How to Drive a Stick Shift Essay Example

How to Drive a Stick Shift Essay Starting the car with a bright smile on my face. Feeling absolutely confident. I released the hand brake and immediately hit the brakes in attempt to stop the car. My heartbeat began to increase as I started to think what I should do next. As the car stood in the middle of the road I visualized my dad driving the car. Taking three deep breaths I quickly released the brake again and pressed on the clutch and shifted to first. As I cruised in the neighborhood feeling proud I saw a hand in the air, as it got closer I realized it was my dad demanding me to park the car. Though my dad hammered me verbally for stealing the car while he was asleep, I had a smile on my face because that day I had learned how to drive a manual car. Driving a stick shift may look easy at first but it’s anything but. Practicing is the key, which may perhaps facilitate the car to run as smooth as an automatic. There are several steps, which need to be taken into account before driving a manual car. In order to have an excellent start there are a few things to keep in mind. The car consists of three pedals, five gears, and the hand brake. We will write a custom essay sample on How to Drive a Stick Shift specifically for you for only $16.38 $13.9/page Order now We will write a custom essay sample on How to Drive a Stick Shift specifically for you FOR ONLY $16.38 $13.9/page Hire Writer We will write a custom essay sample on How to Drive a Stick Shift specifically for you FOR ONLY $16.38 $13.9/page Hire Writer The first pedal to the left is the clutch, which needs to be pressed in order to change a gear. The brake pedal is in the center, and lastly the pedal to the right is the accelerator. Take deep breaths and relax, focus on the car. Release the handbrakes keeping the brake pedal pressed. Using the left foot press the clutch and using the right hand change into first gear, which is the gear on the top left corner. Slowly, free the brake pedal and keep the left foot on the clutch. Using the right foot begin pressing the accelerator gently. Keep an eye on the RPM, as the needle exceeds one RPM gradually let go of the clutch leaving the left foot to rest and press the accelerator further. As the car begins to move faster, concentrate on the sound of the car and at the same time look at the RPM. Once the engine begins to get loud and the RPM reaches three, press the clutch again using the left foot and change into second gear using the right hand. Once the gear has been changed release the clutch pedal and accelerate again. Continue with this process until it can be down without hesitation. It is possible for the car to close a few times. Instantly press the brake pedal and the clutch using both feet. Change the gear into neutral and haul up the handbrake. Then restart the engine. Though it may take a while to get the hang of, how to drive a stick shift will always stay in mind. There are several steps to take into consideration when learning how to drive a stick shift. Practicing how to drive a stick shift may be irritating but think of it as a goal, which must be achieved. Only practicing will improve ones skills. How to Drive a Stick Shift Essay Example How to Drive a Stick Shift Essay Starting the car with a bright smile on my face. Feeling absolutely confident. I released the hand brake and immediately hit the brakes in attempt to stop the car. My heartbeat began to increase as I started to think what I should do next. As the car stood in the middle of the road I visualized my dad driving the car. Taking three deep breaths I quickly released the brake again and pressed on the clutch and shifted to first. As I cruised in the neighborhood feeling proud I saw a hand in the air, as it got closer I realized it was my dad demanding me to park the car. Though my dad hammered me verbally for stealing the car while he was asleep, I had a smile on my face because that day I had learned how to drive a manual car. Driving a stick shift may look easy at first but it’s anything but. Practicing is the key, which may perhaps facilitate the car to run as smooth as an automatic. There are several steps, which need to be taken into account before driving a manual car. In order to have an excellent start there are a few things to keep in mind. The car consists of three pedals, five gears, and the hand brake. We will write a custom essay sample on How to Drive a Stick Shift specifically for you for only $16.38 $13.9/page Order now We will write a custom essay sample on How to Drive a Stick Shift specifically for you FOR ONLY $16.38 $13.9/page Hire Writer We will write a custom essay sample on How to Drive a Stick Shift specifically for you FOR ONLY $16.38 $13.9/page Hire Writer The first pedal to the left is the clutch, which needs to be pressed in order to change a gear. The brake pedal is in the center, and lastly the pedal to the right is the accelerator. Take deep breaths and relax, focus on the car. Release the handbrakes keeping the brake pedal pressed. Using the left foot press the clutch and using the right hand change into first gear, which is the gear on the top left corner. Slowly, free the brake pedal and keep the left foot on the clutch. Using the right foot begin pressing the accelerator gently. Keep an eye on the RPM, as the needle exceeds one RPM gradually let go of the clutch leaving the left foot to rest and press the accelerator further. As the car begins to move faster, concentrate on the sound of the car and at the same time look at the RPM. Once the engine begins to get loud and the RPM reaches three, press the clutch again using the left foot and change into second gear using the right hand. Once the gear has been changed release the clutch pedal and accelerate again. Continue with this process until it can be down without hesitation. It is possible for the car to close a few times. Instantly press the brake pedal and the clutch using both feet. Change the gear into neutral and haul up the handbrake. Then restart the engine. Though it may take a while to get the hang of, how to drive a stick shift will always stay in mind. There are several steps to take into consideration when learning how to drive a stick shift. Practicing how to drive a stick shift may be irritating but think of it as a goal, which must be achieved. Only practicing will improve ones skills.

