Does Travel Really Broaden the Mind?

Question: Travel is often said to influence travelers by making them more open to other cultures and new ideas. Does travel really broaden the mind? What are some other effects of extended period of travel? Nowadays, travelling has become a lifestyle for people, and it is expanding fast. In a hectic schedule, people are trying to have vacation by travelling. Reasons why people choose travel are because people want to discover new things, have recreation far from the hectic schedule. A lot of motives also affect people to travel.Usually they want to explore, discover, and relaxing. Some say to broaden the mind, but some say it is only a waste of time and money. The advantages of travelling give us cause and effect. People said that travelling influence travelers to have different perspective, different point of view. When we are going on a trip, the culture of the destination creates a new perspective and a new way of living our life. People also tend to copy their surroundings, which is why I can say that travelling also make us have a new good attitude.The effect of these 2 advantages that I stated is our behavior, which can affect other people as well. Next, we discuss about the disadvantages of travel and the negative effects of travelling. Dangerous thing can happen during travel. The safety of the transportation is one of the dangerous things that could happen. Diseases issues are also one of the reasons why travelling can be such if a danger (Travel exposes, 2009, p. Online). For example, when swine flu disease attacked that time, people were scared to travel and they always used mask.The other reason is some people had a perspective that people won’t always need physical travel only to broaden the mind, because the idea expanding the mind can be obtained through having a smart conversation, read books, et cetera (The previous, 2009, p. Online). The last reason is because of other country’s problem. The conflict of a travelling destination i s not what people expect on a vacation. The examples are: policy problem, religion conflict, government issues, et cetera (Does travel p. Online).So there are 2 opinions that are acceptable, but it has not answer the question. Does travel really broaden the mind? People’s opinions does matter, but I can say that it does broaden our mind. The journey itself has given us a new experience in our life. We try new things; we learn new things, et cetera. Reading books does help us broaden the mind, but wouldn’t it be great to experience it ourselves and learn it in our own ways? Mark twain once said â€Å"Travel is fatal to prejudice, bigotry and narrow – mindedness. † That is why it affects our perspective.Reaching the conclusion of the essay, we know that through travel people learning and adapting to the culture and diversity of mankind. We also find out that some people won’t always need travel to a new area for broadening the mind. For me, travellin g is a mind broadening and also an experience that can teach us the way we behave. So, the conclusion is travel does broaden the mind but if we spent all of hour time just to keep â€Å"broaden our mind’ it’s not wise as well. In life itself, balancing things are also needed.So to end this essay I can state that the answer is a yes, but it all comes back to the reader: what do you see? References Debate topic – travels broaden the mind (2009), E-notes [online]. Available at: http://www. enotes. com/ref/discuss/debate-topic-travel-broadens-mind-58037 [Accessed 12 January 2012] Does travel really broaden our mind, Correct My Text [online]. Available at: http://www. correctmytext. com/text/139/page1 [Accessed 12 January 2012] Does Travel Really Broaden The Mind? (2009), Running in Heels [online]. Available at: http://runninginheels. co. k/articles/does-travel-really-broaden-the-mind/Travel. (2011), Travellers Backpack [online]. Available at: http://travellersbackp ack. blogspot. com/ [Accessed 16 January 2012] Travel Broadens The Mind (2002), Krenny [online]. Available at: http://www. kreny. com/paper/2/morren/travelbroadensthemind. html [Accessed 12 January 2012] Travel & Tourism: Proof that travel really can broaden the mind (1998), The Independent. Available at: http://www. independent. co. uk/news/education/education-news/travel–tourism-proof-that-travel-really-can-broaden-the-mind-1159877. html [Accessed 12 January 2012]

Assuming that the distribution Essay

1. Assuming that the distribution is normal for weight relative to the ideal and 99% of the male participants scored between (–53.68, 64.64), where did 95% of the values for weight relative to the ideal lie? Round your answer to two decimal places. x=5.48, SD=22.93 5.48+1.96(22.93) = 170.5992 5.48-1.96(22.93)=80.7136 (80.71,170.60) 2. Which of the following values from Table 1 tells us about variability of the scores in a distribution? c. 22.57 3. Assuming that the distribution for General Health Perceptions is normal, 95% of the females’ scores around the mean were between what values? Round your answer to two decimal places. x=39.71, SD=25.46 39.71+1.96(25.46) = 89.6116 39.71-1.96(25.46) = -10.1916 (-10.19, 89.61) 4. Assuming that the distribution of scores for Pain is normal, 95% of the men’s scores around the mean were between what two values? Round your answer to two decimal places. x=52.53, SD=30.90 52.53+1.96(30.90) = 113.094 52.53-1.96(30.90) = -8.034 (-8.03, 113.09) 5. Were the body image scores significantly different for women versus men? Provide a rationale for your answer. Yes, body image scores were significantly higher for women (73.1 Â ± 17.0) than men (60.2 Â ± 17.0). 6. Assuming that the distribution of Mental Health scores for men is normal, where are 99% of the men’s mental health scores around the mean in this distribution? Round your answer to two decimal places. x= 57.09, SD=23.72 57.09+2.58(23.72)= 118.2876 57.09-2.58(23.72)= -4.1076 (-4.11, 118.29) 7. Assuming that the distribution of scores for Physical Functioning in women is normal, where are 99% of the women’s scores around the mean in this distribution? Round your answer to two decimal places. X= 65.20, SD=29.79 65.20+2.58(29.79) = 142.0582 65.20-2.58(29.79) = -11.6582 (-11.66, 142.06) 8. Assuming that the distribution of scores is normal, 99% of HIV-positive body image scores around the mean were between what two values? Round your answer to two decimal places. Body image scores for Male x= 60.22, SD=16.98; Female x= 73.07, SD= 16.93 Male: 60.22+2.58(16.98)= 104.0284 60.22-2.58(16.98)= 16.4116 Female: 73.07+2.58(16.93)= 116.7494 73.07-2.58(16.93)= 29.3906 Male and Female HIV+ Body Image scores combined are between (16.41, 116.75) 9. Assuming that the distribution of scores for Role Functioning is normal, 99% of the men’s scores around the mean were between what values? Round your answer to two decimal places. x=50.00, SD=46.29 50.00+2.58(46.29)= 169.4282 50.00-2.58(46.29)=-69.4282 (-69.43,169.43)

On Ageing by Maya Angelou Essay

Warning by jenny joseph is a humorous way of looking towards old age. It is written as a monologue within which the poet describes how she will behave when she is an old woman. In The first stanza she talks about herself and lists all the things she will do when she is old. She says she will wear the colours purple and red which are significant in the fact that they are bright garish colours. The two colours clash with each other and would not be put together by someone who cares about keeping up their appearance. One of the main themes to this poem is the idea of rebelling against the way society expects you to behave and the idea of not conforming therefore she decides to deliberately make a statement with her appearance by wearing clashing colours to show rebellion against the idea of everyone looking the same- everyone conforming. This idea of rebellion is further emphasised when she says â€Å"I shall spend my pension on brandy†¦ and say we’ve no money for butter†. She has decided that she is going to be deliberately difficult and irresponsible. She is desperate to rebel against the norms of responsible adulthood and change the way she has always been † escape from the sobriety of my youth† . The acts she chooses are harmless and humorous and she will be likely to get away with them as people will think she is senile. The fact that all of these things are what she wants to do in the future shows that she has never done this before and so she could be saying that old age is the time for freedom and to escape from the rules in society. However this could also show that she is only able to do these things with the excuse of being elderly. She would never feel comfortable to break the rules without having the excuse of being senile etc hence why she is waiting until old age to do these things showing that she is still trapped in the rules of society. This shows the underlying more depressing image behind the humour that society doesn’t allow for freedom and the message of how the pressure there is to conform prevents you from being yourself. All of the lines in the poem run on with a quick pace into each other reflecting the excitement and anticipation for the things she talks about doing. Throughout she repeats â€Å"and† and â€Å"I† which also adds to the pace and energy of the poem. The second stanza itself is one long sentence in which she directly addresses the reader with words of encouragement. She wants other people to feel and be able to do whatever they like without worrying about the social pressures of conformity, she could be thinking that if everyone does this then eventually those pressures will not be a problem anymore.

A mobile application tool, which uses persuasive design to encourage Essay

A mobile application tool, which uses persuasive design to encourage young adults to make healthier food alternatives - Essay Example Then the results from the theoretical user requirements with the practical user requirements are collated to gain a list of specific user requirements. A meeting was organized with the head of Villiers High School’s Sixth Form. A presentation of the data was initiated. In this case, a quick overview of the project was explained. Again, the involvement of each student was explained. After this was done, students received an email from their head to inform them of a study taking place. The email notification explains to the students how it would be a great opportunity for them to get involved, given the limited number of students required for the study (Babbie, 2010). The study only required twenty students to act as the respondents. Having received a high level of interest from the students, the head of Villiers High School 6th Form granted them permission. The project overview was structured to be presented at the sixth formers’ assembly on Monday, the 17th day of November 2012. Having been allowed to visit the school, there has been the case of walking in sessions. In this case, students have the freedom to ask the researcher any questions regarding their involvement. Visiting the students within their playground has also been a good way of gaining their participation interest. I could also gain their interests by visiting them in the classes and their scheduled walk. These scheduled walks are usually in sessions, which take place on Thursdays and Fridays, and specifically during lunchtime. In such cases, open discussions and one-to-one sessions about the project are conferred. From such efforts, it was possible to recruit up to 20 students from which I was able to start the project. A team of 20 students was perfect for the project. These 20 students were informed everything to do with their roles. They were issued with conse nt forms after which they were explained about their involvement rights.

