How Did The Renaissance Change Everything - Free Essay Example

Sample details Pages: 2 Words: 619 Downloads: 6 Date added: 2019/06/14 Category Art Essay Level High school Tags: Renaissance Essay Did you like this example? Although some may argue that the Renaissance had no effect on manrs view of the world, the different factors of it really did. During the Middle Ages, everyone was closed-minded and had no connection to the arts and humanities. They believed everything their priests said and were very limited in education. However, the art of Da Vinci, the literature of Shakespeare, and other authors, as well as the science and philosophy of Copernicus changed manrs view greatly. Their works provided education for the rest of the world and their countries. The visual arts played a major role in changing manrs view. The [clearest] evidence of the break with medieval culture comes from the visual arts (Rabb. 2006, Doc A). Leonardo Da Vinci was one of the leading artists during the Renaissance. He worked for the Duke of Milan designing artillery as well as creating paintings. Before the Renaissance, medieval artist, Duccio di Buoninsegna created art with religious symbols. His piece Madonna Enthroned Between Two Angels, was a piece was more spiritual than Mona Lisa. This scene was to illustrate that of the Bible. It represented Mary and Jesus as not important. They were seen as spiritual beings instead of actual people. This was just how medieval artists were, they did not use emotions. Renaissance one begins to feel stronger emotions in the subjects (Rabb, 2006, Doc A). This is true in because the Renaissance focuses on emotion and people. One begins to notice the emphasis on symbolic representation (Rabb, 2006, Doc A). Da Vincirs Mona Lisa does just that. It brings out her human qualities and has nothing to do with religion. Mona Lisa was intriguing and made to look as though she was thinking. It made the viewers see her as an actual human being. Don’t waste time! Our writers will create an original "How Did The Renaissance Change Everything?" essay for you Create order Literature was also an important aspect of the Renaissance that played a part in changing manrs view. During the Renaissance, an English play called Everyman was written. This play was of medieval/Middle Age background. It causes the viewer to think negatively on themselves. Ye [man] think sin in the beginningwhich in the end causeth thy soul to weep (unknown, 1485, Doc B). This author is telling us that man only thinks about sin and regret until it is too late. Shakespeare, however, brings light to manrs new view of positivity. What a piece of work is a man! how noble how infinite in faculty admirable like an angel (Shakespeare, 1601, Doc B). Shakespeare tells of how wonderful everyone is. He gets people to think positively. Last but not least, science and philosophy changed the views of man as well. Ptolemy was a Roman astronomer who had no idea what he was doing. He believed that the Earth was the center of the solar system (Geocentric Universe). Copernicus was a Polish astronomer who later proved him wrong by saying the Sun was the center of the Universe. This was just one of the examples of the power the Renaissance had. In 1512, German astronomer, Johann Regiomontenus, proposed a woodcut saying that the different parts of the body were governed by the zodiacs or stars. Later during the Renaissance, Andreas Vesalius, dissected human corpses to create an accurately portrayed drawing of the human body and its insides. Science bloomed during the Renaissance and greatly changed manrs view. In conclusion, one can see that the expansion of educational resources during the Renaissance helped to change manrs view on the world. By allowing for better education and mass communication/production, people were able to become more open-minded. Because of this, great thinkers of the Renaissance were able to create art, literature, and scientific theories that would soon greatly help broaden the minds of others, eventually changing their views on the world.

Reconstruction Of Reconstruction And Reconstruction

Reconstruction what is it?What does it mean to reconstruct? Is it possible to reconstruct nowadays? Reconstruction started in 1865 and ended in 1877.Reconstruction took place mostly in the south. Reconstruction was created to help fix the problems in the new union after slavery, but sadly didn t end well causing an all white government into power and failing the union. New economic,political and industrial growth was being made. New job opportunities were being made for the people and former black slaves who also were getting education and a chance of equal rights...or so they said. Many events were leading up to the end of reconstruction including the support declining, the lost faith in the acts, and the threats that the blacks,whites†¦show more content†¦No Freedmen shall sell or exchange any article of merchandise within the limits of Opelousas without permission in writing from his employer.† Basically most whites were still able to be in control of former slaves which caused no development in reconstructing the union. Another way the South was in fault for the failing reconstruction were the fact that regardless of the new equal rights the blacks were getting the whites were against these new sets of laws to help the blacks and were terrorizing them. â€Å"(As seen on Document B in the picture below) Caption: He wants to vote the Democratic ticket. The Black man is seen being threatened by two white men with guns pointed to his head.† The man is trying to vote but the whites aren’t allowing him and is being threatened by them. Let’s also include the text from document B â€Å"[The Klansmen] broke my door open...whipped me three hours and left me for dead†¦Ã¢â‚¬ If there was an election tomorrow, I would vote the Radical ticket.† They set in and whipped me a thousand licks more, with sticks and straps that had buckles on the ends of them â€Å" They didn’t want the black man choosing something against them so they would beat them or threaten them with death if they didn’t do as they wanted. Terrorist groups also caused violent oppositions in the south for example the KKK(Ku Klux Klan) wanted to restore the old political order the way they did this was by methods of threats, house burnings, and killings against blacks andShow MoreRelatedReconstruction Goals : Reconstruction And Reconstruction1296 Words   |  6 PagesReconstruction Goals Reconstruction started in 1865 after the war was coming to an end and completed in 1877. It Is the process by which federal government controlled the former Confederate states and the conditions for their readmission to the union. Abraham Lincoln was our president at the time and could not form a treaty with the defeated government. After the emancipation, thousands of freedmen left their plantation to find a new life without being owned and forced to work. This began theRead MoreReconstruction : The Failure Of Reconstruction1529 Words   |  7 PagesReconstruction: By: Siryet Girma 1,514 words 7 pages Historical Paper Reconstruction: the failure Reconstruction was a failure because African American were still not equal to White Americans. The Emancipation Proclamation was proclaimed in January 1, 1863. It freed more than 3 million slaves in the Confederate states by January 1, 1863, blacks enlisted in the Union Army in large numbers, reaching some 180,000 by war’sRead MoreReconstruction Of The Reconstruction Era1587 Words   |  7 PagesThe Reconstruction Era was known as a time to reconstruct the United States of America by the expansion of governmental power that began in 1865. â€Å"There were two central problems that animated Reconstruction; providing justice for freedmen and facilitating national reconciliation. (A New Birth of Freedom, pg. 1) After the 12 year span, reconstructing the nation succeeded in only a few of the goals that were set out to achieve within those 12 years that it was in progress. 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The printer worked as a sturdy base because of its size and shape. It was laid on its side so that t he paper tray was sticking into the air. A motor was then gathered from one of the printers that was deconstructed. The group chose the largest of the motorsRead MoreReconstruction647 Words   |  3 Pages 1. Some historians argue that Radical Reconstruction was not radical enough. After studying the events of the late 19th century, defend whether or not you agree with this position. What are the long-term implications? * * From what I have learned from this class already this week is that the Radical Reconstruction was not as radical as it should have been. If President Lincoln would have lived longer after the Civil War the Reconstruction of the south Might have been handled betterRead MoreThe Challenges Of The Reconstruction And The Legacy Of Reconstruction762 Words   |  4 Pagesthe racial tension between the whites and blacks still existed, and it even exists now. Also, the freed slave’s status in the America was uncertain, and the challenges were anticipated during the Reconstruction period from 1865 to 1877. The challenges faced by the former slaves were during the Reconstruction period since there was a rebirth of white supremacy. For example, the Ku Klux Klan was formed in 1865 and came to a rise in 1877. The Ku Klux Klan was a racist organization that did not accept blackRead MoreReconstruction Of Reconstruction During The Civil War883 Words   |  4 Pages Describe and analyze Reconstruction. Did Reconstruction have any successes? The end of civil war in the United States of America brought about many problems, in particular for the South. Some of the problems were political, economic decay and social disorder. The war destroyed the plantations and crops thus causing many to starve to death while others became homeless. The reconstruction became the only hope for the people. Radical reconstruction began in 1867, which enabled the freed black menRead MoreReconstruction Of Post Disaster Reconstruction Projects896 Words   |  4 PagesPost-disaster reconstruction projects are influenced by administrative, political, social, economic, and cultural settings. The likelihood of success of such projects diminishes if and when systematic recovery plans are absent and the project cost and time overruns. Inadequate relevant policies and legal systems and domination from economically or politically powerful groups/persons in planning and decision making processes further weaken the reconstruction process. Furthermore, i gnoring the communicationRead MoreReconstruction Of African American During Reconstruction2046 Words   |  9 Pageswe do not repeat the same mistakes. During Reconstruction, the country was trying to make amends after the war was over. The country needed to find a way to mend a broken nation because it was divided. The main issue during reconstruction was the status of African Americans because they wanted their civil rights, but could not get that. The question that needs to be answered is: who did the most to aid the cause of African American during Reconstruction, and why? Many organizations and people helped

