Media hint

IntroductionMedia has always been in the forefront as a radical voice all over the world, and naturally, it has invited the wrath of all the regimes autocratic and democratic alike. Among the media types, the broadcast media, particularly television has suffered the greatest suppression, whether it is in the Europe, the Americas, Africa or in the East. The most recent example comes from Pakistan, a Muslim nation in South Asia, where the military ruler Parvez Mushrraf had shut down the television stations soon after he suspended the constitution and imposed emergency.Broadcasting – the transmitting of programmes to be heard simultaneously by an indefinitely large number of people – is a social invention, not a technical one. (Curran J. & Seaton J., 2003). Television is perhaps the only modern media that had played a dual role, as a voice of the radical opinion and as a media of propaganda. The emergence of the global television has made revolts of the people and radical opinion in any part of the world irrepressible. This has always made headaches for the ruling elites to respond in the same manner, to use television itself in order to suppress the opinion.Revolt against televisionIncidents of revolt against television as a mirror of the truth have occurred before the advent of the satellite television, where the regimes controlled the broadcasting system. The history can be traced from the wide spread information suppression and the iron curtain that characterised the erstwhile Soviet regime. Later we numerous incidents around the world, mostly in autocracies where the official television run by the regime, disseminated the news suppressing any other viewpoint. This has occurred in Iraq, in other states of the Middle East like Saudi Arabia, Iran and mostly many of the Muslim Sheikdoms.Suppression, ideology and televisionCommunication has the power to define, persuade, inform and to disinform. An analysis of communication at the level of community and nation is obliged to recognise that truth is not necessarily separated from falsehood; rather, the process of propaganda blurs the elements in order to be persuasive. Taylor (1986) puts the matter succinctly:‘Communication with a view to persuasion is an inherent human quality. I can take place in a private conversation or a mass rally, in a church or cinema, as well as on a battlefield. It can manifest itself in the form of a statue or building, a coin or painting, a flag or a postage stamp.’ To the above list Taylor adds ‘speech sermons,songs, art, radio waves, television pictures.’Whether they operate between individuals or people in millions, the task of the analyst remains the same – to investigate the intent of the act of communication and the ways in which members of the intended audience respond to that communication. It is arguable that most mass communication, whether it is a party political broadcast, the TV news, a pop song, a soap op era or sitcom is in some way or another, to a greater or a lesser extent is an exercise in propaganda. (Bagdikian A.,1987)Thompson identifies four forms of power exercised in society- economic, political, coercive and symbolic. Economic power emanates from the possession of wealth or the means by which wealth is generated; political power rests in decision making arising from being in a position of elected, appointed or inherited authority; coercive power springs from the use of, or potential use of, superior strength. Other classifications include position, resource, and charismatic power each overlapping with Thompson’s categories and each one somehow connected with communication processes.Yet the media have never been either separate from or independent of the forces which create them and which in turn they shape and influence. They work as Thompson points out, within institutional frame works. As such, they operate as cultural apparatus, part of the machinery of state or of most powerful interest groups within the state. Historically media have more often served as the voice of the powerful than of the people. They have been classified by Althusser as one of the prime Ideological State Apparatuses, along with religion, family structures ad education: that is, they are crucially important channels for the transmission of ‘rules of conduct’ in society; the guardians of a culture’s dominant norms and values. They play a part in all power forms, including – in a contributory sense – coercive power.The Chinese revoltThe memorable television images that emanated from Beijing on June 4, 1989 indicated to viewers that the China’s revolutionary activity had been effectively extinguished. The military show of force at Tiananmen Square preserved the political authority of Deng Ziaoping and the Chinese Communist Party for the short term. Following the historic Third Plenum of the Eleventh Central Committee meeting of the CCP in December 1978- a satellite based national television system was made a top priority for achieving a wide range of   propagandist objectives.Television was peaking as a communications medium in China during the troubled 1980s and had itself become a significant symbol of the national modernization. By the middle of the decade nearly every urban household had bought a television receiver. But when push came to shove, televised reports of the military invasion of the student-worker encampment at Tiananmen Square were not transmitted in China. While the rest of the world tuned in to pictures of courageous students, intellectuals, and workers standing up to brute force of tanks and the political power of ageing bureaucrats, Chinese television viewers saw very different visuals and accounts of the tragic events in the capital city, and even those images came very late. Television had been forcibly restored to its original place as a blatant propaganda device.By managing televisi on coverage of the brutal crackdown and subsequently constructing a massive propaganda onslaught, Chinese government officials hoped to re-establish social stability, reassert the place of the CCP as the nation’s legitimate political authority, and minimize ideological damage brought by the economic, political, cultural and social stresses that China experienced in the late 1980s.Why television news is so fearful? – the other side of television newsThe research of the Glasgow University Media Group has been very controversial since the publication of Bad News in 1976, as well as the subject of a great deal of criticism, not least from the journalists and broadcasters. Bad News was concerned with the television coverage of industrial relations in 1975. the GUMG’s analysis of the television news led it to conclude that viewers had been given misleading portrayal of   industrial disputes, a portrayal that distorted the real situation.The group’s work conti nued with More Bad News in   1980, which examined the language used to describe the two sides in industrial disputes. The descriptions attached to management were such that they persuaded the audience of the rightness of the management position against demands made by the unions. Trowler (1996) has produced an excellent summary of the major findings of their studies.The vocabulary of broadcast news is biased against specific groups and this bias structures the listener’s perspective. Stories are selectively reported. The effects of strikes are reported more often than the causes of strikes. The ‘visuals’ used are again selective and help to structure the message being put across. The tactics of the protestors are reported more often than their viewpoints, especially when the tactics are deemed ‘antisocial’.There is a hierarchy of access to the media, so the voices we mainly get to hear are those of ‘experts’, specialist and the establi shment. News is reported from a particular ideological position. The media set the agenda for debate – they tell us what to think about. They also act as gatekeepers, thus excluding some stories and including others. This rationale of these findings can be applied not only in fighting the ‘bad news’ by television but also in fighting an anti-people regime and sometimes in propaganda. This has been the mainstay in most of the democratic nations around the world. Even the Gulf War telecast by the CNN fits to this agenda. (Jones M. and Jones E. 1997)ConclusionTelevision of course is itself an authoritarian institution of sorts, one that articulates confidently and widely. Critics in all societies around the world, complain that the medium has the power to serve the interest of its owners by creating a narrow agenda and monopolizing public opinion, that it debases culture, and that it nearly mesmerizes viewers psychologically. Thus it has invited suppression around t he nations.Reference:Curran J. and Seaton J. (2003) Power without responsibility: The press, broadcasting and new media in Britain, London: Routledge. Boyd-Baret et.al. (ed). (1997) Media in global context: A reader, New York: Arnold. Philip.M.Taylor M.P. (1986) Munitions of the mind: A history of propaganda from the ancient world to the present day, New York : Arnold Thompson J.B. (2002) The media and modernity: A social theory of media, London : Sage Jones M. and Jones E. (1997) Mass Media, London : Macmillan. Bagdikian A. (1987). The Media Monopoly, Massachusetts: Beacon Press.

Criminal Justice Trends Paper Essay

In this paper I will be evaluating past, present, and future trends pertaining to the corrections system. There are many different trends that correctional facilities have used in the past and these trends have continued on to modern day and maybe will continue on into the future. As part of my evaluation I will identify and analyze past, current and future issues facing the corrections system today and also I will discuss the budgetary and managerial impact that future trends will likely have not only on the corrections system, but also on the other components of the criminal justice system like law enforcement and the court system. Trends of Corrections In the past before there were prisons and jails the punishment of crimes were cruel and dangerous. Some of the punishments in the past included flogging, mutilation, branding, public humiliation, or exile. Today our correctional facilities focus on rehabilitating criminals so that they can be functional in society; one of the ways that is pursued is through community based corrections to save costs instead of housing an inmate. Community based corrections is used as an alternative to being locked up, this is also cost effective rather than housing them in prison or jail because they foot the bill. Community based corrections is known as parole, probation, house arrest, or electronic monitoring. Community based corrections is a privilege and there are many rules that need to be followed, and if they disobey any of the rules the get sent back to prison or jail. Currently we have a bill that passed in California called AB 109 and it was passed to release many inmates to lower the overpopulation of inmates and the end rising costs to house an inmate. â€Å"The state expects to reduce the prison inmate population by about 14,000 in 2011-2012 and approximately 40,000 upon full implementation in 2014-2015. The state estimates that these reductions will result in a state savings of about $453 million in 2011-2012 and up to $1.5 billion upon full implementation.† (Taylor, 2011). This assembly bill will just create a future problem though, when all these inmates get released out into the communities most of them will end up back in prison. According to the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation the recidivism rate of inmates that were returned back into a correctional facility within three years was 63.7% and the other 36.3% were successful three years out of prison. AB 109 will not decrease the inmate population that largely in the long run according to those statistics. The bill will also increase the caseloads on probation officers, making it harder to keep a good eye on all inmates roaming in the communities, allowing them to reoffend put the problem back in the hands of law enforcement. Issues Facing the Criminal Justice System The current issues facing prisons are they are being over crowded, and they are too expensive to manage. Assembly Bill AB 109 tries to alleviate the problems of over crowding but I believe that it is a short-term solution because of the recidivism rate. Alternate correction systems would reduce costs to the state, and maybe even be more affective than jail or prison time. There are alternatives to jail and prison like we discussed earlier, but those are all state funded. In the future maybe there will be programs funded by organizations that want to help rehabilitate criminals or they make the criminal pay for their services. Some examples might be intensive supervised probation, house arrest, electronic monitoring, community residential centers, or shock incarceration. I think we need to have a self-sufficient prison that keeps inmates busy working for what they have, to cut down costs of prisons. One way to cut down costs is to actually use our death penalty, what is the severity of having a death penalty if you know you are going to sit in a cell until you die of natural causes. We are not posing enough threat to these criminals. Watching Lock Up on MSNBC, most of the inmates will never be functioning citizens, some of them admit they need to be behind a cell. Why pay so much money for someone to rot in jail, they are no use to the country and think they need to be put down, just like a viscous dog at the pound. If the vet determines the animal is too aggressive they euthanize the animal because they can never be adopted out, I think we can use the same concept in our correctional system. With an overpopulated correctional system, and the realignment bill 109 there will be many criminals back on the streets, which only adds to the problem for every other component of the criminal justice system. The police are having a bigger population of criminals back on the streets and the departments have tight budgets and do not have enough funds to hire more help to control the streets. The sheriff and police departments then will have to stretch themselves thin to try to put the recommitting offenders back in the correction system. Which then puts the criminal back into the already overcrowded court system, which creates more of a problem because now there are even more cases which will create bigger case loads and slow down the already slow system. Conclusion In this paper I discussed the past, current, and future trends in corrections. In the past the punishments were cruel, and now we are focused more on rehabilitation and California facilities are being over crowded. I also analyzed current and future issues facing the overpopulated prisons. The budget deficit is only going to get worse and these problems within the criminal justice system is only going to get bigger and bigger. Bill AB 109 was put into affect to help relieve the budget issue but as I discussed I think that it is a short-term solution because of the recidivism rates. The criminal justice system is always growing and changing to satisfy the needs of the communities they protect.

