Sample of Argumentative Essay

Sample of Argumentative Essay Argumentative essay- what is it An argumentative essay is a type of thesis or composition where you have to present your view and attempt to convince others that your facts and arguments are correct. Your view should be backed up by a few examples, reasons and logics. Generally, argumentative essays are not similar to other types of essays. When you develop such an essay, you need to make your claims through your composition so that it will be open for debate. However, the content and the claims that you make in the essay must be valid. When you are structuring an argumentative essay, you are not supposed to position a fact as facts are undeniable. When you are writing something obvious which cÐ °nt be denied Ð °nywÐ °y, it means you have structured something definite with the aim of making it informative. However, such essay cannot be argued or debated as the facts are real. The thing you need to do in order to structure an argumentative essay is to establish a claim that is debatable. Your piece should declare and at the same time confirm something through different facts and statistics. It should be done in such a way that the entire work appears in a rational and logical manner. Make sure you haven’t put any personal preferences on the essay topics. You might like something, but others may not. So, biased information shouldn’t appear in your argumentative essay. On the contrary, it should create an urge among others to argue on the topic with different reasons pro and contra as well as with logic. Whatever the fact is, make sure that the essay is appealing and generate interest among the readers to take part in the debate.

Mary Magdalene s Place Of The Savior s Physical And...

Thus, the fear of lost control and power of the male hegemonic dominance, women have been ostracized, discriminated, and misunderstood; displacing them in a gloomy mansard. The most disconcerting thing is that women for centuries have been convincing themselves of that diabolical idea. It is true that there have been some glimmers of light that have been recognized by the patriarchal authority that governs the world. However, today women are not allowed to shine in all their splendor. This is precisely what I understand about Mary Magdalene’s place in the Savior’s physical and spiritual life. Her presences is vital in the transmission, guidance, understanding, and teaching of the Savior’s message. It is clear that jealousy and fear are†¦show more content†¦Therefore, in receiving the Savior’s mission, Peter’s ego is enhanced. For that reason, Peter sees in Mary Magdalene his adversary. The fact is that what Jesus is doing is giving Peter hi s own cure. Peter is challenged by Jesus on three grounds. First, in a theological ground because he has the divine responsibility to continuing with the Savior’s teaching about the Kingdom of God. Second, in a philosophical ground because it is not only repeat a story, but also reasoning about its meaning. Third, his personal ground because he has to face his internal enemies of jealousy, and the insecurity of facing the sense and sensibility of a woman. The humble the heart of a man is, the closest to God. This is the case of Mary Magdalene in this specific gospel. This is exactly one of the Savior’s teachings, to transform this kind of mentality while He was among them. The Savior starts with his own disciples. The Savior knows that this metamorphosis will take some time to develop in full bloom. Because HE knows it is a long journey, HE gives them two important commandments: â€Å"You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all y our mind, and with all your strength. You shall love your neighbor as yourself† (Mark 12: 30-31). Hence, with these two commandments, the Savior gives Peter the antidote of his own illness. In other words, Peter is not responsible for being born under a patriarchal

How has the English language changed over time free essay sample

Over time the English language has developed through three main stages; Old English, Middle English and Modern English. Old English is the earliest recorded stage of the English language and is very different to Modern English which we speak today. Native English speakers would find It very difficult trying to understand Old and Middle English. One of the main Influences In the change of the English language Is invasion. During the 5th century the Angles, the Saxons and the Jutes Invaded Britain which all spoke similar languages, resulting In the Old English language. Before the Invasion people In Brltaln spoke a Celtic language. These people travelled north and west when the Invaders arrived. Then In 1066 William the Conqueror and the Normans, conquered England bringing a form of French language with them. This became the language of the Royal Court and generally the upper classes spoke French whilst the lower classes spoke English. We will write a custom essay sample on How has the English language changed over time? or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page This class dlvlslon continued on until the 14th century when English became the main language once gain. However the English language had been slightly adapted. The recent invasion and conquering gave a French influence and some French words had been added to the English language, therefore creating Middle English. Americanisms are terms or phrases that were original British Shakespearean terms which now are not common phrases in Britain but are still part of the language in America. An example of this is fall for autumn. Spanish has also influenced American English when they settled in the west. This therefore also influenced and changed British English. Due to Americas worldwide power a lot of English words are used in technology, music, television and cinema which is used all over the world. Another main cause to the English language changing over the years is down to technology. Due to a mass illiteracy Old and Middle English was a solely spoken language and was learnt by ear and through festivals. There was a lack of standardisation so a persons dialect or accent would influence the way someone else would hear their words. This was until 1440 when the invention of the printing press standardised English. This made books cheaper which meant more people were able to access them so more people learnt to read. Also most publishing houses were located in London so the dialect of London became the standard and spelling and grammar became fixed. Around 1500 the Great Vowel Shift begun, this led to a dramatic change in pronunciation; where vowels started to be pronounced shorter and shorter. From the 16th century Britain had contact with people from all over the world. This resulted In new words and phrases entering the English language. At one point the British Empire covered one quarter of the world so again foreign words were entered Into the language. Social networking plays a large part In technology and the way people communicate today. It Is easier for people to gain access Into other peoples lives from all over the world and from a whole variety of different cultures and see the words or phrases they use. This makes it easier for people to adopt another cultures language into Colloquialisms also help contribute to our ever changing language. No matter where you go in the world every place has its own certain slang words which can now due to social networking and the media can be taken all across the globe and vice versa. For example, television shows such as The Only Way is Essex is very popular all over the country and some slang words such as reem and Jel which originated from Essex are now spoken all over the country and is even in peoples every day language.

Judicial Activism in Pakistan free essay sample

On one hand judicial crises rekindled the popular aspirations towards rule of law, independent judiciary and undiluted democracy ensuring civilian supremacy. On the other hand the suspension of judiciary after November 3rd has led to the disillusionment of public from the cherished ideals that may help the country get rid of the decades of authoritarian traditions, autocratic rule and political decay. Given the chequered political scenario of Pakistan fraught with uncerertanities, the resoulotion of this crises may/would determine the future political dynamics of Pakistan. UNCEREMONIOUS REMOVAL OF CHIEF JUSTICE AND THE PUBLIC REACTION: 1. Government apprehensions concerning judicial activism: The judiciary under suspended Chief Justice had taken Judicial Activism to new height and tthis Judicial Activism was directed towards ensuring rule of law, expeditious provision of justice and checking state authoritarianism but this Judicial Activism ran counter with the presidents mode of governance which allowed more space to the intelligence agencies . We will write a custom essay sample on Judicial Activism in Pakistan or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page And the judiciary mood and posturing over these issues alarmed the government and arose its apprehensions about much important cases which were to be decided by judiciary that would determine the future issues. In anticipation of prospective judicial verdict against military removed the chief Justice which triggered the judicial crises. 2 . UNPRECEDENTED DEFIANCE OF CHIEF JUSTICE: Judiciary was notorious for a legitimizing role. The history of judiciary was full of its pliant role which had tarnished the image of judiciary. The defiance of chief of judiciary evoked unprecedented popular support. 3. ROLE OF MEDIA: Another factor which further encouraged the judiciary attracted deflected popular attention towards this crises was the coverage of print and electronic media which paved the public opinion in favor of Chief Justice. 4. GOVERNMENTS MISHANDLING OF THIS WHOLE AFFAIR: The most important cause behind the judicial crises was government s mishandling of this issue. It dated back on filing of reference against on flimsy grounds. The irresponsible statement given by state ministers and government functionaries to governments fatal blunder in judging judiciarys response. This led to the deterioration of government . The situation was made even worse by the disharmony among the stances of state ministers. SIGNIFICANT DEVELOPMENTS BETWEEN MARCH 9 AND JULY 20: 1. Chief Justice Defiance: The manner in which he was pressurized and kept in General Headquaters for 9 hours and didnt sighned the letter of resignation gained support of lawyer, , civil society and judges. 2. Support of lawyers and judges : Judges resigned in protest their commitment to judiciary stance. 3. Involvement of civil society activists:Civil society found a new role and provided a historic role to check highhandedness of state further awakened by media. 4. Popular Campaighn: Enthusiastic support of public further emboldened civil society to stick to his defiant stance and public opinion in favor of Chief Justice has great impact on judicial decison in favour of civil society. FACTORS INFLUENCING SUPREME COURTS VERDICT IN FAVOUR OF JUDICIARY: Public opinion has the force to change laws and decision. Another important factor in influencing the decision of judciary was the image factor . Unprecedented response to the Chief Justice pressurized the supreme judicial court to give a verdict to save its image. Judiciary found it more appropriate to sign with Chief Justices stance. ENSURING CONFRONTATION BETWEEN JUDICIARY AND GOVERNMENT: Another unfortunate turn was ensuring confrontation betwen judiciary and government. e. g governement failed