A Student of the International Foundation Course Essay - 2

A Student of the International Foundation Course - Essay Example What was even more disturbing was that students who copied the module from the book got a percentage as high as seventy. The aim of preparing a portfolio is to provide a framework for independent work especially as now there is reduced class contact time. Students are grouped according to their ability and hence such a portfolio enables a student to understand his own level. Besides, what I understand is that preparing such a module empowers a student to have control over his learning. It may also demonstrate the employability skills in undergraduates. If these be the aims of an independent learning portfolio, how is it justified that a student who worked independently to prepare the portfolio is granted just a pass percentage while others who copied it from the book, receive over seventy percent? The very purpose is defeated as the marks are not fairly awarded. Besides, most students keep away from such lessons. I feel this should be discontinued from the next session as it really d oes not benefit anyone. In another module, we had to write an essay on fast food. This is something interesting and I enjoyed working on it. We were required to write more than 500 words and I was excited as I scored the highest in the group which was 63%. I like writing and I truly look forward to this module although I must admit I do not like to work on projects. I have also been wondering whether I liked the essay writing because I scored the highest and dislike the independent learning portfolio because I just managed a forty percent. Deep introspection revealed that it is, in fact, the other way round. I got good scores in essay writing because I love writing and I can put my heart into it. When we like something, we enjoy doing it and put our best efforts into it. Maybe my mind did not accept the idea of preparing an independent portfolio as I found no benefits out of it.  Reflection has now made me understand and accept that preparing the Independent learning portfolio was not a useless exercise a fter all. I thought I knew how to prepare it and perhaps complacency set in. I realize that if we do something without interest and involvement, we certainly find it boring.  

Applying Theory to Practice Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words

Applying Theory to Practice - Research Paper Example For more than 20 years , critical thinking has been put forward to emphasize on nursing practice and education (Cody , 2002) . Science based nursing practice is utilized in effective delivery of nursing care. Models of nursing practice provide the nursing knowledge framework in the provision of theory based care. (Burretti, 1988). A good foundation for nursing can be created and further be broadened by applying a theory in nursing practice (Karnick, 2008). Jean Watson is a nurse theorist whose cardinal focus is based on human caring. Watson’s (2008) theory of human caring is broadly applied in nursing practice nursing in its knowledge acquisition and application in practice is identified as a science of caring which has a philosophical and ethical implications. The humanity of a nurse embraces the humanity of others in order to preserve and maintain the dignity one of one’s self being and that of others under the same care. This implies that human beings are connected t o one another in caring process. It also implies that in a transpersonal caring relationship, a holistic approach is used (Watson, 1992). OVERVIEW OF WATSON’S CARING THEORY Watson was born in 1940 in West Virginia and grew in as extended family setup (Tomey & Alligood , 2006). At the University of Colorado, she became dean of the school of Nursing and later at the same university, she became a well known professor. Watson established the center for Human Caring, which she served as the director, in Colorado. She also started the nursing doctoral program at the University of Colorado (Margaret Jean, 1997) . Derived from personal beliefs, Values and experiences. Watson established the Theory of Human caring which formed part of her doctoral studies. In her educational background , she earned her undergraduate degree in nursing and psychology and health nursing from University of Colorado from where she also earned her Doctorate degree in educational psychology and counseling . Dr. Watson is a fellow in the American Academy of nursing. She has national and international honors. Most of her publications describing her theory and philosophy of human caring are studied by nurses in most parts of the world. According to Watson (2001)

International Supply Chain Design Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2750 words

International Supply Chain Design - Assignment Example This country is currently rated as a high-income nation other vital statistics updated in 2012 including 97% of the rural population have access to water, life expectancy at birth stands at 75 years, and a national per-capita income of $24,310 (World-Bank, 2014). Saudi Arabia has among the largest oil reserves in the world and stands among the biggest suppliers of oil in the world. Before the transition of the economy to an oil-driven economy, Saudi Arabia had a slowly growing economy which was run by subsistence Agriculture. Through the years, the drafting of the national budget has highly been influenced by the estimated national oil price for the expected year. With sometimes the unpredictable oil price change implicated the first budget deficit in Saudi Arabia in 2009 (Ramady, 2010, p. 44). Thus, it is evident that this industry is the economy is over-dependent to the oil sector for the purpose of running its economy. To try to counter this, the government is advocating to suppor t other foreign and domestic investors to invest away from the oil market for the purpose to de-monopolize the country's economic outlook. Saudi Arabia is the largest oil supply in the world. As a kingdom, this country played a vital role in its contribution to the world’s economy. Oil exploration in this country was started as early as 1933 and ever since the nation has maintained its relevance to the global economy by controlling an asset that directly contributes to the stabilization of the world’s economy.  

Substitution and Income Effects Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Substitution and Income Effects - Essay Example Substitution effect pertains to the substitution that a consumer resorts to by substituting one product for other owing to the change in the relative prices of the two products (Pass, Lowes & Davies, 1993). Usually the shrinking in the price of a commodity is accompanied by an enhanced demand for it. A fraction of this increased demand occurs owing to the substitution effect. For instance, a fall in the price of gasoline, considering that the price of some alternate fuels like ethanol or LPG remains the same will make gasoline more attractive to me, thereby inducing me to substitute gasoline for the relatively more expensive fuel options. My choice of fuel for my auto also depends on the income impact effect by the change in the price of a fuel option. For instance, a fall in the price of gasoline will make me purchase more of it owing to a rise in my real income (Pass, Lowes & Davies, 1993). If my budget for auto fuel is $100 and say the price of gasoline is $10 per gallon, I can pu rchase 10 gallons of gasoline. Now, if the price of gasoline falls to $5 per gallon, I can buy 20 gallons of gasoline from the same budgetary allocation of $100 or in other words I can buy 10 gallons of gasoline for $50. Hence, I am left with an extra $50 to spend on purchasing more of gasoline or other goods I need. It is the substitution effect combined with income effect that explain as to why demand curves are mostly downward sloping. For instance, I can explain the substitution effect and income effect for a price increase in gasoline (X) on my fuel purchasing preferences by the below given graph. An increase in the price of gasoline causes my budget line for fuel to shift from B1 to B2. Suppose that my auto could run on both gasoline (X) and ethanol (Y). So I change my fuel consumption from the bundle of gasoline and ethanol represented by A to the bundle of gasoline and ethanol represented by B. This shift from A to B is indicative of the total effect of the change in the pri ce of gasoline. This fall in the amount purchased of gasoline from X1 to X2 occurs owing to two reasons. First it is the substitution effect because gasoline is now costlier than ethanol. Second it’s the income effect because my real budge

The Impact of WACC on Capital Budgeting and Structure Essay

The Impact of WACC on Capital Budgeting and Structure - Essay Example The first step is to prepare comprehensive cash flow estimate information for the project under consideration. This step is then followed by forecasting a suitable discount rate to be used in the evaluation of the net present value (NPV). "This discount rate is the return required by the investors to compensate for handing over their capital to the company. It is also known as the company's hurdle or weighted average cost of capital (WACC)."(singh 2005. 26) According to Donald Riggin of Albert Risk Management Consultants, "The weighted average cost of capital is the company's cost of maintaining capital, of owning capital." (2007. Para.4) theoretically speaking, both the concept and its importance as a company's performance measure are very well established. In fact, the company's failure to make up its debt cost is considered by many experts to be the most obvious crisis indicator. The accuracy of the WACC calculations are extremely important to avoid such scenarios as they assist the administration determining projects that are most suitable for the company.

Famous People Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Famous People - Essay Example This paper argues that the famous people deserve to have a private life without journalists following them at all times. Famous people and private life One of the prominent figures of the twentieth century, Princess Diana, wife of Prince Charles, died in a car accident in 1997 when the paparazzi or yellow newspaper journalists followed her for knowing more about her private life. â€Å"Later tests showed the driver had been well over the legal alcohol limit, but immediate blame was on the photographers and their seemingly incessant quest to capture images of Diana that could be sold to the press†(Lewis, 2011). In other words, Princess Diana suffered death because of the over ambitions of the paparazzi to make more money by selling hot news about the private life of Diana. Diana and her newly found friend Dodi were inside the car and the photographers followed or chased Diana’s car in an attempt to take hot pictures which resulted in the car accident. The above incident clearly shows that there are instances in which famous people forced to face death because of the unethical behaviors of the journalists. Nobody likes to reveal anything about their private life. Famous people spend most of their times in the lime lights of the media.

