Electrochemical cell lab Aim Essay

Aim :- To find out the feasibility of a redox reaction by looking at the cell potential of the reaction . Quantitative observation The table below shows the values of cell potential that were recorded when the experiment was performed Reaction Cell potential (ÂÂ ±0.01V) CuSO4 and ZnSO4 0.99V CuSO4 and AgNO3 0.64V Ag 1.39V Qualitative Observation Reaction Obsevrations CuSO4 and ZnSO4 Copper sulphate turns from clear to blue , whereas zinc sulphate remains colorless CuSO4 and AgNO3 Copper sulphate is blue in color , silver nitrate is colorless Ag Data processing Experiment 1 Zn(s) -> Zn2+ (aq) + 2e- (aq) Cu2+ (aq) + 2e- (aq) -> Cu (s) Cu2+ (aq) + Zn(s) -> Cu(s) + Zn2+ (aq) Experiment 2 Cu(s) -> Cu2+ (aq)+ 2e- (aq) Ag+(aq) + e- (aq) -> Ag(s) Cu(s) + 2Ag+ (aq) -> Cu2+ (Aq) + 2Ag (s) Experiment 3 Zn(s) -> Zn2+ (aq) + 2e- (aq) Ag+ (aq) + e- (aq)-> Ag(s) Zn(s) + 2Ag+ (aq) -> Zn2+ (aq) + 2Ag (s) The table below shows the literature values for the respective cell potential Reaction Cell potential (ÂÂ ±0.01V) CuSO4 and ZnSO4 0.34V CuSO4 and AgNO3 0.46 V. Ag 1.10 V Error percentage = (|difference between the literature and experimental value|)/(the literature value )x100 = (|0.34V – 0.99V|)/(0.34V) x100 = 191.17% We can similarly find the error percentages for other cell potentials also The table below shows the respective error percentages of each of the cell potential Reaction Error percentage CuSO4 and ZnSO4 191.17% CuSO4 and AgNO3 39.13% Ag 16.36% Theory Electrochemical cells In an electrochemical cell, electricity is produced through chemical reactions. There consist two electrodes: – the negative electrode and the positive electrode. At the negative electrode

Conflict Negotiation Scenario

?Running head: CONFLICT NEGOTIATION SCENARIO Conflict Negotiation Scenario University of Phoenix HCS587 Conflict Negotiation Scenario TradeStation Securities is an online brokerage company where I was employed as the Client Service Director in charge of the Florida and Chicago Client Service Associates which, totaled 90 employees. Due to the strict rules and regulations of the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) any employee handling brokerage accounts for customers must have their securities license known as the Series 7. When I was hired in January 2008, my contract included that within the first year of employment I needed to study and obtain this license. I also was in charge of ensuring that each employee within the Client Service Department obtained their licenses as well. My department was extremely unorganized and there were no procedures in place for the employees. My first task was to create a flow chart of the Client Service procedures and how they were linked to providing excellent customer service. I linked the procedures and showed how the procedures were linked to other departments of the company. I presented my chart at the first weekly management meeting and received approval from all department managers that were involved. Everything was going as planned until a scandal between the sales department and a client changed everything. The President of my department was also the President of the Sales Department as well and due to the issue with the sales department he was asked to resign. The Vice President of the company took over both departments until a replacement was found. I met with the Vice President and discussed with him the plan I created and how the implementation was progressing. He was concerned that I was hired without my licenses and expressed to me the importance of obtaining them. I discussed with him my contract and explained to him that I was about two weeks away from being prepared to take the exam. My motivation to succeed was noticeable and at that time I felt he knew that I was dedicated to making my department successful which would be shown by the customer service provided to our clients. I started to notice that I was not being included in important management meetings. I made an appointment to speak with the Vice President to discuss my concerns and the reasons for not being included. At that time, he explained that he was placing another director within the company as director of my department. He explained that I should not have been hired since I didn't not have my securities license and stated that this individual was going to assist me with running the department until I passed the exam. I was taken back because he never discussed this with me previously and I felt that he was attempting to push me out of the department and the company. His behavior demonstrated towards me was unprofessional and came across as cold. My employees noticed that something was transpiring and continued to ask me if something was going. I met with each employee and communicated that change would always occur but the changes were going to be effective and they needed to continue to excel in their position. I started to notice that my employees started to slip with their performance because of the negative communication that was occurring throughout the department. I decided to escalate the issue to the President of the Company. The President was well aware of my employment with his company as well as the action plan I created for my department. He was empathetic of the situation and decided to have a meeting with the Vice President and myself. I knew at this point the Vice President was going to be extremely upset because I went above his head on the situation. After a two hour meeting, the situation was under control and I felt at ease knowing that I had the President of the company agreeing with my employment and the positive changes I have made and continued to make daily with the department. I knew the Vice President was upset so I decided to give him a week to digest the situation and I made an appointment to speak with him. I expressed my loyalty to him and the company and went over my plans again ith him and asked him for his thoughts on the changes I wanted to make. I took the â€Å"team† approach when speaking with him to try and get him to see that I wanted to improve the department which would improve the overall customer satisfaction and the success of the company. He expressed his determination to continue to make the changes that he first discussed with me that didn't include me in the picture. I told him I was unfortunate to hear that he was not going to be a team player and that I expressed that I was going to continue the work that I was hired for. At that time, he also expressed that he would continue to work towards his plan. Over the next couple of weeks, I continued to make the improvements with the policies and procedures in the department even though a new director had been placed in my department. I felt like I was in a battle and saw that the employees were being affected as well as my clients due to the confusion. I asked for another meeting but this time not only with the President and Vice President. I also included the board members, the HR department manager and the legal counsel for the company. During the meeting I started from the beginning walking all of them through the timeline and the flow chart and the disruptions that had been preventing the success. All the board members, the President, the legal counsel and the HR Manager agreed that I was on the right path. The final decision was for me to continue handling my department and my department would be overseen by the President instead of the Vice President of the company. A month later, the Vice President resigned from the company because his future for the company was not aligned with the President and Board Members path.