Experience As Choice free essay sample

We believe that there are things in the world, but things are nothing more than beliefs about things in the world—not truths about things. In a lecture of his, Alan Watts argues that the existence of things is rooted in thinking. He notes that â€Å"in various languages this comes out. In German, ‘ding,’ thing, and ‘denken,’ to think. In Latin, ‘re,’ thing, ‘reor,’ to think† (Watts, 1961) Without mentally dividing up the world, there would be only continuity. Only by arbitration do things arise. In the real, physical world, there is nothing to say about where one thing ends and another begins, and there is no one to say it. As Watts says, â€Å"A thing is a think. It’s almost the same word. It’s a unit of thought in the same way that an inch is a unit of linear measure, or a pound a unit of weight.† At first one may be baffled to hear this; think this claim obviously false. We will write a custom essay sample on Experience As Choice or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page One may question, â€Å"If there aren’t things, what am I, or a telephone? Surely we can identify these as things.† It is true that the person and the telephone exist. The problem is not of their existence in the physical world, but of their separation from their surroundings; from the rest of the world. And as language exits of thinking, it is thinking that causes us to view the telephone and person as independent entities. The Buddha states, â€Å"When the mind is disturbed, the multiplicity of things is produced, but when the mind is quieted, the multiplicity of things disappears† (Carpa, 24) The surroundings of a thing are what define the thing, and thus are connected to the thing as a requisite part of it. Thinking of the telephone and person as entities helps us to function; however, we become attached to the idea of things inherently, without our definitions, having the property of being separate from the world. A problem with this, as Watts points out, i s that we think things can exist without other things existing; if one thing utterly ceased to exist, such as the moon, another thing, such as a person on Earth, could continue on existing. The person needs the moon in order to remain that person, as without the moon being part of the person’s reality, the person would necessarily be different. If things are truly separate, they have no way to affect one another. If an object’s existence has no effect on a being’s experience, then there is nothing the being can say about whether or not the object exists. While we can function while holding on to our assumptions and acceptances, we will find that what we assume to be true has no concrete truth whatsoever if we take a logical approach to investigating our assumptions. For having certain experiences, we adopt beliefs on reason. For example, before learning about deciduous trees, a child may assume the belief that trees without leaves are dead, cannot be brought back to life, and will fall and decompose within a matter of years. This belief about all trees arises in the child because the child has repeatedly seen trees lose their leaves and fall. What the child doesn’t realize is that he has imposed the rule that explains the behaviors of trees in past times and places on all figures that resemble those initial trees. Thus, his mental construct, or rule, will cause him to incorrectly predict what happens to a dormant deciduous tree, and he will be left bewildered, as if reality has been changed, when in truth only his rule was ex posed to be limited to describing a single experience that he had. It is a function of survival to take truths on faith; to make unbreakable rules about reality. However, adopting a rule means excluding the possibility of something breaking this rule from happening; and as the only way that we can say that something is impossible is by saying that it doesn’t accord with our rule, rules are circular and do not assure us of what will happen, as change is always possible. While we may argue that there are concrete universal rules that can’t be broken, one cannot argue against those rules existing simply because the acknowledgement of the rules causes the rules to be true. No matter how logically irrefutable rules may be to us, logic exists of the mind, and therefore so do the rules. In a conversation with the Yaqui sorcerer Don Juan, Carlos Castaneda illustrates the issue of knowing what is real beyond perception and reason: Castaneda: â€Å"I really felt I had lost my body, don Juan.† Don Juan: â€Å"You did.† Castaneda: â€Å"You mean, I really didn’t have a body?† Don Juan: â€Å"What do you think yourself?† Castaneda: â€Å"Well I don’t know. All I can tell you is what I felt. Don Juan: â€Å"That is all there is in reality— what you felt.† (Castaneda, 102) While it may seem to us that this physical reality is concrete and unchangeable, it may be argued that the only reason we feel this way about our reality is because we have not ventured further into logic and proving its existence. In the same way that things and rules exist of the mind and cannot be said to be concrete or intrinsically real, importance is merely an illusion, and good is no more an opinion. We think that things make us happy or satisfied because they intrinsically are good and promote happiness; they cause satisfaction in us. However, there is nothing to say that it isn’t our happiness that makes things good. The same goes with importance. As don Juan explains, â€Å"there is no way for me to say that my acts are more important than yours, or that one thing is more essential than another, therefore all things are equal and by being equal they are unimportant† (Castaneda, 82). In truth we cannot say whether something is better than another, because we can only say that we feel or believe that something is better than another. The only knowledge is that of belief. Ultimately, characteristics of things are chosen. Beyond experience, nothing is inherently better than anything else; things just are. If we say that medicine is better than bullets. One may assume the counterargument that it is obvious, or reasonable, that medicine is better than bullets; as humans who derive all happiness on the foundation of living, it is self-evident that living is a good thing. However, this argument does not counter, but in fact supports the concept that things are only good because we believe them to be good, and no more. Don Juan comments on the subjective nature of good and importance: â€Å"Your acts, as well as the acts of your fellow men in general, appear to be important to you because you have learned to think they are important†¦. We learn to think about everything, and then we train our eyes to look as we think about the things we look at. We look at ourselves already thinking that we are important. And therefore we’ve got to feel import ant! But then when a man learns to see, he realizes that he can no longer think about what he looks at, and if he cannot think about what he looks at everything becomes unimportant† (Castaneda 81). While some argue that medicine and healing are truly good, they state that they are only good from the human’s point of view; therefore, they have no intrinsic goodness. By arguing that they are good and being a human, the supposed counter argument is necessarily supporting the argument that things are only good subjectively. It is thinking that makes something important or good. We don’t realize that the only reason that we believe that things are inherently good is because we are constantly believing that we know that these things are inherently good. We don’t question because we are correct. But the person that believes that healing is bad inherently, beyond the opinion, is also correct: There is nothing one can say about whether he is right or wrong for his logic, as he would only be wrong for the accuser’s logic. So if good and evil exist nowhere beyond the mind, the opinion, what are good and evil? For don Juan, â€Å"we may laugh, or cry, or rejoi ce, or be sad or be happy. I personally don’t like to be sad, so whenever I witness something that would ordinarily make me sad, I simply shift my eyes and see it instead of looking at it† (Castaneda 83). The world is empty: things just happen. Whether something makes us sad or happy is our choice— we allow the world to affect us as we choose. Supporting this, we can say that stubbornly disbelieving that disbelieving is not our choice is our choice, as in reality there are no grounds to which, in order to make it valid, we can relate the claim that disbelieving that disbelief is a choice is not a choice: One cannot refute the statement that disbelief is a choice. In this way, if a person believes that life is good and death bad, then he or she is right. If a person believes that death is good and life bad, then he or she is right. The only thing that matters is which reality makes one feel best.

Free Essays on My Trip To Scotland

My Trip to Scotland My trip to St. Andrews, Scotland, was an experience unlike any other experience in my life. Going, I didn’t know quite what to expect. I did expect Scottish life to be somewhat different. However, I was surprised at just how different it was. I had many memorable experiences during my trip to Scotland. I loved just listening to the Scottish people talk; listening to their occasionally incomprehensible accents and their never-ending supply of wonderful tales was mesmerizing. I enjoyed the relaxed lifestyle and kind, fun-loving nature of the Scottish people. I adored the openness and unity in Scotland, and especially how I had to wait for pedestrians to get out of my way at the 1st and 18th holes of The Old Course before taking my next shot. I trembled on the edge of my seat while driving through little Scottish country towns, marked by their beauty and their simplicity, on a tiny road where certain accident seemed to await us at every turn. I was shocked that we, and our rental car, came back in one piece. However, of all of my memorable moments in Scotland, one stands out in my memory as an unforgettable experience, an experience that truly expanded my horizons: playing golf at The Old Course at St. Andrews. The Old Course at St. Andrews is the oldest golf course still being played today. It has played host to many important golf tournaments and the best golfers in history. Simply getting on the golf course to play required extreme cunning and scheming by my astute and determined father. After the lottery system, which determines who gets to play, turned out unsuccessful for our hopeful two-some, my father came up with a brilliant idea. He used his charm, his wit, and his â€Å"I want to take my son out for a good ol’ father and son golfing trip on the most historic golf course in the world† story to persuade the starter to squeeze us into a tee time. It was either that approach or the free Bo... Free Essays on My Trip To Scotland Free Essays on My Trip To Scotland My Trip to Scotland My trip to St. Andrews, Scotland, was an experience unlike any other experience in my life. Going, I didn’t know quite what to expect. I did expect Scottish life to be somewhat different. However, I was surprised at just how different it was. I had many memorable experiences during my trip to Scotland. I loved just listening to the Scottish people talk; listening to their occasionally incomprehensible accents and their never-ending supply of wonderful tales was mesmerizing. I enjoyed the relaxed lifestyle and kind, fun-loving nature of the Scottish people. I adored the openness and unity in Scotland, and especially how I had to wait for pedestrians to get out of my way at the 1st and 18th holes of The Old Course before taking my next shot. I trembled on the edge of my seat while driving through little Scottish country towns, marked by their beauty and their simplicity, on a tiny road where certain accident seemed to await us at every turn. I was shocked that we, and our rental car, came back in one piece. However, of all of my memorable moments in Scotland, one stands out in my memory as an unforgettable experience, an experience that truly expanded my horizons: playing golf at The Old Course at St. Andrews. The Old Course at St. Andrews is the oldest golf course still being played today. It has played host to many important golf tournaments and the best golfers in history. Simply getting on the golf course to play required extreme cunning and scheming by my astute and determined father. After the lottery system, which determines who gets to play, turned out unsuccessful for our hopeful two-some, my father came up with a brilliant idea. He used his charm, his wit, and his â€Å"I want to take my son out for a good ol’ father and son golfing trip on the most historic golf course in the world† story to persuade the starter to squeeze us into a tee time. It was either that approach or the free Bo...

Design and Technology Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Design and Technology - Essay Example I will accomplish this survey by walking around the bank and interviewing those related to my area of concern. For instance, the head of banking security in your facility may help me answer a few questions. Those in charge of monitoring surveillance facilities will also be interviewed. Entrance guards will also be important in this survey by answering a few questions regarding their place of operation. I recognize that banking security is a critical area of study. Because the security of the bank forms the basis of operating the bank in this locality. Compromising the security of this facility may lead to a failure of the whole banking system. Due to this proper care will be exercised during this study. All information obtained from this survey shall be kept confidential. I will ensure that the data obtained from this survey is restricted to class use and no other malicious use. I will not discuss or share your bank information with any third party as this is likely to compromise the security of your bank. The Bank of Kentucky definitely is among the largest commercial banks in the region. The bank has a sole aim of providing the best financial services to each customer they serve each day. Over time, the bank has grown attaining its targeted 100000th deposit account in 2010. The bank is celebrating over 20 years of service since it first started receiving deposits from its customers. The services offered by this bank include saving accounts, fixed deposits accounts, lending services, foreign exchange among other banking and financial services.

Housing Pre and Post Recession Lab Report Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Housing Pre and Post Recession - Lab Report Example From figure 1, we see that the data starts off from the middle of a recession in 1982. It lasted only till the 4th quarter of the year. The percentage of GDP growth since then rose sharply until the 2nd quarter of 1982 and then started gradually moderating. The ensuing period was characterized by some volatility until the 1st quarter of 1991 from where the GDP growth dipped sharply and the second recession initiated. This recession also lasted only for two quarters. The decade of the 1990s marked a steady climb in the GDP growth rate and signs of the next recession were observed only in the first quarter of 2000 since when it started decreasing rapidly. This third recession lasted from the 1st quarter of 2001 to the last quarter of the same year. There was a small climb in terms of GDP growth since then until 2007. From the last quarter of 2007 the recent recession set in and it lasted for seven quarters making it the longest recession in the time horizon under consideration. Figure 1 Housing Starts Turning to the Housing markets, we start by looking at housing starts in Figure 2. Interestingly, apart from a steady dip a few quarters ahead of the current recession, inter-temporal movements in housing starts have been moderately stable. The recessions do not seem to have affected housing starts to any considerable extents and we find only small dips in the first two recessions. Strangely during the third recession, we find that housing starts actually increased. However, it can also be seen from the graph that housing starts exhibit a marked decline from around the 3rd quarter of 2005 onwards well into the recent recession. Figure 2 Average real housing prices The next housing market indicator considered is the real average housing price. As can be seen from figure 3, housing prices exhibit smooth but evident cyclical movements. Comparing these movements with figure 1 reveals that in terms of trends the housing price movements particularly in the latter half of the time horizon match those of the real GDP growth although real GDP volatility is considerably higher. The peaks and the troughs in the average housing price time plots are clearly distinguishable and there are substantially lesser reversals making the series a lot smoother. Although resemblances in trend are not so clear in the quarters before 2000, since then the GDP growth and housing prices seem to follow very similar patterns. Figure 3 Months’ supply Finally, in figure 4 below, we look at movements in months’ supply of housing across the duration considered. In between the first two recessions here, the series seems to have been substantially volatile though stably so, around a mean of 2. Thereon, the movements of the series have been relatively less volatile. Figure 4 We see from the figure that months’ supply has declined in periods subsequent to the 1st, 2nd and 4th recessions. After the 1982 recession, housing supply exhibits a small decline in the ge neral trend although it as mentioned earlier fluctuated around an average. A more pronounced decline in the series occurred following the 2nd recession in 1991. The strong declining trend during this phase continued on through the onset of the third recession. There was a surge in early 2005 reflecting what we know now as the gradually forming housing bubble. The series attained its maximum halfway into the fourth recession. The housing supply series seems to reflect a lagged