How successful can the management of fragile environments can be?

How successful can the management of fragile environments be, given the constant and increasing demand for their exploitation? A fragile environment is an area where the flora and fauna have adapted to a specific climate and evolved to occupy many different niches due to extremely high competition for resources. Furthermore due to the constant abiotic conditions, specialisation and symbiotic relationships have occurred to such a degree that even the slightest ecological or environmental disruption cannot be accommodated, meaning individual habitats and ecosystems can be easily destroyed.This combination of specialisation and interdependence increases the overall fragility and vulnerability of this biome Fragile environments can be exploited in different ways, and for different reasons. For example the Amazon Rainforest, an equatorial tropical rainforest biome, has been significantly exploited for its agricultural potential and natural resources; cattle ranching, soya bean and palm oi l plantations, mining and timber. The most significant consequence of these forms of exploitation is deforestation.There are many management strategies to combat deforestation, popular choices are; legislation, ecotourism, selective logging and various tree regeneration schemes. In this essay I will assess the extent to which these management schemes are successful in terms of sustainability and environmental effectiveness, in light of inevitable increasing anthropogenic pressures on tropical biomes around the world. Firstly it is important to identify how fragile environments are exploited and for what gain. If we look at the Amazon Rainforest, one of the major forms of exploitation is land for cattle ranching.Vast expanses of the rainforest are deforested to make way for grassland to rear cattle. This form of exploitation was responsible for 80% of all Amazonian deforestation in 2009, due to the ever increasing global demand for beef as a new wave of middle classes emerge from dev eloping nations with a first world diet. Large soya bean plantations run by major agricultural TNC’s like Cargill in the Amazon increase its land for plantations at rates of 1. 3 million hectares every year. Brazil is one of the world’s top producers of soya bean.The expansion of this market is driven by low transportation costs from improved infrastructure (both in and out of the Amazon) and increasing international demands for livestock feed where China is one of the main consumers, due to rapid economic growth (9% annually) and high demand from its emerging middle classes. The creation of huge mechanised soy monocultures has already been the sole cause of 21 million hectares of deforested rainforest in Brazil and 80 million hectares from the Amazon as a whole, since the early 1970’s.While these industries stated above as well as mining and logging have contributed to 240,000km2 of deforestation in the Amazon, the hunting for bush meat by native Amazonian trib es has put considerable pressure on rainforest fauna. Since the late 1990’s Brazilian Amazon local people consume between 2. 2 to 5. 4 million primates each year. This process is unsustainable as the primates reproduce at a much slower rate than they are consumed. Moreover some of these primates are endangered, meaning reproduction is inherently slower.There is often a conflict of interests between the exploitation and conservation of fragile environments. Thus in order for a fragile environment to be managed successfully a balance must be established. However, in reality this can be difficult to achieve. It is often the case that many countries depend on natural resources from fragile environments for income and trade on the global markets thus making fragile environments an integral part of their economy. This is the case with many LEDC’s, who are reluctant to stop exploiting their activities for fear it will result in economic decline and slower development.In Brazi l for example, much of the mining industry that takes place in the Amazon brought in $9 billion to the country in 2006. Moreover it can be a misunderstanding that most people, who exploit fragile environments like through mining in the Amazon, are doing so out of choice. As most locals have no other viable alternative to generate income for their families. Furthermore indigenous peoples often receive little education regarding global affairs and may not recognise the need for conservation. In addition it is rare that a single fragile environment is endemic to one country, as they often span over several territories.A good example is the Amazon rainforest which lies within Brazil, holding 60% of the forest, Peru 13%, Columbia 10% and with Venezuela, Ecuador, Bolivia, Guyana, Suriname and French Guiana also holding small amounts. This makes it difficult to establish a uniform strategy across the whole are, and made harder still by low funds available for conservation in many of these countries.One of the more popular forms of conservation management is conservation reserves that protect biodiversity and ensure its population lives  sustainably with their environment. One example of such a scheme is the Central Amazon Conservation complex in the Brazilian Amazon. Established in 2003, it brings together four reserves in the Amazon; Jau National Park, Anavilhanas Ecological Station, Mamiraua Reserve and Amana reserve, a total area of 49,000 km2. Sustainable development reserves have protected areas from developments that could have seriously damaged the CACC. Dams, pipelines, mines and commercial logging projects have all been prevented from entering the area.These reserves have improved biodiversity and caused a 100% increase in the black caiman population, and a 300% increase in the pirarucu fish. Economic Alternatives Programs promote sustainable activities whereby local people who make goods from the forest’s natural resources can sell directly to buye rs without going through ‘middle men’ who charge a commission. Thus ensuring a decent income, preventing any local farmers giving up land to major commercial agricultural firms, where the land is likely to be deforested and indigenous communities displaced.Overall the economics alternative program has reduced poverty, increasing household incomes by 50-99%. However this protecting such a large area can be difficult. The vastness of the area means it is majorly understaffed, thus making the control and regulation of illegal activities difficult. Only 100 volunteer guards and 150 employed members of staff are present in the Amana and Mariraua reserves – combined area of 2,490,000 hectares of land. The size of the protected areas and the number of staff available makes it is very difficult to prevent access into the reserves.In Jau National park, an area of 2,272,000 hectares, there’re only 4 permanent members of staff. Thus fish and turtle poaching remains a n unresolved problem. As populations increase around peripheral settlements, more stress is put on it to satisfy the demands of the populations, for example many towns in the heart of the rainforest suffer from intensive poaching of primates and manatees. Overall it may seem that despite efforts, and indeed success, of implementing such conservation schemes, may decrease in effectiveness following growing demand for the Amazons resources from increasing population pressure.Ecotourism is also a popular way of generating income for the local people as well as promoting conservation. It is a popular method of generating income in developing countries without billion dollar investments. Local people can act as guides or be providers of transport and accommodation – creating a source of income. The environmental low impact theme and conservation awareness can potentially bring in public and private investment. In addition it is a more environmentally friendly form of employment co mpared to other occupations such as logging and commercial agriculture.Plus if the country makes the economic transition from a manufacture to service sector economy, the government will have an indirect economic incentive to conserve the environment through promoting ecotourism. Ecotourism has already proved to be an economic, environmental and social success. For example, Costa Rica has been pumping in US$1. 6 million annually since 2000 from ecotourism, resulting in jobs for local people and 25% of its land under government protection. GNP per capita rose from $1500-$2000 between 1978 and 1992.The village of Tortuguero, Costa Rica, a satellite settlement to the Talamancan national park took a survey which indicated that 88% were highly satisfied with the multiplier effects from ecotourism in the park; such as local employment empowerment and government funding into building eco lodges on old farmland in the village; attracting tourists to spend in their local economy. However, th ere are cases where ecotourism has not benefitted the local community or the country as a whole.It is often the case that an ecotourism service is provided by an international agent, whereby revenue is repatriated overseas, away from the local community. Moreover even if the service is provided by host nation companies, the jobs can be seasonal, menial and in most cases, low paid. The influx of wealth and foreign exchange can shift political and economic conditions to make the country or area dependant on tourism as opposed to domestic economic practises. This induces a degree of instability to the industry, making it vulnerable to sudden economic change, such as the global financial crisis in 2008.This can create a lack of demand and subsequent economic decline in the area and ultimately forcing the local population into occupations that unsustainably exploit natural resources. In conclusion, it is can be said with a degree of confidence that most schemes are beneficial to an exten t. Land which is protected, conserved and managed sustainably outweighs the possible environmental damage that can occur due to poor management and lack of funding towards the scheme. Moreover it is the schemes which involve the local community that have the biggest potential to be successful.Managing the environment whereby its inhabitants are able to reap the full economic benefits of its natural resources allows; growth, development and investment into the local economy – Thus resulting in a self-sustaining operation. However, as world population is not yet set to peak until 2050, the pressure on the environment and demand for resources is only set to increase. It is also worth noting that in the light of possible changes to our global climate system in the coming decades there will be an even greater threat to the Earth’s fragile environments.With the effects of anthropogenic induced climate change causing more extreme weather, the constant abiotic factors that hav e shaped our fragile environments across the globe face a deadly, permanent change. If we are to preserve any type of fragile environment at all, it could be argued that a universal effort to reduce our carbon footprint would be the most successful long term scheme to ensure the survival of the Earth’s biodiversity.

