A Reaction and Analysis of “Saving Grace” by Lee Smith

Lee Smith’s Saving Grace is a novel that features the story of Florida Grace Shepherd, a young Appalachian girl who is brought up in an environment that oppresses the rights and freedom of young women based on the expectations of its very religious nature. Grace, who is also the narrator of the story, tells her own tale about her quest for identity and freedom as well as her ultimate religious awakening. She shares her story as she goes through her childhood despising her father Virgil and the reality that unlike other children, she is growing with insufficient love and care from the people she expects to receive it. Grace’s childhood is bound by religious rules and codes since her father is their community's popular charismatic preacher and serpent handler. She is not free to do what other kids can do, and she is not even free to read anything except for the Bible. Grace and her siblings are not even allowed to read the newspaper as their father stresses that the only news they need to know about is the good news from the Holy Scripture (Smith, 2008). Grace also knows that she is an abused child. Aside from the insufficient affection she gets from home, she also suffers painful maltreatments from her father, whom she wants to respect and adore, but he treats her with coldness instead (Smith, 2008). Because of the absurd religious limitations that prevent her from doing what she wanted as a kid, and due to the agony that she suffered from the hands of her father acting as an honorable man, Grace grows up carrying a bitter resentment toward the home she grew up in. She also becomes pessimistic about the good possibilities in life, and she grows up envying everything that made other girls of her age happy (Smith, 2008). Smith's ability to capture the Appalachian way of life and the reality of growing up in an environment full of bizarre religious traditions has been highly regarded by her critics. Moreover, her ability to mold characters based on the known stereotypes in the society has also made her earn the admiration of critics and readers (Town, 2004). Saving Grace is seen by many as a work filled with symbolisms reflected in the names of the characters. Florida Grace Shepherd is in itself a name full of meanings. Florida is based on the place where Grace was born, while Grace stands for the Grace of God. Her last name, Shepherd, can be interpreted as a reminder of her family’s role as shepherds of their community since they represent the people's shepherd, Jesus, in the eyes of their neighbors (Town, 2004) However, while this is the popular impression about their family, Smith (2008) adds an inner conflict in Virgil’s character. Although considered as a sacred and honorable man, Virgil is inclined to bed a lot of women aside from his wife. He also seems to be incapable of controlling his emotions, particularly his bad temper and rage, which he often takes out on Grace. This sinner-saint conflict in Virgil’s character is the greatest confusion for Grace as well. Yet, despite this conflict on Virgil's personality and attitude, he is still able to win the respect of the people in their church because of his devotion and loyalty to what he preaches. Although he can be seen as a man with normal lustful desires, his ability to strengthen other people’s faith in the Lord remains unquestionable, making him respected despite his worldly sins. In the end, the readers would realize that the title of this novel completely explains Grace’s story. Aside from the fact that the story is indeed about saving the main protagonist from losing her faith and her strength to carry on with life, the title may also say that in all the obstacles and trials Grace faced, there is one saving grace which lifted her spirits up and made her hold on to her faith—her strong desire to repent, to change, and to believe that there is really a Supreme Being who governs and looks after her. The ending appears to be open-ended for the author does not clearly state how Grace chose to carry on with her life. However, as she wanted to start anew, it can be inferred that Grace has met her saving grace which made her realize that being doomed and oppressed for a long time can never be good reasons to give up; rather, they are valuable lessons she can carry with her on her journey to rebuild her new life.

Raw rubber from Malaysia is delivered to the factory in ‘bales’

During the time the way squash balls manufactured has developed into a highly sophisticated process. Here is investigated how balls are made. To begin with, raw rubber from Malaysia is delivered to the factory in ‘bales’ of about 25kg – sufficient to make about 1,200 balls. In its natural state rubber is very stiff and difficult to work, so it is first ‘masticated’ to a softer consistency.A variety of natural and synthetic materials and powders are then mixed with the rubber to give it the required combination of strength, resilience, and colour as well as to enable it to cure (or ‘vulcanise’) later in the process. The manufacturer’s ‘recipe’ is a no less closely guarded secret than that of Coca Cola, and different combinations of ingredients (as many as 15 are used, including polymers, fillers, vulcanising agents, processing aids, and reinforcing materials) produce fast (blue dot), medium (red dot), slow (white dot), and super slow (yellow dot) balls.The current WSF Specification for the Standard Yellow Dot Championship Squash Ball determines the permitted diameter, weight, stiffness, seam strength and rebound resilience of the championship ball. No specifications are set for other types of ball, â€Å"which may be used by players of greater of lesser ability or in court conditions which are hotter or colder than those used to determine the yellow dot specification†. (http://www. squashplayer. co. uk) Thus, we don’t have any exact data (parameters) for red and blue balls.We only can use data available for yellow ball and modify the possible parameters that red and blue balls may have. Out of all specifications of a ball we are interested in its weight and rebound resilience. Rebound resilience is a measurement of the height a ball bounces off a hard surface. The data given in the table above mean that if one drops ball from a height of 100 centimetres (1 meter) onto a concrete floo r then at 23oC the yellow balls must rebound at 12 centimetres; at 45oC between 26 and 33 centimetres.At 23oC the red ball must rebounds at 15 centimetres; at 45oC between 33 and 36 centimetres. At 23oC the blue ball must rebound at 17 centimetres; at 45oC between 36 and 38 centimetres. For our study we will take that if one drops ball from a height of 1 meter, then at 23oC the red ball must rebound at 15 centimeters; at 45oC – at 34. 5 centimeters. at 23oC the blue ball must rebound at 17 centimeters; at 45oC – at 37 centimeters.