Public Sector Budgeting Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2250 words

Public Sector Budgeting - Assignment Example It is majorly done by the executive and should not be made a secretive process. The first important step of this stage is to set a fiscal policy and it involves estimation of the resources available for spending. The treasury department will then issue a directive of spending to all the departments based on the policy framework (Khan & Hildreth, 2002). Negotiations will follow between the spending departments and the treasury with a bid to allocate the resources. The process then ends with the development of a consolidated draft budget that is approved by the cabinet or a higher political authority that will deliberate on the contentious issues before moving to the next budget stage. After drafting a comprehensive budget, the document will be laid before the legislature for approval. Government regulations bar the executive from making expenditures without obtaining sanction from the legislature. Parliament will closely scrutinize the draft budget and has the option of approving, rej ecting, amending or in some cases substituting the draft that is presented by the executive (Khan & Hildreth, 2002). The legislature will also have the mandate of approving the relevant laws on taxation before they take effect. It is important to notice that the period taken by the legislature in approving the budget varies from country to counter. Once approved, the budget process enters the implementation stage, which marks the commencement of a fiscal year. The implementation process is in the hands of the executive, which allocates the resources to the departments in line with the approved estimates. The legislature however may monitor the executive in the process to ensure that they don’t deflect t from the estimates. In the developing economies, the executive may have to cut on some approved expenditures to take care of emerging circumstances. Where the emergency requires substantial amounts, the legislature will have to approve the new estimates to protect the minority rights. The final stage is the accounting and financial reporting stage. At this stage an independent auditor is vested with the mandate of analyzing the government accounts and government reports with the objective of giving an opinion on whether the implementation has been done in a desirable manner. The report should be made in a timely manner and with recommendations that will be reflected in future budgets in order to improve future public accounting and budgeting. Reports should be made in a timely manner to ensure that the official who might be responsible for loss of public resources are convicted for their actions before their retirement or after they had left public service. The budget process is not an event and is an ongoing process that is interconnected. Legislature participation should not be limited to approval and review of the audit findings. Parliament should be empowered to ensure that they make the executive responsible for proper implementation of the budget. B The public sector and private sector budgeting have similarities and differences in some ways. Private sector budgeting is driven by the market and that of the public sector is constrained by resources from taxation. It therefore means that both the public and private sector budgets have some constraints. Secondly, both the private and public and private sector budgeting have objectives. For the private the aim is to make profits while public budgeting is service to the serve the

The function and mechanism of AlkB Research Paper

The function and mechanism of AlkB - Research Paper Example Iron is known to interfere in the assays due to instability of AlkB/Fe+2 complexes in aerobic conditions; a problem that is overcome by replacing iron with other metals or performing assays under anaerobic conditions. The presence of iron bound to 2-oxoglutarate in the core of the enzyme has been established through over expression and isolation of native protein. Like all other Fe(II)/2-oxoglutarate-dependent dioxygenase superfamily enzymes AlkB too has a metal center exhibiting a UV-Vis band range of 52-580nm; that in absence of DNA is a five coordinate Fe2 center and changes to six coordinate center in presence of single stranded DNA. Like other members of the superfamily, AlkB too has a core jelly roll fold that is formed of 8 beta strands at the carboxy-terminus. The catalytic domain is contained within the carboxy-terminus; however additional features for substrate specificity lie outside the catalytic domain and the jelly roll fold. At the N-terminus additional beta strands an d alpha helices form a support scaffold for the catalytic domain and also the outer walls of Binding groove for DNA/RNA. In addition to these and many other structural similarities of AlkB to other members of Fe(II)/2-oxoglutarate-dependent dioxygenase superfamily; certain characteristics unique to AlkB include nucleotide binding lid, flipping mechanism motif. A common double stranded beta helix (DSBH) fold comprising of a large and a small beta sheet with iron core in between has the enzymes’ conserved residues. The first of the two distinct regions of DSBH includes a highly conserved iron binding region H131XD133XH187, wherein iron is bound to the 2-oxoglutarate in a bidentate form. The DSBH present the substrate binding site interacting exclusively with the damaged DNA/RNA strand through 2 amino terminal alpha helices and beta sheet loops that form a secondary structure called ‘lid’ (nucleotide recognition lid) over the active site. The flexible conformation o f the lid allows it its amino acids (Thr51, Tyr76 and Arg161) to bind to varied alkyl groups on its nucleotide substrates through H-bonding to phosphate group in the nucleotide backbone. As a consequence of this interaction the catalytic core of the AlkB, the enzyme loses its flexibility; undergoes a conformational change that disallows oxygen to reach the active site thereby preventing the oxidation of iron. It can thus be proposed that DNA binding if occurring after iron would lead to access of oxygen to active site. DNA/RNA repair mechanism of AlkB involves oxidative demethylation of nucleotides at the site of lesion which is accomplished through hydroxylation of methylated bases through oxidative decarboxylation of 2-oxoglutarate in the enzyme core. The latter as result is converted to succinate and CO2, and methyl group is released as formaldehyde. Though the actual mechanism is yet to be established, on the basis of studies on another enzyme of the same superfamily, TauD; the probable mechanism involving an oxidative intermediate to Trp178 has been proposed. The mechanism also verified through in vitro assays on purified AlkB involves the binding of Fe2 and 2-oxoglutarate to the enzyme core followed by binding of methylated middle base to the ‘lid’. This allows oxygen to reach the iron and form nucleophillic superoxo anion (OÂ ­2-) –Fe3. This then forms a bridged peroxo-type intermediate along with 2-oxoglutarate, that through decarboxylation of 2-oxoglutarate and cleavage of O2 forms Fe4-oxygen intermediate. Coupled to oxygen cleavage is formation of succinate and CO2 from 2-oxoglutarate. The intermediate on the other hand hydoxylates the methyl group at the nucleotide forming

Determinism, Compatiblism, and Libertarianism Research Paper

Determinism, Compatiblism, and Libertarianism - Research Paper Example I will divide my paper into four main parts. Part one will be devoted to an analysis of determinism. I shall use Paul Holbach’s version of this position. In contrast to part one, part two will tackle the libertarian position. Here I shall use Roderick Chisholm’s version. And part three will discuss the compatibilist view on free will. In doing so, I shall use A. J. Ayer’s version. Finally, I will show the main strengths and weaknesses of each. I will conclude my paper by giving an explanation on why I think compatibilism is the most feasible and practical among all three. Determinism: Everything Has A Cause Determinism is the view that rests on the assumption that everything has a cause. â€Å"All doctrines of determinism imply that given the past and the laws of nature at any given time, there is only one possible future. Whatever happens is therefore inevitable† (Kane 285). What does this imply? It simply implies that â€Å"we could not have chosen othe rwise† (Feinberg and Shafer-Landau 410). To illustrate this position further, I will explore Paul Holbach’s version of hard-determinism. Holbach says that we are not free. But how does he argue for this position? The main claim of determinism is that â€Å"whatever happens is determined by prior events† (Sie 2). Holbach is a hard determinist. ... But if my action is determined by past events, then I'm unable to act otherwise. Therefore, I don’t ever act freely. One can argue that it is not the case that I don’t act freely for I have my own motives, choices and I am not restrained. However, Holbach refutes this on the basis of â€Å"the complexity of human conduct and the illusion of free agency† (Holbach 463). Holbach argues, we only think we are free because we cannot explain the phenomena, but in principle, we can explain everything by explaining its causes (463). For instance, if I can explain my actions through the laws of nature then we have no use for free will anymore. So if we discover the cause of a given phenomena, then it nullifies freedom. Therefore, we are not free. Contrary to determinism is the libertarian position. I shall discuss Chisholm’s version of libertarianism next. Libertarianism: some of our actions are free Libertarianism argues that some events that happen are not determi ned by prior events. In defending freewill, Chisholm suggests: We must not say that every event involved in the act is caused by some other event; and we must not say that the act is something that is not caused at all. The possibility that remains, therefore, is this: We should say that at least one of the events that are involved in the act is caused, not by any other events, but by something else instead. And this something else can only be the agent—the man (440). Given Chisholm’s suggestion, I can say that my action-A is free if and only if I am the cause of A and that I could have done another action-B other than A. If determinism is true, I could not have done B. But I could have done B because I am the cause of my actions. My decision to do A caused me to perform A,

