The Merchants Tale Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

The Merchants Tale - Essay Example He is upset that such a beautiful young woman married an old fellow. As they returned to their home, January apologized in advance for the sexual exploits he would act on her. After the customary four days, May joins January at the banquet table and it is at this point that he notices Damien’s absence and is informed he is ill. He sends May to visit him on his behalf, during the visit, Damien hands a letter to May declaring his love for her and in return she reciprocates by writing to him about her love towards him. However, January’s happiness does not last for long as he loses his eyesight, this result to him relying on May for assistance, something that Damien is not happy about. May signals to Damien to January’s secret garden. She displayed a lusty appetite for fruits and led January to the garden where she asked him to bend over and let her stand on his back as she climbed a tree to get pear. She climbed up where she met Damien and they had sex. Suddenly, J anuary’s eyesight was restored and saw May and Damien having sex and he was filled with rage. May convinced January that his sight was weak and the brightness affected his sight such that he saw certain things strangely. She jumped from the tree and January embraced her. According to the merchant, the theme of marriage can be described from two fronts in this tale: marriage as a state of holy matrimony, a means to secure an heir, he demonstrates a wife who has good qualities and how they support each other during instances of need. However, he also reflects his bitterness towards marriage as he is unhappy and has only been married for two months. Due to May’s infidelity, the reader may conclude that January is a foolish husband, May, a slut and Damien a

The problem with public relations Essay Example for Free

The problem with public relations Essay Budd and Ruben (1988) stressed that the absence of data sources signals mass media’s inevitable downfall and destruction. Once and for all, information is media’s main (product). Thus, it is pretty impossible for media organizations to deliver such (product) if there is an apparent lack of supplier. PR is therefore instrumental in sustaining media’s existence and survival. PR departments of business establishments can supply industry-based news and stories. Likewise, government agencies utilize PR to increase the public’s awareness about the government’s projects and endeavors. Similarly, it can be noticed that advocacy and interest groups capitulated on public relations to voice out their views and opinions. However, while it is true that public relations aid the media in satisfying the market for information, it cannot be denied that PR’s sole purpose is still grounded on the principle of building publicity and creating massive media exposure. The marriage of press releases and news items make it too difficult and confusing for the public to distinguish plain news materials from press releases. The implications of the above-mentioned scenarios are pretty compelling and cannot be readily ignored. For one, the dependence of media organizations on PR departments as news sources raises question regarding the quality of news production. For one, media practitioners are trained and expected to conduct heavy research and collect different news sources to ensure accuracy. Relying on a single source is a cardinal sin for many journalists and broadcasters primarily because news items must ensure that all angles of the story are presented. Relatively, this also served as a challenge to the degree of professionalism practiced by individuals that work in the media. Data gathering and verifying information are essential routines in news production. This means that journalists and broadcasters are expected to go out of their comfort zones and look for socially relevant topics that serve the public’s interests. The notion that media practitioners should develop a keen eyes for details and nose for news, imply that media outfits must exert effort in providing news rather than merely sit and wait for PR handouts. But more than anything else, this situation readily surrenders mass media’s freedom. Mutual connections of news organizations and PR departments manifest media’s subtle suppression and independence from the powerful influences of external environments. Indeed, PR departments, due to its strong links to business organizations, governmental agencies and even advocacy groups, now has the upper-hand in the overall process of how news is produced and delivered to the public (Fitzpatrick Bronstein, 2006) . Drawing on Dahrendorf’s idea of power legitimacy, business establishments and government agencies have the authority to transform news materials into mere promotional or propaganda copies (Slattery, 2003). These actors are well positioned in the social strata that grant them a good grasp of influence. The uneven distribution of authority and rule (Slattery, 2003) readily legitimizes the position of business organizations and government agencies in the social, political, cultural and legal hierarchy. PR subsequently becomes a tool for control and manipulation via exerting pressure to distort and fabricate news items. It is important to note that media outfits are also business endeavors that depend on profiteering to sustain their survival. Profit, in the media context is measured by high ratings and wide audience reception. But this can be only achieved if newspapers and television programs alike have enough information to offer for public consumption (Craig, 2004). It is the information—the news stories that function as lifebloods of the media industry. When PR departments become involved in news making, they are very much capable of withholding data and information that leaves journalists and broadcasters at their mercy. This is most especially true in situations wherein corporate reputation is very much at stake. In these times, media practitioners must exercise neutrality and objectivity. However, neutrality in this case does not work well for PR. One must readily take sides. What happens then is that journalists and news anchors are compelled to transform press releases into (well-researched) news reports that simply explain the sides of the affected party. However, a closer look into the matter shows that these simple explanations are no less than defense mechanisms that are pursued to protect capitalistic aims and orientations. Other business organizations would even push media practitioners to exaggerate press releases and resort to sensationalism (Whitaker, Ramsey Smith, 2004). On the other hand, government agencies can impose legal sanctions to influence news coverage and to a certain extent—silence media groups. These institutions can very much exercise censorship to dismantle media’s critical stand. This situation is highly evident in communities governed by extremely authoritarian regimes. Likewise, if government offices fail to garner favorable media attention, they can create their own media system and thus capitalize on PR. Nowadays, it is not too much of an extraordinary thing to see government agencies publish their own newsletters or newspapers (Franklin Murphy, 1991). A deconstruction of these media contents clearly show that campaign materials are readily expressed as news. Yes, these copies may well increase the public’s awareness. But news, in the truest sense of the word, is not self-serving. Apparently, this scenario manifests a blatant abuse of freedom of expression. However, press releases are also exploited by other media practitioners. This can be specifically observed in journalists and broadcasters who are active members of advocacy groups. Their ideological beliefs may very much interfere with the way they handle news stories. Biases may occur in treating subjects that have differing opinions and perspectives. There are instances wherein released statements of their respective groups are customized to look like news items. But then again, no matter how noble the intentions are, this does not erase the fact that the public is deceived and mislead. The inability of media individuals to distance themselves from their respective affiliations is a subtle and unconscious way of placing more PR content in news items. The agenda-setting model states that mass media in general have the ability to dictate and redefine the audience’s perception (Botha et. al, 2007). News organizations, regardless of the ethical standards that govern broadcast, print and online media can tell the public which issues should be considered important and which should be immediately dismissed as irrelevant. The agenda-setting function of media is manifested through giving focus and emphasis on particular subjects (Botha et. al, 2007). When certain events or personalities receive much media attention, the public is made to believe that these are important. It can be observed that majority of released news items are mainly concern on few large-scale issues. Yet, it seems that there is diversity in newspapers and television news programs. But the truth is, these issues are simply dissected and articulated from different angles. Public relations officers know this very well and PR agencies are readily capitulating on these situations (Burns, 2002). Even though it is a common practice for news producers to identify news angles, this has been nonetheless, abused. Consequently, this scenario is also instrumental in the prevalence of unethical practices in mass media. These include biases, data fabrication, inaccuracy, and conflicting interests. Under this context, news and media in general becomes a tool of the elite to retain their positions in the social and political ladder. Media becomes a hegemonic machine of the ruling class. This situation further reaffirms Althusser’s argument that media is part of the so-called â€Å"ideological state apparatuses or ISA (Fourie, 2007). † Conclusion PR is indeed, a good source of news stories. However, there should be a clear distinction between press releases and news items. Media organizations must assert their independence and autonomy from certain groups that could very well affect news production. It should be always remembered that providing relevant information is not synonymous to creating â€Å"praise releases. † Ethical practices in the media must be strictly observed. The public’s demand for information should not be perceived from a business-oriented view. News stories are not commodities. The public needs to know because the public needs to make a decision. Media, more than anything else is accountable to the public, not to PR agencies. Reference List Benkler, Y. (2006). The Wealth of Networks How Social Production Transforms Markets and Freedoms. Connecticut: Yale University Press Botha, D; Chaka, M; du Plessis, N; Krause, B; Rawjee, V. P; Porthen, D; Veerasamy, D and Wright, B. (2007). Public Relations Fresh Perspectives. Cape Town: Pearsons Education South Africa (Pty) Ltd. Budd, R. and Ruben, B. (1988) Beyond Media New Approaches to Mass Communication. New Jersey: Transaction Publishers Burns, L. (2002). Understanding Journalism. London: Sage Publications Ltd. Clear, A. and Weideman, L. (2001) Dynamics of Public Relations and Journalism. (2nd ed). Cape Town: Juta Co. Ltd. Craig, G. (2004). The Media, Politics and Public Life. North South Wales: Allen Unwing Davies, A. (2003). Public Relations and News Sources. In S. Cottle (Ed. ), News, public relations and power. London: Sage Publications Inc. Fleming, C; Hemmingway, E; Moore, G and Welford, D. (2006). An Introduction to Journalism. London: Sage Publications Inc. Fitzpatrick, K and Bronstein, C. (2006). Ethics in Public Relations. London: Sage Publications Inc. Fourie, P. (Ed. ) (2007). Media Studies Media History, Media and Society (Vol. 1). Cape Town: Juta Co. Ltd. Franklin, B. and Murphy, D. (1991). What News?. London: Routledge L’Etang, J. (2004). Public Relations in Britain. New Jersey: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates Inc. Ray, S. (2007) And Now for the good News. Massachusetts: Moment Point Press Schultz, R. (1998) Reviving the fourth estate. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press Slattery, M. (2003). Key Ideas in Sociology. Cheltenham: Nelson Thornes Ltd. Sloan, W. and Parcell, L. (Eds) (2002). American Journalism History, Principles, Practices. North Carolina: McFarland Company Inc. Whitaker,W; Ramsey, J and Smith, R. (2004). MediaWriting Print, Broadcast and Public Relations. (2nd ed). New Jersey: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates Inc.

Lipoplasty (liposuction) :: Medical Weight Loss

Lipoplasty (liposuction) In today’s society you would think it was becoming a crime to be large or overweight, it is not so much of being overweight it is the way society makes people feel about weight. The world today programs us to believe we should and always be thin and our body to look a certain way. Women more so than men want to portray this certain look, by surgery with lipo or other cosmetic surgery. Anymore it is very typical as going out to eat as having these type of procedures done. For most including myself I would have to give this a considerable amount of thought cause this is a scary thing surgery, but yet so many are willing to try. As to say 30 or 40 years ago something like this was unheard of, now it is very common. With the advanced technology we have in the world today all of these procedures seem for the most part safe but like anything else there are always gonna be risks involved. The American society of plastic surgeons was established in 1931,and They do so many different Cosmetic procedures only to name a few breast augmentation, breast lift, browlift, camouflage cosmetics, chemical peel, ear surgery, face lifts, facial implants, spider veins, tummy tuck, and they are so many more. You can virtually get anything on your body fixed. They are some things you need to think about before determining if liposuction is for you, is this really worth all the risks involved. Liposuction is the removing of fat pockets or rolls I call them, they normally stay right with you even if you are dieting, But exercising can do a lot of toning , but exercise can only do so much. There are so many other risks involved especially greater in people with ongoing medical problems. Such as heart disease any kind of respiration problems only to name a few. In preparing for the surgery you will have several blood tests run and also a complete physical. Surgery will be done at either the doctor’s office or hospital depending on the individual person. In choosing an anesthesia they are several different ones to choose from depending on you and the doctor would decide which is best for you. For the length of surgery it would depend on the area or how much lipo is being done would be how long the surgery would take.

