John Lasseter Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words

John Lasseter - Essay Example This artist has been developing his skills of drawing cartoons from his childhood. His mother was an art teacher and John has often tried to incarnate his vision in animation. When he went to the church together with his family, he drew cartoons. He was amazed by Chuck Jones cartoons on TV and rushed home after school in order to watch these cartoons. In high school John was interested in reading the book â€Å"The Art of Animation† by Bob Thomas (Paik, 2007). Thus his decision to become an animator was growing in his heart for years. Finally, he entered California Institute of the Arts and was a student of a new animation course. He was taught by Disney’s outstanding masters, such as Eric Larson, Frank Thomas and others. His first animation films were Lady and the Lamp (1979) and Nightmare (1980) (Paik, 2007). Lasseter won prizes for his first animation films. He joined Disney but after 101 Dalmatians Lasseter claimed that it was the largest masterpiece of this Studio and suggested to introduce some innovations. In the beginning of 80s Lasseter became interested in computer graphics. Lasseter felt a great potential of computer animation and propagated the idea that computers could be helpful in making movies with three dimensional backgrounds. His guidance was the book by Thomas Disch â€Å"The Brave Little Toaster† (Paik, 2007). â€Å"Where the Wild Things Are† was the first project where Lasseter and his followers decided to introduce computer graphics innovations. Unfortunately, producers saw no benefits and Lasseter was fired from Disney. It is possible to note, that all geniuses were not acclaimed at once. A process of acknowledgement requires time and patience and hard work from genius. Lasseter followed this line and step by step reached the heights in the sphere of his dream, short film animation. Lasseter rushed into searching of co-thinker, followers and professionals from computer industry. His first animation film â€Å"The

Anthropology Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Anthropology - Assignment Example Various regions have their own endangered species for which the crisis mainly applies, but in most general definitions, it is used to refer to the killing of the great apes and other primates (Jurmain 129). Possible solutions to this problem include increased conservation measures in the parks and wildlife reservations. Additionally, swoops could be made in hotspots and those arrested be given hefty fines and long sentences to deter the practice. Both humans and primates are social beings, and this means that they exist in social settings and not in solitary existence. This trait exists between the two groups, and though it’s for defense, it also aids in realizing a form of hierarchical structure. Additionally, both primates and humans consistently groom each other, as a form of social behavior that bonds them together (Jurmain 160). This is especially due to the similarity in forelimbs, which enable both humans and primates use their fingers for grooming purposes. Moreover, both primates and humans appreciate territoriality and any two given factions have to respect the territoriality of each other. What is more, both humans and primates have a sense of communication, which is a behavioral trait that assists in maintaining the social structure of the groups. Primates have culture, and this is as defined by their behavior that is noticeable from various ecological and evolutionary perspectives. Shreeve (1991) depicts the various similarities that can be drawn from the behavior of primates and humans, and in most cases, the evidence of a culture is easily noticeable since both have one evolutionary background. One stark representation of culture is the relatively advanced aspect of deception, which is a major survival tactic for primates. It is so well advanced that it is one of the most widely used mechanisms in the wild. The social nature of primates calls for the need for some culture, since there is bound to increased levels of

Illegal Immigrants And The Different Solutions Sociology Essay

Illegal Immigrants And The Different Solutions Sociology Essay The first Illegal Immigrants to ever step foot on American soil, the New World, was the pilgrims, thats right, us, the great American people. We traveled overseas from Britain and assumed ownership over America. The Native Americans who occupied the new territory were treated unfairly by us, the intruders. We treated them as if they were on our land, so we pushed them further away from the coast so we could take our place on this new soil, that we today call our home. Unfortunately, the Native Americans didnt have a government system to insure we had green cards and visas; otherwise they may still run this country. And now that we have The United State of America, we want to keep it ours. We refuse to have our country overran by a multitude of illegal aliens that are using our resources and taking our employment opportunities, while we, the hard-working Americans receive nothing in return. Nevertheless, that is exactly where America is today. There are nearly thirteen million illegal aliens in the United States, that is nearly four and a half percent of the population, and growing at roughly five hundred thousand illegal immigrants a year according to F.A.I.R Federation for American Immigration Reform. This is a major disposition for the economic and social order of the United States. Illegal Immigration creates many problems, higher unemployment rates, health care issues, not paying taxes, and many others. The Problems that are caused by Illegal immigration grow rapidly as the population of illegal immigrants increase. Something needs to be done, and no one has a definite solution to this issue, but I believe I have an answer. The first problem that Illegal Immigrants cause, is the increasing rise of the unemployment rate for national legal citizens. The average unemployment rate of the United States is 9.7%, according to Beck. That doesnt seem too drastic, but if you look at the locations where most of the Illegal immigrants are employed and live; the unemployment rate of those states are higher than those that are not affected as much by Illegal Immigrants. California has the most illegal immigrants with 12.5%; Texas, New York, Illinois, and Florida follow closely behind with the most illegal individuals. Each of these 5 states is in the top 9 states with the highest unemployment rate. What does the unemployment rate and illegal immigrants have in common? Im glad you asked, Illegal Immigrants, wait Im tired of that name, I want to sound politically correct, Ill call them undocumented workers. CITE PAGE NUMBERS The reason that undocumented workers come to the United States is so they can provide a better life for their families. They come here in pursuit of jobs, because they are unable to find them in their country. As a result, the immigrants take more employment opportunities compared to any other state. California has employment opportunities that Americans could excel in, but the Americans are refused because undocumented workers took them. Now, before I go any further, this is where illegal immigration activists argue, undocumented workers do the jobs that Americans arent willing to do. Thats bologna, Have you ever seen the show Dirty Jobs? In one episode Mike Rowe, the host of Dirty Jobs helped clean the sewer of San Francisco; the sewer ran the length of the streets following in suit with the hills, thats not a very intriguing job, yet it was still the work of a blue collar American. Another job he participated in was Horse Inseminator you can just use your imagination with that one. The point of all these examples is that Americans are willing to do whatever it takes to hav e a paying job, especially with the way our economy is now Swift Company meat-processing plants lost about nine percent of their workforce when they were raided in six states. After the raids, Swift raised their pay by almost two dollars an hour and hundreds of residents lined up the next day to take the jobs illegal aliens used to have. Howard industries, an electronics maker in Laurel, Mississippi, was raided in the fall of 2008. Hundreds of citizens soon lined up to apply for the new job opportunities, including one woman who drove 40 miles. This doesnt include those individuals who are lazy and unmotivated, while they rather milk the government instead of getting a real job. Now that I got that off my chest, the issue with undocumented workers having jobs isnt our governments fault, or the average Americans; its the companies and employers that hire them. Bear Stearns Reported That between four and six million jobs have moved to the underground economy since 1990. Those are the jobs Americans wont do, but rather the jobs they used to do before illegal labor became much more attractive to employers. Companies can hire undocumented workers at a fraction of the cost of hiring deserving legal American citizens. I dont blame employers for taking the cheaper route of hiring undocumented workers. There are a number of advantages, such as, no payroll tax since the employer is paying under the table. They dont have to have to worry about supplying health insurance for their employees, and finally they can pay lower wages since undocumented workers dont have that legal right to an attorney, or the privilege of equal rights. Every legal citizen of the United States has become accustomed to paying taxes, from the time they get their first job to the day they die. To see the importance of the argument Im about to make, I have to explain how taxes are used. Taxes help maintain roads, highways, and the public school system so our children can have an education. Taxes also pay for public safety, police officers, prisons, and defense. Taxes also go to a number of other areas in our nation, but thats a general list. If a citizen doesnt pay his/her taxes there are consequences that can occur depending on the situation. If someone neglects to pay taxes or tries to get out of paying taxes otherwise known as tax evasion, there can be fines, criminal charges, auditing, investigations, and garnishing of wages. There could be a giant disposition for a single individual to handle. But, luckily for undocumented workers, they dont have to worry about paying taxes. They get to use our resources, have our jobs and not have to worry about filing a tax return at the end of the year. Yes, they have to pay sales tax, but that is only 7.25% on the dollar, compared to 20% of ones salary. The only time undocumented workers pay any kind of income tax is if they somehow got a social security card illegally, then they pay social security tax. They deliberately perform tax evasion with no punishment, when a normal American citizen would be punished. Another big issue with undocumented workers is health care. American citizens get the privilege of owning health insurance which covers costs that get accrued when visiting hospitals and doctors. Undocumented workers dont get the privilege to own health insurance, so they have to pay for their health care out of pocket. The cost of having basic procedures are mind boggling, too expensive for a family in an upper class salary bracket to afford without health insurance. I wonder how an undocumented worker can afford to pay for their medical issues, my guess is they cant. Most of the time when someone cant, or dont pay their medical bills, the hospital just has a collection agency garnish their wages. With an undocumented worker its a bit different, with no records of where they work, where they live, or a social security number, how to hospitals get that money? Well the answer is they dont, most of time hospitals just eat debt and wait for the government to reimburse them for the loss. So if the government is reimbursing the hospitals, essentially the American people are paying the hospitals for the loss. With the government having to give money to the hospitals that causes taxes to go up. When taxes go up, people have less money to stimulate the economy, thus causes a recession. With all that being said, what has the government and states come up with for solutions? In 1996 Bill Clinton decided to use border control to help in his campaign, he had a 14 foot fence 40 miles long put in to help deter the flow of undocumented workers. This is great in theory, but the border between Mexico and the United states is roughly 2000 miles, which only leaves a 1,940 mile gap. In 2006 George W. Bush had plans for a virtual fence which would have cost 6.7 billion dollars. The virtual fence would consist of, cameras, ground sensors, and radars. The virtual fence would stretch almost the entire Mexican Border. The whole project was canceled by the Obama Administration, after spending nearly 700 million dollars and seeing nearly no results. Even if the virtual fence was completed, there would be a stretch of 200 miles in Big Bend National Park in Texas that wouldnt have a virtual fence established. (Thats like having a home security system installed but putting a note on the front door saying that the back door doesnt have a sensor yet. -Glenn Beck) There is a government agency that helps with deportation of Illegal Immigrants; this agency is referred as Ice Air. Basically its an airline dedicated to transporting illegal persons back to their home country. Ice Air has all the amenities that you would find on Continental, TWA, or Southwest Airlines. Every passenger gets a meal, soda, peanuts. But the only difference is that it is paid for by a legal national citizen, thats right, Illegal Immigrants get a free ride back home. An average one-way single person ticket would normally cost roughly 700 dollars. There have been stories about Illegal Immigrants who had turned themselves in. Their reasoning in often cases were so they could get a free ride home for holidays, and then they just sneak back over as it becomes a repeating pattern for them. Basically the Illegal Immigrants are getting smart; they are using our agencies for their benefits. That is what we get for having such poor deportation and border control methods. It seems like there have been solutions to the problem at hand, but none have been followed through or thought out very well. I have a question for you, do illegal immigrants have civil rights, and do they have rights under our National Constitution? Personally I dont think they should, but the Government seems to think so when it comes to suing National Born Citizens. Arizona Ranchers Roger and Barbara Barnet were sued by 16 Illegal Immigrants after holding them at gun point on his property as they crossed the borders illegally. He held them there until authorities arrived; Barnett has turned almost 12,000 Illegal Immigrants over to the authorities since 1998. The Illegal Immigrants said that they were traumatized and that their civil rights were violated. What civil rights were they talking about? I dont think the U.S Constitution says anything about Illegal Immigrants having rights in our Nation. Barnett said some of his cattle died from ingesting the plastic bottles left behind by the immigrants, with that he added, that he installed a faucet on an 8,000-gallon water tank so the immigrants would stop damaging the tank to get water. Mr. Barnett said some of the ranch ´s established immigrant trails were littered with trash 10 inches deep, including human waste, used toilet paper, soiled diapers, cigarette packs, clothes, backpacks, empty 1-gallon water bottles, chewing-gum wrappers and aluminum foil which supposedly is used to pack the drugs the immigrant smugglers give their clients to keep them running. The Illegal Immigrants sued Barnett for nearly 32 million dollars, thats insane. The courts didnt see it Barnetts way, but they also didnt see it the immigrants way either. The immigrants won the law suit, but only got 100,000 dollars. That fires me up, how can a group of people who have no rights in our country sue a national legal law abiding citizen and win?! Our government is screwy if you ask me. How are people like Barnett supposed to handle situations like this? It just doesnt make sense to me but a lot of things dont make sense to me, such as, Obama wanting to make it to where undocumented workers are able to get drivers license legally. Thats giving rights to people who have no rights under law of being in our country. It seems like instead of setting up ways to abolish Illegal Immigrants, the government just wants to find ways to give them legal rights in our nation. Ok I could go on and on with this argument and debate, but this paper has to come to an end eventually. So my solution to this problem is fairly simplistic on paper, but more difficult in action. I propose that the government imposes a $50,000 fine for each undocumented worker that any employer has. It may sound outrageous, but I believe that employers shouldnt be allowed to cut corners; its essentially tax evasion. The employee will face other felony charges, and maybe even a prison sentence. I believe that would be a great scare tactic to keep most employers from hiring undocumented workers. With no jobs available, we can only hope that undocumented workers head back across the borders to their home countries. Some people argue if you force companies to higher legal citizens they have to raise their wages, which is true, but they also say if companies raise wages that they may not be able to stay in business. My response would be good, if a company cant stay in business because the y have to raise their wages for legal American citizens then they have no business being in business. Another idea to add to my solution is what Bill Clinton already started, a fence; two 14 tall fences stretching the length of the border, all 2000 miles. At an average cost of 5 million dollars a mile, that would cost roughly 20 billion dollars. People might argue that this hypothesis is way too expensive on the tax payers, but if you look at the budget set in for the stimulus package youll notice that the amount of money that set aside for unemployment was roughly 40 billion dollars. Then I also would propose a compromise to allow for some illegals to come out of the wood work, and we would allow them to become legal national citizens. To sum things up, with no jobs for illegal immigrants, they would leave the country because there isnt any prosperity for them here. Also with an enormous fence, that will help deter illegal immigration from occurring as often. With no Illegal Immigr ants being in the United States, employers are forced to higher national citizens, thus reducing the national unemployment rate, and reducing that amount of money government has to pay. When it comes to Illegal Immigrants using our hospitals, I believe that they should just be refused, yes that sounds harsh, but it isnt fair to our hospitals when they have to eat the loss, because the intruders cant get provide a payment for people who are honest national citizens. This will save the government and hospitals money also. That is essentially my solution to the Illegal Immigrant issues, it makes sense to me, but since Im not known in politics my voice may never be heard on this subject. U.S. Code Title 8, Section 1325 Any alien who (1) enters or attempts to enter the United States at any time or place other than as designated by immigration officers, or (2) eludes examination or inspection by immigration officers, or (3) attempts to enter or obtains entry to the United States by a willfully false or misleading representation or the willful concealment of a material fact, shall, for the first commission of any such offense, be fined under title 18 or imprisoned not more than 6 months, or both, and, for a subsequent commission of any such offense, be fined under title 18, or imprisoned not more than 2 years, or both. (b) Improper time or place; civil penalties Any alien who is apprehended while entering (or attempting to enter) the United States at a time or place other than as designated by immigration officers shall be subject to a civil penalty of (1) at least $50 and not more than $250 for each such entry (or attempted entry); or (2) twice the amount specified in paragraph (1) in the case of an alien who has been previously subject to a civil penalty under this subsection. Civil penalties under this subsection are in addition to, and not in lieu of, any criminal or other civil penalties that may be imposed. The paragraph above is the statutes for Illegal Immigration, half the information in it isnt even enforced. Mostly because it cant, we dont have the resources, or enough border control to apprehend the ones crossing the border. Our nation has so many problems with border control that half the time that Illegal Immigrants are apprehended they are let go, and given a citation with a court date on it. Reasoning behind the citation is because our prison system is so full already. Our government needs to come up with a good plan because our country is going to fall apart faster than a jenga tower standing on one block. http://law.onecle.com/uscode/8/1325.html. http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2009/feb/09/16-illegals-sue-arizona-rancher/ http://www.pbs.org/kpbs/theborder/history/interactive-timeline.html http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2009/feb/09/16-illegals-sue-arizona-rancher/ http://www.fairus.org/site/News2?page=NewsArticleid=16859security=1601news_iv_ctrl=1007

