Hope for Melal

The book â€Å"Melal â€Å"by Robert Barclay takes place in 1981 in The Marshall Islands of the South Pacific. The people known as the Marshallese are the natives to these islands. Overtime other cultures began to settle on these islands also, such as the Spanish, Japanese, and Americans. Out of these three cultures the Americans were the most domineering and devastating to the Marshallese people. The Americans took over the Marshallese native land and forced all of them to live on one island in deplorable conditions. The Marshallese had their freedom revoked from them; they then had to live under the Americans rules. Two of the Marshallese characters in this story who believes strongly in withholding many of the native Marshallese custom and traditions are Jebro and Rujen. These two characters portray great hope that they can sustain these important aspects of their culture. Hope starts with believing in something one desires can happen. Sparks of hope are revealed throughout this story through the character Jebro. Jebro’s hope comes from believing that he can continue on the traditions of his native culture, so that the traditions will not be lost. He believes he can do this by teaching important Marshallese traditions to younger Marshallese, and Americans who take an interest in learning. â€Å"Maybe on one of your days off I can swing by with a boat and we’ll go fish. The rules say we’re not supposed to stop over here, but I’m sure we’ll get away with it. You can show me how you knew where that school was gonna come up. Or did you use that magic finger of yours? Jebro nodded, smiling now. Okay we go fishing sometime, but if you want my secrets that are worth more than any boat you give me! He laughed â€Å"(Barclay 253). I think this passage in the story shows that Jebro is realizing that not all Americans like Travis, are bad people. This gives him hope that he can begin to teach Americans about what is important to the Marshallese natives, so they can come to better understand some of the traditions that the natives value. Rujen’s hope in this story is derived from him finally acting on his beliefs in Part 3 of the story. This took place after Rujen tried to integrate for such a long time with the Americans, which lead Rujen into such an empty ife he could no longer take it. He finally snapped and realized that he is a Marshallese and should stop pretending to be something he is not. â€Å"Yokwe, he said, he drove the knife down. That was when blood came up from the mouth of the mermaid on Good Friday, 1981 â€Å"(Barclay 262). I think this is Rujen’s first sign that he has belief that there is still hope for the Marshallese. Rujen performed this act of killing the dolphin, because the Marshallese people believe that it is bad luck to not kill any dolphin that came into the lagoon. This is Rujen’s way of standing up for the traditions and culture he was brought up in. If Rujen did not perform this task, the Americans were going to make it a law that it was illegal to kill dolphins. The fact that Rujen got away with this task, gives all Marshallese people hope that their traditions can still be performed. The second sign of Rujen‘s hope in this story is shown in the following passage, â€Å"How could a Marshallese be trespassing on a Marshallese island? The ticket filled Rujen with an unbearable loathing of the ignorant man who had written it. He waved the ticket in front of Oly’s face, nearly slapping him with it. Maybe you better pay me fifty bucks! You pig â€Å"(Barclay 271). In this passage Rujen is standing up for the Marshallese people in hope of reclaiming the land that had been taken from them. â€Å"I like it when boys like yours go trespassing on the outer islands. All boys should go if they have the chance, instead of just lying around and drinking. He slapped Lazarus’s knee. Maybe we all should go, Alfred said. We should go live on those islands and tell the Army to shoot their missiles at Ebeye instead! Kinoj and the others, not laughing, seemed to be giving Alfred’s proposal serious thought† (Barclay 279). I think that this passage shows that a lot of the Marshallese agrees with Rujen. They have hope that if all the Marshallese stick together and try to take their land back over, that they will be successful. The Marshallese has real hope that they can believe in. Hope that there belief’s and traditions will be carried on for many generation’s. If they stick together, I think that they can be successful in gaining their lives back. I believe the Americans and Marshallese will find a common ground and live happily together, and share the land. They are two different cultures, but many different cultures co-exist. People to have different beliefs and values and we can all learn from one another. If in the South Pacific everyone was governed by the same laws, and was treated equally I feel that the quality of life would drastically improve for the natives in that region.

Environmental Racism: Take Out the Race Essay

The best way to avoid environmental racism is to avoid the subject of race at all costs. Race should never be the subject of any discussion about vital decisions regarding humanity, because when race becomes a focal point, then the discussion automatically becomes racist. The best way to avoid racism in general, including environmental racism, is to keep race out of important debates and choices, including environmental, social, economic, and political ones. When politicians plan for the development of a city, neighborhood, or industry, which has an environmental impact, the best thing politicians can do is to either allow businesses to make their own economic judgments about how, where, and when to build, or to simply use sound economic judgment themselves. If one looks to business and urban planning or environmental development and protection, one must look to costs and benefits. If the costs are low and benefits are high to a city or region in regard to incoming business or environmental changes, then the politicians should make the decision to act in favor of good business and environmental practices. In my opinion, race has no place in the discussion. Sound economics should be considered, including sound planning and social and environmental benefits, but race is never a smart card to be played. Why consider race? Considering it only makes racism more of a truth and reality. Environmental justice is important, social justice is important, and economic justice is important. All of these are linked together, and, in all of these, the color of a person’s skin is an outdated and silly point of consideration. Best practices in government, in business, in ecology, are fundamentally tied to one another, and bringing differing races into the argument is only prejudiced and unreasonable. Protecting all of united humanity and humanity’s surrounding ecology should always be a consideration, but divisive race should never be. It proves fruitless. References (Client’s uploaded article information. No author, date, title, or publisher provided. )

