Is the term ‘Green Logistics’ an oxymoron Essay

Is the term ‘Green Logistics’ an oxymoron? An oxymoron is a term in which contradictory words appear in conjunction with one another such as bitter sweet or a deafening silence. In an attempt to answer this question we must first define what the term ‘Green Logistics’ means. When the term is broken down into its composite parts ‘logistics’ is simply defined by Murphy and Wood (2011) as the part of the supply chain which plans, implements and controls both the forward and reverse flows of goods, services and information between the point of origin and the point of consumption in an efficient and effective manner. However, the term ‘green’ is much more equivocal when defined in a business sense. In 1996 McDonagh and Prothero proposed that there are several dimensions of ‘Green’ which not only cover ecological, sustainability and conservation issues but also political, corporate social responsibility, fair trade and equali ty matters. Since these topics are very broad it is hard to define ‘Green’ in a logistics sense. As a result of this uncertainty over the definition of ‘green’, it is helpful to look at the definition of ‘Green’ on a consumer product level. Ottman (2006, p.24), suggested that while all products inevitably have some effect on the environment, ‘Green’ products are those which aim to minimise this impact by conserving energy and resources and limiting pollution and waste. This definition builds on Reinhardt’s (1998, p.46) view that a ‘Green’ business â€Å"creates products that provide greater environmental benefits, or that impose smaller environmental costs, than similar products†. When we combine these definitions we can view ‘Green Logistics’ as the activities which facilitate the forward and reverse flows of goods, services and information through a supply chain in a way which is not only efficient and effective in achieving organisational goals but also aims to minimise the environmental impact and promote sustainability. When we define and consider ‘Green Logistics’ this way, I believe the term is not an oxymoron and when aligned with an appropriate higher level corporate strategy can actually a major competitive advantage for organisations who are able to achieve it. The body of this essay will provide practical examples of organisations who are successfully using the concepts of ‘Green  Logistics’ to not only minimise environmental impacts but also create and maintain a competitive advantage against competition. One concept which is becoming more prominent in ‘Green Logistic’ networks is the  practice of reverse logistics. Reverse logistics can be simply defined as goods flowing backwards through the supply chain from the consumer to the producers and suppliers. Tompkins (2010) provides multiple ‘Green’ benefits which arise from practicing reverse logistics such as increased sustainability throughout the supply chain and reduced waste product s, as well as producing an increased level of customer service through after-sales support. An example of reverse logistics in practice is the South Australian Government’s policy of paying 10 cents for every glass, plastic and tin container returned to collection depots. By doing this the Government is able to facilitate the recycling of materials which ultimately has a positive benefit on the environment. This provides a clear example of how logistics processes can be ‘Green’ by promoting greater environmental benefit than similar products existing in different logistics chains. An Australian Associated Press article revealed that in 2010, 80 percent or 49,800 tonnes of all containers are recycled in Australia which reveals both obvious environment and financial benefits arising from the practice of green logistics. Another common and relatively simple way for organisations to ‘Green’ their logistics processes while also reducing financial costs is to redesign their logistics chains with increased considerations for route optimisation and collaboration throughout the supply chain. Blanco and Cotrill (2013) make apparent one example of this through a case study of the agricultural cooperative Ocean Spray (based in New Jersey with a distribution centre in Florida) and competitor Tropicana who is based in Florida with a distribution centre in New Jersey. Tropicana’s third party logistics provider approached Ocean Spray and suggested that instead of Ocean Spray delivering to their distribution centre via road, they make use of Tropicana’s rail links between the two cities and utilise the empty train carriages returning from New Jersey to deliver to their distribution centre in Florida. This agreement allowed Ocean Spray to lower both their logistics  costs and environmen tal emissions and saved Tropicana the cost and emissions associated with returning empty rail carriages to Florida. Apart from the physical movement of goods, a firm’s logistics operations also incorporates warehousing strategies. The storage of goods may be overlooked when considering the environmental impacts of logistics chains. Figure 8.1 taken from McKinnon et al. (2013) shows the increasing usage of warehousing and its associated impacts. McKinnon et al. (2013) also proposed three ways in which firms can reduce the environmental impact of warehousing practices. Firstly firms should improve the energy efficiency of the lighting  and particularly heating methods used in warehouses (as shown in figure 8.4. McKinnon, 2013). Secondly, firms can harness green energy to generate energy from low carbon emitting or renewable sources of energy such as solar, wind and biomass. Finally, and most importantly, firms should design sustainability into their warehouses, meaning that the buildings not only produce green energy more efficiently but also use less of it. If an organisation is successful in doing this it is able to not only fulfill the logistical goals of operating efficiently and effectively but also minimise impacts on the environment. While reverse logistics, route optimisation and energy efficient warehousing strategies are only a small example of ‘Green Logistic’ practices, which also include environmental packaging considerations, paperless order processing and improvements in vehicle energy efficiency, these practices may be ineffective in achieving ‘Green’ outcomes unless the corporate strategies of the organisation also align. Reinhardt (1998) suggests that for an organisation to establish environmentally friendly practices as a competitive advantage it must first consider whether this strategy is viable in the industry in which it operates. If a firm does consider environmental product differentiation an option it must then ensure customers are willing to pay for environmental quality, establish and convey the environmental benefits of its product and finally these benefits must be defendable against imitation competition. Only then can an organisation enjoy the benefits of a growing green trend in consumption (Peattie, 2010). If this is strategy alignment is adopted and maintained by an organisation, then ‘Green Logistic’ practices can provide substantial competitive advantages for the organisation while reducing impacts on the environment. Modern organisations can no longer afford to view ‘Green Logistics’ as an oxymoron and perhaps Henry Ford’s (1903) famous oxymoron â€Å"A business that makes nothing but money is a poor business† may be more applicable. References: Blanco, E & Cotrill, K, 2013, ‘Delivering on the promise of green logistics’, MITSloan Management Review, December 2013. McDonagh, P & Prothero, A, 1996, Green management: A reader, The Dryden Press, London. McKinnon, A. Browne, M. Whiteing, A. 2012, Green logistics: Improving the environmental sustainability of logistics, Kogan Page, London. Murphy Jr PR & Wood, DF 2011, Contemporary Logistics: International Edition, 10th edn, Pearson, Boston. Ottman, J, 1997, Green marketing: Opportunity for innovation, TC / Contemporary Books, Lincolnwood. Peattie, K, ‘Green consumption: Behaviour and norms’, Annual Review of Environment and Resources, Vol. 35, Issue 1, pp. 195-228. Reinhardt, F.L. 1998, â€Å"Environmental product differentiation: Implications for corporate strategy†, California management review, vol. 40, no. 4, pp. 43-73. Tompkins, J, 2010, ‘Reverse logistics is not the reverse of logistics’, Material Handling and Logistics, November 2010. ‘Big jump in container recycling in SA’, AAP General News Wire, July 22, 2010.

Mexican American Essay

The document of WWII and Mexican-Americans of 1945 writen by LULAC which was found in 1929 stated that â€Å"some hald a million Mexican-Americans served in the armed forces during WWII†, but yet Latinos continued to face discrimination towards them. LULAC then demanded equal rights for minority groups after them experiencing the War and serving the Country. As many signs in many place clearly stated to the Mexicans-Americans that their â€Å"uniforms and service ribbons† meant nothing to them and they were simply not allowed in anywhere. It left said that the so-called â€Å"Mexicans† were worthless of having equality wether they served the Coutry or not. Mexicans were and are racials characterisctly stated as Caucasian since there was only 3 races which were, Caucasians, Negroid, and Mongoloid. For that LULAC said that â€Å"this condition is not a case of difference; it is a case of ignorance†. They said that ignorance was † a Disease that was contagious to those who wish to suffer from it†. Ignorance tied hate, jealousy, misunderstandings, confusion, etc. The hate was not just beacause of the race or because they weren’t smart enough nor because of the language. The hate was because the ignorance affected many for them to think the â€Å"Mexicans† did not deserve the equal rights. As â€Å"Mexicans† proved to be loyal Americans after every test that was thrown at them, they â€Å"delegated right guaranteed by their constitution as a reward for their faithful servive. † The whole purpose of this document was for Mexican-Americans to be given â€Å"social, political, and economic equality. † Mecians had proved that they deserved the right of equality as all the other Americans. I agree with the authors point of view which was stated that ignorance was the biggest cause of the hate and discrimination toward the â€Å"Mexicans†. Ven withoutservice ribbons the â€Å"Mexicans† and other minorities deseved equality for the simple fact the the world needs to have equal rights for everyone, wether they served the country in any way or not, because they were born in American teritory.

