Adam Walsh Act Essay

The case of six-year old Adam Walsh is perhaps one that will never leave the minds of anyone initially horrified by its details. In 1981 young Adam was kidnapped from a local mall and regardless of tireless efforts by his parents John and Reve Walsh, volunteers, and law enforcement; Adam fell victim to murder. Two weeks after the boy went missing, his decapitated head was located, but his body was never found. This prompted his father John Walsh to start a campaign and legislature policy submission toward more stringent accountability for child crime offenders. â€Å"The murder transformed John Walsh’s life, turning him from a middle-class hotel marketing executive into one of country’s best known advocates for missing children† (Thomas, 2008). In this paper, the initial legislative policy signed into law by President George W. Bush and the current policy addition initiative sought by Mr. Walsh is examined. The Scope of the Initiative With the signing of the initial policy by President Bush in 2006, the Adam Walsh Child Protection and Safety Act became law. Aforementioned, the policy directive was to enact tougher laws on child predators however; the policy contains two additional provisions that would violate states’ rights and state policy’s currently in place for adoptive, foster, and relative caregivers. The two provisions contained in the Adam Walsh law are to follow. 1. Modified existing requirements for conducting criminal background checks 2. Created a new requirement to conduct child abuse registry checks of prospective foster and adoptive parents. (Miller, 2007) The policy provisions left the states the discretion of choosing placement however, if those in the household filing for adoption or fostering of the child did not pass the background checks, the federal funding would not be approved. Those in opposition of the provision above were such because the wording of the provision seemingly protected the federal government instead of the child. The popular point of the second provision remains unopposed. â€Å"In addition, they cannot draw down funds for a child placed in a foster or adoptive home where the child abuse and neglect registry check is not  conducted within that State, or requested of another State as required under the new law† (Miller, 2007) One would think the second of the two provisions to the 2006 law would be automatically assumed however, this particular law would come to face even more provisional changes its future. Issues Presented for Provisionary Inclusion Sex Offender Registration Act (SORNA) The Adam Wals h act has several other provisions including Title I, the Sex Offender Registration and Notification Act or (â€Å"SORNA†). Under this portion SORNA â€Å"established a new federal sex offender registration framework and SORNA made two major changes to federal sex offender registration policy† (Morse, 2009). This portion of the act is currently in question for the following reasons: 1. Subsection (1) provides registration requires persons convicted of a sex crime under either federal or state law to register. 2. Section 16913provides that a sex offender must register and keep the registration current in each jurisdiction where he or she resides, is an employee, or is a student. (Morse, 2009). Two provisions of the act violate principles of federalism: 1. A provision providing for the civil commitment of sexually violent predators, and a provision creating a new federal â€Å"failure to register† crime for federal sex offenders. 2. Section 4248 authorizes the federal government to initiate civil commitment proceedings against three categories of individuals: (a) Persons in the custody of the Bureau of Prisons (â€Å"BOP†), the federal agency responsible for the custody and care of federal offenders (b) Persons committed to the custody of the United States Attorney General based on incompetence to stand trial Persons against whom all criminal charges have been dismissed solely due to their mental condition (Morse, 2009). Thus, Morse cites the following as challenges to the Adam Walsh act and questions the validity of the act for these reasons: Both provisions target people based on their former federal convictions and impose additional restrictions on them despite the fact that they have completed their federal sentences. Neither provision contains a jurisdictional hook. In sum, both the civil commitment provision and the failure to register provision implicate the question of whether legal federal custody over a person may, without more, serve as the basis of future federal jurisdiction over that person (Morse, 2009). Citing the implications above Congress is considering an impending change to the provisions in the Walsh act that would remove all question of misinterpretation of wording These impending changes would ensure that no violations of civil rights, state rights or federalism are contained therein. Also, â€Å"One scholar has argued the wording of  § 2250(a) (2) (B) is not sufficiently tailored to support SORNA’s constitutionality under the Commerce Clause† (Morse, 2009). According to the Legal Dictionary, the Commerce Clause is defined as â€Å"The provision of the U. S. Constitution that gives Congress exclusive power over trade activities among the states and with foreign countries and Indian tribe†. The aforementioned obviously pertains to the location of the registered offender, and that he or she must register regardless of where they are, if they are a student, on a tribal reservation, or in a foreign country. This as mentioned in the cited Morse document, coincides with what Morse goes on to say in regard to the regulation of criminal activity. Morse states â€Å"Because the regulating criminal activity is primarily the responsibility of the states, many scholars perceive the rapid expansion of the federal criminal law as clashing with federalism values† (Morse, 2009). To date the original funding of all aspects of the Adam Walsh Act is still in place and is to be revisited and potentially revised in 2014. Those who declare portions of the act unconstitutional, such as in Morse’s report cited, now have the opportunity to voice concerns and suggestions. Conclusion The Adam Walsh Act while regulatory and legislative, still requires changes before all parties affected stand united in approval. Whereas Congress could use its spending power to encourage state compliance, not all states would view this as constitutional. There is much to do concerning this act, but the outcome is unpredictable. Current filings to repeal or revise the entire Adam Walsh Act exist such as by Citizens for Change in America, represented by Michael R. Handler. The repeal document cites the AWA as being draconian and going against Due Process and the Bail Reform Act of 1984. Only time will prove the Adam Walsh Act is successful as currently written, but undoubtedly there are changes to come with such opposition and reasoning. Works Cited Miller, J. L. (2007, April). Adam Walsh Child Protection and Safety Act of 2006: Issues for Child Welfare Agencies. ChildFocus. Morse, R. (2009, December 1). Federalism Challenges to the Adam Walsh Act. Boston University Law Review, Vol. 89, p. 1753. Thomas, P. (2008, December 17). No ‘Closure’ for Walshes in Son’s Murder Case. Retrieved from ABC Good Morning America: http://abcnews. go. com/GMA/story? id=6478540;page=1

Vampirism in the Fall of the House of Usher

Bethany Risinger English 2341. 02 Dr. Watson September 20, 2011 Vampirism in â€Å"The Fall of the House of Usher† The theme of vampirism occurs several times throughout â€Å"The Fall of the House of Usher† written by Edgar Allen Poe. He shows this theme through many actions of the characters and his use of diction. The three main paths of discovering the vampire theme is to closely examine three important instruments within the story. The three instruments used include Roderick Usher, Madeline Usher, and the House that the two live in.Roderick Usher is used by Poe to demonstrate the vampire theme in two ways. In the launch of the short story, Roderick is described with both physical and mental strangeness. His physical being is characterized as â€Å"terribly altered† (152), having a Hebrew nose, and with a ghoulish color of skin. These descriptions do not give an array of a normal human being. Edgar Allen Poe even writes that the narrator â€Å"couldn’ t connect it’s arabesque expression with any idea of simple humanity† (152). There is obviously something wrong with Roderick physically to where he did not look like a human.These physical alterations are symbolisms for a vampire figure. Hebrew noses are known to be rather large and pointed downward, giving us the imagery of Dracula, a widely known vampire, who is described as ghoulish looking and with a long, pointed nose. This facial feature, along with the pale albino-like skin color can give us the mental image of a vampire. Although Roderick’s physical features are important examples of the vampire theme, his mental unstableness is of more importance to this theme.His thoughts and views of things that happen make the idea of vampirism more evident. Roderick mentions that there is an extreme sense of terror and superstition apparent in the house, in the events that were happening, and in ones soon to happen. He is filled with hysteria along with nervous agit ation and a mental disorder. When Roderick mentions that â€Å"sooner or later (he will) abandon life and reason all together† (153), he suggests that his life will soon come to an end.His life coming to an end could mean that he will die, but looking through the vampire lens, it could mean that he would soon become immortal (abandoning reason). Madeline Usher, Roderick’s sister, is a very important example of the vampire theme in this story as well. Although she is seldom seen, only 3 times, she is a very important part of the plot and of the vampire theme in â€Å"The Fall of the House of Usher. † Throughout the story she is secretly referred to as the terror described by Roderick and the narrator.When the narrator watches Madeline disappear in her retreat, he is filled with a state of mental numbness, hinting that she was a terrorizing scene. Ironically, the period of the most vampiristic quality is when Madeline dies. When she dies, the two men, Roderick and the narrator, put her in a coffin and then in a locked away donjon (dungeon). The importance of this part, is that the two guys not only put her in the coffin, but they screw the lid on and lock the large door to the tomb as if to keep her from escaping.If she were dead, she wouldn’t try to escape, so why bolt everything up? Only if they were burying the undead (hint) would they feel the need to secure everything to where she could not get out. Another way that Madeline is an example of vampirism is when she comes back alive, which we later find out she was never dead, she escapes the coffin and tomb and comes forth to the two men and she â€Å"bore him (Roderick) to the floor a corpse, and a victim to the terrors he had anticipated† (161).In the vampiristic view of this particular scene, it could be suggested that the terrors Roderick spoke of were of Madeline being a vampire and of her hunt to make himself a vampire as well. This might be the reason that Roderick in vites his friend, the narrator, to come visit. Roderick probably thought that they two could defeat Madeline and overcome the terror that would ultimately consume Roderick. One last validation that makes â€Å"The Fall of the House of Usher† have a vampiristic theme is the fact that the house itself has a vampire feel to it as well.The structure is defined as gothic, large, and lofty. When images of a vampire-inhabited house, one thinks of a large, dark, spooky place. Not only does the house have an appearance of a vampire, it has the power to suck the life out of people as well (metaphorically speaking). At the very beginning when the author is first describing the house, he already has a sense of uneasiness about himself. He states that there is a â€Å"utter depression of the soul† (149) and does not feel at ease anymore.After entering the house and staying with Roderick for a few days, it becomes apparent that the narrator is getting more and more apprehension to t he house and its inhabitants. Staying in the house with Roderick affected his mental awareness to a lot of things. He begins to hear the same noises that Roderick has head and becomes very engulfed with terror, just as his friend Roderick is. The house is a symbol for vampirism because it sucks the normality of the narrator’s thoughts and feelings out and inserted those of Roderick’s.The vampiristic theme in â€Å"The Fall of the House of Usher† is a very easy one to pick out, one just has to read the story in a different way than before. To a person reading it plainly, they might not catch the little things that could hint to vampirism. For example, the blood-red moon described at the end could just be the color or the moon on a random night, but for a person reading the story in a vampiristic viewpoint, they can see that blood-red includes the word â€Å"blood† which is the main focuses in vampirism. Vampires suck blood.