explanation paper benchmark :: essays research papers

Explanation Paper (European Foods~ Impact of Exploration) For my benchmark, I chose to research and learn about the impact that exploration had on European foods. In my oral presentation, which I will give on March 21, 2002, I will explain certain characteristics before and after European exploration. I will speak about how the only spices that were ordinarily used in Europe in the beginning of the Renaissance were pepper and salt, while after Christopher Columbus explored the new world common spices also included ginger and cinnamon. In addition, I will refer to other ways that foods were flavored, for example by sugar which was extracted from sugar cane, and I will talk about how poultry and meat were common meals in Europe during the Renaissance, although for most people it was served in an old, decayed manner, as only privileged folk could afford fresh meat. In addition, I will talk about how only few, orchard grown fruits were known to Europeans before exploration, while afterwards, they had knowledge of pineapples, kiwi, blueberries, etc. During my presentation, I will also refer to my museum exhibit, which will include a timeline of important dates, quotes, facts, and a world map, and I will refer to a poster that I create, which will also include many interesting facts about the impact of exploration on European foods. The topic that I researched is an extremely important piece of history. Because of exploration, many common foods were discovered, such as coffee, peanuts, chocolate, red and green peppers, tomatoes, potatoes, and kiwi (Tannahill 241). Pineapple, which is another example of a common food today that was discovered during medieval times, was introduced to Christopher Columbus by the Carib Indians on his second voyage to the Caribbean region in November of 1493 (Levins 4). In addition, spices and sweeteners that were discovered during this time period have all helped widen the horizons of present day cuisine. For example, Christopher Columbus was introduced to cinnamon and ginger on one of his voyages to the New World. Both of these spices are commonly used today to greatly improve the taste of many foods. Also, vanilla was introduced to Europeans in 1529, syrup began being extracted from Maple trees, and sugar was put in gravy for an improved taste after people explored the world (Ushe rwood 26). Most of the spices, sweeteners, vegetables, fruits, and meat that were discovered during medieval times are all common foods today, in the twenty-first century.

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Industrial Marketing Research PHASE 2 1) What are the strategy components of the NPD â€Å" New product Development† ch 7 * The expected life cycle of the product ( 2 years – 5 years ) before we develop it or 10 years. e. g. Peugot 504 Model 1968 was expected to stay in the market undeveloped for 5 years, it stayed for 17 years and there is still demand which affected the demand of other Peugot Models * How are you going to approach the market? * Why are people going to accept your product? Attributes of new products which affect their acceptability Relative advantage: the perception that the idea is better than the one it supercedes * Compatibility. Consistency with existing values, past experience, and needs of a firm’s buyers and influencers * Complexity: more complex ideas are adopted more slowly. * Trialability: if a firm can try out a small aspect for a new idea it will be accepted more quickly than a firm has to make a major switch * Observability: if the effects of an innovation can be easily observed this innovation maybe adopted more quickly. NPD Process Opportunity identification and selection: where new product opportunities are identified and selected. * Concept generation: research with customers and preliminary analysis take place. * Concept evaluation: careful review of new product concepts on technical, marketing and financial variables. Choose the most promising concepts to move forward to the next phase. * Development: both technical and marketing development takes place. Prototypes are designed and tested and the production pro * Launch: how are you going to launch this product and for which prospects? ) Description of services offered (Pure Services/ Pure tangible goods) as well as pricing strategies of services. Ch 8 Combinations of service and physical product * Pure tangible good: products no service * Tangible good with accompanying services: this is a tangible product with services added, highly technical products usually are more dependent upon services such as planning, installation, training, and maintenance. * Hybrid: equal offering of goods and services, so the service portion of the offering is equal importance to the tangible product offering * Major service with supporting goods and services.The most important part is the service but some goods and supporting services are required e,g, business travellers on air line they need food. * Pure service: the offering is primarily a service, such as consulting or advertising, very little tangible goods are required. * Phase 2 is an application of chapter 7 & 8 * Each member of the group should participate * A presentation is required next week in the tutorial * All members of the group should be present * You will be graded individually upon your presentation not how correct your research is * We will explain in the tutorial this week how this phase will be done.

