Wednesday, July 31, 2019

Analysis on Mulan and the Twilight Saga

Women are to be beautiful, curvy, delicate, poised, graceful, refined, thin, curvy, quiet, demure and polite. Men are portrayed as the leaders of society, whereas women are only there to give birth to children. Manual is graceful, calm, and unique she is also beautiful and cur,y, Just like society wants. But that is where it stops. Unlike society wishes, she is not quiet, demure, or delicate. Instead she is intelligent, strong, and independent and is not afraid to be what she wants to be.And therefore, when the mime came when she did not want her father to lose his life in battle, she goes against society's standards when it comes to women on the battlefield and disguises herself as a man to be able to Join the army. She proves that she is Just as capable as a man by Joining the army and doing the same things the men do at training camp, If not more. But by the end of the movie, she saves the country. Feminists hope that people's outlook on female roles and equality will change for t he better, and In some ways the hope lies with the media.Books, movies, poems, songs, TV shows and any there types of influences on the public are their hope In delivering their message. Manual is an animated movie that many kids watch and enjoy from a young age. At a young age they start to develop opinions about everything they Interact with. Therefore, developing a movie like Manual will Influence the children to treat females as equals. The treatment of females will be Improved through the next generation. This will help the feminists with their cause.Twilight Throughout the story, Bella Swan does not have trouble coming to a decision as all ere decisions are based on the fact If a decision will bring her closer to Edward or help him. Her choices are not based on her benefits or what will help her, which portrays the sexist outlook of women – weak, obedient, and not equal – which has been shown throughout history. In New Moon, when Edward leaves Bella, she does eve rything In her power to be able to see Edward, from rolling a motorcycle recklessly to Jumping Off cliff Into stormy waves.This also shows that women are nothing without men, which Is not what the fervently movement wants. Yes the love they had for each other and the devotion that was expressed In the novel was well-played, but the weakness of the female lead does not push society to accept woman as equals economically, politically, or socially. This book does not promote female equality but Instead female Inequality. Furthermore, Bella relies on Edward for her to live and on Jacob In New Moon. Analysis on Manual and the Twilight Saga Through a Feminist Point of View By Chocolate's beautiful and curvy, Just like society wants.But that is where it stops. Unlike society y Joining the army and doing the same things the men do at training camp, if not people's outlook on female roles and equality will change for the better, and in some other types of influences on the public are their h ope in delivering their message. Young age they start to develop opinions about everything they interact with. Therefore, developing a movie like Manual will influence the children to treat females as equals. The treatment of females will be improved through the next generation.Throughout the story, Bella Swan does not have trouble coming to a decision as all ere decisions are based on the fact if a decision will bring her closer to Edward or everything in her power to be able to see Edward, from riding a motorcycle recklessly to Jumping off a cliff into stormy waves. This also shows that women are nothing without men, which is not what the feminist movement wants. Yes the love they had for each other and the devotion that was expressed in the novel was well-played, but instead female inequality. Furthermore, Bella relies on Edward for her to live and on Jacob in New Moon.

Tuesday, July 30, 2019

Identification of an Organic Unknown Essay

Introduction I am supplied with an unknown organic compound containing one of the following functional groups: * Alcohol * Aldehyde * Ketone * Carboxylic Acid * Ester * Phenol Organic compounds have different functional groups and therefore differ from each other. They also react differently, I will use this method to determine the type of organic compound I have. I will conduct various experiments to narrow down the choices. I will the using the information I have gathered construct an, easy to follow, flow diagram. Prediction While conducting these experiments, I will produce solutions, which I may need for the next step of the flow diagram. By observing physical changes to the reactants and recording any substance given off by the product, I will be able to follow my flow diagram and therefore determine the unknown compound. For example, if hydrogen gas is released, and the flow diagram gives a choice of hydrogen given off, and no hydrogen given off. I will down the appropriate route and dismiss the other route. Plan To find the organic the unknown, I will need to find the functional group and I will find this by how they react. I will now describe the experiments that I will conduct, the safety precautions and any other information. Firstly, I will need to figure out how to separate the unknown into 2 different groups. This is done by adding Sodium (Na) to the compound in a test-tube. The Na will sink and a steady stream of hydrogen will be released, this will also happen when NA is added to Phenol and a carboxylic acid. I will collect any gas released and use the ‘pop test’ to test for hydrogen. I will be wearing safety goggles because the acid and phenol are very corrosive. If there is a ‘pop’ I known that it could be one of, an alcohol, phenol or carboxylic acid. I can now split the route into two and from what I discover from the first experiment I can take either one of the routes. If there isn’t a ‘pop’ then I will take the other route, It could be aldehydes, esters or ketones, I know this because these functional groups do not react with Na. To find out if the either of these groups are the unknown, I will use Fehling’s reagent or Tollens reagent experiment. I chose to use the Fehling’s reagent. This reagent determine whether the compound contains the aldehyde. The Fehling’s reagent contains copper ions, when added to an aldehyde it is oxidised to a salt of a carboxylic acid and the Fehling’s reagent is reduced. The solution will stay blue if no reaction takes place, but if the slution turn brick red then a reaction has took place and the unknown will identified as an aldehyde PLAN To find out if the unknown is either one of these the second experiment I will do is to do either the Fehling’s or the Tollens reagent experiment. I have chosen to do the Fehling’s experiment. This experiment is used to discover an aldehyde as Fehling’s solution contains Cu ions. When this is added to aldehyde the aldehyde is oxidised to a salt of a carboxylic acid and the Fehling’s solution is reduced. If there is no reaction and the solution stays blue I will know that the unknown organic compound is not an aldehyde but if the colour changes to brick red there is a reaction and an aldehyde can be identified. The reaction equation is displayed below of an aldehyde reacting with Fehling’s solution. 2Cu (aq) + RCHO(aq) + OH (aq) + H O(l) Cu O + RCOOH(aq) + 3H (aq) I would wear safety goggles during this experiment and handle the solutions with great care. When doing this experiment when adding solutions I should stay clear of the reaction area, as I do not know how the reaction will occur and if it is vigorous. Now that I am left with to other functional groups to identify from I can carry out one more experiment to identify the organic compound. At this stage I would have discovered that it does not react with Na so is not an alcohol, phenol or carboxylic acid. It also does not react with Fehling’s solution so is not an aldehyde so it has to be either a ketone or an ester. The experiment that I have chosen to see the difference between the two would be the reaction with 2,4 DNPH. I would get the unknown compound and place a bit of it into a test tube, I will then add drop by drop the 2,4 DNPH if I see a change in the solution from clear to a yellow precipitate with yellow crystals I will be able to identify the compound as a ketone if not it will be an ester. Now that I have the experiments I will do to indicate if the unknown compound was one of the three that did not produce hydrogen when reacted with Na. I will now describe the experiments I will need to carry out to discover if the unknown compound has either the functional group of an alcohol, phenol or a carboxylic acid that would release Hydrogen when reacted with Na. A further experiment I need to carry out to identify if the compound is an alcohol or is it not. To do this I will do a simple experiment by adding a few drops of universal indicator to a test tube with the unknown organic compound. This will identify to me if there is an alcohol functional group present. If this functional group is present then the solution would go blue/green therefore it would be near neutral although it will turn pink/red if a functional group of either carboxylic acid or phenol is present as they are acidic. After this experiment I will have two functional groups that I would not have identified as I have identified the alcohol. If I had carried out the first experiments I would know that hydrogen is released by this compound when reacted with Na therefore it would be an alcohol, phenol or a carboxylic acid. From the second experiment in this category I would either discover by adding universal indicator if the unknown is an alcohol or if it is both carboxylic acid and phenol. I can now do another experiment adding sodium carbonate to the compound and discover if there is a reaction. I would have a test tube with the unknown compound and I will add the sodium carbonate. I know that if a carboxylic acid is present then carbon dioxide gas will be released. I will have a measuring cylinder or larger test tube turned upside down in a water bath where a plastic tube will allow the gas produced to be collected in the measuring cylinder or test tube. This plastic tube will be connected to the reaction test tube via a rubber bung. The gas collected could then be tested to see if carbon dioxide is released. To do this I will add limewater to the test tube and if the solution forms a milky precipitate then carbon dioxide gas is present. I will then know that the compound is a carboxylic acid. If the precipitate does not go milky then I have identified the unknown organic compound as a phenol. I have discovered that I can do two further experiments on the alcohol. I could reflux the alcohol that I have discovered to discover if this is a tertiary alcohol or one of the primary or secondary alcohols. I will use reflux equipment such as the pear shaped flask and a condenser. I will add it up right and will heat the unknown compound containing anti bumping granules to make it less vigorous. I will use a Bunsen burner to heat the solution in the pear shaped flask. I will then release drop-by-drop potassium dichromate to the pear shaped flask. If there is no change in the colour of the solution and it stays orange then it is a tertiary alcohol. If there is a reaction and the colour of the solution goes blue/green a primary or secondary alcohol is present. To discover if the alcohol is a primary or secondary I could add 2,4 DNPH to the alcohol discovered and if it goes orange/yellow it is a secondary alcohol and if there is no precipitate it is a primary alcohol. In all experiments I will need to take great precautions as many of the solutions are corrosive or flammable. As I will not know the functional groups present in the unknown organic compound I will not know if it is flammable or corrosive therefore I have to handle it with care and try to minimise any spillages. I will wear gloves and wear goggles to protect my hands and eyes. I will not have anything close to the table that may be obstructive and may catch fire. I have described all apparatus that I will use in the description of the experiment therefore have not listed them. In all of the experiments I will add the same amount of unknown compound to the reactant. I will therefore add 2cm of unknown organic compound to 2cm to its reactant. I will however not do these when adding universal indicator, as a few drops will be efficient. Any further reaction equations that may be helpful are written on the sheet with the flow diagram. I have used the chemistry 2 textbooks written by Brian Ratcliff and Helen Eccles. I have also used the Heinemann Advanced Science chemistry textbook written by Ann & Patrick Fullick.