Fallacies

I. Fallacies A. What are Fallacies B. Bandwagon Fallacy C. Either – Or Fallacy A fallacy is an error in reasoning in which the evidence given for the conclusion does not provide the needed degree of support. Fallacies are defects that weaken the speaker’s arguments when trying to persuade an audience while speaking. By preparing yourself to look for fallacies in your own and others’ writing you can strengthen your ability to avoid using fallacies.There are two important things to know about fallacies: One, fallacies arguments are very common and can be quite persuasive to the casual reader or listener. Two, it is sometimes hard to determine whether an argument is a fallacy. Your goal when preparing your speech should be to look critically at your own arguments separate them from the weak and move them towards the strong side. A bandwagon fallacy is based on an appeal to popular belief and behavior not on valid and logical points.An argument based on the bandwagon fallacy usually is similar to â€Å"everyone else does this so it must be true† or â€Å"everyone else does this so it must be right. † For instance, a television show is good because it has many viewers is an example of a fallacious bandwagon, because high viewership does not determine if the show is good or not. This can be effective because it suggests that by defying the claim one is defying the beliefs of everyone or of the vast majority of people. Many people are afraid that they will seem unintelligent if they challenge a belief that is supposedly held by most people.Either – Or fallacy occurs when a speaker makes a claim that presents an artificial range of choices when there are actually more options to choose from. Also referred to as false dilemma when someone accidentally or purposefully makes an argument confuses contradictory and contrary propositions. For example, he is breathing or he is not breathing is contradictory. Another example today is M onday or today is Tuesday which is a contrary statement. So basically either –or fallacy limits the listeners choices when they have so much more to choose from.

Hyphenated American

Chinese Americans tend to keep their separate identity In the United States, there are multiple hyphenated Americans groups, such as African- American, Asian- American, Irish- American, and Indian- American. People hold American nationality, but have a foreign birth or origins tend to identify themselves in some term of Hyphenated Americans. It means that they are not only Americans, but also involve in different ethnicity, religion, language, and culture. Chinese- Americans comprises the largest ethnic group of Asian Americans.Most of the early Chinese workers immigrated from Guangdong province in China for the Gold Rush (â€Å"Chinese Immigrants and the Gold Rush†, n. d. ). Since 1865, lots of Chinese worker come to the United States and worked on the famous Transcontinental Railroad project. The Chinese also worked as small merchants, gardener, laundry workers, farmers, and so on. More and more Chinese Americans immigrated with their children from mainland China, Hong Kong, Macau, and Taiwan(â€Å"Chinese Historycal Society of Southern California†, 2010).The Chinese Americans try to keep their Chinese culture, language, and community, and they tend to retain the separate identity. Chinese Americans tend to live together in their own culture community. According to the 2010 census, the Chinese American population was around 3. 8 million, and half of them lived either in  California  or  New York (â€Å"Race Reporting for the Asian Population by Selected Categories: 2010†, 2010 ). The Chinatown in San Francisco was the oldest and largest Chinese community in the United States.People can find Chinese culture elements everywhere in the Chinatown, for example, herbal shops, temples, dragon parades, Chinese book store, Chinese restaurant, Chinese language school, and even Chinese hospital. People living in the Chinatown communicate in Chinese language, and live exactly the same life style as people in China. Chinese Americans in New York also have such community in the Flushing area, know as Chinatown. There are Chinese transportation companies; travel agencies, and Chinese language school also. Almost every child in Chinese American family has attended Chinese language school after their regular school time.Their parents want them to keep ancestor’s culture, so they will always remember that they are rooted in China. There is a Columbus Chinese Christian Church in Columbus Ohio. Every Sunday, thousands of Chinese American Christians living in Columbus get together and model in the bible through teaching, music, and worship. After the teaching, people share a big dinner of Chinese food. Most of them speak Chinese, and only the new generations who were born in America prefer to speak English. Many of the old immigrated Chinese American even cannot speak English at all.Even though the kids speak English with each other, they can still speak frequently in Chinese with their parents. Chinese Americans stay in th eir own community to retain their culture, language, and customs. Chinese Americans are pride of their ethnic and culture. Music and dance are the common language among all human being. Chinese Americans hold Shen Yun performances all around the United States to spread Chinese art and music. Every year, students can see posts about Shen Yun performance on the wall around the OSU campus. The video Shen Yun 2013 Trailer on the Shen Yun website also shows some significant parts of the performance.Dancers wearing different styles of Chinese traditional ancient clothes performed the Chinese cultures of different dynasty and different ethics. The music play by Chinese traditional instruments was as good as the dancing. As it said in the video, the aim of the performance is to revive 5000 years of divine civilization. It shows Chinese Americans’ strong sense of pride of Chinese culture. Many of the new generation of Chinese American, which is also known as American born Chinese (ABC ), had a hard time to define themselves identity.A short story named â€Å"The Paper Menagerie† written by Ken Liu won the 2012 Hugo Awards. This short, bittersweet story describe Ken suffered a pain of having a Chinese born mom who was different with every else’s mom, also, whose accent and broken sentences embarrassed him (Ken, 2012). His mom taught him Chinese, cooked Chinese food, and made him Chinese tradition paper animals as toys. She liked to see the Chinese parts in her son. However, he hated his chink face and all the other Chinese parts from his mother. He refused to talk to her in Chinese even though she can barely speak English.After reading her lasting letter inside the paper animals after his mother’s death, Ken finally understand his mother’s life and know how much she loved him (Ken, 2012). There is an America born Chinese girl Amy Tan who define herself a completely American, and she wants nothing to do with China. However, she actually struggled a lot about which country she truly belongs to. Then she had a trip back to China with her mother. Tan said that once she touched Chinese soil, she better understood her connection to the land and to the country.She finally understood how she belongs to two cultures at the same, which make her accept her hyphenated identity, and view herself as a Chinese American. She said â€Å"I discovered how American I was. I also discover how Chinese I was. I discovered a sense of finally belonging to a period of history, which I never felt with American history†. She realized that â€Å"Once you were born Chinese, you cannot help but feel and think Chinese† (Lemontree, n. d. ). Ken and Amy all tried to refuse everything about China, and they want nothing to do with Chinese.Finally, somehow, they find the way to connect their Chinese heritage and American nationality, and they accept themselves as who they are. American born Chinese new generation all suffered from an un expected pain of trying to belong. They have Chinese faces; they were mostly raised up in Chinese community and eat Chinese food; they have Chinese friends and their family members speak Chinese at home. They don’t know which nation and culture they truly belong to. Sometime they feel embarrassed about having such a different family, and try to integrate into the American society.Their parents hope they can hold the hyphenated identity, because they are pride of Chinese ethnic and culture. Young generations always refuse to do so, but the Chinese heritages do exist in their body, and will have influences on their life. They need to honor their ancestor’s culture and accept combination of being Chinese and American. Reference Chinese Historycal Society of Southern California. (2010). Retrieved on Nov. 21, 2012, from http://www. chssc. org/history/histtimeline. html Chinese Immigrants and the Gold Rush (n. d. ). Retrieved on Nov. 21. 2012, from http://www. pbs. rg/wgbh/a mex/goldrush/peopleevents/p_chinese. html Ken,L. (2011). The Paper Menagerie. Fantasy & Science Fiction. Retrieved on Nov. 21, 2012, from http://a1018. g. akamai. net/f/1018/19022/1d/randomhouse1. download. akamai. com/19022/pdf/Paper_Menagerie. pdf Lemontree. (n. d. ). Hyphenated Identity: A Long Research Journey, Retrieved on Nov, 21, 2012, from http://ayjw. org/articles. php? id=696640 Race Reporting for the Asian Population by Selected Categories: 2010. (2010). U. S. Census Bureau, Retrieved on Nov. 21, 2012, from http://factfinder2. census. gov/faces/tableservices/jsf/pages/productview. xhtml

Film Review Baraka by Ron Fricke (1992)

Film Review Baraka by Ron Fricke (1992) Baraka directed by Ron Fricke (1992)The title is a Sufi word that means 'blessing' and this is very appropriate as there are many images of people from all walks of life who pray and reveal their spirituality in one form or another. The images of nature at the film's beginning of snow-capped mountains and wheeling birds are backed by spiritual music which includes a flute. The snow monkey soaking itself in a hot spring appears to be meditating, then tribes of natives in prayer somewhere in Asia, Aborigines in Australia, and the Israelis at the Wailing Wall,. and so on. Many of these images are shown later, revealing a change in perspective, for example the Israeli soldier with gun in hand, wearing prayer shawl, praying at the Wall, thus creating meaning for the audience, that life is a paradox. Another way of presenting a change in perspective is through the use of juxataposition.English: Wailing Wall from the TankizyyaWe see skyscraper buildings of New York and an aerial view of the traffic and pedestrians. The camera is sped up and the people racing in all directions suggests that we're going nowhere fast, symbolising a rat race; this is reinforced by the next frame of people who are filling the pews in a church, and once again the camera is sped up to show the church emptying fastthus suggesting that people haven't the time for religion or spirituality. A change in perspective through the various ways of living, all over the globe is interspersed with magnificent views of naturesome being peaceful, such as the moon, stars, sun, waterfall and others, dangerous, such as icy mountain tops and volcanic craters. Shots of homeless families on city streets and unsmiling people posing for the camera create a mournful tone. Factory workers are also shown, for example...