Buddhism Essay Essay

One of the Buddha’s most significant teachings is that everyone is different, and hence each individual’s path to enlightenment is unique. For this reason, Buddhists acknowledge that they must take inspiration from a variety of sources to complete their individual journey to Nirvana. Belief in the concept of enlightenment is therefore important within Buddhism with different branches and schools giving varying emphasis to the many teachings of Buddha and his close followers, while some believe in Bodhisattvas, from whom they take motivation, all believe in shaping their individual effort to achieve enlightenment. Throughout this essay, the Buddha’s teachings on belief and enlightenment, how the four Noble Truths and Buddhist practices relate to belief and enlightenment, and the positions of the two major branches of Buddhism – Theravada and Mahayana – will all be analysed to determine the role of belief in Buddhism, and hence prove or disprove the a bove comments on enlightenment and belief for Buddhists. Enlightenment or _Nirvana_ is a supreme state; free from suffering, individual existence and all worldly concerns; such as greed, hate and ignorance. It is the ultimate goal of all Buddhists, breaking the otherwise endless cycle of death and rebirth known as samsara. Theravada Buddhism (â€Å"Doctrine of the Elders†) teaches that by refraining from all kinds of evil, purifying the mind and having a deep thirst for knowledge, â€Å"†¦ a Theravada Buddhist can reach the state of perfection and enter Nirvana.† (Oracle ThinkQuest, 2012) This knowledge comes almost entirely from the Tipitaka, meaning â€Å"three baskets†. This collection of scriptures contains slightly different versions between the two schools, but is considered to comprise of the most accurate accounts of the Buddha and his close disciples. It is important to note that Theravada Buddhists believe that due to the requirements for enlightenment, monks and nuns are significantly more likely to achieve Nirvana than lay people who should therefore focus on gaining good karma enabling them to be a monk or nun in their next rebirth. Mahayana Buddhism has a variety of scriptures, many of which have been written by high ranking monks since the time of the Buddha, in order to keep the teachings up to date with the culture of the period. Notably, they also  believe that all people have the capability to become enlightened. Apart from the different scripture emphasis, Mahayana Buddism is significantly diverse to Theravada due to the belief in multiple Buddhas and Boddhisattvas. Boddhisattvas are people of deep compassion who are said to delay entering Nirvana in order to help guide others to enlightenment. As such, Mahayana Buddhism adds to the Theravadan definition of Nirvana being the absence of self-centeredness (and therefore the absence of suffering) and the state of spiritual perfection, displayed by total compassion and concern for others. Two well-known Buddhist quotes which summarise the Buddha’s position on beliefs and enlightenment are: â€Å"Don’t blindly believe what I say. Don’t believe me because others convince you of my words. Don’t believe anything you see, read, or hear from others, whether of authority, religious teachers or texts. Don’t rely on logic alone, nor speculation. Don’t infer or be deceived by appearances.† â€Å"Find out for yourself what is truth, what is real. Discover that there are virtuous things and there are non-virtuous things. Once you have discovered for yourself give up the bad and embrace the good.† The above quotes help explain why Buddhists dislike teachings being referred to as beliefs. The first quote highlights the need for scepticism when reading the teachings. The second quote goes further by explaining the individuality of Nirvana, and the idea that not all teachings apply to everyone. Because followers of Buddhism are encouraged to challenge ideas presented and ascertain their own understanding of the major teachings, it is offensive to refer to this knowledge as belief, since `belief’ often refers to faith or trust in an idea(s) which has not been personally experienced. Hence Buddhists only believe in Nirvana, and the basic principles to reach their goal. Theravada and Mahayana both agree with the Buddha’s view that anyone can attain Nirvana, and one can do it within one’s present life if the Buddha’s instructions are followed carefully and applied sincerely. The two main branches of Buddhism have the same Four Noble Truths and interpret these  teachings in a similar manner. The only relevant difference is that Mahayana Buddhists have Bodhisattvas to aid in follower’s quests for Nirvana, whereas Theravada Buddhists believe that since this path is unique, it is the individual’s task to determine how to incorporate the Buddha’s teachings in their own lives. As stated on BuddhaNet, _†Theravada Buddhism places great emphasis on the clergy (Sangha) as the only ones capable of attaining Nirvana__.†_ (Lyall, 2008). As such, the role of the laity (lay people: normal householders) in Theravada Buddhism is to support the clergy and lead a good life according to the Buddha, in the hope of a better rebirth. Whilst it is not taught that a lay person cannot reach enlightenment, as this would be going against a popular teaching of the Buddha, it is perceived as highly unlikely. In return for the lay people’s support, it is common for the monks to teach the laity, provide advice and conduct ceremonies such as marriages. In contrast, the Mahayana Teachings encourage both the laity and the clergy to become Boddhisattvas and attain enlightenment in their current life. Especially in the case of the laity, belief in the possibility of enlightenment at some stage in the many rebirths a person can undergo, is vitally important and an integral part of not only the religion, but the various cultures the religion exists within. The Four Noble Truths are the essence of the Buddha’s teachings. Similar to a doctor’s method for analysing a health issue, the Buddha has diagnosed the problem (suffering) and identified the cause (of the suffering) within the first and second Noble Truths. The third Noble Truth is the description of a cure, while the fourth is the prescription and instructions to recover. Buddhists believe in the Four Noble Truths in the hope of getting closer to enlightenment and find these teachings realistic and hopeful, rather than pessimistic. The first Noble Truth, suffering (Dukkha), describes suffering as presenting itself in many forms of which some are obvious, such as old age, sickness and death (which Buddha encountered immediately after leaving his palace), and others more subliminal. Buddha explained the problem in a more profound way, teaching that all human beings are subject to desires and cravings but acquiring satisfaction from these desires and pleasure is temporar y and will not last without becoming monotonous. The origin of suffering (Samudaya) is the second Noble Truth, and consists of Buddha’s  claims to have found the cause of all suffering – desire (tanha) – which comes in three forms (which have had various names including the Three Roots of Evil, the Three Fires and the Three Poisons). These forms are the ultimate source of suffering, and are; greed and desire, ignorance or delusion, and hatred and destructive urges. The way to extinguish desire is to liberate oneself from attachment, as is explained in the third Noble Truth – Cessation of Suffering (Nirodha). This truth states that attaining enlightenment involves extinguishing the three fires of greed, delusion and hatred and could be considered as a `definition’ for Nirvana. The path to the cessation of suffering (Magga) is the fourth Noble Truth and is often referred to as the Eightfold Path because Buddha outlined a set of eight principles to follow. These are the right understanding, intenti on, speech, action, livelihood, effort, mindfulness, and concentration. Theravada Buddhism, being the more traditionalist branch, follows the practices that have been passed down by senior monks since the Buddha’s time. These traditions or practices include living in forests and performing both sitting and walking meditation. As part of their early training, Theravadan monks and nuns generally live in huts called `kutis’ situated in forests. These huts are built on stilts to keep animals and insects out and have a path for walking meditation. Older monks and nuns are not required to live in the forest, often residing in monasteries. Early each morning and evening, the monks and nuns from a particular school meet together for meditation and recitation. After these ceremonies, which are called _pujas_, they are required to study the Dharma. An important ritual carried out by people entering the temples is to wash their feet with water which has been carried up to the monastery from a stream, generally found below in the forest. The goal of the monks and nuns is to become an _Arhat_, a person free of suffering, through the meditation. Once free of suffering they can continue on their path to Nirvana. Different forms of Mahayana Buddhism have different religious practices. These practices are often heavily influenced by the culture of the society the Buddhist school(s) resides in. Tibetan Buddhist temples are heavily â€Å"†¦decorated with many kinds of Buddha images and wall hangings called  _thankas_.† Big prayer wheels, containing mantras written on strips of rice paper, are set into the walls of the temple while smaller, handheld versions are also common. Tibetan monks generally live in these temples and in between turning the prayer wheels and studying the various teachings, they hold various festivals. These festivals incorporate an array of prayer flags and other colourful decorations to celebrate significant periods. Japanese and Chinese monasteries are very similar to the Tibetan’s, but often with less vibrant, colourful decorations and less festivals. The monks and nuns recite Sutras and sit in meditation together regularly, akin to their Tibetan counterparts. The idea of studying, reciting and meditation in Mahayana Buddhism is to endeavour to accelerate the monks and nuns journey’s to enlightenment, in order that they can become Bodhisattvas and assist others as they near their journey’s end. Theravada and Mahayana Buddhism are very similar with regard to the fundamental teachings. They both accept Buddha (Siddhartha Gautama) as the Teacher, have identical Four Noble Truths (and therefore Eightfold Path), share ideas on the origins of the world, practice their faith similarly and accept many comparable Buddhist concepts. The only outright difference is the scriptures they most value and consider authoritative, which affect the general path members of each branch follow to attain Nirvana. Belief in the concept of enlightenment is therefore important within Buddhism with different branches and schools giving varying emphasis to the many teachings of Buddha and his close followers, while some believe in Bodhisattvas, from whom they take motivation, all believe in shaping their individual effort to achieve enlightenment. BIBLIOGRAPHY BBC, 2009a. BBC – Religions – Buddhism: Meditation [WWW Document]. BBC Religions. URL http://www.bbc.co.uk/religion/religions/buddhism/customs/meditation_1.shtml BBC, 2009b. BBC – Religions – Buddhism: The Four Noble Truths [WWW Document]. BBC Religions. URL http://www.bbc.co.uk/religion/religions/buddhism/beliefs/fournobletruths_1.shtml Dr. C. George Boeree, 2000. Buddhist Meditation [WWW Document]. Shippensburg University. URL http://webspace.ship.edu/cgboer/meditation.html GCSE RE site, 2011. Revision: Buddhism [WWW Document]. GCSE RE Site. URL http://www.mmiweb.org.uk/gcsere/revision/buddhism/keybeliefs/6_theravada.html Goldburg, P., Blundell, P., Jordan, T., 2009. Investigating religion. Cambridge University Press, Port Melbourne, Vic. Gunasekara, V., 2012. Basic Buddhism [WWW Document]. URL http://www.vgweb.org/bsq/basbud.htm#ch5 Gursam, L., 2009. The Importance of Meditation [WWW Document]. URL http://www.lamagursam.org/importance_of_meditation.html Harderwijk, R., 2011. The Four Noble Truths [WWW Document]. View on Buddhism. URL http://viewonbuddhism.org/4_noble_truths.html Heckert, L., 2012. An Overview of Buddhist Meditation [WWW Document]. Johansson, R., Tillekeratna, A., De Silva, L., 2012. Buddhist Studies: Nirvana [WWW Document]. URL http://www.buddhanet.net/e-learning/dharmadata/fdd43.htm Lyall, G., 2008. Buddhist Studies: The Rise of the Mahayana [WWW Document]. BuddhaNet. URL http://www.buddhanet.net/e-learning/buddhistworld/maha2.htm Nikaya, S., 2012. The Fourth Noble Truth [WWW Document]. BuddhaNet. URL http://www.buddhanet.net/cmdsg/truths5.htm Oracle ThinkQuest, 2012. Buddhism: Buddha [WWW Document]. Oracle ThinkQuest Library: Projects by Students for Students. URL

Economic and Political Environment of Orange Mobile Essay

Economic and Political Environment of Orange Mobile - Essay Example The state of social stability within the environment also often becomes the cause of vast development in a certain industry and insufficient funding in another. The extent of influence produces by various conditions within the environment differs for one industry and for another. There are companies, which businesses are so vital to the community, which government strives to maintain stability within their environment. On the other hand, there are companies that must adjust themselves to changes in their environment without significant bargaining powers to question the situation. It is important to recognize the differences of corporations regarding to this issue. Within this elaboration, I am discussing the effect of political and economic changes in the environment to the telecommunication industry. The objects of study are Orange Mobile, one of the market leader of the telecommunication industry in Europe, and several of its competitors. The purpose of the elaboration is to define the extent to which environmental changes contributes to the changes of corporate strategy or corporate operation within the telecommunication industry. ... To date, Orange Group companies have a strong business in United Kingdom, France, the Netherlands, and various other nations in Europe. Furthermore, the Orange brand has also operated in several Asian countries. The company launched its business to the public of United Kingdom in 1994. However, it is not until 2 April 1996 has the company underwent its first initial public offering with the shares being listed in the London and Nasdaq markets. The company obtained its first million customers in 1997 and named as the best performing share in 1998 under the name Orange Plc. In June 1999 Orange is described as 'one of the outstanding business success stories of the past few years' and a company who has 'courageous vision and commitment to the long running potential of mobile telecoms ('History of Orange', 2005). III. Influential Aspects III.1 Earlier Market Condition In its first year of operations, the group faced difficult times. The social condition of the market was hardly conducive for development of mobile phone business. The mobile phone markets in 1994 were a confusing place for customers in UK. Digital networks are new stuffs and only few people understand the benefits. Tariffs regulations are complex and prices are high making the industry only attractive to business customers. For illustration of the inconvenient system, users had to sign-up to a three year contract, with high monthly rental fees, high call tariffs and with little flexibility regarding the type of services offer ('History of Orange', 2005). Today however, the business has developed into millions of dollars worth of industry in UK. Rapid innovation produces new types of communication services, competing in terms of prices and service qualities.

