The Effect Of Alpha 3 Fatty Acids And Pioglitazone Essay

Modulating effects of omega-3 fatty acids and pioglitazone combination on insulin resistance through toll-like receptor 4 in type 2 diabetes mellitus SALMA MOSSAD ERAKY *, NOHA ABDEL-RAHMAN, LAILA AHMED EISSA. Biochemistry Department, Faculty of Pharmacy, Mansoura University, Egypt, 35516 Correspondence, (salmamossad2012@gmail.com), Tel.: 0020 1098969384. Abstract: Toll-like receptor 4 (TLR-4) plays important roles in innate immunity. Changes in the reduction-oxidation balance of tissues can lead to a pro-inflammatory state and insulin resistance. An action thought to be mediated by TLRs. Omega-3 fatty acids and Peroxisome Proliferator Activated Receptor gamma (PPAR-ÃŽ ³) agonists as pioglitazone are used for decreasing inflammation. The aim of this study is to investigate the anti-diabetic effects of combining omega -3 fatty acid with pioglitazone on type 2 diabetes, and the modulating effects on TLR-4. Type 2 diabetes was induced in male Sprague-Dawley rats by combination of high fat diet and low dose streptozotocin (35 mg/kg). Diabetic rats were treated with omega-3 fatty acids (10% W/W diet), pioglitazone (20 mg/kg), and their combination for 4 weeks. Omega-3 fatty acids and the combination treatment significantly decreased TLR-4 activation. Omega-3 fatty acids, pioglitazone, and their combination significantly decreased TLR-4 mRNA expressi on, hepatic malondialdehyde, total cholesterol and triglycerides levels, compared to diabetic group. Pioglitazone and theShow MoreRelatedClass Iv : Type 2 Diabetes1723 Words   |  7 PagesCLASS IV: THIAZOLIDINEDIONES Type 2 diabetes is mainly associated with abnormalities in any of the following 3 basic pathophysiologic abnormalities: †¢ Impaired insulin secretion †¢ Excessive hepatic glucose production †¢ Insulin resistance in skeletal muscle, liver and adipose tissue.9 The thiazolidinediones are a unique class of agents that improve the third parameter, and are therefore also called as the â€Å"Insulin sensitizers†. Insulin resistance syndrome also called as Syndrome X is caused by aRead MoreClass Iv : Type 2 Diabetes1722 Words   |  7 PagesCLASS IV: THIAZOLIDINEDIONES Type 2 diabetes is mainly associated with abnormalities in any of the following 3 basic pathophysiologic abnormalities: †¢ Impaired insulin secretion †¢ Excessive hepatic glucose production †¢ Insulin resistance in skeletal muscle, liver and adipose tissue.9 The thiazolidinediones are a unique class of agents that improve the third parameter, and are therefore also called as the â€Å"Insulin sensitizers†. Insulin resistance syndrome also called as Syndrome X is caused by aRead MoreAn Alternative Medication For Diabetes Mellitus2090 Words   |  9 PagesThe purpose of this research is to discuss the use Fenugreek bread (Trigonella foenum-graecum) as an alternative medication for treating type-two diabetes mellitus since Fenugreek seeds have a therapeutic effect on the improvement of diabetic parameters, blood lipids, and has antioxidant effects. Fenugreek seeds are known for their characteristic smell of soup seasoning and as an ingredient of Indian curry. The first recorded use of fenugreek dates all the way back to 1500 B.C.E., in ancient EgyptRead MoreThe Pathophysiology Behind Pcos : Inflammation1681 Words   |  7 Pagesfindings Summary Introduction Polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) is the most common endocrine disorder among reproductive aged women, with a prevalence of 16.6-18% according to the 2003 Rotterdam criteria (1-3). Though PCOS is extremely common, up to 70% of women with the syndrome are undiagnosed (3). The PCOS diagnosis is one of ovarian dysfunction and hyperandrogenism, and as such has important implications for reproductive health (see Table 1; NIH, 2012). However, in addition to these reproductiveRead MoreApplication of Statistics in Pharmaceutical Industry3871 Words   |  16 Pagestreatment; as well as identifying in the first place whether it is having the desired effect at all. At the heart of the use of statistics in medicine is the seemingly insurmountable problem that everybody is different. Not only in a psychological sense, but a physiological sense too. While human beings may share similar organs, tissues and chemical compounds; how they are bonded, how we are composed and the effects different drugs have on the individual can be radically different from one person toRead MoreA Brief Note On Diabetes Mellitus And Mellitus2107 Words   |  9 Pageshormone produced by the pancreas to regulate blood sugar. It controls the metabolism of carbohydrates and fats that the body used for energy. Without insulin, glucose (sugar) in the blood builds up causing hyperglycemia. There are 3 classic symptoms of diabetes; the 3 Ps: polyuria which defines as frequent and excessive urination, polydipsia which defines as excessive thirst, and polyphagia which defines as excessive eating. There are two main types of diabetes mellitus: type 1 diabetes mellitusRead MoreSymptoms And Treatment Of Diabetes Mellitus Type 15889 Words   |  24 Pagescontrolled diabetes despite subcutaneous insulin (blood glucose 350 mg/dl for 12 hours) ââ€" ¡ Total parenteral nutrition †¢ Recommendations for specialist referral ââ€"‹ Certified diabetes educator for diabetes self-management education and on-going support 3 ââ€"‹ Registered dietitian for individualized meal planning ââ€"‹ Endocrinologist for uncertain diagnosis and/or treatment of labile glycemia (recurrent hypoglycemia, persistent hyperglycemia, ketoacidosis) ââ€"‹ Nephrologist for persistent proteinuria, decreased

The Digital Millennium Copyright Act - 1608 Words

Failure to Protect and Abuses of the Section 1201 of the Digital Millennium Copyright Act Most laws are passed by the congress with intent to either limit the government s power or to benefit the country and it s people. This was the thought behind the ill fated and commonly criticized The DMCA (Digital Millennium Copyright Act). Its purpose, similar to its predecessor, the Copyright Act itself, was to protect the copyright owners from the big scary pirates, thus protecting their profits and live-hood. It largely succeeds without attracting a lot of opposition with the exception of Section 1201. The reasoning behind Section 1201 was to stop the pirates ability to circumvent the copy protection measures used by content produces and†¦show more content†¦There are a few exceptions written into the law, but in practice, they do very little to protect consumers and only serve to benefit the copyright holders while simultaneously eliminating competition and fair use. The main a rgument in support of this section, is that it prevents the pirates from copying or obtaining tools to copy the copyrighted works. Instead, it s a different story all together. In close to 20 years in existence, this law clearly failed to stop the pirates as TV shows, movies, music and other content keep showing up online without the copyright holders consent. In other words, if these provisions worked as intended, we would not see any pirated movies online or hear about stolen music download. Despite all of this, Interstellar was the most pirated movie in 2015 according to Variety. This clearly shows that Section 1201 failed miserably at it s intended goal as pirates continue to break the protection without worrying about the Section 1201. Even without this section, they would still be breaking the law and thus be liable for the penalties as the Copyright Law itself which already protects the works. There is also another side of this provision, a side where everyone else is payi ng the price of protecting the copyright holders. Supporters state that the law provides sufficient exemptions for scholars and researches when working on encryption and DRM. However, there are numerous examples of the abuse of Section 1201. One of the

