Pizza Hut, Yum! Essay

The operations standards are the key path defining elements in any business. Without set procedures optimal results cannot be obtained. The operations standards at pizza hut have multifaceted challenges and opportunities. The standards and procedures for doing business are well defined but some of the possible factors can cause to the deviations and variances. Those possible factors can be eradicated through extra efforts into the process. However the small chances of variance will remain the same because the real business scenarios may vary sometimes than the forecasted one. This report is an attempt to investigate the operational standards and the possible causes of variance in standards and how does it affect customer satisfaction. Introduction Operations management Traditionally it is believed that the operations management is as a transformation process that takes set of inputs and transforms them into the out put. The output can be the goods or services. This includes the effective planning, scheduling and control of the activities that produce the required outcomes. (Cecil C. Bozarth, Robert B. Handfield, 2008). Operations management plays a key role in determining the success or failure of an organization. To carry forwards the inputs of each unit all together and getting turned it into the outputs is the real synergy, which helps organization to set the directions towards climbing the heights of success. According to the William J. Stevenson as he state in his operations management book ‘Operations management is the management of the system or process that create goods and/or provide services’ this involves various inputs, he add, ‘ the creation of goods or services involves the transformation or conversion of inputs into outputs. Such as capital, labour and information are used to create goods or services using one or more transformation processes’. Although the goods and services go hand in hand, there are some very basic differences between the two. This can be determined through its nature of the business. Some organizations can have higher degree of tangibility or intangibility. This can be determined through its nature of business. For instance, if the organization is selling goods, it can be determined high level of tangibility and otherwise if its selling services then level of intangibility will be high. (William J.Stevenson 2005). Operation standards at Pizza Hut Functional Units The activities of business organizations are mostly divided according to the functionality, the management of the personnel and the responsibilities. (Joseph S. Martinich, 1997) The operations at Pizza hut can not be highlighted for any of the single functional unit. Rather it is the collection of several set of the activities that take place with in the unit and make things possible by turning customer expectations into the reality. The success or the failure of the product depends on the performance of several functional units. Those functional units operate separately but connected with each other through the job activities. The unit’s operation standards are discussed further down. The taste and the quality highly determine on the freshness of the ingredients, and the resultant the happiness of the customers. According to the Deputy Manager of Pizza hut, ‘If, there is variance observed in the product quality that will overall affect productivity and finally the customer satisfaction level. This is not acceptable at all’. He added, ‘if company is spending a huge amount of money on the product promotions and marketing activities that is for the business. And also company provides the training to the employee to how to maintain the product quality. So every single person should have to ensure the quality of the product and happy customer makes more return in the future’. In this regard, company has got set procedures and guideline to maintain the standards for the specified interactions between the employees and customers. If the deviations occur that will likely to lead to the unhappy customers. Food temperatures To keep products safe storage the temperature of freezers should be in between -18 to + or – 5 degree centigrade. The seals must be intact so that the temperature can be maintained. Quality Assurance The quality throughout the supply chain rests with the overall team. This is done by setting rigorous standards during product development. In order to ensure the standards, there is regular auditing and monitoring system in place. The one of the regular system to check quality is CHAMPS Excellence Review. Quality assurance is achieved through the complaints monitoring system and their corrections through available remedial methods. Core Competence. Organizational strength or abilities, developed over a long period, that customers find valuable and competitors find difficult or even impossible to copy. (Cecil C. Bozarth, Robert B. Handfield, 2008) The pizza hut has got high degree of core competence in the basic product. The pizza hut’s dough is treated as core competence of the business. This makes pizza hut different then the competitors. Cost & variance The cost of sales and the sales revenue are the actual things that support the managers to run the business on track. If the numbers seems going out of the track they need be highlighted and called as variance. The variance is the difference between the Actual cost and Theoretical Cost. Head office set forecast and provide targets to the business stores. The targets are set with the help of previous year business performance and the expected events. That is called as theoretical cost. On the other hand the cost occurred in the business dates is the actual cost. So if there is any difference occurs that will be treate as variance. The cost of sales of the store for the current period shows the variance of 36. 38. * The theoretical cost set by management was ? 2203. 22 and in percentage 22.46% where as the actual cost for the period occurred was ? 2239. 60 in percentage 22. 83%. The results indicate the variance remained ? 36. 38. The variance in costing is the actual indicator of the performance. Higher the variance depicts higher the concerns persist with in the business unit. In present case in hand, the above depicted variance treated to be normal. The business operations can not work on the absolute set tracks because the forecasted things can not happen on the absolute behaviours as predicted. Reasons of variances * Miscount The chance of miscounting always prevails during the operations. In the case of miscount the chances of wrong order increase and finally will increase the variance. * Wastage The several reasons for wastage may occur during the operations. However if forecast made is not effective then the chances of unexpected results may increase. That applies with the product forecast as well. If product is defrosted without realizing the demand for the product then this may cause to one of potential wastage. In other case the wastage can increase if no proper product forecast is being made and or staff make mistakes while making orders or at the time of dispatching orders. In any case if wrong delivered to customer the customer will complaint against it and in order to make customer happy the order is to be resent. This will certainly increase the cost. Higher the number of complaints more is the cost. These two factors are directly proportional. * Shrink The shrink may occur if inventory reduced without record. The variance shows the real picture of the business operations. Happy customers return back to business and become repeat customers and cause to increases in the sales revenue of the business. However, If sales revenue is running on the increasing trend or above of the forecasted track then it clearly indicates the successful operations of the business activities. And this will likely to decrease the percentage of variance as overall. Forecasting Forecasting the estimated demand is the real start of every single operational activity in the business unit. This involves every thing from human resource planning to the product planning. In this every single factor get into the touch of planning, organizing, and leading and control of the operational activities. This ultimately leads to the overall productivity of the unit. Forecasting product and customers demand is the most important activity for the b business organizations. (Derek L Waller 2003) Forecasting is very important element to carry forwards the business on the set line successfully up to the mark in efficient manners. (Joseph S. Martinich, 1997) The same goes true for the pizza hut business. According to the RGM ‘forecasting at pizza hut plays critical part for the success of the business’. The manager, prior to develop any plans for HR deployment or the food ordering, they observes the forecast of sales and expected upcoming events in the calendar. As per say, the usual shift requires two to three drivers and plus kitchen staff and the shift manager. Where as the number of drivers can increase on weekends, as high as 7 to 10 and 4 to 5 in store staff plus shift manager and support manager. This works fine when every thing works according to plans. However, if any of the external factors come into play then that can potentially affect the service delivery and the speed. This happens when for example the whether conditions. The road hazards in shape of blockades, accidents. All of these factors can slow down the serviceability. The unexpected orders can cause more demand of the product where as the availability of the ready to use product may be limited according to the expected demand for the shift. Therefore the variance in expected demand and actual demand can cause the shortage of the products and ultimately this can play around the one of the possible factors of the unhappy customer and can cause the variance in the productivity of the unit as over all. The demand can also increase because of the good weather, special occasions like sports, rituals, festivals, and purchasing power. According to the RGM of the unit, the demand for the food is high in the start of the month but that usually slow down in the end of the month due to the less availability of the funds with customers. Employee performance/training The training data base available at store and the views gathered from management team reveals the fact that the importance of the training in store is directly linked with the operations standards and productivity. The team member working on make table should have to be trained according to the specified requirements of the make table. The lack of training will cause the variances in operations activities. This directly results the variances in the customer satisfaction. Importance of Customer Experience Customer care is the core point of concentration behind the business. The business treats customers as king. The most important fact is to find out the ways through the customer want can be fulfilled effectively. Therefore there are some procedures and standards set by top management in order to interact with customer. Customers don’t really want relationships. At least not in the same way the brand does. They want to be treated well, respected, understood and to get what they want, when they want it. In other words, they simply want a good experience and the reassurance of knowing that they will have the same good experience every time they come into contact with the brand. So, if we the team get to the experience right, the opportunity to build meaningful relationships should follow. (Asbjorn Rolstadas, 1995 & Alan Mitchell Issue 5, Summer 1999) Pizza hut is selling pizzas but this is what other competitors have been doing. So what makes it really special about it? Who recognise that product alone? The product alone is nothing but the service is also important. That is the factor which make customers as ‘repeat customers’ The attitudes, values make key differentiations. The operational standards, the quality of food all of them are key factors. (Mary Say et all 2003, Issue 440) In order to achieve desired results the team members at Pizza hut are provided with set guidelines for the interaction with customers. The guide line called ‘moment of truth’ or ‘customer mania plus’. Moment of Truth The most important key elements to are set in this guidelines. (See Appendix 8) * Order taker The order taker is the key person who works as a bridge between the company and the customer. If he/she makes customer happy, the business will likely to repeat other wise can drain to the competitors. This results not only the loss of customer but also the loss of several networks of the lost customer. CHAMPS Excellence The order delivered to the customer should followed by the set procedures. The delivery person has provided particular guideline that he/she will have to follow when interacting with customers. This results in increase customer satisfaction. The other most important factors that the management follows are; * Delivered on time * Delivered completely. * Invoiced correctly. * Undamaged However, If any of the above factors missing from the cycle process of order making, then it start again from the make table. This * Response. (repeat customer/happy customer) * Complaints Resolving complaint * Offering service delivery * Offering hot food delivery * Beat the phone capture in busy times. * Beat the web orders There should be every reason for the return of the customer. Without fulfilment of the expectation that will not be possible. However the team at Pizza hut follows the guidelines and makes customers happy, but there may be several factors that may cause to the dissatisfaction. In general, the possible factors may be for instance, rush of customers and not enough staff available to take orders or to pick up a phone, bad quality, late delivery or the rude attitude. According to the pizza hut manual almost 2/3 of unhappy customers never return because of poor service. The RGM at store revealed the fact as ‘Customers don’t come pizza hut just for the food, they can get food anywhere. What most customers want when they visit or call us is a good time’. He adds, ‘when they order on phone they expect order takers to treat them well and make their time great. How do you do this? By having a service attitude and making customers feel welcome and important’. Marketing The Marketing plays very important role for the business. The customers actually receive message through marketing, thus it become very critical that the company should highlight the customer expectations in the marketing message. There are several set standards that are to be followed for the marketing purposes. (Francis J.Mulhern, 2004). The company invest considerable resources to find out the exact wishes of customers. For the Pizza hut’s delivery branches the segment of customers includes from families, to the teens. According to the Pizza hut database the primary customer are teens and young adults. Product Development The pizza hut success is not the matter of isolated activities. But it is the company’s restless efforts to put innovations into the realities by turning needs and wants in to the shape of products. Product development team run focus group to study the consumer behaviours towards product choices. Some time products are launched after having selected study of the chosen sample, but it does not survive for long time. This may cause occurrence of cost or the wastages to the stores. For instance the four for all, cheesy bread, Bombay wings, Indian pizza are all the examples of failed products. However the company has launched successful products as well. For instance cheesy bite pizza, which has cause around 24% increases in pizza sales over all. Company Profile Pizza hut started on 1958. The dream of Frank and Dan Carney turned into the reality when he opened the first Hut in Wichita, Kansas. The website of pizza hut states that in very beginning the restaurant was as too small. It had just 25 seats available for customers. The inspirations for the name as ‘Hut’ came into thoughts through the design of the building. It looked like a hut. Therefore it geared the idea to carry on with name as ‘Pizza Hut’. The Pizza has superior place in the market, particularly for the Pizza business. Through the time it has scattered in to the markets of the world. The numbers of the growth depicts that it Pizza hut has more than 600 outlets in the UK only. The Pizza hut is a part of Yum, which is another big company. The Yum own several big companies like KFC, Long John Silver’s, A & W Taco Bell The Pizza hut was formerly owned by Whitbread and Yum as a joint venture. But in the year 2006 Whitbread sold out their shares to Yum. Presently the Pizza Hut UK Ltd is now 100% owned by Yum! Conclusion The operations management depicts the performance of each and individual unit that is participating in over all acceleration of the engine of business. The business may have some times low speed and high speeds. It highly depends on the strategies that the top management set for the business and the way the strategies are followed by the key components that run the actual business. The operations at Pizza hut have multifaceted situations. The each component working in the process cycle of business plays equally important role to win the customer. However, if any one of the units deviating from the set standards will cause a variance in the performances as overall. Thus it is concluded that the success of the business is possible through collections of inputs from all the units participating in the conversion process.