Book of the Dead

Book of the Dead: The Singer of Amun Nany’s Funerary Procession The Book of the Dead is a textual and visual piece of art that focuses on the funerary aspects of ancient Egypt. One of the parts I liked best in the Book of the Dead at the Metropolitan Museum of Art was the scene of Nany and her passage to the afterlife. I am going to break down this section, and address the different characters and symbols, both formally and contextually. I will describe not just what is seen on the surface, but the underlying meanings behind the Funerary Nany and how it relates to the traditions of ancient Egypt art and life.The Funerary Nany is written/painted on what I assume is a papyrus-like material. It is a light brown color and has a somewhat sandy/rough texture. In this funerary picture, not many colors are used. I’m not sure if colors faded or not, but it seems as if whoever painted it, purposely-used few colors. The primary color shown is green, perhaps to show importance. Iâ €™m assuming this because over the king’s shoulders in the bottom right section is a green garment, so I assume if that is important, all green shown in this picture is important, like the bird in the top register, and the human/animal (? in the bottom, middle register. I believe that figure to be king judging by the conventions of his throne and large hat. He is seated and has a staff, showing authority and power. Also, he appears to be slightly larger than the rest of the people on the bottom register, perhaps a convention to show rule. The only other color in this painting is red, seen on again what I assume is the king’s throne. There are slight shades of darker yellow/brown, but I don’t believe they have much meaning other than to separate people/objects from the background. Papyrus became an essential part of the funerary equipment and every Egyptian who could afford to acquire a copy was buried with it close at hand for use in the afterlife. † T hus, Nany’s Funerary was painted on papyrus. It is also why so many examples have survived and why so much has been learned about the Book of the Dead, which has been called the Bible of Ancient Egypt. The size of this entire piece is quite long. It appears to be about a foot tall but about twenty feet long. It looks like it is telling a story due to the way it is presented.For the entire piece, it alternates from paintings to texts (in probably hieroglyphics). Perhaps the texts describe the paintings presented to the viewer. That would make sense to me, almost like a storybook with pictures in it. And as it turns out, that is exactly what it is. Written on papyri and painted upon coffins in hieroglyphics, it was divided into chapters, each of which had its own title but no specific placement in the book. It was of the Theban Recension, a period in Egypt lasting from the eighteenth to twenty-second dynasty. This period focused around funerary stories. dbghghghh I am assuming that Nany is the woman with the bump in her â€Å"crown† on the top and bottom register. The woman is all the same person due to the way she is dressed and looks. The top register seems of less importance however, due to the scene presented and the size differentiation between the two registers. On the top, it looks as if Nany is walking along and coming across different obstacles or encounters of some kind. From the look of her hand gestures in the paintings it seems as if she is interacting with whatever these encounters are. The bottom register appears to be the last or most important encounter she faces.There is another woman next to her, perhaps an escort to the king. But in the middle is a scale of some type with two figures presented on each side. It is difficult to see what the two images are that are being measured. One side seems to be two people and the other a head. But I’m not quite sure. Or perhaps she is making a sacrifice in front of the king and he is determining whether her sacrifice is a worthy one or not, because all three of the people (including the animal-human creature) are looking at the king and he is looking at them†¦So perhaps there is a dialogue going on in some way.There are texts with each painting in this section, which may be a description of what is going on. It turns out I was somewhat right in my description of the scene and what the hieroglyphics might say. Nany is the woman the whole way through. She is actually making her final journey towards the afterlife. Carol and Faulkner’s book identifies the other characters and symbols and what they represent in Egyptian art and life. Much of the Book of the Dead revolves around Ani (an ancient Egyptian scribe) and his journey to the afterlife.The Ani procession is the largest, â€Å"most perfect,† and the best enlightened of all the papyri containing copies of the Theban Recension of the Book of the Dead. And when reading about it and observing th e paintings, I noticed that much of it is the same, so I was able to compare the two stories. They are both weighing their hearts against the Maat, the goddess of justice and truth. Jackal-headed Anubis, one of the four sons of Horus, and overseer of mummification, adjusts the scales, while a baboon—symbolizing Thoth, the god of wisdom and writing—sits on the balance beam and prepares to write down the result.Nany must pass this test in order to move on to the afterlife. If not, her heart will be eaten. On the bottom register behind Nany is Isis, wife and sister of Osiris. She is identified by the hieroglyphics. These characters are all an important part of the way in which ancient Egyptians viewed death and the afterlife. Sitting right before Osiris is a foreleg of an ox. According to Wilkinson’s book, the foreleg of an Ox is almost invariably included in mortuary offering scenes where it appears in a list of offerings. It is a symbol of royal and divine streng th in Egypt.The way the artist makes these people look doesn’t seem to be as if he was trying to make anyone in the paintings look too idealized. There are no apparent abstractions that throw your focus to any particular piece of the work too strongly. The location of this particular piece of art was a bit secluded. I realized that after we broke off as a group at the Met when I, as well as two of my classmates practically got lost trying to retrace our steps back to the artwork. It was a very dark, empty location of the Ancient Egypt section.I am guessing the darkness intended to put focus on the funerary element of the work, as well as other works around it. Next to the Funerary Nany was the Tomb of Meritamen and Nany’s Funerary Papyri, both of which seem to have correlations with this Nany piece. So it seems that they put related people and objects around each other, to keep everything orderly and relevant in the museum. In conclusion, there are many factors that pl ay into each and every detail put into works of art like this. These details painted a picture for me in my formal analysis of the work and tell a lot about how the piece was made and why.Ancient Egyptians had a meaning for everything they put in the Book of the Dead and all of their art. Each symbol they used had a significant impact on their life and beliefs. In their art, there are connections between many different paintings and texts that relate to each other, and all draw back to a common belief and way of life in Egypt. I am not exactly sure why I chose to analyze The Book of the Dead over the rest of the pieces of art. I think that just when I looked at my options, I felt I had more to say about this piece of work than any of the others.I saw a story in it. I felt I could talk about it clearer and understand it more than the other pieces, and that is what I believe ultimately led to my decision. Sources: Andrews, Carol, and Raymond O. Faulkner. The Ancient Egyptian Book of t he Dead. Austin: University of Texas Press, 1990. Budge, E A. W. The Book of the Dead: The Hieroglyphic Transcript of the Papyrus of Ani. New York, N. Y: Carol Pub. Group, 1990. Wilkinson, Richard. Reading Egyptian Art: A Hieroglyphic Guide to Ancient Egyptian Painting and Sculpture (London: Thames and Hudson, 1992). ——————————————- [ 1 ]. Carol Andrews and Raymond Faulkner, The Ancient Book of the Dead (Austin: University of Texas Press, 1990), 16-17. [ 2 ]. E. A. Budge, The Book of the Dead: The Hieroglyphic Transcript of the Papyrus of Ani (New York: Carol Pub. Group, 1990), 3-4. [ 3 ]. Budge, Book of the Dead, ix. [ 4 ]. Andrews and Faulkner, Ancient Book of the Dead, 14. [ 5 ]. Budge, Book of the Dead, 240. [ 6 ]. Richard Wilkinson, Reading Egyptian Art: A Hieroglyphic Guide to Ancient Egyptian Painting and Sculpture (London: Thames and Hudson, 1992), 75.

Prejudice and the Colonial Condition in Post-Colonial Caribbean Essay

Prejudice and the Colonial Condition in Post-Colonial Caribbean Literature - Essay Example This approach has also built strong prejudices towards a certain community. The stereotype about certain people, culture and community inclines towards hatred, atrocity among different community. In the research paper the racial prejudice has been discussed thoroughly in context to colonialism. For the study, the three major literary works have been taken for discussion. They are â€Å"Small Island,† by Andrea Levy, â€Å"In the Castle of My Skin,† by George Lammings and a memoir of Jamaica Kindcaid called â€Å"A Small Place.† The three novels focus on the stereotypical view and bigotry among the colonizers and colonized people. Various characters from these books are the representatives of the contemporary human psyche. It’s a struggle between masters and slaves, between hatred and helplessness, between colonizers and colonized. The writers want to focus that the colonialism is a psyche and it will take a long time to disappear it from the minds of the c olonized. Colonization suppressed self-respect, self-identity, and local religion of the native people of the colonies. With the help of other references, the paper throws the light on the racism, prejudices of both colonizers and colonized, and the colonial and post-colonial situation in the Caribbean Islands. Racial prejudice has been a sinister social disease, spread all over the world for centuries. So called advanced White people still are backward in their views, intolerant and narrow minded towards the people from other race. The racial prejudice is the consequence of the differences in hair colour, eye colour, facial structure, size of limb and most important the skin colour. Racial prejudice takes place when people are judged on the basis of their superficial character and outward appearance. In American history the racial prejudice resulted into the exploitation of black people. During Second World War, Hitler had an extreme hatred towards Jew community. It resulted into relentless atrocities towards black people and Jews. To remove this social stigma, the modern societies have drafted and enacted various laws and statute to ensure that all the people from different races should get respect and should be considered equal. The racism has become one of the hot topics for debate espe cially after the Second World War. Caribbean islands had previously been the one of the major colonies of British Empire. Much has been written on colonial condition and racial prejudice in Caribbean literature. The authors like Laura Niesen De Aruna have written about racist and imperialist current in Caribbean literature. Frances A. Della Cava and Madeline H. Engel also have given examples of racial prejudice against Blacks, Jews, and Women in their fiction. After World War II people from Caribbean island were migrating to England. The impression about England was very noble among its colonies. They called England as â€Å"Mother Country,† but when they came on the land they found that they had no value in Britain and they were been treated as aliens. Our study throws light upon the post colonial racism and racial prejudices. The stigma of racial discrimination has been reflected in post colonial Caribbean Literature. The problems of immigration, the insecure feeling, uncer tainty and biased, bigotry approach of English community towards the migrants had been the major issues depicted by the authors like Andrea Levy, George Lammings, Jamaica Kindcald and other writers. Keywords: Caribbean literature, racial prejudice, colonial conditions, bigotry, immigration During the World War II, the British colonies had no choice but to hold up with their masters, their British Empire. The colonized, for British people

Issues in Management Accounting - AC313 Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Issues in Management Accounting - AC313 - Essay Example There was enormous resistance to change and tighten the cost control from the engineering side in all meetings as they feared that the cost control was merely to strengthen the accounting regime in the company. In 1980, Volvo representatives visited Renault plant to see their practices as their practices were taken as industry’s benchmarks. Volvo was facing very high costs in the initial stages of product development. Renault had competence in cost control and thus was taken as benchmark for the cost control drive by Volvo. There was a rapid change in the business environment that required Volvo’s management to implement cost management and control system. The business environment forced Volvo to be pro-active in their costing and to make their systems online to as to increase their efficiency in the intra-departmental and cross-functional accounting and costing. For cost effectiveness in the future, Volvo realized that they needed their cost control activities to be redirected to product development rather than manufacturing and production. This would reduce their costs in the initial stages of product development. The company used to be cost and budget driven whereas the need of the hour was to be customer oriented and delivering value to customers at minimum cost. Modular design and common parts were few major changes that Volvo introduced in their products. Process orientation was another major change that was being implemented in the industry. Instead of being function-oriented, organizations were moving towards process orientation. Redundant activities needed to be identified so that the processes could be streamlined and made more effective and cost efficient. Cost targets had become more critical and important. Timely formulation of realistic cost targets saved them huge investments which were not feasible and/or not affordable for their business. Calculations needed to be done in

The role of nursing Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

The role of nursing - Essay Example Significant studies in the area have suggested that the effect of reduced nurse staff on patient outcomes is an inverse relationship between the two whereas positive outcomes result when there is adequate nurse staffing. Therefore, the effect of nurse staffing on patient outcomes has been one of the most essential areas of nursing research and this qualitative research makes a profound analysis of the published literature on the topic in order to determine the various aspects of nurse staffing in relation with patient outcomes. The research question of this nursing research proposal proposes to analyze the various aspects of nurse staffing in relation with patient outcomes and the research question is: What is the effect of nurse staffing on patient outcomes and how can favorable staffing ensure better patient outcomes The research question analyzed in this paper incorporates various important secondary questions such as 1) What are the various aspects of patient outcomes affected by nurse sta... ) What are the determinants of favorable staffing, and 4) What is difference in the results of adequate staffing and that of the reduced nurse staffing. The Purpose or Aim of the Research The research purpose usually reflects the type of study conducted and the main purpose of this qualitative research on the effect of nurse staffing on patient outcomes is to determine the relationship between nurse staffing and patient outcomes. The most important aim of this study is to help the nurses improve their practice by making their aware of the positive relationship between nurse staffing and patient outcomes. Examining the effect of various nurse staffing levels on the patient impact can highly determine the aspects of good practices of health care and in turn produce positive results in the organizational outcomes of health care. Therefore, the purpose of the research proposed in this paper is to contribute to the practice of nursing, health care, and patient outcomes. Keywords to search for The keywords related to this study include: nurse staffing, patient outcomes, reduced nurse staffing, adequate nurse staffing, etc, Scope of the Study (Who is written for) The scope of the proposed study, i.e. the effect of nurse staffing on patient outcomes, covers various aspects of the practice of nursing, health care industry, and patient outcomes. Therefore, this proposed study is intended for the various people engaged in the practice of nursing, health care, and the health industry and this will help in improving the quality of nurse staffing in order to help better patient outcomes. Population of interest The population of interest in this research includes nurses belonging to different levels of nurse staffing and the patients in the related areas of nursing. It will also

History of Film Genres Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

History of Film Genres - Essay Example Although that is the truth of the situation in the entertainment industry, the reality of the film-making world is that all of these films are actually categorized per genre. These genres include but are not limited to historical subject, intended impacts, formal criteria, subject matter, and finally, film style. Films generally classify their type of film per genre. By doing so, the movie aficionados and film buffs are given a chance to fully grasp and understand the evolution of our society via films. The slow but sure evolution of film, from the silent films to the colored talkies, to the high tech 3-D films that we have in the cinemas today all focus on the changes and development of culture or historical period within which certain films are produced (â€Å"The History and Evolution of Genres†). It is through this developmental context that Hollywood managed to produce such a diverse set of films stemming from the Western hero in the 1940's and 50's which eventually evolv ed into group heroism as explored in the 1960's and 70's. This group heroism exposed the shift in our society from the open land, pioneering work place of man towards the more organized group of working people in corporations and companies. Eventually, the increase of interest from within our society in the urban crime and international espionage era of the 1970's and 1980's gave way to the current trend of police/detective and spy / thriller genres (â€Å"The History and Evolution of Genres†). As seen in the above listing of film genres, one can note that films are composed of various forms which are identifiable by type. This means that the film categories or classifications can be done based upon a specific criteria. These criteria could be based upon films that have recurring/similar/familiar/instantly recognizable patterns, syntax, film techniques/conventions. content and subject matter, themes, mood, period, plot, central narrative events, motifs, styles, structures, si tuations, recurring icons based upon influence on society, stock characters, or even film stars. Some of these films could even by hybrid type and therefore employ the use of several genres in one film, this is what is known as a hybrid film in Hollywood (Dirks, Tim â€Å"Main Film Genres†). Historically, one of the most popular film genres includes are epic films such as The Ten Commandments, Quo Vadis, and Gone with the Wind. These types of films cater mostly to audiences that have a keen interest in costume dramas, historical dramas, war films, medieval romps, or period pictures. Although epic films have been known to share the elements of an adventure film due to their shared need for a vast, panoramic backdrop, epics still tend to stand under its own spotlight due to the uniqueness of the production values. These production values include but are not limited to: ... an historical or imagined event, mythic, legendary, or heroic figure, and add an extravagant setting and l avish costumes, accompanied by grandeur and spectacle, dramatic scope, high production values, and a sweeping musical score (Dirks, Tim â€Å"Main Film Genres†). Although the epic and war films share certain contexts when it comes to the story being told due to the lavish budgets, costumes, and settings, these two particular genres tell two different stories. While the epic can tell the story of an imagined event or heroic war figure, the war film depicts the cold-hearted brutality and heart breaking real life events