12 Angry Men

The movie twelve angry men was a movie about different people from backgrounds, races, and religions. They were all different and being in a group dynamics class we learned about how personality affects people and other things that people tend to do. The judge in the beginning of the movie showed some non verbal behavior, which is sending a message without using words but things like facial expressions and body movements. The judge in the beginning was hunched over meaning he was not very alert and seemed to be a passive man.The foreman is supposed to be the leader of the jury’s and according to his behaviors he is. He communicates well which is a key role to being a leader. The foreman functions as a leader because he listens well and also tries to give out ideas to the rest of the jurors. He has the ability to look at the situation in other perspectives. In making these hard decisions the jurors need to have perception checks, to make sure they are not jumping to any conclus ions. This is the life of a kid and their decision depends on his life.The conflicts that arise in the jurors room where productive to the situation at hand. The conflicts were solved in a good manner and beneficial to the case and getting everyone to feel confident about whether the kid was guilty or not. The jurors had assumptions about â€Å"those people† and â€Å"slums† which influenced the way they felt about the case. Their assumptions about those things influenced the way they thought about the case initially, the perception of the facts was altered because of having some type of bias.The juror’s assumptions had to do with the cultural and social diversity of the jury. The jurors based on how they lived their life, thought differently from the ones who were different from them based on the way they lived their lives. There were a lot of details to the case, and some jurors did not quite remember what others did. Some jurors remembered things that others did not due to selective listening. Most of the jurors listened to things that held more meaning to them than others.During the whole case the jurors did not know each other’s names and there is an importance to this, the importance is that being in the case it is supposed to be a strictly business environment. They are there to do one job and that is to make a decision. The twelve angry men is a reflection of how people act together and how their behavior can affect others. The movie is a good example of things we have learned in class. 12 angry men 12 Angry Men, originally a play in 1954, then made into a movie in 1957, has easily stood the test of time.   In an era when the studios and the public were more inclined towards major Technicolor productions with multimillion dollar budgets, over 90% of the movie takes place in a single a setting; the jury deliberation room where, in real time, the viewer is given a no nonsense approach to the many aspects of group decision making, standing up alone for one’s beliefs and overriding the ideology of the day concerning minorities and the poor in order to see the truth; the truth the majority of the twelve jurors did not wish to see. Also, how group process comes into play within the diverse make up of the jurors: How each juror acts differently in the group than how we are led to believe they would act alone. 12 Angry Men tells the story of twelve jurors thrust together in a hot and humid room on a New York summer evening to deliberate on the guilt or innocence of an eighteen year old Hispanic boy with a troubled past.   He is accused of stabbing his father; a man with whom he has had a contentious relationship for years.   The accused is fighting an uphill battle towards an acquittal: the eye witness account of his neighbors, a court appointed public defender whose apathy towards this case is mirrored by more than one of the jurors and his race which seems to be a major strike against him in the mind of some of the jurors, specifically juror #10. From the onset, it seems like an open and shut case with the accused being sentenced to death for the murder of his father. But if that were the case, 12 Angry Men, with its study of human contrasts, inconsistencies and prejudices, would have been long forgotten. Instead, 12 Angry Men is a testament to the notion that standing up for ones beliefs that have come from an unbiased and methodical overview of the facts, even if those beliefs are contrary to the vocal majority, is honorable and that such prejudices which cloud those facts are an impediment to every citizen in a democratic society. Being forced to listen to six days of testimony while at the same time being paid only three dollars a day for their services, it is easy to see how some or most of the jurors at the beginning of deliberations, seemed apathetic towards the great responsibility they have to give the accused their undivided attention while deciding his guilt or innocence. This is the case for a number of jurors; specifically juror #7 who is preoccupied with making the Yankee/Indians game later that day. He feels rushed by the proceedings and desires quick deliberations followed by a unanimous guilty vote. He feels that the accused is guilty but most likely would have voted the way of the majority if that meant that he could have gone to the game, gone home or just been anywhere other than in the courtroom for any additional length of time.   He does not see and cannot be affectively reminded about the awesome power he has to either put a man to death or to set him free. The issue of the guilt or innocence of the accused should be paramount in his mind but sadly, it is not. Juror #5 is not the only one who shrinks from his responsibility. Juror #12, the well dressed and jovial salesman feels that the accused is guilty but when pressed to explain his reasoning, cannot and quickly changes his mind when pressured to do so. Juror #12 is preoccupied with his job and maintaining a light atmosphere in the jury room; almost oblivious to the matter at hand.   Juror #2 is in many ways, the same as juror #12 except for the fact that his personality is not nearly as outgoing but in the same way, lacks convictions and is content to go with the crowd. He does not take his civic duty seriously and is afraid to stand up against the crowd unlike juror #8; the lone dissenter at the beginning of the film. Also, juror #2 does not seem to be able to explain why he feels that the accused is either innocent or guilty. This is contrary to jurors #3,#4 and #10 who at the start of the movie, have no qualms about putting the accused to death and detailing exactly whey they feel that the boy should be worthy of such a fate. The remaining three holdouts all have different reasons why they think the boy is guilty; some are legitimate concerns while others are rooted in prejudice against the poor and minorities. Although misguided, the above mentioned jurors had the conviction to state specifically why they thought what they did and to be perfectly willing for a time and to stand up to what is becoming a numerous and vocal majority as the movie progresses. Jurors #2, and #10 are either too preoccupied to be bothered by the tremendous power they have over the accused, or are too timid and will go with the majority. For that reason, he is among the jurors that did not take their civic responsibility as seriously as they needed to. Jurors #5, #9 and of course #8 are polar opposites of the above mentioned jurors.   At the beginning of the film, only juror #8 votes for the innocence of the accused.   Or rather there is reasonable doubt as to the guilt of the accused in his mind. But juror #8, by his own admission, reluctantly stands alone in defiance to the other eleven jurors. He does not do this while void of fear. It is seen on his face, in his mannerisms and even when he is willing to vote with the majority if after a short deliberation and a second vote, he is still the lone dissenter. Juror #8 is skeptical about many aspects of this boy’s life; his childhood and especially the system that would allow such a boy to fall through the cracks and almost invite this type of behavior (had be been guilty) and feels that an intense and methodical discussion is warranted before he is to vote for the guilt and subsequent death of a fellow human being. This type of moral fortitude, courage and attention to duty goes rewarded by juror #9; the oldest juror who once he has a companion, has no trouble standing up to the intense verbal ridicule of the majority, specifically juror #3,#7,#10. By this act, the group process’s momentum slowly starts to shift away from rendering a guilty verdict to instead empowering those timid jurors who have doubt as to the guilt of the accused but were too afraid to speak as they knew that they could not handle the onslaught levied against them by jurors #3 and #10. The jury room consists of polar opposites when it comes to their fulfillment of their duty in this matter. It is not the specific vote that they cast that makes them the most different, but in the way that they came to that decision. Each juror possessed a different decision making process concerning how they voted, how quickly they changed their vote and how resistant others were to let â€Å"one of them† go free. It is very rare for twelve different people to be completely impartial and void of any prejudices. This was the case especially for juror #3. He is the last of the jurors to change his vote to not guilty and in order for him to do so, a great deal of internal and personal problems and frustrations must be overcome for him to change his vote. Juror #3 is a traditional, hard nosed individual who taught himself to be tough as well as his son, remarking that when his only son was nine and walked away from a fight, it make him sick and he resolved to make a man out of his son. At the time of the trial, his son is twenty two and it is safe to say that they have a contentious relationship for the past few years. The son, most likely, resisted the intense tactics of his father and they have not spoken in years.   This has caused the father a great deal of pain and this pain served as the main source of the father’s hatred for the accused.   Juror #3 sees a correlation between the accused and his son and exerts little effort to disguise that bias. The accused had a troubled relationship with has father as well. Juror #3 sees both the accused and his son as being ungrateful to their fathers and feels that there should be consequences for this disrespect. He seems to have no power over his son for if he did, they would be reconciled or at least there would be visits between them. But he does have power over the accused to put him to death for what his hatred tells him that the boy must obviously be guilty.   The accused stands for everything that juror #3 hates and coupled with his tough exterior, is the last to submit to letting the accused go free. On the opposite end of the spectrum are jurors #11, 5 and 8. Juror #11 is a watch maker from Eastern Europe. Even though he is Caucasian, he is conscious of his ethnicity and the prejudices that come with being from a different country. He sympathizes with the accused and how his ethnic background puts him at a disadvantage in almost every aspect of daily life in 1950’s America. At the beginning of the movie, he agrees with the majority regarding the guilt of the accused but the racist generalizations made by jurors #7 and 10 are very effective in showing   juror #11 that there are certain prejudices in play that need to be examined. Along with the methodical explanation by juror #8, the watchmaker changes his vote to not guilty and does not waver for the rest of the movie despite intense pressure from juror #7 and #10 to convince him of the contrary and to play on the fears the watchmaker has of being different. Also motivated by the obvious shift in the group process away from the ideology that encourages a guilty verdict, the above mentioned jurors do all that they can to slow the momentum.   The way in which the watchmaker comes to his decisions in a non biased, sympathetic and dutiful process and is willing to absorb ridicule against the prejudices of jurors # 3 and 10; some of the same prejudices which force them to be the last to change their vote, is honorable and worthy of mention; second only to that of juror #8, the lone dissenter. The movie wastes no time in pointing out who will emerge the leaders in the jury room. One would think that naturally, the foreman would be selected as the leader and that the proceeding would be run under his watchful eye.   But that is not the case. The foreman has no such ambition and is quick to offer his seat to anyone who thinks that they might be able to do a better job once an argument arises on how the deliberations would be conducted. By the simple yet courageous action of juror #8 to vote not guilty by a show of hands, while knowing that such an action would be the source of ridicule, quickly makes him as one of the leaders in the jury room. Juror #8 becomes the leader by not only being the sole dissenter in the face of ridicule but in the way that he reacts to that ridicule; through a quiet, confident and respectful resolve which earns him not only respect from people who are not used to such treatment, but also converts to his call for a complete examination of the facts. It is this unbiased and caring demeanor that helps his argument to have legitimacy unlike the boisterous juror #3 and #10 whose demeanor steadily helps them to lose converts until they are the only ones left. On the other end of the spectrum are jurors #3 and #10. It is obvious that they have ulterior motives in seeing the accused gets the electric chair.   They are tough on crime, short on compassion and frequent on racist generalizations which cloud their mind and sour their soul with such hatful rhetoric. These prejudices come busting out towards the end of the movie when jurors #3 and #10 are the most desperate as they are now left alone with the intense eyes of jurors who at the beginning of their deliberations, supported their discriminatory ideology by voting for the guilt of the accused. Once the support has been eroded, their actions, like the actions of juror#3, set them apart as they infamously emerge as the other leaders in the jury room. The fact that juror #3 allows his frustrations with his son to come into play with his judgment towards the guilt of the accused and that he his mannerisms are so over the top, helps him emerge as the other main leader in the jury room. His prejudice lies in the age of the accused being close to that of his own son with whom he has had a troubled relationship and a troubled past. Juror #3 may or may not hate his son but he is very discouraged and displeased with the way that things have gone in their relationship and vents his frustration towards the accused. The prejudice of juror #10 lies not in the age of the accused by rather in his race. The accused is a Latino who grew up in the poor tenements of New York where crime runs rampant and juror #10 feels that the accused is guilty by association since he came from such squalor and with a troubled past. However, juror #10 is not nearly as vocal in his suspicion of juror #5 who grew up in a similar atmosphere simply because the juror is white. It is more the race of the accused than where he grew up that seems to motivate juror #10 into the assumption that the boy is guilty. At first, it is the outspoken demeanor of juror #10 that helps to set him apart from the other jurors in a leadership role. But his leadership emerges in more infamous ways as he vocalizes his racist assumptions of the accused in one final and desperate outburst as he desperately tried to win back converts to his cause. He uses such words as â€Å"those people† and â€Å"you know how they are† and finally, the accused is â€Å"one of them.