Travel and Tourism in Society for Blue Mountain - myassignmenthelp

Question: Discuss about the Travel and Tourism in Society for Blue Mountain. Answer: The Blue Mountain is one of the best tourism destination in Australia. It is located 50 kilometers from Sydney CBD. It covers an area of approximately 4402 square miles. It has a rugged terrain with a wonderful view. This mountain is also known for its dramatic scenery, steep cliffs, and beautiful waterfalls. There are wonderful guest houses dotted all over the village to accommodate tourists. The Blue Mountain also has a big eucalyptus forest. This tourist destination is well designed in such a manner that it has gardens, galleries, and wonderful bushwalking trails. This tourist destination is constructed in a way that it incorporates the socio-cultural aspects of the neighboring community. This is essential as it gives tourists a taste of the local lifestyle and culture. The Blue Mountain borders Katoomba area and a National Park. All this adds to the beauty of destination as a tourist attraction. The huge acreage of the eucalyptus tree gives the blue mountain a blue haze hence the name blue mountain. There are also underground rivers, limestone crystals among others. This mountain is not short of beauty. This tourist destination is constructed in a way that it can host various outdoor activities for tourists. Rock climbing is one of the activities. Tourist can also go hiking. From Sydney central station, it takes just around two hours by train from one to arrive at Katoomba. From Katoomba, there are several bus services to assist visiting tourists to access their preferred destination. There are wonderful village constructions where tourists can purchase some of the area's best art at galleries. As a tourist attraction, Blue Mountain has excellent restaurant constructed purposefully to serve tourists. All the tourists needs are comfortably addressed at the Blue Mountain. Literature review The ecosystem of the Blue Mountain is highly variable and very complex. This is due to the fact that there is a complex interaction between the mountains land, water, air and the vegetation (Hall, et al., 2013). The intensity of the interactions is seriously influenced by human beings (tourists). It is very much evident that the human interaction with the mountain is closely woven going by the landscape process present in the Blue Mountain. It has been observed that the forest has a challenge when it comes to damage by insects, human activity and natural plant diseases among other factors (Harris Leiper, 2012). This, therefore, calls for the input of every concerned authority to initiate vigorous environmental conservation initiative. This is important given that as a tourist attraction, the blue mountain brings in a lot of money to the economy of the nation and improves the lives of the local people around the tourist attraction site. The blue mountain management has to deal with challenges that it normally face such as wildfires. Conservation is key in all this aspect. A balance must be achieved between tourists spending and the conservation of the Blue Mountain. The numerous number of tourist often flock to this site and it is important therefore that proper conservation procedures are laid down to secure the tourist attraction for future generations (Griffin, 2014). Even though the blue mountain is a beautiful an attractive tourist destination, it is a park that is under a lot of pressure. A huge number of species that are vulnerable are present in the Park. Therefore maintaining the wilderness is some a challenge to the authorities. This requires proper conservation measures to be put in place to help curb potential challenges well in advance. Discussion of observations The tourist signs used to direct tourists in the Blue Mountain are often written in one language which is English. This ought to be improved. It is essential to have other languages as well to give a tourist a sense of belonging and to make them feel at home (Anon., 2017). This is important since tourists need to feel that they belong. Besides, it makes the life of tourist much easier as they can travel on their own even in the absence of a tour guide or an interpreter The entire Blue Mountain is endowed with different climatic conditions. Parts of the Blue Mountain especially the northern parts of the tourist attraction destination experiences some sort of a relatively cool climate. It has disparities in topography as well. A climate that is slightly moist and a bit cool is found within the mixed zone of the forest (Hall, et al., 2013). The southern part of the forest experiences a warmer and a bit dry weather most parts of the year. The driest zone is the southern part of the forest. The effects befalling some parts of the Blue Mountain are hindering tourism. There has been a decline in the number of tourist in the Blue Mountain owing to the challenges faced by the forest. Innovation and development are still lacking in some parts of the Blue Mountain. Katoomba is one of the towns that could have some of the worlds most vibrant conference venues. Being the main tourist town that is situated in the Blue Mountains, it could serve as one of the getaway destinations for top diplomats to unwind. It is just an hours drive from Sydney which is another big town yet it is not getting much attention from the locals (Williams, 2015). Katoomba is situated between some of the best parks in the world and as such should be more appealing even to the local population. Local tourism needs to be boosted by changing the mindset of the local people through the development of towns such as Katoomba. The lack of interest from local Sydney people to frequent Katoomba is due to lack of development by the tourism management body of Blue Mountain. Analysis of observations The ecosystem is the driving force behind the huge number of tourists flocking the Blue Mountain. By comparing the three physiographic zones of the Blue Mountain, it is evident that there is less of fir forest. Pollution is also evident in other parts of the forest. These are some of the negative acts that negatively influence the tourists behavior (Griffin, 2014). Due to environmental pollution, tourists may be less outgoing as they fear contracting diseases from a dirty environment. This further affects even the sales of food items. In order for the Blue Mountain to remain as a preferred tourist destination, it is important to have the environment cleaned. These pollutants may find their way into the streams and endanger the lives of the wildlife in the National Park as well. The Park must be protected by protecting the mountain. This requires proper work and planning. The number of eucalyptus trees that give the forest its blue color is also at risk due to forest fires. In many instances it is evident that various elements that contribute to the attractive nature of the Blue Mountain can only be managed by such activities such as tree planting especially in areas that timber harvesting might be taking place, forest fire control, restocking of certain fish species in the streams among others. This is essential as it contributes to the wholeness of the blue mountain (Anon., 2017). The main reasons why Blue Mountain experience high tourist demand arises from the fact that it has a majority of the various climatic conditions under one places. Moreover, the beautiful sceneries give it a completeness that can only be found at this destination. It has rivers, a National Park, and a variety of outdoor activities. From observation, it could be seen that a majority of the river basins especially to the southern parts of the mountain show that the rivers exp erience some level of high ponderosa density (Anon., 20017). As a result, the river basins exhibit high levels of fuel availability than is natural. It is possible to return all processes to their natural state by taking care of the Blue Mountain ecosystem. It is possible for this ecosystem to regain its strength, power and beautify in some affected area naturally if proper care is taken to avoid tourist activities that might affect the well-being of the forest. It also evident that apart from the issues to do with the ecosystem that is contributing to the decline in tourists numbers, there is another factor. The lack of proper development of adjacent town Katoomba as well as the inadequate travel service. Findings This report reveals that tourist signs are written in just a single language which is not encouraging for those who are non-English speakers. The National Park contributes a lot in increasing tourist revenues. It is one of the best tourist attraction. As such it needs to be safeguarded against harsh climatic conditions that may lead to the death of the wildlife. Tourist behavior is influenced by the environment greatly. It is thus important to ensure that environmental pollution is controlled in order to appeal to more tourists. The Blue Mountain has varied climatic patterns in its various zones. These zones need proper care from the management authority since they are endowed differently. Lack of development in the nearby town Katoomba is hindering tourism. The locals have little interest in the blue mountain. Local tourism is not properly promoted. Conclusion The Blue Mountain has a lot of potential as a tourist attraction site. It has various attractive sites such as the Eaglehawk Lookout which gives a wonderful view of the three sisters as it is commonly known. Outdoor activities which help tourists to unwind need to be improved and more brought onboard. With the vast area available, there is room for other outdoor activities to be initiated. Local tourism also needs to be promoted. This can be achieved through the initiation of development projects in the area in order to stir the interest of the locals to frequent the Blue Mountain. The ecosystem needs to be protected. It is thus important that fire stations be put up within The Blue Mountain to help in putting out forest fires as soon as they are noticed. Preparation of this kind is very important given the value of the blue mountain to the regional economy as a tourist attraction site. References Anon., 20017. Nothern Territory. [Online] Available at: https://northernterritory.com/uluru-and-surrounds [Accessed 19 October 2017]. Anon., 2017. The Blue Mountains. [Online] Available at: https://www.visitbluemountains.com.au/ [Accessed 19 October 2017]. Anon., 2017. The Blue Mountains. [Online] Available at: https://int.sydney.com/destinations/blue-mountains [Accessed 19 October 2017]. Anon., 2017. Blue Mountains Australia. [Online] Available at: https://www.bluemts.com.au/info/towns/katoomba/ [Accessed 19 October 2017]. Anon., 2017. Blue Mountains Sydney. [Online] Available at: https://www.visitnsw.com/destinations/blue-mountains [Accessed 19 October 2017]. Anon., 2017. Parks Australia. [Online] Available at: https://www.environment.gov.au/parks/uluru/index.html [Accessed 19 October 2017]. Donn, N. Leyne, S., 2015. Tourism in Australia: A global Perspective. 2nd ed. California: Butterworth-Heinemann. Griffin, T., 2014. Tourism Today. Chicago: CRC Press. Hall, F., Knapp, W. Henshaw, J., 2013. Restoring Ecosystems in the Blue Mountains: A report to the regional forester and the Forest Supervisors of the Blue Mountain Forest, Chicago: CRC Press. Harris, R. Leiper, N., 2012. Sustainable Tourism: An Australian Perspective. 4th ed. Texas: Penguin. Weaver, D., 2014. Sustainable Tourism. 2nd ed. UK: Oxford University Press. Williams, P., 2015. Sustainable Tourism: A Global Perspective. UK: Oxford.