Hybrid Cars Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Hybrid Cars - Research Paper Example Global warming has taken the better part of environmentalists. Anderson, in his publication, argues that the introduction of hybrid automobiles had a weighty significance to the environment (Anderson, & Anderson, 2010, p. 37). The first advantage attached to the introduction of this technology is that the automobiles pose less threat to global warming due to their low carbon dioxide emissions. This helps in conserving the future and reliable environment. Researchers suggest that the amount of carbon dioxide emitted by automobiles is proportional to the fuel energy they consume. Therefore, hybrid vehicles with low fuel consumption emit low amounts of the green house gases, thus, reducing threat to the ozone layer. For instance, the Toyota Prius hybrid from the United States reduces tailpipe emissions by up to 90% and green house gas emissions by around 50% (Hilgenkamp, 2005, p. 122). Scholarly research clearly depicts that the hybrid automobiles burn far less gas per mile compared to that of convectional cars. In addition, a number of harmful smog pollutants emitted by the hybrid cars are half compared to the traditional gasoline powered automobiles. This, thus, makes the hybrid automobiles more efficient to use. Due to the strong urge of improving mileage especially in the United States, they have encouraged people to use hybrid cars. This has resulted in the production of more and luxurious automobiles, which rely on low amounts of fuel.Low fuel consumption motivates individuals and states to poses automobiles. Petite MPG (miles per gallon) improvements on incompetent automobiles saves a large amount of fuel over a given remoteness of driving since the greater the MPG, the lower the amount of carbon dioxide produced when traveling a fixed number of miles. A clear example is portrayed by the Nissan Altima hybrid, which gets 35 mpg in the city and 23 mpg on the highway whereas the convectional car gets 33 mpg in the city and 32 mpg on the highway. Ultimately, th e MPG of a hybrid car is higher due to consumption of low fuel amounts as compared to the MPG of a convectional car, which is low due to high fuel consumption resulting to subsequent high carbon dioxide emissions (Stellet et. Al, 2011, p. 3). Arguably, hybrid automobiles consume less amounts of fuel thus reducing the need of foreign oil. The technology being outdated by the introduction of hybrid automobiles is known for high fuel consumption. In fact, statistic collected by U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA)

Sex Education In Public Schools Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Sex Education In Public Schools - Essay Example As much as proponents argue for it stating some benefits, its drawbacks overshadow them in the long run. One of the reasons why sex education should not be taught in public schools lies in the fact that the topic is not taken seriously by both the students and teachers. The whole affair runs through like a leisure teaching and learning experience. One proof of this lies in the lack of exams after its classes (Dogra, 2010). Where the students are not to be awarded grades raises concerns as many will not work hard to understand. This then beats its purpose while related to other courses like mathematics or science. Just as any other recreational course, sex education intends to teach just a few who are willing to learn while others spend the time to do other things. Sex education leads to embarrassment of many students and teachers in the classroom. Considering the tender ages at which it is introduced teachers find it uncomfortable to teach the subject (Dogra, 2010). The same applies to students who become overly excited. At some point students mock others who depict signs of puberty e.g. developed breasts, height and so on. This leads to low self esteem to the ridiculed students which may in the long run affect their education and the whole learning experience. A sex education class in most cases fails to serve the purpose of informing. Sex education is rarely given the respect and time offered to other subjects. Most instances it is offered as an interlude while teaching physical education. This also shows that many schools still do not regard it as important and it is a burden to their curriculum. Teachers on the other hand are not adequately trained on how to teach it (Dogra, 2010). Due to its extraordinary scope, there is need for them to incorporate other methods other than normal ones. They end up teaching according to their

Gestalt and His Theory Of Psychology Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2250 words

Gestalt and His Theory Of Psychology - Essay Example The Gestalt effect refers our brain's form creating capability, especially with respect to the visual recognition of figures and whole forms instead of an assortment of lines and curves. Gestalt psychology is most developed in perception and cognition but also has great relevance in studying individual behaviour (Henle 2006). But in observing behaviour errors can crop up due to false notions and deductions when drawing conclusions on scientific data. The most distinctive feature of scientific data is the way they are gathered. For example, if psychologists want to investigate a particular issue, say, to determine the circumstances which people act to help those in distress, or the impact of variable reinforcement schedules on the behavior of lab rats, or whether children imitate aggressive behavior they see on TV, psychologists will construct situations to establish conditions from which data can be generated (Schultz p.5). They may conduct lab experiments, observe behavior under controlled real-world conditions, take surveys, or calculate the statistical correlation between two variables. In using these methods scientists can have a measure of control over the situations or events they choose to study. In turn, those events can be reconstructed or replicated by other scientists at other times and places. Thus, data can be verified later by establishing conditions similar to those of the original study and repeating observations. But much of this data is seen narrowly and not viewed as having associations to other factors. For example, in testing whether children get aggressive after watching violence on TV many researchers fail to consider other factors, such as educational level of the child or the parents' upbringing abilities, or whether the child has problems in school, or consider the fact that certain processed foods when consumed by youngsters can result in uncontrollable behavior. Most scienti fic data do not view the whole, but only the part. Gestalt theory developed by Max Wertheimer resulted from the concrete investigations in psychology, logic, and epistemology. To give a description and make a comparison, we can consider transitioning from the world of everyday events to the world of science. Something as simple as crossing the road, becomes extremely complicated when trying to explain in scientific terms as both psychology of the person and physics are involved. It may not be unusual to assume that while making this transition we shall gain a deeper and more precise understanding of the essentials. The changeover could be seen as progress. But we often find that this turns out not to be the case. Explanations can be difficult to formulate. It is the same in psychology. In this regard also, we find science focused on acquiring a systematic collection of data, yet often excluding through that very activity of acquiring information, precisely that which is most vivid and real in the living phenomena it studies. In Gestalt theory wholes exist, the behavior of which is not determined by their individual elements, but where the part-processes are themselves determined by the intrinsic nature of the whole (Boeree 2000). Gestalt theory endeavors to determine the nature of such wholes and seems particularly fitted

Asda-the company's capital structure starting from 2008 Essay

Asda-the company's capital structure starting from 2008 - Essay Example The cost of debt to a company is therefore relatively less than equity financing. Besides this, debt is considered cheaper by the providers of finance and it attracts tax relief on interest payments. The greater the level of debt, the more will be the financial risk to the shareholder of the company. Hence the return required would be higher. This also helps in establishing the gearing mix of a company. The higher a company is geared, the higher would be the risk involved. There are many factors that contribute towards the availability of different sources of funds {(Goyal et al (2005); Darren (2006)}. Equity financing is raised by issuing equity shares or rights issue, preference shares issued are not considered as equity issue as they carry a fixed percentage that is to be paid to the preference shareholders and hence in substance preference shares have a debt nature attached to them so they are categorized under debt issue. Equity finance is considered a comparatively more risky approach of raising finance than debt financing, it is also considered more costly to raise equity finance than to raise debt finance (Burton et al, 2003). Asda is a UK based supermarket chain which deals in clothing, grocery, children toys and other general products used during normal routine. It is a subsidiary of the American Wal-Mart. Asda initiated its business involving Dairy products and later went on to diversify its business. It has been always renowned for its great marketing strategies. It was taken over by Wal-Mart as a subsidiary in 1999. Asda is considered as the second largest retail chain business after TESCO in the United Kingdom. Later in 2009, Wal-Mart made a deal to sell Asda to Corinth Services Limited for an amount of  £6.9 million. Since that deal Asda is a subsidiary of Corinth Services Limited (Telegraph.co.uk, 2010). Gearing is one major issue which has a critical effect onto the capital structure of a

Physician Payment Reform Essay Example for Free

Physician Payment Reform Essay 1. The three goals of the Physician Payment Reform is to decrease medicare expenditures by promoting preventative care and preventing unnecessary hospital stays. The next goal is to Re-distribute physicians payments more equitably by ensuring that physicians receive a fair payment for services rendered. The last goal is to ensure quality health care at a reasonable rate. 2. Modifier -25 would be the appropriate choice, it is a separately indentifiable service that was provided by the same physician on the same day. 3. Medicare pays physicians for services based on three basic compnents called relative value units. The first is Physician work which is the time, skill, and training it takes to provide a particular service. The next is practice expense which is everything that goes into running a practice, like equipment, rent, supplies, etc. The last of these is malpractice, which covers the cost of professional liability expenses. 4. The three types of persons eligible for medicare are the elderly who are age 65 and older. The second are people who are disabled and drawing by social security disability The third are people who are in the stage of renal failure (ESRD). 5. The six basic location methods to find main terms in the index of CPT are; procedure/service, synonym, eponymous, anatomic site, condition of disease, and abbreviations. 6. 99253 is the appropriate E/M code of the initial impatient consultation. The consultation was with a detailed history, a detailed exam, and MDM of low complexity 7. The four elements of history are the chief complaint, the second is the history of present illness. The third is the review of systems, and the final is past, family, and/or social history. 8. The complexity of medical decision making is based off of the number of diagnoses, risk or morbidity (complication or death), and the amount of data (complexity). 9. The appropriate CPT code for this scenario is 99214. The re is a detailed history, a detailed exam, and a MDM of moderate complexity. 10. The three key components that are present in every patient case, (except counseling encounters or time-based codes) are  history, examination and medical decision making. 11. The correct CPT code for this clinic note is 99396. It is a 42-year-old female who is going for a routine physical exam, which is a preventative measure to ensure her health. 12. The appropriate CPT code would be 99341. This case is for a home visit with a problem focused history, a problem focused exam, as well as a straight forward MDM. 13. The four levels of history type are problem focused, expanded problem focused, detailed and comprehensive. 14. The appropriate CPT code is 99281, and the ICD-9 code is 918.1. 15. This scenario has a problem focused history, a problem focused exam and a straight forward MDM (or of low complexity.) Therefore the correct CPT code is 99231. 16. If a patient were discharged from the hospital with a diagnosis of probable myocardial infarction without a history of MI in the past, the coder would use the ICD-9 diagnosis code 410 for this stay. 17. The correct CPT code is 13160, and the correct ICD-9 code is 998.32. 18. The difference between outpatient and inpatient measures of time is that outpatient care is when a patient comes in and receives a medical procedure or treatment and goes home immediately. As where with inpatient care they will receive a medical procedure and stay at the hospital. 19. In this scenario the patient has a fracture of the distal radius, the appropriate CPT code for this is 25600. 20. Four of the five graft types in the musculoskeletal system are bone graft, tissue, fascia, and cartilage. 21. The procedure that was performed in this scenario is on the placement of a halo. The correct CPT code for this scenario is 20661. 22. Since the procedure in this scenario is a left heath catherterization with coronary angiography and left ventriculogra, the correct CPT code for this is 93452. 23. The correct CPT code for the placement only of a dual-chamber pacemaker is 33208. 24. In this scenario the proced ure is for the replacement of a pulse generator in an old pacemaker, the correct CPT code is 33228. 25. The correct CPT diagnosis code is 58558, and the correct ICD-9 code is 621.0. 26. This outpatient clinic scenario is for a bilateral screening mammogram, the correct CPT code is 77057. 27. The correct CPT code for this scenario, an MRI of the brain, is 70552. 28. This scenario is for a dialysis progress note, the correct CPT code is 90947. 29. The correct CPT code for a pulmonary walking stress test is 94620. 30. Physical status modifier P3 indicates a patient with severe systemic disease. 31. The correct CPT code  for a patient who receives anesthesia for revision of total hip arthroplasty is 01215. The physical status modifier would be P2, because the patient has mild systemic disease. 32. The main term in the diagnosis of fractured clavicle is fractured. 33. The main term in the diagnosis of globe adhesions is adhesions. 34. The main term in the diagnosis of urinary retention is retention. 35. The main term in the diagnosis of acute pneumonia is pneumonia. 36. The correct code for personal history of peptic ulcer is V12.71. 37. The correct code for family history of breast cancer (for a), female is V16.3. 38. The correct code for the preoperative evaluation is V72.83, the code for COPD is 496. 39. In this scenario it is for a simple repair of a superficial wound of the nose measuring 5.2cm, the correct CPT code for this is 12014. 40. To correctly code a lesion excision you must first know the size, location, and number of lesions. You must also know if it is malignant or benign to properly code. 41. The appropriate CPT code for an unlisted procedure of the neck or thorax is 21899.

