Christianity vs. Mythology Essay

For many centuries, ancient Greek mythology has played an instrumental role in the development and foundation of all societies. The ancient myths formed through Greek Mythology has given meaning to the world people saw around them and helped answer perplexing questions such as, â€Å"Who made the world? How will it end? Who was the first man? Where do souls go after death?†. In fact, Greek mythology has provided meaning to people and the world around them in the same way Christianity and Judaism does. Greek mythology can relate to Christianity and Judaism such that they all were based off oral tradition, they have helped mankind develop a community that shares a common world view through moral way of life, and they all respond to our quest for wonder, the mystical and the unknown. Nonetheless, it is necessary to try and understand that both Ancient Greeks and Ancient Christians may have held similar beliefs about the world they were living in. In ancient Mythology, although there were no written texts that presented the several myths and stories such as the Christian Bible or the Hebrew Torah, the earliest Greek myths were part of an oral tradition. Ancient Greek myths, in their unknown beginnings, are believed to have been formed and passed on by oral tradition, meaning the myths originated from story-telling. The spread of Greek myths can relate to the early spread of Christianity and Judaism in the respect that the stories in the Bible and the Torah were stories about the sayings and acts of Jesus as told by story tellers long before they were ever recorded into a written text. Greek mythology, Christianity and Judaism are also similar such that they all teach a moral way of life and help mankind share a common world view. Almost all ancient Greek myths were constructed to teach some sort of lesson or moral, for example, in the story of Arachne. In the story, Arachne expressed extreme pride in her weaving skills; in Ancient Greece, having too much pride was considered a very unfavorable quality to acquire. Arachne believed her weaving abilities were far more superior than that of Athena’s, the goddess of weaving, so she challenged her to a weaving contest. In the end, Arachne’s skills did not even compare to Athena’s and Athena turned her into a spider. The story teaches that excessive pride and having a big ego is not considered acceptable if one wants to like a purely moral life. Like Greek mythology, Judaism and Christianity also strive to teach mankind how to live a fulfilling, moral life through the Ten Commandments. The Ten Commandments in Judaism and Christianity are a set of laws that God gave to the people of Israel that represent the main moral code of behavior every person should try to follow in order to live a spiritually pure and moral life. Finally, Greek mythology, Christianity and Judaism are similar because they all attempt to answer our perplexing questions and wonders about the world we live in. For instance, one similarity lies with the stories of creation; The story of Pandora’s Box in Greek mythology and the Book of Genesis in Judaism and Christianity. In the story of Pandora’s Box, Pandora was the first woman created and she was given a box by the Gods that she was told to never open. In the end, her curiosity overcame her, she opened the box and out came all the evils of the world. The story in the Book of Genesis is very similar- God created Adam and Eve and commanded them not to eat the fruit from the forbidden tree. Eventually, a serpent appeared to Eve and convinced her to eat the forbidden fruit. She persuaded her partner, Adam, to eat the fruit also and as a result, sin engulfed the world. The ancient Greeks and early Christians tried to find an explanation for the evil in the world, and both blame a woman for mankind’s downfall.

