Marketing Swot and Pest Analysis on Aston Martin 2008 Essay Example

Marketing Swot and Pest Analysis on Aston Martin 2008 Essay The current economic crisis has spread havoc across local and global markets. There can be no place for doubt that certain automobile manufacturers and retailers would also suffer to some extent from the catastrophe. The car industry is a huge entity that has several different subdivisions, and it is quite intriguing to see how consumer behaviour shifts across these sublevels of the automobile market and how different brands engage in dealing with the arising instability. Aston Martin is one of the most famous UK brands and one of the top marquees for top-end sports cars in the entire world. Established in 1914 by Lionel Martin and Robert Bamford, Aston Martin, has gone through a lot and many changes have occurred in its history including the change of ownership several times most recently in 2007, which also happens to be the company’s most successful year of sales when it brought 7300 cars to the roads. Today the UK car manufacturer proudly occupies one of the leading positions in the market for luxury vehicles and seems like it is planning to expand further from that. When it comes to assessing socio-cultural factors that determine the external environment of Aston Martin one has to understand this is a company that exists on an international level. It has over 100 dealerships in about thirty countries around the globe including the US, Russia, Japan, South Africa, Saudi Arabia, China (Aston Martin Lagonda Ltd). We will write a custom essay sample on Marketing Swot and Pest Analysis on Aston Martin 2008 specifically for you for only $16.38 $13.9/page Order now We will write a custom essay sample on Marketing Swot and Pest Analysis on Aston Martin 2008 specifically for you FOR ONLY $16.38 $13.9/page Hire Writer We will write a custom essay sample on Marketing Swot and Pest Analysis on Aston Martin 2008 specifically for you FOR ONLY $16.38 $13.9/page Hire Writer Apart from the fact that it would be extremely difficult to collect and process socio-cultural information about possible clients in these countries, a company that deals with top-end car manufacturing is certainly not targeting the average household, or any group of people that can be denoted by a common feature other than wealth. The percentage of people that possess the spending power to buy an Aston Martin is rather low anywhere around the world. Buyers of such cars occupy the higher levels of society in most countries but of course for Aston Martin it would be most profitable to establish a dealership in areas with high concentration of people with the ability and willingness to spend; example of areas of such potential are Monaco, Kuwait, and Dubai. It is a fact that the Middle East has GDP rates rising higher than anywhere else on the planet, and chief executive Ulrich Bez has taken that into account when developing the company’s future growth plan (Bowker 2008, para. ). Taking technology into consideration one can see that Aston Martin is a bit old-fashioned in terms of manufacturing, nevertheless that does not hinder their ability to combine discipline in crafting with innovative approach and creativity. Nowadays car engineering is split between mechanical and electronic engineering. Aston Martin emphasizes on the use of manual labour to get the job done, whereas their counterparts from Porsche rely on the precisi on of computers in the assembly of their cars. Unquestionably Aston Martin strives to utilize every unit of input in order to create perfection as a final product. Their cars represent a splendid blend of heritage and innovation in terms of design and vision, and also excel when it comes to performance on the road. Undeniably Aston Martin’s headquarters at Gaydon in the UK is one of the finest car production facilities in the world. At Gaydon Aston Martins are being assembled manually bit by bit to create a masterpiece (Aston Martin Lagonda Limited). The â€Å"heart† of every car is its engine, and engines for Aston Martins are primarily V8 and V12, which are all products of the specialised Niehl Engine Plant that was build during the Ford regime in Cologne, Germany. Presently Aston Martin engines are still being produced at the factory in Cologne; however, recent news of a deal between Mercedes-Benz and Aston Martin (Kacher 2008) has caused speculations about the use of Mercedes-built engines in the new Astons, which would definitely be an upgrade for the British car manufacturer. Among the major victims of the economic catastrophe at the moment is the car market. The crisis worsens is evident; figures for the UK in October 2008, historically one of the two busiest months on the calendar for car purchases, are down by 21% in comparison to the previous year (Pollard 2008). However, it seems that some car companies have gained advantage of the current economic situation. Present market conditions are beneficial for companies that offer lightweight cars with small, fuel-efficient engines such as Smart, which has more than doubled its sales with a rise of 105% in 2008 compared to last year’s (Pollard 2008). Aston Martin on the other hand has suffered a 26% fall in its sales, year-to year figures dropping from a total of 1978 sales up until last year’s November to 1479 units up until the same month this year (Moody 2008 p. 44). As gloomy as the situation might seems for Aston Martin it is the same for their direct competitor Bentley, which is experiencing the same decline in sales. The UK Car market is in its worst condition since 1966 (Pollard 2008). The existing situation presents an unprecedented slowdown compared to the major rise of car sales in the past several years. The credit crunch has effectively crippled the entire European car market excluding only a few countries. â€Å"Warwickshire car maker Aston Martin is suffering from the economic downturn but is hoping to offset weakness in the UK and United States with bigger sales in emerging markets – with the Middle East a key target. † (Bowker 2008, para. 1). The stagnation that has seized Europe presently regarding automobile market may be the reason why Aston Martin’s chief-executive Ulrich Bez has decided to shift the focus of the company’s future growth plans towards the Middle East market where the situation looks a lot better. However, that is not the only option for Aston Martin. Going further east China and India’s economies are undergoing such rapid development that is unparalleled by nothing before it. There are definitely many more markets for Aston Martin to explore and possibly exploit. Some of the difficulties that Aston Martin will have to face in the years to come are the regulations that the EU is imposing on CO2 emissions for cars. Currently several EU bodies are struggling to reach a consensus regarding this issue. The scheme that is presently proposed states that by 2012 all car-making companies need to begin efficient reduction in the emission of CO2 from their products in order for all newly manufactured cars to reach a mark of 130 grams of CO2 per kilometre by the year of 2015 and supposedly a maximum of 95g/km of CO2 is the goal for 2020 (ClimateBiz 2008). These figures are quite upsetting for companies such as Aston Martin. Their cars are top-end luxury sports cars that exceed on average the 2015 maximum by approximately three times. The DBS for example has CO2 emission of approximately 388g/km (Pepper 2008). Even though there are fierce debates taking place in the European Parliament regarding the reduction of CO2 emissions, it is certain that car manufacturers will have to lower the carbon dioxide exhausts from their engines. Turning to the internal marketing environment that Aston Martin operates in one must acknowledge that the target customer for the company is not by any means an average person. Price is a vital factor when it comes to defining consumer behaviour, and Aston Martin is aware of that fact, that is why they offer basic models of their cars at prices a lot lower than the ones of the premium models. People buying an Aston Martin are able to choose from a wide range of accessories and specifications to go in their cars, which means that the price spectrum also fluctuates. The lowest price for a new volume-produced Aston Martin in the current market is ? 