Childhood Obesity and Cartoons

There are more obese children in the current times than ever before, and many people blame many different sources. One of these sources is Television; whether it is the act of the children watching television, or the shows themselves and what the children are seeing on the programs. The main discussion in what children’s television programs are showing is ‘food’ – more specifically, unhealthy food. Many of the programs on the children’s television channels show many cases of food during their run-time, and many argue that the majority of this food is unhealthy, and part of the cause of our children’s obesity. One of the more current cases in this category involved the long-time popular young children’s show Sesame Street, in which the beloved Cookie Monster was changed. He was changed to eat fruits and vegetables with the occasional cookie – because always eating cookies was unhealthy, and many complained that their children were getting a bad example from this. This was an extreme case since the show was actually changed (since it was such a popular show for young kids) – where in most shows, people wouldn’t argue as much, nor would they bother to change. A lot of studies have been done regarding the relation between obesity in children and children’s television, however mostly the studies were just making a correlation between the number of hours of television viewed and child obesity. The studies were not all paying attention to the exact programs or channels watched, just the fact that it was television. In his essay â€Å"Healthy Cartoons? A Content Analysis of Foods in Children’s Animated Television Programs,† Jeremy L. Korr talks about food in children’s television programming. Not only does he look back and gather together a lot of the important studies done concerning Children’s television programs and the food shown or referenced, but he does his own studies of the current Children’s Cartoons and their food shown and referenced (which will be discussed later). There are some older studies of children’s programs, one of which was conducted in 1994 by Warnke and Albrecht. They analyzed many children’s network programs airing Saturday mornings broadcast during 1991 and 1992. Of the foods mentioned or shown in these shows, â€Å"32 percent were fruits and vegetables, 14 percent were sweets† (Korr 452), and the rest were other food-types. This already helps to show that children’s programs do not show only unhealthy or even mostly unhealthy foods. However, a more recent study conducted by Poor in 2007 showed some different results. After watching 20 hours of the Disney Channel’s programming, â€Å"Poor found that 57 percent of the foods referenced within the Disney Channel programs were low in nutritional value† (Korr 452). These two studies seem to contradict each other, however the study done by Warnke and Albrecht was done on Saturday morning programming on major networks, where children (and parents) will be more likely to be watching the programs, whereas the study done by Poor was not. So the study done by Warnke and Albrecht could almost (but not) be disregarded, since the programs will intentionally try to be healthier since there will be more attention (by parents etc. ) on Saturday morning programming. In summary, these studies do not seem to show that children’s television programs are all showing only unhealthy food. The Saturday morning children’s programs on the major channels tend to stick more with healthier foods, but the weekday children’s programs on channels such as the Disney Channel tend to be closer to half or more of the food shown being unhealthy. Neither of these seem to quite prove or disprove that children’s programs are leading to obesity. Of course, in watching television, not only is one watching the program, but sitting through the commercials. People tend to neglect this fact and stick to blaming the children’s television programs instead of looking towards the children’s commercials. These commercials have been proven to consist of almost all unhealthy foods (at least in the past – currently they are moving more towards healthier foods because of the overall scare of children’s obesity in our society). A semi-current study was taken by Powel in 2007 that showed â€Å"98 percent of the food commercials view by children aged 2 to 11 and 89 percent of those viewed by children aged 12 to 17 were for products high in fat, sugar, or sodium† (Korr 451). These numbers have most likely lowered in the past few years due to all the current attempts to help our ever-growing obese society, but never the less – this is still quite important. Another relatively recent study on children’s commercials was conducted by the Kaiser Family Foundation in 2007. After studying thousands of children’s food advertisements, they found that â€Å"34 percent of the foods in those ads were for candy and snacks, 28 percent were for cereal, 10 percent were for fast food, 4 percent were for dairy products, 1 percent were for fruit juices, and none were for fruits or vegetables† (Korr 458). Although it is not split into simply unhealthy and healthy categories, one can easily agree that well over half, maybe two-thirds of the advertisements were of unhealthy foods. This only helps strengthen that a good majority of advertisements during children’s programming are of unhealthy foods. Now that children’s programming and the advertisements during have been covered, only one category remains: Children’s Cartoons. Since it is a relatively hard subject to study, since cartoons aren’t always realistic, not much research has been done. Korr however, watched thirty-two children’s cartoons on a total of three cable and two broadcast networks. He found that â€Å"35 percent of the foods referenced visually or verbally were sweets and salty snacks, 6 percent were breads and cereals, 18 percent were meats, 5 percent were dairy products, and 22 percent were fruits and vegetables (including fruit juice)† (Korr 458). So as far as Children’s Cartoons; surprisingly, one-fifth to one-fourth of all of the foods referenced are fruits and vegetables, and less than one-half of all of the foods referenced are unhealthy. This differs slightly from unanimated children’s programs with more fruits and vegetables and 20-25 percent less unhealthy foods. Compared to the more closely monitored Saturday children’s programs, which consist of unanimated and animated shows, there are considerably more sweets and slightly less vegetables overall in children’s cartoons. Korr also found that children’s Cable channels accounted for most of the food references as well as â€Å"98 percent of the references to sweets, 91 percent of the references to salty snacks, and 91 percent of the references to fruits and vegetables† (Korr 459). He also found the lowest frequency of unhealthy foods in the Saturday morning programs that were always ridiculed for sending out poor nutritional messages. This only helps prove the point that Saturday morning programs are more closely monitored seeing as they have the least reference to food, as well as the least reference to unhealthy food. So now, we could almost definitively say that warnke and Albrecht’s studies could be ignored for the purpose of this analysis. After looking at all of these different studies, one can deduct a few things. First, children’s programs aired on cable seem to be more likely to have more foods referenced or shown, which of course leads to more unhealthy foods. Second, children’s programs aired on Saturdays seem to be more likely to have less foods referenced or shown, with more fruits and vegetables than sweets and salty foods. Third, children’s programs aired on the weekdays tend to have more sweets involved. And last, children’s advertisements all seem to show a majority of unhealthy foods. In general, it seems that children’s advertisements are the major problem in showing unhealthy foods. As far as children’s programming, Cartoons seem to show more unhealthy foods than unanimated series, and depending on what time and network the program is aired on will make a difference on what one will see. One solution to this, stated by Korr, would be to use a DVR (digital video recorder), such as TiVo, to record the programs, and then fast-forward or skip through the commercials, thereby eliminating a good amount of the unhealthy foods shown during children’s programming. However this does not seem quite necessary. It seems, based on these studies, that if one limits them self to Saturday programming, one will eliminate a good amount of the advertisements and the shows with unhealthy foods referenced and shown. Also watching broadcast as opposed to cable network shows appears to cut down the amount as well. As a last resort, if a child must watch television, a DVR would be a relatively good solution.