Body Image Of The World

Media affects body image Body image is an idiosyncratic picture of one 's own physical appearance established both by self-observation and by observing the reactions of others. Whether it may be a magazine cover, commercial or the internet, the media 's false portrayal of perfection greatly impacts children and young adults. The media glorifies models and celebrities as figures of a higher standard, as icons of beauty and youth. Media features female models with tall, slender body types and male†¦ Body Image When I hear the word body image I began to shrink inside. I have never really been comfortable in my own skin. As a child I was my own worst critic; I hated the color of my skin, my weight, to my hair. As a child my relatives would always say I was dark. So, I hated my skin color. I always wanted to be lighter because it seemed that light-skinned girls my age that were light skinned were able to get whatever they wanted. From the time I was a little girl I told myself I would get†¦ conditioned to believe that our bodies are flawed. Projected by the media consumed, fashion modeled during Fashion Week, or critics online, the message is clear: we commit the crime of imperfection simply by existing. Society shames us for this, for not fitting into the unrealistic mold cast upon us. One of the primary sources of this is body shaming, which is simply defined as â€Å"shaming someone for their particular body type†. Living in the 21st Century, anyone can be subjected to body shaming. However, the†¦ a clear definition of abs. Long hair with curls that look like a picture perfect image on a magazine. That’s what an â€Å"ideal† body type is. Flawlessly beautiful. As a 5’0 muscular girl, body image has always something that been a traumatic issue for myself. Always feeling ashamed for the body that I have. Body image has been a road block of trying to fix myself, or to free the bottled up insecurities to accept the body, I have. Sometimes it can be the simplest of questions that can be the hardest to†¦ The impact of brands on body image Discuss the ways in which the idea of ‘Body Image’ is created through advertising and brand promotion. How is this reinforced by celebrity promotion? What potential damage can be done by certain Body Image prototypes? Are there examples of positive body image in advertising and branding? The area of research will be focussing on is an issue which has plagued the fashion conscious world for decades. The issue of body image, especially on women, and the impact advertising†¦ Sheppard Ads today draw us into the television with enticing, edgy images depicting women and men in sexualizing roles. However, women are repeatedly used as sexual appeals to promote the good of a product, but is the aim really to promote the product or the idea of gender roles in society? Society promotes that women should be the one to stay home and take care of their husbands to please them, so they create a visual image for men as to how they should treat their woman and how their woman should†¦ Body Image The perfect body is something that every person wants but very few posses. Many people will do just about anything to either fit in with their community or cover up their insecurities. Women are clearly more obsess with obtaining the perfect body more than men. From an adolescent’s viewpoint, a particular body image can be particularly dangerous because it can lead to a physiological obsession, eating disorders, and physical health consequences (Berger, 2014). Adolescents can become†¦ Fake Perfection Like snowflakes there is no one person who looks the same in the world. Even identical twins have a small difference that you would be able to tell them apart. What makes every person individually unique is our physical traitsÍ ¾ however, things like the internet, the social media, and television says otherwise. According to the media, every man must be handsome and muscular, and every woman must be fit and beautiful. An easy access to such technologies make it easier for people†¦ Perfect Body With an alarming 50 percent of 3-to-6 year old girls worrying about their weight, it makes you wonder, what are we doing wrong? (Hanes). If I were to ask you, what do you consider the perfect body, how would you respond? Most girls would reply: thin body, skinny waist, and big breasts. In today’s society, the media controls all aspects of our lives. From popular Smartphone applications such as Instagram, Twitter, and Tumblr to advertisements and movies, the media has managed to distort†¦ Mistura Olawore Shailen Mishra Final Draft 13 April 2015 Body Image and the Demand for Beauty in our Society In almost every advertisement today regarding a female, her image is tweaked, airbrushed, and cropped. Minimizing her waist, enlarging her features, raising her eyebrows, pronouncing her cheekbones, and airbrushing her skin are one of the many examples of how a woman’s image can be altered. The images of these perfect looking women are being placed in many advertisements. Young girls see†¦

Change Stages and Strategies in Popular Culture Essay

Change Stages and Strategies in Popular Culture - Essay Example In the case of the jilted lover, he/she must give up his/her identity as one half of a romantic relationship, and must resume his/her identity as an individual. Sheryl Crow's song "My Favorite Mistake" presents the case of a woman who knows that her relationship with her lover is at an ending point. She tells her lover, "I woke up and called this morning. The tone of your voice was a warning that you don't care for me anymore" (Crow). She goes on to say how all of this man's friends know about his "secret lover," and they pity her for holding on the way she is (Crow). She even admits that she knows she is wrong for staying in a relationship with a man who doesn't love her. She calls him her "favorite mistake," but she concludes that she will continue to stay with him because "maybe nothin' lasts forever, even when you stay together. I don't need forever after. It's your laughter won't let me go, so I'm holding on this way" (Crow). The woman in this song is stubbornly holding on to a relationship that she knows is bad for her, and possibly even bad for her lover; however, she is not willing to accept the end of their relationship. She knows that she should let go, and she should go on with her life and let her lover go on with his so that he won't have to try to pretend he adores her, but she is hesitant to make that first step.

Answer and summarize Management HR Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Answer and summarize Management HR - Essay Example This alignment is to align HR function with business strategy, understand the various aspects of the business and familiarizing with the challenges encountered by leaders so that the various issues can be tackled from both employees and the leader’s perspective. A strategic partner determines the business strategy and oversees the implementation of such strategies. It is imperative to involve key executive leaders and to develop a good team rapport while coming up with HR policy guidelines and strategies, which are very crucial in guiding the organization. In business, the customer is usually the primary concern. To satisfy the customer, the HR head should ensure that the employees are made to feel at home. When employees are happy, customers are also happy. While there may be a success in some organizations with regard to human resource management, in others it remains very elusive. HR is more about understanding the needs of the business and acting with these needs at heart. There should always be contact with the rest of the company to ensure ease of doing business. From a team standpoint, specialization coupled with hard work, enthusiasm, consistency and diligence are of core importance. Strategic partnership with an inclination towards the people element put people first, with the key being retention and development. Long-term forecast is usually desirable, and the agility of the company can make it reap handsome returns faster. Synchronized teamwork is necessary especially in light of changing functions that may occasioned by downsizing. The employees are greatly helped by assisting them in ranking growing responsibilities. An open door policy style of management is attractive. The manager leaves the door â€Å"open† to foster transparency and frankness with employees of the company. In order to encourage performance, the company motivates employees by paying or rewarding

Equal employment opportunity laws affecting Essay

Equal employment opportunity laws affecting - Essay Example ights of the workers in any firm in order to ensure that there is a conducive working environment and for that, every person is entitled to equal employment (Lorna, 1968). Many people are denied the chance of getting a job due to various issues like race, gender, religion, age difference, women pregnancies, and also the national origin. As a result, the civil rights acts comes in to help workers from being discriminated. So the employers in this case are supposed to treat all the job applicants and also the working employees the same and not discriminate them with regard to their differences like, race, religion e.t.c. (Kateri, 2007). All employees are entitled to their right pay. For example in US, the fair labor standards act established a minimum wage for the worker. For instance, in July 2010, the minimum wage for all the employees as well as the job seekers was $6.55. All the employers in this case abided to this new law hence you find that all male and female employees are given the right pay due for their input. (Kateri, 2007). This is another law which applies to all people with disabilities in America. You find that many people are discriminated due to their disabilities irrespective of their many credentials in many fields. ADA ensures that any employer or any potential employer cannot discriminate any citizen from getting a job, promotion any good pay on the basis of their disabilities. So, this ensures that all job seekers and the employees have equal employment opportunities. (Kateri, 2007). This law Act ensures that in any employment opportunity, a job seeker cannot be denied a chance due to age differences. This Act tries to prohibit the potential employers from discriminating the job applicants on the basis of their age differences. Pregnancy discrimination Act also prohibits any potential employer from discriminating pregnant women from getting jobs. It ensures that everybody has the right to any job (Lorna, 1968). Equal employment opportunity

Relevance of Clinical Care in Nursing Research Paper

Relevance of Clinical Care in Nursing - Research Paper Example The basic idea is to get involved in community services without expecting any reward. The idea is to serve the community and people by taking care of their needs. Extracurricular activities include taking time out of the normal routine and devoting much of time in community services to learn ways of serving others in a compassionate manner. This also requires leadership attributes as dealing with people and serving them comes under little guidance and individuals needs to decide the mode of interaction, behaviour and mannerism often requiring a participating and compassionate approach. Moreover, students are guided by people having prior experience in serving the community and thus there is ample scope to learn from the leaders to become leaders. The most significant experience can be of realising the fact that serving others offers great happiness that is unmatchable. The very idea of bringing smiles over the faces of others can be considered as the most significant experience and a chievement. Achievements show dedication and reward but in my case; being compassionate and dedicated reaped all achievements along with offering rewards in the form of priceless smiles and gratitude. I personally believe that nothing can beat this particular experience in terms of contentment. At times, serving the community exposes oneself to learn and the elements of risk are quite negligible. From an early age, I was fascinated to see doctors and their approach while serving others by curing them and bringing smiles on their faces. This created a profound impression over my mind along with making me think that serving the community and people is the real bliss. As a community care extender, my role will be to act as a volunteer in any hospital. This will help me in learning the intricacies of people and service management. With the primary goal of becoming a nurse, the role of community care extender will help in having a profound idea over how things are managed in hospital and how patients are managed and cared. As an intern, I will be receiving training in patient care that will be further utilised in my professional career. Overall, it can be said that the role of clinical care extender will assist me in meeting my career goals along with offering me a chance to evaluate my skills and attributes in a clear and precise manner. The core value of an internship is to follow the goals and objectives of the organisation along with devoting oneself in a selfless manner. The prime objective is to take care of patients along with learning new things by being active and zealous. At the same time, it is important to be honest, transparent and ethical in approach while initiating and completing tasks and responsibilities. Being an intern, it is very much evident that one has to assist the organisation in accomplishing its goals and objectives. In hospitals, it is important to have a compassionate and ethical approach in order to serve people and their needs. If I get selected as an intern, I will be ethical and honest in my approach. In last few years, I have learnt that ethics, honesty and transparency show the character of an individual and speak on his behalf. I will carry forward with this mindset along with embracing the legacy and objectives of the organisation to empower myself as a human being.