International Economics Gerber Study Questions Essay

The United States in a Global Economy 1.Outline Introduction Globalization in Perspective The Growth of World Trade Capital and Labor Mobility New Features of the Global Economy New Issues in International Trade and Investment The Role of International Organizations Regional Trade Agreements Trade and Economic Growth Twelve Issues in the International Economy The Gains from Trade Wages, Jobs, and Protection Trade Deficits Regional Trade Agreements The Resolution of Trade Conflicts The Role of International Institutions Exchange Rates and the Macroeconomy Financial Crises and the Global Contagion Capital Flows and the Debt of Developing Countries Crisis and Reform in Latin America Export Led Growth in East Asia The Integration of India and China into the World Economy 2. A Thumbnail Sketch of the Material Covered in Chapter One The re-emergence of international economic integration theme tries to put globalization in perspective. Most features of globalization aren’t new, and international economic integration could be described as re-emerging after a period of disruption during time periods surrounding WWI and WWII. There are three aspects of international economic integration considered: 1.The growth of world trade. World trade has grown over the last sixty or seventy years but is still fairly comparable in percentage terms to what existed 110 years ago. Trade has become a larger share of national economies as measured by the: Index of Openness (Exports Imports)/GDP This index does not tell us about a nation’s trade policies. Nations with higher figures for the index of openness do not necessarily have lower trade barriers. Large economies are less dependent on international trade and often have lower measures of openness than small countries. Figure 1.1 shows the openness index for six nations at different points in time. It shows the drop in trade from 1913 to 1950 and its growth (even above 1913 levels) for most nations by 2000. A trend obscured in the overall trade data is that in 1890 most U.S. trade was in agricultural products and raw materials, while today most is manufactured goods. The relative importance of capital goods has increased dramatically. 2.Capital and labor mobility. Labor is much less mobile internationally now than it was in 1900. For capital, it is somewhat more mobile. There is a difference between financial capital and physical capital. Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) is the flow of capital representing physical assets such as real estate, factories, and businesses. While capital flows to developing countries have increased over recent decades, the level of investment in any country is still correlated with its domestic level of savings, making national savings rates far more important than global capital flows. However, capital flows today are different from earlier periods in three ways. More types of financial instruments exist today, and flows of financial capital are likely much greater. In 1900, the world operated on a fixed exchange rate standard and much of today’s financial market transactions are aimed at protecting against exchange rate risk caused by floating exchange rates. Transactions costs associated with foreign capital flows have also fallen significantly. Volatility in international capital flows, while often a subject of intense attention today, is not new. 3.Movement of prices in different markets. The text does not develop this, but points out that in the late 1800s wheat farmers, meat packers, and fruit growers all produced for a global market where international rather than domestic supply and demand determined prices. News reports today could easily demonstrate this for most commodities. New issues in international trade and investment: Barriers to manufactured goods have fallen significantly as a result of a process that began at the end of WWII. As formal restrictions on imports  have been reduced, domestic policies on issues such as the environment, labor, and fair market conditions have become the barriers to further increases in trade flows. Reducing trade barriers has been the focus of negotiations between nations. Eliminating the traditional barriers to trade, tariffs and quotas, is referred to as shallow integration because it just changes policies â€Å"at the border.† Eliminating domestic policy differences that create trade barriers is much more complicated and is referred to as deep integration. International organizations created at the end of WWII play a key role and are an entirely new element in the international economy. Agreements between nations are not new, but there has been a significant increase in the number of regional trade agreements signed, especially in the 1990s. The formation of these regional trade agreements is controversial for different reasons for both trade opponents and trade proponents. The growth of world trade can potentially lead to a variety of consequences, but generally economists remain committed that the benefits outweigh the costs. This position is supported by the casual empirical evidence of historical experience, evidence supported by models and deductive reasoning, and evidence from statistical comparisons of countries. Open economies grow faster and prosper sooner than more closed ones. 3. What Students Should Know After Reading This Chapter Chapter 1 challenges the belief that the world has embarked on an entirely new and unprecedented era of globalization. Looked at from the long run, it seems clear that the period 1870 to 1914 was an earlier era with similar trends. Those years experienced rapid technological change in the form of railways, steamships, and telegraphs that all came into widespread usage and spanned the oceans; they underwent business and financial sector innovation through the rapid growth in the corporate form of business organization, the invention and spread of demand deposits, and the development of stockmarkets; trade policies were liberalized in many nations; and there were widespread protests against immigration and the global economy. In the United States, the protest movement was centered in populist movements that are reminiscent of some politicians and commentators today. This is not an argument about history repeating itself. Rather, i t is an attempt to get students to think of the period from World War I to the end of World War II as an aberration in the last 150 years of world history. The long run trend is toward  integration, punctuated by protests and nationalistic movements that halt or reverse the trend. When students are asked what they think is new about today’s economy, they inevitably answer: technology. E-mail, faxes, satellite systems, jet aircraft, and less visible forms such as container cargo transportation systems have each made significant contributions to increasing trade flows. It is useful to engage students in a discussion over the marginal impacts of these new technologies versus the marginal effects of steam powered ocean going vessels or trans-Atlantic telegraphy. Telegraphy cut the time it took information to cross the ocean from around three weeks to relatively instantaneously, and reduced the time it took to buy a foreign bond from around three weeks to about one day. It is us eful for students to realize there was a disruption for two reasons. First, much of what has happened over the last 50 years was aimed at fixing something that was broken, not creating a new phenomena. Second, the international institutions that deal with the global economy are new and were created because of some shared recognition that integration was important and helpful and needed to be encouraged. An important sub-theme of the text is the idea of deep versus shallow integration and the institutional process that nations go through to create deeper levels of integration. The chapter also points to some things that are new about today. Important ones for the text will be flexible exchange rates, regional trade agreements, and the changing mix of the types of goods nations produce. Domestic policies will be a key focus when trade barriers and capital flows are considered. Another important issue will be the evolving role of international organizations in negotiating and enforcing changes in domestic policies. 4. Assignment Ideas 1.I like to use the index of openness to contrast the importance of trade to various nations and to drive home the fact that relative value matters. The United States is a huge participant in trade in dollar terms, but it is not as dependent on trade as many other countries. Some countries’ entire economies are dependent on international trade. I find students need some practice calculating and interpreting the index of openness. The data below is from the World Fact Book and is 2006 estimated data in billions of U.S. dollars: Country Exports Imports GDP New Zealand 23.7 B 25.2 B 106 B Bahrain 12.6 B 9 B 17.7 B Brazil 138 B 95.8 B 1,616 B Cambodia 3.3 B 4.5 B 36.78 B Chad 4.34 B 0.823 B 15.26 B Nigeria 59 B 25.1 B 188.5 B 2. As homework very early in the course, I sometimes assign students each a nation, and one of the pieces of information they are to collect is its Index of Openness. I also ask them to find out its currency, current exchange rate with the U.S. dollar, primary exports, imports, major trading partners, and the trade agreements in which it participates. To compare with the U.S. historical data, you might ask them to track the nation’s trade figures over time. While these are basic matters of fact, I find it helps make what we are discussing more concrete. 3.The chapter also lends itself  to students developing some factual knowledge about U.S. trade history. One possibility is to look at U.S. trade policy in various time periods. The U.S. had relatively high tariffs (greater than 40 percent on average) throughout the second half of the nineteenth century. In 1890, Congress passed the McKinley Tariff, followed in 1897 by the Dingley Tariff. Both tariffs raised rates further fro m their already high base. Wilson tried to reduce tariffs but was thwarted by World War I. Rates in the 1920s fell, but the Tariff Act of 1930 (Smoot-Hawley Tariff) raised the rates back up to nearly 45 percent. In the midst of the Great Depression (1934), Roosevelt and his Secretary of State, Dulles, persuaded Congress to pass the Reciprocal Trade Agreement Act. The Act authorized Roosevelt to negotiate bilateral, reciprocal tariff reduction agreements. This piece of legislation marks an historic shift in U.S. tariff policy, away from protectionism and toward more openness. Answers to End-of-Chapter Questions 1.How can globalization and international economic integration be measured? Answer:The chapter offers three ways to measure globalization and economic integration: (1) trade flows; (2) factor movements; and (3) convergence of prices (goods, factors, and assets). 