† The phrases are used at the beginning of the movie and assumed as fact in the mind of juror #10 mostly due to the fact that his only opposition is from juror #8 who is not being taken seriously and is no threat to him. However, when the group process shows that juror #10 is in a shrinking majority and will soon be a lone standout, along with juror #3, the same phrases are used desperately but to no avail. The main source for the drama in the jury room is the requirement that their decision must be unanimous. If for the simple fact that everyone must be in agreement in either sending the accused to his death or setting him free, there would have been no screenplay to begin with. The jurors might have argued the merits of the case but with there being no need for a unanimous decision, juror #8 would have known that unless he could win six more converts in what would have to be a short amount of time, the deliberations would soon be over. The ulterior motives of jurors #3 and #10 would never have seen the light of day. The lack of conviction displayed by jurors #1 #2 and #12 would never had been recognized and the heroic actions of juror #8 and to a lesser extent juror #9, would never had sparked such heated yet important and necessary debate within the jury room. Every man left the jury room a little different than when they first came. Jurors #2, #5, #11 and #12 may have been emboldened in their private lives and to let future injustices not slide as easily as they may have had in the past. Jurors #3, #10 and to a lesser extent #7, recognized their prejudices and may have exerted some effort to confront these problems. The phrase â€Å"group process† refers to the behavior of people in groups, such as task groups that are trying to solve a problem or make a decision. 12 Angry Men has numerous and obvious examples of group process. It is the fact that twelve men must come to a unanimous decision that such examples can be shown. If there were only one or two jurors and/or a unanimous decision did not have to be achieved, any aspect of group process would have been absent. The jurors can be grouped into three main groups: those who are strongly in favor of giving the accused the electric chair, those who are willing to go along with the majority and those who are strongly in favor of being oblivious from the glaring prejudices and racist assumptions and quickly latch onto the moralist; juror #8 and then #9. Jurors #2 #5 and #11 are beneficiaries of group process.   They cannot do alone what is made easier in a group once jurors #8 and #9 have voted for the innocence of the accused. Alone, they could never have done what #8 and #9 had done: stand up to vocal ridicule and to do it alone. But once the first step has been made towards an attempt to judge the facts and not the race, age or background of the accused, jurors #2, #5 and #11 are relieved to vote their consciousness instead of giving into the pressure levied against them by specifically jurors #3 #4 and #10. The negative aspects of group process would have been guilty for defective decision making if it hadn’t been for the fact that juror #8 has the courage to vote for the innocence of the accused. 12 Angry Men will continue to stand the test of time since it speaks eloquently on many different areas: that prejudices are an impediment to everyone in a democratic society and that standing up for a belief, despite knowing the dangers of such a stand, is honorable and should be recognized as courageous. But also, people do in groups what they wouldn’t do in private. Individuality within a group of strong opinions comes at a price and that price is most often ridicule and misunderstanding. If at the beginning of the movie, the foreman had taken a secret vote, juror #8 may not have been the lone dissenter. The jurors that did not put a great deal of value in the democratic process of trial by jury and didn’t feel that a daily salary of $3 was not worthy of their methodical analysis of the facts, were content to go with the majority, no matter what that decision said. But for the jurors who made it a point to shift group process away from a guilty verdict based on racist assumptions and in light of strong ridicule and little monetary compensation, this movie will continue to be studied and appreciated for years to come.       12 Angry Men Twelve Angry Men 1. How do you think you might have acted as a juror in this case ? How would you had interacted ? I think i would have started off with being calm but stressed i mean I would probably feel very burdened, because just by choosing one option you can change someones life. And as fas as interacting goes i would be casual but if something unexpected happens and i do have an outburst then it happens every one loses it at some point. 2.At the beginning of this movie the jurors vote 11 to 1 to convict the defendant and send him to death for murder; yet by the end of the movie they vote to acquit him, to set him free. What are the events that led the jurors to change their minds so radically and set the defendant free ? Describe the process. 1)The knife could be bought or have been found by anyone 2)The murderer knew how to use a pocket knife and the count have known. 3)When they re-enact the old man walking/limping from his bed to the door outside it takes them more then 15 seconds to get to the outside door.And the old man swore it had taken him 15 seconds. 4)The old man and the lady say that they heard the boy screaming at his father saying â€Å"I'll kill you† but that doesn't really mean he actually killed him since people say that phrase all the time but don't really mean it and that was proved when juror number three has and outburst and say's â€Å"I'll kill you† to juror number eight. 5)How could the old man and the lady have heard the boy screaming when you can't even hear yourself thinking over the el train. )The jurors start doubting the lady's eyesight since she did not have her glasses on and maybe just assumed that it was the boy staying his father. 3. Why is juror number nine (old Man) a real hero ? Explain this using examples. 1)Because he is the first to agree with juror number eight , deciding that there is not enough evidence to sentence the young boy to death. 2)He openly describes juror number ten's racist attitude. 3 )When he agrees that the old man could have maybe justified to what he heard and saw the night of the murder so he's name could be recognized. 4. Explain number three's anger against the accused.He's anger towards the accused is because he's relationship whit his son was very similar to the accused and the defendant. So based on the fact that he hasn't seen his son in the past two years and the negative relationship he's had with him he decides to declare the accused guilty because he thinks that the boy dose not deserve to live because he killed his own father. 5. Explain the impact of the closing scene in the jury room between number eight and three. Juror number three breaks down after his outburst while every one is leaving juror number eight stays back and tries to console him without communication. . Explain the following (refers to the play). a) â€Å"Innocent until proven guilty† Until you have no strong evidence against the accused, the accused is declared guilty. b) â€Å"Reasonable doubt† Something that could possibly prove the accused guilty. c) â€Å"Burden of proof† The biggest/important proof to prove the accused guilty or not guilty. 7. Explain the title. The title explained how these twelve men are frustrated and stressed and have this burden of declaring the accused guilty or not guilty. 12 Angry Men MODULE TITLE: – STRATEGIC MANAGEMENT DATE ASSESSMENT SET AND LOADED ON TO STUDENT PORTAL:- 13th February 2013 DATE ASSESSMENT TO BE COMPLETED AND SUBMITTTED:- SUBMISSION METHOD/MODE:- Online via turnitin, in person Group Oral presentation —————————————————————————————————————- Assessment Type: An Individual Assignment and a Group presentation Individual Assignment Word limit -3000 words Assignment One is based on the Harvard Business Review Case Study on Facebook. Study the case carefully and the recommended sources in the reading list. Attempt the following tasksTask A Using relevant analytical frameworks critically analyse the strategic capability of Facebook (1500 words, 12. 5%) Task B To what extent could prescriptive models of strategy be used to explain the strategic success of Facebook? (1500 words, 12. 5 %) Total weighting for Assignment 1: 25% Individual Assignment: Marking Guidelines 100 marks = 25% weighting †¢ Critical discussion and application of relevant models and concepts on strategic capabilities to understand the competitive advantage of Facebook (25 marks) †¢ Critical examination of conventional strategic management models to explain the success Facebook (25 marks) Discussion of contemporary models/ studies such as complexity theory, chaos and positive returns economics that may give an insight into Facebook’s explosive growth (25marks) †¢ Academic protocol – quality of academic references, the presentation of these and the overall structuring and format of the business report (25 marks) (Total 100 marks=25%) ——————————————————à ¢â‚¬â€Ã¢â‚¬â€Ã¢â‚¬â€Ã¢â‚¬â€Ã¢â‚¬â€Ã¢â‚¬â€Ã¢â‚¬â€Ã¢â‚¬â€Ã¢â‚¬â€Ã¢â‚¬â€Ã¢â‚¬â€Ã¢â‚¬â€Ã¢â‚¬â€Ã¢â‚¬â€Ã¢â‚¬â€Ã¢â‚¬â€Ã¢â‚¬â€Ã¢â‚¬â€Ã¢â‚¬â€Ã¢â‚¬â€Ã¢â‚¬â€Ã¢â‚¬â€œ Group Assignment Assignment Brief Task A Using relevant strategic management concepts, conduct an analysis of the film: â€Å"12 Angry Men† ( Dir.Sidney Lumet. Orion-Nova, 1957. Film) and discuss the implications of your findings for decision making in a business organisation. (Max: 1000 words or 5 slides) Task B The Board of Directors of a medium-sized company of your own choosing have recently attended a conference on contemporary developments in strategic thinking. They were particularly impressed by the Blue ocean concept. As consultants, critically discuss the ways in which the Board could shift its current strategy in oder to open up new market possibilities and to create sustainable value for its current and new stakeholders. 2000 words or 10 Slides) . Group presentation guidelines †¢ Studen ts are required to fully participate in and contribute to the development of the Group Presentation. Non-participation and/or non-attendance will result in restriction of marks for this aspect of assessment †¢ The group size will be determined by the module leader and module teaching team and will normally be in the range of 6-8 group members (normal maximum). In specific circumstances this may be varied. †¢ The formal Group Presentation will be delivered by a maximum of three members of the group.The other group members will be required to answer questions put them by assessors at the end of the presentation. †¢ The absolute maximum presentation period is 20 minutes. This will be timed and there will be NO extensions to this time period. Student Groups are strongly advised to rehearse their presentation to ensure that the time period is strictly adhered to. †¢ Presentations will be stopped by the lecturer/assessment team at the end of 20 minutes †¢ Presenta tions are followed by Questions which are required to be fielded by/responded to by all the members of the group.The absolute timed period for questions is 10 minutes. †¢ Both times are required to be strictly adhered to. †¢ There is a stipulated Maximum of 15 power point slides in the 20 minute presentation. †¢ Students are required to be aware and are formally advised of all maximum times which will be cut off times with no exceptions. †¢ Power Point printouts with the individual texts provided for the presentation by each student are required to be handed in to the assessment team/lecturer at the time of the presentation immediately before the commencement of the presentation and will be retained by the lecturer/assessment team. The contribution to the Group Presentation is deemed to be equivalent to 3000 words from each student. †¢ The Assessment Weighting for this aspect of the group assessment is 25% (all students in the particular group are awarded th e same percentage) Group Presentation Evaluation Criteria 100 marks= 25% weighting Organisation †¢ Topic clearly stated †¢ Structure and scope of presentation clearly stated †¢ Topic developed in order stated †¢ Speakers summed up main points in conclusion 10 marks Content Knowledge of subject (background of company and storyline of film and their relevance to module) †¢ Application and discussion of relevant conceptual models †¢ Clarity of business concept for Blue Ocean †¢ Implications of analysis for strategic decision-making and company selected †¢ Speakers in control of subject matter 30 marks Confidence †¢ Speakers look relaxed and confident †¢ Professionally dressed †¢ Maintain eye contact †¢ Engage with audience and display awareness of audience response 10 marks Speech †¢ Varied paced †¢ Use of conversational style avoiding jargon and long-winded â€Å"bookish† xplanation of relevant concepts †¢ Appropriate volume †¢ Clear pronunciation and articulation †¢ Accurate grammar 10 marks Visual Aids †¢ Clear and legible †¢ Introduced at right time †¢ User-friendly, easy to follow and not too much information †¢ Impact on audience †¢ Creativity and novelty 10 marks Timing †¢ Well-timed presentation †¢ Time divided appropriately between tasks 10 marks Discussion management and handling of questions †¢ Respond confidently to questions †¢ Deflect difficult or irrelevant questions 20 marks (Total 100 marks= 25%)Students are required to fully participate in and contribute to the development of the Group Presentation. Marks will be restricted for non-participation and/or non-attendance. Module Learning Outcomes to be Assessed:- Upon successful completion of the assessment, students will be able to: Assignment 1 (Individual): †¢ analyse the aims, concept and role of strategic management Assignment 2 (Group Assignment) †¢ critically analyse how the different perspectives of social science disciplines inform strategic management †¢ evaluate the debates surrounding contemporary strategic issues 12 Angry Men The movie twelve angry men was a movie about different people from backgrounds, races, and religions. They were all different and being in a group dynamics class we learned about how personality affects people and other things that people tend to do. The judge in the beginning of the movie showed some non verbal behavior, which is sending a message without using words but things like facial expressions and body movements. The judge in the beginning was hunched over meaning he was not very alert and seemed to be a passive man.The foreman is supposed to be the leader of the jury’s and according to his behaviors he is. He communicates well which is a key role to being a leader. The foreman functions as a leader because he listens well and also tries to give out ideas to the rest of the jurors. He has the ability to look at the situation in other perspectives. In making these hard decisions the jurors need to have perception checks, to make sure they are not jumping to any conclus ions. This is the life of a kid and their decision depends on his life.The conflicts that arise in the jurors room where productive to the situation at hand. The conflicts were solved in a good manner and beneficial to the case and getting everyone to feel confident about whether the kid was guilty or not. The jurors had assumptions about â€Å"those people† and â€Å"slums† which influenced the way they felt about the case. Their assumptions about those things influenced the way they thought about the case initially, the perception of the facts was altered because of having some type of bias.The juror’s assumptions had to do with the cultural and social diversity of the jury. The jurors based on how they lived their life, thought differently from the ones who were different from them based on the way they lived their lives. There were a lot of details to the case, and some jurors did not quite remember what others did. Some jurors remembered things that others did not due to selective listening. Most of the jurors listened to things that held more meaning to them than others.During the whole case the jurors did not know each other’s names and there is an importance to this, the importance is that being in the case it is supposed to be a strictly business environment. They are there to do one job and that is to make a decision. The twelve angry men is a reflection of how people act together and how their behavior can affect others. The movie is a good example of things we have learned in class.