The Mbuti Culture Essay Example for Free

The Mbuti Culture Essay The Mbuti Culture The way a culture makes their living impacts many aspects of cultural behaviors and has been a very effective way to organize thoughts and studies about different cultures. For most of human history people have lived a foraging or in other terms, hunting and gathering type of lifestyle. It has been said that foraging is the oldest form of human society and it was dated all the way back to the Paleolithic period, which was at least a million years ago (Nowak Laird, 2010). The Mbuti are Bantu speaking foragers, who live in small, independent communities within the northeastern part of the Democratic Republic of Congo. There actual location is found in the southern part of the Ituri Forest (The Mbuti of northern congo, 2006). Mbuti people have a nomadic lifestyle within a certain territory and live in a subsistence economy, meaning they only produce what they need to survive (Nowak Laird, 2010). They make their living by hunting and gathering, and this has had a big impact on their kinship, political organization, and their beliefs and values. The Mbuti culture has also had to overcome many changes throughout the past seventy years. Among foragers such as the Mbuti, there’s an endless movement of goods through kinship ties and residential closeness that have a positive impact on people’s obligations to one another. The responsibility to share and the traveling lifestyle prevent the buildup of individual wealth. No one person owns or has control over the resources and there are no differences in wealth among individuals (Nowak Laird, 2010). However, individuals do have rights over the natural beehives or termite mounds which they have located and marked (The Mbuti of northern congo, 2006). The Mbuti culture has certain beliefs and customs regarding marriage. When people from the Mbuti culture marry, it involves the payment of bridewealth or either the exchange of sisters or other close female relatives. The bridewealth was usually paid with iron implements or bark clothing, but today it’s paid in cash. Nowadays, exchanged marriages are the most common in bridewealth and they account for nearly half of the marriages in some bands. A rightfully married couple most of the time lives  virilocally, which leads to the band structure of partilineally related men and their wives and children. Families are involved in clans with each specific clan having certain names and totemic animals that are avoided by members (The Mbuti of northern congo, 2006). â€Å"Actual band composition is, however, more composite, with uxorilocal residence, and band fission and fusion† (The Mbuti of northern congo, 2006, p.3). Aside from kinship, the political organization is another feature that is greatly impacted by the primary mode of subsistence. It has been said that, the main difference between our society and the Mbuti’s society is that, ours is based on discrete or â€Å"separated individuals†, while theirs is a single corporate group (Ground, 1983). Within each band, there is a spokesperson called the kapita. Until recently, the kapita’s role was limited to liaison work with horticultural villagers and regional administrators. The kapita handled things such as tax collections, census taking, and administrative demands. If those demands were not in-fact handled, the kapita was called into the local administrative office. Oddly enough, the kapita authority was recognized by other band members, through recognition of his sufferings on behalf of the community. Conflicts within the band were handled usually by face-to-face interactions, especially when it had to deal with labor, food, material culture, and bridewealth (The Mbuti of northern congo, 2006). Decisions that needed to be made concerning the entire band such as camp movement or certain hunting grounds are made in the course of men’s gatherings in what they call the tele. The opinions that came from the elderly and more experienced individuals were respected th e most. Sometimes the aged women were allowed to join in on the discussions, but the younger women had to listen quietly from their families homes. Usually when conflicts arose, one of the disputants moved to another camp to calm down. If the conflicts resulted in injury, the matter was submitted to the local village’s court (The Mbuti of northern congo, 2006). Another aspect of the Mbuti culture, that the primary mode of subsistence impacts is their religious beliefs and values. For the Mbuti people, their physical environment is clearly all accommodating, their food is fresh in hand every day, and they don’t have marked seasons so in return, they live day to day rather than thinking about the past and future. Their attention is on the present moment as well as the present space. They do not worry about what  isn’t here and now and that goes the same for time and space as well. Like for instance, if the hunting and gathering isn’t good near the camp, they would just simply move the camp. This method helped to restore the habitual â€Å"goodness† for the â€Å"here† and the â€Å"nowà ¢â‚¬  (Turnbull, 1985). â€Å"Even the visual aspect of the Mbuti world has a profound effect on their thinking† (Turnbull, 1985, p.9). They see the forest clearings to be cavernous, their houses are sphere shaped, and their concept of space is also spherical. They believe that each hunting camp and house is its own sphere surrounding the greatest sphere of all, the forest. All in all, every Mbuti is in the center of his own sphere that moves with him through time and space; he is always equally adapted to everything that is around, at any given moment (Turnbull, 1985). The Mbuti people believe that forest animals are an important source of food; however, some of them could cause awful diseases and other hardship if they were eaten imprecisely. For example, they felt that pregnant women and babies were vulnerable to certain animals and these animals were called kuweri. It was stated, that about eighty percent of the sixty mammals were avoided for that particular reason for at least a part of the life -cycle (The Mbuti of northern congo, 2006). Mbuti were famous for their dancing and singing; this was performed for amusement as well as the essential part of the rites of passage. Some examples were circumcision, girls’ puberty, marriages, and funerals. There were also known for communicating with the dead ancestors, who supposedly caused the living to sing and dance. The different kinds of songs were associated with different types of activities such as net fishing, elephant hunting, and honey collecting (The Mbuti of northern congo, 2006). One ritual that the Mbuti often practiced was the Ritual Performance of the Molimo Made’ and Molimo Mangbo. This particular ritual involved the use of a trumpet that was made out of wood and was secretly hidden in a tree, deep into the forest. â€Å"The ritual itself involves both dance and song for the trumpet (referred to as â€Å"the animal of the of the forest†) as well as for all other participants† (Turnbull, 1985, p.12). Singing and dancing takes place every night that the ritual lasts and the appearance of the trumpet is unpredictable. The Molimo Made’ might only last one night, but it seldom ever went past three or four nights and the trumpet would usually make at least one appearance per night (Turnbull, 1985). â€Å"This ritual is intended  to â€Å"cure† noise-or akami- and the trumpet appears in the form of the elephant in direct response to such akami† (Turnbull, 1985, p.12). On the other hand, the Molimo Mangbo continues for about a month or so, and the trumpet only appears when there’s ekimi (Turnbull, 1985). â€Å"This is the molimo that cures death itself, by â€Å"making it good†, a process that demands the total ekimi it brings, with the trumpet appearing as the leopard† (Turnbull, 1985, p.12). In both cases, a young Mbuti member goes off into the woods to find the trumpets hiding spot after dark. There isn’t anything special about how t hey go retrieve it, but the youth are all boys and are close to the marrying age. When the boys do in-fact find the trumpet, there is a certain ceremony that one boy must perform because the trumpet isn’t sacred all by itself (Turnbull, 1985). â€Å"Like any Mbuti ritual paraphernalia, it is not sacred merely for what it achieves† (Turnbull, 1985, p.12). If the trumpet just so happens to be rotten or is becoming too short, it is left there to rot without ceremony. Each time that the trumpet is taken down from a tree, the young boys inspect it and test the sound (Turnbull, 1985). When the trumpet arrives at the camp, the ritual will differ according to whether or not it is of greater or lesser molimo. If it’s lesser, the trumpet will circle the camp numerous times sounding shrilly just as if a herd of elephants were surrounding the camp. Then the young boys will all put one hand on the trumpet and run head first into the camp. They go right through the central place and attack the house that’s on the opposite side. Sometimes they might would run directly into it and beat on it with their fists or tear off some of the leaves, or they might even uproot the sticks that were used to make the foundation. After that, they run back through the central place and attack the house that was closest to where they came out of the forest. This is repeated and every time they make sure to cross the central place and if anything should be in the way, it was destroyed (Turnbull, 1985). The Mbuti people, who were in the houses that were being attacked, tried to plead with the young boys to go away, but neither the people who were barricaded in their homes nor the young boys would make direct references as to why the akami had brought out the molimo made’. The Mbuti people knew everything was over when they heard the boys singing as they took the trumpet away after its final attack. The song that the boys sang was a rather aggressive, defiant and  potentially destructive sound, like the elephants would make. When the boys got back to the hidden place to put the trumpet back into the tree, they would make a shrill trumpeting sound into the instrument. If it was a molimo mangbo, the trumpet would again circle the camp, kind of like before, but growling and coughing sounds would be made, like a leopard (Turnbull, 1985). â€Å"It occasionally breaks into song as the singer echoes the sound of all those gathered around the central fire, the kumamolimo. Sometimes this is all the youths will do, refusing to enter the camp at all† (Turnbull, 1985, p.14). If this was to happen, then the kumamolimo knew that it was in-fact their fault, because they didn’t sing and dance well enough. This would be repeated every night until the singing and dancing around the central place was sufficient enough to entice the greatest dancer and singer of all (Turnbull, 1985). When the trumpet did decide to enter the camp, it was welcomed because it brought ekimi rather than akami. The trumpet may stay all night or it may only decide to stay for a few minutes, but that depends on how well everyone sings and dances. â€Å"There is always a sense of sadness when the trumpet finally leaves as suddenly as it came, for it brings to the camp a degree and quality of ekimi that, the Mbuti say, mere humans can never achieve by themselves† (Turnbull, 1985, p.15). At the end of the festival, when the curing is complete, the dancing becomes more intensive and makes it more communal rather than individual, with very specific uniqueness to the occasion. Within the final week of the festival, an old woman joins the group of men and she also brings a number of nubile girls. The girls take over the men’s position of singing and dancing until the tribute is paid. Then one night the woman will dance around slowly through the fire, scattering the burning logs to every side. â€Å"After that, the men jump to their feet and kick the logs back into the center, dancing around as if in a communal act of regeneration, clearly imitating the act of copulation as the fire springs back to life† (Turnbul l, 1985, p.15). It has been stated that this would happen several times and then the old woman triumphs. An old man would slowly stamp through the ember, putting out every last one until the fire that fed the molimo was indeed gone. The trumpet sounds for the last time and this time, it leads the singing. This camp remains very special until the camp decides to move. It’s special because it has been transformed by the molimo mangbo (Turnbull,  1985). Needless to say, the Mbuti Molimo Ritual is a major ritual in Mbuti life. The molimo is associated with the death after a successful kill has been made and could also take place at the time of a crisis such as a poor hunting season. Mbuti’s current situation is very different now then back in the day. The profitable meat trade began in the nineteen-fifties and intensified in the nineteen-seventies and has inspired market-oriented hunting for the Mbuti. The Mbuti had links to the outside economy only indirectly with their villager patrons before the development of the meat trade. The meat trade aloud traders from outside of the forest to visit Mbuti camps and do face-to-face transactions with the hunters and this avoided the traditional kpara relationship. â€Å"The kpara relationship has declined as it’s economic basis of meat and labor has lost its former importance† (The Mbuti of northern congo, 2006, p.4). In the nineteen-eighties, the gold dust mines opened and this caused the immigration to progress. The Mbuti population has increased by as much as forty percent during this same time period. Deforestation and degradation of resources was caused by the sudden increase in population (The Mbuti of northern congo, 2006). The Mbuti have become more involved in the market economy and they have had to start paying government taxes. â€Å"Most Mbuti men in the Teturi area now pay half the tax paid by villagers, and hold their own national identity cards. In addition to tax collectors, there are soldiers and civil servants demanding meat and labor from Mbutis† (The Mbuti of northern congo, 2006, p.5). The main reason that the sedentarization plan failed is because of the flight of Mbutis from officials and government agents back in the nineteen-seventies. To say the least, the Mbuti are gradually becoming incorporated with the Zaire/Congo state through the ways of taxation, elections, national identity cards, and participation in other national events (The Mbuti of northern congo, 2006). In conclusion, the Mbuti are Bantu speaking foragers, who live in small, independent communities within the northeastern part of the Democratic Republic of Congo. There actual location is found in the southern part of the Ituri Forest (The Mbuti of northern congo, 2006). Mbuti people have a nomadic lifestyle within a certain territory and live in a subsistence economy, meaning they only produce what they need to survive (Nowak Laird, 2010). They make their living by hunting and gathering,  and this has had a big impact on their kinship, political organization, and their beliefs and values. The Mbuti culture has also had to overcome throughout the past seventy years as well. References Ground, P.L.B., Berger, P.L. (1983, April 10). Western complaints. New York Times, pp. A. 13. Retrieved from http://search.proquest.com/docview/424621445?accountid=32521 Nowak, B.S., Laird, P.F. (2010). Cultural Anthropology. Retrieved from http://content.ashford.edu/AUANT101.10.2 The Mbuti of northern Congo. (2006). In The Cambridge Encyclopedia of Hunters and Gatherers. Retrieved from http://credoreference.com/entry/cuphg/i_iv_7_the_mbuti_of_northern_congo Turnbull, C.M. (1985, Autumn). Processional Ritual among the Mbuti Pygmies. The Drama Review: TDR, 17(3), 6-17. Retrieved from http://www.jstor.org/stable/1145649