American History Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words - 2

American History - Essay Example Uncle Tom was subservient, docile and strongly Christian. He accepted his fate as well as his position as an inferior according to the Bible. Next, we have to understand the political reason behind the decision to abolish slavery in America as a whole. Abraham Lincoln's policy on slavery was simple, it was an economic decision. Slavery was costly and the Southern states of America did not achieve the urbanisation and industrialisation that was apparent on the North. It was reasoned that because of slavery and its costs of maintenance, rapid industrialisation will have difficulty to penetrate the South. For example, the labour of a free African American was cheaper than the cost of maintaining a slave who's health, food, living and treatment must be accounted for. The other reason for the North's decision to stifle slavery in the South was so that they could obtain money from import tariffs. By stifling the cotton industry of the South and allowing cheaper imported cotton the Northern government could profit better. But in addition, it was also seen from the North that there was contempt of the Southern life and its standards. Robert E. Lee once wrote that the Africans who were displaced were better off here than they were in Africa and the pity was to the Southern whites. But he also believed that their slavery was a 'necessary' evil that would educate the Africans Americans even if it was by the hand of the 'plebeian' South. 2. If nothing else, slavery set the South apart, made it unique. How did the institution of slavery operate, and what was its effect on the slave Analyze the organization of the plantation system and the white racial attitudes that underpinned and justified slavery. How did these beliefs bind together planters and non-slaveholders After considering the institution from the slaveholder's point of view, consider how slaves responded to slavery. What effect did it have on their psyche, families, culture, and the like Relevant Material: lecture notes, American History, Chapter 11; Stowe, Uncle Tom's Cabin The institution of slavery was divided into two, the domestic sphere and the agricultural sphere. The slaves of the domestic sphere's work were concerned with only the family's wellbeing and needs and worked as butlers, servants, cooks, helps and even wet-nurses to the white families' children. The agricultural sphere was concerned with the planting, harvesting, etc. work. Nearing the civil war most of the slaves were already 2nd and 3rd generation African Americans and have been since birth embedded with the slave psyche. They developed an attitude of ignorance and avoidance of the white man. Their life was bleak and hopeless and yet they maintained faith in Christianity as a means of their own salvation. In actuality, their attitude was similar to the peasant and working classes of Europe, accepting the oppression within their lives. As I have said, characters that were represented in