American Business Leaders Free Essays

This essay briefly describes the life and achievements of two successful American business leaders, their brief life sketches, the ways and means used by them to achieve their success . It also goes to explain how each of them affected the American society and finally concludes with a comment on the morality of their actions. The two businessman chosen for this essay are : Andrew Carnegie, the pioneer of the American steel industry who lived in the nineteenth century, and Bill Gates,  the software wizard who has managed to change the definition a computer, from a ‘ highly scientific equipment’ of 1960s, to a necessary machine of every member of every family, not only in America but the entire globe !!! Andrew hailed from a very poor family of a hand weaver of Scotland who was disposed ‘workless’ by the power looms of the industrial revolution, and Bill was an entrepreneur at the age of 14 as a school student !!!! Both climbed up the ladder, to be respected as the ‘captains’ of their own respective industries. We will write a custom essay sample on American Business Leaders or any similar topic only for you Order Now Life sketches â€Å" I began to learn what poverty means, it was burnt to my heart that my father had to beg for work, and then came the resolve that I would cure it when I become a man. †. ( Andrew Carnegie) Can anyone believe that he would become the pioneer of the formidable American steel industry and the richest man on this world? Andrew Carnegie was born in a very poor family of a hand weaver who was disposed from his work when power looms came in during the industrial revolution in Britain. His mother used to do household work to manage daily bread. The family shifted to Pittsburgh in US in 1848. Andrew started working at the age of 17 as a telegraph delivery boy, and never missed an opportunity for advancement. Carnegie happened to come close to Thomas Scott, who was an official with Pennsylvanian railroad, while working at the telegraph office. Thomas hired him as his PA, and from there he climbed up to become the later become the superintendent of Pittsburgh division. The outbreak of civil war created a huge demand for iron and steel. Andrew saw this as an opportunity and invested in steel rolling mill. There was no looking back then. He became the richest man on this world during his times. In the later stages of his life, he sold off his steel business and concentrated on philanthropic activities, mainly for the spread of education and global peace. 2500 public libraries were opened with the help of his donations. He had given away $350 million as donations for the improvement of mankind. He had floated the idea of ‘league of nations’ and built the ‘ palace of peace ’ which later became ‘ world court ’. He was so disturbed by the hostilities of World War I that the last entry in his autobiography was on the day the war began !! ( Andrew Carnegie) On the other hand, Bill Gates, real name William Henry Gates III, was born in a rich family of Seattle, USA, to a lawyer father and mother was director in a bank. He went to the most expensive school of Seattle, where the fees were $ 5000 as compared to $ 1760 at Harvard. He was interested in programming from his early school days. The Computer Center Corporation banned students from his school, when they were caught exploiting bugs with the operating system to buy computer time!! So involved was he with programming that at the age of 14, he had already made a payroll program in Cobol and formed a venture with his school colleagues to make traffic counters and earn $ 20,000/- in the first year. When his age was disclosed, he was shown the gate !! He went to Harvard for his degree study where he met Steve Ballmer. Both joined hands as partners to establish Microsoft ® a software consultancy firm, which has become the largest software company on this world. Windows operating system, invented by Microsoft ® has revolutionized the computer industry. Bill Gates is perhaps the only person to be ranked as the richest man on this world for 13 successive years, from 1993 to 2006 !! He announced his retirement from day to day activities in 2006, to turn his attention to philanthropic activities. ( Bill Gates) Methods Both Andrew and Bill have lived two centuries apart, and both were poles apart in their personalities and background. Hence their methods to amass wealth also vary substantially. Andrew lived in times when technology was not so advanced and resources were scarce. A very fierce lust for wealth was the driving force behind all his methods, and this force was driven by necessity. He had seen the ghastly face of poverty in his childhood and his sole aim in life to drive it away. This was coupled with eagerness to progress and earn more. In absence of any good scholastic background, his instincts was the only asset he had. He kept his eyes and ears open and took a right jump whenever he saw a rise in income coming through that jump. Experience was the only teacher, and he was an avid learner. He did not hesitate to jump if it offered financial gains. This was coupled with a sharp sense of vision. A vision to see the shape of things to come in future. He saw an opportunity in iron and steel during the civil war, and he invested in it. Taking right steps at an appropriate time is also one of the salient methods adopted by him. Though he was an advocate of trade unionism, he did not mind exploiting the workers of his own steel company, because self gain is the only motive of any businessman. This is evident from the labor strike at his company. Good administrative skills and good human relations management were the key methods to his success, which has earned him the reputation of ‘Captain of steel industry ’. Bill Gates has lived in a different era when technology had highly developed and he had an enviable scholastic background. His methods are more ‘intellectual’ than ‘physical’. It were the intellectual abilities, especially his ability to find software solutions , that has enabled Bill to win the race. Like Andrew, Bill also saw an opportunity and lost no time in grabbing it. A salient highlight of Bill’s methodology is that he has always focused on ‘ innovations’ and ‘speed’. The milestones of developments his development are witness to the fact that his thoughts are very fresh and innovative, and he worked at such great speeds that he has always been the first to offer tangible solutions. It has been Bill’s strategy to bank upon someone else’s idea, work upon it, and present the solutions before others can do it. Bill did not see anything wrong in working upon GUI which originally someone else’s idea. It was Bill who came up with the first GUI ‘Windows-3. 1’ which was an instant success. ‘ Ruthlessness’ was one of the methods which helped Bill to attain his status as the ‘captain of software industry’. Impact on American Society Both Andrew and Bill have had tremendous impact on the American life. Andrews’ daunting spirits were not only helpful in establishment of the formidable American steel industry, but also an inspiration to many youngsters who were eager to start on their own. Europe was the focus of all technological development so far, but Andrew was instrumental in demonstrating that America has all the resources to beat Europe in this matter. It was largely due to his efforts that large scale industrialization and mass production concepts started gaining momentum in the war torn America. Talking of Bill, he has changed not only America but the whole world. So wide and great is the impact of his thoughts and the products of his company that today almost Microsoft ® has become a household name over the globe. He has completely changed the way people communicate across the globe. This has a massive impact on the increase in global trade and commerce. Today, a Director of a company head quartered in London can get the production figures from its units situated in America, and the sales figures from his office in Tokyo, within seconds. He should thank Bill Gates for making all these possible !! Moral Aspects All of us big or small, rich or poor have a social obligation. Both Andrew and Gates have erred drastically during their young age in their quest for wealth. Even though Andrew had witnessed poverty, he did not hesitate in exploiting the poor workers in his own steel company. The strike and the labor unrest due to this is a blot on his otherwise spotless career. ( Andrew Carnegie) On the other hand Bill went one step ahead, and saw nothing wrong in ‘stealing’ the GUI concepts which were initiated by others. His fierce maneuvering with IBM is one more example of business practice which can be judged ‘wrong’ morally. A legal suit, filed by the American Government over Microsoft ® raises many questions about the ethical policies of the Company. ( Bill Gates) Both these ‘captains’, towards the end of their career have exhibited unparallel moral sense by donating huge amounts for the betterment of the society. Andrew concentrated on improvement through education, while Bill has been more aggressive and even touched social issues like ‘AIDS eradication’. Andrew died as a frustrated man due to hostilities of the first world war and what happens to Bill, only time will tell. Works-cited page 1) Andrew Carnegie, People and events- Andrew Carnegie, 1999, Retrieved on 18-02-07 from, http://www. pbs. org/wgbh/amex/carnegie/peopleevents/pande01. html 2) Bill Gates, wikipedia the free encyclopedia, 18-02-07, Retrieved on 20-02-07, From: http://en. wikipedia. org/wiki/Bill_Gates How to cite American Business Leaders, Papers

Romeo and Juliet Character Essay Example For Students

Romeo and Juliet Character Essay Choose a play in which one the main characters has to cope with strong feelings such as love, jealousy, ambition or hatred. Show how the character deals with these feelings and what effect this has on the outcome of the play. In the play â€Å"Romeo and Juliet† by William Shakespeare, the character of Romeo has to cope with the strong feeling of love. The play tells the story of an ancestral feud between two opposing families, the Montagues and the Capulets, causing several harmful consequences. These consequences ultimately lead to the death of the families’ â€Å"star-cross’d lovers† Romeo and Juliet. Feeling of love make Romeo act impetuously several times during the play and this and unfortunate circumstances lead to the untimely death of both Romeo and Juliet. In the first act of the play, Shakespeare introduces Romeo as an impulsive character. Romeo is portrayed as a man who is desperately in love with Rosaline, yet, when he meets Juliet he immediately falls in love with her: â€Å"O dear account, my life is my foe’s debt!† The moment the Romeo lays eyes on Juliet his feelings of love for her are strong. Once finding out that she is a Capulet, he declares that his life is wasted. Romeo’s strong feelings of love influence how quick he is to forget Rosaline completely and fall in love with Juliet. After seeing Juliet, Romeo even doubts that he was in love before as he questions himself, â€Å"Did I love before?† It is evident here how much the feelings of love affect Romeo’s life and it seems as though all of his actions are based on his feelings of love. Romeo’s strong love for Juliet cause him to act quickly upon his thoughts. This is clear as within a few days of knowing Juliet, Romeo goes to the Friar and arranges for them to be married: â€Å"As mine is set on hers, so hers is set on mine thou must combing by holy marriage† Although Romeo thinks that he knows Juliet well, they have only known each other for less than a week. Romeo’s powerful feelings for Juliet cause him to act rashly and he behaves impatiently. He is also portrayed as immature here as he does not even stop to consider the feud or any consequences that could happen as a result of their marriage. His love for Juliet lead him to make bad decisions and act impetuously and this has several bad consequences later on in the play. Another situation in which Romeos feelings towards Juliet cause him to act foolishly is in the balcony scene. His love for Juliet causes him to not fully realise his actions and this is evident here. When Juliet asks him how he entered the Capulet grounds he replies: â€Å"With love’s light wings did I o’erperch these walls thy kinsmen are no stop to me† Romeo’s overpowering love for Juliet makes him blind to the danger he is in. He is desperate to see Juliet and this causes him to rashly decide to sneak into the Capulet grounds. He does not realise fully that he could be killed and his love causes him to risk his life. Romeo’s tries to show that he is ready to take risks to be with Juliet. Juliet, however, is more sensible and quickly tells him to run away before he is caught but Romeo is determined to stay with Juliet as he is totally euphoric with love. The Friar also advises Romeo to go â€Å"wisely and slow† but he ignores this and rushes into marriage the next day. Romeo’s strong feelings of love cause him to act very impulsively and irresponsibly and his desperation to marry Juliet cause him to forget everything else.

Living on Campus vs. Living Off Campus free essay sample

You just graduated high school and now you are getting ready to head to college. Going away to college is the most exciting time for a newly graduated student. You are finally able to get away from home and be on your own. But in the process of applying for a college, you must decide whether to live on or off campus. Are you ready to really live on your own or do you want to experience the traditional college life? This decision is often very hard to make when considering the pros and cons of each. When living on campus or living off campus one must recognize the difference in the rules, the roommates, and the opportunities. Rules for living on campus may knock the campus life living cool points down a little bit. Campus living provided by the school always comes with what they call a â€Å"code of conduct†. We will write a custom essay sample on Living on Campus vs. Living Off Campus or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page It is probably a very small book with rules and regulations that students living on campus must follow. For example, there might be a curfew which insists students to be in their bedroom by a certain time. Another example is the amount of guests you can have and if they are even allowed to stay overnight. Campus life has many more regulations on alcohol and drug abuse, the noise level after late hours and even monthly or weekly room expectations. It can sometimes feel like you still living at home. Campus life also has what they call a Resident Assistant or RA. This is a person or a few people who also live on campus and who are responsible for the building they are assigned to. They are the people you go to if there is conflict between you and someone else or any technical problems with the room you are in. They also assist in anything else that is concerning with their assigned building. The rules of living an off campus life might be a little more lenient. There are no RAs and the landlord may only ask you to follow a few rules but other than that you are on your own. For example, you can probably bet that you can bring whoever you want over and have them stay overnight. Another example is there are no room expectations and whatever you break you must get fixed. Living off campus can kind of be a little bit of a shock when you are just coming out of your parent’s house. You can see how the rules play a big part in your living situation. Roommates are usually the first main concern when living on or off campus. When you decide to live on campus you can expect living with people you may not know depending on how many room options they have. In my experience in living on campus, I was put into a four bedroom dorm with three other girls I did not know. In some occasions you can request someone you want to live with but the college informs you that it might not always be a guarantee that you are put with that person. So be prepared to accommodate to other people’s living styles. In living off campus, you can get an apartment with whoever you choose or by yourself. If you already have someone or some people in mind you can live with them or find someone or a group of people who are also looking to rent. The good thing about this is you can meet who you are living with beforehand to make moving in more comfortable. One similarity that roommates have both living off and on campus is that you still have to sit down with them and talk about how you are going to handle the common areas like the kitchen and living room. Are you going to allow everyone to clean their own mess in the kitchen and living room or take turns? Is the food being bought for everyone or just for the person who bought it? What are you going to do for the guests sleeping arrangements? These are questions that are very important to go over with your roommates whether living on or off campus. One of the reasons why living on campus is called campus life is because it is usually on campus or adjacent to campus and includes opportunities and activities you can get yourself into. You can also meet a lot of new people. Living on campus is being able to get involved in things that may just be for people who live on the campus. In my experience with living on campus, the college had many activities that only the people who lived on campus were allowed to be a part of. For example, campus life government was like student government but only concerning the campus life. The government set up activities and social events that were not open to the people living off campus. The disadvantage of off campus living is the travel you might have to make to campus all the time. Another disadvantage is not being where the â€Å"action† is. Since you do not live on campus you do not have as many chances to get involved in things. Living off campus sometimes can feel a little isolated from things that are going on campus. Personally, I believe living on campus is the best option for someone just starting college. It does not hurt to try a real college experience and get a feel for it. If you then do not like the circumstances you can always live off campus the next year. It is really important to make a wise decision on where you are going to be living and if it is the best fir for you.