Storm Drainage Design Project Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words - 3

Storm Drainage Design Project - Essay Example The inflow into the river after the rainfall is through different ways. The major types are overland flow which represents the surface flows which includes other direct flows into the river. The ground water flow component is the sub-surface runoff component contributing to the river discharge from a particular region after the rainfall. If the major portion of runoff water reaches the river as overland flow , a heavy rainfall would result in quick response in the river and the hydrograph shape would be peak. Thus the risk of floods would be higher in this case. While if the major share is through ground water flow the rise in discharge is slower and the repose of the river is slower. Thus the rate at which the flood waters reaches the river body determines the shape of t he hydrograph. The major factors contributing to these situations are characteristics of drainage basin, type and amount of precipitation, land use pattern in a region, impact caused by human intervention, size and shape of drainage basin and major river management measures adopted (Flood hydrograph, n.d.). The hydrograph for river Cynon is drawn based on the rainfall and river flow depth data (figure 1). The discharge in the river is plotted along y-axis and the time (in hours) along x axis. Similarly, the rainfall depth is indicated on a secondary y axis in the same graph corresponding to particular instant of time. Based on the flood hydrograph obtained for the river Cynon, it is obvious that the drainage characteristics of the terrain results in the occurrence of peak discharge soon after the rainfall. The drainage basin soil characteristics is said to have relatively low value of permeability and this results in low infiltration rates into the soil. The rising limb of the hydrograph has a very steep rise while the receding limb was not as steep. The receding limb required more time to reach the base flow condition which justified the

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Philosophy 101 Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Philosophy 101 - Essay Example Based on this argument, existentialism holds that there is no general essence among individual selves. It asserts that one’s identity and purpose is fashioned by the individual subject alone. In this light, philosophy enables the individual subject to reflect on one’s purpose in life, which in turn defines one’s authenticity. An authentic lifestyle entails the affirmation of individual responsibility. It contends that humans must become highly reflective of the possible outcomes of their desired course of action. Such an act of cognition shall facilitate both prudent and moral conduct that contributes to the emancipation of the individual self. This shows how philosophy encourages us to become resolute in our own beliefs and convictions regardless of what traditional society or religion dictates. By this, we shall find value in life, in our pursuit of knowledge and meaning in the world, for such can lead to the acquisition of a deeper and holistic understanding o f life. Herein is the value of philosophy. For through it, we are able to exercise human freedom, and take hold of our own lives, based on our own choices and actions. It enables us reflect on the meaning of the most important and simple things in life, and most importantly, exalt individualism. Works Cited Kelly, Eugene. The Basics of Western Philosophy. Westport: Greenwood Press, 2004. Print. Sartre, Jean Paul.

Evaluation Argument Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words - 3

Evaluation Argument - Essay Example Waiting to meet Jesus is a healthy journey for everyone, but the pressures of the society can interrupt this waiting, and cause an individual to go against the will of God, by being forced to lie to having met Jesus, even though in the real sense Jesus has not yet visited the individual. Thus, the understanding and practice of religion might be marred with widespread confusion, most especially when the practice of religion is associated with induction of a child, but external pressure can obstruct the good judgment in matters of religion even more. The elaborate understanding of religion and its practice is fundamental for an individual seeking to join and practice it. The misunderstanding of the basic tenets surrounding a religion might see an individual simply enter into a religion, but remain disappointed afterwards, when the expectations held by the individual are not met (Klick, 27). In the article the article "Salvation" by Langston Huges, joining the religious practice happened in utter confusion, since the understanding of Huges was that he must first meet Jesus physically. Huges had been told by his auntie Reeds that â€Å"when you were saved you saw a light, and something happened to you inside! And Jesus came into your life!† (Huges, n.p.). In this respect, his understanding of this process of getting saved was in its literal meaning. Thus, this understanding build such an expectation in his mind; that seeing the light and feeling something happen on the inside will be the hallmarks of accepting salvation. Th erefore, the fact that it was becoming too late and everyone else had gotten saved except for him, made Huges remain with no other choice but to take the step forward and accept salvation without having first experienced the light and something happening on the inside. It can therefore be seen that Langston Huges’ article, "Salvation", may not

Social research methods Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

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Rhetorical analysis of Sweatshop Oppression Essay

Rhetorical analysis of Sweatshop Oppression - Essay Example In the opening paragraph, Ravisankar says that we are all â€Å"poor college students† (87). Through these words, Ravisankar conveys the message that despite our formal education, we fail to understand the relation between our tendency of low-cost consumerism and the poor wages the employees get in those sweatshops. In other words, ‘we’ are placed first in the list of culprits by Ravisankar. Thereafter, one can observe the use of pathos by Ravisankar. He says that the employees in sweatshops ‘are forced to work 70-80 hours per week making pennies per hour’. In addition, there are ‘unsanitary bathrooms, poor ventilation, and extreme heat upward of 90 degrees’ (86). Evidently, this description sufficiently informs the readers about the pathetic situation prevailing in such sweatshops. Thereafter, Ravisankar depends on logos to disprove the claim that the fight against sweatshops has adverse impact on the poor in developed countries as companies change their locations when there is opposition from labor right activists and trade unions. Here, Ravisankar uses the logic that trade unions and labor right activists are not against the location of the companies but against the inhuman activities prevailing there. He alleges that the companies shift their location because they want to find cheap labor in another location. From the very beginning, one can see the use of ethos. Throughout the essay, he relates sweatshops with the inhuman situations in the said companies. At first, he says ‘we’ are responsible for this inhuman condition as we are crazy about ‘low-cost’ products. Thereafter, he describes how pathetic is the condition of employees in such sweatshops. After contradicting the claim that anti-sweatshop campaign adversely affects the poor workers, he asserts that the companies are the ones to be blamed. It is their zest for excessive profit that creates such a situation. Now, as ‘we’- ‘the poor

Predictive Methods Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Predictive Methods - Essay Example According to Sandford and Hsu, The Delphi Technique can perform functions such as the exposition of underlying information thus leading to various judgments. It can also educate respondents on the vast interrelated aspects about the topic [3]. In such a case, a group of experts will have to have some experience concerning Ukraine in order to determine viable intentions of the people concerning any impending attack. Such determinations rely on the use of experts with intelligence knowledge such as the Red Team. Such cases require fusion by the relevant teams to identify in the identification of elements within the area of responsibility [4].Therefore; the read team becomes an integral part in the prediction of the study question. The Red Team has shown major advances bot in technicality and methods to handle small warring groups [5]. Read teaming is very fundamental in ensuring information for intelligence collection and analysis and thus the Secretary of Defense should ensure the effective establishment of the team in critical areas such as Ukraine [6]. The Red teams have the expertise suitable to analyze situations from various perspectives such as Ukraine [7]. In such a case, they will be in a position to have sufficient information to tell whether the Russia is in an invasion jeopardy. Red Teaming in the past seemed viable in the identification of potential clashes between different groups [7]. Reliable sources say that it is possible that Ukraine is preparing for an attack in the Russia Islands. However, the sources do not have the provision of a clear cut on such claims thus the Delphi method cannot ascertain the outcome of such