83 194 for the Aston Martin Vantage model (Pepper 2008), which is still a tremendous amount of money. Nevertheless, an exquisite product such as Aston Martin classifies as a luxury good that is designed to suit a sophisticated taste. A buyer of an Aston Martin would choose such a car to match his lifestyle, to satisfy his personal desires, not needs. If we could apply the Maslow’s hierarchy pyramid to the case with a person buying an Aston Martin we would expect this person to satisfy one of the higher levels of the pyramid with such a purchase, whereas a Toyota Corolla or a Volkswagen Golf for example would be a necessity for one of the lower stages. If we could create a profile for the average Aston Martin buyer we would get a male, probably single with affinity for luxury and sense of style, and of course having the capital to afford an Aston Martin. Nevertheless, changes in consumer demand do affect Aston Martin as well, so the UK automobile brand will be making changes in its production line. Among the company’s new projects for 2009 is the Rapide, which is going to be an entirely new member of the Aston Martin car family not the usual two-door, two-seats drive, but instead it will be a saloon car. The new Rapide will offer more space, which was the major aspect that all previous Aston Martin models were lacking. This is clearly an attempt by Aston Martin to make its entry into another section of the car industry by offering its client more utility. There is a high chance that market might witness the appearance of an Aston Martin hybrid quite soon, which would be a ‘child’ of a rumoured Aston Martin – Mercedes Benz alliance (Kacher 2008). A jewel that Aston Martin is going to add to its crown is also a new car that is due to come out in 2009 – the Aston Martin ‘one-77’, the price of which will orbit around ? 1. 2million(BBC Magazines Limited). Servicing customer’s concerns is crucial for every company that is why the Warwickshire company provides one of the best Service Works for their vehicles. Their facility based in Newport Pagnell offers premium services that vary from fixing small flaws, renovation of heritage cars to repairing severely damaged vehicles. (Cooke and de Burton 2007, p. 62). Aston Martin evidently is striving to portray a strong brand image that is also concerned with the satisfaction of its customers, and that seems to be paying off as the car manufacturer was selected to be the coolest brand in the UK for the year 2007 (CNN 2007). The industry in which Aston Martin competes primarily is the top-end car market, and that is a market which most of the biggest car companies strive to dominate. Direct competitors for Aston Martin’s products are Ferrari, Lamborghini, Porsche, Mercedes, and many other brands although the once mentioned are the fiercest rivals. The British car company seemed as strong as ever last year recording top sales for its 95 year history but with the already occurring market stagnation will it continue to do so well. Following the example of many other industries in the same situation, Aston Martin has launched a cooperative programme with one of its competitors, namely Mercedes-Benz (Kacher 2008). The advantages to be seized for Aston Martin’s specialists from the deal are tremendous as the UK engineers would be gaining access to the research and development department of the German automobile titan. Another vital aspect of the deal is the future cooperation in the creation of hybrid-powered Aston Martins, which would tackle very successfully issues with fuel inefficiency and CO2 emissions. Another important decision was made by Ulrich Bez regarding his company’s future; one of the newest volume models to commence production will be built outside the UK, which is a precedent in the history of the company. The task for the assembly and production of the Aston Martin Rapide is assigned to the Austrian Magna Steyr company. Aston Martin has undergone a turbulent transformation in the past, most of that is due to the change of ownership. The UK brand was purchased by Ford Motor Company in 1987 but twenty years later Ford parted with Aston Martin and sold the British car company to a consortium headed by David Richards’s Prodrive and part of which are two Kuwaiti investment houses – Investment Dar and Adeem Investment (Aston Martin Lagonda Limited). The shift seems to have taken Aston Martin to new heights taking into account the company’s last year achievements, the announcement of the stunning new projects like Aston Maritn Rapide and the ‘177’, and even the possible future cooperation with Mercedes-Benz. Nevertheless, the economic status quo raises issues which are tough to be dealt with even by a company like Aston Martin. In an attempt to tackle the problem with the financial upheaval the UK car company has decided to ‘decimate’ its personnel. In all three hundred permanent posts nd exactly the same amount of temporary jobs will be liquidated within the company from a total of 1850 people currently employed (Pollard 2008). Despite the drawbacks of this loss Aston Martin’s chief executive Ulrich Bez states that Aston Martin will not be shutting down or reducing production and the new projects will be making their market debut according to the company’s initial schemes. Aston Mar tin has a strong brand name existing for 95 years, during which it has acquired and developed expertise in the manufacturing of luxury sports cars. This puts company in a leading position as a world top-end car manufacturer with a major influence on the highest levels of the car market. Recent change in ownership also proves to be beneficial for Aston Martin so far. Probable joint operations with Mercedes-Benz are likely to boost the UK automobile maker even higher in the overall car market ranking. Expansion into new markets in the Middle East has become also a top priority of the company at the moment. These factors, combined with the adequate management that has proven itself over the past, compose the strength of the company. Currently Aston Martin only holds a tiny share of the world car market. The company has entrusted the production of a new car series to a foreign manufacturer which is clearly shows the lack of production power. The UK manufacturer is also attempting to enter new markets in terms of car diversification, but that might prove catastrophic because of the swiftness with which the plans are being executed and the current economic climate. Especially when a company like Aston Martin is forced to cut down on its operating personnel it means that production will fall and no matter what the company will suffer. The potential mutual programme between Mercedes-Benz and Aston Martin could prove very beneficial for Aston Martin. For a small company specialised in a single branch of the car industry a partnership with Mercedes could mean access to the research and development, using Mercedes patents and technology along with Mercedes-built engines and other components. Considering the market instability at the moment Aston Martin could possibly widen their range of automobiles to the levels below the premium. Using hybrid-engine technology implements in Aston Martin engineering is a viable option. Further territorial growth is definitely a chance for Aston Martin to win market share. Major threat to Aston Martin’s future is the EU regulations that are to be enforced in 2012 regarding CO2 emissions. Fluctuating fuel prices and possible fuel shortage also pose danger to the position of the brand on the market. Customers’ increasing tendency to buy fuel-efficient, environment-friendly cars will definitely put the UK manufacturer at stake. Not last comes the threat from the potential alliance with Mercedes. A large foreign company with much interest in a small manufacturer like Aston Martin could prove to be devastating for the image of the UK brand and might threaten its future. Making the correct choices is crucial for Aston Martin in the current marketing environment. For a brand with such expertise in luxury cars it would be wise to keep the production coming, making sure the new products are upgrades of the previous ones. Another improvement for Aston Martin would be to take their products to markets where other industries are flourishing and cash is flowing in – the Middle East and Asia. Trying to tune up with the growing concern for fuel efficiency and environment conservation Aston Martin should look more seriously into hybrid-fuelled cars like many other car manufacturers have. Advertising is an area where measures need to be taken, not only when it comes to entering new markets, but also promoting in already established ones with emphasizing the distinguishing characteristics of the brand. References BBC Magazines Limited. 2008. One-77: its out [Online]. Available at: http://www. topgear. com/uk/car-news/aston-martin-one-77-hot-image. [Accessed 03 Dec 2008]. Bowker, J. 2008. Aston Martin targets Middle East market [Online]. Available at: http://www. birminghampost. net/birmingham-business/birmingham-business-news/emerging-markets/2008/09/09/aston-martin-targets-middle-east-market-65233-21714080/. [Accessed 02 Dec 2008]. Brassington, F. and Pettitt, S. 2006. Consumer Behaviour. In: Principles of Marketing. 4th ed. Harlow: Pearson Education Limited, pp. 115-121. ClimateBizStaff. 2008. EU Car Emissions Agreement Stalls [Online]. Available at: http://www. climatebiz. com/news/2008/11/26/eu-car-emissions-agreement-stalls.