Fawlty towers hotel group Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Fawlty towers hotel group - Essay Example If all the three other than basil are on one side then it will be the majority. If Basil gets support of any on of the remaining three, then these two can be termed as majority according to the shares they hold. Element 1: Now let us discuss about the possibilities of the transactions Basil want to do. He was holding 40% of the share in the company and wishes to retain as much capital as possible from it with out disturbing its financial structure and security. This implies that he was not willing to retain his investment from the cash reserves of the company or by disposing the assets held by the company. Moreover he needs another person to support his decision of selling his shares. As his wife Sybil is holding 20% shares and was in support of his decision he gets majority of 60% share holding for the proposed disinvestment. Now the question lies in the manner the deal to be followed. There is no obstacle for the disinvestment of 15% of the shares as his wife is willing to buy them by paying half of the amount from her own savings and other by taking loan from the company or from the bank. Here also the practicality and legality lies between these two persons only. The company is a privat e owned firm, the buying of shares in that company involves the inquiry of encumbrances by the buyer. As the buyer is a partner of the company she must be aware of the financial status of the company. Despite being like that, still if there is a need to advice on that we have to consider, then it is the financial status of the company. It was mentioned that Sybil was planning to take loan from the company or from bank on the company guarantee. This proves that the company is having strong fundamentals, which involve sufficient cash reserves along with fixed and current assets dominating short term and long term liabilities. So the hurdles regarding financial matters were cleared. Sybil can acquire 15% of the shares from Basil with one half by her own savings and the other half by a loan from the company or from the Bank. The decision needs approval of share holders holding at least 51% of the company's shares. As both Basil and Sybil are together holding 60% of the shares it can be approved with no objections. (If objections are there from the other two partners, they cannot be considered as these two constitute the majority of the share holdings). Element 2: This element seems to face some obstacles in completing. Rose Mary wants to buy further 5% of the shares from Basil on a condition that in two years the company should buy all of her shares, which may amount to 25% of the total shares. This needs the approval of all the share holders of the company or a majority of them. Here again, Basil and Rosemary constitute majority share holding to take a decision. But Basil is keen on not disturbing the financial structure of the company. Within two years if the company is not having enough cash reserves ( as Rose Mary wants) to buy the Rose Mary's share, which constitutes 25% of the total value of the company (the holding of her if she buys further 5% from Basil's shares), the financial structure of the company will be disturbed and that was against the wish of Basil in case of his disinvestment. This may not be possible because after distributing the profits to the partners there may not be enough cash to buy the 25% of the

Answer questions Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words - 10

Answer questions - Essay Example Managers of Corporation have decided to play a mind game to the investors in manipulating the earnings of the income to lure investors. According to (Palepu, & Healy, 2000), income smoothing refers to the minimization of fluctuations in the earnings of a corporation. He further expounds by claiming that it can be of good course and at the same time be a fraudulent act. A firm can decide to defer revenue for a successful fiscal year to the following that is anticipated to be challenging. This will stabilize the income and prove consistency. Other firms can postpone expenses in a difficult financial year and recognize it in the next financial that is prosperous. Working capital measures the liquidity of a firm by deducting the current liabilities from current assets. Liquidity is the ability of a firm to pay its short term due without interfering with its normal operations (Palyi, 1984). Including inventory, prepaid expenses and deferrals in the current assets to determine working capital will not give a realistic state of the firm. Inventories are not easily convertible to cash to run operations of the firm during that financial year. Even if they are auctioned, they will consume much time before cash is earned. Prepaid expenses cannot be reversed easily under normal condition, and, therefore, the cash paid will not be available at the moment to run other business operations. According to (Chattopadhyay, 1982), deferral specifically revenue represents transactions that occurred, but payment will be in the next financial year. He emphasizes that it does not mean the other party will honor and pay the dues. So for these items to be included in determining the liquidity of a firm will result in a false interpretation. The principle of relevance and faithfulness representation of the state of the company under U.S. GAAP is beneficial to stockholders. Stockholders need

RELIGION, SCI-FI & FANTASY Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words

RELIGION, SCI-FI & FANTASY - Essay Example These beliefs caused them to develop religions that worshipped these strange beings. These ancient civilizations worshiped many of these beings as gods. Most importantly, these religions formed doctrines and views about the cosmos based on their understanding of these beings. Pantheism, pluralism and universalism define these religions affecting the way its adherent’s process thought. In present day America and around the world, cults are using media such as television, movies and the Internet to manipulate the minds of people (Singer & Lalich, 1995). The Bible theory of creation is strictly creational, which makes it impossible to allow for speculation about the nature of the universe (Gen. 1-3). Other Abrahamic religions such as Islam and Judaism are also strictly creational in theology and therefore do not entertain the possibility of life forms existing beyond that which has been outlined in their holy books of revelation. The fascination with beings from other planets, a spiritual world in our own world, demons, angels, gods and the devil are as old as mankind. Human beings are social beings and this makes them gravitate towards the group’s ways of thinking (Kassin, Fein, & Marcus, 2013). This could be the reason why humans are in a constant search for other living beings in the universe even when it does not presently affect their lives on earth. The Aztec, Mayan, Egyptian and Hindu civilizations were very advanced and evolved in science as well as in the arts. They left depictions in their art and writings that closely resemble many of the extra-terrestrial beings that are the subjects of many science fiction works. The Bible condemns the idols and other deities as demons (Deut. 32:17; Ps. 106:37) The technology of making film has evolved exponentially especially with the advent of special effects technology, which have and

Franchising of SMEs in China Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Franchising of SMEs in China - Essay Example Franchising in China proposes great opportunities for local businesses and international small and medium-size enterprises to expand their activities and enter new markets. Following Welsh et al (2006): "franchising is seen as a means of obtaining scarce capital, as the franchise is generally required to make a substantial investment in the business. Franchisees share risk with the franchiser. Franchising is also identified as a way of addressing the agency problem, specifically, the issue of monitoring managers" (2006, p. 130). In China, key to the success of the organization is the mutually dependent relationship between the two companies-the franchisors and the franchise. Miller and Grossman (1986) described franchising as an organizational form structured by a long-term contract whereby the franchisor (usual owner) of a product and service grants the non-exclusive rights to a franchise for the local (in this case Chinese) distribution of the particular product or service. The franchise has to pay a fee and ongoing royalties and agrees to follow to quality standards. Also, a franchise can be defined as "an incentive distribution system for organizing individual firms pursuing their own rewards" (Abbott 1998, p. 76). Taking this perspective into account, researchers determine the phenomenon as an inter-organizational form. A possible, roughly natural rate of SME density also has limited implications for policies designed to promote 'entrepreneurship'. The logic is as follows: Let's assume that heading a small firm is an important mark of entrepreneurship, since the founder of a firm that quickly disappears may be less entrepreneurial than the leader of an SME that exists and survives, whether or not the leader was the original founder. In this analysis, the number of SMEs then becomes a proxy for the number of 'entrepreneurs': Entrepreneurs are the independent leaders of SMEs (Abbott 1998). Once economists accept that this assumption is one logical proxy of entrepreneurial activity (although by no means the only one), we can then say that a roughly natural rate of SME density implies there is little that can help, or hinder, ent repreneurship at the national level in a broadly liberal trading environment (Ambler & Witzel 2003). Ratios of 'entrepreneurs' (leaders of SMEs) are somewhat constant across European national populations. If one measures entrepreneurial activity by the rates of start-ups, then the analysis would change; but it is not clear that high start-up rates on a national scale really correlate with economic success either. The lowest start-up rates in Europe are in rich Sweden, the highest are in southern Europe, where unemployment is high and GDP per capita is lower. Definitions of entrepreneurship should encompass success measured by economic production and profits, and not just frenetic activities, primarily in the low-tech service sector (Justis & Judd 1999). In China, the majority of franchising companies operate as SMEs. In emerging markets like China, "retail franchising can sometimes supplant traditional and local cultural elements, which over time can lead to homogenization and westernization of preferences, especially among the youth. The older generations and the political establishments often resist such cultural shifts" (Welsh et al 2006, p. 132).

The Relationship between Colonists and Native Americans Assignment

The Relationship between Colonists and Native Americans - Assignment Example It will show that history can reflect the time it is written in, and that word choice and grammar can influence the reader's attitude toward the subject. The overwhelming attitude towards Native Americans is, in the earliest extract (1877), one of hatred and violence. Words like savage and hostile abound, amongst descriptions of the Native American attack on Jamestown and other settlements as massacre, murder and exterminate (in-class exercise). The author writes that his contemporaries are fighting against Native Americans in Arizona and Montana (the Apache Attacks and Nez Perce War), which is almost something the reader does not need to be told, given how intense and hateful this piece seems. There is no mention of Native American culture, although the author does (begrudgingly) admit that the tribes could build shelters, grow crops, and hunt. Any reference to an exchange between European and Native American culture is hidden in whining laments that Native Americans appear to be in nately hostile to European culture, called here 'civilization'. By contrast, the 1885 piece comes across as slightly less impassioned. Whereas the 1877 text ends by saying that it is certain that Native Americans will have disappeared from the American continent within a few years, the 1885 text expresses hopes that the Native Americans will be 'Christianized' rather than dying out. The 1885 piece attempts to be fairer to the indigenous tribes, but still makes incorrect assumptions, such as the 'fact' that Native Americans lived very simplistic and uncivilized lifestyles. Non-neutral language is used to claim that the Native Americans were inferior to the settlers in the fields of arts and inventions, progress and education, disposition, and religion, and had been since their collision with European culture two hundred years before. The only area in which Native Americans are not lesser is 'endurance,' yet this achievement is still couched in terminology which makes these people see m not quite human. It is easy to suspect that the writers of the textbook 'knew' this through experience. The two extracts from nineteenth-century textbooks neither mention individuals, whether European or Native American nor refer to any sort of cultural exchange. Admittedly, this would be hard given that neither text admits the existence of a Native American culture. Nor does either piece suggest any possible explanation for the failure of the Jamestown settlement other than Native American savagery. Therefore these earliest passages reflect the real-life hostilities occurring at the time between Europeans and Native Americans. The Apache Attacks lasted until 1900 when the last fighting tribe surrendered, so it is understandable – if despicable – that the textbooks adhered to the image of Native Americans as an enemy which must be destroyed. It is more difficult to completely exterminate an enemy if there is evidence of the enemy's humanity, or that a valuable part o f human cultural history might be lost in their destruction, so it makes sense that contemporary textbooks were unconcerned with these subjects. The 1927 text is the first to recognize that at least some of the Native American tribes were fairly advanced and cultured.  