Environmental Issues Facing Future Of European Car Industry Marketing Essay

Environmental Issues Facing Future Of European Car Industry Marketing Essay The European Car industry has been continuously evolving from its early years. The world economic recession leading up to World War II led to strengthening of the uneven automobile manufacturing market, while in the postwar period, improved economic growth, marketing, and an expanding road structures increased sales for auto manufacturers in many developed countries. Design, service, and speed became trademarks of the thriving car producers, as evidenced by the every growing range of car models and the increasing popularity of Formula 1 racing all over Europe. In todays modern society the car industry is beginning to show signs of struggle due to the challenges that the industry faces in the new era. Issues such as congestion, rising oil prices, traffic jams and air pollution are some of the reasons that have forced the car makers to rethink its marketing, its goals, its objectives, and all the other unforeseen consequences. In total car makers produce almost 60 million vehicles every year, and provide employment to millions and millions of people all over the world. Average profits have been on a decrease from 20% or more in its first days of the 1920s to nearly 10% in the 1960s and way less than 5% in this present day. In fact some volume car makers such as Fiat, GM, and Ford all have actually been losing money. EUROPEAN AUTOMOTIVE INDUSTRY The European industry is the worlds largest car manufacturing region and the worlds largest market. In addition to that the industry is considered a leader in the worldwide market, with incorporated operations consisting of design, research, development, production and sales (BERA 2004). The market is made up of a concentrated and refined universal network, which includes different joint-ventures, special productions, many cooperatives, and assembly sites. European car manufacturers have a combined productivity that exceeds that of the United States and Japan; but no one single European manufacturer produces more than its Japanese or United States competitor (BERA 2004). There are more than 20 vehicle producers in Europe, with the largest carmakers producing numerous brands, such as VW, GM, Fiat, DaimlerChrysler, and Peugeot Citroen (McLaughlin, Maloney 1999, p. 193). There are also independent carmakers, such as Porsche, BMW and Baritone (McLaughlin, Maloney 1999, p. 193). The vehicle production of the European automotive industry has shown a great increase over the last 10 years. According to recent studies the largest car manufacturing country in Europe is Germany which is estimated at 30% of regions total production, followed by France at 19%, than Spain at 17% and UK at 10% (BERA 2004). Similar to the other markets in the global car industry trade, European industry has undergone an important restructuring, consolidation and reorganization, which comprises of mergers, such as Chrysler and Daimler-Benz, General Motors acquisition of Saab, BMWs hostile take over and then sale of Rover, Jaguar and Volvos passenger car division are now all under Ford, Volkswagens acquisition of Lamborghini, Bentley, SEAT and Skoda (McLaughlin, Maloney 1999, p. 193). Presently there are many other supply arrangements and co-production efforts amongst the European carmakers and other manufacturers all over the globe. Trends and issues in Europe: Increasing challenges Sustainable development for European Car industry requires sufficient and capable, economically feasible, socially adequate and environmentally sound transport systems (UNDESA 2010, p.1). Urban population is growing rapidly, in particular in the developing countries such as Turkey, Poland, Croatia and Ukraine. By 2050, two-thirds of people will live in mega-cities and other urban areas. Cities in developing countries urgently need better and affordable public urban transport systems (UNDESA 2010, p.2). With increasing income and prosperity many city dwellers aspire to own their own motor vehicles. Rapidly growing use of private motor vehicles and of freight transport, limited space and inadequate infrastructure result in urban traffic congestion, lost time, wasted resources, polluted air and negative health impacts through emissions of sulfur oxide, nitrogen oxide, volatile organic compounds and particulates, including black carbon (UNDESA 2010, p.2). Motorized transport depends almost entirely on oil products for its energy needs. Many developing countries are energy importers. Inefficient use of motor fuel in congested urban transport imposes unnecessary costs on countries, which can contribute to foreign trade imbalances and hamper economic development (UNDESA 2010, p.2). At present, the transport sector is responsible for almost a quarter of greenhouse gas emission from fossil fuel sources worldwide. It is the fastest growing sector with respect to green house gas emissions, yet is has received so far little attention from international climate initiatives and support programmes. For increasing resource productivity in transport, both for passenger and freight transport, a comprehensive approach is required that seeks (UNDESA 2010, p.2): to avoid or reduce transport demand, where possible, to encourage a shift towards less polluting and more efficient transport modes, and to improve and deploy clean transport technologies. EXISTING LITERATURE REVIEWED The automobile sector, is very important in the European economy, but is currently facing a number of problems. The lack of funding creates difficulties for the consumer to finance the purchase of a new car. European markets are also in overcapacity, and the evolution towards an aging and a no car society is predictable on the structural long-term (EJCIC 2009, p.4). To address these issues European Union has adopted a number of policies as well. To finance the sector in the short-term, to elaborate short-term schemes to favour demand, to restructure the sector on the long term, also to finance RD and clean cars, and finally to improve traffic flow and promote efficient use of transportation (EJCIC 2009, p.4). The car industry is one of the main manufacturing sectors in the Europe and remains important in terms of production, wealth and jobs: it produces 15 to 18 million cars a year, about 1/3 of the world production, and employs directly and indirectly 12 million people (EJCIC 2009, p.4). Many suppliers depend on the automobile industry (steel, aluminum, plastic, glass, textile industries, etc.) and its investments in RD benefit also to other sectors (EJCIC 2009, p.4). Once a symbol of social and industrial development, the automotive industry is now facing a multitude of severe challenges: fight against climate change, oil price volatility and the financial and economic crisis that has caused a significant decline in demand and, therefore, jobs (EJCIC 2009, p.11). Automotive industry is considered as a vital sector for growth and competitiveness in the EU, and it figures prominently on the political agendas of the European Commission (EJCIC 2009, p.11). THEORETICAL PERSPECTIVES OF THE INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS ENVIRONMENT AND MARKETING The business environment of the firm or an industry consists of all the external influences that affect its function, decision making and its performance. When given the measureless number and range of external influences, how can companies expect to analyze, let alone monitor, environmental situation? This organizing of information can be done by using some form of system or framework. Environmental influences can be classified by PEST analysis into political, economic, social, and technological factors (Grant 2005, p.68). Also environmental influences can be sorted by the micro-environment or task environment that can be distinguished from the wider influences that form the macro-environment (Grant 2005, p.68). Although systematized and constant scanning of the entire range of external influences is always desirable by most companies in the industry, such extensive environmental analysis is expensive, because it creates an excess of information (Grant 2005, p.68). The condition for efficient environmental analysis is to differentiate the vital information from the information that is less important. To do this, we must look at primary principles of most companies (Grant 2005, p.68). In order for the firm to make profit it must first create value for its customers. Thats why; it must understand its consumers. Second, in creating value, the firm must acquire goods and services from suppliers. Thats why; the firm must have a good understanding of its suppliers with whom they should form good business relationships. Third, the capability to generate income from value creating activity entirely depends on the intensity of rivalry amongst firms that compete for the same value creating opportunities. Thats why, the firm must be aware of competition. Hence, the core of the industrys business environment is formed by the relationships that the firms in the industry have with three sets of players: customers, suppliers, and competitors (Grant 2005, p.68). These make up the industry environment. At the same time one cannot say that macro-level factors are unimportant to environmental analysis. Macro-level factors consist of general changes in demographic structure, economic or social and political trends (Grant 2005, p.68). These factors are also critical determinants of the threats and opportunities companies in the industry will face in the near future. The main concern is how these more general environmental factors affect the firms industry environment. Strategically speaking the threat of global warming, for most industries, will not be an important issue, at least not for next few hundred years (Grant 2005, p.68). However for European car industry, the implications of global warming are a vital issue because of restrictions on burning fossil fuel and rising taxes on oil. To analyze the strategic implications of global warming, the automobile manufacturers need to trace its implications for the industry environment (Grant 2005, p.69): What will be the impact on demand, will consumers favor more fuel-efficient cars or will there be a shift from gasoline-powered to electrically powered vehicles? Will there be substitution of public transportation for private transportation? Will there be new entry by manufacturers of electric vehicles into the car industry? Will the heavy RD costs associated with adapting cars to the new environmental challenge cause the industry to consolidate? P.E.S.T. A technique thats used to identify, assess and evaluate external factors affecting the performance of firm in the industry is known as PEST analysis (Gregory 2004 p.49). PEST analysis is done to help an organisation gain knowledge and understanding of the broader business environment and may be carried out as part of a continuous process of environmental scanning (Campbell, Stonehouse Houston 2002, p.118). PEST analysis may be used to evaluate firms expansion into a new market or to evaluate the feasibility of a new product or service (Campbell, Stonehouse Houston 2002, p.118). There are a large number of factors that may be included into PEST analysis, few of which are outlined below. Political factors Political and legal factors play a critical role on the development of any industry. Political and legal factors shape the rules of rivalry, supply chain requirements and operational costs (Jones 2010). International instability has led to an increase of oil prices that has created a sturdy trend towards smaller engines, hybrid engines as well as lighter diesel engines (Jones 2010). Present high level of oil prices has damaged the sales of larger engine-sized cars that are more then two litres in capacity, most of which are luxury and premium vehicles. There are also various quality controls and operation requirements for safety standards and emission levels that have a negative impact on the costs of production which in turn reduce the operating profit margin of companies (Jones 2010). A new legislation for car parking has been implemented in various European countries due to the threat of high congestion with the extreme traffic load of road networks. The foreign ownership regulations also form a part of political and legal factors. Currently the UK, France and Spain are considered as one of the most FDI welcoming countries in Europe. Automotive industry is being deregulated, which means that foreign car makers have a flexibility of choosing between various entries into the market and expansion modes in doing business with European companies (Jones 2010). The political relations between countries of operations imply certain benefits in a form of reduced tariff and non-tariff barriers, for example India and Japan work together with the UK within the regime of favorability (Jones 2010). Economic factors The countrys present and future demand situation is one of the most important determinants of location, because demand influences operations margin, the pricing strategy of the product, potential growth of the market, and the potential of return on investment (Jones 2010). Since early 2000s the target market size in Europe has experienced steady growth by size and value. There has been growth in size as every day current car parking capacity is being increased. The steady increase of average price level of parking contributed to the growth of market value (Jones 2010). European market is viewed as extremely mature. The present maturity has led to the overcapacity issue and an evident drop in sales of particular car segments. In general due to the maturity issue the market is experiencing negative growth. Even so, there is still an enormous significant growth potential for the sales of certain car segments due to the impact of technological factor as well as socio-cultural factors (Jones 2010). The strong growth of GDP, personal disposable income and consumer expenditures reveal the soaring level of consumer confidence. But when looking at the purchase of new cars, consumer confidence has fallen a lot. Nowadays consumers in Europe have been very unwilling to take out new debt and instead been choosing to service their existing debt. Also there has been a decline in the levels of mortgage equity withdrawal, which indicates that European consumers do not seek other funds to buy pricey items like cars (Jones 2010). The current strong position of Euro against other currencies has created many benefits for manufacturers consumers operating in Euro zone such as certainty of operations and reduced currency fluctuation risk. When highlighting the outlook of the automakers industry, it is evident that one of the key concerns with establishing and maintaining the competitive advantage is the cost factor, to be more specific, it is the ability of the firm to manage its direct and indirect costs (Jones 2010). Furthermore, when a decision has to be made with regard to the location of operations and the establishments of factories, industry specialists say that the key determinant here is labour-specific costs. A major emphasis is being put on the labour-specific cost saving (Jones 2010). According to the survey, more than 85% of industry specialists agreed that not only in Europe but all over the world, in the next coming five years there will be a very big increase in labour specific costs, such as legal services, cost of pensions and medical benefits for the employees (Jones 2010). According to predictions as the target market for car makers, the attractiveness of Europe will stay high (Jones 2010). The reason why European region will remain attractive for car makers is the potential increase of its market size and value, due to the expansion of the European Union and their strong currency. There are however suggestions that the share of markets in Europe will drop, because of the present maturity of the market, excessive competition and the demand trend. Social factors Whenever social factors are discussed the key factor that always comes to mind is a demographic factor, because it involves the lifestyle, the trend and the spending power of the consumer. The type of risk aversive behavior and value per customer all fall under a demographic factor (Jones 2010). The use of particular type of products and its projections can be determined by looking at the status of demographic trends. For example, the sales of family cars have been damaged by the current European demographics. The changes of routines, lifestyles and habits have a direct impact on the consumer spending. For instance, there has been a recent increase in preferences for secondhand car ownership instead of brand new vehicles. Additionally, the impact of trend factors such as fashion ability and luxury preferences can be so strong that it can remove and neglect the negative effects of oil prices and maturity of the market in some car segments (Jones 2010). Thats why, despite the predictio ns, luxury cars and many SUVs can experience strong growth, while the sales in other car segments experience dramatic fall. Technological factors New transactional capabilities are now open with the current development of Internet. Continuous development and growth of technological solutions, particularly in the area of digital technologies and communication create fresh operating opportunities such as innovative marketing mix channels, latest market research tools along with new purchase environment known as e-commerce (Jones 2010). To counter the problem of overcapacity, a number of leading car distributors make use of e-commerce. There e-exchange channels linking supply chain agents have undergone major improvements and have become the source of strategic advantage since it creates the aptitude of better value chain quality control and faster market response (Jones 2010). Porters Five Forces of Competition Framework When it comes down to it, there are many tools that can determine the level of profitability and the amount of competition in an industry. A helpful, commonly used framework for analyzing and categorizing these factors is the one developed by Michael Porter of Harvard Business School (Grant 2005, p.73). Porters Five Forces of Competition framework analyzes the profitability and the fertility of an industry, as indicated by its rate of return on capital relative to its cost of capital, as determined by five forces of competition (Grant 2005, p.73). These five sources of competitive pressure fall under either horizontal or vertical competition. Three sources make up horizontal competition namely: competition from new entrants, competition from substitute products or services, and competition from established rivals. And two sources make up vertical competition namely: the bargaining power of buyers and the bargaining power of suppliers (Grant 2005, p.73) Competition from Established Rivals The European automotive market is highly collective. The main rivalry involves Ford, General Motors, Volkswagen, Renault, Peugeot, BMW, Citroen, Honda and Toyota. There is a threat of intense price wars and a strong requirement for product differentiation because of this presence of powerful competitors with established brands (Jones 2010). This competitive pressure leads to an increase in promotional costs; and overcapacity introduces a significant price pressure. The current market conditions are so intense, that some manufacturers had no choice but to close certain plants to slash the costs and stay alive on the market. There are three major competitive strategies that firms use to survive; the first one is to serve and satisfy the needs of emerging market segments, new product development strategy, and lastly the supply chain improvement strategy (Jones 2010). Any opportunity that might arise requires an immediate operational responsiveness as there always is little space till market opportunity is leveraged by competitors. Bargaining Power of Buyers Because of the increasing overcapacity issue and high intensity of competition on the worldwide scale, European buyers experience very strong bargaining power (Jones 2010). It is said that buyers have a high level of bargain seeking behavior. Competition from Substitutes Apart from straight competitors such as public transport, cars compete with other forms of transport: air, sea, and rail. The ever-increasing importance of door to door transportation as well as environmental concerns has decreased the present threat of other forms of transport as substitutes. The main source of substitute threat comes from the sales of used cars. The steady accumulation of secondhand cars is one of the major reasons for the dramatic fall of the sales of new cars (Jones 2010). Bargaining Power of Suppliers Although carmakers have formed large entities it did not make a noteworthy shift of bargaining power in relations between original equipment manufacturers and the suppliers. The consolidation in the original equipment manufacturers sector has generated the equivalent consolidation between different groups of suppliers (Jones 2010). In the light of the overcapacity issue, demand chain partners and especially large car dealers do experience large bargaining power. Competition from entrants There is a high level of entry barriers when an industry is extremely consolidated and there is a well-developed value-added chain, RD and marketing capability. All of these minimize the threat of new entrants. However, due to global nature of the automotive industry the idea of new entrant is not that straightforward, since existing companies may enter new geographical markets. For example there is a huge potential for Chinese manufacturers to flood European markets in case safety measures and protectionist laws are not introduced by European countries (Jones 2010). Attractiveness of the industry for Foreign Direct Investments The value of Foreign Direct Investments (FDI) per annum or per capita is one of the most common indices used to compare the attractiveness of countries (Maksymiuk 2006, p.4). The attractiveness of any country for FDI consists of many factors (which are valid also for sectors): low transaction costs, low risks for investment, a developed capital market, assured property rights, high expenditure in research and development, a highly developed infrastructure, a liberal economy, a lack of barriers for the entrance or exit from the market, a high quality of institutions supporting entrepreneurship and innovations, low taxes for employees, highly qualified specialists, a big domestic market, positive perspectives for the development of the country and political and social stability (Maksymiuk 2006, p.4). The attractiveness of the automotive industry can be increased by additional factors: the number of automotive suppliers qualified by quality management systems, the close proximity of car manufacturers, and the access to raw materials, a good climate guaranteed by government, operational clusters and co-operation between the industry and universities as well as RD institutions and consulting companies (Maksymiuk 2006, p.4). Information technologies are essential in all phases of development of the product, through manufacturing, logistics, purchasing and up to sales and after-sale services (Maksymiuk 2006, p.18). IT reduces the period of implementation of solutions and the costs of implementation. It supports the transfer of data around the world and makes it easier for transnational corporations to develop their products in a country that offers the most favorable conditions for FDI. IT is also one of the first tools which helps during mergers and acquisitions. The automotive industry could face some issues in the future. There could be a fall in the popularity of cars because of increases in car prices, increases in maintenance costs, and the appearance of substitutes for the car (Maksymiuk 2006, p.19). Another threat for the automotive industry could be triggered by an increase in transaction costs. It would be rather difficult to find such a situation in all automotive regions in the world, however decline in one of the regions (e.g. nationalization or a change of law against FDI in a big country) would bring higher losses and an extension of profits from investments in the longer term Many companies could be stopped because of a lack of components. Europe (especially the countries that have recently joined the European Union), with its strengths and opportunities reduces the risk of losses and is an attractive place for future investors (Maksymiuk 2006, p.19). SUMMARY AND CONCLUSION Out of all the main manufacturing car industries in the world (Japan and US), the European is the largest and the most competitive. European automotive industry is a complex one and at the same time very diverse. It is basically dominated by German manufacturers. Although there has been a rise in sales and manufacturing from France, Spain and UK, German car makers still dominate the market. The market is also further divided by manufacturers that produce mass volumes of cars, than the manufacturers that focus on specializations and finally those that target niche markets and only cater to those specific customers. I say that the car industry is a complex one, because the state of industry affects many markets that are related to it, such as car parts, accessories, fuels and many more. Another reason why the industry is complex is that there are changing regulations of the car production, such as issues of global warming, safety and reliability. Also, companies must continuously consi der political, environmental and technological concerns in order to succeed. However despite the complexity of the environment of the automotive industry, European car industry has many favorable business and environmental factors such as the future growth potential within Europe, also there is an economic stability, positive growth of certain car market segments and finally theres relatively medium entry barriers which makes it an excellent place for FDI investors.