Marketing Plan for BlackBerry

Executive Summary The BlackBerry is Smartphone manufactured by RIM. It has been having a large market share, especially in the North American market. However, it is currently facing stiff competition from other products such as the Apple iPhone and Nokia Smartphone among others.Advertising We will write a custom term paper sample on Marketing Plan for BlackBerry specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More The main target for the BlackBerry has been the business users and it has not been able to effectively attract the mainstream consumers. Such Company as Apple has been able to produce products that have been attractive to the majority consumers. However, RIM can still take appropriate measures to avoid losing its market share by coming up with a new series BlackBerry Smartphone to add it to its product line with an intention of increasing its market share in North America as well as in the foreign markets such as China, parts of Africa and Europe. The company will have to capitalize on the available opportunities and its strengths and to make the necessary efforts to overcome its weaknesses and threats in order to win the competition. In this marketing plan, the situation of the BlackBerry product has been assessed and analyzed; the available literature concerning the problem of stiff competition and losing the market share by BlackBerry has also been looked at. In addition, a marketing strategy to be employed in introducing the new BlackBerry product to the market has been given and the financial projections and implementation plan has also been given in this marketing plan. Situation Assessment and Analysis According to Gowda, Szabo, Choi, Hauk Salt (2009), â€Å"Research In Motion – RIM, pioneered the development of the Smartphone market in 1998 with the BlackBerry, positioned in government and enterprise target markets† (Gowda, Szabo, Choi, Hauk Salt, 2009, p.3).Advertising Looking for term pa per on business economics? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More The BlackBerry has gained a competitive edge following its recognition as being an â€Å"all-in-one portable wireless communication device† (Gowda, et al, 2009, p.3). It has a broad portfolio of Smartphone products which include; BlackBerry Tour, Bold, Pearl and Curve series (Gowda, et al, 2009). On the was of this product getting more popularity, it goes without saying that it would be meaningless if the RIM Company depends on the sales of the present existing enterprise in order of ensuring the retaining of the products in the market. Following this realization, a move to introduce the BlackBerry Storm series was taken in 2008 and the main aim for this was to accommodate the majority consumer segments. However, this new series brought about â€Å"low customer satisfaction rates†. Another move was taken in 2009 to bring improvement to this series in which th ere was launching of the Storm2 series. However, the consumer expectations are ever changing and the competitors are always on the lookout to satisfy the consumer needs. Therefore, it is essential that RIM develops a new BlackBerry series product to add it to its product line in order to win the competition since the competitors in the Smartphone market such as Apple and Nokia are becoming more and more innovative. Research In Motion is a company that became very popular all over the world getting its popularity each day with a high speed. There are more than 14 million people who preferred the Blackberry production and, in total, the users come from different places of the world. Between the year 2005 and 2009, its revenue approached over $11,000 million. Out of this revenue, 92 percent came from outside North America. In 2009 financial year, the revenue increased by 84 percent over the financial year 2008 (Datamonitor, 2009). The company has realized growth â€Å"by expanding in to foreign markets where it held 18.7 percent of the global Smartphone market share in 2009† (Datamonitor, 2009, p. 1). Strong financials bring in investors and enable RIM to realize growth with coming up with new products as well as new solutions. However, this company encounters a danger to its global share and revenue as a number of its competitors enter the industry and come up with new products.Advertising We will write a custom term paper sample on Marketing Plan for BlackBerry specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More The forecasts that were made gave an indication that the Smartphone market would increase by 19 percent all through from the year 2009 to 2011. Even if there was a decrease in the sales of mobile phones by 9 percent at the start of 2009,†the Smartphone movement increased by 13 percent despite the economic crisis† (Datamonitor, 2009, p.3). The consumers of the Smartphone have given an indication that they have attached value on the multi-media applications and entertainment in their mobile devices. This tendency offers an opportunity for RIM to expand its product lines by putting much of its focus on the needs of the mainstream consumers. Competition RIM takes up the 20% of the global Smartphone market share. Even if this share is remarkable, the company is facing threats from its competitors and it is constantly fighting to remain on top of the competition. Its competitors in this market include â€Å"High Tech Computer (HTC), Apple, Nokia, Google’s Android, Samsung and Palm† (Gowda, et al, 2009, p. 4). Considering the Apple Company, in the financial year that ended in September 2008, its net sales amounted to $11.8 billion. Basing on the research that was conducted, it was established that the Apple Company was able to take up 13.3 percent of the global market share â€Å"as their 3 GB iPhone is growing in popularity selling for $199 with a service contract† (Datamonitor, 2009, p.4). In addition, the iPhone offers a competitive advantage, â€Å"as the device is able to run upwards of 85,000 applications providing higher utility for customers† (Datamonitor, 2009, p.5). In a similar manner, Nokia dominates the Smartphone global market share at 40 percent, posing a threat to North America market shares (Abkowitz, 2009). SWOT Analysis Strengths One of the strengths of the BlackBerry product is the brand image. This product has one of the best images for the mobile phones in the current mobile phone market. The diverse business it has possesses various products for its greater range of consumers. The other strength is that it is an innovative product. The software of the BlackBerry is designed very well. This phone is greatly secure it combines well with other platforms. It operates well with various other carriers which make it possible for it to be utilized all over the world. This device is quite easy to manage. It’s batt ery life is longer than the standard one.Advertising Looking for term paper on business economics? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More The third strength is the product features. This product has â€Å"a small form-factor with an easy-to-use-keyboard† (Randhawa et al, 2009, p.2). RIM has the patents for the â€Å"thumbwheel and QWERTY keyboard found on the device† (Randhawa, et al, 2009, p.2). In addition, the device has a â€Å"speedy mobile e-mail provider† and it has coverage in a large number of major nations. The Blackberry Smartphone is very comfortable to use when monitoring the e-mail messages. It is a very convient and portable way of being connected to the Internet as well. The global utilization of this product is one of â€Å"its best known assets† (Randhawa, et al, 2009, p.2). Weaknesses One of the main weaknesses of the Blackberry is ‘Global Coverage Dependence†. The company’s business model which involves entirely selling through operators implies that it relies on its â€Å"operators when it comes to launch Blackberry’s services† (Randhawa , et al, 2009, p.2). This consumes much time and the expense of launching this â€Å"can be high for small time operators† (Randhawa, et al, 2009, p.2). The other weakness of the Blackberry is the cost of ownership. This product has a high ownership cost. According to Randhawa, et al (2009), â€Å"Blackberry is known as a high-end product that is very costly for enterprises that want to provide e-mail across large organizations† (Randhawa, et al, 2009, p.2). The other companies competing with RIM have brought to the market products that are less costly as compared to the Blackberry. The third weakness of the Blackberry is in relation to its features. When it comes to setting up critical applications, the Blackberry does not find it easy but struggles. It does not have â€Å"a very large storage of third-party software†¦.when it comes to most people, its main feature is the e-mail utility† (Randhawa, et al, 2009, p.2). Opportunities One of the available oppo rtunities is the wide range of offerings for mobile workers. The increasing number of consumers will, in the future, need to be satisfied and the Blackberry will be at their service to ensure the consumers’ needs as are satisfactorily met. RIM will seek to ensure the enlarge of e-mail all across the world towards a market which is divergent and popular at the international level. Consumers have the knowledge about this value but they do not have the willingness of paying a premium. The other opportunity is that RIM â€Å"extends the range of third-party Blackberry devices† (Randhawa, et al, 2009, p.3). At a time Blackberry engages in licensing its software via â€Å"Blackberry connect and Blackberry programs† it is in a position to increase control against other users who have preference for the platforms of the Blackberry and â€Å"It is easily addressable in global markets and features certain products in markets worldwide† (Randhawa, et al, 2009, p.3). Threats The biggest threat that the Blackberry faces is the competition. The Blackberry is currently experiencing stiff competition from other products such as the Apple’s iPhone than it has ever experienced. There are various suppliers all over the world which give competition to Blackberry on each and every coming day. Blackberry competes as well with its operators; a large number of them have ensured launching of their own â€Å"branded e-mail service† (Randhawa, et al, 2009, p.3). There is a great competition in gaining popularity at the level of economic marketing within the mobile industry that bases on the competing of Blackberry with the products that are eager to imitate or to overcome this mobile product. Marketing Research (Literature Review) According to Tsirulnik (2010), even though the BlackBerry is the largely used Smartphone in the U.S, with about 43 percent of the market share, there seems that its application strategy has not been a success. In compa ring RIM with the Apple Company, the RIM’s BlackBerry App World is remarkably â€Å"less crowed than Apple’s App store† (Tsirulnik, 2010, para. 2). By the beginning of the year 2010, there were about one hundred and fifty thousand applications in iTunes while the â€Å"BlackBerry App World† did not have more than fifteen thousand applications. Moreover, it is reported that Android was a little higher but in a similar ballpark. â€Å"There is no too much going on in terms of branded BlackBerry applications and it is rather ironical considering its market share† (Tsirulnik, 2010, para 2). It has also been reported that the iPhone/Android platform do have touch functionality that is superior as well as navigation from App store to application to a larger number of the BlackBerry devices (Tsirulnik, 2010). In addition, â€Å"the Androids and iPhones are preloaded with their app stores but on the other hand, a person using a BlackBerry has to download App World in case he or she wants to use it† (Tsirulnik, 2010, para 22). However, it is pointed out that â€Å"BlackBerry has a great opportunity to win over the enterprise and B2B market, as companies are far more likely to incorporate companywide BlackBerry solutions over the iPhone, which constitutes a significant barrier to entry for the iPhone† (Tsirulnik, 2010, para 22). Tsirulnik poses a question that; â€Å"will BlackBerry App World measure up to the iPhone† (Tsirulnik, 2010, para 10). The iPhone has a large â€Å"installed base of seventy five million iPhone and iPod devices and counting, all feeding on billions of downloads of 150,00-pluc applications† (Tsirulnik, 2010, para 11). The success of the â€Å"iPhone App Store† is attributed to its marketing support which include; â€Å"existing infrastructure of application review sites, blogs and YouTube review sites† (Tsirulnik, 2010, para 12). Research in Motion is supposed to obtain more developers as well as brands which have interest in the creation of the entertaining and fun applications for the company’s platform ((Tsirulnik, 2010). According to Arthur (2011), RIM has been gradually losing its market share in the course of the last two years to phones that make use of the Google’s Android OS as well as to the Apple’s iPhone, and especially in the U.S market which was once the company’s biggest market. However, this company has been able to gain the market share in other countries in Africa, Europe and Asia, and especially in China. It is reported that the company has been able to gain a bigger market share than that that has been held by the former market leader Nokia for Smartphone sales in parts of Africa and China (Arthur, 2011). However, although the profits of RIM increased in the most recent quarter of the financial year 2011, there was sequential fall in the handset sales, giving an indication that the customers were not renewing contracts but they were instead purchasing touch-based phones for RIM’s competitors such as Apple, Samsung and HTC (Arthur, 2010). According to Arthur (2011), â€Å"RIM’s customers split roughly 50 -50 between business users and consumers, where the general Smartphone market is split 30-70† (Arthur, 2011, para 11). The consumer market is bigger and following this, problems have been created for RIM in its attempts to expand the customer base â€Å"as the iPhone and Android phones have so far proved more popular with the first wave of consumer Smartphone buyers† (Arthur, 2011, para 11). According to Siebes (2010), following the industry wide competition, there has been increased spending in research and development at RIM and this has in turn led to a decrease in profit margins to a considerable level between the year 2007 and 2010. Moreover, there has been an eight percent increase in the cost of sales during the same period and at the same time, there has been a decrease in the average selling price per unit to $311 in 2010 from $371 in 2009 (Peers, 2010). To a great extend, the rise in the cost of sales is attributed to increased level of spending on research and development and at the same time, the decreasing unit selling cost is a result of end-consumer expectations â€Å"in a market where RIM’s BlackBerry is no longer one of just a few alternatives† (Siebes, 2010, para. 4). It is pointed out that the company is not just about to make a loss but it is imperative that to the company’s stakeholders for it to maintain high profit levels (Siebes, 2010). As on one hand it is not realistic to have expectations of the company’s profit margins going back to the previous highest levels any time in the near future, some actions are supposed to be taken to ensure that there is slowing down of the rate at which the profit margins are decreasing in the short time, and to ensure that there is an increase in the profit margins in the long run. Marketing Strategy Marketing Mix Product To this point, RIM has transformed â€Å"mobile phone communication devices with the BlackBerry smartphone† (Gowda, et al, 2009, p.5). The best idea would be to add to the product depth by bringing in a new BlackBerry to the product line by coming up with a multi-media device to meet the consumers’ needs in a better way. Price The setting of the price point will be done by the pricing strategies of the competitors. For the clients who long to have the satellite service, there will be predetermining of the extra charge. Place There will be distribution of the new BlackBerry product through the North American service carriers as well as the Global carriers, retail outlets and also through the â€Å"Black Berry promotional website† (Grewal, 2009, p.9). Promotion The company will engage in communicating the advantages of the new BlackBerry product to the consumers and it will do this thr ough tailored advertisement campaigns, †internet marketing, viral marketing, social media channels and exclusive offers to current and new customers† (Grewal, 2009, p.9). Financial Projections and Analysis It is projected that within the next one year, there will be a gradual increase in the BlackBerry market share and the company’s profits are projected to increase at a rate of 10 percent per year. However, in the long run, after between three and five years, it is expected that the profits will increase by about thirty percent. Target Market The present BlackBerry target market is formed by a population consisting of middle to upper class consumers who fall in the age range between 30 to 55 years in the â€Å"professional, executive, and industrial segments† (Gowda, et al, 2009, p.4). The main target for getting new clients is the mainstream consumer market where the RIM Company will enter this segment by putting the changes in the consume expectations in to consideration. The company can bring the Smartphone products in to the market with more multimedia components to go with the interactive lifestyle of the consumers. In order to go on with the long-term growth, â€Å"RIM will target the next generational cohort. Tweets’, who are adept to technology, social media and have considerable influence on their parent’s consumer behavior† (Grewal, 2009, p.20). Strategies, Implementation and Controls The RIM to be able to satisfy the needs of the next generation of consumers and expand its global presence and increase its Smartphone market share, it has to increase its product depth. It has to add a new series to the BlackBerry Smartphone product line. In order to realize this, it needs to take various measures. One of the measures that need to be taken is product development. The current capabilities of the BlackBerry devices will not be sufficient in meeting the ever changing expectations of the consumers in the long run. The company can expand its market share both in North America and globally by ensuring addition of a BlackBerry series to the product depth under the mobile communication devices breadth. The new BlackBerry series that the company will have to come up with will have to feature increased multimedia and application capabilities, â€Å"non-scratch recycled metal, a full LED touch screen in combination with Qwerty keypad on the reverse side of the device, and a satellite service option for all customers† (Gowda, et al, p.5). The â€Å"satellite service will give out a higher value and greater utility for consumers who have a desire to use their phone at any place in the world. The advantage of this new BlackBerry product line will generate and give value by ensuring that the ever changing needs of the existing and new consumers are satisfied within the targeted market segments. The new alternative would facilitate sustenance of growth because a new product creates motivati on for clients to go on buying BlackBerry products and offer greater utility with the features that have been added. Having a complete product line, this will enable the BlackBerry products to resist the external threats that are posed by the competitors. The new BlackBerry product will stimulate a sales increase as new products bring in a big proportion of revenues and dominate over other products. However, some disadvantage may be brought in case RIM does not succeed in satisfying the changing needs of the expectations of the consumers because this will bring about revenue loss and a reduction in the profits. If there is no demand for the new product, this may in turn reduce the value of the BlackBerry brand; thus discouraging the existing as well as the new customers from purchasing any BlackBerry brand . In addition, the competitors may decide to improve on the concept on which BlackBerry may base on when developing this new product line and bring to the market an improved model to capture the market share in case this new product does not succeed. But RIM should foresee this and take appropriate measures to avoid such risks. Adequate research should be carried out to ensure the new product does not fail and serve to satisfy the ever changing consumer needs. Precaution should be taken to ensure the product has not weaknesses on which the competitors can capitalize on it and for them to bring in to the market an even more improved product. Another move that needs to be taken by RIM after developing a new product is market penetration. In order for this company to increase the Smartphone market share is the business as well as consumer segments, it can ensure that the brand awareness is increased. It can do this by communicating the superior benefits of the new BlackBerry brand. In order to bring up the level of the brand awareness, and to ensure intensification of the distribution efforts, the company can open BlackBerry stores having specialized BlackBerry service, situated in the business centers as well as suburban regions across the globe, and mostly in Asia, Europe and North America regions. One of the Benefits that will accrue from this is that, by bringing improvement in the marketing mix and open the BlackBerry stores in the existing markets, the company will be able to penetrate its markets and increase its market share. Adding to the â€Å"place of market distribution, this will serve as an additional vehicle that will be used to strengthened its communication of its BlackBerry products through customer service quality. Moreover, the company’s BlackBerry â€Å"specialty stores† offer added value to the products, through providing convenience and product knowledge to both the current as well as new customers in the targeted markets. However, there are some disadvantages that the company may encounter following taking this move. For instance, there will be no compensating of the additional marketing costs in cas e the additional promotion and distribution places turns out to be fruitless. In such a situation, the company will loose its market shares to its competitors who may offer innovative products with higher perceived value. If RIM does not move fast and delay in launching the new specialty stores, the customers may not be motivated to purchase from the BlackBerry product line. But the most important thing is the company to consider these shortcomings and ensure they are avoided as much as possible. The other move that can be taken by RIM to gain a larger market share and improve its sales and profitability is to develop the market. The company should seek to further penetrate the global markets by collaborating with mobile carrier service sin nations having emerging markets to increase the market share for its Smartphone. An advantage of this is that, in a large number of developing economies, there is an increasing percent of middle-class household who starting to purchase technologi cal devices. This offers an opportunity for the company to capture market share and bring up the level of the revenue. Going on to collaborate with co-brand with the global mobile service carriers promotes a number of consumer perceptions of the quality of the product and ensures value addition to the BlackBerry products. One of the drawbacks that may be associated with this is that the potential that go on co-branding with the global mobile service carriers may fail on the side of RIM because, it is pointed out, â€Å"global carrier brands are suited to respective geographic regions and demographics in the different cultures, resulting in different customer profiles† (Gowda, et al, 2009, p.8). The global carrier companies may swift the priorities they have making the co-branded products not to be continued. Consequently, customer loyalty as well as customer relationships which are brought about by the co-branded products would actually be lost. Another drawback may be that v enturing in to the foreign markets may be obstructed by the regulations put in place by governments in thee countries. References Abkowitz, A. (2009). How BlackBerry Does It. Fortune, 160, (4), pp.92-100. Arthur, C. (2011). RIM launches three new BlackBerry devices with BB7 OS. The Guardian.  Web. Datamonitor: (2009). Research In Motion Limited SWOT Analysis, Research In Motion Limited. 3 (1) pp1-10. Gowda, N., Szabo, C. Choi, Y., Hauk, C. Salt, G. (2009). Blackberry’s rise in brand power.London: Macmillan and Company. Grewal, D. (2009). Marketing,. New York: McGraw-Hill Irwin. Peers, M. (2010) RIM’s Not-So-Smart BlackBerry Strategy. The Wall Street Journal. Web. Randhawa, et al. (2009). Blackberry’s rise in brand power: The dueling marketing strategies of RIM versus Apple. Marketing Case Study. Web. Siebes, D. (2010). The future of RIM/BlackBerry. MGMT 647. Web. Tsirulnik, G. (2010). Has RIM’s BlackBerry app strategy failed? Mobile Marketer. Web. This term paper on Marketing Plan for BlackBerry was written and submitted by user Charlie Holder to help you with your own studies. You are free to use it for research and reference purposes in order to write your own paper; however, you must cite it accordingly. You can donate your paper here.