Cultural Manifestation Via A Game Of Street Basketball Essay

Two hoops, ten players, one basketball court and one leather ball to dribble, pass, shoot and score points with. The other aspects of basketball – the rules, the technicalities – are all fluid and bent by the whims and preferences of the existing culture, even the existing playing teams. Street basketball may not be the roots of the sport, but through the years, it has becoming both the foundation of professional basketball as well as the avenue for the exercise of the growing subculture in street basketball. Ballard (2004) elaborates: â€Å"Within the caged confines amidst the bohemian community of Greenwich Village in Lower Manhattan can be found the essence of street basketball: all the grit, showmanship, competition, and spectacle that make the game great† (pg 35). To those who are not indoctrinated in the culture of street basketball, it is easy to say that what they see being played on the street and what they see flashing on their television monitors are both the same game of basketball; that they share so many similar attributes and that the only thing different in street basketball compared to collegiate or professional basketball is the level of popularity. But that is far from the truth – because those who know and understand street basketball, those who lived and breathed street basketball, those who bled and literally died in the cement floors of the street basketball courts know that what they do where they do it is so much different from what high salaried pro basketball players do in the NBA. They have different stages where they play; they have different rules as well as different ways of enforcing it; they have different cultures and different reasons why they play basketball. The only thing they have in common is that they all want that leather and rubber spheroid up in the air and then inside the rim, swooshing the net that makes a catcall for such a sexy swing. Professional basketball is all about winning the coveted ‘ring’, about being able to parade around town like rockstars and hoist that championship trophy alongside guys who you might be elbowing the following season. In professional basketball, there is a certain convenience for players and team owners to just move from one team to another because it is just a job for them, but on the street, one’s alliance to a basketball team is a binding oath; jumping to another team is never about the job of getting the Ws and finishing the season with the ‘ring’, and most players who see a former teammate desert them always take it personal, because street basketball is never a job. It is a brotherhood where loyalty is the most expensive and most important aspect of a player, and those who sell it cheap will always have a ‘low market value’. Street basketball and professional basketball have different set of ethos – in street basketball, they play for their team’s pride and for the wager while in professional basketball, they play for their own personal pride and for their own personal salary, especially in today’s era when even the best of players are traded to other teams in exchange for the chance of the team’s long term vision to take shape. In street basketball, it is always here and now, every game feels like the last game, and it is hard to go home with a monkey on your back because when you lost, you did not just part with some of your money, you also parted with some ounces of self respect and the respect of the people in the neighborhood about you, your team and your game. Observing and analyzing human behavior – Like every cultural vestige and like every subculture type, included in the consideration for the analysis of certain cultural practices is the assessment of human behavior. In street basketball, there are also a set of prevailing human behavior and the dictating factors on why such patterns exist, appear and persist. The manifestation of these sets and patterns of human behavior inside street basketball is two-pronged; those which the average eyes can see and those which only the trained eyes can detect happen simultaneously. It is both reflected and hidden in the way they dress, in the way they talk and in the way they play the game. The human behavior patterns in street basketball depict that of the prehistoric tribes – it requires that only the fittest with the toughest set of behaviors survive. And what are these behaviors? The behavior in fighting, in negotiating, in people management and control of power – all of these behaviors are essential for a person to survive the culture of street basketball. Without some of these behaviors, the individual is forced outside the circle of street basketball. Players fight for their place to be among those who are considered as respected basketball players in the street. Outside the five-on-five, there are those who wield similar power, clout and influence – those who fix wagers, those who tap, harness and control budding talents and those who are present in the circuit for their own socio-political reasons. One needs only to sit down by the bleachers and take a good look around to see the abundance of a diverse set of human behavior present inside one confined yet open spaced rectangular domain of street basketball. African American guys play with white guys and vice versa, and so does the relationship of those who have different ethnic descent, and this reflects the behavior of the individuals inside street basketball when it comes to ethnic sensitivity. Other easily discernable behaviors found in street basketball include the penchant of most basketball players for gambling, their obvious disregard for socially accepted behavior while in public like going topless for most of the time, spitting, cursing and the prevalence of foul and derogatory terms hurled at each other, the integration of gang related separatist attitude and the resorting to physical assault as a way to settle differences of avenge any feeling of indignation. Looking at street basketball players, the universal behavior noticeable is their take on street basketball as the end all and be all of their lives – they gamble every paper bill they have on the pockets of their pants, sometimes, even money that they don’t have, on a round of street basketball without serious regard for what will happen in the future in the event that they lose their bet; most of them would rather spend their days playing ball and cementing their hold among their peers and their social cliques, which sometimes result in the creation of strong bonds of brotherhood between two persons or among members of a group or the creation of intensive animosity as well; school is never an equally important priority, and the preference for the type of work they would engage on is similar on how they battle, win and lost in street basketball – exciting, thrilling and promises the yield of a quick buck.. Street basketball is a religion, while professional basketball is a mere day job for night shift dribblers, and the rituals that are involved in the daily exercise of their faith exists in different aspects – there are rituals of battle, rituals of praise, rituals done to ask for intercession and divine intercession as well as the rituals for both the victorious and the defeated. At some point, the ‘real’ and the ‘sports-based’ religion meets in the middle, when religion is infused in the practice of a competitive sport, because there is one ultimate human behavior that is manifested greatly in street basketball – and that is the desire to win, because winning is always more than the scorebook statistics; it is about winning wagers and bets, winning the respect of the crowd as well as the opponents and winning your own sense of self respect towards yourself. A sports activity is a particular cultural event, and like any other cultural event, st reet basketball is unique in different places. But despite these differences, this cultural event shares the same characteristic – and that is this: that it is the showcasing of the most primitive instinct that is present among humans inside the society; it is a display of skill, grace, strength and the set of values to which a person will be remembered for; it is a reminder of how fiercely competitive the world is, how one should earn everything with his bare hands standing on his own two feet alone. Street basketball speaks a lot about a place’s culture; pro basketball is plain entertainment. Works Cited: Ballard, Chris. â€Å"Hoops Nation: A Guide to America’s Best Pickup Basketball. † University of Nebraska Press, October 2004.

Monday, July 29, 2019

Gender Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words - 1

Gender - Essay Example Feminist theory embraced in totality the concept of the distinction between the concept of biological sex and the socio-cultural construct of gender. In the current conservative societal systems, the gender-biological sex distinction is strictly followed in specific contexts, especially the documents written by the World Health Organization (WHO) and the social sciences. Put differently in other contexts, including social science areas, gender is the basic inclusion of sexuality, or it replaces sexuality. Although the change in gender meaning is overly traced in the 1980s, a meager acceleration of gender context in the scientific field was liberally observed in 1993 in the United States. This is the period in which USA’s Food and Drug Administration (FDA) began using the terminology gender instead of sex. Therefore, gender was reversely used during this period as a sexual view of individuals or as a person’s self-assessment and self-representation as male or female. Thi s paper, therefore, describes how individual social role players construct gender in a culture other than the ordinarily known cultures. Natural languages often make up all the gender distinctions. Gender relation and language may be of various kinds. Gender and language distinctions socially are more or less loosely associated with analogies of either perceived or actual differences between men and women. Some grammatical gender issues go far much beyond or totally ignore the masculine-feminine distinctions. In the explanation of gender and languages, the following are the key and elementary attributes of gender as a cultural construction concept. Firstly, languages include the terminologies used unequally while referring to men and women (Jowett, 2005). The conservative societal concern that the current language structures may be biased in favor of only

Sunday, July 28, 2019

Recent Trends In the Historiography of Soviet Russia since 2004 Research Paper

Recent Trends In the Historiography of Soviet Russia since 2004 - Research Paper Example This led to the acceptance of the more extensive anti-soviet traditional western account by a majority of the Russian scholars2. Andrei Sakharov indicates that, currently, the russian historical science is vibrant, dynamic and discussive, and is closely associated with global historiography3. These claims seem to be echoed by Kritika in whose pages several informative articles that have, in the recent past, been published to map the evolving ideological constellation of russian histological publications. Mironov argues that, the wall between historical research done in the cities and that done in provinces is diminishing, and so is the wall between Western and Russian historiograhy. Consequently, a community of Russianists is coming into being. In a brief review of the demographics and communication pathway of these lines of thought, Benedict Anderson writes extensively of the school â€Å"pilgrimages,† which encompass the pathways in education that were pursued by â€Å"nati ves† and â€Å"creoles† during the colonial period that gave rise to the notion of a nation in sites4. It is arguable that Russia has become a colony of the west. However, this is optimised by Minorov’s assertion of a progressively more integrated community. In terms of demographics, there are some advancements in the Russian information systems. However, in the post –Soviet era, the prone networks including the science academies and their branches have been eroded and remained only shells. A majority, in the academies, have taken refuge in tertiary institutions, in which they partake in multiple teaching workloads, as a means of survival. Many individuals, in the academic world, are too busy with multi-tasking thus cannot find time to write academic materials. It is evident that many academic institutions are staffed with scientists of a retiring age. Moreover, not many young people find jobs in the academic field to be alluring. Consequently, many scient ists are reported to be leaving for better jobs abroad. Another crucial topic is the mode of teaching of history in learning institutions. A critical examination indicates that a social history can have a significant effect, basing on its approach and debates as presented to the lay community, in schools through textbooks and may corrupt the public memory5. Catherine Marridale notes a significant lack of interest for historological studies, majorly among the younger generation and continual widening of the gap between lay and scholarly lines of specialization. She, at the same time, argues on the persistence of a discursive field in which Russian tropes maintain dominance. For schools and textbooks, during the perestroika era, there was a great interest in history. This is accompanied by a sharp decline, as people are immersed in a struggle to survive and deal with the woes resulting from drastic impoverishment. However, Prime Minister Mikhail Kasianov rekindled the public interest in 2001, on the mode of teaching of history, through his concern about the quality of the Russian history books6. As a result, the government indulged in a competition aimed at finding the top three text books to be used in schools. Consequently, the new standardized school