Childhood Experience Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Childhood Experience - Essay Example The paper tells that during the author’s first day in the new school, his mother dropped him off and he was led by the Principal into his first class. The researcher was very nervous and also excited. When he was introduced by the teacher as a new student, he noticed that all the students looked at him strangely – like he looked different or he was growing horns or something. This made him feel very shy and even more nervous. A chair was pointed out to the author and when he took his seat, he felt them all staring at him, particularly one girl sitting two seats in front of the author. When he braved a look at her, he saw that her eyes were squinted at him, like she was angry at him. He felt threatened by her intimidating stare. The researcher tried his best to ignore her and just listen to his teacher. During their recess, he was too nervous to go out with the other children to play, so he opened his lunchbox and just took out the sandwich his mother prepared for him. A s the author laid it out on his table, it was suddenly snatched from behind. The researchers looked at him and it was the girl who was staring at him during our class. She thanked him for the sandwich and then took a bite out of it. She then went on to spit out what she bit, saying it was disgusting. The researcher was too shocked and surprised to react to what she was doing. He did not know what to do, and when he tried to get his sandwich back, she pushed him back to his chair. At that point, their teacher came in and asked what was happening.... In the playground, I ran straight for the farthest part of the grounds, looking behind me to check if Annabelle was following me. Fortunately, I was not followed. I found a big bush with a bench behind it and I could not help but cry. I felt so miserable and lonely. Then I heard the rustling of the bush and suddenly a red-headed girl emerged. She asked me why I was crying and I told her about Annabelle. She told me that Annabelle was the class bully and she was always mean to the other children in the class. She said her name was Kathleen. She confessed that she was also bullied by Annabelle when they were in their first grade and it looks like she found a new girl to bully, namely me. She told me that whenever Annabelle is coming near, I should go close to any of the teachers and Annabelle would eventually back off. I felt better after having met Kathleen. For the next few weeks, I did what she taught me and Annabelle could not get close to bully me anymore. One time though, she cau ght me alone in class again and was trying to grab my bag. It was a good thing that Kathleen saw me being bullied and she ran to get our teacher who immediately came to reprimand Annabelle. Annabelle was sent to the Principal’s office. She never tried to bully me after that, especially as Kathleen and I grew to be best friends, keeping each other company and protecting each other when we could. Annabelle’s parents were later called and they told of their daughter’s bullying habits. The following year, Annabelle was transferred to another school by her parents. Kathleen and I have remained good friends throughout the years. And although I had a difficult time that year, I gained a friend in

Biotech Case Study Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Biotech - Case Study Example At the beginning of my lessons, I learnt that biotechnology involves the utilization of bioprocesses and living organisms in medicine, technology and engineering. This knowledge shook my lay knowledge of what the term means. I realized that the chief objective of biotech was the modification of the organism in order to fulfill human needs and purposes (Jefferis 47). The application of technical and scientific advances in the development of products is the entire business of biotech. It is imperative to note that biotech does not only draw its entire knowledge from pure biological sciences, but also from information technology, chemical engineering and bio-robotics. I was amazed to realize the numerous fields that biotech finds useful applicability, and this paper will shift its focus to provide a brief overview and highlight these uses. The initial applicability of biotech is in the field of medicine. Although I had a faint clue that biotech was useful in medicine, I was not sure how the two fields were connected. Therefore, I took a keen interest in lessons; the lessons revealed that biotech was the pillar of pharmacogenomics and the synthesis of pharmaceutical products, which can be regarded as essential in medicine (Jefferis 50). Further, biotech solves issues that arise from genetics testing, and it is used to settle cases that involve identity and parenting disagreements. Furthermore, biotech holds the lifeline for gene therapy and cloning; the latter is widely applied to create clones that donate organs to people, prolonging their life. The world faces the danger of food crisis as a result of rapid growth of the population; the rate of population growth beats the capacity of the planet to produce subsistence. Further, pest and crop diseases result to crop failure, not forgetting erratic, unfavorable weather conditions. Biotech stepped in to address the issues that face agriculture. In agriculture, Biotechnology is applied to improve crop yields in a remar kable way; this ensures plenty of yields from a small area of land. I was able to understand how biotech has facilitated the development of drought resistant and pest resistant crops (Jefferis 56). These crops were well advanced that they could withstand environmental stresses, and give yields that have advanced nutritional qualities. Further, biotech has enabled scientists to minimize pesticide and fertilizer dependency. As such, the crops that grow under this technology can be altered to produce plenty of substances that tend to be novel. Livestock breeding and cross breeding has strong associations with biotechnology; it facilitates the production of high producing animals, which are also resistance to diseases and parasites. Furthermore, I learnt how bioremediation facilitates a safe way of reclaiming an environment that has been contaminated through developing organisms that clean up the mess. These organisms do not have negative impacts on the environment. Further, biodegradat ion is extremely significant in decomposing wastes to allow release of humus (Jefferis 62). This process is essential in enhancing the flow of the energy cycle. This technology allows the development of strains of bacteria, which attack wastes and allow for more disposals. The above knowledge was extremely helpful to me because it opened my eyes and my brain to plenty of knowledge, which I had taken for granted for a long

Narrator in Mark Twains Huckleberry Finn Essay Example for Free

Narrator in Mark Twains Huckleberry Finn Essay Mark Twain chose Huck Finn to be the narrator to make the story more realistic and so that Mark Twain could get the reader to examine their own attitudes and beliefs by comparing themselves to Huck, a simple uneducated character. Twain was limited in expressing his thoughts by the fact that Huck Finn is a living, breathing person who is telling the story. Since the book is written in first person, Twain had to put himself in the place of a thirteen-year-old son of the town drunkard. He had to see life as Huck did and had to create a character that could see life as Mark Twain saw it. Huck is more than Twains mouthpiece because he is a living character and is capable of shaping the story. The language that Huck uses shows what he sees and how he will pass it on to us. Something else that is apparent is that the humor of the book often depends on Hucks language. In chapter fourteen, Huck is telling Jim about royalty in general which is an example of humor through language and incomplete education although sometimes he is not that far from the truth. They [royalty] dont do nothing! Why, how you talk! They just set around. No; is dat so? Of course it is. They just set aroundexcept, maybe, when theres a war; then they go to war. But other times they just lazy around; or go hawkingjust hawkingwhen things is dull, they fuss with the parlyment; and if everybody dont go just so he whacks their heads off. But mostly they hang round the harem. However, by using Hucks language Twain creates character and establishes realism. Huck is capable of making Twain write something merely because it is not the kind of thing Huck would say or do, and he can force Twain to leave something out because Huck would not do or say that kind of thing. Huck is essentially good-hearted, but he is looked down upon by the rest of the village. He dislikes civilized ways because they are too restrictive and  hard. He is generally ignorant of reading and writing, but he has a sharply developed sensibility. He is imaginative and clever, and has a good eye for detail, though he does not always understand everything he sees, or its significance. This enables Twain to make great use of irony. Huck is basically a realist. He knows only what he sees and experiences. He does not have a great deal of faith in things he reads or hears. He must experiment to find out what is true and what is not. With this kind of personality, Huck is able to believe Jims superstition at some times and to distrust others. He also see Huck as he is, the opposite of Tom Sawyer. He is as stated before, a realist, and generally a regular person except when he goes off on Toms adventures or when he follows Toms lead. He is not sivilizable. The end of the book makes this clear. He is where he was in the beginning: he left the Widows house, and he will leave Aunt Sallys. Something in society and civilization appalls Huck. Huck learns from Jim, who is in some ways his substitute father. He does not believe in Jims superstition until the superstition proves itself true. He mocks the snakeskin until the snakeskin does its work. Huck rises to Jims level by accepting Jims superstitions. Huck enters Jims primitive world which, though crude, is more honest and real than Miss Watsons world. He cannot go beyond this world. He wont pray because he has not had any benefits from prayer. Huck is involved in adventures and is continually bothered by his conscience. All during the trip down river, he tries to answer the question whether hes doing  right by the Widows sister and by Jim, or not. The obsession with justice  has him confused. Whatever he chooses to do, hes wrong. Hes wronging Jim if he returns him to slavery; hes wronging Miss Watson if he helps Jim escape. Huck has no way of knowing what is right. He must follow his feelings and the only thing he can do is to learn by experience. And he does. Using Huck Finn as the narrator of the book allowed Mark Twain to add more life, excitement, and realism in his writings. We can only think how good Mark Twain was at languages by how he writes. Twain created Huck, but soon Huck had his own personality and life and Mark Twain had to write with this character.