Literature Review About E Banking In India Finance Essay

Literature Review About E Banking In India Finance Essay Abstract Due to increase in use and popularity of internet, E-banking has contributed in economic growth to a large extent. E-banking is a modern service provided by banks all over the world (Poon, 2008). E-banking came into existence from the use of Automatic Teller Machines (ATMs), telephone banking, direct bill payment, electronic fund transfer (EFT) and the revolutionary online banking (Poon,2008). E-banking refers to banking through internet. Indian customers are slowly and steadily moving towards Internet Banking. E-banking services constitute ATMs, Electronic data interchange, MICR, Cash dispensers, Automated ledger posting system, Electronic clearing system, Tele banking, Anywhere Anytime Banking, Plastic money, E-cash, Smart cards etc and various processing systems such as Real time processing, Batch processing system, Desktop publishing etc. The Research paper is intended on understanding and identifying the products of e-banking its trends, advantages and disadvantages as well of g rowth of e-banking in India. Researcher also intends on providing suggestions after analyzing the various other research papers, articles, journals etc. Firstly, emphasis is made to define the term e-banking followed by literature review and methodology planned. Literature review Introduction E-banking in todays scenario is a very dynamic concept. It is a kind of self service technology (Dixit Datta,2010). Competition is the pushing force for the introduction of e-banking. (Ziqi Liao and Michael Tow Cheung, 2003) .E-banking is delivery of new and traditional banking products and services straight to customers using electronic, interactive communication channels using computers. At a fundamental point, E- banking means setting up of a web page by a bank to provide information about its products and services their features, advantages, disadvantages, prices , duration and other details. On the other hand, at an advanced level, it refers to providing facilities such as accessing accounts, transferring funds, and buying financial products or services online, Making payments et which is known as transactional E- banking (Sathye, 1999). E-banking includes the systems that enable financial institutions, customers, individuals or businesses whether small or big or medium scale t o access accounts, carry out transactions or obtain information on financial products and services through a public or private network using Internet. (Vasanthakumari and Sheela rani, 2010) The conception of electronic banking has been defined in a number of ways (Daniel, 1999). According to Karjaluoto (2002) electronic banking is a construct that consists of several channels of distribution. Daniel (1999) has defined electronic banking as providing banking information, products and services by a bank to customers using a number of different delivery platforms that can be used with different terminal devices such as a personal computer, mobile phone, desktop software, telephone or digital television. Electronic banking is also frequently known as internet banking or e-banking or PC banking or Home banking or Phone Banking or tele banking. The first java based 24 hours electronic banking services were started by the first direct and Fujitsu cooperation. (Fujitsu, 2008).It is a new and innovative banking channel for Indian Banks. (Vasanthakumari and Sheela Rani, 2010). E-banking is both transactional as well informative medium. (Vasanthakumari and Sheela Rani, 2010). E-banking involves customers using Internet to operate their bank accounts and obtain information without visiting a bank branch. (Vasanthakumari and Sheela rani,2010).Internet banking involves providing information about bank products as well carrying online transactions such as transfer of funds, setting up direct debit, buying and selling of products etc. It involves computer networks and telecommunication networks. The basic aim of e-banking is to provide services to end consumer so that they can carry out banking transactions through PC or mobile. e-banking has attracted attention of banks, securities trading firms, individual businesses, insurance com panies, medium and large scale businesses etc. e-banking is growing because e-commerce has grown at a rapid rate. Internet banking can help in building sound strategies as its impact on cost savings, revenue and satisfaction of customer is tremendous (Gupta, 2008). e-banking influences business models of various banks, insurance companies, brokerage houses etc. Internet banking has changed the banking industry as well as banking relationships in a positive way. E-banking provides banking products using internet including e-mails, modems and various networks other networks like RBINET, NICNET, BRISKNET, RBINET, BANKNET. E-banking services includes ATMs, Electronic data interchange, MICR, Cash dispensers, Automated ledger posting system, Electronic clearing system, Tele banking, Anywhere Anytime Banking, Plastic money, E-cash, Smart cards etc and various processing systems such as Real time processing, Batch processing system, Desktop publishing etc. However it is very complicated for banks as well as customers to decide a best and appropriate approach to E-banking. (Dixit Datta,2010) History Of E-banking In India Before E-banking In India came into existence the dealings between customers and banks was on one on one basis. The bank branch was involved in dealing with customers, payments, clearing, loan applications, opening accounts etc but the head office was involved in overall clearing, size of branch, training, sanctioning of loans, keeping track of accounts of customers and it does not deal directly with customers. In the last 5 decades banking in India has evolved through various phases. Due to Globalization and Liberalization a new environment was seen in banks in the whole of the world. Banks offered new services with latest technologies such as anywhere and anytime banking, Tele banking, Internet banking etc The entry of foreign banks has pushed Indian banks to follow the path of latest technologies so as meet threat of competition and to retain their customer base. The growing competition and increased expectations has led to increase in awareness among banks on and role of internet banking. E-banking has revolutionized banking industry and is a product of innovation. There is a prototype change in different parameters of transformation. Many factors both internal and external are responsible for this shift. Competition from other bank group and other global factors are forcing Indian banks to make these changes in their functioning. E-banking services have replaced traditional services. (Uppal, 2008). The process of E-banking started in 1980s when RBI had set up two committees in a sequence in order to step up the pace of automatic operations in the banking sector. A high-level committee was formed under the chairmanship of Dr. C. Rangarajan, then Governor of RBI, to plan out phased computerisation and mechanization in the banking industry over period five-years from 1985 to1989. The main aim was to improve customer service and two models of branch automation were developed and were in practice. The second committee was Rangarajan committee which was formed during this five year time frame in 1988 to make a detailed perception plan for Computerization of banks and for extension of automation to other areas such as funds transfer, e-mail, BANKNET, SWIFT, ATMs, E -banking, etc. The Government of India enacted the Information Technology Act, 2000 (generally known as IT Act, 2000), with effect from 17 October 2000 to provide legal status to electronic transactions and other electronic commerce. RBI had set up a Working Group on e-banking to examine different aspects of e-banking. This Group mainly focused on three major areas of E banking (1) Technology and security issues, (2) Legal issues and (3) Regulatory and supervisory issues. RBI accepted the recommendations of the Working Group, and issued guidelines on internet banking in India for implementation by banks in accordance with those recommendations. The Working Group also issued a report on e-banking covering different aspects of E-banking. (Vasanthakumari and Sheela Rani, 2010) In 1980s internet developed rapidly. In early 1980s customers had access to their accounts through computers of banks. Later internet developed as a network of communication and E-commerce came into existence. In May 1995, Wells Fargo which was the first bank in world to provide access to accounts over internet allowed its customers to see their accounts online. In India, ICICI was the first bank to begin internet banking in early 1997 with the name of Infinity. Later ICICI bank terminated online banking services but 1996-1998 for Internet it was the adoption phase but its usage increased in 1999 because of lower online charges, increase in PC penetration and Technology friendly atmosphere. E-banking started with use of ATMs and later included telephone banking, electronic fund transfer, direct bill payments and online banking. Present Status of E-banking In India E-banking is a banking business approach. Banks nowadays know that internet opens up new horizons and is a major factor in success of a bank and helps a bank to grow internationally. Therefore, a number of banks in India have either adopted E-banking or are in the process of adopting and using it. (Malhotra Balwinder, 2009). E-banking provides right to use to worldwide connection from anywhere in world. Products presented by banks are offered all over internet due to which internet has become an important channel for delivery for banks. (Rahmath Safeena Hema Date Abdullah Kammani, 2011). India being a developing country has weak infrastructure, low PC penetration, developing security protocols and consumer reluctance in rural sector. But many banks are offering e-banking services. In a study conducted by Rao and Prathima (2003) it was revealed that India still has long way to go in online banking services in comparison to other countries. e-banking is becoming popular in India(Gupta, 1999; Dasgupta, 2002). Internet is cheapest channel of delivery for bank and financial products as it reduces the branch networks and scales down the number of service staff. E-banking has also improved performance of banks. E-banking has also emerged as planned source for achieving higher efficiency, control of operations and reduction of cost by replacing paper based and labour exhaustive methods with automatic processes which thus lead to higher productivity and profitability and efficiency. (Malhotra Balwinder, 2009) E-banking has led to increase in speed of communication and transactions for clients. E-banking is offering wide range of services to its customers. Customers can communicate with banks and carry out transactions from anywhere in the world. Due to E-banking customers have changed their traditional way of banking to modernised banking i.e self service system by use of internet. (Curran and Meuter, 2007). Fast and furious growth of technology has affected lives of millions of people from all over the world. There are a large number of factors which influence the consumers attitude towards e-banking such as persons age, income, family size, inspiration and behaviour towards different banking technologies and attitude of every individual towards the new technology (Laforet and Li, 2005). But Many people do not use Internet banking in India due to security reasons, lack of knowledge and also due of user friendliness. Protection and confidentiality are the most challenging problems faced by customers who aspire to operate in the e-commerce. Perceived risk was also one of the major factors affecting consumer adoption, as well as customer satisfaction, of E- banking services (Polatoglu and Ekin, 2001). The Banks in India started E-banking initially with uncomplicated and simple functions such as getting information about rate of interests, checking account balances, clearing and calculating loan eligibility. Later on the services were extended to online bill payments, electronic transfer of funds between accounts and Management of Cash for businesses. Nowadays the banks are using E- banking technology to meet the increased competition. Some new services are also being offered by e-banking such as payment of taxes, railway ticket booking etc (Malhotra and Singh, 2010).But The banking sector in India was not willing to use e-commerce applications as according to them the transactions which are conducted electronically were open to hackers and viruses, which were not in their control. Also e-banking became unattractive because online services were a mixture of insecurities, technology investment costs and a lack of market-readiness. (Abdulwahed and Yaqoub, 2006) . But it has been obse rved that Internet banking has changed the banking industry as well as banking relationships in a positive way. The plan of a bank to carry out business online depends on assets of the bank, years in operation, expenses ratio, deposits ratio, urban location, Non- fee income ratio. Internet banking may not have huge effect on the bottom line of most banks except for a few newly born banks. Internet Banking is subject to various statues including Banking Regulations Act, 1949, the Reserve Bank of India Act, 1934, and the Foreign Exchange Management Act, 1999, Information Technology Act, 2000, Indian Contract Act, 1872, the Negotiable Instruments Act, 1881, Indian Evidence Act, 1872, etc. The effect of E-banking on monetary and credit policies of Reserve Bank of India is a vital area of anxiety. E- banking in India is only at its primitive and is in the growing stage stage which is solely dominated and controlled by both the Indian private and foreign banks. E-banking in India is used only by a few consumer segments. There are a number of risks associated with E- banking which have to be modelled by banks by using sophisticated systems and extensive and proper use of technology. The legal framework should handle the issues associated with E- banking. E-banking phenomenon cannot be avoided by the Indian Banks, but to add a competitive advantage and to succeed, business models must be structured and arranged properly in the long run to suit to Indian conditions. (Gupta,2008). But The factors which influence the adoption of Internet banking in India will probably be a matter of concern to both bankers and policy makers. ( Prakash and Malik, 2008) There are a handful of companies specializing in developing e-banking software, security software and website designing and maintenance, there are few online financial service providers. Nowadays ICICI is also offering wide range of services to customers. According to a number of authors E-banking is becoming popular in India (Gupta, 1999; Pegu, 2000; Dasgupta, 2002). However, it is still in its evolutionary stage. By the year 2006-2007, a large classy and reasonable E -banking market will develop. Almost all the banks operating in India are having their websites. (Vasanthakumari and Sheela Rani, 2010). In India almost 12% of the 38.5 million Internet users use E- banking and it Is expected to increase to 16 million, according to survey by lAMAI. (Prakash and Malik ,2008). In a survey carried out by Malhotra and Singh (2006) it was shown that 48% of the commercial banks in India offer e -banking. Therefore for gaining complete control in present e-markets a purposeful and strategized approach is requisite. Classification of E-banking In India The Reserve Bank Of India (RBI) constituted a functioning group on E- Banking in India. This functioning group further divided the internet banking products in India into the following three types based on the levels of access granted:- Information Only system Electronic information transfer system Fully electronic transactional system More advanced transactions Information Only system It provided general information such as rate of interests, location of a bank branch, products offered, their features, advantages and disadvantages, application forms were available for purpose of downloading. e-mails are used for communication purposes. A Customers and a banks application system do not interact. Customer identification is not done and there is no chance of any unauthorized person getting into a banks production systems via Internet. (Geetika, Nandan Upadhyay , 2008) Electronic information transfer system It provides information about a customer such as account balances, address, details of transactions etc. Customers are identified by their passwords and customers are provided information from banks application system. (Geetika, Nandan Upadhyay , 2008) Applying For New Banking Services Very few banks provide the facility of making an application and enabling new services using internet because the RBI does not allow opening of banks accounts online.(Malhotra Balwinder ,2009) This requires high degree of safety and security. In this, the network server and the application systems are linked over secure communications. (Geetika , Nandan Upadhyay , 2008) More advanced transactions In this system various other services are provided such as insurance policies, Brokerage, investments, demat, Credit card payments, trading, shopping and various other services provided online. Private sector banks are more expected to offer insurance services and covers, brokerage, online trading online and shopping online. Many of the Internet banks have also started offering certain new services through E- banking such as tax payment, charity payment and railway ticket booking. Public sector banks have shown a tremendous performance in the providing the services such as tax payment and railway ticket booking online. (Malhotra Balwinder ,2009) Advantages and disadvantages of E-banking There are a number of drawbacks of e-banking such as it is time consuming, poor network availability, lack of knowledge among people, unsuitable location of ATMs, Lack of infrastructure, high setting up costs, chances of frauds and scams, customers feel e-banking is not secure etc. Apart from above mentioned disadvantages there are a number of other disadvantages of Internet banking. Some of them are survival, accessibility, security, acceptance, infrastructure, perception, etc. Many people do not use internet banking because they do not trust banking services through internet. They doubt that their money is not safe and secure while being processed through internet banking. Many cases of frauds in India have been reported. Another disadvantage of E-banking is when a person has a query or question or faces a problem he/she cannot physically go to the bank and solve it but he/she has to call customer service department to solve it which might take a lot of time. Also some people avoid using E-banking because they do not understand how to use to and what is the procedure of getting started. Internet banking also poses a problem when the network is down and it might cause delay due to server problem when an important transaction is to be made. Starting up of E-banking requires large amount of investment which includes advertising cost, setting up cost, purchasing of technology etc. Many Internet banks dont have ATMs, due to which customers have to pay ATM fees. This costs them more. Lack of literacy and education regarding how to use internet is another drawback of e-banking. Sometimes unknowingly computer system is damaged Also there are a number of benefits of e-banking to both bank as well as customer. For example- Its cheaper to make transactions over internet, it provides satisfaction to customers, it improves the image of the bank, and customers get facility to manage every aspect of their bank account, It makes the transactions paperless, banking services are available round the clock helps customers to save time as they do not have to visit bank branch, customers can check costs of currency. Check stock market, check previous transaction history, transfer money, check which transactions have been cleared. Joseph et al. (1999) studied the influence of Internet on the delivery of banking service. This study identified six dimensions of E- banking service quality i.e. convenience and accuracy, feedback and complaint management, efficiency, queue management, accessibility and customization. While on the other hand Jun and Cai (2001) identified to seventeen service quality dimensions of E- banking service quality which are reliability, responsiveness, competence, courtesy, credibility, access, communication, understanding the customer, collaboration and continuous improvement, content, accuracy, ease of use, timeliness, aesthetics, security and divers features. Services Services are one of the primary benefits which a customer looks for while adopting a new channel. The consumers consider the benefits and weigh them against the costs associated. The Internet offers a lot of benefits to consumers, like any time anywhere banking, updated information, convenience, faster transaction, etc. Future of E-banking In India The large banks in India will find out new and better ways in providing their services. Also they will find out new ways to propose those services which will include use of new technologies. Wireless communication and mobile banking will increase at a very high rate due to which e-banking will become omnipresent. While E-banking will grow at a high rate the current generation of customers will still require face to face interaction with banks due because of feeling of satisfaction and security and some functions like cash withdrawals, checking lockers etc require physical contact with the bank. (Southard Siau, 2004) Keeping In India the benefits of E-banking such as increased efficiency of employees, accuracy etc it is seen that future of E-banking is very bright. The Banks which are fully computerized have gained majority of industrialists, service class, business class, less educated as well as highly educated customers. Most of the customers will favour E-banking because preferences of customers are changing with time and they are becoming more demanding and they will prefer a bank which will provide them quick service. In this era of globalisation only banks which are technologically advanced will survive.(Uppal Chawla,2009) The future of e-banking depends heavily on the future development of technology. The one certainty is that it will continue to offer new delivery methods for banking services. (Southard Siau,2004) Poon W C (2008), Users Adoption of E-Banking Services: The Malaysian P.K. Gupta, (2008), INTERNET BANKING IN INDIA CONSUMER CONCERNS AND BANK STRATEGIES, GLOBAL JOURNAL OF BUSINESS RESEARCH Volume 2Number 1 R.K. Uppal, (2008).Customer Perception of E-Banking Services of Indian Banks: Some Survey Evidence Icfai Journal of Bank Management, Vol. VII, No.1, Ms.H.Vasanthakumari and Dr. S. Sheela Rani (2010 ) ROLE OF E BANKING SERVICES IN THE BANKING SECTOR SRM Management Digest ,vol 8 pg 43 Dasgupta, P. (2002) Future of e-banking in India. Available online at: www.projectshub.com Gupta, D. (1999) Internet banking: where does India stand?, Journal of Contemporary Management, December, Vol. 2, No. 1 Ziqi Liao and Michael Tow Cheung, (2003) COMMUNICATIONS OF THE ACM Vol. 46, No. 12ve. Rahmath Safeena, Hema Date and Abdullah Kammani, (2011)Internet banking adoption in emrging economy International Arab Journal of e-Technology, Vol. 2, No. 1, Laforet, S and Li, X. (2005). Consumers attitudes towards online and mobile banking in China. International Journal of Bank Marketing, Vol. 23, No. 5; pg. 362-380. Pooja Malhotra and Balwinder Singh(2010), An analysis of Internet banking and its determinants in India, Vol. 20 No. 1, pp. 87-106, Emerald Group Publishing Limited pg 94-98, 87-88 Curran, M. James and Meuter, L. Matthew (2007) Encouraging existing customers to switch to self-service technologies: put a little fun in their lives Journal of Marketing Theory and Practice, 15 (4), 283-298 Polatoglu, V. and Ekin, S. (2001). An empirical investigation of the Turkish consumers JIBC August 2010, Vol. 15, No.2 Abdulwahed Mo. Sh. Khalfan and Yaqoub S.Y. AlRefaei, (2006). Factors influencing the adoption of internet banking in Oman: a descriptive case study analysis. International Journal of Financial Services Management, 1 (2/3), 155-172. P.K Gupta (2008)internet banking in India-consumer concerns and bank strategies Global journal of Business Research vol 2 no 1 pg 6 -8 Sathye, M. (1999). Adoption of internet banking by Australian consumers: an empirical investigation. International Journal of Bank Marketing, 17 (7), 324-34. Dixit M. And Datta S.(2010) Acceptance of E-banking among Adult Customers: An Empirical Investigation in India Journal of Internet Banking and Commerce, August 2010, vol. 15, no.2 pg 1 Daniel, E. (1999) Provision of electronic banking in the UK and the Republic of Ireland International Journal of Bank Marketing, 17(2), 72-82. Ajay Prakash and Garima Malik, (2008) Empirical Study of Internet Banking in India Vol.1 . 3 Geetika, Nandan T Upadhyay A(2008) internet Banking In India-issues and prospects The Icfai Journal of Bank Management, Vol. VII, No. 2, 2008 pg 48-49 IAMAI (2006), IAMAIs Report Online Banking 2006, http://www.iamai.in/, Accessed on May 10, 2011. Uppal R.K Chawla R(2009)E-banking Channel-Based Banking Services:An empirical study The Icfaian Journal of Management Research, Vol. 1 0 VIII, No. 7 pg 21-22 Southhard P.B Siau K (2004)A survey of online E-banking Retail initiatives COMMUNICATIONS OF THE ACM October 2004/Vol. 47, No. 10 pg 102