Accessing External Finance for SMEs Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2250 words

Accessing External Finance for SMEs - Essay Example This essay stresses that Entrepreneurial Finance plays a significant role in helping managers to choose better financing and investment strategies relevant to their line of business. The business sector has been growing tremendously in the recent times. This is because of prevailing affirmative business and market factors. The ever-growing technological advancements, population, and economy has provided the requisite labor of production and increased the demand for the finished products. As a result, diverse businesses have come up to supply the needs of the demanding citizens in our economy. While some businesses are well-established entrepreneurs, most of them are small and medium sized enterprises that face many challenges in starting up, financing, management, and market competition. This paper makes a conclusion that there is evidence of information and control limitations in financial markets especially in the process of seeking debt financing. There is significant credit rationing procedure that denies borrowers a chance to borrow all they want, or to borrow at all. However, many entrepreneurs have been seeking debt finance for the startup, expansion and the running of the enterprise by selling the bonds, bills, notes, debentures, or mortgages held by the business. Entrepreneurs use debentures to raise capital without selling the enterprise, giving up future profits, or having to use their assets.

Pancreatitis Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Pancreatitis - Essay Example In serious cases, acute pancreatitis leads to bleeding into glands as well as tissue damage. It leads also not only to cyst formation, but also to infection. Severe pancreatitis has also the potential of harming other essential organs like the heart, kidneys and lungs. According to Digestive Disorders Health Center, â€Å"chronic pancreatitis is long-lasting inflammation of the pancreas† (Digestive Disorders Health Center 1). In most occasions it results from acute pancreatitis. Heavy consumption of alcohol has also been associated with its causation. Damage to the pancreas as a result of heavy consumption of alcohol occasionally leads to no symptoms for many years. However, the victim of heavy consumption of alcohol may develop serious pancreatic symptoms. Symptoms of acute pancreatitis include nausea and vomiting, fever, and increased heart rate. The disease also leads to upper abdominal pain that spreads to the back as well as swollen and tender abdomen. The symptoms of chronic pancreatitis include all symptoms of acute pancreatitis in addition to weight loss as a result of malabsorption and diabetes if the cells involved in producing insulin are destroyed (Buchler 108). Treatment for acute pancreatitis obliges one to spend some days in hospital in order to access intravenous (IV) fluids, medication for relieving pain, and antibiotics. During the healing process, an individual is required not to eat in order to allow the pancreas to rest. Performance of Therapeutic Endoscopic Retrograde Cholangiopancreatography aid in the healing of chronic pancreatitis; it enhances the admission of sphincterotomy, gallstone removal, stent placement, and balloon

United States trade policies and their effect on the automotive Essay

United States trade policies and their effect on the automotive industry - Essay Example The desolate outlook for the United States' auto industry comes as no surprise for most everybody.In the beginning of 2006 Ford Motor Company and General Motors, two of the "Big Three" automakers, announced staggering layoffs in the tens of thousands and debilitating year over year losses in the billions of dollars. In addition to these layoffs, both General Motors and Ford have planned for multiple plant closures and the selling off of controlling shares of assets or subsidiaries in their ongoing struggle toward profitability. These announcements come as a blow to the tenuous economic recovery of the United States.The recent trends regarding the economic recovery of the United States remains slow but promising. According to Employment Situations published by the U.S. Bureau of Labor and Statistics, the current average unemployment rate for the United States is 4.7%, (2006). The effect the impending massive job loss in the automotive industry will have on the unemployment rate and th e overall health of the nation's economy is uncertain.In the four years between 2000 and 2003, an estimated 5.2 million people lost their jobs. Over 2 million of those lost jobs were in the manufacturing industry ("Employment Situation," 2006). The cause for the ongoing decline in America's auto industry are many and range from increasing fuel prices and the growth of the global economy to poor product design and increased foreign competition. Although all of these issues are contributing factors in the decline of the American auto industry, none are as contentiously argued as issues of United States trade policies. According to Section 2102 Congressional Statement of Purpose on trade, there are 6 defining factors to U.S. Trade agreements (2003): To foster economic growth. Reduce or eliminate trade barriers. Trade 2 The establishment of fair and equal international trade. Provide protection of American industry and labor against "injurious" import competitions. To open market oppoutunites for U.S. commerce in non-market economies. To provide "reasonable" access of products too less developed countries or nations. In the process of attaining these goals U.S. trade polices have drawn harsh criticisms due to the nations' 2005 trade deficit in manufactured goods of $726 billion and to the apparent effect they have on the U.S. economy, its' labor force and worker rights and wages (Scott 2006). As the trade deficit in manufactured goods continues to rise, so too does the loss of jobs in the manufacturing industry. The United States finds itself unable to compete with low labor and production costs in foreign countries. For automakers such as Ford and General Motors, this has lead to the movement of production plants to outside the U.S. as well as the massive volumes of lay offs the industry is currently experiencing. The autoworkers that have been fortunate enough to retain their jobs face the issue of the downward pressure on wages and benefits that is caused by the rising trade deficit and the lower labor costs in foreign countries. Currently, the cost of labor in Mexico is the lowest of any developed nation (Bernard). Labor costs are one of, if not the number one, highest expense of any corporation. While moving U.S. production plants to Mexico creates jobs, increases the standard of living and stimulates the economy for that country, the U.S. labor force cannot compete with these low wages and benefits and therefore, lose bargaining power. The loss of bargaining power is exacerbated by the low level of government enforcement of labor laws in some foreign countries. In the United States this loss of bargaining power often results in the acceptance of lower wages and cuts to benefits and pension programs by U.S employees. Trade 3 While jobs are being exported to foreign countries such as Mexico, auto parts are being imported to the United States at an increasing rate. In 2004, the United States imported $77 billion

The Effect of Poor Lightning Condition on Spelling Performance in 3rd Year Psychology Students Essay Example for Free

The Effect of Poor Lightning Condition on Spelling Performance in 3rd Year Psychology Students Essay The study was conducted to assess the disruption of cognitive performance such as spelling proficiency in a classroom with poor lighting condition. The participants were 31 students, who participated for course credit. It was hypothesized that participants undergoing the spelling test with poor lighting would report low results. The result of the mean is 4. 87 while the standard deviation resulted to 1. 91. We conclude that the results indicated that cognitive process such as vocabulary usage is greatly affected by poor lighting condition and is an affective instrument for determining how the subjects will respond to the given situation. The Effect of Poor Lightning Condition on Spelling Performance In 3rd year Psychology Students Vision is the ability of the brain and eye to detect electromagnetic waves within the visible range of light that makes them interpret this image as sight. Humans are a diurnal species (active in daytime) usually exposed to light while engaged in cognitive tasks. Light not only guides performance on these tasks through vision but also exerts non-visual effects that are mediated (Vandewalle, Maquet Dijk, 2009). People also can easily determine which changes in darkness and lightness are due to the physical properties f objects and the changes in illumination (Goldstein, 2008). The same research conducted by Vandewalle et al. (2009) also demonstrated that recent advancement studies ion vision which demonstrates that the wavelength, duration and intensity of light exposure adjust brain responses to (non-visual) cognitive tasks and adapts to different conditions. A similar study entitled â€Å"daylighting impacts on human performance in school† was conducted by Heschong, Wright Okura (2002) which aims to demonstrate a clear relationship between the presence of daylight and human performance. In humans, light enhances both alertness and performance during nighttime and daytime and influences regional brain function (Vandewalle Balteau, 2006). The results of these researches suggest that the adjustment of cognitive process and performance can vary to those people who are experiencing it with different and changing lighting condition as to support the claims of Makihara, Takizawa, Shirai Shimada (2007). Much of the studies conducted came with the conclusion that the more there is light, cognitive performance is absolute. In contrast, Landsberger (1955) found out in a study conducted by Hawthorne works that the workers’ productivity seemed to improve when changes were made and slumped when the study was concluded. Landsberger (1955) suggested that the productivity gain was due to the motivational effect of the interest being shown in them. However, it does not permit conclusions to be drawn about whether the lighting condition caused reductions in performance or was just a consequence of motivational effect in them (Simonson Brozek, 1948). In terms of effectiveness of lighting condition in increasing or reducing the performance of the subjects, the low lighting in the workplace may suggest that some of the subjects were just motivated in improving their performance to compete or may have been another case of demoralization. These drawn conclusions may suggest that this study is not that highly validated, thus, making it not that reliable also. The present study was an attempt to assess the disruption of cognitive performance, such as spelling proficiency in a classroom setting with no lighting. And the relationship of lighting and visual performance (Rea, 1992). Based on past experimental research on light as a modulator of cognitive brain function by Vandewalle et al. (2009) and related research on the effects of light exposure to brain responses (H. M. Parsons, 1974), it was expected that participants will end up with low scores in the spelling test due to low level of lighting. Method Participants Participants were 15 male and 16 female undergraduate students who attended San Beda College in Manila. The examiner used total enumeration in determining the participants. Total enumeration is selecting all members of the population without randomization. Apparatus The setting of the experiment was in classroom. It is of average size and the lighting is good. The room is also well ventilated. Then the participants were being ready for a spelling quiz. Instrument Participants were instructed to spell out the words given by the test instructor. The highest possible score on the test was 10. Design This experiment was a one-shot case design that is a type of pre-experimental design where a single group of test units is exposed to an experimental treatment and a single measurement is taken afterwards (Babylon, 2009) wherein the participants spelled in poor lighting and then the results was taken afterwards. Procedure The experimenter told the participants to prepare a paper for a spelling test. Then they proceeded with the experiment which is to spell words with the lights turned off. After the spelling quiz was done, the experimenter then opened the lights and then the results of the tests were checked. Results  The effect of poor lighting condition on spelling performance was assessed by finding the mean and standard deviation of the statistical data. The mean resulted to 4. 87 while having a standard deviation of 1. 91. Discussion The result of this study demonstrated that lighting condition greatly affects the cognitive performance of the students. As expected, majority of the participants garnered low scores during the unlighted spelling tests. Past research suggests that lighting conditions affects cognitive processes that tend to focus on how people would respond to that kind of situation (Vandewalle Balteau, 2006). The results of the present study support it because it demonstrates the validation of the past research and thus making it also reliable. In contrast to the study conducted by Landsberger (1955), which implies that the performance varies to the individual regardless of lighting condition, the results of the present study refute this idea. The results basically tell us that having the spelling test on unlighted condition will cause a poor cognitive performance. Although the hypothesis in this study was supported, the study has a limitation. No controls were taken to ensure that lighting condition experiment could occur into two experimental conditions. It is only a one-shot case study making it less dependable in stating whether a change in the outcome or dependent variable has taken place. In conclusion, the findings of this study are consistent with the claim of researchers such as (Vandewalle, Maquet Dijk, 2009) that light not only guides performance on these tasks through vision but also exerts non-visual effects that affects the human cognition. Light really enhances both alertness and performance during nighttime and daytime as the claims of the study of Heschong et al. (2002) states that daylighting impacts human performance in school. Lighting condition plays a large role in cognition not just only by giving us vision or sight as to go on with perception but also the scientific discovery that light exposure dynamically enhances brain responses.