Saturday, July 27, 2019

Service Market Liberalization Research Proposal

Service Market Liberalization - Research Proposal Example The proposal was rejected in March 2005 and caused a major setback for the SMP process. A possible reason for rejection was the coincidence of the proposal with the accession of ten new member states giving rise to labor immigration fears. In 2006, an amended version of the Services Directive was agreed upon to be implemented in 2010 (EC 2006). In the 1990s labor growth in the European services sector decreased in comparison with the 1980s and the United states of America (USA) (European Central Bank 2006). One reason to the decrease in growth is the slow implementation of Information Communication Technology (ICT) services as pointed out by O'Mahony et al. (2003). Bilateral trade and foreign investment in services in an open market would stimulate competition and foster innovation which would diminish the gap with the US. Liberalization of services is still considered by many as a zero-sum-game where some countries win while others lose. The notion of liberalization of services gives rise to fears from open market competition and survival of local services. This research focuses on the effect of service market liberalization and the expected increase in market competition on the economies of the lesser developed European countries in Central and Eastern Europe. The better understanding of the effect of liberalization of services on the lesser developed countries in Central... The question is whether an open market for services in Europe would increase competition and productivity in the central and eastern European countries. 2. Research Problem 2.1 Research Problem Description Liberalization of services is still considered by many as a zero-sum-game where some countries win while others lose. The notion of liberalization of services gives rise to fears from open market competition and survival of local services. This research focuses on the effect of service market liberalization and the expected increase in market competition on the economies of the lesser developed European countries in Central and Eastern Europe. 2.2 Significance and Contribution of the Research Problem The better understanding of the effect of liberalization of services on the lesser developed countries in Central and Eastern Europe would convince politicians towards legislation of required directives to disrupt barriers to trade of services and create an open service market. 2.3 Delimitation and Assumptions of the Problem Research is limited to the effect of liberalization of services in Central and Eastern European countries only. Only the economies of these countries are evaluated towards their reaction to services liberalization. Liberalization of other trade products is not considered. 2.4 Research Objective This research aims at achieving the following research objectives: To conduct an in-depth investigation and analysis of the currently available studies and theories that predict and estimate the effect of services liberalization in developed and less developed economies. Examine the statistical data of Central and Eastern Countries of trade in services and their relationship to different acts of

Friday, July 26, 2019

Art Studies Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Art Studies - Essay Example This musical composition is intended for three violins and basso continuo. However, through time its popularity made it the subject of arrangements for a wide variety of ensemble (Pachelbel's Canon 2). In general, the composition conveys both warm and festive emotion through the instruments that are used, rhythm, and overall structure. I believe that this effect is most likely because of the connection of this music to wedding ceremonies. The Canon in D major is also made more interesting and appealing by the composer's extensive use of chord progression. Overall, the composition seems to be an expression of strong, elaborate, and dramatic expression of emotion through the use of complex musical elements. 6. Choose a work of visual art (painting or sculpture) from the same time period as the musical composition that seems to "relate" in some way. Explain your choice. How do these two works of art fit the time period The Canon in D major as stated above is one of the famous musical composition during the Baroque period. Alongside this composition, the St. Theresa in Ecstasy is also created within the same era. This sculpture is crafted by Bernini showing St.

Thursday, July 25, 2019

Public Relations in Business Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 4000 words

Public Relations in Business - Essay Example " According to two American PR professionals Scott M. Cutlip and Allen H. Center, "PR is a planned effort to influence opinion through good character and responsible performance based upon mutual satisfactory two-way communication". Corporations use marketing public relations (MPR) to convey information about the products they manufacture or services they provide to potential customers to support their direct sales efforts. Typically, they support sales in the short and long term, establishing and burnishing the corporation's branding for a strong, ongoing market. Corporations also use public-relations as a vehicle to reach legislators and other politicians, seeking favorable tax, regulatory, and other treatment, and they may use public relations to portray themselves as enlightened employers, in support of human-resources recruiting programs. Non-profit organizations, including schools and universities, hospitals, and human and social service agencies, use public relations in support of awareness programs, fund-raising programs, staff recruiting, and to increase patronage of their services. Politicians use public relations to attract votes and raise money, and, when successful at the ballot box, to promote and defend their service in office, with an eye to the next election or, at career's end, to their legacy. PR has had many definitions over... Typically, they support sales in the short and long term, establishing and burnishing the corporation's branding for a strong, ongoing market. Corporations also use public-relations as a vehicle to reach legislators and other politicians, seeking favorable tax, regulatory, and other treatment, and they may use public relations to portray themselves as enlightened employers, in support of human-resources recruiting programs. Non-profit organizations, including schools and universities, hospitals, and human and social service agencies, use public relations in support of awareness programs, fund-raising programs, staff recruiting, and to increase patronage of their services. Politicians use public relations to attract votes and raise money, and, when successful at the ballot box, to promote and defend their service in office, with an eye to the next election or, at career's end, to their legacy. PR has had many definitions over the years and since its early boom days of the 1980s has almost entirely redefined itself. This is probably because most clients these days are far too media-savvy to think that fluffy ideas and champagne parties constitute a good media service (of course this is a good thing, but we do still like a good champagne party). PR these days is often misunderstood, and it's probably the fault of the PR industry itself that most people aren't sure where PR is supposed to stop and marketing, advertising, branding and all the other media services begin. Put very simply, good PR encourages the media (newspapers, magazines, TV and radio) to say good things about your product/service or whatever it is that you want to promote so that more people buy your

Wednesday, July 24, 2019

Importance of Strategic thinking and formulation in the organisational Essay

Importance of Strategic thinking and formulation in the organisational change - Essay Example There are many stages involved in the process of the strategic management. These steps are divided in to three broad categories: 1) Strategy formulation 2) Strategy implementation 3) Strategy evaluation The first step namely the strategy formulation involves the development of the business mission, evaluation of the opportunities and threats faced by the business organisation in the business, by using tools such as SWOT analysis, examining the strengths and weaknesses of the business, determining the long term objectives of the business and designing the new strategies to eke in the process of achieving the new targets. It also include the processes to determine the investment direction, the business markets to be addressed, extension of the operations of the business, limitations faced by the business in order to undertake the business activities.... d the marketing efforts, planning the financial issues, alignment of the information system with the information needs of the employees and last but not least provisions of appraisals and rewards to the employees. The strategy implementation stage requires several actions to be taken by the management in order to get the most of it. The successful implementation of a strategy is directly related to the ability of a manger to motivate employees in the strategic direction and to develop an organisational culture to adopt the change and take it into the daily business practise. It also demands some crucial steps by the managers on personal level. The manger should depict different qualities such as discipline, high level of commitment and motivation, leadership and enthusiasm of making things possible. Successful implementation of strategy is very important. This is the most crucial step in the whole process since it involves many factors besides the ability of manger. This includes the adoption of change by the employees, their commitment levels, and the enthusiasm towards their jobs. Most often the business organisations fail to achieve their desired targets since they fail to implement their s trategies in a successful manner or fail to get support from their employees. The final stage is the strategy evaluation. After the implementation it is important for the managers to test the effectiveness of the strategy. The strategy of a company requires constant updating. With the changing conditions of market and industry it is important for an organisation to keep its strategy in tact with the changing environment. An out dated strategy cannot fulfil the needs of today's global environment. In order to go through the updating process the organisations should carry on

How the cultures of Norway, United Kingdom and Greece differ and how Essay

How the cultures of Norway, United Kingdom and Greece differ and how it affects the way the countries are run - Essay Example Situated away from the cultural centres, Norway has a strong culture flourishing from the ninth century. The unique Norwegian Farm Culture, sustained to this day is closely related to the country’s history and geography, due to the scarce resources, harsh climate and the ancient property law. Romanticism has a great influence on Norwegian language and media. With the continued support of government for various activities like exhibitions, cultural projects etc, Norwegian culture flourished in areas of art, literature and music. Present Norwegian culture is a melting pot of various backgrounds and cultures. Norwegians are mainly egalitarian people who mainly focus on fairness, equal rights and open-mindedness. They like people for their nature and not what they do or how much money they have. They are honest and sincere in their relationship and have a simple way of living. Norwegian food has diversified in recent years and all types of food is available along with sea food. Ev ery year Norwegian food festival is celebrated in late august to celebrate different kinds of food. Music has an important role to play in Norwegian history. It has been passed down the generation and mainly includes instrumental and vocal music. The traditional musical instrument includes Hardingfele followed by Harp. The traditional dress is Bunad, an elaborate dress with lot of embroidery and jewellery. From Business perspective there are certain attributes in culture of Norway like informal style, individual interests, Transactional relationship and direct communication. History defined United Kingdom as a developed power, a major power and comprising of four major countries-England, Northern Ireland, Scotland and Wales, each of which has retained its distinct culture. But with cultural influence of west, there were changes in United Kingdom’s culture. Humanism, Protestantism and representative democracy developed .With the evolution of industrial revolution in UK, there were major changes in field of agriculture, manufacturing and transportation which impacted socio- economic culture. Formerly a homogeneous society, Britain has become more diverse with people from different part of world living there. British are known for their stiff upper lip and blitz spirit. They still live up to grin and bear attitude in situations of embarrassment. They are reserved and private people and are sticklers for adherence to protocols. British cuisine follows a specific set of traditions and customs of cooking. However British has absorbed the cultural influence of those who settled in Britain. British cuisine’s international significance is limited to full breakfast and Christmas dinner. Britain has made a lot of progress in field of music with British invasion and British-pop evolving. The traditional music is centuries old and has contributed to a lot of genres. It supports major orchestras and was among the two main countries in development of rock music . UK has been in forefront in development of theatre, movies, radio and television. UK has played a major role in scientific developments from the times of scientific revolution. The Royal society serves as a centre for science and is the oldest society developed. From the prospective of business British are formal and look for long-term relationship in Business. The culture of Greece has developed over a thousand of years with influence of Roman Empire, British Empire but according to historians the credit for