Cell Phones VS Landlines; the Advantages and Disadvantages Research Paper

Cell Phones VS Landlines; the Advantages and Disadvantages - Research Paper Example nine percent of Americans use cell phones only with no landlines though most Americans combine the use of both landlines and cell phones (Westcott, p41). A cell phone is a short-range communications device that receives and broadcasts low power digital radio signals to and from cell sites which are located throughout populated areas. Older cell phones transmitted analogue signals with some transmitting both digital and analogue signals until 2008 when the support of analogue signals stopped. On the other hand, landline phones are usually linked to a main central utility via telephone lines. Local regulatory commissions normally control the pricing of landline use. Traditionally, landlines were the ones used for homes and offices but nowadays more people have switched to cell phones. This presentation seeks to examine the pros and cons of cell phones and land lines from different perspectives in terms of their use and possession and provide one with knowledge to enable him or her make an informed decision when choosing to have one or both telecommunication devices. Portability: Unlike land lines, cell phones are very portable and one can carry them along anywhere and use them anywhere where there is a service provider signal. They can be conveniently carried around and used in places where land lines are absent, for example while on the highways. Mobility: One can use cell phones while on the move and hence save a lot of time which would have been wasted by being stationary and waiting for the phone call, especially for a busy individual. Besides, one does not have to miss important calls while on the move. Emergencies: In cases of accidents, one can easily call the ambulance or police while at the scene. One can even take pictures of the accident scene if he has a phone with a camera. In cases where one may be lost, one can call for directions or if he has a GPS enabled phone, the emergency services can trace his position and come to his rescue. Versatility:

AAA servers Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

AAA servers - Essay Example Authentication is suitable for user identification, typically by having the user enter a valid password and username before access is . The authentication process enables each user to have unique criteria for gaining access to the computer. The AAA compares other user credentials within the database to the authentication credentials. The user is only granted access when the credentials match with one another. Authentication fails when the credentials are at variance, and the access is (Choi, Jung & Jang, 2007). After authentication, a user has to be authorized (authorization) to perform a certain task. The user may try to issue the command after logging into the system. Authorization is the process of determining the qualities or the types of resources, activities and services that a user is permitted to undertake. Accounting measures the resources that a user utilizes during access. It comprises the amount of data and time that a user has spends or used (Lopez-Fernandez et al., 2014). Bu is using the server the company can control access to information and data while at the same time keep record of the time and resources spent by the user. The motive authentication, authorization and accounting server addresses roaming partnerships, complex resource sharing and integration of disparate technologies such as Wi-Fi, LTE, DSL, GPON and small cell. The server delivers extended functionality for the deployment of blended multimedia services, wireless LANs and other networks supporting fixed mobile roaming. The server is beneficial to the organization since it supports unlimited numbers of subscribers having many configurations (Zaghloul & Jukan, 2009). Choi, H., Jung, C., & Jang, Y. 2007. Design and Implementation of User Authentication and Authorization System based on Remote Management Server for Home Network. The KIPS Transactions:Partd, 14D(5), 545-554. doi:10.3745/kipstd.2007.14-d.5.545 Lin, P., Cheng, S., & Liao, W. 2009.

Written analysis of a quantitative research report to determine the Paper

Written analysis of a quantitative report to determine the validity of the study - Research Paper Example (Choi, 2005; Gardner, 2005a; Jeffreys, 2007b). Research on stress in nursing students indicates these students experience a variety of stressors, such as fear of failure, financial issues, patient care responsibilities, and balancing school work with personal life (Jones & Johnston, 1997, 1999). Furthermore, the greater the stress experienced, the greater the negative effects it has on student learning and success (Gwele & Uys, 1998; Jones & Johnston, 1997). Conceptual model is used in forms of diargrams and scales and it is used to help us understand the subject matter. This model includes 11 teaching strategies, such as prepairing learning objectives related to communication, premitting expression of identity and cultural sharing,providing bilinguaal and bicultural opportunities, modeling the use of texts and resources, and continuous assesment. The findings of this study reflect previous literature indicating that foreign-born nursing students report issues of discrimination, stereotyping, and cultural incompetence or incongruence (Gardner, 2005b; Jeffreys, 2007a). An interpretive phenomenological design was used to examine stress experiences and perceptions of faculty support among foreign-born generic baccalaureate nursing students. Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis  (IPA) is an approach to psychological  qualitative research  with an idiographic focus, which means that it aims to offer insights into how a given person, in a given context, makes sense of a given  phenomenon. Usually these phenomena relate to experiences of some personal significance - such as a major life event, or the development of an important relationship. It has its theoretical origins in  phenomenology  and  hermeneutics, and key ideas from  Husserl,  Heidegger, and  Merleau-Ponty  are often cited  . IPA is one of several approaches to qualitative, phenomenological psychology. A purposeful sample of foreign-born

SEMESTER PROJECT Thesis Proposal Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

SEMESTER PROJECT - Thesis Proposal Example The food chain is famous for customising and evolving as per the consumer preferences. This philosophy helped McDonalds succeed in 119 countries, including culturally-sensitive Arabian and South-east Asia nations. Thus, it can be described as unstable. Subway, though an International fast food chain, spread over 98 countries, is narrower than McDonalds, as the former targets the health-conscious customers, who propose to eat fresh. Its nutrition focus made it possible to establish franchises in churches, hospitals etc too. Comparatively, the menu also speaks the same, as the product portfolio includes sandwiches, salads, burgers, sides and soft drinks (Doctors Associates Inc., 2009). But for the minor modifications to suit the local religious beliefs, not many changes are made in the menu. So, Subway has a more or less stable outlook, as compared to McDonalds. Coming to the boundaries, McDonalds is highly permeable and attracts customers, right from its clown, Ronald and its golden arches welcoming them. The seating arrangement, ambience, the first part of their tagline, ‘Get them in’ reinforce this ideology. The turnover rates at store level are found to be low, showing its impermeability in this aspect (Francis, 2011). The logo, flashy ‘open’ board and long working hours bring customers to the outlet. But, the limited number of tables and less store space make Subway unlikely destinations for catching up with friends. It operates more on take away mode and therefore less permeable than McDonalds. High employee attrition rates have also been observed at Subway, mainly due to low levels of satisfaction, which declare its permeability (Schlosser, 2001). McDonalds has a complex activity system, which guarantees competitive advantage (Pride & Ferrell, 2007). The laborious and long procedures also make it inflexible. Subway heavily relies on franchising. The complex and inflexible activity system is thus transmitted to the all levels, emphasizing the