2.In what sense is the U.S. economy more integrated with the world today than it was a century ago? In what ways is it less integrated? Answer:The U.S.’s openness indicator is about sixty percent greater today than it was in 1890 ((25.3 – 15.8)/15.8 ï€ ½ 0.601), or almost one hundred and nine percent greater than in 1910. While this is a very significant increase, it is hardly the revolution in economic relations that many people claim. The sixty percent statistic might be considered misleading, however, in that a much larger share of total goods output is traded (more than thirty percent in 1990 versus less than ten percent in 1950). While we cannot compare the latter statistic to 1890 or 1900, it does appear that there is a clear trend toward a greater role for international commerce. This is consistent with the observation that world trade has been growing faster than world output, at least since 1950. Much of the growth in trade since then, however, simply brought us back to where we were before World War II. In terms of labor flows, the U.S. is probably less integrated with the world economy than it was in 1890 or 1900. At those latter dates we had an open door immigration policy (for all but Chinese citizens), and a larger share of our population was foreign born (fourteen and one half percent in 1890 versus less than eight percent in 1990 and twelve percent today). Capital flows are more difficult to generalize since they can be measured several ways. While the absolute volume of capital flows has increased dramatically, as a share of world GDP it is probably no more than it was at the turn of the century, and it may be less. While the absolute volume of capital flows to developing countries has increased, the level of investment in any country is still highly correlated with its domestic savings rate. What is different, however, is the ease at which capital can cross international boundaries (lower transaction costs) and the much greater variety of assets that are traded. The need to protect against exchange rate risk is a key component of today’s international financial markets and is a primary difference from the fixed exchange rate standard of the past. The incidence of financial crises has not increased and, as a metric of integration, it implies no increase in capital market integration. The growth of regional trade agreements is also an indicator of increased integration. A growing role for international institutions such as the IMF or the World Bank may also indicate an increase in international integration. 3.What is â€Å"openness†? How is it measured? Does a low openness indicator indicate that a country is closed to trade with the outside world? Answer:Openness is a measure of the relative importance of trade to a national economy. It is measured by the ratio of exports plus imports to GDP. A relatively small openness indicator does not necessarily mean that an economy is intentionally closed to the outside world. Large countries like the U.S. or China have big domestic markets that enable firms to specialize and produce in volume in order to attain their optimal scale. Specialization and high volume in manufacturing is often associated with increased productivity, so firms in large markets can achieve the highest possible level of productivity without having to sell to foreign markets. Firms  located in smaller countries have to trade their output across international boundaries if they want to have the same technology and the same level of productivity. Consequently, large countries tend to have lower openness indicators regardless of their trade policies. 4.Describe the pattern over the last century shown by the openness index for leading industrial economies. Answer:The indicators fell between 1913 and 1950, when it begins to rise relatively rapidly. The main caus es of the pattern shown in Figure 1.1 are the two world wars and the Great Depression of the 1930s and changes in trade policy that accompanied that period. In 2000, they are mostly higher than they were before WWI. Another pattern the chapter notes is that the index is smaller for the larger population countries of Japan and the United States, and higher for the Netherlands, with its small population. 5.Trade and capital flows were described and measured in relative terms rather than absolute. Explain the difference. Which term seems more valid, relative or absolute? Why? Answer:Absolute values are the dollar amounts of trade and capital flows. Relative values are the ratio of dollar values to GDP. Relative values are a better indicator of the importance of a variable. Large economies like the U.S. may have large export and import values, but the importance of trade to the national economy is not nearly as great as it is for other economies. The U.S. is the world’s largest e xporter and importer, but the national economy is so large that trade is much less important for the U.S. than it is for many smaller countries such as Canada, Belgium, or the Netherlands. 6.The relative size of international capital flows may not be much greater today than they were 100 years ago, although they are certainly greater than they were 50 years ago. Qualitatively, however, capital flows are different today. Explain. Answer:Major qualitative difference between late nineteenth and late twentieth century capital flows include the fact that there are many more types of financial instruments available now compared to a century ago. These instruments can be finely tailored to the income and risk preferences of investors. Secondly, a large share of the total flow of capital across borders is related to the need to protect against fluctuations in the value of currencies. This use of international capital markets was not as necessary when nations operated within fixed exchange r ate systems. And third, the transaction costs of participating in international capital markets is much lower today than it was a century ago. 7.What are the new issues in international trade and investment? In what sense do they expose national economies to outside influences? Answer:The new issues involve policy differences between nations that until recently were considered the exclusive responsibility of local or national governments. Examples include labor standards, environmental standards, competition or antitrust policies, and industrial support policies. Negotiations between nations potentially give foreign interests a voice in setting domestic policy. The scope and the depth of the negotiations determine how great a voice foreigners will have. It is often the case, however, that negotiations either occur or are proposed because some aspect of domestic policy is perceived by foreigners as a barrier to trade, and they seek to alter the domestic policy that creates it. 8.Describe the three kinds of evidence economists use to support the assertion that open economies grow faster than economies that are closed to the word economy. Answer:These are: (1) casual empirical evidence of historical experience; (2) economic logic and deductive reasoning; and, (3) evidence of statistical comparisons of countries. (1)The historical evidence examines the experiences of countries that tried to isolate themselves from the rest of the world. First, not only did trade protection exacerbate the depression of the 1930s, but it also led to the misery and tragedy of World War II. Second, an examination of countries such as the former West and East Germany, South and North Korea, and other countries with the same historical, economic, and ethnic background that were divided by war, indicate that those who closed their economies from the rest of the world suffered in terms of prosperity and environmental degradation. East Asia experienced an economic take-off when it dec ided to integrate with the rest of the world, while Latin America, which had the same economic background with East Asia but chose to remain partially closed, experienced mediocre growth. (2)The logic of economic theory also suggests a strong causal relation between trade and faster economic growth. The following is a summary of this linkage: Following Adam Smith, David Ricardo proved that comparative advantage leads to trade and this in turn leads to the reallocation of resources and the improvement of the standard of living of any nation, large or small. Modern trade theory also makes the case for exports and open trade as the causes for economic expansion. Exports and open trade foster competition, innovation, and learning-by-doing, and bring international best practices to the attention of domestic producers, spurring greater efficiency and export expansion. This helps domestic producers to realize economies of scale when they attempt to produce for the world market, rather than for their own limited domestic consumers. Larger markets create incentives for firms to engage in research and development, and allow countries to import important production inputs and foreign capital by minimizing the foreign exchange constraints. They facilitate the transfer of technology and managerial skills. It follows that open trade an d exports increase the demand for the country’s output and therefore contribute strongly to positive economic growth. (3)Even though the statistical evidence is not quite conclusive (mainly due to measuring trade policy), the evidence of statistical comparison of countries (cross-sectional time series) indicates that countries benefit from open trade.

Brief Psychoanalysis of A Perfect Day for Bananafish Essay

J. D. Salinger’s A Perfect Day for Bananafish depicts the psychological struggles of Seymour Glass, a veteran of the Second World War. Through Freudian psychoanalysis, the different aspects of the effects of his war-damaged psyche on his ability to perform in society become clear. There are several instances during which it becomes obvious that Seymour’s superego does not function in the same manner as that of the adults around him. It is also evident that his id is the most dominant force for his unusual behavior, but not by the pleasure principle. Rather, it is the childlike innocence that is the facet of his id that is the primary motivation for him to act the way he does. Finally, in the ending, Seymour’s ego comes to the conclusion that it is simply impossible for him to fit into the materialistic society that has come to be. Thus, it can be seen that the war and the society that Seymour returns to after the war play equally important roles in leading up to his suicide. Seymour’s dysfunctional superego becomes evident during Muriel’s conversation with her mother. The mentions of his actions regarding â€Å"The trees. That business with the window. Those horrible things he said to Granny about her plans for passing away. What he did with all those lovely pictures from Bermuda. † all point to various actions that indicate that Seymour’s sense of right and wrong-which is associated with the superego-does not recognize the distinction between things that are socially acceptable and things that are not. Furthermore, it is also implied that this damage to his psychological state stems from the war, which may be a sign of Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD). Of course, PTSD was unheard of during this time period, so Seymour remained untreated for it. This defective superego is then unable to contest the id properly. As a result, Seymour’s id is given partial freedom and so he acts childishly, making things up and pointing things out that are considered foolish. One such example is when he asks Sybil whether â€Å"Whirly Wood, Connecticut is anywhere near Whirly Wood, Connecticut. † In fact, the entirety of his interaction with Sybil is an example of the uncontrolled id. Along with his invented bananafish, this serves to illustrate that his innocence is the primary reason for how he acts. However, this leads to an irreconcilable difference between Seymour and the rest of society, as the rest of society is primarily dictated by their superego. This is best portrayed by the events mentioned in passing during Muriel’s conversation with her mother, and the thing he tells the woman in the elevator: â€Å"I see you’re looking at my feet. Whether or not the woman was actually looking at his feet at all is obviously unimportant; the brief exchange between Seymour and the unnamed woman serves to depict the rift between Seymour and the rest of the world. This rift eventually leads Seymour’s ego, which is tasked with the interaction with external stimuli, to the conclusion that he can no longer coexist with the rest of society. As a result, the only course of action that he can see is that of suicide. Thus, both WWII and the materialism of the society left in WWII’s wake are equally responsible for Seymour’s death. Had the war not damaged Seymour’s psyche to the point where his superego could no longer oppose his id, the whole series of events would not have taken place to begin with. Had society not been converted to follow the ideals of materialism, Seymour would not have found that he was unable to fit into society. But because both did what they did, Seymour’s death became an inherent result of the combination of events that culminated here.