Poverty and American Humane Association Essay Example for Free

Poverty and American Humane Association Essay You see it in movies, books, and even real life. The cycle of poverty is an endless cycle that entraps those who have become its victims. Poverty has become one of the largest troubles within America today. It repeats the questions of fear, like, whether or not you will have food on the table? Will I be able to pay the mortgage for the house? How can I pay for my child’s doctor visits if their sick? Families who fall into poverty cycle are usually never able to recover, but there are a select few who find a way to strive and leave its menacing hands, through education. There are kids just like you and me, who are living in conditions unimaginable and have to deal with it almost their whole life. Many people fall to poverty because of the loss of a job, expenses, wages, incomes, and other such money problems, but through the success in education they can prevent this from happening. Poverty has become a universal flaw in both our country and many others. Education is one of the possible reasons why people fall into poverty, because many who do not have an education or a high school diploma usually will cause themselves and their families to fall into poverty. According to roastedpinebark at hubpages. com, people in the U. S who have a high school diploma will have a more likely chance of receiving at least $40,000 yearly salary paying job while those who are dropouts would receive a $20,000-$16,000 yearly salary job. This may sound like a lot of money for all of you but really, it’s not. If you think about it on a $20,000 yearly salary you would only receive about $1,666 a month probably barely being able to pay for mortgage for their house, not including water, electric, and gas bills too ([emailprotected] paragraph 2). That is a lot of money. What it comes down to is that a good education is a divided pathway to getting an average paying job or ending up in poverty. If a family is already in the cycle of poverty then those kids are even more likely to continue that cycle to their next generation. Three years ago in 2010, the Bureau of Labor Statistics released that â€Å"For [all] Americans without a high school diploma the unemployment rate is significantly higher than the national average at 14. %† (Employment Policies Institute). The idea of never getting out of the cycle of poverty moved me, because there can be kids just like you and me who try and try to do well in school but end up failing. According to Celia Baker on Deseret News posted on October 22, 2012 that â€Å"earning a high school diploma can help break the cycle of multi-generational poverty†(Baker paragraph 6). The reason for this is because of the lack of money, family issues, and their social life. It may not make sense as to why a child’s social life effects their education, but it’s because they do not receive the skills to develop their brains to learn or adapt. Another problem that is found through poverty is the backing of a loving and stable family. Generally I assume all of us have a warm loving family that we have the greatest times with. Some kids aren’t so lucky. When they come home from school they are sometimes abused, exposed to drugs, and some may have no family. I know that without my family I wouldn’t be able to be the person I am today. Our families give us the necessary love and attention we need to function as people. According to American Humane Association, kids in poverty are often neglected and abused because their parent or parents are aggravated with being unable to pay bills or even hold a job. It seems horrid but it’s the truth. If you think about your younger siblings or cousins, if you have any, they want a lot of attention right? I know my little sister does, and if a parent just ignores their child and neglects them it breaks their heart, so they keep trying and trying to live up to the approval of their parents only to get rejected again. According to Dr. ’s Ashlee Loughan and Robert Pern, â€Å"brain growth advances in the first 6 years of life and are further supported with high nutrition, appropriate stimulation, attention, and emotional support† (http://www. apa. org/pi/families/resources/newsletter/2012/07/neurocognitive-impacts. spx). So as you can see domestic life is very important in the early stages of life. Other research has found that the kids found in poverty are not given that nutrition, emotional support, or attention therefore they are more likely to have depression or any other psychological or mental illness. The cycle of poverty causes many problems for people; it is a chain reaction that is impossible to get out of. It affects many aspects of a person’s life and I b elieve it is one of the worst things that could happen. Many students in high school, like ourselves, are faced with the decision of staying in school or having to drop out to be able to put food on the table for their families. This is where the rates of student dropouts increases and many wonder why. Some say it’s because the kids are lazy and don’t care about school, but only a few percentage of them are like that. The other percentage of students who drop out of school that live in poverty, make the decision to get a job just to be able to make sure their family gets food on the table, or even keep the place they currently live in. Nowadays, you teenagers, even me, we take it for granted that we have a home to live in, food to eat every day, a bed to sleep in, and all of those things are just something we expect to be there; and for some it is not the case. Studies shown by Chris Isidore proved that those kids who leave school to take on jobs are more likely to become the 20% of adults who earn the bare minimum under a full time job which is $10. 65 at a minimum wage of $7. 45 (Isidore paragraph 2 3). The topic of poverty is sometimes an overlooked topic among students, I believe that it is one that should be more paid attention to; and I believe that there should be a lot more relief efforts to get people out of it. I hope today, that this speech has changed you mind on the topic of poverty and moved you to want to try and help. If so check out to learn more about how you can help stop poverty and get involved in creating a better world (www. peopleagainstpoverty. com). Known to many officials even the President, poverty, is a virus in America that cannot be ridded of until it is right medicine. To help prevent the beginning of epidemics like these from spreading, I suggest you become a good parent when you are an adult, help guide you children, acknowledge their mistakes, help them learn from it, and to create or join any clubs that de-motivate the dropping out of school. Traits such as these will allow your children to strive to do well in school forming a better future for them-selves. To learn more about how to prevent teens and children from going into poverty go to this link and scroll down to the subheading â€Å"What Can We Do? †