Sociological Methods Of Research

Sociological Methods Of Research Sociology studies the social structures and influences society has on people, their experiences and interpretations of the world around them. Sociology provides information on how human societies are constructed, where our belief system may stem from, our daily routines and how social identities are formed. This essay will cover a small fraction of sociology; Quantitative and Qualitative methodology, its advantages and limitations. What will also be covered is quantitative approach to suicide by Emile Durkheim (1897) and his critic, J.D Douglas qualitative approach to suicide. (Tutor2U 2010) Emile Durkheim (1938) advocated Comtes methodology and agreed that social factors should be studied rather than what goes on internally; his rule was to consider social facts as things, he believed social facts make individuals behave in a certain ways (Haralambous). Sociologists use different methodologies to reach their conclusion; ways of producing and analyzing data so the theories can be tested which are then accepted or rejected. Durkheim adopted the methods of natural science by applying the use of quantitative methods in his suicide study. There are two ways in conducting a research, primary and secondary research. Primary research is where sociologist has to start from scratch as there is no data available, for it to be taken from. In order to do this the researcher needs to design they method of collecting data and analyze the results. Primary research is only validated if the research gives true measurement, descriptions or explanation of what was being studied. Unfortunately there is a likely hood that these finding may not be actually explain peoples everyday settings or actions. (Haralambous p815-16) Secondary research is data that has already been produced by a previous researcher(s); Organizations such as companies, charities, trade unions are useful sources of data as well as documents such as letters, autobiographies and dairies. Secondary research may not be specific enough for researchers needs which in that case means they may have to look at more than one source to come to a conclusion and not only that but more than necessary time is taken up, also information given by the secondary data are sometimes questionable which is why the research has to be aware of this disadvantage (Haralambous 838-9) Quantitative research, in sociology, contains measurements of variables within society; people and groups. In order to get peoples opinions, a survey may be carried out; fieldwork, experiments or documentary research. When these methods are carried out, the researchers are usually avoiding being biased. In order to be unbiased as possible questions that are asked in a closed question form, so the participants replies are very limited or generalised observations are then conducted. Researchers who carrying out quantitative research do not want to get distracted from the intent of the research; they know exactly what they are looking for so their researches are controlled, with closed questions or only statistical information (McGuigan 2010). Alternatively, qualitative research, in sociology, attempts to gather more in depth understanding of individuals or groups actions in the context of social life (Giddens 2009). There usually is no scientific evidence and if there is, its very little evidence. When using qualitative methods of research the investigator is more interested in deeper truths; they prefer to observe things in their natural settings, make sense of things and interpret the information gained; in order to gain information they may interview people or observe them in non artificial settings. Qualitative is more theoretical rather than statistical. Information gained explores deeper into their interest and then data is collected by either observing or interviewing and from the data gain helps generate a hypothesis. Qualitative research digs deeper into reasons of why people may act the way they do. A survey is a method used by researchers to gather information from a sample of individuals whether its from a certain gender, age, race etc where the researchers interest is at and changes depending on the purpose of the study. These samples of individuals are questioned on their information that will help the sociologist conclude, questions can be very much closed questions or open, they are sent out to participants or administered directly; surveys can have a variety of purposes and questions are asked in standardized procedures so the same questions are asked; Surveys help obtain a composite profile of the population. In all reputable survey organizations, organisers should present their results anonymously (Scheuren). Surveys are an advantage for generalizing a big group by getting smaller groups to answer the questions once there is an efficient amount of results. Unfortunately there is a risk of answers to the questions being answered falsely, may not actually reflect their tr ue feelings or may even seem superficial. Surveys can be used to either get quantitative or qualitative data, solely relies on the wording of the question, whether its a open question or a closed question. Field work is when the investigator hangs out, works or lives with a group, organization or community and lives the realism of the environment by taking direct part in their activities; in other words real world experience. Investigators who take part in this are likely to have a better understanding of those who actually are a part of what they are investigating. This method is more likely to be used to have a qualitative outcome. There are two types of experiments, one being laboratory and the other being field experiment. Experiments are used to test the hypothesis and the relationships between the two variables are tested. It is conducted in a controlled environment where the variables are isolated and the correlation between things can be discovered. In sociology laboratory experiments are barely used as they believed variables cannot be controlled, the environment people are put in are artificial which will lead to the actions of people being artificial too and they do not believe its right to put laboratories just to measure the effect of variables. Field experiments have been proved to be more used and affective in sociology as they are conducted in normal everyday situations and environments; variables cannot be controlled. Although field experiments arent conducted in laboratory they are still not exact but are more valid than lab experiments as the actions from the people are real; less artificial. B ut if people are aware that they are taking part in a experiment their actions can become artificial, for an example workers may work harder in normal conditions because they know they are being observed. Emile Durkheim (1897) did a socially confusing study on suicide based on the hypothesis; as the individuals social unity decreased it was found there was an increase of suicide rates. Durkheim (1897) did not believe that reasoning for suicide was an individual act, he believed suicide was a social fact that can be proved by other social facts; the larger social forces can account for social facts. Durkheim (1897) employed quantitative research to his study of suicide, to make it have a scientific backbone as he believed it to be more rich and valid, by examining the official suicide statistics in France; these official statistics were secondary sources produced by the government. He believed that patterns of suicide were linked to the way which individuals were integrated and regulated by society and how they controlled them, he identified there were four types of suicide, and he generalized these four types of suicide to everyone; the four were Egoistic, Anomic, Altruistic and Fatal istic suicide. Egoistic suicide is when an individual is isolated or their ties to a group is broken or weakened; Catholics and Protestants. Anomic suicide is when an individual feels his life has a lack of meaning and feels as they are worthless, this can be a result of a divorce. Altruistic suicide is when an individual values others more for an example a mother who pushes their child out the way of a oncoming car and hurts herself or a suicide bomber. Fatalistic suicide is when an individual feels hopeless about their fate or feels excessively restraint for an example an individual may take their own life before the police arrest them to avoid being in a cell for the rest of their life or many years. Egotistic and Anomic are the two most common occurred, of the four. In contrast to Durkheims study of suicide Douglas (1967) is one of the many interpretive sociologists; interpretive approach strongly advocate qualitative data as they believe sociologists should be able to understand and interpret the meanings and motives of actions and quantitative data does not help discover meanings and motives. Interpretative sociologists reject studying social facts as things, they say natural sciences deal with matter and matter does not have a mind which in that case has no consciousness which in that case there is no meaning in behaviour. Interpretive approach acknowledges that people have consciousness, it is believed that people will interpret the meaning of a stimulus and then react to it; meaning is attached to the stimulus. J.D Douglas (1967) conducted his study Social meanings of Suicide, he believed that the official statistics were systematically biased and could have been made up by friends, families, and coroners. He disputed that Durkheim (YEAR) neglected other meanings attached to why an individual may commit suicide, he believed it to be wrong that Durkheim (YEAR) would treat all suicides the same without investigating other reasonings. Douglas was concerned with meanings of suicide and believed there to be different reasons behind a suicide than the four generalisations Durkheim (YEAR) had made. In Douglass (1967) study of social meanings for suicide he believed there to be four different meanings of suicide. Douglas (1967) believed in qualitative research methods to find his answers to why an individual would commit suicide; his methods were conducting case studies, unstructured interviews and diaries, from his investigations he found four types of suicide, the four are Transformation of the s oul, this is where it is used as a way of getting into heaven, transformation of self, this is where the individual would want others to think differently of them, suicide where an individual wants sympathy and suicide where the individual tries to get revenge by leaving the other person feeling guilty.

The Coca-Cola Value Chain Essay -- Value Chain for Coca-Cola

Introduction Coca Cola markets nearly 2,400 beverages products in over 200 geographic locations. As a result development of a superior value system is imperative to their operations. Throughout this paper we will analyze their value system by using Michael Porter's value chain analysis model. In an attempt to paint a current picture of the non-alcoholic beverage industry we will assess the market activity by using mergers, acquisitions and IPOà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢S as our benchmarks to determine if the market is growing or contracting. Value Chain Analysis A value chain is a model used to disaggregate a firm into its strategically relevant value generating activities, in order to evaluate each activity's contribution to the firm's performance (Terms V 2006). Through the analysis of this model we can gain insight as to how a firm creates their competitive advantage and shareholder value. The value chain of the nonalcoholic beverage industry contains five main activities. These include inbound logistics (suppliers), operations, outbound logistics (buyers/ customers), marketing and sales, and service. Inbound Logistics (Suppliers) Some of Coca Colaà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s most notable suppliers include Spherion, Jones Lang LaSalle, IBM, Ogilvy and Mather, IMI Cornelius, and Prudential. These companies provide Coca Cola with materials such as ingredients, packaging and machinery. In order to ensure that these materials are in satisfactory condition, Coca-cola has put certain standards in place which these suppliers must adhere to (The Supplier Guiding Principles). These include: compliance with laws and standards, laws and regulations, freedom of association and collective bargaining, forced and child labor, abuse of labor, discrimination, wages and b... ...com/gst/fullpage.html?res=980CEEDC123AF932A25751C0A9629C8B63 Symbol Technologies, Inc. (2003) Coca Cola FEMSA To Roll Out Symbol Rugged Mobile Computers for Next-Generation R. Retrieved October 25, 2006 from, http://www.symbol.com/news/pressreleases/press_releases_coca-cola_femsa.html Symbol Technologies, Inc. (2006) Coca Cola HBC Improves Sales Productivity by 25 Percent with Symbol Solutions. Retrieved October 24, 2006 from, http://www.scansource.com/symbol/files/CocaCola_CS.pdf Reuters (2006) Beverages (Nonalcoholic): Milestones. Retrieved October 24, 2006 from, http://www.investor.reuters.com/business/KeyDevelopmentsBusInd.aspx?industry=BEVNON&topiccodes=207&target=%2fbusiness%2fbussecindustry%2fbussecindfake%2fbusindmajerdev Yahoo Finance (2006) IPOà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s By Industry. Retrieved October 25, 2006 from, http://biz.yahoo.com/ipo/indg_m.html

Nuclear Energy Essay example -- essays research papers

Nuclear Energy   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Nuclear energy-This is energy that binds together components of an atomic nucleus. This is made by the process of nuclear fission. Nuclear fission is produced when an atomic atom is split. The way nuclear pore is made is in a nuclear reactor, this is most likely located in a nuclear power plant. the fission that is produced is when a heavy element splits in half or is halved into two smaller nuclei, the power of the fission is located by the rate of the splitting of the nuclei at once which causes watts of electricity to be forced into the energy type.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Energy that is released by the nuclear fission matches almost completely to that of the properties of kinetic fission particles, only that the properties of the nuclear energies nucleus are radioactive. These radioactive nucleuses can be contained and used as fuel for the power. Most of this power is fueled by uranium isotopes. These isotopes are highly radioactive. The isotope catches the fast moving neutrons created by the splitting atoms, it repels the slower moving protons and electrons, then gathers the neutrons and pulls them inward. While all these atoms are flying about they smash together then split many of many times, this is when the reactor grabs and pulls in the frictional energy to be processed into electrical watts.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  This usually causes heat or thermal energy, this must be removed by some kind of a coolant. Most power plants use water or another type of liquid based formula. these coolants are always base related, never acidic. Very few use gas related coolants in there reactors, these are known as thermal reactor based power plants. Another nuclear reactor type is a type that runs off of uranium oxide, the uranium oxide is a gas form of the solid uranium. These fuels which cause the radioactive particles usually are always highly radioactive themselves. Because of this all the power plants take high safety standards and use special shields to prevent leakage. Usually the leakage can cause nuclear contamination. This means they must take high safety standards.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  After nuclear fission has occurred many of the thermal neutrons are moving at thermal neutrons are moving at thermal velocities which are harder to be absorbed, so they rely on constructional details. Usu... ...afety was renewed following an accident at a facility in the Soviet Union in April 1986. The Chernobyl nuclear power plant, which is located 80 miles northwest of Kiev in Ukraine suffered a castrophic meltdown of its nuclear fuel. A radioactive cloud spread from the plant over most of Europe, this contaminated a very large amount of crops, and livestock. Lesser amounts of this radiation showed up.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  These are some reasons why people and the community are very cautious against nuclear power, I hope that this report can better inform people on this issue, even though nuclear energy is the cleanest, and supposedly the safest I still lay undecided. Here are some pictures on the topic.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Nuclear energy-This is energy that binds together components of an atomic nucleus. This is made by the process of nuclear fission. Nuclear fission is produced when an atomic atom is split. The way nuclear pore is made is in a nuclear reactor, this is most likely located in a nuclear power plant. the fission that is produced is when a heavy element splits in half or is halved into two smaller nuclei, the power of the fission is located by the rate.

Alcoholism among Victorians Essay -- Victorian Era

Alcoholism among Victorians Wrayburn: â€Å"It will be necessary, I think, to wind up Mr. Dolls, before anything to any mortal purpose can be got out of him. Brandy, Mr. Dolls, or - ?† Mr. Dolls: â€Å"Threepenn’orth Rum.† --Our Mutual Friend by Charles Dickens Throughout Victorian society â€Å"gin was the preferred spirit of the lower class, while wine and brandy were imbibed by the more comfortable citizenry† (Alcoholic Beverages 12). During the nineteenth century, the Victorians had high expectations of their class system to make sure the classes were distinct and properly represented. They â€Å"valued controlled, propitious behavior† and would tolerate nothing less (Harding Victorians and Alcohol). There was a â€Å"cultural value placed on teetotaling,† total abstinence from alcoholic drinks, but despite this value â€Å"alcohol consumption became a popular pastime† (Harding Victorians and Alcohol). Behavior such as drunkenness was strongly disapproved of because of its association with the lower class. Alcoholism: Representation of the Working Class It was widely known that â€Å"drunkenness, and the related loss of self-control, was associated with the lower classes† and therefore had negative connotations (Harding Victorians and Alcohol). Spirits, a popular hard liquor, â€Å"had become the everyday drink for less wealthy people† and â€Å"laborers commonly used spirits to flee from their desolate everyday lives† (Harding Victorians and Alcohol). The awful working and living conditions of the working class contributed to their â€Å"hard, controlled, and monotonous life, [leading] to excessive drinking of hard liquor† (Harding Victorians and Alcohol). This excessive drinking would sometimes result in public intoxication which was â€Å"regarded as anti-s... ...ss, Inc. 1996. 12. Distad, Merrill N. â€Å"Food and Diet.† Victorian Britain: An Encyclopedia. New York: Garland Publishing, Inc. 1988. 304-307. Garwood, John. â€Å"Religious and moral Character of the Pensioners, and Provisions made for their Instruction.† Social Investigation/Journalism – The Million-Peopled City. (1853): 94-96. 11 Mar. 2005 Harding, Stephen. â€Å"Alcohol.† Victorians’ Secrets. â€Å"Absinthe and Victorians.† Victorians’ Secrets. 2000. University of Texas at Arlington. 24 Feb. 2005. Kent, Christopher A. â€Å"Drink.† Twentieth-Century Britain: An Encyclopedia. New York: Garland Publishing, Inc., 1995. 239-240. Murdock, Catherine Gilbert. Domesticating Drink: Women, Men, and Alcohol in America, 1870-1940 . Baltimore, MD: Johns Hopkins University Press, 1998.