Compare and Contrast Essay Sample on Adaptations of the Original Book

Compare and Contrast Essay Sample on Adaptations of the Original Book Basics of Compare and Contrast Essay Paper One of the most common types of essays that students meet during the learning process is comparison and contrast essay. Like any other types of essay, compare and contrast essay has some rules and instructions for writing. By following these instructions, anyone can write a quality essay without much difficulty. So, the main features of this type of essay are: Clarity and structure; The presence of two objects of comparison within the same category; Clearing of similar and opposite features of compared objects; Logical narration; A detached judgment of an anonymous author about the objects of comparison. To write the correct comparison and contrast essay, one must organize the workflow and follow this algorithm: Determine the nature of the essay: comparison, contrasts, or both. Set a goal to help write a logical compare and contrast essay example. Select comparison objects on which the essay will be based. For the essay to be logically justified, it is necessary to choose objects from one category, time segment or sphere of functioning. Write a clear thesis that will determine the nature of the future essay. Compose an outline of a future compare and contrast essay sample. This stage will help to structure the essay, as well as highlight the basic thoughts and ideas that need to be revealed in the essay. To use words and phrases typical for this type of essay, such as: on the contrary, on the other hand, however, otherwise, whereas, still, as well as, both, like, in common with, likewise, also, and yet. Follow the rules of the correlation of form and content when writing an essay, for competent disclosure of the topic of work. The Sample of Compare and Contrast Essay ‘Solaris’ Since the beginning of the era of literary adaptation critics and readers all over the world argue whether screen version of popular books may become an alternative to reading. These claims especially concern books that were made into a film several times and, as a result, the variety of interpretations has appeared. One example is Stanislaw Lem’s novel â€Å"Solaris† written in 1961, which has two most famous adaptations by Andrei Tarkovsky, and by Steven Soderbergh. The comparison of these adaptations illustrates how different directors understand the author’s main idea presented in the novel, and how the difference between the ways of adaptation affects the viewers’ perception of â€Å"Solaris† in both cases. The first thing that catches the eye when comparing the film version and the original book is accordance between the content of the film and the book on which the film was shot. In the case of Solaris, one can note the predominance of free interpretation of Lem’s idea both in the film adaptation by Andrei Tarkovsky and by Steven Soderbergh. Thus, in the film adaptation by Andrei Tarkovsky, the primary emphasis was placed on the moral aspect of the novel, which, in turn, almost negated the sci-fi character of Stanislaw Lem’s novel. Lem himself was extremely surprised by Tarkovsky’s interpretation and recognized it instead not as a screen version of his book, but as an original independent work. At the same time, the other novel details, such as a plotline, and the names of characters, remained almost unchanged in the film adaptation by Tarkovsky. The director used in his script virtually authentic replicas from Lem’s â€Å"Solaris,† which allowed him to create a film version that was as close as possible to the original in content. On the other hand, despite the apparent predominance of sci-fi themes in the film adaptation of Steven Soderbergh, the director made some deviations from the original, which, in turn, led to the change in the general nature of his work. For example, Soderbergh changed some character names like Rheyas instead of Harey, as well as created additional turns of the plot that were not in Le Solars Solaris as killing Snaut with his double, Rheyas pregnancy, Kelvin and Rheyas return to Earth. Thus, the film adaptation of Soderbergh is significantly different from Lem’s original intention but retains the plotline presented in the novel. The second peculiarity that should be made clear when comparing a literary work and its film adaptation is the embodiment of the original message of the author to the reader. Therefore, the critics have to decide whether the director succeeded in transmitting it without modification. It can be said that both Tarkovsky’s and Soderbergh’s film versions just partially correspond to the message laid by Lem in his novel. Thus, one of the main Lem’ ideas described in Solaris is the idea of establishing contact with another mind to which a person aspires, but often mistakenly searches for it not in another person, but the extraterrestrial civilizations. In the film adaptation by Tarkovsky, this idea stands like a leitmotif, embedded in the mouth of Academician Snaut: Man needs a man. At the same time, Tarkovsky deepens the subject of a person’s moral and ethical choice, raising the question of the human conscience. This motive presents Lem’s novel too. How ever, the author gives it much less attention than Tarkovsky. On the other hand, in Steven Soderberghs film adaptation, the idea of contact is represented rather weakly, giving way to the problem of human relations and mutual forgiveness. The plot of the film develops mainly on Earth, the main characters reflect on their past and try to find answers to questions that remained unresolved earlier. Moreover, the interpretation of Soderbergh significantly deviates from the original Lem’s intention. It can be assumed that the director focused his attention precisely on the aspect of human relations and transferred the action to Earth to evoke sympathy from the viewer and to make Lems story closer to a wide audience. Thus, the film adaptations made by Andrei Tarkovsky and Steven Soderbergh differ significantly from each other, despite the general plot underlying their adaptations. While Tarkovsky seeks to preserve the general mood of Lem’s novel and to focus the viewers attention on the moral and ethical problems of the story, Soderbergh creates a film that is most adapted to the modern viewer, exposing the central issues of human relationships. It can be said that both of the screen versions are not an exact retelling of Stanislaw Lem’s Solaris, but rather the independent works based on the existing plot. A comparison of the book and the two existing screen versions shows the significant role played by the directors’ personalities, their understanding of the original Lem’s idea, and the final purpose of their screen version of Stanislaw Lem’s novel â€Å"Solaris.† Post-writing Tips The above compare and contrast essay example can be used to familiarize oneself with the practical application of the norms and rules for writing a comparison and contrasting essay. This Ã' ompare and contrast essay sample includes both a comparison and an opposition, which often happens in this type of essay. The example shows the main elements of the form and content typical for this type of essay. First, it should be noted that the above-presented essay has a clear structure, due to the main purpose of the essay. The essay begins with an introduction, which is 15% of the total length of the work. The introduction tells the readers what the essay will be about, giving a general assessment of the problem revealed in the essay. The thesis, placed at the end of the introduction, reflects the key idea of the entire essay and is the link between the introduction and the main part of the work. The thesis is one of the most important parts of the work; therefore, when writing one, it is necessary to formulate a thought or problem that needs to be revealed in an essay. In the process of writing the introduction, one should avoid appeals, rhetorical questions or introducing quotations, since this part of the work, just like the conclusions, must be generalized. Second, the main part of the essay covers the topic indicated in the thesis and is subordinated to a certain structure. Thus, the comparison and opposition of objects are conventionally divided into two stages. The latter, in turn, consists of two paragraphs each. Such structuring of the work allows building a logical narration, as well as consistently providing examples and revealing the theme of the essay. Nevertheless, there are different schemes for constructing the main part of the essay, which the writer can choose depending on the offline essay and its main theme. The central condition is the logical presentation of the material and the structure of the type of the essay. The essay ends with conclusions that summarize the main points disclosed in the essay and confirm that the topic outlined in the thesis was disclosed during the writing of the work. The conclusions do not contain any new information but are summing up and combining the main ideas presented in the essay. Since in the above example the basic norms and rules regarding the structure and content of the comparison and comparison essay are observed, I hope that this work will be useful to students and writers when working on this type of essay, as well as help to understand the issues that may arise in the process of work.

Heres How You Can Double Your Blog Conversion Rate Right Now

Heres How You Can Double Your Blog Conversion Rate Right Now Why do you blog? For fun? For personal enjoyment? As a hobby? It is likely that your blog has become ground zero, the place you promote yourself, your business, and your ideas. Your blog is a strategic business tool, but are you treating it that way? Are you optimizing your blog conversion rate? For years, the typical blog layout was the same, with content on the left and a sidebar on the right. There was the usual array of widgets and ornaments decorating the side and, in a word, the look of such blogs was  busy. Isnt it time we started to re-think our blog post layout? Isnt it time we got a bit more strategic? Focus On Your Blog Conversion Rate The problem with most blogs is that they lack a simple thing called focus. Do you know why your blog exists? I suggest that it is for two simple reasons: Your blog should display and distribute your content well. Your blog should convert visitors into readers and future customers. With this in mind, how is your  blog conversion rate? Thats the rate at which your visitors convert to your desired call to action. Are you focusing on a single call-to-action that you can track and measure? The more options we give our readers, the less likely they are to actually do what we want them to do when they visit our site. As we strip away the excess, we narrow our focus and naturally increase our blog conversion rate. Here are few ways that we can do just that. Tip #1 – Choose A Single Call-To-Action For years, the typical blog sidebar has looked something like this: Crowded, colorful, crazy, and confusing. What we do you really want the reader to do with all of this? So often, when we try to decide what we want our readers to do, we get confused ourselves. We want them to follow us Twitter. Or maybe, we want them to subscribe to our RSS feed. Or, download a free ebook. Perhaps we would like them to click on an ad. It can be pretty easy to think of our web visitor as a character in a choose-your-own-adventure novel. They are there for intrigue and suspense, hoping to see something interesting. This usually isnt the case. The average time a users spends on a website is, at best,  only 20 seconds. You have to make it count. So, if you could only choose one thing to have your reader do (besides actually read the article) what would it be? Choose a single call-to-action. This simple task will instantly improve your blog conversion rate. For example, make it your goal to convert an inbound visitor into a reader with an email signup, or a free course. This is a simple but powerful call-to-action that we can focus on as a way to increase conversions. Choose a single call-to-action if you want better blog conversion rates.Tip #2 –  Cut The Ads You arent getting rich and famous with those Google-served sidebar ads. Why are they there? So many ads, so little space. Source: smashingmagazine.com/ Unless you get a ton of traffic, it is unlikely that those ads are paying off for you at all. In fact, they may be doing more harm than good. Are you okay with a potential lead becoming distracted or disgusted by a pile of ads in the sidebar? Are you okay with them completely missing your call-to-action altogether? If you have ads, its happening. Increasing your blog conversion rate  may be as simple as cutting the excess clutter and cleaning up your sidebar. Those ads might be worthwhile for a high traffic site, but that isnt the case for most blogs. Consider ditching them altogether in favor of more breathing room and a better focus on your tangible goals. Are your sidebar ads helping your blog, or hurting it? #BetterBlogConversionTip #3 –  Cut The Sidebar While youre hacking away at those ads, maybe its time to ditch the sidebar altogether. In so many ways, the blog sidebar has become a dumping ground for our every whim. Unfortunately, there are too many whims: Ads   Facebook like box List of categories Recent posts Follow Me! Follow Me! Links to my favorite sites Blogroll, anyone? RSS Feed Subscribe A link to another project You get the idea. Maybe it is time for a different approach. Lots of breathing room. Wheres the sidebar? Sites like Medium.com  have popularized the no-sidebar blog post, and it works. Not only does it make reading a pleasure, but it leaves plenty of room for the real call-to-actions that you need to promote. If you removed half (or all) of your sidebar widgets, what do you think it would do for your  blog conversion rate? It might be worth a try. Get rid of your blogs sidebar altogether and see what happens. #BetterBlogConversionTip #4 –  Get Inline With Your CTAs Who decided that all of the action needed to be taking place on the sidebar anyhow? Wouldnt it be better if we had them where our readers are, like inside the actual blog post for example? See what this strategy can do for your  blog conversion rate. Image source: http://.com/blog/ You can sneak a basic call-to-action inline, right inside your blog post. These can be especially useful if they are matched with important keywords, like the example above for a content marketing editorial calendar. Your content is why they came in the first place. Make it a goal to do at least one inline call-to-action with each blog post. You can even automate a portion of this process with a plugin if you are using WordPress. The plugin  SEO Smart Links will automatically link keywords that you define to a post or a page of your choosing. This is a simple and valuable way to add calls to action to your posts text. Put your call-to-action inline in your blog post. #BetterBlogConversionTip #5 –  Lighten The Footer Speaking of dumping grounds, what about the blog post footer? This is another place where weve loved to bring on the clutter. Holy footer batman! Source: huffingtonpost.com/ Again, this is just too much. When we choose to focus our blog on a single call-to-action, it becomes much easier to improve our blog conversion rate. Ads and more blogs posts are not necessarily the goal. We need to be careful about where we send our readers. Stop putting everything in your blogs footer if you want #BetterBlogConversionTip #6 –  Dont Take Out Ads On Your Own Site A few years ago, I was publishing content on my company blog day after day. The content was good, but overall the blog wasnt doing much for me. I wasnt sure why. We had everything. We the subscribe box, related posts, a Facebook Like box, and of course, a series of ads for our own content. Waitwe were taking out ads on our own blog? It may not feel like it, but this could be exactly what you are doing as well. It is only natural to want our audience to see and understand everything we offer, but that is an unrealistic goal. We cant sell our audience everything all at once. We need to help them focus on one actionable goal so that we both succeed. Slowly, over time, we can expose them to our other services and offerings, but not until after weve ensured a maximum  blog conversion rate. Dont take out your own ads on your own site. #BetterBlogConversionTip #7 – Make Things Easy To Track One of the most crucial aspects of improving our  blog conversion rate  is being able to track our efforts. Fortunately, by relying on a few calls-to-action, rather than an abundance we make tracking them much easier. This way, we can make subtle changes to our site and see the impact that those changes make on our overall conversion statistics. We doubled our own blog conversions by cutting the clutter, and focusing on what we really wanted to happen. By cutting out some of the clutter and focusing on a simple conversion metric, we were actually able to double our total ebook downloads over a single week. Simple works!