anti pot Essays - Drug Culture, Drug Control Law, Drug Policy Reform

I personally believe that marijuana should not be decriminalized. I understand that it is not a hardcore drug and has possible medical uses, but it is just wrong to decriminalize it. The reason I believe this is simple why give them the option that if they continue with their unhealthy addiction that their only repercussion is that they have to pay a little bit of money and continue to harm themselves and others. One who is a user of weed might say: well at least I am not drinking, doing cocaine, meth or taking pills because those are worse than pot. Well what I see just from my own experience with drug users is that they also do those other drugs also. (I would like to say that I have never done any of these drugs). I know quite a few people friends, family, and otherwise that does or has done drugs, and most of them will admit to popping pills or drinking while smoking marijuana. Although they might still do it, it is right to charge them a fine and throw them in jail for a number of days, because in the long run maybe they will come to their sense and stop doing that to their self. On top of that if they lose their education, have trouble getting a job, or fin ding a place to live as the article said. Then isn?t that a consequence of their drug addiction? I know that this sounds harsh and I get that it might have been a onetime thing for them. It was their choice to go against what the laws said. That being said I do believe that they should be able to be allowed back into society (record expunged), but only after they go through rehab and can physically prove that they are not abusing drugs through a drug test. I believe that marijuana should not be decriminalized because it would allow more people to abused it and with less consequences.

women in the work place essays

women in the work place essays The past decades there has been a dramatic increase of women participating in the labor force from countries all over the World including Canada. In 1950, one Canadian worker in five was a woman. By 1980 this percentage had doubled, and women are expected to make up more than 44 percent of the labor force by the end of this century. The increase in female participation started occurring during the 1970's. This increase also caused the largest baby boom that the Canadian female labor force had ever witnessed. In North America it is common for women to have part-time or summer jobs, and the participation rate of teenage girls is high. It is also mostly high throughout the world in places as United Kingdom because of the fewer women going to school. But in places like France, Italy, and Japan the female participation rate is very low. In most of the countries the labour force is most participated in the age groups between 20 and 24. The labor force of mature women is very high in Sweden, because of the encouraged day care facilities, which also provides the females with legislation that provides them with excellent benefits. In Japan there is a drop in female economic activity, the reason why is it affects their marriage and the care of their only child. An observation of labor force participation rates in Canada show that female rates rose a lot between 1971 and 1981, while the male rate rose unnoticeably. The increase in the female participation rate was found in all age groups except in older women. For women aged 15 to 19 the rate was as almost as high as the men. But the largest increase was in the age group of 25-44 years old, where the rate rose almost 50 percent. This meant that the participation rates of the females had become more alike with the men. Family status also influenced the female participatio ...

Is biomedical model out of date Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Is biomedical model out of date - Essay Example It is based on 'the notion of the body as a machine, of disease as the consequence of breakdown of the machine, and of the doctor's task as repair of the machine.' (George Engel 1977). This approach has a serious shortcoming because by focusing on smaller parts of the body we lose the sight of patient as a human being. Also by considering health as proper functioning of organs, we are unable to deal with the phenomenon of healing as it is not only based on physical factors but on psychological factors of the human body. The concept of health and the concept of life are closely related. Around the globe, people follow different cultures and lifestyles. They are adapted to the different environment and slight change in the environment may lead to change in their health. Patterns of mortality and morbidity have changed shifting from a predominance of acute infectious diseases to a predominance of chronic and lifestyle-induced illness (US. Department of Health, Education and Welfare 1979 ). So here the ecological dimension is also considered while considering the concept of health. This contradicts the biomedical model.In the biomedical model, health is defined as the absence of disease. The World Health Organization defines health as ‘a dynamic state of complete physical, mental, spiritual and social well-being and not merely the absence of disease or infirmity’. This clearly shows that the biomedical model fails to address the social and psychological issues and thus can be considered to be outdated.