Strategic Role of Information Systems Essay Example for Free

Strategic Role of Information Systems Essay Information Systems (IS) Information Systems is systems comprising of people, processes and technology to process data into meaningful and interpretable information. This system aims at assisting management and business operations in making business decisions and support business processes. There are various types of information systems, for example: transaction processing systems, decision support systems, knowledge management systems, learning management systems, database management systems, and office information systems. Critical to most information systems are information technologies, which are typically designed to enable humans to perform tasks for which the human brain is not well suited, such as: handling large amounts of information, performing complex calculations, and controlling many simultaneous processes. Organizational Hierarchy The components of information systems can be broadly categorized into: Hardware, Software, Data, Procedures, People and feedback. Executive Information System Decision Support System Managment Information System Transaction Processing System Strategic Importance of Information Systems. In current world and business scenario right information, at the right time and with the right person can be the difference between survival and extinction of an organization. A strategic IS helps an organization gain a competitive advantage through its contribution to the strategic goals of an organization and its ability to significantly increase performance and productivity Information system can help strategize an organizations business model or enhance existing ones to give it an edge over its competitors. The different thoughts currently in the market for successful information systems management strategies are Descriptive Analytics This is based on historical data and represents patterns that occurred in the past. Predictive Analytics This is also based on historical data and related patterns but has the intelligence to predict related probable events that might occur in the near future. Prescriptive Analytics – This stream not only identifies patterns and probable near future events but also suggest probable course of actions based on past experiences. For Example – How much cash to keep in each ATM machine across the country and what currency notes to keep for each one of them so as to reduce idle cash and ensure customer satisfaction. Again organizations are employing predictive and prescriptive analytics to identify probable attrition cases and related remediation patterns. Probuddho Halder EMBA ITM 2015 Information courtesy Canadian Center of Science and Education Cases of Successful Information System. A few examples of effective and strategic use of information system are Ryanair Airlines – is an Irish low-cost airline headquartered in Swords, Dublin, Ireland, with its primary operational bases at Dublin and London Stansted Airports in 2013, Ryanair was both the largest European airline by scheduled passengers carried, and the busiest international airline by passenger numbers. In 1986, the two Ryan brothers announced that their young airline will take on giants like British Airways and Aer Lingus for the  first time on the route between Dublin and London. It significantly undercut those two airlines on price, bringing in people who had previously preferred rail or ferry tickets. The Rayan brothers had based their business model on a robust and reliable information system that showed that the big airlines were missing out on a successful customer base out of the middle and lower middle class commuters, who were least concerned about luxury and opulence and were more interested in pure transport. Pre-Shipment(Amazon) – Amazon the e-commerce giant is working on a model whereby they will base their product shipping strategy based on the browsing patterns of users. Predictive analytics will predict that a customer is most likely to buy a product and in a given time frame. Amazon will ship the product to the nearest warehouse even before the consumer has placed the order and ultimately when the order is placed deliver it within hours and not days. This clubbed with bulk order description can significantly reduce the logistics cost for amazon at same time increase the customer delight.