Father-Daughter Relationships in Sidney’s The Countess of Pembroke’s Ar

Father-Daughter Relationships in Sidney’s The Countess of Pembroke’s Arcadia, Marlowe’s The Jew of Malta, and Shakespeare’s The Merchant of Venice Justification for the subjugation of females to males during the sixteenth century came from a variety of sources. Ranging from the view that God gave Adam authority over Eve as penalty for the fall, to a belief in the superiority of a husbands’ physical strength over that of his wife, attempts at rationalization of the restricted freedom of women came from every direction.1 Puritan reformers also believed that Eve was God’s gift, given to Adam ‘to consummate and make up his happinesse.’[1] From this perspective, we can easily make the mental adjustment necessary to embrace the view of women as property that could be ‘given in marriage, taken in battle, exchanged for favours, set as tribute, traded, bought, and sold.’[2] With this viewpoint in mind, it is interesting to move into a consideration of the father-daughter relationships presented in Sidney’s The Countess of Pembroke’s Arcadia, Marlowe’s The Jew of Malta, and Shakespeare’s The Merchant of Venice to analyse how this viewpoint limited the freedoms of daughters. To begin our exploration of father-daughter relationships in the context of patriarchal control, we must first examine how males viewed and represented daughters within the texts. In The Old Arcadia, Pyrocles as Cleophila not only ‘praises’ Philoclea in fragmented body parts (as opposed to a whole person), but also compares these parts to military instruments of war. ‘Her loose hair be the shot, the breasts the pikes be / Scouts each motion is, the hands the horsemen’ and ‘her cannons be her eyes.’[3] Although this comparison situates Philoclea in the degra... ...53-7. [10] Oxford English Dictionary Online [11] Singh, 153. [12] The Merchant of Venice, III.ii.83-96. [13] D. Lucking, ‘Standing for Sacrifice: The Casket and Trial Scenes in ‘The Merchant of Venice,’ University of Toronto Quarterly (Spring 1989):355-75, quoted by J.G. Singh, in A Feminist Companion to Shakespeare, ed. Dympna Callaghan (Malden and Oxford: Blackwell Publishers Ltd, 2000), 150. [14] The Jew of Malta, II.iii.52-3. [15] II.iii.289. [16] The Old Arcadia, 101. [17] The Old Arcadia, 102. [18] The Old Arcadia, 5. [19] The Jew of Malta, II.iii.228-232. [20] The Jew of Malta, II.iii.304-6. [21] The Merchant of Venice, I.ii.22-5. [22] II.v.56-7. [23] The Jew of Malta, III.iii.39-42. [24] The Jew of Malta, II.iv.1-4. [25] The Merchant of Venice, III.i.31-33. [26] The Old Arcadia, 360. [27] Dusinberre, 124.

Pm 586 Huntsville Project Analysis

The project schedule for the Huntsville plant project has been already done and completed. The resources and duration are properly assigned to the specific tasks/ activities. This section of the report will discuss the outcome of the project schedule and allocation of the resources used in the project. The Gantt chat in the Microsoft project shows each activity and estimated duration as when it will be completed.The Gantt chat also reveals that the estimated completion time for the entire project will be July 6, 2012 which is one week after the projected date set by the board of directors which is June 30, 2012. This is clearly indicates that the project would not be completed on time as it was projected. In my opinion I think July 6, 2012 is not too far from the expected project completion date, therefore I would suggest the project manager to revise the schedule and reschedule. Our text book mentioned some of the critical success factors when scheduling.Some of these factors are wh en attempting to reduce the duration of a path activities that has a negative slack, focus on activities that are near term and activities that have long estimated duration, the person who will be responsible for performing the activity should approximate duration for that activity, the key to effective schedule control is address any paths with negative or deteriorating slack values aggressively as soon as they are identified, and activity estimated duration should be yet realistic (Gido & Clements, 5th Ed, pg 180).Based on the factors above, the schedule should be revised to find activities with negative slack and timing interval. For example, recruiting & training, create building design estimated duration time could be adjusted to shorter period. This will cause the earliest start and earliest finish time of other activities around these tasks to be adjusted and hence it might create some positive slack time.The Gantt chat also reveals that during the planning phase there are so me of the activities such select architect have been scheduled over the weekend which is non-working days, I suggest to schedule these activities during weekdays to accelerate their estimated duration time. The analysis also revealed that almost all the resources are over allocated. When we change the view to the view resource usage we can see FS, PM, CP, PS, RC, ME, GC, PD, AC, MS, AD, and PA are over allocated.In order to address this problem I suggest looking at the activities with the shortest duration schedule that may have limited resources available. Using the resources constraints concept, in the planning phase we can find out that building, production, and selection can be considered for adjustments. Also we can use the resource leveling to distribute the resources to each phase more evenly and avoid unnecessary over allocation in some of the resources.The adjustments of these activities must be done carefully so as not to affect some other activities which have the greater contribution to the over allocation. In conclusion, the analysis shows that it is clearly that the main objective which to complete the project and its deliverables by June 30, 2012 will not be achieved due to the scheduling and over allocation of resources problems.In order to meet the completion date a clear schedule adjustments and leveling of the resources in needed. This will help the project to finish on its projected time and if we very lucky we might have finished it under time and have few extra days to review few activities thoroughly. Reference Successful Project Management, 5th Ed, Gido & Clements: Retrieved March 27, 2013 from https://devry. vitalsource. com/signin? return=/books/9781133614487/pages/49723591

Ohalo II, the Upper Paleolithic Site on the Sea of Galilee

Ohalo II, the Upper Paleolithic Site on the Sea of Galilee Ohalo II is the name of a submerged late Upper Paleolithic (Kebaran) site located on the southwest shore of the Sea of Galilee (Lake Kinneret) in the Rift Valley of Israel. The site was discovered in 1989 when the level of the lake plummeted. The site is 9 kilometers (5.5 miles) south of the modern city of Tiberias. The site covers an area of 2,000 square meters (about a half an acre), and the remains are of an extremely well-preserved hunter-gatherer-fisher camp. The site is typical of Kebaran sites, containing the floors and wall bases of six oval brush huts, six open-air hearths  and a human grave. The site was occupied during the Last Glacial Maximum, and has an occupation date between 18,000-21,000 RCYBP, or between 22,500 and 23,500 cal BP. Animal and Plant Remains Ohalo II is remarkable in that  since it had been submerged, the preservation of organic materials was excellent, providing very rare evidence of food sources for late Upper Paleolithic/Epipaleolithic communities. Animals represented by bones in the faunal assemblage include fish, tortoise, birds, hare, fox, gazelle, and deer. Polished bone points and several enigmatic bone tools were recovered, as were tens of thousands of seeds and fruits representing almost 100 taxa from the living surface. Plants include an assortment of herbs, low shrubs, flowers, and grasses, including wild barley (Hordeum spontaneum), mallow (Malva parviflora), groundsel (Senecio glaucus), thistle (Silybum marianum(), Melilotus indicus and a slew of others too numerous to mention here. The flowers at Ohalo II represent the earliest known use of flowers by Anatomically Modern Humans. Some may have been used for medicinal purposes. The edible remains are dominated by seeds from small-grained grasses and wild cereals, although nuts, fruits, and legumes are also present. Ohalos collections include over 100,000 seeds, including the earliest identification of emmer wheats [Triticum dicoccoides or T. turgidum ssp. dicoccoides (kà ¶rn.) Thell], in the form of several charred seeds. Other plants include wild almond (Amygdalus communis), wild olive (Olea europaea var sylvestris), wild pistachio (Pistacia atlantica), and wild grape (Vitis vinifera spp sylvestris). Three fragments of twisted and plied fibers were discovered at Ohalo; they are the oldest evidence of string-making discovered yet. Living at Ohalo II The floors of the six brush huts were oval in shape, with an area of between 5-12 square meters (54-130 square feet), and the entrance-way from at least two was from the east. The largest hut was built of tree branches (tamarisk and oak) and covered by grasses. The floors of the huts were shallowly excavated prior to their construction. All of the huts were burned. The working surface of a grinding stone found at the site was covered with barley starch grains, indicating that at least some of the plants were processed for food or medicine. Plants in evidence on the stones surface include wheat, barley, and oats. But the majority of the plants are believed to represent the brush used for housing. Flint, bone and wooden tools, basalt net sinkers, and hundreds of shell beads made from mollusks brought from the Mediterranean Sea were also identified. The single grave at Ohalo II is an adult male, who had a disabled hand and a penetrating wound to his rib cage. A bone tool found near the skull is a piece of gazelle long bone incised with parallel markings. Ohalo II was discovered in 1989 when lake levels dropped. Excavations organized by the Israeli Antiquities Authority have continued at the site when lake levels permit, led by Dani Nadel. Sources Allaby RG, Fuller DQ, and Brown TA. 2008. The genetic expectations of a protracted model for the origins of domesticated crops. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences 105(37):13982-13986. Kislev ME, Nadel D, and Carmi I. 1992. Epipalaeolithic (19,000 BP) cereal and fruit diet at Ohalo II, Sea of Galilee, Israel. Review of Palaeobotany and Palynology 73(1-4):161-166. Nadel D, Grinberg U, Boaretto E, and Werke E. 2006. Wooden objects from Ohalo II (23,000 cal BP), Jordan Valley, Israel. Journal of Human Evolution 50(6):644-662. Nadel D, Piperno DR, Holst I, Snir A, and Weiss E. 2012. New evidence for the processing of wild cereal grains at Ohalo II, a 23 000-year-old campsite on the shore of the Sea of Galilee, Israel . Antiquity 86(334):990-1003. Rosen AM, and Rivera-Collazo I. 2012. Climate change, adaptive cycles, and the persistence of foraging economies during the late Pleistocene/Holocene transition in the Levant. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences 109(10):3640-3645. Weiss E, Kislev ME, Simchoni O, Nadel D, and Tschauner H. 2008. Plant-food preparation area on an Upper Paleolithic brush hut floor at Ohalo II, Israel. Journal of Archaeological Science 35(8):2400-2414.

The Importance of Family in Homers The Illiad.