Reasons for Surfing the Internet Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Reasons for Surfing the Internet - Essay Example   For younger people, the Internet is very important in terms of the opportunities it creates to socialize. People can stay in contact with their friends, follow events in their friends’ and families’ lives, meet new friends and even join communities of similar people, with the same beliefs and ways of thinking (Finn, 2009, website). They also join social networking websites such as Facebook in order to remain current with their social groups. This is the first category of reasons for surfing the Internet according to this essay, but importantly, it does not only apply to younger people: socializing on the Internet also applies to all groups of people, no matter their age. Older people use Facebook and other more business-oriented networking sites such as LinkedIn to grow their connections to people in the same industries as theirs, or in the same social circles as theirs. Many families stay in touch via technology such as Skype, when they cannot physically be togethe r. They have conversations across the world and are able to see each other and communicate more effectively via the Internet. There are also very legitimate sites for people to meet each other for relationships, such as dating sites, or less specifically for emotional relationships, community forum sites, where people who have common characteristics can meet and share ideas in cyberspace. This category of people who use the Internet is therefore wide, and cuts across age, status and nationality groups in society.... They have conversations across the world, and are able to see each other and communicate more effectively via the Internet. There are also very legitimate sites for people to meet each other for relationships, such as dating sites, or less specifically for emotional relationships, community forum sites, where people who have common characteristics can meet and share ideas in cyberspace. This category of people who use the Internet is therefore wide, and cuts across age, status and nationality groups in society. While there is some danger for people in that they could meet sexual predators or con artists in this way, the Internet still provides a major source for many people of the need to socialize with others. A second category of reasons for Internet surfing is due to the amount of information that can be found on the World Wide Web. From students at schools and universities, to professional people and businesspeople, many people use the Internet to find the information that they n eed to do what they need to do. Very credible sources of academic knowledge are available on the Internet and more and more universities and schools are advising students to do research in this way. While some sources are not well-substantiated, many academic journals, the best magazines and newspapers, encyclopedias, and textbooks can all be sourced on the Internet. This method of research definitely saves time, and makes it possible for people to keep up to date with knowledge in their fields, complete academic courses and even find out how to repair their cars! Although not strictly Internet surfing, it is even possible for people to publish their research and writing on the World Wide Web. This group of

Treaty of Versailles Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Treaty of Versailles - Essay Example The Elbe, the Oder, the Niemen and the Danube were declared as free international routes.The Versailles-Washington system has created a lot of large and small problems, which together led to war. So, East Prussia was cut off from the rest of Germany and had no train and motorway connections with it. The separate existence of the city of Danzig did not satisfy either Poland or Germany (German population totally prevailed in the city). USSR lost almost all bases of the Baltic Fleet. The Soviet fleet could be based only in Leningrad after the Treaty.Germany was unable to pay huge reparations to the Western countries. This was the reason why the French army occupied the Ruhr in 1923, which was the most developed industrial region of Germany. 10% of the German population lived in the Ruhr. It produced 40% of steel, 70% iron and 88% of coal were mined there. Occupation of the Ruhr only exacerbated the economic crisis in Germany.Many problems were not resolved during the Versailles Conferen ce and after signing the Treaty. The new treaties were called to deal with the unsolved challenges: Treaty of St. Germain(1919), which established the current borders of Austria; Treaty of Trianon (1920) of the victorious nations and Hungary; Washington Naval Conference (1921-1922), etc.The direct consequences of the Great War and the Treaty of Versailles were so-called small wars: Romania and Serbia against the Hungarian Soviet Republic (1919); Greco-Turkish War (1919-1921); Soviet-Polish War (1920).

Three Laws in One Life Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Three Laws in One Life - Essay Example Johannes is said to have been a rather sickly child, but was impossibly brilliant and excelled through his schooling, despite constant bullying and teasing by the other pupils. Somewhat of a loner, Johannes considered himself as an outsider, and tended to keep to himself during his childhood years. Kepler was introduced to mathematics and astrology at a young age, and began attending the University of Tbingen in 1587. There he concentrated solely on his studies, proving himself as a superb mathematician. He graduated from there in 1591 and went on pursuing various different studies, until April of 1594, when he was offered the position of teacher of mathematics and astronomy at the Protestant school in Graz, Austria - he immediately accepted. In April 1597, Kepler married Barbara Mller, and together they had three children: Susanna (1602), Friedrich (1604-1611), and Ludwig (1607-1663). It was in that same year in which he married that he published his first significant piece of work, The Cosmographic Mystery, in which he explained his argument on the relative distances of the planets from the Sun in the Copernican System. It was in this work which he defended the Copernican theory that the Sun, rather than the Earth, was at the center of the solar system. Although some had doubts, Kepler's opinions proved to be remarkably accurate. "Kepler was forced to leave his teaching post at Graz due to the Counter Reformation because he was Lutheran and moved to Prague to work with the renowned Danish astronomer, Tycho Brahe." ("Kepler Mission," 2005). "Unlike Brahe, Kepler believed firmly in the Copernican system." ("Astronomy 161," n.d.). When Brahe died in 1601, Kepler was appointed as his successor and given the title of 'Imper ial Mathematician', the most esteemed appointment in mathematics in Europe. What are the Most Important Things Johannes Kepler Accomplished in his Lifetime It was at this point in his life when Kepler truly began his list of incredulous accomplishments. Within a span of only several years he published numerous works, including Astronomia Nova ("New Astronomy") in 1609, which contained his first two laws: one that planets move in elliptical orbits with the Sun as one of the foci, and the other, that a planet sweeps out equal areas in equal times. Following an opposite precept to other astronomers, Kepler brought an excitingly new view to things. "Kepler took an openly dynamic approach, introducing the physics into the heavens." ("The Galileo Project," 1995). In 1613 Kepler published a work on chronology and the year of Jesus' birth which demonstrated that in his opinion the Christian calendar was in error by five years, and that Jesus had actually been born in 4 BC - an opinion that is now universally shared. Between 1617 and 1621 Kepler published still more ingenious works, including Epitome Astronomiae Copernicanae ("Epitome of Copernican Astronomy"), which was the most instrumental introduction to heliocentric

VIRTUAL WALKING TOUR ASSIGNMENT Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

VIRTUAL WALKING TOUR ASSIGNMENT - Research Paper Example Furthermore, he considers that the streets in Paris are narrower than those of American streets. Accordingly, parking lots in Paris are built on both sides of the streets. He also finds that the streets in Paris are smaller and unlike huge vehicles such as trucks that run across the streets of America, the trucks in Paris are relatively smaller in size and are designed according to the local culture and the widths of the streets. Jim tries to distinguish the streets of Paris with that of American streets. The sites across all the streets of Paris are accompanied by a number of small and big shops such as wine shops, beef shops, pork shops, bread shops, chocolate shops and many other different shops selling a variety of interesting products. He states that the buildings along side of the streets are maximum seven-storeyed. The most interesting thing that I find is the size of buildings along the streets. I find that almost all the buildings were similar in size, the majority of which were seven-storeyed. The diversity in the buildings was conspicuous only at the ground floor of the building while the rest of each was uniform with others. The widths of the buildings were greater than the width of the street and were more like monuments (Latour and Herment). I think Paris has one of the world’s stunningly beautiful urban landscapes. The uniformity in buildings depicts the unity of people in Paris. Each building is unique in itself. A building’s design does not depict the superiority over other buildings. Despite the streets being narrow, there are seldom traffic problems. The shops selling a variety of grocery products and other interesting products indeed offer people a wide choice. Moreover, the trees are planted alongside of the streets, and parking lots provide people with cool shade during the summer and help in controlling air pollution. Jim commented that French people probably make the best combination of formality and

Dyslexia in American Public Schools Research Paper

Dyslexia in American Public Schools - Research Paper Example 1). Furthermore since in our educational system successful learning requires reading ability, being dyslexic would consequently be of great disadvantage, that the need for early diagnosis and intervention of dyslexia is argued to save dyslexic children from experiencing failure (Bentham, 2002, p. 72; Wadlington & Wadlington, 2005, p. 16; GB Parliament, 2006, p. 395), which studies (Turkington & Harris, 2006, p. 126; Carson-Knight, 2007, p. 37) show may cause them undue social and emotional problems. Understanding Dyslexia History Most probably, dyslexia had been present since early human civilizations, but was unnoticed because the system of writing then is pictographic (proto-writing) unlike today, which is alphabet-based (letters), with the Latin alphabet the dominant writing system worldwide (Fischer, 2001, p. 7). Then, as societies have become literate, the abilities to read, write and count have become essential. Hence it was only then that dyslexia has begun to raise serious co ncerns and studies. (Riddick, 1996, p. 8) How dyslexia has gained much attention in the educational field, specifically in the US, will be presented here in three stages: 1) The Origin, 2) The Move to the US, and 3) The Current Theories of Dyslexia. The Origin (17th - 18th centuries). The origin of dyslexia can be understood following the historical accounts on the learning disabilities field (Hallahan & Mock, 2003, pp. 16-29; Wong, Graham, Hoskyn & Berman, 2008, pp. 1-3), which can be traced back to the 17th century in Europe from the works of European doctors and researchers on the relationship of brain injury and speech disorders – Franz Joseph Gall (1809) and John Baptiste Bouillaud’s (1820) localization of brain functions, Pierre Paul Broca’s (1861) nonfluent aphasia, and Carl Wernicke’s (1874) â€Å"sensory aphasia† (Hallahan & Mock, 2003, p. 17). Findings of these studies have shown indisputably that the brain is divided into specific areas with each area tasked with specific kinds of mental/cognitive functions. Hence, it had been believed that brain damage to specific brain area would mean impairment on the given function of that area (Wong, et al., 2008, p. 2). Consequently, this had inspired studies on reading disorders leading to the discovery of reading disability and was named differently – ‘word-blindness’ by the German physician, Adolph Kussmaul (1877), â€Å"dyslexia† by the German ophthalmologist, Rudolf Berlin (1884) (Hallahan & Mock, 2003, p. 18), â€Å"alexia† by Charcot (1887), â€Å"alexia or dyslexia† by Bateman (1890) (Guardiola, 2001, p. 6), ‘pure word blindness’ by the Swiss-born neurologist Joseph Dejerine (1892) (Heim & Benasich, 2006, p. 271), ‘word-blindness and visual memory’ by James Hinshelwood (1895) (Ott, 1997, p. 6). From this, succeeding research studies on more specific areas of reading disability ensued –William Pr ingle Morgan’s (1896) first case study on congenital word-blindness and Sir Cyril Hinshelwood’s (1896-1917) first systematic clinical studies of reading disorders essentially validating Broca & Wernicke’s areas (Wong, et al., 2008, p. 2). Thus the first theories of dyslexia had taken their form, which observably had focused on the causes of dyslexia being attributed either to defects on the structure of the brain or to deficits on the functions of the brain (Guardiola, 2001, p. 9). The Move to America (19th-20th century). The research