How can Playstation3 sustain the dominance in the video game console Essay

How can Playstation3 sustain the dominance in the video game console war - Essay Example Successful brands achieve higher customer loyalty- success being in the context of differential advantage. Brand names that have managed to monopolise their differential advantage will create strong brand name images in the minds of their consumers in terms of physical characteristics, name, symbols, and reputation. And loyal customers prove their commitments to a specific brand by spending more money and time and effort in order to obtain the brand of their choice. Successful brand names have differential advantages that result in profit and good market performance. The international games consoles market manifested a growth of 14.1% in 2007 and has attained $14.2 billion. In the next 3 years, this international market is projected to reach $24.6 billion, which represents nearly 75% growth from its value in 2007. In 2007, the market has grown by nearly 20%, registering a volume of 74 million pieces. This number is anticipated to reach 96.6 million pieces, which is about 30% of its value in 2007 (Reuters 2009). Moreover, the US Console Games Forecast 2005: Analysis of Alternate Launch Scenarios projects that the US console market shall have a growth of $11.7 billion next year. Moreover, the report says that the game console industry has become quite competent at product diversification to be able to address the varying wants of their target market. There are products that appeal to the majority and those that are particular to certain audiences. The biggest driver of ambiguity in this industry is when players shall introduce novel products and systems (Softpedia 2005). Sonys Playstation 3 and Microsofts Xbox are selling premium performance, while Nintendos Wii is leveraging on fun games which are more dependent on peculiar, nice controllers and effectual graphics. PS 3 remains to be the most expensive, and is projected as a PC option. Microsoft Xbox 360 packages the

Case study Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words - 4

Case study - Essay Example As part of the consultancy services, the bank has found three major underlying problems that led to the issues faced by Hole in the Wall. They are namely, equating performance of the employees with their pay, isolating employees from collaborating and preventing innovation in the process and avoiding conflict management leading to unsettled quality issues and personal enmity. The report analyses the three root problems in details, explores a host of possible solutions for eliminating the problems and recommends the best possible solution to the company for implementation. Equating performance with pay The salesmen are paid exclusively by the commission per window sold, which is often sacrificed while negotiating with clients. The production and fitting teams are also paid based on the number of windows produced and fitted respectively. While this model of compensation is aimed at motivating employees, it leads to unstable salaries, unhealthy sales model and shoddy workmanship (Solomo n and Podgursky, n.d.; Hamel, 2013). To earn maximum commission, the salesmen make unrealistic promises to too many customers without co-ordinating with other units and then to commit to these orders, components are procured in a rush and windows are produced as early as possible, leading to substandard products made from substandard materials. As a result, windows are sent back to the factory for rework, thereby increasing the number of unsatisfied customers. Also, since sales are low during recession, numbers of windows fitted are also less, which leads to falling income of the fitting team, perhaps which is why one of the three fitting teams quit. There are two salary models that can replace performance-based pay and eliminate its consequences: a fixed salary and a hybrid salary. In a fixed salary structure, the employees are paid a consistent remuneration every month. This means they do not have to worry about the financial hardships that their families will go through in the ev ent of bad performance in a particular month due to low sales, economic recession or poor market conditions. This creates stability in income and uniformity in the quality of life, thereby giving a feeling of financial security and contention to the employees. It also boosts productivity as they have more time to focus on work and no worries to make ends meet. In a hybrid salary structure, the employees receive a minimum base pay every month that creates stability in income and uniformity in the quality of life, just like a fixed salary structure. However, outperforming employees also get additional variable income based on their performance, such as, higher sales, more units worked upon or overtime hours done at the factory. Therefore, if an employee wishes for a pay raise besides the regular appraisal, he or she may do so simply by giving a little more attention to work instead of looking for another job with higher salary. It also improves the company’s performance without pressurising employees to deliver more (UC San Diego, 2013). While both the pay structures can solve the present problem of inconsistent monthly remuneration and unhealthy race against time to earn more, the hybrid pay structure seems much more viable for Mr. Barker.

Business Plan Dissertation Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 4750 words

Business Plan - Dissertation Example The customers will benefit from discounts ranging from 50% to 90%. Business partners will benefit from increased sales resulting in a win-win situation for all parties. The value of each deal ranges between ?10 and ?30 so we expect on average ?20 to be spent by each of our customers with 50% of that being our revenue. Therefore, we expect to earn an average of ?10 from each of our deals. Hooray is expected to be up and running by June 2011. Our target customers are university students, house-wives and white collar workers in and around London. We expected to work with major supermarket chains like Tesco, Sainsbury, Airlines and Travel companies like Thomas Cook operating in and around London. We will also be working with a variety of upscale restaurants in London and on the Campuses of various Universities as well as entertainment companies like movie theatres and opera houses. Our starting point will be in London where we expect to get between 20,000 and 100,000 subscribers in our f irst month of operation and between 20,000 and 100,000 coupons sold bringing in an average of between ?200,000 in a worst case scenario and ?1,000,000 in a best case scenario in terms of revenues. We expect to have between 500 thousand and one million subscribers by the end of May 2012. All first time subscribers’ will get an opportunity of obtaining their deals free if at least three of their friends use their link on subscribing to purchase coupons. Students on various university campuses will be able to buy weekly deals for ?30 for meals for five days at the university cafeteria. If they allow at least five other students to use their link they get free meals for the week. White collar workers will benefit from daily lunch deals various restaurants in and around London. House-wives will benefit tremendously from deals at major supermarkets, especially on items that are slow moving and in some cases soon to expire. Certain fast moving essential items will be mixed with eith er slow moving, soon to expire or in the case of fruits and vegetables that does not have much time left on the shelf or which are in excess supply. In case of airline seats Hooray will seek to obtain regular deals on traditionally slow days which can be past on to its customers. In such a case the customer will obtain discounts of between 30 and 50% off regular travel packages and airline fares. Hooray’s competitive advantage is that it will take the unique elements from other top group buying sites like Groupon which has applications for both Android and IPhone, credits for subscribers who introduce friends that sign up and buy coupons. The more members that a subscriber invites the bigger the discount that the member receives as Tippr currently does. We will offer a percentage of the cost of the purchase to a charitable organisation of the customer’s choice as Deals for deals. Like Homerun customers can get free deals if they invite friends to join. Most valued cust omers will get exclusive deals which will relate to the frequency of purchase and the value of their purchases. Like Daily Dealster our coupons will be transferable and can be given to others as gifts. Every week we will have a promotion where customers give an indication of what deals

Marketing plan Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words - 3

Marketing plan - Essay Example Since the customers go to Pizza Restaurant for quality, changes in prices are not that important to them. Therefore the price elasticity of demand is not important in this case. Demand for the products and services would be influenced to the minimal extent by price. The company is located in a rich city where the customers are richer than the customers in other parts of the country. Therefore the most influential demand factors are lifestyles and cultural considerations (Kotler and Keller, 2006, p. 65). The demand would be more influenced by price if the customers came to the company to get lower prices. However they purchase the products and services because the products and services deliver quality of taste. 60% of the customers are from rich families who will be more concerned about the quality. Therefore demand in this case will not be affected by price to any great extent. Answer to Question 2 The unique selling proposition is the quality of products and services. Therefore the recommended pricing strategy is premium pricing. This will ensure favorable perception among the customers (Armstrong and Kotler, 2005, p. 34). In this case, it is recommended that the management should maintain high prices in order to maintain the brand reputation which is the source of its unique selling proposition.

Casualties of War Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Casualties of War - Essay Example It is the hope of this author that not only the film, but the Vietnam War as well as pervasive American interpretations of the value of native and indigenous people will help to be affected. Ultimately, the movie can be summarized, as with many Vietnam War movies, as concentric upon an analysis of a small squad of American soldiers. This is one of the most popular approaches that filmmakers take due to the fact that it allows the viewer the, acquainted with and personally knowledgeable regarding each of the characters; rather than integrating with an entire company, the viewer is able to simplify human emotions, personalities, and likely reactions based upon the means by which these characters are expected to behave. As with many other Vietnam War movies, â€Å"Casualties of War† represents a mixture of different individuals within the squad from various geographic regions as well as various ethnic and cultural backgrounds. Firstly, the viewer is integrated with an understandi ng of the sheer misery, abstraction, and violence that the Vietnam conflict engendered. As a function of understanding this level of inhumanity, exhibited on both sides of the conflict, it unfortunately comes as little surprise that the soldiers themselves begin behaving as little more than animals. The line of no return is of course cross when one of the soldiers takes a young Vietnam means girl and suggests that the squad user as a sex toy. Even though this is initially resisted, the threat of violence subdues these objections long enough for the girl to be raped. Once she is raped, it becomes infinitely easier for the other members of the squad, with the exception of Erikkson, to engage in a similar behavior. At each and every juncture, Erikkson opposes the actions that the squad leader perpetrates upon the young girl. Ultimately, Erikkson risks his own life in an attempt to save the girl from being murdered by the squad members. Once she is murdered, Erikkson set out on a person al crusade to expose the crime to the superiors within the military. As one might expect, speaking truth to power was neither popular nor safe. After many months and years of trying, Erikkson was able to bring the issue to the military’s attention and seek a nominal degree of punishment for the individuals involved. With regards to understanding the underlying tensions that existed between Meserve and Erikkson, the viewer can and should integrate with the basic understanding of unrestrained selfishness and complete lack of respect for human life that Meserve exhibited as compared to Erikkson’s more traditional view. Rather than exhibiting all Vietnam veterans as baby killers and murderers, this film helps to differentiate the difference between those sociopaths in society that were drafted into the military and sought to further their own selfish ends as compared to individuals that retain a level of humanity and restraint regardless of the pressures and difficulties t hat combat placed upon them. A further dynamic is equally evidenced within the film is the level and extent to which the

Marketing plan Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words - 3

Marketing plan - Essay Example Since the customers go to Pizza Restaurant for quality, changes in prices are not that important to them. Therefore the price elasticity of demand is not important in this case. Demand for the products and services would be influenced to the minimal extent by price. The company is located in a rich city where the customers are richer than the customers in other parts of the country. Therefore the most influential demand factors are lifestyles and cultural considerations (Kotler and Keller, 2006, p. 65). The demand would be more influenced by price if the customers came to the company to get lower prices. However they purchase the products and services because the products and services deliver quality of taste. 60% of the customers are from rich families who will be more concerned about the quality. Therefore demand in this case will not be affected by price to any great extent. Answer to Question 2 The unique selling proposition is the quality of products and services. Therefore the recommended pricing strategy is premium pricing. This will ensure favorable perception among the customers (Armstrong and Kotler, 2005, p. 34). In this case, it is recommended that the management should maintain high prices in order to maintain the brand reputation which is the source of its unique selling proposition.