Affirmative Action is Reverse Discrimination Essay Example for Free

Affirmative Action is Reverse Discrimination Essay Racial discrimination has long been an issue especially in the United States which is considered as a melting pot of different people from different ethnic and cultural backgrounds. Black people have experienced extreme even radical form of discrimination for centuries, but now, the black people found an ally in the affirmative action policy. This policy, after some time of implementation sparked debate since some people, even the blacks themselves, say that giving racial preferences is never a good thing. The policy has affected admission aspects in schools and employment in jobs. Two job applicants, a white male and a black male, even with the same qualifications, the black male will likely get the job because of racial preference provided by affirmative action. Black people are being given a definite advantage and white people would find this an unfair treatment. The same goes for school admission policies where minorities are being given a higher preference over white people in order to maintain a diverse student body. Thesis Affirmative action laws were made to eliminate or reduce discriminatory acts but there are numerous claims that these laws have reversed the tide. Affirmative actions laws may no longer be considered fair in this current setting since it only results in reverse discrimination and it is no longer an effective means of providing opportunities for minority groups. This reverse discrimination is constituted by racial preferences for blacks. This racial preference clouds the judgment of many educational institutions and employers since racial background is being analyzed instead of just the plain qualifications which some white people might find inappropriate. Affirmative action was envisioned to put an end to racial discrimination especially against black people. Under this policy, black people were given higher preferences in job and in admission policies in universities. This is however not an answer to eliminating discrimination. Instead of giving higher preferences to those people who are being discriminated such as the black people, a better alternative solution to racial discrimination would be to find steps to eliminate discriminatory acts and leveling the field so that all people from different ethnic backgrounds will be presented with equal opportunities. Since the black people are being given higher preferences, this may appear as a form of discrimination against white people. Affirmative action, instead of fulfilling its intention of eliminating discrimination, rather contributes to it. One of the major focuses of the affirmative action debate is its inclusion in university admission policies which show higher preferences for black applicants. Many people have been calling for the ban of the use of affirmative action in the public arena. Voters in California, Washington and Michigan have already submitted amendments to their state constitutions that would prohibit the use of affirmative action in the public setting (Prince Ryan, 2007). According to actor and columnist Joseph Phillips, affirmative action is not an issue of nondiscrimination, it is now about racial preferences. He emphasized on the point that racial preferences is not an effective way of fighting racism, instead, it brings about negative stereotypes especially in the educational sector wherein it pertains to a person’s intellectual capacity and academic capabilities (Prince Ryan, 2007). In a Supreme Court ruling in 2003 which involves the University of Michigan which makes use of racial preferences in its admission policies, the court highlighted the goal of having a diverse student body which is brought about by affirmative action but critics say that this decision by the court would only spark more law suits and that the critics of affirmative action would continue to put pressure on the Department of Education to discontinue the use of the policy (Marklein, 2003). Evidences have been presented regarding the effects of affirmative action; however, these evidences always seem imperfect and ambiguous. A review of the policy during the Clinton administration indicated that active federal enforcement of the policy in the 1970s resulted in government contractors moderately increasing the hiring of minority workers. Studies have indicated that there is only a meager increase in the employment of black males. Employment share of black males in contractor firms in 1974 was 5. 8 percent and this figure only increased to 6. 7 percent in 1980. On the other hand, the increase in non-contractor firms was from 5. 3 percent to 5. 9 percent. Also, a substantial number of black government employees got their jobs or promotion to managerial rank because of affirmative action even if qualifications are questionable (Galston). In the education sector, it was only during the height of the affirmative action policy that the enrollment of black people was on a steady rise. From only 4. 9 percent in 1955, black enrollment went up to 7. 8 percent in 1970. The figure further increased to 9. 1 percent in 1980 and 11. 3 percent in 1990. On the other hand, according to a report from the Census Bureau, Hispanics holding bachelors degrees or other advanced degrees went up to 9 percent in 1994 from only 5 percent in 1970 while the rate for blacks is 12. 9 percent from 4. 5 percent (Galston). Another issue that rises with affirmative action is that minority groups may gain an image of inferiority since the whites may think that a black student was able to enter the university or a black person is able to get a job only because of affirmative action even if the black person has all the necessary qualifications (Hoffman). Overall, the past 30 years has been fruitful for the black people as they generally lived better lives with better education and income all because of racial preferences. This has resulted into what Seymour Martin Lipset classifies as a â€Å"growing differentiation† within the community of black people from the growing black middle class to the ghetto poor. The affirmative action program would work better if it would remove barriers for those who have the credentials to succeed instead of giving them a definite advantage in admissions. Anti-Thesis Supporters of affirmative action make use of the argument that it is necessary for the people compensate for years of discriminations against blacks. Many black people approve of affirmative action because it provides recompense against the discrimination that they have experienced and endured in the past but not all black people share this kind of insight. Steele said that, theoretically, affirmative action is in moral symmetry with fairness. She described the policy as reformist and corrective as well as repentant and redemptive. The country is trying to make up for its sins and wants to correct it but black people will lose more than what they will gain from the policy (Steele). Some also argue that it is difficult to remove stereotyping and discrimination without the policy and that it is needed to maintain diversity. Another argument states that affirmative action should continue because racism still exists in this society. The argument that affirmative action is needed for the white people to compensate for the discrimination against blacks is shrouded in hatred and appears as a form of retaliation against the white people. However, retaliation will not improve the situation. It might even spark more discrimination against black people if affirmative action policies continue to be implemented and this could lead to more hatred and discrimination against the minority groups. According to Kimberle Crenshaw, a professor of law at the University of California, affirmative actions removes the obstacles so that people from the minority groups can qualify and compete. With affirmative action, blacks, Hispanics and other minority group find it easier to get a job because of racial preferences geared toward these minorities (Prince Ryan, 2007). Affirmative action exists because there is discrimination, if there is no discriminations, affirmative action would not be needed in this society. The fact that affirmative action exists is because there is still discrimination and it is still needed in the current setting. Those who believe that affirmative action is in conflict with their interest must be made to see what benefits it provides to the society. Racism is still dominant in the United States which is why affirmative action must stay (Noguera, 1996). According to Linda Chavez, founder and president of the Center for Equal Opportunity, the Michigan University case speaks of admission and scholarship programs for minority groups which make use of substantially different standards and must include the racial background. People against the policy said that they will take their case to the ballots but the court has already made it clear that it is the universitys prerogative to include race in the admission policy to ensure the diversity of the student body (Marklein, 2003). The 2003 Supreme Court ruling allowed admission officials to consider race in the selection process. Colleges and universities have no obligation to use racial preferences but they may adopt such policies to meet a satisfactory level of student diversity. Arthur Coleman, a former official under the Department of Education said that adopting diversity is a choice and is not mandated by any law or policy. According to a survey by Public Agenda, 79 percent of Americans agreed that it is important for schools to have a diverse student body while only 54 percent approved of affirmative action programs. In a separate poll conducted by Gallup before the court handed out its ruling, only 49 percent said that they are in favor of affirmative action while 43 percent said that they are not in favor (Marklein, 2003). Synthesis Affirmative action was made to eliminate discrimination but discrimination would not likely be eliminated if the method used to eliminate it is discriminating in itself since it results in a reverse discrimination. Instead of blacks being discriminated, the white people are now the ones being discriminated because of racial preferences given to black people in school admission policies and employment opportunities. Arguing that affirmative action is fair because blacks were once discriminated to a great extent is not valid since it is only driven by hatred towards white people who were discriminating the blacks and other minorities (Steele). Also, continuing affirmative actions only causes white people to hate the blacks because of the racial preferences that they are being handed. White people who believe that they have the qualifications but are turned down while a black person gets in may think that affirmative action gave him a disadvantage and not because the black person is really qualified (Hoffman). Affirmative action will not eliminate racial discrimination but it rather contributes to it. The policy may have its benefits every now and then, but generally, it is no longer applicable in the current setting as more and more white people are feeling the negative effects of the policy. It does remove barriers so that people from minorities can compete but it comes with a price. They gain an image of inferiority because people may think that it is only because of affirmative action that they have reached a certain level of success and not because they are really qualified (Hoffman). The Supreme Court has handed out its decision in the Michigan University case and the decision maintained that the school may use the race as part of the admission policy to maintain the diversity of the student body. Even without affirmative action, colleges can use race as a basis of application to meet a desired rate of student diversity since having a diverse student body promotes a better learning environment (Marklein, 2003). Ultimately, data indicates that affirmative action is no longer effective which means that it is time to adopt an alternative policy (Galston). A better way of embracing diversity would be to encourage minorities from a young age to work for their goals and get a good education. Assisting people from poor socio-economic backgrounds to gain resources and motivation should also be done so that they will also be competent when it comes to school admission and job-seeking. This is a lot better than giving them preferential treatment because they would not be treated as inferiors (Hoffman). Conclusion To conclude, affirmative action may have been an effective way of reducing racial discrimination against minorities, but now, it is no longer applicable to be used in the current setting since it results in reverse discrimination. The white people are now put in a seat that was once held by other minorities. Affirmative action might trigger hate targeted towards the blacks and other minorities because of the reverse discrimination. The policy which gives racial preferences also connects inferiority with minority groups. A better way of eliminating discrimination is by leveling the playing field not by racial preferences but by providing equal opportunities for whites and minority groups. References Prince, Andrew Ryan, Erica. 21 November 2007. Is it Time to End Affirmative Action?. National Public Radio. Retrieved July 8, 2008 from http://www. npr. org/templates/story/story. php? storyId=16337441 Marklein, Mary Beth. 24 June 2003. Despite ruling, affirmative action debate is far fr

