Culture-Bound Syndromes

Mental health functioning is important regarding a person’s well-being, being able to interact with others in a healthy manner, and contributes many things to individual’s through communities and society. Culture-bound syndromes are conditions that are specific to particular cultures. The cultures that experience, express, and deal with culture-bound syndromes in different ways is extremely common. LaVeist and Thomas (2005) state that â€Å"culture-bound syndromes are clusters of symptoms more common in some cultures than others† (p. 01). There are symptoms that are found in all nations, cultures, and similarly recognizable worldwide but yet are different at the same time. Culture-Bound Syndromes Culture-bound syndromes, also known as culture-specific syndromes, have been defined as â€Å"clusters of symptoms more common in some cultures than in other cultural groups† (LaVeist & Thomas, 2005, p. 101). Although many mental disorders are well known in sp ecific cultures, these disorders are at least somewhat conditioned by the culture in which they are found.More importantly, the topic of culture-bound syndromes has â€Å"been a controversial topic since they have reflected the different opinions of anthropologists and psychiatrists† (WHO, 1992). Consequently, researchers have had some difficulty emphasizing culture specific dimensions of certain syndromes. Some studies have suggested that the most beneficial aspect of defining culture-bound syndromes is that they represent an acceptable way to define specific cultural responses to certain situations.According to Guarnaccia and Rogler (1999), â€Å"researchers have referred to culture bound research on culture-bound syndromes serves strategically to tighten the integration between cultural and clinical knowledge, while providing insights into issues of diagnostic universality and culturally specificity† (p. 1326). The role of biology in the development of culture-bound syndromes, therefore, has proved to be of debate. Interest in culture-bound syndromes has increased over the last few decades.Similarly the treatment in a diagnostic classification treatment of these disorders has over the last several years gained attention (Guarnaccia & Rogler, 1999). Clinicians are presented with plenty of challenges when dealing with culture-bound syndromes such as how to diagnose them. Several questions clinicians present include the stability of culture-bound syndromes, the common nature of these disorders across cultures, and the similarity of symptoms between syndromes (APA, 1994).Similarly, the question of whether culture-bound syndromes should be included in the diagnostic criteria of current psychological illnesses or as individual entities themselves is also debatable (APA, 1994). Another issue concerns the relationship between culture bound syndromes and standard diagnostic systems such as the DSM. Of specific concern is that they do not easily con form to the categories within the DSM due to significant differences across cultures.These differences are due to differing views of self and reality as well as the different ways cultures express certain disorders (APA, 1994). Guarnaccia and Rogler (1999) referring to the DSM classification system in that it addresses certain concerns about differing cultural boundaries, and in dealing with the classification methods certainly deal with the reliability and validity of the non-universality of cultural experiences in relation to mental illnesses.The fact that each culture-bound syndrome is individually associated with particular sets of illness responses, it is difficult to define precisely the definition of the culture-bound syndromes as a unit. Culture-bound syndromes as therefore comprised as several different illnesses and afflictions. LaVeist and Thomas (2005) thoroughly expresses the dynamic nature of culture-bound syndromes when they state: The symptoms of mental disorders are found in all nations and in all cultures; there are recognizable symptoms that are common worldwide.Mental health researchers have not yet been able to determine whether culture bound syndromes are indicative of one or more possibilities that include distinct disorders that exist only in specific cultures, and reflect different ways in which individuals from different cultures express mental illness, as well as reflecting different ways in which the social and cultural environment interact with genes to produce disorders, or any combination of these. (pp. 01) With the following information in mind, it should be noted that not all disorders are considered pathological; some behaviors are seen as ways of expressing and communicating distress to members of a certain culture and are seen as culturally accepted responses (APA, 1994). In fact, cultures experience, express, and cope with feelings of distress in various ways that may counter what Western societies see as common. Furthermor e, at times these cultural differences are referred to as idioms of distress.Understanding the expression of these idioms (for example somatization, which is a physical representation of distress that is typically accompanied by symptoms such as abdominal or chest pain, heart palpitations, dizziness or vertigo, and blurred vision) allows clinicians to be more aware of the diagnoses they give (LaVeist & Thomas, 2005). Culture-bound syndromes can also appear to be similar within several cultures. Furthermore, a culture specific syndrome can be categorized by various things.The APA (1994) characterizes culture specific syndromes as the following: categorization as a disease in the culture, familiarity within a widespread culture, people with lack of familiarity of specific conditions from other cultures, and the use of folk medicines that particular cultures use as a conditioned sense of usage within a specific culture. More specifically, culture-bound syndromes are not the same as geographically localized diseases with specific biological causes, such as kuru or sleeping sickness, or genetic conditions limited to certain populations, like sickle cell anemia (APA, 1994).Discussions of culture-bound syndromes have often concerned the amount of different categories of syndromes present in the world today. Many culture-bound syndromes are actually specific cultural representations of illnesses found elsewhere in the world. Some of these responses are not necessarily psychological illnesses but rather are explanatory mechanisms like witchcraft (Simons & Hughes, 1985). Beliefs in witchcraft could seem to be a little farfetched as a type of culture-bound illness; however, it is supposed that witchcraft can lead to behaviors that can be seen as disordered.This concept is of particular concern to medical and psychiatric anthropologists because culture-bound syndromes provide examples of how cultural specific symptoms can evolve into psychological illnesses. Just because these responses may not begin as disorders, however, does not devalue the fact that they are illnesses and should be taken seriously (Simons & Hughes, 1985). The American Psychiatric Association (1994), states that the Western scientific perspective characterizes culture specific syndromes as imaginary and has no way of clearly being able to show why someone cannot understand that perspective.According to the APA (1994), physicians will share many things about a disorder with the patients and help them try to understand how they see their particular disorder; they also use folk medicine treatment if the patient asks for that if it is a culture-bound syndrome. Another thing is that a physician may falsify a patients perspective to offer folk medicine treatments that are available or maybe for a new and improved treatment strategy. Lastly, the clinician should educate the patient on being able to recognize their condition as a culture-bound syndrome so that the clinician m ay treat them as they see fit.Guarnaccia and Rogler (1994) said that specific conditions are very challenging within medical care and illustrate rarely discussed aspects of fundamental aspects of physician to patient relationships, a diagnosis that is the best fit for the way of looking at the body and its diseases are easily negotiated if both parties can be found. Restrictions of the diagnostic classification systems of culture-bound syndromes have complications with certain additions within the iagnostic classification systems and have raised many questions. It is not quite clear on whether culture-bound syndromes are actually different from conventional syndromes or if they are just categorically different. Some people like to argue that some culture-bound syndromes are not just limited to specific cultures but are widely experienced throughout the world. Many of the syndromes that have been labeled as culture- bound are compromised by many mixtures of indicators that have been witnessed collectively.Culture-bound syndromes are lacking in diagnostic regularity and legitimacy making it extremely difficult to reach widespread straightforward criteria to describe these illnesses because of problems in language. â€Å"In the development of the DSM, its designers tried to create a diagnostic system that was well-suited with a broader and more worldwide medical organization system that is, the International Classification of Diseases, Injuries, and Causes of Death (ICD) developed by the World Health Organization† (WHO, 1992).Therefore, the DSM implements a medical model of diagnosis for which many mental disorders, regardless of whether their background is biological or psychological, is viewed as mental illnesses and requires treatment. Furthermore, this model is implicit and assuming that mental disorders are under the compromise of behavioral or psychological symptoms that can form definable patterns or distinct forms of a particular syndrome (Guarnacc ia & Rogler, 1994).The authors of the DSM definitely made a careful choice to accept a clear-cut categorization of mental illnesses. It is important to notice, however, that the DSM does not make the assumption that all mental disorders are discreet entities with absolutely no boundaries. Finally, before methodology is discussed, examples of what culture-bound syndromes actually are is important to include. The case of Koro â€Å"provides an example of shifting diagnostic classifications because of changing decisions about which symptoms are predominant.For example, Koro was first categorized as a somatoform disorder on the basis of the perception of the afflicted person’s intense preoccupation with a somatic concern, the retraction of the penis† (Bernstein & Gaw, 1990). â€Å"More recently, Koro was categorized as an anxiety disorder and noted that others have associated Koro with panic disorders† (Levine & Gaw, 1995, p. 1323). Second, the debate of the relationship between culture-bound syndromes and psychiatric disorders according to symptoms is evident in the case of Latah Levine & Gaw, 1995). More specifically, â€Å"a debate about Latah focuses on which theoretical perspective should prevail; Simons and Hughes argued that the predominant feature of Latah is the neurophysiological startle reflex, culturally elaborated into Latah in Malaysia† (Simons & Hughes, 1985, p. 1323). Therefore, each disorder represents responses specific to certain cultures while also explaining the different ways cultures respond to events. MethodUnderstanding culture-bound syndromes requires looking at multiple sources that give a broad range of information regarding the topic. For this paper I felt that it was necessary to use the American Psychiatric Association’s Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders because it gives plenty of information regarding culture-bound syndromes. The Diagnostic and Statistical Ma nual of Mental Disorders is extremely useful in the fact that it allows a health educator to become more acquainted with culture-bound syndromes that are unique and unusual to our specific field of study.Guarnaccia and Rogler and their research on culture-bound syndromes is informational in that they give a comprehensive look at culture-bound syndromes through the classification system and allow one to focus more on specific syndromes, such as Koro and Latah. LaVeist and Thomas from Chapter 5 in Minority Populations and Health are really informational along the lines of mental health, mental illness, and mental health problems.They give a more thorough explanation of basic background information on the previously stated information and topics and yet still remain in-depth when looking at specific aspects of mental health. They describe mental health, mental health problems, and mental illness in more detail and allow for the interpretation of others reading their work to help fuel o ne’s own judgments on those topics. I also used various sources to address other topics relevant to culture-bound syndromes. For example, Bernstein and Gaw specifically addressed Koro, which I used as an example of a culture-bound syndrome.Another example, Simon and Hughes addressed Latah, I felt it was necessary to use examples of both Koro and Latah to help show what culture-bound syndromes were exactly and what they meant to cultures that were not American and how the cultures that were affected by these syndromes. The method I used for identifying and locating sources mainly dealt with trying to find a broad aspect of culture-bound syndromes and basic information on this particular subject. The rationale for choosing the specific sources was along the lines of being able to find enough useable information that could allow me to get my points across.When searching the electronic databases and the library at Central Arkansas University I was mainly looking for a broad range of topics that could fulfill the various information needs I had for this paper. I wanted to look at the topic on multiple levels, including cross-cultural, the way culture-bound syndromes affect others, and the ways in which these disorders are specifically associated with mental illness. Analysis & Discussion The grouping of culture-bound syndromes into qualified diagnostic categories usually is based on a perception of their principal indicators.But the bigger issue itself of classifying a majority of symptoms is definitely challenging, as exemplified in the cases of Koro and Latah. Problems most definitely arose when conclusions were built on general, typical descriptions of the syndrome that are then linked with the textbook criteria of psychiatric diagnoses. The present method of studying the same set of readings and engaging in the classification process with them does not, from my viewpoint, promote the consideration of culture-bound syndromes.The approach of trying to find the right classificatory organization by basing it on the similarity between certain symptoms that include maybe one or two of the same grouping within the syndrome as well as the DSM groupings as the main organizing arrangement of significance to the culture-bound syndromes is not expected to produce new answers to the questions about the classification system. There are many syndromes that have different names that are seen from a variety of cultures that are basically the same set of behaviors, but culturally are explained in slightly different ways.Occasionally, on certain remote instances the arrangement of the behavior that is recognized as a culture-bound syndrome occurs in an area that is far from individuals where the termed and elaborated syndrome is an endemic. Conclusion & Recommendations Some major challenges that can help the classification system out is that the same distress responses may be stated differently as a result of cultural cues, language variances , and changes in experience.In addition, the American Psychiatric Association (1994) notes that some examples of cultural structuring and or human behavior knowledge regarding illnesses are stated in Western classification systems more commonly known as the DSM. Thus, the challenge to categorize culture bound syndromes, whether as diverse syndromes or as part of an already categorized illness, is an activity that is inseparably tied to a certain culture. Also it has been suggested the ways that cultures and their social methods can limit the expansion of an internationally valid system of identification.Guarnaccia and Rogler (1999) suggests that classification of culture-bound syndromes are better than recording symptoms due to the fact that examining the context and symbolic structure of cultural reactions yield a better turnout. The main themes of most discussions over culture-bound syndromes is that such illnesses personalize symptom patterns that are somewhat linked in some sign ificant way to the specific cultural setting in which they have occurred within.Because most of the syndromes are separate from the theoretical outlook of the Western medicine systems, they are quite often disregarded in serious analyses and therefore are carelessly overlooked for helpful mediations. These disorders appear to reside in a figurative twilight zone of psychiatric diagnosis and are viewed as highly mysterious. To nearly everyone, the behavior and outlooks common to one’s own culture seem natural and/or rational in most parts, while those derived from other cultures appear abnormal, culture-specific, or arising from irregular conditions.Most clinicians are more than likely to think through the justification of culture when presenting a patient’s problem, especially when he or she is from a cultural setting other than the clinician’s own. However, cultural factors are a considerable part of every disorder and expressive in the outlook of specific comp onents. Nonetheless, all psychiatric illnesses are culture bound to a certain degree. The divisions of psychiatric illnesses of culture-bound syndromes are those found only in inadequate cultural areas.Though culture does shape all illness behavior, it is always hypothetically informative to ask why any given syndrome appears to be present or not in a given culture. In recent years, the mindfulness of cultural diversity and of the role of culture in all illnesses has greatly been improved. Because of the interpretations into the relationships between individual psychopathology and culturally firm practices and beliefs that the study of culture-bound syndromes offers, an interest in these syndromes has grown greatly over the past several years.Health educators in dealing with culture-bound syndromes would be able to help Center for Disease Control officials in many aspects. Since culture-bound syndromes are very common among many cultures around the world, health educators who deal w ith particular syndromes could help assess and implement many programs that can help with assessing many syndromes that afflict many cultures throughout the world. In a classroom setting, health educators can teach students how to spot syndromes and treat them to an extent in which helps their particular culture, community or society.Health education programs that are implemented within colleges and universities can stress that culture-bound syndromes are very serious and need to be treated like any other mental health disease that we as educators deal with and try to diagnose every day. I believe that policies and procedures that are already implemented within our culture are doing a good job in trying to handle culture-bound syndromes. Educationally, I believe that there are definitely some great programs that try to help with identifying and dealing with culture-bound syndromes.References American Psychiatric Association (APA). 1994). Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental D isorders, Fourth Edition: DSM-IV. Washington, DC. Bernstein, R. L. , & Gaw, A. C. (1990). Koro: proposed classification for DSM-IV. American Journal of Psychiatry, 147, 1670-1674. Guarnaccia, P. J. , & Rogler, L. H. (1999). Research on culture-bound syndromes: New directions. American Journal of Psychiatry, 156(9), 1322-1327. Hall, T. M. (2008). Culture-bound syndromes in China. Retrieved from http://homepage. mac. com/mccajor/cbs. html LaVeist, T. A. , & Thomas, D. (2005). Mental health. In T. A. LaVeist (Ed. Minority populations and health: An introduction to health disparities in the United States (pp. 83-107). San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass. Levine, R. E. , & Gaw, A. C. (1995). Culture-bound syndromes. Psychiatry Clinic North America, 18, 523-536. World Health Organization (WHO). (1992). International Classification of Diseases, 10th Edition (ICD-10): Classification of mental and behavioral disorders. Geneva, Switzerland. Simons, R. C. , & Hughes, C. C. (1985 ). The culture-bound syndromes: Folk illnesses of psychiatric and anthropological interest. Dordrecht, Netherlands.