Strategic Sourcing - Assignmet Case Study Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Strategic Sourcing - Assignmet - Case Study Example A quality analyst should have a high level of training and have exceptional analytical abilities along with broad knowledge. He should also be creative and be a quick learner in order to solve problems easily. The quality analyst is always supposed to work with other people as an analysis of the process of production entails an analysis of the people involved along with the technology. The applicant should demonstrate that he has an ability to cooperate and interrelate with other employees efficiently. Â  This question aims to understand whether the candidate has the necessary skills that are needed to report and make effective presentations that associated with the position through oral or written communication. The candidate should be able to demonstrate that he can make effective presentations of problems and proposed means of dealing with them. He should also show that he can freely interact with the rest of the employees and clients with exceptional oral and written skills The candidate should broadly explain how he would be able to efficiently use his skills and experience if he is selected for the job. He should demonstrate his motivation, abilities to deal with challenges and be flexible in handling challenging situations. The ideal candidate should possess a bachelor’s degree in quality control a related field so that he can demonstrate competency with essential skills that provide a wide range of knowledge for success as a professional. The candidate should be able to demonstrate that he possesses exceptional analytical skills that are needed to perform the tasks associated with the position efficiently. He must also show an ability to rely on his skills in the various responsibilities associated with the position. The ideal candidate should be one that is willing to learn from his mistakes and one who regularly seeks to get more knowledge on his field through seminars and workshops as well as other forms

Innovation at apple Coursework Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Innovation at apple - Coursework Example Evidences suggest that many companies have achieved a strong global presence within a short period of time over the last two decades on the strength of their technology and innovation management. The explosive growth of Apple Inc over the last decade is a good example of how a company can create an insanely loyal customer base and dominate the market. This paper will discuss the current significance of innovation and technology management using normative literature and critically analyse the case study to identify contemporary issues in international technology management and hence to justify the arguments. Innovation and technology management Today, companies give specific focus to innovation and technology in order to enhance fast business growth and to master the intense competitive practices brought about by the globalisation forces. In developed countries, innovation is considered as a key tool to address the challenges raised by the low cost producers from emerging economies. A number of the economic reforms introduced over the last few decades have led to the development of new economic powerhouses like India and China, which maintain strong scientific capabilities. In addition, the emergence of globalisation eliminated cross border trade barriers and enhanced the cross border movement of capital, labour, cultures, and ideas. Even though globalisation promotes international trade, products manufactured internationally need to comply with particular needs of targeted markets. Hence, when a multinational corporation markets its products in technologically developed countries like US, UK, or China, it must be able to meet higher level expectation of consumers. Therefore, many of the today’s organisations have established special departments to foster innovation and technological advancements. Innovation management is a recently developed branch of management that particularly deals with execution of various processes in innovation. Generally innovati on can be of two types; product and organisational innovation. Innovation management addresses a set of tools that assist business managers to work together with a common understanding of different objectives and processes. Management experts claim that innovation management greatly benefits an organisation to timely and effectively respond to external or internal growth opportunities and to use its resources to develop new ideas, products, or processes (Rossini 1978, p.45). It must be noted that the scope of innovation management is not limited to research and development activities. In contrast, it encourages frontline workers to top executives to contribute their creativity to the firms’ growth, especially in the areas of manufacturing and marketing. By practicing effective innovation management tools, management can foster employee creativity and gather combined employee efforts towards the sustainable development of the firm (Clark 1980, pp.23-24). Technology management is another set of management disciplines that defines a clear way for organisations to deal with their technological landscape successfully and hence to obtain a competitive edge over their market rivals. The common concepts employed in the technology management are ‘technology strategy, technology forecasting, technology roadmapping, technology project portfolio, and technology portfolio’

Phylosofi Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Phylosofi - Essay Example There is a complex relation between the both. We live in a materialistic world but still possess a spiritual self. Despair in human beings are of two forms, willing to be one it is not or doesn’t wish to be one it is. Kierkegaard states that human beings who are immensely involved with the spiritual beliefs are the most affected with despair, hence they themselves are held responsible for pain and sufferings attained due to despair, as it is something faced internally by individuals. Despair brings about frustration and pain making it tough to be overcome. Providing a simple example of a girl who lost her lover Kierkegaard states that she has to overcome with the loss and lead her life on her own similarly Christians need to understand that physical death is un-avoidable and rather overcome their despair with Kierkegaard relates the Christianity and despair to state, that despair is universal in nature. People say that they are not in despair but they are unaware of being in despair except for a true Christian. Any personal illness can be cured by prescribing certain medication but despair can only be overcome by mere belief in â€Å"God†, the only way to reduce the psychological problems and gain eternity. Human self is composed of various components like finite and infiniteness, possibility/necessity, consciousness/lack of consciousness relating itself to itself. The willingness to become itself and overcome despair can only be possible by becoming concrete that is by establishing a relation between these elements. Kierkegaard explains the forms that strike the imbalance of self components: Despair based on the elements of Finitude/ Infinitude and Possibility/ Necessity: Despair due to infinitude, which is when an individual focuses on fantasies and forgetting his own self. Despair due to finitude, which is to just exist as any other person in the society. Life may

The Adventure of the Speckled Band Essay Example for Free

The Adventure of the Speckled Band Essay I read through two quite different short stories, continually considering how they both created suspense (anxious uncertainty, or expectation, or waiting for information) and tension (mental strain or excitement) and more importantly how I could compare the two, considering both similar and divergent parts in the stories. The first short story I examined was The stolen Bacillus. The title itself creates suspense, because of the word stolen. When something is stolen, you always expect a chase or investigation into finding the stolen item, and the word Bacillus (a single bacterium) this would prompt the reader to think of the stereotypical idea of bacteria- tiny green creatures that appear in films and cartoons. Therefore from the title, the reader is urged to read on and find out why it has been stolen, who has taken it and if it is going to be recovered. In the opening paragraphs of the story, a pale-faced man is inside the office of the bacteriologist. Wells refers to this man as the visitor, confirming that he is not known to the bacteriologist, leaving him at this point in the story totally anonymous. Wells describes the visitor in great detail, particularly concentrating on his physical attributes. Examples of this are he held a limp white hand over his disengaged eye. These particular details help to develop this feeling of suspense and tension, as our idea of the visitor now, is that he is rather creepy and sinister. What follows this is a very important line from the visitor: And yet those little particles, those mere atomies, might multiply and devastate a city. This captures the feeling of the plot entirely, the reader is now wondering why the twisted and sadistic visitor is there after all. These anarchist rascals. Perhaps at this point, the visitor was going to tell the bacteriologist what his real aim was. But before he can do so, the wife of the scientist (Minnie) knocks on the office door- a perfect opportunity for the visitor to take the Bacillus (cholera). At this point, the reader can now decide whether the visitor will take it or not. This draws us into the story, as well as building up a great deal of tension. After this, comes the most exciting and fast part of the story- the chase. The bacteriologist has realised that his visitor has stolen the bacillus, so he pulls up a horse-drawn cab and begins the chase. A lot of tension and suspense is built up in this scene; firstly the pace of the story picks up because of the use of Shorter words/sentences, Wells uses this technique to increase the overall excitement of the chase scene. Words that create this are: gesticulating wildly, mad, hastily and swished. The other cockney cab men are commentating on the chase, making it seem like a horse race on the radio or television, which adds to the excitement. Harry Hicks (the visitors cab driver) was using his whip, which was very surprising as it states that cab drivers never normally used their whips. This also adds to this exciting, tense atmosphere. Minnie then picks up a cab and starts to chase the others. The behaviour of the other cab drivers then begin to change they become really excited and start shouting remarks out. It is at this point in the story in which Wells now refers to the visitor as the Anarchist, earlier on in the story, he was calling anarchists Rascals. Towards the end of the chase, the anarchist reveals what his motives for stealing the bacillus were. This is the result of a lot of tension, as this is the first time we know why he has stolen from the bacteriologist. At the end of the chase, when the Phial breaks, the feeling of the story becomes very sorrowful, as the anarchist believes he is going to die, and more importantly, so does the reader. But the actions of the casualty become quite sinister once again, as he starts to laugh and states, anyhow, I shall be a martyr. There is a lot of suspense at this point of the story, coming from the fact that he is laughing when he shouldnt be. Throughout the chase scene, the bacteriologist had been extremely worried, but at the end we find out that the so called cholera is actually a substance that turns animals blue, and the reader sees the bacteriologist laugh it off, and the only factor he worries about is the fact that hell have to make some more. The reason why Wells did so well creating the Suspense and Tension in his story, is the fact that he left it until the very end to let the reader know what the bacillus really was. The second Short story I read was The Adventure of the Speckled Band, which is based around Sherlock Holmes and his partner Watson trying to solve the murder of a young lady. What I believe made this story really worth reading, is the fact that Conan Doyle wrote it from Watsons point of view. Where as The Stolen Bacillus was written in third persons point of view, which in my opinion isnt as effective as Conan Doyles first person view. My reason for this, is the story can be made a lot more descriptive, and that it draws the reader into the story as it makes them feel as though they are in the story as a lot more personal words are used: we, you, they etc