History And Creation Of Science Fiction Film Studies Essay

History And Creation Of Science Fiction Film Studies Essay Science fiction has a rich and varied  set of cultural and  historical traditions. With reference to at least two different films and/or television texts discuss the evolution of Science Fiction as a genre. You should consider its literary origins as well as discussing how science fiction is a lens through which to view the social, political and technological progress and anxiety. In this essay I will discuss the history and the creation of Science fiction and the journey it has travelled that has changed society and surroundings of today. I will talk about the Science fiction genre and also the birth of the genre and how it all was created. I will talk about the literary origin as well as the social change and political influences and messages that are encrypted in this genre, and how the political society we live in, is touched upon in this. I will also discuss how technology has had an impact in the way the world is changing through Science fiction, and how it has helped us see things that we could only imagine. I will start this question firstly discussing the science fiction genre. The science fiction genre is a collection made of intellectual and physical adventure which overlaps predominantly with other genres. It is difficult to define this genre with a simple definition that clarifies it relation to other genres. There is a debate about the difference between the two, fantasy and science fiction. The science fiction fans and those, whom are passionate in this genre, usually have strong and different views on what makes a science fiction, a science fiction. Sci-Fi is known to be a genre that questions the What If? It always investigates philosophical, morals, and technological possibilities by making new and exciting realities. In the book, Genreflecting by Diana Tixier Herald, she defines science fiction deals with, scientific topics, space travel, aliens and recognizably Earth-variant worlds of life forms that have not been touched by magic. Also time travel is common theme in many of the sci-fi novels. Science fiction can be traced back to the revolutionary works of Mary Shelly in Frankenstein which was in 1818. This is the story of somebody being made by a scientist from different body parts, and a person who discovers that in the eyes of the world he is a monster and wants to get revenge. The idea that science might become an anti-social force and diabolical is one of the foundations for one of sci-fi most known assumptions. Even though many celebrate science as the end of lack of knowledge and superstition, SF can also remind us that it can be used as tool of violation, oppression and small minded destructiveness. Certainly many critics of industrialisms explained the products of scientific thoughts did more harm than any good. Technology did not free workers in the nineteenth and early century; it was mainly mutilated and then mutated them. H.G Wells allegorized the social and physical mutations inspired by industrialisms in his portrayal of the cannibalistic, technology-obsessed Morlocks in 1895 the novel, The Time Machine. In the early 20th Century we saw a large interest in this subject and it became more clearly defined and identified by the public. The emergence of the sci-fi pulp magazine helped develop a new generation of sci-fi writers, mostly Americans at the time. Also with fantasy writings, the use of art helped define the stereotypes in the public mind. Hugo Gernsback became a cultural leader at this time as a founder of Amazing Stories magazine. In the 1930s late, John Campbell became editor of Astounding Science Fiction, and a number of new writers started to come forward in New York. They names themselves the Futurians, which including Isaac Asimov, James Blish, Fredrick Pohl, and many others. Sci-fi writing and art become cultural bed fellows, and lurid covers of books were now the norm. During this time, authors such as Arthur Clarke, Robert Heinlein and A.E Van Vogt started making themselves a name. Campbells supervision of the Astounding Science Fiction magazine is thought to be known as the beginning of the Golden Age of sci-fi. This continued until after the war, when new magazines like Under Pohl Galaxy as editor, broke the old mold. Arthur C. Clarkes film 2001 A Space Odyssey (1968) is well known as an all time classic film, which also succeeded in achieving a new cinematic high. In 1950s, author William S. Burroughs came into his own and in the 1960s and early 1970s, writers like Frank Herbert and Harlan Ellison started experimenting with newer ideas and writing styles. In Britain we were not far away behind it, coming forward as the sci-fi new wave. In the 1970s, writers like Poul Anderson began to reshape so called hard sci-fi while Ursula Le Guin and others experimented with soft science fiction. Female characterisations were starting to eventually creep into this fiction increasingly. Twentieth century sci-fi in the U.S owes a lot to the gothic tradition of Frankenstein, which has also returned to haunt the dystopian subgenre of cyberpunk with its electronically generated identity and bitter assumption about the consequences of human greed coupled with scientific progress. More current SF are still keeping in with Wells vision, however speculative narratives about the life on other planets also human life in the future, dominates the market in sci-fi. Tech Fiction a whole subgenre has come out in the wake of Isaac Asimov most famous anthology, I, Robot (1950), which offered a way of imagining artificially-generated intelligence and consciousness. The Utopian sci-fi was heavily influenced by ecology, feminism and the TV show Star Trek. This was caught in the 1960s and created a slay of novels about the birth of a much better society made possible by the use of new technologies and a notion of science counterbalanced by humanism, spirituality, and democratic mulitcu lturism. What continues to bring narratives in the sci-fi tradition is an urgent desire to reimaging human society, even if having to revise history, inventing possible new technologies, civilization and life forms or even creating a speculative future. The term, Science Fiction was first used in the nineteenth century, arguably as the results of the god father of science fiction, H.G Wells, from his novels, Time Machine 1895, The Invisible Man 1897 and The War of Worlds 1898. Cook and Bernink (1999) argue that science fiction did not become established until the beginning of the twentieth century, when the magazines started to produce science fiction in written format. Cook and Bernink argues that one of the first and most known contributions to putting science fiction in the realms of cinema is Le Voyage Imaginares (1926) which says, ..helped to establish the bond between science fiction, special effects technology and set design that has remained a feature of the genre ever since, (Cook and Bernink, 1999:192) Science fiction cinema achieved mainstream in the late 1960s and 70s, with the infamous film, 2001 Space Odyssey  (1968) and also Star Wars (1977). Since then it has grown to become a much famous and popular genres moving away its previous status as of a B-Movie in the past. Some theorists have outlined a number of elements that are common within sci-fi. Using the semantic and syntactic conventions as mentioned above, an analysis of two specific films, The Fly (1986), story of powerful scientists Seth Brundle, who has a vision to change the limitations of space and time through the use of teleportation machine, however somehow manages to, when experimenting on himself, to combine his DNA with of a fly then produces a bad result. Also Even Horizon (1997) in which a crew travels into space in an effort to save a ship built by scientist Dr Weir, which while being abandoned in outer space, he has travelled into an unknown dimension and will be conducted in order to know weather, and to what extent, they conform to the conventions of science fiction as a genre. You can say that some authors may not believe that sci-fi is just about science, but its about politics. A lot of authors have used this genre to explore their political beliefs or outrage the political machine. Authors such as Robert Heinlein, Isaac Asimov and many more. Even if their main story is not meant to be political, political science fiction is quite important today. In the sci-fi genre there are analogies to current and past politics and government organizations, allowing the authors to explore political possibilities that may never be tested. Almost every military sci-fi there is a political wheel that turns the war for example, Starship Troopers (1959). Also there is government regulation and oversight such as the regulation of Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep (1959). Also other subgenres of science fiction, it is not mutually exclusive. The film Avatar (2009) is a big blockbuster movie, with new 3D effects. It is not a movie that you watch normally but a movie that you immerse yourself, going through the adventure with dragons, hoping the good guys win and bad guys lose. However I believe this film has hidden political message through it. There is no doubt the director James Cameron created the most expensive movie ever created with message about environment, government corruption and terrorism. Avatar (2009) overt it own message about the environment and how mans interference with that area. The story is based on how humans have destroyed the earth and is now mining nearby planets for minerals including an unobtainium, on the Eden style Pandora. The area Pandora is a peaceful place, Navi, a race of blue humanoids whom live in peace with their exotic land and are linked to their ancestors in a way you might believe Aborigines, and Native Americans and other many tribes around the world. When the huge bulldozers cut down the Navis special spaces, you can imagine the same bulldozers cutting the many trees in rainforests in todays society, ripping apart tribes and the forests as this happens quite frequently in todays world. Al Gores documentary in 2006 states that global warming is real, and it is caused by human activity, and that all humans and the government has to do something before its too late and our planet will move past the point of no going back. You can argue that it is kind of like what is happening in Avatar (2009). Avatar (2009) takes many similarities of President Bushs War on Terror, even in the film, Stephen Langs war manic Col. Quartich exclaims, we will fight terror with terror!. When the Navie is refusing to leave their land so the government can mine their mineral, the military will not stop until they achieve their target. Even if it requires to kill every Navi and replacing their plant life with an apocalyptic land of charred chaos and rubbles. They also have their own group of scientist to create the avatar program, to gain access to the tribe and report back with relevant information. A few of the scientists have hearts, however the military people are portrayed as cold-blooded people and just want to win and destroy. You can say to sum this up that the film is intending to give a political message as a sci-fi genre, to the audience by feeding them information of things going on in todays world and how in the future life out can be gone. Politics does not necessarily have a large influence on sci-fi. Sometimes science fiction has an effect on politics. A few government agencies have science fiction counterparts, both on a known level and on a more subtle level. Some events in our history have been influenced by sci-fi that came way before it. A good example of this is NASAs Space Shuttle Enterprise was named after the Starship Enterprise from Star Trek after a letter writing campaign. While the Enterprise itself did not make it into space, it was in fact the first Space Shuttle every built by NASA and marked the beginning of Space Shuttles as we know. The Political Science Fiction is the media through which we can explore potential government institutions, point out the errors of our own political system, and experiment with new ideas. It can play across the world stage, is the imagination. Usually political science fiction can be an instructive tale of a repressive government, but it can also try and prove that other political avenues are as viable. If its even purely political, or what seems afterthought, politics will always be behind a great deal of science fiction. In the last 60 years the faster technological progress and events has changed the world. Even though all films are a subject to change at each point of sci-fi, has a close relationship with both technology and the real world. As Robert A. Heinlein a science fiction writer says, science fiction is a realistic speculation of future events based on knowledge of past and present real world. For this reason, the cause of the evolution of science fiction movies is the real world, put another way: Science fiction is reality. In the 1960s the radical revolutions in technology and the technological achievements such as the Moon, had a large impact on sci-fi. Also the Cold War, Martin Luther King, JFK and the Vietnam War all have an influence in sci-fi during the decade. Some of the well known films of sci-fi films including 2001: A Space Odyssey (1968) and The Time Machine (1960) had an impact in a way by this occurrence during the 1960s. Most notably the spacecraft appears in 2001 A Space Odyssey (1968) are very similar to the ship used in the 1960s. When the production of films was improving, the success of science fiction in the 1960s quickly advanced the creation of science fictions in the 1970s. The popularity of the technology during the 1970s has changed the lives of many people, cars, pocket calculator, bar codes and the computer at home. Others technologies such as the Space Shuttle influenced neutron bombs and the Concorde. An increase population of 4.4 million people since 1978 has affected the genre. The atmosphere of the decade was featured in the sci-fi film Logans Run (1976), while the anxiety about overpopulation was made in the film Soylent Green (1973). The increase of computer technology in films, more advanced films started to be produced in the 1980s. These new technologies gave a fresh new amazing special effect in sci-fi films like The Flight of the Navigator (1986), Predator (1987) and The Terminator (1984). Blade Runner (1982) is a science fiction that first contained dystopia rather than of all apocalypse in the road warrior or the future of The Terminator (1984). One topic that usually seemed to be presented on a number of occasions has been the concept of powerful corporations and evil that rules the world. This can be found in Aliens (1986), RoboCop (1987), The Terminator (1984) and Blade Runner (1982). Large technological advances during the 1990s all had the potential impact on sci-fi films. Some progress includes World Wide Web, text messaging, the computer generated films, cloning, photos of deep space and also the International Space Station. The ending threat of a third world war with Russia has been replaced by an increase number of small conflicts. The first war source was since the Gulf and Vietnam War took place, with some of the latest military technology used in the battle. Teams began to engage in larger roles in special effects films producing in revolutionary films like Men in Black (1997) and Jurassic Park (1993). Films with storylines in natural disasters have been made quite frequently like Deep Impact (1998), Armageddon (1998) and 2012 (2009), as the currant global warming and save the world began to have an influence. The film Matrix (1999) came a new era of SF films with complex plot and special effect. In the years 2000s, this was a decade of the availability of technological achievements related to space travel and also astronomy. The new solar systems and planets like Earth was discovered, countries like China have launched people into space, several robots have landed on Mars and exploring different planets was discovered in our solar system, recycling comet dust and many of unmanned probes have launched into space by organizations around the world. We are seeing the future of space tourism and the potential possibilities of space travel in the future. Also the politics climate has changed even more in events such as 9/11. Also not to forget, the film Avator was written by James Cameron in 1994. In 1996 Cameron announced after the film Titanic was made he would film Avatar. However due to technology not have been ready for the story and vision Cameron had for the film, he decided to make this film for the future when these technology was ready which he eventually did and released in 2009. To my conclusion on this essay, I have identified how far science fiction has come over time. Science Fiction has emerged over 100 years from the start of literacy novels, comics, magazine, television and films. I identified how politics and the surrounding of society and social have messages in science fiction films over time. Also how these films change of evolution in society and brings ideas to up and coming technology, making the world more advanced, constantly improving each day. Without sci-fiction films, and the whole genre, I believe that even today we would not have expanded and have the intelligence to bring out these technology machines, computers, phone and television today, as new ideas are still occurring in films every day. We would not have identified what is out in space, and now we can clear our minds with any superstitious thoughts of what is out there can be identified. We also can see the what if situation in the world if there was world disasters, to make us th ink of what can happen, and thanks to science fiction, technology is expanding and we can see more clearly and get ideas of what we can make the future and possibly create the future as we go along. (2969)