Research, define, and discuss what strategic philanthropy is and why Essay

Research, define, and discuss what strategic philanthropy is and why it is beneficial to organizations, as well as give one example - Essay Example It is also a creative planning process that does not just entail volunteerism and generalized charity giving, it is instead a system that requires monitoring, tracking, and strategic assessment to determine whether a philanthropy effort can be qualified a success (Putnam 2008). What does this mean? Take for example the business REDF, which is a company provider that offers technical assistance in order to help community members achieve workforce development. REDF goes a step beyond just general philanthropy: the organization has developed a total management tracking system to determine whether its workforce programs have made long-term differences in the lives of those who sought the technical support services (Brest, 2010). This is the main difference between strategic and general philanthropy, it seeks the long-term benefits either to the organization or to society as a means of building a more positive future and knowing whether the effort is worth the investment or the cost. Strategic philanthropy is beneficial to the organization because it can give consumers, business leaders, or general community citizens a more positive view about the responsibility and values of a company. Some individuals in society believe that businesses should share their wealth and expertise with others less fortunate, and strategic philanthropy efforts can influence their purchasing decision-making behavior toward the firm. A positive consumer or social attitude about a business can help the organization achieve more long-term profitability or gain better contracts with like-minded business leaders in many different industries. It can, in some instances, even improve relationships with government members who are already responsible for securing the welfare of their constituents, thus allowing for political endorsements in favor of the organization. It should be said, then, that strategic philanthropy is a vital component

Mens Rea Personal Statement Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Mens Rea - Personal Statement Example He was perhaps in his early thirties medium height and bearded face. What stood out to me at the moment was that he wore well fitted tan suit. I presumed that he was a business man of some sort. Like most in this particular coffee shop, he sat on his chair busily minding his lap top and scribbling on his note pad. He next began talking to himself. I privately concluded that he was a journalist preparing for an interview. My notion was dashed when I noticed a bewildered expression cross his features. He glanced around, panic stricken with eyes darting about. It was almost as if he did not realize where he was. I spent a minute watching him look about like a caged animal and found myself compelled to assist him. Standing with latte in hand, I strode over to assist and en route asked "Are you ok" "Do you need help with something" He stood, the same animal, now cowering but yelling "YOU'RE TRESPASSING, YOU'RE IN MY SPACE". I quickly apologized and left the caf. I consoled myself noting that this man in the nice suit needed some serious couch time. Maybe he was in the middle of a panic attack, I surmised. Yet I wondered was I trespassing If a police officer had been in the caf, would I have been charged I was only trying to help so why did he use that specific legal termtrespassing. Determined to not have my day ruined, I chalked up the experience to a gross misunderstanding by a tortured soul and proceeded about my business. Putting the episode behind me I strolled south on Boston street when suddenly some greenish hued paper caught my eye. To my delight there was a five dollar bill lying on the ground utterly abandoned. I took a moment and looked around me to see if perhaps there was someone searching for it. Nope, the money was mine. I smiled knowing that karma was now on my side and leaned down to pick it up. Suddenly, this screeching voice hurled an accusation and I found myself confronted by flip flops commandeered by toes in desperate need of a pedicure. "You took my Money"!!! My stomach lurched, not again! What is going on today I rose to a tall woman maybe in her middle twenties with black hair wearing blue short shorts and a tank top and flip flops standing there. Setting aside for a moment the fact that she had absolutely no business wearing short shorts, I was being yelled at by this crazy woman with her perfectly lacquered talons waving in my face. Transfixed and trapped by the talons, I quickly returned the five dollars to her muttering an apology. I didn't want any trouble. The woman screamed, "You're lucky you gave it back, I can still call the cops!" I sensed her aggression and replied with, "so sorry ma'am". I could not believe this was happening. If I didn't know better I'd swear I was on candid camera. I wondered what was happening and praying that it would change. I turned around to make my exit and trotted towards the park. It's peaceful there, I concluded. Eyes forward because now I am convinced that the whole town thinks that I am a criminal and I am horrified to see the looks on their faces, I continue my trot. I remind myself that the park is a safe place, a happy place, a peaceful place. Yes, only good things happen in the park and dammit I left my latte back with Ms. Shorty shorts. Should I get another Nah, better just get to the park. I had about three more blocks to go before I reached the park. The whole time I kept repeating positive affirmations

Change Management and Motivating People to the Change Dissertation

Change Management and Motivating People to the Change - Dissertation Example Organizations are every other day putting efforts to bring a positive alteration in their organization to survive in this competitive corporate world (Ventris, pp. 11-19, 2004). In addition, as there have been huge numbers of advancements in the field of information and technology, organizations are now feeling greater pressure in midst of globalization that has inclined organizations to introduce new methodologies, take innovative approaches, and inspire new perspectives in their workforce. In this process of constant change, experts have indicated that managers, especially HR managers play the most crucial role in ensuring success in the process of change in organization. At the same time, besides ensuring success, managers have to fulfill the greater responsibility of avoiding any adverse effects of the process, and simultaneously, ensure motivation of the employees. Unfortunately, huge numbers of organizations seem to fail in this process of ensuring success, and at the same time, continued motivation of employees that has been resulting in lower productivity, adverse performance, and subsequently, failure of the organizations. From this understanding, one can see only two ways of ensuring survival in this harsh competitive business world. Firstly, organization can become an initiator of the change and become a leader. On the other hand, one can act as a follower and carry out alterations depending on the approaches of market leaders. (Kossmann, pp. 39-44, 2006). In particular, there is no other way of bringing a change, and thus, realization of such notion is essential along with understanding of different factors that play the role in the process. Research Statement In this regard, the researcher focused on the following research statement to acquire the aims and objectives of the research: â€Å"To identify and analyze barriers to change and motivation process causing failure in the organizational management, particularly, in context of Middle Eastern organization† Aims & Objectives From this understanding of process of change, the researcher has identified a few aims and objectives that will enab le a critical, clear, and comprehensive understanding of the change process. In particular, the main aims and objectives of this research are to: Recognize and analyze various physical, sociological, and physiological barriers that exist and affect in the process of change in the organisation Scrutinize the level of impact of identified barriers on employees’ performance and their level of motivation Assess the impact of identified barriers in employees’ decision-making processes that play a crucial role in the success or failure of an organization Evaluate the role of managers in recognizing barriers, and in reducing the chances of failure in the organizational management Identify approaches and solutions that can ensure effective change and motivation processes in the organizatio

Role of Transaction Cost in Intermediation Process Assignment

Role of Transaction Cost in Intermediation Process - Assignment Example For instance, when the bank acts as intermediary it connects individuals with different needs, financial inputs at different point of time. It allows people to save money into various accounts like savings account, time deposits, salary account, pension funds, and so on. After the bank accepts deposits from an individual it invests that sum into projects which have returns greater than or equal to the cost of investment which is also the bank’s liability. Now, if any corporate or individual approaches the bank for loan, the bank will charge interest on that loan. This interest will increase the transaction cost of the individual or corporate. The interest charged on loans by the bank on the borrower will obviously higher than what the bank has to pay to the depositors. This is because in order to operate in the market and serve the community it has to maintain a profit margin for all transaction which otherwise would lead to collapse of business. The advantage that an individu al or a corporate will get from an intermediation process is that the credit risk is transferred from individual borrower to the bank. This is because when a corporate raises funds from market directly without any intermediation, the credit risk of parties to transaction has to be evaluated personally. This is true in case of over-the-counter markets where the contracts are much customised according to individual requirements and parties to contract enter into agreement with each other without any intermediary. This reduces their transaction cost but also increases the credit risk. When an intermediary is introduced in the same model as in case of exchange traded funds, the transaction cost increases due to brokerage charges, maintenance fee, printing and advertising charges, commissions, and so on. The various costs are passed on to the fund raiser and hence decreasing the transaction cost of the individual from intermediation process (Buckle and Thompson, 2004, p.37). From the abo ve discussion, the role of transaction cost in the intermediation can be summarised as follows. The intermediation process aims to connect the individuals with surplus funds with individuals with deficit funds in order to channel funds properly in the economic system. In the process of intermediation the individuals and corporate is able to reduce search cost of raising funds, verification cost, monitoring cost, and credit worthiness of the parties involved in transaction. Since the intermediary provides these services, it charges a fee or commission for providing these services which increases the cost of transaction from intermediation process but such cost is much less compared to the benefit from intermediations (Mishkin and Eakins, 1998, p.369). For instance, the banks offer standardised services and products that reduce cost of transaction and the risk of investment. The OTC market mainly operates without intermediation and is hence a much more risky option. Role of Asymmetric Information in Intermediation Process In order to understand the role of asymmetric information in the intermediation process, it is important to understand the concept of asymmetric information. Asymmetric information arises from a situation when one party to transaction has more information compared to the other. This is generally

Dominant Points Of The Eliminative Materialism Essay

Dominant Points Of The Eliminative Materialism - Essay Example One of the most imperative claims made by eliminative materialism is this that the humans are unable to comprehend with the realities existing all around them just by depending upon common sense humans have universally been gifted with. In simple terms, the existence of the objects could not be viewed as they appear before the eyes (Ramsey, 2013). Consequently, what humans perceive and subsequently conclude on the foundation of their apparent observation and visualizing could be contrary to the real characteristics attributed to the same thing, object or phenomenon in general. Hence, developing an idea, and reaching out the conclusion on the basis of the visible image(s) of the objects could not be supported by the eliminative materialism to be the true picture of divergent scenarios altogether. On the contrary, reductive materialism submits to state that the psychological states of affairs associated with the mind could be estimated by deducing the same from mental to physical (Murr affa, 2011). Theory of mind, as per elucidated in the Internet Encyclopedia of Philosophy (IEP), also supports the states of mind, indirectly ratifying the validity of reductive materialism (Apperly et al., 2006). Somehow, it's being the product of the cognitive development theory, eliminative perspective declares it to be a bad theory, which actually serves as the reflection of the desires one contains on the one side, and the influence of the prevailing norms, values, and traditions regulated by the folklore on the other (Theory of Mind, 150). In addition to this, eliminative materialism criticizes and refutes the claim made by reductive materialism that the situation of mind could be explained in the same lines as it is conducted while assessing and evaluating the material things. Rather, there only exist, according to eliminative perspective, the physical states, which reflect their existence in one way or the other in various objects.