Audit and Assurance Case Study(SANCTUARY GROUP PLC) Essay

Audit and Assurance Case Study(SANCTUARY GROUP PLC) - Essay Example The Company's subsidiary, Bravado International Group Limited, operates as a merchandising company that specializes in exploiting intellectual property rights for more than 100 artists and brands. Live Agency even represents over two hundred twenty acts for live performance. Also, its business is carried out by the Company's subsidiary, Helter Skelter Agency Limited. This company operates as a booking agency. The following paragraphs will explain how audit strategy is related to the fairness of the financial statements of the. An audit(Pickett, 2006) is defined as the evaluation of an organization, process, system, project or product. In accounting, an audit is the independent assessment of the fairness where a company's financial statements are presented by its mangers or board of directors. It is done by competent, independent and objective person or persons, known as auditors or certified public accountants, who then issue a report on the results of the audit(Whittington, 1995). And, the audits are performed to determine the validity and reliability of financial information. Also, it provides an assessment of a company or a business' system of internal control. The accounting and related recording systems must adhere to generally accepted standards set by governing bodies that regulate how businesses should presented in terms of balance sheet, income statement and statement of cash flows. The audit should be based on random sampling and it should not be an assurance that financial statements are error free. Auditing also provides assurance for third parties or external financial statement users that such statements present 'fairly' a company's financial condition and results of operations.Further, effective risk management(Frame, 2003) will not happen overnight. Managers who want to enable their organizations to be better at managing risk must recognize that the road to effective risk management is definitely long, twisting, and occasionally hazardous. Beginning the journey is not as difficult. It may be even be triggered by a one-page directive issued by the chief operating officer of the organization following a small disaster, exhorting the organization to implement good risk management practices. But after the uninitiated, when the confetti has settled and the cheerers have been thrown away, the journey toward effective risk management is an uphill battle. In some way, what happens at this point is typical of many high-sounding corporate decisions. When light shines on the initiative, everyone scrambles to support it. When the senior managers turn their attention to other issues, the initiative begins to lose momentum, and without active support from top management, it falters. It may even hang on for a while until it dies and is buried. The risk related approach to external audit in the audit of Santuary Group Plc is based on control risk, audit risk and inherent risk. Audit risk is used to describe what is usually applied when in case of an audit of the financial statements of an entity. The first objective of the audit of the balance sheet, in

Fashion Management Design Lulu Lemon Brand Essay

Fashion Management Design Lulu Lemon Brand - Essay Example The paper "Fashion Management Design Lulu Lemon Brand" concerns the Lulu Lemon's Fashion Management Design. The toolkit is implied by the Three Pillars of Sustainability, which contains Economic, Ecological and Social dimensions. The term ‘sustainable development’ was born in 1987 by United Nations Commission on Environment and Development. The idea of equal attitude towards the three pillars is grounded on the hypothesis, that human needs cannot be met by one single pillar; economy, ecology and social issues are the three interconnected systems which are to remain stable. In reality, such equality doesn’t exist and economic side tends to be more convincing. Ecological and social pillars are less disputed, but ironically, they are the ones to be stressed in the first place, and the profitability is to follow naturally. In case of Lulu Lemon brand, the past experience and failures in particular need to be traced and analyzed; they are the indicators to show the dir ection to be followed in order to develop a sustainable strategy. The brand known as Lululemon Athletica was established in early 1998 by Chip Wilson. It is a Canadian company, specialized in yoga and athletic clothing. The targeted segment is the educated woman leading healthy and active lifestyle. Basically, Lululemon has developed a community-based strategy, promoting healthier, longer and fun lives. Basically, the Lululemon brand is not just about selling clothing, it is targeted at building loyalty by means of grassroots marketing.

Reducing Adverse Drug Events in Older Adults

Reducing Adverse Drug Events in Older Adults Gabrielle S. Buma With age comes the prospect of multiple health problems that may require treatment with several medications and multiple prescribers. The likelihood of morbidities and comorbidities such as, heart disease, arthritis, diabetes, and hypertension increases with age. Many older adults also take over the counter medications, vitamins, and other supplements along with their prescribed medications. The use of these multiple kinds of medications is called polypharmacy, and if done so correctly the use of multiple medications can have positive results in the treatment and maintenance of disease but if not used correctly the drugs could be less effective and result in expensive drug-related morbidity and mortality. The Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality claim that more than 770,000 people are injured or die each year from Adverse Drug Effects (ADEs) (Lynn, 2012). What makes this even more of a concern is that many experts believe that ADEs are significantly underreported. According to the Journal of the American Geriatrics Society, the annual cost associated with drug-related morbidity and mortality has been estimated to be at around $177 billion (Roth, Weinberger Campbell, 2009). Many factors play a role in the quality medication use in older adults; these factors can be considered overuse, underuse, and misuse. The misuse of medication that leads to adverse drug effects in older adults can be greatly reduced by improving health literacy and prescribing physician and patient communication. According to the Institute of Medicine, health literacy is considered an individual’s capacity to obtain, process, and understand basic health information and services needed to make appropriate health decisions (Martin, Kripalani, DuRapau, 2013). Currently in the United States, the older adults that are 65 years and older represent the largest group with the lowest general literacy and health literacy skills in the country (Bennett, Chen, Soroui White, 2009). This means that there is a large portion of the older adults over 65 that are making health decisions with the likelihood of not fully understanding them. Older adults over 65 years of age also have the highest rate of chronic illness of any other age group. The combination of low levels of literacy and high prevalence of multiple chronic conditions with multiple medications are major contributing factors to the high rate of ADEs in older adults. The article, Preventing Medication Errors, in the Institute of Medicine c ited that poor patient comprehension and unintentional misuse of prescription drugs as a significant cause for medication error and worse health outcomes (Martin, Kripalani, DuRapau, 2013). Many older adults are simply accidentally misusing prescribed medications due to a low level of health literacy. Low literacy in older adults and Medicare recipients affects their understanding of complex medication labels, instructions, and regimens (Martin, Kripalani, DuRapau, 2013). A way to improve older adult’s understanding of prescription drugs especially among those with limited literacy is greatly needed to prevent unintentional use that lead to AEDs, before the improvement can be made we need to first understand the factors associated with patients understanding of prescription drugs and their labeling. According to the National Assessment of Adult Literacy, adults who are socioeconomically disadvantaged that are a part of minority groups are more likely to be in poorer health (Davis, Wolf, Bass, Middlebrooks, Kennen, Baker, . . . . Parker, 2006 ). In the study, Low Literacy Impairs Comprehension of Prescription Drug Warning Labels, the authors measured a group of 251 adult’s ability to correctly interpret commonly used prescription medication labels. They measured the participant’s health literacy by having an expert panel evaluating the patient’s interpretation of the commonly used prescription medication labels. The results showed that one-third of patients were reading at or below a 6th grade level and that a patient’s comprehension of warning labels was associated with their level of literacy. The result that low literacy is associated with low comprehension and a difficulty understanding of warning labels on prescription medications is not a surpris e because the labels use terminology about a 6th grade reading level (Davis, Wolf, Bass, Middlebrooks, Kennen, Baker, . . . . Parker, 2006 ). The multistep instructions were found difficult for patients across all literacy levels. I found it surprising that the multistep instructions were difficult for all reading levels, but the study explains that the more steps a labels has the less concise and clear it tends to be to the patient. If the multistep instructions are a challenge for all literacy levels to understand then I would assume that it is quite challenging for a large population of the older adults who tend to have the lowest levels of literacy and so many different medications to keep track of with each having multistep directions. The study did offer recommendations that would help the understanding of medication labels for all literacy levels. These recommendations include; warning labels being developed with consumer participation, especially with lower literate populations, attempt to keep the steps short, clear and concise with familiar words and recognizable icons. After reading this study, I was surprised to learn that more prescription drug labels are not developed with the use of consumer participation, one would assume the in the developing of the instructions that it would be a priority to develop the instructions with consumer participation. It seems that more consumer participation with all health literacy levels would help create more user friendly labels that could result in a significant decrease in misuse of prescription drugs. The study, Improving Medication Management among At-risk Older Adults, evaluates health literacy but also medication self-efficacy and medication adherence. One reference in the study shows an alarming 54.3% of Medicare enrollees with limited health literacy were unable to understand what is considered simple medication instructions such as. â€Å"take on an empty stomach, † (Martin, Kripalani, DuRapau, 2013). The study describes a quality improvement pilot project where they provide at-risk older adults with illustrated medication instructions as an approach to improve medication understating use. In the quality improvement pilot project they evaluated the effect of their intervention on the older adult’s confidence in managing their medication and their self-reported adherence. This study, Improving Medication Management among At-risk Older Adults, took place at an adult day center were medication errors and misunderstanding medication instructions were identified as a problem. The authors and staff provided the adult day care center’s participants with illustrated depiction of their daily schedule PictureRxâ„ ¢ with the goal to improve the older adult’s understanding of medication instructions and improve medication safety. The illustrated aid shows the older adult’s medications pictorially, uses what they consider plain language for the instructions, and uses icons to aid patients in understanding the purpose and the dosing schedule (Martin, Kripalani, DuRapau, 2013). The PictureRx cards were used for six weeks and then the participants were surveyed along with reassessing their self-efficacy and adherence, as well as their perception on the PictureRx cards. The results showed that after the use of the PictureRx cards the participants reported much less forms of non-adherence and confidence significantly improved in areas of self-efficacy, such as correctly taking medications and following a routine. This article provides a valuable assessment of older adult’s health literacy and applies an intervention that resulted in an improved adherence and self-efficacy in older adults. When comparing the participant assessment before for the use of PictureRx and then the reassessment after shows a notably significant improvement. This pilot study shows an efficient way to improve older adult’s various health literacy levels and provides them with a way to better understand their overall medication regimens. I think something very similar to the PictureRx would be a great tool to implement for pharmacists when filling medications for older adults at the pharmacy and can provide a good reference for doctors when explaining medications to patients especially since doctors are so limited on the amount of time they can spend with a patient. Proper patient provider communication plays a huge role in a patient’s ability to understand their medications and ability to properly follow their medication regimes. Good communication about health history and medications with a provider and a patient could prevent the misuse of medication and an ADE. Before prescribing a new medication, the prescribing doctor is supposed to review the patient’s current medications, including over the counter medications, vitamins, supplements, and the patient’s health history. The article, Physician Communication When Prescribing New Medications from the Archives of Internal Medicine recommends that prescribing physicians should educate their patients about their medication’s purpose, how and when to take it, and the medications expected adverse effects. The patient and physician interaction is an opportunity for the physician to educate the patient on these topics which may reduce nonadherence that can be a result from poor understanding about medication use. The article also describes and assesses the quality of physician communication with patients about newly prescribed medications. The authors assess the provider’s communication through an observational study that combined patient and physician surveys and audiotaped 860 of the 909 participating patients while 270 new medications were prescribed (Tarn, Heritage, Hays Kravitz, 2006). During these visits the authors measured the quality of physician communication when prescribing new medications. The study by Tarn, Heritage, Hays, and Kravitz found that physicians stated full medication dosing directions for less than 60% of all of the medications that had been prescribed and informed the patients about the duration intake and ADEs for one third of the time. The study shares that ADEs were addressed for 35% of the medications and how long to take the medication was addressed at 34%. Although patients may be able to find information about their medications from different sources such as, a pharmacists and medication package inserts, information from their visits with the prescribing physician is inadequate to meet the patient’s needs. Conclusion The study found that the use of precise wording on prescription drug label instructions can improve patient understanding of how to take the medication patients with limited literacy were more likely to misinterpret instructions despite use of more explicit language Patients that have a limited literacy rate and those who are taking more medications are at a greater risk for misuse. Reference Page Davis, T. C., Federman, A. D., Wolf, M. S. (2009). Improving patient understanding of prescription drug label instructions. Journal of General Internal Medicine, 24(1), 57- Davis, T., Wolf, M., Bass, P., Middlebrooks, M., Kennen, E., Baker, D., . . . . Parker, R. (2006). Low literacy impairs comprehension of prescription drug warning labels. Journal of General Internal Medicine, 21(8), 847-851. Martin, D., Kripalani, S., DuRapau, J. (2012). Improving medication management among at-risk older adults. Journal of Gerontological Nursing, 38(6), 24-34. Roth, M., Weinberger, M., Campbell, W. (2009). Measuring the quality of medication use in older adults.Journal of the American Geriatrics Society,57(6), 1096-1102. Tarn, D. M., Heritage, J., Paterniti, D. A., Hays, R. D., Kravitz, R. L. (2006). Physician communication when prescribing new medications . Archive of Internal Medicine, 166(17), 1855-1862.