Deductive and Inductive Reasoning in Sociology

Deductive and Inductive Reasoning in Sociology Deductive reasoning and inductive reasoning are two different approaches to conducting scientific research. Using deductive reasoning, a researcher tests a theory by collecting and examining empirical evidence to see if the theory is true. Using inductive reasoning, a researcher first gathers and analyzes data, then constructs a theory to explain her findings. Within the field of sociology, researchers use both approaches. Often the two are used in conjunction when conducting research and when drawing conclusions from results. Deductive Reasoning Many scientists consider deductive reasoning the gold standard for scientific research. Using this method, one begins with a theory or hypothesis, then conducts research in order to test whether that theory or hypothesis is supported by specific evidence. This form of research begins at a general, abstract level and then works its way down to a more specific and concrete level. If something is found to be true for a category of things, then it is considered to be true for all things in that category in general. An  example of how deductive reasoning is applied within sociology can be found in a 2014 study of whether biases of race or gender shape access to graduate-level education. A team of researchers used deductive reasoning to hypothesize that, due to the prevalence of racism in society, race would play a role in shaping how university professors respond to prospective graduate students who express interest in their research. By tracking professor responses (and lack of responses) to imposter students, coded for race and gender by name, the researchers were able to prove their hypothesis true. They concluded, based on their research, that racial and gender biases are barriers that prevent equal access to graduate-level education across the U.S. Inductive Reasoning Unlike deductive reasoning, inductive reasoning begins with specific observations or real examples of events, trends, or social processes. Using this data, researchers then progress analytically to broader generalizations and theories that help explain the observed cases. This is sometimes called a bottom-up approach because it starts with specific cases on the ground and works its way up to the abstract level of theory. Once a researcher has identified patterns and trends amongst a set of data, he or she can then formulate a hypothesis to test, and eventually develop some general conclusions or theories. A classic example of inductive reasoning in sociology is  Ãƒâ€°mile Durkheims study of suicide. Considered one of the first works of social science research, the  famous and widely taught book, Suicide, details how Durkheim created a sociological theory of suicide- as opposed to a psychological one- based on his scientific study of suicide rates among Catholics and Protestants. Durkheim found that suicide was more common among Protestants than Catholics, and he drew on his training in social theory to create some typologies of suicide and a general theory of how suicide rates fluctuate according to significant changes in social structures and norms. While inductive reasoning is commonly used in scientific research, it is not without its weaknesses. For example, it is not always logically valid to assume that a general principle is correct simply because it is supported by a limited number of cases. Critics have suggested that Durkheims theory is not universally true because the trends he observed could possibly be explained by other phenomena particular to the region from which his data came. By nature, inductive reasoning is more open-ended and exploratory, especially during the early stages. Deductive reasoning is more narrow and is generally used to test or confirm hypotheses. Most social research, however, involves both inductive and deductive reasoning throughout the research process. The scientific norm of logical reasoning provides a two-way bridge between theory and research. In practice, this typically involves alternating between deduction and induction.

Economic Development Objectives Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Economic Development Objectives - Essay Example Structural transformations include â€Å"diversion of economic production away from agriculture, increase in the scale of productive units, shifts in organization and in the status of labor, and shifts in the structure of consumption† (Lundberg 445). Advanced technology increases the potential of an economy recording high economic growth rates. This therefore means that technological improvements are necessary conditions and not sufficient conditions since economic development is much wider than just economic growth (Kuznets, 419). There is therefore need to factor in the structural changes associated with improved technology since the net change might be negative or zero after including the costs of structural changes to quantifying economic development. Structural shifts and developing countries As much as everyone in developing countries wants economic developments, they should be aware of Kuznets and that with structural shifts long-term end results could be detrimental to the welfare of their less developed economies.

Martin Luther King and Malcolm X Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Martin Luther King and Malcolm X - Essay Example Political philosophy: The deep differences in their political philosophy are an example of the extent to which their formative years impacted their adult life: King drew inspiration from the champion nonpareil of nonviolence, Mahatma Gandhi, who, without so much as lifting his little finger, had brought the behemoth of British imperialism crumbling down. Apart from an unswerving commitment in theory and practice to nonviolence, both Gandhi and King drew from the core ideals of their respective religions. If the Mahatma embodied the tolerance and spiritual expansiveness of Hinduism in all its depth, King was the practitioner of the quintessential Christian virtues of inclusiveness, compassion, and forgiveness. (Lischer 53) On the other hand, Malcolm despised the religion he was born into, frequently abused and cursed the Book of God, deserted Christianity, (Malcolm X) and was vehemently committed to the policy of racial exclusiveness and separatism. His beliefs were based on the †˜eye for an eye’ doctrine. (Adams) Legacy: Another area that characterized the sharp difference between the two related to their legacies. If King was to leave behind a legacy as a champion of nonviolence, a principle to which he swore till the end, the finest culmination of which was the Nobel Peace Prize in 1964, a year after winning the Time’s ‘Man of the Year’ award, (Cone 86) Malcolm left behind a legacy that was totally dissimilar to King’s, and was as tormented as his life and principles.

Macroeconomic Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Macroeconomic - Essay Example The volatility in the expenditures made by the consumers can be explained by the volatility in the terms of trade. The economy of Australia can be characterized by less volatile terms of trade after the period of 1980s. It can be judged that economic growth shares close association with terms of trade. An economy moving along the growth curve is expected to witness terms of trade while the economy under the growth curve will face the declining terms of trade line. Question a The global prices of the exports as well as the imports and the goods basket offered to the consumers are the two prime components that make up the terms of trade. Australia can be treated to be the country that has the potential to affect the world prices of the goods. The terms of trade can also get influenced by the geographic boundary of an economy. Coal is abundant in the country and therefore Australia engages itself in coal export (Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade, 2011). A rise in the prices of coa l relatively to the prices of the other ICT goods will shed the effect in rising the terms of trade. The exchange rate of the economy and the terms of trade are closely associated. The nominal exchange rate got reduced being the resultant of financial crisis of 1990s. The influences with the geographical boundaries can play a part in volatility of import prices but the prices of the exports are influenced only by changes in world prices of the goods. In the short time period the fall of imports are steeper than the price of exports. The unstable growth in productivity in the sectors of tradable or non tradable goods played a part in boosting the exchange rate. The phase after the 1980s led to rapid productivity growth in the sectors of finance as well as insurance. The inflows of capital paved the way for strengthening of the U.S. dollar and this can be accounted to be the second factor. In the short run the exchange rate remained lower than the market rate. The economic growth rema ined at more or less at relatively stable state as the volatility in terms of trade played a major role. The less volatility in the terms of trade also contributed in keeping the rate of inflation at a lower level. In the initial phases of the new millennium the terms of trade began to rise. Over the last decade and a half Australia shifted from exporting price impulsive properties towards exports of goods whose price can be anticipated. Australia now engages itself in exporting the rural goods. It offers a wide variety of goods for export and experts are of the opinion that the export of the rural goods is an effective strategy for the country as exports of such goods can be assumed to capture a proportion of foreign market (Australian Government Productivity Commission, 2012). Therefore foreign capital will plight in into the country. The exports of the rural goods have taken the steep rising curve over the course of time and the exports of the goods comprises of vegetables and da iry products. Question b The terms of trade is influenced by the factors that are summarized below. The fluctuation in the levels of demand on the global platform The shocks in the market of commodities Globalization shock The fluctuations in the levels of demand on the global arena and the shocks on the commodity markets plays their part in raising the prices of the

What Is The Sources Of Skepticism Philosophy Essay

What Is The Sources Of Skepticism Philosophy Essay It is maintained that epistemological skepticism is different in theme and scope. There are two types of skepticism: knowledge skepticism and justification skepticism (Moser et al, 1998). While unlimited knowledge skepticism suggests that no one knows anything including the claim itself (reference), unlimited justification skepticism suggests a radical point of view that no one is even justified in believing anything including this view itself (reference). Epistemological skepticism differs in theme and scope. Two noteworthy types of skepticism are recognized: knowledge skepticism and justification skepticism (Moser et al., 1998). Unrestricted knowledge skepticism implies that no one knows anything including this claim itself. Unrestricted justification skepticism implies extreme view that no one is even justified in believing anything including this view itself. Another discrepancy is related to the level of skepticism. In its first level, skepticism claims that it impossible for an individual to know anything. In its second level, skepticism proposes that an individual does not know that he has knowledge. I t is probably that one knows P, but he does not know that he knows P ( Brenecker and Dretske, 2000). The other difference concerns the order or level of skepticism. In its strongest form, first order (or direct) skepticism implies that it is [impossible of] logically impossible for anyone to know anything. Second order (or iterative) skepticism is a weaker thesis that we cannot know that we have knowledge. Maybe you know P, maybe you do not, but you cannot know that you know P (Brenecker and Dretske, 2000). Regardless of the shape or size taken by skepticism, it is believed that is stimulated by one sole thing: seeking unlimited knowledge. Whatever form or magnitude skepticism takes, it is thought to be motivated by one thing; the search for true unrestricted knowledge. Pyrrhonians utilized skepticism in their search for true knowledge, which led them to suspending judgment of truth. However, ancient skepticism used to be unlimited with no conditions. It is believed that ancient skepticism is motivated by the nature of social and intellectual turmoil that existed in those times which invited deep questions about right and wrong, and truth and false (reference). Ancient skepticism placed for discussion more extreme doubts and maintained more radical attitudes than those familiar in modern skepticism. For instance, Sextus uses Gorgias argument to conclude that nothing exists (and that if it did we could not know so, and that we could not communicate it even if we knew (reference). (1) Skeptics in the ancient world particularly Pyrrhonians deployed skeptical behavior in the infinite quest for knowledge and truth. They suspended judgment of truth of any claim. Ancient skepticism was unrestricted and unconditional. It is believed [Thought] to be motivated by the nature of social and intellectual turmoil that existed in those times which invited deep questions about right and wrong, and truth and false. Ancient [ancient] skepticism raised more radical doubts and adopted more extreme positions than those we see in modern skepticism. An example which Sextus favors is Gorgias argument for the conclusion that nothing exists (and that if it did we could not know so, and that we could not communicate it even if we knew)  [1]  . The basic themes of ancient skepticism are belief, suspension of judgment, criterion of truth, appearances, and investigation (reference). However, modern skepticism mainly focuses on knowledge, certainty, justified belief, and doubt (reference). (2) The core concepts of ancient skepticism are belief, suspension of judgment, criterion of truth, appearances, and investigation. Modern skepticism is more concerned about knowledge, certainty, justified belief, and doubt  [2]  . The skeptical challenge has indeed many sources in the epistemological context. One of these sources is that we obtain our knowledge about the outside world through senses. We, however, may be deceived by these senses, and therefore, skepticism, due to the epistemic priority of the senses, becomes an unavoidable issue (Okasha, 2003). There are many sources or root causes for the skeptical challenge in the epistemological context. One such source is the fact that knowledge about the external world is principally informed by senses. As we will see later, those senses might deceive us in many ways. The epistemic priority of the senses makes skepticism unavoidable (Okasha, 2003). The epistemic priority of the senses has indeed a catastrophic effect on the human knowledge. When we agree that one type of knowledge comes before another as an underlying component of our philosophical understanding, we cannot be satisfied by a different idea (Stroud, 1989). (Stroud, 1989) believes that such epistemic priority has fatal consequences on the understanding of human knowledge. Stroud argues that once we accept the idea that one kind of knowledge being prior to another as an essential ingredient in the kind of philosophical understanding we seek, it immediately becomes difficult to imagine, let alone to find anything that could satisfy us (1989, p. 312).