Tuesday, July 23, 2019

Financial Analysis Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words - 2

Financial Analysis - Essay Example The weak market efficiency version is supported for the Pace Plc group based on the information available from the share prices. The share prices have shown fluctuating trends. While compared with those of the trends in the market indices like FTSE 250 index and technology, hardware and equipment index the trends are similar and in some years outperformed the market movements and have not declined significantly, which supports the weak form of market efficiency for the company. Hence based on the analysis in this report, it can be recommended that investors can buy the stocks of the company in spite of the fact that the company has shown poor performance in the context of global economic crisis in 2007. The evidence shows support in favour of improved financial performance in 2008 and 2009 and is still going on increasing. Financial Statements of a company are intended to give valuable information about the financial health of the company to its owner investors and lenders (Tracy, 2004). In other words, they are supposed to give information about the financial position, performance and changes in financial position of the company. In this report, the financial performance of Pace Plc listed in the London Stock Exchange is analyzed. The objective of the study is to analyze the financial performance of the group and to recommend whether or not to invest in the company’s shares based on the analysis. The financial performance is analyzed using financial ratio analysis and share price analysis. This report is organized as follows. Section 2 discusses the company history and business. Section 3 discusses the methodology. Section 4 discusses the analysis and results. Section 5 concludes the report. Pace Plc is one of the most famous digital TV technology developers in the pay TV industry, with its headquarters in Saltaire, UK (Pace Plc, 2009a). It was founded in 1982. It has

Monday, July 22, 2019

Three Key Techniques for Better Listening Essay Example for Free

Three Key Techniques for Better Listening Essay In this McKinsey article, Bernard T. Ferrari explores three key techniques for better listening and its importance. By showing respect, keeping quiet and challenging assumptions, Mr. Ferrari argues that will create a â€Å"base of knowledge that generates fresh insights and ideas. First, show respect. Respect breeds confidence and trust. If you’re a manager, you probably have a complex set of responsibilities. You can’t know everything about every facet of your domain. By respecting your teammates, you will naturally draw them into the conversation and learn from them. If you simply jump to a solution, you short circuit the entire process. Not only do you miss out on any advice about the current situation, you also teach your colleagues not to offer advice in the future. Second, keep quiet. Ferrari suggest a variation of the 80/20 rule — let the other person speak about 80% of the time while you speak only 20% of the time. Many executives struggle as listeners because they never think to relax their assumptions and open themselves to the possibilities that can be drawn from conversations with others. But many executives will have to undergo a deeper mind-set shift—toward an embrace of ambiguity and a quest to uncover â€Å"what we both need to get from this interaction so that we can come out smarter.† Too many good executives, even exceptional ones who are highly respectful of their colleagues, inadvertently act as if they know it all, or at least what’s most important, and subsequently remain closed to anything that undermines their beliefs. Third, challenge assumptions. This doesn’t just mean that you challenge other people’s assumptions. It also means that you encourage your colleagues to challenge your assumptions. So it takes real effort for executives to become better listeners by forcing themselves to lay bare their assumptions for scrutiny and to shake up their thinking with an eye to reevaluating what they know, don’t know, and—an important point—can’t know. One of the interesting twists in Ferrari’ s framework for effective listening is his â€Å"field guide to identifying bad listeners†. He identifies six â€Å"types† of bad listeners: The Opinionator listens to others primarily to determine whether or not their ideas conform to what he or she already believes to be true. Grouches are poor listeners who are blocked by a feeling of certainty that your idea is wrong. The Preambler’s windy lead-ins and questions are really stealth speeches, often intended to box conversation partners into a corner. Preamblers use questioning to steer the  discussion, send warnings, or generate a desired answer. Perseverators talk a lot without saying anything. If you pay close attention to one of these poor listeners, you’ll find that their comments and questions don’t advance the conversation. Everyone wants to solve problems, but Answer Man spouts solutions before there is even a consensus about the challenge—a clear signal that input from conversation partners isn’t needed. Pretenders feign engagement and even agreement but either aren†™t interested in what you’re saying or have already made up their minds. This article is particularly aimed at executives. However, it is useful for every person who wants to learn how to communicate better. Ferrari uses very interesting and humorous examples, so it’s easy and interesting to read. I find this article very helpful because I struggle to be a good listener. When I’m engaged in an intense conversation, I’m often framing my response or am thinking about a solution to the problem at hand. Of course, when I’m thinking about something else, I’m not really listening. More importantly, if the other side thinks I’m not listening, they’re less likely to be persuaded to my point of view. Also, I had always thought of questions as being solely an expression of interest and generosity. Now, I am beginning to better understand that questions. Even seemingly friendly inquiries can be a subtle source of control. We simply can’t listen if we’re talking, even if we are talking by questioning.

Sunday, July 21, 2019

Linguistic Features Of Advertising Language English Language Essay

Linguistic Features Of Advertising Language English Language Essay In the present world of mass media, people are confronted with advertisements all the time. When we watch TV in the comfort of our living rooms, we are bombarded with ads; when we read a newspaper or magazine, somehow our attention is distracted by one form of an ad or another. On our way to school or office, we come across ads in various shapes or colors. Indeed, advertising, whether print, broadcast, or any other type, is part of our everyday lives. It is inevitable for us to neglect the importance of advertising. Goddard (2002) suggested that Although advertisements are ephemeral in that each one is short-lived, their effects are longstanding and cumulative (p.3). There was a TV commercial in which a young male stripped down to his underwear so as to wash his Levi 501s jeans in a launderette. This commercial has stimulated an eight-time growth of the sales of that brand. It happened in 1985 and advertisements at that time were not as popular as nowadays. From this perspective we can know more the importance of advertisements. They can impose great impact on the behavior of the consumers. This is the reason why many and many scholars are working on advertisements. Simpson (2001) acknowledges that there has been an enormous upsurge of interest in the linguistic and discoursal characteristics of advertising (p. 589), adding that the studies conducted have been anchored on different traditions and perspectives, such as cognitive, cultural and anthropological, genre and register analysis, critical discourse analysis, and linguistic pragmatics (Simpson, 2001, p. 590). In recent years, research has focused on reader effects of poetic and rhetorical elements in ads from a relevance-theoretic perspective. For instance, van Mulken, van Enschot-van Dijk, and Hoeken (2005) aimed to find out whether slogans in ads are appreciated more than slogans without a pun, and whether puns containing two relevant interpretations are appreciated more than puns containing only one relevant interpretation (p. 707). Lagerwerf (2007), on the other hand, examined the effects on audiences of irony in ads and of sarcasm in public information announcements. Working within th e pragmatic construct of metadiscourse, Fuertes-Olivera, et al. (2001) analyzed the metadiscourse devices typically used by ad copywriters to construct their slogans and/or headlines. The researchers analysis proceeded from the assumption that advertising English should be represented as a continuum of text functions fluctuating between informing and manipulating in accordance with the idea that advertising is an example of covert communication. By studying advertisements and its language, we can acquire more information of this special form of language and also of register. Sometimes, the language use in advertisements can even reflect the different values in a society. In this study, the main focus is on the linguistic perspectives of advertising language. A lot of studies have been done to find out the common and distinctive features of advertising language in Western society. The English advertisements in Asian society have rarely been studied. In this research, some advertiseme nts in a magazine published in Hong Kong will be studied. The research questions are as followed: What are the general lexical grammatical features of advertising languages? And what are the general lexical grammatical features of advertising language in Hong Kong Magazine? Do the general features found in the advertisements in HK Magazine match with the findings of general features shown in literature review? If so, what are the reasons for the seller to use a similar approach? If not, why do they use different approach? The answer of the first part of the research will be answered in Literature Review. While for the others, they will be answered through a textual analysis on the advertisements of Hong Kong Magazine. Literature Review 1. Advertising 1.1 Definition and Development The word advertise originated from Latin advertere, which means to attract peoples attention. The basic characteristic of advertising is to arouse consumers attention and interest towards a product so that consumers would take action to buy the product (Cao, 2008). The American Marketing Association provided a more detailed definition of advertising, namely, a paid, non personal communication laying emphasis on promotion and visual as well as oral presentation of the sales message (Tyagi Kumar 2004:3). Aside from considering advertising as a paid communication and a marketing tool, Ulanoff(1977) further stated that advertising openly identifies the advertiser and his relationship to the sale effort. The patterns or styles of advertising change. There are different manners to advertise in different times. Three different periods in advertising were elaborated as follows (Myers, 1994:19-28): The 1890s: making brands and getting attention. Ads were created using rhymes, repetition, parallelism, and scientific and literary language. The advertisers were just getting a major foothold in newspapers and magazines. The 1920s: creating an image for consumption. Ads often contained embedded narratives and mock conversations, associative language, and metaphorical substitutions of one thing for another. Ads used the new media, such as radio and comics. The 1960s to the present: addressing the jaded consumer. Ads are made using ironies, parodies, puns, ads on ads, and juxtaposition of competing discourse in the text and the images. There is an extension to new media- not only television, but sponsorship of sports and the arts. 1.2 Categorization Cook (1992:9) proposed four ways of categorizing ads, namely, by medium, product, technique, and consumership. First, in terms if medium, Fuertes-Olivera, et al. (2001) mentioned that the text type of advertisements can be further subdivided into digital advertisement, broadcast advertisement, print advertisement and outdoor advertisements. As for this study, the data of analysis are print advertisements. Second, based on products, luxury item ads require distinct techniques from ads on household necessities (Cook, 1992:9). Mueller (1992) brought forward two terms: high consumer involvement and low consumer involvement. The former refers to the goods which generally tend to be higher in price and are purchased relatively scarcely; the latter refers to the goods which tend to be lower in price and are brought very often. Ebert Griffin (2005:305) provided a more detailed categorization, namely, convenience goods, shopping goods, and specialty goods. The first one is similar to low con sumer involvement while high consumer involvement products are subdivided into shopping goods and specialty goods. Specialty goods are extremely important and more expensive than shopping goods, such as wedding gowns. The data analysis in this study comprise of all three kinds of goods. Third, concerning techniques, there is a distinction between reason advertising and tickle advertising. Reason advertising is direct and simple while tickle advertising in indirect and required an audience to exert more efforts to comprehend them (Bernstein, 1974). Fourth, with respect to consumership, advertisements can be categorized by consumers lifestyle, socio-economic class, gender, age, and so on (Cook, 1992:11). Moreover, advertisements can be classified based on their location in the magazines or newspapers. First, display ads, like those investigated in this study, are placed in conspicuous places amongst the editorial material so as to draw the attention of readers whose main purpose of reading the publication is not to read a particular advertisement. Second, classified ads are placed in special sections and ordered in accordance with the subject as their target reader belongs to a particular group (Vestergaard Schroder, 1985:3). Advertising language The relationship between text and image There is general disagreement on the relationship between text and image. Barthes (1984) claimed that all images are polysemous with a floating chain of signifier. Language can be used to fix this floating chain and to anchor the image (1984:39). However, Kress and van Leeuwen (1996:17) argued that text and image are not mutually dependent and that the visual component of a text is an independently organized and structured message- I. Lexical features of advertisements in English newspapers and magazines 1. Coinage Coinage, according to Longman Dictionary, means a word or a phrase that has been recently invented. Advertisements are full of coined words to be lively and eye-catching. For example: Give a Timex to all, to all a good time. (Timex, a brand name of watch) Timex, being a coined noun, is formed originally from the two words time and excellent. The new word is short and easy to remember. (2) TWOGETHER The Ultimate All Inclusive One Price Sunkissed Holiday (a seashore holiday hotel advertisement) Twogether is obviously derived from the word together, which will create the fresh effect and leave a strong memory in the readers mind. Beside, the particular image of two persons being together is formed without great effort, which make us feel warm and longing for that holiday hotel. 2. Comparative and Superlative adjectives In order to convince the readers that the product advertised is second to none, comparative and superlative adjectives are frequently and commonly used in the advertisements. (3) More connections to Europe. DHL has the worlds biggest logistics network. In this example, DHL, the logistics company, highlight its advantage of being more accessible and more easily to reach with the word more and biggest. Those who read this advertisement will have the impression that DHL is right choice for them because it has more locations to reach than other companies. 3. Compound word Compound words are colloquial in form, which will gives the readers a sense of closeness. Compound words also allow more possibilities to create humorous effect. (4) better-than-leather-miracle-covering look at the oh-so-comfortable size give that oh-so-good-to-be alive feeling This advertisement is quite interesting by combining many words together, which sounds like someone who is exclaiming his extol. Without doubt, it is impressive because of its creativity of compound word and humorous effect. III. Syntactic features of advertisements in English newspapers and magazines 1. Simple sentence Generally speaking, simple sentences are quick and direct in conveying information, while complex sentences will create some suspense dragging the readers understanding behind. Please compare: (5) Buy one and get one free. (5`) If you buy one, you will get one free. (6) Time to listen. Capacity to act (Mess Pierson, Consulting Company) (6`) Its time to listen and our capacity to act. Obviously, sentence (4) and (5) are both vivid in rhythm and easy for the readers to get the information. Sentence (4`) and (5`) however, are comparatively redundant in conveying the meaning, though they are grammatically correct. Readers tend to remember to (4) and (5) structure, because of their simplicities. One everlasting example is Nike shoes slogan: Just Do It! rather than Lets just do it now! 2. Imperative sentence Imperative sentences are often persuasive in that it arises the reads impulse to buy the product. Imperative sentences, beginning with the verbs, are forceful and tempting, which coincide with the purpose of the advertisements. (7) Get fast downloads with no wires attached. (SmarTone, Hong Kong Telecom Company) (8) Stop in at any Ford or Lincoln-Mercury dealer. (Ford, Car Company) Readers are advocated and persuaded to do the action, waiting no time. By telling or requesting readers to perform in a certain way, imperative sentences are effective in exerting a subtle impression to do as they are told. 3. Disjunctive Clause Disjunctive Clause is the exclusive syntactic features of advertisements in English newspaper and magazines. Disjunctive Clause usually chops the sentences into several parts with the cohesive device of full stop, dash, hyphen, semi-colon etc. By doing so, the advertisement is more condensed, which will save the money for taking up too much space of the newspapers or magazines. (9) We strive to send you a vacation faster. Caring more about you. (SkyTeam, Flight Company) In this advertisement, we can see that Caring more about you is split from the former. Normally, we would say: We strive to send you a vacation faster and care more about you. The effect here is to highlight the part Caring more about you to leave a strong impression on the readers. So, when the ads want to emphasis something, they will tend to put them in a Disjunctive Clause to catch the readers attention. Cook (1992) stated that Advertising is a prominent discourse type in virtually all contemporary societies (p.5). The term discourse means text and context together and they interact in a way which participants perceived as unified and meaningful. Text means linguistic forms, which is artificially and temporarily detached from context so as to carry out analysis. Context includes substance, music and pictures, paralanguage, situation, co-text, intertext, participants and function. Four categories of advertisement are found. They are medium, product, technique and consumer (Cook, 1992, p.9). Another scholar Goddard (2002) suggested that attention-seeking devices are presented in the language of advertising, along with the category of writer, readers and texts. Moreover, cultural variations, user friendliness, stereotyping and presupposition are also features of the advertising language. Research Questions Methodology A qualitative approach will be adopted in this research. A total of twenty advertisements will be collected randomly from the magazine Times. The volume in 2012 will be used. Times magazine has 54 issues a year. The issues on January, April, July and October will be used. From each issue, one piece of advertisement will be analyzed. There should be a total of 20 issues and thus 20 pieces of advertisement. Times magazine is chosen because of its popularity and the readiness to find in the market. The types of products must not re-occur in the 20 pieces being analyzed. It means that every piece of advertisement should be promoting different products. From the 20 pieces of advertisements, they will be analyzed accordingly in several directions. The first direction is the theory they has used in advertising. The second direction is identifying the features of advertising language. The results will be presented in tables and summary will be drawn according to the findings.

