Nutrition †Obesity Essay

Objective: To assess the association between the consumption of fast food (FF) and body mass index (BMI) of teenagers in a large UK birth cohort. Methods: A structural equation modelling (SEM) approach was chosen to allow direct statistical testing of a theoretical model. SEM is a combination of confirmatory factor and path analysis, which allows for the inclusion of latent (unmeasured) variables. This approach was used to build two models: the effect of FF outlet visits and food choices and the effect of FF exposure on consumption and BMI. Results: A total of 3620 participants had data for height and weight from the age 13 clinic and the frequency of FF outlet visits, and so were included in these analyses. This SEM model of food choices showed that increased frequency of eating at FF outlets is positively associated with higher consumption of unhealthy foods (b ? 0. 29, Po0. 001) and negatively associated with the consumption of healthy foods (b ? A1. 02, Po0. 001). The SEM model of FF exposure and BMI showed that higher exposure to FF increases the frequency of visits to FF outlets (b ? 0. 61, Po0.001), which is associated with higher body mass index standard deviation score (BMISDS; b ? 0. 08, Po0. 001). Deprivation was the largest contributing variable to the exposure (b ? 9. 2, Po0. 001). Conclusions: The teenagers who ate at FF restaurants consumed more unhealthy foods and were more likely to have higher BMISDS than those teenagers who did not eat frequently at FF restaurants. Teenagers who were exposed to more takeaway foods at home ate more frequently at FF restaurants and eating at FF restaurants was also associated with lower intakes of vegetables and raw fruit in this cohort. International Journal of Obesity (2011) 35, 1325–1330; doi:10. 1038/ijo. 2011. 120; published online 28 June 2011 Keywords: fast food; overweight; ALSPAC Introduction Childhood obesity prevalence have risen dramatically in the last 30 years in the Western world with the most recent figures for England and Wales show that 17% of boys and 16% of girls are obese. 1 An increase in the availability of calorie dense foods is implicated as one of the factors in the aetiology of the obesity epidemic. Fast food (FF) is one section of the food market that has grown steadily over the last few decades and it was worth d8. 9 billion in the United Kingdom in 2005. 2 FF is typically quick, convenient, cheap and Correspondence: Dr LK Fraser, School of Geography, University of Leeds, University road, Leeds LS2 9JT, UK. E-mail: l. k. fraser@leeds. ac. uk Received 6 February 2011; revised 21 April 2011; accepted 12 May 2011; published online 28 June 2011 uniform in its production,3 but FF is often high in saturated fats, energy dense and has low micronutrient content. 4–9 Studies from the United States of America have shown that children who consume FF (when compared with children who do not eat FF) have higher energy intake and higher fat intakes9,10 as well as lower vegetable and milk intake. 10,11 Therefore, the consumption of such foods could possibly result in a positive energy balance; and hence, weight gain. There is some evidence from longitudinal studies in the United States of America that consuming FF as a teenager can result in weight gain in both early12 and middle adulthood. 13 FF is often marketed to children and adolescents through television, internet and movie advertising,14–17 with brand recognition being present from an early age. 18 The addition of toys as gifts with FF meals also attracts children. There is growing body of literature that has assessed the location of FF outlets and has found that areas of higher deprivation Fast food and body mass index LK Fraser et al 1326 have more FF outlets19–21 and that FF outlets are often located close to schools. 22–24 The majority of research to date has been undertaken in the United States of America, but a study that analysed the fat content of a FF meal in McDonald’s and Kentucky Fried Chicken outlets in 35 countries showed that the amount of fat varied considerably between countries, within the same FF outlet. 25 This means that results from studies in the United States of America may not be generalisable to other countries. This study aims to assess the cross-sectional association between the consumption of FF and the body mass index (BMI) of teenagers in a large UK birth cohort. Methods The data for this study were obtained from the Avon Longitudinal Study of Parents and Children (ALSPAC),26 which is a birth cohort study where pregnant mothers who lived in the old Avon County in the United Kingdom (the Bristol region) were recruited in the early 1990s. A total of 14 541 mothers completed recruitment. Because of retrospective recruitment the total sample size was 15 224 fetuses and 14 610 live births. This paper presents data on the teenagers who attended the year 13 clinic and completed the year 13 questionnaire. Variables The food frequency data were collected from the questionnaires completed by mother (or carer) and separate questionnaires completed by the teenagers themselves at age 13 years. The data used from the carer questionnaire (collected at the same time point) referred to the questions ‘How often does s/he eat in a FF restaurant? The responses to this question were collected as never/rarely, once a month, once every 2 weeks, once or twice per week, 3–4 times a week, 5 or more times a week. The carers were also asked ‘In total, how many portions of vegetables does s/he eat in a week (do not include potatoes)’, ‘In total, how many portions of raw fruit does s/he eat in a week? ’ These were free numerical responses, which were retained as a continuous variable for analyses. In the food frequency part of the teenager completed questionnaire the teenagers were asked ‘If you ever buy food yourself from outside school, or from school vending machines, how often do you buy and eat each of the following things (include after school and weekends): chips, burger, pizza, sandwich, pies or pasties, chocolate, crisps, fruit and other food. ’ The height and weight data were collected at clinic visits at B13 years. The exact age, sex, height and weight were used to calculate a BMI standard deviation score (BMISDS) for each participant (1990 UK reference dataset). 27 The teenagers International Journal of Obesity were classified as obese if their BMISDS was greater than the 95th percentile (BMISDS41. 64). The physical activity data were collected via accelerometry at the age 13 clinic visit. 28 The participants wore an accelerometer for seven consecutive days and the measure used from this is mean counts per minute, which is a continuous variable. A deprivation score was assigned to each participant by matching the coordinates of their residential address (when carer questionnaire was completed) to the appropriate lower super output area. Each lower super output area has an index of multiple deprivation score (Index of Multiple Deprivation 2007 (IMD))29 assigned from the local census data. This is a continuous variable in which a higher number indicates an area of higher deprivation. Ethnicity was assigned as per the child’s ethnicity into a binary variable of ‘white British’ and ‘other’ ethnicity. Statistical modelling Descriptive statistics were performed in STATA version 10 (StataCorp LP, College Station, TX, USA). A structural equation modelling (SEM) approach was chosen to allow direct statistical testing of a theoretical model. SEM has many benefits over traditional regression techniques, which include the ability to model equations simultaneously and the incorporation of latent variables. 30 SEM is a combination of confirmatory factor and path analysis, which allows for the inclusion of latent (unmeasured) variables. 31 This approach was used to build two models: the effect of FF outlet visits and food choices and the effect of FF exposure on consumption and BMI. The SEM analyses were undertaken in AMOS version 17. 0 (IBM SPSS, USA). The hypothesised model for food choices is shown in the results section (Figure 2). The observed variables are displayed as boxes and latent variables as circles. Each observed variable has an associated random error term and each latent variable has an associated disturbance term, which represents the variance in the latent variable that has not been explained by the observed variables associated with that latent variable. Regression paths are shown by singleheaded arrows and covariances by double-headed curved arrows. The model fit was assessed by two indices; the comparative fit index (CFI) and the root mean square error of approximation (RMSEA). The CFI is a comparison of the hypothesised model compared with an independence model where all parameters are assumed to be independent. The RMSEA gives an indication of ‘how well would the model, with unknown but optimally chosen values, fit the population covariance matrix if it were available’. 32 A combination of CFI40. 95 and a RMSEA of o0. 50 is a sign of good model fit. The w2-test of overall fit is very sensitive to large sample size so has not been used in these models. 30 The two models were constructed a priori using previous research. The nutritional content of chips, burgers, pizza and Fast food and body mass index LK Fraser et al 1327 pies are known to be high in saturated fat and energy and therefore are ‘unhealthy’,4–9,33 whereas fruit and vegetables are known to contain fibre and vitamins and so are classified as ‘healthy’. Exposure to FF outlets is known to be higher in areas of higher deprivation. 19–21 In the food choices model, unhealthy consumption (latent variable) was modelled from the frequency of consumption of chips, burger, pizza and pies (reported by the teenagers themselves), and the healthy consumption was modelled from the number of pieces of vegetables and raw fruit consumed by the teenager (maternal report). The number of times that the teenager visited a FF outlet (maternal report) was regressed on the unhealthy and healthy consumption variables. The model for the effect of FF exposure on consumption and BMISDS is shown in Figure 3. Here exposure is a latent variable modelled from maternal and paternal takeaway frequency and deprivation score. The exposure is regressed on the number of visits to FF outlet. The BMISDS at age 13 years is the main outcome of this model. Ethical approval for the study was obtained from the ALSPAC Law and Ethics Committee and the local research ethics committees. Results A total of 3620 participants have data for height and weight from the age 13 clinic and the frequency of FF outlet visits, and were included in these analyses (SEM cannot use individuals with missing data). A total of 1711 (47. 3%) were boys and 456 (12.6%) obese. The descriptive statistics are shown in Table 1. Frequency of visiting FF outlets and food consumption frequencies are shown in Figure 1. The results of model 1 are shown in Figure 2 with regression weights shown in Table 2. This model showed that increased frequency of eating at FF outlets was positively associated with higher consumption of unhealthy foods (b ? 0. 29, Po0. 001) and negatively associated with the consumption of healthy foods (b ? A1. 02, Po0. 001). The CFI for model 1 was 0. 98 and the RMSEA was 0. 05 (90% confidence interval 0. 044, 0. 058). These represent good approximate model fit. Table 1. The results of model 2 are shown in Figure 3 with regression weight shown in Table 3. This model showed that increased exposure to FF increased the frequency of visits to FF outlets (b ? 0. 61, Po0. 