Midterm Paper Rewrite Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Midterm Paper Rewrite - Essay Example Does this reflect the true picture of what beauty stands for today Definitely not! The "Curse of the Fashionista" will rob you of your identity and will steal the personality that makes you uniquely appealing. We express our shock when a model publicly dies on the runaway from the culmination of years of anorexia. Yet, thousands more suffer in private, away from the public's eye while celebrities promote this disease and its disastrous consequences. The recent case of the Ramos sisters brought only a fleeting glance at the fashion industry's policies that condone and promote an unhealthy body weight. The lure of stardom is quickly traded away, and the unethical practices continue. Cosmetics can be an instant cover-up or a dynamic enhancement for a woman's natural beauty. However, the long-term effects of these chemicals on the skin are mostly unknown, potentially damaging, and may be fatal. The women of England began to paint their faces with powdered white lead to imitate the pale complexion of Queen Elizabeth I. The product worked wonders while the women fell ill to lead poisoning. Today, women taking oral tyrostat for skin whitening have little information about its unforeseen side effects. Recent events indicate that drug companies may have trouble detecting side effects even after years of rigorous testing.

Project Management and its usage in cost and time mitigation Dissertation

Project Management and its usage in cost and time mitigation - Dissertation Example This research will begin with the statement that the construction industry is generally recognized as a vast, complex and diverse sector. It’s further complicated by the huge number of employees working for this sector. The sector suffers from noticeable differences in the areas of internal organizational structure, training and development techniques and various government policies running this industry across the globe. An estimated number of 35000 employers exist in the present construction sector and the number of employees stands near 330120. The industry showcases some unique traits that are different from other sectors, which includes †¢ Large size of the networks used within the industry- It is an important sector of the economy which produces buildings, roads, bridges, airports etc. which in turn are used for further business purposes by the economy. Again, the end product of various other firms like cement, stone, steel, wood etc. are used by the construction sector for delivering its ultimate product. Therefore, this sector has a link with each and every sector of the economy and the networks it maintains are wide and complicated. †¢ Government as a customer- In most of the countries, the government acts as the direct client of the construction sector and assigns them with projects for various urban and rural development programs. In countries like Singapore 87% of the citizens live at public residence where the government plays a vital role in developing housing projects. Expensive products- The construction sector is characterized by the production of expensive goods which are not possible to purchase without preplanning. Generally people spend almost all their saving in purchasing their dream house or setting up their own business. For this purpose, this sector has close relationship with the financial industry. Nowadays, the Real Estate firms are tying up with banks and other financial institutions to provide easy access to loans and other benefits to their customers. Immobility of the products- It is the unique feature of this sector that it produces goods which are fixed to the land. This feature limits its chances for export and showing the customer a pre-fabrication sample. When the project is started, it’s impossible for the firm to change or modify the work process in the midterm. Labor Intensive- This industry

Leadership Style Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Leadership Style - Essay Example leadership ensures that leaders and employees interact in different ways and subsequently build close relationships that promote progress within the organization. Transformational leadership is the most effective leadership style because it does not only focus on the results, but also the process by which results are realized. The most vital aspect of transformational leadership is that it allows leaders to motivate, inspire, and encourage their followers in a way that promotes individual growth and development (Kuckartz, 2010). Additionally, leaders are encouraged to harness and nurture talents, skills, and knowledge possessed by employee. In other words, this style of leadership makes it easy for leaders and their followers to identify their points of strength and subsequently discover ways to grow, develop, or improve personally and professionally. When it comes to transformational leadership, both the process and the results are critical. The process fosters close relationships that subsequently enhance well-liked interactions. For the results, motivation and inspiration are evident in the organization as far as transformational leadership is concerned. For example, leaders who embrace cultural diversity and promote the same in an organization play an important role in developing varied talents within the

Writing helps jog creativity (needs better wording..) Essay

Writing helps jog creativity (needs better wording..) - Essay Example No doubt, free writing is a natural way of writing that accelerates learning and enhances creativity. Writing is a process that explores ideas, beliefs, knowledge of known, and leads to the unknown. Free thinking and writing keeps the ideas and thoughts flowing. Murray finds free writing as a natural way of writing. He acknowledges the fact that writers are mostly clueless, they don’t know what their direction is. It is because they use language as a tool to explore what is beyond their knowledge (77).Free writing let the writer express every little detail on the paper rather than missing it in the â€Å"only thinking† or planning process. I personally feel that ideas are like soap bubbles that form and burst quickly, one after the other. I can identify with Abelardo Delgado who says, â€Å"I literally give birth to the ideas which wiggle in me wanting to come out†(qtd. in Tomlinson).It is critical to save them as they appear, and nothing can save them as beautifully as free writing. James Baker refers ideas and details as â€Å"free-floating metal shavings† looking for magnet (qtd. in Tomlinson).The magnet here are words that attract and absorb every little detail of our ideas. Free writing gives clarity and meaning to the whole thought process in general and writing in particular. Murray observes his students exploring and discovering the meaning through their writing process (77). While writing freely, we naturally express ourselves more. Gradually, we come to identify the meaning behind our expressions. It is more like a process of self exploration which introduce us to our writer self. Elie Wiesel says, â€Å"I write in order to understand as much to be understood† (qtd. in Murray 77).Murray supports my idea of writing as a discovery of meaning which unfolds itself as it proceeds. However, I never felt like professor of philosophy who felt embarrassed or dumb because he has to keep writing to find out what is his objective