Analysis of StratSim

Analysis of StratSim The StratSim is a growing and a wider spread industry around the global among the automobile sellers. Notwithstanding the economic and energy instabilities, that led to decreased vehicle demand, sales revenues strongly increased as Gross Domestic Products (GDP) increase from period 1- 4, and remains constant in period 5, and inflation rate decreased from 2.5% period 1 to 1.0% in period 3. However, in some circumstances, sales were increased and/or decreased since firms started making decisions. These 7 competitors were; firm A, firm B, firm C, firm D, firm E, firm F and firm G. In StratSim, there are 7 vehicle classes; Minivan (M), Family (F), Sports (S), Luxury (L), Utility (U) Economy (E), and Truck (T). Vehicle attributes being; performance, styling, quality, interior and safety. Furthermore, advertisement plays a significant role especially when firms striving to create brand image, awareness as well as interests to target customers. Dealerships contributed in generating revenues through sales of ranges of vehicles which in turn enabled the firm to increase its market share while maximising shareholders wealth. Firm B has had 3 vehicle classes; Boss -Truck Boffo Family and Buzzy Economy. 2.0 Strategic Analysis According to (Johnson et al, 2006, p 9), strategy is the direction and scope of an organisation over the long term, which achieves advantage in a changing environment through the use of resources and competence with the aim of fulfilling shareholder expectations. Figure 1. Processes by which strategy is described and executed. Source:http://www.12manage.com/description-deliberate-strategy.html. In a competitive business environment such as StratSim, analysing firms strategies is vital in order to enhance performance and customer satisfaction. 2.1 Firm Bs Strategic Intent Firm Bs mission was to become the leader in automobile industry worldwide by offering highly innovative vehicles to diverse customer segments that will consistently satisfy their dynamic needs. 2.2 Objectives 2.3 Basic Strategy Our strategy was to provide good quality vehicles at premium price trying to differentiate our vehicles from incumbents while avoiding price war from our competitors. By doing so, we became the leader twice in economy (Buzzy) car, period 2 and 5. To meet diverse customer taste and preferences, we made minor upgrades to our vehicles during decision periods, e.g. technology, promotion, advertising, etc. 2.4 External Analysis Scanning the macro-environment is vital since there are several factors that hinder firms performance and growth. In order for managers to come up with effective and suitable strategies that will enable the firm exploit overt and hidden opportunities while overcoming threats, those factors need to be thoroughly tackled before decisions are made. The external analysis comprises; The Michael Porters five forces. PESTEL analysis. Opportunities and Threats (OT) from SWOT analysis, And Critical Success Factors (CSF). 2.4.1 PESTEL framework PESTEL framework is a useful tool that is used by organisations to analyse the complexity of macro-environment variables. It also provides a picture on how these key factors may influence firms success or failure of its particular strategies in future, so that managers can find ways of overcoming. PESTEL refers to; political, economic, social, technology, environment and legal. Figure 2 the PESTEL Framework Source: (Johnson et al, 2006. p 68) The Organisation Political Taxation policy Government stability Social welfare policies Foreign trade regulations Legal Health and safety Competition law Product safety Employment law Economic factors Business cycle Inflation Interest rates Unemployment GNP trends Money supply Disposable income Environmental Environmental protection laws Waste disposal Energy consumption Sociocultural factors Population Demographic Socio mobility Consumerism Income Distribution Lifestyle changes Level of Education Attitudes to work and leisure Technological Government spending on research Speed of technology transfer New discoveries/developments Government and industry focus on technological effort Rates of obsolescence Political/Legal Since 1960, laws and government regulations have affected the automotive industry (Highfill et al, November, 2004). Political changes may favour or hinder the firms production since anti-pollution laws and taxes may be imposed, so, firm B should continuously pay special attention to any rules, codes and regulations regarding carbon-dioxide emissions. Economic During simulation, firm B had experienced unstable economic growth. Its variables like inflation, interest rates, gas prices, and material costs were fluctuated, these have affected firm profitability. Social Due to increased health awareness, people tend to change their lifestyles, while turning to low-emission vehicles, also income distribution and demographic population both affect vehicle production either positively or negatively. Technology Rapid change in technology has provided both opportunities and threats to the automotive industry. Those who employ it effectively, it facilitates them in enhancing firms efficiency by producing vehicles that appeal to customers whilst lowers costs. So far, internet and firm websites as part of technology have been used by many buyers as a reference tool before making purchases decisions. 2.4.2 Critical Success Factors (CSF) Johnson et al (2009) defined CSF as those product features that are particularly valued by a group of customers and, therefore, where the organisation must excels to outperform competition. CSF comprises; threshold features and differentiators. Source: Johnson et al (2009) CRITICAL SUCCESS FACTORS (CSF) THRESHOLD FEATURES DIFFERENTIATORS Threshold features These are features that customer values mostly, and they are likely not to buy a product or service that lack one among them. In StratSim industry, threshold features are; quality, performance, safety and size. Differentiators These are customised or added qualities some customers may/may not consider before purchasing a service or products. During our simulation, price, styling and interior were regarded as differentiators. In reality, differentiators have had given a difficult moment to distinguish what they prefer most, since many vehicles were similar among competitors after modifications being made during decisions. Lastly, firms should take it seriously, creative and keep innovating in these CSF in order to outwit its competitors through customer satisfaction. 2.4.3 Porters Five Forces model The 5 competitive forces model was developed by Michael Porter in 1980 (Johnson et al, 2006). Since then, the model is used by firms as a tool to analyse the attractiveness (profit potential) while determining the intensity of competition (threats) of an industry, and finally come up with the right strategies that will support in exploiting opportunities, neutralise threats and hence grow. Figure 3 Porters Five Competitive Forces model SUPPLIER POWER Switching costs of firms in the industry Presence of substitute inputs Threat of forward integration Supplier concentration Importance of volume to supplier Impact of inputs on cost or differentiation Differentiation of inputs Cost relative to total purchase in industry BARRIERS TO ENTRY Government Policy Capital requirements Access to distribution Economies of scale Switching costs Proprietary learning curve Access to inputs Expected retaliation Brand identity Absolute cost advantages Proprietary products BUYER POWER Price sensitivity Threat of backward integration Substitutes available Bargaining leverage Buyer concentration vs industry Buyer information Buyer volume Buyers incentives Brand identity Product differentiation www.scribd.com DEGREE OF RIVALRY Brand identity Exit barriers Switching costs Product differences Industry growth Fixed cost/ value added Diversity of rivals Industry concentration Corporate stakes Intermittent overcapacity RIVALRY THREAT OF SUBSTITUTES Buyer inclination to substitute Switching costs Price-performance trade-off of substitutes Threat of New Entrants The threat of new entrants in automobile industry is low, since barriers to enter are very high, such as high amount of start-up capital required. Moreover, incumbents have; adequate experience curve, distribution access, economies of scale, strong research and development (RD) and even brand and customer loyalty. These become difficult for new entrants to manage as Incumbents can produce at mass to cover potential and existing customer needs. Bargaining Power of Suppliers Suppliers power in automobile industry is low, since producing a car/vehicle requires a range of inputs (parts) from diverse suppliers. If some inputs not found in one supplier, it is easy to switch from one supplier to another finding a substitute for the required input due to low switching costs. Threat of Substitutes Substitute threats in this industry is likely to be moderate and depends much on customer geographic location, other customers like walking, taking train or riding bike. But in Dar es Salaam city for example, people prefer public transport, motorcycles (BAJAJ known as rickshaw in India) as alternative means to automobile due to increased congestion. Bargaining Power of Buyers In this industry, buyers power is a bit high. Low switching costs from one firm to another seeking for substitutes since most of the customers are price sensitive. For the case of the simulation game we played, most of the products were undifferentiated, so that, buyers can easily shifts to an alternative producer as well as products. Competitive Rivalry The intensity of competition in automobile industry is high due to lack of differentiation strategy and innovation among incumbents especially to the three vehicle classes, i.e. family, economy and truck because most of the firm use similar strategies like price, this reduces market growth as well as profitability. 2.4.4 Opportunities and Threats Opportunities: Advanced technology Firms can use it more efficiently in enhancing product features that can appeal to the eyes of customers. Also use e-commerce to advertise and sell globally. Bargaining power of suppliers. Low supplier power is an advantages to an automobile firms since they can set input prices, and hence be able to enjoy cost advantages while offer good quality products that will satisfy customers. European Union (EU) Automobile manufacturers can use the EU to sell their products. Diversification Diversification can be done to widen the market to other untapped segments like high income earners or internationally and also locate the firms near raw materials where they can enjoy location economies. Differentiation strategy In order to sustain customers, after satisfaction is being met, differentiation strategy can be used as a weapon in delivering a range of added values that surpass those of competitors, since most of the firms use similar strategies. Threats: Bargaining power of buyers Strong bargaining power buyers associated with low switching costs to alternative products, force suppliers to an increased competition in order to provide the best that will satisfy their customers. Increased gas prices Gas being one of the operating energy, increased price will also affect firms production as well as profitability e.g. in simulation that we played, period 1 $/gal was 3.15 rise to 3.50 in period 5. New laws New rules and regulations on carbon-dioxide emissions in environmental protection hinder production of cars that use petrol engines. World economic recession Recession discourages consumption of luxury goods, and streamlines production while people turn to public transports. High competition Initially, all firms in the StratSim industry were in similar position e.g. financially and other resources; these prove difficult in making decisions on how to create demand in order to enhance market shares as well as profits. Each firm was competing. Inflation Inflation has started to increase in period 4 from 2.0% to 2.5%, this will affect consumer prices. Fuel price instability. Rapid change in technology This threatens vehicle production since other substitutes to vehicles may be produced. 2.5 Internal Analysis 2.5.1 Resources and Capabilities These are those which will create a strategic fit in order for the firm to survive and prosper even in a competitive business environment. Lucino Noto, (2007, p 125) Analyzing resources and capabilities: The interface between strategy and the firm THE FIRM Resources and Capabilities Goals and Values Structure and System STRATEGY THE INDUSTRY ENVIRONMENT Customers Competitors suppliers The firm-Strategy Interface The Environment-Strategy Interface Organisation resources are divided into two categories (Johnson et al (2009); Tangible Resources These are firms physical assets. Firm B physical assets were; Three vehicle classes, each of these represents a unique configuration while targeting different customer segments like value seekers, families, singles, high income and enterprisers (the StratSim case, 2010). Financial resources, at period 0, each firm were given sales amounted to $ 15.5 billions (the StratSim case, 2010), which enabled firm B to diversify into different segments. Manpower, firm B had 4 competent human resources who made diverse valuable decisions and hence became twice the leader of economy car (Buzzy). Intangible Resources These are non-physical resources such as; information, reputation and knowledge i.e. intellectual capital. (Johnson et al, 2008). Firm B holds a number of unique competences over its rivals. Firm B capabilities were; Quality. Safety. Performance. Style. Interior. 2.5.2 V.R.I.O Are criteria that are used to assess the sustainability of an organisation resources and capability that will enable the firm achieve durable competitive advantages. V.R.I.O stands for Value, Rarity, Inimitability and Organisation. (Johnson et al, 2008). Value As the game started, firm B had enough resources and capabilities i.e. unique brand name that facilitated it in formulating and implementing different strategies to meet customer needs. But due to increased market demand, demand exceeded production in the periods around since the firm lacked efficiency. Rareness At the beginning, all firms had similar starting point which led them to have a low degree of rarity. This positioning by StratSim made firm B to create more appealing strategies like vehicle enhancements and improvements in terms of its attributes which allowed it to come with things which turned out to be less common among the firms. Inimitability During simulation game, product imitation was very high since previous results and almost all modifications and other statistics were openly published for other firms to see. This means that competitors can possibly copy other firms techniques. Organisation In StratSim industry, there were 7 firms producing identical vehicles, because they used similar strategies, lacking differentiation. Due to these, it became easily for customers to switch from one firm to another if satisfactions have not met. 2.5.3 SWOT- SW SW is a tool that is used in identifying or analysing firms internal strengths and weaknesses and enables it to use the available strengths to minimise or turned those weaknesses to strengths. SW means Strengths and weaknesses. Strengths: Unique brand name Best Motor Works. Unique product names like Buzzy, Boffo, and Boss. Twice leader of Buzzy-Economy car, period 2 and 5. Reliable dealerships. Innovation, almost every decision period, firm B upgraded its vehicle attributes to meet emerging customer needs. Weaknesses: Weak financial position. Unstable growth of market shares. Limited product lines, this means that firm B did not exploit the available opportunities of unsatisfied and potential new customers to launch any new vehicle that will satisfy their needs. 3.0 Decisions 3.1 Technology Firm B upgraded its technology capabilities during decision periods considering dynamic business environment and customer tastes and preferences, while special attention given to economy (Buzzy) and family (Boffo) cars. Investment in technology facilitated firm B in enhancing its production capacity as well as vehicle attributes that appealed to target customers and hence satisfy their emerging needs. 3.2 Marketing Firm Bs marketing mix was to create leverage with customers and build strong brand loyalty which will enable customers purchase our products even in intense competition as in StratSim industry. Firm B unique selling price USP was quality. Quality being the key in our products while charging premium price enable Buzzy (economy) car to become the leader in period 2 and 5. Despite this success, it was hard for firm B survive in just a success of one car and become the market leader. Though the marketing mix was thoroughly applied by adding or reducing the number of dealers in each area, increasing dealer discounts and product promotions attracting customers, firm B marketing share was increased and decreased during decisions due to overspending. (For more marketing and distribution details for period 5, see appendix 1 2) 3.3 Finance During simulation, firm B financial performance was somehow poor despite a slightly increase in sales ($), net income was negative during period 2 and 5 results. We discovered that one of the problems could possibly be overspending, however, (Firm B performance summary period 5, see appendix 3). 3.4 Production In the year around, production was increased as well as vehicle attributes to meet customer demand. Though Boss (truck) and Buzzy (economy) vehicles were upgraded in period 4, there were some shortages on Boss; this means that if we were given a chance to continue making decisions, we could probably increase production to meet the demand (see appendix 4). 4.0 Conclusion Firm Bs mission was to become the leader in automotive industry offering highly innovative vehicles to different customer segments that will satisfy their emerging needs. Unfortunately, firm B did not meet its expectations. Though it became the leader twice in Buzzy (economy) car, this means that its strategies fits in economy market, having success in one vehicle does not guarantee survival, thus why firm B income and market share fluctuated. We were not pretty sure of what contributed in unstable financial performance, though we speculated that overspending was one of the problems. 4.1 What I Have Learned I learned that, in the business, taking risks is the way of success. In StratSim industry, almost each period, market research has identified some potential new customers whose needs were not yet satisfied by current vehicle (the StratSim case, 2010). But firm B overlooked to take advantage of launching new vehicle in order to exploit these opportunities and hence increase our turnover and margins due to being risk averse. 5. Reference and Bibliography: Johnson G, Scholes K, and Whittington R, (2006), Exploring Corporate Strategy, 7th Edition, Prentice Hall. Johnson G, Scholes K, and Whittington R, (2009), Exploring Corporate Strategy, Prentice Hall. Highfill D, Baki M, Copus S, Green M, Smith J and Whineland M, (November, 2004). Automotive Industry Analysis-GM, DaimlerChrysler, Toyota, Ford, Honda, overview of industry analysis, available at http://www.academicmind.com/unpublishedpapers/business/management/2004-11-000aaa-automotive-industry-analysis.html. Accessed on 19/11/1010. The StratSim Case (2010), Automobile industry. Lucino Noto, (2007), Analysing resources and capabilities: the interface between strategy and the firm, available at. http://www.blackwellpublishing.com/grant/files/CSAC05.pdf . Figure , Porters Five Forces Available at www.scribd.com/doc/16998313/Diagram-of-Porters. Accessed on 20/11/2010. 6. APPENDIXES 1. Technology Capabilities Period 5 Firm Ratings (1=low capability) Dev. Centers Interior Styling Safety Quality Max. Feasible 5 11 12 11 12 Firm A 3 4 6 4 7 Firm B 3 4 6 5 7 Firm C 2 4 7 6 6 Firm D 2 4 6 5 6 Firm E 2 6 8 6 8 Firm F 2 4 6 4 6 Firm G 3 5 8 7 9 Tech Dim Considerations Interior flexibility of cargo space Styling general curb appeal, styling, handling, finish Safety structural design, braking system, safety features Quality overall reliability, durability, consistency of products StratSim Ind:ind1 Firm:b Period 5 2. Marketing Detail Period 5 Firm B Consumer Budget (mill.) Company Owned /Fleet Budget (mill.) Regional Corp. Adv. $48 Direct Sales Force $0 Direct Mail $6 Direct Mail $0 Public Relations $12 Total $66 Total $0 Vehicle Val Mkt Share MSRP Dealer Disc. Avg Sell Price Adv. (mill.) Adv. Theme Promo. (mill.) Days Inv. Buzzy 2.4% $11,550 12.0% $10,572 $33 Quality $20 18 Boffo 9.4% $20,400 15.0% $18,749 $34 Safety $29 0 Boss 3.2% $20,499 13.0% $19,859 $28 Perform $15 0 Total $95 $64 StratSim Ind:ind1 Firm:b Period 5 2.1 Product marketing period 4 Vehicle Platform MSRP Dealer Disc. Adv. (mill.) Adv. Theme Promo. (mill.) Boffo No Change $20,400 15.0% $34 Safety $29 Boss Upgraded $20,499 13.0% $28 Perform $15 Buzzy Upgraded $11,550 12.0% $33 Quality $20 Total $95 $64 2.3 Distribution Detail Period 5 Firm B North South East West Total Full Coverage 200 250 150 200 800 Established Dealers 137 137 133 133 540 Coverage 69% 55% 89% 67% 68% Planned Openings 10 9 11 12 42 Support/Dealer (000s) $150.6 $150.6 $153.2 $153.2 $151.9 Units/Dealer 2,187 2,284 2,389 2,756 2,401 Sales/Dealer (mill.) $36.9 $38.9 $40.2 $46.3 $40.5 Service/Dealer (mill.) $1.4 $1.5 $1.6 $1.7 $1.5 Gross/Dealer (mill.) $3.3 $3.6 $3.6 $4.1 $3.7 Dealer Rating 59 60 60 61 60 StratSim Ind:ind1 Firm:b Period 5 2.4 Product Contribution Period 5 Firm B Product Contribution Vehicle Units (000s) Dealer Sales (mill.) Direct Sales (mill.) COGS (mill.) Gross Margin (mill.) Adv Promo (mills.) After Mkting (mill.) Boffo 734 $12721 $0 $9797 $2924 $63 $2861 Boss 234 $4179 $0 $3262 $916 $43 $873 Buzzy 329 $3342 $0 $3319 $24 $53 $-29 Total 1,297 $20242 $0 $16378 $3864 $159 $3705 Note: Dollar amounts are in millions. StratSim Ind:ind1 Firm:b Period 5 2.5 Vehicle Classes Period 5 Class Mfr Sales Retail Sales Unit Sales %Chg (units) Num. Veh. Leader Economy $17,296 $17,904 1,726 +5% 7 Buzzy Family $84,734 $91,128 4,816 +4% 7 Efizz Luxury $0 $0 0 NA 0 Sports $0 $0 0 NA 0 AEV $0 $0 0 NA 0 Minivan $4,950 $5,421 220 NA 1 Goofy Utility $0 $0 0 NA 0 Truck $29,506 $32,278 1,669 -1% 7 Ace Total $136,486 $146,732 8,431 +6% 22 Efizz Note: Dollar amounts are in millions, units in thousands. StratSim Ind:ind1 Firm:b Period 5 3. Performance Summary Period2- 5 Firm B Per. 2 Per. 3 Per. 4 Per. 5 Sales ($) $14,800.9 $17,418.6 $18,244.8 $20,242.1 Sales (000s units) 912 1,088 1,144 1,297 Market Share ($) 13.5% 14.9% 14.2% 14.8% Market Share (units) 13.6% 15.0% 14.4% 15.4% Net Income $-897.1 $249.1 $494.4 $-239.3 Cum. Net Income $-373.6 $-124.5 $369.9 $130.6 Stock Price $18.95 $22.74 $26.42 $26.46 Market Value $9,472.5 $11,370.3 $13,208.4 $13,232.1 Return on Sales -6.1% 1.4% 2.7% -1.2% Return on Assets -10.0% 2.6% 5.1% -3.3% Firm Preference 15.2% 14.9% 13.5% 15.0% Dealer Rating 57 58 60 60 COGS 74.4% 76.2% 77.7%