The Importance of Family in Homers The Illiad. Most people would consider their family to be among their top priorities, if not their very first. In Homer's "The Illiad", Hecuba is portrayed as a woman who values family. Her emphasis on family values is demonstrated in her relationship with her son Hektor, as well as her husband Priam.Hecuba feared Achilleus would kill her son Hektor in battle so she attempted to persuade him to refrain from fighting the great Achilleus. Unfortunately she was unsuccessful as she "could not move the spirit in Hektor", Hektor proceeded to prepare for battle (l.91). Despite Hecuba's efforts to sway her sons decision, Hektor was confident that he could win this battle. Confidence is a quality often developed in early stages of childhood, showing the reader that Hektor was brought up in a supportive and loving home, created by his parents. Hektor was no match for Achilleus and sadly lost the battle.Hector GuimardHecuba knew Hektor would lose if he were to fight Achilleus, as shown when she "in tears w as mourning" before Hektor had even gone to battle (l.79). This indicated that she knew Hektors strengths and weaknesses, something an attentive mother would be aware of. This knowledge provided the reader with evidence enabling them to believe that Hecuba and Hektor had a solid mother-son relationship.Hecuba did not want Hektor to fight Achilleus, not only because she feared his death, but because she suspected that Achilleus would rob Hektor of his right to the chance of a proper burial. Hecuba believed that Hektor, when he was to die, deserved a proper and respectful burial. She told her son "for if he kills you I can no longer mourn you on the death-bed", and "nor can your generous wife mourn you, but a bit way...

W201 eTMA 03 Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

W201 eTMA 03 - Essay Example awaiting trial, hence the matter is sub judice and publication of materials such as newspapers that have wide access to members of the public could compromise the course of justice, especially if the judges or jury also happen to read the article when the matter is yet to be decided. In this connection, Section 2(2) of the Contempt of Court Act of 1981 states as follows: where any publication creates a substantial risk that the course of justice in the proceedings in question will be seriously impeded or prejudiced, contempt of court will be found1. There are three separate elements that must be established before the issue of contempt of court arises. Firstly, there must be a publication, secondly this publication must be related to the court proceedings which are taking place and lastly, the nature of the publication must be such that it could seriously impede the course of justice through prejudice. The above mentioned article in the Grayton Gazette appears to substantiate all of the above. Firstly, it is a publication, i.e, an article in the local newspaper. Secondly, it is related to the court proceedings because Billy is awaiting trial in connection with the events of 15th April and the antics of Street Clear and the article is specifically about Billy and his earlier activities with Street Clear. This article also fulfils the third criterion because it does seriously prejudice the case, because it mentions that Billy has been involved in fights before – he has been involved in demonstrations which have turned nasty because he looks for trouble. Moreover the article specifically states: â€Å"let’s hope the jury sees sense†, which directly creates a substantial risk of serious prejudice, because being a news article, it is quite likely to come to the attention of a potential jury member and the timing of publication of the article coincides almost exactly with the trial procedures. On this basis, it appears that there would be excellent grounds for

Corporate Profits versus the Protection of Natural Environment Essay

Corporate Profits versus the Protection of Natural Environment - Essay Example Therefore, it is advisable that while organizations work towards increasing their profit margins and expanding their businesses, they should as well put in place measures to protect and conserve the natural environment, as the latter is more important than any aspect in the business world (Sharfman, Shaft & Tihanyi, 2004 p. 23). This paper seeks to analyze the significance of profits and protection of the natural environment in an organization, clearly the most important of them while at the same time discussing the impact of media involvement on this issue. According to Steiner & Steiner (2012 p. 567), virtually all organizations set up with the sole aim of making profits within a given business environment. While profits play an important role in determining the solvency or otherwise of the said organization, it is imperative to consider that profits do not come from vacuum. The accumulation of profits and the conservation of the natural environment are an inseparable pair that ena bles corporates to operate their businesses in a sustainable manner. It is true that no business can survive without making profits that will sustain it even in times of economic hardships and propel its growth and expansion. That said it is apparent that the need to make profits is crucial to all businesses more than any aspect within the business concept, as this is the driving force (Sharfman, Shaft & Tihanyi, 2004 p. 26). ... Due to the significant aspect attached to profits within the corporate world, it serves to say that urge to make profits can never be overestimated, the approach notwithstanding (Sharfman, Shaft & Tihanyi, 2004 p. 30). The concept of environmental protection and sustainable development has been with us for a while, at least in the wake of concerns about global warming. Natural environment is important in that virtually every business enterprise and all organizations derive part of their resources directly or indirectly from the environment (Michalisin & Stinchfield, 2010 p. 138). Organizations may use natural resources as their raw materials or products from natural resources for their production processes. Perhaps it would be appropriate to confess at this point that the protection of the natural environment is more important than the need to make profits. Since the most businesses have their operations surrounded by the natural environment, they ought to take into consideration the impact of their activities on the natural environment (Steiner & Steiner, 2012 p. 537). In the recent past, the world has been very conscious on the environment especially due to the adverse effects of climate change, a revolution that has affected most businesses across the globe. More environmental organizations like the UNEP and the NRDC have advocated for sustainable development and have particularly put up a spirited campaign for the adoption of clean energy and cleaner production (Natural Resources Defense Council, 2013 para. 4). The environmental issue has gained more support prevalence especially in the business world where the rating of business enterprises is based on their efficiency in production and

Explain why emissions' trading is a compromise between a) the Pigovian Essay

Explain why emissions' trading is a compromise between a) the Pigovian taxation approach and b) the pure Coase theorem approac - Essay Example 8). Pigouvian taxation approach Emission trading and Pigouvian taxation are both the approaches for reducing the emission s of greenhouse gases by providing incentives to firms and individuals. The Pigouvian tax involves the increase of cost of production of carbon by the government, and the market determines the efficient quantity. On the contrary, the emission trade entails the regulation of the amount of emission by the government with a market-determined price of the carbon, based on the reallocation of polluting permits (Mabey 2001 p. 61). Pigouvian tax effectively requires a polluter to internalize the cost of pollution by imposing taxes. This tax represents the cost to society, because of polluting the environment. The emission trade and the Pigovian approach can lead to the same reduction of pollutants. Emissions trade though is more advantageous, because the rights to pollute are given through a market to those who can make efficient use of them (Lane 2009 p. 145). For compa nies to trade their carbon credits, they have to reduce their emission. However, companies that generate higher emission will have to buy more credits (Tiwari & Dubey 2010 p. 316). Pure Coase theorem approach Coase theorem describes the financial effectiveness of an economic allocation, or the result in the presence of externality. According to this theorem, if there is the possibility of externality, and there are the absences of transaction costs, bargaining can cause an efficient result without considering the first allocation of property rights. Poor definition of property rights can obstruct the coasian agreement (Callan & Thomas 2009, p.69). The coase theorem is the motivation principle behind emission trade because when there are absence of transaction expenses, the involved individuals can negotiate to a jointly beneficial result (Fine & Milinakis 2009 p. 101) Bargaining to a mutually helpful outcome can be expensive because the transactions costs are almost never zero. This concept is very important for the market-based environmental policy. Reduction of transaction costs is a fundamental factor in facilitating people to use markets to handle and optimize pollution. Coase theorem rests upon restraining assumptions like the small size groups, and near-zero transaction costs. However, in practice, transaction costs are often prohibitive and the government has to intercede (Harris 2003 p. 39). Two major approaches to environmental regulations are the use of command and control together with economic instruments (Gokcekus, Umut & LaMoreaux 2011 p.257). Command and control methods like pollution standards and targets are commonly found in the developing and the developed countries. Actors who fail to meet the levels that were specified by the standard are liable to sanctions. This is in contrast to economic instruments, which work by modifying markets and the incentives of agents in order to achieve publicly desirable amount of pollution (Levin 2009 p. 741 ). Market creation for the emission trade is an efficient method of lowering transaction costs. In reducing the transaction expenses, it is important to define and enforce property rights so that a company that has a right to emit a certain amount per year can trade away some or all the rights, and will be held accountable for the amount that it emits. Therefore, if

Understand how to safeguard the well being of children Essay Example for Free

Understand how to safeguard the well being of children Essay Issues Risks Possible Consequences Being Online 1. Cyber-bullyingChildren may receive texts or emails that make them feel sad, embarrassed, upset, depressed or afraid. This could be damaging to the child’s self-esteem and psychological well-being 2. GroomingUsed by child sex offenders with the goal of obtaining sexual contact. 3. Confidential informationCould inadvertently give out personal information such as address, school attended or bank or credit card details, resulting in fraud or worse still an attempted abduction. Issues Risks Possible Consequences Mobile phone 1. Who is child talking to?Very hard to know who your child has contact with and the content of any conversation 2. Explicit materialPhotos and explicit content either from texting or talking resulting in inappropriate behaviour. 3. Mobile phone theft/crime Expensive mobile phone handsets are desirable items, and so unfortunately are at risk from theft. Children and young people may be particularly vulnerable to such crime. Area Ways of reducing risk Social networking1.Restrict access to social networking sites. Most social networking sites have age limits so make sure they adhere to this. Talk to the children/young people about predators about never talking to strangers, meeting them etc. Internet use. Monitor children’s online activity and block site’s that are inappropriate and limit the amount of time the child/young person spends online. 2.Encourage children/young people to talk to you about things that might be happening on-line and guide them in the right direction. This will help them to recognise the dangers that could develop Buying online1.There is a risk of others hacking into your computer to get your identity this can be minimised by a firewall. A firewall can help by preventing hackers or malicious software from gaining  access to your information. There is a risk to young persons of fraud (your card details being used by an unauthorised users) whilst buying online. This can be prevented by using a secure payment system (PayPal), this enables you to buy from multi online shops and pay using one account set up by PayPal. Using a mobile phone. A risk of them being attacked if they have expensive phones . Buy a cheap pay as you go phone for them to use at school or clubs this will minimise the risk and still allow the child/young person to have access to a phone. There is a risk to their health by means of cancer/tumour, they can reduce the risk by using landline phones, hands free, loud speakers or blue tooth. If the phone is held a few inches away from the ear or less time made on phone calls perhaps use text messages instead of ringing a friend, this can make a difference.