How to Write a Dissertation in Mathematics Step-by-step Guide

How to Write a Dissertation in Mathematics Step-by-step Guide A dissertation in mathematics is a significant component of postgraduate education where students have to work independently and produce a coherent piece of text in which they need to describe the results of their investigation. It’s a challenging and time-consuming project which requires thorough understanding of complex mathematical concepts and producing coherent research outcome. To help you cope with this complex academic paper, we’ve created this guide which covers the essential steps in writing a dissertation in mathematics and addresses the most common difficulties that students face during the writing process. You will learn how to structure your dissertation and write its chapters. We will provide you with editing and proofreading tips and give you a list of 15 interesting dissertation topics. If you struggle with writing any other academic project, on our website, you will find full guides to all writing assignments out there. What Is a Dissertation in Mathematics? Basic Requirements Dissertation in mathematics is an individual project where students investigate and study a specific area of mathematical research or an application of advanced mathematical techniques and write a report on their findings. When writing a dissertation in mathematics, you will learn to understand complex mathematical texts, work on open-ended problems, and communicate mathematical reasoning and ideas clearly. In your dissertation, you need to report what was previously known on a particular topic and contribute to some field of mathematics. A Masters dissertation can be either expository that explains some results that are already known or research-based that includes a new theorem. A PhD dissertation in mathematics is based on original mathematical research and includes at least one previously unknown substantial theorem. The length of a dissertation varies with the topic and typically is between 50 to 80 pages for Masters’ dissertation. Keep in mind that quality is more important than quantity. Mathematical sentences contain notations, figures, and equations that are difficult to type if you use a typical word-processing program. That’s why dissertations in mathematics should normally be produced in TEX or LaTEX which were specifically designed for the production of technical and scientific documentation. If you are going to type your dissertation in mathematics yourself, you should dedicate a certain amount of time to become familiar with this software. And keep in mind that you will need several drafts because it’s practically impossible to concentrate on getting all aspects of your paper (layout, mathematics, grammar, spelling etc.) correct at once. Writing is a process and no one is capable of producing a well-organized, clear, and error-free exposition the first time he/she sits down to write. Typically, good papers are thoroughly rewritten at least once or twice and the key sections often require 3 to 5 major revisions. A dissertation in mathematics reports results of your investigation and should meet the following standards: It should follow a standard format for scientific communication and include a title, introduction, results, discussion, conclusions, and bibliography. You need to follow conventions of mathematical writing and citations. Your final paper should be correct and logically coherent. You should clearly explain which contributions are your own and which you have taken from other scholarly sources. You also have to report negative results. The text of your dissertation should be clear, interesting, and readable. You should write it with your readers in mind and ensure that even non-experts could be able to make sense of what you write. Precision is crucial. Every mathematical statement in your dissertation must have a precise mathematical meaning. You must define every term and every symbol and use them according to their definition. You must also justify every mathematical conclusion that you reach in your paper. If you write something (ideas, facts, proofs, mathematical results) which you obtained from a published source, you must refer to such a source in the text and list it in your bibliography to avoid plagiarism. Choosing a Good Topic for a Dissertation in Mathematics The first step in writing a dissertation in mathematics is choosing a topic. The dissertation project typically relates to the research interests of your supervisor so you should speak to members of the staff about possible dissertation topics and find out who works in the areas that you are interested in. If you can’t think of something to write about, here is a list of topic suggestions for your inspiration. Representations of Finite Hecke Algebras for Complex Reflection Groups; Homotopy Type Theory: Computing Homotopy Groups of Spheres; Geometric Quantisation of Symplectic Manifolds; Cohomology of Abelian Varieties; Geometric Class Field Theory; Application of Theorems of Grushko and Stallings for Classification of Groups up to Quasi-isometry; Evolution Equations: Problems Arising in Population Dynamics; Low-rank Approximations in Multiple Variables; Stochastic Gradient Descent Methods; Application of Discrete Mathematical Techniques in Cellular Automation Models in Biology; Fluctuation Theory of Levy Processes; Random Matrices and Free Probability; Intersection Theory of Singular Varieties; Linear Programming Methods in Combinatorics; Mathematical Modelling in Metal Forming Processes. How to Structure Your Dissertation in Mathematics Dissertations in mathematics typically give an extended analysis of a particular topic and report on a research project or study. A dissertation commonly consists of multiple chapters: Abstract of approximately 300 words summarizes the aims, scope, and the conclusions of a dissertation. Introduction introduces a specific research topic, its scope, and significance, gives a review of relevant literature, and briefly outlines the logical structure of your dissertation. Body of the paper should be structured into several chapters that contain proofs and details of numerical implementations. Conclusion restates the main arguments, tells about the consequences, and provides suggestions