Description Essay

During my time as a child, I remember visiting so many places with my family throughout Southern California. One of the best memories was when I visited Lake Arrowhead. Located in the beautiful mountains of San Bernardino, Lake Arrowhead is a tiny city where every family would enjoy living in. Not only is Lake Arrowhead Village a great place to live but great place to enjoy nature’s beauty at any time of the day. I remember Lake Arrowhead for its beautiful scenery, it is family-oriented, and it has many outdoor activities. While visiting Lake Arrowhead in the winter time, I fell head over heels with the beautiful scenery that nature brought upon my eyes. As I arrived to the house in the evening, I looked up and I was able to see the stars that lit up the sky above me. As I walk down to the lake, I was able to hear the crickets’ chirping and the owls hooting as they hear the crackling of the snow that I’m stepping upon. As I look through the horizon of the snow, I saw the never ending slope falling towards the lake that apparently was frozen. As I sat on one of the unfrozen steps, I looked up once again, and I see the beautiful full moon sitting on a cloud. The stars shined even brighter when the moon glistened its light down to Earth. The lake looked really calm and I only saw a couple of ripples being caused by a female duck and her ducklings swimming in the middle of the lake. In the morning when I looked outside the window, the sun shined beautifully through the icicles that dangled down the side of the house. When I drove down to the city, you can see the cities that are at sea level. As I continued looking down, I see the clouds climbing up the mountains. And as I reach out of the car’s window, I can feel the refreshing mist that touches my fingertips. The scenery of the cities down below can’t no longer be seen because of the clouds the cover the scene like a blanket that stretches miles away across the sky. While walking through the forest, the leaves kept falling one by one. As the night approaches once again, the sunset looks like if someone painted it precisely to appear like an orange-ish and purple like sky as it gets darker every second it passes. Besides having beautiful scenery, Lake Arrowhead is family-oriented. While spending the weekend in Lake Arrowhead, I got to spend plenty of time with my family. In The Lake Arrowhead Village my family and I got to eat in a Mexican oriented restaurant called â€Å"Papagayos†. While eating in Papagayos, I got to talk with my family about many situations that we never had spoken about. For instance, I talked about what I thought I should do as my career. My family supported my decision and is helping me get to it. We also got a chance to explore their outdoor mall. There are many events in The Lake Arrowhead Village that are family oriented, such as family talent shows. Every Saturday, there is a competion for almost everything. There are times where they open up a fair close to the village for the weekend. Me and my brothers got to play many of the games and won many prizes. In Lake Arrowhead, there are many fun activities all over for families to enjoy their time no matter in what season we are in. Besides having a beautiful scenery and being family-oriented, Lake Arrowhead has many types of outdoor activities throughout the entire year. During spring time, you can jog for miles while enjoying the warm sun rays hitting your back. You can also hike between make of the resorts that provide mountains that are safe to climb. During the summer time, you can enjoy your time playing many sports such as volleyball. You can also spend your time on  your private boat and swim in the lake whenever there are heatwaves. Many people get their tan whenever the sun is really bright. In fall,

How to Promote Tourism in Malaysia Essay

In comparison to other sectors of Industry, the tourism industry is well developed at Malaysia. This industry effects in a positive manner in giving a boost to the Malaysian economy with a rapid increase in the earnings, of foreign exchange along with good employment opportunities. In the year 2005, it was declared by the World Tourism Organization that Malaysia stands 14th in the overall ranking based on the international tourism arrivals. Among the 53 different common wealth countries Malaysia ranks 3rd next to Britain and Canada. A wide increase in the foreign revenue generation was noticed in the year 2006 and the tourism sector generated about US$18. 1 billion through export revenue, which is almost 10% of the total foreign revenue earned by the country. Different efforts were taken by the government of Malaysia, to make the country more developed and a prime place of attraction for tourist from all parts of Asia and world. You can notice a huge infrastructure and physical development was given due priority by the government of Malaysia along with the established projects of tourism with good attraction of tourism for the prospect of the country (Jamil. J, 2007). After the independence of Malaysia, the Malaysian people put their concern on the western influences on the tourism development (Din, 1982). The tourism development continued its journey with a vision for the national development, the civilization of Islam, with a great progress in the parallel with the teachings of Islam (Islam,H, 2005). Out of the world’s 57 Muslim countries, only four countries manage to earn 17. 5 million tourists in 2004. The countries are Malaysia, Morocco, Egypt, and Turkey (Islamic countries Seek Bigger Piece of Tourism Pie, 2005). The tourism policy and its implementation in Malaysia As per as the overall development of Malaysia is concerned, NEP directly influenced it from 1971 to 1990. In later part NEP was replaced with the introduction of New Development Policy from the period 1991 to 2000. Several objectives of NEP were included in New Development Policy. Like various other industries and sectors of the economy of Malaysia, focus was also given towards the development of tourism industry by NEP. Depending on that, a federal form of constitution was adopted by Malaysia. Under this constitution come all the thirteen states and all the federal territory. The central government of Malaysia designed the policies keeping in mind a linear path with regard to their implementation on the state level. But in real terms it seemed like quite difficult to centralize the flow of the process, particularly due to the involvement of each state with own legislative style. Many of the state participated in the argument to oppose some of the policies of tourism as they feel that goes against the local norms of the state. Institutionalization of the industry of tourism in Malaysia The year 1995, marked the beginning of tourism as a new force of the economic sector of Malaysia with the setting up of the Department of Tourism under the Ministry of Trade of Malaysia. It clearly justifies that the industry of tourism is a late arriver in comparison to any other sector of industries in Malaysia (Tan, W. H 1991). The involvement of Malaysian government was in a slow pace towards the tourism industry, while most of the developing countries concentrate on the tourism industry to follow the path of growth in the economic front. A sudden fall in the commodity prices inspired Malaysian government to give new life to the industry of tourism, in order to sustain the growth of economy principle objectives of tourism, was included in the tourism master plan of Malaysia, which was the country’s 2nd Malaysia Plan 1971-75, marked the new beginning of the tourism sector as the contributing force for the economic development of Malaysia. In the year 1972, a dedicated agency was established known as the Tourist Development Corporation by the parliament of Malaysia. It is established with the mission to promote tourism of Malaysia. A new phase is marked with the involvement of the government in this sector. An international bench mark was achieved by the tourism industry in the year 1972 when Malaysia hosted the Pacific Area Travel Association (PATA) 21st conference, which resulted in the gradual increase in the number and percentage of the international tourist into Malaysia. A rapid increase is noticed also in the number of inbound tourist with the availability of the facility of regional airports and that too of an international standard. In the year 1986, the PATA 35th conference was held at Malaysia, which enhances the tourist attraction of the place in the subsequent years with the highlighting of the facilities and services offered to the delegates (Tan,W. H, 1991). A grand event was organized in the year 1990 on tourism . The event was named the Visit Malaysia Year 1990. In that very year a record visit of almost seven million international tourists was marked, which is a growth of almost 53. 6% from the previous year. The grand success of this event gave a targeted increase of almost 10% for each coming year. The Ministry of Culture, Arts and Tourism was introduced in the year 1992 to coordinate and plan the tourism activities of the country with close monitoring of the activities too. The inceptions of the Malaysia Tourism Promotion Board (MTPB), in the same year establish Malaysian tourism as one of the major force of the economic sectors of Malaysia. Malaysia Tourism Promotion Board took the initiative to promote Malaysia as the world tourism destination in order to enhance the socio economic well being of the country of Malaysia. On the other hand the Ministry of Culture, Arts and Tourism were entrusted with the responsibility to formulate the policies for tourism industry of the country. MTPB get the advantage to promote Malaysia on the international level with about 29 offices on worldwide basis. The domestic destinations were marked and then it was matched with various selected international markets. Keeping this concept of promotion eight destinations were marked with another four additional sites in each subsequent year. The destinations of Sabah, Langkawi, and Sarawak were promoted in high level especially to the European market, especially due to the appeal of the nature along with the sand and beaches. The development authority of the Langkawi targets the tourist from the Western Europe, area as the tourist from there do possess the capacity to avail and enjoy the facilities of the four to five star hotels located on the Langkawi Island. The above discussion on the Institutionalization of the industry of tourism in Malaysia clearly depicts how the development of the tourism industry take place in different stages to establish the country as one of the attractive destination for the tourist specially on the international level.