Computer Ergonomics In The Workplace :: Workplace Health and Safety

Business strive for high production at low cost. This would result in the highest profit for a company. To many businesses, this is only a mirage. This is because the 'low cost' of the business usually results in a 'high cost' for the employees. This high cost is lower quality workplace items, lower salaries, less benefits, etc. These costs create an upset workplace environment. Companies understand that the more efficient their workers are, the more productive their business will become. Although this will take lots of money at first, the result will be extreme success. There exist many different things in the workplace that add to stress and injuries. They range from lifting heavy boxes to typing too much on the keyboard. This paper will be focusing on the principals of ergonomics in the computer workstation. According to the Board of Certification for Professional Ergonomists (BCPE), the definition of ergonomics "is a body of knowledge about human abilities, human limitations and human characteristics that are relevant to design. Ergonomic design is the application of this body of knowledge to the design of tools, machines, systems, tasks, jobs, and environments for safe, comfortable and effective human use."(BCPE, 1993) In the average computer workstation, employees are prone to over a dozen hazards. There exist two factors that can prevent this: forming good work habits and ergonomically designed computer workstations. We will discuss these preventions throughout the paper. First, a few terms may need defining. Repetitive Strain Injuries (RSI) takes place from the repeated physical movements of certain body parts which results in damage to tendons, nerves, muscles, and other soft body tissues. If these injuries are not taken care of immediately, permanent damage could be done. A few common results of RSI's that were not taken care of right away are injuries like Carpal Tunnel Syndrome, Tendentious, Tenosynovitis, DeQuervain's Syndrome, Thoracic Outlet Syndrome etc. All of these are able to be prevented by the use of good working habits and ergonomic engineering.i Usually, ergonomically designing a computer workstation would cost about $1000. This expense could be eliminated by the formation of good work habits. This is essential for the safety of computer terminal employees. There exist a number of precautions that can be taken into consideration when dealing with a computer workstation. We shall discuss six of them. First, the whole body must be relaxed. The correct posture is shown in Figure 1. Notice that the arms and thighs are parallel to the floor and the feet are flat on the floor. Also notice that the wrists are not bent in any way. This is one of the most damaged parts of the body when

Philosophy †Free Will vs Determinism Essay

The dialogue between philosophers over the existence of free will versus the inevitability of determinism is a debate that will always exist. The discussion centers around the true freedom of humans to think and act according to their own judgment versus the concept that humans are intrinsically bound by the physical laws of the universe. Before I enter this chicken and the egg debate I need to quantify my terms: Free will is defined by the great philosopher, St. Thomas Aquinas as â€Å"vis electiva† or free choice. It is the ability of man to contemplate and judge the effects of the actions he is about to take. †¦But man acts from judgment, because by his apprehensive power he judges that something should be avoided or sought. But because this judgment, in the case of some particular act, is not from a natural instinct but from some act of comparison in the reason, therefore he acts from free judgment and retains the power of being inclined to various things. † (Aquinas. Suma Theologica) Determinism is a complex notion but is best described by David Hume as the notion that something cannot come from nothing and that all actions have causes preceding them. I conceive that nothing taketh beginning from itself, but from the action of some other immediate agent without itself. And that therefore, when first a man hath an appetite or will to something, to which immediately before he had no appetite nor will, the cause of his will, is not the will itself, but something else not in his own disposing. So that whereas it is out of controversy, that of voluntary actions the will is the necessary cause, and by this which is said, the will is also caused by other things whereof it disposeth not, it followeth, that voluntary actions have all of them necessary causes, and therefore are necessitated. (Hume. Liberty and Nessessity. ) Philosophy and world religion alike were born of the same origins. Each of the two ancient disciplines arose from the quest for the answers to life’s ominous questions. These human questions, archetypical to people of all geographic locations; where did we come from; why are we here; where do we go when we die; unite us as a race. It is no coincidence that each religion and theology from all four corners of the earth tackles these black holes of human logic. Each religion carves their own individual explanations of these unanswerable questions into their core belief systems, each one centrally different than others. However, they all share one common thought; each shares a belief in an afterlife determined by the choices made in life. Free will is the common denominator in all world religions, because all share the essential concept of morality. The widespread acceptance of the concept of morality implies that there is a choice to be had at each and every juncture or life. The choice comes from recognition of good and evil. For good and evil to exist, then there has to be the ability to decipher between the two and also decide to accept one over the other. The existence of morality alone proves that free will exists, because without the freedom to choose right or wrong in any given situation there would be no qualitative measure of the â€Å"rightness† or â€Å"wrongness† of ones actions. David Hume comments on the origin of morality and its place in our everyday decision making processes, â€Å"Only when you turn your reflexion into your own breast, and find a sentiment of disapprobation† (Hume.  Treatise of Human Nature). In other words, there are no outside stimuli that can decipher good from evil; the line can only be drawn by internal thought. Hume was a naturalist in that his vision of the world and therefore stance of philosophy was based directly through the experiences of the senses. His stance on many issues directly originated from his ability to experience it with the five senses, and on the subject of morality he takes exception. Even he recognizes the existence of morality in everyday life, even though it cannot be explained through the lens of the senses. It would seem that morality’s acceptance must therefore prove that free will exists, but there is one essential school of thought yet to weigh on this topic; science. Science was the latest bloomer of the three major disciplines of existential explanation and in the post modern era is becoming more and more popular. As the world becomes further secularized and the reaches of scientific logic continue to exceed their grasp, many of the world’s intellectuals identify â€Å"truth† on a scientific scale. Science does not support the theory of morality, because it can’t be proven to exist. The notion of â€Å"free-will†, something which world religion and philosophies alike recognize as a fundamental part of our human anatomy, is called into question in a few simple and logical ways. Science supports the theory of determinism as the only logical explanation of the unfolding of the actions of our lives. First off, science has recently developed the discipline known to us as physics, in which the laws of the universe have been defined. In the short time in which humans have been graced by the scientific understanding of the laws of the universe, human kind has yet to fully step back and contemplate the magnitude of this discovery. In generations past, humans believed that we were made special with â€Å"free will†, but now we know that like all things in the universe we are subject to the physical laws. This is a huge step forward in rational thinking because it allows us to understand that our previously God given concept of â€Å"free will† was really a result of a lack of understanding of the deterministic laws of the universe. For instance a law as simple and commonly accepted as â€Å"gravity† challenges the idea of free will. Gravitational pull determines that no matter the size of an object, once separate from the surface of the earth will be dragged back down at the same force every time. This is a simple concept that we take for granted, but it works in the free will v. determinism argument. We are ruled by gravity, and therefore all of our lives activities answer to it. We can’t choose to jump off a building and float in the air because we’ll be pulled back to the ground to our imminent deaths. We can’t choose to stay younger and keep our skin tight to our faces because gravity’s long-term effect causes our skin to droop down towards the ground. The choices I just listed may seem farfetched to some, however, if we examine the notion that we have â€Å"free will† in the empirical sense of the word we see that not all of our decisions are controlled by us, and that we fall victim to the tyrannical rule of the physical laws of the universe. We aren’t truly â€Å"free† to create our own actions in life. Albert Einstein offers a particularly apt synopsis, â€Å"Everything is determined, the beginning as well as the end, by forces over which we have no control. It is determined for the insect as well as the star. Human beings, vegetables, or cosmic dust, we all dance to a mysterious tune, intoned in the distance by an invisible piper. † (Albert Einstein) The rule of physical law aside, which hinders us from truly being â€Å"free† to choose our own actions in life, is a much more simple scientific argument that dispels the notion of free will. For example: Say a 20 year old man murders another man in cold blood. They have no affiliation, no prior knowledge of who each other is, or reason to dislike each other. Man A walks up to random Man B and shoots and kills him. Was this action of Man A a result of â€Å"free will†? To examine the notion fully you need to look at his action coming from two sources. Either Man A was born with the moral flaw to allow himself to find killing another human acceptable, or that Man A was influenced during the course of his life by interactions and actions of others and came to that conclusion based on his own experience. There is no other explanation for Man A to willingly choose to open fire on Man B and kill him. If we look at the first option, Man A’s natural moral compass was skewed, allowing for him to conceive the notion that killing another is okay. This speaks to the determinant nature of our chemical makeup. Its possible his DNA made a mistake coding somewhere and he developed overtime and understood that killing another is â€Å"wrong† or maybe that his entire sense of â€Å"right from wrong† was skewed inside his mind. This would lead Man A to lead a life normally on the outside, and yet without regard for consequence, open fire on another man and kill him as easily as he could have held a door for him. This is the idea that he naturally had the capacity to kill, and that he could not control it. Eventually one of his animalistic impulses would finally stick and he’d be in the right place at the right time, and that it was only a matter of time until he killed someone. If you don’t subscribe to that theory and believe that he chose to kill Man B that day, try and consider that the results will still be pre-determined. If Man A killed Man B due to his choice, then his own â€Å"free will† and judgment that he finds reprehensible to kill another man can’t be attributed to truly â€Å"free† will of choice. Not every human kills others as part of their natural lifestyle, as they might kiss or mate with another. In fact a very small percentage of people in the world murder other humans, and this begs the question of why? What makes this small percentage of people â€Å"choose† to kill another person? The answer is that if they choose to do it, and they weren’t previously miswired so as said in the prior paragraph, then they must have been influenced by their surroundings. When Man A was six years old he didn’t choose to murder Man B, the events of his life led him to make this decision about whether or not murder was okay. This is yet another reason that he wasn’t truly free to choose; outside influence hinders the ability to choose freely. Whether he was abused, molested, lost a loved one, or just plain fed up with the monotony of everyday life in society, something pushed him over the edge. Something allowed for him to justify his actions; that something is outside influence. This deterministic train of thought explains why people do what they do, but not when. What makes us actually hit the point of no return, or when will the right opportunity hit the right mood leading the right action? (In our example the murder of Man B) The paradox between â€Å"free will† and â€Å"determinism† exists because of the influence of the different schools of thought. If one aligns his personal truth based on religious fervor, then an understanding of â€Å"free will† can exist logically and on the other hand if one bases his logic around science then â€Å"determinism† seems to be the only answer. So where does that leave philosophy, the great bridge between the two polarized schools of thought? It leaves philosophy somewhere in the middle, examining the validity of both sides of the argument, and helping to shed light on the debate over whether or not we truly are free to make a choice or if we are merely floating along the currents of the universe. Personally, I’m lost somewhere in the middle, hoping that the answer to this time-old question will be revealed.