for future work. You may structure the body of the work like this: Introduction Proof of Theorem 1 Proof of Theorem 2 Numerical Examples Extensions Writing a Dissertation in Mathematics A dissertation in mathematics is based on independent mathematical research which differs from most researches in other fields of knowledge. To get your PhD in math, you need to create at least one new theorem and become a world’s expert in your niche. That’s not easy. Typically, it takes about a year and a half of hard work reading papers and attacking different math problems before you find one that you can prove. So first, you need to choose an advisor, select a topic, and work hard on your research reading papers, making conjectures, and proving lemmas. While reading, you should analyze examples, and memorize important vocabulary. You should understand that you won’t be able to prove your theorem by making one big step. You’ll need work hard and add lemma after lemma, write down your research results, and keep them organized in your notebook. You may need a couple of years to prove your theorem and you never know if you are following the right or the wrong path for a proof until you actually find it. Research will take up most of your time but you’ll also need to meet regularly with your supervisor and attend all relevant seminars. When you start writing your dissertation, you should provide definitions for terms and notations that you will use throughout the paper so that your readers can understand your work. The best way to do it is to provide explanations of the key terms in the introduction section. Your introduction should also clearly describe the problem and put it into the context. When writing the main chapters of your dissertation, you should split lengthy proofs in several steps or several lemmas, taking care of the logical flow. When writing a proof, you must start with the hypothesis and use other mathematical truths such as definitions, axioms, computations or theorems to arrive at the desired conclusion. Write your proof like a manual in a natural step-by-step order. You need to provide all logical steps but there is no need to explain obvious arguments. It’s important to provide clear arguments and justify every step. Don’t just add a parenthetical remark, telling readers that a certain equation was used. You should provide step-by-step explanations in full sentences. When you finish a long argument, you should summarize it. You should also mark the end of your proof. Don’t forget to link ideas in different chapters using transition words and phrases. This way, you will integrate your work and see your dissertation as one whole in your mind. It’s important to number equations, as well as theorems, lemmas, etc. by section to help your readers follow your argument. You should also include numerical results, examples, computations, comparisons, and interpretations. Don’t try to write an abstract of your dissertation in mathematics first because you’ll only waste your time. It’s the most difficult part of any academic paper and it should be written last in spite of the fact that it appears at the very beginning of a document. You should try to condense the content of your dissertation into one paragraph and ensure that your readers will be able to understand your message. Abstract provides readers with a quick overview of your dissertation and its organization. It should express your hypothesis and your key points in the proof. Besides, your abstract should suggest applications o implications of the research you discuss in the paper. How to Cite Sources in Mathematical Writing You must properly cite all sources of the results used in your dissertation that are not your own because if you state a definition, theorem or an idea and don’t give reference to it, you tell your audience that it is something absolutely new and make a claim that you have created it. And if it’s not true, you commit plagiarism. Every time you use a person’s words or even ideas, you need to give them credit. This includes direct citing and paraphrasing. All major citation styles require using in-text citations and an entry in a reference or bibliography list. When referring to your bibliography in text of your dissertation in mathematics, you need to include the item into the square brackets e.g. [45] and then provide more specific information such as theorem number and page number. e.g. E. Snow [46, Proposition 4.1, p.3] gave a good example of †¦ When you present a technical material word for word, such as a definition or a statement of theorem, you don’t need to use quotation marks if you provide an appropriate reference. Revising and Polishing Your Dissertation in Mathematics As you write each chapter of your dissertation in math and finish it, you should read it for understanding and pay attention to the logical flow and sense of continuity. Then, you should read it again and this time, you need to pay attention to how comprehensible it is to ensure that your audience will understand your arguments. Finally, you should read it once more and pay attention to language issues like spelling, grammar, and punctuation. Following these three stages, you will be able to evaluate each chapter for its structure, content, and style. When you complete all chapters, you should read the dissertation again and this time, check overall understanding, coherence, clarity, precision, and presentation. Ask your supervisor to read and criticize your early draft of your dissertation. Keep in mind that the more you polish up your math dissertation, the better your chances of getting good mark for it. A good idea is to do a final revision of the text of your dissertation in math on a printed copy instead of doing it on the computer. Printing your math dissertation out and revising it on hard copy can help you feel as if you are reviewing someone else’s paper. It’s a useful technique because it will help you overcome the writers’ blindness and be more objective so that you will be able to spot more mistakes, typos or inconsistencies. If you take the right approach and take full responsibility for your project from the very beginning, you will be able to write a competent dissertation in mathematics and make a significant contribution to this field of study.