A Separate Peace Essay Example for Free

A Separate Peace Essay A Separate Peace tells the story of a sixteen-year-old boy at boarding school in New Hampshire during World War II, and the mixed feelings of admiration and jealousy he harbors for his best friend and roommate. Things get messy pretty fast, as you might expect from a bunch of ill-supervised adolescents. John Knowles novel, often compared to Catcher In The Rye, he raises a question about competition amongst teens. Competition is supposed to be healthy, but Knowles questions when do you draw a line between a fruitless rivalry and wanting to win at all costs. Knowles uses themes of friendship, identity and youth to establish quite clearly that knocking your best friend out of a tree is on the wrong side of that line. A Separate Peace focuses on the friendship between two sixteen-year-old boys, and its complicated. Friendship is a combination of admiration, respect, jealousy, and resentment. For all the camaraderie between them, these boys are still driven by good old healthy competition, which at times can end up being, well, less than healthy. Friendship blurs identity, as one boy begins to assimilate the life of the other. Narrator Gene has an inner struggle with himself trying to decide if he pushed best firend Finn off a tree, shattering his leg and dreams, on purpose or not. In the book he says It struck me then that I was injuring him again. It occurred to me that this could be an even deeper injury than what I had done before. I would have to back out of it, I would have to disown it. There are two ways to interpret this passage. Either this is one of Genes greatest moments of honesty or its yet another moment of justification. Knowles leaves it to the reader to decide if Gene would rather live with his shame than hurt Finny by revealing the truth, or if he is pretending he doesnt want to hurt Finny in order to recant the truth and save himself from persecution. In A Separate Peace John Knowles explores the difficulties with understanding ones own identity during adolescence. Identity is complicated enough as the narrator enters adulthood in a time of war, but a difficult friendship with Finny leads to a further confusion of identity. Attempting to alter identity serves a number of purposes in the book, from escaping guilt to living through others to dealing with insanity. Gene begins abandoning his identity and assimilating that of Finny because of the would be the guilt he feels for ending his Olympic dreams. Finny interested in turning Gene into a version of himself for the very same reason. Furing Finnys funeral Gene says I did not cry then or ever about Finny I could not escape a feeling that this was my own funeral, and you do not cry in that case. If Gene did in some way become a part of Finny, then part of Finny lives on in Gene. Gene alludes to this when he says that he still lives his life in Finnys created atmosphere. In the book youth exists in its own environment. Knowles physically, mentally, and emotionally isolates it from the rest of the world. In doing so growing up becomes the transition from the sheltered environment to the harsh realities of things like war, hatred, and fear. In the book while taking a walk Gene does a little introspection stating levels of reality I had never suspected before, a kind of thronging and epic grandeur which my superficial eyes and cluttered mind had been blind to before. They unrolled away impervious to me as though I were a roaming ghost. Essentially Gene has moved into the adult world. In doing so he is leaving his youth behind. That sense of emergence is reflected as he considers his old self, his younthful self, dead. Nearly all the major characters in the book attempt to alter identity but these attempts ultimately fail and then the characters are forced to deal with themselves, actions, and personal identities. Knowles cleverly uses the title of the book in order to explain the overall It wasnt the cider which made me surpass myself, it was this liberation we had torn from the gray encroachments of 1943, the escape we had concocted, this afternoon of momentary, illusory, special and separate peace. These lines offer meaning, and this one with a less militaristic meaning. Essentially in the book Knowles has created a peace that is separate from the rest of the world, isolated somehow, protected. Like the youth at Devon school? The rest of the world is at war, but Gene and the other boys at Devon have achieved a peace outside of that war, a peace that is separate from it.