Saturday, July 20, 2019

The Anonymous Christian As Described By Karl Rahner Essay

The Anonymous Christian As Described By Karl Rahner Essay I would like to first start by giving a short biography of Karl Rahner as described by the Karl Rahner Society. He was born in Freiburg, Germany, on March 5, 1904 and died in Innsbruck, Austria, on March 30, 1984. He entered the Jesuit order in 1922 and he was one of the most influential theologians in the Vatican II era. His essays covered a broad range of topics; most of these issues were what concerned the Catholics from the 1940s to the 1980s. His essays provided many resources for both academic and pastoral theology. He was quite popular in his native German-speaking countries through his teaching, lectures, editorial labors and membership in learned societies. He was published in international publications like Concilium. He had a large collection of works 1651 publications (4744 including reprints and translations); He also enjoyed a positive reception of his contributions by many Protestant thinkers. Rahners influence became more evident after his service as an official papal theological expert from1960 to 1965 before and during the Second Vatican Council. To understand how Rahner arrives at his concept of the anonymous Christian, it is important to understand the basis of ideas of Rahner. He was greatly influenced by Immanuel Kant, Heidegger, and the Belgian Jesuit Joseph Marà ©chal. The basis of Rahners thoughts comes from a vision of the world being a profound area of Gods self-communication. Rahners first two books were Spirit in the World and Hearer of the Word. Rahners position, as written in his essays, was deeply rooted in the Ignation way of thinking, believing that God is in all things, sacramental piety, and devotion to Jesus and the Catholic doctrine. Rahner addresses the anonymous Christian in an interview provided to Rev. Norman Wong Cheong Sau in an article titled Karl Rahners Concepts of the Anonymous Christian an Inclusivist View of Religions, he provided his personal definition of anonymous Christian to Rev. Sau interviewer: We prefer the terminology according to which that a man is called an anonymous Christian who on the one hand has de facto accepted of his freedom this gracious self-offering on Gods part through faith, hope, and love, while on the other he is absolutely not yet a Christian at the social level (through baptism and membership of the Church) or in the sense of having consciously objectified his Christianity to himself in his own mind (by explicit Christian faith resulting from having hearkened to the explicit message). We might therefore, put it as follows: the anonymous Christian in our sense of the term is the pagan after the beginning of the Christian mission, who lives in the state of Christs grace through faith, hope, and love, yet who has no explicit knowledge of the fact that his life is orientated in grace-given salvation to Jesus Christ. A non-anonymous Christian for lack of a better term or a declared Christian is someone who has accepted Christ and lives with the grace of Gods grace, love, hope and understanding. This person declares himself a Christian, was baptized and lives by Gods laws. Rahner bases his belief in the anonymous Christian as someone who lives a Christian lifestyle but has not yet declared himself a true Christian. By declaring oneself a true Christian, according to Rahner, you must be baptized, attend mass and pray in the traditional standardized way. This of course, includes living by Gods laws and living in a Christ like manner. This person declares themselves a Christian in every way, the way they talk, the way they pray and their absolution from original sin. A good example of the declared Christian would be Mother Teresa. Mother Teresa acknowledged that she lived in the Grace of God and followed his words and teachings. She accepted Jesus as her way to God. In believing that Jeus Christ is the only way to God would be to think in an exclusivist manner. According to Rahner there is more than one way to reach God. This would be the Inclusivist view. It accepts that Jesus is but only one way to God, but acknowledges that there are others. Rahner talks of the supernatural salvation for people who live in Gods grace without the acknowledged title of Christian. The Inclusivist view is what has led to Karl Rahners description of the anonymous Christian. According to Rahner it is not necessary to be a declared Christian to work your way to God. In Pope John Paul IIs visit to Mahatma Gandhis tomb The Pope put flower petals on the grave and said that followers of other religions can be saved by Christ without being converted. This gave some popularity to Rahners claim that any man who practices a religion or acts according to natural law and is blessed by Gods grace is an anonymous Christian, even if he does not wish to admit it. Gandhi was a perfect example of this anonymous Christian, although he did not call himself a Christian by name he lived in a Christ like manner, followed his religion faithfully and exercised Christian attitudes to others, thereby living in Gods grace. There is a quote in the Rahner Reader on Page 75 that best describes the awareness utilized by Gandhi in being called an anonymous Christian, The mind of even the anonymous Christian is raised to the supernatural order by the grace of Christ, philosophy is not purely secular activity. The best of modern philosophy should be considered the self-reflection of a mind to which God has revealed himself implicitly through his grace. This quote described the grace given to Gandhi through his self awareness and through his thought process that leads to his Christian like beliefs. Although, again, not being a declared Christian, Gandhi, would be considered an anonymous Christian as his beliefs and life style brought him into the grace of God. Of course, any person can become an anonymous Christian; it is based on their beliefs and their way of thinking, and their supernatural salvation. If a mans reason is that which leads him closer to grace then as per Rahner, The anonymous Christian whether they know it or not, whether they distinguish it from the light of their natural reason or not are enlightened by the light of Gods grace which God denies no man. Being a Christian is not a prerequisite to receiving Gods grace. According to Rahner, Gods grace is open to all men. Presented in Rahners Reader is a passage about exploring new lands, Christs message can still be heard. Although, the inhabitants may not understand Christ or his word it does not mean that they are not living in the grace of God. The Western World, during its wonderings into strange lands while carrying Christs message, always encounters a world in which Christs grace has long been at work even though not called by its own name. (Rahner 80) Basically what Rahner is saying here is that no matter where we travel we can find anonymous Christians. He believes that Gods grace is at work in many lands, places where the inhabitants may not even have heard of Jesus Christ or of God Himself. Rahner has a very open mind, in the exclusivist view the only way to God is through Christ. Rahner is exemplary of the inclusivist view. I agree with Rahner that to be near God does not necessarily mean that we must only accept Jesus Christ as our Lord and savior. There are many people that live a good life, are Christian like in all of their ways but they do not worship Jesus the same as Christians. Many people in many lands are blessed by Gods grace. Many of the people of Israel, although Jewish, still live a life that is graced by God. They pray, the exhibit Christian like atitudes, Jewish people can live a righteous pious life and through reasonable intelligence believe that they are righteous, and imagine God telling them that no matter how good of a life they lived they could not get into heaven or be awarded the gift of his grace. This is where Rahners anonymous Christian theory believes that although they are not considered Christians, they still can receive Gods grace and love. To sum up Karl Rahners position of the anonymous Christian, anyone can be an anonymous Christian; it only takes the act of living as a Christian and not the explicit declaration of being a Christian. Grace exists by affecting a spiritual, personal substantiality, by being the divinizing condition of the latter, and hence presupposes and incorporates into itself the whole reality of this person as the condition of its own possibility and makes it part of the factors o fits own concrete being (Rahner 75) In other words grace exists by the actions of people and the actions are a part that makes up the whole. Therefore, it is the actions of the people that decide if they are worthy of Gods grace. The world is full of anonymous Christians. Some we may recognize by name such as Gandhi and others are the anonymous faces we pass everyday on the street. But we are not able to pick them out except by their actions because even their worshipping or non worshipping habits cannot help to pick out those worthy of Gods grace.