Domestic holidaying in the USA Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Domestic holidaying in the USA - Essay Example The other top destinations are the famous Walt Disney World in Orlando. There you can enjoy the magical realm of Disney World with its Theme Parks and Water Parks. Portland Oregon is known for it fresh air and is home to the world renowned International Rose Test Garden where you can treat your senses to 7,000 rose plants (Parks & Gardens †¦). There is the White House in Washington, home of the President of the United States. Lake Tahoe borders Nevada and California where you will find the City of San Francisco, known for its famous Golden Gate Bridge and Hollywood with its famous Hollywood hotel and the Sunset Strip which emphasizes its movie stars and mansions. Finally, you can enjoy the Bar Harbor Maine in New England, The Grand Canyon in Arizona and Savannah Georgia in the State of Georgia. Works Cited â€Å"Parks & Gardens in Portland Oregon.† travelportland.com. travelportland. (n.d). Web 9 Feb 2011 â€Å"Ten Must Visit Cities in the United States.† hubpages. com. hubpages. (n.d.). Web 9 Feb 2011 â€Å"The Official Guide.† nycgo.com. nycgo. (n.d.). Web 9 Feb 2011

Continued Professional Development Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words - 1

Continued Professional Development - Essay Example On the other hand, PhD is designed to assist nurses to be tangled in research aimed at discovering new knowledge. DNP deals with courses such as evidence based practice and applied statistics, financial management, budget planning, health system transformation whereas on the PhD side courses such as philosophy of science, qualitative research methods chronic illness and care systems For a DNP, one can get health care administration in clinical nurse faculty and preparing nurses in management and health information technology to improve the care given. On the other hand, a PhD holder can work as a nurse scientist in the nursing faculty and carry out research to tackle issues that are arising in nursing discipline. Another difference between the two is the amount of time taken to complete each. A DNP course takes around 5 semesters to finish after a master’s degree whereas a PhD takes around 4-5 years depending on the learning mode of the university. From my point of view I would prefer to take a doctorate of nursing practice (DNP) because of its broad spectrum of finding good jobs and also my passion of helping the patients recover fast (

A Chat with Jesus Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

A Chat with Jesus - Essay Example The high price of such experience shows the value found in wisdom, a treasure more valuable than gold and diamonds. As there are rare people who truly have the wisdom that promotes prosperity not only in the financial aspect of a person’s life but includes philosophical, psychological, emotional and spiritual prosperity; it is indeed important to consider the people a person deals with. If given the chance to speak with one person for twenty four hours, the choice would definitely the man who was crucified because of his claim that He is the Son of God. There are many courageous people who would claim what or who they are but probably would never dare to say that they the sons God. Being a prominent figure in the generation He lived with, Jesus never sought to be famous instead, he eluded political power which could have been easily his with the help of his supporters and the Jews who were unfairly treated by the Roman government. In a world where fame and fortune are importan t, it would be wisest to hear from one who has looked to better things rather than what is seen in the present. In addition, it would be a great advantage for a person to get himself involved in the spiritual discussions of a master, a teacher who knows about the centuries-old questions about life after death. The very reason why Jesus Christ was crucified was because of His claim of being the Son of God which, to the Pharisees’ and Sadducees’ point of view, was a means of equating one’s self with the Creator of man, God. This was considered blasphemous, for a man to consider Himself equal with God, yet Jesus with all the courage He could muster and despite the knowledge of what disaster awaits Him, Jesus still declared Himself to be the man He claimed to be, the Son of the Living God, enraging the teachers of the law and endangering His life. One of the things people look up to these days, is the courage and boldness a person has in presenting himself, to be hi ghly applauded and well-considered. If indeed this is a need that is to be met in this generation for a person to be able to be competitive and successful, then listening to the advice of a person who had all the confidence in declaring himself to be the Son of God, would be a great help. Many scholars study about confidence building as they see it important in a person’s life and probably, for a person to be able to survive in a world like ours, one has to have the attitude of being sure of one’s self. Of course, not everyone is equipped with such confidence for even other great philosophers and prophets had their own slice of uncertainties. For Jesus, He was so sure of Himself that even if it meant death to Him, he still stood for what he believed in, for which, on another perspective, would be considered honorable and making him highly distinguishable. Fame and fortune are one of the things modern people chase but with Jesus, having all the abilities and capabilitie s, he chose to live a simple life, out of the limelight despite the good things He did. Surely, there is something more important in life than the aforementioned essentials of modern living. Getting an education about the matter would be a great experience with the teacher who could have the best reasons why He chose not to get himself involved in politics and other forms where he could acquire wealth. Reading books could inform me in years and probably provide me with all the information needed but authors may be misconstrued and readers forget. As mentioned earlier, speaking with a wise man face to face is far better than just

Why Philosophy Essay Example for Free

Why Philosophy Essay This paper is about the six questions in Philosophy I gave my reasons and belief’s one why I feel a certain way on each of the questions and after reading I hope you have a better take on Why Philosophy 1. Metaphysics: what is real? Well a lot of people would say that real is anything that could be touched, seen, smelled, or tasted using one of the five senses. But as a Christian I have to disagree I believe that you have to have faith in the fact that something’s are real weather or not you can sense them with the five senses. Take heaven and hell I believe that these are very real tangible places although I never seen touch smelled or tasted either one. So how do I know it is real well faith. I have never been to the Grand Canyon but I know that it is real with that being said how we know that heaven and hell is not real. 2. Epistemology: what is the relationship between faith and reason? Reason is to believe what can be proven math and science laws of gravity and physics nothing left to the imagination if you have reason then there is no need for faith. Whereas faith is the belief in things unseen there is a lot of issue with these two and the fact that if you’re a person of reason there is no room for faith the problem with that is that science does not explain everything so there has to be room for faith I without faith life is useless and you don’t have anything to live for. 3. Ethics: Is morality culturally based individually based or is there a universal morality? I have to say that this was a tough one to answer because really the answer is all three. Culturally based morality is learned through the interactions with the people with in your culture usually starting with the parent or guardian. There is also church or the village chieftain. Then there is the individual morality this take place after you been taught and raised and then you choose what to become or what your moral code will be will you protect your fellow man or will you choose to laws of the street. You then have the most unique morality term and that is the universal morality I call this unique because it is not chosen or learn or gained through life experiences it is automatically instilled in all people. Right and wrong which universal to all the most primitive civilizations understand that it wrong to steal or to murder without ever being taught even criminals know this is wrong they choose to do the wrong and willing to except that the consequences. 4. Aesthetic: is beauty truly in the eye of the beholder, or are there some things that all cultures find beautiful? Yes Beauty is in the eye of the beholder everyone one has there on mind when it comes to what is beautiful and what is not some like roses some tulips and so own this is evident in the people we choose to marry. If everyone agreed on what was beautiful then everyone would look the same or strive to be the same people find different things that they find to beautiful. That is not to say that there are things that a culture find beautiful. Let’s take our culture for example people believe that thin woman is what the population of men find beautiful so companies use this fact to exploit that beauty putting them on TVs and billboards. 5. Political Philosophy: How much power should the government have? The government should have a minimal impact on our lives. It is not supposed to bail out private businesses increasing the national debt. The government is not supposed to control the populace it is the populace that control the government. It is not the job of the government to make the decisions for the people. That is the problem with the government today they have too much power. 6. Social Philosophy: How should humans behave in a society? Humans in most cases depend on society to live and in order to function in a society there are certain rules that apply one being laws. Also respect for the others in that particular society. Freedom of speech and some other rights are lessened due to the infringement of other people’s rights. The rules are followed because of the convenience of living in a society. Such as supper markets gas station and things like these. Now if one was to live in the wilderness most of these rules would not apply for there would be no one’s rights to intrude on allowing them to do as they please but some rights have to be given up for the sake of the better good in a society.