Marketing Strategies In Life Insurance Services Marketing Essay

Marketing Strategies In Life Insurance Services Marketing Essay The study is designed to evaluate the marketing strategies in life insurance service sector how these strategies boost sales marketability of a product which ultimately lead to customer satisfaction. The insurance scenario faces multiple challenges such as increased costs of operation, regulatory pressures, and inflexible technology infrastructure. These pressures are compounded by low to moderate premium growth the increasing burdens of regulatory compliance. Keeping all the above problems around the study would attempt to study all the factors that contributed to the effective marketing strategies. This paper presents different marketing strategies that are taken up in life insurance services keeping in view external and internal environment of the firm. Marketing strategy is the basic approach that the business units will use to achieve its objectives, and it consists of broad decisions on target markets, market positioning and mix, and marketing expenditure levels. As the finan cial services sector has become more competitive, financial institutions need to consider ,ways of developing relationships with their existing customers in order to defend their market share. Strategic dimension of marketing should focus on the direction that an organization would take in relation to a specific market or set of markets in order to achieve a specified set of objectives. Every insurer must recognize that its strategic posture depends partly on the competitive environment, partly on its allocation of marketing resources. An insurance firm strategy is a plan for action that determines how an insurer can best achieve its goals and objectives in the light of the existing pressures exerted by competition, on the one hand, and its limited resources on the other hand. Key words: Customer satisfaction,Insurance,Innovation,Marketing Strategies,Services, Introduction: In todays economy, the financial services industry is exposed to increasing performance pressures and competitive forces (Goergen, 2001). Modern media, such as the internet, have created new challenges for this industry (Fuchs, 2001).New business concepts, a change in client sophistication (Davis, 2006), and anincreasing number of new competitors entering into the market, such as independent financial consultants, have changed the business models and the competitive forces that established financial services organizations are facing today worldwide.A marketing strategy serves as the foundation of a marketing plan. A marketing plan contains a list of specific actions required to successfully implement a specific marketing strategy. A strategy is different than a tactic. While it is possible to write a tactical marketing plan without a sound, well-considered strategy, it is not recommended. Without a sound marketing strategy, a marketing plan has no foundation. Marketing strategies serve as the fundamental underpinning of marketing plans designed to reach marketing objectives. It is important that these objectives have measurable results.A good marketing strategy should integrate an organizations marketing goals, policies, and action sequences (tactics) into a cohesive whole. The objective of a marketing strategy is to provide a foundation from which a tactical plan is developed. This allows the organization to carry out its mission effectively and efficiently. The following techniques are implemented to device the Marketing Strategy for the product/service: Segmentation Targeting Positioning Market segmentation is the process in marketing of grouping a market (i.e. customers) into smaller subgroups. This is not something that is arbitrarily imposed on society: it is derived from the recognition that the total market is often made up of submarkets (called segments). These segments are homogeneous within (i.e. people in the segment are similar to each other in their attitudes about certain variables). Because of this intra-group similarity, they are likely to respond somewhat similarly to a given marketing strategy. That is, they are likely to have similar feeling and ideas about a marketing mix comprised of a given product or service, sold at a given price, distributed in a certain way, and promoted in a certain way. Segmentation: Market segmentation is widely defined as being a complex process consisting in two main phases: identification of broad, large markets Segmentation of these markets in order to select the most appropriate target markets and develop marketing mixes accordingly. Positioning: Simply, positioning is how your target market defines you in relation to your competitors.   A good position is: 1. What makes you unique? 2. This is considered a benefit by your target market   Positioning is important because you are competing with all the noise out there competing for your potential fans attention.   If you can stand out with a unique benefit, you have a chance at getting their attention.   It is important to understand your product from the customers point of view relative to the competition.   Targeting: Targeting involves breaking a market into segments and then concentrating your marketing efforts on one or a few key segments. Target marketing can be the key to a small businesss success. The beauty of target marketing is that it makes the promotion, pricing and distribution of your products and/or services easier and more cost-effective. Target marketing provides a focus to all of your marketing activities. Marketing Mix: Marketing professionals and specialist use many tactics to attract and retain their customers. These activities comprise of different concepts, the most important one being the marketing mix. There are two concepts for marketing mix: 4P and 7P. It is essential to balance the 4Ps or the 7Ps of the marketing mix. The concept of 4Ps has been long used for the product industry while the latter has emerged as a successful proposition for the services industry. The 7Ps of the marketing mix that are used to frame marketing strategies of life insurance companies can be discussed as: Product It must provide value to a customer but does not have to be tangible at the same time. Basically, it involves introducing new products or improvising the existing products. A product means what we produce. If we produce goods, it means tangible product when we produce generate services, it means intangible service product. A product is both what a seller has to sell buyer has to buy. So, insurance companies sell services services are their products. Apart from life insurance as product, customer not only buys product but also services in the form of assistance advice of agent. It is natural that customers expect reasonable returns for their investments insurance companies want to maximize their profitability. Hence while deciding the product mix services or schemes should be motivational. Price Pricing must be competitive and must entail profit. The pricing strategy can comprise discounts, offers and the like. The pricing of insurance products not only affects the sales volume and profitability but also influences the perceived quality in the minds of the consumers. There are several different methods for pricing insurance, based on the insurance marketers corporate objectives. They are the survival approach, the sales maximization approach, and the profit maximization approach. To determine the insurance premium, marketers consider various factors such as mortality rate, investment earnings, and expenses, in addition to the individual risk profile based on age, health, etc., and the time period/ frequency of payment. In insurance business the pricing decisions are concerned with: -The premium charged against policies -The interest charged for defaulting the payment of premium credit facility. -Commission charged for underwriting consultancy activities. The pricing decisions may be high or low keeping in view the level or standard of customers or the policyholders. Mainly, pricing of insurance is in the form of premium rates. The three main factors used for determining the premium rates under a life insurance plan are mortality, expense interest. The pricing of insurance is in form of premium rates. The three main factors for determining the premium rates under life insurance plan are: Mortality: Average death rates in a particular area. Expenses: The cost of processing, commission to agents, registration is all incorporated into the cost of installments premium sum forms the integral part of pricing strategy. Interest: The rate of interest is one of the major factors which determine peoples willingness to invest in insurance. People would not be willing to put their funds to invest in insurance business if the interest rates provided by other financial instruments are higher than the perceived returns from the insurance premiums. Place It refers to the place where the customers can buy the product and how the product reaches out to that place. This is done through different channels, like Internet, wholesalers and retailers. This component of marketing mix is related to two important facets- -Managing the insurance personnel -Locating a branch The management of insurance personal should be done in such a way that gap between the services promises-services offered is bridged over. In a majority of service generating organizations, such a gap is found existent which has been instrumental in making down the image problem .The insurance personnel if not managed properly would make all efforts insensitive. They are required to be given adequate incentives to show their excellence. They should be provided intensive trainings to focus mainly on behavioral management. Another important dimension to the place mix is related to the location of insurance branches. While locating branches, branch manager needs to consider the number of factors such as smooth accessibility, availability of infrastructural facilities and management of branch offices and premises. Thus place management of insurance premises needs a new vision, distinct approach an innovative style. The branch managers need professional excellence to make place decisions productive. Promotion It includes the various ways of communicating to the customers of what the company has to offer. It is about communicating about the benefits of using a particular product or service rather than just talking about its features. The insurance services depend on effective promotional measures, so as to create impulsive buying. Promotion comprises of advertising other publicity tactics. The promotion is a fight not only for market share, but also for mind share. The insurance services depend on effective promotional measures, so as to create impulsive buying. Promotion comprises of advertising other publicity tactics. Due attention should be given in selecting the promotional tools. Personnel should be given adequate training for creating impulsive buying. People People refer to the customers, employees, management and everybody else involved in it. It is essential for everyone to realize that the reputation of the brand that you are involved with is in the peoples hands. Understanding the customer better allows to design appropriate products. Being a service industry which involves a high level of people interaction, it is very important to use this resource efficiently in order to satisfy customers.Training, development strong relationships with intermediaries are the key areas to be kept under consideration. Process It refers to the methods and process of providing a service and is hence essential to have a thorough knowledge on whether the services are helpful to the customers, if they are provided in time, if the customers are informed in hand about the services and many such things. The process should be customer friendly in insurance industry. The speed accuracy of payment is of immense importance. The processing method should be easy to convenient to the customers. Installment schemes should be streamlined to cater to the ever growing demands of the customers. IT Data warehousing will smoothen the process flow. IT will help in servicing the large no. of customers efficiently and bring down overheads. Technology can either complement or supplement the channels of distribution cost effectively. It also helps to improve customer service levels helps to find out profitability potential of various customers product segments. Physical (evidence) It refers to the experience of using a product or service. When a service goes out to the customer, it is essential that you help him see what he is buying or not. For example- brochures, pamphlets etc serve this purpose. Evidence is a key element of success for all insurance companies. Physical evidence can be provided to insurance customers in the form of policy certificate and premium payment receipts. The office building, the ambience, the service personnel etc. of the insurance company and their logo and brand name in advertisements also add to the physical evidence. To reach a profitable mass of customers, then new distribution avenues alliances will be necessary.Initally insurance was looked upon as a complex product with a high advice service component. Buyers prefer a face to face interaction they place a high premium on brand names reliability. Review of literature: Sankaran M (1999) studied the measures that would help domestic players in financial services sector to improve their competitive efficiency, and thereby to reduce the transaction costs. The study found that the specific set of sources of sustainable competitive advantage relevant for Financial Service Industry are: product and process innovations, brand equity, positive influences of Communication Goods ,corporate culture, experience effects, scale effects, and information technology. Trevor Watkins (1989) while studying the current state of the financial services industry worldwide identified four major trends: the trend towards financial conglomeration, globalization , information technology in service marketing; and new approaches to financial services marketing. These trends, it was concluded, will affect the marketing of banks and other financial services in the 1990s. Marisa Maio Mackay (2001) examined whether differences exist between service and produc t markets, which warrant different marketing practices by applying ten existing consumer based measures of brand equity to a financial services market. The results found that most measures were convergent and correlated highly with market share in the predicted direction, where market share was used as an indicator of brand equity. Brand recall and familiarity, however, were found to be the best estimators of brand equity in the financial services market. P. Kotler rightly states that a companys marketing strategy depends on many factors, one of which is its size and position in the market. From this assertion he suggests that one method of classifying marketing strategies is to place the firm in accordance with its competitive position; namely as to whether they are market leaders, challengers, followers, or nichers. In effect these are behavioural strategies ordered in relation to the companys market share. Impetus for marketing strategy: India is a jumbo-sized opportunity for life insurance need hardly belaboured. Here is a nation of a billion people, of whom merely 100 million people are insured. And, significantly, even those who do have insurance are grossly underinsured. The emerging middle class population, growing affluence and the absence of a social security system combine to make India one of the worlds most attractive life insurance markets. No matter how you look at it whether in terms of life insurance premiums as a percentage of GDP or premium per capita the market is under penetrated and people are under-insured. In a country where there is high unemployment and where social security systems are absent, life insurance offers the basic cover against lifes uncertainties. India has traditionally been a savings-oriented country and insurance plays a critical role in the development of the Indian economy. The role of insurance in the economy is vital as it able to mobilize p remium payments into long-term investible funds. As such, it is a key sector for development. So marketing strategies are important and inevitable phenomenon to tap huge untapped potential. Effective selling of insurance policies depends to a large extent on the marketing strategies selected. As the market for insurance is dynamic and accompanied by rapid changes in the environment due to advancements in technology and uncertain economic conditions, coupled with inflation, increased attention must be given in the future to the selection of marketing strategies. Components of marketing strategies: Pricing Personal selling Advertising Word of mouth selling Institutional image Quality control Marketing orientation New approaches to strategize the productization of life insurance services: Latest tools and techniques are used by marketers of life insurance products to boost the sales to ensure customer satisfaction and brand building. Some are the approaches to survive in this scenario are as under: Innovation: Innovation in the delivery system refers to the internal organizational arrangements that have to be managed to allow service workers to perform their job properly, and to develop and offer innovative services. All the insurance companies have a structured internal organization team with customer service teams for the delivery of the service. Extensive training is given to the service contact personnel who are called the financial consultants or Agent advisers. Service development, service design and delivery are intricately intertwined. All parties involved in any aspect of the new service must work together at this stage to delineate the details of the new service. (Valarie A Zeithmal and Mary Jo Bitner, 2003). The need and importance of the customers involvement in the service innovation process is considered to be of prime importance by all the life insurance companies as the current market for life insurance is customer centric. They also express their opinion that t he new services developed currently are based on customer focus. The degree of involvement of the customer has gradually increased in the last five years. In the last two years customers are involved in the new service process as information providers. Product/Service differentiation: In case of product differentiation, new products, customized products, tailored products, bundled products can be introduced and new target segments can be identified. For example, life, health and personal accident insurance can be bundled together. Similarly Home Loan and insurance covering fire and burglary can be put together. The life insurance companies provides only packaged policies whereas new players have been providing several Riders. Rider in insurance parlance is an option that gives the policyholder additional coverage without disturbing the fundamental risk coverage. The service in the field of life insurance has improved greatly with the entry of multinationals and rising competition. The customer should have the option to continue or to switch over or to come out of the given policy. The service in the field of life insurance has improved greatly with the entry of multinationals and rising competition. The customer should have the opt ion to continue or to switch over or to come out of the given policy. Advertising and sales promotion: Advertising and publicizing have a positive effect on the prospective customers as well as personal selling. Both the direct and indirect strategies have to be balanced and mixed well to get the desired result. Discounts and incentives promised along with the policy have to be presented in detail to the customers. The companies must provide a tangible and rational reason to the customers to buy a particular policy. Unity and honesty must be maintained by the company and the frontline executives at any cost to attract the customers in the long term. Various creative and innovative strategies should be developed to promote various different life insurance policies. Finding an ideal mix of customers with high disposable income and targeting them with specific policies is another good promotional strategy. Life insurance may be one of the most difficult products to sell, but with an effective promotional strategy it can be sold easily. Technology: Information Technology progress is a major driver behind the structural change in the Life insurance industry to enhance risk transfer efficiency. Ebusiness opens up new ways to reduce costs while lowering market entry barriers and facilitating the break-up of the traditional insurance value chain. Insurance clients will benefit from greater transparency, lower prices and improved services not just in the sales area, but also in claims management. New information and communication technologies are making it easier for insurers to break up the value chain and outsource individual functions to specialized providers. In the long-term basis the information technology units control the potential for new service delivery since all new products represent a more sophisticated delivery of the service. Although it is argued that service innovations are often non technological, this is still the center of much analysis and debate (Kandampully, 2002). Customer relationship management: Insurance companies experiencing competition from within and abroad. Making this problem-situation into an opportunity lies always on the prudent management adopting or adapting tactics and strategies. In line of this, customer relationship management is a measure of winning competitiveness as it is the information-driven approach to customer analysis and process automation; and thereon supplement customer-value proposition. An action on tangible services prompt and accurate issue of document, prompt and fair settlement of claim ,good listening mechanism, better problem solving approach, reliable manner of service and meet requirement of customers on time every time in lieu of intangible promises would give utmost satisfaction to customers, the customer relationship management provides better service to the insured protecting him against perils or risks and the insurer enabling to retain the existing customers and bringing in new customers in his a mbit of business Distribution channels: The distribution network is most important in insurance industry. Insurance is not a high cost industry like telecom sector. Therefore it is building its market on goodwill and access on distribution network. We cannot deny that insurance are not bought, it is sold. The market has a great scope to grow. This can be better done by more innovative channels like a super market, a bank, a post office, an ATM, departmental store etc. these could be used to increase channels of insurance. But such growth in channels shall increase with time. Till then agents seem to be the most important distribution channel in this industry. Agents connect with people and influence them to buy any insurance policy. For the same such agents charge commission on the policies they get for the company. There is a fixed percentage of commission for which these agents work. In the field of distribution channels, many innovative techniques can be adopted. For example, Bancassurance and sel ling through postal network will make a great deal of difference. In Europe 25 percent of insurance policies are sold through banks. Bancassurance, as a package of financial services that can fulfill both banking and insurance needs, if implemented correctly can bring vast benefits to stakeholders such as banks, insurance companies, shareholders and consumers.Bancassurance will facilitate mass selling of insurance products through banks. Banks can act as large financial supermarkets. Distribution of insurance will be smoother through wider number of branches of the banks. Customer database, personalized service, rural penetration, cross-selling of products (e.g. car loan along with car insurance), being cheaper than agents are some of the greatest advantages of Bancassurance. At present the distribution channels that are available in the market are listed below: Direct selling Corporate agents Group selling Brokers and cooperative societies Bancassurance Mallassurance Conclusion: Life insurance industry requires new strategies in order to survive and survive successfully .To tap the insurance potential to maximum industry needs to frame such plans and strategies that will help to capture the market. Companies instead of focusing only on improving the variety of products needs to focus on targeting new segments and implement innovative strategies in order to achieve sustained growth and ensure profitability of business as well as growth of insurance coverage.