The History Of The Shade Of Dark Tourism Tourism Essay

The History Of The Shade Of Dark Tourism Tourism Essay The aim of this research project is a critical analysis of dark tourism in relation to its application to Ground Zero and the 9/11 Memorial Museum in New York, USA. This dissertation will analyse dark tourism, related to Ground Zero and the 9/11 Memorial Museum, shade of dark tourism, Ground Zero and the 9/11 Memorial Museum, and strategies of them, then to depth analysis of details of Ground Zero and the 9/11 Memorial Museum. The literature review shows secondary research and quantitative research, conducted on dark tourism is, the shade framework of dark tourism and some strategies of Ground Zero and 9/11 Memorial Museum. This indicates analyses structure of the case study. Through this dissertation, the author aim and objectives were achieved, and further suggestions and analysis are provided which could help Ground Zero and 9/11 Memorial Museum better match their aim and mission. Chapter 1. Introduction In this section, why Ground Zero and the 9/11 Memorial Museum have been chosen as a case study are explained. September 11th, 2001 North America suffered a most serious terrorist attack by al Qaeda. The World Trade Center in New York was destroyed and many people died in this attack. Nowadays, American and New York government decide build Ground Zero in the site of the World Trade Center and build the 9/11 Memorial Museum for people to remembers and understand how terrible terrorism is. After the 9/11 attacks, there are many people remembered victims through in many ways, and visitor numbers increased. In recent years, the dark tourism has start to develop (Sharpley and Stone, 2009), and the 9/11 attacks shocked the whole world thus, Ground Zero as a new building and the 9/11 Memorial Museum as the main memorial place, these are the main reasons for the author choosing them as a case study. These are related to dark tourism. Aim: To undertake critical analysis of dark tourism in relation to its application to Ground Zero and 9/11 Memorial Museum. Objectives: To critically evaluate dark tourism. To analyse Ground Zero and the 9/11 Memorial Museum as memorial sites. To evaluate tourism management strategies in relation to balancing the negative and positive side of dark tourism relating to tourism at Ground Zero and the 9/11 Memorial Museum. Chapter 2. Literature Review 2.1 Introduction This part is composed of research and information into the meaning of dark tourism and its various shades shade, the situation of Ground Zero and 9/11 Memorial Museum, and the strategies used to manage Ground Zero and memorial museum. 2.2 Evaluation of dark tourism Each tourism product has a complex design, therefore it is not can easy to definite dark tourism as dark or light (Stone, 2006). In this situation, in order to distinguish dark tourism, the author needs a prudent scale to argue and analyse the shade of dark tourism. Stone (2006) made a summary of the different shade of dark tourism. Table 1: shade of dark tourism Sources: Stone (2006): A dark tourism spectrum: perceived product features of dark tourism within a darkest lightest framework of supply. Each dark tourism site could be analysed by this framework, to define its shade. For Ground Zero and the 9/11 Memorial Museum the author will use this table to analyse the shade from the definition of dark tourism mentioned above, it is easy to see that dark tourism relates to death and suffering, Stone (2006) referring to Miles (2002) suggests that the difference between sites of death and suffering and sites associated with death and suffering should be understood. The former is the site at a place where there has been death and suffering, and the latter is a site which is connected to death and suffering. Ground Zero was built at the site of the World Trade Center, which was destroyed in 2001 and in which almost 3000 people died (CNN news 2009), Ground Zero corresponds to the sites of death and suffering. On the other hand 9/11 Memorial Museum is not built on the site of the World Trade Center, it just close to the site and its main purpose is to function as a memorial, so this mu seum is part of the sites associated with death and suffering. However, thorough other aspect in table 1 and based on the main theory from Stone (2006) and Miles (2002) , the shades of Ground Zero and 9/11 Memorial Museum and impact of dark tourism will be analysed late in the Findings section. 2.3 An analysis of Ground Zero. In 09/11/2001, there was an attack by terrorists and the World Trade Center was destroyed, New York is currently rebuilding this site which has a new name Ground Zero. 9/11 was the deadliest terrorist attack in the history of mankind, and now there is a different attitude to related to this site. On May 1, 2011 President Obama announced that American Navy Seals had killed Osama bin Laden who was the mastermind of the 9/11 attacks. Alter (2011) points out that when America heard this news they celebrated and reflected on, most of them going to the grounds of the White House in Washington and to Ground Zero in New York. In this way Ground Zero may be a place for Americans to remember the people who died on 11th September. Although the World Trade Center was destroyed, but now when the people look at Ground Zero, they will recall the memory of 9/11 and they mourn the dead people. In order to offer a good place to people for memory the government is building a museum in 2006 and put into use in 2011 (9/11 Memorial Museum). As can be seen from this place today, Ground Zero and the 9/11 Memorial museum becomes the main place to have a memory of dead people. These information which mentioned above show one of the main purpose of Ground Zero and the 9/11 Memorial Museum is to remember victims. In this sense, the provide information help the author achieve the objective 2, which is Ground Zero and the 9/11 Memorial Museum are memorial sites in New York. Memory as the main reason for Ground Zero, and in recent years, especially after 9/11 American government has been ceaselessly the implementating stringent anti- terrorism measures. Miller (2011) points that à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦the 9/11 terrorist attacks set the stage for the War on Terrorism, in the form of subsequent U.S led invasions of Afghanistan and Iraq. In the past, there have been other terrorist attacks on America, but none created such a great influence, in the sense of 9/11 which meant terrorist declared war on humans, and after this event the American government made a strong response to terrorism, and the rebuilding at the site of the World Trade Center means people do not bow to terrorism (Walsh, 2001). In this situation, Ground Zero will be a sign of war on terrorism. Because of the 9/11 terrorism attacks, the U.S government launched a massive counterattack to terrorism, and also affect on the policies and strategies. More details will be analysed in the Findings later. 2.4 Strategies of Ground Zero and 9/11 memorial museum. Sliverstein et al., (2012) in their report refer to after the 9/11 the main signification and action of the World Trade Center is rebuild and memorial. Ground Zero is the new building on the site of the World Trade Center and today the main place to remember 9/11 victims is at the 9/11 Memorial Museum. The author summarises a time line about the main actions of America and New York between 2001 to 2011. Table 2: Main strategies of America and New York after the 9/11 This table just a summarise of the main strategies and action that government used in the past 10 years. Through this table could help the author clean understand the main action of American and New York government to do after 9/11 terrorism attacks. In the findings, the author will use this table to analysis more detail of the government do and related to the significants of Ground Zero and 9/11 Memorial Museum to analyses. Except strategies and policies on table 2, the author will based on Porters (1985) generic strategy to make a professional strategies anaysis of Ground Zero and the 9/11 Memorial Museum. There are two ways which suitable for Ground Zero and 9/11 Memorial Museum to achieve their mission and help the author achieve objective 3: differentiation and cost leadership. Although the Ground Zero and 9/11 Memorial Museum are nonprofits making organisations but their main purpose is make more people understand 9/11 and how horrible terrorism is. In this situation, Ground Ze ro and the 9/11 Memorial Museum also needed strategies to develop them. When an organisation uses a different strategy, it seeks to offer something unique to its customers that they will appreciate. This can be found in marketing sales or the actual product or service. This strategy usually involves charging a premium price to customers to cover the higher production costs and added-value feature. If a organisation uses the cost leadership strategy then it aims to be the lowest-cost producer in the industry to which it belongs. This strategy is usually employed by a large business that produces a standard with little differentiation. It will offer discounts on the products to further increase profits and market share (Porter, 2004). The basis of above-average performance within an industry is sustainable competitive advantage. A cost leadership approach means a firm sets out to become the low cost producer in its industry. Note that a cost leader must achieve parity or at least proximity on the bases of differentiation, even though it relies on cost leadership for its competitive advantage, if more than one company aim for cost leadership, usually this is disastrous, it is often achieved by economies of scale. In this case study, the Ground Zero and 9/11 Memorial Museum are free for tourists, although some other museum also feel free but the Ground Zero and 9/11 Memorial Museum try to add more value on their products. In the museum, the organisation offers more useful value and information to customers (9/11 Memorial Museum Organisation) more service details will be analysed in the Findings. The differentiation approach means that a firm seeks to be unique in its industry along some dimensions that are widely valued by buyers (Porter 2004). A differentiator can not ignore its cost position. In all areas that do not affect its differentiation, it should try to decrease the cost; in the differentiation area, the costs should at least be lower than the price premium it receives from the buyers. The areas of differentiation can be product, distribution, sales, marketing, service and image. In this paper, because of Ground Zero and 9/11 Memorial Museum are free for customers, therefore the cost of products in not gong to be the center of analysis in this paper. How are Ground Zero and 9/11 Memorial Museum different? Based on Donofrio (2010) and Nevins (2005) refer that 9/11 is the most serious and horrible terrorist attack in the history of mankind, and caused a very serious impact on humans, especially families. In this respect, Ground Zero as the site of this terribel incid ent it has a special meaning, but also it is the most direct place for people to have a memorial for 9/11. For 9/11 Memorial Museum, today this site has become one of the most important places for people to remember 9/11. Because the place of Ground Zero is crowded by traffic, if too many people go there to for remembrance it will impact on traffic, so the government built a museum near by the site of the World Trade Center. For the reasons mentioned above, the Ground Zero and 9/11 Memorial Museum are different from other museum and dark tourism sites. Differentiation strategy is suitable for them to provide a high level of products and services. In the findings the author will make more analysis about these two strategies. 2.5 Conclusion This chapter makes a summarised evaluation of dark tourism, the author pays more attention on the shade of Ground Zero and the 9/11 Memorial Museum, this is in order to understand the nature of dark tourism, and the other part assess the impact of dark tourism will be analysed in the Findings. Because the author considered understanding nature of the dark tourism could help author to better analysis. Dark tourism is a whole industry, in this paper the author chose Ground Zero and 9/11 Memorial Museum as case study, so in this part author also give some short evaluation of Ground Zero and 9/11 Memorial Museum, a simple analysis the shade of Ground Zero and 9/11 Memorial Museum, and what their mean, it gives out a brief summary of them. The part of 2.2 3 the author based on the characteristics of Ground Zero and 9/11 Memorial Museum point out two suitable strategies for them to develop, achieve their mission and try to offer a high level of service and information to tourists. In part 2.2 of literature review, the author gives out an overall framework and structure of the whole paper, and expounded which different aspects the author considered and analysed to achieve the aim of this paper based on other authors theories which author researched through secondary research and qualitative research. Chapter Three: Methodology 3.1 Introduction There are many different approach and methods to collect data and information in order to achieve the ultimate goal and solve the research question. This chapter mentions how and why the research data were collected, and also advantages and disadvantages of the chosen methods and how to remedy the disadvantage are presented. The data collected are reliable, credible, and authentic. Steward and Kamins (1993) point out that the main research methods could be divided into primary research, secondary research, qualitative research and quantitative research. As the author determined the overall use of secondary research was chosen in this project to achieve the aim, so methodology will provide sufficient justification to explain why secondary research was selected. Thoms (2009) points out that successful research should include the following elements: purpose, question, approach, and method. Hart (2007. p28) argues that the procedure for formulating a method is a system of methods and rul es to be collected and analysis of data and information. In the following paragraph the author will follow Thoms (2009) and Harts (2007) elements to present the methodology and analyse why secondary research was chosen to collect the data and how to analyse the information . 3.2 The Research Process To determine the choice of approach in the research process, the author will use the following Research Process Onion model, introduced by Saunders et al. (2003) is used. The research process onion allows the researcher to identify the many different layers in the research process and to eliminate or identify the most suitable process. The research process onion consists of the following five different layers: The model is used by starting from step one, the outer layer, which illustrates research philosophy, and peeling away the layers when different criteria have been set until reaching the end, which introduces the possible data collection methods. Once the last step has been reached, the parameters of the research have been established. 