The Evolution use and design of research centers in the world - 2 Essay

The Evolution use and design of research centers in the world - 2 - Essay Example Research Centers, Evolution and Architecture 1. Introduction The ongoing trend of research centers in the contemporary world is attributed to the formal beginning of research center in the 9th century. The importance of research centers is identified in the 9th century from where its benefits are being acquired in a significant manner today (Tash 9-11). The initial research centers were limited to observatories, which have expanded to several other disciplines by the evolution of time. In the contemporary world, there are several research centers which precisely deal with distinct important disciplines including medical and health sciences, chemistry, physics, sociology, psychology, astronomy and many more (Tash 22-27). Since the beginning of this significant trend in the world, the discipline of architecture has played an intrinsic role in the design and structure of research centers’ buildings (Narvaez, Panksepp and Schore 13-15). The evolution of this trend was accompanied with the evolution of architecture in which specific research facilities were designed in the latest state of the art with its contemporary times (Colquhoun 7-11). Out of many research centers, which are designed in concordance with its domain of discipline, there are specific research centers, which precisely incorporate the issues related to children. The idea of children research center is associated with the evolution of child development (Committee on Integrating the Science of Early Childhood Development 31-33). This concern has hatched the initialization of children research centers. As the evolution in the consideration of child development led to the persisting trend of children research centers, the discipline of architecture has also pertained to the influence of this evolution (O'Connor 3-5). There are several significant elements, which are being incorporated in the architectural design of children research centers in the contemporary times. These elements include arts, spacious interior design, modernistic exterior of building, numerous levels of buildings with utility of glass, and friendly decor to the architecture of building (Colquhoun 45-51). These are the elements which have been illuminated through the evolution in the children research centers’ architecture. 3.1 History/Evolution (International & National) of Development of your Project. If your project has multiple functions/mixed use you should trace the evolution of these functions/types/uses. Offering examples is necessary The Beginning of the Children Research Centre The very first recorded children’s research and learning center was the Victoria Hospital for Sick Children that was built in 1892 by Darling and Curry Architectural Firm. It was built in Toronto, Canada as a hospital to serve sick children. It became the first children’s hospital to open a school within its walls (Hamilton & David 65). This school was meant to facilitate the transfer of skills and k nowledge that nurses and doctors had learnt in the hospital to new staff. In addition, it was meant for doctors, professionals, and scientists to exchange information on various children illnesses. Starting off as a hospital, the building was later abandoned as it became less suited for multiple departments. The building, first made

Econometrics Institutions and Growth Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2750 words

Econometrics Institutions and Growth - Essay Example This paper focuses on the reasons why some countries are wealthier than others, studies such as Daron Acemoglu (2001) focus on colonisation and its effect on institutions. They state that colonisation led to the introduction of institutions which are present today, these institutions are therefore contributed to better economic performance. The role of better institutions in economic performance is supported by North (1973) who states that better institutions would lead to more investment in human capital and this would result into better economic performance will be realised. Besley (1995) studied the relationship between property rights and output and identified that there was strong correlation between the two variables, therefore economic performance will also depends on property rights. In this paper we focus on the role of colonisation and establishment of institutions, we also discuss the effect of property right on GDP and the differences in economic performance and the colonisers of the various countries. A study by Acemoglu (2001) was based on three assumpti... lonisers are present today, these institutions have an effect on income per capita and that colonisers chose areas with low mortality and in areas with high mortality establish extractive institutions. According to the study by Acemoglu (2001) the high mortality rate was as a result of disease such as yellow fever and malaria which was common in the tropic areas, settlers had no immune to these diseases and therefore chose not settle in these areas, settlers settled in the equatorial regions where mortality was relatively low. Therefore we focus on the effect of good institutions and property rights to discuss the differences in the economic performance, according to Douglas North (1973) better institutions and secure poverty rights would lead to more investment in human capital will lead to better economic performance. Besley (1995) also stated that economic performance depends on property rights. It is also evident that the countries considered in previous studies were colonised by a number of countries, a study by Mathew Lange (2006) showed that colonisers had differing effect on post colonial period economic development, his study compared Spain and British colonies that showed that Spain colonies had negative effects on post colonial economic development while British colonies had positive effects on post colonial economic development, some explanation or this effect is associated with the type of institutions left by the colonisers, Landes(1998) stated that a comparison of Spain and British colonies is that British left better institutions. Methodology: The first section of the paper is a description of the sample, the determination the correlation between the various variables under question to determine the nature relationship, measure of central tendencies

HRM analysis Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2250 words

HRM analysis - Research Paper Example The hotel consists of more than 5000 rooms and suits for guests in four thirty storey towers, world class gourmet restaurants, 27000 square feet pool complex, Grand Spa, casino, clubs, etc. Different parts of the hotel have different themes, food courts, restraints, entertainment lounge etc. (Jay & Dwi, 2000). The hotel is set up on an area of 33 acres. MGM Grand Las Vegas most commonly offers accommodation services but in addition to this the hotel also serves as a venue for different shows, events and concerts. Moreover, MGM grand hotel incorporates pool parties, night clubs, shopping outlets, wedding chapel etc. History In the 60’s a group of properties started as MGM Resorts International under Kirk Kerkorian’s leadership. After the grand opening of paradise hotel in early 1970s the second hotel was built in Las Vegas named MGM Grand Las Vegas. Both the hotels were the world’s largest hotels at that time. MGM Grand Las Vegas was opened in 1993 for the first t ime. The hotel turned to be the largest hotel in the United States with over 5000 guest rooms. At the opening of MGM Grand the biggest intention was the creation of first hotel in Las Vegas that includes the Theme Park MGM Grand adventures behind casino. The objective behind this hotel was providing a friendly and family oriented atmosphere where all the family members could enjoy different activities except the casinos. Strategy A strategy that a company sets and adopts to achieve its desired business objectives and goals are known as business strategy. The strategies adopted by MGM Grand Las Vegas hotel are discussed ahead. Competitive strategies are associated with the business strategies in a way to develop a competitive edge for an organization. MGM Grand Las Vegas hotel has potential business strategies to predict the expectations of the customer most accurately and make them satisfied with creativity. Product differentiation is one of the most unique competitive strategies th at MGM Grand uses. One of the examples of this strategy is the introduction of M Life Payers Club in 2010. This club is basically a customer reward club where customers can earn points by shopping and using other services of the hotel and then use those points for other experiences like concerts, food etc. To compliment the services activities the hotel uses marketing and sales strategies (Alan, 2007). The unique communication platforms used by the hotel and the entertainment attractions has helped the hotel win a competitive advantage. The hotel uses strategies to stay ahead of competition. The various strategies adopted by MGM Grand have helped the hotel grow and expand to different countries. In 2006 MGM Grand Las Vegas focused on the extension of its brand into hotels subsidiary named MGM Hospitality. MGM hospitality is held responsible for the outsourcing of gaming and non-gaming both type of investments and the management opportunities. The opening of Grand Macau in China is a nother example of this. These investments helped in accumulating almost one billion dollars of capital in the same year. Market position The ability to establish a unique position in the mind of the customer by delivering benefits and unique features is known as the determinant for the organizations position in the market (Woods, Robert,

Computer Shopper Essay Example for Free

Computer Shopper Essay Technology has evolved and changed throughout history and the world. In the 80’s and even early 90’s, type writers and the mail man were highly relied on when it came to communication. Today when it comes to communication now we have e-mail and text messaging. Presently different professions use computer but with different configurations. So what I did was take three known professions business, student and professional gamer. To describe what functions are needed for their profession. The Student Being a fulltime student takes a lot and requires one to be on point at every task at hand. Having all materials such as paper, books, pens and pencils. Even through textbooks breaks the bank in your pockets. The need for a notebook also known as a laptop is a major requirement. Having a notebook definitely helps a lot in everyday class curriculums. One problem is that once you have your notebook you need software such Microsoft Office. Microsoft Office is a wonderful tool when it comes to creating and reviewing documents. How can you determine what type of notebook to get though? On table 1 below, I have looked into Best Buy, one of America’s top known electronic retail companies, to see what is it that they have to offer to students. I came across Hewart Packard Pavilion A-8 series. This notebook comes with a 500 gigabyte hard drive and 4 gigabytes of memory. The processor is an Intel Celeron 2.1GHz. It is not one of Intels high end processors but for a student, it is definitely at the top of its class. The price provided by Best Buy is $429.99. The Business Man Reports, meetings, reviews, and analysis are the assignments general business men have to complete daily, weekly and/or monthly. But what type of desktop does a business man usually have in his or her office? Some random hand me down desktop provided by the IT Department? I believe so. What if you were your own boss and needed some sort of desktop that can get you  through everyday business. What type would you go for? Generally you want a desktop with a moderate processor, high on memory and a large hard drive to keep all documentation. Below on table 1, I suggested the Dell XPS desktop. Dell is popular nationwide when it comes to businesses and even schools. The Dell XPS provides 1TB of hard drive, 12GB of memory, and on top of that a 3.4 Intel 4th Generation Core. This desktop is an awesome display of business power and priced at $699.99.

The Csr Evaluation of Gap Inc. Essay Example for Free

The Csr Evaluation of Gap Inc. Essay The Gap Inc. : The CSR Evaluation of Gap Inc. Outline of the notable ethical decisions made by Gap Inc. and their impacts on the company In 2003, Gap Inc. was sued for its usage of child labor and sweatshop factories in its subsidiary in Saipan. The decision to use child labor and sweatshop in Saipan was made by the management of Gap Inc. that could either be seen as egoism or utilitarianism (Smith, 2004). On one hand, on the egoism perspective, Gap Inc. could have decided to use child and sweatshop labor to cut its costs and maximize its profits. On the other hand, on the utilitarianism perspective, Gap’s decision to use child and sweatshop labor, cruel and ethical as it might seem, provided the people in Saipan a source of employment and income. As a poor, third world country, Saipan could not create enough jobs to sustain the livelihood of all its citizens, so it the citizens could choose between starving to death and making a difficult living in Gap’s sweatshops, the sweatshop is apparently a better option. Hence from the utilitarianism approach, Gap’s unethical behavior was actually better than its doing nothing at all. However, this decision gave Gap an international lawsuit over ethical treatment of labor, which does not cost Gap considerable fortune and energy, but also severely harmed its international reputation as an ethical player in the apparel industry (Smith, 2004). It turned out that the public citizens and the media prefer to use the Kantianism when viewing a corporate ethical issue (Iwanow and McEachem, 2005). After this Saipan sweatshop incident, the stakeholders of Gap Inc. placed huge pressure on the company management (Smith, 2004). As a result, Gap Inc. went through a thorough reflection on business ethics and corporate social responsibilities (CSR). Finally, the company made a decision to shift from the Utilitarianism approach to the Kantianism approach in its business ethics and CSR decisions. The new approach features three key principles, namely the universality, reversibility and respect. First of all, Gap decided to apply the same standard of ethical treatment to its workers whether they work for Gap in the U. S or third world countries. Secondly, under the Code of Vendor Conduct (Gap, 2011), the Gap management has been committed to treat the employees just the way they expect the employees to treat them. Thirdly, Gap decided to treat its partners in the value chain with escalated respect, namely not considering them as a means to an end but rather as vivid means with flesh and bones. This revolution on Gap’s CSR philosophy has ushered the company into the right track of corporate social responsibility. Gap’s change in attitude has been accolade both by its stake holders and the media.