The History Of Harley Davidson Marketing Essay

The History Of Harley Davidson Marketing Essay Harley-Davidson  (formerly HD), often shortened  H-D  or  Harley, is an American  motorcycle maker. Founded in  Milwaukee, Wisconsin, during the first decade of the 20th century, it was one of two major American motorcycle manufacturers to survive the  Great Depression.   The company sells heavyweight (over 750cc) motorcycles designed for cruise on the  highway. Harley-Davidson is a reliable brand name  which keeps active events,functions a museum. Harley-Davidson logo accounts for almost 5% of the brand companys net revenue. In 1901,Mr.  William S. Harley, was the founder of this plans for a small engine with a design of 7.07  cubic inches (116 cc) and four-inch (102  mm) flywheels.The prototype of the new loop-frame Harley-Davidson was assembled in a 10  ÃƒÆ'-  15  ft (3.0  ÃƒÆ'-  4.6  m) shed in the Davidson family backyard. Most of the major parts, however, were made elsewhere, including some probably made-up at the West Milwaukee rail shops where oldest brother William A. Davidson was then  tool room  foreman. In 1906, Harley and the Davidson brothers built their first factory in Chestnut Street. still this location name Harley-Davidsons corporate headquarters  today. Harley davidson first manufacturing plant was a 40  ÃƒÆ'-  60  ft (12  ÃƒÆ'-  18  m) single-story wooden construction. this plant was produced aprox 50 motorcycles that year. In 1907, William S. Harley graduated from the  University of Wisconsin-Madison  with a degree of  mechanical engineering and the same year additional factory expansion came with a second floor and later with facings and editing of Milwaukee pale yellow brick. With the new services and stuff production increased to 150 motorcycles in 1907.They also began selling their motorcycles to police departments to others departments around this time, a market that always been important to them ever since. Harley davidson which was produced in 1905 n 1906 they all were in single cylinder with 26.84 cubic inches ( 440cc ) engines.in feb 1907 they manufactured V-Twin engine with 45 degrees and was displayed at the chicago Automobile showroom. between 1907 n 1910 a very few v twin model were built as well as shown and advertised.Harley davidson first V-Twins model displaced in 1907 and 1910 was 53.68  cubic inches (880 cc) and produced about 7  horsepower (5.2 kW). This gave about double the power of the first singles. Top speed was about 60  mph (100 km/h). and the company Production jumped from 450 motorcycles in 1908 to 1,149 machines in 1909. In 1911,some 150 motorcycles company had already been built in united stated so harley davidson improved V-Twin model was introduced for the market. The new V Twin engine had advance operated intake valves, as opposed to the automatic intake valves used on previous V-Twins that opened by engine vacuum. having displacement of 49.48  cubic inches (811 cc), the 1911 V-Twin was smaller than earlier twins, but gave better performance and good result. After 1913 the majority of bikes produced by Harley-Davidson would be V-Twin models. By 1913, Harley davidson improved there market so they demolished and constructed the yellow brick on the site a new 5-story structure of resistant concrete and red brick had been built for the new site.In spite of the competition with other brands, Harley-Davidson was the one who already pulling ahead of  Indians  and would dominate motorcycle racing after 1914. the manufactured that year swelled to 16,284 machines. Golden time period for the Harley-Davidson was in the 1920 become the largest motorcycle manufacturer in the world. and the dealer of the HD motorcycles were sold by dealers in 67 countries. Production was about nearly 28,189 machines. In 1921,Otto Walker who riddent harley davidson, he was the first motorcycle ridder ever to win a race at an average speed of over 100  mph (160 km/h). During the 1920s, several changing put in place for the race, such as a new 74 cubic inch (1200 cc) V-Twin, introduced in 1922, and as well the Teardrop gas tank in 1925. A front brake was added in 1928. In the late summer of 1929, Harley-Davidson introduced V twin flathead with 45  cubic inches (737 cc) to compete with the Indian 101 Scout  and the  Excelsior Super X.  This was belong to D model, produced from 1929 to 1931.  Riders of Indian motorcycles irreverently referred to this model as the three canister Harley because the generator was upright and parallel to the front cylinder.  The 2.745  in (69.7 mm) bore and 3.8125  in (96.8 mm) stroke would continue in most versions of the 750 engine; exceptions include the XA and the XR750. (Ref. by Harley-Davidson eNotes.com Reference ). The Great Depression After the introduction of their 45 cubic inch model  Great Depression  began a few months. Harley-Davidsons sales plummeted from 21,000 in 1929 to 3,703 in 1933. Despite those dismal numbers, Harley-Davidson proudly unveiled its lineup for 1934, which included a Art Deco Styling with flatthead. In order to survive the remainder of the Depression, the brand company manufactured industrial powerplants based on their motorcycle engines for the best output. They also designed and built a three-wheeled delivery vehicle called the  Servi-Car, which was based in production until 1973. Claims of stock Price Manipulation In late 1990s the golden time periods of the harley davidson was on the peak demand and early first decade of the 21st century, Harley-Davidson took a look on a program of expanding their dealerships throughout the 67 countries. At the mean time, its present dealers had waiting for the lists that extended up to a year for some of the most popular models. Harley-Davidson, like the auto manufacturers or the producers,they records the sale when it is deliverd to the dealer not when a consumer buys their product. Therefore, it is quite possible for the manufacturer to inflate sales numbers by requiring dealers to accept more inventory than desired in a practice called channel filling.This news led to a dramatic decline in the stock price when demad softened following the unique 2003 model year. Financial crisis In 2009 According to  Interbrand, the value of the Harley-Davidson fell by 43% to $4.34 billion. the company profits droped in 2009 in two quarters and which fall in value is believed to be connected to the 66% .  On April 29, 2010, Harley-Davidson explore alternate u.s site to achieve that they must cut the amount of $54million in modern cost from the production. The statement came in the wake of a massive company-wide reformation, which began in early 2009 and involved the closing of two factories, one distribution center, and the planned removal of nearly 25% of its total workforce (around 3,500 employees). (Ref by ridley choppers vs harley davidson Google Search) Softail Harleys strong value of tradition was based on these big-twin motorcycles. With the rear-wheel suspension hidden under the transmission, they are visually similar to the hardtail  choppers  popular in the 1960s and 1970s, as well as from their own earlier history. Harley davidson kept the tradition and made few amendments like, they offerd Softail models with Springer front ends and Heritage styling that integrate design cues from throughout their history. Dyna Dyna motorcycles feature age -old styling and big-twin engines. They can be distinguished from the Softail by the traditional coil-over delay that bonds the swingarm to the frame and from the Sportster by their larger engines. On these models, the program also houses the engines oil tank. In 2006, Harley-Davidson introduced their five best Dyna models: Super Glide, Super Glide Custom, Street Bob, Low Rider, and Wide Glide. In 2008, the Dyna Fat Bob was introduced the unique Dyna line-up featuring violent styling, featuring a new 2-1-2 tire out, having twin headlamps, a 180  mm rear tire and a 130  mm front exhaust. The Dyna family uses the 88 cubic inch twin cam from 99-06. From 2007-and on the dislodgment was increased to 96 cubic inches. This was the result of the factory increasing the hit to 4 3/8 inches. Sportster In 1957, the Sportster is the longest-running model family in the Harley-Davidson brand. They were prepared as racing motorcycles, and were popular on dirt and flat-track race courses through the 1960s and 1970s. Smaller and lighter than the older Harley models, contemporary Sportsters make use of 883  cc or 1,200  cc Evolution engines and though often modified, remain similar in appearance to their racing ancestors. In 2003 model year, the engine on the Sportster was rigidly attached to the frame. The 2004 Sportster taken a new frame featuring a rubber-mounted engine. Due to these ammendments these bike become heavier and reduced the available lean angle, it decreased the amount of vibration transmitted to the frame and the rider.  Just because of the rubber mounted engine it provides a significantly smoother ride for rider and passenger, for the longer trips. In the year 2007 , Harley-Davidson celebrated its 50th anniversary of the Sportster and introduced a limited edition called XL50, of which only 2000 were distributed for sale purpose among the dealers. Each motorcycle was individually camed in one of two colors, Mirage Pearl Orange or Vivid Black. In 2007, a new category having electronic fuel injection was introduced to the Sportster , and the Nightster model was introduced in mid-year. In 2009, Harley-Davidson added the Iron 883 to the Sportster line, the newest in the Dark Custom series. Environmental record According to the  Environmental Protection Agency  conducted emissions-certification and representative emissions test in Ann Arbor, Michigan, in 2005. Harley-Davidson produced an environmental warranty. The warranty ensures each owner that the vehicle is structured and built free of any defects in materials and workmanship that would cause the vehicle to not meet EPA standards.  In 2005, the EPA and the  Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection(PADEP) confirmed Harley-Davidson to be the first corporation to willingly enroll in the  One Clean-Up Program. This program is structured for the clean-up of the affected soil and groundwater at the former York Naval Ordnance Plant. The program is backed by the state and local government along with participating organizations and corporations. Harley-Davidson culture Harley-Davidson motorcycles have long been associated with the sub-cultures of the: Biker Motorcycle club Outlaw motorcycle clubs, bikers, one per centers Origin of Hog nickname In 1920, a team of farm boys, including  Ray Weishaar, who became known as the hog boys, continuously won races. The group had a live  hog  as their mascot. The HOG BOYS made the Harley towin the races and make a victory lap.  