Situational Leadership and Empathy :: Leader Leadership Qualities Business Essays

What can we say about leadership? Leadership is a concept, way of life, and aspect of continuous evolution. Trying to narrow down or pinpoint an exact definition to be applied to this term is non-existent. Rather you can only apply certain aspects of this term to better understand it. The area which I will go into is â€Å"how situational leadership coincides with empathy as far as generating a successful or non-successful leader.† First let us look at what situational leadership is. Situational leadership is seen as a leadership method according to the present situation you may be in. A true exceptional leader is not one who has a set method on how he/she leads, but rather an evolutionary method that situational leadership requires. Let me elaborate more on this. Let us say Roger Smith (a project manager from XYZ Construction Company) worked on a project down at Seattle for about a year and had to deal with the common problems associated with projects such as change orders, sub-contractor disputes, scope issues, and weather conditions. Roger Smith handled the Seattle project as he saw fit with prior experience and knowledge that he has about the industry. Now let us modify the situation. Let’s give Roger Smith the same type of project. Identical in size, cost, and scheduling but this time it will take place 4 years later along with the location being in China rather than Seattle. Will Roger Smithâ €™s way of leading that he used in Seattle be successful in China? The outcome points towards no. Why would that be the case if the project is basically identical? For one, we have a different setting location. The labor issues, construction specifications, and laws are dealt with differently in China. Not only that, but the people he would be working with are raised and exposed to a totally different culture. With that, Roger can not approach or deal with people the same way. He would have to understand their culture to better adapt which is an aspect of empathy which I will get into more detail later. That is just one example of situational leadership needing to be applied to succeed in a project. For an additional clarification, http://www.chimaeraconsulting.com/sitleader.htm defines situational leadership as, â€Å"In simple terms, a situational leader is one who can adopt different leadership styles depending on the situation.† With those aspects at hand, someone can apply this concept in their progression of becoming a successful leader.

Friday, July 19, 2019

A Comparison of Allen Ginsberg and Jack Kerouac :: comparison compare contrast essays

A Comparison of Allen Ginsberg and Jack Kerouac      Ã‚   Why. Excuse me. Why. Does. Excuse. Why me. I mean. Excuse me. Why. Does. It . Always end up this way. Like this. A performance. It's my best excuse. And. I'm on the wagon. Again. Why. Excuses. Sitting in the state of a daydream. No. Falling. A performance. Why what it comes down to. Poetry. And. My two main men. Allen Ginsberg and Jack Kerouac. Both use their individual voice to perform the buddhistic beat they feel is part of their poetry/ their beatific movement. Even though these two poets influenced each other. And. Their voices are significantly different. Each has a personal style one cannot deny. And. Each boy added his separate beat to the music they created as a generation. A beat generation. Jack's buddhistic jazz/ blues chorus poetry is domesticized/ tainted Christianity-wise. And. Allen's sound becomes zentific without Christianity/ hanging on a cross in the backbeat of his prose poetry. While each may have his own personal style/ both poets use the same techniqu e in sound. And. Rhythm to give their audience something to bugaloo to. Excuse me. What's. That. Poetry. Baby. A performance. So. Please brother. Take a chance. And. Dance. (She says that as she shh shh shivers.) "It's all gotta be non stop ad libbing within each chorus, or the gig is shot" (Kerouac, 1). And he meant every word of it. Jack's system of jazz/blues choruses work on/carry on harmonically as well as through certain words or phrases put together through sound. And also like jazz, his music, seemed to happen spontaneously, like nothing was planned.   In the '182nd Chorus', the ideas behind the phrase "The Essence of Existence is Buddhahood" is carried on into the '183rd Chorus' with the phrase "This is the real Buddha" (Allen, 171). It is like a bar of music in a jazz or blues riff. The idea and sound of one chord moves into the next, traveling, never knowing where it is going to end up. Just like the idea and sound of one line in one of Jack's choruses moves into the next, traveling, never knowing where it is going to end up. It sounds and looks spontaneous.    And because of this it is meant to be preformed out loud so it can be heard like a jazz or blues riff wailing.