Deception Point Page 72

The President looked around the room for Tench. He had not seen her since before his press conference, and she was not here now. Odd, he thought. This is her celebration as much as it is mine. The news report on television was wrapping up, outlining yet again the White House's quantum political leap forward and Senator Sexton's disastrous slide. What a difference a day makes, the President thought. In politics, your world can change in an instant. By dawn he would realize just how true those words could be. 85 Pickering could be a problem, Tench had said. Administrator Ekstrom was too preoccupied with this new information to notice that the storm outside the habisphere was raging harder now. The howling cables had increased in pitch, and the NASA staff was nervously milling and chatting rather than going to sleep. Ekstrom's thoughts were lost in a different storm-an explosive tempest brewing back in Washington. The last few hours had brought many problems, all of which Ekstrom was trying to deal with. And yet one problem now loomed larger than all the others combined. Pickering could be a problem. Ekstrom could think of no one on earth against whom he'd less rather match wits than William Pickering. Pickering had ridden Ekstrom and NASA for years now, trying to control privacy policy, lobbying for different mission priorities, and railing against NASA's escalating failure ratio. Pickering's disgust with NASA, Ekstrom knew, went far deeper than the recent loss of his billion-dollar NRO SIGINT satellite in a NASA launchpad explosion, or the NASA security leaks, or the battle over recruiting key aerospace personnel. Pickering's grievances against NASA were an ongoing drama of disillusionment and resentment. NASA's X-33 space plane, which was supposed to be the shuttle replacement, had run five years overdue, meaning dozens of NRO satellite maintenance and launch programs were scrapped or put on hold. Recently, Pickering's rage over the X-33 reached a fever pitch when he discovered NASA had canceled the project entirely, swallowing an estimated $900 million loss. Ekstrom arrived at his office, pulled the curtain aside, and entered. Sitting down at his desk he put his head in his hands. He had some decisions to make. What had started as a wonderful day was becoming a nightmare unraveling around him. He tried to put himself in the mindset of William Pickering. What would the man do next? Someone as intelligent as Pickering had to see the importance of this NASA discovery. He had to forgive certain choices made in desperation. He had to see the irreversible damage that would be done by polluting this moment of triumph. What would Pickering do with the information he had? Would he let it ride, or would he make NASA pay for their shortcomings? Ekstrom scowled, having little doubt which it would be. After all, William Pickering had deeper issues with NASA†¦ an ancient personal bitterness that went far deeper than politics. 86 Rachel was quiet now, staring blankly at the cabin of the G4 as the plane headed south along the Canadian coastline of the Gulf of St. Lawrence. Tolland sat nearby, talking to Corky. Despite the majority of evidence suggesting the meteorite was authentic, Corky's admission that the nickel content was â€Å"outside the preestablished midrange values† had served to rekindle Rachel's initial suspicion. Secretly planting a meteorite beneath the ice only made sense as part of a brilliantly conceived fraud. Nonetheless, the remaining scientific evidence pointed toward the meteorite's validity. Rachel turned from the window, glancing down at the disk-shaped meteorite sample in her hand. The tiny chondrules shimmered. Tolland and Corky had been discussing these metallic chondrules for some time now, talking in scientific terms well over Rachel's head-equilibrated olivine levels, metastable glass matrices, and metamorphic rehomogenation. Nonetheless, the upshot was clear: Corky and Tolland were in agreement that the chondrules were decidedly meteoric. No fudging of that data. Rachel rotated the disk-shaped specimen in her hand, running a finger over the rim where part of the fusion crust was visible. The charring looked relatively fresh-certainly not three hundred years old-although Corky had explained that the meteorite had been hermetically sealed in ice and avoided atmospheric erosion. This seemed logical. Rachel had seen programs on television where human remains were dug from the ice after four thousand years and the person's skin looked almost perfect. As she studied the fusion crust, an odd thought occurred to her-an obvious piece of data had been omitted. Rachel wondered if it had simply been an oversight in all the data that was thrown at her or did someone simply forget to mention it. She turned suddenly to Corky. â€Å"Did anyone date the fusion crust?† Corky glanced over, looking confused. â€Å"What?† â€Å"Did anyone date the burn. That is, do we know for a fact that the burn on the rock occurred at exactly the time of the Jungersol Fall?† â€Å"Sorry,† Corky said, â€Å"that's impossible to date. Oxidation resets all the necessary isotopic markers. Besides, radioisotope decay rates are too slow to measure anything under five hundred years.† Rachel considered that a moment, understanding now why the burn date was not part of the data. â€Å"So, as far as we know, this rock could have been burned in the Middle Ages or last weekend, right?† Tolland chuckled. â€Å"Nobody said science had all the answers.† Rachel let her mind wander aloud. â€Å"A fusion crust is essentially just a severe burn. Technically speaking, the burn on this rock could have happened at any time in the past half century, in any number of different ways.† â€Å"Wrong,† Corky said. â€Å"Burned in any number of different ways? No. Burned in one way. Falling through the atmosphere.† â€Å"There's no other possibility? How about in a furnace?† â€Å"A furnace?† Corky said. â€Å"These samples were examined under an electron microscope. Even the cleanest furnace on earth would have left fuel residue all over the stone-nuclear, chemical, fossil fuel. Forget it. And how about the striations from streaking through the atmosphere? You wouldn't get those in a furnace.† Rachel had forgotten about the orientation striations on the meteorite. It did indeed appear to have fallen through the air. â€Å"How about a volcano?† she ventured. â€Å"Ejecta thrown violently from an eruption?† Corky shook his head. â€Å"The burn is far too clean.† Rachel glanced at Tolland. The oceanographer nodded. â€Å"Sorry, I've had some experience with volcanoes, both above and below water. Corky's right. Volcanic ejecta is penetrated by dozens of toxins-carbon dioxide, sulfur dioxide, hydrogen sulfide, hydrochloric acid-all of which would have been detected in our electronic scans. That fusion crust, whether we like it or not, is the result of a clean atmospheric friction burn.† Rachel sighed, looking back out the window. A clean burn. The phrase stuck with her. She turned back to Tolland. â€Å"What do you mean by a clean burn?† He shrugged. â€Å"Simply that under an electron microscope, we see no remnants of fuel elements, so we know heating was caused by kinetic energy and friction, rather than chemical or nuclear ingredients.† â€Å"If you didn't find any foreign fuel elements, what did you find? Specifically, what was the composition of the fusion crust?† â€Å"We found,† Corky said, â€Å"exactly what we expected to find. Pure atmospheric elements. Nitrogen, oxygen, hydrogen. No petroleums. No sulfurs. No volcanic acids. Nothing peculiar. All the stuff we see when meteorites fall through the atmosphere.† Rachel leaned back in her seat, her thoughts focusing now.

Joy Luck Club2 essays

Joy Luck Club2 essays The Joy Luck Club, Amy Tan, 1989, Chinese A. Jing-Mei (June) Woo. June is rebellious in nature, always swimming against her mothers dreams for her, not because they were harmful dreams but because she felt she could never live up to them, and she didnt because she thought she couldnt. Her mothers death has brought her face to face with questions about herself, her mother, and both their identities. B. Suyuan Woo. Like any mother Suyuan wanted her daughter to be the best she could be. She pushed her, to make her proud of herself, to give that one child what the two that were swallowed by her past could not. A. An-Mei Hsu. She is a strong woman, whose strength came form her mothers sacrifice. She wishes her daughter to be strong as well, to break with the Chinese role of swallowing ones own tears, and sorrows. B. Rose Hsu Jordan. A character drowned in vacillation, Rose has given her life to a dominating husband, until that husband leaves her. This is when after all the confusion in her heart clears and she finds the strength, the voice her mother intended her to have. C. Lindo Jong. Lindo is a brave cunning woman who found a way to change her fate, tied to an undesired husband. As a mother she is controlling if not somewhat possessive, she only wishes the best of both worlds for her daughter, American and Chinese. D. Waverly Place Jong. Waverlys character is intelligent, calculating yet fragile. She could outsmart any chess opponent and stubbornly believed it was all her merit yet the instant her mother no longer demonstrated how proud she made her, she became weak. Independence from her mothers feelings and actions seems to be her largest desire but she cant, and maybe she shouldnt fight so hard and realize her mother is not her opponent. E. Ying-Yin St. Clair. Ying-Yin is a dismal character. Scared from her first marriage, empty because her spirit, her joy has fled her b...

Free Online Computer Courses for Adults

Free Online Computer Courses for Adults Whether you are new to the computer or just want to brush up on your skills, you can find a free course online to meet your needs. Working through tutorials is a great way to practice computer skills you can use every day at home or at work. Entry-Level Courses There are numerous computer classes designed for beginners; they cover a variety of topics, from email and web browsing to word processing and graphic design. GCFLearnFree:  This treasure trove of free classes is designed for all computer owners, whether youre a PC, Mac, or Linux fan. Free classes cover basic skills, email, internet browsing, and Mac and Windows basics. For more advanced users, free classes in social media, cloud storage, image editing, and mobile devices bring you up to date with the most recent hardware and software.ALISON:  ALISON ABC IT is a free online information technology  course that teaches everyday computing as it relates to work and life. The course focuses on Microsoft Office  applications and touch typing. Topics include computer software and hardware, file management, IT safety, email, and word processing. The program takes 15 to 20 hours to complete. A score of 80 percent or more in each of the course assessments qualifies you for a self-certification from ALISON.Home Learn: All the free online tutorials at the Home Learn site are aimed at complete beginners. You dont need any experience to get st arted. Tutorials cover Windows XP, Windows 7, and Windows 10. Several courses cover dealing with spyware. The beginners guide to going wireless addresses the basics, including routers, what you need to buy to go wireless, and safety. Outlook Express is the subject of 10 tutorials. Free-ed: Offers a  collection  of free e-books, courses, and tutorials on computer programming, operating systems, database operations, web scripting, and design, networking, communications, game design, animation, and virtual reality.Meganga: Provides free basic computer training for beginners and seniors.  The video tutorials cover computer basics, Windows, troubleshooting, Word, Outlook, and other topics.CT Distance Learning Consortium: The CTDLC offers a free four-module tutorial that covers computer skills, email, word processing, and web browsing. Each of the modules is self-paced and comes with review questions so you can evaluate your progress. The computer skills module includes instruction on using a mouse, click and double-click, opening and closing files, locating saved files, and copying and pasting between files and text.Education Online for Computers.com: Offers both free and paid training. The free training includes instruction on computer software including Wor d, Excel, Access, Outlook, Powerpoint, Photoshop, Flash, and web development. Intermediate and Advanced Courses Once youve mastered the basics, you may wish to explore more advanced computer applications, including program design, data analysis, and cybersecurity. FutureLearn: Offers hundreds of free online courses from top universities and other organizations. These classes last up to several weeks each and are suitable for intermediate and advanced computer users. Topics include robotics, social media, digital accessibility, managing your identity, searching and researching, and cybersecurity.Skilledup: Offers a collection of free online computer science courses. Although some classes are self-paced, some  require weeks or months of study, just like real college courses. Among the topics covered are cryptography, compilers, program design, hardware security, fundamentals of programming, web development, web intelligence, and big data.