Korean Wave in China | An Analysis

Korean Wave in China | An Analysis Korean popular culture has become one of the most beloved pop cultures among Asian fans over the last 10 years. Asia is no longer dominated by American popular culture, and fans now are choosing what they consider to be more Asian. Many have recently come to prefer Korean popular culture, which they perceive to be fresh and trendy, as well as something that contains Asian values and sentiments. More and more people throughout Asia are choosing to watch Korean movies, listen to Korean popular music, follow Korean soap operas, and even travel to Korea to visit sites they have seen in their favorite Korean dramas. The sudden rise in popularity and the dissemination of Korean popular culture throughout Asia is new, unprecedented, and fascinating. This cultural flow in contemporary Asia is called the Korean Wave. Starting point of the Korean Wave in China The term Korean Wave refers to the phenomenon of Korean popular culture, disseminated primarily through the mass media and enjoying a broad popularity outside of Korea. It includes Korean-identified television dramas, movies, internet games, fashions, and popular music. It is unclear exactly when the term Korean Wave started to become popular among Asians, but public media began recognizing Korean popular culture in mainland China in 1997, when the Korean television drama Star Is in My Heart was broadcast in China, Taiwan, Hong Kong, and other Asian countries. The Chinese broadcasting company Phoenix TV, which broadcasts throughout Asia, showed this drama under its Chinese name, and the broadcast met with broad popular appeal, especially in mainland China. The drama caught peoples attention in part because its main actor, Ahn Jae-Wook, was particularly attractive to Chinese and Taiwanese women. Ahn Jae-Wook, therefore, became a symbol of the Korean wave in China. Following to Star Is in My Heart, Autumn Story, Winter Sonata, What Is the Love and many other drama fascinated people in China. Korea pop music has also taken a huge role of the Korean Wave from the beginning. Young dance music groups, H.O.T and Clone ignited the Korean Wave in China in 1999. Various radio stations in China began to create programs specializing K-pop. Moreover, it is known that the number of fans of H.O.T. was eight million only in China in 2002. Afterwards, at least 50 different Korean pop albums were produced in China, and more than three million albums in total were sold by 2002. Beyond simply consuming the media contents, Chinese teenagers repeated Korean pop songs and imitated Korean actors and singers fashion and hairstyle. In addition, Korean restaurants in China became popular among people who were enjoying Korean pop culture. Through the indirect experience of Korean food in television drama, people became familiar to it and such familiarity made people walk to Korean restaurants. As the effect of the Korean Wave, the national image of Korea was recognized as positive. As a result, Korean products raised their own value as well. Samsung mobile phones and LG air conditioners and microwaves took bigger portions at Chinese market as people demanded more of such products. Started with the drama, Star Is in My Heart, and Korean pop music sung by H.O.T and Clone in China, the Korean Wave outstretched to Taiwan, Hong Kong, Singapore, Vietnam, and other Asian counties. The Second Round of Korean Wave in Japan Even though people in most Asian countries showed deep interests in Korea pop culture, Japan, which is geographically the nearest neighbor, was not affected by the Korean Wave until Winter Sonata hit Japan. In 2003, the Korean drama, Winter Sonata, was first shown on Japanese television in twenty episodes. It captured 22% of the prime time viewing audience. In 2004 Winter Sonata had its second showing. This time it captured 24% of viewing audience. The key feature of the Japanese response to the Korean drama was that it was not just passively accepted. A demographic of Japanese viewers positively embraced the Korean drama, especially the television drama Winter Sonata and its Korean associations. There are the indicators that with some of the Japanese audience, Winter Sonata was elevated to cult status. For example, in 2003, the DVD of the series sold out within four hours of its release. Lead Korean actors from the series become celebrities in Japan. Indeed, in some newspapers the male leading actor, the Korean Bae Yong Joon, was addressed as Yon Sama, an honorific usually assigned only to royalty in Japan. At last count, Bae Yong Joon has some 50 websites devoted to him. During visits to Japan cast members were mobbed by their fans. Demand by fans for Winter Sonata merchandise has created an industry with an annual turnover in Japan and Korea worth 2.3 billion US dollars. The industry produces memorabilia such as clothing, ac cessories, jewelers, stationery, magazines, books, DVDs and supports fan clubs. Significantly this interest extended beyond the characters of Winter Sonata toward a more general interest in Korea. The tourist industry in Korea was affected by the Korean Wave. In 2004 Japan was the source of nearly half of Koreas 5.6 million overseas visitors, and was its major source of tourists though it is difficult to identify who of these came because of Winter Sonata. In 2006 Korean Air announced special film flights from Japan so that they could visit the Winter Sonata location sites. In 2006 NHK television media and publishers announced an increase of its annual sales of its Korean language textbook to 20,000 copies. Reasons why the Korean Wave became popular in Asia The good quality of cultural media comes to the foremost reason. According to the Chinese local analysis, Korean dramas have outstanding storylines, well designed characters, and sophisticated directing system. Plus, original background music (OST) are excellent as well. Whether Chinese or Taiwanese dramas repeat the obvious storylines making people already bored by watching only the first episode, Korean dramas own various styles and types of story raging widely. Their creativities in developing stories fuel peoples curiosities to see the next episode. Korea actors handsome appearance, stylish fashions and hairstyles, and outstanding acting abilities are said to the best among Asian actors. Improved technology in film producing helps background settings and music to be wonderfully assimilated to each other. Camera walking and well designed composition of pictures improve overall quality of the video. The second reason is that the economic decline of Asia forced television producers to seek out products cheaper than Japanese and Western products. One of these was soap operas, the starting-point of the Korean Wave in Taiwan. The Korean Wave arose mainly because of the media liberalization that swept across Asia in 1990s, when the economic crisis made Asian buyers prefer the cheaper Korean products compared with Japanese and Hong Kong products. The primary producer of K-Pop Entertainment at Gala-TV in Taiwan told that the main reason that GTV began programming Korean soap operas was because of their cheap prices compared to Japanese products, and Korean soap operas were even cheaper than domestic ones. According to her, Korean soap operas were of much better quality then Taiwanese products, but were much cheaper, so GTV dubbed in Mandarin and aired the programs as if they were locally made soap operas. In 1999, GTV began buying old dramas from the Korean Broadcasting System under the considerations that it costs less than the domestic dramas and the quality of the Korean dramas could be guaranteed. GTV was informed that KBS had invested a huge amount of money in production. Indeed, Korea has long invested in dramas, and after 1993 it has encouraged the investment of private capital in the media industry. Therefore, to supplement domestic dramas, GTV introduced Korean dramas of low cost and good quality. Thirdly, Korean movies and TV dramas show virtue and kindness. In Korean movies and TV dramas, people are friendly, and families are harmonious. Juniors respect elders, elders cherish juniors. Lovers love dearly each other, and spouses care for each other. TV dramas of Korea still show the harmonious and pure-hearted feelings. Every one wishes to have a harmonious family and live in a harmonious society. First of all, such heartwarming stories attract wide age groups. It is appropriate for elementary school kids to elder grandma and grandpa to watch altogether. Most western dramas or movies contain suggestive scenes to express passionate love between lovers which made family members to be apart to watch them. However, all family members gather around and can watch Korean dramas or movies which mostly depict pure-hearted loves between friends, families, and lovers. Second of all, pure love between lovers especially attracted Japanese women. Winter Sonata which delivers the story of pure love between main characters evoked Japanese Womens memories of their first love. Since purity in love was already old-fashioned culture in Japan, women who watched Winter Sonata brought out their nostalgic feelings toward pure love. Husband and wife do not talk a lot because Japanese people do not directly reveal their emotions and feelings to others which were regarded as the most secret part of individuals. The actions, that spouses sincerely care for each other, stirred desires of Japanese women to be loved from their love directly and in a gentle way. Lastly, the family value commonly dealt in Korean drama evoked nostalgic feeling toward family among Chinese people. Through the Cultural Revolution and through the national campaign, One family, one child, large families were exterminated in China. Naturally, the older generations miss memories they had in large families. The older generations in China could be vicarious satisfaction as they enjoy Korea drama. Even though Asian countries are bound with the similar cultures and traditions, purity in love and family value were lost in Japanese and Chinese society. Pure-hearted feelings and harmonious aspects of Korean society reflected on drama played the significant role to promote the Korean Wave in two societies. First, cultural industry includes movie, broadcast, music, game, book, and concert at which people directly show their enthusiasm. Second, derivative products are products such as cosmetics, tour, accessories, clothes, mobile phone, home appliance, automobile, and food which are indirectly linked with the cultural contents. Automobile that one Korean star drove in drama or the place where the drama was directed are in this category. Third, ripple effect on national economy is that effect on the other economy as cultural industry and derivative products are exported. For example, if the cultural contents were exported and therefore if the mobile phone meets the great demand, the mobile phone company needs to employ more people to produce the phone. As a result, more jobs are created in domestic market. This is a ripple effect on national economy. Fourth, immeasurable effects is, as it says in its word, it is not measurable by numeric values or by statistics. It is invisible effect suc h as people who are big fan of Korean culture learning Korean language. Korean exports in cultural industry to overseas amount to eleven million dollars in 2007. It shows 11.3% of annual growth from 2005 to 2007. In the case of movie industry, the movie, in which Bae yong-Jun (Yon-sama) acted in 2005, was exported at a high cost to Japan. The success of this movie resulted out exporting 76 million dollars. However, the following year reported the exports of only 25 million dollars which fells 68%. The broadcast industry is especially strong in Japan than any other Asian countries. While the broadcast industries in Japan and China show fairly steady outcome, other Asian countries and non-Asian region suddenly consumed the doubled volume of Korean television dramas in 2006 compared to that of 2005. The game industry, which takes the biggest portion in the cultural industry, gradually increased it exports. Derivative products are not the cultural contents; however, they are closely related to the Korean Wave. The car appeared in drama or the cosmetics which Korea celebrities advertising are included in the realm of derivative products. Therefore, they are second biggest part in calculating the economic effects of the Korean Wave. Korean cosmetic brands such as The Face Shop and Misha rapidly grew in size in the international market and exported three hundred million dollars in 2005 and three hundred fifty million dollars in 2007. Cosmetic brands are sensitive to their models; therefore, companies frequently change the models to the most popular one at the time. Interestingly, Korean cosmetic brands use male Korea celebrities who are at the center of the Korean Wave because, in this way, it is easier for companies to appeal to female Korean fans in overseas. This is the strategies Korea cosmetic companies are using to target the international market. In the case of clothes, clothes industry resulted out the exports of twenty-three million dollars in 2005; however, exporting volume has been gradually decreased to seventeen million dollars in 2007. Decrease in home appliance exports can be explained by the increasing supply of Chinese products with the developing qualities in China mainland. When the exports of clothes, accessories, mobile phone, and home appliances were decreasing, automobile industry stretched its competitiveness in the international market with the grow rate of 12.5%. Koreas developed technology in automobile production and positive image toward Korean automobile brand established such consequence. Abroad fans interest and familiarity to Korean food helped its industry internationally. The number of tourists is increasing from 2005 to 2007 with the growth rate of 3.5%. However, the number of tourists who visited Korea because of the Korea Wave is decreasing with the rate of -13.2%. Winter Sonata sensationally hit Japan in 2003. Thus, the rate of tourists, who came to Korea by the influence of the Korean Wave, in 2005 is comparatively higher than in 2006 and in 2007 as the aftereffect of Winter Sonata. As Japanese tourists who were deeply impressed by Winter Sonata increases after 2003, interesting thing happened in the streets in Korea. The shops near the locations appeared in Korean drama have Japanese explanations on each products. Moreover, the shop assistants in Myung-doing streets tout people in Japanese. They speak Japanese more than Korean to tout Japanese tourists. The decreasing number of tourists due to the Korean Wave does not mean that the Korean Wave has less impact on other cultures. Rather, people, who already visited Korea, would not make a second trip in near future. Therefore, it is quite natural that the number of people visiting Korea due to the Korean Wave gets smaller and smaller, regarding the huge impact of Winter Sonata in 2003. Instead, increasing number of tourists shows the general perception on the image of Korea is improving and it is ultimately the result of the Korean Wave. Therefore, I conclude that the Korean Wave yet fosters the tourism industry in Korea. Riffle Effects on National Economy Through the Korean Wave, Korean international economy was vitalized. Growing demands of Korean cultural contents from abroad have increased supplies, and therefore, Korean cultural industry has grown in a large scale. Numerous companies which create the cultural contents require more labor force as they extend their business. The Korean Wave not only vitalized the Korean economy but also opened the labor market to support industry. Considering the fact that companies, which directly or indirectly related to the Korean Wave, inevitably employ more labors, unimaginable number of people would come into the economic activities, relieving unemployment and boosting the national economy. The Korea Wave started with few dramas and pop songs now controls the whole national economy. Immeasurable effects Korean fans outside of Korea often learn Korean language and eat Korean food. More and more people have interest in Korean culture and favorable impression toward Korea. These sociological phenomena raise the power of Korea very softly everywhere in the world where the Korea cultural syndrome has hit. This is the Soft Power that Korean has. Conclusion The Korean Wave hit China in 1997 for the fist time and now its influence prevails all over Asia. By watching the same drama, by reading the same comic book, and by listing to the same pop songs, people have a strong sense of solidarity. Reflecting on my own experience, Asian teenagers become intimate to each other easily by sharing their cultural interests. In the fact that cultural contents take the large portion on students lives, there is nothing better which connects the students so tightly. They would forget the time flying away when they talk about their own favorite dramas and celebrities. The Korean Wave was directly connected to the domestic economy. Numerous cultural industries have expanded their influence in Asia and related manufacturing industry also has been thrived. The cultural industry established the average exports of 414,387 million Won from 2005 to 2007 and the derivative industry reached to the average exports of 2,204,567 million Won from 2005 to 2007. The whole economic impacts including the ripple effects during the past few years are tremendous in Korean domestic economy. There are several shortages of the Korean Wave that the Korean cultural contents overwhelmingly attract female but only mimic influence to male and that the current Korean Wave is not as sensational as the past few years. The Korean dramas and movies mostly deal with romantic love stories which women love and do not take action or thriller genres which men like. To embrace a broader range of people, Korean production companies need to develop creative and interesting scenarios in various genres. Plus, the economic effects are diminishing in many sectors of industry such as clothes, home appliance, and mobile phone. It is because there are recently no big contents such as Winter Sonata and Dae Jang Geum which rose fanatical boom about Korean media. The more efforts to create the high quality cultural contents enable to continue the glory of Korean Wave in 2004 and 2005. Asian countries and people have never gathered and shared the same cultural contents before as they do these days. Even though there are worried voices that Asian cultures are losing diversity in arts and culture, I valued more on the Korean Waves positive effects that connecting many countries and people in Asia in a close bound. I hope the unified the cultural market in Asia region would be the chance for cultural industries in each Asian countries to cooperative each other to create more developed cultural contents opening up new visas of the future.