What MBA Admissions Consulting Isnt

What MBA Admissions Consulting Isnt Do Business School Admissions Need an Overhaul? There have been a few articles published lately about MBA Admissions Consulting. One such article published in Bloomberg Businessweek, Business School Admissions Needs an Overhaul, proposed that the entire admissions process for graduate business school be changed. The author, Alex Fleming, goes so far to propose that essay length and number should be reduced to discourage applicants from hiring admissions consultants. No one, he suggests, would pay someone $1,000 to write 100 words. The author and I both have MBA degrees from Wharton, but we part company after that. What Business School Admissions Consulting ISNT As an MBA Admissions Consultant for 14 years, I believe that what needs the overhaul isnt business school admissions but rather the incorrect understanding that many have about what admissions consulting actually is. For a start, any ethical admissions consultant will make it clear that he or she will never write an essay for an applicant. Some of our clients will ask us to do so despite what our written agreements and policies may say, but we make it clear that thats not part of our service. And for the record, as of the current admissions season, most top business school applications require multiple essays, with limits of several hundred to about a thousand words each. An admissions consultant can help to ensure the topic and organization of those essays hits the mark with admissions committees. Admissions Consultants also wont ghost write recommendations for our clients, although a few may request that service. In fact, many of us, myself included, refuse to even review a draft recommendation. I take it even further than most, suggesting that my clients push back if the recommender wont write a recommendation without getting a draft from the applicant. If the recommender insists on receiving more than a bulleted list of suggested points, I tell my clients to find another recommender. Is there an alumni interviewer popularity contest? I disagree with another point in the article. Having been an alumni interviewer for Wharton MBA applicants, I dont understand what he means by the â€Å"alumni interviewer popularity contest.† Assuming that the school trains its volunteer alumni interviewers well, as most do, an interview with an experienced alumnus can give the interviewer and interviewee insights into the fit between the applicant and the school that an on campus interview may not, especially in terms of the long-term career view. I have no understanding of the popularity contest that the author mentions. You are no doubt wondering what MBA Admissions Consulting is if this is what it isnt? That will be the topic of my next blog entry. Need guidance in your MBA/EMBA Application process? Maximize your applications with help from The Essay Experts MBA Admissions Consulting Services. Or feel free to email me directly at larryessayexpert@gmail.com. Larry Sochrin Category:MBA Admissions ProcessBy Brenda BernsteinNovember 18, 2011

Kate Turubian and Modern Writers

Kate Turubian and Modern Writers Kate Turabian was born in 1893, and worked as a dissertation secretary at the University of Chicago. Turabian serves as another instance of greatness in writing coming out of Chicago. She later authored the Students Guide for Writing College Papers, which made a name for her in higher education. In the last 60 years, Kate Turabian has continued to guide young writers. Her Manual for Writers gives such detailed instruction that it has become a standard for authors of term papers, theses, and dissertations. Virtually any question that an academic or student might have can be answered within the pages of Kate Turabians manual. Covering the parts of a long formal paper, Turabian teaches readers the mechanics of writing. Her book even covers the use of tables or illustrations, and how to reference them. She provides lengthy instruction on citations, manuscript preparation, and various other topics. Perhaps the best part of her manual is its extensive use of examples for easy comprehension. The editors of the Chicago Manual of Style now offer a new edition of the manual originally authored by Kate Turabian. Now Turabians manual is in full conformity with the Chicago Style Manual. This new edition also offers the modern student, replete with use of personal computers.

The Slade Plating Department Term Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words

The Slade Plating Department - Term Paper Example In a typical business, a more horizontal structure is usually required in order to gain total work group commitment and satisfy motivational goals for productivity. However, at Slade Plating, this structure brings forward a great deal of management presence that can oftentimes create negativity between high producing employee groups. Furthermore, the relatively low pay that is experienced in the production and operational departments is another problem at Slade Plating, despite the ongoing presence of overtime. There are some work groups at the facility that value overtime and consider it a blessing for lifestyle and needs fulfillment, while other work groups expressed dissatisfaction over the high workload with minimal pay. This division of unity that is occurring at the company continues to erode total work group effectiveness when considering how inter-dependent the production teams are with one another in order to get the job done effectively. At the same time, a far-too-flexible production schedule that continues to become more and more unpredictable due to customer demand angers some less-productive work groups that leads to some level of job dissatisfaction. In terms of the environmental conditions, they are less than favorable for some of the plating room work members. They are forced to work in hazardous environments that are uncomfortable due to design and temperature. As Herman in Sarto’s group identified, it is considerably hard work and there is division between employees in this work group that only serves to complicate social attitudes and also productivity in the long-term. Attitudes regarding Herman by other members of his team clearly impacted his sense of belonging and self-esteem, despite his efforts to at least try to fit in with this in-group having strong social attachments. IMPARTIAL EVALUATION Under Abraham Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs, there is a strong generalized human need for affiliation and belonging. It is only when the need for affiliation has been satisfied that a person can begin to develop a stronger sense of self-esteem and personal recognition that produces higher levels of confidence and control (Gambrel & Cianci, 144). In Tony’s group, several members who have been excluded from engaging in more rewarding socialization continue to drive a rift between productivity and the social environment. It is affecting self-esteem, especially in Herman, who seems to have a strong need for socialization which was apparent by his ongoing presence in many different social activities such as singing, fishing, and athletics. What this has done is created a standoffish attitude where he is psychologically convincing himself that he would rather stay isolated from the group when clearly a need exists for belonging and affiliation. Management theory indicates a phenomenon related to personality and human behavior that involves what is referred to as the locus of control. Essentially, under this theo ry, there are some who believe they are the masters of their own fate and do not blame the external social environment for why they cannot or do not succeed at their goals. They believe they control their own destiny (Treven & Potocan, 642). Those with an external locus of control feel as though they are controlled through outside forces and tend to be more defensive as a result (Treven & Potocan

The negative effects on the grammatical skills of teenagers due to Research Paper

The negative effects on the grammatical skills of teenagers due to text messaging - Research Paper Example The technology used in communication in the modern world has proved to be highly advanced bringing people closer to each other through different means that include the mobile phones, the internet and â€Å"text messaging† (Sampson). From Pew Research Center’s survey conducted in the year 2010, it has been obtained that â€Å"one in three teens† can be found to text message that may be reported as being more than 100 in a day (Sampson). This massive use of text messaging has a natural impact on the teenagers, particularly with respect to their effects on the grammatical skills of the user (Sampson). Text messaging is developing as a much loved practice of communication particularly for the younger generation who prefer to â€Å"stay in close contact† with friends and close ones. The young generation does not feel convenient in â€Å"typing out full words or sentences† (Baldauf & Stair, 280). Alternatively abbreviations enhance a â€Å"fast-paced† process of communication a reason why most of the people use limited or â€Å"just enough† characters to phrase a message (Baldauf & Stair, 280). However, although the use of abbreviations may prove to be convenient, this may also impact the ability of a person to properly construct a sentence and other similar negative effects (Baldauf & Stair, 280). This report would primarily focus on the negative impacts that text messaging are having on the grammatical skills of teenagers.... Text messages have character limitations and people are using this facility to convert their long conversations into short texts and send to friends and other acquaintances (Braun, 17-18). It can be realized that when long conversations can be expressed in short messages, that becomes more convenient for the users to make use of less effort as well as lesser time thus making the text messaging service preferable for the teenagers. Moreover, teenagers of the modern world are known to be impatient and in search of fast and easy way of achieving things. Communication is thus not an exception. Thus like all other technologies, the text messaging also has specific uses that make this facility â€Å"more valuable† than other ways of communicating (Ball & Foster, 92). Firstly, through text messaging, very small messages can be exchanged. Moreover, text messaging is less expensive than calling a person and communicating the same message. In comparison to making calls, text messaging i nvolves lesser time as well as lesser costs making it more favorable for the users. Also, text messaging provides an â€Å"excellent technology for chatting† and staying in close contact with others (Ball & Foster, 92). Teenagers would thus prefer to keep in touch with their friends, make plans for enjoyments or other necessities through communication facilities that can occur in very less time, and with less money. Through such text messaging, users can share ideas, views, knowledge, and information or simply stay in touch by conversing. Views on the effects of text messaging on the use of English Grammar amongst the teenagers: Different views arise on the effects that the use of text messaging may have on the teenagers in their use of English grammar. This is particularly because