Criticisms of Disability Legislation in the UK

Criticisms of Disability Legislation in the UK Do you agree that mentally ill and disabled people are the poor relatives of anti-discriminatory thought and practice? Introduction Disablism and disability The introduction of new legislation against discrimination of disabled people in 2005 marks a temporary milestone in the heated debate on appropriate legislative measures.[1] The last two decades have seen an enormous transformation of anti-discriminatory policy, theoretical and conceptual approach and attempts to solidify these changes in the practices of public life. Arguably the changes have been long overdue, given that antidiscrimination law was hopelessly outdated (1944) and did not reflect the shift in attitudes towards the notions of social justice and inclusion as it affected the relationship between disabled and able-bodied people in society. Whether the most recent proposals for legislative review (2005) redefine the disability agenda in a sufficiently radical manner is debatable. Yet, it seems a shared view in the literature that huge strides have been made towards achieving more equality for disable persons and that the urgency and validity of constant legislative review is recognised by the government. This essay explores the extent to which the changes in law, practice and general attitudes of the public reflect sufficiently the needs of disabled people for adequate recognition of their social, economic and domestic needs in modern society. It will focus mainly on the debate that has taken place in the UK following the first significant changes introduced by parliament in 1995 (under the Major government) and leading up to the last round of public consultation under the Blair government. It will look at three distinct but interrelated fields that seem relevant for a comprehensive answer to the question: first, what are the legislative changes and how did they affect the status and societal position of disabled people in Britain. Second, what policies are currently favoured by the government and local authority effectively addressing the problems that originate in widespread discrimination against disabled persons. And third, what are the conceptual difficulties that underlie the l egal and practical problems with framing the disability agenda in the UK. The aspects one and three will be discussed in the section below, aspect three will be explored in more detail in the last section of this essay. Prior to sketching all three fields of inquiry, however, we need to introduce a concept that has informed more recent critical discussion of discrimination and disability. Disablism is supposed to denote a particular constellation of cultural values, forms of personal prejudice and social constraints that result in severe but often unnoticed types of discriminating behaviour. Outlining the structure and content of discrimination therefore would allow us to identify hidden components of the problem that may escape critical consideration. Disablism attempts to redefine the nature of the various barriers that are discriminatory in character but unrecognised since they are part of habitual human conduct. A sociological critique of disablism would enhance out understanding of the underlying patterns of discrimination. Sociologists speak of PCS which stands for the three elements that make up disablist attitudes in public.[2] Personal prejudice, cultural values and social stratification th at originates in disability and the exclusion of disabled people from mainstream public life. Theorists also highlight the complex interaction between concepts of disability and the capitalist economy which emphasises wage labour and the pursuit of profit.[3] All these various factors act as building blocs for disablism which in turn diminishes the chances of public participation by disabled persons. It fosters an attitude which frames disability as a personal tragedy and de-publicises its impact. Seen as an individual misfortune disablism tends to ignore the social dimension of disability and hence underplays the social and political leverage in alleviating some of the effects of discrimination. It echoes therefore the predominant medical model of disability and rejects any social involvement in rectifying the various instances of discrimination by disabled people. Law and the concept of disability Ever since parliament passed the Disability Discrimination Act in 1995, the criticism by academics and practitioners has focused to a large degree on the legal foundations and the conceptual basis of the legislation. Although the literature is fundamentally critical to the implementation of the Act (henceforth DDA) the bulk of the literature deals with the profound conceptual flaws of the law. Since conceptual and legalistic facets go together and combine to detrimental effects, this section of the essay will explore both aspects together rather than separately. With the ostensible failure of the previous legislation to tackle the problems of discrimination in any consistent fashion, the Major government brought in the new law in 1995 to base anti-discriminatory policies on a updated and more coherent conceptual framework. The shortcomings of this new legislation in the face of numerous challenges for disabled people in modern society however contributed to an almost universal understanding that another consultation process on new legislation was needed and the Blair government anticipates to pass the new DDA this year. The DDA in 1995 marks a significant shift from the original quota requirement to a more regulatory approach which basically emphasises the individual responsibilities of disabled persons in achieving similar status and positions in society. The state acts only as a regulatory body, placing constraints on players in the economic and social domain. This concurs with the broadly liberal theory of society where similar life chanc es are stressed and any bias against irrelevant aspects of individuals are being removed in considering their abilities to function as social agents. In general, the idea is to minimise subjectivity and standardise any decision-making process. Although the various strategies for intervention take place at different stages in the discriminatory process[4], legislation focuses on providing the broader framework within which discriminatory behaviour is identified and possibly prosecuted. Such a liberal notion of individuals and society can accommodate special treatment under certain circumstances for example when equality of opportunity is compromised by the lack of a level playing field. In fact, most of the anti-discrimination legislation of the 1990s has favoured a similar approach and it will be argued later in this essay that such a convergence of approach when dealing with different origins of discrimination is gravely mistaken and enshrines complex conceptual problems into the DDA. (SDA and RRA were drawn up under the Major government and subsequently superseded by more advanced legislation. New legislation on ‘Incitement of racial hatred’ is being debated currently in both houses of parliament. As such the legislative is pretty much in flux). Let us now look at the problems that the DDA has created for disabled persons in the UK. Practitioners and theorists often locate the main dilemma in what they call the medical model of disability which informs the DDA in its current form. They contrast this medical model with a social model which recognises the social dimension of disability and hence widens the fields of societal responsibilities in combating discrimination considerably. Roulstone remarks: ‘The social construction of when harm occurs is entirely central to discussions about the workings and effectiveness of anti-discrimination legislation.’[5] But why is this so? How exactly do the two models differ? Woodhams and Corby outline the problematic nature of the definition of disability in the DDA. The statutory definition identifies somebody as disabled who has ‘a physical or mental impairment which has a substantial and long-term edverse effect on his [sic] ability to carry out normal day-to-day activities.’[6] The core problem with this definition extends to three areas. First, it attributes disability to a form of impairment, second, it contrasts disability against a norm of human behaviour which asserts a complete and paradigmatic functioning of body and brain, and third, it articulates a benchmark for validating disability by introducing the notion of substantiality and long-term affliction.[7] The medical model thus contributes to a certain bias in evaluating the severity of the disability by (a) assuming that disability supposes a lack of ability which spills over into a lack of functioning ‘normally’. It thus presupposes normality as a criterion while failing to define it accurately. The definition enshrines a picture of difference between people who suffer from a disability and those who do not. Impairment becomes tantamount to ‘abnormality’ which is thought to derive from a personal tragedy not to be able to perform certain activities .[8] Consequently this medical model asserts (b) the need to assist and help the disabled person and therefore often exacerbates the tendencies for patronising or as Woodhams puts it, ‘the impaired individual remains subservient to the teams of ‘disability experts’ charged with ‘helping’, ‘rectifying’ (pitying and patronising) them.’[9] In contrast the social model which some theorists advocate as reflecting more accurately the social dimension of any disability, suggests that the origin of any disability lies in the perception of difference that is prompted by notions of normality. Hence, any anti-discrimination strategy must take into account the cultural values and social construction of normality upon which discriminatory behaviour is built. Woodhams writes: ‘As a result, the territory of ‘correction’ becomes society and the environment, rather than the person with the impairment.’[10] Recognising the role of socialisation and perception are central for any serious programme for change. Some theorists even go further and argue that although the social model widens the field of anti-discriminatory policies and correctly acknowledges the responsibility of social attitudes in discrimination against disabled people, it still lacks recognition of another vital element in debasing or derogatory practice. Even the social model, they note, excludes that group of people who may be subject to discriminatory conduct simply because they are being associated with a disabled person or because they are perceived to be disabled.[11] Additionally, there is a lack to have appreciation for discrimination that ‘may be based on other people’s fears of contracting illness’[12] such as HIV. In general the DDA fails to acknowledge the varied and complex nature of disabilities and therefore also falls short in grasping the multifaceted character of discriminatory behavi our. Woodhams concludes: ‘Disability†¦is frequently invisible, indecipherable and unstable.’[13] With respect to the way in which the legislator has framed the notion of disability various problems arise. The essay will summarily point to some but will not be able to explore them comprehensively and in detail. The current practice in employment tribunals (henceforth: ET) illustrates some of the crucial shortcomings of the DDA. ET very often lack the expertise to deal with the complex issues that are involved in disability litigation. The small number of cases (only 2% of ET cases deal with infringement of rights by disabled persons) means that there will be no radical change in this situation and ET personnel will for a long time coming still work under conditions of insufficient medical proficiency. Since the DDA clearly locates the burden of proof with the disabled person, claimants often have to procure (frequently heavily contested) medical evidence, a process which is costly and often prohibitive given the divergence of medical assessment and the vagueness of thresholds of ‘impairments’ in defining disability. In effect, it is noted in the literature that a remarkable gap between the legal stipulation and the practical application of the DDA by human resources has already opened up. Human resources personnel often apply the DDA intuitively and therefore come closer to recognition of impairment than medical experts, consequently undermining the strict and rigorous application of the law.[14] In practice, it seems also customary to ignore the impact of environmental factors which often contribute to the development and persistence of a disability, while hidden aspects of disabilities are failed to be recognised routinely. Sociologists also point out that the DDA places the claimant in a position where decision-making power is firmly located in the hands of defendants. Successful claims are therefore extremely rare, even when taking into account the number of out of court settlements. The DDA works with an underdeveloped notion of judicial harm as well as constructs formidable hurdles when it comes to defining the nature and origins of harm. This often diminishes the confidence of claimants to articulate grievances and contributes to the fact that many unseen or contested impairments are underrepresented in claims. Effectively the success rate of disability litigation is very low, ‘not because treatment less favourable is not established, but because specific legal tests are not met.’[15] The absence of legal aid in many cases exacerbates the problem for disabled persons who feel their rights have been infringed upon and, consequently many practitioners and theorists propose to introduce a set of prima facie criteria which would make it easier for claimants to get a particular impairment acknowledged. Such a set of criteria would also ensure that an unambiguous acknowledgment of rights and their possible infringement would be easier to obtain in particular cases. The small amount of compensation and the small number of successful cases for such compensation in ET indicates that the DDA still failed to define a clear benchmark for discriminatory behaviour.[16] Some sociologists have gone as far as characterising the DDA as being grounded ‘on profoundly social meanings masquerading as pure realms of law.’[17] We do not need to share this slightly Marxist criticism of the DDA to recognise that the current law is heavily biased against disabled victims of discrimination and rests on incoherent conceptual framework. Policy and Discrimination Most policies initiated by the government after the introduction of the DDA in 1995 focuses on the barriers disabled people face in public life and employment. The inbuilt bias of the DDA against disabled persons is exemplified neatly by the underlying motivation for incorporating disabled persons into the competitive labour market. Although participation in the first labour market is as such a desirable intention, it is widely suspected that the government’s motivation to push this agenda forward has more to do with decreasing expenditure than improving the quality of life for disabled people.[18] It is equally regrettable that for comparative purposes there is still no reliable data on the various groups of disabled people across Europe. The reason why this may be important in the future is that the European Union has, after an initial period of hesitation, become a main driver in anti-discriminatory legislation which has full application in the UK. As the EU becomes a more proactive player in the field and begins to formulate policies that are implemented on a European scale, the conflicts between national and European legislation creates problems. Hvinden uses the concepts of crowded and vacant policy fields to distinguish between those policy areas that are likely to creatively absorb new legislation from the EU and those that are not. He argues that, in addition to various disability legislation, anti-discrimination policies often have to take into account that victims are subject not simply to singular dimensions of discrimination but that attempts to discriminate against others are often motivated by concepts of normality which rests on multiple aspects of human existence. For example, discrimination against disabled people can carry significant elements of gendered behaviour, which anti-discriminatory practice must recognise to be effective.[19] The policy instruments available to European governments differ widely amongst the member states, but there seems to be a sort of convergence emerging when it comes to what Hvinden calls the rights and opportunity discourse.[20] Although this is something that the DDA failed to appreciate in all its complexity, practitioners have gradually come to understand this dimension as the inevitable core of anti-discriminatory strategy in the field of disability. As the European Commission redefines its role in the fight against discrimination, national governments are gently pushed towards a notion that equal opportunities for disabled people should occupy the heart of any future legislation. While the DDA was still far removed from stipulating full active citizenship and participation in public life as the main objective and following this up with effective policy implementation, the increasing involvement of European lawmakers in this field may exert considerable weight to such an agenda.[ 21] Much depends on the future decisions of the European Court of Justice and the articulation of legal competence by this body.[22] Conclusion The DDA was clearly based on a flawed definition of disability, resting it on the medical model which made it difficult for disabled persons to articulate the social dimension of any disability. Policies that were supposed to combat discrimination against disabled people were thus misdirected and neglected the cultural and social component in discriminatory behaviour. Although since 1995, the need for further and more sophisticated legislation is almost universally recognised, the current proposals for consultation must place the social construction of disability at the heart of the debate if it wants to avoid similarly misguided policies and ineffective strategies to combat discrimination. Bibliography Bjoern Hvinden. The Uncertain Convergence of Disability Policies in Western Europe, in Social Policy and Administration, Vol. 37, No.6, December 2003, pp.609-624. Carol Woodhams and Susan Corby. Defining Disability in Theory and Practice: A Critique of the British Disability Discrimination Act 1995, in Journal for Social Policy. Vol. 32, No.2, pp.159-178. Alan Roulstone. The Legal Road to Rights? Disabling Premises, Obiter Dicta and the Disability Discrimination Act 1995, in Disability and Society, Vol. 18, No.2, 2003, pp.117-131. Liz Sayce. Beyond Good Intentions. Making Anti-Discrimination Strategies Work, in Disability and Society. Vol.18, No.5, August 2003, pp.625-642. Neil Thompson. Anti-Discriminatory Practice. Second Edition. Basingstoke: MacMillan 1997. Rights of People with Intellectual Disabilities. Access to Education and Employment. Monitoring Report United Kingdom. Budapest: Open Society Institute 2005. 1 Footnotes [1] For an overview of legislation cf. Rights of People with Intellectual Disabilities. Access to Education and Employment. Monitoring Report United Kingdom. Budapest: Open Society Institute 2005, pp.51-58. [2] Neil Thompson. Anti-Discriminatory Practice. Second Edition. Basingstoke: MacMillan 1997, p.107-109. [3] Thompson, Practice, p.108. [4] Liz Sayce. Beyond Good Intentions. Making Anti-Discrimination Strategies Work, in Disability and Society. Vol.18, No.5, August 2003, p.633. [5] Alan Roulstone. The Legal Road to Rights? Disabling Premises, Obiter Dicta and the Disability Discrimination Act 1995, in Disability and Society, Vol. 18, No.2, 2003, p.122. [6] quoted in Carol Woodhams and Susan Corby. Defining Disability in Theory and Practice: A Critique of the British Disability Discrimination Act 1995, in Journal for Social Policy. Vol. 32, No.2, p.163. [7] Woodhams, Defining Disability, p.163. [8] Woodhams, Defining Disability, p. 164 [9] Woodhams, Defining Disability, p.164. [10] Woodhams, Defining Disability, p.164. [11] Woodhams, Defining Disability, p.164. [12] Woodhams, Defining Disability, p.165. [13] Woodhams, Defining Disability, p.165. [14] Woodhams, Defining Disability, p.168. [15] Roulstone, Legal Road, p.124. [16] Roulstone, Legal Road, p.126. [17] Roulstone, Legal Road, p.129. [18] Bjoern Hvinden. The Uncertain Convergence of Disability Policies in Western Europe, in Social Policy and Administration, Vol. 37, No.6, December 2003, p.616. [19] Hvinden, Convergence, p. 612. [20] Hvinden, Convergence, pp.617-618. [21] Hvinden, Convergence, p.620. [22] Hvinden, Convergence, p.624.