Bus Rapid Transit: A Sustainable Approach to Mass Transit Essay

Bus Rapid Transit: A Sustainable Approach to Mass Transit Transportation accounts for about 25% of fossil fuel consumption. One way to decrease the negative environmental effects of burning fossil fuels (e.g. smog and global warming) is to improve mass transit. An efficient mass transit system speeds travel time, cuts travel costs, and makes service more reliable. Consequently, it discourages the use of private vehicles, reducing fossil fuel consumption and emissions. A type of mass transit that has proven to be environmentally and socially successful in many cities across the world is Bus Rapid Transit. BRT uses a variety of a variety of innovative system designs and technologies to achieve to the aforementioned qualities of an efficient mass transit system. The innovative system designs and technologies include: lane priority, signal priority, vehicle design, stop location, fare collection, rider appeal, and land use policy. Lane priority gives buses exclusive use of lanes to increase travel time. There are three types of priority lanes: curbside, median, and contraflow. Curbside bus lanes are usually effective during peak hours in peak directions; otherwise the lane is reserved for parking and deliveries. Since bus stops are in this lane, buses do not waste time remerging with traffic. Double curbside bus lanes allow them to pass one another, such as Madison Avenue in New York City. Median lanes are those located in the middle two lanes of traffic, usually separated from all other traffic by a raised curb. Median lanes are only appropriate for wide boulevards because space is needed to build the passenger platforms. Even though median lanes are less likely to be congested than curbside lanes, some di... ...a2.html; provides a case study of the transit system in Curitiba, Brazil. 2. http://www.solutions-site.org/default.htm; provides a case study of the transit system in Curitiba, Brazil including a history and schematic maps of the city. 3. http://www.atlanticplanners.org/whatnew/conf99/curitiba.htm; an overview of the success of the BRT system in Curitiba, Brazil, provides links for more information on the city’s BRT system. 4. http://www.fta.dot.gov/brt/index.html; an overview of the elements that comprise a BRT system, case studies of Curitiba, Miami, Orlando, and Vancouver are included. 5. http://www.lightrailnow.org/facts/fa_cur02.htm; offers criticisms of implementing a BRT system in Detroit, MI. 6. http://www.iea.org/public/studies/bus.htm#tables; offers a .PDF to a table (2.4) comparing a traditional bus transit system to a BRT one.

Physiological Effects of Ventolin :: essays research papers

Physiological Effects of Ventolin Ventolin is a brand name of the drug albuterol sulfate HFA, and its generic name is adrenergic bronchodilator. It is mostly taken as an inhalator, but can also be taken as tablets or syrup. It treats the symptoms of bronchospasms. Bronchospasm is an abnormal contraction of the smooth muscle of the bronchi, narrowing and obstructing the respiratory airway, resulting in coughs, wheezing or difficulty in breathing. The chief cause of this condition is asthma, although it may also be caused by respiratory infection, chronic lung disease or an allergic reaction to chemicals. The mucosa lining of the trachea may become irritated and inflamed, which secretes mucus, causing it to be caught in the bronchi and triggers coughing. On the handouts, there are three different pictures of the inside of the trachea, showing the difference between a normal healthy trachea, and inflamed one and another with a mucus plug from the left main bronchus. These pictures were taken from the internet, with the address on the handout. A Ventolin inhalator is breathed in through the mouth to open up the bronchial tubes of the lungs. It relaxes the smooth muscles of all the airways, from the trachea to the terminal bronchioles. Ventolin also clears the mucus in the bronchi, making it easier for patients to breathe and reduces coughing. For Ventolin to work optimally, situations that may trigger an asthma attack must be avoided. These situations include exercising in cold, dry air; smoking; breathing in dust; and exposure to allergens such as pet fur or pollens. Relating to the case study, a few of these may apply to the patient, such as exercising in the cold morning air and perhaps breathing in dust and allergens such as pollens or maybe from the eucalyptus in the Blue Mountains might have had an effect on his condition. There are two forms of bronchodilators, a short acting and a long acting form. Short acting relieves or stops asthma symptoms and is very helpful during an attack. They are also called ‘rescue’ medications because they are best for treating sudden or severe asthma symptoms. Long acting bronchodilators are used to control asthma, they take longer to work but they also last longer, up to 12 hours, whereas a short acting would only last for about 4-5 hours. Ventolin is a short acting form, it is the recommended medication to use 15-20 mins before exercising.

Discuss psychological insights into understudied relationships

Until recently relationships between gays and lesbian, and also Internet relationships had had little attention from researchers, hence the term ‘understudied relationships'. Gay and Lesbian relationships – no one really knows what makes a person homosexual, though Garnets and Kimmel (1991) say there are likely to be multiple components. Unlike ethnic minorities, homosexuals are often surrounded by negative stereotypes from friends and family whilst they are growing up. As well as being asked, when they ‘come out', what makes them that way inclined, which is something that isn't typically asked of a heterosexual person. In 1973 homosexuality was removed from the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual or DSM (which cited homosexuality as a mental disease), though it is still illegal in many countries in the world at present and is still part of the International Classification of Diseases. Although often only in certain, prescribed situation, there are some cultures where homosexuality is encouraged and in Greco-Roman society it was quite normal practice to have a homosexual relationship. However, even in the 21st century and the ‘progressive' West things are not easy for gay men and lesbians. Many people in the public eye (such as entertainers and politicians) have had their careers pretty much ruined after being ‘outed'. Gay people experience pressures that can affect their relationships, which include such things as the psychological effects of growing up in a (heterosexual) society that characterises homosexuality and lesbianism as unacceptable. Also the unequal age of consent for gay men and the way few happy and successful gay relationships are presented by the media. Gay characters tend to be secondary to the plot (unless it is a ‘gay drama') and gay relationships are often presented as superficial, unstable or problematic can cause relationship problems. To establish a reliable figure of the number of gay or lesbian people is almost impossible (estimates from North America range from 4%-17%).Evidence suggests that for many people sexuality classification is not permanent and is always shifting, where one orientation may be embraced after a lengthy adult experience of another (Sequential bisexuality – Money, 1988). There is often an assumption that homosexual culture is unitary. This, however, is incorrect, as homosexuals can be any class, culture, race, etc. For obvious reasons many homosexuals prefer to spend social time in the company of other gay people, but this isn't such an easy option for those who have children. The world of schools and child-orientated situations needs to be arranged. As well as this they must protect their principles and living arrangements, protecting privacy, but also being sensitive to the children's needs. Electronic friendships and computer-mediated communication (CMC) – CMC can be email, chat rooms, notice boards etc as well as more sophisticated computer programs (MUD's, MOO's and MUSHs) where they can assign themselves a character where they can join in or listen to discussions. They can contrast to face-to-face relationships (corporeal, meaning bodily, physical or material), obviously there is nothing corporeal about a CMC relationship. Though they may have the opportunity for a corporeal relationship, many people prefer CMC, perhaps feeling that they can say what they want without having to worry about embarrassment. CMC can offer support, as well as friendship, and simply because people have not met face-to-face does not mean their relationship is not real. In a 1994 survey out of the top ten AOL chat rooms 3 were gay, 1 lesbian and 1 ‘swingers and groups' with the other 5 being heterosexual. Though it has only really developed over the last 10-15 years, it seems that it is here to stay.