The Myth of Individualism Essays

The Myth of Individualism Essays The Myth of Individualism Essay The Myth of Individualism Essay The Myth of Individualism America is famous for the reputation of being the land of opportunity, and for generations immigrants have fled to the United States to experience the freedom and equality our government lays claim to. The fundamental of this reputation is the American Dream, the belief that life should be better and richer and fuller for everyone, with opportunity for each by hard working regardless of social class or circumstances of birth(by James Truslow Adams). The American Dream is different for everyone, though it is most commonly associated with success, freedom, and happiness. The concept of the American Dream seems to have dwindled from where it was in the past few generations. It has gone from success, freedom, and happiness to having lots of money and the nicest possessions. Also, it is believed to be blind to race, sex, or socio-economic status. In today’s society we all hope and strive for this dream, but how many actually achieve the American Dream? Is it a reasonable goal that Americans should strive for, or is it a myth that only leads to self-destruction? Repeated examples and statistics of the lower-classes, those continually facing the harsh reality that opportunity and equality are empty promises, only prove the opposite. The countless stories of failure to reach the American Dream significantly override the few success stories that keep the myth alive. However, these few success stories keep Americans, as well as the rest of the world, believing in the false opportunities the American Dream puts forth. For generations, Americans have been led to believe that the American Dream is realistic. Perhaps the American Dream can only be a myth to the lower classes. According to Maria La Ganga in her article â€Å"Tent City, USA,† many former owners of the American dream are living the American nightmare in the tent city, struggle to stay clean and fed. In the same vein, those who attempt to disprove the American Dream are considered un-American, and so are quickly silenced. However, these few success stories and accusations cannot change the truth; the American Dream is not equally attainable to all. Poor parents cannot offer their children the same attention and motivation as parents of a higher-class can, therefore never providing these children with the belief that they are able to accomplish the American dream. Citizens who live in poverty work long hours for little pay, yet return to a household that in no way symbolizes the hard work put forth. Within this environment, very few people have the positive outlook to mentor children successfully. In addition, many families do not make sufficient income to provide adequate food, housing or health care, and so then health conditions are drastically different than those of the upper class. Although many Americans are proud of the free-trade economic structure in the US, capitalist policy is only widening the gap between rich and poor, keeping the lower-class away from attaining their American Dream. The American Dream was founded on the backs of small business-owners and farmers who at one time had the ability to become self-made men, but as Stephen Cruz pointed out in his interview with Studs Terkel, Its getting so big. The small-business venture is not there anymore. Business has become too big to influence. Because the capitalist economic structure supports private ownership and growth and opposes government intervention to prevent it, companies have grown big enough to have the characteristics of monopolies. Due to this, small companies or farmers cannot possibly compete with larger stores or corporate farms that can easily buy them out or price them out of business. Additionally, capitalism presents another oppressive strength that is beyond individual control: class domination. Therefore, even though America prides itself on being a classless society, a class system is unavoidable with a free-trade economic system because the private and individualistic characteristics force a distinction between the haves and have-nots. Class distinction provides not only feelings of inferiority for the lower-classes, but monetary inadequacy as well. Higher-class children have an advantage from birth since they are guaranteed large sums of money at some time in their lives. Furthermore, it is known that it takes money to make money in a capitalistic system and so the inheritance laws only widen the gap between the rich and poor, keeping the lower-class exactly where they started: on the bottom. The American dream can only offer empty promises of equal opportunity to ucceed. People are driven to work hard by the notion of success without having almost any chance to succeed. However, because the American Dream is so deeply embedded in our culture, it greatly influences our perception of others and our perception of success. The all you need is hard work to succeed mindset has encouraged Americans to flaunt costly possessions to give the persona of a hard worker, while Americans who do not own extravagant objects are l ooked at as lazy or incompetent. In reality, most cases are opposite. It is undeniable that an American laboring long hour for minimum wage works harder than an American who doesnt maintain a job because he lives off inheritance money, but that is not what the myth has taught us. Even for those who have completed the American Dream, it’s not necessary a happy ending. In the story Ragged Dick, Horatio Alger writes about a young man’s progress from poor background that searches for wealth. In this story Dick has gone from rags to riches, immediately after his success he wants to move to a nicer quarter of the city? But will this move satisfy his wants? Even though Dick is moving to a better part of town, there will always be a place that’s even better than this. The American Dream has taught us that each American has an equal opportunity to succeed and because it has been accepted for generations, the myth continues to make us blind to the many inequalities that prevent the lower class from reaching their dream. Therefore, the American Dream will only leave lower-class Americans as they continue to see their dreams die, while they watch the dreams of the higher-class blossom The American Dream does not offer hope, but rather keeps Americans in the same class they were born into. The pattern will persist from generation to generation, making the rich richer and forcing the poor to become poorer unless action is taken. This vicious cycle is a result of a blinding myth that not only gives false hopes, but prevents the inequalities of America from taking center stage. It seems as though the myth cannot be weakened, but then after all, with a little hard work, one can do anything. Terkel, Studs. Stephen Cruz. Rereading America. Eds. Gary Colombo, Robert Cullen, and Bonnie Lisle. Boston: Bedford/ St. Alger, Horatio. â€Å"From Ragged Dick. † Rereading America. Eds. Gary Colombo, Robert Cullen, and Bonnie Lisle. Boston: Bedford/ St. Ganga, Maria La. Tent City. Los Angeles Times [Los Angeles] 26 Mar. 2009. The Standard. Web. 14 Nov. 2011. .

Roche Pharmaceuticals Operations Planning Research Paper

Roche Pharmaceuticals Operations Planning - Research Paper Example Sales & Operations Planning At Roche an efficient sales & operations planning is used in order to balance demand and supply, to align mix and volume and for integrating financial and operating plans. This has been facilitated by using of Enterprise Resource Planning systems discussed in later sections. At Roche, the top management takes ownership of the sales and operations planning process. The management considers it a source of delivering business plans and strategies. The medium to long term decisions are taken by the top executives while the short term decisions are taken by the middle management. Various products at Roche pharmaceuticals are divided into families which makes it easier for management to review them for planning. Roche believes in proactive management rather than reactive crisis management. Hence, the sales and operations plan are designed well ahead of time. The sales and operations planning process also encompasses risk analysis and mitigation. The various possible scenarios in the planning horizon are studied and plans are made to tackle sudden rise or fall in demand and resources. After the plans have been decided at the top, they are communicated throughout the organization for smooth and accurate implementation. Broadly speaking, 5 steps are followed by Roche for Sales and Operations Planning. In the first steps, all new product development programmes are reviewed with the help of Research and Development Department. The information obtained acts as input for the sales and operations planning process. The concerned risks and assumptions are also documented. In the second step, a new sales and demand plan is created. The forecasts made here are dependent upon inputs from various stakeholders in the meeting. Roche accomplishes forecasting with the help of SAP ERP tools. The system generated forecasts are shared with all stakeholders. Any changes suggested are incorporated after discussion and the final forecasts are developed. These forecasts act as input for demand planning meeting. The concerned risks and assumptions are documented. In the third step, an operations plan is prepared in order to fulfill demands for each time period. For this the old operations plan is studied and the differen ces are noted. In the new operations plan, these differences are adjusted keeping in view the various resource constraints and inventory levels. The operations plan is multiplied by bill of materials required for each product family to arrive at total required resources. The required resources are compared with available resources. If there are significant differences, solutions to fill those gaps are identified and documented. In the fourth step, the impact of operations plan on other departments such as Accounts, finance, IT and sales is studied. Reconciliations and corrections are done to address concerns of various departments. Finally the key recommendations and potential scenarios are studied to from an agenda for the final Sales and Operations Planning meeting. The agenda is shared before the meeting for everyone to understand. In the fifth step, final Sales and Operations meeting is conducted. In the final meeting, the progress on previous sales and operations plan is studie d, plan for each product family is reviewed, approvals are made and new proposals are decided. The minutes of meeting and action plans are then communicated to various stakeholders (PHS, 2006). 5.3. Aggregate Planning Strategies Roche pharmaceuticals uses aggregate planning for achieving its medium term objectives. The activities are planned at various