001), which in turn was associated with higher BMISDS (b ? 0. 08, Po0. 001). Deprivation was the largest contributing variable to the exposure (b ? 9. 2, Po0. 001). The CFI for model 2 was 0. 98, and the RMSEA was 0. 021 (90% confidence interval 0. 009, 0. 033). These represent very good approximate model fit. Discussion This study shows that teenagers who are exposed to more unhealthy foods at home are more likely to eat at FF restaurants and have a higher BMISDS. The negative association of increased visits to FF outlets on consumption of healthy foods (fruit and vegetables) has also been demonstrated. The FF restaurant use in this analysis was reported by the mother or main carer of the teenager and showed that nearly 60% of all the teenagers ate at a FF restaurant at least once a month. This appears to be less frequently than in the United States of America, where studies showed that 60% of older children and adolescents ate FF more than once per week34 and that B30% of children ate at a FF restaurant on any typical day. 9. As one part of the SEM this study showed that eating at a FF outlet was associated with a higher BMISDS. There were no previous UK studies to compare these results with, but previous studies from the United States of America have not found consistent results. Boutelle et al. 11 found no association between frequency of FF consumption and adolescent BMI or weight status, and an Australian study Descriptive statistics Mean BMISDS Deprivation (IMD 2007)29 Physical activity (c. p. m. ) Raw fruit (portions per week) Vegetables (portions per week) s. d. Median IQR 0. 29 13. 7 541 9. 5 9. 5 1. 14 11. 4 190 7 7 0. 024 10. 6 511 8 8 A0. 47, 1. 06 5. 9, 17. 0 404, 653 5, 14 5, 12 Abbreviations: BMISDS, body mass index standard deviation score for age and sex; c. p. m. , cycles per minute; IMD 2007, Index of Multiple Deprivation 2007; IQR, interquartile range. Figure 1 Food frequency data. International Journal of Obesity Fast food and body mass index LK Fraser et al 1328 Figure 2 Results of SEM model of food choices. Table 2 Results of SEM model of food choices Regression weights a Unhealthy’fast food Healthy’fast food Chips’unhealthy Burger’unhealthy Fruit’healthy Vegetables’healthy Pizza’unhealthy Pies’unhealthy Estimate s. e. CR P 0. 285 A1. 023 1. 000 0. 732 1. 000 1. 157 0. 774 0. 530 0. 021 0. 124 13. 439 A8. 274 o0. 001 o0. 001 0. 016 45. 243 o0. 001 0. 148 0. 018 0. 016 7. 802 42. 483 32. 720 o0. 001 o0. 001 o0. 001 Abbreviations: CR, critical ratio; SEM, structural equation modeling. aAll consumption variables units: never/rarely, once a month, once every 2 weeks, once or twice per week, 3–4 times a week, 5 or more times a week. showed that FF eaten at home (but not away from home) was associated with higher BMI in adolescents (MacFarlane). Two longitudinal studies using data from the CARDIA study found that higher FF intake in adolescence was associated with higher BMI in young adulthood12 and those who ate FF more than twice a week had put on an extra 4. 5 kg of weight 15 years later. 13 The teenagers who ate more frequently at FF restaurants were more likely to eat less fruit and vegetables, as well as consume more unhealthy foods (chips, burger, pizza, pies) than those teenagers who ate at FF restaurants less frequently. This is an indication that the consumption of unhealthy foods may displace healthy food choices. This is similar to previous research in the United States of America, International Journal of Obesity which showed that children who ate FF consumed 45 g less vegetables per day than children who did not eat FF. 10 At age 13 years the food frequency data were a combination of maternal and self-report from the teenagers, but the total macro- and micronutrient values could not be assessed in this study as these data were not yet available at the time of writing. Deprivation was the largest contributor to the FF exposure variable. This could be explained by the fact that those of higher deprivation eat more FF because of the relative cheapness of FF. It has also been shown in many studies in the United Kingdom and the United States of America that areas of higher deprivation have more FF outlets than more affluent areas therefore, FF is more readily available. 35 An interesting economics paper from the United States of America showed that increasing the cost of FF by $1 could decrease BMI by 0. 78 units. 36 The increased consumption of unhealthy foods (chips, burger, pizzas and pies) by those teenagers who ate more frequently at FF outlets was not surprising, but the associated negative effect of the consumption of fruit and vegetables by these participants is important. These teenagers will not only be consuming more of the saturated fat and salt from the burgers, and so on, but at the same time they are not consuming important nutrients from fruit and vegetables. Although many FF outlets now offer more healthy alternatives such as fruit and vegetables, the consumers may still be choosing the unhealthy foods. Fast food and body mass index LK Fraser et al 1329 The FF question completed by the carer did not specify what constituted FF so some respondents may only count large franchises as FF whereas others may use a broader definition that includes independent takeaways. Although the frequency of eating at a FF restaurant was asked, the carers were not asked about the food eaten from these establishments and many FF restaurants now offer more ‘healthy’ alternatives. Although the majority of FF items do not meet the Food Standards Agency nutrient standards for total fat, saturated fat, sugar and sodium there are wide variations in similar products from different FF outlets with sodium content varying by up to four times in fried chicken products. 37 Therefore, having data on which food items were consumed from which FF outlet would further enhance future studies. There was no information on why the teenagers ate at FF restaurants, and key questions for the future include; was there no alternative eating establishments in their neighbourhood? Did they prefer FF to other meals or was the cost of food important? Conclusions This study has shown that the teenagers who ate at FF restaurants consumed more unhealthy foods and were more likely to have higher BMISDS than those teenagers who did not eat frequently at FF restaurants. Teenagers who were exposed to more takeaway foods at home ate more frequently at FF restaurants. Eating at FF restaurants was also associated with lower intakes of vegetables and raw fruit in this cohort. Figure 3 The SEM model of FF exposure and BMI. Table 3 Results of SEM model of FF exposure and body mass index Regression weights Fast food ’exposure. Maternal fast food’exposure Deprivation’exposure Paternal fast food’exposure BMISDS’fast food BMISDS’c. p. m. a Estimate s. e. CR 0. 61 1. 000 9. 20 0. 66 0. 08 0. 00 0. 07 8. 654 1. 07 0. 08 0. 02 0. 00 8. 605 8. 680 3. 586 A3. 351 P o0. 001 o0. 001 o0. 001 o0. 001 o0. 001 Abbreviations: BMISDS, body mass index standard deviation score for age and sex; c. p. m. , cycles per minute; CR, critical ratio; FF, fast food; IMD 2007, Index of Multiple Deprivation 2007; SEM, structural equation modeling. a All consumption variables units: never/rarely, once a month, once every 2 weeks, once or twice per week, 3–4 times a week, 5 or more times a week. Strengths/limitations This is a large dataset with good-quality height and weight data taken at clinic visits by trained staff using validated equipment. There were food consumption data about the teenagers available from both the teenagers and their carers, but this is a cross-sectional study so causation cannot be implied from this data. As expected in a longitudinal study there is attrition and the subcohort used in this study may not be truly representative of the whole cohort. Conflict of interest The authors declare no conflict of interest. Acknowledgements. We are extremely grateful to all the families who took part in this study, the midwives for their help in recruiting and the whole ALSPAC team, which include interviewers, computer and laboratory technicians, clerical workers, research scientists, volunteers, managers, receptionists and nurses. The UK Medical Research Council (grant ref: 74882), The Wellcome Trust (grant ref: 076467) and the University of Bristol provide core support for ALSPAC. LKF was funded by ESRC/MRC studentship. References 1 Craig RS. Health survey for England 2007, 2008. Available from http://www. natcen. ac. uk/study/health-survey-for-england-2007. 2 Keynote.UK fast food and home delivery outlets, 2006. 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J Am Diet Assoc 2003; 103: 1332–1338. 9 Schmidt M, Affenito SG, Striegel-Moore R, Khoury PR, Barton B, Crawford P et al. Fast-food intake and diet quality in black and white girls – the national heart, lung, and blood institute growth and health study. Arch Pediatr Adolesc Med 2005; 159: 626–631. 10 Bowman SA, Gortmaker SL, Ebbeling CB, Pereira MA, Ludwig DS. Effects of fast-food consumption on energy intake and diet quality among children in a national household survey. Pediatrics 2004; 113: 112–118. 11 Boutelle KN, Fulkerson JA, Neumark-Sztainer D, Story M, French SA. Fast food for family meals: relationships with parent and adolescent food intake, home food availability and weight status. Public Health Nutr 2007; 10: 16–23. 12 Duffey KJ, Gordon-Larsen P, Jacobs DR, Williams OD, Popkin BM. Differential associations of fast food and restaurant food consumption with 3-y change in body mass index: the Coronary Artery Risk Development in Young Adults Study. Am J Clin Nutr 2007; 85: 201–208. 13 Pereira MA, Kartashov AI, Ebbeling CB, Van Horn L, Slattery M, Jacobs DR et al. Fast-food habits, weight gain, and insulin resistance (the CARDIA study): 15-year prospective analysis. Lancet 2005; 365: 36–42. 14 Sutherland LA, MacKenzie T, Purvis LA, Dalton M. Prevalence of food and beverage brands in movies: 1996–2005. Pediatrics 2010; 125: 468–474. 15 Powell LM, Szczypka G, Chaloupka FJ. Trends in exposure to television food advertisements among children and adolescents in the United States. Arch Pediatr Adolesc Med 2010; 164: 794–802. 16 Hillier A, Cole BL, Smith TE, Yancey AK, Williams JD, Grier SA et al. Clustering of unhealthy outdoor advertisements around child-serving institutions: a comparison of three cities. Health Place 2009; 15: 935–945. 17 Lingas EO, Dorfman L, Bukofzer E. Nutrition content of food and beverage products on Web sites popular with children. 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Br Med J 2009; 339: b4544. 29 Index of Multiple Deprivation 2007 (IMD 2007). 30 Kline R (ed) Principles and Practice of Structural Equation Modeling. The Guildford Press: New York, 2005. 31 Tomarken AJ, Waller NG. Structural equation modeling: strengths, limitations, and misconceptions. Annu Rev Clinic. Psychol 2005; 1: 31–65. 32 Byrne BM (ed). Structural Equation Modelling with AMOS. Lawrence Erbaum Associates: London, 2001. 33 Astrup A, Dyerberg J, Selleck M, Stender S. Nutrition transition and its relationship to the development of obesity and related chronic diseases. Obes Rev 2008; 9: 48–52. 34 Taveras EM, Berkey CS, Rifas-Shiman SL, Ludwig DS, Rockett HRH, Field AE et al. Association of consumption of fried food away from home with body mass index and diet quality in older children and adolescents. Pediatrics 2005; 116: E518–E524. 35 Fraser LK, Edwards KL, Cade J, Clarke GP. The geography of fast food outlets: a review. 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Best Friend Comparison