math lesson Essay -- essays research papers

Lesson Plan Title: Alexander, Who Used to Be Rich Last Sunday: Understanding Opportunity Costs Grade Level:2, 3, or 6th Duration: three 50-minute class periods Student Goal: To understand that there is an opportunity cost to every economic decision and that these costs come as a result of limited resources. Student Objectives Students will: †¢ Identify "opportunity costs" in the story and in their own lives. †¢ Create an opportunity costs bar graph as a whole class. †¢ Complete a table of personal spending and savings information. †¢ Write an original story about how they spent and saved their allowance and what they gave up or their "opportunity costs" in order to reach their goals. Materials: †¢ a copy of Alexander, Who Used to Be Rich Last Sunday, by Judith Viorst †¢ chart paper †¢ markers †¢ overhead projector †¢ transparency †¢ student handout: How I Spent & Saved My Allowance (included). This was provided by the teacher in which I was doing my participant observations with. Set Up and Prepare: 1. Use the book Alexander, Who Used to Be Rich Last Sunday, by Judith Viorst. 2. Write the definition of the term "opportunity cost" on a sheet of chart paper and display for the class: Opportunity Cost: what you give up when you decide to do or buy something 3. Draw a bar graph on a transparency. Write the title "Opportunity Costs for a College Education" across the top. Label the horizontal axis "Opportunity Costs." Label the vertical axis "Number of Students." 4. Print out copies of the student handout "How I Spent & Saved My Money" for each student to take home. Directions: PART I: Step 1: Share with students a story about a time when you did not buy something you really wanted so that you could use or save the money for something more important. For example, maybe you didn't go on a vacation so you could save the money for a car you need to buy. Explain that what you gave up is called an "opportunity cost." Direct students' attention to the definition of "opportunity cost" displayed on the chart paper. Step 2: Ask students to share stories from their own lives in which they gave up something to get something else, or to save for something else that they want more. Have them identify their opportunity costs. Ask studen... ... †¢ How much does Alexander have after he buys the gum? ($0.85); after he loses a bet to his mother? ($0.70); after he rents Eddie's snake? ($0.58); after his father fines him for saying naughty words ($0.48); after flushing pennies down the toilet and dropping a nickel through a crack? ($0.40); after paying for Anthony's chocolate bar? ($0.29); after pennies disappear in Nick's trick ($0.25); after paying his father for kicking his brother? ($0.20); after buying things at a garage sale ($0.00). Set Up Shop/ Learning Center: Students set up a shop and role play the parts of customer and shopkeeper, making economic decisions along the way. Have them draw pictures or use manipulatives for the items they are selling in the store. Allow them to determine prices and tag each item. Then give all students the opportunity to be a customer and the shopkeeper. Provide customers with a limited amount of play money to spend in the store. They will need to budget their money so that they can afford all they need to buy. Using play money too, the shopkeepers sharpen their math skills as they make change for the customers. Assignments: Student Handout: How I Spent & Saved My Money