Services Based Organisation Report Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Services Based Organisation Report - Essay Example These developmental processes include coaching, mentoring, eLearning, action learning and blended learning (Becker and Gerhart, 2009). This paper is focused on the employee development of a firm on the grounds of eLearning and how it has been improved over the years to foster employee development and using organisational resources efficiently. The purpose of the human resource management department is not only to look after the employee acquisition and performance level, but also to ensure that the firm is able to improve the employees’ skills and knowledge. An organization with a high skilled employee base is most likely to yield a higher performance level than its competitors. Therefore, it is vital for a firm to engage in employee development to gain a competitive advantage over its rivals (Baumruk and Gorman, 2009). The advent of globalization has made the global business market a more open place; this as a result has also increased the competitiveness of the industry. Therefore the companies constantly seek out new ways to improve their operational and production process so that they can stay ahead of their competitors (Eunmi, 2009). The traditional way to achieve this is to invest in high end manufacturing process and infrastructure. The firms often overlook the importance of the individuals who run the opera tional process. Moreover, owing to the myopic vision of the organization, it is caught up in achieving short term goals only, which as a result deviates the focus from the employees. This as a result reduces the productivity and efficiency of the firm as well as the chances of its sustainability (Sugumaran, 2008). Currie and Kerrin (2010) have stated that one of the effective ways of improving the productivity of the employees is to provide them with proper training. It can be defined as the planned effort of the organization to improve the competencies and knowledge base of the employees, which includes the

The Ancient Art Analysis Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

The Ancient Art Analysis - Essay Example The Indra and Surya are engravings as depicted in this picture. Nonetheless, the two sculptures are a depiction of the final existence and the past lives the Buddhism founder, Siddhartha Gautama. The size of the sculptures is also similar as it ranges from 50 to 200 feet in height. The four-ram Fangzum is a bronze cast sculpture while the Reliquary Buddhist Stupa is cast in gold. The two sculptures have a great significance in the culture of the Chinese and the Indians respectively. These two sculptures depict the respect given to the dead, and especially to sages and religious teachers. However, there is a great difference in the age of their molding with the four-ram fan zun cast in the second Millennium BCE, during the era of the Shang dynasty with the Reliquary Buddhist Stupa cast in the 3rd century CE, which was during the Kushan dynasty. The two sculptures are also a symbol of commemorating significant occurrences in the Chinese and Indian religion. Hence, their main subject or significance is more of spiritual beliefs than political. Their complexity and evident in the way that the bronze is carved into the four-ram Fangzum and the way the pillars erect the Reliquary Buddhist Stupa. This artistic feature is a clear evidence of the prowess and the passion of Chinese and Ancient Indian sculptures of the time. The sculptures also have a gloss finish that clearly distinguishes them from the past sculptures that had a dull finish. The bowl is red and made of earth. The bowl also has designs  of a human head that are  black  in  color  and  imposing  fish designs. The bowl was made for worshiping the ancestors in Ancient China during the Neolithic Period, which was crucial in the Chinese history. Despite the non-development of the potter’s wheel during the time of making the bowl, the bowl is perfectly round with highly polished surfaces. In