Thursday, July 18, 2019

How Is the Holocaust Represented in Films Essay

‘The Holocaust’ was the massacre of nearly six million Jews in parts of Europe controlled by Adolf Hitler and his Nazi party leading up to and during World War II. When the Nazi party first came to power in 1933 they began building on the anti-Semitist feelings in Germany; introducing new legislations that gradually removed the Jews from society such as the Nuremberg Laws which prohibited marriage or extramarital sexual intercourse between Jews and German citizens and required Jews to wear an armband with the Star of David on it so they could be identified as a Jew. Encouraged by the Nazi’s, people began to boycott Jewish ran businesses and in the November of 1938 they were openly attacked, these pogroms became known as ‘Kristallnacht’ which in German translates as: â€Å"the Night of Broken Glass† because of the vandalised shops and broken glass windows. During Kristallnacht over 7,000 Jewish shops and 1,668 synagogues (almost all of the synagogues in Germany) were destroyed and the official death toll is ninety-one although it is assumed to be much higher. In 1939, after the invasion of Poland, small areas of towns were sectioned off from the rest of the population where Jews and Romani were forced to live in confined and overcrowded spaces. These were known as ‘ghettos’. The largest was Warsaw Ghetto, in Poland (where ‘The Pianist’ was set), with over 400,000 people living within its walls. Although it contained at least 30% of the population of Warsaw it occupied only 2.4% of the city’s area; this meant that the residents of the ghetto were forced to cram in an average of nine people per room. From 1940 through to 1942 starvation and disease, especially typhoid, killed hundreds of thousands. Over 43,000 residents of the Warsaw ghetto died there in 1941. On January 20th, 1942 a â€Å"final solution to the Jewish question in Europe† was devised by the Nazi leaders. Death camps were built in Eastern Europe with new railway systems that were made to transport Jews from other countries to these remote areas. Jews, as well as other ‘undesirables’ such as Romani, Soviet prisoners of war, Polish and Soviet civilians, homosexuals, people with physical or mental disabilities, Jehovah’s Witnesses and other political and religious opponents, were rounded up from all over Europe and forced into tightly packed rail freight cars like cattle. If they survived the journey, a small fraction of the Jews were deemed fit to work as slave labour. Everyone else was sent straight to the gas chambers which were disguised as shower rooms to prevent the victims panicking or trying to fight back. People were packed into these ‘shower rooms’ where the doors were bolted shut and a small but deadly pellet of Zyklon-B was dropped in and was activated by the heat of hundreds of human bodies crammed in together, those inside were dead within twenty minutes. By the end of the war six million Jewish men, women and children had been killed; this was more than two-thirds of the Jewish population. We have watched three films based around the Holocaust. The first of the three ‘The Pianist’ is a film based on the true story of a Jewish man, Wladysaw Szpilman: a famous pianist who worked for a polish radio station, living through the Holocaust. The beginning of the film shows the German invasion of Poland, in which Szpilman’s radio station is bombed, and the anti-Jewish laws that the Germans enforce in Poland, for example, when Szpilman is refused entry to the park or the cafà © with his polish friend and made to walk in the gutter to let polish people get primary use of the pavement. Szpilman and his family soon have to move to the Warsaw Ghetto where death became commonplace due to starvation, disease and attempt to rebel against the Nazi’s. The Nazis treat the Jews appallingly; they forced some Jews to dance to humiliate themselves for their own entertainment, a little boy is beaten to death for trying to scavenge some food for his starving family and, in one scene, Szpilman watches from an opposite flat as Nazi soldiers tip someone in a wheel chair out the window because he couldn’t stand up when they ordered him to. After several months in the ghetto, Szpilman and his family are chosen to be taken to the Treblinka death camp, however, Szpilman is saved from boarding the train by Itzak Heller, a Jewish police officer, while his family board the train never to be seen again. Szpilman is then put to work under gruelling, abusive conditions with the ten per cent or so of the Jews that the Nazi’s kept alive to use for slave labour; tearing down the walls that use to separate the ghetto from the rest of Warsaw and rebuilding the houses for new, non-Jewish residents. The Jews who are still alive are planning on rebelling Szpilman helps; smuggling guns into the ghetto. But after almost being caught by a Nazi soldier who suspects he is concealing something in a bag of beans, Szpilman decides to attempt an escape and take his chances hiding in the city. His friend, Dorota, and her husband hide him in an empty apartment near the ghetto wall where he can get by on smuggled food; however he must not make a noise or go outside as there are other, non-Jews living in the building to all believe the room to be empty. From his apartment window he helplessly watches the Jewish ghetto uprising from the 19th of April 1943 to its unsuccessful end on the 16th May. He lives silently in the abandoned apartment for another few months until he accidently smashes a shelf of china plates. Although Szpilman is unhurt the noise alerts other residents to his presence in the abandoned apartment; he is forced to leave his hideout. Szpilman is hidden once more, with the help of people from the Polish resistance, in another abandoned flat but the man supposed to be providing him with food disappears with the money from generous and unwitting donors, pocketing it all for his self. Dorota and her husband find him gravely ill from lack of nutrition but luckily he recovers in time to witness the Warsaw Uprising. His flat gets bombed during the uprising and Szpilman escapes to the abandoned ghetto where he is found by a merciful Nazi officer, Captain Wilm Hosenfeld. Szpilman plays the piano for him to prove that he is a pianist and the soldier, moved by his playing, finds him food and allows him to remain hidden there. Szpilman hides out here until the end of the war when the German Nazis are rounded up and polish prisoners released. The freed prisoners yell insults at the Germans and Hosenfeld, upon hearing that one of the freed prisoners was a violinist, asks him to contact Szpilman; to ask him if he will return the favour of saving him. However, Szpilman is unable to help Hosenfeld as the camp of Nazi prisoners had been moved and Szpilman returns to playing the piano for the Warsaw radio station. As the movie finishes the closing captions on screen tell us that Hosenfeld died in 1952 in a prisoner of war camp but Szpilman continued to live in Warsaw until his death in 2000, aged 88. The second film we watched was ‘The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas’ this film took a different, perspective of the Holocaust than ‘The Pianist’. This film is shown through the point of view of Bruno, the eight-year-old child of a German Nazi officer; he doesn’t really see the Jews as any different to himself yet despite his innocence Bruno still becomes a victim of the Holocaust†¦ At the start of the movie Bruno and his family are moving because his father got a job promotion as Commandant of a Jewish extermination camp. Bruno is upset and lonely because he was forced to leave his friends in Berlin so when he meets Shmuel, a Jewish boy the same age as Bruno, sitting on the other side of the fence, in the death camp, Bruno immediately befriends him. Shmuel tells Bruno that he is a Jew and that the Jewish people have been imprisoned here by soldiers, who also took their clothes and gave them the striped camp clothing, and that he is hungry. Bruno is confused and starts having doubts about his father being a good person. However, Bruno regularly returns to the fence bringing Shmuel food and playing checkers with him through the fence. When Bruno’s Mother realises what’s actually happening at the camp through a comment by one of the younger soldiers â€Å"They smell even worse when they burn,† she is shocked and appalled as she believed it to be a labour camp. She argues with her Husband, insisting that she and the children should move elsewhere, eventually the Mother wins out but Bruno doesn’t want to leave anymore because of his friendship with Shmuel. Shmuel tells Bruno that his father is missing. Bruno gives him the bad news that he will be moving away for good the next day after lunch. Wanting to make up for letting Shmuel down and naive that his father has likely been murdered, Bruno agrees to help Shmuel to find his father, and returns the next day with a shovel to dig a hole under the fence to get into the camp, and Shmuel will bring an extra set of camp clothing; Shmuel’s suggestion that he could leave the camp through the hole is rejected by Bruno, who doesn’t know what it’s really like inside the camp and is determined to find Shmuel’s father. Whilst still searching Bruno and Shmuel get caught up in a crowd of people being marched to the gas chambers where both Bruno and Shmuel are murdered with the other Jews. In the meantime, Bruno’s Mother tells his Father, who was in a meeting about increasing the capacity of the gas chambers, that Bruno is missing. They find Bruno’s clothes next to the hole under the fence and realise that he got into the death camp. His Father runs throughout the camp when he reaches the gas chamber, he realises that Bruno has been brought to the gas chamber with the other Jews, but when He arrives it is too late, the boys are already dead and he is devastated. Upon hearing the Father’s cry of â€Å"Bruno!† his Mother and his sister, Gretel, realise what has happened and are equally devastated. The ending of this film has an element of retribution as Bruno’s father, who has killed thousands of Jewish children, finally gets a taste of what it’s like to lose his child. Finally, the last movie that we watched was ‘Life is Beautiful’. This film was set in Italy about the main character, Guido, a young, Jewish, man who at the opening of the film moves to the city with his friend to work at his uncle’s restaurant where he meets his future wife, Dora, although neither knows it yet. During the beginning of the film you can see how the anti-Semitist feelings built up it Italy for instance when the school children are meant to be lectured on ‘the superior race’, when someone paints â€Å"Beware, Jewish horse† on Guido’s Uncle’s horse, the sign on the shop reading â€Å"No dogs, no Jews!† and, later in the film, when Guido and Dora are married, despite the fact that Guido’s a Jew and Dora’s Italian, people trash their house. On Joshua (Guido and Dora’s son) birthday the Germans arrest Guido, Joshua and Guido’s uncle are taken onto the train to be taken to the death camp Dora insists on going with them even though she isn’t a Jew eventually the Nazi gives in and puts her on the train where she is included with the other Jewish women. Guido is devastated to see his non-Jewish wife board the train. Protecting his son from the horrific truth, Guido tells Joshua that they are simply on a big holiday camp, and he turns the camp into a big game for Joshua, saying that they must win 1000 points to win a real tank and leave. Luckily Guido’s quick thinking saves Joshua from the truth when a German officer requires a translator. Despite not speaking a word of German, Guido steps forward and makes up the â€Å"Regole del Campo† from the German’s body language, claiming that tanks, scoreboards and games of Hide and Seek litter the camp, while cleverly stating that Joshua cannot cry, ask for his mother or declared he’s hungry, resulting in the loss of the â€Å"game†, in other words, death. Joshua later refuses to take a shower (repeated from an earlier part in the film), and unknowingly escapes being gassed, so Guido hides him with the help of other Italian prisoners, since there are no other children. Playing messages over the speakers for Dora, kept prisoner on the other side of the camp, let’s Dora know her son and husband are alive, while the Nazi’s don’t speak Italian. With the help of Guido’s former German friend, Herr Lessing, Guido hides Joshua amongst the German children, while waiting the German Officer’s meals. Hiding Joshua in a junction box for the last time, telling him that everyone is looking for him, Guido jeopardises his own survival to prevent the Germans discovering Joshua, while he attempts to free Dora, giving his own life away at the same time. Once the German’s realise they’ve lost the what they desert the camp, closely followed by the surviving Jews escaping, then, when the Americans break into the seemingly deserted camp the following morning Joshua comes out of hiding just as a tank pulls around the corner so Joshua believes that he has won ‘the Game’. Hitching a lift out, Joshua spots his mother reuniting as the film ends. Although all three of these movies are based on the Holocaust each one uses different themes and different view points. Firstly, ‘The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas’ is filmed from a very innocent, child view point. Bruno is very young and the difference between Jew and German doesn’t matter to him; he doesn’t understand what might be considered wrong in befriending Shmuel. A similar viewpoint is used in ‘Life Is Beautiful’ where Joshua doesn’t know what’s going on because his father told him it was a game. I think that this perspective very effective in displaying the horrors and injustice of the Holocaust and, personally, it makes for a more entertaining film as it uses the audiences’ sympathies to make them more emotionally involved with the plot. However, in displaying historical fact within the film this take has disadvantages because what makes the main characters so innocent is their lack of understanding of their situation which naturally makes it harder for the film to be both educating and entertaining. ‘The Pianist’, however, has a much more grown up approach as, being based on a true story, it sticks to the facts and I felt that I learnt more from that film then I did from the other two. A similar theme that emerges in all three of these films is family. In ‘The Pianist’ Szpilman loses his family early on in the film, although he seems quite close to them before, and he struggles to survive without them probably feeling lonely all those month in hiding with no one with him for company. In ‘The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas’ you see how Bruno’s family are driven apart by their conflicting opinions of the Holocaust; Bruno’s father is a strong believer in Nazi policy and the commandant of the death camp, however, his Mother is quite shocked and appalled when she learns the truth of what’s happening at the death camp and insists on moving away with the kids, whereas Bruno is young and confused as he’s been brought up being told that Jews are basically evil and German soldiers, like his father, are good but when he befriends Shmuel he realises that some Jews are nice, like Shmuel, and begins to doubt his father. Contrast to this, in ‘Life is Beautiful’ you see how Joshua’s family grow closer together because of the Holocaust; they stick together for each other and Guido even sacrifices himself in hope of saving Joshua. Although we often assume that all of the Nazi soldiers were evil, the issue of ‘good’ and ‘bad’ Germans is brought up in all three of these films. Firstly, in ‘The Pianist’ although most Germans are portrayed as evil, the Nazi officer, Captain Hosenfeld, saves Szpilman from starvation or being found and, towards the end of the movie, when he’s a prisoner and begging for help you begin to sympathise with him a bit more, especially when it’s revealed that he died on the caption. Then, in ‘Boy in the Striped Pyjamas’ Bruno befriends Shmuel, and Bruno’s Mother and Grandmother openly disagree with Nazi views, which makes you think not to stereotype all Germans as ‘evil’. And lastly, in ‘Life I Beautiful’ although no German steps out and helps Guido and his family, you do see a doctor (who Guido knew before he was forced to work at the death camp) beginning to lose his stability because the work he is forced to do goes against all his moral values. This adds another layer to the ‘evil Germans’ assumption because maybe not all of them were doing it willingly so therefore does that make them bad?