Answers to Questions About Restrictive and Nonrestrictive Constructions

Answers to Questions About Restrictive and Nonrestrictive Constructions Answers to Questions About Restrictive and Nonrestrictive Constructions Answers to Questions About Restrictive and Nonrestrictive Constructions By Mark Nichol The following questions from readers pertain to how to distinguish essential information from nonessential information. 1. A colleague of mine wrote, â€Å"Institutions need to be able to collect and collate data in a centralized tool, which is easily accessible and can be mined to inform data-analytics activities.† I corrected it to â€Å"Institutions need to be able to collect and collate data in a centralized tool that is easily accessible and can be mined to inform data-analytics activities,† but she disagrees with the edit. I know I’m right, but how do I explain it to her? In your revision, you have altered the sentence to reflect the writer’s interest in presenting the essential details that the centralized tool is easily accessible and is conducive to data mining. The original version of the sentence offers the details in an offhand fashion, set off as a subordinate clause rather than as part of the main clause. Both versions are grammatically valid, but only your revision conveys the emphasis the writer intends. 2. When is it right to put a comma in front of â€Å"such as†? In many of your examples, I notice that there is no specific standard to using â€Å"such as.† At times, you write it as â€Å", such as,† and at other times, you omit the comma preceding â€Å"such as.† Are there any rules to using a comma before â€Å"such as†? Precede â€Å"such as† with a comma when the phrase that includes the listed examples is not essential to the sentence, such as in â€Å"The program offers team sports, such as basketball and softball, for adults in recreational and competitive leagues.† Omit a comma before â€Å"such as† when the information is essential: â€Å"The program offers team sports such as the ones listed below for adults in both recreational and competitive leagues.† The wording in these examples is identical, but there’s a subtle difference in meaning: The commas in the first example set off the phrase â€Å"such as basketball and softball† as a parenthesis in the main clause â€Å"The program offers team sports for adults in recreational and competitive leagues,† which states that the program is exclusively for adults. The second sentence refers to a list of sports for adults in recreational and competitive leagues, implying that other team sports may be offered that are exclusively for children or are for adults or children alike or are only recreational or only competitive. 3. â€Å"In the sentence ‘Chairs that don’t have cushions are uncomfortable to sit on,’ I think which is acceptable in place of that, because chairs is a nonperson noun. I would appreciate if you let me know why that is the only correct answer.† The fact that chairs refers to a class of objects, rather than people, is irrelevant. That is not the only correct answer, but it is the best one. In American English, most careful writers employ that and which distinctly to clarify the difference in meaning between restrictively and nonrestrictively constructed sentences: â€Å"Chairs that don’t have cushions are uncomfortable to sit on† refers to a particular class of chairs: those without cushions. The implication is that many chairs are comfortable; the ones specifically referred to are a categorical exception. â€Å"Chairs, which don’t have cushions, are uncomfortable to sit on† expresses- erroneously- that all chairs are cushionless. (The phrase â€Å"which don’t have cushions† is parenthetical; it can be omitted without altering the meaning of the basic sentence: â€Å"Chairs are uncomfortable to sit on.† However, this sentence is also incorrect in its assertion.) Some writers will use which in both types of sentences: â€Å"Chairs which don’t have cushions are uncomfortable to sit on† and this is common in British English but most people (at least those in the United States) recognize that the distinctive wording helps strengthen the role of the commas in distinguishing meaning. By the way, although â€Å"Chairs, which don’t have cushions, are uncomfortable to sit on† and the abridged version, â€Å"Chairs are uncomfortable to sit on,† are logically erroneous comfortable chairs certainly do exist (though, unfortunately, I’m not sitting in one right now) a similarly constructed sentence can be valid: â€Å"Ostriches, which can’t fly, rely on their strong legs for mobility.† Conversely, because no ostriches are capable of flight, â€Å"Ostriches that can’t fly rely on their strong legs for mobility† is problematic. Want to improve your English in five minutes a day? Get a subscription and start receiving our writing tips and exercises daily! Keep learning! Browse the Grammar category, check our popular posts, or choose a related post below:Comparative Forms of AdjectivesDisappointed + Preposition150 Foreign Expressions to Inspire You

Managing responsibly in a Global Environment - Reflection Journal on Movie Review

Managing responsibly in a Global Environment - Reflection Journal on Blue Gold - Movie Review Example n that we utilize 30 billion gallons of water dailly which is 15 times more than the amount of groundwater produced invoked me on the ways I could implement to curtail my misuse of water. It invoked my sense of humanity to the point that I though ven if it won’t be in my life time when the water wars will be fought, how will humankind survive and thrive? The movie also compelled me to be overly preservative and conservative of land, water and its sources. It changed my view of use of water in agriculture,manufacturing and production of soft drinks. This is because I thought to myself if through our humankind actions 60% of the wetlands in the world have been destroyed and most of land has become deserts then the water crisi may be innevitable! Furthermore, bearing in mind that most of the 3% fresh water is polluted, where are we headed as a planet? It dawned on me that unless we did something now and fast water crisis will be here with us soon enough. After viewing the film I became aware of the way man destroys himself through greed. I could not imagine the extent to which desire for money has driven men to convert water from a public good to a commercial good for profiteering. In addition, it was more painful to learn that even the world organisations, corporations and governments which pretend or are supposed to be pro humanity are at the fore-front in causing water crisis through corruption and wierd laws.It has become even worse since water sources are being sold off as private land to individuals as opposed to being a reserve land to governments. The movie created a sense of urgency to me regarding the role I have to play to combat this crisis. This is because as it stipulates we are 50 years away from the crisis unless actions are taken.Recently, I have become vocal and action oriented towards the goal of preventing occurrence such a crisis to our future generations.In addition, I have been in full support of new technologies aimed at conserving or

Monitoring pain response in DBS patients Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words

Monitoring pain response in DBS patients - Essay Example As a result, researchers have presented several studies to determine and explain the DBS mechanism in a way that people could understand. High-frequency stimulation is the method used to minimize the tremors and seizures (Kim 2013). DBS is believed to trigger the release of neurochemical by the application of high frequency stimulation. DBS is beneficial in this filled because it helps in relief and management of pain in patients with movement disorders. However, it also presents several challenges that threaten its effective application, for example, recent and future changes in technology, attitude, as well as health risks such as brain bleeding, stroke among others (Kim 2013). This paper seeks to explore this topic by looking at literature review if the issue, recent developments and its benefits in the area of biomedical engineering. Introduction DBS is a surgical treatment whereby a neurostimulator device delivers minute electrical signals to the parts of the brain that controls movement. This occurs in three parts; first, a thin insulated wire referred to as electrode is placed into the brain. Second, a neurostimulator (pace-maker like device) is placed under the skin near the collarbone or may be placed somewhere else in the body. Lastly, an extension in the form of another thin, insulated wire connects the electrode to the neurostimulator. DBS was discovered in 1980s to relieve tremor using high frequency stimulation of certain parts of the brain. As a result, DBS replaced the traditional ablative procedures by emerging as the surgical treatment option for movement disorders such as tremors, Parkinson’s disease, tics and dystonia. The DBS system can be activated and deactivated by putting a magnet in the area of the chest with the IPG or neurostimulator. This has a small battery of a lifespan of five years, which produces the electrical pulses required for stimulation (Patterson, et al. 2007). Unlike in the traditional ablative procedures, the st imulating electrodes in DBS, which includes voltage, pulse width and frequency of stimulation, can be customized and adjusted to an individual’s needs. Further, there is rare occurrence of potential risks such as infection, stroke or hemorrhage. If side effects occur, they are reversible and include swallowing and speech difficulties, weakness, and abnormal sensations. DBS was principally used for treatment of movement disorders associated with Parkinson’s disease and essential tremor, but it has since been applied to certain nonmotor conditions and other types of movement disorders. The main goal of DBS is to relieve pain or restore function by stimulating neural activity by use of surgically implanted electrode. Literature Review Mechanism of Action Since its introduction, DBS continues to be effective in reducing dyskinesias, improving motor function and reducing symptom fluctuations brought by on-off medication effects especially in the case of Parkinson’s d isease (Maruo, et al. 2011). Success in DBS treatment depends on precise neutral targeting, careful selection of patients, and extensive individualized programming. The bottom-line is that DBS does not treat the disorders completely, but it helps in managing pain and reducing severe symptoms in Parkinson’s disease such as rigidity, tremor, slow movements, stiffness and walking problems (Burns, et al. 2007). DBS surgery has been successful in treating neuropathic pain, but the

The Hands of Poverty Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

The Hands of Poverty - Essay Example While it is true that the economy has improved the lives of many people, poverty still exists. Many networks attempts to provide the basic needs of the poor – clothing, food, shelter – but the number of people who needs assistance is still higher compared to those who are being serviced. This paper critically analyzes the essay written by Jane Addams entitled â€Å"The Hands of Poverty†. Written in 1910, during the height of industrialization, the essay provides valuable insights on the lamentable situation of many citizens of East London. In this essay, Addams talks about her first experience in East London when she became eyewitness to the poverty afflicting Londoners. Here, she describes how everyone had to fend for themselves: how the â€Å"submerged tenth† (Addams 258) were forced to eat decaying fruits and vegetables while auctioneers had to endure the suffering of their countrymen in order to bring food to their own tables. Addams is making a point about how poverty serves to diminish humanity, because it makes people act more like animals than men. Addams’ essay had a referential purpose. Written objectively, Addams talks about the two faces of East London, one which is seen by tourists like herself, and the other one which is experienced by the city’s residents. ... The secondary purpose for this essay was expressive. The writer hoped to show how much the scene has affected her. Perhaps, it was also a way for her to explain why she did what she did in later life. Addams went on to become a social activist (Knight) and has often referred back to this experience in her other works (Bettis). Addams went on to describe her experience in the city and how it created an impact on her life. Her use of first person pronouns made the essay more personal. This essay was also used an evaluation pattern. She related her own judgement of the scene she wrote about. Though she did not explicitly say that she â€Å"hated† what she saw, she used words like â€Å"wretchedness of East London† to depict her disdain at the scene unfolding before her. This pattern combined with the secondary pattern described below gave information to the reader, and at the same time allowed the reader to experience the same emotions and convictions as the writer. Moreov er, the essay also had descriptive pattern because of her choices for words she used the word â€Å"clamoring† to describe how these bidders were shouting just to get their hands on a cheap piece of vegetable or fruit which is the only thing they could purchase with the money they had. To show how hungry these people were she described a winner of a bid who â€Å"tore [the cabbage] with his teeth, and hastily devoured it, unwashed and uncooked† (Addams 257). Addams used strong words to describe the scene, and in effect, she transported the reader to the same instant that she witnessed, giving the reader the same feeling of contempt for the prevailing system of poverty and hunger. In the latter part of