Free Essays on The Wars Of The Roses

J. R. Lander The Wars of the Roses New York G. P. Putnam’s Sons 1966 In medieval England from 1455 to 1487 The Wars of the Roses were a series of civil wars fought between the House of Lancaster and the House of York. The name Wars of the Roses comes from the badges used by the two houses, the white rose for the Yorkists and the red rose for the Lancastrians. The entire war was based on the two houses fighting for the throne and who was rightfully king. The author of this book is J. R. Lander; the book doesn’t cite where he was born or his time of birth. The book is vague on his background but states that he was a traveler and traveled to England to write this book. Most of the evidence that he uses to back up his writing is from biased opinions, wild rumor, meretricious propaganda, and the foulest of slander as well as historical truth. To him what people thought, their affections and their prejudices were often as important in history as truth itself. In this book Lander draws on contemporary sources to argue that the feud between the Yorks and the Lancasters was a fairly minor event to people at the time, overshadowed by local conflicts and the Black Death. The book is organized by beginning with background on the Lancasters and Yorks. There’s a very intricate discussion on the battles and why they happened, and it describes the time of peace after the civil war. It covers the life of many rulers and England ’s Civil War. It shows just how power hungry people can be. Lander’s thesis is The Wars of the Roses was a very bloody set of battles that spanned many decades between the Lancasters and the Yorks. The Wars of the Roses was begun when King Henry suddenly lapsed into a state of catatonia in 1450. This provided an opening for a powerful faction headed by Richard Neville, Earl of Warwick. Richard Neville wanted to make Richard, Duke of York, king. Ironically Richard of York had a better hereditar... Free Essays on The Wars Of The Roses Free Essays on The Wars Of The Roses J. R. Lander The Wars of the Roses New York G. P. Putnam’s Sons 1966 In medieval England from 1455 to 1487 The Wars of the Roses were a series of civil wars fought between the House of Lancaster and the House of York. The name Wars of the Roses comes from the badges used by the two houses, the white rose for the Yorkists and the red rose for the Lancastrians. The entire war was based on the two houses fighting for the throne and who was rightfully king. The author of this book is J. R. Lander; the book doesn’t cite where he was born or his time of birth. The book is vague on his background but states that he was a traveler and traveled to England to write this book. Most of the evidence that he uses to back up his writing is from biased opinions, wild rumor, meretricious propaganda, and the foulest of slander as well as historical truth. To him what people thought, their affections and their prejudices were often as important in history as truth itself. In this book Lander draws on contemporary sources to argue that the feud between the Yorks and the Lancasters was a fairly minor event to people at the time, overshadowed by local conflicts and the Black Death. The book is organized by beginning with background on the Lancasters and Yorks. There’s a very intricate discussion on the battles and why they happened, and it describes the time of peace after the civil war. It covers the life of many rulers and England ’s Civil War. It shows just how power hungry people can be. Lander’s thesis is The Wars of the Roses was a very bloody set of battles that spanned many decades between the Lancasters and the Yorks. The Wars of the Roses was begun when King Henry suddenly lapsed into a state of catatonia in 1450. This provided an opening for a powerful faction headed by Richard Neville, Earl of Warwick. Richard Neville wanted to make Richard, Duke of York, king. Ironically Richard of York had a better hereditar...

Study on Liza Minnelli essays

Study on Liza Minnelli essays The pinnacle of Liza Minnelli ¡s career as an actress is her role as Sally Bowles in Cabaret. The movie is a terrific piece, scoring seven academy awards in 1972, including Minnelli ¡s Oscar for Best Actress. Bob Fosse, the director, has brilliantly illustrated the lives of several people and the time they lived in. All characters driven by sympathetic goals, but their futures are complicated by the events of their locale ¡XGermany in 1931, the dawn of Nazi dominion. Intertwined in the narrative of these characters ¡ stories are musical scores, complete with girls and dancing, to emphasize and/or to foreshadow the intensity of these lives. Minnelli ¡s contribution to Cabaret lies in her superb portrayal of Sally Bowles, the singer of the Kit Kat Klub. Bowles is a bundle of contradictions. In the beginning of the film, the audience is greeted by her flightiness when she first meets Brian Roberts, the Englishman of letters who is to become her housemate. She flits ab out, throwing comments, making impressions and changing topics of conversations. At one point, she asks him to tell her all about himself, but interrupts him before he begins. She carries herself very swiftly and very self-assuredly, perhaps to allow no audible rejections. Nonetheless, by midway of the film, Sally ¡s strong will and ability to face reality with humor seep out. She is not easily embarrassed (by Brian ¡s rejection when she made a seductive move on him); she is not beaten by her father ¡s lack of love for her; she undergoes an abortion to keep her dream of becoming a movie star afloat; she is aware of her gold-digging motives. Minnelli could pull off Sally ¡s idiosyncrasies because she doesn ¡t demonize Sally ¡s flamboyance, nor glorify Sally ¡s strength to survive. She played Sally with one specific action: Sally ¡s thirst for attention, hence she can say vain little lines ¡X ¡Do I shock you, darling? ¡Ã‚ ¡Xand commit adultery without aggra va...

Issues and their implications for AVE Practitioners Essay

Issues and their implications for AVE Practitioners - Essay Example The rather unexpected revelation indicates that there is indeed an insufficiency for the provision of decent adult and vocational education. To try to solve the issue, many countries responded by installing frameworks that will cater and monitor the ongoing education of adults that is suited to fill to the emerging needs of a rapidly diversifying global market. Policies concerning adult and vocational education are being made and they are hoped to address this issue. There is much fanfare generated by the survey and is leading to many changes or introduction of innovative ideas for AVE. In my chosen field of AVE education, the issue now is that how is my career be affected in light of the developments in social and economic scenes. To be sure, my field can surely be affected and it is in this matter that I try to examine in this paper. It is undeniable that AVE education is considering that most adults would like to achieve career mobility. It even becomes more important as intercultural interactions make the scene competitive as Australia open its doors to immigrants to ensure it has enough skilled workforce that its aging population can provide. Perhaps the foremost question now is how recent events can define or affect the future of Adult and Vocational Education program. Is there a need to be concerned with the trends in the teaching workforce condition in the local scene According to McKenna and Fitzpatrick in their 2004 paper "Building sustainable adult literacy provision", Australia has been characterized before by a minimal amount of opportunities for literacy instructors for professional development due to lack of clear training and career pathways. There was a lack of support and necessary information to determine the needs of literacy instructors in teaching adults. The situation has increasingly improved, however, as Australia made changes to address this issue. The enthusiasm that characterizes the development of the literacy programs by the Australian authorities is actually a recent development. According to McKenzie and Kirkpatrick (2004), Australia has been the one who lag the most in response to the results of the International Adult Literacy Survey while other countries have proactively formulated and enacted reforms. Curtain (2008) suggests that the reason for this may be due to inclination of the Australian government to a certain type of approach to innovation. According to Curtain (2008), there are two approaches that governments tend to follow in spurring innovation. The first one is founded in the principle that market competition and forces could generate innovative ideas on their own. On the other end of the spectrum is the approach that operates in the principle that enterprise rarely innovates alone and the government should proactively formulate a national innovation system. In this approach, a network is established betwee n skilled personnel, government research and enterprises. Curtain, in his paper, argues that Australia tends to use the first approach. While other countries such as Finland and Singapore have developed from a humbling beginning, Australia had been left behind. Having this in mind, Australian authorities have stepped up efforts to improve literacy rates. Efforts to provide a federally recognized

The liberal and critical theory account of economic globalization Essay

The liberal and critical theory account of economic globalization - Essay Example tional contexts beyond national boundaries, critics like Ellen Meiksins Wood have been arguing on the extent of interference practiced by these international institutions and its implications on national powers. According to Wood (2005), problems related to globalization, such as â€Å"the social injustices, the growing gaps between rich and poor, ‘democratic deficits, ecological degradation and so on† are the consequences of capitalism (pp. 14). Wood (2005) thus argues that â€Å"capitalism, whether national or global, is driven by certain systematic imperatives of competition, profit-maximization and accumulation, which inevitably require putting ‘exchange-value’ before ‘use-value’ and profit before people† (pp. 14). While an optimistic view of liberalism will justify this particular opinion, a critical view to the notion shall be much emphasized to argue on behalf of capitalist theorists, stressing on the negatives associated with the same (KukoÄ , 2009). The critical theory thus asserts that globalization has made it possible for a handful of economies and institutional members to enjoy the wealth and resources within their global â€Å"playing field†, leading to graver sufferings of weaker and vulnerable economies (Bohman, 2004). As the two theories, liberalism on one hand and capitalism on the other, argue on the positives and negatives associated with globalization, this essay will aim at examining both these standpoints to conclude whether globalization can be held responsible for the increasing inequality in resource allocation causing poverty or it actually functions in reducing such disparities. Influences caused by international institutions will also be considered in the disc ussion henceforth to obtain a succinct understanding of the issue in concern. A nation might be said of having a comparative advantage if it can produce a particular good or service in a much efficient and cost effective manner as compared to other countries, which is only

China,Japan and Korea Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

China,Japan and Korea - Essay Example This form of government was in existence since 1644 to 1911 and it had a number of dynasties, for instance Xia, Shang and Tang (ChinaI 2). Though this form of system was in existence for a long period, it had a number of faults that were the main reason for its fall. According to historical studies, some of the problems associated with this form of political system were that it was marred with not only nepotism but also corruption (ChinaI 11). For instance, court officials themselves were corrupt to the extent of planning intrigues against one another. Citizens were levied high amounts of money in form of taxes that the government spent on undertaking expensive military expeditions. Another example of the poor political system emerged during Mao Zedong era. Mao’s form of government was quite dictatorial that no one would dare oppose his opinions. Since not everyone loved Mao’s form of governance, this resulted to the Cultural Revolution in 1966 that lasted for one decade (ChinaVI 3). During the revolution, Chinese students openly criticized the government. The case was similar during Deng Xiaoping reign whereby students were also unhappy with the form of governance, hence held protests in Tiananmen Square. After turning down the order to vacate the square, Deng sent an army to disrupt the protest that resulted to massive loss of lives, most of whom were students (ChinaIV 18). Just like China, Japan also had numerous issues due to poor ancient political systems. Historically, the Togukawa government ruled Japan. The system comprised of shogun, daimyo and the samurai (Japan V 3). Apart from collecting taxes, the Togukawa government also had the task of controlling cities in addition to maintaining civil order. Japan had both formal and informal institutions; informal institutions comprised of Zoku and Amakudari. Whereas Zoku was a policy tribe comprised of politicians working together for a