Our Dreams

from each one of us has many dreams and in concomitant they ar a sign that we are alive, we exist and we are going off despite the situation we live in. My dreams, the likes of every young person, are countless. When we had midterm break my boyfriend fulfilled this wide dream as a lay out for Valentines Day. We visited Venice and Bergamo. Our bone marrows and souls are still there with the beauty that surrounds us.thither everything is like in the movies Ive seen with the difference that when you get up, you look round and realize youre part of the Italian breeze, your heart starts to beats as it wants to jump in order to enjoy beauty and crapulence with you. Im still real excited regular when I record my experience. I keep tell each destination by the piece for days. The one I chose to tell you is our prevail destination Venice. The magic that conceals this magical mail service causes every visitor to yearn to counterpunch again and again there.The small, narrow streets founder preserved the charm of the past times, deliverance eagerness, love and romance to tourists. I remember when we arrived at the boat at dusk. We went the right way in San Marco Square. The majesty of the basilica, pigeons and music of the philharmonic orchestras of every restaurant made everything in us dancing. We continued our tour close to the island with a visit to all the sights, and for me The intimately beautiful place was the Bridge of Sighs.There I received my first Italian rose, which I keep to this day. The view provokes us a warm sigh and a desire to stop the time and to stick around there forever. In the evening we were in a small restaurant at the Grande Canale, drinking red wine and enjoying the sunset. Love, Italy and Venice really go hand in hand.This region makes an unforgettable gift to every visitor by donating memories of eternal beauty, intoxication, romance and love. once you have visited Italy, there is a warmth in your heart that kee ps trembling and leaves the emotion that you have forgotten something and you have to go back and look for it.

Wednesday, July 17, 2019

China Reflection Paper

We touch offed by plane, boat, subway, car, bus, and even out a let train. The archetypal day was a long day of travel and we landed In Belong close to pm. This was my start-off time ever being do uttermost from and It was an kindle feeling. Our group was every(prenominal) pretty refreshing with each other, further even up away we clicked and started devising friendships. After we checked into our hotel we went on our narrow-back walk. It was a exercise set different thusly and any urban center I formulate hold of been and I was excited right away. We had a beer while walking d knowledge the thoroughf atomic number 18 (who knew you could do that) and smoked a cig arette with the group.At this rank In time I knew nothing or so the hooking and how they loud treat us, nevertheless aft(prenominal) debauching a beer and ace walking up to me right away with a bottle unfastener after determineing me struggling I knew it was all e veryplacetaking to be a gr eat earn off. Not because of the beer although every sensation loves beer, however because of how nice everyone was to us that first three hours we were in capital of Red mainland China. The first couple days were definitely a culture shock. Everything was new Our tour take in was a little ponderous to understand and it was a lot hotter than expected. On the first full day I was glad I brought a camera with. We went to the bumpiality of Beijing.The Forbidden City. Attainment square, A bike urge on through the oldest share of Belling, a tea leaf honoring and to top it off we all got creation massages. This one day set the pace for the whole trip and I trust got us all over our culture. I wish however that this day would been a little later in the trip so I could of really understood what was going on the whole time. Lisa was easy to understand after the first day and even started cracking a a few(prenominal) jokes. Belong was frightening and my most memorable part was the Great Wall of China. The rampart was huge to hypothecate the least. It took over 1 million people to build.It hard to explain its surface with aside posting pictures. As currently we approached it and got in it I immediately respected the people who build it. Yeah its a huge wall. A lot of people dont understand that the wall is built on top of basically a mound ridge. It is only oft high, but If a person falls of they are rolling down the cumulus side. Also a lot of people Including myself opinion It was flat on top almost akin a road. I never knew It was more desire a skintn escalator. Once we walked and crawled to the end we were brave enough to explore past the part of the wall that still being kept up and tapped foot on the original wall.In my opinion this was the best part it showed the age and strength of it and how it in the ended so many years. I never knew the wall was actually a unwholesome thing for the Chinese. It separated China from the rest of the globe and they apply all of their recourses building It. I think they could of thought of a better way to nutriment to Mongolias out with 1,000,000 people. All the wonders of tea and the health benefits received teas give you. The ceremony is hard to explain, I could arrogate it for you some time with my authentic teapot. I wish owe she explained each lovely of tea on an individual basis and what temperatures they should be served at.I guess Im not supposed to point green tea in boiling pee Oops. Another one of the cool things we did in Beijing that I dont think I will ever see again is go to the Pearl Market. This wasnt sound any foodstuff the market was strictly for knock-off or look a analogous items. This market really amaze my bargaining skills to the test. The market was 4 taradiddles of sellers each floor was as big as the Kirby Lounge. They had everything from pearls to statues. Every vendor started at a wrong and through his market Ryan and I really honed our b argaining skills.Some of the things we did we questionable, but effective. showtime things first you have to walk away at least twice. And keep walking the first time. They are really persuasive. They all think that we are wordless Ameri keeps and dont really know what the price should be. So incisively keep saying a lower price and stand firm on the price. They always can go lower. Sometimes it takes a near(a) 15 minute argument, but its satisfying knowing you give the lowest price possible. Another trick we did which kind of upset a few people was moose to multiple venders. Play the Over there rise she said this price game.Those werent the only atrocious things we did in Beijing, but if I talked to the highest degree them it all it would literally take me three days. After Beijing we went to tannin. Tannin was amazing. We spent 2 weeks there studying line of work and visiting businesses. I well-educated a lot near(predicate) the Chinese culture in those cardinal week s from the tours, classes and the people we met. Instead of talking about the businesses and classes I would rather talk about the friends I make there. I learned a lot from them and they are the most memorable part. ICC, Iris, Tony, Niles, Jon, Jason, Lisa, and even terrycloth the niner owner were all great people.Miss ICC was great she was out going and bubbly and really help us break the ice with the other Chinese students when we were together. She taught us all about the dating life. She was interested in older men because they were more mature and set in life. I feel like this is a common thing over there. She also talked about how marriage is not considered complete until the guy has a house and a car. Iris was very interesting. Her friends called her Superwoman on the account f that she was great at sports. She even took the time to teach Ryan and I few things about tennis.I dont think there is any hope for me in that sport. Tony was an interesting little guy. He taught us about how is China it is really is frowned upon to fail. That is why there arent a lot of entrepreneurs there. He also helped me order a few times. He was interested in our gunslinger laws compared to his. I never noticed that it was illegal over there to own a firearm. I precisely thought of it as a nonchalant thing. He was very intrigued when I was telling him about capture and the rights we have as Americans. Niles was awed we got along very well. I dont think you ever met him Dry.L, but he was a world traveler from Germany. He wrestled in Minnesota during high school, went to college in France, studied overseas to China where I met him, on his way to mho Asia for a month and then to South Africa for his last semester. He taught me a lot about how to sink effectively with the Chinese. He had decent mandarin, effectively and how to be really respectful to the Chinese. He kind of shake me to travel a lot more. Lifes too before long not to travel the world. Little Jon and Lisa were awesome too. They showed us everything and brought us everywhere.They were basically our guides a circular Tannin. They taught me about how the instruction and grades were actually set up. They explained that it is really hard to get into college, but at a time youre there it is basically a pass/fail. They took the time to show us around during their finals week which they would have otherwise spent studying. They broke the stereotype that all Chinese students do is lapse their time in the library studying and never have any fun.. They even came out with us a few times and let loose, which was awesome to see. Jason did a good Job showing us around the metropolis and explaining things.He let us have enough room to branch out on our own and explore stuff on our own which I think was the best part. It was cool group meeting him and his family. I still remember his contagious gag after he would crack a Joke. Terry the manager of the club still Heehaws me very once in a wh ile Just to see how America is and how life is. He actually seems like a pretty nice person. After we left wing Tannin it was a sad goodbye, but it was exciting to start traveling again 2 weeks was big bucks enough time to spend in the city of Tannin. The next city we went to was rise up. We met our new tour guide there named Joe.He went to school for Tourism and English and was primitively from Wax. In Wax we visited the Tiger Hill pagoda which was one of the most beautiful places we had visited in my opinion and a Tea pot museum. The pagoda stood 7 stories tall and was built to honor and emperor. The emperor was said to have been hide with 7,000 swords. Wax stands for no more Iron. Wax apply to be full of iron and was fought over because of it. It employ to be a battle ground because of this unparalleled metal, but once it was gone the city was named Wax Just to make sure no one would come back. Its hard to explain the beauty of all these laces.I guess thats why I took alm ost 1,000 pictures. The Tea Pot Museum was amazing. I love interesting facts and attainment about random things like the teapot. The tea pots in it represented Chinese culture and history. People dedicated their lives to the art of Tea Pot making and we learned about the process of how the pots were made, History of the material, what makes a good quality Pot, and how they should be properly used. I had to buy one. I bought the 2nd lowest grade of pot, but it is the most traditional. It doesnt drip and can be suddenly balanced in water. After Wax we went to Ouzos then Hangout. one(a) was known for its green tea and the other for silk. I had to buy some of both. They made great gifts for my girlfriend.. I could go on and on about the shows, tours and places we went, but I would be writing for over a month. I will have to end my considerateness by talking about the food. The food was amazing I had the expectation that I would like it, I never thought I would miss it. In fact Im pre tty sure I gained a few pounds over there from it. Lets start with the breakfast. The breakfasts we had we commonly at the hotel, which in America means a few bagels and cold cereal.In China is was pretty awesome most places we went had everything a person could think of and more. One place even had sushi. The breakfasts were pretty Americanizes in my opinion. They had the meter Chinese food a person could get here. The best lunch I had was at the dumplings place you brought us to. That place was amazing I wish Duluth had a place cooked. The dinners were interesting as well. They were all family style around a round table Which I am not used to. Also a big difference is the size of plate a person gets. The Pates in China Are comparable too Tea loving cup plate.