Is Lady Macbeth More Ambitious Than Macbeth Essay

Lady Macbeth has more ambition than Macbeth. When Lady Macbeth has received the letter from her husband, Macbeth, telling her about the three witches’ prophecies and the future king Macbeth, she decides to make it come true immediately. Macbeth who is loyal man and unwilled at first, but unfortunately gets convinced by Lady Macbeth. Lady Macbeth is cold-blooded person as she thinks to regicide Duncan right after reading Macbeth’s letter. In the other hand, Macbeth is a brave soldier, a powerful man and also shows great loyalty. â€Å"I dare do all that may become a man; who dares do more is none,† meaning that it is the power to put responsibility before selfishness. It tells us that Macbeth is too generous to kill King Duncan without good enough reason. He is born loyal. However Lady Macbeth convinced Macbeth to commit a dark act. He became indecisive and confused which eventually lead him to murder Duncan. Lady Macbeth would do anything to fulfil her ambition where Macbeth has ambition but he is indecisive and afraid of the consequence that will come after murder of Duncan. She is stubborn because she encourages Macbeth to regicide. When Macbeth backs out, refusing to kill Duncan, Lady Macbeth accuses Macbeth for being a coward. She also says he is not a man if he doesn’t murder Duncan. Lady Macbeth assures him that they won’t fail if they have courage. Definitely this is not exactly true and never right. This shows Lady Macbeth is desperate to fulfil her needs. Macbeth is the one who kills King Duncan and he is the one who goes mad over his ambition. Macbeth is the one who decides to murder everyone who he thinks it will be a threat in the future. It is clearly not Macbeth’s fault that made him mad over power. The three witches are responsible as well but Lady Macbeth is the reason that made Macbeth chooses to decide Duncan and fulfil his needs. The fact that Macbeth was unwilling to murder King Duncan showed us that he has the ambition but knows what is right or wrong. He was brave, smart and showed real loyalty in the beginning of the act and at the end where he regrets all his actions. And later in the act, Macbeth wishes that Lady Macbeth was still alive so he could blame her for all the actions. Lady Macbeth’s ambition is almost opposite to Macbeth’s. She is the type of person who is willing to achieve anything to fulfil her ambition. Lady Macbeth is the one who made all situations possible and it shows us that Lady Macbeth clearly has more ambition than Macbeth.