Use Word’s Replace to Transpose a Column of Names

Use Word's Replace to transpose a column of names Available from:http://blogs. techrepublic. com. com/msoffice/? p=4156 Date: November 22nd, 2010 Author: Susan Harkins Category: Microsoft Word You’ll often see a column of names entered in a Word document either as a list or part of a table. Listing the names is no problem, but changing their order after they’re entered could be. For instance, let’s say your document contains a list of names entered in firstname lastname format, but you want them in lastname, firstname format. Do you have to re-enter them?No, there’s a simple wildcard trick you can use with Word’s Replace feature that will take care of the transposing for you. To get Word to transform a list or column of names, do the following: Select the list of names you want to transpose. From the Edit menu, choose Replace. In Word 2010, click Replace in the Editing group on the Home tab. Click the More button and check the Use Wildcards option. This is an important step—if you miss it, this technique won’t work. In the Find What control, enter () (), with a space character between the two sets.In the Replace With control, enter the following characters 2, 1, with a space character before the second slash character. Click Replace All. Word will transpose the first and last names and separate them with a comma character. When Word asks you to expand the search, click No, and then Close to return to the document. Wildcard explanation Once you understand the wildcards, the whole trick is easily exposed: (): The parentheses aren’t true wildcards, not in a matching sense. They allow you to divide a pattern into logical sequences. :The brackets mark the beginning and ending of a word or phrase. : The slash character replaces characters, and is used with a number that specifies a bracketed component (above). In this case, the Find What code splits the two names into two separate sequences. The 2 component in t he Replace What code replaces the contents of the first sequence with the contents of the second sequence. The 1 component replaces the contents of the second sequence with the contents of the first. As you can see, you’re not limited to just transposing first and last names. With these wildcard tools, you can rearrange quite a bit of content!