TOPIC FROM PERSONAL EXPERIENCE MUST BE FIRST HAND EXPIERENCE WRITTEN Essay - 1

TOPIC FROM PERSONAL EXPERIENCE MUST BE FIRST HAND EXPIERENCE WRITTEN IN OWN OWRDS USING THE PRONOUN I - Essay Example I happen to have a very good handwriting, too bad it never helped me in getting good grades when it came to Algebra. I looked around to see a whole lot of people were busy talking and laughing. Some were hard at work and some were simply copying stuff from the others. Thinking that I should also get to work now, I turned my attention to the textbook. I turned the book few pages back to look up some pointers on cyclic equations. Sitting right behind me, Kimberly and Amy were comparing notes about how to best avoid split ends in hair. I tugged at my ponytail, groaning inwardly at their frizzy texture. Suddenly, I realized I had been staring at the same page for past ten minutes, contemplating uselessly on hair care. Bracing myself, I got back to work and resolved not to get distracted again. To my surprise, the first few steps of the problem went well but halfway through I found myself stuck again. Mike, from the other row, chose the moment to disrupt the class with his famous imitation of buzzing bees. Fuming inwardly, I tried to concentrate but to no avail. I ended up spending another five minutes making tiny flowers around the page number and a face right above the Exercise heading. â€Å"This looks better now†, I thought looking at the page number. I looked around to find a completely engrossed Hannah, sitting next to me, had solved the problem and was already jotting down the next one. I felt the usual wave of frustration building up inside me at the difficult nature of this subject. Irritated with my lack of concentration, I compared my work with Hannah’s and learnt that the reason I was stuck with very wrong looking values was because I had made a few dumb mistakes. Taking the lead from her, I set about correcting my work. I was confident that I will be able to solve it then. Hannah was kind enough to explain the equation functions to me. Patiently bearing my occasional spacing out due to noise distractions in

Religion and Health Care in a Secular Society Essay

Religion and Health Care in a Secular Society - Essay Example This paper approves that Islam is a religion that was founded by Mohammad in the 7th century AD. Mohammad claimed to be from a long line of prophets including Jesus, Moses, Abraham and many others who were monotheist prophets sent into humanity by the creator God who had also been known as the Father, Allah, and Elohim etc at different times in recorded human history. Mohammad claimed that he was the recipient of Divine revelations which are recorded in the Qur ’an. Mohammad also claimed that he was to be the last in the line of prophets sent to humanity by God to present the final universal law for humanity for all times. Although Mohammad claimed that the previous prophets including Jesus and Moses were equally true in presenting the message of God to humanity, the previous message had been corrupted and lost by their followers. Thi essay makes a conclusion that a secular society has to cater for a lot of minorities and the diversity which is inherent in its midst. The job and the calling of a nurse, a health worker or a policy maker are to provide comfort, cure and the elimination of suffering. Religion has a spiritual dimension and most individuals belonging to a religious framework can be identified with the spirituality that is associated with the religious framework. The sick or the dying have to be treated as far as possible with respect to their spirituality and values so that they can be comfortable. A secular system and the individual should try to do just this within the limits imposed by resources and the physical limitations of the human body.

Herbert Henry Asquith Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Herbert Henry Asquith - Essay Example As Prime Minister Asquith worked closely with his successor as Chancellor of the Exchequer, David Lloyd George to push through the Liberal social reform policies. The People’s Budget of 1909 had shown the government’s reforming credentials yet forced two general elections during 1910 (James, 2003 p. 88). Asquith had not had an easy time as Prime Minister yet had previously maintained the loyalty of the Liberal Party through the various problems faced before his replacement by Lloyd George. The Liberal government had been through enough traumas before the First World War. Disruption was caused through the issues of reducing the power of the House of Lords, dealing with industrial unrest, and votes for women, although the war itself put those issues and the more controversial moves towards Irish home rule on hold for the duration (Schama, 2002 p. 433). Although David Lloyd George was known to be ambitious, he had not from the outset of the First World War planned to oust Asquith and become Prime Minister himself. At the start of the conflict, Asquith and Lloyd George had been united as to Britain’s war aims and that Asquith was the best available Prime Minister. Neither man, for instance, had thought about making peace with Germany, instead of waiting for the outcome of the Somme offensive in 1916 (Stevenson, 2004 p. 148). In the source Stevenson argues that Lloyd George wished to become Prime Minister to help the nation win the war, to add a sense of urgency in the solving of political, military, and economic obstacles that were preventing British victory. Lloyd George’s ambitions are played down whilst the stubbornness of Asquith in refusing to step down is stressed. Asquith was assumed to be selfishly holding on to power to the detriment of the Liberal party’s future and British national interests (Taylor, p . 128).

Religion and Health Care in a Secular Society Essay

Religion and Health Care in a Secular Society - Essay Example This paper approves that Islam is a religion that was founded by Mohammad in the 7th century AD. Mohammad claimed to be from a long line of prophets including Jesus, Moses, Abraham and many others who were monotheist prophets sent into humanity by the creator God who had also been known as the Father, Allah, and Elohim etc at different times in recorded human history. Mohammad claimed that he was the recipient of Divine revelations which are recorded in the Qur ’an. Mohammad also claimed that he was to be the last in the line of prophets sent to humanity by God to present the final universal law for humanity for all times. Although Mohammad claimed that the previous prophets including Jesus and Moses were equally true in presenting the message of God to humanity, the previous message had been corrupted and lost by their followers. Thi essay makes a conclusion that a secular society has to cater for a lot of minorities and the diversity which is inherent in its midst. The job and the calling of a nurse, a health worker or a policy maker are to provide comfort, cure and the elimination of suffering. Religion has a spiritual dimension and most individuals belonging to a religious framework can be identified with the spirituality that is associated with the religious framework. The sick or the dying have to be treated as far as possible with respect to their spirituality and values so that they can be comfortable. A secular system and the individual should try to do just this within the limits imposed by resources and the physical limitations of the human body.

The novel & Frankenstein Essay Example for Free

The novel Frankenstein Essay How does Shelley create sympathy for the Monster, as well as for Victor Frankenstein, in the novel, Frankenstein? Mary Wollstonecraft Shelley, born 30th August 1797 was the anonymous writer who was idolised over due to her novel, Frankenstein. She was a literary icon in the romanticism era in the early 1800s. The globally famous novel was published in 1818 when Shelly was at the age of 21. Shelley decided to submit her novel anonymously as in that stage in history women were not taken seriously in society and were victims of sexist and prejudiced movements. The novel was originally a ghost story in which she wrote while being overwhelmed by a series of calamities in her life; the worst of these were the suicide of her half-sister, Fanny Imlay. Frankenstein is considered to be the greatest gothic romantic novel in history and also thought of as the first science fiction novel. Gothic horror was a common genre of use in the time Frankenstein was written. This was a time of great novels such as Dracula and Hound of the Baskervilles. Gothic horror is traditionally set in dark castles and countryside with eerie moaning music and bad weather. Written in 1818, Frankenstein is the deeply disturbing tale of a monstrous unnamed creation that was created in the name of science. Huge and strong, the creature, created by Victor Frankenstein kills and murders many throughout the tale, but considering his tragic beginnings, I must ask, who is the real monster in this gothic tale of horror? Frankenstein is cleverly written in two parts. The first part of the book is narrated from Frankensteins point of view as he relates his story to a ships captain. The second part of the story is the monster telling Victor how he came to find him and what had happened to him since he was abandoned. This technique cleverly allows the reader to see both sides of the story and judge who the real monster is. In chapter five of Mary Shelleys Frankenstein, the creature is given life. The opening paragraph makes excellent use of pathetic fallacy, using the weather to set the scene. The first lines of the chapter, it was a dreary night in November, and the rain pattered dismally against the windowpanes, make obvious use of traditional gothic horror scenery.