Social Construction of Female Gangs

Social Construction of Female Gangs Introduction In the UK, there has been very little research on female gang problem which has led to the vast amount of research from the USA being applied to the UK situation. Female gangs have been in existence throughout history although very little has been said about its members beyond their role as sexual objects. Hallsworth and Young (2008):176) following a home office report in 2008 state that the gang was for the first time explicitly linked to the problem of urban violence and rising weapon use in the UK (2008:176) and according to Campbell (1990) girls have been a part of gangs since the earliest accounts from New York in the early 1800s (1990:166). Female gang activity has been on the increase in the latter half of the twentieth century and as such, these activities have increasingly become violent. In this essay, I will elaborate on the meaning of gangs and female gangs using various definitions given by key authors. My main interest in this paper will be to discuss the historical bac kground of female gangs and the key debates surrounding these gangs in relation to the literature written by authors of different calibers and also the myths as portrayed by the society. I will also be interested in discussing the media construction of female gangs giving examples which will lead me to explore the disconnection between what the media says about female gangs and what the reality is. The term gang according to Schneider and Tilley (2004) does not have a single definition even though it is used universally by researchers, police, social workers, media and the general public (2004: xviii). The US National Criminal Justice Reference Service have defined the term gang as a group of three or more people who have a common name or sign and have an aim of engaging in criminal activity. In the UK context, experts have found it difficult to reach a consensus on whether or not gangs exist and how they can be defined (Aldridge and Medina, 2008; Alexander, 2008; Broadhurst et al., 2009; Hallsworth and Silverstone, 2009; Her Majestys Inspectorate of Prisons, 2010; Pickles, 2009; Pitts, 2008). Websters Dictionary (1961) gives us another definition stating that a gang is a band or group of persons who involve themselves in criminal or socially unacceptable behavior (1961:74). Female gang is simply a girl group or individuals who are involved in criminal activities and share the same names, symbols and signs as their identity. Female gangs do not have a visible leader and according to research that they tend to be fairly informal and they do not often have a visible leader. Campbell for example in the Huffs book on Gangs in America (1990) observes that in Los Angeles some gangs have veterinas or godmothers but she goes on to say that typically the members insist there is no leader and that decisions are made democratically. Campbells observation suggests that some girls clearly have more clout than others, but that this usually is not formalized as a leadership role. (1990: 178). In this review, I will discuss about female gangs drawing upon American research but with more emphasis on the rising phenomenon of female gangs in Britain. In order to accomplish my aim for this literature review, I will use primary sources, some secondary sources and other policy documents or government publications to enable me make conclusions and recommendations, identifying gaps in knowledge which may inspire other researchers into ideas for further research and also enable me to give my general opinion of how I feel about the social construction of female gangs by the media much of which I tend to disagree with. Literature Review Historical Background Many researchers and journalists have for a long time assumed that girls and women did not take part in criminal behaviors and therefore the issue of female gang has often been ignored. Campbells (1990) review on girl gangs states that, girls were defined solely in terms of their relations to male gang members (1990:166). Men have always been the point of concentration in investigating gang crimes and until recently, female gang members were seen as sex objects or tomboys. Literature has shown that researchers describe female gangs as weapon carriers for the male counterparts in addition, Moore and Hagedorn (2001) argue that even when describing female gang members as tomboys, researchers emphasized that the females motivations were focused on males (2001: 2). Looking at the UK context of female gangs, literature on girls and gangs has not been well developed because researchers in Britain have not seen the need to concentrate on female gangs (Campbell and Muncer, 1989; Sanders, 2002 ). According to Downes (1966); Parker (1974) and Scott (1956), the UK tried to apply American gang theories to address the problem of street gangs but these attempts failed over time leading to lack of data on gangs. This explains why there is no sound evidence as in the case of USA, for the proliferation of violent street gangs (Hallsworth and Young, 2008: 177). Female Involvement is not a new occurrence universally. In fact, there has been a lot of concern on the rise of female involvement in gang business over the years. Early studies found that there was a 50 percent increase in serious crimes by teenage gins between 1968 and 1974, compared to a 10 percent increase for boys and arrests of girls under 18 for violent crimes rose 393 percent between 1960 and 1978, compared to 82 percent for boys (CASA Website) . Miller (2001) compared youth gang involvement in 1950, and found out that youth gangs of the 1980s and 1990s are more numerous, more prevalent, and more violent than in the 1950s, probably more than at any time in the countrys history (2001: 263). In the early 1980s, Anne Campbell (1981) became interested and had concerns about female offenders which led her to conduct an investigation about the occurrences of violence amongst girls in Britain. Campbell, (1984) also did an investigation on female gangs in America and this led to her conclusions that the problem of female gangs was socially constructed. She criticized Britain for only concentrating on male gangs and ignoring female gangs and illustrated that in New York, women were very unlikely to organize in to gangs in big numbers because the female groups were only known to follow male groups (Campbell, 1995). Recent studies on girls and violence also shows that there has been an increase in violent and aggressive behaviour by girls and this has been catalyzed by media attention. Earlier on, people knew very little about girls violence because there was a belief that violence was solely committed by men. The study findings show very little evidence suggesting that girls are physically violent. Membership Academic research on gang membership in the UK is very sparse as mentioned earlier on and there is little evidence showing that young women have existential experience in committing violence. It has been difficult to ascertain the numbers of female gangs although there is a significant existence of the members. On the other hand, in the US, feminist researchers have tried to provide a more nuanced portrayal of the complex gender experiences of girls in gangs (Miller, 2001: 16). They have demonstrated that girls involvement in female gangs meets their gender expectations and experience heightened risks for physical and sexual victimization and also ascertains that gang membership provides them with a sense of belonging, giving them confidence and refuge from their abusive families (Campbell, 1990; Joe and Chesney-Lind, 1995; Joe Laidler and Hunt, 2001; Miller, 2001, 2008; Moore, 1991; Nurge, 2003). Many gangs appear to be more highly structured than delinquent groups but that does not disqualify the fact that they may still be seen as loosely organized. Several factors such as age, neighborhoods and so on are considered as the basis of gaining entry to these gangs or becoming a member. The gang sizes range from a member group of four or five and can go beyond a thousand. There have been different classification of gang groups such as the leaders, associates of the regulars then there are the peripheral members and finally the recruits. Most studies have shown that the reasons why females join gangs are because of friendship influence, it is seen as a form of solidarity and self affirmation. Research has indicated that those kids who grow up in dysfunctional families and whose parents are in prison may find it appropriate to join gang groups. Many youth gang formation is as a result of the present deteriorating economic conditions which are characterized by poor housing, lack of school structures and facilities and lack of laws that regulate violation of youth gangs. Being in a female gang may be a refuge from physical and sexual abuse at home. Young et al.s (2007) was involved in a research which directly involved girls and young women who had association with female gang and this gave him a different picture of their involvement. UK studies of female gangs have indicated that girls and young women are just portrayed as girlfriends to their male gang members but Young et als involvement in interviewing some of the females indicated that their groups were mainly composed of peers whose main reason for being together was plain friendship and denied that their groups were gangs. However in the US, Miller (2001) states that young womens group formation was through friendships from school, their house neighborhoods and not through any initiation rites to join these groups. Evidence uncovered by Young et al. (2007) stated that all the female groups interviewed referred to each other as their mates. Seven young women belonged to all-female groups and although they would periodically hang about with the local young men, this was not because these relationships with males were considered to be important or necessary. Indeed, from their testimonies it was evident that these women did not consider the males around them as friends or even friendly, nor did this group enter into intimate relationships with the young men they associated with. These young women determined when they associated with the males in their social circle and were not significantly influenced by the actions of males or male-dominated groups (Young et al., 2007: 143). A study conducted by Pitts in 2007 considers female membership in gangs as Reluctant Gangsters: Youth Gangs in Waltham Forest (Pitts, 2007). According to Pitts (2007), young women in gangs are often sexually exploited, sometimes in exchange for drugs and the relationships (they have with male members) tend to be abusive; one of dominance and submission and also some senior gang members pass their girlfriends around to lower ranking members and sometimes to the whole group at the same time (2007: 39). Pitts (2007) study states that the reason why young women, or girlfriends, are attracted to the gangs is mainly because they believe they can be glamorous or become celebrities within the group. It is unclear how members of female gangs are able to maintain long term roles and specific position given that the core members decide on the primary roles of the gang groups. Some members join the groups for a short period and others may move on to other gang groups after a certain period of ti me but in all these groups, the core members still remain in charge of the criminal activities. Statistics The most widely used data on female gangs has been from the nationwide surveys of law enforcement agencies. Miller (1975) stated that a survey conducted in the mid-1970s indicated that 10 percent of all gang members were estimated to be female and according to Spergel (1995), a national survey found that in 1992 only 3.7 percent of all gang members were female. This was due to the fact that 32 percent of the surveyed jurisdictions did not, as a matter of policy, identify females as gang members (Curry and Decker, 1998: 98). Four years later in 1996 there was an estimate that 11 percent and then 1998, 8 percent of all gangs were female (Moore and Terrett, 1998; National Youth Gang Center, 2000). It is noted that it is in small cities and rural areas where female gangs are more likely to be found and their ethnicities vary by regions (National Youth Gang Center, 2000). In 2003 the Channel 