How to Use a Company’s Annual Report to Ace Your Interview :: Process Essays

How to Use a Company’s Annual Report to Ace Your Interview If you don't take the time to get know a company, you many not have a future there.   Your interviewer will ask you why are you looking for this particular position and why are you looking at ABC, Inc.   Start by telling him or her that you have read ABC's current sales record "in their annual report."   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Company sales are important even if you are not interviewing for a sales job.   If you have reviewed several years of annual reports, you can easily see if the company's sales have gone up or down. Asking questions about the company's sales during an interview scores lots of points because it shows you have done your homework.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   You can get ABC, Inc.'s past annual reports directly from the company, the public library or the Internet.   The annual report may not tell you how well the company fares within the industry, but it will tell you everything you need to show your interviewer how well you can fit into the company.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Once you obtain a company's past annual reports, review the most recent report first. At the back of the report, you will find the name of the auditor, somebody like Smith and Smith Accounting.   Reputable companies use a certified public accountant to show that the accounting methods used in the report conform to "generally accepted accounting principles."   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Now turn to the front of the report and find the letter from the chairman of the board, whose personal style will be reflected throughout the report. The director will discuss the direction of the company, so pay attention to how he plans to run things in the future and whether he thinks the future looks positive for growth.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   The company's financial growth is very important to both the company and to your salary requirements.   You may not want to crunch the numbers yourself, but you will want to understand the balance sheet, the status of the company's finances at a given date.   On the left are the assets, all of the organization's valuables.   Current assets are those that the company can convert quickly to cash.   On the right are the company's liabilities-what they owe.   Current liabilities are the company's debts due in one year, paid out of current assets.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Net working capital, is a key figure to watch only if you have several years worth of reports to compare.