The various methods of dealing Essay Example for Free

The various methods of dealing Essay Legally, a working Monopoly is defined as a firm which controls 25% of their market. This immediately raises problems, within the measurement of market share, and the definition of their market. Microsoft is a considerably well known monopoly (as a whole), but is this the case for all areas of business? This would be the initial problem: determining their market. Microsoft spans a vast spectrum of business, however, virtually breaking into distinct main markets Desktop and Server. It is clear that Microsoft dominate the Desktop market, far outselling any near threats, but is this the case for the server market? I have broken down the server market into two main areas the Operating System itself, and the web based server. Operating System Percentage Share Linux 31.3% Microsoft Family 24.3% Server Software Percentage Share Apache Foundation 56% IIS (Microsoft) 24% According to the definition, Microsoft is not technically a monopoly in both markets. However, as Microsoft can be accepted to live within a single market (computing), they would have a clear monopoly. Consequentially, problems of dominance begin to occur. It has been discovered that they have been abusing their market power by forcing small firms into signing contracts that require them to purchase their software, should they be using their hardware. There are numerous ways to reduce or reclaim the power of monopolies, some controversial, and some are economic theory, therefore unrealistic. I will be discussing these within my essay. Monopolies tend to play as the dominant firm within their market, and as a result, tend to me price makers rather than takers. However, they can only control the price, or output, but not both. Generally, monopolies can be bad for the market mechanism as they are neither productively nor allocatively efficient. Like most firms, they would choose to profit maximise (at the point MC=MR). As you can see from the diagram on the left, if they choose to output the profit maximising level Q1, they will receive the price displayed by the demand curve P1. Fortunately, there are several remedies for monopoly. The first that I am going to discuss is: regulation. An excellent remedy for pure monopolies (where a single firm dominates 100% of a market) is regulation. Regulation involves the government appointing an independent body to monitor the activities of the firms. Ofcom (merged, previously Oftel) are a working example of this. They are the regulating body for the communications industry, covering telecommunications. Previously, before deregulation occurred, there were two main dominant firms: Telewest/NTL (Now Virgin Media), and British Telecommunications. If there was no regulatory body in place, it would have been too easy for this duopoly (where two main firms dominate the market) to price fix (tactically through the use of informal signals to indicate their future and current pricing structures) and therefore take advantage of the consumers, at they would have little choice other than to remove their fixed line telephones completely. One of the methods that can be used is RPI-X (RPI minus X) regulation. The value of X is defined by the regulatory body, and limits the pricing that firms may change based on the RPI (retail price index) less the value of X. As a result, if RPI-X0 then the firms will be forced to reduce their prices by the resultant value. The kind of price barrier will motivate firms to lower costs (as they cannot increase their prices) in order to generate greater profit for themselves. This kind of regulation has been using against British Gas, which expired on the 31st March 2000. Expanding on my telecommunications example: NTL has had agreements put in place by Oftel of RPI-1, so they were permitted to raise prices by no more than the value of RPI, less 1%, per year. However, this particular agreement expired on 31st December 1996. However, actual regulation has (in my opinion) proven to be inefficient and adequate, and possibly deemed to be failing the industry. A typical example of this lack of regulation is demonstrated by the unstoppable, but inevitable, profits of British Gas. They announced profits of à ¯Ã‚ ¿Ã‚ ½992 million for the first 6 months of this year, less than 24 hours after raising household prices by 35. This raises the question of whether or not these price rises are justified. They, along with the rest of the market, justify their actions on the elevation of wholesale gas and electricity prices (costs which they cannot absorb), but is this form of a tacit agreement (where firms informally signal price decision to other firms, to suggest they copy)? While it is proven that the barrel of oil did rise to approximately $150 per barrel, the firms were quick to act, raising their prices in quick succession of each other. However, now that the prices have fallen by half, have the firms taken the same quick action in reducing prices? I think not. This is an example of asymmetric information between the firms and the regulator, where the regulator is only dropping suggestions to the firms; they are not forcing any actions upon them. Despite preaches by Fuel Poverty organisations and EnergyWatch (the regulator), prices are still not falling at the rate that they should be. However, one of the most significant problems lie within determining the correct value of X for RPI-X price capping, as the regulator has few resources (as this example has demonstrated), therefore they cannot correctly evaluate costs. Setting a value too low may lead to under investment within the industry, causing undesired adverse effects. Having said this, the regulatory body has the power to split up a monopoly into multiple, smaller, firms if it deems this as necessary. This can be good for the market, as this will open up it to more competition, and possibly lower barriers to entry for other firms. This is the case of British Gas, where the regulator (Ofgas) had split it up into two major firms: Centrica and Transco. The idea was to open the market up to greater competition, as then British Gas (a trading name of Centrica) who sells the gas to business and domestic users would be separated from Transco who manage the actual gas pipelines. This would lower the barriers to entry (sunk costs) for new firms, as they would not have to produce the gas, nor have it routed to their customers homes. They can simply purchase it at a wholesale rate, and sell that on with a margin for profit. Other countries have adopted a different method for regulating monopolies, called Rate of return regulation. This is where companies are taxed a percentage of their profits, however this has similar problems. As there is no price ceiling introduced by this method, the monopolistic firm(s) may choose to simply increase their prices in order to cover the additional tax. This actually solves no problems, and leaves the consumer worse off, as they would be faced with paying higher prices. As the market is dominated by the few single firms, it may leave the consumer no choice but to purchase their goods from those single or sole suppliers at the higher cost. The competition commission also has a strong say on mergers, whether or not they are permitted to go ahead, if there is a threat to the market of a monopoly. An example of this was the Halifax Bank of Scotland and Lloyds TSB merger which resulted in a monopoly for the merged company of the mortgage market over 30% market share. However, these rules were brushed aside due to the nature of the merger, and the apparent confidence that the bank would collapse, and the government being unable to use more public money, therefore being unable to resort to nationalisation without public backlash. The reverse of regulation, de-regulation, can also help to remedy the problems of monopoly. De-regulation is when remove or simplify restrictions on a market in order to increase competition, or the threat within. While the thread of competition may keep push prices down (limit pricing where firms sell at just above their average costs, therefore diminishing the threat of new firms entering the market, forcing any new entrants not to take the chance as the barriers to entry and exit may be too high), it may not been enough in the long term. An example of this is the postal industry. In 2006, the market was fully deregulated, meaning that any new entrant had the ability to complete a range of functions, ranging from collecting and deliver door-to-door mail, to bulk mailing. While this does open the market up to some serious competition, the barriers to entry are still too high. The initial cost of dropping door-to-door mail to 99% of the country is very labour intensive, and explains why the state owned Royal Mail have a monopoly on this. Additionally, there needs to be a way for new firms to pick-up the mail locally from their clients. All this has to be profitably fairly quickly, as if they firm does not have enough finance behind them, they will quickly go bankrupt. However, there have been several new entrants to the marketplace for courier services, and this has become more apparent over the past few years. Such an example is www.Parcel2Go.com (who are a reseller of such companies such as DHL), but pickup large items from your home (as this cheaper service is domestic) and deliver it to another place of a domestic nature for a extraordinary low fee in comparison to the pricing that Royal Mail would change for the same service. Monopolies can also be dealt with by challenge of new firms. However, when a monopoly exists, this is sometimes less likely due to barriers to entry and exit. The new entrants have to assess these barriers, and judge whether or not it would be wise for them to compete; this then encompasses the theory of contestable markets. There are several factors involved, such as the reputation (pricing predictions) of the current (incumbent) firm. The existing monopoly may employ (legal) limit pricing to keep the threat of competition low, or apply predatory pricing. Illegal in the UK, predatory pricing involves setting the price below cost, with the intent to drive out their rivals, and then raise prices again. Another such formal form of collusion is cartels, however they are also forbidden by law. Fortunately, such anti-competitive practices are removable, however unfortunately, as I have discussed above: tacit collusion is the most likely and the hardest to prove and stop. Furthermore, there is resale price maintenance where the manufacturer will fix the price that the retailer must sell their goods at (they will generally apply this), and if they did not they would refuse to supply, which is again, illegal. Additionally, the incumbent firm can compete with non-pricing strategies, such as brand loyalty schemes or certain kinds of special offers so that their customers naturally do not buy from their competitors. There are also considerable sunk costs that are involved, and the more irrevocable they are, the less tempting for the new entrant. Depreciation is common, and when technology is fast-moving, a production system thats 6 months old can lose considerable value, quickly. An almost totally irrevocable cost is advertising such as branding and gaining that brand awareness and loyalty. While its average cost can be kept low by spreading the budget over large volumes of output, however the only realistic way this cost can be recovered, is if the firm was to sell their entire brand to the monopolist. Unfortunately, the incumbent firm can easy rival any advertising that the new entrant makes, making their efforts redundant. There may also be legal barriers, but these are more uncommon than not. Such barriers will include Patents, where the incumbent firm is rewarded for the research and inventions that they have created, so have a legal barrier to prevent any other firms from coping their idea, design or otherwise. Such patents stand for around 2 decades, so this can be a considerable amount of time for the incumbent firm to gain a monopoly on their product (regardless of the fact they will be the sole supplier). Natural monopolies act at as a barrier to entry for new firms, and within industries such as Water (Thames Water have a monopoly on this), it would be too costly and inefficient to lay down two pipes to consumers homes. However, should the market be deregulated for example, if Thames Water sell the water a wholesale price (such as British Gas does with Gas) then additional firms can afford to enter the market with lower barriers to entry. Finally, there is information asymmetry, where the existing firm has the experience and the knowledge about the industry that allows them to be more productive and drive down their costs. If the information is not known to the new entrants, this can be a sunk cost for them, acting as yet another deterrent for entering the market. However, having discussed the problems that monopolies may bring, the reverse can be true. Monopolies can be beneficial to a market because they achieve greater economies of scale, and tend to have a lower market price than smaller firms as they are more able to pass on cost reduction. A typical example of this would be the comparison of a monopolistic firm such as Tesco against Jays News. A typical product, one pint of milk will cost around 49 pence in a small firms shop, or 26 pence in Tesco. At a 53% saving, it seems clear that monopolies can benefit the greater economy. Sources: NTL Price Capping: http://www.ofcom.org.uk/static/archive/oftel/ind_info/broadcasting/ntlprice/section2.htm