President George W. Bushs Use of Pathos, Logos, and Ethos Essay

Throughout George W. Bush's political career he has implored the use of Aristotle's tripod, which we like to call it. This tripod is a rhetoric which implies that persuasion relies on three things, which are ethos, pathos, and logos. Logos is devoted solely to logic and reason. While on the other hand, pathos deals with attitudes and beliefs. Perhaps the most important one which pertains to George W. Bush is something called ethos, that is to say the branch of the tripod which deals with the personal strengths of the speaker and most importantly his character. Throughout his political journey he has showed the use of pathos, logos, and ethos time and time again, but the one of which he is commonly known for is ethos. The instances in which he has demonstrated them are countless, but I will recall but three. The first event took place on the day of September 14, 2001 at 'Ground Zero', three days after the attack of the World Trade Centers. The third instance was on September 20, 2001 during his Address to a Joint Session of Congress. Lastly, was the State of the Union Address in Washington D.C. Which was held on January 29, 2002. At 'Ground Zero' on September 14, 2001, President George W. Bush did many things to restore the confidence of the rattled and scared population. Unity was a key role in the success of this speech. The whole time that he made his speech his arm was wrapped around a firefighter at the scene which not only showed ethos, but also made them look like good friends and it showed a sense of stability and unity, â€Å"Throughout most of his speech, he kept his arm wrapped around a lead firefighter working at the scene,† (Docan.) In addition, he said how the local area was connected to other people who where hurt ar... ...n D.C. On January 29, 2002, at 'Ground Zero' on September 14, 2001, or at his Address to a Joint Session of Congress he has used many of Aristotle's ideas in order to instill trust and assurance back into his people. Works Cited Bush, George W. George W. Bush State of the Union Address. 29 Jan. 2002. . Bush, George W. President Declares â€Å"Freedom at War with Fear.† Address to a Joint Session of Congress. 20 Sep. 2001. . Docan, Tony. Ethos, Pathos, and Logos Applied: George W. Bush Speaking at 'Ground Zero'. 22 Apr. 2002. . Orren, Gary. Gore vs. Bush Why It's All Greek to Me. 2000. .

The Neurobiology of Parkinsons Disease Essay -- Biology Essays Resear

The Neurobiology of Parkinson's Disease In neuroscience it is assumed that the central nervous system governs and defines all aspects of behavior (Grobstein, 1998). Therefore, the brain, the hub of the central nervous system, is responsible for integrating all sensory and motor patterning. To understand the mechanisms of neurobiology it is often useful to observe the nervous system at the level of the neuron. Integration and communication between neurons is facilitated by neurotransmitters, chemicals which act as intermediaries at the synaptic gap (Delcomyn, 1998). Many behavioral disorders have a neurochemical basis, oftentimes associated with abnormal neurotransmitter activity. These abnormalities are thought to stem from interactions between genetics and the environment. One of these disorders is Parkinson's Disease, a progressive neurodegenerative disease which is characterized by a deficit in the neurotransmitter dopamine (NHGRI, 1998). Parkinson's Disease affects more than a million Americans a year and is distributed equally geographically, in both men and women, and between socio-economic classes (PD Web, 1998). Although the probability of developing the disease is somewhat equal in all populations, recent studies have shown that African-Americans and Asians are less likely to exhibit Parkinson's symptoms than those of European descent (PD Web, 1998). It was first formally identified by British physician James Parkinson in 1817 as "The Shaking Palsy", however, it is thought that the disease has been around for thousands of years. Described as early as 5000 B.C. in the Indian Ayurvedic medicinal tradition and in the Nei Jing, the first Chinese medical text 2500 years ago, Parkinson's disease has been a constant cha... ...ces Consulted: 1)Awakenings. 1998. Parkinson's Disease, Treatment Options. http://www.parkinsondisease.com/ 2)Cosgrove, G.R. 1998. Neurosurgery Web Page. Practical Information Regarding Stereotactic Pallidotomy for Parkinson's Disease. http://www.neurosurgery.mgh.harvard.edu/pd-pract.html 3)Delcomyn, F. 1998. Foundations of Neurobiology. New York: W.H. Freeman and Company. 4)Grobstein, P. 1998. Neurobiology and Behavior Lectures, Bryn Mawr College. 5)National Human Genome Research Institute. 1998. Parkinson's Disease- Research News. http://www.genome.gov/DIR/LGDR/PARK2/background_info.html 6)National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke. NINDS Hope Through Research. http://www.ninds.nih.gov/healinfo/disorder/parkinso/pdhtr.htm 7)PD Web: Parkinson's Disease Website. 1998. http://www.pdweb.mgh.harvard.edu/IntroPD/Intro.html