In 1983, the Motor Company introduced a club for owners of its product taking advantage of the long-standing nickname by turning hog into the acronym HOG., for Harley Owners Group. Harley-Davidson attempted to  trademark  hog, but lost a case against an independent Harley-Davidson organisation, The Hog Farm of West Seneca, NY,  in 1999 when the  appellate panel  ruled that hog had become a  generic term  for large motorcycles and was therefore unprotect able as a trademark. On August 15, 2006, Harley-Davidson Inc. had its NYSE ticker symbol changed from HDI to HOG. COMPETITORS OF HARLEY DAVIDSON American Iron Horse Choppers A new firm has been introduced in the market i.e. American Iron Horse Choppers. They have a custom bike shop that dealt with various brands of choppers. They are a dealer for APC, Ironworks,  Iron Horse, and Swift. They also do repairs on other brands. There are a couple of Big Dog choppers along with many  Iron Horse bikes. Out of all the bikes we worked with I consider Iron Horse and Big Dog to be some of the best out there nevertheless they are not better than Harley Davidson. I loved dealing with Iron Horse as they really provide a lot of proper maintenance documentation. One thing that I think is the biggest problem with custom choppers is the wiring. Iron Horse went the extra mile and in my opinion did a great job making  proper wiring harnesses for their bikes. If a bike came out of the crate with any chrome or paint issues they were real quick to send new parts to correct the problem.   Big Dog also does a good job as far as warranty stuff and they have designed a new primary set-up that allows you to replace the starter without having to take the primary apart. IIRC both bikes run SS engines. They make some really good material and usually dont give much problems.   As far as aftermarket parts both bikes use standard Softail forward control mounts so just about any aftermarket Softail forward control setup will fit. The tripple trees are also standard Harley stuff so any handlebar setup will fit. They look great but to me they are not fun. I like bikes that you can lean in to a corner with. But the super wide tires on the choppers will just laugh at you if you try to take a corner faster then a car. Theyre great in a straight line but I hated making turns with them as it didnt take much before you were scraping the street with a part of the bike. So I cant help you much in that category. (Ref. by American IronHorse vs. Big Dog (Choppers only) Yahoo! Answers) West Coast Choppers West Coast Choppers motorcycles are known as  old school.  WCC bikes have been known as more exposed down when contrasted with decades-long established chopper builders like  Arlen Ness, that is, a bike having, not much there but engine, what the law requires, and something to hold on.  In spite of this information, a WCC product is the use of  9 mm  and  .44 Magnum  shell casings  as purely non-functional art, adorning the fuel or oil filler caps or top of the motorcycles handlebar risers. The presence of this 20th Century gun ammunition is intended to evoke Jesse G. James distant ancestor,  old west  outlaw  and  fighter Jesse James.  A tough brand tie between the chopper-riding biker and old west outlaws is a mainstay of biker culture, established by the biker worlds Norman Rockwell,  and its painter  David Mann. The bikers cross logo, a version of the  Iron Cross  or the  Maltese Cross, is also typical of a WCC bike, though that symbol is nea rly everywhere in Kustom Kulture  in any case. The old firm label of WCC bike labels fits loosely as well, moreover in recent years as WCC has moved away from the traditional  Harley-Davidson  chopper, seen by James as too ordinary, and enhanced the style to grooms its look. Specific ammendments include  Lambretta  scooters,  Honda 305 Scramblers, and  Schwinn Black Phantombicycles. Labels used by West Coast Choppers have been designed to make it professional look firm Atkins Parker Creative, who carefully observed the colours and motifs dear to old firm bikers, such as Vietnam war squadron patches. This is crafted to remanufactured for mass consumption the odd, imperfect shapes of old hand-painted bike art in order to gratify the customers keen sense of authenticity. (Ref by american iron horse choppers Google Search ) SWOT Analysis of Harley-Davidson This case is an analysis of the strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats for Harley-Davidson. Name recognition Harley-Davidson is possibly the most recognizable name in the motorcycle industry, anywhere in the world. This is possibly because of the typical, rough crash (sounds like potato-potato-potato) which made its bikes famous. Or perhaps its because the name Harley-Davidson is the core of the motorcycle industry, and the Harley-Davidson is the motorcycle that almost every rider aspires to own. Whatever the case, HDI enjoys brand name acknowledgment that other companies strive to obtain, yet fail to achieve. History Harley-Davidson has a long history, beginning in 1909, with the introduction of the V-Twin engine. Harley-Davidson motorcycles were in high demand during World War I, and HDI was one of only two motorcycle companies to survive the Great Depression of the 1930s. The military used Harleys during WWII, and law enforcement agencies around the country either have used or are currently using Harley-Davidson motorcycles as a tool for their Police Officers, Sheriffs Deputies and Highway Patrol Troopers enforce the laws of this great nation. Today most of the youngsters have a passion to buy and keep Harleys as an antique. These bikes have grown in popularity around the globe because of their reliability and durability. World Wrestling Entertainment Super Star Undertaker also used to enter the wrestling arena on a Harley Davidson bike. Harley-Davidson Performance Analysis There are many ways to test the output of the company, some more famous than others. According to Barney text ,the accounting method is the most useful and famous way of measuring a firms output (Barney, 2002). Some of the reasons for the popularity could include the fact that accounting measures of output are publicly their on many firms and they can make a great deal of material related to the firms operations. Other methods of the frims output analysis consist of firm survival and the multiple stakeholder approach.   The first method we will check is the accounting method. Through this accounting method we will take a look on specific ratios and their possible impact on the companys output. The specific ratios we will analyse contains the return on total assets, return on equity, gross profit margin, earnings per share, price earnings ratio, debt to assets, debt to equity, accounts receivable turnover, total asset turnover, fixed asset turnover, and average collection period. I will explain each ratio in complete detail, and why I have included it in this check, when I give the results of each specific ratio calculation. The return on total assets is an overall measure of prosperity which measures the total success of management in generating profits according to its ratios. This ratio shows the amount of net income generated by each dollar invested in these assets. The higher the firm returns on total assets, the better. The return on total assets of Harley davidson was 14.04% for 2001, 14.27% for 2000. These percentages are up and shows an upward trend, this shows strong output in this area for the previous two years.   Return on equity (ROE) showsthe profitability from the stockholders perspective. The ROE is a step to check the return earned on the common stockholders investment in the firm. Generally, the higher this return, the better off the stockholders are. Harley Davidsons return on Harley Davidson Case Analysis In 2007, Harley Davidson was the worlds most profitable motorcycle company.    They had just released great earnings and committed to achieve earnings per share growth of 11-17% for each of the next three years.    Their CEO of 37 years, James Ziemer, knew this would be an extremely difficult task seeing Harleys domestic market share recently top off at just under 50%.    The domestic market was where Harleys achieved the most growth over the past 20 years and with it leveling off, where was Harley going to get the 11-17% was the million dollar question. Harley Davidson has built a brand that is more than just the spread eagle on a load rumbling motorcycle, but for those who purchase a Harley they are purchasing a lifestyle, an experience, or piece of American culture if you will.    Due to this differentiating factor Harley has been able to charge a premium for its products and still be successful against its lower priced competition.    Harley built upon this lifestyle when it created the Harley Owners Group (HOG).    Harley would promote shows, rallies and rides through HOG in the US and even in other countries. This helped to build its coveted image into more of an exclusive club.          In the 1990s, Harley Davidson saw tremendous growth and looked for resolutions to its one problem of balancing production with its soaring demand.    In 1996, Harley announced Plan 2003.    Plan 2003 was a huge undertaking to increase its production capacity, introduce several new models and increase international expansion.    At the end of this planned expansionary period, Harleys sales had grown tenfold over just 23 years.    However in 2007, domestic demand was starting to slip, as several economical factors weighed on the American consumer, making it more difficult to buy luxury products. In 2007, Harley Davidson finds itself in a battle with heavyweight contenders with deep pockets and a lot of engineering resources.    Harley lacks the Harley Davidson Strategic Analysis William Harley and Arthur Davidson wanted to take a look of riding bicycles in 1901.    After joining of the Arthur brothers, Walter and William in their firm, they came up with the new idea of making a motor and a bicycle together.    Many engine ammendments were made before the satsfaction of the builders.    In 1903, they manufactured the first Harley-Davidson motorcycle and they produced three that year.    Harley built its first building in 1907 on Juneau Avenue in Milwaukee.    That same year, they manufactured 150 motorcycles.    As they were used for rebuilt purposes, they were also came in the useage of military .    They fullfill the military useage in border skirmishes and the government called for 20,000 bikes to be shipped overseas.    During the war, other companies also tried to challenge the market of Harley, but Harley remained the largest.    The depression had an unfavorable effect on Harley as it did with most firms, but they overcome on that iss ue and the crisis and celebrated its fiftieth year in 1953 as the sole survivor in the bikes industry.   Harley attract public in 1965, but was bought by thirteen heavy Harley-Davidson executives in 1981.    It was returned to public useage in 1986 by calling two million shares of common stock.    It was accepted by the New York Stock exchange in 1987 and has been there ever since. 2. A firm with the history of Harley-Davidson has few defects and threats, but a SWOT analysis can help them turn them into favorable conditions and strengths. Strengths- Customer satisfaction is the first strength of Harleys business.    Once a person bought a Harley, it seems as they trapped in the entire Harley business.    Once they bought a Harley, they usually never buy another brand of motorcycle. Once a person purchases a bike, the jacket, bandanas, etc. become a must.    Opportunity for Harley is that the economy is at a place where people will go out and buys a motorcycle for recreational purposes.    (Ref by Harley-Davidson eNotes.com Reference).