Should cigarette smoking be banned Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words - 1

Should cigarette smoking be banned - Essay Example He gives six reasons for the statement. One of the reasons is that cigarette smoking is harmful and it kills 6million people annually. The inhalable smoke that comes from the tobacco goes into the lungs and it is more dangerous than normal smoking. Cigarette smoking also brings financial burden to the consumers and the treasury. Other hidden costs are the costs of treating people with illnesses that stem from smoking. The tobacco industry has disrupted science. It has eroded human civilization and popular media. Most media houses do not publish a lot of articles about the harmful effects of cigarettes, but they get revenue from advertisements. Cigarette smoking causes air pollution. The last reason is that smoking is not a drug that people should take for fun because it is addictive and it affects people’s decisions. Although the doctor has outlined these reasons in his research, he also points out that prohibition is not effective. The issue of whether to ban cigarette smoking is an enigma. There is still an issue of how effective the ban will be. Some people claim that smoking has some positive aspects like relaxing people and making them feel better. However, the negative effects outweigh the positive

Critique on the Movie the Prince and Me Essay Example for Free

Critique on the Movie the Prince and Me Essay This modern Cinderella inspired love story is about a Danish prince Edvard who falls in love with a commoner (simple and shy) Paige Morgan. Edvard and Paige first meet at a bar where Paige works, their first meeting doesn’t go well though(oh I thought first impressions matter). The first day of classes they discover that they are classmates, seatmates and partners in organic chemistry class. They don’t go along for quite sometime until Paige teaches Edvard how to do the laundry and Edvard in return helps her with Shakespeare, this leads Paige to invite Evdard to spend the sem break (thanksgiving) at her farm. Here Edvard joins a go cart race winning the first price. At the end of the race Edvard has a fight with someone and then when he arrives home Paige patches up his wounds where Edvard kisses Paige for the first time. Is very obvious that Edvard and Paige don’t have much in common, we all know what they say that love is blind, opposites attracts. This story tells us that when people are in love nothing is impossible, the two discover their selves and accept although their many differences (too sad to say but in real life not many remain in love with their first spouse, I consider my family lucky). The part I really liked in this movie was when Edvard was heading back to Denmark and left Paige a message â€Å"the sky seems not until heaven clears†(Shakespeare) it reminded Paige that love is blind, that made her think and she courageously travelled half the globe to be find her true love.