4 documentary Dispatches emphasized that the gang problem was increasingly spreading in the UK and as many as 30,000 gangs were functional and 57 percent included female members (Thompson, 2003). The Metropolitan Police Service (MPS, 2005) released the most recent figures with findings that there were 174 street gangs in London. In 2006 the MPS figures showed that there was a 66.6 per cent increase in gang membership raising the number of UK gangs to 50,000 of which 2500 of the total number were young women (MPS, 2006). The United States gang numbers according to recent police estimates indicate that there are 27,000 gangs with approximately 788,000 members (National Youth Gang Survey, 2007). According to these reports, there was a 25% increase in the reported numbers of gang and gang problems since the year 2001 where there was a low report on gang problems (National Gang Center, 2009). Curry, Fox, Ball, Stone (1992) and National Gang Center (2009) reported that in 2007 there were gang problems in large cities, 86% more than what was reported in 1983 which was at 50% when the gang problem was just beginning to grow. Media construction of female gangs Media representations on gangs and more specifically female gangs have played a very big role in informing the social reality by a social constructionist perspective. In the past two decades, gang crime activities have dominated the crime news and the quality of life among rural and urban dwellers has been eroded also, violent young females have been presented as a new and growing social problem(Batchelor, 2009:408). According to Batchelor (2009) girls have been perceived to be the same as boys especially in fighting to defend themselves (2009:400). Batchelor continues to argue that young women who involve themselves in male gangs have been used as carriers of weapons and drugs and in some cases the girls have been exploited sexually. News in the media has claimed that young women have acted as the heads of anti-social youth groups who commit crimes like rape, murder and violent robbery (Young, 2009). Many newspapers produce stories with an aim of attracting peoples attention and informing them on what they think the public want to read about thus making a lot of sales on the papers. The medias main interest had been to enhance its economic aspect by manipulating the public way of thinking about crime and its social context (Potter and Kappeler 1998). The main contribution of the media has been according to Best (1993:119), a contextual constructionism of gangs where the media makes certain choices of what to cover in the news which contributes to the social construction of the reality. Crime narratives and representations are, and have always been, a prominent part of the content of all mass media( Reiner, 2007:305), with sources such as newspapers and television documentaries playing a central role in creating public perceptions of crime and therefore influencing their perceptions about the extent of crime and the risk of suffering it (Treadwell, 2006:77). Media reports especially in the UK have not been backed up by concrete evidence on the wider female gang problems. The Centre for Social Justice (2009) states that media coverage has, at times, been suggestive of an epidemic in gang-related youth violence (2009:19). In the UK, television headlines and documentaries relating to gang violence and the coming up of girl gangs has been dominant and that has not been different in the case of USA where it has been reported that gang groups are armed, dangerous and prepared to kill (Hallsworth and Young, 2008:176). Despite the fact that gangs and gang activity has been seen as a social problem to society and despite the regular convictions from the news that has shaped such problems, a comprehensive and systematic analysis of newspaper coverage of gangs and societys war on gangs has not been undertaken. There have been extraordinary cases of female violence reported. For example the reported case of a frenzied attack of eight strangers which was enacted by Chelsea OMahoney, who was the only female member of Sergeant Crew, in conjunction with her male friends (Laville, 2005). This case signifies that there are existing modern girl gang members who offend the law. The press gave an impression that made the public perceive the girl involved as aggressive and one capable of extreme behaviour, a trouble maker who causes havoc in and out of her group and catalyses others to be involved in aggressive behaviour (Thompson ,2003). In the next section, I will analyze the literature review and the medias perception towards female gangs. I will explore the information given in order to see if there is a disconnect between what the media says and what the reality is about female gangs. This will aid me in making proper conclusion about the media construction of female gangs. Analysis It has been argued that reports on female gangs offending the law is very low compared to male offenders and noted that female violence is a relatively rare occurrence according to crime statistics. Various authors like Campbell (1995) have stated that Britain for many years had not developed any research on female gangs whereas in New York, female groups were only seen as followers of their male counterparts and could not possibly form gang groups to organize crimes. On the other hand, the press has had much to write on the papers and commentate in news about girl gangsters especially in the last ten years. According to Tara (2009) there have been news reports contending that young women are traditionally engaged in violent crimes. Reports have in excess claimed that many anti-social youth groups are now headed by young women and they commit crime such us rape, murder and robbery. Honigsbaum (2006) states that young women in the UK are cited to be amongst the most violent and aggres sive in the world. It is clear that there have been a few empirical studies on female gang membership especially in the UK although the media coverage of violent offences committed by young women has created a certain perception towards the girl gangsters. This construction of female gangs has also been through the statistical evidence that has been provided by officials from the law enforcement department. Comparing the literature on female gangs and what the media has had to say about this topic, it is evident that there have been gaps in research on female participation in gangs in the UK which is the same case as the American gang literature where else, the media has been successful in socially constructing the girl gangs even though its evidence is very scant. Over the years, most researchers have concentrated on investigating the male gangs, studying the criminal behaviour of men and ignoring the female counterparts. According to Pitts (2007), the female gangs have not been recognized or in some cases, research has been conducted in reference to the experience of men. In reality, female gangs have been in existence for decades but it has been difficult to come up with the true picture of the problem. In the case of UK, there have been claims that currently young women are more likely to engage in street gangs and these women are more likely to engage in serious violent crime. This information is not substantial because the media seems to exaggerate this kind of violent crime thus shaping the public perceptions of gangs. There is a problem of statistic as well. It has been noted that female gangs exist in larger cities but there is no evidence to suggest that female crime is a national problem, therefore the true problem cannot be identified. Unrealistic public attitudes towards girls gangs have been the order of the day because there has been misrepresentation of girls lives and this according to Batchelor (2001) has created a misdirected public policy. The media has been fond of relying on simple statistics and typical gang cases that have no evidence and this has complicated the discussions of complex socio-specific contexts of violence in girls lives (Batchelor, 2001). Young womens genuine problems continue to be marginalized and ignored as the media continues to give wrong information to the public thus making the girls become a problem. Batchelor (2005); Coy (2008) suggest that it is important that any steps taken to address problems of gang involvement by young women should be from the reality and should be able to acknowledge the yo ung women are active agents and victims. As I have discussed above ,most of the violence that is experienced by girls and young women, as both perpetrators and victims, takes place within either the family or their friendship group. This means that social work and probation practitioners need to give careful attention to the familial and peer contexts of young womens offending, putting in mind that both groups can be concurrently harmful and protective. (Batchelor, 2005) argues that if we are to working towards effecting change in young women offenders lives, we need to maximize on their involvement and participation in various positive activities. These activities should enable them relate well with their families and friends and also the social work teams in order to have positive relations. There is need for accessible and affordable leisure activities which can be effective in occupying the girls and young womens minds and address some specific needs like bullying and victimization. It could be argued that research in to the phenomena of the girl gang especially in the UK is barely adequate thus making it difficult to make quantifying conclusion of the girl gang problem. Much of this essay clearly states that crime statistics show that compared to male offending female violence is a relatively rare occurrence (Young, 2009:224), and any rise in female violence may not always be gang related. I will conclude this essay by indicating that a lot of information represented by the media is just assumptions with no evidence to back it and researchers can do more towards looking more into the problem. Conclusion There seems to be no concrete theory as to why girls of women get involved in violent crimes but there have been various factors that have been cited to have played a major role in influencing them to join gang activities. Parental negligence, poverty, teenage pregnancies, lack of education, ill health, early involvement in sexual activities and peer group influence are some of the factors that drive these girls and women into gangs. Researchers, the law enforcement system, school, community based programmes and families have ignored the fact that female gangs exist and have confined young female to victimization and this has resulted to the rise of female violence. This essay has considered the background information of female gangs, the definition of gang and female gang, the key debates surrounding these gangs in relation to literature written, also the media construction of female gangs and the myths as portrayed by the society. It is argued that many researchers have ignored females as gangs and the notion seems to be that female gangs and their members are pale imitations of male gangs (Spergel, 1995: 90). Due to lack of research, facts that have been written and reproduced in books about female gangs are based on journalists and probation officers reports and also the statements given by the male gang members. Looking at the past and current research on female gangs, it is clear that they do exist in the UK and the USA although the statistics given are socially constructed due to the fact that the gang related cases are underreported. Reliable statistics may show that the problem of female gangs is not as large as the media portrays it to be and with the media catalyzing the problem, it may have negative consequences such as labeling to girls and young women. Media reports fuelling a moral panic can also have an impact on how the community and the government responds to female gangs thus failing to tackle the needs of these female groups. I will conclude by saying that it would be important for researchers to further explore the problem of female gangs because I completely agree that they exist and need attention otherwise the problem will get out of hand if ignored. The media should stop exaggerating facts on female gangs and concentrate on finding out the true picture of these gangs.