A Model Of Consumer Behavior Online

A Model Of Consumer Behavior Online Del Monte operates in a very competitive global food industry. In addition to manufacturing canned fruits and vegetables for human consumption, Del Monte produces pet food such as Gravy Train, 9 Lives, and Meow Mix. Therefore, using market research the company constantly looks for innovative ways to increase its competitive edge. The company also decided to implement social media. Once Del Monte made the decision to deploy social media projects, the company had to decide how best to use social media research to support its diverse product line-in this case dog food. The Solution The basic idea was first to connect and collaborate with dog lovers via social networks. Since the corporate IT department was not equipped to deal with social network research, Del Monte hired Market Tools Inc., a market research firm. With the help of Market Tools Inc., Del Monte began offering an online platform for customers to chat and comment on blog entries about different Del Monte products. Using their propriety software, Market Tools monitors millions of relevant blogs in the blogsphere as well as forums in social networks, in order to identify key ideas and issues that consumers are interested in, analyze them, and then predict consumer behavior trends. To analyze the collected data, Del Monte teamed up with Umbria (a division of J. D. Power and Associates), a pioneer in drawing market intelligence from the online community. Umbria assisted in further analysis of and in profiling the collected information. Such analysis is usually done by using computerized tools such as monitoring consumer interactions, analyzing consumers sentiments, and using social analytics methods (e.g., see Hedin, et al. 2011 and Jayanti 2010). By utilizing social media, Del Monte can conduct market research much more efficiently. The conventional approach was to use questionnaires or focus groups that were expensive and difficult to fill with qualified participants. Using social media, Del Monte can gather much of the same or more qualitative data faster and at a lower price. All that is required now is to monitor customer conversations, collect the data, and analyze the vast amount of information. The software also facilitates subgroup creation, idea generation, and panel creation. The results of the analysis help Del Monte understand its customers and consequently plan its marketing activities, communication strategies, and customer service applications. The results also help evaluate the success of marketing campaigns, how well the business processes accomplished the goals, and better justify proposed new activities. The Experiment Del Monte used the above application first to help improve its dog treat, Snausages Breakfast Bites. For guidance, Del Monte relied on its dog lovers social community. By monitoring customer blogs and by posting questions to customers to stimulate discussions, Del Monte used text analysis methods to investigate the relationship between dogs and their owners. Del Monte concluded that owners of small dogs would be the major purchasers of Snausages Breakfast Bites. The company also found differences due to the age of owners, and discovered other people-dogs relationships. Next, a small sample of the improved dog food was produced and tested in the physical market. As a result of both social media and physical research, the product design decisions were revised. Also, marketing promotions were modified. The product sells better because the dogs love it. Finally, the new approach solidified the community of dog lovers who are happy that their opinions are considered. The Results Product cycle time was reduced by more than 50 percent to only 6 months, and Del Monte was able to develop a better marketing communication strategy. Furthermore, the analysis helped the company better understand customers and their purchasing activities as well as predicting market trends and identifying and anticipating opportunities. Note: Similar research on cat food was conducted in 2012 in an online survey, by Kelton Research, using e-mail invitation and an online survey. For details see Meow Mix (2012). Sources: Compiled from Steel (2008), Greengard (2008), Hedin et al. (2011), Jayanti (2010), Meow Mix (2012), Wikivest (2012), and Market Tools (2008). What we can learnà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦ The opening case illustrates that market research can be useful in a competitive market by providing insights for better product development and marketing strategy. In this case, the company collected data online from its socially-oriented customers. Market Tools Inc. monitored conversations (over 50 millions of them) on blogs and discussion rooms to find the voice of the customers. The collected data were then analyzed. The results of the analysis helped Del Monte improve its dog food and devise new marketing strategies. Market research, as seen in the case, is related to consumer behavior, purchasing decision making, behavioral marketing, and advertising strategies; all these topics are addressed in this chapter. 9.1 Learning About Consumer Behavior Online Companies are operating in an increasingly competitive environment. Therefore, they please customers and influence them to buy their goods and services. Finding and retaining customers are major critical success factors for most businesses, both offline and online. One of the key elements in building effective customer relationships is an understanding of consumer shopping behavior online. A Model of Consumer Behavior Online For decades, market researchers have tried to understand consumer shopping behavior, and have summarized their findings in various models. The purpose of a consumer behavior model is to help vendors understand how a consumer makes a purchasing decision. If a firm understands the decision process, it may be able to better influence the buyers decision, for example, through advertising or special promotions. Before examining the consumer behavior models variables, lets describe who the EC consumers are. Online consumers can be divided into two types: individual consumers (who get much of the media attention) and organizational buyers, who do most of the actual shopping in cyberspace in terms of dollar volume of sales. Organizational buyers include governments, private corporations, resellers, and nonprofit organizations. Purchases by organizational buyers are generally used to add value to materials or products. Also, organizational buyers may purchase products for resale without any further modifications. We discuss organizational purchasing in detail in Chapter 5 (e-procurement) and will focus on individual consumers in this chapter. The purpose of a consumer behavior model (for individuals) is to show factors that affect consumer behavior. Exhibit 9.1 shows the basic elements of a consumer behavior model. The model is composed of two major parts: influential factors and the consumer decision process. [Insert Exhibit 9.1 here] Æ’ËÅ" Influential factors. Five dimensions are considered to affect consumer behavior. They are consumer characteristics, environmental characteristics, merchant and intermediary characteristics (which are at the top of the exhibit and are considered uncontrollable from the sellers point of view), product/service characteristics (which include market stimuli), and EC systems. The last two are mostly controlled by the sellers. Exhibit 9.1 illustrates the major variables in each influential dimension. A more detailed description is provided in Online File W9.1. Æ’ËÅ" The attitude-behavior decision process. The consumer decision process usually starts with a positive attitude and ends with the buyers decision to purchase and/or repurchase. A favorable attitude would lead to a stronger buying intention, which in turn would result in the actual buying behavior. Previous research has shown that the linkages among the previously mentioned three constructs are quite strong. For example, Ranganathan and Jha (2007) found that past online shopping experiences have the strongest associations with online purchase intention, followed by customer concerns, website quality, and computer self-efficacy. Therefore, developing a positive consumer attitude plays a central role in the final purchase decision. The Major Influential Factors These factors fall into the following categories: Personal characteristics. Personal characteristics, which are shown in the top-left portion of Exhibit 9.1, refer to demographic factors, individual preferences, and behavioral characteristics. Several websites provide information on customer buying habits online (e.g., emarketer.com, clickz.com, and comscore.com). The major demographics that such sites track are gender, age, marital status, educational level, ethnicity, occupation, and household income, which can be correlated with Internet usage and EC data. Males and females have been found to perceive information differently depending on their levels of purchase confidence and internal knowledge (Barber et al. 2009). A recent survey by Crespo and Bosque (2010) shows that shopping experience has a significant effect on consumer attitude and intention to purchase online. Psychological variables such as personality and lifestyle characteristics are also studied by marketers. These variables are briefly mentioned in several places throughout the text. The reader who is interested in the impact of lifestyle differences on online shopping may see Wang et al. (2006). Product/service factors. The second group of factors is related to the product/service itself. Whether a consumer decides to buy is affected by the nature of the product/service in the transaction. These may include the price, quality, design, brand, and other related attributes of the product. Merchant and intermediary factors. Online transactions may also be affected by the merchant that provides the product/service. This group of factors includes merchant reputation, size of transaction, trust in the merchant, and so on. For example, people feel more secure when they purchase from Amazon.com (due to its reputation) than from a no-name seller. Other factors such as marketing strategy and advertising can also play a major role. EC systems. The EC platform for online transactions (e.g., security protection, payment mechanism, and so forth) offered by the merchant may also have effects. EC design factors can be divided into motivational and hygiene factors. Motivational factors were found to be more important than hygiene factors in attracting online customers (Liang and Lai 2002). Perceived usability is highly related to user preference for commercial websites (Lee and Koubek 2010). Motivational factors. Motivational factors are the functions available on the website to provide direct support in the transactional process (e.g., search engine, shopping carts, multiple payment methods). Hygiene factors. Hygiene factors are functions available on the website whose main purpose is to prevent possible trouble in the process (e.g., security and product status tracking). Environmental factors. The environment in which a transaction occurs may affect a consumers purchase decision. As shown in Exhibit 8.1, environmental variables can be grouped into the following categories: Social variables. People are influenced by family members, friends, coworkers, and whats in fashion this year. Therefore, social variables (such as customer endorsement, word-of-mouth) play an important role in EC. Of special importance in EC are Internet communities (see Chapter 7) and discussion groups, in which people communicate via chat rooms, electronic bulletin boards, twitting, and newsgroups. These topics are discussed in various places in the text. Cultural/community variables. It makes a big difference in what people buy if a consumer lives near Silicon Valley in California or in the mountains in Nepal. Chinese shoppers may differ from French shoppers, and rural shoppers may differ from urban ones. Other environmental variables. These include aspects such as available information, government regulations, legal constraints, and situational factors. [Comp: please shade the bullet list] Section 9.1 Ã… ¸ Review Questions 1. Describe the major components and structure of the consumer online purchasing behavior model. 2. List some major personal characteristics that influence consumer behavior. 3. List the major environmental variables of the purchasing environment. 4. List and describe five major merchant-related variables. 5. Describe the relationships among attitude, intention, and actual behavior in the behavior process model. 9.2 The Consumer Purchasing Decision-Making Process Consumer behavior is a major element in the process of consumers decisions to purchase or repurchase. A Generic Purchasing-Decision Model From the consumers perspective, a general purchasing-decision model consists of five major phases (Hawkins and Mothersbaugh 2010). In each phase, we can distinguish several activities and, in some, one or more decisions. The five phases are (1) need identification, (2) information search, (3) evaluation of alternatives, (4) purchase and delivery, and (5) postpurchase activities. Although these phases offer a general guide to the consumer decision-making process, one should not assume that every consumers decision-making process will necessarily proceed in this order. In fact, some consumers may proceed to a specific phase and then revert to a previous phase, or they may skip a phase altogether. The phases are discussed in more details next. à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Need identification. The first phase occurs when a consumer is faced with an imbalance between the actual and the desired states of a need. A marketers goal is to get the consumer to recognize such imbalance and then convince the consumer that the product or service the seller offers will fill this gap. à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Information search. After identifying the need, the consumer searches for information on the various alternatives available to satisfy the need. Here, we differentiate between two decisions: what product to buy (product brokering) and from whom to buy it (merchant brokering). These two decisions can be separate or combined. In the consumers search for information, catalogs, advertising, promotions, and reference groups could influence decision making. During this phase, online product search and comparison engines, see examples at shopping.com, buyersindex.com, and mysimon.com, can be very helpful. (See decision aids in Chapter 3.) à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Evaluation of Alternatives. The consumers information search will eventually generate a smaller set of preferred alternatives. From this set, the would-be buyer will further evaluate the alternatives and, if possible, negotiate terms. In this phase, a consumer will use the collected information to develop a set of criteria. These criteria will help the consumer evaluate and compare alternatives. For online consumers, the activities may include evaluation of product prices and features. à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Purchase and delivery. After evaluating the alternatives, the consumer will make the purchasing decision, arrange payment and delivery, purchase warranties, and so on. à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Postpurchase activities. The final phase is a postpurchase phase, which consists of customer service and evaluation of the usefulness of the product. Customer services and consumer satisfaction will result in positive experience and word-of-mouth (e.g., This product is really great! or We really received good service when we had problems.). If the customer is satisfied with the product and services, loyalty will increase and repeat purchases will occur afterward. [Comp: please shade the bullet list] Several other purchasing-decision models have been proposed. A classic (1925) model for describing consumer message processing is the Attention-Interest-Desire-Action (AIDA) model at Wikipedia (see AIDA at Wikipedia). It argues that consumer processing of an advertising message (part of the information search phase) includes the following four stages: 1. A-Attention (Awareness). The first step is to get the customers attention. 