Murder Report Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words

Murder Report - Essay Example Ryan had been drinking lager all night, topping up the beer up with a few shots as the evening wore on. In the night club Ryan happened to see Sukhdev an Asian engaging in loud discourse with Laura in an intimate position. Under the influence of alcohol, Ryan used dirty language against Sukhdev humiliating his Asian identity. Sukhdev’s friends separated him from the scene, ignoring Ryan. The outraged Ryan shifted his anger over her and tried to pull her out when she quitted saying her day with him was over. Ryan never stopped taking liquor and met a friend of him in another club. During exchange of his experience at ‘Gas’ club, the friend fuelled his animosity on Sukhdev and returned back to ‘Gas’ club to meet Sukhdev again who was just leaving ‘Gas’ with a few friend and two young white girls. Ryan dragged them into altercation and began to attack Sukhdev. Sukhdev’s friend too retaliated in the same coin terming Ryan a white scum. Ryan’s friend joined him and showed his muscle power against Sukhdev, by when the door staff of ‘Gas’ called the police to intervene. However, the police caught hold Ryan and brought Sukhdev to a nearby hospital, where he was declared dead before arrival. Background: - Ryan was aged 22 at the time of the incident. He had grown up in the north Midlands town where the incident took place in a terraced house close to the mine where his father had worked as a young man. The mine had closed in the early 1980s along with many of the town’s other heavy industries. After losing his mining job Ryan’s father had struggled to find work, eventually finding work as a long distance lorry driver. During the 1950s and 1960s when the local economy was booming, people had been attracted to the town from both Pakistan and the West Indies, often to work in the health service, transport and on night shifts in local factories. More recent migrants from sub-Saharan Afric a, the Middle East and south-eastern Europe had found it harder to get work – often because they were prevented from doing so as asylum-seekers. Despite this inward migration, the town remained overwhelmingly white and many families had lived in the area for generations. Ryan’s father and mother split up when Ryan was four leaving his mother to bring him up along with his elder brother, Damian, and younger sister, Charlotte. During Ryan’s childhood, his mother had a succession of relationships with men, two of whom had, like Ryan’s father, been violent towards her. One of them, a man called Dave, who didn’t work and spent most of the time drinking at home in front of the television, had taken a strong dislike to Ryan and gave him regular beatings, including on one occasion with a baseball bat he kept behind the door, ostensibly to deal with burglars. Ryan had spent some time in hospital as a result of this beating. Ryan also suspected that Dave had been sexually abusing his younger sister but his mother had threatened to throw him out if he didn’t ‘stop making things up’. From the age of nine Ryan had tried to spend as little time as possible at home. Hanging out on the streets, he came into contact with a group of older boys who were amused by his fearless, devil-may-care attitude and adopted him as a kind of mascot. Through his contacts with this group, Ryan began drinking alcohol and then got into taking drugs. By the age of 13, Ryan was a hardened drinker and a regular truant. On the rare occasions

Agroforestry Research Essay Example for Free

Agroforestry Research Essay Agroforestry is an integrated approach of using the interactive benefits from combining trees and shrubs with crops and/or livestock. It combines agricultural and forestry technologies to create more diverse, productive, profitable, healthy, and sustainable land-use systems.[1] A narrow definition of agroforestry is trees on farms. As a science The theoretical base for agroforestry comes from ecology, via agroecology.[3] From this perspective, agroforestry is one of the three principal land-use sciences. The other two are agriculture and forestry.[4] The efficiency of photosynthesis drops off with increasing light intensity, and the rate of photosynthesis hardly increases once the light intensity is over about one tenth that of direct overhead sun. This means that plants under trees can still grow well even though they get less light. By having more than one level of vegetation, it is possible to get more photosynthesis than with a single layer. Agroforestry has a lot in common with intercropping. Both have two or more plant species (such as nitrogen-fixing plants) in close interaction, both provide multiple outputs, as a consequence, higher overall yields and, because a single application or input is shared, costs are reduced. Beyond these, there are gains specific to agroforestry. Benefits Further information: Ecoscaping Agroforestry systems can be advantageous over conventional agricultural and forest production methods. They can offer increased productivity, economic benefits, and more diversity in the ecological goods and services provided.[5] Biodiversity in agroforestry systems is typically higher than in conventional agricultural systems. With two or more interacting plant species in a given land area, it creates a more complex habitat that can support a wider variety of birds, insects, and other animals. Depending upon the application, potential impacts of agroforestry can include: †¢Reducing poverty through increased production of wood and other tree products for home consumption and sale †¢Contributing to food security by restoring the soil fertility for food crops †¢Cleaner water through reduced nutrient and soil runoff †¢Countering global warming and the risk of hunger by increasing the number of drought-resistant trees and the subsequent production of fruits, nuts and edible oils †¢Reducing deforestation and pressure on woodlands by providing farm-grown fuelwood †¢Reducing or eliminating the need for toxic chemicals (insecticides, herbicides, etc.) †¢Through more diverse farm outputs, improved human nutrition †¢In situations where people have limited access to mainstream medicines, providing growing space for medicinal plants Agroforestry practices may also realize a number of other associated environmental goals, such as: †¢Carbon sequestration †¢Odour, dust, and noise reduction †¢Green space and visual aesthetics †¢Enhancement or maintenance of wildlife habitat Adaptation to Climate Change There is some evidence that, especially in recent years, poor smallholder farmers are turning to agroforestry as a mean to adapt to the impacts of climate change. A study from the CGIAR research program on Climate Change, Agriculture and Food Security (CCAFS) found from a survey of over 700 households in East Africa that at least 50% of those households had begun planting trees on their farms in a change from their practices 10 years ago.[6] The trees ameliorate the effects of climate change by helping to stabilize erosion, improving water and soil quality and providing yields of fruit, tea, coffee, oil, fodder and medicinal products in addition to their usual harvest. Agroforestry was one of the most widely adopted adaptation strategies in the study, along with the use of improved crop varieties and intercropping.[6] Applications Agroforestry represents a wide diversity in application and in practice. One listing includes over 40 distinct uses.[3] The 40 or so applications can be roughly classified under a few broad headings. There are visual similarities between practices in different categories. This is expected as categorization is based around the problems addressed (countering winds, high rainfall, harmful insects, etc.) and the overall economic constraints and objectives (labor and other inputs costs, yield requirements, etc.). The categories include : †¢Parklands †¢Shade systems †¢Crop-over-tree systems †¢Alley cropping †¢Strip cropping †¢Fauna-based systems †¢Boundary systems †¢Taungyas †¢Physical support systems †¢Agroforests. Parkland Parklands are visually defined by the presence of trees widely scattered over a large agricultural plot or pasture. The trees are usually of a single species with clear regional favorites. Among the benefits, the trees offer shade to grazing animals, protect crops against strong wind bursts, provide tree prunings for firewood, and are a roost for insect or rodent-eating birds. There are other gains. Research with Faidherbia albida in Zambia showed that mature trees can sustain maize yields of 4.1 tonnes per hectare compared to 1.3 tonnes per hectare without these trees. Unlike other trees, Faidherbia sheds its nitrogen-rich leaves during the rainy crop growing season so it does not compete with the crop for light, nutrients and water. The leaves then regrow during the dry season and provide land cover and shade for crops.[7] Shade systems With shade applications, crops are purposely raised under tree canopies and within the resulting shady environment. For most uses, the understory crops are shade tolerant or the overstory trees have fairly open canopies. A conspicuous example is shade-grown coffee. This practice reduces weeding costs and increases the quality and taste of the coffee.[8][9] Crop-over-tree systems Not commonly encountered, crop-over-tree systems employ woody perennials in the role of a cover crop. For this, small shrubs or trees pruned to near ground level are utilized. The purpose, as with any cover crop, is to increase in-soil nutrients and/or to reduce soil erosion. Alley cropping With alley cropping, crop strips alternate with rows of closely spaced tree or hedge species. Normally, the trees are pruned before planting the crop. The cut leafy material is spread over the crop area to provide nutrients for the crop. In addition to nutrients, the hedges serve as windbreaks and eliminate soil erosion. Alley cropping has been shown to be advantagous in Africa, particularly in relation to improving maize yields in the sub-Saharan region. Use here relies upon the nitrogen fixing tree species Sesbania sesban, Tephrosia vogelii, Gliricidia sepium and Faidherbia albida. In one example, a ten-year experiment in Malawi showed that, by using fertilizer trees such as Tephrosia vogelii and Gliricidia sepium, maize yields averaged 3.7 tonnes per hectare as compared to one tonne per hectare in plots without fertilizer trees or mineral fertilizer.[10] Strip cropping Strip cropping is similar to alley cropping in that trees alternate with crops. The difference is that, with alley cropping, the trees are in single row. With strip cropping, the trees or shrubs are planted in wide strip. The purpose can be, as with alley cropping, to provide nutrients, in leaf form, to the crop. With strip cropping, the trees can have a purely productive role, providing fruits, nuts, etc. while, at the same time, protecting nearby crops from soil erosion and harmful winds. Fauna-based systems Silvopasture over the years (Australia). There are situations where trees benefit fauna. The most common examples are the silvopasture where cattle, goats, or sheep browse on grasses grown under trees.[11] In hot climates, the animals are less stressed and put on weight faster when grazing in a cooler, shaded environment. Other variations have these animals directly eating the leaves of trees or shrubs. There are similar systems for other types of fauna. Deer and hogs gain when living and feeding in a forest ecosystem, especially when the tree forage suits their dietary needs. Another variation, aquaforestry, is where trees shade fish ponds. In many cases, the fish eat the leaves or fruit from the trees. Boundary systems A riparian buffer bordering a river in Iowa. The are a number of applications that fall under the heading of a boundary system. These include the living fences, the riparian buffer, and windbreaks. †¢A living fence can be a thick hedge or fencing wire strung on living trees. In addition to restricting the movement of people and animals, living fences offer habitat to insect-eating birds and, in the case of a boundary hedge, slow soil erosion. †¢Riparian buffers are strips of permanent vegetation located along or near active watercourses or in ditches where water runoff concentrates. The purpose is to keep nutrients and soil from contaminating surface water. †¢Windbreaks reduce the velocity of the winds over and around crops. This increases yields through reduced drying of the crop and/or by preventing the crop from toppling in strong wind gusts. Taungyas Taungya is a system originating in Burma. In the initial stages of an orchard or tree plantation, the trees are small and widely spaced. The free space between the newly planted trees can accommodate a seasonal crop. Instead of costly weeding, the underutilized area provides an additional output and income. More complex taungyas use the between-tree space for a series of crops. The crops become more shade resistant as the tree canopies grow and the amount of sunlight reaching the ground declines. If a plantation is thinned in the latter stages, this opens further the between-tree cropping opportunities. Physical support systems In the long history of agriculture, trellises are comparatively recent. Before this, grapes and other vine crops were raised atop pruned trees. Variations of the physical support theme depend upon the type of vine. The advantages come through greater in-field biodiversity. In many cases, the control of weeds, diseases, and insect pests are a primary motive. Agroforests These are widely found in the humid tropics and are referenced by different names (forest gardening, forest farming, tropical home gardens and, where short-statured trees or shrubs dominate, shrub gardens). Agroforests, in many ways, epitomize agroforestry. Through a complex, disarrayed mix of trees, shrubs, vines, and seasonal crops, these systems, through their high levels of biodiversity, achieve the ecological dynamics of a forest ecosystem. Because of the internal ecology, they tend to be less susceptible to harmful insects, plant diseases, drought, and wind damage. Although they can be high yielding, complex systems tend to produce a large number of outputs. These are not utilized when a large volume of a single crop or output is required.