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The Interaction Of Byelikov And Kovalenko In The Man In A Case - Essay Example The conflict between these two people discloses the main idea of the story. The story has a very interesting structure – a story in the story, but at the same time, it doesn't prevent Chekhov from conveying the uniform assessment of human life perception, stating his ideas and outlooks. Plot composition of this story is simple and original. The prolog is the story of a gymnasium teacher Burkin telling to his friend, a veterinarian Ivan Ivanovich, a story about the teacher of Greek language Byelikov. We learn about the appearance and the way of life of the main character. The plot begins when a new teacher of history and geography Mikhail Savvich Kovalenko comes to the city. He comes with his younger sister Varinka whom Byelikov liked and considered marriage with her. The conflict of Byelikov and Kovalenko is the conflict of the people with absolutely different characters, different ideas, and moral principles, and it is the foundation of the story. Byelikov lived in panic, bei ng afraid of reality irritants. Byelikov praised the past, expressing disgust for the present and classic languages which he taught. He wore the same â€Å"an umbrella and galoshes† in which he was hiding from the real life. And everyone was afraid of this strange person. His thoughts were also hidden in a â€Å"case†. Nobody could know what he is thinking about and what he is going to do. Kovalenko, on the contrary, was open to people, he clearly expressed his opinion. A number of events make the culmination of the story: the desire of Byelikov and Varinka to get married, the drawn caricature of the main character, driving bicycles. All these actions excited Byelikov and provoked the conflict between him and Varinka’s brother. Belikov's death, which according to others serves as a solution to all the problems, is the outcome.

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In order to prove that humans evolved from apes there would need to be a half man, half ape out there. Scientists have been searching for this missing link, since the origin of the evolution theory and no remains have been found to indicate this link exists. Human remains have been found from previous times and all of them have been human. Scientists have found partial remains of very old skeletons, which they claim are up to 3. 5 million years old they attempt to claim these as missing links (Creationtheory. org 2006) The truth however is the remains are so deteriorated is would be impossible to tell if they are human or ape. They are not something in between even in modern society, facial characteristics and jawbones differ between cultures, therefore claiming the bone structure differs from that of a human is inaccurate. A second point to substantiate creation is the intelligent design. Everything on earth is designed exactly as it needs to be in order to sustain life. If the oxygen levels were different or the atmospheric pressure varied substantially, the earth would be uninhabitable. Evolutionists choose to believe that a large explosion causes planets to form and fall into a perfect orbit around the sun. The earth stays the right distance from the sun to provide heat and light, but does not over heat or dry the planet. In addition to this, the explosion left small particles in the oceans, which amazingly formed in the explosion, which turned into living creatures. These living single cell organisms then somehow evolved into fish, which turned into birds, mammals and eventually humans. Even without figuring the complex probability probability problem it is obvious the odds of this happening are unfathomable. Even if the inert matter could all fall into place, no experiment has proven successful in turning inert matter into living matter (allaboutcreation). The complexity of DNA could not have happened by chance it has too much detail and would have taken very precise design it could not have just developed from a particles in the ocean (allaboutcreation). Scientists have failed to find links between any current species and a previous one. There are no amoeba-fish or bird-fish (Allaboutcreation). Bats have wings, but there is no evidence they were ever anything except mammals. In addition to the lack of evidence proving evolution happened is the complete lack of higher evolution during recorded history. For at least a few hundred years, history has been written down and it was humans that wrote it not ape-men. There were oxen, fish, sheep, and birds just as there are today. If evolution had occurred, it would not just stop squirrels should be starting to walk on two legs and apes should be turning into people and they are not. People and technology are advancing, but people are staying people. Some theories that evolutionists used to present as evidence have been proven false such as embryology (the belief that in embryonic stages humans followed the evolutionary cycle), horse evolution (the evolution between horses with three toes and the current horses which turned out to just be differences in horses), and vestigial organs (organs that were needed by ancestors but are now useless organs). These were all proven to be false proof, but many still appear in science textbooks (Thinkquest). If after the evidence, facts and reasoning of this case have not convinced all who hear it there is only one logical, intelligent, and educated answer for the beginning of the earth, then the facts need to be presented again. The only reasonable solution is that the earth and all of its contents were created by God who had a plan and followed it. Any human who chooses to believe their ancestors were amoebas, fish, or even apes is simply making an effort to deny God. This is because they do not want to recognize God’s authority and follow his laws. They would rather live in a world that happened by some unrealistic explosion. No scientist could even show an instance where order was created from chaos (such as an explosion), yet this is what evolutionists want people to believe. It is the job of the reasonable intelligent humans, who know their ancestors were humans to convince others the true story of how the world came to be. Otherwise the future may be filled with children who call the apes in the zoo Grandma and Grandpa. Works Cited â€Å"Creation Vs. Evolution. † All about Creation. 17, May 2007. http://www. allaboutcreation. org/evidence-for-creation-faq. htm â€Å"Creation Vs. Evolution II†. 1999 17, May 2007. http://library. thinkquest. org/29178 â€Å"Creation Versus Science† 18 September 2006. 17May 2007 http://www. creationtheory. org