2. I-Interest. By demonstrating features, advantages, and benefits, the customer becomes interested in the product. 3. D-Desire. Convice the customers that they want the product or service and that it will suit their needs. 4. A-Action. Finally, the consumer will take action toward purchasing. Now, some researchers also add another letter to form AIDA(S), where: 5. S-Satisfaction. Customer satisfaction will generate higher loyalty and lead to repurchase after using a product/service. (Loyalty, satisfaction, and trust are discussed in Online File W9.2.) A recent version of AIDA is the AISAS model proposed by the Dentsu Group that is tailored to online behavior. The model replaces decision with search and adds share to show the increased word-of-mouth effect on the Internet. It indicates that consumers go through a process of Attention-Interest-Search-Action-Share in their online decision process. This model is particularly suitable for social commerce. Customer Decision Support in Web Purchasing The preceding generic purchasing-decision model was widely used in research on consumer-based EC. In the Web-based environment, decision support is available in each phase. The framework that is illustrated in Online File W9.3 shows that each of the phases of the purchasing model, which were described earlier, can be supported by both a consumer decision support system (CDSS) that facilitates the process and Internet and Web-aiding facilities. The CDSS facilities support the specific decisions in the process. Generic EC technologies and analytics provide the necessary mechanisms as well as enhanced communication and collaboration tools. Specific implementation of this framework and explanations of some of the terms are provided throughout this chapter and the entire text. The planner of B2C marketing needs to consider the Web purchasing models in order to better influence the customers decision-making process (e.g., by effective one-to-one advertising and marketing). [Insert Exhibit 9.2 here] Online File W9.1 shows a model for a website that supports buyer searching and decision making. This model revises the generic model by describing a purchasing framework. The model is divided into three parts. The first includes three stages of buyer behavior (see top of exhibit): identify and manage buying criteria, search for products and merchants, and compare alternatives. Below these activities are boxes with decision support options that support the three top boxes (such as product representation).. The second part of the model (on the right) has a box that includes price, financial terms, shipping and warranty negotiations. These become relevant when alternatives are compared. The third part at the bottom of the exhibit, major concerns are cited. Players in the Consumer Decision Process Several different people may play roles in various phases of the consumer decision process. The following are five major roles: 1. Initiator. The person who first suggests or thinks of the idea of buying a particular product or service. 2. Influencer. A person whose advice or view carries some weight in making a final purchasing decision. 3. Decider. The person who ultimately makes a buying decision or any part of it-whether to buy, what to buy, how to buy, or where to buy. 4. Buyer. The person who makes an actual purchase. 5. User. The person who consumes or uses a product or service. [Comp: please shade the number list] A single person may play all the roles if the product or service is for personal use. In this case, the marketer needs to understand and target such individuals. In many situations, however, different people may play different roles. For example, a newly graduated engineer proposed to buy a car for his mother, which was followed by suggestions from his father and friends. Finally, he followed his fathers suggestion to buy the car. When more than one individual comes into play, it becomes more difficult to properly target advertising and marketing. Different marketing efforts may be designed to target people who are playing different roles. Section 9.2 Ã… ¸ Review Questions 1. List the five phases of the generic purchasing-decision model. 2. Use an example to explain the five phases in the generic purchasing-decision model. 3. Describe the supporting functions available in Web-based purchasing. 4. Describe AIDA and AISAS models and analyze their differences in illustrating an online purchasing behavior. 5. Describe the major players in a purchasing decision. 9.3 LOYALTY, SATISFACTION, AND TRUST IN E-COMMERCE Good online marketing activity can generate positive effects, which are generally observed as trust, customer satisfaction, and loyalty. Loyalty is the goal of marketing, while trust and customer satisfaction are factors that may affect customer loyalty. CUSTOMER LOYALTY One of the major objectives of marketing is to increase customer loyalty (recall the Netflix case). Customer loyalty refers to a deep commitment to repurchase or repatronize a preferred product/service continually in the future, thereby causing repetitive same-brand or same brand-set purchasing, despite situational influences and marketing efforts that have the potential to cause switching behavior. Customer acquisition and retention is a critical success factor in e-tailing. The expense of acquiring a new customer can be more than $100; even for Amazon.com, which has a huge reach, it is more than $15. In contrast, the cost of maintaining an existing customer at Amazon.com is $2 to $4. Attracting and retaining loyal customers remains the most important issue for any selling company, including e-tailers. Increased customer loyalty can result in cost savings to a company in various ways: lower marketing and advertising costs, lower transaction costs, lower customer turnover expenses, lower failure costs such as warranty claims, and so on. Customer loyalty also strengthens a companys market position because loyal customers are kept away from the competition. In addition, customer loyalty can lead to high resistance to competitors, a decrease in price sensitivity, and an increase in favorable word of mouth. Loyalty programs were introduced more than 100 years ago and are widely used among airlines, retailers, hotel chains, banks, casinos, car rentals, restaurants, and credit card companies. But now, loyalty programs have been computerized and expanded to all kinds of businesses. For example, Octopus Hong Kong (octopuscards.com), a stored-value card operator, launched a reward program for consumers aimed at increasing card usage across Hong Kong. Reward points are gained by purchasing at a number of leading merchants across the territory, including Wellcome, Watsons, UA Cinemas, and McDonalds. Each Octopus card can store up to 1,000 rewards points, which can be redeemed on the next purchase. FANCL, see the company atfancl.com, a Japanese cosmetics and health-care company, offers the FANCL point program where consumers earn FANCL points that are saved for gift redemption. However, the introduction of Internet technologies and social networking has the potential to undermine brands and discourage customer loyalty. The customers ability to shop, compare, get quick advice from friends, and switch to different vendors becomes easier, faster, and less expensive, given the aid of search engines and other technologies. Furthermore, customers are less loyal to the brand because of the lower switching costs for them to take advantage of special online offers and promotions, as well as to try new things. It is interesting to note that companies have found that loyal customers end up buying more when they have an optional website from which to shop. For example, W.W. Grainger, a large industrial-supply company, found that loyal B2B customers increased their purchases substantially when they began using Graingers website (grainger.com). (See Chapter 4 for more information.) Also, loyal customers may refer other customers to a site, especially with word of mouth in social networks. Therefore, it is important for EC companies to increase customer loyalty. The Web offers ample opportunities to do so. E-Loyalty E-loyalty refers to a customers loyalty to an e-tailer or a manufacturer that sells directly online, or to loyalty programs delivered online or supported electronically. Companies can foster e-loyalty by learning about their customers needs, interacting with customers, and providing superb customer service. Another source of information is colloquy.com, which concentrates on loyalty marketing. In an online environment, merchant ratings can be the source of interpersonal communication and are obtained from other consumers, not just friends and family. It is interesting to note that positive customer reviews have considerable impact on repurchase intention. It is not the total number of reviews that influences customer repurchase intention, but the percentage of positive reviews. This increases e-loyalty. (For reviews and recommendations in social networks, see Chapter 7.) Also, online ratings and word of mouth may undermine the effects of competitors low prices. For example, Amazon.com has higher prices than Half.com, but Amazon.com is still preferred by many customers. The difference is that Amazon.com has customer reviews and other personalization services, and Half.com does not. Many factors may affect customer loyalty and e-loyalty. A typical model is to check the relationship quality between retailers and their customers, which often is composed of trust, satisfaction, and commitment. Satisfaction and trust are particularly important because they will lead to commitment. For example, a recent study by Cyr (2008) found that e-loyalty is affected by trust and satisfaction across different cultures. Hence, we shall further discuss these two factors. SATISFACTION IN EC Satisfaction is one of the most important success measures in the B2C online environment. Customer satisfaction is associated with several key outcomes (e.g., repeat purchase, positive word of mouth, and so on) and it can lead to higher customer loyalty. A survey indicates that 80 percent of highly satisfied online consumers would shop again within two months, and 90 percent would recommend Internet retailers to others. However, 87 percent of dissatisfied consumers would permanently leave their Internet retailers without any complaints (Cheung and Lee 2005). Satisfaction has received considerable attention in studies of consumer-based EC. For example, ForeSee Results, an online customer satisfaction measurement company, developed the American Customer Satisfaction Index (ACSI) (theasci.org) for measuring customer satisfaction with EC. The Customer Respect Group (customerrespect.com) also provides an index to measure customers online experiences. The Customer Respect Index (CRI) includes the following components: simplicity, responsiveness, transparency, principles, attitude, and privacy. Researchers have proposed several models to explain the formation of satisfaction with online shopping. For example, Cheung and Lee (2005) proposed a framework for consumer satisfaction with Internet shopping by correlating the end-user satisfaction perspective with the service quality viewpoint. The framework is shown in Exhibit 9.3. The ability to predict consumer satisfaction can be useful in designing websites as well as advertising and marketing strategies. However, website designers should also pay attention to the nature of website features including navigational, visual, and information design (Cyr 2008). Different features have different impacts on customer (dis)satisfaction. If certain website features, such as reliability of content, loading speed, and usefulness fail to perform properly, customer satisfaction will drop dramatically. In contrast, if features such as those make the usage enjoyable, entertaining, and useful, they could result in a significant jump in customer satisfaction. [Insert Exhibit 9.3 here] Factors that Affect Consumer Satisfaction with Internet Shopping TRUST IN EC Trust is the psychological status of depending on another person or organization to achieve a planned goal. When people trust each other, they have confidence that their transaction partners will keep their promises. However, both parties in a transaction assume some risk. In the electronic marketplace, sellers and buyers do not meet face to face. The buyer can see a picture of the product but not the product itself. Promises of quality and delivery time can be easily made-but will they be kept? To deal with these issues, EC vendors need to establish high levels of trust with current and potential customers. Trust is particularly important in global EC transactions due to the difficulty of taking legal action in cases of a dispute or fraud and the potential for conflicts caused by differences in culture and business environments. In addition to sellers and buyers trusting each other, both must have trust in the EC computing environment and in the EC infrastructure. For example, if people do not trust the security of the EC infrastructure, they will not feel comfortable about using credit cards to make EC purchases. EC Trust Models Trust in e-commerce is often called online trust. Several models have been put forth to explain the factors that may affect online trust. For example, Lee and Turban (2001) examined the various aspects of EC trust and developed the model shown in Online File W9.2. According to this model, the level of trust is determined by numerous variables (factors) shown on the left side and in the middle of the exhibit. The exhibit illustrates the complexity of trust relationships, especially in B2C EC. [Enter Exhibit 9.4 here] EC Trust Model A newer model expands previous ones to include internal and external factors. Internal factors are directly related to online services provided by the vendor, and external factors are those that have indirect relationships (Salo and Karjaluoto 2007). How to Increase Trust in EC Consumer trust is fundamental to successful online retailing; it is considered the currency of the Internet. The following are representative strategies for building consumer trust in EC. Improve Your Website. The most important factor that affects online trust is the quality of the website. Cyr (2008) found that the navigational, visual, and information design of a website affect consumer trust. Gregg and Walczak (2010) reported a positive relationship between website quality and trust. Higher perceived website quality induces higher trust and price premium based on a survey of 701 eBay users. Therefore, how to design the EC website that delivers high-quality information and navigational experience