Many people have two best friends that are similar and different in many ways. These similarities are usually in age, attitude, and interests; on the other hand, some of the differences between these two friends can include height, beliefs, goals, ethnicities, cultures, and much more. Some people may not find any similarities or differences in their best friends, and others may find many similarities and differences in their friends.However, I find three distinct similarities and three differences within these similarities between my two best friends Daniella and Ashley, which allows me to see that despite these similarities and differences, they are still my best friends. Both Daniella and Ashley have boyfriends, but both boys are treated differently. Daniella and Ashley both live with their mom, but one house is cleaner then the other. Finally, Daniella and Ashley are both very smart, but one applies this smartness more then the other.My two best friends, Daniella and Ashley have b oyfriend. They both have been in their relationships for about 3 years, and they both met their boyfriends in freshman year of high school. Despite the similarity of both having boyfriends for the same amount of time, they treat their boyfriends differently. Daniella treats every moment with her boyfriend as if it were their last moment together. For example, every weekend, she picks her boyfriend up for a date. On the other hand, Ashley takes her boyfriend for granted.For instance, every other weekend, Ashley's boyfriend will pay for dinner and they never go on any dates. Both of my friends have boy friends, but Daniella treats her boyfriend with more respect than Ashley. In addition, Daniella and Ashley live with both their mom in a house. Daniella and Ashley both live in the same neighborhood as me. However, Daniella keeps her house immaculate. Her house is always clean and everything is in order. For example, her carpets always look brand new. Her bathroom is spotless, and her k itchen has everything organized, with the dishes always put away.Ashley's house looks like a tornado ran through it. Ashley's house is always a disaster. For instance, Ashley always has clothes all over the place and shoes everywhere. Her bathroom is completely disgusting. Her kitchen has filthy dishes all over the place and food on the floor. Her place also smells, unlike Daniella's house. Both of my friends live with both their mom in a house, but Daniella clearly knows how to maintain her home, while Ashley either does not care or does not know how to keep a clean home.Finally, both of my best friends, Daniella and Ashley, are extremely smart. Both of them speak very well and read lots of books daily. Daniella and Ashley usually get through the same book in the same amount of time, which is a 200-300 page book every four to five days. Both of my friends know how to discuss the text and analyze it. However, Daniella applies this talent to her schooling and future goal of becoming an Athletic Director, while Ashley does not apply herself at all. Daniella goes to all her classes and passes them with straight A's and B's.On the other hand, Ashley still, after many years, goes to school, but usually has to repeat her courses because she does not go to class regularly, and she is lazy to do the work. If Ashley did apply himself, I believe she would be the same to Daniella and also doing well in school. Either way, both are smart, but one applies herself, while the other does not. In conclusion, my two best friends Daniella and Ashley share many similarities, but within these similarities, they are both different.Both Daniella and Ashley have boyfriends, live with their mom in a house, and they both are very smart. However, Daniella treats her boyfriend with respect and takes him on dates every weekend, while Ashley never checks in with her boyfriend or buys him gifts or go on dates. Daniella's house is very clean and has everything in order. Her dishes are always clean, and her carpets are spotless, while Ashley's house is disgusting. Her bathroom is filthy, and her dishes are always dirty.Ashley also always has clothes all over her floor as well as shoes throwed everywhere. Finally, Daniella and Ashley are very smart and read a lot, but Daniella applies her smartness to school and future, while Ashley fails to discipline herself to move on with school. Either way, my two best friends may have similarities that differ in many and various ways, but one similarity that has no differences is that they are my best friends, and I care about them equally.

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Source Analysis Assignment - Essay Example The inconsistency may be due to differing style and theological conception as highlighted in Genesis 1 and 2 resulting to a different order of creation. In the first account, man and woman were created after the birds and animals and formed the climax of the creation while in the second creation account man was created before the animals and birds while the creation of the woman followed their creation (Gen 2: 19-22). The two accounts show some disagreement as the sequence of creation of events is an indication that two authors were involved. Looking at the style and form of writing in chapter one, it is very clear that chapter 1 is very precise, measured, and stereotyped while chapter shows diversity as there are no recurrence of formulae such as to create. Chapter 1 is more systematic while chapter 2 is spontaneous such as in the case of the earth which is first dry (GEN 2:5). In the first account, the earth emerges from the waters and the order of filling it is very different with that of the chapter 2. There is a great discrepancy between the two creations of man stories in chapters 1 and 2. The differences may also be due to mechanical errors of the editors during compilation disturbing the order of creation. The second account seems to be more dramatic with an imagination that captures the heart with more influence on the feelings of the reader and less on the intellect part of the reader. There are other major differences between the two creation accounts. One of them is the conception of God in which the first one sees God as majestic and dignified. The second views God as somebody with humanistic traits such as speaking, walking, and behaving like an earthy man. Other differences such as the case in which he creates man and woman at the same time in chapter one (Gen 1: 27), while in chapter 2, man was created first and women was created later

Child Labor in Egypt Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Child Labor in Egypt - Essay Example One example of the central reasons behind the development includes; highly challenging living conditions. This reflects on the cost of living across Egypt. Apparently, the cost of living is hiking while the wages remain constant. Additionally, the necessities of life are never constant. Basic necessities such as food, clothing and shelter are listed among the common expenses incurred by any population across the world. The increased cost of living has implicated increase expenses, with regards to basic survival. Families in Egypt have resulted into the adoption extreme adaptation measures in order to make extra coins for survival. Such measures include the embrace of eventualities such as child labour. A poor family with children in their middle age is forced to engage them into income earning activities in the quest of increasing the tally it accrues by the end of the day (Wahba 145). Other factors that are contributing to the development of these cases include the increased cost of basic education in Egypt. Unlike in several countries in the continent which have endorsed full or partial subsidise of basic or elementary education, Egypt is yet to adopt such measures on its education system. Parents living under challenged income eventuate into being unable to cater for basic education. This implies that their children can no longer engage into education since they are unable to sponsor them through the system. This development leads to the emergence of populations of increased school dropouts, or young children who are not attached to any schooling system. Presence of uncommitted children in a family is rather frustrating in accordance to their increased demands and necessities. This leads to a build-up of frustrations in the system, prompting the parents to seek for alternatives. Another fuelling factor over the topic of child labour is the benefits associated to their deployment. Their services are extremely cheap since they have reduced negotiation edges. T his is due to the fact that their presence is fuelled by the demands of their families, other than their personal needs. They, therefore, beg for opportunities since a day without will imply difficulties in survival back at home. The employers of child workers are fully conscious of this aspect. They instead readily embrace it towards their own gains. This includes exploitation of the young children since they have undermined defences. On average, an Egyptian child labourer earns an average 150 pounds (almost two US dollars) in a day. The girls are rather discriminated since they earn an average of 100 pounds in a day. This is irrespective of the equity in some of the tasks which they are anticipated to perform (El-Gabalawi 87). In some situations, the parents organize for their absorption, leading to reduced inconsideration or victimization in terms of wages. However, they are still subjected to several other risks. This includes the lack of employees cover to the rest of the labou rers. Such cover caters for various topics, amongst them medical and pension schemes. This implies that the children subjected to remunerative labour are not covered over the risks that may eventuate during their span of operation. This is inconsiderate, especially towards the children especially when considering the fact that children are the propellers of the future generation. Subjecting them to conditions that jeopardize their health

Government accountability office Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Government accountability office - Essay Example The current goals and objectives of the Department of Defence are: a] To counter terrorism and irregular warfare, b] Deter and defeat aggression, c] Project power despite anti-access & area denial challenges, e] Counter weapons of mass destruction, f] Operate effectively in cyberspace and space, g] Maintain a safe, secure and effective nuclear deterrent, h] Defend the Homeland and provide support to Civil authorities, i] Provide a stabilizing presence, j] Conduct stability and counter-insurgency operations and, k] Conduct humanitarian, disaster relief and other operations. 6. The department is organized as, a] the Office of the Secretary of Defence, b] the Department of the Army, b]the Department of the Navy, c] the Department of the Air Force, d] the office of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, and e] Combat Commands [Africa, Central, European, Northern, Pacific, Southern, Special Operations, Strategic & Transportation ] 2 7. Overall, 3.5 million people work in the Department of Defence, in cluding civilian employees. Navy=322,441 as of April 16, 2013; Army=480,000; Air Force=332,800 8. FY 2012 Budget Expenditures = $729 billion 9. FY 2013 Budget Appropriations = $672.880 billion 10. FY 2014 Budget Request = $613.9 billion 11. Five performance measures of the Department of Defence: 12. The Department currently has job opportunities in 3 broad categories. Active duty, Reserve and Civilian. In the first and second categories, opportunities exist for field operations, combat operations and support operations. Support operations include, administrative, housekeeping, engineering, and training functions. In the civilian category, opportunities exist for a wide range of functions, such as academic, cooking, housekeeping, accounting, maintenance, information management, recreation, logistics, construction, engineering, translating, clerical and administrative. 13. In my opinion, I feel that the Department of Defence is doing a great job and is striving hard to accomplish its mission. Based on the missions and goals of the department in their government reports, the evaluation is given below – One of the primary missions of the Department of Defense (DOD) is to supply military forces necessary to provide security to the country and deterring war. The headquarters of the Department of Defense is located at the Pentagon. The chief policy advisor to the President is the Secretary of Defense, who works in tandem with the Deputy Secretary who exercises authority in all military related matters. Being the world’s biggest employer, they also employ a huge Civilian force comprising of both men and women who are on active duty and serve in the National Guard and the Reserve forces. 3 The mission of the Defense.gov is to lend complete support to uphold the mission of the Department of Defense. Their duty is to provide accurate and timely information regarding the functions and operations, Defense policies and any other information regarding the Depar tment of Defense, and this information, in turn is provided to military members and their families, DoD civilians, the news media, Congress and the general public of America. ‘The protection of the public fiscal is a matter that is of interest to every citizen†. (Brock v. Pierce County, 476 U.S. 253, 262 (1986) A Federal agency has the power to function to the extent authorized by law. Brock v. Pierce Co