A Business Plan to introduce Clean City Ltd

A Business Plan to introduce Clean City Ltd This document serves as a Business Plan to introduce Clean City Ltd, a registered Limited Company that was formed in January 2010. The sole purpose of Clean Citys business will be to solely engage/enforce the sorting of garbage, its collection, transportation and delivery/disposal to recycling plants and dumping sites, our main focus being recycling plants. What is Waste Management? Waste management is the collection, transportation, processing, recycling or disposal, and monitoring of waste materials, while Recycling is the process of re-using a given product (beyond its intended use), or producing a new product from a recyclable material. Nairobis population is approximately 4 million, 44% Kenyans fall below the poverty line, meaning approximately three quarters of Nairobis population falls under the urban poor category. In Nairobi, approximately 1,530 tonnes of garbage is generated daily and as illustrated in the Pie Chart below, approximately 1,130 tonnes of garbage rots uncollected close to its source, or is burnt in homesteads, dumped at illegal landfills or dumpsites or is collected by Non Governmental Organisations and Community based groups. Due to economic hardships and the high rate of unemployment, we have seen an increase of people migrating from rural to urban areas in search of better prospects to support their immediate families and/or dependants, and more often than not, most of these people eventually reside in low class areas such as the Kibera Slums or Peri-urban areas such as Gachie, Ongata Rongai, etcetera. Approximately half of the Kenyan population is based in Nairobi, and most of these migrants find themselves close to fragile areas such as rivers, valleys, steep slopes and adjacent to sewers or dumps. Nairobi City Council whose mandate is to provide and sustain a clean and healthy environment in Kenya has been unsuccessful due to its failure to formulate and adopt clear and comprehensive strategies that take into account all aspects of waste management; its reluctance to involve stakeholders and to educate the general public on taking responsibility for their garbage disposal; and its manner in which it has disseminated information on the inherent dangers of inadequate attention given to waste management, or lack thereof. The Councils Systems and Methods adopted to manage solid waste have failed to conform to the minimum requirements stipulated in the Environment Management and Co-ordination Act (EMCA) 1999, Part 11, Section 3(i). Generally it is poor governance. It is very sad indeed to witness adult pedestrians, motorists and passengers alike, ditching rubbish on footpaths, streets and roads without giving a second thought to the negative effects of their actions and having no regard for the beauty of Kenyans Capital, the Green City in the Sun. Majority of our young citizens, that is, our children, who are our leaders of tomorrow, innocently litter anywhere and everywhere outside their homes and/or school premises, and in many instances this habit grows uncorrected because these young impressionable children mirror what many of us adults do resulting in a vicious cycle. Many of Nairobi streets and footpaths are littered with rubbish ranging from maize cobs, cigarette butts, fruit skins to plastic papers. City Council of Nairobi owns and operates Nairobis only official landfill disposal site that is located in Dandoras high density residential neighbourhood where a quarter of low income voiceless Kenyans reside. The Dandora landfill is currently filled with approximately 1.3 million cubic meters of waste spread over approximately 30 acres. Dandora is approximately 7.5 km away from the Central Business District, out of sight out of mind. This has serious health consequences to the dwellers and the urban environment at large. In addition, low income areas are largely affected by uncollected rubbish due to poor infrastructure or geographically inaccessible areas and also due to the residents inability to pay for garbage collection services rendered by the Private firms. With the burgeoning population or in this case urban escalation, there is an urgent need for an operational mechanism to be put in place by the Council with the backing of the Kenyan Government to enable the formulation of structures that will encourage the participation of the private sector and the general public in waste management initiatives. Clean Citys main objective is to act as a catalyst towards the green movement, to eradicate the negative effects of environmental degradation where it will promote a cleaner, air pollution-free, urban environment and habitat by equipping the Public with facilities, knowledge and tools, in order to effortlessly segregate their garbage at source, meaning to sort out their garbage at the point of disposal; basically to make this practice a part of their lifestyle. Recyclables are treasures buried in our landfills and Clean Citys underlying desire is to promote the re-use, to enhance well organised and structured recycling systems instead of waste been burnt or dumped in landfills. Recycling is a pollution-reduction strategy and at the same time will save land that is currently being used as landfills. There is an urgent need for the public to unlearn the poor garbage disposal habits and to internalize that the sorting out of Garbage is a proactive approach to a clean habitat that will ultimately be beneficial to them at different demographical levels. 1.1 Objectives Clean City Limiteds endeavour is to have established a fully fledged Garbage sorting business by the year 2012 that will have incorporated the following Objectives: To run an ethical business that involves Corporate Social Responsibility in all aspects of our business activities. To aim for a return on investment of at least 15% yearly To achieve an operating profit of 10% of our total sales Incorporate or win the favour of the public and private sector in promoting waste management in Nairobi To advocate for the withdrawal of Dandora as a landfill plus other illegal dumpsites within Nairobi and to reallocate them to isolated land away from residential areas; and to convince the Council to allow privately owned landfills. To expand our horizons in the wider part of Nairobi and eventually to Kenyan major towns like Mombasa, Kisumu and Eldoret and to further penetrate regionally to our neighbouring East Africa such as Uganda, Tanzania and Rwanda. To exemplify to Kenyan citizens the benefits of garbage sorting. To educate Kenyans on the benefits of untapped or low key recycling business that can be used as a source of income, where scarce natural resources can be obtained, which are currently hampered by the landfill dumping. To introduce Leaf-it Depots where organic waste such as garden waste, grass, food, leaves, wood shavings can be deposited for composting Most importantly, to reinforce Nairobis slogan, The Green City in the Sun and to encourage and educate Kenyans on the paramount importance of living in a clean and healthy environment.    1.2 Mission Clean City Limiteds mission is to provide a garbage sorting framework that will encourage and promote effective and efficient methods of disposing of garbage by using our garbage sorting systems that would eventually enhance the current skeletal recycling business. Our labelled coloured/categorized recycling dustbins equipped with appealing advertisements and educational campaigns will be used as a conduit to achieve this mission. 2.0 Our Business Idea Currently, there are a few privately owned Garbage collecting firms that collect garbage once a week. These firms distribute between 8 12 bags per household for the months use and their charges range from between Kshs.400 Kshs.800.00. The current system involves households paying a monthly fee for garbage collection through their monthly service charge contributions to either an external management company or to their internal management committee, whom in turn organise for garbage collection services. Standalone/Bungalows would directly pay to the service provider. Once the garbage is collected, it is directly delivered to landfills where human scavengers sort out the garbage and sell to recycling plants. The vehicles used for collection and transportation are Lorries without canvas or any other material that can cover the back, therefore the back is left open with the stinky garbage out in the open for all to see and garbage spillage on the roads. Where does Clean City come in? Clean City will deliver an efficient and effective collecting/transporting service but at a premium cost. We shall diffuse in the minds of our clients the idea of an organised disposal/collecting/transportation system, a value for money service that will be a valued added benefit. We shall provide communal huge categorized Dumpsters that will be stationed on communal ground of households that constitute more than 6 units in a compound, where full thrash plastic bags from individual households can be disposed of for collection. We shall also provide our residential clients with service contracts stipulating the standards of proper sorting and disposal. Also included in our contract will be the probability of our refusal to collect garbage that has not been correctly sorted. 2.1 Target Market Residential and Commercial in Upmarket Areas Residential We have taken into consideration that not many apartments are provided with a provision for waste bins which normally is situated in the laundry/balcony area next to the Kitchen and if they are, the space is too limited to accommodate 3-1 recycling bins. However, we still intend to approach apartments and suggest they use 1 bins with compartments, that is, for glass/metal/plastic recyclables and the other for organic/wet and paper, and others. Please see images below. Standalone/Town Houses/Maisonettes have the advantage of spacious verandas and balconies for storage. Shopping Malls, Major Airports, 3-5 Star Hotels, Hotel Apartments, Golf and Social/Sports Clubs and Shopping Complexes we shall place huge Dumpsters in strategic positions please refer to images below. Schools Of paramount importance is to educate the young on the benefits of disposing of garbage in an organised and hygienic manner and to enlighten them on recycling materials. Upcoming Housing we shall also keep a keen eye on upcoming apartments so as to educate developers/real estate dealers on the need to have provisions in households for storing bins. We shall also approach newly completed apartments/standalone housing to enable us incorporate our services before tenants occupy them. Recyclers We have approached 4 major recycling companies PET Recycling Company for plastic waste Central Glass Industries for glass waste Roll Mill Limited for metal waste Pan Africa for paper waste Community based groups for organic matter However, we shall not limit our sale of recyclables to the above mentioned companies. 2.2 Business Model Once we have equipped our clients with the necessary bins and accessories, our Business model which is solely manually based will involve the following process: Each weekday will have a designated Zone or Region for Waste for once a week collections. We shall start off with 3 rear load trucks that have been equipped with a rear hydraulic conveyor lift that will lift Thrush bags into the main hold of the truck. Each truck will have a driver and two support staff, who will assist each other to lift the bags onto the hydraulic conveyor. All the 3 trucks will be dispatched together at any one time to their different zonal schedules. All waste will be delivered to our Waste Holding Site in Karen, where Waste will undergo a final segregation phase. Purchasing hydraulic trucks is a massive investment however this expenditure will compensate for the reduction in labour expenses in the long term. Classified Recyclables will be purchased and collected from us by Recycling Plants on a weekly basis while non-recyclable waste will be dumped at official landfills. Staff Working Hours Working hours will be from 8 am to 5 pm from Mondays to Saturdays. We do not foresee overtime issues, however, in the event of overtime, staff shall be compensated accordingly. No of Supporting Staff 3 drivers 6 staff to accompany drivers 4 staff to be based at our holding site Main Equipment/Accessories We have identified 3 reconditioned Trucks from the United Kingdom, model Personal Protective Equipment Bins and Dumpsters Plastic Garbage Bags Occupational Health and Safety Measures To avoid any job site hazards, we shall comprehensively train our staff on health and safety measures while on duty and also provide them with Personal Protective Equipment that will consist of the following: A pair of heavy duty gloves Jungle Green A pair of high top heavy duty boots/shoes Jungle Green Light weight safety helmet (for comfort due to tropical weather) Lime Green Safety Vest Lime Green Overalls Jungle Green The table below shows the total cost of the safety equipment. ITEM QUANTITY COST PER UNIT TOTAL COST Gloves 13 100 1300 Boots 13 500 6500 Helmet 13 750 9750 Safety Vests 13 500 6500 Overalls 13 600 7800 The Bins will be sold to residential clients while the Dumpsters that come in big sizes will be on rental to commercial clients. The dominant green colour will speak for itself, Clean Citys Green Footprint and the same principle will be applied to our trucks. Our Logo and Corporate colours The following Recycle symbol will be our logo and brand that will be pasted on all our equipment, uniforms and stationery. Our corporate colours are green and white. Our Offices We shall be located in Karen on a 1 acre plot that will be on rental, where most operations will take place. The site will consist of an Admin Office while most of the land will be an open air field with a shed, for sorting purposes. The monthly rental for the 1 acre office in Karen will be Ksh. 75,000/= 3.0 Management Team City Clean is owned by 3 partners, namely Regina Maru, Sheily Shah and Maureen Adhiambo, in the capacities of Managing Director, Financial and Human Resources Director and Sales, PR and Marketing Director, respectively. Once we have our operations running we shall bring on board an Office Manager. Structure, Ownership and Intellectual property City Clean is owned by 3 partners namely Regina Maru, Sheily Shah and Maureen Adhiambo Flat Structure Managing Director Finance Human Resource Director Sales, PR Marketing Director Accounts Clerk Sales Representative Admin Manager Support Staff Managing Director 4.0 Industry Analysis 5 Forces Model Threat of new entrants Already the market is flooded with waste collection businesses that are not following the Waste collection regulations, and the National Environment Management Authority has introduced more stringent regulations and measures to our competitors. NEMA further assured us that they shall not allow new entrants until the Clean Citys sorting/recycling concept has been fully established. Threat of Substitutes Clean Citys existing competitors offer an inferior service. We shall charge our residential customers a one-off fee for the cost of the bins however our service, that is, collection of weekly garbage will be Kshs.500.00 which is similar to what most of our competitors charge per month. Buyer Power Bargaining power of our customers will be low as City Clean has no competitor offering a similar product and service. Supplier Power Bargaining power of our suppliers, in this case, Kenpoly Industries who specialise in plastic, will be low as we are able to source the Bins and Dumpsters from other suppliers both locally and internationally, for example in China. Rivalry the degree of rivalry in the waste collection industry is low as City Clean is introducing a new and superior product and service. 