Website Proposal For Holiday Inn Hotel Tourism Essay

Website Proposal For Holiday Inn Hotel Tourism Essay The shrinking world is expanding the outreach of tourists. No more do hotels have a fully staffed reservation department with managers, assistant managers, supervisors and agents. The internet has conveniently replaced numerous phone calls, faxes and payment issues. Now potential guests just dial a toll-free number or book directly on the internet. According to Forrester Research 32% of hotels revenues come through online bookings. They include both direct reservations and those made through third party websites. The travel industry allocates 29% of its marketing budget to online marketing. (Cullen)This is so because the importance of integration of E-Commerce with business strategies is realized. This is also because the nature of the traveler and travelling is changing. Present day travelers are hyper-interactive, who are texting, tweeting, emailing, communicating with friends via face book and commenting on their current or previous travels. The advent of social media and mobile Web means that potential guests for the hospitality industry have continuous access to multi-channel interaction and sharing opinions. Thus hotel websites have to be designed in order to handle this hyper-interactive user. Thus hotel websites can no longer be static brochures with stale and boring context. (Max Starkov). Back ground The Holiday Inn hotel is a subsidiary of the IHG group of companies. It is a brand which remains consistent towards the board. Guests at the 1874 Holiday Inn hotels around the world know that they will be treated well and have certain level of expectations regarding the service. In fact the idea for the Holiday Inn hotels came into the mind of its founder, Kemmons Wilson, when he was disappointed with the consistency of road side motels during a trip to Washington DC. Consistency is a great advantage when it comes to providing services. The art of total quality management lies with the hospitality greats like Marriott, Hilton and of course Holiday Inn but when it comes to social media policies and the ever changing world of the internet consistency has a huge down side. Consistency is not the only key feature of the Holiday Inn hotels and resorts. Innovation goes side by side with consistency. Holiday Inn hotels were the first ones to introduce the Holidex reservation system giving its competitors a run for money. Holiday Inn hotels also initiated the idea for indoor pools, termed Holidromes, turning its hotels into resorts. This innovation and comfort, which is the landmark of the Holiday Inn hotels, should be made evident in the hotel website. With the advent of time, Holiday Inn is now an established name in midscale provision of hospitality. This midscale travel market consists of 43% of travelers worldwide. (Hospital and tourism industry report:Q2 2010) and is the sector of the tourism industry which faces the highest competition. With the tourism industry recovering from the economic depression of 2009, the number of tourists is increasing, but at the same time the new tourist is more cost conscious and e-savvy. With social medias burgeoning levels and websites like tripadvisor advising tourists on the wide range of living options available, the tourist might not fall for the reliability of brand names as the previous guests were. The increasing travel trend resulting from economic recovery also means that the internet is bombarded with tourism information. This is so because due to economic conditions many hotel websites were abandoned during the past two years. The waking up of hoteliers means that new websites are profoundly different as they now cater to a different inventory distribution system, social media and cross channel marketing. Almost all new websites cater to mobile web applications and so does the Holiday Inn website. With increased globalization of the economy and increased competition hotels cannot rely on their past successes. Holiday Inn and IHG are bound to know this well as the hotel chain lost considerable market share in the 1980s. it is only after its re launch in 2007 that the hotel has again captured some part of its market segment. At the time of the re launch, the new hotel website was also launched. Consumers that visit the hotel website find a user friendly environment. The site provides availability details, locations, room features and descriptions of the surrounding area. But provision of these details is not enough for the highly competitive hospitality industry. Holiday Inn hotels needs to develop a website which highlights its core competencies, tackles competition from market rivals and eliminates the bargaining power of buyers. During the pre recession times, visitors were more satisfied with the Holiday Inn website than the industry average. This data was deployed from studies based on 31 websites of leading hospitality brands. It checked data based on the five most crucial dimensions of a visitors online experience. They were navigation, content, interactivity, motivation and adoption. The customer satisfaction was generally higher ranking in the 92nd percentile. (Website Satisfaction Soars at InterContinental Hotels Group) In the year 2007, the content dimension was an area of strength for the website. The amount of details provided covered a vast range of aspects of visitor concern. Coupled with this was the fact that the data was very well structured and easy to navigate. This led to an adoption rating higher than the industry average, pointing to future site referrals and a strong likelihood to return. The website also fostered brand loyalty. According to Sasha Paine, an analyst at iperceptions, There is no clearer indicator of a sites effectiveness than its ability to build loyalty among its visitors.(Website Satisfaction Soars at InterContinental Hotels Group) The new virtual market place allows small companies to compete with industry giants. This means that Holiday Inn faces competition not just from hotel chains like Ramada and Hilton but also from small hotels. By looking at the hotel website we can easily find out that the website is high in content. The most critical section, which is the reservations section, is right in front for customer ease. The reservations section helps finds locations and provide all details regarding the Holiday Inn hotel in the area to be visited. On the downside it is known that only 32% of visitors visit a hotels website to make reservations. (Hospital and tourism industry report:Q2 2010) The rest visit either to find information or to compare rates. For visitors who are not lured by the brand into booking, the website should be appealing and catchy enough to ensure adoption or at least a revisit. But what the website lacks is targeting new customer strategies. It seems that unlike other websites which appeal to new guests by providing reasons for staying at their hotels, the Holiday Inn relies on its brand name and preconceived notions about its excellence to get potential guests to make reservations. What is not realized is that website design is an illustrative art and making correct use of this art might ensure that visitors will not have to change pages or scroll down for the required information. A look at the key competitor Ramadas website demonstrates this very well. Though the reservation section is still on the main page of the site, the opening window encompasses much more than only the reservation section. It eyes potential customers and not just visitors by ensuring that new deals are right under the visitors nose. The slideshow of the Holiday Inn website is not very creative and is short with only 4 slides. Though it instantly appeal to the comfort factor and attracts business travelers immediately. The family and friends factor and fun travelling and living is excluded from the slide show. In contrast other websites have wider navigation menus and longer, swifter slideshows. Websites are using rich media foreg the Pueblo Bonito website and the Atlantis hotel in Dubai. Websites foreg theurbansuites.com are also trying to split visitors by demographics and visitor types to provide custom services. Websites have an increasing number of testimonials, blog links and some even have the press singing their praises. (Mackenzie) This you attitude employed by the website and marketing strategy appeals to visitors. This paper looks at the need for developing a new website for the Holiday Inn hotels. It observes the changing trends in both website designs of the hospitality industry and nature of travelers. Data is collected from visitors to the website and their satisfaction is analyzed. Satisfaction is measured using variables which include content of the website, ease of navigation, interactivity, motivation and adoption. This is done by e-surveys and observing visitor behavior on the website. Conclusions are then drawn regarding visitor satisfaction. Since online reservations make up a chunk of all hotel reservations, it will be very important to pay due attention to either reconstructing or renovating the website if needed. The new website can be developed by outsourcing the development of the website to some leading website developers specially related to the hospitality industry. Budgetary allocations will have to be made. They include consultancy costs, advertisement of the new website, Search Engine optimization costs and website development and mantainence. Research will have to be made on the percentage of revenues generated by the website, the potential for development and the amount competitors allocate towards online marketing and website development. Budget allocation and trends in the hospitality website industry along with weaknesses in the current website will provide guidelines for the new website. Rationale The hotel marketing industry is a booming industry which caters exclusively to hospitality providers. Surveys are done and researches made to find out about visitor and guest behaviors. These researches aid hotel marketing advisors in development of new websites and to target customers. Special online surveys are designed to get visitor opinions and rate their satisfaction. Some of the works done in this regard are The Iperceptions satisfaction index It is the only metric device to measure exclusively customer satisfaction with an online channel. It provides advice to hoteliers on data mining and analyzes that data to provide results and draw conclusions. The hospitality and tourism industry report This caters to timely changes in the hospitality and tourism industry providing hoteliers with the current trends and predicting the future condition of the market. Best practices in Hotel website design by Hospitality e-business strategies. A report prepared by hospitality e-business industries which looks at the importance of websites for hotels and outlines ways to do so. Best Practices for Maximizing Your Hotels Online Revenue ROI by Kathreen Cullen. This white paper is a survey which as the name suggests helps hotels maximize their online revenue. Although the content of these reports and many others which try to integrate E-Commerce with hospitality are industry specific but they provide broad guidelines for the Holiday Inn hotels. This paper will focus on how the Holiday Inn hotels should conduct its research? what would be the methodology of research and what strategies would be involved. The limitations of the research and the potential for advanced features on the Holiday Inn website will also be discussed. As Del Ross, vice president of Americas Distribution marketing for IHG, claims We truly believe in the paramount value of knowing our customers and capturing their opinions in the context of their actual online experiences by implementing improvements research for the new website will be centered around customer opinion and satisfaction. Data collection and methodology. Advanced research methods will have to be employed to gather data from website visitors. According to Cooper and Schindler (Methods) qualitative studies may be combined with quantitative ones to increase the perceived quality of the research, especially when a quantitative study follows a qualitative one and provides validation for the qualitative findings. There is a strong suggestion within the research community that research, both quantitative and qualitative, is best thought of as complementary (Malhotra) and should therefore be mixed in research of many kinds. There is a strong suggestion within the research community that research, both quantitative and qualitative, is best thought of as complementary and should therefore be mixed in research of many kinds. Both qualitative and quantitative data sets will have to be used. Since customer satisfaction regarding the website has to be measures, offline data collection can prove to be useless and mundane. Online data collection approach can be utilized in two ways and can result in both objective and subjective responses. The difficult part about this research is that though secondary data relevant to the industry is abundant, but none of this will be specific to the Holiday Inn hotel. Thus researchers will have to gather primary data from the scratch, analyze it and form conclusions about the current state of the hotel website. Sampling methods The sampling method will mostly be a non probability method as the only visitors cannot be forced to take part in the research. Probability sampling will be reserved for a small focus group. Quantitative research will depend upon visitors and visitors will only participate in qualitative research by choice. Quota method of sampling will be the most convenient. This is so because only potential travelers should be included in the research. Only people with annual income above $50000 will be sampled. Population below this income group generally is observed not to travel frequently. Similarly other characteristics of current guests can be used to find the different quotas which should be used in sampling. This kind of sampling will make it impossible to assess the sampling error as the results will not be representative of the population as a whole. Focus groups of targeted market will need to be used. Since the current website of the hotel and the general notion about the hotel chain is that it caters to mostly business travelers, business travelers can be selected randomly. They can be chosen from firms where work entails frequent travelling. These business travelers will be then asked to navigate through the website and answer relevant questions about the website content, ease of