Southwest airline Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Southwest airline - Essay Example In general terms, cost leadership can be described as operating at the lowest cost in an industry. Cost leadership has been an effective generic strategy for the Southwest Airlines over the last two decades. The company is able to produce services at comparatively low cost  to  that of its competitors. As a result, the firm generates high profits since it produces at low cost and sells at the established market prices. In this regard, the firm has been able to diversify its services to various location through the aid of modern technology and experienced workforce. In essence, the many years of existences facilitates production at low cost and selling at a considerable high profit. Moreover, the diversity of services and the experience of being in the industry for many years offers the company a platform for differentiation (Witcher & Chau, 2010). For instance, the company has established structures that facilitates efficient service delivery to customers of varied financial levels. In essence, the approach employed to handle customers ensures that everyone enjoy the value of money spent. An analysis of the company’s financial base and the total market share shows that the company has sufficient resources for differentiation. In addition, the resources that the company has so far can maintain an effective differentiation strategy. The experienced workforce, high technology equipment, and huge capital reserves depict that the company can be able to maintain its differentiation strategy for long. The firm should introduce another generic strategy to reinforce its efforts for generating sufficient profits and diversifying the market share. In this regard, the company can employee  the  focus  generic  strategy in marketing its services. Benoliel & Cashdan (2006) argue that the focus strategy enhances that the needs of a particular market segment are comprehensively covered. In this regard,

Personal statement about telecommunication and networks engineering Assignment

Personal statement about telecommunication and networks engineering - Assignment Example Even light was used as a medium of communication, by signaling the light in various frequency of on and off, people would know through such a signal that they are under attack. Animals were also used as means of communication such as the messenger pigeons. A more authentic and reliable method was to send letter via postman. These means of communication were kept in use till the invention of telephone. Letters are still in circulation but their numbers have decreased. The invention of telephone was a major breakthrough brought by Graham Bell, but the invention of telephone was obviously dependent upon the wires, fibers and magnets. Graham Bell took advantage of the type of technology available to him and by using the magnet connected to some membrane through the wires, he invented the telephone. Telecommunication engineering is one field which relates to all these sectors together and helps to create and join the circuitry which is a part of our modern electronic devices. The materials as well as the equipments that the telecom engineers require, is supplied by various manufacturers and they are responsible for giving the best result with minimum facilities. This scenario helps in the creation of new ideas which may prove to be beneficial if put in work. Telecom engineers help the world to keep in contact through signals that are sent through the air in the form of waves. All these factors together have built my interest in the field of telecommunication and network engineering. I believe that my interest can help me thrive in this field and make some contribution to it accordingly. The complexity of computing and its use in the real world fascinates me, like helping the human genome plan for technical development, algorithmic skills for raising the effectiveness of economical markets to generating the digital transformation from the internet to other equipments that are wireless. What motivates me to be a part of

Westlake Case Study Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Westlake - Case Study Example Price of recreational activities of Westlake Lanes was affordable which contributed a lot in attracting customers from all income groups. Pricing strategy of this company helped to strengthen its business position. Westlake Lane also had fooding facilities. It sold Pizza, soda etc in their bowling zone (Hamermesh and Zalosh, 2012). This acted as strength to the business by satisfying its customers through different products and services. The company incurred a huge cost for maintaining its recreational activities. Low sale of these activities weaken the business position and lower the company’s profit. For a long period of time the company was operating its business activities by taking different types of loan from the market. In many cases Westlake Lane was unable to repay the loans which hampered its revenue. Strategies in which the company operated its business process were not effective enough to improve the business condition. For its inefficient business process the company incurred huge losses which weaken the business position. The operational activities of Westlake Lane were not managed properly which resulted in rise of cost in its business process. General expenses of the company were very high. Productivity of its employees was very low. As a result the company delivered low quality of products and services to its customers. There was no strong long term strategy for the company to improve or stre ngthen its business position. Westlake Lanes is into a developing industry. This attractive industry provides huge growth opportunities to the company. Westlake Lanes is into the business for past 30years. So it acts as a strong barrier to different small companies in this industry. The loyal customer base of this firm helps it to improve business position. Westlake Lanes is a family owned business which provides different opportunities to the company to

Educational Memories Essay Example for Free

Educational Memories Essay I first came into Wakefield City High School on September 1994. I had to go to the hall for an assembly. I was nervous I didnt know anyone. There was no one else from my old school just me. I was sat down feeling nervous in the assembly just then the head of lower school called out my name. They decided which tutor group I should go to Mrs Elliss classroom. I made a few friends in my class Tariq, Ajmal, Safdar and Zulfiqar. At first we all used to have the same timetable and I would ask them which lessons we would have next and which room the lesson would be held. But then gradually we were put into different groups meaning different timetable. Most of the teachers didnt like us. In maths we would look in the back of textbooks for answers that would be in are maths work. In science we made a mess of all the experiments. I broke three beakers and two test tubes, once I squirted hydrochloric acid at the black board the mark is still there. My music teacher liked me because I was good at the essays and minor music tests. I scored a high mark in the music exam but I was awful at playing music. I blew up the keyboard adapter. We would throw water balloons at everyone in the winter and set of bangers at bonfire week. In food technology the teacher hated are cooking we never cleaned up after we had finished. In art we used to draw pictures on are art folders even though she told us not to draw on them. We would draw a picture of a liver floating in a swimming pool and write next to it Liver+pool FC. My art teacher was Austrian and she would were these big black German boots and walk very disciplined like a solider. I thought she was related Adolph Hitler. In D+T resistant materials we had a teacher called Mr Taylor. Mr Taylor was tall and was a very moody person. When he was drunk he was alright. But when he was sober he was on a short fuse. He would never repeat himself. If anyone in the class asked, sir what was the question I didnt understand it sir he would start shouting and tell you to just do your work. He was tall skinny and atleast 30 years old. He would wear a white shirt with black pants. His hair had a lot of gel on it and his sideburns were completely shaved of. He always thought he was cool so he always brushed the side of his hair back. He never use to send students to isolation but he sent me because I was outside the school uniform by wearing white trainers. Whenever he explained to the whole class the work, what we had to do. I always fell asleep. So I always washed my face before entering the classroom. If you did anything wrong he would give dirty look and make you look like an idiot as though you are stupid and not clever. In the last two years all the teachers started getting on with me. I started doing well in my science and D+T. I got a high score in my science modular tests and I was predicted a c in my final G. C. S. E exam. In D+T I got a c for my coursework in G. C. S. E project Table. In my final two years at school Mr Taylor would not talk about work in D+T because we know what we had to do finish the design work. Instead Mr Taylor what talk about general interests and all kinds of things that he heard on the news saw in the papers or saw on TV. Most of al this talk was irrelevant but it was just to keep us company while we were working in the workshop and in the classroom. He would even put the radio on in the workshop and we would often have debates. He would view us as engineers including himself, which he was and he viewed the common man as underpaid labourers. He told us about his last job that he would operate a machine. He would just set the material on the machine and program the machine, then he would let the labourer do all the moving and lifting basically the heavy work. He said all this with confidence thinking non-of us would become a labourer, he thought we would all do well with his help D+T. He developed a relationship, which went from student and teacher to colleagues, and everyone knew what to do. We developed confidence in the workshop. I would use the sander and go into the store cupboard looking for whatever I needed to assemble the project. I would use all the machines, tools and equipment in my surrounding. Show preview only The above preview is unformatted text This student written piece of work is one of many that can be found in our GCSE Mildred Taylor section.