5.0 Marketing Plan 5.1 Our Product and Service Clean City is entering a niche market as this concept has not been introduced in Kenya, in fact countries worldwide that practice this healthy habit are few and far in between. It will be a new phenomenon in Kenya that we know will be received with mixed reactions; however, we are also very confident that we shall eventually have a good footing. Clean City will have a competitive advantage as no other Company in Kenya or even East Africa offers a similar product or service, neither do any of the other garbage collecting companies have automated hydraulic trucks that shall be in use. Our marketing strategy focuses on differentiation due to its nature of providing a value added benefit, uniqueness, affordability, profitability, superiority and ultimately giving us a competitive edge. Clean City is two-fold as it shall provide both a product and service. Our product has 4 facets that are interdependent of each other and these are the Bins, Garbage plastic bags, Dumpsters and Trucks while our service will involve the collection of pre-sorted waste that will be delivered to Recycling Plants and Landfills. Clean City shall have 5 or more classes of beneficiaries/customers at both ends of its supply chain as follows. The following table illustrates that Customers falling under 2 will benefit from our product while the rest will be benefit from our service. Customer Description of Benefit 1 Nairobi City Council Gradually reducing the size of the Dandora Landfill and assisting and advocating for its reallocation. 2 Household and Commercial Providing education and tools to sort waste 3 Compost Manufacturers Providing pre-sorted green waste 4 Recycling Plants Providing pre-sorted recyclable material 5 Animal Farms, example Pig Farms Proving pre-sorted food waste 5.2 Product Description Our Bins and Dumpsters will be custom-made to match the quality of imported Bins that are used in developed countries; however, City Cleans will be available at lower prices. The Bins that shall be rectangular in shape will come in 2 varieties; either with 2 or 3 partitions for recyclable waste which will be influenced by the amount of storage space available. A sample of Truck Leyland truck each  £6500.00 CIF. The government has kindly granted us freight clearance charges and government tax subsidies. Specifications 4 tonnes 62 midlift Hydraulic lift Vulture body Double bin lift Cummins engine A sample of Dumpsters. Size Specifications for Dumpsters Length 72 inches, Width 16 inches, Height 40 inches -For General Waste, Organic/Food, Glass, Metal Cans, Plastic Bottles/Containers. Each dumpster costs Ksh. 3500/= A sample Bins we shall supply both the 3-in-1 and 2-in-1 depending on household storage space. The size specifications for the Bins per partition Length 12 inches Width 12 inches Height 24 inches Green will symbolize organic and food waste Brown will symbolize general waste Yellow will symbolize glass and plastic bottles/containers and metal example Metal and Aluminium Cans/Tins. 5.3 Marketing Budget KES. Designing and Printing of Fliers 100,000 500,000.00 Mazingira Advertisements A4 size quarterly 80,000.00 Facebook Advertisements 15 days per month for 3 months 7,200.00 Purchase of .com Website and Design 20,000.00 Roadshows 4 times a month 40,000.00 5.4 Costs of Official Launch of City Clean To facilitate the official launching of Clean City, we have humbly requested the presence of Minister for Environment and Mineral Resources, Hon. John Michuki, the Environmentalist Activist and Nobel Peace Price Winner 2004, Ms. Wangari Maathai and the Director General of NEMA, Mr. Muusya Mwinzi and UNEP top officials, just to name a few. The launch programme will be brief and will mainly consist of a few speeches and refreshments. The venue will be at our Karen site. Costs of Tents 20,000.00 Refreshments 10,000.00 5.5 Promotional and advertising plan To build a customer database of a minimum of 2000 households within the next 12 months To build leads of at least 50 households and 10 Firms per week Advertise our services by distributing 1000 pamphlets/fliers to 50 households per week Give a personal touch by sending seasonal promotional representatives to deliver our Bins and Dumpsters door to door and illustrate the use, features and benefits of the Bins and plastic bags to our customers, with an aim to minimise resistance. Advertise our services on Facebook, Twitter Myspace and send out e-shots to a minimum of 50 per week Launch our website www.cleancity.com and invite internet users to join Advertise on Environmental magazines such as Mazingira We have already received backing on financial sponsorships from organisations we plan to partner with, UNEP has so far given us a pledge. 5.6 Pricing Strategy The pricing strategy of clean city will be quite similar to those of the prevailing competitor firms. The following figures depict the pricing strategy. For the services the company will charge households Ksh. 500 per month and Firms Ksh. 800 per month. A pack of a months supply for households bin bags will cost Ksh. 150 and those for firms will cost Ksh. 200. During the first month, households will have to purchase bins which will be sold in 2 varieties, 2 in 1 and 3 in 1. The 2 in 1 will be sold for Ksh. 700 and 3 in 1 for Ksh. 850. The firms will have to purchase huge dumpsters which will cost them Ksh. 3400. We will assure that the quality of all these materials is high and durable. 5.7 Market Segmentation Our target market is solely in upmarket areas that include residential homes, shopping malls, Cineplexes, 4 and 5-Star hotels and upmarket schools. 6.0 Operations Plan 6.1 Licensing and Registration Requirements NEMA The National Environment Management Authority, who is Kenyas Government Parastatal that has been given the mandate to act as Kenyas Environment Authority, has given us the required framework for all the licences and waste management policies, procedures and regulations. NEMA officials were very impressed and assured us of their full support. The cost of acquiring the licence and other regulations would be a total of Ksh. 65000. 6.2 Operating and Control Systems In order to have the operating and control system in place, we will purchase 2 computers and softwares. Our staff is already well trained in maintaining these systems and thus we will not spend on training more staff. Each computer will cost Ksh. 35000 and each software will cost Ksh. 10000 6.3 Accounting and Cost Cutting Controls We shall have computerized accounting systems with Software designed for book-keeping purposes. We also shall have an Electronic Tax Register that can calculate Value Added Tax and keep a record of our stock and daily sales. Fuel Consumption We shall sign contracts with only one fuel station close to our Site in Karen, where our Trucks will be fuelled using fuel cards, to avoid cash changing hands and to keep abreast with our fuel consumption. We shall also fit in all our trucks an anti-fuel theft device to stop any fuel siphoning. The fuel cost per month will be Ksh. 30,000 for each truck Therefore for 3 trucks a total of Ksh. 90,000. Mileage We shall take down Mileage readings of our trucks on departure and arrival on a daily basis. Performance Controls Applying Total Quality Management by incorporating benchmarking, through regular collections and comparisons of customer data in form of surveys and focus groups For effective communication purposes, our trucks will be equipped with VHF radios and a base station radio at our Site. Our trucks will undergo regular servicing to ensure effectiveness and efficiency We shall adhere to all the Governments regulations and ensure timely licence renewals 6.4 Financial plan: Accompanied summary: Company was formed in January and no revenue was earned during this period, therefore the financial projections commence from the month February 2010 when actual operations start. Target of having a customer base of 2000 households in a year and 500 firms in a year. 10 dumpsters will be purchased initially. Further dumpsters will be purchased as demand increases. Utility costs include telephone, water, electricity and internet. Salary Structure: 3 drivers @ 15,000/= each, 6 support staff @ 12,000/= each, 4 staff at holding site @ 12,000/= each. Each truck costs  £ 6500; 6500*127.945449 (exchange rate) = Ksh831, 645/= During the first month, we expect to have a customer base of 200 households and 10 firms; we expect these figures to gradually increase by 35% each month. Households will be charged 500 a month and Firms will be charged 800 per month. Sale of recyclables per Kg Ksh 10/=. We assume each household accumulates waste of approximately 2kg everyday out of which 1.5kg is renewable. Each firm accumulates 10kg of renewable waste per day. A pack of one Bin bag for households (medium size) that contains 30 bin bags for a month supply costs Ksh 150 /= A pack of one bin bag for Firms (Large size) that contains 30 bin bags for a month supply costs Ksh 200/= We assume each month half the new household customers purchase 2 in 1 bin whereas the other half purchase 3 in 1. Therefore initially we expect total households customers of 200; 100 will purchase 2 in 1, the other 100: 3 in 1. Consequently each month the 25% increase in customer base will follow the same trend. The 2 in 1 Bin will be sold for 700/= whereas the 3 in 1 will be sold for 850/=. Dumpsters are purchased for each firm @ 3500/= per dumpster. Break Even point i.e. when total revenue is equal to total costs and net profit is zero. After Break even point Clean City will start making profits. From the graph, the Break Even point is marked as 5.5 which is mid May 2010. After the 1st year, in the projections for the 2nd and 3rd year, we expect the number of customer base for both households and firms to increase by 15% annually. From the second year, we will depreciate the trucks and the office furniture on a straight line basis. The percentage annual depreciation will be 5%. The fuel cost for the 2nd and 3rd year will increase by 15% each year. This is attributed to increases in oil prices as well as increased demand of services and therefore more distance to be covered by the trucks. The initial cost of set up is presented in the table below: Item Quantity Cost per Unit (Ksh) Total cost (Ksh) Hydraulic Trucks 3 831,645 2,494,935 Gloves 13 100 1300 Boots 13 500 6500 Helmet 13 750 9750 Safety Vests 13 500 6500 Overalls 13 600 7800 Acre Plot in Karen 1 75,000 75,000 Purchase of website 1 20,000 20,000 Cost of purchasing office furniture 1 50,000 50,000 Cost of computers 2 35,000 70,000 Cost of software for each computer 2 10,000 20,000 Licensing and registration 1 65,000 65,000 Anti siphoning device for each truck 3 5000 15,000 Cost of Launch 1 30,000 30,000 TOTAL START UP COST: 2,871,785 PROFIT AND LOSS ACCOUNT PROJECTIONS YEAR 1 2 3 Revenue: No of Households 15545 17877 20558 Price charged per Household 500 500 500 Total revenue from households 7772500 8938375 10279131 No of Firms 1013 1165 1340 Price charged per Firm 800 800 800 Total revenue from Firms 810400 931960 1071754 Sales of recyclables 7299150 8394023 9653126 TOTAL REVENUE 15882050 18264358 21004011 Expenses: Rent 900000 900000 900000 Salary 1980000 1980000 1980000 Utility 84000 84000 84000 Security 60000 60000 60000 Administration Costs: Stationary cost 24000 24000 24000 depreciation of office furniture 2500 2500 2500 loan repayment 565357 565357 565357 Truck expense: Depreciation of trucks 124747 124747 124747 Fuel (30,000 per month per truck) 1080000 1242000 1428300 servicing charges (10,000 per truck) 360000 360000 360000 Cost of Purchasing Bin bags 2534350 2914503 3351678 Cost of purchasing Bins: 3 in 1 443275 990994 1139643 2 in 1 365050 816113 938529 Dumpsters 245,000 531825 611599