Occupational Stress and Health Essay example -- Business Management St

Occupational Stress and Health Introduction In recent years, occupational stress and health have gained considerable importance to people in all forms life. Keeping in mind, the excessive work load, amount of time spent at work and the recent changes that are affecting the nature of work, it is not surprising that work stress today is increasing (Szymanski, 1999). Stress can be caused due to a number of reasons and in many ways and those things are known as stressors which may vary from person to person. According to the United States National Institute of Occupational Safety and Health (1999), job stress can be defined as the harmful physical and emotional responses that occur when the requirements of the job do not match the capabilities, resources, or needs of the worker. It can also lead to poor health and even injury. http://www.ilo.org/public/english/protection/safework/stress/whatis.htm People should be made more aware about the symptoms of stress and try to precautionary measures before it affect their lives. Stress at work can affect people both mentally and physically. Excessively high levels of stress need to be controlled in order to avoid these health related problems. A number of things can be done by employees and employers to prevent workplace stress. Also, there are a number of stress management techniques that can be used by people to ensure that they lead a stress free life. Job related stressors should be identified and dealt with so that an organisation and its employees can operate efficiently and effectively. Identifying stressors at work The list of potential stressors is limitless. There may be times when these are actually of use to us, creating simply a pressure s... ...herwise, when unplanned things happen, it’ll cause you just as much stress as trying to work without a plan. References & Bibliography International labour organisation – safe work program http://www.ilo.org/public/english/protection/safework/stress/whatis.htm Kendall, E., Murphee, P., O’Neill, V. & Bursnall, S. (2000). A report to the workers’ compensation and rehabilitation commission (Western Australia).Occupational Stress: Factors that contribute to its occurrence and effective management. Centre for Human services (Griffith University). http://www.workcover.wa.gov.au National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) http://www.cdc.gov/niosh/stresswk.html Szymanski, E. M. (1999). Disability, job stress, the changing nature of careers, and the career resilience portfolio. Rehabilitation Counselling Bulletin. 42, pp 279-284.

The Themes of Siddhartha Essay -- Hesse Siddhartha Essays

The Themes of Siddhartha      Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   There are two themes developed in Siddhartha by Hermann Hesse.   One theme is that people can teach religious doctrine, but it may not lead one to find one's true inner "self".   The other theme is that knowledge can be taught, but wisdom comes from experience.   The main character, Siddhartha, came to these understandings during his glorious journey to find spiritual enlightenment.      Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   In order to find his "self", Siddhartha undertook a quest that was split into four main parts.   These parts include:   understanding, escape from "self", knowledge of "self", and wisdom, (enlightenment). The first part, understanding, involved him living with his father who was a brahmin. Siddhartha realized that he made everybody else happy but that he himself wasn't.   He also got the feeling that he had already learned the best of what his teachers had to teach but it still wasn't enough.   He still wasn't satisfied.   One day he and his friend, Govinda, meditated by a banyan tree. Siddhartha recited the verse:      Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   "Om is the bow, the arrow is the soul,   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Brahman is the arrow's goal   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   At which one aims unflinchingly."(8)      Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   It was after meditating with Govinda that he realized what he had to do.   In an attempt to reach the arrow's goal, he would leave his father to join the Samanas who he thought had the secrets to finding the "self".      Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   While with the Samanas Siddhartha learned many ways to escape the "self".   He would do this through meditation, abandonment of the body, fasting, and the holding of breath. He abandoned his body thro... ... the river that he had crossed long ago and met the same ferryman that had been kind to him. During his stay with the ferryman he realized that the river was a symbol of spiritual transition; timelessness, and a teacher of the unity of all things. He had gained spiritual enlightenment.      Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   The reasons for the trials and tribulations experienced during Siddhartha's glorious journey were to show that time was irrelevant and the world of appearances was transitory. In other words, he went through many changes in appearance and time didn't matter as long as he had achieved his goal.      Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Siddhartha had spent his whole life trying to gain spiritual enlightenment and at the end he finally achieved it. Like in the verse, Siddhartha used Om like a bow to direct his soul, the arrow, to spiritual enlightenment.