Book Reviewwho fights who cares :: Essays Papers

Book Reviewwho fights who cares The book was based on a wide range of contributions, written and verbal, and has been edited together by Alex de Waal. He does not represent any of the views of any individual or government. The book â€Å"Who Fights Who Cares† is a very interesting book. The focus of the book is mainly towards the continent of Africa. Just about every thing that has to do with blacks in Africa will in some way effect African Americans. The book is broken up in to little sections in each chapter. The book talks about the sixteen countries in central Africa. The book breaks down everything that is corrupt in Africa that has to do with blacks. The first main section in the book talks about why is there war in Africa. There has been many wars in Africa sense the 1970’s. In the 90’s alone there was something like twelve wars in Africa. Many of the wars had been going on for years about the same thing. In Africa they also have wars called the â€Å"war next door† meaning that an ongoing conflict in going on during the war. This is what happens in the first part of the book. The next main section in the book talks about Improvements in military interventions. The people in Africa are saying that they need the unity of command for an effective intervention. They are also saying that if the military in each country were stronger then civilians would not die. The book also says â€Å"interventions troops should have public relation officers and humanitarian sections in each part of Africa†. A non- neutral humanitarian assistance is the conclusion to the book. Many

Should Small Airports Have More Security? Essay -- Airport Explosives,

Airport Security has always been extremely important, but even more so since the attacks on September 11, 2001. When flying out of O’Hare International Airport you go through multiple security checks. At Canton Municipal Airport there is no security other than a four foot tall fence. Security is the degree of resistance to or protection from harm (Wikipedia, Security). It applies to any vulnerable and valuable asset, such as a person, dwelling, community, nation or organization (Wikipedia, Security). Is it necessary to have security at small airports; are there holes in the current security system, and what problems may arise for small airports? Seven hundred and thirty million people travel on passenger jets every year, while more than 700 million pieces of their baggage are screened for explosives and other dangerous items (H, n.d.). The first line of defense in airport security is the most obvious: Fences, Barriers, and Walls (Works, n.d.). In contrast, Canton airport has a fence, but they lack metal detectors, x-ray equipment and security personnel. One of the most important measures at an airport is confirming ID such as a driver’s license or passport (Works, n.d.). The pilots at Canton airport have a key card that allows them access into the gated area. They do not have to provide photo identification. Going through security in larger airports can be very time consuming and frustrating. If smaller airports had security it wouldn’t be as frustrating. Many Americans feel that from the time they get into the airport, to the time they get out they are being treated very rudely and like criminals (News). A su rvey said that sixty one percent of Americans were not okay with the new airport security measures (News). Innocent Americ... ...is Broken - and How to Fix it." WSJ. Wall Street Journal. Web. 4 Dec 2013. . "Former TSA Head Slams Agency: 'No More Banned Items' Read more: http://www.businessinsider.com/former-tsa-head-slams-agency--2012-4 "Domestic Airport." wikipedia.org. Wikipedia. Web. 4 Dec 2013. . "Security." Wikipedia. Wikipedia. Web. 4 Dec 2013. . Lisa, Stark. "'Shoe Bomber' Case Illustrates Ongoing Problems in Airport Security." abcnews.go.com. ABC News, 4 12 2013. Web. 4 Dec 2013. . "‘Underwear Bomber’ Was Working for the CIA." beforeitsnews.com. Before Its News. Web. 4 Dec 2013. .

Macbeths Varying Atmosphere :: Macbeth essays

Macbeth's Varying Atmosphere      Ã‚   Concerning the atmosphere in William Shakespeare's Macbeth, the reader might say that it is ever-changing and yet constant in many ways. Let us look at it in this essay.    L.C. Knights in the essay "Macbeth" mentions equivocation, unreality and unnaturalness in the play - contributors to an atmosphere that may not be very realistic:    The equivocal nature of temptation, the commerce with phantoms consequent upon false choice, the resulting sense of unreality ("nothing is, but what is not"), which has yet such power to "smother" vital function, the unnaturalness of evil ("against the use of nature"), and the relation between disintegration in the individual ("my single state of man") and disorder in the larger social organism - all these are major themes of the play which are mirrored in the speech under consideration. (94)    Charles Lamb in On the Tragedies of Shakespeare comments on the atmosphere surrounding the play:    The state of sublime emotion into which we are elevated by those images of night and horror which Macbeth is made to utter, that solemn prelude with which he entertains the time till the bell shall strike which is to call him to murder Duncan, - when we no longer read it in a book, when we have given up that vantage-ground of abstraction which reading possesses over seing, and come to see a man in his bodily shape before our eyes actually preparing to commit a muder, if the acting be true and impressive as I have witnessed it in Mr. K's performance of that part, the painful anxiety about the act, the natural longing to prevent it while it yet seems unperpetrated, the too close pressing semblance of reality,give a pain and an uneasiness [. . .]. (134)    D. F. Bratchell in Shakespearean Tragedy record's Charles Lamb's consideration of   Macbeth's atmosphere as essential to the purpose of the play:    For Lamb the essence of the tragedy in Macbeth lies in the poetically suggested atmosphere of horror and evil impulse, readily seized upon by the imagination of the perceptive reader, whereas stage representation concentrates the mind on the action. (133-34) Roger Warren comments in Shakespeare Survey 30 , regarding Trervor Nunn's direction of Macbeth at Stratford-upon-Avon in 1974-75, on opposing imagery used to support the opposing atmospheres of purity and black magic:    Much of the approach and detail was carried over, particularly the clash between religious purity and black magic.