Scuba Diving Essay -- Art

Scuba diving is a sport in which you can lose yourself to the beauty of the underwater world and escape gravity for a short time. You can wander among kelp forests or swim with sleek noble sharks. You can find a fortune in Spanish ducats or lose yourself in the beauty of the underwater realm. Some may say though that diving is an extreme sport and that it is too risky for anyone, it's just for the wild hooligans. Scuba Diving is a safe and enjoyable hobby despite the small risk involved. Haven't you ever wondered what it was like to swim with the fish? Or see why all of those people would want to were all that funny looking gear and go under the water? The going below the water is little like being above the water. While underwater there are forces and laws that dictate how your body will respond to being under so much pressure. The first rule regarding the pressure water puts on the air spaces in your body is Boyles Law. It says that as the pressure increases on a given mass of gas the volume will decrease. This rule explains the popping sensation you fell when you go up in an air plain and the squeeze you feel as you go under water (The Skin Divers Bible 37, 41). Another law is Dalton's law of partial Pressure. It says that pressure of mixed gasses is equal to the pressure exerted by the individual gas. So if a mixture of gas is say 5% carbon dioxide then it would account for 5% of the total pressure of the gas, because of this law the concentration of harmful gasses must be less when you are under water otherwise you can be poisoned or experience the effects of the gas that would only occur at a higher concentrati! on at sea lev el (47). And the last major law that governs you while underwater is Henry's law. It simply s... ...eatures feel like they are being attack they will usually fight back with painful and even deadly consequences (PADI Adventures 208-211). With all the mystic surrounding the sport of scuba diving many people would never dream about taking a class to get certified, and those people don't know what they are missing. Those people that would never consider diving most likely have only seen the dangers and risks of diving, but they have never really looked into the safety precaution and quality of the instruction needed to go diving. I hope that anyone who had previously decided against Scuba diving reconsider their choice, because they are missing out on some awe inspiring views and spectacular adventures. If you do nothing else in your lifetime at least take an introductory class to Scuba diving. It may just show you how safe and enjoyable the sport actually is.

Just In Time Essay

Just-In-Time or J-I-T is defined in the APICS dictionary as â€Å"a philosophy of manufacturing based on planned elimination of all waste and on continuous improvement of productivity. † To put it simply, it means products are produced in the necessary quantities at the necessary time, basically, everything happens just in time. It promises to provide a tailored solution for business matching none of the off-the-shelf software available in the market. It believes that it must adapt to its customers not the other way around. It takes its name from the idea of replenishing material buffers just when they are needed. Also known as lean production or stockless production, it seeks to improve profits and ROI by the reduction of inventory levels, by increasing inventory turnover rate, by the reduction of variability, by the improvement of product quality, by the reduction of production and delivery lead times and by the reduction of other costs like those that are associated with machine set up and equipment breakdown. It applies to repetitive manufacturing processes where it involves the same products and components being produced over and over again. J-I-T, a recognized philosophy, technique or way of working takes its root in Japan. Developed by the Toyota Motor Company in the mid-1970’s, it was originally known as Toyota Production System (TPS). Toyota’s Taiichi Ohno is after all the credited father of this way or working. He developed a system of production based on waste elimination. Waste, according to Ohno includes time and resources as well as materials. Just-in-time and autonomation were then born. The former means that items move through production as and when they are needed; and the latter means that production system must be automated to include inspection, where human attention was only called for when a defect was detected automatically, signaling a temporary stop in the system until the problem has been solved. J-I-T believes that waste and its many forms must be eliminated. These wastes can be in the form of materials, space and labor. Problems that may lead to the production of such wastes are paid close attention to. There has been a constant improvement on operation and procedures to finely tune them in to an increase in productivity. Ordering or holding costs can be reduced. And there must also be a continuous effort to strive to improve. This means an improvement on processes and systems to an efficient and competitive one. Moreover, a certain respect among the workers must be maintained. It assumes a stable environment and requires an active participation among the employees, the basics of industrial engineering, continuous improvement, small lot sizes and total quality control. Stock or inventory, overproduction, time spent waiting, transportation or movement, processing time as well as defects are considered to be unnecessary wastes. This techniques promises to render its users the benefits ranging from consistent high quality products, quality as a responsibility of every worker, uniform Master Production Schedule, standardization of components and work methods, product focus, preventive maintenance, reduced scrap, reduced re-work, reduced cycle times, lower set up time, smoother flow of production, less inventory, cost savings, higher productivity, more skilled and multi-tasking work force, reduced space requirements and improved relationships with suppliers and continuous improvement. Setting it apart from all the other traditional techniques applied which provides large amount of options available to its customers and accepts almost all orders, J-I-T targets a limited market in order to deliver high quality services at low cost. In terms of capacity, a traditional technique employs excess capacity designed into the system anticipating problems that may arise, they are highly utilized and are inflexible as opposed to that of J-I-T that minimizes waste of having extra capacity, and such is flexible and moderately utilized. In the traditional technique, there is a lot of space for inventory storage. Job shops are often converted to cellular manufacturing when J-I-T technique is employed. Traditional technique believes that long lead times allow more time to make decisions and get the job done. J-I-T on the other hand, believes that more accurate forecasting and planning can be done in short lead times. In terms of layout, a job shop in a traditional set up are spread-out to accommodate areas for stock rooms, tool cribs and work-in-the process inventories between the equipment. It even requires automated or semi-automated materials handling equipment in the form of conveyors and forklifts, another addition to an already big space requirement. In a J-I-T system, manual transfer is employed. Equipment is as close together to aid the handling over of parts from one worker or machine to the other. In terms of quality, in a traditional technique, goods are inspected at critical points and scrap rates are tracked. In the case of the J-I-T technique, workers themselves inspect parts to achieve the zero defects goal in the end. Toyota and its suppliers were alone in the use of the TPS for almost a decade. Not until the late 1970’s when other Japanese automobile manufacturers in the likes of Mazda, Honda and Nissan adopted the concept of J-I-T to continue to compete with arch rival Toyota. Then in the mid 1980’s US and European manufacturers like Chrysler, Ford and General Motors benchmarked the J-I-T philosophy. Other firms such as CM, Ford, Bendix, Harley-Davidson, IBM, Hewlett-Packard, AT&T and others have been strongly advocating J-I-T. There have been progresses in regaining competitiveness. Many firms are once again at if not near world class status. But J-I-T is not a revolution but an evolution. Not all accounts will be success stories. Managers only implement J-I-T when they are convinced that it can enhance the firm’s performance. This is true even though there have been a lot of testaments to the benefits that it claims to deliver to its clients. There have been studies that show that the implementation and maintenance of the J-I-T manufacturing systems will eventually reap rewards as measured by improved financial performance. J-I-T is not the end of an evolution- it actually is just the beginning. There will be new J-I-T generations to be born in the years to come. We all have to then learn how to embrace changes in order to improve and gain control of our growing enterprises. We can always take a pick amongst the ones available. The choice is ours to make. References Donath, Bob. Reduced warehouse storage/inventory costs. The IOMA Handbook of Logistics and Inventory Management, p. 310. Retrieved November 21, 2007 from http://books.google.com/books?isbn=047120935x.

A Brief History of Christianity before Jesus Christ

Damascus Document Notes from the Damascus Document 1. The document opens by pointing out that during the time before the exile to Babylon when unfaithfulness was prevalent, causing God to bring about his wrath upon the people. 2. Then there came twenty years in which a remnant of the people knew their own guilt and tried to find a way to the path of righteousness, until God provided them with a â€Å"Teacher of Righteousness† who revealed the will of God. 3.The teacher of righteousness was opposed by the Man of Mockery who brought about persecution to the group led some of them into all sorts of unrighteous acts and sinfulness. The Man of Mockery led some of the people to sin through the defilement of the temple and causing the people â€Å"to wonder in a pathless wilderness†¦abolishing the ways of righteousness†¦Ã¢â‚¬  4. The teacher of righteousness was â€Å"passed away† at some point and the writer pointed out that the incident marked the beginning of th e end of all the fighters who deserted to the Liar.The writer also pointed out that period lasted about forty years. It seems as though the writer is saying that â€Å"passing away† of the teacher of righteousness (perhaps killed) by the Man of Mockery, was began the forty year long war which ended all wars. 5. The righteous members of the group became the â€Å"the Separatists† when they left the Holy City. 6. The writer of the document foretells the coming of two Messiahs out to the â€Å"House of Aaron and Israel. † Perhaps this may have been a reference to the John the Baptist (House of Aaron) and to Jesus the Christ (House of Israel).The exception to this theory is that technically Jesus was from the House of Judah, but collectively he Judah was Israel’s son, hence, the house of Israel would suffice. 7. The writer of the document explains the administrative hierarchy for members of the covenant. The one above all was the Overseer of the assembly. The document instructs that the Overseer shall teach the groups the ordinances of God and make decisions as to who can join the group and determine the rank that each will have. The Overseer â€Å"shall be from thirty to fifty years old and will have final say on all the group’s activities. The Overseer was the ultimate authority that settled disputes between members. 8. The Document also stated that congregation shall be divided into groups of ten and every group of ten members required a priest that rules the group of ten. Each group of ten was to be registered by name and the first one to be enrolled was the priest; followed by the Levites; and then came the regular Israelites with the proselytes being the last. The same order followed when members were settled during meals and assembly meetings. Each of the members was assigned a rank. 9.From here the documents provides a long succession of rules that governed the members including: keeping the Sabbath (even a restriction f rom assisting an animal to give birth or pull it out of pit if the animal falls on the Sabbath); prohibitions against sleeping with a woman in the City of the Sanctuary; rules for bathing; restrictions against selling of clean animals or birds to gentiles in case they would offer them in sacrifices; rules to members with children that require them to force their children to take an oath to the covenant upon the age of enrollment; directives to the members to contribute two days of every month’s incomes to the poor and needy; rules demanding all new members to study for a full year under the Overseer before partial membership if granted; and rules prohibiting any membership for lunatics, the maimed, madmen, the deaf, the blind, simpletons, the lame, and the underage.