Economics in the early renaissance Research Paper

Economics in the early renaissance - Research Paper Example The economic development at the time portrayed the economy as a cohesive structure with numerous facets all of which function independently albeit in unison to enhance the economic growth of the entire society. The numerous sectors in the early renaissance economies thrived on peaceful economies coupled with systematic integration with other neighboring economies in order to expand their economies. Specific dynasties and think tanks such as Aristotle and Plato contributed fundamental economic ideas that fostered the development of the economies as I discuss in the easy below. In the research of the early renaissance economy, I research the theories fostered by numerous classical and neoclassical economists such as Adam Smith and David Ricardo. Effective taxation refers to a system of taxation in which the government demands a fair share of the citizens’ earning thus leaving the citizens with an adequate amount to foster the economic growth of the countries. At a time that the church played an important role in te formulation and implementation of policies, taxation was a fundamental issue since the royal dynasties often collaborated with the church to defraud the people. However, in order for the countries to register economic growth, the leadership had to implement effective policies that would enhance effective taxation, a system that would curb exploitation and enhance the appropriate utilization of the expenditure. Among the early cities worse governments exhibited effective management of resources was Florence. Florence was a small inland cit y in Italy that unlike other inland cities became economic success. Among the reasons for Florence’s success was the use of the resources in enhancing the liquidity of the economy. The Medici circulated the money in the economy through increased public spending thus resulting in the thriving of arts among other sectors of the economy. This way, the government raised the purchasing power

Late Adult Personal Interview Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Late Adult Personal Interview - Essay Example Sigmund Freud taught that a child goes through stages of development. A child’s personality is formed by the age of 5 when the child enters the (sexual) latency stage (Storr, 1989). Erikson, a student of Freud’s daughter Anna, also taught that there are stages of development; however, he differed from the elder Freud, and taught that a person’s sense of identity is not fully formed as a child. Erikson taught that individuals continue to develop and evolve throughout their life. Whereas Freud stressed the importance of reaching milestones within a certain period during childhood, Erikson stressed the importance of cultural demands upon a child during life transitions (Erikson, 1959). According to the teachings of Freud, the older person could not accept concepts divergent from their basic philosophies. Erikson’s followers, however, would slowly advance through stages of acceptance of new concepts. Erikson taught that learning and development occur throughou t life. Erikson’s theories were evident in the interview with a woman who had experienced many tragedies, yet overcame them to life a full and productive life. Interview with Joyce Joyce Smith, age 67, resides in a condominium inside the city limits of Atlanta, Georgia. (Change this to your city.) After agreeing to the interview and signing the consent form (see Appendix A), Joyce indicated she preferred the interview take place in her living room, and it did. Joyce stated she had lived in her condominium since 1982, and was most relaxed there. The condo was quite comfortable with overstuffed chairs, large potted plants, thick carpets, antique tables, and three large Maine Coon cats.

The role of the judge is to declare what the law is, and not to make Essay - 1

The role of the judge is to declare what the law is, and not to make it.Discuss this statement with reference to the theory and practice of both statutory interpretation and the doctrine of precedent - Essay Example The application of the law in particular controversies has been a contentious matter of this nature. Laws necessarily are framed in a general way so that they apply to a group of circumstances. When the judge seeks to apply these general principles to a specific case, he necessarily has to restate the law to a certain degree in order to put the case within its context. Similarly, the judge in common law cases is tasked to apply judicial precedent to subsequent cases to maintain stability in the law. The idea is that once meritorious, always meritorious – and, necessarily, the same for non-meritorious cases. Occasionally, however, the judge finds the need to modify or differentiate from precedent, to serve the ends of justice. In his treatise on the history and theory of statutory interpretation, William D. Popkin observed that originally, the judiciary and Parliament were not formally separated. Until the thirteenth century, Parliament was a mere group composed of powerful people summoned at the pleasure of the king. The function of Parliament at the time included â€Å"agreeing to pay taxes (it did not legislate taxes so much as assent to requests for money), dealing with matters of state (often foreign affairs), responding to petitions (what we would call private legislation), and passing some general rules (often prompted by petitions). Parliament was not so much a body as an occasion at which people met to parley or speak with the king as they saw fit† (Popkin, 1999). What may be deduced here is that judicial techniques such as statutory interpretation could not have existed while the legislature had not developed a sense of separation from judging. Until that was achieved, there was nothing to â€Å"interpret† as judges, being part of Parliament, could claim absolute competence in understanding the law. There was therefore a â€Å"shared sense of common enterprise† between Parliament and the judiciary because of the