Law Enforcement Today Essay

Trust is a huge issue police department’s face in today’s society. Society’s faith in policing has been diminishing as the century has passed because of corrupt police officers and brutality scandals. An immense amount of law enforcement administrators are overwhelmed with the task of again bringing a trust worthy structure to police departments. One reason for the corruptness is the extraordinary level of drugs, growing gang members, and guns in the different cities. Agencies are blind to see who they are hiring, some departments continue to hire the wrong type of people then are forced to participate in cover-ups of misconduct in hope the department will not receive a bad reputation. Money, a controversial issue, can be another factor. Officers that know and deal with the dangers of the daily life that citizens are living each day, are helpless to finding real hard-core evidence or gain real suspects as some small town departments are not funded for the more serious crimes. Stress is likely an issue that police officers in today’s society deal with. Humans just like the rest of us, police officers cannot show any symptoms of weakness in front of their co-workers, or emergency services as well as public safety workers, but more importantly the accused. Police officers do not have an easy job. These men and women are forced to make split-second decisions involving the life or death of not only themselves, but of the victims as well as the accused. Sometimes the decisions that officers make can result in serious injury or bring death to the wrong person. In some instances police officers are killed because they do not act quickly enough or make immediate decisions. Each day officers are subjected to danger and extreme mental coupled with physical stress. Unfortunately this intense amount of stress can cause officers to engage in brutal offenses, which reflect opon the department, such as beating the guilty or snapping on the innocence. Violence is another issue police department’s face daily. About 70 percent of police officers who suffer from bullet inflicted wounds leave the police force within seven years of the experience. â€Å"Police are admitted to hospitals at significantly higher rates than the general population and rank third among occupations in premature death rates (Sewell et al, 1988)† The federal government supports State and local authorities when their resources are in high demand or are predicted to be overwhelmed. The federal departments are there to respect the independence in addition to responsibilities of local, tribal, and State governments while providing assistance. The Department of Homeland Security also known as DHS is on the federal level, though state governments are assigned to lead the role in Homeland Security. In response to the assignment, many states brought together existing public security, law enforcement, and emergency response services by drawing them together and opening channels to other states. The connection between DHS, law enforcement, and intelligence has practically demolished as some law enforcement departments are becoming more like intelligence agencies while the existence of foreign intelligence is primarily improved. The Department of Homeland Security, in hopes of improvement, has established the six-point agenda. The agenda begins with 1. â€Å"Increase overall preparedness, particularly for catastrophic events 2. Create better transportation security systems to move people and cargo more securely and efficiently 3.  Strengthen border security and interior enforcement and reform immigration processes; 4. Enhance information sharing with our partners 5. Improve DHS financial management, human resource development, procurement and information technology 6. Realign the DHS organization to maximize mission performance. † In the year 2006/2007, Congress developed the Department of Homeland Security Appropriations Act which requires the Department of Homeland Security Office of Emergency Communications to create an order to provide a roadmap that will improve the Nation’s emergency communications purpose.  The National Emergency Communications Plan is a goal setter in hopes to enhance governance, planning, technology, training and exercises, as well as disaster communications capabilities. It also makes recommendations available which include improvements of the emergency response in emergency communications. Police departments can improve by cleaning up the corruption in their departments in addition hiring the right types of individuals, lowering the number of minutes in response time, and obeying the law themselves.

Case Analysis Callaway Golf Company Essay

When it comes to the factors contributed to Callaway Golf Company’s success, the tremendous effort it made on updating technology was one thing. With Senior Executive Vice President like Richard Helmstetter, who is the Chief of New Products as well, Research and Development has always been the lifeblood of Callaway Golf Company (CGC). Helmstetter believes that â€Å"If you can make something sufficiently good, what it costs doesn’t matter.† CGC was consistently be on the leading position of technology, which differentiated their products from others and led to the results that CGC sold more units of equipment at the higher price than any other of its competitors in the market. The consumer behavior in golf equipment industry was another factor that led to CGC’s success. First, golf was unlike almost any other sport, the equipment played a significant role in golfer’s performance. Therefore, golfers always seeking for an edge that would help improve their plays. Average golfers, who were the segment CGC targeted, were able to tell the noticeable differences when they used premium equipment. The advanced technologies CGC had with their products perfectly fitted the behavior. Second, when making a purchase, most golfers accepted word-of-mouth recommendations. The form of advertising worked for CGC since golf was played in groups of people who spent hours together, and whenever one player had a good shot with a new club, it impressed others. The last factor that contributed to CGC’s success was the support mechanisms it provided to its retailers. As CGC achieved product differentiation with continuously updated technology, it was important for retail salespeople to understand the product and technology well. To accomplish the goal, CGC supplied its retailers with brochures, informational videos, pocket-sized product guides, and training. CGC also provided product advertising, endorsements, warranty programs and most importantly, the closeouts to help its retail channels. Closeouts occurred when a new-product introduction or when CGC would like to get rid of its inventory and it helped the retailers to bring down the average cost of the remaining inventory as well. As a result of these support mechanisms, CGC was placed in top three for excellence in customer service.

A Different History Analysis Essay

In the poem â€Å"A Different History† by Sujata Bhatt, the poet speaks about culture identity, the importance of language, and religion. Bhatt describes the history of India during the British colonization days, from her point of view – from the side of the oppressed. Her strong diction portrays her emotions clearly. The varied structure and tone between the two stanzas of the poem highlights the differences between the cultures and emotions she feels. Bhatt creates an impression of freedom and peace when she describes her country in the first stanza. The two lines, â€Å"Here, the gods roam freely,† â€Å"Every tree is sacred† describe the Indian culture. They represent the â€Å"old India†, before the British had conquered it. However, in the next line, the mood of the poem differs. The poet emphasizes how wrong it is to disrespect books (nature) with the repetition of the words â€Å"a sin†. It portrays a different side to the Indian culture – one with customs and rules that must be followed. Bhatt addresses her own culture, (ll. 9-14) as it could symbolize the importance of maintaining the firm and religious beliefs of the Indian culture. See more: Experiment on polytropic process Essay Towards the end of the first stanza, the poem’s tone changes into one that is very pleading. There is a distinct change from a very calm tone to an interrogative one. â€Å"You must learn how to turn the pages gently / without disturbing Sarasvati, / without offending the tree / from whose wood the paper was made.† She seems as though she is commanding, or rather begging the oppressors to tread lightly, to adjust slowly to her culture, and to learn how to be gentle with it. This is the difference between the previous lines – at first she was addressing her culture, but in these lines she is referring to the British. She uses the terms â€Å"books†, â€Å"paper†, and â€Å"wood† to refer to her culture. The â€Å"tree† represents her ancestors, and â€Å"the paper† represents the future generation. These comparisons have a strong effect; they make the reader think about the way he or she is treating nature. In the second stanza, Bhatt indents to highlight the difference between the two things she’s talking about. The first stanza talks about how precious books are and how they should be respected. It gives us an insight to India’s old culture. On the other hand, in the beginning of the next stanza, she speaks about language and the â€Å"new  India†. Bhatt begins the second stanza with rhetorical questions. â€Å"Which language / has not been the oppressor’s tongue? / Which language / truly meant to murder someone?† The poet is trying to point out that many languages become the language of a country because they were once the language of the people that conquered them. She is referring to the loss of her native language. It adds a tinge of humor and mockery, since she is already speaking in English. The poem ends with an ironic statement. â€Å"the unborn grandchildren / grow to love that strange language.† Bhatt refers to herself as the â€Å"unborn grandchildren†. After expressing her feelings of anger about the murder of her language, she still writes in English – she still grew to love the English language. Bhatt clearly expresses what she feels about her culture. She shows that even though her culture is being destroyed and left behind because of foreign conquerors, she still remembers her motherland and the roots that link her to it. Through the different structured sections, she was able to show the readers the difference in culture and feelings she has.