Evaluating Supply Chain Management in the Volkswagon Brazil resende

Evaluating Supply Chain Management in the Volkswagon Brazil resende The RESENDE factory of Volkswagen company in BRAZIL brought revolution in the automobile industry around the globe the factory has totally unique supply chain model and was first of its kind. The resend plant was also known as the rebirth of Volkswagen company as after the Auto Latina was ended between Volkswagen and ford as Volkswagen company has no factory to manufacture its trucks and buses so resend was built in Brazil in 1995. The Volkswagen has around 400 suppliers who use to supply different spare parts for the manufacturing of trucks and buses the Brazilian market was famous for Volkswagen trucks and buses, Volkswagen company cut their suppliers to 8 and then had contracts with them, the whole theme of Resende factory was a Modular consortium, the eight suppliers would be coming in with the supplies and then fixing that is assembling it up, it was like a mini shops they own inside the factory that is they were the producer and as well as the assembling was done by them, this model was very new to supply chain that was implemented there, no worker of Volkswagen company was there except the quality control as it is one of the important factor to check. The supply chain model helped them to cut their labor cost and give them advantage to sell their buses n trucks at lower price that how they made their customers and the competitors were not able to lower their prices as they were manufacturing the parts as well as assembling them the good thing about Volkswagen Resende plant was that they were hiring labor at cheap costs which helped them to cut their cost. Just as the factory started operating the most important person was forced to leave the organization as the Jos Ignacio Lpez de Arriorta was working with gm and left gm joined Volkswagen. As when they started with the resend factory the claim did by Volkswagen was lawfully accepted ant Volkswagen paid a good amount for it as gm had did the claim that lopes left gm with some important documents missing a nd data as they said he spy us and the resend factory was more like their idea which Jos Ignacio Lpez de Arriorta started their so just at the beginning the big question mark was with this factory, more over Jos Ignacio Lpez de Arriorta was forced to resign and had left the company leaving the post of operation management which was a loss to the factory and have the big importance to the resend factory. VWs supply chain strategy according to Michael Porters strategic framework: The Resende factory of Volkswagen company known as the rebirth of Volkswagen company established in Brazil known as modular consortium was very unique in sense of supply chain as totally new frame work was being applied to it as it was a junction where all suppliers of different companies come and make up the whole product (trucks and buses) that is they work in a way that there were different suppliers who were bringing up the parts of trucks and assembling them up that is suppliers were also the labors and was responsible for the production as well as assembling the trucks and buses they come and work in the factory. Discussing about supply chain model used by Volkswagen company in their Resende factory was a totally new supply chain strategy and if we talk about it in the light of Michale Porter ¿Ã‚ ½s strategic frame work it would be as follows: The threat of the entry of new competitors: The Resende factory of Volkswagen company was the first one in entire automobile industry having this kind of supply chain model that is a modular consortium model. The main point of attraction to the automobile world was the management of operations in the plant as the plant was first of its type more over one can take it as an experiment so at that point of time the threat of a new competitor to enter was up to 0%. As the concept has bring revolution in the traditional supply chain strategies in automobile industry so at the beginning the competitor was not at all the threat but the execution of the supply chain model could create threats as just at the beginning the company ¿Ã‚ ½s operation manger left so the competitors are always looking for something which they can use as an advantage to its competitor. The intensity of competitive rivalry: The intensity of competitive rivalry was there in the form of General Motor for Volkswagen Company because of their lawsuit. the operation manger Jos ¿Ã‚ ½ Ignacio L ¿Ã‚ ½pez de Arriort ¿Ã‚ ½a left so at that time things become difficult for them but Volkswagen mange it efficiently moreover the suppliers which was the main theme of this Resende factory the modular consortium was all about the supplier which was cut down to eight from four hundred they have to be a good and strong bonding with them as if any one of them left the trucks and buses would be hard to finish as the company has no plant to produce the products after their joint venture with ford ended so the suppliers were very important to Volkswagen. The another competitive advantage competitors of Volkswagen had was that the suppliers with Volkswagen was due to the relationship of Jos ¿Ã‚ ½ Ignacio L ¿Ã‚ ½pez de Arriort ¿Ã‚ ½a as in general motor he was the director of Latin America state so he use his referen ce in Volkswagen company so he was forced to resign from the company the suppliers can also leave but fortunately this never happened and the Resende factory known as rebirth to Volkswagen give a new life to Volkswagen company indeed. The threat of substitute products or services: The threat of substitute was there in Brazil as it was the largest market of all and Volkswagen company ¿Ã‚ ½s the Resende factory was a totally new thing in the industry of automobile industry more over the supply chain strategy they used was the first to be used in any factory the unique idea they applied worked for them as they didn ¿Ã‚ ½t had any employee of Volkswagen company to work in the plant it was totally outsourced plant as the suppliers was also the labor not only responsible for supplying the parts more over fixing them up as it was a solely new strategy of supply chain implemented by the Volkswagen company. The only people by Volkswagen company were the quality control departments they were responsible to give the perfect quality so that their trucks and buses be the strength to the company not the strength of the competitor this model of supply chain worked and helped Volkswagen to cut its labor cost which help them to lower their prices compared to its competitor s so the threat of a substitute was around 0% as the competitors were manufacturing their trucks and they cannot lower their prices so Volkswagen company was going good. The bargaining power of customers (buyers): The Resende factory of the Volkswagen company was a revolutionary factory for the world the plant was using a supply chain strategy that really help them in generating revenue as they cut their suppliers from 400 to 8 and they were the suppliers as well as the assemblers for the trucks and buses and if any part for not perfectly fitted or had a problem the loss would be barred by the supplier the Volkswagen company were generating revenues out of the supply chain strategy they have implemented in the plant moreover if we talk about the barging power of the customers we can say that the factory was saving a lot to Volkswagen company as their cost have lower down a lot so they can give the trucks and buses at lower cost which was the thing that its competitors cannot compete as they were making up the product by themselves and buyers were getting advantage for it they don ¿Ã‚ ½t need to bargain as the trucks and buses were already at lower costs. The customer were getting at good adv antage on buying Volkswagen trucks and buses so the bargaining power of the buyer didn ¿Ã‚ ½t affect much on the Volkswagen company. The bargaining power of suppliers: As they cut down their suppliers from four hundred to eight the suppliers working with them in the Resende factory would be having good relations with the Volkswagen company and more over they would be having some advantages to be the part of the Resende factory as they were suppose to produce the parts and assemble them up for Volkswagen company so there would be some interest of their also as they were the part of the Resende factory and making up the trucks and buses for Volkswagen company and that was giving a benefit on cost to the Volkswagen so their trucks and buses were less in cost compared to other companies in the Brazilian market, Volkswagen company had planned about it, as they were dealing with a good number of suppliers and above all they don ¿Ã‚ ½t own any plant for making the parts of the truck as they were totally out sourcing them and the operations as well as the assembling were done by the suppliers, they have been critises by one of the worker on just outsourc ing everything, therefore they have to be very good at it and have to implement the supply chain strategy very well more over there were no employee of Volkswagen company working there, so everyone working there under one roof would be wearing same uniform having same salary packages and more over they don ¿Ã‚ ½t want any labor union to be made up as they were catering the whole of brazil and the trucks were very famous around brazil. Analyze the ways in which VW could employ technology across the different supply chain processes. As the Resende factory of Volkswagen was something really innovative and more unique was the supply chain model implemented on the factory which was assembling of the trucks as well as the production was the duty of the suppliers, Jos ¿Ã‚ ½ Ignacio L ¿Ã‚ ½pez de Arriort ¿Ã‚ ½a designed it in such a way that no labor cost was to be incurred from Volkswagen company as there were no Volkswagen workers involved in the factory except the quality control supervisors as the suppliers were bounded for putting up the parts of trucks and buses the factory is producing the technology they used or we can say that the supply chain strategy they implies in this factory was really working for them as they have cut their cost in sense of labor cost more over the assembling was no more there issue as now it was the problem of the suppliers. The Volkswagen company c use to hire the labor through lowest bidder and the new technology was working so good that they planned to apply this strategy of supply chain to their other factories in different parts of world and the benefit from this supply chain strategy is for the developing countries as they can use the idea the modular consortium as it is the game of suppliers who are producing as well as assembling the trucks and busses for them and Volkswagen company is decreasing its labor cost at good. The main idea was like the contractors which were suppliers was totally responsible for making up the part which is required and fixing it perfectly as if the part fitted or purchased not sit right than the company which was responsible for putting the part bare the loss the Volkswagen company were really generating revenues with the factory, in the factory there were around eight suppliers who were operating there mini shops in the factory the company was able to get supplies in low rates so they can sell the busses and trucks at low price and attract the customers towards them and the other competitors of Volkswagen company was no t able to compete as they were producing everything by them self which was hard for them to cut the costs and therefore cant lower the prices and that helped Volkswagen company to generate their revenues, and this supply chain strategy was a success for Volkswagen. Evaluate current global supply chain challenges to this VW supply chain model. Global Supply Chain Challenges: At the Resende plant of Volkswagen totally new model of supply chain was implemented which was a risk because the Resende factory was first in nature to its own moreover it was more important to Volkswagen as it was a rebirth to the Volkswagen company as their Auto Latina was ended so their factory at Brazil that is Resende was the only hope as they did not had any factory to produce trucks and buses, the supply chain model was a totally new idea in the industry of auto mobile  ¿Ã‚ ½Modular consortium ¿Ã‚ ½ just at the starting it faced a challenge to its survival in the form of its operation manger Jos ¿Ã‚ ½ Ignacio L ¿Ã‚ ½pez de Arriort ¿Ã‚ ½a left because of some lawsuit between Volkswagen and General Motors. Just in time inventory. various supply chain strategies can help a business minimize their costs and focus on their main business that is there core competencies and more over it cut the time waste on waiting for the suppliers and sometimes not perfect supplies can make company suffers a lot and bear losses moreover they can take away your customers from you, can give the competitive advantage to the other company that is your competitor. There are several strategies for supply chain practiced by many organizations. More over there are several global supply chain challenges. The first challenge to the resend factory was to stand having totally new model of supply chain as the modular consortium was about the suppliers would be working as the labor in the factory no Volkswagen employee would be there and they were suppose to perform the activity of suppliers as well as labor for the company this method reduce the cost of labor to the Volkswagen company moreover manufacturing all the parts were more costly than to just buy them up. As the world is moving so rapidly technology is changing with respect to time so as the new threats are there supply chain has a good growth in coming future as many industries working around the world is not making up all its products there are things they supply and get supplies to make up their end product which plays an important role in the companies having their branches all around world have to look for suppliers and the supplies they would be getting should not increase their cost or reduce their core competence as the competition is very tough so therefore the supply cost should not exceed as your revenue decrease. As the VW supply chain model was based on suppliers as if they lose any of the supplier their truck was impossible to construct as they them self was not producing to that scale as it was just like a junction where different suppliers were bringing up the part they manufacture and assembling them which helped VW to cut their cost more over to sell their trucks and buses at low rates as compared to its competitors VW was facing some supply chain challenges as they were supplying all the parts and the suppliers were responsible for fixing them moreover in case of damage they have to bear it if any there were no blue collar worker of VW at the factory except quality control as it was a point at which its competitor can have advantage so the whole idea was a supply chain game. Economic challenges was their more over in case of natural disaster they were the one who have to faced it all as the factory was not producing anything so it was a challenge to maintain a good relations with their suppliers so they don ¿Ã‚ ½t stand against them. CONCLUSION: the supply chain model faced difficulties in the starting as the main operation manager Jos ¿Ã‚ ½ Ignacio L ¿Ã‚ ½pez de Arriort ¿Ã‚ ½a was forced to leave the company because General Motor claims that Jos ¿Ã‚ ½ Ignacio L ¿Ã‚ ½pez de Arriort ¿Ã‚ ½a has left the organization with some very important documents more over the resend factory was somewhat similar to a new project general motor was working so Jos ¿Ã‚ ½ Ignacio L ¿Ã‚ ½pez de Arriort ¿Ã‚ ½a was forced to leave the company, just at the beginning the Resende factory faced a loss but the supply chain model fits right and Volkswagen generated good revenue out of it and give out its trucks and buses at low cost compared to other automobile companies in brazil as the model helped them to cut their labor cost out of all the conflicts and issues the Resende faced it was a success at the end and the rebirth of Volkswagen succeeded.

Howard Dean for President :: Politics Political Essays

Howard Dean for President As more and more polls and data seem to indicate the Howard Dean will be the Democratic nominee for president next year (barring a last minute entry by Hillary Clinton) more and more pundits are pulling out their history books to find comparisons to the front-runner. Most point to Dean as an old-school liberal, in the vain of men such as George McGovern, Lyndon Johnson, and Jimmy Carter. An advocate of increased taxes and bigger government, one can find his photo in the dictionary under â€Å"tax and spend liberal†. But while Dean is a member of the Old Left, his entrance in the 2004 presidential election bears stronger to the rise of Barry Goldwater than Michael Dukakis. Dean has been catapulted onto the scene through the efforts of the hard left, anti-war, Bush-hating liberal Democrats which turned out for him in an early summer Internet primary, and won it for him. In 1964, conservative Arizona Senator Barry Goldwater was given the Republican nod for president through the intensive efforts of right-wing grassroots groups like the Young Republicans and Young Americans for Freedom. Like Dean, his critics charged that he was â€Å"unelectable† for his extreme views, and they were proven right when Lyndon Johnson trounced him in the greatest landslide ever. The lesson to be learned from all this is not that the Bush/Rove team can let down their guard in 2004, but that Republicans need to realize, when Dean loses, that it is not the end of the fight. After the 1964 election most pundits declared that extremism was dead, and that all presidential elections would be fought between two moderates. Yet in 1980, Ronald Reagan swept into office on an equally conservative platform. How’d he do it? By using the grassroots forces left in place by Goldwater while presenting himself as a less acidic candidate who would invigorate a stagnant American dream. In 2008 Hillary Clinton will attempt to repeat the success of Ronald Reagan by using the grassroots left behind by Howard Dean while de-emphasizing her own Bush-hating.