Effect of Demographics on the Choice of Investments

Effect of Demographics on the Choice of Investments It has been observed that over the last decade the Income of the third world countries such as India, China and Indonesia has grown at a high pace. As the wealth of the people increases they will have confidence in the markets and start investing in financial products. This research paper deals with the investment decisions of all individuals across different income groups, age, gender etc. and tries to identify the affect of demographic factors on the decision making investors The study aims to find out if the demographic factors of an individual namely his age, income, gender, savings, source of income and investment experience have any effect on the patterns of investment and hence affect his risk taking ability. Advanced quantitative techniques have been used to investigate the data and judgment has been given on the basis of statistical output. The results would help the managers in the Wealth Management process in advising their clients better regarding investments that are most suitable according to their demographics and personality type. The study provides evidence that the investment choice depends on and is affected by the demographic variables. Introduction India, China and Brazil showed the highest growth in the number of HNIs in the year 2007 (The world wealth report 2008). The growth in the exposure that these markets have still remains untapped as they have only 3 percent exposure to equities. As the wealth of the people increases they will have confidence in the markets and start investing in financial products. In the 1970s and early 1980s, researchers found enough evidences that the markets are efficient and investment decisions are taken rationally. However, over a period of time there have been major challenges to the rationality assumption. Such challenges, coming from behavioral finance, continue to advance the argument that the traditional finance theorys predictive power is no match to what investors observe and experience in the markets, in reality. Behavioral finance is a new emerging science that exploits the irrational behavior of the investors. According to the behavioral economists, individuals do not function perfectly as the classical school opines. Weber (1999) makes the observation, à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã…“Behavioral finance closely combines individual behavior and market phenomena and uses the knowledge taken from both psychological field and financial theoryà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬?. The key result of a behavioral finance-enhanced relationship will be a portfolio to which the advisor can comf ortably adhere while fulfilling the clients long-term goals. This result has obvious advantages which suggests that behavioral finance will continue to play an increasing role in Wealth Management The study aims to find out if the demographic factors of an individual namely his age, income, gender, savings, source of income and investment experience have any effect on the patterns of investment and hence affect his risk taking ability. Quantitative techniques shall be used to investigate the data and the decision will be given on the basis of the analysis. The results would help the people involved in the Wealth Management process in advising their clients better regarding investments that are most suitable according to their demographics and personality type. Objective The objective of this paper is to investigate how the investment choice is affected by the demographics of the investors, once we study the choice effecting variables, we will use past data and monitor what have been the returns achieved from such proportion of investments and we shall determine the ideal portfolio and mix in the portfolio. Such knowledge will be highly useful for financial advisors as it will help them to advise their clients regarding investments that are appropriate with respect to their demographic profiles. Literature review A number of studies have been conducted to study how risk tolerance varies with the individual demographics, such as, gender, age, education, income, etc. Most of these studies have, however, concentrated on exploring the gender differences in investment choice. Harlow and Keith (1990) found that women prefer low risk bets when asked to make choices in an experimental market environment, involving auctions and lotteries (Olsen and Cox, 2001). Experimental evidence suggests that women may be more risk averse towards gamble (Hershey and Schoemaker, 1980). Large-scale one-on-one attitude surveys by the Investment Company Institute and SRI International in the year 1996 and 1997 respectively, also revealed that women tend to prefer lower risk assets than men. (Olsen and Cox, 2001). Women hold less risky assets than men (Jianakoplos and Bernasek, 1998) and they also choose less risky alternatives (Powll and Ansic, 1997). Women exhibited less risk-taking behavior than men in their most recent, largest and riskiest mutual fund investment decisions (Dwyer et al., 2002). Women are more risk averse than men in gambles, investment frames with possibility of loss and gamble frame with no losses (Eckel and Grossman, 2003). Brynes and Miller (1999) have studied and investigated the relationship between risk and gender and concluded that women tend to take less risk than men (Olsen and Cox, 2001). Women are less likely to invest in riskier but high return assets than men (Mc Donald, 1997). However, the empirical investigation of gender difference in risk taking is inconclusive (Charness and Gneezy, 2004). While most research conducted prior to 1980 concluded that gender difference clearly exists, more recent research studies yield mixed results (Changanti and Parasuraman, 1996; and Powell and Ansic, 1997). Males and females are equally successful in taking decisions under conditions of risk (Hudgen and Fatkin, 1985). They are equally effective in the leadership role (Eagly et al., 1995) and are equally capable of processing and reacting to information (Stinerock et al., 1991). As businessmen/women, many studies have found similar level of performance for women-owned business as those which are owned by men (Kalleberg and Leicht, 1991; and Fischer et al., 1993). In an abstract lottery choice, Schubert et al. (2000) framed choices as either potential gain, or potential loss. They found that women are more risk averse than men in domain of gain, while men are more risk averse than women in the frame of loss domain. Women fund mangersà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â‚¬ both domestic and internationalà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â‚¬ hold portfolios which are marginally riskier than those of men, and their returns also outperform those of men (Bliss and Potter, 2001). Women were found to be less risk averse than men when the gambles were framed as insurance (Duda et al., 2004). Although, the impact of gender on risk taking is significantly weakened when investor knowledge of financial markets and investments is controlled in the regression equation, the greater level of risk aversion among wome n, which is frequently documented in the literature, cannot be completely, explained by knowledge disparities (Dwyer et al., 2002). In the Indian context, Gupta (www.info.gov.hk/gia/general/bandhk/1118105.html) has indicated that from the angle of investor protection, the regulation of the new issue market is important for several reasons. The number of small investors in new issue market is massive. Most of new investors make their first entry into equity investments via the new issue market. So retaining common investor confidence in primary markets is important. Madhusoodan (www.nyse.com/press/NT00545421.html) has indicated that in the Indian stock market, higher risk is not priced, hence investment in higher risk instruments is of no use. Kakati (www.investorclaims.com/html/bokermisconduct.html) has indicated that Indian IPOs are under priced in the short run and overpriced in the long run. Selling after allotment, around the listing month, is the cause of major return differences between IPOs performance in the short run and long run. Gokaran has studied the financing patterns of the corporate growth in the country. The study indicated that equity markets suffer serious inadequacies as a mechanism for raising capital. Murali (www.ssrn.com) has indicated that new issues market (NIM) focuses on decreasing information asymmetry, easy accessibility of capital by large sections of medium and small enterprises, national level participation in promoting efficient investments, and increasing a culture of investments in productive sector. In order that these goals are achieved, a substantial level of improvement in the regulatory standards in India at the voluntary and enforcement levels is warranted. The most crucial steps to achieve these goals would be to develop measures to strengthen the new issues market. To effectively and efficiently serve clients in todays competitive industry, financial planners increasingly rely on information technology. The larger the financial planning firm, the more critical the use of information technology becomes as its applications extend to areas outside financial planning such as payroll, accounting, marketing, and operations. This article proposes the establishment of a new research discipline, financial planning informatics, which focuses on the development of technology tools to support the unique needs of financial planners. We live in the information age. Information is the result of processing, manipulating, and organizing data in a way that creates new knowledge (Rahman 2006). A number of studies have been conducted to study how risk tolerance varies with the individual demographics, such as, gender, age, education, income, etc (Schooley Worden, 1996; Shaw, 1996; Xiao Noring, 1994; Watson and Naughton, 2007). Most of these studies have, however, concentrated on exploring the gender differences in investment choice. The impact of other demographic factors, such as, age, education, income, occupation and dependents on investment choice has not been investigated by many researchers. But whatever studies have been done suggest that they (other demographic factors) affect individuals investment decisions. Risk tolerance, a persons attitude towards accepting risk, is an important concept which has implications for both financial service providers and consumers. For the latter, risk tolerance is one factor which may determine the appropriate composition of assets in a portfolio which is optimal in terms of risk and return relative to the needs of the individual (Droms, 1987). In fact, the well-documented home country bias of investors may be a manifestation of risk aversion on the part of investors (see Cooper, and Kaplanis, 1994 and Simons, 1999). For fund managers, Jacobs and Levy (1996) argue that the inability to effectively determine investor risk tolerance may lead to homogeneity among investment funds. Further, Schirripa and Tecotzky (2000) argue that the standard Markowitz portfolio optimization process can be optimised by pooling groups of investors together with different attitudes to risk into a single efficient portfolio that maintains the groups average risk tolerance. Although a number of factors have been proposed and tested, a brief survey of the results reveals a distinct lack of consensus. First, it is generally thought that risk tolerance decreases with age (see Wallach and Kogan 1961; McInish 1982; Morin and Suarez 1983; and Palsson 1996) although this relationship may not necessarily be linear (see Riley and Chow 1992; Bajtelsmit and VanDerhai 1997). Intuitively this result can be explained by the fact that younger investors have a greater (expected) number of years to recover from the losses that may be incurred with risky investments. Interestingly, there is some suggestion that biological changes in enzymes due to the aging process may be responsible (see Harlow and Brown, 1990). More recent research however, reveals evidence of a positive relationship or fails to detect any impact of age on risk tolerance (see Wang and Hanna 1997; Grable and Joo 1997; Grable and Lytton 1998, Hanna, Gutter and Fan, 1998; Grable 2000, Hariharan, Chapman a nd Domian, 2000; and Gollier and Zeckhauser, 2002). A second demographic which is frequently argued to determine risk tolerance is gender and Bajtelsmit and Bernasek (1996), Palsson (1996), Jianakoplos and Bernasek (1998), Bajtelsmit, Bernasek and Jianakoplos (1999), Powell and Ansic (1997), and Grable (2000) find support for the notion that females have a lower preference for risk than males. Grable and Joo (1999) and Hanna, Gutter and Fan (1998) however, find that gender is not significant in predicting financial risk tolerance. Education is a third factor which is thought to increase a persons capacity to evaluate risks inherent to the investment process and therefore endow them with a higher financial risk tolerance (see Baker and Haslem, 1974; Haliassos and Bertaut, 1995; Sung and Hanna, 1996). Shaw (1996) derives a model which suggests an element of circularity in this argument however, as the relative risk aversion of an individual is shown to determine the rate of human capital acquisition. Income and wealth are two related factors which are hypothesised to exert a positive relationship on the preferred level of risk (see Friedman 1974; Cohn, Lewellen, Lease and Schlarbaum 1975; Blume 1978; Riley and Chow 1992; Grable and Lytton 1999; Schooley and Worden 1996; Shaw 1996; and Bernheim et al, 2001). For the latter, however, the issue is not clear cut. On the one hand, wealthy individuals can more easily afford to incur the losses resulting from a risky investment and their accumulated wealth may even be a reflection of their preferred level of risk. Alternatively, wealthy people may be more conservative with their money while people with low levels of personal wealth may view risky investments as a form of lottery ticket and be more willing to bear the risk associated with such payoffs. This argument is analogous to Bowmans (1982) proposition that troubled firms prefer and seek risk. Investigation of the investment decisions made by married individuals presents a unique challenge to researchers as the investment portfolio of the couple may reflect the combined risk preferences of the couple (Bernasek and Shwiff, 2001). The available evidence suggests that single investors are more risk tolerant (Roszkowski, Snelbecker and Leimberg, 1993) although some research has failed to identify any significant relationship (McInish, 1982; Masters, 1989; and Haliassos and Bertaut, 1995). Methodology The study employs primary data collected by communicating with the respondents with the help of a structured questionnaire. Before undertaking the survey, a pilot test of the questionnaire was done with 40 respondents. Their views were incorporated in the final questionnaire and desired results were obtained. The study is based on responses obtained from the respondents belonging to a wide cross section. The total sample consisted of about 150 people, Males/Females from Salaried/ Self Employed, were split from different Age groups of Less than 35, 35-45, 45 and above. Investment Experience (Measured in the No of years) and the savings of Individuals post investment was also observed. The study employed non-probabilistic sampling method to select the respondents. The sampling method used can best be described as a mix of judgmental and convenient sampling. The questionnaire (Annexure) consists of a risk profiling exercise combined with the demographic characteristics required about the investor. Later a combination of cluster analysis along with a couple of other tests like LOGIT, PROBIT Etc will be used. DATA ANALYSIS The risk taking ability of the respondents was found by looking at the patterns and similarities that could be found and understood in the data. Techniques of Regression and Logit tests are used. Then the demographic characteristics of the people to their risk taking ability and any similar patterns are also identified. From the final questionnaire we got to know the risk profile, demographic profile, choice of investments, other habits and observations etc. Later any patterns and similarities were looked at in the data. The analysis was done using Logit tests identifying probabilities, Multi logistic regression, Man- Whitney U test and chi square. The following hypotheses were formulated to study whether the choice of Investment depends upon variables, such as, gender, age, income, educational qualification and occupation. The hypotheses are stated as follows: Ho.1: There is no significant difference between the males and females in their choice of investment avenues. Ho.2: There is no significant difference among the investors belonging to different age groups in their choice of investment avenues. Ho.3: There is no significant difference between the investors of different occupations in their choice of investment avenues. Ho.4: There is no significant difference between the investors having different investment experience in their choice of investment avenues. Ho.5: There is no significant difference between the investors having different savings post investment in their choice of investment avenues. Logit Regression Using the data, we have calculated if the respondent is a risk taking or a risk averse investor. His risk taking behavior is taken as a Dependent variable. The various independent variables include Age, Gender, No of dependents, Income; savings post investments, investment experience etc. The model studies the change in the dependent variable due to change in all these independent variables. We use ungrouped method of Logit regression as we observe that these variables are independent and are not very much correlated with each other; hence they show lesser chance of hetroscedasticity with each other. Wald statistic (test) was used to test the significance of individual logistic regression coefficients for each independent variables ( that is to test the null hypothesis in logistic regression that a particular logit coefficient is zero). It is the ratio of the unstandardised logit coefficient to its standard error. The Wald statistic and its corresponding p probability level is part of the SPSS output. The independents may be dropped from the equations when their effect is not significant by the Wald statistic. We observe that the regression equation is significant at 10% with Wald value of 2.959. It was observed that among the independent variables the Age, gender and Investment experience are considered to be significant with a Wald value of 18.571, 3.47, 3.457 respectively they are also significant as they fall in significance level of 10%. However No of dependents, the Income and savings post investment are not significant enough and they are not at a significant level too with more than 10% significance level. It is observed that the number of dependents or siblings of a person does not define his risk taking ability and capacity, same is the reason for the person being salaried or being self employed for his living. There is no pattern observed for the level of savings that person has after his investment habits. Hence it can be said that the risk taking capacity can be mainly judged by his Age, Gender and Investment experience. The logit can be converted easily into an odds ratio simply by using an exponential function. The original odds are multiplied by e to the bth power, where b is the logistic regression coefficient, when the given independent increases by one unit. The ratio of odds ratio of the independent is the ratio of the relative importance of the independent variables on the dependent variables. The value of ratio for income 1.083 . Hence a unit change in income affects the change in risk taking ability by 1.083 Further in the regression equation the variable Age is highly significant with the score of 21.443 in the equation, so is gender and investment experience. The equation has a overall statistics of 28.953 with a appropriate significance level. R Square in logistic regression R2 à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â‚¬Å" measures attempts to measure strength of association. For small examples, for instance, an R2 à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â‚¬Å" like measure might be high when the goodness of fit was unacceptable by model chi- square or some other test. Cox and Snell R square is used to in the interpretation of multiple R square based on the likelihood, but the value lesser than1 is, the better. Here the value is 0.230. Nagelkerkes R2 divides Cox and Snells R2 by its maximum in order to achieve a measure that ranges from 0 to 1. Therefore Nagelkerkes R2 which is here 0.310 will normally be higher than the Cox and Snell measure but will tend to run lower than the corresponding OLS R2 which is 133.048. Nagelkerkes R2 is the most-reported of the R-squared estimates. Conclusion The insight of how an investment choice gets affected by the demographic variables helps the financial advisors to advise their clients better. The clients, on the other hand, on being advised regarding the investments that suit their profile, will not only rate such an advice higher but will also appreciate it. This study thus, will certainly improve the mutual trust between the advisor and his client. Similar studies with diverse samples will help in understanding the investment psychology better. From the research we observe that the risk taking ability can be mainly judged by his Age, Gender and Investment experience. That is if the person falls in a specific age category, the financial planner cab be readily prepared for the desires level of risky portfolio to be offered to the client. It has been noticed from the data that mostly people with high age are risk adverse on the contrary young people like to take very high risks and invest in aggressive stocks and speculative instruments. Men have been observed to be more risk taking and aggressive than most females. And people who have experience of trading in the financial markets also determine the level of risk they like to take. It is observed that the no of dependents or siblings that a person does not define his risk taking ability and capacity initially we thought that people who have more no of siblings would like to take less risk however same has not been observed in this case, same is the case for the person being salaried or being self employed for his living. Similarly no pattern has been observed for the level of savings that person has after his investment habits and the level of risk that he like to take.

Bob Marley Essay -- Rastafari Reggae Music

Thesis Statement: Bob Marley’s life affected his writing and contributed to the development of his poetry. Bob Marley is without a doubt the greatest musician a third world country ever produced. Through Rastafari ideas, he influenced many others with songs that touched the lives of millions with his constant message of unity. His wisdom through experience helped him achieve a grand distinction over other artists. In the year 1944, Captain Norvol Marley, a middle-aged white marine officer, married a young Jamaican girl named Cedilla Booker. On February 6, 1945 at two thirty in the morning their son, Robert Nesta Marley, otherwise known as Bob Marley was born in his grandfather’s house (The Story). Soon after Bob was born his father left his mother. Bob’s Father did, however give financial support and occasionally arranged to see his son. It was now the late fifties and jobs were scarce in Jamaica. Bob followed his mother from their home in St. Ann to Trenchtown (West Kingston) to seek employment in the big city.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Trenchtown got its name because it was built over a ditch, which drained the sewage of old, Kingston. In Trenchtown Bob spent a lot of his time with his good friend Neville Livingston, who people called by his nickname, Bunny. He began to attend a music class with Bunny, which was held by the famous Jamaican singer Joe Higgs. In that class they met Peter Macintosh and soon became good friends. When Bob was 16, he started to follow his dream of becoming a musician. According to Michael Anderson, â€Å"Music to many young Jamaicans was an escape from the harshness of everyday life† (Anderson, 1). Bob’s life looked brighter on February 10, 1966 when he married girlfriend Rita Anderson. Rita gave birth to their first born whom they named Cedilla. Stephen, Sharon, and Ziggy then followed Cedilla.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Bob Marley had quite a massive rà ©sumà © for his artistic career. It first started when he met Jimmy Cliff, who at the age of 14 had already recorded a couple of hit songs. After meeting Bob, Jimmy introduced him to Leslie Kong, a local record producer. Bob followed his advice and auditioned for Leslie Kong (Lieblich, 7). Bob’s musical talents shone much more brightly than anyone else that day and found him in the studio recording his first single â€Å"Judge Not†. Unfortunately neither â€Å"Judge Not† nor his 1962 single â€Å"One More Cup of Coffee† did very wel... .... He used his ideas and beliefs not to create but to solve problems. The life he lived as a Rasta allowed him to generate songs that are treasured significantly. It has always been said legends never die and with such musical genius, Bob Marley’s legend will live on. BIBLIOGRAPHY Hauler, Joe. â€Å"Bob Marley Biography.† MSN Search. Online. Available Online. 3 Nov. 2001. Available at http:/www.rollingstone.com/artist/bio.asp?oid=185. Lieblich, Julia. â€Å"Beyond Dreads, To Roots of Rastafari,† Star Tribune, B 7, August 15, 1998. Marley, Rita. â€Å"Remembering Bob Marley,† Essence. 16: 18, February 1, 1995. Michael Anderson. â€Å"The Biggest Tribute To Bob Marley.† Lycos. 20 Mar. 1998. Online. America Online. 4 Nov. 2001. Available at http:/www.thirdfield.com/. Mirkin, Steve. â€Å"Roots Rock Reggae,† Rolling Stone. 24: 13, April 15, 1998. Salewicz Chris. â€Å"American Music ‘50s Rhythm and blues Influence Bob Marley: Google. Online. Internet. 1995. Available at http:/www.bobmarley.com/life/musical/influences/Americanmusic/index.html. Sisano, Ben. â€Å"All-Star Tribute To Jamaica’s Native Son,† New York Times, III 55, December 19, 1999. The Story. Chicago: Thames and Hudson, 1996.