The Ed Sullivan Show

Since the late 1940’s, television has been a staple in American culture. A show that was very important in American television history is The Ed Sullivan Show, created by Ed Sullivan and Marlo Lewis in 1948. The show lasted until 1971, making it the longest running variety show in history and the twenty-fourth longest running show in primetime history. The show aired on CBS from 8:00-9:00 pm after being filmed in what was eventually named, The Ed Sullivan Theater. The Ed Sullivan Show lasted as long as it did because it was able to target all audiences in the hour show, which was one of the first television programs truly to do so.It was cancelled in 1971 because of the technological advances of television which made any television program available to anyone, at any time. Although other variety shows have been incredibly popular, The Ed Sullivan Show is the most important variety show to date because of its appeal to all ages. An agreeable argument is that both the Milton Ber le Show and The Steve Allen show had great talents and success as variety shows. The Milton Berle show was started in 1948 by host Milton Berle, who became one of the most famous television show hosts ever.His nickname developed into â€Å"Mr. Television† because of how great a host he was. The show aired originally on the radio and then the idea of the public use of television sparked its television debut. Milton Berle was so successful as host, which is evident in the fact that while on the radio, the show went through four different hosts before it reached him, and then did not change after that point1-6. Another variety show that showed great success on television was The Steve Allen Show. The show debuted many impressive new acts of all kinds.Steve Allen himself was â€Å"innovative, funny, and whimsical†2-15, which made him apart of the show with jokes and comedy skits. His talents helped the show tremendously. The show’s comedy talents were so famous that a few years after the show was cancelled The Steve Allen Comedy Hour was aired on CBS to pay tribute to the original show. While The Milton Berle Show, and The Steve Allen Show can be viewed as very important variety shows, they were not as appealing to all age groups and were not well-rounded shows.The Ed Sullivan Show was so successful as a variety show for so many reasons. One of the most important parts of the success was Ed Sullivan himself. Before becoming a television host, Ed worked behind the scenes as a writer for newspapers and a producer of many television programs. He began writing as a sports columnist and continued writing sports with many different papers all over the country until 1929 when he became a Broadway columnist3-17. Ed began to learn about show business through Broadway writing and shortly after began producing one time shows on television.During World War II Ed worked as the master of ceremonies at many relief effort shows, where people began knowing him as a host. Ed Sullivan made a great host because he was not the classic host with a â€Å"sparkly† personality. He put the focus on the acts by introducing them, and then stepping off to let the performer(s) do what he hired them to do. â€Å"Ed [did] nothing, but he [did] it better than anyone else on television†-Alan King4-9. Ed helped give the show its glory. He was named #50 of TV Guide’s â€Å"50 Greatest TV Stars of All Time† which demonstrates the value Ed gave to the show5-9.He was also a brilliant businessman. Ed exceedingly wanted to be a household name because the more he was nationally recognized, the more money and sponsors he could bring to the show. Mr. Sullivan was paid $164,000 a year, and for that time, that amount of money was incredible even for a television personality, but Ed turned a simple variety show into a phenomena6-19. Another piece of the shows success was the new talent scouted by Ed and the producers. The baby boomers were becoming the new market in pop culture, and The Ed Sullivan Show captured the attention of the baby boomers with all the talent.Ed Sullivan caught the young’s notice and then kept it and influenced it with bringing in new talent. Ed brought the love of English rock to America. On February 9th, 1964 the Beatles appeared live on television for the first time in America. Ed Sullivan noticed the obsession with the Beatles while in England with his wife and made a deal with Brian Epstein that the Beatles would perform three Sunday’s in a row on the show for $10,0007-4. About 73 million people tuned in to watch the Beatles perform, which equates to nearly 60% of all TV’s in America watching8-4.That was one of the biggest TV viewing in television history. After bringing in The Beatles and really launching â€Å"Beatle mania† in the United States, Ed starting focusing on other English rock bands and discovered talents such as The Rolling Stones, The Animals, Pet er and Gordon, etc. 9-4 With all the new talents, Ed brought in many new comedians too. Ed founded the careers of many famous comedians, and shortly after starting the show, any new up-and-coming comedian wanted to be on the Ed Sullivan Show because it meant a start of a career for them.If Ed held that they were funny enough to be on his show, than America would soon agree with that. The Ed Sullivan Show was so successful as a variety show because of the shear number of types of performers that starred on the show. First and foremost, theatrical and musical acts shaped the Ed Sullivan Show. Everything from Broadway music to classical, to rock and roll was played on the show. Ed also enjoyed different dancers a lot so there was everything from ballet to jazz. He also loved showing movie clips and parts of Broadway plays.A Second key genre of acts was comedy. It was one act that the â€Å"whole family† watched and enjoyed together; no matter what comedian or the type of comedy. Ed also focused on just kids with comedy. There was a ten-inch tall puppet named Topo Gigio that was apart of the show for eleven years. 10-8 Topo Gigio along with other kid directed comedy gave the show a softer side, which helped it compete with a show such as â€Å"The Wonderful World of Disney†. The Ed Sullivan Show had so many other acts that kept it shuffled.Sometimes there would be episodes dedicated to one theme, which broke up the usual shows and would be an hour-long episode to pay tribute to somebody or something. Sometimes athletes would appear to give advice about how to play their sport or just to talk to Ed. Some of those athletes include Mickey Mantle and Willie Mays. 11-2 Another very interesting type of performance would be a random celebrity in the audience coming up on stage to talk to Ed or to give an impromptu performance, which kept the show and audience members on edge.Ed Sullivan produced one of the most important television shows in history because of its impact on the careers of many and the world of television. ENDNOTES 1. Williams, Mark. â€Å"The Milton Berle Show. † Editorial. The Museum of Broadcast tttttttCommunications. 2011. Web. 22 Nov, 2011. http: //www. museum. tv/eotvsection. php? ttttttttentrycody=miltonberle. 2. Pack, Lindsay E. Saulovich, Johnny. â€Å"The Steve Allen Show. † Editorial. The Museum of ttttttBroadcast Communications. 2011. Web. 22 Nov, 2011. 3. Ed Sullivan Is Dead at 73;Charmed Millions on TV. † The New York Times 14 Oct. tttttttt  1974: n. pag. The New York Times:On This Day. Web. 25 Nov. 2011. ttttttt  . 4. Schaeffer, Eric. â€Å"Sullivan, Ed. † Editorial. The Museum of Broadcast   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  ttttttCommunications. N. p. , 2011. Web. 22 Nov. 2011. . 5. The New York Times 6. The New York Times 7. Solt, Andrew, Sherwood, Mary. Rev. of The Beatles on The Ed Sullivan Show. tttttThe Ed Sullivan Show.SOFA Entertainment, 2010. Web. 22 Nov. 2011. ttttt. 8. Solt, An drew. Sherwood, Mary 9. Solt, Andrew. Sherwood, Mary 10. Solt, Andrew. â€Å"Topo Gigio. † Editorial. The Ed Sullivan Show. SOFA Entertainment,   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  ttttt2010. Web. 22 Nov. 2011. . 11. Simon, Ron. â€Å"The Ed Sullivan Show. † Rev. of The Ed Sullivan Show. The Museum of   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  tttttBroadcast Communications. N. p. , n. d. Web. 20 Nov. 2011. tttt.

Cultural Dimensions of Two Countries

According to Geert Hofstede there five dimensions of culture. The five dimensions are Power Distance, Individualism or Collectivism, Masculinity-Femininity, Uncertainty Avoidance, and Short or Long-Term Orientation. Power Distance The dimension of Power Distance is the attitude toward the inequalities amongst individuals in a society. Power Distance is â€Å"the extent to which the less powerful members of institutions and organizations with a country expect and accept that power is distributed unequally† (Hofstede). Trinidad scores low in power distance with a 47 (Hofstede).Individuals in Trinidad tend to be very independent. The hierarchy present is merely for convenience. There are equal rights for all. Superiors are very accessible and coaching. Management facilitates and empowers the individual. Power is decentralized. Managers rely on the experience of team members and individuals expect to be consulted. Relationships between managers and employees is informal and genera lly on a first name basis. The United States also scores low in power distance with a 40. The US also has equal rights, a hierarchy for convenience only, accessible managers, and informal communication.Individualism Individualism is â€Å"the degree of interdependence a society maintains among its members† (Hofstede). It is whether an individual views their self-image as â€Å"We† or â€Å"I†. A society that is Individualistic, its members look after themselves and their direct family only. Trinidad scores low in the dimension of Individualism with a 16 (Hofstede). It is a collectivist society. Its members have close long-term commitments and strong relationships. Relationships between employers and employees are seen in moral terms. Hiring and promotions take into account the employees of the group.Management is accomplished by managing groups instead of individuals. The United States is a very individualistic culture. The US scores 91 in this dimension. People look after themselves and their immediate family (Hofstede). Individuals are expected to be self-reliant and display initiative. Hiring and promotions are merit based. Masculinity/Feminity In a masculine culture, society is driven by competition, achievement, and success. Successful individuals are considered to be the winners or the best in their field. A feminine culture has cares for others. The quality of an individual’s life is a sign of success.Being different is not a trait that is admired. Trinidad, with a score of 58 is a masculine culture (Hofstede). Management is decisive and assertive. Competition and equality is stressed. Conflicts are resolved by fighting it out. The United States is also considered a masculine culture with a score of 62 (Hofstede). In the US, people tend to talk about their successes and achievements. The goal is always to win. Conflicts are resolved individually. Uncertainty Avoidance Uncertainty Avoidance is how a society reacts to the fact the future is not known. Different cultures deal with the anxiety that this can bring.The people of Trinidad prefer to avoid uncertainty and score a 55 (Hofstede). They have strong beliefs and expectations for behavior. The Trinidad culture is not accepting of beliefs and behaviors that are outside the norm. The people are very precise, punctual, hard working, and busy. Their culture is very resistant to innovation. The US scores a 46 and is uncertainty accepting (Hofstede). In the US, new ideas and products are welcomed. Individuals are open to trying new ideas and technology. The culture does not require many rules. People in the US do not express their emotions are openly.Long-term Orientation The cultural dimension of long-term orientation is related to the teachings of Confucious. It deals with a cultures search for virtue. A society with a high score in long-term orientation has a future oriented view. A society with a low score has a short-term point of view. Trinidad has no score in this dimension. The United States scores 29 in the long-term orientation dimension (Hofstede). It has a short-term point of view. Its people focus on tradition. American business measure their success with financial statements issued quarterly. Individuals work for fast results.

Is the UK economy out of recession Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words - 2

Is the UK economy out of recession - Essay Example But this hope was to prove a mirage as the trend reversed in subsequent months. Though the UK took a little while to catch up with the crisis in the United States, at the beginning of the second quarter of 2008, the region’s economy was in acute recession. It has been close to two years since the onset of recession in the UK and the economic condition of the region remains weak and vulnerable. While some economists assert that the turnaround is already underway, others take a more pessimistic view. This essay will try to answer this important question, by way of perusing scholarly and news media resources. (Lynch, 2009) The recession that began in early 2008 gave no signs of recovery even after one full year. As the industry data for third quarter 2009 revealed, the economy shrank a further 0.4 % in during this period, which completed the sixth consecutive quarter in decline. As per the Office for National Statistics, by this time â€Å"output has slumped 5.9% since the onset of recession - almost as bad as the 6% slump seen in the early 1980s. The lingering decline came despite interest rates at a record low of 0.5% since March, additional Government spending and an unprecedented pounds 175 billion boost to the money supply through quantitative easing† (Lynch, 2009). But even as the UK was enduring this economic decline, neighbouring countries such as France and Germany have already shown early signs of recovery. While neighbouring countries in Europe were already into recovery, it was only during the heralding of year 2010 that the UK economy showed clear signs of recovery. Financial experts have declared that technically the UK economy has emerged from recession, but concerns still remain about the stability and strength of the pound against the dollar and the euro. Due to the internal economic turmoil, there is a strong possibility for deflation of currency during