Impressions of America :: History

Impressions of America I have been in this country for almost three months now. One of the biggest challenges is getting along peacefully with the native population. To Americans one of the most important things is to make sure that no one gets insulted or hurt and that everyone is heard. Some would go to the extent of not revealing their true opinion, in order to avoid confrontation. In some group discussion decisions, if reached at all, are made after making long, tedious conversation about the topic at hand. While there are some merits to this kind of behavior, other aspects of interpersonal aspects are lost, such as frankness and being open to one another. Sitting among other international students enhances these observations by listening to the so-called â€Å"outsiders† talk amongst themselves. On one occasion a fellow student tried to explain something to his friend from another foreign country that he had different opinions from him on a certain subject, talking and describing the matter and â€Å"beating around the bush† as they say, when all of a sudden the listener said,† Just say what you think – don’t be an American.† I was amazed that someone noticed or thought the same way I did. Being misunderstood is one of the most common feelings I’ve felt since arriving at J.F.K. Airport. People being insulted or puzzled next to me is a pretty common site and a thing I’ve gotten use to, maybe due to my cynicism or the lack of interest in what other people think about me, a thing that is inconceivable by most Americans that I have gotten to meet. Local manners â€Å"state† that if another person did not take a liking to what you said or did then you must take that into consideration and try to avoid saying or doing that again. This is something that is very polite and considerate but steels away our individuality and personality and at times takes away the ability to really know the person next to you in class or at work. The people I encountered here are diverse and intelligent and by majority, opened to new ideas and way of thought. One of the most frequent questions I am asked is, â€Å"Are you planning to stay here after school?† Or, â€Å"Do you like it here?† These are questions that show interest in me and my future but at times are also implying a certain fear or distrust of foreigners.

Globalization itself Essay

Globalization is not value free; rather, the pressures to conform to universal standards of conduct and competitive performance force organizations and individuals to assimilate new values, which may be in conflict with local cultural values and practices. This requires the individuals, organizations, and nations to build the necessary mind-set, competencies, capabilities, and capacities to manage the transformations associated with globalization. Globalization is founded on competitiveness. To remain competitive, actors must â€Å"continue to innovate† (Anton, 1995). Innovations are based on advancements in science, technology, and commercialization. It is, therefore, logical to add to the center the institutional actors involved in promoting science, technology, and innovation. This includes universities, research laboratories, startups, entrepreneurs, knowledge workers, venture capitalists, management experts, consulting firms, stock markets, shareholders, and corporate directors. The United States currently leads the world in investing in science, technology, and innovations and remains the most dominant actor at the center. A key lesson we learn from these experts is that globalization can and must be managed. Since globalization affects all nations, governments, businesses, communities, and individuals, the best we can do is fight back or respond in kind in order to take advantage of its opportunities and to minimize its potential adverse consequences. This requires a â€Å"strategic approach to globalization† (Fischer, 2000). Nations, governments, businesses, institutions, communities, and individuals should not see themselves as helpless victims of globalization; rather, they should actively take the initiative to understand the nature of globalization, its causes, and its consequences on the ground; assess their own opportunities, strengths, and limitations; and develop realistic goals and a plan of action for managing globalization. It is not easy, and there are no guarantees or shortcuts, but the strategic approach is better than isolation or surrender. Doing it in partnership with others increases the chances of success and mitigates against some of the negative consequences. The management literature is rich with descriptive materials on how businesses can become globally strategic and competitive in the twenty-first century. (Hirst, 1999) Nations, government institutions, communities, and individuals can draw on this body of knowledge to develop their own tailor-made strategic directions and action plans for managing globalization. In its 1999 Human Development Report on globalization with a human face, the United Nations Development Program (UNDP), one of the U. N. specialized agencies doing extensive work in developing countries, provides a framework and guidelines for managing globalization. Recognizing that globalization is characterized by new markets, new tools, new actors, and new rules, the report challenges governments and the international community to find rules and institutions for stronger governance at the local, national, regional, and global levels. Globalization is multidimensional and, therefore, means different things to different people across time and space. Globalization is about transformational change with intended and unintended adverse effects. Since its dynamics and consequences are not fully predictable, some of its aspects may be emphasized or deemphasized at different times for different regions, countries, or societies. (Friedman, 2000) Yet, because the key drivers of globalization come from industrialized countries, individual developing countries have no realistic option but to participate in the globalization process. Many people are openly opposed to globalization: the concept, its practice, and its consequences. This is in spite of its actual and potential benefits to both rich and poor countries. This opposition, if left unchecked, threatens to push the world back to the dark days of protectionism and closed societies reminiscent of the Cold War. Many world leaders have, at one time or another, expressed doubt, apprehension, qualified support, or outright opposition to globalization and have questioned its moral justification. However, Globalization can be and in most cases has been, good for cultural diversity and development. By contributing to â€Å"liberalization, rising incomes, increased use of technology, better education, and global migration,† (Prakash & Hart, 1997) globalization helps to create multiple environments in support of cultural and interactive diversity. It allows people to experiment with alternative models of development, while at the same time borrowing ideas and practices from other cultures and institutions. It provides people with the opportunity to enjoy freedom for their own culture and, at the same time, be exposed to other cultures. It allows weaker and smaller cultures to coexist alongside the big and powerful cultures. It allows minor or provincial languages and remote cultures to connect with other cultures. As it presently exists in the world today, globalization is an asymmetrical and imperfect system. To be committed to globalization is to understand its lack of symmetry among the players and its inherent imperfections. Therefore, globalizing countries, governments, businesses, institutions, and communities must commit themselves to work toward its improvement. For developing countries, this means, among other things, not to promote globalization as a â€Å"panacea for all problems,† (Micklethwait, 2000) but to build the necessary institutional capacities and competencies for the defense and improvement of globalization for the greater benefit of all citizens. Resources Anton, D. J. 1995. Diversity, Globalization, and the Way of Nature. Ottawa: International Development Research Centre, 1995. Fischer, T. C. 2000. The United States, the European Union, and â€Å"Globalization† of World Trade: Allies or Adversaries? Westport, CT: Quorum. Hirst, P. , and G. Thompson. 1999. Questioning Globalization: The International Economy and the Possibilities of Governance. Cambridge: Polity Press. Friedman, T. L. 2000. The Lexus and the Olive Tree: Understanding Globalization. New York: Anchor Books. Prakash, A. , and J. A. Hart. 1997. Globalization and Governance. London: Routledge. Micklethwait, J. , and A. Wooldridge. 2000. A Future Perfect: The Challenge and Hidden Promise of Globalization. New York: Random House.