Impact Of Social Networking Sites On Brand Promotion Marketing Essay

Impact Of Social Networking Sites On Brand Promotion Marketing Essay If considering the example of Skoda, it gives the substantial results for such instance. Skoda has created the community of about 2000 people through social media. This community was started when a female customer has posted its comment about the after sales services of Skoda and a person has picked this comment and posted it on social networking site (Muncaster, 2007). It is not only the corporate biggies who have used social networking sites as a medium to promote their brand but also a phenomena of retailing the designers label to increase the brand awareness among the target customers. Looking at the importance of social networking, this research aims to analyzing the impact of social networking sites on brand promotion. This chapter provides the brief introduction about the research study, including the aims and objectives of the research, significance of the research and rationale behind conducting this research study. Aims and Objectives of the Research: The aim of this research is to analyze the impact of social networking sites on brand promotion. In order to fulfill the aim of the research, researcher has laid down following research objectives which has been achieved in this research as a part of research aim. To understand the importance of social networking websites in branding strategy To determine the advantage of using social media in marketing and branding To understand the current and future scope viability of social media To identify the strategies of companies using social media as a medium for promoting their brand In order to achieve the above research objectives, the research has addressed the following research questions in this study. RQ1: What is the importance of social networking sites in branding and marketing? RQ2: What are the advantages for a marketer in using social media for its marketing and branding strategy? RQ3: What is the current and future scope viability of social media? RQ4: What are the strategies used by companies for using social media in promoting their brands among the target customers? Significance of the Research: This research study is contributing significantly in the studies of marketing and brand management where the researcher has provided some key facts about the current usage of social networking sites in brand promotion and marketing. The research findings will help the marketers to understand the advantage of using social media as a medium for promoting their brands and they can integrate these findings in preparing their brand strategy. In addition to this, the research work provided the base for future academic researchers to conduct the research in the social networking space in relation to the marketing and branding management. Rationale behind the Research: Reason for conducting this research is to get the deeper insight about how the companies are using social networking websites for promoting their brand and in what ways they are making it effective among the target customers. In this way researcher would be able to get greater learning in the field of marketing and brand management and can integrate these findings into its professional career. Chapter Scheme of the Research: It is essential to divide the complete research into sub sections or chapters to get the sequential understanding of every step taken by the research for completing the research. Therefore researcher has segregated the complete research into fiver chapters. First chapter of the research provide the brief introduction about the research. Second chapter provided the literature of the research. Third chapter includes the research methodology. Fourth chapter provided the discussion, analysis and findings of the research. Last and fifth chapter includes the conclusion drawn by the research from the key findings and provided the recommendation to marketers. Summary: There is a latest trend of using social networking sites for brand promotion however the businesses are realizing slowly of using social networking sites for brand promotion. The aim of this research is to analyze the impact of social networking sites on brand promotion. Social network affect the purchase decision making process of consumers which make the difference in the branding and marketing strategies. However social networking websites are useful for the marketers to increase the brand awareness and product awareness. Reason for conducting this research is to get the deeper insight about how the companies are using social networking websites for promoting their brand. This chapter provided the brief introduction of the researcher to the reader. Chapter 2: Literature Review 2.1 Introduction: Social networking sites such as Facebook (400 million users worldwide) and Orkut (100 million), or the micro-blogging site Twitter (which crossed 10 billion tweets recently) may offer engaging distractions to the average user. But the numbers add up to a dizzying truth for brands: social networking sites (SNS) and sites like Twitter are prodigiously fertile spaces to harvest ad business. Adgully speaks to Indias leading brand nurturers and digital agencies to understand how they are leveraging the networking revolution. Social Networking soon became a way for brand Marketing and promotion on social sphere, whereby, the enterprises started using these online communities or websites for developing contacts and driving traffic to their respective websites. Today, these social networking websites form the main tool of social media marketing. The most commonly used websites that have become drastically popular over last couple of years are Twitter and Facebook. Following these two are som e other sites such as LinkedIn, My Space, Digg and StumbleUpon (Adler Kwon, 2002).   Facebook is a Social Networking Site which helps friends and colleagues to share dialogues with each other through Wall Posts, Messages and Comments. Today, Facebook has more than 350 million members and still counting. This site experiences more than two million clicks per day. Statistics state that users spend an average of 20 minutes per day in Facebook. The advanced functionalities of Facebook allow the users a longer shelf life. A user can view your files which are more than five years old. With such wonderful features, Facebook soon became one of the lethal tools of SMM and SMO. Businesses, especially small scale business houses started using the medium of Facebook to promote their brands and services. Setting up a business page and initiating and regulating interactions with the visitors are some of the strategies that business houses adhere to, in Facebook (Alba, 2003). 2.2 Popularity of Social Networking Sites in Developing Countries: The online penetration is just 3-4 per cent, and less than 1 per cent of our total population has a Facebook account. And the percentage of people using Twitter is even smaller. Mehra said that despite the percentages, developing countries like India were already the 5th largest consumer of Twitter in the world, owing largely to Bollywoods enthusiasm for it. And we are in the Top 10 list of consumers of Facebook. Rahul Mehta, the business head of Chings Secret, said, There are approximately 5 crore Indians and 1 crore NRIs online. Facebook alone has 1.2 crore Indians and 40 lakh NRIs. Mehta said the RoI on social media was substantially higher than what was offered by traditional media (Albrecht Adelman, 2007). These numbers are comparable to most national newspapers, Mehta said. Facebook is best place to reach Sec A+, A and B+. With internet penetration deepening, the numbers will rise in the next three to four years, he said. Chings Secret has 98,826 (and counting) fans on Faceboo k. Khushboo Maheshwari, the head (digital) of OMD, said, Today, 5% of Indian population has an online presence and it is growing at a rate of 35% CAGR. In other words, 50 million users have a presence on social media. And the numbers were growing, Maheshwari said. With the government planning to spend Rs18,000 crore over the next three years to lay a 5 lakh km optic fibre cable network to reach every gram panchayat, the growth rate is going to touch 100% CAGR, Maheshwari said. Mobile, web, and broadband will be critical to the growth in the coming years, Maheshwari said. Mihir Ferrao, who looks into Social Media Optimization and ORM at Starcom IP feels that Internet in India needs to grow by at least 20 to 25% year on year, to shake off the constant comparisons with TV and Print (Alkire, Collum, Kaswan, Love, 2008). He said, The only reason why we do not get a fare share of advertising budgets is because, next to the reach penetration of TV or Print, we are very small. But if we look at the concentration of brand TGs on TV Internet, then surely the Internet will have higher traction. Sagar Dhoke, the founder of Fun Element said that the e-revolution had helped to bridge the gap between the product and the end consumer, be it for a movie or an FMCG product. As for the group being targeted online by marketers, Ritesh Patel, the brand manager of CEAT, said, Social media has indeed proved to be a very useful medium for a brand like CEAT. He said that CEAT aspired to be a youthful brand and it finds complete match of TG in this medium (Arabie, 2004). 2.3 The Approach: Sandeep Singh, the business head of Quasar, said that promotional activities designed for online platforms could be a campaign lead in which the target audience is engaged for a specific purpose and for a short duration. Or, brands could choose a more strategic and long-term initiative. In a campaign lead, the idea is to use social media platforms to create a buzz and receive feedback from the community represented by the target audience, Singh said. Strategic initiatives involve the management of social presence from brands online-reputation standpoint, and the use of social platforms as a medium of continued dialogue with the prospects and customers. Singh said experience suggested that the one-size-fits-all approach did not work. Every product and campaign needs a different approach and activation strategy, he said (Bainbridge, Brent, Carley, Heise, Macy, Markovsky, Skvoretz, 1994). Maheshwari of OMD described one of the agencys typical media activities. Motilal Oswal Financial Services Limited has been quite active on the social media, Maheshwari said. We have uploaded Wealth Creation Study (WCS) Videos on You Tube and also created a Linked In event page for the WCS awards ceremony. Besides, we also have a scribed page where we have uploaded different annual WC Studies. The creation of Wikipedia pages on the Motilal Oswal Group, on Motilal Oswal and Raamdeo Agrawal had been completed, Maheshwari said. As a result of these activities, seven out of 10 results on Google are owned and controlled by Brand Motilal Oswal for the search Wealth Creation Study, Maheshwari said (Baker Hubert, 2001). Zapak has carried out several similar campaigns; Axe, Ponds, and Mahindra campaigns which used a mix of available options are among the most successful Zapak works. Mehra listed the focus areas: Fan pages and groups, gaming and other fun applications on platforms like Orkut and Facebook, an active handle on Twitter. Mehra said it was essential to link the APIs (application programming interface) like OpenID and Facebook Connect to ones site to promote easy communication and conversations (Barabasi, 2002). Chings Secret advertises regularly on Facebook and YouTube, the brands Mehta said. But a lot of traffic has been generated virally because of the content, quizzes, contests on Facebook. He said that in the end, social media was a long-term strategic investment. It is not brand building but genuine relationship creation and maintenance, he said. And like any relationship, it takes time to build. Describing the two aspects of promotion social applications and paid advertising -they use both options equally well. For Emotional Attyachar, social advertising was placed on Facebook and other sites. And we also released an application on Facebook, Mistry said. Applications turn on engagement to high levels, users get to communicate with the brand, and they understand the values of the shows. On the other hand, advertising draws people who are unexposed to the brand. So the two options serve different purposes and we use as much of both as they can (Barnlund Harland, 2005). Patel of CEAT said that any one people-engagement tactic would not work in isolation. If they create a fantastic social application and do not promote it, it will die a natural death owing to the lack of critical mass required to give it a viral effect. Similarly, only paid advertising will fail to generate brand interaction with consumers which is the essence of social media. Such a tactic would evoke the fee ling of a one-night stand and customer would probably not engage with the brand in question in the future. Starcom IPs Ferrao, also said that lots of their clients are slowly waking up to the fact that social media is a growing phenomena in India. Some of their clients whom they have brought onto the social space are Himalaya Herbal Tea and Foster, while they are enhancing the social presence of brands like Tata Teleservices and Pantaloons. The results they have got, in terms of fans on Facebook and followers on Twitter etc. have given the client reasons to be excited. And has initiated thoughts of how do they leverage these groups further (Bernard Killworth, 2003). 