Operations Management for Competitive Advantage

Operations Management for Competitive Advantage Introduction : Operations Management is present in many occupations as well as those of manufacturing and service industries. I believe it to be present in daily duties of any person although they may never notice. With this in mind I see operations management as a skill anyone has with an aim of achieving an outcome of something they are working towards in a logical process with thought of awareness of a system structure. Operations management has been around for some time yet it was Christopher Polhelm (Sweden) first recognised a skill and recorded that Nothing increases demand so much as low prices. Therefore there is a great need of machines and appliances which will diminish the amount or intensity of heavy work (Extract from text book Operations Management supplied by DMU for open learning please see bibliography) this was around 1700. There are cases in many history books and stories passed down that operations management was present before this yet not identified as operations management. From 1700 business development has grew significantly and seems to have been a notable point of operations management to present day. Operation management is depending upon five performance objectives i.e.ÂÂ  Quality, Flexibility, Cost, Speed and dependability. Quality: Quality means doing things right. An operation needs to be spotless and in order, have appropriate and attractive furnishings and make sure that the staffs are friendly and helpful. Quality reduces costs and increases dependability. Flexibility: The Flexibility facilitate to any changes. Different products and services need to be available, for example the opening times need to be varied as the main customers (students) have varying timetables. ÂÂ   Cost: The membership prices need to be a suitable price to facilitate students and people with different financial situations. The cost of hiring employment needs to be considered as well as the cost of the equipment. The lower the cost of producing their services, the lower the cost to the customer will be. This is a very attractive attribute, especially to students. Speed: The speed of the internal processes can reduce inventories and reduce risks. Dependability: The staffs want to be able to do things in time for the customers to receive their services. Being reliable causes the customers to become more loyal over time. Dependability can save time, save money and give support throughout the operation, internally and externally. In this assignment I try to focus on above all objectives and how manufacturing process is going? How much time taking each Department for their work? Why occur delay for delivery to Customer? Whats role of Human Resources in maintain Quality, Cost and Time? Why storage is create scarcity of space? Why quality is going down? Product value and Customer satisfaction Etc. Operation management find out best solution before arise problem. Operation Management is helpful for Decision making, Developing a process strategy, managing effective project, process analysing, Demand Forecasting, managing Quality, planning Capacity, managing Inventories etc. In this assignment I researched on Rama Newsprint Papers Ltd, India, which is largest private paper Production Company. It is running by more than 2000 workforce. This is manufacturing Cream Wove, Super printing, base paper for coating, map litho; SS map litho, Copier paper and newsprint etc. It has $ 50 million equity or spread over in 400 ac res land. RNPL has also own 23 mw Power plants. This company is huge in paper industry sector and I am sure it will be increase my knowledge in Operation management and its systems. Manufacturing Process of Newsprint Paper : The paper industry is basically based on wood and wood based pulp. But Rama Newsprint is produce paper by Recycling process. This plan is zero wastage process plans. Wastepaper is a key input in the production of newsprint, packaging paper and paperboards. Production of specialty paper involves the use of different varieties of pulp, which lend special quality to the paper. Here below illustrate whole manufacturing process of paper. R D and QC Department : This department play important role in manufacturing process. R D department is continuously taking sample from Raw material, Deinking and Paper machine for checking quality of ongoing process and find out anything wrong in the process. As per operation management quality is very important issue and this is handled by R D and QC department. Raw materials Department : Paper manufacturing is start from Raw materials department. This department is using Virgin Pulp, Local/Imported old newspaper (ONP), News Pams, Mixed office waste, Old Telephone Directory, Old magazine grade (OMG) for raw materials. But these all materials are available in wastage paper. This department is sorting fibre, plastic, iron, dust etc from west paper. Sorting is important part of process. If sorting is not good, quality of paper will be bad. This is very sensitive department and root of the process. This department retain maximum labour for sorting work. After sorting process this wastage paper send to Deinking department and complete their work. ( Ref C : http://www.madehow.com/images/hpm_0000_0006_0_img0128.jpg ) Deinking Department : After completion of Raw materials sorting process, Deinking department is ready to start next process. In this department waste papers have been mixes with water and wash by Chemical. This departments core work is removing Ink from paper and converts in to Pulp by mixing Sodium hydroxide and sodium sulphide. The chips close into pulp in the resolution. Next the pulp is sent through filters.ÂÂ  BleachÂÂ  may be added at this stage, or colourings. The pulp is sent to the paper plant. Thats for this department called De-Inking. In this stage also mix some chemical for create brightness in paper and which is providing by CAPP department. This completed Pulp has been send to paper Machine Department and finished their work. Paper Machine Department : The pulp is next put through a beating and squeezing course called, properly enough, pasting. Inside a large container, the pulp is subjected to the produce of machine beaters. At this point, various packing materials can be supplementary such as chalks, clays, or chemicals such as titanium oxide. These additives will control the dullness and other qualities of the final product. Sizings are also added at this point. Sizing affects the way the paper will react with various inks. ( Ref C : http://www.madehow.com/images/hpm_0000_0006_0_img0128.jpg ) In instruct to ultimately revolve the pulp into paper, the pulp is fed or pumped into colossal, automated machines. One ordinary category is called the Fourdrinier instrument. Pulp is fed into the Fourdrinier machine on a touching belt of bright mesh selection. The pulp is squeezed through a series of rollers, while suction strategy under the belt drains rotten water. If the paper is to obtain a water-mark, a device called a dandy moves across the sheet of pulp and presses a design into it. The paper then moves on top of the press part of the machine, where it is pushed between rollers of wool felt. The paper then passes over a series of steam-heated cylinders to eradicate the left over water. A large machine may have from 45 to 65 aeration cylinders. Finishing House Department: Finally, the dried paper is injuring onto large reels, where it will be additional processed depending on its last use. Paper is round and packed in further by passing through metal rollers called calendars. A particular finish, whether supple and waterless or solid and glossy, can be imparted by the calendars. The paper may be further ended by passing through a container of sizing material. It may also obtain a covering, which is either brushed on or rolled on. Covering ads chemicals or pigments to the papers outside, supplementing the sizing and fillers from previous in the course. Fine clay is often used as a covering. The paper may after that be supercalendered, that is, run from first to last extremely silky calendar rollers, for a closing time. Then the paper is cut to the wanted size. Product Wear House Department : This is the final stage of Paper process. This stage PWH department is packing cutter paper and send to storage or customer. This department is storage paper size wise on different place. Whenever requirement arise easy to find out and send to customer. Product life cycle of RNPL : When offering papers product to customer is that they have a variety. They have an enormous number of a ways of expenses their money and spaces to spend it. Therefore, Rama newsprint papers places considerable emphasises on developing a new paper product which customers want. Market research establishes exactly what this is. However customers requirements change overtime. What is fashionable and eye-catching today may be excess tomorrow. Marketing constantly monitors customers first choice. In order to assemble these changes, RNPL has tried to launch new product with change in old product. The type of selling undertaken and the amount invested will be dissimilar, depending on the phase a product has reached. For example, the begin on of a new product will classically involve television and other advertising support. At several time a company will have a variety of assets, a share portfolio integrated shares in a range of different companies of product each in a diverse phase of life cycle. Some of RNPLs option is going constant at the growth stage. Paper is a daily use product but not much profit making industry. In Indian market more than 800 paper industries are running in paper sector. So competition is on high level and also tough. Thats reason is for paper industries are not reach to maturity level of product life cycle. Process Flow Chart : A process chart is a set method of documenting all the activities performed by a person or group at a workplace, with a customer, or working with certain materials. It analyzes a process using a table, and provides information about each step in the process. It is used to drill down to the job level for an individual person, a team or a focused nested process. In this process five categories. Process flow chart with easy to identify gap between two process and this is giving idea to management for generating idea for resolve it. On below chart easy to identify marketing department send order to PWH department on right time. But lack of efficiency of PWH department, they are not putting in to process and make a delay. Also PWH department is looking storage department. But there negligence on work create scare of place. Here paper machine department have good efficiency in spite of they cannot work due to scarcity of space. So whole operations in PWH department is making delay in process. Quality Circle : Quality is important part in Paper Industry. If industry ignore to this concept, They will be loose their customer and lose their image in market. Rama Newsprint papers Ltd is also believe in this concept and Quality circle implemented in organisation. RNPL established department wise Quality circle committee and they meet to one time in a week. They discussed regarding problem, production, cost reduction idea, new technology, participative management, Decision making on new things etc.. They are tried to solve problem at department level. If its not possible than bring it to management level and search solution. Quality circle is good concept in management theory and RNPL completely follow to this and short out problem on root level and avoid delay. This is also responsible for cost saving and quality improvement. Porters Value Chain Michael Porter (1985) the strategic inventor of the Porter Value Chain constructed a chain effect understanding that every business should implement for logical understanding and awareness of its inputs and outputs as a business. He separated the business functions into primary and secondary methods, primary being dedicated to the product or service and secondary being supportive methods to aid the primary. Porters (Michael Porter 1985) Value Chain (VC). From the model suggests, that no issue how many operational units that are concerned in the course of generating customer value; these primary actions can be conceptualised into five common stages. The five primary stages are inbound logistics, operations, outbound logistics, marketing and sales, and service. These primary stages are supported by the firms infrastructure, human resource management, technology development, and purchasing and procurement. The stages within the VC should not be seen in segregation but looked at in a wider context and include the connections between stages not just within the processes. The relationship between sales, operations and procurement for instance can determine how much stock is to be carried and therefore reflected in cost of inventory held. ( Ref Book Operation Management Processes and Supply Chain Lee, Larry Manoj ) Value activities are divided in to two types, Primary activities and support activities. Primary activities involved in the physical creation of the product, sales and transportation to the buyers as well as after sells services. Primary activity alienated into five categories. Support activities are support to primary activities and each other given that purchased inputs, technology, human resources and various firm-wide functions. Primary Activities : The primary activities of the organisation are group in to five main areas: Inbound logistics : RNPL concerned with receiving, storming and distributing the inputs to the products. In this included raw materials, handling, stock control, transportation etc.. Operation : the transformation of these various inputs into the final paper or newsprint : machine, packaging, testing etc. Outbound logistics : The collection, storage and distribution of the product to customers. In RNPL involves Product were house activities, material handling, transportation etc. In this part most important to bring services to customer on fixed location. Marketing sales : in this part RNPL create their own image in paper industry by advertising, highest production per day and strong administration department. Also loosening with customer and take a feed back of customer. Services : all the activities depend upon services after sells. After sells services consist of installation, start up of product, replacement, warranties etc. RNPL also provide quality assurance guarantees to customer. Support Activities : The support activities divided in to four areas. Procurement: all primary activity have been refers to the process of acquiring the various resource. This is the main part of the organisation. Human Resource management: RNPL is very poor about human resources and this is the main root of problem. Here value chain is play important role to emphasise more training development, motivation like monitoring non monitoring ways to workforce, recruiting skilled manpower. Technology development : Technology is directly related with product, process or resources. if employees do not understand how to operate equipment, its create big problem for firm. In RNPL most of the workforce recruit experienced with higher pay scale. This is increase production cost to firm. If they create their own workforce by providing T D to old staff is better than higher new staff. Infrastructure : RNPL plan lay out and infrastructure is good but some place require some change. Infrastructure is also consisting of the structure and routines of the organisation that sustain RNPL culture. This all activities are implement perfectly by RNPL is must be require for in competitive terms, value is the amount that buyer are willing to pay for what a firms provided them with product perceived value. Value chain model is very helpful to RNPL for win to paper market and therefore they have to implement and follow above all activities. So value chain is guide to industry how to win market and create own image in market. For RNPL has a value chain is key success. Recommendation : As student I cannot give the exact idea about reading just few papers for the company which is running successfully since 1991. Company has history of19 years they have created their name and fame through their working pattern and workforce who works for them. I am little bit small to evaluated and give the recommendation to the companys board of directors they are the genius in their planning and implementation of their Operation Management systems. 1 ) Most of the companies are manufacturing product depend upon order or make to stock. RNPL is also following these methods. But RNPL not use perfect performance metrics in process and these are the main reason for delay in manufacturing product. As a student I would like to suggest to RNPL, if they will follow some below formula for manufacturing process. Defiantly they will almost achieve their target. Operation time = Setup time Run time Throughput time = Average time for a unit to move through the system Speed = Throughput time Value-added time Cycle Time Example Suppose RNPL had to produce 10 paper roll in 50 hours to meet the demand requirements of a product. There are 3000 minutes (60 minutes/hour x 50 hours) in 50 hours. So the average time between completions would have to be: Cycle time = 3,000/10 roll = 300 minutes. Process Throughput Time Reduction All of this work done after RNPL should apply bellow main three concept for process. A ) It must be execute activities in corresponding. B ) Change the series of activities. C ) Reduce interruptions 2 ) Human Resource Management : Humans are core part of process and they have been a particular platform in Organization. Human is sensitive part of operation management. If employees are not satisfied, organization will loose target. Employees play important role in quality management and have a power to make decision that will improve quality and customer services. Strategic goals for quality and customer satisfaction require teamwork and group participation. RNPL is face lack of satisfaction in their employees and that for so many causes are responsible. I would like to suggest some ideas for implementing in company for success in paper sector. Employees are not satisfied with management systems. Management follows autocratic and close leadership and this is demotivate to employees. If RNPL will understand employees requirement and change the management styles towards employees, definitely company will get incredible growth. Change the management style from Autocratic to Liberal, means employees have been invite for decision making, Quality circle, participation in management, giving more responsibility etc.. These all are motivate to employees for achieving goal. RNPL should more focus on Technical commercial training to employees. Trained workforce is more productive as well qualitative and also Time saver. RNPL should be implement below T D activities through minimise cost, time and maintain quality. Create Apprentice force in the Organisation. Apprentice is productive, cheaper and easy to available. Provide more paper machine operation training to employees and these are useful for minimise cost and increase qualitative production. Job specification has been implementing in Organisation. Employees have been mastery in work through it. These is key of maintain quality, cost and time. Job rotation is also important part of operation. It should be implementing in RNPL. Also provide commercial training like time keeping, communication, leadership, cost reduction etc. 3 ) Raw materials department has been also needed some change for Time saving and Quality maintaining. In sorting work per bunch require maximum 20 to 30 minutes. But lack of inspection on labour makes delay in this process. Also sorting work is not going accurate. This is creating adverse impact on Paper quality and deinking departments system. So as per my suggestion management have to take strict step against labour. 4 ). Product wear house department is end of the manufacturing process part. This department is looking storage, separation and selling work. RNPL has lots of space for storage. In spite of arise scarcity of space due to lack of skilled staff. They have no any proper storage system which is helpful for identify thickness wise paper. So they have to implement storage system like inventory management system. 5 ) Central Engineering stores is located so far away from main core department in plan. Maximum time wasted in collection for equipment from store to concern department. If central department located near to core department, definitely maximum time will be saved by RNPL. Conclusion : I conclude that although most businesses look different in their operation most of them actually are similar because all businesses need a foundation to start off with and when they build from their foundations this is where differences occur because of their overall business plan in the 5 key business function. They are Operations Management, Human Resource Management, Marketing, Accounting Finance and Information Management in which they operate from. They start to defer within the sectors they build their business on as every business has a different way of getting their products and services forward depending on the market they explore in which they try to dominate through success to keep the business alive. They key difference is how they outsource their organisational role and activities all depend on how the business is adapted to operate to meet the demand of the businesss activities. This is vital for the business to fulfil their organisational needs so the operation of the business is flawless and it will maximise their organisational productivity and stability. History of RNPL : ( Appendix 1 ) Rama Newsprint and Papers Ltd is largest private sector in Printing Writing paper manufacturing company at a single spot in India. It has 22 percent capacity of production in Indian newsprint sector, based on Virgin Pulp as well as Recycled fibre, to manufacture either 1,44,000 tonnes per annum of Newsprint or 1,80,000 tonnes per annum of Printing Writing paper or a mix of both. The paper mill was established in 1996. Its is set up with an equity of Rs. 233 crores ( US $ 50 million ) and spread over 450 acres of land in village Barbodhan, Gujarat, India, the company is managed by professional Board of Directors having enormous practice in related fields. The company is able to produce Newsprint and Writing paper from Virgin pulp as well as Non-conventional raw materials. The company has also demonstrated deep commitment to the cause of preserving the environment, by setting up a state of the artÂÂ  facility for manufacture of Environ friendly Chlorine free paper. The Company has its own Power plant and water works, means uninterrupted power and water supply leading to non-stop production. A causative feature is the internal engineering workshop for defensive maintenance and looking after leading to permanent invention of process, quality and productivity. Technical partnership with world best in the newsprint industry and aided by a highly qualified and committed workforce of about 500 personnel has now seen us expand into synergetic industries as well as set up an sell overseas existence in Asia and Africa. Water : RNPL has sufficient water bring for its plants and for general human use from Narmada Water Resources Department, Government of Gujarat. RNPL has also occupied a range of initiatives for water upkeep such as Rain water harvesting, recycling re-use of water in the process of manufacturing. Power : RNPL has 23 MW confined power plant installed at site, which ensures supply of quality power for permanent operation of the plant without any break due to power cuts. RNPL has also reserve unit of 17 MW installed at site. Majority of RNPLs power demand is met through confined plant. However It has power authorize boundary of 8500 KVA for paper mill and 550 KVA for raw water supply intake pump house from Gujarat Electricity Board in case of any possibility or surplus demand. Mission : To establish ourselves as leaders in the paper industry in terms of efficiency, productivity, profitability and above all, customer service..