Lost Innocence in The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas by John Boyne :: The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas, John Boyne

Evil can be glossed over by innocence but in the end subsumes it. This is vividly conveyed by John Boyne in The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas, a powerful narrative of lost innocence set in Nazi Germany. It all begins simply enough. Nine-year-old Bruno has to suddenly leave a familiar and beloved home where he could slide five floors down on a fine banister, and move with his parents and his twelve year old sister Gretel to a place called ‘Out With', where Father was going to be doing a very important job. ‘ The Fury' had dined with them the week before, and after that Bruno's father was given a brand new assignment, and as Bruno's mother told him, he would now have to wear a grander uniform than the one he had been wearing. So the family, with their entourage of staff and servants, leaves bustling Berlin. Sadly for Bruno, he has to also leave behind his three best friends, not to mention his beloved grandparents; he has to move far away to a much smaller, sequestered house with only Gretel (whom he thinks of as a Hopeless Case) for company. From his bedroom window, homesick Bruno can see groups of people in the distance, all in striped pyjamas moving about slowly behind a tall and endless wire fence. And because Bruno loves exploring, he soon sets out to find out more, although when he had asked his father who the people in the striped pyjamas were, his father had said that they were not people. The language and structure of this novel, The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas by the Irish writer John Boyne, labelled as young adult fiction in early editions, is deceptively simple. But this is definitely a book that adults must read; it is a fable set in living history that will jolt readers of all ages. Paradoxical While evil hiding among us is an ancient theme (as Agatha Christie once said), in this book evil is the base, glossed over by an innocence that is at one level redemptive, but at another level shocking. Bruno is the much loved child of a Nazi Commandant; but he is also an endearing little boy who adores his parents, is frustrated in typical sibling fashion with his pre-teen older sister, and in all aspects a solid little fellow; curious, full of energy and also trusting and innocent in a manner that sometimes seems a bit paradoxical for someone as intelligent as he is.