Demonstrated Effectiveness of Training within the Workplace to Improve

The Quality Management Plan at Club Nova reflects two core quality improvement plans: House Cleanliness and Employee Retention. Club Nova collects member and staff satisfaction data at least semi-annually in order to analyze that data and to make headway in finding a remedy for these two issues. Alas, no solution has been found. Staff turnover rate is at an all-time high, with 6 of 10 staff having left Club Nova since July 2011. For the members, I recognize that losing valued and favored staff will result in decreased member participation and attendance, strained interactions with new staff, and overall dissatisfaction with the functioning of Club Nova. My solution is simple. Club Nova should invest in its staff. According to Nowack’s research (2011), 42.6% of those within his study reported that career growth and learning opportunities were a significant factor in their continued employment at a given job. Staff who are more knowledgeable about the Clubhouse Model and who receive various on-going training will operate a more efficient program, will experience less frustrations in dealing with the organizational style within Club Nova, and will enjoy their work significantly more thereby reducing staff turnover and improving member satisfaction. Which Staff & Members Do We Offer Training? Club Nova is a unique environment in which all members and staff function along-side each other to complete the tasks during the work-ordered day. Trainings should not be any different in this model. Tanvir, Hussain, & Janjua, (2011) defined training as the â€Å"attainment of the skill, ideas and attitudes to obtain the desired performance and results.† Given that the responsibilities of the day fall on both members and staff, each pe... ...nd Stress.† Envisia Learning, http://abstracts.envisialearning.com/78-abstractFile.pdf Olivero, G., Bane, K., & Kopelman, R. (1997). â€Å"Executive coaching as a transfer of training tool: effects on productivity in a public agency.† Public Personnel Management, 26(4), 461-469. â€Å"Schedule,† Retrieved from http://www.fountainhouse.org/content/schedule Smith, A., Oczkowski, E., & Smith, C. (2011). To have and to hold: Modelling the drivers of employee turnover and skill retention in Australian Organisations. International Journal of Human Resource Management, 22(2), 395-416. doi:10.1080/09585192.2011.540162 Tanvir, M., Hussain, A., & Janjua, S. (2011). A Remedy based Concept: Impact of Encounter Service, Culture and Employees Training on Customers Satisfaction of Hospitality Industry. Interdisciplinary Journal of Contemporary Research In Business, 3(2), 1237-1247.

Capitalism :: essays research papers

A global assembly line is a capitalist’s dream come true. It allows companies to do business in free trade zones to manufacture goods throughout the world at the lowest possible cost to the company. This assembly line enables companies like Nike, with corporate headquarters in the U.S. w to shut down their factories here, and move over seas where there are less restrictions and cheaper labor. Where as the production cost are drastically less in these free trade zones, so are the human rights laws, especially those pertaining to women, the majority of the work force. By moving its production sites to places like Asia, Nike is able to pay workers sub-minimum wage, on top of allowing the corporation to dodge responsibility for the treatment of its work force. Nike strategists have certainly managed to devise a plan to escape the responsibility and liability of insuring that it assembly line sites are safe, healthy and fair labor places of work, by subcontracting to foreign owned and governed factories. South Korea, the sneaker capital of the world is one of these places. According to the article The Globe Trotting Sneaker the workers in these assembly factories are predominantly women. The article also highlights the fact that South Korea has a military government that possesses a strong determination to suppress labor organizations. Nike is not blind to this information. These facts only work more for the sneaker typhoon. It allows them to profit legally from under paid, over controlled and unorganized women laborers. A Confucian following culture. In which Korean women except the philosophy that her morality is measured by the amount of hard work she is willing to endure for her families well being and to acquiesce to her father and husbands dictates is yet another benefit that Nike reaps the profits from. The Global assembly line affects every part of the factory workers life both U.S and Korean. This is due to the fact that at any given time, the corporation may decide to pick up and move to a neighboring country because the labor is cheaper and the restrictions fewer. The women working in these factories of South Korea endure numerous difficulties, low pay, poor work conditions etc.. For many years they remain silent. In the 1980’s the silence was broken, but not shattered. For the first time, women workers organized, separate from the men and brought their issue to be heard.

True Portrayal of Children in Lord of the Flies :: Lord of the Flies Essays

True Portrayal of Children in Lord of the Flies In the novel The Lord of the Flies, by William Golding, one can see how children react to certain situations. Children, when given the opportunity, would choose to play and have fun rather than to do boring, hard work. Also, when children have no other adults to look up to they turn to other children for leadership. Finally, children stray towards savagery when they are without adult authority. Therefore, Golding succeeds in effectively portraying the interests and attitudes of young children in this novel. When children are given the opportunity, they would rather envelop themselves in pleasure and play than in the stresses of work. The boys show enmity towards building the shelters, even though this work is important, to engage in trivial activities. Af ter one of the shelters collapses while only Simon and Ralph are building it, Ralph clamours, "All day I've been working with Simon. No one else. They're off bathing or eating, or playing." (55). Ralph and Simon, though only children, are more mature a nd adult like and stray to work on the shelters, while the other children aimlessly run off and play. The other boys avidly choose to play, eat, etc. than to continue to work with Ralph which is very boring and uninteresting. The boys act typically of m ost children their age by being more interested in having fun than working. Secondly, all the boys leave Ralph's hard-working group to join Jack's group who just want to have fun. The day after the death of Simon when Piggy ! and Ralph are bathing, Piggy points beyond the platform and says, "That's where they're gone. Jack's party. Just for some meat. And for hunting and for pretending to be a tribe and putting on war-paint."(163). Piggy realizes exactly why the boys have gone to Jack's, which would be for fun and excitement. The need to play and have fun in Jack's group, even though the boys risk the tribe's brutality and the chance of not being rescued, outweighs doing work with Ralph's group which increase their chance s of being rescued. Young children need to satisfy their amusement by playing games instead of doing work. In conclusion, children are more interested

Solar Cells theory

The consumption of the products grew enormously and therefore it is not surprising that we characterise today society as a consumption society. Nevertheless, it has become evident at the end of the 20th century that the philosophy of human rogress that has manifested itself in a huge production and consumption of goods has a negative side too. It has been recognized that a massive consumption of fossil fuels in order to fulfil the present energy demands has a negative impact on the environment.The deterioration of environment is a clear warning that the present realization of human progress has its limitations. The emerging international environmental consciousness was formulated in a concept of a sustainable human progress. The sustainable human progress is defined as: † to ensure that it sustainable development) meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs†l . A new challenge has emerged at the end of the 20th century that represents a search for and a utilization of new and sustainable energy sources.The urge of this challenge is underlined by limited resources of the fossil fuels on the Earth and increasing demand for energy production. This is the reason why the attention is turning to the renewable energy sources. Energy is an essence of any human activity. When we are interested in how he human civilization has been producing and using energy, we can describe it in terms of an energy system. The main characteristics of the energy system are: the population, the total consumption of energy, and the sources and forms of energy that people use.The energy system at the beginning of the 21st century is characterised by six billion people that live on the Earth and the total energy consumption of approximately 1. 3 x 1010 kW. World Commission on Environment and Development (WCED), Our Common Future, Oxford/New York: Oxford University Press (1987). 1. 2 Primary energy sources Figure 1. 1 presents an overview of the present primary energy sources 2. The primary energy sources can be divided in two groups. The first group includes those energy sources that will be exhausted by exploiting them.These energy sources are called the depleting energy sources and they are the fossil fuels and nuclear energy. The fossil fuels and nuclear power are the main source of energy in todays energy system and they supply 78% of the energy demand. Under the assumption that the population of mankind does not change drastically and it consumes energy at the urrent level, the fossil fuel reserves will be exhausted within 320 years and the nuclear energy within 260 years.

Esraa ali

The Dubai Mall Dubai mall is one of the biggest malls in the world, and the biggest mall in the UAE, it's located in Dubai near of Khalifa Tower. It's an amazing place, a lot of people visit Dubai to see Dubai mall. Dubai mall includes more than 1,200 shops and most of them are expensive but some of them are affordable.Clothes shops such as Mark & Spencer and H&M, sports stuffs such as Nike and Puma, Electronic shops, Candy stores, Shoes shops such as Aldo, Shoe Mart and Crocs , And for sure baby shops such as Mother care and many others . In the 2nd floor, there where you can find the Food Court which filled with many different kinds of restaurants, Fast food restaurants such as Shack Shack and MacDonald's, Family restaurants such as Chilies, Chinese food restaurants such as Bamboo Garden restaurant and Indian food restaurants such as Maharaja Palace.Dubai mall even includes Mexican food restaurants such as Amrigds and healthy food restaurants such as Subway for those who likes to k eep their selves fit. Finally its worth to mention that Dubai mall includes a very large entertainment place such as Dubai Aquarium And under water Zoo for an amazing experience in he underwater world, The Ice rink , the Shark tunnel, and for sure Cinema with a large screens and more than 2,800 seats for the movie lovers ! its worth to mention that Dubai mall entertainment court includes a fast roller Costar which can give you an unforgettable ride. And near of it there where you can find the Kids Playing Court. To conclude, Dubai Mall is a perfect place to have fun and to spend an unforgettable day, in my opinion the view of the Dancing fountain in the mall is very adorable. It's a perfect place to enjoy and to have a very good shopping experience.