3.3 Type of research The first stage of the research onion is called research philosophy. Saunders et al (2003, p. 83) argue that the research philosophy depends on à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦the way that you think about the development of the knowledge. There are four main philosophies that are used to approach the research: positivist, interpretive, realism, and phenomenology. There are two features of positivism philosophy, they are belief that the natural and the social sciences could help the author achieve the aim through the collection of data and information and to explain, then offer an external reality data support and explain the points (Bryman 2001). On the other hand, the interpretivistic philosophy asserts that the assumptions of both philosophies are unwarranted; especially in cases where the objectives of study are influenced by many factors, and are extremely difficult to isolate and control in experimental laboratory settings (Hirschheim and Klein 1994). The realistic philosophy shares two features with a positivism philosophy: a belief that the natural and the social sciences should apply the same kinds of approach to the collection of data and to explanation, and a commitment to the view that there is an external reality to which scientists direct their attention (Bryman 2001). The first three are not appropriate to this study as the positivist paradigm requires mainly quantitative data and uses large samples; interpretive paradigm is more concerned with generating theories and realism investigates relationship between two variables. The latter one has been used for this study as it was the most suitable for this type of research. The phenomenological approach can be applied to a single case, which is appropriate to this research study as the researcher used one Ground Zero and the 9/11 Memorial Museum as a case study for investigation. The use of phenomenology in the scenario then was to look into what presented itself that is the tourist attraction, its facilities and performance and then explore behind the scenes and question how the tourism operators sell themselves and of any special techniques which are used to do this. This is summarized by Mariampolski (2001): According to phenomenology, the purpose of the human sciences which presumably includes market research is to pry beneath the surface to expose these categories and habits of mind that shape out perceptions. This research study lends itself to a realistic approach, where the author recognises that areas such as strategy and visitors attitudes cannot be measured and studied in the same way physical process can. Instead, the author wants to discover the mechanisms that brought Ground Zero and the 9/11 Memorial Museum prosper and where possible, will try to measure the theory applied within the study. The existence of competing, or even explanations is one of the features of realist research. (Fisher, 2004. p 16) 3.4 Research strategies and approach The research objectives were to investigate the key metrics as indicators for success; this involved conducting secondary research by studying data and reports. Based on the objectives, it can be said that this research is an explanatory study. According to Robson (1993), this is a type of discovery is: What is happening; to seek new insights; to ask questions and to assess phenomena in a new light. Exploratory studies are about discovering new information and generating ideas and hypotheses. The researcher explored the factors that contribute to Ground Zero and the 9/11 Memorial Museum, and how these places gaining a competitive advantage as these were unknown prior to conducting the study. The approach to the study involved a combination of inductive and deductive approaches, inductive because the researcher collected data and then analysed it to draw conclusions and offer theories; deductive because the researcher studied previous research and evidence through the literature review and then compared it to findings to see how they corresponded or contrasted with each other. The strength of inductive arguments is often weaker than deductions. Deductions are certainties but inductive conclusions are probabilities (Fisher, 2004. p 76) These diverse methods area particularly suited for the research as it requires different analysis and allows for more research to be conducted and analysed. Some qualitative data were used for secondary research, involving studying statistic at figures which relates to the three objectives in finding out the indicators of success. Once this data was analysed conclusions were offered to how Ground Zero and the 9/11 Memorial Museum gains a competitive advantage. 3.5 Research choice The study will benefit from the use of current secondary data to make clear many of the contradictory findings throughout various authors work, therefore, a report-based approach to data collection was adopted, by examining the annual reports and surveys conducted. In the following section the author will analyes why secondary research was chosen. Gene (1976) points out that secondary research is a way to reanalyse data to answer the question, to achieve the purpose, or use old data to answer a new question. Thus, secondary research is through books, journals, websites, or other researchers findings were used to collect data and material. For primary research and secondary research each have their own advantages, for primary research, Steward and Kamins (1993) indicate that primary research have the following advantages. The first is primary research which could allow the researcher collect the data they want and report it in a beneficial way to support the researcher. The second is primary research enables the author to better grasp and control how the information is collected. The last is the way to help companies who under take primary research to keep information hidden from the competitors and possibly offer an information advantage to these companies. Primary research has some deficiencies but for the author, the projects research will use the secondary research. The author will first point out is to the advantages of secondary research. Steward and Kamins (1993) also given some advantages of secondary research. The biggest advantage of secondary research is saving time and cost, because secondary research allows the author to use of secondary data to support a point of view and this will be easier, and sometimes secondary research could provide a higher quality of data than from a new research, like primary research. If the author wants to obtain some information about suggestions for problem planning, research hypotheses and research methods, secondary research could provide these additional advantages. In addition, secondary research also helps researchers to clarify the issue they want to study, and previous primary research can help clarify the focus of the study. Although there are some deficiencies with secondary research, Bryman and Bell (2007, p.334) point out the limitation of secondary research as the following three: 1. Lack of data relating to the research. 2. The data that are collected are complex; some of these data have a large number of respondents and variables. 3. The quality of data is not controllable. 3.6. Construction of the research For this dissertation, a lot of data were obtained from references source such as books, journals, reports, and networks. Most books which author found were in university library. Not only books, but also a large number of journals, magazines, E bookwere used. For secondary research, the author also included information from found websites. The network of all the information from the New York government websites, local government websites, other reports, and Emerald, in these data also include information from E books, these can ensure the datas authenticity, reliability, accuracy and credibility. Real data are better to support this dissertation, and make this dissertation more credible and make up defect of secondary research. According to the aim and objectives, there is much information and data to support this dissertation, however, many of these data sources are not irrelevant. For this reason, the author will consider many aspects of this dissertation to choose the relevant, credible, accurate information, the author will also consider the quality of data, year of information, and when it was published. 3.7 Assessment schematic Rudestam and Newton (2001, p. 60) argue that you need to keep a perspective, and do an evaluation of the advantages of this study, at the same time make a comparative study with same or similar problems. The purpose of the assessment diagram is to ensure that data collection is credible, reliable, effective and could be used for this study. 1. Survey of major issues: Analysis of what are the main issues to be investigated and definition of the concept of the authors work, allows comparison of similar studies. 2. Hypotheses To enquire and evaluate what hypotheses has been stated and whether the theoretical framework is narrowed or broadened 3.The appropriate data for the study To question whether the collected data are appropriate and how they have influenced results and findings. 3.8 Conclusion This chapter explains why the author would choose secondary research to collect and evaluate data. Meanwhile, the author also aware of the limitation of secondary research, therefore, the author would analysis more information and theories to support this study. In this part, the structure will be illustrated that how the author collect information, how to select suitable, correct and accurate information. Chapter 4 Findings 4.1 Evaluation of Dark Tourism. Part 4.1 will introduce the situation of dark tourism and provide a depth analysis of dark tourism in order for the reader to gain an overall concept of dark tourism, and the details of Ground Zero and 9/11 Memorial Museum will be given in part 4.2. This paper uses Ground Zero and the 9/11 Memorial Museum for the case study. The museum is a kind of exhibition showing pictures, voices, and experiences, therefore, this part critically examines the value that contemporary and controversial exhibitions techniques play in the visitor experience at sites of historical significance. According to Lennon (2000), dark tourism is a kind of tourism products that signify a fundamental shift in the way in which death, disaster and atrocity are being handled. Sharpley and Stone (2011) also point out that dark tourism includes travel to sites about deaths, disasters and atrocities. It can be easy to understand the definition of dark tourism (also known as black tourism or grief tourism) as a kind of tourism product, meaning a place that people visit in memory of death, disaster, suffering, violence or atrocity. One emerging area of special interest has been identified by Lennon et al. (2000) as dark tourism. This type of tourism involves visits to dark sites such as battlegrounds, scenes of horrific crimes or acts of genocide, for example concentration camps. Dark tourism remains a small niche market, driven by a wide variety of visitor motivations such as mourning, remembrance, education, macabre curiosity or even entertainment, depending on the social, cultural and political context (Stone, 2006). In this study, the author takes a neutral stance on this issue. There are both positive and negative aspects in contemporary exhibition techniques. Consequently, a particularly complex issue revolves around the consumption of dark tourism. People usually visit such dark sites for emotive and controversial ideas. Someone, within contemporary society, visits such places out of respect and remembrance. Someone could obtain a secret pleasure in gazing on the macabre. While, some people contemplate t heir own mortality at such attractions and exhibitions (Stone, 2006). Nowadays, visitors are no longer satisfied to loll on the beach or gather around the hotel bar with other tourists. The increasing attention paid to the phenomenon of dark tourism may arguably be symptomatic of the trend within academic circles to identify and label specific forms of tourism, or to subdivide tourism into niche products and markets (Novelli, 2005). Visiting Nazi death camps in eastern Europe as a holiday itinerary, enjoying family picnics on the battlefields in northern France, purchasing souvenirs at Ground Zero and allowing schoolchildren to gaze upon tools of torture at the London Dungeon, are all examples of the macabre exhibition. Consequently, the term dark tourism has been gradually entering the public, such as academic and media discourse. By definition, dark tourism mean the visits, intentional or otherwise, to purposeful / non-purposeful sites which offer a presentation of death or suffering (Stone, 2005). Likewise, Tarlow (2005) identifies dark tourism as visitations to places where tragedies or historic deaths have occurred and that continue to impact on people`s lives. Dark tourism sites can be divided into several categories and can be defined in terms of site structure and tourist experience features. The usual type of site is interpretive and historical, whether it is located at the primary scene of an atrocity or at a geographically unrelated place. Often taking on the form of a museum, such places exhibit a narrative and an event-based view of violence, leading the tourists through the history and details of a particular tragedy. An in-context technique, (Kirshenblatt-Gimblett, 1998) to contextualise via labelling and explanation, characterises such displays and works to present violence as explainable and cognitive through education and information. 4.1-1 Positive affects of dark tourism Tung and Ritchie (2011) states that tourism is a way for people seek the experiences and open a way to absorption of those experiences. People collect experiences through travel, go different place, meet different people and culture and experiment different life style. Understand world could help us understand ourselves and develop ourselves (Lanterman 2007 referred to Boniface 1998). Although people can learn many things from school, but experiences of life should experiment by people themselves, tourism provides a way to us to learn. In ancient time, Marco Polo traveled to Asia from Europe, when he backed to his country, he brought many advance technology to his country and made European experiment a lot of new things which they never saw before. Today, with developing of dark tourism, there are many new things for tourists to experience enrich themselves. With the degree of infrastructure and normality that surround the supply of dark tourism, even on varying scales (Stone and Sharpley, 2009), the increasingly socially acceptable gaze on death and its reconceptualisation either for entertainment, education or memorial purpose offers both the individual and collective self a practical confrontational mechanism to begin the process of neutralising the impact of mortality. The educational meaning of dark tourism. Sharpley et al. (2010) state that in the UK, around 30% of schools undertook tours to battlefields. Visiting battlefields provides an opportunity to bring history to life, for history students to gain an understanding of what it might have been like to be a soldier of the time. Religious Studies students may visit sites of mass slaughter in order to explore the spiritual issues and the reactions of different faiths (Sharpley et al., 2010). For Ground Zero and the 9/11 Memorial Museum, they are a part of history of human, and they as the sign of 9/11 it own a special significant, and visitors could learning many things about terrorism and peace in these. Although a tour may exhibit some particular darkness, the experience of visiting battlefields may provide young people with a chance to explore their reactions to death. This reflects the potential mediating role of dark tourism. Secondly, is full of memory to visits. Memorialisation and interpretation are two ways of assuaging feelings such as guilt, fear of forgetting, remembrance and reconciliation (Sharpley et al., 2010). A mass number of visitors to Auschwitz may think of their visit as a pilgrimage, particularly visitors who are survivors or family