Muslims and Science

THEME OF adjudicate Please read the short give Moslems and eruditionby Pervaiz Hoodhbhoy. Provide your debates on the profound argument of this book. Building on your familiarity from Bronowski and Sagan, what were the life-sustaining characteristics that al low ge atomic number 18d westsideern civilization to exceed Moslem civilization in the suppuration of acquirement in the modern conclusion? Moslems and cognizance By Zara Abbas(11020043) Perspective always since the advent of Islam in 7th Century, the Islamic civilization rapidly rose to the headspring of human achievement.Remarkable progress was do non simply in the sacrificele of intelligences and physiciantrine i. e. mathematics, astrology, astronomy, favourics, cartography, medicinal drug, anthropology, logic and lit geological erature except they too became the dominant military and economic index finger of the universe of discourse by the 13th Century. These accomplishments were do p ossible by a subprogram of underlying situationors prevailing at that magazine in Moslem history.The significant ones organism the territorial and commercial expansion of Muslim influence to a colossal domain of a function where a treasure trove of Greek, Persian and Roman works in science, medicine and philosophy was made available to their gifteds to shape up upon Patronage and encouragement was given to Muslim scholars by the ruling elect(ip) of that time, s incessantlyal(prenominal) universities were built in the Muslim lands and a tint of freedom for questioning seek across the spectral divide was created and encouraged.But then, owe to a raging and endless troth amid the forces of logic and reason and those of hard religious fundamentalism, Muslim light bewildered its appeal and eventually disappeargond into near oblivion. Resultantly, the close of patronage of those seeking companionship and the hobby of virtue in the fields of sciences and the arts ex cessively died. The Muslim reality today, comprising 57 countries and 1. 57 billion peck which is well-nigh one fifth of the solid ground universe of discourse has made no significant begetteration to science or offered anything substantial towards technology1 during the nett 500 years.It establishment in a state of rational stagnation age its inept and corrupt leaders pattern without any vision or foresight. budgetary equatingcelings for sciences and common didactics in some Islamic countries are low resultant roleing in their dependence on the due west for excerption in vital areas of human activity. Their collective wealth of human capital and vast preserve of natural resources are be wasted on non- didactics expenditures. The continuing unit of ammunition of regressive policy formulation has perpetuated p overty, battle and inst top executive in most Muslim countries.This deliberate neglect has non only created frustration and despondency amongst the Muslim callownessfulness plainly has as well as provided s footfall to the Jewish-Orthodox religious forces to breed a chummy rooted hatred for the Christian West being a convenient scapegoat. In the context of Pakistan and its functional geo-political surround we ferret out ourselves trapped in a weighty internal conflict, socio-economic insecurity, political instability and institutional collapse which pass retarded the pace of complaisant progress. This bleak scenario provides enough motive to dejected members of the companionship to join immoderate elements for their egotism actualization.When the sad rule out of Muslims began afterward some 5 centimeuries of creative activity domination, the West started overtaking them in every field of human enterprise ranging from gist of warfare, industry, economics, teaching method, cheek and culture. This ascendency of European nations is attributed to the collapse of feudal economy, delegation of the church serv ice from socio-political dominance to specified religious preaching, emergence of capitalistic economy, development of a layman and keen-sighted plan of attack towards scientific and social education2 and lastly the cultivatable cum commercial usefulness of science and technology for the human race.Unfortunately, the gap betwixt both civilizations in the domain of scientific research and techno tenacious advancement has steadily widened during the last 400 years. It is in that locationfore domineering upon the Islamic origination to issuance forceful but pragmatic measures to stem the feed some early(a)wise we are headed towards an impending disaster. This is on the nose the Central Argument of Dr. Parvez Hoodbhoys make Muslims and cognizance unearthly Orthodoxy and the press for reason.Although a nuclear physicist by profession, Dr Hoodbhoy has shown rum insight into a subject of schoolman specialization and contemporaneous importance and has produced a tim ely and dispassionate analysis of the causes of pin of the Muslim introduction in the fields of sciences after remaining in the principal for centuries. His persuasive and lucid style of argument, which at times seems rather offensive for classifiable Pakistani (i. e.Muslim) sensibilities, takes the reader finished the stainless spectrum of factors affecting the Muslim loss of world leadership and retreat from modernity. Simultaneously, he overly high fairylikes the special characteristics of the westbound nations that propel lead them towards human excellence and accomplishment non only in sciences but also in societal activity. Finally, he also suggests some structural and sensible measures to progressively take the Muslims onto the travel guidebook of modernity and scientific enterprise in harmony with our Islamic ethos. AimThe aim of this render is to enunciate my own reflections on the decline of Muslim society after spark advance the world for centuries as against the ascendency of Western powers through their superior human actualization with a view to proposing a realistic way forward for the Muslims in firing of the nonions expressed by Hoodbhoy, Bronowski and Sagan. What Ails The Muslim globe Over the past five centuries people in Islamic societies hand tried to come to terms with the reality of their relegation to being the worlds pursual after remaining its leading light for an equally long period in the medieval ages.The crucial but applicable principal of, What went wrong? agitates the minds of Muslim intellectuals and youth alike. But beyond seeking scapegoats the question cadaver unanswered. There seems to be no common agreement and honest recognition of our own failings that conduct to our sad but truehearted decay, particularly so in the arena of scientific development. However, armed with my field of operations of the subject Science and Civilization I shall briefly put forward an intent view of the malaise affl icting the Muslims. 1. Historical Causes of Muslim Decline a.Orthodoxy versus moderateness. The long drawn opposition (801 1406 AD) surrounded by the supporters of Pre destination/Revelation and other Orthodox/Conservative scholars of Sharia, Theology and Islamic juris oversight (represented by Al Ghazali, Ahmad stack away Hanbal, Al Ashari, Ibn e Taymia, Al Maalik) and the Qadarites/Mutazlites (i. e. the proponents of forgive Will, Ethics and Reason represented by Al Kindi, Al Razi, Ibn e Sina, Ibn e Rushd and Ibn e Khaldun)3 eventually lead to the success of the forces of ossified religiosity and swept rational mind away from Islamic intellectualism.Thus the nonwithstanding patronage, prize and support extended to the scholars by the nobility of the times were also move under pressure from the conservatives. Sadly, the separation between the fundamentalists and secular/rational Muslims became complete and exists gutter the present times. Thereafter, no one could tak e for granted combine reason with revelation in Islam. The edifice of Islamic science and intellectual glory was reduced to ruin and could not be rebuilt. b. Non scientific Attitude.As a logical corollary of the aforementioned rigidity of thought amongst the Muslim Orthodoxy, the attitudinal notions required for the nurture and development of sciences did not evolve in the Muslim world after the defeat of rationality. The arrival of dogma and rigidity in Muslim intellectual thought led them to the rejection of prediction, liking, curiosity or the spirit of interrogation and the ordain or urge to escort ones physical environment to human advantage- essential ingredients of scientific knowledge resulting in the death of fictive activity.Likewise, Muslims of the post golden age contagious a widely distributed pretermit of spirit and interest in theoretical instruction of non-homogeneous sciences owing to their insignificant stuff and nonsense reward or utility. They would rather opt for eruditeness of practical knowledge for functional ends instead of maturation a ecumenic atmosphere of discipline where abstract thought and spiritual harbors could be nurtured. 4 This general impassiveness towards academic learning steadily became a societal attitude amongst the Muslim generations which exists even today. c. Muslim educational System.The traditionalistic concept and orientation of education in Muslim societies aims at harmonizing all knowledge with Islamic thought whereby the student remains wedded to his/her Islamic ethos. This develops an attitude of acquiring revealed knowledge being a bode command rather than discovering it through inquisitive and participative mover. The traditional mode of education followed over centuries in the Muslim world led them to nurture the values of rote learning, historical and conceptual continuity,5 self righteousness and rigidity in their psyche.Their subsequent inability to respond and ad practiced to a constantly changing world denied them the pass off to progress and achieve scientific excellence. d. capitalist economy versus Islamic Law. The scientific and industrial variation in Europe transformed a hitherto feudal society into a modern capitalistic culture. This was achieved through the macrocosm of a bourgeois class candid of investments, innovations and structural changes to coordinate the rising means of production and technical progress with the new complex economic challenges.This automatically led to the development of a comprehensive judicial constitution for regulation and dispute closure of the new socio economic realities. 6 As against this the Islamic jurisprudence, being derived from Quranic injunctions and Prophetic traditions, has a repair set of rules and defining principles within which legal expert is to be provided and these laws cannot not be change or modified to suit changing situations. Therefore, capitalist economy could not take root and de velop in its guileless sense in Muslim societies. . sparing Causes. When the colonization of Muslim lands in began in the eighteenth Century, Muslim civilization was urban ground with the city dwellers depending on the regular and assured supply of means of subsistence from the unpolished peasantry. Such supplies would continue even during conditions of shortage or strife with state assistance. Therefore, Muslim economies of that time remained immune from Europes revolutionary advancement.Likewise, Muslim urban centers never developed municipal or embodied institutions meant for stimulation of economic growth through industry and trade. 7 As a result the Muslim economic order of that era could not fence with Europes phenomenal economic growth. f. Means of Warfare. The steady European advancement in the means of warfare (concepts and weaponry) along with the progress made in industry and technology after the 15th Century was also an master(prenominal) factor in causing Europea n victories on the battlefield.By coincidence the Muslims could not soften comparable military muscle/prowess. This inconsistency increased substantially by the 18th Century resulting in the occupation of Muslim territories in North Africa, Spain, Balkans, Russia, India and Iran culminating into the colonization of almost the entire Muslim world by the 19th Century. 