2.4 Pros and Cons: Every platform has certain advantages and disadvantages, so its a question any longer of them wanting to be on it or not. The advantages are varied: right from being able to monetize certain things to being able to put your content out there; to getting feedback from users. In the past, people could not connect to a brand on a one-on-one basis, but social media allowed that to happen. Most brands feel that going to SNS will put their brands up for public scrutiny, which is considered a disadvantage. But it is considering that to be an advantage because it gives them a good reality check to improve your product or service. But on this channel, Singh warned, one wrong step could snowball into something highly detrimental to ones brand, in matter of minutes. So they should learn to do it well than not doing it at all, as you cant run away from such platforms if their consumers are flocking them (Bonacich, 2002). They will have to embrace them today or tomorrow. SNS can definitely contri bute to making or breaking the brand image. Brands should be very cautious in venturing into SNS. While developing games for the brands, Dhoke suggests subtle branding techniques to his clients. Constant hammering of the product is a complete turn-off to the player and user, he said. Same applies to social applications and games. The app should highlight the main features of the app in a very exciting way rather than in the brochure style. Maheshwari endorsed Dhokes assertion about treading carefully. Yes, a single bad comment or rumor can severely damage the reputation that a brand like MOFSL has taken great pains to establish over the years, Maheshwari said. Also since SNS connect users from different parts of the world, it takes little to no time for bad news to spread. Patel strongly believes that a consumers negative feedback could be used to create customer delight. Today, more and more brands are engaging directly with consumers through various discussion forums, networking sites and forums to understand their expectations (Borgatti Everett, 1999) Ferrao of Starcom IP sees the clear advantage of social networking sites in the entire brand experience which one can bring to the consumer. He said, With Facebook and Twitter, you can communicate so many brand properties to those people who want to listen! he believes that by doing so, you know the effort is not going to waste and that your initiatives could actually lead to sales (Burt, 2008). 2.5 The Future: Patel also highlighted the fact that only a select age group was active in social media. While Youngistan is spending more time online, the older age group is not very active yet. Also, online options are more popular in metro and tier-II cities. Internet penetration is still an issue in rural India. But Dhoke sees things differently. Things will change in the next five to six years. When 3G is operational, the number of internet users will grow by about 25-35%. It is estimated that by 2013, India will have the third largest Internet user base. Singh goes a step further and says that as in the West, the audience is now online. When you refer to the audience, these are the guys with high disposable incomes and spending power. These guys are online for sure. And most brands are eying their wallets. If you talk about numbers, we still have some way to go to before the medium reaches the masses. The Indian audience was enjoying the internet and its offerings. Gaming is an offering that h as now become a passion among the youth (Carley Krackhardt, 1996). The online gaming industry is growing and how! Year-on-year, they are recording a rise in the number of gamers in the country. Zapak, which was started just three years ago, already had 7 million unique registered users, and continues to grow. Soon, there will be a day when the online Indian farmers on Farmville will outnumber all the real farmers of our country put together. Other than Twitter and Facebook, there are couples of other websites that have gained immense popularity. LinkdIn is a professional social media website where a stream of professional gets the chance to review and interact with their counterparts. With more than 50 lacs people registered with this site, LinkedIn offers a solid platform for establishing new business relationships. LinkdIn by facilitating more of a personal communication between the business professionals can help the business as a whole. MySpace also have a massive impact in the social networking world. Once registered with MySpace, a user can not only inform the entire networking circle about their likes and dislikes but can also submit videos. A lot of personal stuffs can also be added to the site, and an active mode of communication can be initiated. MySpace also helps in Social Media Marketing by enabling the businesses to create their own profile page and communities and develop interactive dialogues with targeted mass of people. This enables in building brand awareness and can be of immense help to small business houses. Social media and networking Sites have not only contributed to take inter-personal communication to a different level, but also have been a great marketing tool for the small businesses. Well planned approach to social media marketing via social networking sites can be of great help in promoting the business, create proper brand awareness and in the end, meet the ultimate business ends. A business house must have proper expertise and planning to approach in the network so as to reap the fruits of benefits to the very best (Cartwright Harary, 2007). 2.6 Spreading brand awareness: We all know word-of-mouth propagation is a great way of spreading your brand awareness. This is what social network can do. As soon as brand becomes recognizable to a large number of customers, they start discussion about the product. Maximum people who are satisfied with the product they often post their comments through these social networking, which encourage other customer to buy the product. Big companies create a blog in relation with the social network to give customer a wide area to discuss about product and give reviews. This way social network spread your brand awareness to millions of customer online (Cohen Prusak, 2001). 2.7 Engage customer interest: A social media website is ideally suited for product discussions, demonstrations, and showcasing of expertise and quality. Businesses can engage the interest of customers from a global market and build a powerful brand image. People will become fans of your website, product or business because they choose to; Make them feel comfortable with this decision by posting quality information. Talking about online business, social networking is a great opportunity to keep your site busy by attracting potential customer with well developed networking strategies. Organizations are already making use of new and creative way to utilize the massive popularity of various social media to promote their particular product. The additional benefit is the long-term impact on business revenue through brand management. Social media websites are just right for business marketers to spot potential customers (Eveland Bikson, 2007). But in order to get benefit from social networking, business owner should study to handle their social networking assets carefully. Most famous social networking sites like facebook, twitter and my space are the great for carrying your message to abroad. But new businesses must always remember that benefits from social networking solely include arduous work (Crane, 2009). 2.8 Summary: A social network is a social structure made up of individuals or organizations called nodes, which are connected by one or more specific types of mutuality, such as friendship, common interest, financial exchange, dislike relationships of beliefs, knowledge or prestige. It was initially intended to make friendship and stay connected with colleagues, but now days every businessman would have known how important social networking is for their business. Mainly online business has made social networking a priority as well. Premier Websites have made it possible for businesses to develop their contact lists, handle their relationships and created the ideas of viral marketing. It is because Shopping and social networking Web sites gather a lot of information about online users, and has become tremendously useful for companies to track and model consumer behavior. Businesses are looking to companies like Twitter, MySpace and Facebook to help companies to sell more products and services. Let s see how it makes an impact on your business in reality (Fararo Skvoretz, 2004). Chapter 3: Research Methodology Introduction: A research methodology enables the researcher to get the right direction in achieving the research aim and objectives. Therefore it is important for the researcher to understand the different research methods available and making the right selection of the appropriate research component to design the complete research methodology. This chapter provides the detailed explanation of the research methodology that has been used by the researcher for this particular research. The aim of this research is to analyze the impact of social networking website on brand promotion which requires a robust research methodology. Research Methodology: Before moving further, a research first needs to understand the difference between exploratory and explanatory research and make the appropriate selection between them. Exploratory research is useful where the research wants to conclude the research through in-depth and detailed discussion about the research objectives and findings of the research. On the other hand explanatory research is useful where the researcher conclude the research based on the key facts and using statistical measures without having in-depth discussions. Here the research wants to conduct the analyses to understand the impact of social networking websites on brand promotion therefore it requires statistical measures to conduct the impact analyses. Hence researcher has used explanatory research in this study. Research Design: There are the various authors who have provided the approach to design the suitable research methodology. However the most relevant research methodology design is given by Saunders et al (2003) by developing the research onion. Each layer of this research onion provided the research component and selecting the research components gives the complete design of the research. Research has used the research onion developed by Saunders et al (2003) for designing the research methodology. Description of selecting the research components by using research onion is provided in the following section. Research Approach: Research approach is chosen from the first layer of the research onion. A research can go for deductive, abductive or inductive research approach. In this research, researcher has used abductive research approach which enables the researcher to get the deeper understanding of research objective and need of correlating the literature with key findings of the research. Other research approaches such as inductive and deductive approach has been rejected by the research since both the approaches more focused towards the theoretical implications and less towards the practical implication of the research. Research Philosophy: Research can select the research philosophy by removing the second layer of the research onion. There are the two research philosophies such as positivism and interpretivism research philosophy. Interpretivism research philosophy is useful where the researcher interpret the study results using literature and less focused towards the practical implications of the research study. Since the research approach used by the researcher is abductive which requires the practical implication hence interpretivism research philosophy is irrelevant. In positivism research philosophy researcher only considers the practical implication along with the use of literature to be linked with research findings. Hence in this research, researcher has used the positivism research philosophy. Research Strategy: Research strategy can be chosen by removing third layer of the research onion. Research strategy enables the researcher to conduct the analysis and presenting the key findings of the research. In addition to this research decides on methods of data collection. A research can use survey questionnaire methods or face to face interview method to collect the data. It is essential to capture the views of marketing managers about the impact of social networking websites in brand promotion. Hence the research has used survey questionnaire method for collecting the data. Once the data is collected, a researcher needs to understand the way of conducting the analysis and presenting the data. In this research, research has used question by question analysis and drawn the conclusion. Research has used both the secondary and primary data in this research and method for each of type of data is described below: Data Collection Methodology: Secondary data is the data which is already existed in the published format. On the other hand primary data is the data which is not available and researcher collect the information using questionnaire method from the relevant respondents. In this study, researcher has collected both the secondary and primary data. The methodology description of collecting each type of data is provided below: Secondary Data: Secondary data in this research has been collected using various secondary sources such as academic journals which have been procured from the university library, books, news articles, web articles, company websites and general internet search. Secondary has been used to compile the literature in this research. Primary Data: In order to capture the view points of marketing managers towards the impact of social networking websites, the data has been collected using primary research. In primary research, researcher has prepared the quantitative questionnaire and administered the questionnaire using email. Others details of primary research is provided below. Target Respondents: Target respondents were marketing managers who must have knowledge about the social networking concepts and websites and responsible for preparing branding strategy for their companies. Sample Size: A total of 200 questionnaires were sent to the target respondents out of which 59 responses were received by the researcher. Therefore the total sample size of this study is 59. Sampling Methodology: Convenient sampling methodology has been used by the researcher for designing the samples in this study. In this research, the researcher already known to the screening and qualification criteria of the target respondents therefore the convenient sampling methodology is useful for this research study. Data Analysis: A researcher has used excel tool for analyzing the data. Each questionnaire responses are filled in Excel and developed a final data file. Researcher has used some basic statistical measures to analyze the data and key findings of the research has been presented using charts and graphs which have been prepared using Excel. Ethical Consideration Research Limitations: There are certain ethical issues that have been taken into consideration by the researcher. Researcher has followed the market research guidelines to meet the ethical challenges in this research such as disclosing the respondents names contact information as per the respondents consent, acknowledging the information sources, use of authenticated data sources and websites and meeting the university guidelines to avoid plagiarism. Some limitations faced by the researcher are access to the company information, coverage of sample size and reach out to the target respondents.