navigation, interactivity and adoption. The results can be classified and then visitor perceptions about the different aspects of the website can be rated. They will provide a clear guideline about the positive and negative aspects of the website. This focus group will be coupled with quantitative and qualitative data. The focus group technique will allow better screening of the focus group respondents to ensure that they are the people whom the hotel is most interested in and thus provides an in-depth insight. Descriptive data from the survey and the questionnaire will reveal information that could not be easily explained by the statistics from quantitative data. This survey will be limited to a very small population of potential Holiday Inn customers. It can be both biased and non-representative of the actual feelings of the general public. But this data will target the largest niche of current customers. Gathering quantitative data Quantitative data can be gathered by observing visitor behavior on the website. It can be done on a large scale on the website. The behavior observed includes number of clicks, time on site, no of visitors who made a reservation, net promoter scores and the page from where visitors are exiting. Relationships between variables can be observed. This can be done from web analytics of the website. The sample size from this kind of web analytics has to be large and therefore will have to be done over a period of time. For much of its history, web analytics has been concerned with measuring behavioral phenomena. Unique visitor counts, pages viewed/visit, time on site, bounce rates, click through rates, ad impressions, and, more recently, rich internet application events have But studying clicks alone can never tell more than a part of the visitors story and will never bring to light true engagement data. Behavioral analytics is akin to paleontology, in the sense that it presents a fossilized record of a visitors site experience, at least as much as can be captured through page tags with optimal cookie deletion rates. However much scientists study the material implements of the past, however, they will never truly be able to gauge whether people were happy and led meaningful lives. This is the primary shortcoming of behavioral research; the tracks a visitor leaves are necessarily incomplete without knowing intent, attitude, and satisfaction. Further, engagement indices will always be hollow metrics unless they can be made to account for loyalty, trust, and advocacy (iperceptions) Gathering qualitative data. Qualitative research will take more time and preparation. Different sampling methods and full time researchers will have to be employed to monitor data. The basic format will be inviting all visitors to the website for a short survey or questionnaire. It will have to be ensured that the questionnaire is short and to the point yet it is fulfilling the purpose. This is necessary because abandonment of questionnaires will lead not only to loss of data but will also cause distaste for the website in visitors. Like all qualitative and naturalistic research methods, questions will have to be developed which are clear and unambiguous but open to change as the research develops. It is necessary because both qualitative and quantitative research goes hand in hand. It is qualitative research which will give a holistic view of the complexities which the website poses to its visitors. In the course of the survey visitors will be asked to provide scores for the website attributes related to their online experience. Each of these attributes will be related to specific dimensions of the website. It can include questions such as whether the visitor likes the site enough to recommend it to another friend or colleague. The scaling can be done on a 1 to 10 scale ranging from very bad to outstanding. The attribute sets that will be selected will be in accordance with both the E-commerce and hospitality industry standards. They will be content, navigation, motivation and interactivity in this case. It might also address the most crucial section of the website which is the reservations section. Thus the questions to be addressed are Navigation Website functionality must be intuitive and easy-to-use. If visitors are cannot find the information they desire, they may lose interest and move on to another hotels site. It is also important to be sure that hotels provide the capability to allow customers to book via the method of their choice such as mobile and smart phone technology. Content The website must provide all necessary information. This information should not only be limited to the hotel but also about the area and activities where the hotel is located. The content of the website should be accurate, up-to-date, detailed and relevant. Interactivity This will address questions about the visitors ease of communication with the website and therefore the hoteliers. It measures functionality, collaboration, informational exchange, and the intuitiveness of transactional tools. Motivation This measures whether the online content matches with the services the hotel provides. It questions whether the customers feel that the site was trustworthy and if their time on the site was well spent. All these factors eventually answer one question and that is of adoption. This is the main factor of concern for the Holiday Inn hotels that whether the visitor will re-visit the website or refer the website to somebody else. Potential for new features New vanity websites can be added which cater to different locales. It should be ensured that the feel of the different websites remains the same but better search engine optimization can be achieved. The Holiday Inn website can be optimized in two ways. It is the need of the time to modify the contents for Search Engine optimization. The second is the renovation and restructuring of the website. New website design Visual content It has been observed that the Holiday Inn website has a subtle color appeal. It stands true to catering to business travelers as they can visualize themselves in that situation. But simultaneously excludes a large travelling class. A glimpse at the Marriott hotel website speaks loads about integrating target markets at one place. A boost of color on some place in the Holiday Inn website will provide the required energy to indicate that the hotel welcomes both fun and families. Selling travel is all about selling a vision, a dream-an intangible product. Rich media and its many formats-from photos and visual galleries, to videos and virtual tours, e-postcards, web cams, interactive maps, etc.-can truly present your travel product and make it tangible and real. Seventy-two percent of US Internet users view video online on the same scale as network television and 89% of users surveyed said video influenced their booking decision. Usability surveys about hotel websites show that the majority of users think hotel websites are lacking or need more pictures and images The website can also add more visual content as the number of slides on the main page slide show is only 4 and only targets limited audience. The website can make use of good photography which provide more details about rooms and amenities. Demand generator content. The website should add more localized content to each of its franchise content sites. This will not only aid in showing up on search engines but a description of the area and the activities of the areas helps visitors thus creating better chances of adoption. More navigation options can be introduced on the main page as even though the current website has a high content percentage but the visitor has to scroll and search for it. More tools can easily be added in the navigation tool bar without making the site look congested. Scalability The website platform should have the ability to grow with the needs of the growing Hotel Inn. Holiday Inn is launching new hotels so it should be ensured that the new website keeps pace with both the rapidly changing face of the hotel as well as the fast changing tourism industry. Thus new development should be both easy and inexpensive. It should be easy to add new pages without the returning visitor to find a change which hinders his navigation. Conclusion The rapid pace of change of tourism industry and the changing face of the traveler requires the Holiday Inn hotel to maintain a website which is intuitive and adaptative. Regarding this concern quantitative data can be analyzed from the websites web analytics. An understanding of this quantitative data can be done by a focus group survey of the target market and online questionnaires. Visitors to the website can be surveyed about their views about the website. This will be random non-probability sampling. The questions have to be short and succinct as target specific attribute. This is to ensure that the visitor does not abandon the survey midway. After the online survey, a deep understanding can be gauged by using a focus group. This can be done either online or offline. The focus group can be small but chosen by quota or snowball sampling. The target audience should be used as the part of the focus group. The sample can be small but the questionnaire has to be extremely detailed. This will address all questions which arose from the satisfaction or non-satisfaction of the online survey participants. The final data set will lead to a certain conclusion about the visitor satisfaction index. This can be used to provide guidelines about visitor expectations from the website and how and how much the website should be modified. The modified website will lead to higher revenue and return on investment. Online questionnaire Based on todays visit, how would you rate your site experience over all? Very bad Bad Fair Good Outstanding Which of the following best describes the primary purpose of your visit? Make a reservation Compare rates Find more information View/cancel reservation Other please specify Were you able to complete the task you visited the website for? Yes No What do you value most about the website? __________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ What did you most dislike about the website? __________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ Would you recommend the site to somebody? Yes No If you answered in negative to the previous question, why? __________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ Would you recommend any changes to the website? __________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ How did you arrive at the website? Typed the URL in the browser Search engine Advertisement Link on a Blog Another website Link sent by somebody Other. Please specify _______________________________________________ The offline questionnaire presented to the focus group. This will be modified according to the response generated from the online website survey. It will be more detailed so as to sound explanations of the data derived can be provided. Offline questionnaire What is your age category? 15-20 years 20-35 years 35-60 years 60 or above What is your gender? Male Female Are you single or married? Single Married Your email address? _____________________________________________________________________ How often do you travel? More than four times a year. Twice or thrice a year. Once a year Less than once a year Is your travel related to work most of the time? Yes No Do you always make your bookings online? Yes No What features of the website did you use? _____________________________________________________________________ Did each page load quickly enough? Yes No On a scale of 1 to 5 where 1 is poor and 5 is excellent rate the following Reservation procedure Website speed Ease of navigation Visual appeal Information Your overall satisfaction Was the reservation process efficient? Yes No Were you tempted were you to abandon the reservation process midway? Yes No If yes then why? Choose one that is applicable Technical difficulties Rate issues Difficulty in finding Unfriendly website Other. Please specify ______________________________________________________________ Did you easily find what you were looking for? Yes No Did the website design confuse you? Yes No Was the language easy to understand? Yes No Was navigation comfortable? Yes No Was the information you were looking for easy to find Yes No Was the information useful? Yes No Was the information detailed? Yes No Was the information accurate? Yes No Was the information up-to-date? Yes No Did you like the appearance of the website? Yes No Do you think more visuals should be added to the website? Yes No If yes, do you think it will make the hotel more appealing? Yes No Will a more detailed, illustrative website, aid or hinder you in your work? Yes No Do you think the overall design of the website can be improved? Yes No If yes then how? __________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ Can the website alone without the Holiday Inn brand name lead you to make a reservation? Yes No What did you like the most about the website? __________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ What did you dislike most about the website? __________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ What problems if any did you face when navigating the website? __________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ Was the website user friendly? Yes No If no why not? Would you recommend the website to someone you know? Yes No If no, then why not? __________________________________________________________________ Would you navigate the site from your phone? Yes No If no then why not? _____________________________________________________________________ Do you think your time on the website was well spent? Yes No If no then why not? _____________________________________________________________________ What are your overall suggestions for the website? ______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ Field guidelines The research survey will look at the need for developing a new website for the Holiday Inn hotels. It observes the changing trends in both website designs of the hospitality industry and nature of travelers. Data is collected from visitors to the website and their satisfaction is analyzed. Satisfaction is measured using variables which include content of the website, ease of navigation, interactivity, motivation and adoption. This is done by e-surveys and observing visitor behavior on the website. Conclusions are then drawn regarding visitor satisfaction. Since online reservations make up a chunk of all hotel reservations, it will be very important to pay due attention to