Media Image of Asian Women Essay Example for Free

Media Image of Asian Women Essay The media is large platform that signifies or represents individual on a ranging scale of different perspective. The media largely influences personality through a formative role with a representative segment of a community’s view. The Asian women are a sample case with a unique representative within the media. Various forms of media including television, film and movies have a reflective effect on the Asian women. As such, the Asian women are accredited a distinctive feature within various cultures of the world. The resultant effect is propagating effect that creates a lasting effect to the world at large. The media image of Asian women presents such individuals as unsympathetic and character driven. The exemplary platforms displayed by the media on such women showcases a highly competitive group as compared to the other counterpart women of the world. This understanding of the Asian women is a built profile from highly ambitious women who are career driven. The few high ranking personality within industrial sectors is goal oriented with propounding results. An exemplary case study of the Asian women image portrayed by the media is the physicians (Chan, Karpovich, Zhang, 2011). These groups of women focus of logistics evaluation based on the eventual success. As such, the typical Asian woman is depicted of sound judgment and eventual delivery given unique working environments. Conclusion A social element of the Asian women portrayed in the media is sexual aspect and exotic objects. Asian women are an iconic group largely adored in various continents of the world. The media portrays the Asian woman as an intelligent group with high work ethics. The media also endorses the Asian woman as a professional group given the various working conditions. Reference Chan, F., Karpovich, A., Zhang, X. (2011). Genre in Asian film and television: New approaches. Basingstoke: Palgrave Macmillan. Source document

Censorship of David Wojnarowicz, Robert Mapplethorpe, and Francisco Goy

The Censorship of David Wojnarowicz, Robert Mapplethorpe, and Francisco Goya Censorship is usually considered â€Å"official† censorship because it is action taken by governmental institutions such as government committees, or universities, to limit the view of a specific artwork or a group of works by the public. However, these concrete official actions taken to limit public view of specific artwork are only the results of the abstract â€Å"censoring attitudes† of individuals or groups of individuals, encouraging the actions. Censoring attitudes can arise from feelings of race or gender discrimination, discrimination against the gay community, fear of taboos and controversially issues, and assumed moral or Christian authority. It is these attitudes that are the basis of censorship, not necessarily the artist’s intentions of their artwork, because each individual viewer of the artist’s specific piece will unconsciously project his/her own anxieties and fears into the artist’s artwork. What drives the individual to c ensor the artist’s work is the product of their attitudes being reflected in the subject matter of the artwork, and the result of censorship is keeping the artist’s work from being exposed or even from being created. A mutually supportive relationship between artists and society would be the ideal under the First Amendment of the United States Constitution. Our society would recognize and support an expanded role for artists. Free and diverse artistic expressions are vital for challenging people to rethink their assumptions and for educating people about past and present issues. We should oppose censorship in the arts, and encourage individual and social expression by artists. Only by supporting the voice... ... money, and of course the committee voted to pass the amendment. The result of the committee was the â€Å"Miller test† that labeled art as obscene when â€Å"the work, taken as a whole, lacks serious literary, artistic, political, or scientific value† (378). But according to whose values? If the jury’s values differ from that of the artist, who defiantly considers his work serious, the artist expression is limited. Another example was the criticism made by Dr. Judith Reisman who disagreed that Mapplethorpe’s photographs were art because they â€Å"failed to express human emotion† because of the sexual images(379). But this statement also requires the question, by whose values? Maybe they do not show human emotion to her because she believes only traditional â€Å"beautiful† things can invoke emotion, but they may invoke emotions in other viewers, which is the artist's purpose. Censorship of David Wojnarowicz, Robert Mapplethorpe, and Francisco Goy The Censorship of David Wojnarowicz, Robert Mapplethorpe, and Francisco Goya Censorship is usually considered â€Å"official† censorship because it is action taken by governmental institutions such as government committees, or universities, to limit the view of a specific artwork or a group of works by the public. However, these concrete official actions taken to limit public view of specific artwork are only the results of the abstract â€Å"censoring attitudes† of individuals or groups of individuals, encouraging the actions. Censoring attitudes can arise from feelings of race or gender discrimination, discrimination against the gay community, fear of taboos and controversially issues, and assumed moral or Christian authority. It is these attitudes that are the basis of censorship, not necessarily the artist’s intentions of their artwork, because each individual viewer of the artist’s specific piece will unconsciously project his/her own anxieties and fears into the artist’s artwork. What drives the individual to c ensor the artist’s work is the product of their attitudes being reflected in the subject matter of the artwork, and the result of censorship is keeping the artist’s work from being exposed or even from being created. A mutually supportive relationship between artists and society would be the ideal under the First Amendment of the United States Constitution. Our society would recognize and support an expanded role for artists. Free and diverse artistic expressions are vital for challenging people to rethink their assumptions and for educating people about past and present issues. We should oppose censorship in the arts, and encourage individual and social expression by artists. Only by supporting the voice... ... money, and of course the committee voted to pass the amendment. The result of the committee was the â€Å"Miller test† that labeled art as obscene when â€Å"the work, taken as a whole, lacks serious literary, artistic, political, or scientific value† (378). But according to whose values? If the jury’s values differ from that of the artist, who defiantly considers his work serious, the artist expression is limited. Another example was the criticism made by Dr. Judith Reisman who disagreed that Mapplethorpe’s photographs were art because they â€Å"failed to express human emotion† because of the sexual images(379). But this statement also requires the question, by whose values? Maybe they do not show human emotion to her because she believes only traditional â€Å"beautiful† things can invoke emotion, but they may invoke emotions in other viewers, which is the artist's purpose.