Criticality and Creativity

Individuality is the state or quality of being an individual; a person separate from other persons and possessing his or her own needs or goals. Individualism promote the exercise of one’s goals and desires thus one values independence and self reliance while opposing external interference upon one’s own interests by society and institutions such as the Government. Liberty is the ability of individuals to have control over their own actions.John Stuart Mill a philosopher, on his article Liberty under the chapter of Individuality as One of the element well-being has made an imperative that that human beings should be free to form opinions, and to express their opinions without reserve. This is of beneficial consequences to the intellectual, and through that to the moral nature of man, unless this liberty is either conceded, or asserted in spite of prohibition. He recognized the difference between liberty as the freedom to act and liberty as the absence of coercion.Indivi duals should be given the chances to come up with opinions or ideas and be allowed to express them without been stopped. For example the Government should not refuse an individual to put into action their new ideas but should rather motivate them. It should not stop them because it thinks it can do better than them but should facilitate the idea by providing the necessities such as fund and freedom. Individuals can come up with opinions or ideas that may benefit them but at the same time impose a problem to others.The liberty of the individual must be thus far limited; he/she must not make himself a nuisance to other people. But if he refrains from molesting others in what concerns them, and merely acts according to his own inclination and judgment in things which concern himself, the same reasons which show that opinion should be free, prove also that he should be allowed, without molestation, to carry his opinions into practice at his own cost.When individuals are given the freedo m to come up with new ideas and exploit them, it encourages them to want to come up with better ideas, learn from their experiences thus promoting their creativity and developing criticality in them. The human faculties of perception, judgment, discriminative feeling, mental activity, and even moral preference, are exercised only in making a choice. He who does anything because it is the custom, makes no choice. He gains no practice either in discerning or in desiring what is best.The mental and moral, like the muscular powers, are improved only by being used. The faculties are called into no exercise by doing a thing merely because others do it, no more than by believing a thing only because others believe it. If the grounds of an opinion are not conclusive to the person's own reason, his reason cannot be strengthened, but is likely to be weakened, by him adopting it and if the inducements to an act are not affected by, or rights of others are not concerned, it is so much done towa rds rendering his feelings and character inert and torpid, instead of active and energetic.This is because originality is a valuable element in human affairs. There is always need of persons not only to discover new truths, and point out when what were once truths are true no longer, but also to commence new practices, and set the example of more enlightened conduct, and better taste and sense in human life.

Chemistry Acid-Base Titration

Chemistry: Strong Acid and Weak Base Titration Lab Cherno Okafor Mr. Huang SCH4U7 November 21st, 2012 Data Collection and Processing Concentration of the standard HCl solution: 0. 1 M Data Collection: | Trial 1| Trial 2| Trial 3| Final HCl Buret Reading  ± 0. 05 mL | 38. 3| 45| 54. 5| Initial HCl Buret Reading  ± 0. 05 mL | 29. 9| 38. 3| 45| Volume of NaHCO3 used  ± 0. 1 mL | 9. 2| 9. 5| 9. 8| Qualitative Data: I used the methyl orange indicator which was suitable for my titration because of its clear and distinct colour change from orange to a bright red at the endpoint * At the beginning of the titration after I added 3 drops of methyl orange into the base (NaHCO3) and swirled, I began titrating the acid (HCl) slowly, and initially in the methyl orange and base, there was a tiny amount of red colour present, but then it quickly disappeared due to insufficient HCl (H+ ions)then I gradually kept titrating more acid while swirling and there was even more red colour present, unti l finally I reached the endpoint when the orange-yellow colour had completely transformed into a red colour * Changes from an orange-yellow colour (slightly higher pH 4. 4) to a bright red colour (at low pH 3. 1) at the endpoint and point of equivalence * Baking Soda (NaHCO3) absorbed the odour caused by the strong acid of HCl when I mixed the two: bleach-like smell ProcessingIf the concentration of an acid or base is expressed in molarity, then the volume of the solution multiplied by its concentration is equal to the moles of the acid or base. Therefore, the following relationship holds: nVb x Cb = Va x Ca Where: Vb = the volume of the base Cb = the concentration of the base Va = the volume of the acid Ca = the concentration of the acid n = the mole factor In the case of hydrochloric acid and Sodium Bicarbonate (Baking Soda), the mole ratio is one to one, thus the mole factor is 1. Therefore, the volume of sodium bicarbonate multiplied by its concentration in molarity is equal to the moles sodium bicarbonate. The moles of sodium hydroxide are equal to the number of moles of hydrochloric acid in the reaction.The neutralization equation becomes: HCl + NaHCO3 NaCl + H2O + CO3 Hence, Cb = Va x Ca / Vb. Trial 1 Calculation: * First we need to find the change of volume of the acid used up in the titration: Va = Vfinal – Vintial Va = 38. 3  ± 0. 05 – 29. 9  ± 0. 05 Va = 8. 4  ± 0. 1 mL Therefore, nVb x Cb = Va x Ca (1)(9. 2  ± 0. 1)(Cb) = (8. 4  ± 0. 1) (0. 1  ± 0. 0005) Cb = (8. 4  ± 0. 1) (0. 1  ± 0. 0005) / (9. 2  ± 0. 1) Cb = (8. 4  ± 1. 19%) (0. 1  ± 0. 5%) / (9. 2  ± 1. 09%) Cb = (0. 84  ± 1. 69%) / (9. 2  ± 1. 09%) Cb = 0. 0913  ± 2. 78% 0. 0913  ± 0. 00254M is the concentration of the base for trial 1Theoretical Base Concentration = 0. 1  ± 0. 0005 M Experimental Base Concentration = 0. 0913  ± 0. 00254 M Trial 2 Calculation: * First find change of volume of the acid used up in the titration: Va = Vfinal â⠂¬â€œ Vinitial Va = 45  ± 0. 05 – 36  ± 0. 05 Va = 9. 0  ± 0. 1 mL Therefore, nVb x Cb = Va x Ca (1)(9. 5  ± 0. 1)(Cb) = (9. 0  ± 0. 1) (0. 1  ± 0. 0005) Cb = (9. 0  ± 0. 1) (0. 1  ± 0. 0005) / (9. 5  ± 0. 1) Cb = (9. 0  ± 1. 1%) (0. 1  ± 0. 5%) / (9. 5  ± 1. 05%) Cb = (0. 9  ± 1. 6%) / (9. 5  ± 1. 05%) Cb = 0. 0947  ± 2. 65% 0. 0947  ± 0. 00251M is the concentration of the base for trial 2 Theoretical Base Concentration = 0. 1  ± 0. 005 M Experimental Base Concentration = 0. 0947  ± 0. 00251 M Trial 3 Calculation: * First find change of volume of the acid used up in the titration: Va = Vfinal – Vinitial Va = 54. 5  ± 0. 05 – 45  ± 0. 05 Va = 9. 5  ± 0. 1 mL Therefore, nVb x Cb = Va x Ca (1)(9. 8  ± 0. 1)(Cb) = (9. 5  ± 0. 1) (0. 1  ± 0. 0005) Cb = (9. 5  ± 0. 1) (0. 1  ± 0. 0005) / (9. 8  ± 0. 1) Cb = (9. 5  ± 1. 05%) (0. 1  ± 0. 5%) / (9. 8  ± 1. 02%) Cb = (0. 95  ± 1. 55%) / (9. 8  ± 1. 02%) Cb = 0. 0969  ± 2. 57% 0. 0969  ± 0. 00250M is the concentration of the base for trial 3 Theoretical Base Concentration = 0. 1  ± 0. 0005 MExperimental Base Concentration = 0. 0969  ± 0. 00250 M * Now, I will average all 3 trials: Trial 1: 0. 0913  ± 2. 78% 2. 78% / 100% x 0. 0913 = 0. 0913  ± 0. 00254 M Trial 2: 0. 0947  ± 2. 65% 2. 65% / 100% x 0. 0947 = 0. 0947  ± 0. 00251 M Trial 3: 0. 0969  ± 2. 57% 2. 57% / 100% x 0. 0969 = 0. 0969  ± 0. 00250 M Therefore: (0. 0913 + 0. 0947 + 0. 0969)  ± (0. 00254 + 0. 00251 + 0. 00250) / 3 trials = (0. 2829  ± 0. 00755) / 3 = (0. 0943  ± 0. 00252) MAverage Concentration of base for the 3 trials * Percentage Error = Theoretical – Actual / Theoretical x 100% = (0. 1  ± 0. 0005) – (0. 0943  ± 0. 00252) / (0. 1  ± 0. 0005) x 100% = 0. 0057  ± 0. 00302 / 0. 1  ± 0. 0005) x 100% = (0. 57  ± 0. 00352) x 100% = 5. 7%  ± 0. 00352 Conclusion and Evaluation: Conclusion: In this titration lab, I used a s trong acid HCl (hydrochloric acid) vs. a weak base NaHCO3 (sodium bicarbonate/baking soda). My intent was to find the concentration of the weak base after it has been titrated with the strong acid. The theoretical basic solution had a concentration of 0. 1  ± 0. 0005 M. In my experiment, the value I obtained was 0. 0943  ± 0. 00252 M, which is pretty close to 0. 1. I also had a very small error percentage at just 5. 7%  ± 0. 00352 error. My experimental value was only off by 0. 0057 (0. 1- 0. 0943) with a total uncertainty of 0. 00402 (0. 005 + 0. 00352) from the theoretical value of the base concentration. Evaluation/Improvement: Some of the most notable errors in my procedure to mention are the small quantities being used and hence the inaccuracy in measurements. Perhaps I could have arranged the titration to have bigger titres, which would reduce errors by using larger quantities such as a higher concentration for the standardized solution. In addition, there was also some splattering/loss of the acidic solution being titrated into the basic solution, as it came into contact with the edges and surface of the flask, which in turn, presumably initiated errors in volume measurements.Also, this means that not all of the acid that was added reacted efficiently with the basic solution mixed with methyl orange indicator. Moreover, there could have been impurities in the basic solution itself and as well as the indicator causing a higher reading than the theoretical value of concentration. The leakage that resulted from the stock cock may have caused the HCl to alter slightly in content because of the reaction with some of the chemicals in the external environment (air). There was also some residue that could have been left behind in the basic flask when I washed it with distilled water after the neutralization of each trial. Perhaps drying it could have made a difference instead of leaving it wet.Maybe some of the neutralized solution was left behind after I washed out the flask, and it mixed with the tiny water droplets also left behind in the flask. Before I started the next trial, it could have interfered with that titration and provide inaccuracy. Another error to mention is getting the exact endpoint during the titration. The indicator could have ranged from different shades of red (starting with orange) but I assumed that the moment it turned a standard red colour, it was finished. In addition, I could mention that I may not have properly swirled the solutions before beginning the titration process to make sure nothing (residue) settles at the bottom.This could have impacted the inaccurate colour change of the indicator in the neutralization and hence unknown standard colour. I also kept on adding drops when the solution was already a red colour towards the end. However, this may have either darkened or lightened the colour too much in an effort to change the precision of the indicator colour at the equivalence point or end point . Finally, at some moments, I was in a hurry to finish titrating, and so I may have flushed out the acid in large amounts. I realize that near the neutralization point, the acid must be released in drops. However, for the third trial, I did sort of flush out a large amount of the acid and therefore could have missed the neutralization point which could cause errors in results.