Reduction in Force :: essays research papers

The Role of Length of Service in a Reduction in Force Organizations participating in a reduction in force (RIF) are typically reacting to an economic reason. A poorly designed and executed RIF procedure is fraught with potential litigation possibilities. Using â€Å"†¦length of service with the company or in a job classification is the most common, easiest, and most objective standard† (Wildman-Harrold).   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Any RIF is subject to potential lawsuits. Considering the number of employees involved, the amount of potential damages can easily escalate. Consequently, RIF decisions need to be consistent, uniformly applied, and based on objective measures.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Using seniority has several advantages. It is a quantifiable measurement that is readily understood and appreciated by employees. Using Seniority can also aid in the positive perception that employees have in their organization by valuing loyalty. Seniority can also reduce the liability that comes with age discrimination. One survey indicated that age discrimination claims are twice as frequent as any other claim in a RIF. (Wildman-Harrold)   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  While using seniority as a RIF measurement tool has distinct advantages, companies that use seniority as the sole measurement tool for a RIF put themselves at a disadvantage. These companies are potentially at risk for not retaining productive and high performing, less senior employees. Companies that create a hybrid of measurements that include skill set analysis and performance based measurements, along with seniority will be better served. Considerations of Gender, Race, Age, and Other â€Å"Protected Class† Designations State and Federal laws protect employees from unlawful termination based on gender, race, and age. It is estimated from the â€Å"Displaced Worker Survey† that over 2.4% of all employees displaced in the mid 1990’s filed a discrimination claim with the EEOC (Harriet Zellner, 1998, p.1). Understanding this large potential risk, employers must be cognizant of the effect that any RIF will have as it relates to this protected class. To understand the potential implication of a RIF on the employer’s protected class, the employer should conduct â€Å"statistical pre-testing of RIF lists† (Harriet Zellner, 1998, p.1). In this process the employer would conduct a mock RIF to develop lists of employees both before and after the RIF. These lists would provide the statistical data for the workforce composition, from which a statistical analysis of patterns in the data are completed. From this data, the organization must make an assessment whether the statistics represent a disparate impact on a protected class. If a disparate impact exists, the organization needs to determine if the impact is statistically significant, is the RIF process fair, impartial, and caused by a business need?