Change of Audience †Letter to Peer

Three skills an Administrative Medical Assistant needs to possess are planning, strategy and effective communication. Planning is a criterion that is required in the job description of a medical assistant. Medical Assistants should be able to plan appointments for the specified times needed for the availability a patient needs. Medical assistants should also be able to plan well for ordering medical supplies, if a medical assistant does not have planning or organizational skills the company he or she is working for will be out supplies and cannot care for the patients or use the materials needed to complete everyday tasks.Strategy is a skill that medical assistants need to possess in everyday job experiences. Strategy is something that every person uses on a day to day basis. A good medical assistant should be able to strategize to achieve any goal he or she desires. Working in the medical field there are chaotic days that a person needs to be able to make quick and accurate decision s within an instant. Medical assistants need to be able to strategize each course of action he or she needs to decides and it needs to be accurate and effective because the company is in stake of each strategic decision.Communication is a skills that every person possess however to be a good medical assistant effective communication is important. Medical assistants use communication at the office answering phones, planning patient’s appointments, and greeting patients with professional hospitability. The medical assistant is the first person a patient see’s when entering the office everyday therefore a medical assistant needs to possess the abilities to understand, listen and control the behavior of other individuals and groups.Medical assistants should be understanding of patient’s complaints and should have the ability to be a good listener and give professional feedback to the patients. Patients sometimes need someone other than family members and friends to listen and understand their problems and situations and as a professional healthcare employee medical assistants need to possess these skills.

Growth of a Business Essay

When a business grows in size it will need more staff to carry out:- *Existing jobs e.g. in a chocolate factory it may need more people to operate the production lines it it moves from 4 to 5 lines. *New jobs e.g. if a company expands to overseas it will need to recruit staff who are capable of speaking foreign languages. When existing jobs are being expanded, human resource specialists simply need to copy existing practice on a larger scale. They can do this by interviewing more people and advertising more widely etc. More detailed thought is needed if new jobs are to be created. This is even more important if the jobs being created are different to the jobs that already exist within the company. If Norwich Airport they would need to employ a lot more security guards. This would be due to the increased numbers of passengers going through the airport and the terminals. If Norwich Airport started to fly to new destinations they would need new staff who could speak the language of the country. They could do this training their existing staff to speak the languages or they could recruit externally people already with the capability to speak those languages. CHANGING JOB ROLES WITHIN THE BUSINESS In recent years there has been a decline in standardised jobs. The change of a job role is usually down to changing and advancing technology. This involves employees taking more responsibility in decision making. This is known as empowerment. The development of new jobs requires a lot of research. Looking at the best practice in an industry often does this. Sometimes it is done by looking at the development of new jobs particularly in the USA. FILLING VACANCIES CREATED BY RESIGNATION, RETIREMENT OR DISMISSAL Vacancies come about for a number of reasons. This could include retirement, dismissal, expansion or even death. When some body moves on it is normally necessary to replace them. Before this is done the company will need to decide if it would be best to get a employee similar to the previous one or if it would be best to to get someone with new skills because the job has moved on and more skills are required to carry the job out properly. In some cases this has effected Norwich Airport. In some extreme cases they have had to dismiss employees who have lied about foreign languages they can speak. When Norwich Airport first opened, they only offered flights to a few select countries. But since then they have expanded and a far wider range of flights are now offered. With this they have a lot more people using them rather than using the larger London airports or the near by Luton airport. With the extra money they are still thinking of expanding even more in the near future. In some cases the job that has become available does not always need to be filled. There are amny factors that Norwich Airport takes into account before deciding whether or not a replacement is required. They will always consider: – * Is there still a need for that job? * Do the benefits derived from this job justify the total cost of filling it? E.g. advertising, salary, training etc. * Is it essential that the vacancy is filled immediately? * Rather than employing a new member of staff would it be best to reorganise the workload within the company/department to cover the position. * Will the job need to be full or part time? * Will there still be the need for this job in 12 or 18 months time? Is the post likely to be affected by current or future organisational changes or different work methods. Will the job therefore be temporary or permanent? And for this reason will there need to be a fixed term contract. INTERNAL PROMOTION There is always the opportunity for internal promotion. This is a good form of motivation as it gives employees something to aim for within the organisation. This should make the employee try to impress in his current job rather than looking else where outside of the company. But if an employee is to be promoted, then someone else would have to be employed to cover their previous position. It is extremely important that the right candidate is selected. The recruitment process can be extremely costly. To set up an effective recruitment process it takes a great deal of time. Once a job has become vacant it is very important that the company should then analyse the job. This is when they will decide what will be entailed in the available job. How to advertise, sift through the applications, checking which applications best meet the criteria, interviewing candidates and then the most important, selecting the best candidate. When a job becomes available at Norwich airport they decide whether to recruit internally or externally. From our meeting I discovered that 50% of the time they will recruit internally only, and the other 50% they will recruit internally and externally. They often decide to recruit internally only because they can save a lot of money. They save a lot on advertising costs and it normally takes them less time to train the employee if they already have some experience working within the airport. Often they have noticed that when an employee knows that there is the chance of promotion it enhances their rate and quality of work because it acts as a motivator. However they have also found disadvantages when recruiting within the company. They have to replace the person who has been promoted, this means that they have ended up advertising for two jobs instead of just the one. In the past they have had arguments and disputes or another employee has been upset that someone else has been promoted instead of them. However, from our meeting I understood that their better employees in the past were ones who had been promoted as a pose to the ones who had been employed externally. This has always been the case when they have been first employed because they have a better understanding of the business. NEW POST Sometimes rather than a current post becoming available a new post all together may become vacant. But before the new post is confirmed it must be approved in the companies budget. This may not be the case and a supplementary budget will have to be applied for. If this is not the case then the recruitment process will be unable to go ahead. There must be available work space and enough available equipment for the new person. If all of the above are ok, then Norwich Airport decide on a realistic start date. When this is decided upon, the airport would work backwards from this date to plan each stage of recruitment. Below is a realistic time plan for Norwich Airport if they were to advertise externally. A typical time plan would be for about 3 months. 21 January – complete staff vacancy request form and hand into human resources department. 22 January – write job description and interview report form, allowing time for the approval of the line manager. Pepare advert and job particulars. HUMAN RESOURCES MUST BE NOTIFIED THAT THE RECRUITMENT PROCESS HAS BEEN STARTED! 2 February – send the above papers to human resources. 9 February – if appropriate the job will be evaluated. Human resources will book space and send advert to media. 16 February – the advert will appear. Interview dates and panel members must be decided upon. 18 February – applicants respond. 4 March – closing date for response from potential applicants. 7 March – final candidates are shortlisted. 8 March – candidates are contacted to arrange interviews. 15/16 March – interviews take place. 17 March – the post is offered to the successful candidate. 17 April – after one month notice period the candidate would start.