Andy Warhol and His work on the Contemporary Art Essay

Andy Warhol (1928-1987) of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, less commonly known as Andrew Warhola, was a central figure in the pop art category. He is an American artist who reigned around the world as a painter, author, avant-garde filmmaker and as a public personage for his connection to many people of different fields of work and status. Warhol studied in Carnegie Institute of Technology (now known as the Carnegie Mellon University) to hone his artistry (www. artgallery. com, 2008). Warhol unify his works through the Keatonesque style which is aritistically and personally affectless. In his work s a Pop artist, conceptual aspects were always there as a key factor. His art was known for its irony, in most of its sense. Campbell’s soup cans was probably his most famous work. The mundane images he made were turned to the so-called ironic art through enlargement, hand-painting or silk-screening. He always mentioned that the idea of his work is always at the surface of his work, obvious, apparent. Other attributes of his work were slight color changes using ink spots (www. pbs. org, 2007). His work reveals contemporary art in such a way it concerns some human desires that never ceases to revolve around. He even made his film where he was an international celebrity and a pop artist. His experiences with many people brought him the ideas of what is contemporary, and made sure that no traces of the artists can be recognized from his artwork.

Google in China Case Study Essay

In the case study presentation regarding the Google Company there have been many challenges that have arisen during the growth of the global leader. One of those challenges is in regards to the penetration of the largely available market in China. Google has a mission â€Å"to organize the world’s information and make it universally accessible and useful.† (Closing Case: Google in China) Google has constructed a largely profitable advertising business that piggy backs its search engine; which by far is the largest in the world. Using a business model called pay-per-click; advertisers pay Google each time a user of the search engine clicks on one of the paid links that are usually listed on the right hand side of engines results page. These are the paid links and are not included in the main search results generated by Google. The Move In order to penetrate a larger market and further increase popularity Google began running a Chinese language service in 2000 for the largest country on the planet; even though the service was operated from the United States. In 2002, Chinese authorities blocked the site. The people that would have been using Google’s search engine were directed to a Chinese rival search engine company. This came as a huge surprise to Google’s managers. When this occurred the co-founder of Google quickly ordered several books on China and began studying in order to understand its vast country and its culture. In just two weeks’ time the services were restored in China. It appeared that this had just come out of nowhere. It was reported by Chinese users that politically sensitive material sites were no longer accessible. This gave way to the suggestion that the Chinese government had begun monitoring search activities more aggressively. This also generated the suggestion that the Chinese government had constructed a giant firewall between Chinese internet and the internet in the rest of the world allowing the Chinese government to block any sites that were deemed insurrectionary. Due to the fact that serving the Chinese from the United States was incredibly slow and the new censorship imposition was ruing search results Google decided it was time for some change. In a new mindset of operations Google decided to open up a site in China using Chinese management and employees and even a Chinese home page. The Culture and Conclusion It appeared that the cultural divide between Google and China caused some misunderstandings to take place; this in-turn caused some serious offenses to be made. Chinese government did what it felt needed to be done in order to keep the divide between government and citizenship as strong as it has always been. Realizing that it had crossed the line, the search giant Google decided to move its Chinese operations overseas. Google was faced with two choices, they could give up China or and lose over 100 million users, a number that rapidly increases every year, or operate out of China and respect the culture. Now that Google is up and operating in China, even though they have to provide a slightly more less lucrative service, they have provided a small notation for every site that has been blocked once the search results show up; a service no other provider gives. References Closing Case: Google in China; by International Business. Competing in the Global Marketplace, Seventh Edition Chapter 4: Ethics in International Business: by Charles W. L. Hill copyright  © 2009 McGraw-Hill, a business unit of the McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. https://ecampus.phoenix.edu/content/eBookLibrary2/content/eReader.aspx

Free Essays on Rap And Rock And Roll

What’s Wrong With Rock & Roll & Rap? An idea believed by many people is that music has a significant effect on the way people think. Professional psychologists say that the lyrics used in music today has a brain-washing effect. This brain-washing effect is supposed to make the listener become so overwhelmed with the lyrics of the song that the person feels that it’s a must to act on what was heard. It doesn’t matter if what they do is accepted or not. It is common to believe that the type of music that provides unacceptable content is rap (hip-hop) music, or rock-n-roll (head-banger) music. The reason people have this presumption about rap and rock-n-roll is because both genres reputations of having or using inappropriate lyrics. A lyric from the N.W.A album F**k The Police states â€Å"Mr. Officer, I want to see you layin‘ in a coffin, sir.† This statement, as well as music that refers to women as "bitches," "whores" and sex-dispensing "hoes"(Saunders B29)is considered to be "Gangsta rap". â€Å"Gangsta Rap† has been criticized and debated over for its graphic sexual content, violent imagery and misogyny. When rappers were asked why they refer to women as â€Å"bitches† and â€Å"hoes† their replies were similar. "Snoop" uttered that â€Å"it is just for the women who are like that and if you're a real women, you're classy and elegant. Those lyrics wouldn’t necessarily affect you. Y ou’d just groove to the music".(Farley 78). Richard Shaw, A! .K.A Bushwick Bill, stated, "I call women bitches and hoes because all the women I've met since I've been out here are bitches and hoes." When asked at the National Association of Black Journalists convention what he calls his mother Shaw exclaimed, "I call her a 'woman', but I'm not f***ing my mother. If I was f***ing you, you'd be a bitch." (Raspberry A21). He then apologized for what he said to the reporter. Kevin Powell, a writer for Vibe magazine, believes that ra... Free Essays on Rap And Rock And Roll Free Essays on Rap And Rock And Roll What’s Wrong With Rock & Roll & Rap? An idea believed by many people is that music has a significant effect on the way people think. Professional psychologists say that the lyrics used in music today has a brain-washing effect. This brain-washing effect is supposed to make the listener become so overwhelmed with the lyrics of the song that the person feels that it’s a must to act on what was heard. It doesn’t matter if what they do is accepted or not. It is common to believe that the type of music that provides unacceptable content is rap (hip-hop) music, or rock-n-roll (head-banger) music. The reason people have this presumption about rap and rock-n-roll is because both genres reputations of having or using inappropriate lyrics. A lyric from the N.W.A album F**k The Police states â€Å"Mr. Officer, I want to see you layin‘ in a coffin, sir.† This statement, as well as music that refers to women as "bitches," "whores" and sex-dispensing "hoes"(Saunders B29)is considered to be "Gangsta rap". â€Å"Gangsta Rap† has been criticized and debated over for its graphic sexual content, violent imagery and misogyny. When rappers were asked why they refer to women as â€Å"bitches† and â€Å"hoes† their replies were similar. "Snoop" uttered that â€Å"it is just for the women who are like that and if you're a real women, you're classy and elegant. Those lyrics wouldn’t necessarily affect you. Y ou’d just groove to the music".(Farley 78). Richard Shaw, A! .K.A Bushwick Bill, stated, "I call women bitches and hoes because all the women I've met since I've been out here are bitches and hoes." When asked at the National Association of Black Journalists convention what he calls his mother Shaw exclaimed, "I call her a 'woman', but I'm not f***ing my mother. If I was f***ing you, you'd be a bitch." (Raspberry A21). He then apologized for what he said to the reporter. Kevin Powell, a writer for Vibe magazine, believes that ra...