Ethnographic study Essay -- Analysis, Whole Foods Market

This essay is an ethnographic study of Whole Foods Market which is located in Kensington, London. Whole Foods Market is a niche supermarket that sells high quality organic and natural products at high prices. In this essay, I will provide a brief orientation of ethics with regards to the concepts of Corporate Social Responsibility - macroethics and Business Ethics - microethics and the theoretical frameworks of consequentialism, deontology and virtue ethics. I will be using deontology framework in ethics devised by Immanuel Kant to assess if the marketing strategy and the products sold at Whole Foods Market support their principle of ‘organic and natural’. My ethnographic study took place at Whole Foods Market in Kensington, London. Before entering the store, I closely examined the front display windows. The products displayed include very red fresh apples that were in a stack. The apples were placed on a tray and table to provide the product with a lift and increase product visibility for all to see. Merchandised in another window, were books written by several authors whose expertise include organic foods and farming. Behind the stack of books was a poster which had a picture of each book, highlighting the authors’ names and quotes made by the authors in the book. Also posted on the display window was information about the store supporting products made by local farmers in the Kensington area. The products were sold in store and the farmers’ names were written as well as the foods the farmers were selling. Colours used by the organisation with regards to store layout and marketing posters were light brown and green which highlights Whole Foods Market green credentials to existing, new and potential customers. The layout o... ...Market making this a primary issue and placing it in their code of conduct before the business began. Lahdesmaki (2005) argued that marketing can be an ethical contract between businesses and their customers. Therefore businesses are morally obliged to inform their customers about the products in store and provide all the information necessary via marketing strategy so the customer can make informed decisions about their purchase. Whole Foods Market does display qualities of deontology framework in relation to its marketing strategy. The analysis of the organisation and its marketing strategy within deontology theory has been carried out. The supermarket performed its ethical duty by informing customers about the products in store and showing them the preparation area, thereby justifying the high prices the high quality organic and natural products are sold at.

The Impact of Digital Technology on the Film Industry Essay -- Technol

The Impact of Digital Technology on the Film Industry The purpose of this research assignment is to put forward a convincing argument in how digital technology in the last four years have completely revolutionised the whole film industry. This thesis will attempt to focus on the main disciplines of film making and the impact that technology has had on each area. Firstly, this article will look at recent changes in the pre-production area of film making followed by what new equipment and storage facilities are being used during film production. Next is arguable the biggest transformation in the film industry as a result of technology, namely the post production stage. New methods of film distribution are explored followed by the negative impact that technology has had on the film industry with the main focus being on the illegal distribution of copyrighted film footage. New ways in post-theatre film distribution is also explored and the impact that continual break-through technologies are having on the education and training of profe ssionals working within the film industry. Finally an examination of the impact of computer generated graphics on the film industry is concluded by a brief discussion on what the future may hold for the film industry. During the pre-production phase, digital tools and technology have transformed the script writing process by making use of digital tools and the internet. The internet is being used by scriptwriters to forward their scripts to directors and potential cast members but it also caters for peer reviews by way of online forums. There has been a significant increase in the last decade in the use of digital video cameras for low-budget film shooting along with higher definition vide... ...y conceivable scene can be computer generated if resources are committed to achieve the desired goal. Technology is set to continue to revolutionise the film industry for many years to come (Huang 2004). Reference List Bishop, Rod & Case, Dominic & Axarlis, Stella & Plante, Johanna & Allsop, Derek 2000, Innovation in the Australian Film Industry, Prime Minister’s Science, Engineering and Innovation Council, Canberra. Culkin, Nigel & Randle, Keith 2003, Facing the Digital Future: The Implications of Digital Technology for the Film Industry, University of Hertfordshire, Hertfordshire. Huang, Gregory 2004, The New Face of Hollywood, Technology Review, http://www.technologyreview.com//articles/04/09/huang0904.asp?p=0. Markman, David & Vega 2001, Mark, Digital Future: Movie Industry Tries to Keep One Step Ahead of Hackers, Daily Journal, Los Angeles. The Impact of Digital Technology on the Film Industry Essay -- Technol The Impact of Digital Technology on the Film Industry The purpose of this research assignment is to put forward a convincing argument in how digital technology in the last four years have completely revolutionised the whole film industry. This thesis will attempt to focus on the main disciplines of film making and the impact that technology has had on each area. Firstly, this article will look at recent changes in the pre-production area of film making followed by what new equipment and storage facilities are being used during film production. Next is arguable the biggest transformation in the film industry as a result of technology, namely the post production stage. New methods of film distribution are explored followed by the negative impact that technology has had on the film industry with the main focus being on the illegal distribution of copyrighted film footage. New ways in post-theatre film distribution is also explored and the impact that continual break-through technologies are having on the education and training of profe ssionals working within the film industry. Finally an examination of the impact of computer generated graphics on the film industry is concluded by a brief discussion on what the future may hold for the film industry. During the pre-production phase, digital tools and technology have transformed the script writing process by making use of digital tools and the internet. The internet is being used by scriptwriters to forward their scripts to directors and potential cast members but it also caters for peer reviews by way of online forums. There has been a significant increase in the last decade in the use of digital video cameras for low-budget film shooting along with higher definition vide... ...y conceivable scene can be computer generated if resources are committed to achieve the desired goal. Technology is set to continue to revolutionise the film industry for many years to come (Huang 2004). Reference List Bishop, Rod & Case, Dominic & Axarlis, Stella & Plante, Johanna & Allsop, Derek 2000, Innovation in the Australian Film Industry, Prime Minister’s Science, Engineering and Innovation Council, Canberra. Culkin, Nigel & Randle, Keith 2003, Facing the Digital Future: The Implications of Digital Technology for the Film Industry, University of Hertfordshire, Hertfordshire. Huang, Gregory 2004, The New Face of Hollywood, Technology Review, http://www.technologyreview.com//articles/04/09/huang0904.asp?p=0. Markman, David & Vega 2001, Mark, Digital Future: Movie Industry Tries to Keep One Step Ahead of Hackers, Daily Journal, Los Angeles.