David Humes Moral Skepticism †Philosophy Essay

David Humes Moral Skepticism – Philosophy Essay Free Online Research Papers David Hume’s Moral Skepticism Philosophy Essay David Hume’s moral skepticism concluded that an individual’s morals are matters of their feelings about the fact, resulted from ones own experience. This was Hume’s empiricist method. Hume’s argument shifted philosophy in general from the norm to a radical point of view. Hume believed that the materials of thinking, our perceptions, are derived either two categories our ideads and our impressions. After reviewing Hume’s argument one can conclude that facts have no impact on a individual’s actions and morality never consists in any single matter of fact that could be perceived by reason alone. Today astonishing achievements in biomedical science and technology have led to an amazing ability to harvest stem cells. The debate over this issue is that of abortion. The opposition of stem cell research argues that the embryo is being destroyed during this process. This issue is one of our society’s morals. It is a promising area of research that can ultimately lead to the cure of many diseases. But why is it immoral to explore a process that can heal individuals suffering from such conditions as diabetes, Alzheimer’s and Parkinsons. Hume had argued that an individual’s â€Å"sentiments and affections,† not reason, is what leads us our actions. One can conclude that this stem cell research is moral because of their feelings about the subject. Not how they â€Å"ought† to feel about it, but how they really feel about it. The feelings associated with certain facts change from person to person. One may favor this research because they have personally been affected by it. Society says how we ought to feel about something and it is subjects that encounter this issue will reason it immoral because they have never had previous experience with it. So an individual who supports stem cell research had deemed it moral because his reason gave way to his â€Å"sentiment and affections.† Hume creates a point in that an individual ought to feel a certain way about something but they really feel different due to the impact of our feelings. It is our preception of the subject that creates a division amoung our people. I agree with Hume in that facts are neutral in determining an action. Somone can know all the facts about this issue but until they experience it personally they will continue to denouce stem cell research as immoral. Yet, when they experience first hand the outcomes and benefits of it their feelings will overpower their reason. In contrast to David Hume, Immanuel Kant’s philosophy of categorical imperative argued that the individuals are able to make decisions free from ourside forces. We have a free will which acts under the laws of itself. According to Kant, in each of us there is a noumenal reality, and a phenomental reality. The noumenal reality is that of which is unexplainable and unknown. It is everything the mind cannot explain, like an individual calculating how long they will live. It is just not possible, one can only The phenomental reality is that in which is known, or experienced. It is the natural world in which we live in. For instance, like how many days are in a week. The individual knows because they personally experience it weekly. Moral law of our own will means that we are able to make decisions by themselves and freely. To be subject to moral law of our own will is to question yourself whether or not the subject matter is ultimately good or bad. It is a point in which you decide that something is bad and you will not condem it. For instance, road rage results in many individuals raising the middle finger, but one may be subjected to their own moral law and decide it imoral to conduct such behavior. Moral law from an external source is those laws in which we are subject to by outside forces. It can be one’s society, religion, or family that pronouce what is right and wrong. For example, in the Jewish faith, tattoos are frowned apon. So if the individual wishes to remain a good jew, then they will condem tattoos. Kant emphasized the way in which the moral life was centered on duty. He believed that duties are created by rules or laws of some sort. For example the laws of a club lay down duties for its officers or city and state laws establish the duties of citizens. So when the subjects of these legislators do something because it is because of their duty to do so. The motivation we have for these duties comes from our own will to do so, if one wished not to conform to the laws, then one can choose not be be part of that city, state, or organization. Kant looks to the motives to see if the motive has true moral worth or not. He does not determine the moral worth on the consequences of an action. According to Kant, if a person is motivated purely by the good will, then does the motive have true moral worth? If the motive of doing inclinations, then the motive does not have true moral worth, even if such a motive brings about happiness for others. Kant isnt concerned about the consequences of whether your actions bring happiness or not. The problem with motives is that they are always changing. They are never absolute or constant feelings, emotions, or desires. The answer to the question on why there is so much violence and hate in the world is because peoples incentives or motives are based on desires and self-interest and NOT on the good will. So therefore inclinations cannot be relied on for making moral decisions. Research Papers on David Hume’s Moral Skepticism - Philosophy EssayComparison: Letter from Birmingham and CritoCapital PunishmentGenetic EngineeringEffects of Television Violence on ChildrenMoral and Ethical Issues in Hiring New EmployeesRelationship between Media Coverage and Social andPersonal Experience with Teen PregnancyAnalysis Of A Cosmetics AdvertisementAssess the importance of Nationalism 1815-1850 EuropeResearch Process Part One

The Importance of Spiritual to Human Condition Essay

The Importance of Spiritual to Human Condition - Essay Example Thus, it can be concluded that spirituality is a central component to the human experience. This concept will be explored further by looking at the three novels namely, The Scarlet Letter by Nathaniel Hawthorne, Jane Eyre by Charlotte Bronte, and Sula by Toni Morrison. The Scarlet Letter is a portrayal of the fallen woman in the person of Hester. Within the Puritan society, Hawthorne reveals how religion and spirituality had strongly influenced the individual lives of its members. Being an adulterous in a religious society, Hester’s sin brought her to become an object of ridicule and snickering. However, we can see that towards the end of the story, Hester’s recognition and repentance for her sin brought about a transformation in her life. The story tells of her acceptance of the punishment as well as the determination to move on amidst the shame inflicted to her by the society. This perspective together with her good deeds and admirable character which represents moral transformation enabled her to partially regain the favor of the society. Thus, this story states that the spiritual condition of an individual directly influences her whole being. Hester’s life in sin brought unpleasant things to her while her transformation leads the way to a happier existence.

Essay on Ricardian trade Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

On Ricardian trade - Essay Example On the same basis, England specializes in the production of cloth and imports wine according to the Ricardian model. The amount of wine produced from specialization in Portugal and the free movement of workers to the wine producing industry increases compared to an autarky situation. Cloth production by England also augments due to increased workers and specialization allowing for the fall in prices for both countries. This leads to an increase in the consumption ability of the people in both countries. Trade, therefore, can occur despite one country having absolute advantage in the production of both goods due to the presence of comparative advantage in the production of one good over another. Assumptions of the Ricardian Model include the assumption of perfect competition where there is perfect information, free entry and exit by firms, homogenous output among firms, firms cannot influence output and prices, and the aim of the firms are to maximize profits (Winthrop, 1344). The other assumptions are that there are two goods produced by two countries using one factor of production (labor) that is homogenous and freely moves between industries and that there is full employment. Other assumptions are general equilibrium, industry production of the goods and services, resource constraint and its immobility across countries, and lack of transportation costs for goods and services across countries (Winthrop, 1344). The structure of the Ricardian model is that a country that has comparative advantage in the production of a good specializes in the production of the good for domestic consumption and export while importing the good that it has comparative disadvantage in its production. The other country will specialize in the production of the second good for its domestic consumption and export the extra to the first country getting the supplies of the first good through imports. This results in benefit