Initial Public Offerings Paper Essay

When an organization goes global many outside factors can help the organization as well as work against it. There are many risks that are involved when dealing with foreign exchanges and an organization must understand how to deal with those risks and issues that may arise. Making public offerings presents risks as well and this is where those closest to the organization help protect and maintain the organizations image. The following paper will cover and address the issues and risks involved with an organization becoming a global firm as well as ways to mitigate any issues that may present themselves during the duration of the company’s transition. Role of Investment Banker and Underwriter One of the primary ways to raise capital for a company is the sale of stocks and bonds. Special expertise is required when executing these transactions, which is done in a way that will exploit income to directing regulatory necessities when assessing implements. At this point is when an investment bank typically comes into play. Large enterprises and the investors are the investments banks bridges. Their primary goals are to instruct organizations and governments on how to see their business challenges are and how to support them. The role of underwriters typically obtains underwriting fees from their issuing clients. Underwriters also gain revenues by marketing underwritten dividends to venture capitalists. Underwriters may take responsibility for issuing a safety issue to the community. Role of Originating House and Syndicate When a company is preparing for an initial public offering, it must go through an originating house or a syndicate. The originating house is an investment or brokerage firm that manages the underwriting and sale of a new  issue of stock to the general public. When the negotiation of an underwriting involves more than one firm, a syndicate is formed to handle the process. A syndicate is created when several brokerage firms come together to complete the underwriting process and manage the sale of the new securities. Both the originating house and a syndicate will first buy the new securities and then resell them to the public. These two entities play a crucial role in an initial public offering. Explanation of Pricing Issue Issuing securities is a positive way to gain capital for an organization. The first issuance of a security is priced carefully to maximize the amount of capital an organization will receive as well as entice investors to purchase the securities. New securities issued are typically sold through a brokerage firm connecting the organization with investors. If the issue is priced too high, the firm cannot sell the issues tying up their capital. If the issues are priced too low investors will purchase them very quickly causing the price to jump; this is good for the investors but bad for the original organization (Mayo, 2012). Risks Involved in an Initial Public Offering There are risks associated with any expansion a company may go through. An initial public offering can be a risk because there is no guarantee of what this stock will do on the first day. The stock may sell quickly, or the stock may not sell at all. Many people are not comfortable with initial public offerings because there is no historical data on the company, and this makes their decision on purchasing the stock difficult. Those investing in the company want to be sure they will receive a return on their investment and without proper documentation to back this up they may not be willing to make those initial purchases. The private investors in the firm will also lose some control of the organization because now outsiders gain voting control over the firm. The risk of this decision is the other company may resist the takeover. This means there is a risk of a costly takeover battle. . Foreign Exchange Risks When an organization decides that it wants to reach out into the global market, there are some risks that should be analyzed before moving on. An organization is at risk when it comes to foreign exchange due to the  different currency that is involved with each country that the company expands to. â€Å"Foreign exchange risk occurs when the value of the investment fluctuates due to changes in a currency’s exchange rate.† (Sargeant, 2015). When the currency in the domestic market appreciates against the currency in a foreign market, the profits earned in that foreign market or country will be lower because it has been changed back to the currency in the domestic market where the organization is based. In this type of situation, the organization will face times in which revenues will go up as well as come down. Even though the revenues from expanding into a global market may fluctuate, there are still advantages that an organization can use to the companies advantage. Conclusion An initial public offering can be a difficult and complicated process for a company. There are many roles and players involved in the process such as the investment banker, underwriter, originating house, and syndicate. Also, there may be many risks involved for both the company and the players. It may take time to make money off the stock, and there could be an initial debt for both the company and those involved. Currency exchange rates can affect the stock causing a fluctuation in price. The process of an initial public offering can be a difficult and complicated process, but the benefits are significant and may outweigh the costs and risks of the process. References Mayo, H.B. (2012). Basic finance. An introduction to financial institutions, investments, and management (10th ed.). Retrieved from The University of Phoenix eBook Collection database. Sargeant, Nicola (2015) â€Å"What Risks Do Organizations Face When Engaging In International Finance Activities? http://www.investopedia.com/ask/answers/06/internationalfinancerisks.asp

Rhetorical Analysis Bittman

The Rhetorical Analysis of the Seriousness of Food Thinking about the importance and significance of food respective to our health, ethnic culture and society can cause cavernous, profound, and even questionable thoughts such as: â€Å"Is food taken for granted? †, â€Å"Is specialty foods just a fad or a change in lifestyle? †, and even â€Å"Is food becoming the enemy. † Mark Bittman, an established food journalist, wrote an article called â€Å"Why take food seriously? † In this article, Bittman enlightens the reader with a brief history lesson of America’s appreciation of food over the past decades.This history lesson leads to where the social standing of food is today and how it is affecting not only the people of America, but also the rest of the world. Bittman attempts to display awareness in his audience by supporting his argument and encouraging his readers to see his perspective through three proofs of persuasion: ethos, logos, and pathos. Bittman’s ethos is immediately realized simply through who his stature. Bittman has been a food journalist for the past thirty two years. Within that time, he has managed to write bestselling books including: â€Å"How to Cook Everything†, â€Å"How to Cook Everything Vegetarian†, and â€Å"Food Matters. He also writes for the New York Times in his own weekly column called â€Å"The Minimalist. † Along with professional experience, there is personal experience. The article opens with Bittman stating, â€Å"Our relationship with food is changing more rapidly than ever, and like many others, I’ve watched in awe. † Bittman has been a food journalist since 1980. Therefore, he has witnessed the ever changing perspective of food in society with an â€Å"unusual† perspective. He has observed and followed the effects of which foods has brought forth to health, media, and the rest of the world.This gives the reader a sense of trust because h e has experienced it first hand. Even with his palpable experience and expertise with food, his ethos is continued throughout the article. Bittman exemplifies his ethos through his use of sarcasm. He says, â€Å"Each year, each month it sometimes seems, there are more signs that convenience, that mid-20th-century curse word, may give way to quality — even what you might call wholesomeness — just before we all turn into the shake-sucking fatties of â€Å"Wall-E. † The movie â€Å"Wall-E† is an extremely recent and popular Pixar film.It is about Earth no longer providing living conditions for life. This causes humans to live in a space craft where robots did essentially everything for them; the result, â€Å"shake-sucking fatties. † Bittman’s use of sarcasm throughout the entire article adds a comic relief giving the reader a sense that Bittman is just a normal funny guy. Along with using his humor, Bittman makes references to well known figu res in today’s society, like â€Å"Wall-E. † By doing this, Bittman shows that he is current and up to date with media and society.He references, â€Å"We were ripe for the Food Network’s Emeril, Rachael, Mario and Bobby, who created a buzz based on celebrity that grabbed not only the middle-aged and the young but also the very young. † Food network is incredibly popular along with the network’s stars that Bittman referenced. Bittman displays that he is well knowledgeable of who is who and what is what in today’s society. Bittman’s ethos is exemplified through his professional and personal experiences, along with his humor and up to date knowledge of media. Bittman goes on to establish logos through structure.He begins with a quick introduction of who he is and discloses the problem of society’s relationship with food and it â€Å"changing rapidly. † Bittman then presents a brief history lesson starting with before the 1 950’s leading to today. He says, â€Å"Until 50 years ago, of course, every household had at least one person who took food seriously every day. But from the 1950s on, the majority of the population began contentedly cooking less and less, eating out more and more and devouring food that was worse and worse, until the horrible global slop served by fast-food and â€Å"casual dining† chains came to dominate the scene.One result: an unprecedented rise in obesity levels and a not-unrelated climb in health-care costs. † Bittman continues to go through each decade presenting new facts about what was the â€Å"thing† or â€Å"latest fad† at that time. For example he says, â€Å"Of course, food continues to be fetishized;  organic food  has been commodified; the federal government subsidizes almost all of the wrong kinds of food production; supermarkets peddle way too much nonreal food (â€Å"junk food† or, to use my mother’s word, â₠¬Å"dreck†); and weight-loss diets still discourage common-sense eating. By individually going through each decade, it helps the reader see the evidence Bittman presents. It then furthers what society’s relationship towards food has evolved into. Also, it allows the reader to understand and relate. The reader, depending on their age, can mentally travel back to previous decades and think back to instances they remember experiencing themselves. Bittman establishes logos through structuring a time line for the reader to understand and relate to. Lastly Bittman exerts pathos through his mood and tone. The mood of the article transfers into awareness and humorous but possibly the actual reality.The reader can distinguish Bittman’s attempt to raise awareness for the topic from his presentation of what he believes to be the real issues, â€Å"The real issues — how do we grow and raise, distribute and sell, prepare and eat food? And how do our patterns of doing t hese things affect the rest of the world (and vice versa)? — are simply too big to ignore. † By Bittman directly pointing out what the â€Å"real issues† are, the reader is automatically more aware of the problems with food. The reader now ponders what they can change and do or learn to help relinquish the issues at hand.Bittman continues to raise awareness, more so in a comical way, when he states: â€Å"This has led  many Americans to think as much about food as they do about â€Å"Survivor† or the  N. F. L  Ã¢â‚¬â€ which is to say a lot — and its preparation is no longer limited to what was once called a housewife. † Bittman’s is saying this too purposely so the reader has an eye opener moment, while others may get a chuckle out of it. Either way, Bittman is trying to compel the reader to be conscious of what the importance and significance of food has become. Bittman uses his sarcasm to enforce awareness upon the reader.Bitt man’s tone throughout the article ranges from sarcastic to passionate to a want for change. He says, â€Å"I’ve never been more hopeful. (In fact, I was never hopeful at all until recently. )† Bittman is stating that he believes there is potential for change and people are realizing that food needs to be taken seriously. He continues to express his sense of humor intermixed with his passion and hope for change when he concludes the article with, â€Å"Perhaps just in time, we’re saying, â€Å"Hold the shake,† and looking for something more wholesome. † Bittman is ending the scene and leaving the reader with something to ponder.Bittman sets his tone and the mood of the article to leave a lasting impression on the reader. Mark Bittman used the three proofs of persuasion to better appeal to his audience. He exemplifies ethos by using his professional and personal experiences. Bittman then moves on to establish logos through the structure of a t ime line of facts for the reader to understand and relate to. Lastly, Bittman creates pathos with his spewing emotion of passion, awareness, and sarcasm. He portrays these emotions through his tone and mood. Bittman uses the three proofs of persuasion to open the readers eyes to the seriousness of food.