Public Company and Patagonia

As resources and commodity's decrease, it is harder and harder to make a difference in the world today. Patagonia continues to work hard to do their part with the resources that are available. Patagonia is a privately held outdoor clothing company based out of Ventura, California that generates yearly sales of approximately $540 million. Patagonia has developed outdoor apparel that is marketed towards outdoor sports, travel and every day wear. The company integrates Its core values into every product that it produces. They are known for their innovative designs, and environmental responsibility.Its high integrity and commitment to the environment has placed Patagonia on the Deciphers Institute's â€Å"WorldS Most Ethical Companies† list for SIX consecutive years since the list was first developed In 2007 (Unknown, WOMEN Honorees, 2012). This case analysis will examine the history of Patagonia, and Its business philosophy. Patagonians business model will be evaluated as well as the captured cost and value of the company. Next, we will examine Patagonians environmental position and its sustainability. The product lifestyle initiative will be analyzed and how well it worked for the company.Patagonians financial statements are important to determine the success of the company's financial goals. Lastly, I will share some lessons that I learned from Patagonia and this case study. History Patagonia was started from one entrepreneur's passion. Hypochondriac, founder of Patagonia, developed a passion for rock climbing. In 1953 his passions brought him west to the San Fernando Valley in California, where he became an expert at climbing. He knew that he couldn't explore his passion of climbing the way he wanted to because of limited appropriate climbing gear available.The only available climbing ear were pitons, which are metal spikes that were driven Into cracks or seams In the rocks. Pitons are left In the rock, meaning that a long climb could require hundreds of these tools. After frustration, and financial hardship, Schoolyard became Inspired after meeting a Swiss climber that had crafted his own set of iron pitons. He turned pitons that were stronger than what was currently on the market. Word of Cinnabar's invention spread, and he began selling his pitons out of the back of his car for $1. 50 each.Although the hobby was enough to support him, he often lived on less than a dollar day. Drifting along the California coast, climbing in Yosemite, and surfing in Baja, Cinchonas was happy with his lifestyle. By 1966 Cinchonas decided to partner with Tom and Doreen Frost to create Cinchonas Equipment. They quickly became the largest supplier in the United States. For nearly a decade Cinchonas and Frost made improvements on nearly every climbing tool. Tom and Doreen worked with Cinchonas â€Å"Just to pay the bills†. In 1972 Cinchonas Equipment added an outdoor apparel line called â€Å"Patagonia†.Patagonia grew very quickly. Cinch onas and his wife Melinda knew they wanted to sell items that would have a minimal impact on he environment. So they made many decisions in their business approach that would help the environment such as using organic cotton to make t-shirts. Soon after the establishment of Patagonia, it became its own company, no longer under the ownership of Cinchonas equipment. However, like many start-up companies, Patagonia tried to expand too quickly. Growing its sales from $20 million to $100 million as well as expanding its services into Japan and Europe.This wide-scale expansion placed Patagonia into a dire financial situation. The recession that took place in the ass's forced the company to lay off about 20% of its staff. Patagonia continued to grow despite some of the financial troubles that they faced (Reinhardt, Cascade's, & Hymn, 2010). Cinchonas did not allow the recession or the financial troubles of the company to stop his vision for Patagonia. Instead, he chose to go in a more sust ainable direction. The company switched to the more expensive organic cotton in 1996, a risky business move considering it increased the firm's supply costs.However, no other company was producing clothes with organic cotton. He invested in other sustainable materials and decided to make products more durable. This session a risky move because companies often rely on consumers coming back to get replacement products. Plausibly, the more durable the product, the less customers will need to purchase for replacement. However, the exact opposite occurred: consumers were more willing to do business with Patagonia due to its environmental consciousness and the fact that they could trust Patagonians products to last a long time.Connoisseurship's on Business Cinchonas used Patagonia as an experiment to â€Å"challenge conventional wisdom and present a new style of responsible business† (McAllen, 2011). He wanted to stay way from the traditional way of doing business, and focused his efforts on â€Å"doing the right thing†, rather than on profits. Doing the right thing for Cinchonas meant ensuring that every decision that was made regarding the business, was environmentally sound and responsible. One decision that he made was to no longer use anti-odor technology because it was not safe for the environment.The competition Patagonians products were comparable to those of their competitors. Other stores in the industry such as North Face, Marmot Mountain, and Mountain Hardware, all shared the same interest of selling outdoor apparel. However, because of quality, environmental impact, and innovation, Patagonia is able to charge more for their and some of the top outdoor sportswear companies in the industry during 2009. Patagonians gross profit margin for 2010 was 52. 6%. Whereas the average gross profit margin of the other five companies (Columbia Sportswear, V. F.Corporation, Nikkei, and Timberland) was $44. 95%. Not to mention Patagonians 12- month Net Inc ome Growth for 2010 was 42. 5%, which was substantially higher than the average net income growth of its competitors at 26. 525% (Reinhardt, Cascade's, & Hymn, 2010, p. 12). This goes to show that despite the company's more expensive product, consumers were willing to pay more for higher quality, and items that were environmentally safe. Marketing isn't that important Patagonia used a much different marketing approach than its competitors, using less than 1% of its sales towards marketing and advertising.They have strengthened their brand based upon their environmental commitment, and â€Å"profit sharing with environmental causes† (Alienist & Door-Near, 2012). As social media becomes more popular, and ads are now a part of what one sees when scrolling down their timeline, any companies get free advertising. The company took advantage of this and used it as an outlet to communicate to consumers and the public. Although it would have given them possibly some advantage, Patagon ia did not use its environmental stance as part of their marketing tool.However they educated the public on the impact that their company had on the environment. Doing so attracted more consumers. Patagonia uses its website not Just for selling outdoor apparel but also as an educational tool about the environment, and the products that the company uses in its production. The type of information that Patagonia put on their website shows that the company has taken their business very serious and that they are aware of their environmental responsibility. They use the website not Just to sell the items, but to showcase that they items that are produced show corporate responsibility.In addition to the information on their website, Patagonia at times did put out ads for their company. The advertisements were usually very short and included educational messages. They believe that it is more important to show people useful information that will help enhance their lives. In a recent intervie w Patagonia UP Joy Howard stated that their position is to â€Å"solve problems in the world,† and that advertising is the â€Å"dead last thing† to the company (McAllen, 2011). This goes to show that the company is more focused on the environmental sustainability than on profitability.Educating consumers about what they are buying and how it affects the environment, sells the product itself. Exhibit Use of organically grown cotton Patagonians concern for the environment also caused them to decide to use organic cotton in their clothing. They wanted to continue to follow their mission tenement of â€Å"Build the best product, cause no unnecessary harm, use business to inspire and implement solutions to the environmental crisis† (Unknown, Company Info, n. D. ). Cotton is one of the world's most insect dependent crops, therefore causing a risk to the environment because of the pesticides that are used.In 1996 Patagonia switched apparel to 100% organic cotton produ cts. They already had clothing that was made with conventional cotton, and made up about 20% of the company's sales, but switching to organic cotton was a risk that they were willing to take. Patagonia was not the first company to use organic cotton. The decision to clothing companies decided to cancel their organic cotton line, so it was perfect timing for Patagonia to drop their line. Although initially Patagonia found success in introducing its organic cotton products, they also faced some challenges.Because of the items and styles that were unavailable for production using organic cotton and because some of the suppliers refused to switch to organic cotton citing â€Å"lack of supplier alternatives and skepticism about the market potential†, Patagonia had to decrease its product line in order to stay in line with the 100% organic cotton initiative that they made. Due to the increased price for organic cotton, the company's costs increased. Product costs increased 25-30% w ith the use of the organic cotton. Organic cotton had a drastic decline in production, therefore costs were higher than normal.In addition, Patagonia struggled to maintain the quality of its product, once they switched. With cotton products making up more than 20% of the company's sales (Reinhardt, Cascade's, & Hymn, 2010), they were forced to get it right, and to make their product desirable enough to sell. Business Model: Does it really work? A business model is a model that is designed for the successful operation of the equines, identifying customer base, revenue sources, products and details of financing. Patagonia seems to have a business model that has helped the company be very successful and remain relevant amongst its customers and competitors.They have stayed true to their core values which is to provide quality, integrity, and environmentalism. Since the start- up of Patagonia, they have never operated under conventionalism, and has continued to stand out from every othe r outdoor apparel chain. Focusing more on environmental sustainability and social responsibility rather Han profits, Patagonia has become the worldwide leader of environmentally responsible business. They have continued to remain innovative in their approach to doing business, as well as in the product development and marketing.Creating and Capturing Value Achieving Growth, being Profitable, and minimizing ecological expenses are somewhat contradictory goals but somehow Patagonia has been very successful at achieving these goals. Their business model is based on making minimum environmental impact but creating products that have create value, without compromising the company's capital. In order to stand apart from competition, Patagonia has effectively positioned itself as a supplier of superior quality products and has continued to commit itself to minimize its impact on the environment, once again staying true to its core values, and mission statement.On the supply side of the bus iness the company uses activities and relationships along the value chain that provide the finished goods and create value. The company has been able to create value by creating integrity in its product and product's performance. The company shows confidence in the product that they create, by offering warranties and as well s the promise to provide replacement products when items become too worn. They also creates value by using only quality materials such as organic cotton when manufacturing its products.They have also created value by influencing the customer's experience. Patagonians uses catalogs that don't focus so much on selling their product as other companies do, but the catalogs are informational in nature regarding the environment (Wang, 2010). Patagonia also only works with suppliers responsibility, therefore never compromising the value of the company or its products. Patagonia has also created a social and psychological factor through their advertising, educational me ssages, donations, and campaigns.This has helped the company capture value because the company differentiated themselves from its competitors and other apparel companies, and it gave consumers the willingness to purchase a product with quality despite the fact that their apparel was more expensive than its competitors. The fact that Patagonia cares about the environment, and customers feel that they can trust their product, consumers are willing to pay more for Patagonians products.Sustainable future Patagonians business model is not one that is begging for consumers to come in a arches their product on an impulse. In fact their model is designed to do the exact opposite. In 2004 Hypochondriac, wrote in a black Friday ad â€Å"Don't buy this shirt, unless you need it† (Exhibit 1). This statement was not made because Cinchonas doesn't want his items to sell, or doesn't want the business, he made the statement because he wants his consumers to make responsible decisions that wi ll have a positive effect on the environment.He helps consumers make those smarter decisions by producing items that last longer and that do not need to be replaced as often. Patagonians Environmental Position Patagonians business model supports environmental position in that the company makes a deliberate attempt to focus more on the products that they sell rather than on the profits that they make. They do so by launching such initiatives as their Product Lifestyle Initiative where they encourage consumers to reduce, repair, reuse, and recycle their Patagonia purchased products.This particular initiative does not focus on profit, it actually costs the company more money, however, they choose to stay focused on acting environmentally responsible, and not causing unnecessary harm to the environment. For the most part, Patagonia has used the same business model since it opens its doors in 1972. Their focus has always been the same, â€Å"inspire and implement solutions to the enviro nmental crisis† (Unknown, Environmental and Social Responsibility, n. D. Over the last 40 years, Patagonia has become a leader in the industry have implemented many environmental and social initiatives such as; using only organic cotton in its cotton products since 1996; redefining corporate transparency through its Footprint Chronicle† website – documenting what is working in the supply chain, what's not, and steps the company is doing to address TTS challenges; launching its Common Threads Partnership, which invites customers to take mutual responsibility for the entire life cycle of the company's products through the 5 Or's: reduce, repair, reuse, recycle and remained; becoming the first brand member of the [email  protected] system; being one of the first California companies to switch to wind energy upon deregulation and adding on-site solar energy systems; being the first company in California to incorporate as a benefit corporation launching $20 Million & Change, a fund to help like-minded responsible start-up companies; and Becoming one of he first U. S. Outdoor apparel companies to introduce Fair Trade Certified†* garments (for fall 2014). (Elks, 2013) resources to help the environment and still maintain its integrity as well as follow its mission statement. They have continued to remain as the leading outdoor apparel company with more than $600 million revenue in 2013. Patagonia has not slowed down.Their business model has worked for them over the last 40 years. As times continue to change and other retailers pick up on Patagonians business practices, such as being more environmentally conscience, the use of organically grown cotton, he product differentiation threatens the sustainability of Patagonians business model. Other retailers offering a similar product as Patagonia, affects their gross profit margin, therefore causing Patagonia to continue evolve and spend more money to create product differentiation within their o rganization. Patagonians business model does place some pressure on their environmental stance and could cause some conflict in providing high quality products.Although consumers are willing to purchase products from Patagonia at a high price, with initiatives such as the Product Life Cycle, consumers are purchasing less, and Patagonia will overall have more overhead, due the repairs that they are offering their consumers. If consumers aren't buying as often, it will be difficult for Patagonia to continue to purchase the high quality materials that they use to produce their garments. Product Lifestyle Initiative: â€Å"Reduce, Repair, Reuse, and Recycle† The Product Lifestyle Initiative was a plan by Patagonia to help customers to buy only what they really needed, and encourage them to reduce their consumption.Patagonia would promise to provide their customers with high quality garments, and roved a guarantee that would allow customers to have their items repaired if anything ever happened to them as many times as needed. Once the products are no longer wanted, the customers are asked to â€Å"facilitate its reuse† (Reinhardt, Cascade's, & Hymn, 2010). The store planned on doing this by creating an online swap meet. Once all options were exhausted and there is no longer use for the product, customers are asked to recycle their items with Patagonia. In planning for this initiative to take off, the executives acknowledged many obstacles that would hinder the success of the initiative.Analysis of the Initiative As Patagonia stays focused on doing their part to not cause unnecessary harm to the environment and plans to reach and maintain 10% annual growth in sales other a five year timeshare, starting in 2010, their Product Lifestyle initiative would likely hinder the type of above average growth that they are seeking. The initiative is expected to cost $60,000 over the course of the first year of implementation (Reinhardt, Cascade's, & Hymn, 2010). Although that amount is very small compared to the amount of profit the company makes, sales would drop and cost of labor would increase. Patagonia is one of the only companies that offers to fix damaged items for customers. Through the Product Lifestyle Initiative, they will repair products from other brands, and â€Å"encourage customers to limit their consumption to only essential products,† (Reinhardt, Cascade's, & Hymn, 2010, p. 8).The Product Lifestyle Initiative however, it seems as though it will cost more to implement and maintain the initiative, than revenue that will be generated from the initiative. The initiative will cause a higher rate of product returns, and new team members will need to be hired in order to create a repair department or use a third-party vendor. In 2010 the company was insignificantly staffed to handle the existing returns. In order to accommodate the increase of returns, the stores were told to provide replacement products in order to reduce wait times. Furthermore, in order to increase â€Å"the percentage of recyclable products from 65% of products in June 2010 to 90% in spring 2011† investment in research and development would have to increase (Reinhardt, Cascade's, & Hymn, 2010).All of the things that are involved in this portion of the initiative cost more money for the company, but it does not mean that there would be more profit. The initiative does not seem to generate any venue. Although Patagonia focuses more on the environmental footprint than on profits, realistically, in order for them to stay in business and continue to grow at a steady rate, it is not beneficial for them to implement initiative that cost a more than they will be able to bring in. The replacement portion of the initiative could increase revenue for the company. Since Patagonia is willing to allow customers to bring in garments purchased from other retailers for repair, they could charge those customers a small fee.Customers who pur chased their products directly from Patagonia and are able to provide a except or some proof of purchase, could get their products repaired for free. For customers who own Patagonia products, but bought them from other sources such as used clothing stores, could still bring in their garments for repair, but at a small fee. The initiative would have no affect on the way that customers purchase products in the store nor customer behavior, but it could potentially have a negative effect on the business if implemented. Although implementing the initiative will promote responsible behavior for customers and the company, it may do more harm than good to gross profit margin.If the company is serious about continuing to grow the company 10% over the five year time frame, they would want to think about how they can implement initiatives that not only help maintain their environmental position, but also that increase their profit. Has Patagonia been successful in achieving its goal of profit? Although Patagonia spends most of its efforts focusing on its environmental responsibility, in order to remain in business and profitable they must also set financial goals. While focusing on their environmental responsibility, they set a goal to increase sales by 10% annually. Patagonia has been successful at achieving this goal. For 2011 fiscal year, Patagonia reported annual sales of $417 million.During the 2012 fiscal year Patagonia recorded its best year financially. They increased their sells by 30% earning $543 million (Shannon, 2013). As of 2012 Patagonia has doubled its revenue and tripled its profits since 2008 (Martin, 2012). They continue to perform financially although not at a consistent rate. However they have come very close to their sales goals each year and some years far exceeding that goal. Patagonia has done many things to continue to remain competitive in the outdoors apparel industry. In 2010 Patagonia Cost of goods sold and the company's sales have not been truly consistent, but they remain successful in their efforts.Although Patagonia has a history of doing well financially, Yves Chicagoan admitted in 2012 that he did not expect the company to continue to grow at the same rate as other retailers are catching on and trying to adopt some of their philosophy. Richard Jeff, a retail and apparel expert, says that Patagonia â€Å"is doing things incrementally better† (Martin, 2012). Which means that the competition is lurking closely behind. As Meany's catch on to their philosophy, Patagonia will need to be more innovative in its approach in order to continue to grow at a steady rate. What if Patagonia were publicly traded? Some of the most successful organizations are publicly traded. Companies that are publicly traded allow the market to determine the value of the company through daily stock market trading (Unknown, Public Company, 2014).Publicly traded companies have less control over the organization structure and must answer to shareholders' on certain decisions. They also give less control to the owner and company founders. Patagonia has an organization structure that is different than any other organization out there. The structure of the organization allows the company to focus on environmental awareness as opposed to profits as most companies. If Patagonia were publicly traded, the dynamic of the organization would be completely different. Being a private company, Patagonia is not required to report to stockholders or gain their approval in any way. This is one of the biggest advantages for Patagonia and their business structure.If Patagonia were publicly traded they would have to change the organization Truckee to focus more on the profit, as shareholder's would have an interest in the company, and would want to ensure that they are able to profit from any decisions that are made regarding the organization. The decision to use only organically grown cotton may not have been approved had Patagonia bee n publicly traded, because to shareholder's they could see it as a potential risk. They are able to take on greater risk because there is no one to tell them that they can't. As a publicly traded company Patagonia and its founder would have much less control over the business structure, ND every decision would be about how to gain profit. Publicly traded companies have many pressures on them including how quickly the company is expected to grow. The business model would not focus on being responsible.Not to mention as a private company, Patagonia is not required to make their financial information public, as publicly traded companies are. With sales growth reaching an average of 6% each year, and the company closely reaching their sales growth goal of 10% the current strategy works very well for Patagonia. The decision to utilize organic grown cotton in its garments, has been very successful. Patagonia has been innovative and works diligently to stay ahead in sales as well as it env ironmental operations. Being a private company has allowed Patagonians decision-makers to not only focus on what they want, but also on what is best for the company.Patagonians market strategy, though exceedingly bold, is sustainable in the sense that eccentric ideas have become their norm. In Cinnabar's book Let My People Go Surfing, he said, â€Å"it's okay to be eccentric, as long as you are The sustainability of Patagonia also falls in line with the sustainability of the planet. There are many companies that can learn from Patagonians business model forever in order to remain successful it would be difficult for some of the top retailers to remain competitive in the market should they change and adopt Patagonians practices. Patagonia has built their business and brand around a philosophy instead of around products.Their business strategy has driven up sales to 6% and continues to offer high-quality premier garments. Patagonians business model being much different than its compe titors, leaves room for continued growth and innovative ideas. Would other firms choose to follow Patagonians environmental practice? Although Patagonia has been successful in its business approach and environmental practice, it would be difficult for already established firms to successfully fully take on Patagonians environmental practices. All things being equal, if Nikkei and Patagonia were to share their practices, they would reach a Nash equilibrium. Lessons Learned Patagonia continues to focus on the environment and making a difference one step at a time.This action is commendable, especially because they are not following the norm for the industry. With the success of Patagonia I have learned that in order to be successful, you must also do what you are passionate about, and allow everything else to fall into place. That is what Cinchonas did with Patagonia. He was passionate about the environment and the affect that his decisions had on it. Although he wasn't as focused on profits as other organizations, he was able to follow his passion and have the most successful outdoor apparel company in the country. The type of passion that Yves Cinchonas has for the environment and Patagonia can definitely be applied to many aspects in life.