Business ethics and deontology Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Business ethics and deontology - Research Paper Example It is a case of â€Å"fraudulent financial reporting†. Adelphia is a publicly traded corporation based in the United States. In 2002, Adelphia was ranked sixth among the largest cable service providers in the country. In the same year, the company was publicly accused of discrepancies in the financial reports prepared and produced by the company. It was found that the company did not represent the real economic condition and Adelphia was charged of a major accounting disgrace. Investigations proved that the managers modified financial statements of the company by excluding many billion dollars that it held as debt, from the company’s balance sheets. Hence, auditors could not discover the presence of fraudulent activities that the company indulged in. This is a major example of infringement of deontological issues. It was revealed through investigation that some of the most influential and important rank holding members of the organization lacked ethical behavioral trait s and they were the major participants in this scandal. Key ethical problems The Adelphia scandal is a case of financial fraud that broke the trust of the shareholders and lowered level of faith of the public on the company. It is the most far-reaching financial fraud that has occurred in the country in the past few decades (Markon & Frank, 2002). The company filed for bankruptcy in June 2002 and was finally purchased in July 2006 by Comcast Corp. and Time Warner Inc. Two ethical problems were distinctly identified in this fraudulent case; financial statement modification and superficial statement about stock earnings. The first ethical issue is concerning the fact that the officials in the company had strategically and systematically excluded several billion dollars that the company held as liabilities over the period of four years between 1998 and 2002. The liabilities were hidden fraudulently from the books of off-balance sheet affiliates (Barlaup, Dronen & Stuart, 2009). Additio nally, the company also inflated its earnings in order to meet the expectations of shareholders in the Wall Street. Various operations statistics were falsified and concealed (The SEC, 2002). These activities raised questions about ethical duties of the employees working in different private as well as public corporations. Deontological ethics The term ‘ethics’ is generally understood as â€Å"systematic attempt to understand moral concepts and to propose and defend principles and theories regarding right and wrong behavior† (Barlaup, Dronen & Stuart, 2009, p. 186). Normative ethics is found to be highly relevant to the issues faced business firms and the problems faced by auditors. Under the framework of normative ethics, three principal theories of ethics can be identified. These are egoism, utilitarianism and deontology. In this section, the focus would be on the deontological theory of ethics. General theory Deontological ethics relate to the â€Å"ethics of duty of principle† (Cooper, 2000, 179). The term ‘deontology’ was coined by Bentham (1748-1832) and by this term he emphasized on the following meaning. It is the act of motivating people in such as way that it would maximize overall community happiness. This would be done by mobilizing the causes that inspire specific private

Kraft Foods Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words - 1

Kraft Foods - Essay Example The effectiveness of using this website as a marketing tool depends on the extent to which it achieves the desired goals and objectives set by the company. The ultimate objective of designing and hosting a website is to ensure that the company profile reaches out to as many people as possible. The fall of new and improved technologies has enhanced the company’s use of this website. The company reaches to its potential markets at the click of a button. This enhances consumer awareness, which is a fundamental aspect in marketing. The company acknowledges that markets within and without the United States are diverse and dynamic. In this respect, the Kraft Foods’ website offers a variety of product and service packages that suit specific markets in and out of the United States. Australia, Canada, Germany, New Zealand, and the United States are some of the regions that enjoy customized product and service packages (http://www.kraft.com/). However, this does not imply that markets outside these regions are irrelevant to the company. The website is actually open to the global population, and most importantly the global market. An effective marketing tool has to account for the variations in buyer behavior, tastes, and preferences. Considering these aspects influences the performance of any given marketing tool. Kraft Foods’ website highlights the company’s product base and all the services factored in the company’s operations. This allows the consumers to enjoy a wide range of products and services that the company offers. On the same note, the website provides a platform where the user can directly engage and interact with the company, thereby allowing the company to foster functional relations with the target markets. A positive impact on the company’s marketing pursuit is realized in the process. Amid the effective use of the website by Kraft Foods, the customer service aspect could be done better. The direct interaction between