Analyzing EMC Corporation

EMC Corporation, based in Hopkinton, Massachusetts. with 11,200 employees worldwide, is the world†s leading supplier of intelligent enterprise storage and retrieval technology. EMC is a Fortune 500 company and was ranked ninth on Business Week†s 1998 â€Å"Info Tech 100†³ list of the world†s best-performing information technology companies. In 1998, EMC had an annual revenue of $3.9 billion. EMC designs systems for open system, mainframe, and midrange environments. EMC is the only company in the world entirely focused on rapidly delivering intelligent enterprise storage and retrieval solutions. This enables companies and organizations to leverage their growing volumes of information into profitability, growth and competitive advantage. EMC Enterprise Storage systems, software products, and services are the leading information access and storage solutions for every major computing platform in today†s business enterprise. EMC was founded in 1979 by Richard Egan and Robert Marino (the E and M in EMC) as a supplier of add-on memory boards. EMC†s rapid rise in the worldwide data storage market began its major surge in 1989, when the company revised its strategy to align itself with businesses† growing reliance on increasingly vast and complex amounts of electronic data. In 1990 with the introduction of EMC†s Symmetrix product line, EMC became the first company to provide intelligent storage systems based on arrays of small, commodity hard disk drives for the mainframe market. Since the in introduction of Symmetrix technology, more than 30,000 of these systems have been sold around the globe and EMC†s annual revenues have grown from $190 million in 1990 to $3.97 billion in 1998. With the introduction of Symmetrix Remote Data Facility in 1994, EMC became the world†s leading storage-based solution for business continuity and disaster recovery. EMC†s portfolio of storage software includes EMC TimeFinder, EMC Data Manager, EMC PowerPath and Symmetrix Manager. With its $445 million in software revenue in 1998, this makes EMC one of the world†s largest and fastest-growing software companies. The major customers of EMC include the world†s largest banks and financial services firms, telecommunications providers, airlines, retailers and manufacturers, as well as governments, universities, and scientific institutions. These customers rely on EMC†s innovative storage solutions for such applications as online reservation systems, transaction processing, customer billing, year 2000 compliance, the Internet and corporate intranets, business continuance/disaster recovery, data mining and data warehousing. EMC has also formed alliances with the world†s leading software, application and database companies, such as Microsoft, SAP, Oracle, Baan, and PeopleSoft. EMC is a global organization, and is represented by more than 100 offices worldwide. The company manufactures its products in Massachusetts and Ireland. EMC has R&D facilities in Massachusetts, Colorado, Israel, and France. They also have Customer Support Centers in Massachusetts, Ireland, Japan, and Australia. EMC holds the most strict quality management certification from the International Organization for Standardization (ISO 9001) and its manufacturing operations hold MRP II Class A certification. The company trades on the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol EMC and is a component of the S&P 500 Index. Richard J. Egan- Founder and Chairman Egan is a founder of EMC Corporation.. He has served as Director since the companies inception in 1979. In 1988, Egan brought the company public and was elected Chairman of the Board. He held the position of President and CEO until January 1992. Michael C. Ruettgers- President and CEO Ruettgers has held the position of President and CEO of EMC Corporation, since January of 1992. Ruettgers joined the company in 1988 as executive Vice President of Operations and Customer Service, and from 1989 he was EMC†s President and Chief Operating Officer. 1979- EMC Corporation is founded by Richard j. Egan and Roger Marino in Newton, 1981- 64 kilobyte chip memory boards are developed for Prime Computers. 1982- EMC corporate headquarters moves to Natick, Massachusetts. -Annual sales surpass the $3 million mark. 1984- Five years after the company†s founding, annual sales reach $18.8 million, nearly tripling 1985- EMC is first to commercially ship denser memory upgrades using 1-megabit Random 1986- EMC goes public in April; makes initial public offering on the NASDAQ stock exchange. -Total revenues double over 1985 to $66.6 million; net income more than doubles to $18.6 million. 1987- Corporate headquarters relocates to Hopkinton, Massachusetts. 1988- EMC opens its European manufacturing facility in Cork, Ireland. -EMC stock lists for the first time on the New York Stock Exchange in March. 1989- Second major US corporate facility is opened in Hopkinton, Massachusetts. -EMC develops Direct Access Storage Device (DASD) subsystems with automated error thresholding for IBM System/38 and AS/400 computers. -Michael C. Ruettgers, is promoted from Executive Vice President of Operations and Customer Service, to President and Chief Operating Officer. Richard J. Egan continues his 1990- EMC redefines mainframes storage by introducing the Symmetrix 4200 Integrated Cached Disk Array (ICDA), a 24-gigabyte RAID mainframe storage system that replaces traditional 14†³ DASD disks with the mainframe industry†s first 5.25-inch disks. Performance is further enhanced through 4-gigabyte cache and 32-processor controller cards. -EMC institutes a Continuous Quality Improvement process, resulting in greatly enhanced product and process quality, as well as over $20 million saved to date (1995). 1991- Several enhancements to the Symmetrix ICDA product line give EMC the ability to compete in the Online Transaction Processing (OLTP) environment. 1992- Michael C. Ruettgers is named President and CEO and the company†s stock splits 2 for 3. 1993- EMC mainframe storage market share increases from 5% to 15%. 1994- EMC introduces the world†s first â€Å"terabyte box† and the company surpasses the $1 billion 1995- EMC introduces first Symmetrix storage systems for open systems and surpasses IBM as market share leader in mainframe disk storage capacity. 1996- EMC becomes leader in the open storage market. 1997- EMC extends lead in the enterprise storage and retrieval market. 1998- The EMC Effect is felt across the computing enterprise. 1999- EMC Corporation announces two-for-one stock split. There are five forces that shape competition in an industry, barriers to entry, power of suppliers, power of buyers, threat of substitutes, and rivalry & industry structure. These five forces that Porter developed have become a strong framework in helping strategic mangers find answers as to how, or why decision can have an impact on their firm, and the industry they operate in. When analyzed the collective strength of these forces show potential profits of an industry. The company being focused on is EMC, which is in the Computer Peripherals industry. Barriers to entry are forces that firms must overcome in order to enter an industry. These barriers can be caused from high initial investment, product differentiation, cost disadvantage, access to distribution channels, or restrictive government policies. An example of this could be the phone, or cable companies. There are very few companies that are able to compete within this industry because of the high capital requirements to start off. An enormous amount of time and money would have to be spent on installing lines throughout the country to supply you customers with the services they want. EMC is in a situation where it has created several barriers to entry. Capital requirements are one of the barriers that EMC has in its favor. In 1979 EMC started its business in data storage which it is now the leading company in its industry. It has offices all over the globe and is the only company in the world to be specifically focused on rapidly delivering intelligent enterprise storage and retrieval solutions. There are very few companies that can compete with EMC because of its name association and large international operation. New entrance into this industry would have to invest large amounts of time and money into research and development. EMC already has the technology and is constantly updating with more advanced services. Another barrier to entry is product differentiation. EMC is specialized in enterprise storage, which is much different than conventional storage. While conventional storage has been used to back up memory in case of a disaster or, to log companies transactions, EMC started a niche which it has made into a new industry. Enterprise storage has six specific parts that set it aside from conventional storage. They are as follows enterprise connectivity, information centricity, cascadability, information management, information sharing, and information protection. It can be clearly seen that this industry is constantly changing, and new products are coming out every day. If you are not the leader in this new technology then you will not survive. EMC has without a doubt developed barriers to entry. The threat of substitutes is how easily a product can be interchanged with another. For example if you are going to buy bottled water you decision will ultimately come down to price. An expensive flashy bottle of water can easily be exchanged for a generic store brand bottle at a fraction of the cost. However with services it is a different story. Lawyers for example could easily be substituted if you were looking at the cost. It would be very simple to find a cheap lawyer, however you might end up losing your case. To get a top of the line service you will have to pay a little extra. EMC is a top of the line service which also offers a very affordable pricing strategy. Its pricing very sensitive with the companies it works with, whether you are a world dominating bank, or a newly started Internet company. EMC has something to offer everyone. What makes EMC even more attractive is its unmatchable customer service. Customers are always kept in close and frequent contact whether it be for unforeseen problems, or to validate new features. Customers have found that EMC offers the best of both worlds, and that no other company so far can be substituted for it. â€Å"We need high capacity, fast performance, a scalable platform, and total data protections. With EMC, we found a complete solution from one provider.† Says the General Manager of information technology, at Komercni Banka. This clearly shows the EMC has eliminated its substitutes by offering something that no one else can match. Rivals in any given industry are a part of competition that businesses have to deal with. For the past several years EMC has not had to deal with many competitor since they offer services and customer support that surpasses any other company that has been looking to get into the the information storage industry. IBM, and Sun Microsystems are two companies that have recently been competing with EMC. These are both large established companies that deal in many different aspects of the technology industry. Both IBM and Sun Microsystems have begun to compete with EMC†s self started indusrty. The reason for this is because they both have large R&D departments with large budgets that allow development of product comparable to EMC. However since EMC is so focused in their niche market they have a mixture between service and product quality that hasn†t been matched by anyone. IBM Sun and the other competitor are not focused just on storage technology but they also have many other interest. This makes companies weary of handing over valuable information to a business that could be in direct competition with them. This gives EMC a competitive advantage over any other company since they are well known for tight security. Another advantage EMC has over its competitors is that they are now recognized as the â€Å"standard: in computer information back up and storage area.