8 g. Non Existence of a queen Structure. The power structure of a society determines its dominant attitudes towards scientific enquiry and acquisition of knowledge.In the absence of a central post wielding politico-religious and military power as against the Church in medieval Europe, the Islamic world did not possess the means of practice session control over its territories/subjects and resolving disputes. This entire weakness laid bare the mishap of insurrection by powerful religious factions/sects, seizing control of distant lands by usurpers or mobilization of the majority sect against minority viewpoint on unaffixed religious groups. 9 This was a serious organizational weakness that eventually proved deleterious to the political, economic and intellectual ascendency of the Islamic society. 2. Present State of Muslim Science/ fostering a. Scientific Progress. A young study of the World Bank prognosticates that the note of scientific as well as general education in the Muslim World is rapidly falling stub the rest of the World and shoots imperative attention if it is to cope with the demands of the prox.While some Islamic countries like Pakistan, Saudi Arabia, UAE, Qatar, Malaysia, Iran and Nigeria have drastically increased their respective resource allocations to climb general education and the Sciences, their traditional attitudes towards the education of women, non separation of religious thought from the secular genius of scientific education and reject a scientific culture based upon innovation, quantification and experimental verification remain sturdy to this da te. b. Science in the Productive Sector.Despite a universal recognition of the importance of industrial sector for a nations economic growth, value added production of contemporary Muslim economies is woefully low. Barring Malaysia, the nature of economy of key Muslim countries remains basically agro and mineral extraction. 10 Therefore their hive away economic strength/capacity is relatively lower than other developing economies. This indicates that the science to production ratio is negligible with circumstantial indications of improvement. c. Scientific Output.The overall scientific make of Muslim countries, as indicated by the list of science research papers make together with the citations to them, indicates that we stand alarmingly low in equation with others like India, Brazil, chinaware and USA. Likewise, we find that 46 Muslim countries contributed 1. 17 % of the worlds science literary works as against 1. 66% and 1. 48% individually from India and Spain alone. In terestingly, 20 Arab countries contributed 0. 55% in comparison to 0. 89 % by Israel. Moreover, the scientific price or quality of a fair large issuing of these papers was not only on a lower floor par but some were even plagiarized.A study by academics at the International Islamic University Malaysia showed that OIC countries have 8. 5 scientists, engineers, and technicians per 1000 population, compared with a world average of 40. 7, and 139. 3 for countries of the Organization for economical Co-operation and Development. 11 It is also a known fact that the consequence of Muslim Nobel Laureates is still in single digit in comparison to hundreds from Israel alone. This state of affairs does not figure well for the future of Muslim science. d. Scientific Enterprises.Over the last decade or so Muslim disposals have been steadily increase their S & T budgets with a view to inducing greater scientific activity. The actual average spending of 57 Islamic countries on R & D is 0. 3% of their GNP which remains far below the orbicular average of 2. 4%. 12 Nonetheless, the thither is a perceptible trend of high spending in major Muslim countries. But bigger budgets alone would not arrest the deteriorating standards unless the capacity to spend these monies is also built simultaneously on developing a critical mass of scientists, engineers and technicians in like manner improving their quality and professionalism.Recent surveys also indicate that spending on higher education has increased significantly resulting in a sharp rise in the number of institutions, students and infrastructural improvements. But these centers of learning still lack the qualitative edge that could make them locate amongst the foremost 500 in the world which is not the case at the moment. e. Educational Paradox Pakistans Context. Ever since Pakistans independence no establishment has ever given education any locating in the list of its national priorities.The worldly concern sector e xpenditure on this vital sector has remained abysmally low (i. e. ranging between 2. 16% to 2. 42 % of GDP from 2003-08 but was reduced to a paltry 2% in 2010 budget)13 which compares unfortunately with other southernmost Asian countries. This has left Pakistans literacy range as the lowest in the region (i. e. 57% which is 69% males and 45% females). 14 The poor quality of the learning environment is lucid from the fact that a large number of schools lack basic infrastructure 37. per cent of the schools up to the elementary level dont have boundary walls, 33. 9 per cent lack drinking urine facility, 37 per cent dont have latrines and 60 per cent are without electricity. 15 Owing to the criminal neglect of various successive governments in formulating coherent and sustainable education policies for the people by investment in this vital sector, we have not only ended up losing infrequent generations to the vicissitudes of time but have also denied them the opportunity to im prove their lot through acquisition and development of clevernesss.Apart from this, the general apathy and indifference shown towards education by our rulers has led to the creation of a stratified system of educational prejudice. In that the rich and the elite go to the private English forte schools while the commoner class attends the government run Urdu medium schools. This puts the common citizen at an unfair disadvantage against the well to do child when both aspire and compete for admission into professional institutions. Recommendations In the dustup from Dr. Hoodbhoy borrowed from one of his recent papers, Progress will require behavioral changes.If Muslim societies are to develop technology instead of just using it, the ruthlessly competitive global marketplace will insist on not only high cleverness levels but also intense social work habits. Science can expand among Muslims once again, but only with a willingness to accept certain basic philosophic and attitudinal c hangesi. e. shrug off the dead hand of tradition, reject fatalism and absolute belief in authority, accept the legitimacy of temporal laws, value intellectual rigor and scientific honesty, and respect cultural and personal freedoms.The struggle to conduct in science will have to go side-by-side with a much wider bleed to elbow out rigid orthodoxy and act as in modern thought, arts, philosophy, democracy, and pluralism. Within this plainspoken observation lies an abstract framework of our future plan of action based on common sense and principles of logic and reason. However, we would need to tread this path with farsighted prudence and devise our strategic thinking in harmony with the obtaining socio political realities of the Islamic world.Such an glide slope warrants a judicious and systematic motion but profound application so that the reform process permeates into the Muslim spirit without agitating its impassioned sensibilities. The new poseur of our education philosoph y should recognize and endure that science and religion are antonymous and not contradictory to each other. Therefore, the rewrite concept of scientific education should all the way state that both disciplines are severalize domains which do not overlap and that there can never be a conflict between the two as long as their protagonists do not stoke public passions for self aggrandizement.The other areas where reform is proposed are listed below rebuild the entire concept/ philosophy of general education at the primary / secondhand levels with a view to developing the traits of inquisitiveness, empirical and deductive thought process and the ability to challenge/question precepts and assumptions. Basic education up to Matriculation (or equivalent standard) should be made compulsory for all citizens (both genders) in all Muslim countries. Budgetary allocation for education be brought at par with laid down UNESCO standards. Revitalize the 3rd and post graduate education syst em by improving the infrastructure and facilities, furnish of high quality teaching module and improving the quality/worth of scientific research. Current standards of vocational training for skill development of technicians should be refined, upgraded and rejuvenated to match the current technological advancement. The syllabi of Deeni Madaris (religious schools) should be suitably revamped and harmonize with the current trends in modern education. The existing disparity between the standards of education/syllabi of man and private schools be minimized at priority.BIBLIOGRAPHY Pervez Amirali Hoodbhoy, Muslims & Science spectral Orthodoxy and the Struggle for reasonableness (Vanguard Books , 1991) Bernard Lewis , What Went Wrong? (Perennial harpist Collins 2002) Jacob Bronowski, The rising of Man (1973) Carl Sagan, Cosmos (1980) Pervez Amirali Hoodbhoy, Science and the Islamic World The Quest for balancing , physical science Today deluxe 2007 pg 49 < http//p tonline. aip. org/journals/ doctor/PHTOAD-ft/vol_60/iss_8/49_1. shtml? bypassSSO=1 > Muslim World Education move Behind, Khilafah. Com , 24 Feb 2008 < http//www. khilafah. com/index. hp/the-khilafah/education/2019-muslim-world-education-falling-behind > Dr. Ahmad shafaat, a review of Pervez Hoodbhoy, Islam and Science sacred Orthodoxy and Battle for Rationality November 2002 < http//www. islamicperspectives. com/ReviewPervezHoodbhoy. htm > Khawar Ghumman, lonesome(prenominal) two percent of GDP played out on Education, Dawn. Com, (5 Jun 2010) , < http//www. morn. com/wps/wcm/connect/dawn-content-library/dawn/the-newspaper/front-page/21-only-2pc-of-gdp-spent-on-education-560-sk-09 > 1 Muslim World Education Falling Behind, Khilafah. Com , 24 Feb 2008 < http//www. khilafah. om/index. php/the-khilafah/education/2019-muslim-world-education-falling-behind > 2 Pervez Amirali Hoodbhoy, Muslims & Science sacred Orthodoxy and the Struggle for Rationality (Vangua rd Books ,1991) pg 2 &161. 3Pervez Amirali Hoodbhoy, Muslims & Science unearthly Orthodoxy and the Struggle for Rationality (Vanguard Books ,1991),pg 115 141. 4Pervez Amirali Hoodbhoy, Muslims & Science Religious Orthodoxy and the Struggle for Rationality (Vanguard Books ,1991) pg 145 149. 5 Pervez Amirali Hoodbhoy, Muslims & Science Religious Orthodoxy and the Struggle for Rationality (Vanguard Books ,1991), pg 149 154. 6 Pervez Amirali Hoodbhoy, Muslims & Science Religious Orthodoxy and the Struggle for Rationality (Vanguard Books ,1991), pg 154 156. 7 Pervez Amirali Hoodbhoy, Muslims & Science Religious Orthodoxy and the Struggle for Rationality (Vanguard Books ,1991), pg 157 160. 8 Bernard Lewis , What Went Wrong? (Perennial Harper Collins 2002), pg 18 34. 9Pervez Amirali Hoodbhoy, Muslims & Science Religious Orthodoxy and the Struggle for Rationality (Vanguard Books , 1991), pg 161. 10Pervez Amirali Hoodbhoy, Muslims & Science Religious Orthodoxy and the Struggle for Rationality (Vanguard Books , 1991), pg 34 37. 11 Pervez Amirali Hoodbhoy(2007), Science and the Islamic World The Quest for Rapprochement ,Physics today August 2007 pg 49 < http//ptonline. aip. org/journals/doc/PHTOAD-ft/vol_60/iss_8/49_1. shtml? bypassSSO=1 > 12 Pervez Amirali Hoodbhoy, Science and the Islamic World The Quest for Rapprochement ,Physics Today August 2007 pg 49 < http//ptonline. aip. org/journals/doc/PHTOAD-ft/vol_60/iss_8/49_1. shtml? bypassSSO=1 > 13 Government of Pakistan Ministries of Finance and Education