Lycius Dilemma Essay examples -- Essays Papers

Lycius' Dilemma The Master and Margarita and Lamia are the vastly different works of two men from far flung times and places. Though the histories and plots of these works diverge, their thematic elements resonate. Each text invokes a dualism of worlds: the world of the imagination and the world of reality. The imaginative realm is a mythic space of love, creativity and magic. Paradoxically, the characters that speak for the realm of imagination are those aligned with the devil (Lamia and Woland). Reason control and mortality characterize the realm of reality and its representatives are Appollonius and the Muscovites. The source of conflict and distress in these works arises from the seemingly unbridgeable schism between these two worlds. The dilemma of Lycius in Lamia and the Master in The Master and Margarita is this fundamental incompatibility of worlds. These mediating figures can be seen (allegorically or literally) as artists attempting to reconcile the space of creation and imagination with t he everyday world that "will clip an angle's wings, / Conquer all mysteries by rule and line" (Lamia, Pt. II, 234-235). Keats and Bulgakov offer varying representations and outcomes to Lycius' dilemma. In these texts Appollonius and soviet Moscow society function inimically to the forces of imagination and negative capability. These characters represent sobriety and reason. They attempt to limit and control the narrative and the forces of the imagination-which often exceed their powers. A systemic vision of knowledge binds both the Muscovites and Appollonius. Both parties rely on the certainty of this knowledge to inoculate them from the more frightening and unstable aspects of existence. Through categorization they hope to contro... ...er will live a life of writing and love, but without any hope of communicating his ideas to his society: he is completely cut off from the community. The intrusion of reality (Appollonius) destroys Lycius and his relationship with Lamia. However discouraging these endings seem, they are after all texts that have reached us and communicated something to us. Though the artist might die and though society might not understand, the truth of Woland's words remains: "manuscripts don't burn" (Bulgakov, 245). The text survives as a testament to the power and possibility of the artistic spirit. Works Cited Bulgakov, Mikhail. The Master and Margarita. New York: Vintage, 1995. Keats, John. Lamia. 1820. Romanticism: An Anthology. Ed. Duncan Wu. 2nd Ed. Oxford: Blackwell, 1998. Proffer, Ellendea. "'Commentary' in The Master and Margarita." New York: Vintage, 1995. Lycius' Dilemma Essay examples -- Essays Papers Lycius' Dilemma The Master and Margarita and Lamia are the vastly different works of two men from far flung times and places. Though the histories and plots of these works diverge, their thematic elements resonate. Each text invokes a dualism of worlds: the world of the imagination and the world of reality. The imaginative realm is a mythic space of love, creativity and magic. Paradoxically, the characters that speak for the realm of imagination are those aligned with the devil (Lamia and Woland). Reason control and mortality characterize the realm of reality and its representatives are Appollonius and the Muscovites. The source of conflict and distress in these works arises from the seemingly unbridgeable schism between these two worlds. The dilemma of Lycius in Lamia and the Master in The Master and Margarita is this fundamental incompatibility of worlds. These mediating figures can be seen (allegorically or literally) as artists attempting to reconcile the space of creation and imagination with t he everyday world that "will clip an angle's wings, / Conquer all mysteries by rule and line" (Lamia, Pt. II, 234-235). Keats and Bulgakov offer varying representations and outcomes to Lycius' dilemma. In these texts Appollonius and soviet Moscow society function inimically to the forces of imagination and negative capability. These characters represent sobriety and reason. They attempt to limit and control the narrative and the forces of the imagination-which often exceed their powers. A systemic vision of knowledge binds both the Muscovites and Appollonius. Both parties rely on the certainty of this knowledge to inoculate them from the more frightening and unstable aspects of existence. Through categorization they hope to contro... ...er will live a life of writing and love, but without any hope of communicating his ideas to his society: he is completely cut off from the community. The intrusion of reality (Appollonius) destroys Lycius and his relationship with Lamia. However discouraging these endings seem, they are after all texts that have reached us and communicated something to us. Though the artist might die and though society might not understand, the truth of Woland's words remains: "manuscripts don't burn" (Bulgakov, 245). The text survives as a testament to the power and possibility of the artistic spirit. Works Cited Bulgakov, Mikhail. The Master and Margarita. New York: Vintage, 1995. Keats, John. Lamia. 1820. Romanticism: An Anthology. Ed. Duncan Wu. 2nd Ed. Oxford: Blackwell, 1998. Proffer, Ellendea. "'Commentary' in The Master and Margarita." New York: Vintage, 1995.

Importance of Thinking in Troilus and Criseyde and Hamlet Essay

Importance of Thinking in Troilus and Criseyde and Hamlet Troilus and Hamlet have much in common. Both have represented the quintessential tragic heroes of two literary periods. Both lovers, Troilus and Hamlet lose what they love despite their earth-shaking groans. Both are surrounded by traitors and are traitorous in kind. Both are embattled and--this is no secret--both die. But somewhere on that mortal coil on which they are both strung, they confront a similar question, a question which divides them in no sense less than the waters divide England and Denmark--the question of action. This essay pretends to do little more than probe the circumstances of that question in relation to a speech that appears prominently in Shakespeare’s Hamlet and tangentially as a â€Å"Proem†to Chaucer’s Troilus and Criseyde. I will delve into the specific and larger textual contexts for both of these instances, seeking to show that the manner in which the speech is reworded shows in miniature the gulf that separates Troilus and Hamlet. Hamlet opens famously with sickness. Francisco, a simple soldier, who has thus far endured an uneventful watch, describes himself as â€Å"sick at heart†(1.1.9-10). We find our ubiquitous cliche soon afterwards inserted in a conversation on the prison-like nature of Denmark: â€Å"for there is nothing either good or bad, but thinking makes it so: to me it is a prison†(2.2.255-257). With this epistemology in mind, it is not difficult to see how a cloud ) may be weasel-like, and â€Å"very like a whale†in the next instant. Such is our power to determine truth: we name it so, and so it is. Hamlet’s remark is that of one who has suddenly been bathed in the reality of life. He is confronting directly, perhaps for the first time,... ...ism is finally indeterminate. If Krapp me Gant to draw a direct parallel between the two works, it was a matter of vanity: â€Å"I do not find you [Chaucer] full of mysteries./ The world is much the same from day to day?(30-31). Though a comparison between Hamlet and Troilus and Criseyde is possible, we must finally discover how different they are from one another. The chasm that separates the two is one of depth and attitude: it is the difference between recognition and non-recognition, the difference between a self-created future and the pandering of one’s will to a human leech. Works Cited Benson, Larry D., gen. ed. The Riverside Chaucer. Boston: Houghton Mifflin, 1987. Evans, G. Blakemore, ed. The Riverside Shakespeare. Boston: Houghton Mifflin, 1974. Krapp, George Philip. Troilus and Criseyde: A Love Poem in Five Books. New York: Random House, 1932.

The Last Dalai Lama? Essay -- Tibet History Dalai Lama Essays

The Last Dalai Lama? The twentieth century is rife with examples of countries being torn apart or experiencing great upheaval. Multi-ethnic Yugoslavia broke apart into several nation states with loose foundations. The Soviet Union collapsed, transforming the area into the Commonwealth of Independent States. Germany split in half as a result of World War II and then reunited over forty years later. One country that has experienced tremendous crisis and upheaval on a scale even greater than these European nations, yet often goes unnoticed, is Tibet. Tibet enjoyed peace and autonomy until 1949 when Chinese Communists invaded the country under the guise of the "Peaceful Liberation." Coveting Tibet’s vast natural resources and strategic location in Central Asia, they sent off innocent civilians and peaceful protesters into prisons and concentration camps, subverted their economic and agricultural system, and ravaged Tibetan culture. As a result of the Chinese invasion, Tenzin Gyatso, the Fourteenth Dalai Lama of Tibet has undertaken roles and responsibilities that no other previous Dalai Lama has attempted. Determined to salvage Tibetan life and culture he fled his palace in Lhasa and instituted the Tibetan Government in Exile in Dharamsala, India. Since his flee into exile Tenzin Gyatso has diligently worked to negotiate peacefully with China and other nations to reclaim his country, institute a working democratic government in India, and promote the survival of Tibetan culture through the establishment of schools, monasteries, and cultural centers. Therefore as a result of the Communist invasion of Tibet and Tenzin Gyatso’s subsequent response to it, the role of the Dalai Lama has irrevocably changed. He has gone from an iso... ...e past half-century. His actions and success as a ruler provide a true example of the application of religion towards politics, and that faith can and does overcome. Works Cited Avedon, John. In Exile in the Land from Snows. New York: Harper Perennial, 1997. Goldstein, Melvyn. "The Dalai Lama’s Dilemma." Foreign Affairs, 77 no. 1, 1998, p. 83 – 98. Mullin, Glenn H. The Fourteen Dalai Lamas: A Sacred Legacy of Reincarnation. Santa Fe: Clear Light Publishers, 2001. Pedersen, Kusumita P. "Tibet: Liberation as Oppression." Cross Currents 38, no.1, 1988, p. 100-102. Pilburn, Sidney, ed. The Dalai Lama: A Policy of Kindness. New York: Snow Lion Publications, 1993. Verhaegen, Ardy. The Dalai Lamas: The Institution and Its History. New Delhi: D.K. Printworld, 2002. Wen, Wang. "Tibet: Change and Development." Beijing Review 44, no. 19, p. 12 – 15.