Marketing Strategies: Bang Olufsen vs. Sony

Marketing Strategies: Bang Olufsen vs. Sony Marketing Strategies and Customer behaviors of High-tech products: Bang Olufsen vs. Sony Introduction The high-tech industry is experiencing furious competition in the global market, especially in the sectors of audio/video, loudspeakers and digital appliances. Bang Olufsen and Sony are both successful organizations offer examples of excellent strategies in their respective markets in the same industry. Compared to Bang Olufsen, Sony is a less expensive brand, which was founded in 1946 in Japan. It is one of the leading electronics and entertainment companies, offering quality digital and media products to the mass global market. Sony stands on a strong foundation of innovation, experience, talent, capital and desire (Sony 2008). Its products and services are available around the world. They are attached with strong design capability, good quality and high prestige. Bang Olufsen (BO) was founded in 1925 by two young Danish engineers, Peter Bang and Svend Olufsen. Known all over the world for spectacular, idea based, quality products (Christensen and Jà ¸rgensen 1997). It produces and develops a wide range of digital appliances as well as audio/video products. This report will assess the effectiveness of distinct marketing strategies of these two organizations, and then identify and analyze their key customer behaviors. Background of the companies 2.1 Sony With its commitment to quality and consistent dedication to customer satisfaction Sony is recognized as a benchmark for New Age technology. Sony adapts Digital Signage, which is a powerful tool to influence Customer behavior, both at point of purchase and at point of sale. Bang Olufsen: Bang and Olufsen have tied with e-commerce giant Amazon to influence their customer behavior, wherein products purchased by the customers will be provided with warranty registration forms which allows customer to register the purchased products for support throughout the life of the product. Key Customers Behaviors Jim Blythe (2006)says that many purchases are made without apparent conscious thought – people often buy as a result of unexplained impulses, or simply fall in love with a product for no apparent reason. In the market of high-tech products, the customer behavior follows the seven stages of CDP (Consumer Decision Process) model . First, they recognize that something is needed in their lives. Then they search for information. The information may be internal (remembering facts about products, or recalling experiences with them) or external (reading about possible products, visiting shops, etc). Based on the information, they conduct the pre-purchase evaluation of alternatives. During the process, they compare a number of factors (such as price, design, functions) of various brands to select the possible alternatives that best fulfill the needs (Yan 2008). Finally, they make the purchase, and then use the product for the purpose of fulfilling the need. The past-consumption evaluat ion will be carried out to consider whether the product actually satisfy the needs or not. They might dispose the product before or at the end of its life cycle (Blythe 2006). A simple goal hierarchy for buying a high-tech product might look like this: Find out which high-tech product best suit the individual needs. Find out which brand has the right product at the right price. Go and buy the product. Bang Olufsen targets the elite group, which can be explained as upper class customers who are educated, well-to-do, cultivated in their interests and highly individualistic and self-motivated. These consumers are normally wealthy with high income and good taste. Most of them have luxury houses/flats and cars. They would like to spend large amount of money to achieve the same quality for their audio and video equipment, long before design-widescreen TVs became fashionable. Bang Olufsen’s designs attract both men and women with a combination of high-end technology, spectacular and often audacious Danish modern styling, excellent performance and extremely functional integration into the typical upper middle class home (Austin and Beyersdorfer 2007). In addition to the luxury offers, Bang Olufsen had introduced a new range of smaller products (such as Serene) with relative lower prices to attract the wealthy fashion-conscious youth market. In a word, these customers are persons who are willing to sacrifice a lot to get the very best in some particular area. For this reason, the step 2 in the goal hierarchy might be missing from their purchasing process as they are wealthy and non-price sensitive, attracted only by the products featured with unique looking, high-end technology, personalization and customization (Dolbow 2002). Compared to Bang Olufsen, Sony’s customers have relatively lower standards of â€Å"lifestyle†, although Sony’s products still have higher prices and better qualities than the industry average. These groups of customers are price-sensitive. They totally follow the CDP and goal hierarchy estimated. Most of Sony’s products are marketed as value for money products with strong brand image and good design. Unlike Bang Olufsen, Sony does not want its products to be zero flaws, but meet the demands of the mass global customers. It limits the application of the high-end technologies such as finer art of design and frequency range to reduce the costs. Individualization is excluded from its production profile for the same reason. Therefore, its products may not be able to fully meet the expectations of one specific person. In such products one feature appeals to one type of person, other features to another, the price, but no features, to a third, etc. But on the whole, the consumer will pay for a number of features that he or she never really wanted and perhaps never will use (Ravasi 2004). Marketing Strategies and Tactics The Bang Olufsen specialist will represent the Bang Olufsen showroom located closest to the customers residence, and the specialist and showroom will then be available for customer services. The Competitive Approach Bang Olufsen always had a more high-brow approach. It competes for upper middle-class discretionary dollars. In the fact, there are no any direct competitors of Bang Olufsen in the high-end electronics industry, because it does not want to make mass-market products with a broad appeal like its competitors – products without any regard for the preferences and needs of the individual end-users. Bang and Olufsen locates the showrooms close to its potential customer’s residence. In addition to the normal working hours, all the services and showrooms are made available to customers by appointment. Resources are selectively employed to serve its end-customers intelligently. Bang Olufsen highlights customization and personalization. It charges premium price to makes individual products for individual people (Hendriksen 2001). Basically, all the products share the same Bang Olufsen qualities, but each of them has a specific design profile that works individually to serve th e end-customers in the market. The integration of unique designs and high qualities are notable selling points of each product. The Quality Approach In parallel with the design and quality, Bang Olufsen, therefore, developed a marketing and communication strategy a lifestyle oriented strategy aimed at a smaller, but more international target group. The targeting strategy was best encapsulated in the advertising slogan of the period: Bang Olufsen is for those who consider taste and quality before price. The products offered by Bang Olufsen are therefore regarded as ‘lifestyle’ products. Each of them is manufactured to the highest standards, and that last 15-20 years instead of the industry typical 24 months. Bang Olufsen conducts a niche marketing strategy by operating under a completely different margin scheme than any of the large, well-sourced players like Sony, Philips, Samsung, Matsushita, Thomason, who all need market share to be visible and profitable (Hendriksen et al., 2002). The Differentiation approach Bang Olufsen is not built on a low cost structure. The advantage of cost leadership does not exist. Each of the products from Bang Olufsen is unique in the market. Product lies not only in the way it looks, but also in the way it works. Intelligent technology, advanced features and unconventional solutions are what set Bang Olufsen apart. Under this strategy Bang Olufsen strengths and skills are used to differentiate the company’s electronic products from those of its potential competitors. The differentiation strategy creates, or emphasizes, a reason why the target customers should buy from Bang Olufsen rather than from its competitors. It also creates a market-based advantage. In this way, Bang Olufsen’s products can command higher prices and margins and thus avoid competing on price alone. In addition, this strategy of BO is hard for potential competitors to imitate, because the differentiation is integrative. All the products are integrations of design, qualit y, aesthetics, and functionality. Marketing Strategies of Sony From a general point of view, Sony conducts a segmentation marketing strategy by dividing products into three main categories: Electronics, Game, and Pictures. This report only highlights the marketing strategy of its electronics division. Sony always responds quickly to catch the popular lifestyle accepted by most of the people. Compared to Bang Olufsen, Sony is more likely to conduct a â€Å"One product for the many† marketing strategy, with mass production to serve the majority of the market. Except the quality, price is utilized as a tool for competing with rivals. In recent years, Sony outsourced most of its non-core businesses such as assembling, packaging to organizations in developing countries for further reductions of its operating costs. The Annual Report 2008 states that Sony successfully re-engineered the company by dramatically reducing operating costs, streamlining the operations. As a result, on an annual basis and compared to three years prior, sales and operating revenue rose 23% (Sony 2008). Marketing 4Ps The report applies a simple marketing mix of 5P’s to analyze the difference between Bang Olufsen and Sony. Product Bang Olufsen Product Strategy Bang Olufsen develops and markets a unique rang of audio/video, communication and multimedia products. All the products are integrations of design, quality, aesthetics, and functionality, which are easily differentiated from the products of other companies (Hendriksen et al., 2002). According to the feature of target customers, Bang Olufsen discovers that their clients usually do not know what they really want. They desire something that could stand out of the mass, or lasts and represents something appeals to them, but not just follow the fashionable style. Bang Olufsen always keep the concept to produce groundbreaking products to satisfy its customers’ needs and update their products more frequently in the dynamic environment. Ground-breaking products have been launched for the audiophile world, with BeoLab 5 named as one of the world’s finest loudspeakers, and within TV (Aigner et al., 2006). Over the past few years, the branded business has extended into new areas. BO has developed sound systems for, so far, six Audi models. These have attracted strong praise with BO being awarded the title of â€Å"Best Brand 2008† in the Car-HiFi category in the respected German auto magazine â€Å"Auto Motor und Sport† (Anthony 2008). In the automotive area, Bang Olufsen has also entered into a strategic partnership with Aston Martin, the UK’s sports car maker, and latest, Mercedes-AMG. Through its Enterprise department, BO focuses on sales to hotels where the company’s products are currently represented in more than 200 five-star hotels across the world. In addition, BO Enterprise has initiated and expanded a number of partnerships with leading property developers for the supply of audio/video products for exclusive property projects (Vej 2007). To ensure that all the products are in the highest standards, Bang Olufsen only concentrates on fewer product categories. Sony – Product Strategy Unlike Bang Olufsen, Sony has a broad list of electronic products. In the fiscal year 2005-2008, it launched the BRAVIA brand of LCD television. It took a strong position in each major market, and became the first to bring to market organic light-emitting diode televisions (Russinovich 2005). Sony mainly focuses on the marketing development to increase the products variety to meet the demands from different customer groups. People at different levels of socioeconomic status may find their favorable products from Sony. Moreover, Sony’s products are normally with a short lifecycle, for example 12-24 months. New products are quickly imitated by the competitors. Therefore, Sony has to update its product lists frequently to catch sales. This typical marketing strategy is also adopted by most of its competitors, such as Apple, Samsung etc. Price In theory, price is really determined by the discovery of what customers perceive is the value of the item on sale. Pricing Strategy of Bang Olufsen According to an online research, the average BO purchase is  £2,800 (Underwood 2005). The prices are much higher than the industry average. The price reflects the product’s quality and brand image (Raun 2009). Customers regard price as one of the notable aspects of Bang Olufsen, which stands for the highest value of design, outstanding performance, durability, and long-term reliable services. Pricing strategy of Sony: Being a premium brand and known for its high quality products, Sony adapts premium prices for the products. It sells its products at comparatively higher price. Promotion Bang Olufsen – Promotion Strategy Bang Olufsen produces differentiated products to satisfy their elite customer group. Around 80% of its sales revenue is generated from between 800-1000 of its customers. It determines that the promotions are only available for a small amount of VIPs, which are especially used to establish the long term relationships with those important customers. Sony – Promotion Strategy Sony adapts dynamic promotion strategies through Marketing communication, Advertising, Sales promotion, Public relations and Direct selling. Place (Distribution) Bang Olufsen – Place (Distribution) Strategy By the end of May 2008, Bang Olufsen has 822 B1 shops across the world, which accounts for 81% of the total turnover. Bang Olufsen dedicates to provide the best services for its customers. Customers could make the appointment online for after working hour services. Because most of its products are very expensive, only small amounts of relatively cheaper products are sold via online dealers. Sony – Place (Distribution) Strategy Sony practices Selective distribution of its products through selective dealers. It distributes products in various channels (Zone-Level, One Level and Two-Level Channels). Sony also distributes through online facility which proved to be more effective and efficient way of distribution. People Bang Olufsen’s Strategy It motivates the people with their knowledge towards technology and provides greater opportunities to explore and carrier growth to achieve. Sony’s Strategy Sony is driven by its mission to offer an opportunity to create and fulfill dreams of all kinds of people, including customers, employees, share holders and business partners. Conclusion This report compares the marketing strategies and key customer behaviors between Bang Olufsen, the very expensive high-tech products provider, and Sony, a less expensive quality high-tech products provider. Although they operate in the same industry, there is no actual competition existing between them as they target different customer groups. Reference Aigner, G., Budzinski, O., and Christiansen, A. (2006). The analysis of coordinated effects in EU merger control: where do we stand after Sony, BMG and Impala, pp. 311–336. Anthony, S. (2008). Sony: Winning the DVD battle but losing the innovation war, Innovation Insights. Austin, R. and Beyersdorfer, D. (2007). Bang Olufsen: Design Driven Innovation, Harvard Business School Case. Blythe, J. (2006). Essentials of marketing communications, Prentice Hall. Christensen, S. and Jà ¸rgensen, J. (1997). Analysing Bang Olufsens BeoLink (R) Audio/Video System Using Coloured Petri Nets, Lecture Notes in Computer Science, pp. 387-406. Dolbow, S. (2002). Bang Olufsen Tunes Sales Channel for S20K Plasma-Based TV System, Brandweek, pp. 14. Hendriksen, O. (2001). Long-term Monitoring at Bang Olufsen Office Building, in Editor (ed)^(eds), Book Long-term Monitoring at Bang Olufsen Office Building, City, pp. Hendriksen, O., Brohus, H., Frier, C., and Heiselberg, P. (2002). Pilot Study Report: Bang Olufsen Head Quarter, Paris, France: International Energy Agency. Raun, H. (2009). Strategisk analyse og và ¦rdiansà ¦ttelse af Bang Olufsen pr 21. oktober 2008. Ravasi, D. (2004). Bang Olufsen A, S, Bocconi, Mailand. Russinovich, M. (2005). Sony, rootkits and digital rights management gone too far, Marks Sysinternals Blog, October, Vol. 31. Sony (2008). Sony Global Annual Report 2008, in Editor (ed)^(eds), Book Sony Global Annual Report 2008, City, Sony, pp. Underwood, R. (2005). The case for fanaticism. At high-end Danish electronics firm Bang Olufsen, design is king, Even if it means sacrificing revenue, FAST COMPANY, Vol. 101, pp. 84. Vej, P. (2007). Bang Olufsen Holding, International Directory of Company Histories: Volume 86, pp. 24. Yan, G. (2008). Sony Style in China,:, No. 010, pp. 22-23. Emergency Planning Techniques: Private and Federal Sector Emergency Planning Techniques: Private and Federal Sector Emergency Planning Abstract The basis of this paper deals with the emergency planning techniques of both the private and the federal sector. They each have their own way of writing and carrying out the emergency plans. There are similarities in each and there are differences in each. However, both have the same goal of protecting people and property. Thoroughly discuss how private planning may differ from governmental emergency planning. Should there be any difference? If so, when and how. Planning for a major disaster can take many different forms. On a governmental level, the federal, state, and local governments are responsible for the protection of its citizens. Emergency planning is designed specifically for this area and can come from such things as the use of intelligence gathering and even Congress passing laws like the USA PATRIOT ACT. On a private level, businesses are responsible for the protection of their employees and assets. More often than not, these emergency plans are also dubbed Business Continuity Plans (BCP). These plans help if a disaster like a tornado should strike their area. Even more narrowed down than that, there are even plans for families to help protect themselves in their home. From top to bottom it is kind of likened to a bulls-eye. The outer circle is the Unites States government all the way to the smaller middle part, the individual/family. The bottom line is that it is important to have some kind of plan in place in all levels to ens ure the utmost safety. On the governmental level, one of the main areas of planning and the one that is forefront in the event of a major national disaster is the Department of Homeland Security (DHS). The DHS was created in response to the terrorist attacks on the United States on September 11, 2001. This particular department heads numerous other agencies that assist in the event of a catastrophe of national significance. The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) which was created by Jimmy Carter by executive order on March 30, 1979. (Woolley, 2005) The main goal of FEMA is to put together a response plant to catastrophes that happen in the United States which surpass the resources and abilities of local and state jurisdictions. States also have their own emergency management agencies but when an incident is too much for them the governor of the state where the incident takes place must declare a state of emergency and make a formal request for assistance to the President of the United States that F EMA and the Federal Government respond to the disaster. Like most government agencies FEMA is under high scrutiny whenever a disaster occurs. In recent years the agency has not gotten very high marks for their efforts. Most notably are their responses to natural disasters like hurricanes. They are often criticized for their response times like in the cases of hurricanes Hugo in 1989 and Andrew in 1992. Most notably was the way FEMA (and the government as a whole) handled Hurricane Katrina in 2005. In the wake of Katrina, the United States Congress issued a scathing report on how it was handled noting that elements of the National Response Plan were executed late, ineffectively, or not at all. It cited, in part: DHS and FEMA lacked adequate trained and experienced staff for the Katrina response The readiness of FEMA’s national emergency response teams was inadequate and reduced the effectiveness of the federal response Long-standing weaknesses and magnitude of the disaster overwhelmed FEMS’s ability to provide emergency shelter and temporary housing FEMA logistics and contracting systems did not support a targeted, massive, and sustained provision of commodities (Congressional Select Committee, 2006) Get help with your essay from our expert essay writers FEMA is just one part of the National Plan for emergency readiness. Another agency in the mix is the Transportation Security Administration. This agency was also started as a direct result of the 9/11 attacks and is also under the umbrella of the DHS. As stated in their mission statement, â€Å"The Transportation Security Administration protects the Nation’s transportation systems to ensure freedom of movement for people and commerce.† (Transportaton Security Administration, N/A) This particular agency is most noted and seen at our nation’s airports but are also responsible for transportation of land and sea as well. Like FEMA, there have been criticisms of this particular department as well. There have been complaints of invasion of privacy, theft of airline passenger’s possessions, and wasteful spending in its hiring practices. FEMA and the TSA are just a couple of the many areas in which the federal government has set its emergency planning into motion. As stated before, the governmental agencies are under a microscope and when something fails (or appears to have failed) it will be put into the spotlight. Citizens often turn to their governments for answers and direction, as they should, when a disaster occurs. Some involved in security planning privately feel that there are those agencies that need to do more in the way of explaining emergency and security plans to employees. However they also believe that the government has come a long way in emergency planning since the 9/11 attacks on the Pentagon and World Trade Center. In the private sector, planning for an emergency becomes more focused. The emphasis is on a much smaller populace depending on the size of the entity whether it be a business, school, hospital, etc. No matter how much planning or preparation an entity does, there can never assurances that all crisis will be handled flawlessly. If a business fails to plan properly, the likelihood of problems during a disaster will greatly intensify. One issue that arises is that the managers of the business and public safety officials sometimes underestimate the issues that may arise during a crisis situation. Administrators normally don’t have experience or prior training with emergency management issues. That is where the area of the Director of Security would come into play. This person would be responsible for writing up the emergency plan (i.e. Business Continuity Plan). Business continuity plans are essential in helping companies stay afloat through any misfortune and aid them in coming back more quickly after the setbacks. Without the BCP companies could be in great danger of going out of business is a disaster occurs. This could not only impact the business itself but the people it employs and the economy of an area if the business is large enough. Mary Carrido, president MLC Associates stated, After the Oklahoma City bombing, 40 square blocks were barricaded off for weeks. This devastated 4,000 businesses; 210 are not in existence anymore. (Rodetis, 1999) Had there been some kind of back-up plan to help these companies more businesses could have been saved. It’s much easer to minimize a risk than to try and recover from a setback. A thorough plan can take a few months or even years to develop, depending on the size of the organization. Unfortunately a recent study by KPMG, LLP, found nearly 40% of respondents either lacked business contin uity plans or had not tested theirs within the last six months. (Rodetis, 1999) In this day and age, especially with the technology available, it is unbelievable that many businesses do not have proper planning. The old adage of not planning to fail but failing to plan comes to mind. The next part to discuss is the really whittled down part, family planning (not the kind where you want to have kids). This is extremely important on this level too because families should do things like practice regular fire drills so the whole family knows where to go or find exits from the house in the event of a fire. These plans should also involve making sure fire alarms are placed properly throughout the house and ensure that the batteries are in working order. Also if some sort of disaster should occur while the family is away, there should be different means as how to contact one another and have a known meeting place if the family is separated. One should determine the type of risk that is most likely to happen whether it be a hurricane, tornado, man-made disaster, etc. and prepare for those risks. According to the FEMA website, it is suggested that enough food, water, and other supplies are stocked up enough to last at least three days. As written in the paper, the governmental and private sectors are different in many ways but the one underlying similarity is the basic need for protection of life and property. The differences are in the way plans are carried out and how they are managed. The federal government would not have to go through the same processes as say a business would to receive assistance. Ultimately some plan needs to be in place on all levels to minimize the risks and if there are areas in the federal level that need to be changed so response times are better or relief aid gets to an area sooner or mandating that all companies have a document emergency plan, then these actions need to be taken. References Congressional Select Committee. (2006, N/A). Executive Summary of Findings. Retrieved July 16, 2007, from United States Congress: http://www.gpoaccess.gov/katrinareport/execsummary.pdf. Rodetis, S. (1999, February 1). Can your business survive the unexpected?(business continuity plans). Retrieved July 17, 2007, from Journal of Accountancy: http://www.highbeam.com/doc/1G1-53878194.html. Transportaton Security Administration. (N/A, N/A). Mission, Vision, and Core Values (Who We Are). Retrieved July 17, 2007, from Transportation Security Administration: http://www.tsa.gov/who_we_are/mission.shtm. Woolley, L. (2005, September 12). FEMA Disaster of an Agency. Retrieved July 17, 2007, from newsmax.com: http://www.newsmax.com/archives/articles/2005/9/12/102827.shtml.