Advantages And Disadvantages Of Hybrid Vehicles Engineering Essay

Advantages And Disadvantages Of Hybrid Vehicles Engineering Essay Hybrid Electric Vehicles (HEV) entered US market in the end of 20th century and during the last years have been highly developed and they succeeded entering the European market. [3] The purpose of this report is to analyze the advantages and disadvantages of HEV compared to conventional and electric vehicles. Hybrid Electric Vehicles Overview Hybrids are a combination of conventional and electric vehicles. They can have an internal combustion engine, a fuel cell or a gas turbine as power source, an electric motor, a regenerative braking system, a power inverter/motor controller, hybrid system controls and a battery. [4] [3] [5] There are four types of HEV: series, parallel, series-parallel and complex hybrid. [2] In this report hybrid vehicles are considered to be the HEVs with an ICE, the conventional vehicles are the typical internal combustion engine vehicles (ICEV) and electric vehicles are considered to be the battery electric vehicles (BEV). Advantages and Disadvantages of HEV HEV have many advantages in comparison to ICEV and BEV but as they are still an emerging technology they do have some disadvantages. This report will present the advantages and disadvantages of HEV in three areas: cost, efficiency and performance, and environmental impacts. 267 Cost Typically HEVs have a higher retail price than CV but a lower one than EV. A typical retail price of a Honda Civic (ICEV) in USA is $18,655, of a Toyota Prius (HEV) $22,000 and of a Chevrolet Volt (EV) $40,000. (Mitchell) It is estimated that a consumer needs about 8 years to breakeven the bought of a HEV instead of a CV and 39 years to breakeven buying a BEV instead of a HEV and that gives ICEV advantages over the alternative technologies. [6] The Total Ownership Cost (TOC) over a 10-year period (life-time period that includes maintenance and operation costs) gives HEV an advantage. For instance, a parallel HEV has the lowest net present value, about $69,000, an ICEV about $71,000 and a BEV about $80,000, under certain financial parameters. [7] Usually HEV have higher maintenance and insurance costs and higher batter costs per kilometer but they have much lower fuel costs. [3] The main reason that HEV has an advantage against BEV is the high cost of battery for the latter. [8] [2] [9] A typical ICEV has a fuel consumption of 4.2 l/100km and 6.2 l/100km for diesel and gasoline respectively, a HEV 3.8 l/100km and a BEV 0 l/100km. The average fuel prices for EU are 1.35 and 1.48 à ¢Ã¢â‚¬Å¡Ã‚ ¬ for diesel and gasoline respectively and the average EU electricity price is 0.16 à ¢Ã¢â‚¬Å¡Ã‚ ¬/kWh. [10] During the life-cycle a conventional car will change the battery once for 100$, a HEV for $1020 and a BEV needs to change it tw ice with total cost of $30,800. [8] 255 Efficiency and Performance In European Union (EU 27) transportation sector consumes 37% of total energy, where 85% of this comes from road transportation. [1] In general the HEV has an advantage over ICEV in all stages of energy usage: during energy generation (wheel-to-tank, WTT), during operation (tank-to-wheel, TTW) and on a full fuel cycle (well-to-wheels, WTW). On the other hand, BEV has an advantage over HEV in TTW and WTW stages but uses more energy in WTT stage for the electricity generation. A typical HEV has lower specific fuel consumption than an ICEV and higher than a BEV. A HEV has lower energy annual cost than an ICEV but higher than a BEV. Also, HEVs have bigger driving range than ICEVs and BEVs. [8] [1] [11] Regarding the energy conversion efficiency (energy consumed at the wheels divided by total energy supplied to the vehicle) a HEV has higher conversion efficiency than an ICEV but lower than a BEV. [12] [2] But, in a well-to-wheel analysis a HEV could have higher conversion efficiency from B EV too depending on the electricity generation source. From a consumers point of view an HEV has lower top speed than an ICEV but bigger than a BEV. Moreover, a HEV can have higher acceleration than both ICEV and BEV. [2] Typical values of the efficiency and performance of vehicles with different technologies are presented in Table . The main reasons for the advantages of HEV in comparison to the ICEV are the lower engine size, the use of regenerative braking energy and the ability to operate only in battery when is available. [13] [14] [5] 260 Table Efficiencies and performance of each vehicle technology. (Source: ref. [2]) Conventional Hybrid BEV Reference car VW Golf 1.4TSI Toyota Prius III Nissan Leaf Top speed (km) 200 180 161 Acceleration (s) 9.5 10.4 7 Range (km) 888 1152 117-175 Net Power (kW) 90 100 80 Effective Storage capacity (kWh usable) 105 143.1 22.1 Average conversion efficiency (%) 21 35 92 Environmental Impacts Transportation sector accounts for about 19% of the total CO2 emissions and road transportation is responsible for 94% of this amount. HEV have an advantage over ICEV as they produce lower CO2 emissions, which is the main greenhouse gas, during the driving stage (TTW). As far as BEVs are concerned, they have zero emissions in TTW stage. [1] [16] Regarding the total GHG emissions (CO2, CH4, N2O and SF6) and the total air pollutants emissions (AP: CO, NOx, SOx and VOCs) HEVs have lower GHG emissions in all stages (WTT, TTW and WTW) than ICEVs, but regarding BEVs the emissions produced in WTT and WTW stages are depending on electricity generation mixture and that could lead to high variations. [8] [15] At the production stages of a vehicle, a HEV has higher GHG and AP emissions than an ICEV but lower than a BEV one. That is due to the high environmental impact for the production of batteries. At the fuel utilization stage and during the total environmental impact (assuming 10 years lifecycle and that a car drives 241,350km) a HEV has lower GHG and AP emissions than an ICEV. For the BEV emissions there are variations because of the electricity production. Under three scenarios for electricity generation: (1) electricity from renewable energy sources (RES) and nuclear energy; (2) 50% from RES and 50% from natural gas with efficie ncy of 40%; (3) all electricity from natural gas with 40% efficiency a BEV will have lower emissions at both, fuel utilization and total environmental impact, than a HEV. [8] [17] Typical values of GHG and AP emissions for each type of vehicle are presented in Table . Table Emissions for each type of vehicle during production and utilization stages (source ref. [8]) Vehicle Production (kg) Production of NiMeH battery (emissions per life of vehicle, kg) Fuel utilization usage (kg per 100km of vehicle travel) Total environment impact (kg per 100km of vehicle travel) GHG AP GHG AP GHG AP GHG Conventional 3595.8 8.74 19.9 0.0564 21.4 Hybrid 4156.7 10.10 89.37 0.507 11.6 0.0328 13.3 Electric 4758.3 15.09 1087.6 6.167 1a 0.343 0.00131 2.31 2 5.21 0.0199 7.18 3 10.1 0.0385 12.0 a Numbers in this column refer to the electricity production scenarios. Moreover, Hawkins et al. [18] compared the total lifecycle Global Warming Potential (GWP) for vehicles of each technology and the results show the advantages of HEVs over ICEVs and the high variations of BEVs, and those can be seen in Fig. 1. Fig. . Comparison of lifecycle global warming potential per km driven. (source: ref. [18]) 314 Conclusions In conclusion, HEVs have many advantages over ICEVs and can also compete with BEVs because of the high price for latters. They have good energy efficiency and high performance and can compete with both, ICEVs and BEVs. In terms of environmental impacts, in lifecycle they have significant lower emissions than ICEVs and in some cases against BEVs too as those are depending on electricity generation mixture. Despite their high initial price HEVs are considered to be a very good choice today and it is estimated that in the next few years their percentage in the car market will get higher. As BEV are still in their early stages for being fully developed and enter the market in competitive terms HEV can be the bridge to the future road transport. (129) (1225 total)

Compare and Contrast Germany and America :: Germany Europe North America Essays Culture

Compare and Contrast Germany and America Europeans and Americans have much more in common than most people think, making adjustments to life in a new country easier. Many customs are similar to practices in the United States. Germans have their own way of being German. Germany is a relatively small and densely populated country. Unlike the United States, which is a large, densely populated country. The greatest shock to Americans is the speed at which Germans drive. The roads and freeways are quite narrow. Speed limits in cities are strictly enforced, but on much of the Autobahn there is no limit on how fast drivers can go. Although it is against the law, impatient Germans may also tailgate at high speeds and/or flash their headlights when they want to pass your vehicle. If you are driving for the first time in Germany, keep right. Left lanes are for passing only. Unlike when you are driving in America; Americans tend to travel in the lane that is meant for passing and the faster drivers. Americans tend to think â€Å" I am going the speed limit, so I am going to stay in the left lane†, the Germany way of thinking is that if you are not passing anyone or if you are going too slow, your car needs to be in the right hand lane. Unlike in the United States, train travel is a German way of life. You can get on at train at any bahnhof (train station) and travel to any destination in Europe you would like. The Germans use the train as their main mean of travel due to pollution and the inflated gas prices. Americans tend to use the automobile as our main mean of travel more than we should. Nobody likes to wait in line – especially the German people, who seem to have to do it more often than Americans. Even normally courteous Germans may elbow their way ahead if you don't stand your ground. It's not unusual to get bumped by a "tailgating" shopping cart. Keep smiling; it is just the German way of life. It's usual to greet others when walking into a waiting room, small business or train compartment. A simple Guten Tag or, in southern Germany, Gruess Gott, is in order.

The History of Jamaican Maroons Essay examples -- Slavery Revolt Histo

The History of Jamaican Maroons European colonialism in the Caribbean was dependent upon the use of African slaves as a major source of labor. Inevitably, some of these slaves escaped and formed isolated communities that allowed them to live outside the white-dominated plantation societies that were the norm of the time. These escaped slaves were given the name "Maroon", possibly originating from the term marronage, or slave revolt. These Maroon communities existed in many different areas in the Caribbean, but none were more famous and successful that those of Jamaica. Jamaican Maroons fought the British government for nearly a hundred years beginning from the time of the British occupation of the island and lasting until the 1740’s when the British finally sued for peace with the leaders of these rebel bands. By using guerilla tactics and relying on information and assistance from slaves within the colonial communities, the Maroons were able to engage the British in a conflict for freedom that was not only successful, but also a testament to the resourcefulness and ability of these African warriors. What were the factors that led to the successful campaigns against the British? How were the Jamaican Maroons able to continue their fight in the face of overwhelming man and firepower? Two distinct Maroon societies emerged in Jamaica, both having their own system of leadership and ways of dealing with outside settlements. While the fact remains that both these factions came from the same background of slavery, their differences are both interesting and varied and deserving of a closer look. The earliest Maroons were remnants of the Spanish slaves that were not exported from the island after the defeat and subsequent occupation ... ...t the physical well –being of slaves. If they die, new ones are simply brought in to replace them. The final condition is that of a lack of cohesion among the white ruling class due to a lack of white female presence. The female (and thus family) situation had no opportunity to establish itself because of the lack of white women in Jamaica. This led to an increased ambivalence on the part of most of the white population towards itself. These seven conditions help us understand the ways that a revolt by slaves in Jamaica could and did succeed. The Maroons were a very successful, highly adapted group of runaway slaves that fought for their freedom and achieved it. The two distinct Maroon societies found ways to survive and prosper under difficult and overwhelmingly hostile conditions. The fact that the succeeded is a testament to their pride, ability and commitment.

Mobilizing a Nation: America’s Entry Into World War I :: United States History Historical Essays

Mobilizing a Nation: America’s Entry Into World War I Works Cited Missing Woodrow Wilson delivered his now-famous War Message to Congress on April 4, 1917. Four days later, Congress declared war and the United States became a formal partner in the war to end all wars. As the Wilson administration was to discover, however, declaring war and making war were two very different propositions. The former required only an abstract statement of ideals and justifications and a two-thirds Congressional majority; the latter required the massive mobilization of virtually every sector of American society - military, industrial, and economic, as well as public opinion. The Wilson administration sought to accomplish this daunting task in two concomitant and interdependent fashions. First, it undertook an unprecedented assumption of federal control and regulation. The federal government established an array of bureaus and agencies endowed with sweeping powers to regulate the nation’s economy and industrial production. Furthermore, it passed a ser ies of laws designed to support these agencies and to stifle what it deemed subversive antiwar opinion and activity. Second, and of equal importance, the administration appealed to the public’s patriotism and sense of civic responsibility, effectively encouraging volunteerism in both the public and private sectors. Each of these tacks was bulwarked by a pervasive dose of pro-war government propaganda. In the end, in terms of raising an army, mobilizing the economy and influencing the outcome of the war, the administration’s mobilization efforts were largely successful. However, there were significant consequences to the government’s actions, most acutely in the realm of civil liberties, both during and in the aftermath of the war. One of the earliest examples of federal muscle in wartime mobilization was the passage of the Lever Act in August 1917. The act gave the president the power to regulate supplies and prices of food and fuel by creating two new government agencies: the United States Food Administration and the United States Fuel Administration, headed by Herbert Hoover and Harry Garfield, respectively. Hoover and Garfield operated with â€Å"virtually unlimited power† and used the implicit threat of federal nationalization to regulate prices and cajole producers into increased production and conservation (Zeiger, 72).