Play Review: “Annie” Essay

The play â€Å"ANNIE† was all about an orphan who is waiting her parents to get her in the orphanage because when she was a baby her parents promised her in a letter that they will get her back when the time comes. And they have a proof that they were Annie’s parents because of her pendant she was wearing when she’s a baby and when they left her in the orphanage. But 11 years have passed and her parent’s still not yet come to get her. So she decided that she will bail herself out of the orphanage. Until she already got out, but Ms. Hannigan (the one who takes care of the orphans and the orphanage) reported to the police that she was missing, until Annie was already found by the police and returned her into the orphanage. And then a woman came to the orphanage to get a child to spend a Christmas vacation with her boss at her boss house. And then she picked Annie to spend the Christmas with them. And when Annie came to Mr. Warbox house she was amazed because it was big and beautiful. At first Mr. Warbox didn’t like Annie because she was a girl cause Mr. Warbox a boy to spend Christmas with him. But as the time goes by he already liked Annie to be his own daughter. So he decided that he will adopt Annie. But Annie didn’t want to be adopted by Mr. Warbox because she’s still waiting for her parents to come and get her. So Mr. Warbox and Grace Farell was trying to find Annie’s parents. But many impostors was saying that they were Annie’s parents because of the money that they will receive ftom Mr. Warbox. Until the brother of Ms. Hannigan (Rooster Hannigan) said that he was real father of Annie because of the half of the pendant he has. But the real thing is that he was not the father of Annie he only wanted the money that Mr. Warbox will give. But before they give the money and Annie they already know that Rooster Hannigan was an imposter and they know that the real parents of Annie was already dead. So Annie decided that she will approved by the adoption that Mr. Warbox was talking about so, she decided that she wants being adopted by Mr.Warbox. All-in-all the play was great but there are some mistakes that you can see in the play. Some of them are the low voices of the some characters, the background musics, and their lightning’s. In the low voices of the characters, some characters like Annie has a low voice when she was talking. And then the background music, sometimes the background musics are louder than the voices of the characters in the stage play. And then their lightnings they have only one spotlight  that’s why the other characters in the story doesn’t have a spotlight even if they were doing something. But all-in-all the stage play was great and I refer that all ages can watch this type of stage play because it really for families. And the stage play has many lessons that we can get and we can connect it in our lives.

Goals in life Essay

It is the goal of every individual to adequately achieve his/her goals in life. It is what motivates them to strive and seek for something worthwhile. Each one uses this as a model for getting motivation and fulfillment in the things that they do. Amidst the setbacks that are in place, it is in here that they learn to appreciate what is important in life; hard work and determination. Moreover, our ability to transcend to other people and influence change can truly bring about capabilities to be adaptive and vibrant. Give this notion, I wish to present my intention to apply for a degree in Communication. Dialogue and exchange remain to be one of the instruments that shape man’s interaction among other people. It serves as an important determinant in molding and creating individuals who are both capable to adapt and conquer the challenges of professional practice. Given the complexities of today’s workplace, many students need to be formally trained to have the sufficient and necessary skills to cope in these changing times. By doing this, I can be competent and vigorous in the things I do. To supplement this, one must have the essential experience and leadership skills so that this relative facet be honed and cultivated. For my part, I believe that I have these necessary ideals to adequately address these challenges both in the educational environment and in the workplace. It is in here that I wish to point out my qualifications and traits that I believe can be vital towards my application in UC. At an early age, I was exposed into various endeavors that opened up my abilities and potential as a leader. Being immersed in these activities other than my study widened my horizons and opened new boundaries for me to explore. From my experience in Hong Kong to my community work in Santa Monica College, all these paved the way for such realization. At the same time, I was able to cultivate the service trait which I believe is an essential component of a good and adequate leader. Looking at my experiences, I had mentioned that I was not merely involved in academic undertaking. I too tried to develop my interpersonal skills by advocating numerous civic and extracurricular activities including sports. Back then, I was in the badminton school team since I was in grade 7(grade 7 to grade 11) I represent my school to entered many badminton competitions and came out with a good results. Moreover, I am proud to have been part of the â€Å"Duke of Edinburg Awards† (The DofE) and finished the Silver level. The DofE is a programme of activities that can be undertaken by anyone aged from 14 to 25, regardless of personal ability. In the end, all these endeavors contributed to what I am right now; competitive and vibrant. With your help, I can actively sustain this energy and create opportunities for me to create and respond actively to the needs of others. Prompt 2 I believe that determination and patience remains to be the defining factor in the way we do and handle things. It is in this light that we gain experience and insights that contribute to the way we do our tasks and responsibilities. Give the different struggles that we may encounter in these situations; we must continue to stand up and use these events as a way to facilitate a renewed effort to widen our horizons and learn from the process. It is with this adage that I come to combat every challenge that may come along the way. Coming from the United States as an immigrant, I too experienced difficulties in adjusting to the norms and culture. I had to cope up with the language barrier and effectively communicating with other people. However, this did not stop me from achieving what I wanted to be. Rather than giving up in the process, I developed my personal commitment to major in communication to help me bridge this gap and let other immigrants feel the same way. Though this task is never an easy one, I feel that my background and the way I was brought up by my father can give me the strength to tackle any challenge that may come along the way. Looking back, I am proud to say that my family raised me pretty well and gave the right norms and values to handle the pressures in the outside world. They gave me the opportunity to showcase my talent and skills in different ways. Each one did not hamper my growth but gave me the inspiration to focus on what I want. In addition, they imparted in me the lessons of patience and perseverance in everything. Now, I began to understand and appreciate what they gave me. As I brought these adages to practice, I became involved in numerous activities outside the academic realm. It has always been my belief that to achieve an element of satisfaction and fulfillment, one must go out of his/her comfort zone and serve other people. With this, I began to associate with individuals in different levels may it be in sports (badminton) or civic activities such as my participation in Duke of Edinburg Awards. Not only did these programs enhance my capabilities and skills as an individual, it also gave meaning in my life and purpose in everything that I do. My involvement as a vice president of my house was also a unique experience on my part. It proved vital for me to enhance my leadership and communication skills among other people. I became part of charity events and reaching out for disabled people. It motivated me because I am now seeing what I wanted to become and actively working harmoniously with other individuals. I learned useful skills which allow me to meet people and communicate with them. In all of these, I feel that the past five years of my life were a determining factor of what I wanted to be.