Photosynthesis Essay

Photosynthesis Essay During the Light Dependent Reactions, activity occurs within the thylakoids of the chloroplast. NADP+ accepts two high energy electrons and an H+ ion and then converts into NADPH. This process ultimately traps some of the sunlight in chemical form. Then, NADPH is able to carry the energy it absorbs to the rest of the cell. The reaction produces O2 gas and converts ADP to ATP and NADP+ to NADPH. First, pigments in Photosystem II absorb light, which is then absorbed by electrons, which are then passed along the Electron Transport Chain.Chlorophyll loses an electron, but interestingly, those missing electrons are replaced through enzymes in the thylakoid membrane, which divide H20. Secondly, electrons move through the Electron Transport Chain from PII to PI and an H+ ion moves from the stroma to the inner thylakoid space. Thirdly, pigments from PI use energy from light to reenergize electrons; NADP+ picks them up along with H+ ions in the outer surface of the thylak oid, making NADPH.Next, as the electrons pass from chlorophyll to NADP+, more H+ ions are being pumped through the membrane to the inside of the thylakoid, which accounts for the inside being positive and the outside being negative. Lastly, ATP synthase, which spans the membrane, allows the H+ ions to go through it. As they go through, the synthase spins and rotates and binds an ADP to a phosphate group, producing ATP. Specifically, the Light Reactions can either follow a noncyclic electron pathway or a cyclic electron pathway.During the noncyclic electron pathway, PII absorbs solar energy, which is passed along pigments until it is concentrated in a particular pair of chlorophyll a molecules, called the reaction center. Here, the electrons become very energized that they escape and go to electron acceptor molecules. The electron acceptor sends electrons down the ETC and ATP production occurs when they flow their gradient in ATP synthase. PI absorbs solar energy, but the electrons a re captured by different electron acceptors, which pass electrons to NADP+.Each one accepts two electrons and an H+ to become NADPH. The cyclic electron pathway is the same as the noncyclic pathway, where ATP production occurs; however instead of electrons moving to NADP+, they return to PSI, which how it receives replacement electrons. This is why it is called a cyclic pathway; ATP production occurs but not NADPH production. The Light Independent Reactions, also known as the Calvin Cycle and or the â€Å"dark cycle†, ATP and NADPH produce high energy sugars.To begin the cycle, six CO2 molecules enter from the atmosphere and combine with six 5-carbon molecules to form twelve 3-carbon molecules. Next, these are converted into higher energy forms using ATP and high energy electrons from NADPH. Lastly, two of the twelve 3-carbon molecules are removed from the cycle, used by the plant for metabolism and growth; the remaining ten are converted back into six 5-carbon molecules, whi ch ultimately begin the next cycle.The Calvin Cycle has three in depth parts: C02 fixation, C02 reduction, and RuBP regeneration. During C02 fixation, C02 from the atmosphere is attached to RuBP, which is a 5 carbon molecule, which splits into two 3 carbon molecules. RuBP carboxylase is the enzyme that speeds up this reaction. Secondly, both of the 3PG molecules formed undergoes reduction to G3P: ATP and NADPH are used as energy to fuel this reduction where carbon dioxide reduces to a carbohydrate (R-CO2 to R-CH20).Lastly, the Calvin Cycle has to cycle three times for one G3P to exit. This occurs because five molecules of G3P are used to reform three RuBP molecules. Glyceraldehyde -3-phosphate, G3P, produced from this cycle is an ultimate carbohydrate used for nutrition for most living things on Earth. Glucose phosphate is an organic molecule that results from G3P metabolism. Glucose is essential to plants and animals to be able to produce ATP for energy purposes. Glucose phosphate is also the starting point for the synthesis of starch and cellulose.

Rationale and Methodology

The biblical account of the battle between David and Goliath is a story which offers inexhaustible life-lessons. For instance, when seen within the context of problem solving, one can put on the shoes David and say, â€Å"Goliath is so big, I don’t stand a chance†, or â€Å"Goliath is so big, I can’t miss. † Suffice it to say that these perspectives sufficiently determine whether one ends up as triumphant or looser in life.This paper presents an analysis of the rigors involved in ensuring the continued presence and progressive expansion of BAE Systems in Kava, an island in the South Pacific which, by right of analogy, is one humungous Goliath both literally and figuratively. As such, this paper is not so much concerned with providing concrete alternatives as prospective solutions in view of the aforesaid goal, as this is more an attempt to firstly identify the issues and problems that the company presently faces. It is also to be expected that the norms go verning critical thinking shall be employed herein in as many instances as possible.Circumscribing Goliath: Challenges and Opportunities in Kava Alex’s candid but straightforward assessment of the conditions in Kava clearly states the need for a lot of brainstorming. As in the case for most strategic planning, one sits on a problem with thoughtful consideration to determine all contributing causes in order to address them with correct solutions. Simply put, to solve a problem means to first identify it, give it a name, determine its enormity, measure its impact, and even anticipate its damage. In fact, the rules governing scientific investigation (and even correct logic for that matter) also suggest the same thing.Solving problems, it maintains, â€Å"begins when (one) is confronted with something that appears to need explanation† (Copi and Cohen, p. 552). Unless one is willing to take time in studying the intricate details of the problem, one is most likely to ‘ miss’ the target in the process. Besides, most psychologists have noted that â€Å"most people’s spontaneous and intuitive approaches to problems† end up â€Å"frequently wrong† (Halpern, 1996, p. 6). Taking time to map subsequent courses of action truly starts with going into the problem with much thought and consideration.After all, having a â€Å"well defined† or â€Å"ill-defined† problem determines the success rate of anyone who tries to get into the bottom of a given crisis (Halpern, 1996, p. 317) The first task in slaying the Kava-Goliath therefore lies in this: circumscribe it. On the one hand, one can look at Kava with eyes fixed on the challenges it poses; i. e. , one needs to isolate the problems (Sofranac, 2006). First, the problem of geography. Kava is an island; and most likely, its being separated from mainland economies can mean that transporting goods to and from the place will be more costly than doing business in an easily accessible land.Not only would it mean higher budgetary allocation for transport of BAE Systems goods, it can also spell delays and – in times of typhoons, tornadoes or volcanic eruption – suspension of business all together. Second, the problem of demography and its influence on Kava’s economy. It was said that nearly 50% of the island’s population are 15 years and below. If one were to translate it in economic transcripts, it would be safe to assume that only 40% of the population, or less, are working to fuel the economy. A portion, say 5-10% of the population must be regarded as incapacitated and/or elderly.Thus, the younger composition of Kava’s demography means that its economy more consumptive than productive. This does not yet consider the state of health of the working populace. In an island – contained as it were – where HIV or Avian flu is reported, the rate of business expansion is most likely to be affected by the workfo rce either suffering from, or fearing the spread of the diseases thereof. Third, on the viability of return investment for BAE. There is a need to consider the nature of the business the BAE Systems is engaged with, in relation to the needs of the island.These factors properly determine the health of the supply and demand market which BAE needs to handle. It must be noted well that BAE supplies products which are not so much accessible to, or are needed by general public consumers. BAE Systems deliver products which include, but not limited to communication and identification devices, â€Å"navigation and warfare solutions†, warfare systems, fighters and missiles, â€Å"countermeasure for both military and commercial aircraft†, among others (Wikipedia). On the other hand, one may also need to look at Kava with eyes fixed on opportunities; i. e. , one needs to also explore alternatives (Sofronac, 2006).While Kava may be an island full of challenging conditions for the c ompany, it is not an utterly hopeless place to conduct business with. One should also consider that its economy is driven by production of Petroleum, a lucrative and profit generating business to say the least. Surely, this type of business needs to protect itself from threats of terrorism, which the country is not unfamiliar with. Second, one should consider too the cheap but quality cost of labor throughout the island.It is something that the company can capitalize from, in order to create an excellent workforce for the company. One may also explore the cheaper operation costs for the company as the island seems to produce an array of crop-produces for its own consumption. Preliminary Recommendation: First things first To be sure, the process of formulating problems does not end up with the identification of forces involved only. There is a need to further classify them. At the very least, one needs to see which problems are urgent – and therefore needs immediate attention – as against which ones need long term attention due to complexity.The continued presence of BAE in Kava demands that it first focus on squaring with the urgent problems at hand: the high cost of having to weather geographical and environmental difficulties, the equally costly transport of goods and services (because it is an island), the need to establish cheap but competent workforce, and the tall prospect of having the business survive the supply-demand market. Since in most decision making process, one would find being confronted with a multitude of goals given a limited number of resources (Betsch and Haberstroh, 2004, p.1), ensuring that these aforementioned priorities are first met will be fundamental l to the achievement of such goal BAE sets. Critical thinking dictates that in a decision making process, â€Å"maximizing payoffs and minimizing risks† is a rule of prime importance (Betsch and Haberstroh, 2004, p. 1). While there are other smaller, but legitimate concerns to address – such as logistics, difference in time frame, re-supply issues, among others – contemplating seriously on solving the most fundamental concerns pertinent to doing business is an essential ingredient to savoring success.References Betsch, T. and Haberstroh, S, eds. (2004). The Routines of Decision Making. New Jersey: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates. Copi, I. and Cohen, C. Introduction to Logic (Tenth Edition). Prentice Hall International Editions. Halpern, D. (1996). Thought and Knowledge: An Introduction to Critical Thinking. New Jersey: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates. Sofronac, R. (2006). Preparing Business Scenario Analyses. University of Phoenix: Unpublished Reprinted with permission. www. wikipedia. com. Retrieved 09 June 2008.