Examine the Hindu views on arranged marriages Essay

To what extent can Hindu arranged marriages survive in a multi – cultural society In this essay I will examine the Hindu views on arranged marriages and how they are surviving in s multi – cultural society. I shall use secondary research to back up what I mention within this essay. An arranged marriage is a marriage in which neither the bride nor the groom has a say over the selection of their future spouses. However, in an arranged marriage, both parties give full consent to the marriage. Arranged marriages have been proven to be successful. Arranged marriages have been a traditional aspect of family life in Hinduism. According to Hinduism, a marriage between two people is seen to be a holy relationship, that is just not limited to this one life, but extends across seven or more lives during which, the couple will help each other grow as people and progress spiritually. Two souls come together and marry because their karmas are intertwined and they have to resolve many things together upon earth in order to ensure their mutual salvation. In Hinduism, man and woman represent the two halves of the divine body. There is no question of superiority or inferiority between them. When parents are in search for a partner for their child, they firstly look at the religion, language and caste. These are very important factors that most parents do not overlook for arranged marriages. In India, parents feel that a girl can be a potential wife at the age of eighteen and parents get worried if she remains unmarried past twenty four or twenty five. It is acceptable for a boy to remain unmarried till his late 20s, but after that questions are asked about his appropriateness as a husband. This does not necessarily apply to a growing urban middle class population. Once the families have agreed on their children’s marriage they consult a family priest or an astrologer to fix the wedding date according to their astrological charts and thereafter invitations are sent to family and friends. The Hindu marriage ceremony entails several functions before the â€Å"big day†. However the wedding day itself has many religious rituals which need to be followed and is a custom for all Hindus. Firstly there is the â€Å"Panigrahana†; this ritual is carried out by the bride’s father, where he would offer the hand of the bride to the groom. The next ritual is the exchanging of the vows with fire as the witness. A â€Å"Havankund† or fire is lit and the priest recites the relevant hymns from the scriptures. Each time the bride and groom go around the fire they exchange vows. The next ritual is the â€Å"Saptapadi†; at the end of the ceremony the couple take seven steps together; each step represents strivings for their married life. The first step is taken for God and the growing of their spiritual progress together, the others are for health, wealth, strength, children and happiness. The seventh step represents life long friendship between husband and wife. The other key feature of a Hindu marriage, which everyone is familiar with, is the marking of the bride’s forehead with red powder called â€Å"kumkum†. This merely shows the females status. Love marriages are on the increase in Britain, but there is still a lot of doubt about them amongst the elder generation. Love marriages within the same caste and financial background are favoured, compared to inter-caste and inter-religious marriages. Couples who dare cross the social conventions have to cope with a lot of social pressure within their families and outside. These problems are more acute in the rural areas compared to the urban areas and metropolitan cities. Much depends upon the family background. If parents are educated and enlightened on both sides, things would be easier for the children, who get involved in unconventional relationships. I would say one of the evils of Hindu arranged marriages in India especially is the ever- present dowry system. The amount of dowry can be a very substantial amount, even in dollar terms, depending upon the financial status of the parties involved. Sometimes greedy mother-in-laws and husbands subject the poor brides to innumerable hardships for not meeting their expectations in respect of the dowry. Cases of bride burning are not unknown. Indian penal code prescribes severe punishment for such acts. But the cases take years and decades before the courts deliver justice. Many Indian families who have settled outside of India still uphold the tradition of arranged marriage. Being part of two cultures can be hard. Young people born in Britain but from an Indian family can find this particularly difficult if their modern western lifestyles clash with their parent’s hopes and wishes.2 Many young Indian people living in Britain know that one day they will agree to an arranged marriage. To deny their parents this would be a sign of deep disrespect. Many families are able to discuss the issue and reach compromises that are suitable for everyone. For example insist that you are happy to meet with prospective partners but that you must like your match. Family, friends and relatives will be informed once they have decided to go ahead and soon meetings will be organised. They will be matched according to their education and experience, a suitable caste, or social class associated with the Hindu religion. Many non Hindu’s have a huge misconception about arranged marriages. It is important to make a clear distinction between arranged marriages that are consensual and marriages that are arranged without the consent of the individuals involved. These are sometimes called forced marriages and are against the law in this country. However in rural parts of India this idea about forced marriages still takes place even today. Although Western societies tend to ridicule arranged marriages as backward and uncivilized and old fashioned, there are positive aspects. For example, Westerners focus more on the physical aspect of relationships, and are thus obsessed with love, sex, and beauty. As a result, people get married based on these factors and then get let down by one another very easily. The divorce rate in Western countries such as the U.S. has increased rapidly. â€Å"50% of American marriages end in divorce†1. In contrast, Eastern cultures that practice arranged marriages place far more emphasis on the practical, such as integrity, diligence, ambition, modesty, and kindness. People get married based on practical reasons, and work on building affection later. Strong characteristics like the ones described above are very favourable to building love and affection in Eastern marriages. As a result, these marriages are much longer-lasting than many Western marriages. It is because the primary emphasis is not on love, sex, and physical beauty that arranged marriages are usually so successful, because the spouses get to know one another on a practical level first, looking beyond trivial issues such as beauty. I know it can go both ways, there are many arranged marriages that are just total hell, and there are marriages that started out based only on infatuation and grew stronger as time passed. But I think as long as one looks for the right characteristics in a potential spouse, then, arranged marriage can definitely work. People within the western civilisation are mistaken by the term arranged marriages. Arranged doesn’t necessarily mean â€Å"fixed†. Arranged marriages it encompasses a lot of different varieties: the harshest arranged marriages are almost forced upon the bride or groom while the most liberal ones start with just an introduction of the couple through their parents and the rest is up to the couple. If they feel they are compatible then they would go ahead with the marriage. If they decided not to get married they would remain friends. I feel that within Britain today, Hindu parents have become liberal with their children dating and â€Å"seeing† each other. Parents are now influencing their children to look for someone within University get to know them for at least a couple of years and then decide on whether they are right for you. I think if the parents know about the son or daughter’s partner and they are Hindu, have a good family background and most importantly are educated then the parents would definitely agree to the marriage. In fact, the advantages and drawbacks of arranged marriages cannot be so easily appraised. The incidence of divorce among Indian-born British/Americans is dramatically lower than among British/Americans generally, but that partly reflects the continuing disgrace of divorce. Even as the divorce rate among Indian British/Americans appears to be increasing, the topic is rarely discussed. Divorce reflects poorly on an Indian family, and some proportion of arranged marriages endures not because they are successful or rewarding, but because leaving them would bring such shame. In addition, the concept of a woman living independently is foreign to most people in South Asian culture. Also, a majority of women don’t work in rural areas of South Asian countries and hence find it difficult to have enough money to support them without getting married or after getting divorced. And many endure because the definition of success differs from Western ideas. Traditional Indians don’t expect a partner to be that improbable combination of soul mate/confidante/red-hot lover/best friend. â€Å"The husband-wife bond is one of reliability and dependability and complementary family roles – raising children, caring for elders,† explains Karen Leonard, author of The South Asian Americans and a University of California-Irvine anthropologist. â€Å"They may communicate very little in intimate ways, and it’s still a good marriage.†3. The custom of arranged marriages in India has survived migration and modernization remaining central to the fabric of society. However 95% of all marriages in India are arranged, even among those in the educated middle class. Many Indians challenge that arranged marriages are more successful than marriages in the West, particularly given the latter’s staggering divorce rates. Romantic love does not necessarily lead to a good marriage, and often fails once the passion dissolves, they argue. With most unions between individuals from the same background, the arranged marriage reflects and reinforces the social, economic, geographic and historical diversity of India itself. More like a continent than a country, India is made up of 14 states, with as many languages, thousands of dialects, three major religions, hundreds of sub-religions, an outlawed but still practiced caste system amongst Hindus. The Hindu religion, strongly intertwined in the concept of â€Å"duty,† order that parents are responsible for providing their children’s education and marriage. Once married, their sons take over the running of the household and provide for their parents for the rest of their lives. The arranged marriage has adjusted to modernization. Prospective grooms were once not even allowed to see the photograph of their prospective brides so as to protect an unmarried woman’s purity, her most valuable asset. By the 1930/40’s, such as in my grandmother’s marriage, the couple exchanged photographs, in order to decide if they liked each other. Today couples, depending on how liberal their parents are, have a coffee or meal on their own either at home, or in a restaurant, before deciding to commit. Middle-class women are allowed to reject suitors favoured by their parents. Engagements can now last six months. Western concepts of love triumphing over tradition can be seen in popular Indian films. However, many Indian women in the diaspora are in change. Freedom comes with a price. Some women, after having ended several long term relationships, find themselves in their late 30s alone, with one foot in either world and judged by both. It goes without saying that no marriage, not even an arranged one, is accustomed from basic incompatibility or abuse. But the arranged marriage does have its advantages. Living with the extended family, daughters traditionally live with their in-laws including brothers-in-law and their wives and children which means a free staff of child minders. Apart from the economic savings of a family home, shocks such as a death or the loss of a job can be absorbed. The system cares for elderly parents and grandparents who are generally isolated in Western societies. Also, because the arranged marriage tends to be a union of two families of strong moral and cultural values provides checks and balances against areas that may splinter it, such as unfaithfulness. Most people tend to equate Hindu marriage with arranged marriage. The parents in order to meet this domestic obligation prepare themselves mentally and, more importantly, financially when their child reaches marriageable age. They search for a suitable partner keeping in mind the community â€Å"rules† regarding cast, creed, birth chart, and financial and social status of the family. Traditionally it is the girl’s parents that bear the cost of the wedding and to jumpstart their daughter’s married life they shower her with gifts and ornaments to take to her in-laws. Unfortunately, this has aggravated people’s greed end in the many evils of dowry system. In the end, the discussion of arranged and love marriages comes down to which is better? Obviously, the one that leads to more successful marriages. Supporters of arranged marriages claim that it is more successful, but their definition of success focuses on divorce rates. But are divorce rates really a measure of a successful marriage? Do all the couples that don’t get divorced stay happy with each other? The occurrence of divorce in society depends on a lot of factors including the stigma of divorce. It should be a matter of great concern that we have begun to ignore the ancient and lofty ideals of Hindu marriage and are anxious to follow in the footsteps of cultures that do not value these ideals. No wonder, the number of divorce suits filed by Hindu couples is on the rise. Instead of strengthening the traditional ideals, which for thousands of years have helped us prevent marriage and family break-ups, we are misdirecting our energies towards promoting the ideal of sense-enjoyment and self-interest. In my opinion it is still not too late to be proactive to protect the sanctity of Hindu marriage. 1: http://www.religioustolerance.org/chr_dira.htm 2: http://www.youthinformation.com/infopage.asp?snID=805 3: http://lair.xent.com/pipermail/fork/2003-March/018427.html Words – 2,582 (not including Bibliography)