Differences in Socioeconomic Status

Three social factors that most impact the scenario are social stratification, socioeconomic status, and class differences. Social stratification ranks individuals and families on the basis of their income, education, occupation, wealth, and power in society. This social stratification can be seem in the eighth grade boys that showed up at the Valentine’s Day dance with the rented tuxes that their parents had agreed to and paid for. These parents are mentioned to be among the more affluent in the community. Socioeconomic status is determined by a family’s income and wealth. This is demonstrated in the students that did not have the money to rent the tuxedos and the rumored limo. These students being from a different socioeconomic background and could not afford the expensive attire. Class differences are demonstrated because of some students wanting to boycott the dance because they were told only the nerds and the geeks would show up in anything less of a tux or formal dress. Their parents do not have extra money to spend on such elaborate things. The other students express behaviors and dress standards far from what the school has seen before. A variable solution to the Differences in Socioeconomic Status scenario would be for the school administration to intervene the situation. They could decide to make it mandatory that only a certain type of dress will be considered acceptable for the Valentine’s Day dance. They could change it to where all students would be able to afford the required attire. This way all students would feel equal. Also the kids that wanted to rent the limo would probably change their mind because of it not being such a formal event. It would seem sort of silly to rent a limo for a casual Valentine’s Day dance. This issue of what attire should be addressed in a school assembly to let all students know of the dress code for the dance. This way it will not be such an issue in the years to come afterwards. Students will already know what to expect and be prepared for it.

Brutality of Ivory trade Essay

In 1989, CITIES (the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora) approved a worldwide ban on ivory trade due to extensive poaching reducing the African elephant population by more than half. However, levels of poaching and illegal trade are getting out of control once again. Since 1997, certain countries such as Botswana and Zimbabwe have tried to weaken the ban by allowing the sale of thousands of kilograms of ivory to China and Japan. It was not until 2012 that CITIES recognized that elephant poaching had reached unsustainable levels (Elephants and the ivory trade, 1). The illegal trade of ivory is pushing elephant poaching to the point where elephants are vulnerable to extinction. This terrible, wasteful act of poaching will put many species, as well as our own, at risk and harm the economy unless we take immediate action. What would happen if elephants became extinct? Elephants play a very important role in maintaining sustainable habitats for many other species (African elephant, 2). There are certain elephant-dependent tree species in Congo, Africa that have declined in growth population after more than 98% of the forest elephants have been killed by poachers. Forest elephants help these trees by spreading their seeds when they roam, and germinate them with their stomach acids. This dual relationship allows fruit trees with no other dispersal partners to ensure reproduction (Platt, 2). Depletion in these trees will have long-term ecological effects as the loss of one species directly impacts the whole balance of the food web (Bove, 2). If elephants became extinct, the elephant-dependent tree species would no longer continue to grow, causing  the herbivores that rely on these trees for food to essentially starve as well as the carnivores that eat these herbivores, eventually affecting all local people who rely on these organisms for food and me dicine. Can elephants be protected in order to save the economy? The demand for ivory is very high. Because of this, the price of ivory has risen causing the amount of poaching to rise as well. It has gotten to the point that the tusks of a single adult elephant can be worth more than 10 times the average annual income in many African countries (Rosen, 1). This is unsustainable for the economy because if we assume that these poachers hunt elephants into extinction, they will no longer have means of making money once the elephants are gone (Planet earth, video). However, if the conservation of elephants were to put money in people’s pockets, then poaching could be stopped. A way to do this would be by the means of tourism; tourists mostly go to Africa to see wildlife, and wherever there are elephants, tourists will go. Tourism brings a lot of money into the economy, and with more money coming from tourism, poaching will become less appealing to those who need money (Johnson, 3). What needs to be done to stop elephant poaching? Because demands for ivory are so high, measures need to be taken immediately to avert the extinction of African elephants. The only solution to truly protect elephants is to reinstate a total, permanent ban on all ivory sales (Sterling, 1). Other measures that also need to be taken include the application of strong law enforcement on international levels to ensure punishment, and the closing down of national ivory markets (Elephants and the ivory trade, 1). What is being done now to try and stop elephant poaching? Many elephants are being protected from poachers within national parks to ensure their continuity and survival. Organizations, such as the World Wild Life Fund, try and protect habitats by having anti-poaching patrols surveying areas within elephant ranges (African elephant, 9). There are many African countries that recognize the threat to their elephant populations and want to protect them (Sterling, 2). Among these countries, Kenya plays a  major role in trying to convince CITIES to reject any proposals from Tanzania and Zambia to allow them to sell ivory (Elephant voices blog, 7). However, most African countries do not have the power to stop these crimes from being committed without the help of European countries (Sterling, 2). IFAW (the International Fund for Animal Welfare) is urging the European Union to support these countries that are requesting assistance to stop poaching since they have the power to ensure that a ban on all ivory is reinstated (Sterling, 2). What could be used instead of ivory? Poaching is extremely wasteful. When an elephant is killed, the poachers usually leave it there to rot. Often times, poachers will lay new snares without checking old ones and elephants caught in the old ones are also left to rot. This has lead to many animals, including humans that rely on elephants for food to starve (Poaching in Zimbabwe, 1). Ivory is mainly used in the manufacture of piano and organ keys, and minor objects of decorative value because of its durability (Uses of ivory, 1). Ivory is not a necessity; there are alternatives to the products that we manufacture that don’t require the use of tusks. A good example of this is Ivorite, made from casein (milk protein) and an inorganic hardening compound, which has both the quality and durability of ivory (Rosen, 2). Products like this always have flaws, but there is always room for improvement. In this case, RPIvory, which is an unusual polymer, was created to improve Ivorite, which made the keys less slippery for pia nists (Rosen, 2). Science and technology have improved so much that there is absolutely no more need to keep removing tusks in order to manufacture minor objects that are not essential to humans. Elephant poaching is unsustainable in the sense that it harms other habitats by disrupting their sustainability; it is extremely wasteful because of the fact that only the tusks are being used, and it ruins the African economy. At the rate we’re going today, elephants will become extinct causing many species, as well as our own, to suffer because of our greed. The African economy is so bad that people would risk their own lives to kill an elephant in order to get paid by a supplier, who will then sell it for ten times as much. There are many things that countries and organizations are doing to help elephants, but there are still many things that need to be done. Ivory is not a necessity; there are other materials  that have been created to be similar to ivory that do not require the tusks of an elephant. Nobody in the world needs an elephant tusk but an elephant. If everyone did little things, such as signing a petition to refuse to buy items made from ivory or funding elephant protection, we would still be able to meet our human needs without destroying the sustainability of the environment. Our greedy and selfish acts are making a species vulnerable to extinction; Gandhi stated, â€Å"Earth provides enough to satisfy every man’s needs, but not every man’s greed.† (Good reads, 1). Works cited â€Å"African Elephant.† WorldWildlife.org. World Wildlife Fund, n.d. Web. 29 Mar. 2014. . Bove, Jennifer. â€Å"Why does it Matter if Species go Extinct?.† About.com Endangered Species. N.p., n.d. Web. 28 Mar. 2014. . â€Å"â€Å"Earth provides enough to satisfy every man’s needs, but not every man’s greed.†.† Goodreads. N.p., n.d. Web. 31 Mar. 2014. . Kimani, Eddy. â€Å"EDDY KIMANI.† EDDY KIMANI. N.p., n.d. Web. 31 Mar. 2014. . â€Å"ELEPHANTS AND THE IVORY TRADE.†The Ivory Trade. N.p., n.d. Web. 25 Mar. 2014. . â€Å"ElephantVoices Blog.† ElephantVoices Blog. N.p., n.d. Web. 25 Mar. 2014. . Gilford, Gwynn. â€Å"wildsingapore news: 90 dead elephants in Zimbabwe are proof that the ivory trade has gone industrial.†wildsingapore news: 90 dead elephants in Zimbabwe are proof that the ivory trade has gone industrial. N.p., n.d. Web. 31 Mar. 2014. . Johnson, Glen. â€Å"Kenyan poachers make a killing in ivory.† – Features. N.p., n.d. Web. 30 Mar. 2014. . â€Å"Kenya hunts for armed elephant-poachers.† – Africa. N.p., n.d. Web. 31 Mar. 2014.