Apocalypto Essay

Jayna Eckerson Apocalypto Essay Indiana State University Apocalypto is a movie about a man name Jaguar Paw who is a part of a Mayan tribe. Jaguar Paw, his father and his other tribe mates were out hunting for food when they came across another tribe leader and his people were passing through their forest. The tribe leader told Jaguar Paw that their homes were invaded by men from a different tribe and warned him to look out for them. After the he told Jaguar Paw about the other tribe men, he was scared that they were coming to their tribe next.The next morning, Jaguar Paw was awoken by the dog which stopped barking and he became suspicious. Then he saw a tribe man running with a torch, so Jaguar Paw immediately woke his wife who is pregnant and his son so that can run for cover. After he put his family in a safe place, Jaguar Paw went to go help his tribe mates and father fight the invading men and women were also getting raped by these men. Jaguar Paw was held down to watch one of th e tribe leaders kill his father. All the women and men in Jaguar Paw’s tribe were taken as prisoners.They made to walk miles with the other tribe members that Jaguar Paw saw the day before to another camp site. As they were walking, they ran into a little girl who they believed that she had a disease. When they denied her help, she cured them and said that they will be killed by a man in a jungle. Finally, they made it to the camp the women were sold as slaves and the men were to be scarified. But eventually, Jaguar Paw would be released from being scarified and he goes back to his homeland to save his family. External adornment was worn throughout Apocalypto such as paint and make-up, intrinsic, sartorial, and local.All the tribe members wore a lot of black for their paint and make-up. According to my course packet, black is meant for protection. Intrinsic adornments are shown through their accessories. Each tribe member has some type of intrinsic adornment such as feathers, beads, shells, and teeth. These adornments are worn as necklaces, bracelets, and head ornaments. Also, feathers, beads, shells, and teeth are value too. Another type of adornment that is viewed in this movie is sartorial. I really got a chance to see sartorial adornments during the rituals.For example, the men that were killing other tribe men for sacrifice wore big masks with different colors and it was carved into funny looking faces. Also, they wore very big shields that look like necklaces, but it covers their shoulders and chest instead of being a necklace. In this movie, every tribe member showed some form of local adornment. The women wore a rough cotton material as a dress, but their breast and buttocks will still be seen. Also, the same for men but the only part of their body that is covered is their penis.Also, corporal adornment is shown in Apocalypto. Each tribe member in the movie had their on tattoos to describe their level of status. In Jaguar Paw’s tribe, the color of their tattoos is black and white. The other tribe men culture, women and men had green, red, black, and many more colors for their tattoos to represent their level of status too. Another important cororpal adornment is piercings. Most of tribe members have piercings in their chin, ears, and nose. For example, Jaguar Paw had a piercing on chin with a small circular object on it.Another example is Jaguar Paw’s dad, he have a piercing of a tooth or shell going through his nose. As earrings, they wear earrings that cuffed, spiral, or the round earrings that stretch their ears into a bigger size. The status roles among the tribes are different. Jaguar Paw’s tribe only has one leader which his father. The other tribe men have numerous of leaders that have their own personal adornment. Jaguar Paw’s father has feathers to represent is status in their tribe. He has big feathers that are placed on his shoulder.The leader of the other tribe has skulls, bones, and feathers to represent his role as a leader. He has a mask that is made out an alligator mouth with a creature head on top of the head piece and it has a few feathers on it too. Also, the other tribe men have leaders that are over them. Their leaders wear color tattoos, bigger and better intrinsic adornments, and have more beautiful external and corporal adornments. One of those leaders has beads that link off one another and it goes down his stomach. He also wore a head piece that has colorful, big feathers on it too.In Apocalypto, the higher you get in social status, you will get better adornments. The language that was spoken in this movie is called Yucatec Maya. This language is spoken among people of Yucatan Maya of Mexico. Throughout this whole movie, I only saw two rituals. The first ritual I saw was when Jaguar Paw and his tribe sat around a fire while elder told a story. After he told his story, the tribe members begin to dancing. After Jaguar Paw was captured, he was taken to a place where they scarified men for their God. My personal reaction to this movie was neutral.Overall, I think Apocalypto is a good movie but it is not the type of action movie I typically watch. I do not dislike anything about the movie, but it did kind of bore me at some point of time. I enjoyed how the tribe members loved their families especially toward the children. I am very impressed with the language that was spoken in the movie. Also, I got very sad when the mothers were taking away from their children. The children were left alone to raise themselves and each other. If I had to recommend this movie to a friend I would because it is good movie and it has a great meaning.