Motivation vs Psychological Contract

During the history people’s expectations and needs have been changing. They depends inter alia on actual situation on the market and current necessities of life. The economy climate is also important in creating people’s performance. People will make a good performance at work when their situation is certain. Poor performance will be made when situation is unstable. One of the key issues connected with the employee performance is motivation. Without well-motivated employees enterprise cannot exist on the market for a long time. Employees are very important part of the company, because thanks to them it can perform properly and fulfill its goals and assumptions. Unmotivated employees will not make their job with proper involvement and commitment, so their performance will be contrary to expectations of an employer. One of the biggest challenge for an employer is to motivate its employees to perform on the required level. Nowadays, it is not easy thing to do. Different types of employees have different expectations and things which motivate them. Different authors created motivation theories, but most of them was created in the last century. Great influence over people has also a psychological contract between them and their organization. Motivation theories and the psychological contract are the most powerful tools to motivate people, when they are used in the right context. Person is motivated when he knows what he wants to do to achieve specific goal. Motivation covers all factors which makes person to act from positive, like money, to negative, like fear of defeat. Motivation factors are different for each individual person. They are changing because of age, sex, position in society, education, level of skills, knowledge and circumstances. Also support from the managers and leaders has a significant meaning. Unmotivated manager cannot lead people to good performance. Organizational background and surrounding environment should be motivating. When managers knows employee’s needs, demands and expectations they are able to treat one as an individual and have specific approach depending on person’s character and attitude. Managers cannot forget about person’s development and setting realistic and challenging targets. Important in keeping positive motivation is also reward for a good job performance. People like to be awarded and that keeps them self-motivated on a high level (Adair 2006). â€Å"Motivation is an important part both in an individual’s and in a company’s performance. Even very well trained and very able employee will not perform well unless motivated. Higher motivation does not always result in a direct increase in productivity, because, in many jobs, productivity is limited by other people or by the pace of machine†(Robertson 1992:137). The motivation theories fall into two groups content and process theories. â€Å"First of them explain why people behave in a particular way in terms of those individuals’ pursuits of need fulfillment. Content theories attempt to determine the specific needs that motivate individuals†(Gallagher 1997). A group of the content theories includes theories of McGregor, Herzberg and McClelland. Process theories are those of, for example, Vroom’s, Adams’, Hackman’s and Oldham’s. Theory X and Theory Y created by McGregor assumed there are two kinds of people. In Theory X people are lazy, unambitious and want to avoid responsibility. Employees are against the system and represent defensive attitude. Very high level of supervising is required otherwise people will perform very poor. Theory Y says that work is in a human nature and it is able to provide enjoyment and self-fulfillment. Managers have just to make a positive climate for personal development and minimize supervision. Thanks to this people will feel self-reliance, confident and self-actualized (Tyson 1993:11). Herzberg was researching factors which have influence over people’s feelings about work. Those factors brings out satisfaction or dissatisfaction: achievement, recognition from others, the work itself, responsibility, opportunities for advancement, company policy and administration, supervision, salary, interpersonal relations, working conditions. He recognized two groups of factors satisfying needs. First one are external (hygiene) factors that cause unhappiness and dissatisfaction. They have to be present to avoid dissatisfaction, but by themselves they do not provide satisfaction. Managers need to provide intrinsic factors to keep employees happy with their job. He claimed that employee abilities should be fully used otherwise he will not be well motivated (Thomson 2003). „How Herzberg theory applies to XXXX employees. Management at XXXX understands that hygiene factors can potentially cause dissatisfaction among their employees, which in turn can lead to the loss of productivity and profitability. Therefore, they gave their employees Herzberg's theory assessment. With these results, the company is able to provide competitive pay and bonuses that can motivate employees to work harder XXXX believes that rewarding hard working employees satisfies the motivating factor of job security. The company confirms this with pay incentives. Moreover, Management realizes that work conditions could play an integral part of their business success, not only for their employees, but for their customers as well. In addition to the brand new facilities, they also use state of the art cleaning materials that clean and make any surface resistant to dirt and decay. It is the goal of XXXX to maintain job satisfaction from all of its employees by increasing motivators and decreasing hygiene factors by constantly evaluating themselves through their employees† (Hunter 2007). McClelland’s research has identified three basic categories motivating needs, power, affiliation and achievement, into which people could be grouped, according to which need appears to be the main motivator in their lives. Those most interested in positions seek position of control and influence; those from whom affiliation is most important seek pleasant relationships and enjoy helping others; achieveme nt seekers want success, fear failure, are task-oriented and self-reliant. The implications of the theory in practice are that managers can identify employees who are self-motivated, those who rely more on internal incentives and those who could increase their achievement drive through training† (Tyson 1993:10). Vroom’s theory has three basics elements: expectancy, instrumentality and valence. Expectancy is belief that if a person make an effort to achieve goals he will be seen and appreciated. Instrumentality is conviction that when employee do what should be done with proper accuracy he will be rewarded by salary increase, promotion or other form of appreciation. Valence is the value added by individual to the outcome. Employee will be poorly motivated if his reward has little valence for him (Kermally 2005:53). Adams argued that people want to receive relative returns for the effort they have put into work. Equity theory is based on the individual’s perception of fear treatment. â€Å"This theory bases explanations of behaviour on perceptions of social comparisons. Theory argues that the more intense the perceived inequity, the higher the tension and the stronger the motivation to act†(Buchanan 2004:251). Hackman and Oldham theory of job satisfaction presumes that three main rules decide about work. In the first of them person must perceive work as reasonable, rational. Second one says that person should take the responsibility for own work results. In the last one person should have chance to meet own work results. In their opinion each job should take into consideration above rules. Moreover, if those rules are included the higher probability of motivation occurs more by the job content than by some external factors. In planning the job complexity and level of difficulty should be taken into account (Miner 2006). In every day live people meet with contracts of a different type, for example contract of employment, bank contract etc. Contract is an agreement between two or more participants, which contains some settlements between them. In companies, apart form the contract of employment also can be found an unwritten psychological contract, which is very important to keep a good relationships between the employer and the employees. Psychological contract is necessary to keep long term agreement. It contains mutual expectations and obligations. Fundamentally, the psychological contract expresses the combination of beliefs held by an individual and his or her employer about what they expect of one another. It can be described as the set of reciprocal but unarticulated expectations that exist between individual employees and their employers. As defined by Schein (1965): The notion of a psychological contract implies that there is an unwritten set of expectations operating at all times between eve ry member of an organization and the various managers and others in that organizationâ€Å" (Armstrong 2006:225). The meaning of mutual expectations is also underlined by other researchers, such as: Rousseau and Wade-Benzoni, Katz and Kahn. Expectations are related with behaviour, often they are presumed and they are not formulated in the job contract. Employees may expect, and they usually do, fair treatment, just wage, possibility of future development and that they will be informed what they are expected to do. But expectations are mutual, so the employers also have them. Generally, they want to receive obedience, loyalty, commitment in business or job efficiency. It is normal that each side of this contract possess its own set of assumptions of the other one’s behaviour. Sometimes lack in fulfillment of mutual expectations can cause tensions and misunderstandings, or even dissolving of the contract of employment. â€Å"The significance of the psychological contract was further explained by Sims (1994) as follows: A balanced psychological contract is necessary for a continuing, harmonious relationship between the employee and the organization. However, the violation of the psychological contract can signal to the participants that the parties no longer share (or never shared) a common set of values or goalsâ€Å" (Armstrong 2006:227). Establishing a common set of values or goals is very important to keep positive and proper relations between people in the organization. Especially important seems to be their verbalization, because when people do not know what they can expect, they will not know why they are disappointed afterwards, when their expectations are not met. But they will have a feeling that something is done not as it should be. For the organization that kind of attitude can have a bad influence, because dissatisfied employees can have a negative effect on the organization activities. Specific character of the psychological contract in the organization is not based on a single transaction, because as Spindler claims: †every day people create relationships by means other than formal contracts(†¦) As individuals form relationships they necessarily bring their accumulated experience and developed personalities with them. In ways unknown to them, what they expect from the relationship reflects the sum total of their conscious and unconscious learning to date†(Armstrong 2006:230). Not every person in organization is aware, that in forming specific demands and expectations he or she bases on own knowledge and experience. Psychological contract is something which is usually not defined, so it can develop in unexpected way and have unforeseen consequences. Good psychological contract have a lot of advantages for an employee as well as for an employer. From the employees point of view proper psychological contract should include: proper approach to an employee (equal treatment, appraisal, understanding, respect), employment stability (it is important part of employment, but with dynamic changes on the labour market is not so attractive as it used to be), promotion (employees are focused on personal development and carrier opportunities), power and responsibilities (ability to make own decisions should be related with person’s skills), trust and commitment (employee, who feels understanding and have trust in own organization is more engaged in work and wants the same from the others). On the other hand employers consider that the psychological contract covers competences, effort, commitment, honesty, loyalty and the attitude consisted with the organization values. Psychological contract between the employee and the organization is created when a person is joining the company. The first stage on which some basis of the psychological contract may occur is the process of selection and recruitment. Employer presents own requirements and demands, invites selected persons for an interview and afterwards makes an opinion about the cohesion between the candidate and own organization. Employee acts similarly. After getting to know the organization’s offer he or she should know whether that job is for him or for her appropriate for the offered salary and the level of skills. Psychological contract is not constant, it is not something that stays still. â€Å"The psychological contract remains beneath the surface of relationships and is dynamic in character, continually changing, and frequently unacknowledged. It is a manifestation, too, of the ideals— ego ideals— that one party to the contract has for the other†(Burke 1999:20). It changes, because its environment is changing. External and internal factors have great influence over its state. Internal changes are caused by the market competition. Nowadays career is not always developing from the bottom to the top. It sometimes can be horizontal, which means that individual employee development is not a guarantee of the promotion. Now, in the companies very important are flexibility and capability to changes. Employers are not currently interested in keeping the same team for all time. They make further co-operation dependent on the level of demand of the employee‘s abilities for the company. Because of the nstability in employment Hiltrop suggested new type of psychological contract. According to him: â€Å"There is no job security. The employee will be employed as long as he or she adds value to the organization, and is personally responsible for finding new ways to add value. In return, the employee has the right to demand interesting and important work, has the freedom and resources to perform it well, receives pay that reflects his or her contribution, and gets the experience and training needed to be employable here or elsewhere†(Armstrong 2006:233). The new psychological contract does not guarantee a job for a lifetime. From my own experience I am able to say how important is the psychological contract for an employee. I was working for a building society, which was growing very well. As an employee I could expect from my employer appreciation and respect for my work. The responsibilities and duties for each of us were very clearly. The financial bonuses were the most motivational factor for all of us, because they were really high. The company has very good approach to its employees. When it generated more profits than it was presumed 25% of randomly chosen employees was going for a fully sponsored one week trip for one of the European countries. Also twice a year there was an integrating trip for all employees and lottery with the main prize of 50% of annual salary. None of this was formally written. It was the company’s customs. The best performing salesman had a company car and a mobile phone for an unlimited disposition with the option of buying them from the company after certain time. The loyalty to the company was very high. Nobody has left work by himself/herself since the establishment. Employees were very well motivated, because they knew that they would be appreciated. Thanks to those actions everybody were aimed for the company’s success. They were aware that when the company will gain profits and when the managers will be pleased with their performance the reward will be proper. The relationship between the employees and the organization has been changing recently. The employees want to develop their skills and if the company do not provide any training or development options for them they will leave, because their motivation to action will decrease. Nearly nobody wants to put an effort into company’s performance without being appreciated for it. Underestimated employees will not put much effort into their work. Motivation theories are old and not always adequate for today’s labour market. Employers are trying to motivate people in a different way, using different approaches and different points of view. Theoretical knowledge about motivation can be put into practice to see and explain, not only the psychological mechanism of organizational behaviour, but also to formulate diagnosis. Psychological factors of responsibility for the individual’s level of organizational behaviour have the basic meaning for understanding the peoples’ role in the organization and effective human resources management. Motivation theories are not flexible. They have their definitions, which contain certain rules and factors that create them. The psychological contract is much more flexible and can be changed under some special circumstances and mutual admittance. The negative side of the psychological contract is that, when one of the sides will not feel that their expectations and needs are fulfilled the trust and commitment will decrease. When these two factors are low the performance, positive attitude and motivation are poor. Motivation is important to keep the psychological contract, because without it the whole idea of the psychological contract is useless. Psychological contract has more determinant power than motivation theories. Unwritten mutual expectations, when are appeased, can motivate very well. People can find themselves united with the organization and its goals. Good leaders and managers will do their best to satisfy an employee, but on the other hand they will expect the same from him/her. Retaining positive employment relationship and psychological contract can have great influence over the company’s performance and image. List of references Adair, J. (2006) Leadership and motivation. London. Kogan Page Limited Armstrong, M.. (2006) 10th ednHandbook of Human Resource Management Practice. London. Kogan Page,Limited. Buchanan, D. , Huczynski A. (2004) 5th edn Organizational Behaviour. An Introductory Text. Essex. The Prentice Hall. Burke, E. (1999) Corporate Community Relations : The Principle of the Neighbor of Choice. Westport. Greenwood Publishing Group, Incorporated. Hunter, S. (2007) Motivation in the Workplace: Applying Maslow and Herzberg Theories. online] Available from [1 Dec 2008] Kermally, S. (2005) Gurus on people management. Oxford. Thorogood Miner, J. (2006) Organizational Behaviour 1: Essential Theories of Motivation and Leadership. New York. M. E. Sharp Inc. Robertson, I. , Smith, M. , Cooper, D. (1992) 2nd edn Motivation strategies, theory and practice. London. Institute of Personnel Management. Thomson, R. 3rd edn. (2002) Managing people. Oxford. Butterworth Heinemann. Tyson, S. , York, A. (1993) Personnel management. Oxford. Made Simple Books.