How Retail Operations Management Objectives Can Best Be Achieved

Retailing is now one of the world’s largest industries and it is in a permanent state of change. This change has been accelerating over the past decade, (Zentes et al. , 2011: Pg. 1). This sector is not only more competitive than in the past but the consumer is also increasingly more demanding and more complex, (Gordon et al. , 2006: Pg. 22). Retailers have to predict the desires of fickle customers, buy and allocate complex sets of merchandise, set the right prices, and offer the right promotions for each individual item.However, there are often wide gaps between supply and demand, which leave retailers holding too much of what customers don’t want, and too little of what they do’, (Friend and Walker, 2001: Pg. 133). This is a huge challenge which faces the retailer of today. Fisher et al. , (2000: Pg. 115) maintains that retailing’s formula for perfection is offering the right product in the right place at the right time for the right price. This is no e asy feat for the retailer and with merchandising decisions becoming more complex, the penalties for errors too are even steeper, (Friend and Walker, 2001: Pg. 33). This is why Gordon et al. ,(2006: Pg. 24) notes that in today’s cutthroat market, there is no place for a ‘head in the sand’ attitude. The importance of the areas of ‘retailing’s formula for perfection’ as stated by Fisher et al. , (2000) will now be examined theoretically and subsequently researched in the context of a successful, independent fashion boutique, Emporium Kalu. Right Product ‘Retailers capture their customers’ interest by the nature of their product range’, (Varley, 2006: Pg. 8).Fashion markets have become increasingly complex with consumers fragmenting into small groups who have very different needs and demand very different products. Varley, (2006: Pg. 8), maintains that product helps to position a retailer against it’s competitors within a given market, but problem many companies today face is that they sell very similar products and services to those of their competitors, (Ingenhoff et al. , 2010:83). Therefore, tremendous pressure is put on retailers to offer the customer something different, (Dvorak et al. , 1996: Pg. 121). In making roduct decisions for individual stores, buyers and retail managers have long relied on instinct, (Friend and Walker, 2001: Pg. 133) but in today’s marketplace many more factors need to be considered. What is at the core of the ‘right’ product is the retailer’s target market, they need to be given a good reason to choose one retailer over another, (Varley, 2006: Pg. 8). Four major trends which affect the consumer’s choice of product have been emerging in recent times.Since the consumer is at the core of what the ‘right’ product is, the retailer must pay attention to these trends and how they relate to their target customer. . The Savvy Co nsumer Whether you are a value fashion retailer or a high end department store, it is necessary to acknowledge that today, the consumer is more tuned in to the latest trends and styles in the fashion industry. Consumers have become more savvy about fashion as they can now access information about various fashion events around the world almost immediately through internet media like blogging, video sharing and podcasts. An increased number of weekly glossies, e. g. Grazia, also fuels this consumer demand for the latest look at a faster pace (Barnes, 2006:260).The consumer now knows what ‘should’ be in-store and retailers will suffer if they cannot provide this to their customers when they expect it. 2. Celebrity power Many Irish consumers find their fashion influenced a great deal by celebrities, with this being the most likely facet of their lives to be influenced by celebrity culture, (Mintel, Clothing Retailing-Ireland, 2011). Star style has never been more accessible . As a result of this constant exposure to celebrity lifestyle, 8% of Irish consumers claim that celebrities influence their purchases, (Mintel, Clothing Retailing-Ireland, 2011).This report continues to detail how this high level of interest in celebrities and their lifestyles is beneficial to the clothing retailing market and can be used as a tool to attract consumers by adding value to a clothing retailer’s product range, and help to drive sales. This can be seen when brands of clothing celebrities wear or clothing lines where a retailer collaborates with celebrities and well known fashion designers become popular. â€Å"In a celebrity-obsessed world, it’s no surprise that we all want to copy what famous faces are wearing†, (www. gsn. com, 2010). Celebrities, according to Olympio, (2007) represent a â€Å"glamour that most of us have idolized and wanted for our own†. This concept can be said to be the reason why people emulate styles they have seen on celebrities, for example, Joan Collins, who in the soap opera ‘Dynasty’, made shoulder pads a signature trend of the 1980’s. This can also be seen today where Sarah Jessica Parker, in ‘Sex and the City’ helped make Manolo Blahnik, the shoe designer, a household name, (www. wgsn. com, 2010).Retailers who choose to sell brands that are publicly linked or associated to a celebrity will stand to be of benefit if their target consumer aspires to be like said celebrity. 3. The Concept of Fast Fashion Gordon et al. , (2006: Pg. 22), remarks that retailers have to deal with constantly shorter product lifecycles. Fast fashion is a business strategy which aims to get new fashion product into stores in the shortest time possible and reduce the processes involved in the buying cycle consequently satisfying consumer demand, (Barnes et al. , 2006: 259, Bruce et al. , 2006: 330).This notion of consumer demand driving the fast fashion industry demonstrates the need to have the ability to act accordingly and respond quickly to these demands. Today, successful fast fashion companies have been moving away from the traditional fashion buying cycle of seasonal forecasting from historical sales one year in advance, (Bruce et al. , 2006:330), to creating smaller collections more frequently, (Barnes et al. , 2006: 261). Barnes et al. , (2006: 261), believe this is as a result of fashion trends being moulded by â€Å"what is happening on the street, in clubs, lifestyle hotspots and not 12months in advance of a selling season†.Long buying cycles have become inappropriate for the demands of modern fashion consumers. Bruce et al. , (2006: 329), maintain this is because fashion consumers â€Å"expect and thrive on constant change and so new products have to be available on a frequent basis†. It is no longer sufficient for retailers to have the same collection in-store all season; product ranges need to be constantly refreshed in order to be à ¢â‚¬Ëœright’. â€Å"Quick response is a concept that has become synonymous with the textile and apparel supply chain†, (Barnes et al. , 2006: 263).This approach to supply chain management is regarded as information driven, minimal pre-season ordering is engaged in and more frequent, in-season small orders are placed to take advantage of improved speed and flexibility, (Christopher et al. , 2004 as cited by Barnes et al. , 2006: 263). This quick response method allows companies to respond almost instantly to catwalk trends that would appeal to their target audience, therefore providing them with the ‘right’ product. The success of this high volume/low cost business model is down to constant and regular updates of fashion collections.For these types of retailer, (value) this has historically been the ‘right’ product as it satisfies the need for ‘newness’ by the consumer at a low cost, something which is central to what their target market seeks. 4. Quality Vs. Quantity: Durability has been found to be a key concern for Irish consumers as four in five R. o. I. consumers claim to make their clothes last, (Mintel, Clothing Retailing-Ireland, 2011). With the occurrence of the recession, consumers are more inclined to want to get the best value for money out of all the products that they buy.In terms of the clothing industry, they are increasingly likely to claim that they make their clothing last a long time. According to Mintel (2011), 81% of R. o. I. consumers agree with this statement as they note between 2007 and 2010 there was an 11 percentage-point increase in agreement with this statement among R. o. I consumers. This highlights that Irish consumers, are increasingly moving away from disposable fashion (i. e. clothing that they may only wear a few times), and towards buying clothing that they expect to last a long time, illustrating a higher demand for quality.Consumers who are now searching for high qualit y investment pieces that will last are driving sales within the premium womenswear market. â€Å"Nearly a quarter (23%) of women are opting to invest in fewer items of superior quality clothing that will last, a substantial increase of 10 percentage points since 2010†, (Mintel, Is the Era For Fast, Disposable Fashion Coming to an End? , 2011). While consumers may be seen to be cutting back in the recession but they are still willing to pay for high quality clothing, (Mintel, Clothing Retailing-Ireland, 2011).With this trend growing, it is necessary for the retailer to evaluate whether their target market is interested or seeking this quality in order to provide the ‘right’ product to them. The type of product on offer in Emporium Kalu has been described as having ‘fashion aesthetic that is unlike anything you will find anywhere else in Ireland’, (Harris, 2011). The Emporium Kalu customer is a ‘business woman, a student, a mother, a grandmother, anyone who wants to be feminine, elegant and unique. She appreciates beautiful design, stunning quality fabrics and subtle detail.She likes to wear timeless, great fitting pieces but puts them together in an individual and personal way’, (Louise Flanagan, co-owner of Emporium Kalu, 2011). The owners of the boutique, who are in business nearly fifteen years now, really know their customer. They have fantastic know-how on what customers want, (Harris, 2011). They pride themselves on offering their consumer exclusivity and uniqueness in their labels, (Louise Flanagan, 2011). They deliver on this by offering high quality brands such as Giles, Galliano, Maria Grachvogel, Alice by Temperley, M Missoni, Vivienne Westwood Red Label, and D&G.Kate O’Dwyer, (co-owner of Emporium Kalu) has stated that ‘even if we have a label that might be stocked somewhere else, we buy it differently. We buy it with the Emporium Kalu attitude. So it is always different to what you will fin d elsewhere’, (as cited in Harris, 2011). They are constantly searching for the ‘next big label’ so keeping a close eye celebrity fashion is a must. It is through this product differentiation and clear focus on their customer that Emporium Kalu have succeeded in buying the ‘right’ product for their store.Right Place/Location ‘A common cause of business failure among retailers is the selection of the wrong store location’, (Mazze, Pg. 17). Zentes et al. , (2011: Pg. 203), agrees and adds that a good location can lead to strong competitive advantages as location is ‘unique’ and thus cannot be imitated by competitors. It is necessary however for the location of a store to be appropriate to the retail business because in order to reach the right kind of customer it is important for a store to be in a street that reflects its image, (Varley, 2006: Pg. 173).The success of a retail store depends on many factors such as the storeâ⠂¬â„¢s location in relation to the region and the state, its situation within the community, its location on the street or in the shopping centre and the characteristics of the community and trading area, (Mazze, Pg. 17). The retailer also needs to take into account, the customer’s perception of the shopping task. Mazze explains this consideration in that a customer who wishes to obtain speciality goods like gourmet foods is not greatly concerned with how far he must go or the length of time it takes to get them.This implies that store location can be directly linked to the merchandise available within. This theory put forward by Mazze can be seen in practice by Emporium Kalu. The store is located in Naas, Co. Kildare, Ireland. This is not a large, heavily populated city with substantial daily footfall. It is a relatively small commuter suburb where many people reside but work in capital city Dublin. The store itself is positioned on the corner of a pedestrianised lane which meets the main street of Naas.This location ‘offers the kind of environment that attracts a more discerning shopper ‘, (Varley, 2006: Pg. 173). While Emporium Kalu’s location may not be preeminent, it offers the product ranges and service that consumers are willing to travel for. The owners leverage it’s merchandise and style expertise in a way that makes up for what it may lack in store location, so much so that it has been honoured with being ranked as one of the fifty best boutiques in the British Isles, (www. telegraph. co. uk). Right Quantity at the Right TimeVarley, (2006: Pg. 110), holds that getting the ‘right’ quantities of merchandise delivered into the retail organisation at the right time is necessary to satisfy both basic customer needs and retail management goals. The implications of getting product levels wrong are great; too much stock will threaten the profitability of a range and increase holding costs and too little stock wil l cause a loss of customers and sales, both direct and complementary. These errors can occur as a result of late deliveries, late orders or choosing the incorrect size mix.Choosing the perfect size configuration for a company store program requires careful calculation, (Cook Kimbrough, 2008: Pg. 36). A retailer must decide how much of a particular product line is needed for their store, (Varley, 2006: Pg. 110). Similar to the other ‘right’s, this decision is highly dependent on a fashion retailers target audience. Cook Kimbrough, (2008: Pg. 36), is of the opinion that a good rule of thumb is to think of the bell curve when choosing your sizes for your range. Sizes in the middle tend to sell about twice as much as the sizes at the extreme.As can be seen, the ‘right’ quantity includes many different factors and cannot be considered independently. Emporium Kalu operates with an exclusive image. They pride themselves on offering product that is ‘different to what you will find somewhere else’, (O’Dwyer as cited in Harris, 2011). They achieve this exclusivity factor through both the labels they offer and through their size configuration. They are not the business of mass selling product. ‘We want the consumer to feel special when she wears her clothing and she can be confident that she will not see other people wearing the same outfit.That is why we buy our ranges relatively wide as opposed to deep’, (Louise Flanagan, 2011). Therefore, the co-owners do not purchase large quantities of each style in-store which creates the ‘exclusive’ feeling. This strategy has proven to be extremely successful for this boutique and is the ‘right’ quantity for their customer and their retail organisation. Right Price Setting prices in today’s intensely competitive and dynamic retail environment is a complex task and developing a detailed understanding of consumer behaviour and buying patterns lies at the heart of any successful pricing strategy, (Gordon et al. 2006: Pg. 22). Retailers can use price in conjunctions with product quality, customer service quality and selling environment to make a very clear statement about the image they wish to communicate and about where they belong in the market, (Varley, 2006: Pg. 13). Therefore, pricing is directly linked to a retailers specific target market and the level of product quality they offer. This is clearly seen in the three main retailing pricing structures that Zentes et al. , (2011: Pg. 256) puts forward; 1. Value/ budget Price: Focuses on low cost and high volume selling of product. 2. Medium Price: Focuses on 3.Premium Price: Focuses on attracting customers who are less concerned with price and more interested product quality and prestige. In order for a fashion retailer to succeed with their pricing structure and charge the ‘right’ price, product quality and consumer expectations need to be aligned. Empo rium Kalu is positions themselves in the premium price segment. They attract the type of consumer described in this segment by Zentes et al’s, (2011: Pg. 256). Kate O’Dwyer verifies this and states that ‘we're about beautiful pieces because there are people who appreciate the special and unique’, (cited in Harris, 2011).Whilst on buying trips, price is not at the forefront of the minds of the co-owners, it is more about whether the collection and quality is a good fit for the store and their customer, ‘if we love a piece, we have to have it’, (Flanagan, 2011). This pricing structure prevails for Emporium Kalu as they attract customers who are in pursuit of product prestige and service over lower cost. Right Personnel What has not been included in the ‘retailing’s formula for perfection’, and should be considered as a new addition, is having the right personnel to carry out the final step in the retailing process, that is, s elling product to the consumer.The rational for this inclusion is for without converting store visits into sales, the bottom line cannot be achieved and the other ‘rights’ are meaningless. Kotler et al. , (2005:446), too acknowledges personnel importance and states that it is a key way for a brand to stand out in the mind of the consumer is through providing top quality service as service is important to customers. Having the right personnel in your store can be an invaluable tool in creating and retaining customer loyalty. Individual help by floor staff, personal shoppers or stylists will enhance the customers experience and perception of the brand.For â€Å"it is here at the customer interface that business is either won or lost†, (Jackson et al. , 2009:84). This idea of the right personnel is central to the store offering in Emporium Kalu. The owners Louise Flanagan and Kate O’Dwyer, right from the beginning were focused on not only providing the custom er with exceptional quality products and brands but also exceptional service, (Louise Flanagan, 2011). This outstanding customer service is delivered through unrivalled, individual styling and advice, personal tailoring on garments, an in-store deposit facility and one to one after hours service if required.Co-owner Louise prides the store on having staff who provide first class, attentive assistance for all customers who walk through their doors, (2011). The consumer and their requirements are valued and are given the upmost consideration. This she believes, in part, is the way forward for independent retailers today. Offering the customer more than just a product but an enjoyable experience and advice they can trust so they feel confident in their clothes too. ConclusionIn order for a fashion retailer to achieve its retail operations objectives a number of considerations need to be taken into account and the customer is central to each. When choosing the ‘right’ produ ct, the target customer needs to be at the core of all decisions. Trends in their choices, spending power and what influences them are fundamental in selecting different collections. The product has to have the ability to satisfy the consumer, (Varley, 2006: Pg. 76). Jackson et al. , (2009: 83), maintains that uniqueness in product, a high level of quality and providing unique product benefits are a â€Å"critical differentiator in fashion†.When choosing a retailer’s location, in order for it to be ‘right’, the customer’s perception of the shopping task and the characteristics of the community and trading area need to be considered. If chosen appropriately, location can be a source of competitive advantage. Getting the quantities of merchandise ‘right’ for a retail organisation is highly dependent on a fashion retailers target audience and they what they require. It is a decision that cannot be made independently and is affected by timi ng and sizing issues.In order for a fashion retailer to succeed with their pricing structure and charge the ‘right’ price, product quality and consumer expectations need to be aligned. This will create loyalty among customers if a retailer can deliver on their pricing structure. The proposed additional ‘right’ of retailing, the right personnel could prove to be key in gaining a competitive advantage in the marketplace today. Offering the customer benfits other than the product like an enhanced in-store experience will aid the fashion retailer to endure the current difficult market conditions.