Tiffany Case

The case In July l993 . Tiffany& Company concluded an agreement with its Japanese distributor, Mitsukoshi Ltd. that would fundamentally change its business in Japan. Under the new agreement, Tiffany’s wholly owned subsidiary, Tiffany& Company Japan Inc. (Tiffany-Japan), assumed management responsibilities in the operation of 29 Tiffany &Company boutiques previously operated by Mitsukoshi in its stores and other locations in Japan.Tiffany looked forward to the new arrangement, as it was now responsible for millions of dollars in inventory that it previously sold wholesale to Mitsukoshi, resulting in enhanced revenues in Japan derived from higher retail prices. It was also apparent, however, that fluctuations in the yen/dollar exchange rate would now affect the dollar value of its Japanese sales, which would be realized in yen. Since Japanese sales were large and still growing, it seemed evident such fluctuations substantial impact on Tiffany's future financial performance. Comp any BackgroundFounded in New York in 1837,Tiffany ;Company was an internationally renowned-retailer, designer, manufacturer ,and distributor of luxury goods . The famous blue-box company found its initial success in fine jewelry, most notably diamonds, but had since expanded its product line to include timepieces, china, crystal, silverware, and other luxury accessories. In the fiscal year ending January 31, l993 (FY1992), Tiffany earned $15. 7million on revenues of $486. 4million and had total assets of$419. 4 million. Recent financial statements are provided in Exhibits 1and 2.An historical summary of operations is provided in Exhibit 3. After more than a century of independence, Tiffany was acquired by Avon Products, Inc. in 1979. For the next several years, Avon, a nationwide door-to-door cosmetics marketer, worked to expand Tiffany's product line to reach beyond its traditional affluent customer base to the larger middle market. While this diversification strategy resulted in e nhanced sales for Tiffany from $84million in l979to $124million in l983, operating expenses as a percentage of sales grew inordinately from 34%to 43% in 1978and l983, respectively.Avon soon realized that Tiffany's traditional market niche was substantially different than its own and, in l984, decided to put the company up for sale. The most attractive offer came from Tiffany's own management, who agreed to buy back Tiffany's equity and the Fifth Avenue store building for a total of $135. 5 million. In what ultimately took the form of a leveraged buyout (L B O), the terms of the deal distributed virtually all of the equity shares to three key investor groups. Management ended up with 20% of total equity shares.Investcorp, the Bahrain-and London-based merchant bank that backed management in the deal, received 49. 8%of total equity shares. The third player, General Electric Credit Corporation(GECC), ended up with 25. 7%of total equity shares. 1t was through an $85 million credit arrang ement with GECC that management was able to refinance a substantial portionof the purchase price. The aftermath of the LBO was marked by very tight free cash flow coupled with significant growth potential on the horizon.After the company had once again become profitable and realizing that the company's growth prospects demanded more cash than could be generated internally, in 1987,management offered Tiffany stock to the public at approximately $15 a share(adjusted for a subsequent stock split). In l989,Mitsukoshi purchased l. 5 million shares of Tiffany's common stock from GECC. As of January31, 1993, Mitsukoshi owned approximately 14% of Tiffany stock, the largest percentage of any single institutional investor.Three other institutional investors collectively owned approximately 26% of the stock, followed by all Tiffany executive officers and directors as a group at 4. 9%. In l993, Tiffany was organized into three distribution channels: U. S. retail, direct marketing, and internati onal retail. U. S. retail included retail sales in Tiffany-operated stores in the United States and wholesale sales to independent retailers in North America. The l6 stores in this channel accounted for 50% of total sales in FY 1992 Direct marketing, representing the smallest channel of distribution, consisted of corporate and catalog sales .In FY 1992, its sales represented 18% of Tiffany’s total sales. International retail, which included retail sales through Tiffany-operated stores and boutiques, corporate sales, and wholesale sales to independent retailers and distributors, primarily in the Far East and Europe, accounted for 32% of total sales in FY1992. Jewelry sales from all three channels accounted for 65% of 1993 sales, making jewelry the most significant product line. Exhibit 4 provides financial results of Tiffany’s domestic and foreign operations.The past several years for Tiffany were marked by a trend of international expansion, beginning in1986 when it op ened a flagship retail store in London. Additional flagship stores were then opened in Munich and Zurich in 1987 and 1988, respectively. In 1990, the Zurich store was expanded. Stores were opened in Hong Kong at the Peninsula Hotel and at the LandmarkCenter in August 1988 and March 1989, respectively. Taipei saw the opening of a store in1990, as did Singapore (at the Raffles Hotel), Frankfurt, and Toronto in 199l. Also in l991, the London store was expanded.In l992, Tiffany opened five new boutiques in Japan, and two new boutiques were opened by an independent retailer in Korea. Early 1993 saw continued international growth, with the opening of two more boutiques in Japan, a second store in Singapore's NgeeAnnCity, two boutiques by independent retailers in Saipan and the Philippines, and the expansion of the Peninsula Hotel store in Hong Kong. Exhibit 5 shows the growth in the number of Tiffany stores and boutiques around the world from 31 to 79, implying a 250% increase from 1987 t o 1993.These 79 retail locations included l6stores in the United States,56 stores in the Far East,6stores in Europe, and l store in Canada, all of which ranged in size from700 to 13,OOO gross square feet, with a total of approximately 127,OOO gross square feet devoted to retail purposes. Tiffany's worldwide capital expenditures were $22. 8 million in FY l992. compared with $41. 4 million in FY 1991. These expenditures were primarily for the opening of new stores and boutiques and the expansion of existing stores.Management anticipated capital expenditures to drop further to $18. O million in FY l993 before rebounding to approximately $25. O million in FY 1994. Management also expected to open four or five new stores per year in the foreseeable future. To support future expansion plans, and fluctuations in seasonal working capital needs, management planned to rely upon internally generated funds and a $100 million noncollateralized revolving credit facility available at interest rate s based upon Eurodollar rates, a prime rate, certificate of deposit rates, or money market rates.As in the past, cash dividends were expected to be maintained at a relatively moderate level, which would permit the company to retain a majority of its earnings. Impetus for Change in the Japanese Operations While Tiffany found new market potential across the globe, nowhere was let as promising as in Japan, where Tiffany’s sales accounted for only 1% of the $20 billion Japanese jewelry market. The thriving Japanese economy of the late l980s and very early 1990s stimulated a booming demands for certain types of expensive and glamorous Western goods.Among these were Tiffany products, principally those of the fine jewelry line marketed toward older women. However, as the Japanese economy finally slowed and Japanese consumers became more cautious in their spending, the demand for Tiffany's luxury items also slumped. In response to soft consumer demand in Japan, Mitsukoshi cut back on Tiffany inventory levels. Mitsukoshi’s wholesale purchases from Tiffany-Japan declined from 23%of Tiffany's total sales in FY 199l to 15%in FY1992. Declining wholesale shipments were also accompanied by a small decline in gross margin from 49. %in FY1991 t0 48. 7%in FY 1992. Despite lackluster consumer demand in the first half of FY 1993, however, Tiffany continued to believe that Japanese sales had attractive long-run growth potential. It was for this reason that Tiffany sought greater control over its future in Japan and ultimately decided to restructure its Japanese operations. From 1972 through July1993, Mitsukoshi acted as the principal retailer of Tiffany products in Japan, purchasing selected goods from Tiffany-Japan on a wholesale basis.Mitsukoshi sold the products on a retail basis to the Japanese consumer, realizing profits in the form of relatively higher retail prices. Since the wholesale transactions were denominated entirely in dollars, fluctuations in the yen/ dollar exchange rate did not represent a source of volatility for Tiffany's expected cash flows. Instead, Mitsukoshi bore the risk of any exchange rate fluctuations that took place between the time it purchased the inventory from Tiffany and when it finally made cash settlement.Typically, Tiffany merchandise sold by Mitsukoshi was priced at a substantial premium (l00% in some cases) over the domestic U. S. retail price for such merchandise. The new agreement between the two companies, however, fundamentally changed both companies' financial situations. In repurchasing the merchandise previously sold by Tiffany to Mitsukoshi, Tiffany-Japan assumed new responsibility for establishing yen retail prices, holding inventory in Japan for sale, managing and funding local advertising and publicity programs, and controlling local Japanese management.Mitsukoshi on the other hand, would no longer be an independent retailer of Tiffany products but would still receive fees equaling 27% of net ret ail sales in compensation for providing boutique facilities, sales staff, collection of receivables, and security for store inventory. With greater control over retail sales in its Japanese operations, Tiffany looked forward to long-run improvement in its performance in Japan despite continuing weak local economic conditions. However, increased sales and profits were not the only changes that Tiffany could anticipate as a result of the new agreement.Tiffany now faced the risk of foreign currency fluctuations previously borne by Mitsukoshi. Past history warned Tiffany that the yen/dollar exchange rate could be quite volatile on a year-to-year and even month-10-month, basis. Exhibit 6 illustrates the significant strengthening of the yen against the dollar during the l O years ending in 1993. While a continuation of this strengthening would enhance the dollar value of Tiffany's yen denominated cash inflows, there was the distinct possibility that the yen might eventually become overval ued and crash suddenly, just as the U.S dollar in 1985. Indeed,there was some evidence that the yen was overvalue against the dollar in 1993 (see Exhibit 7) Hedging to Manage Foreign Exchange Risk The possibility of sharp, unexpected movements in the yen/dollar exchange rate had prompted Tiffany’s management to study the desirability of engaging in a program to manage exchange rate risk. To reduce exchange rate risk on its yen cash flows, Tiffany had two basic alternatives available to it. One was to enter into forward agreements to sell yen for dollars at a predetermined price in the future.The other was to purchase yen put options. The terms at which Tiffany could purchase forward contracts and put options, along with other financial market data, are shown in Exhibit 8. Before committing Tiffany to a hedging program, management wanted to be sure it understood what the potential risks and rewards were for each of these so-called â€Å"derivative† instruments. Perhaps more importantly, it was essential to determine whether or not a risk management program was appropriate for Tiffany, what it objectives should be, and how much, if any, exposure should be covered. pic] This included a $ 75 million secured revolving credit facility; a $10 million, 16% subordinated note due in 1992; and common stock warrants to purchase approximately 25% of the company’s equity on a fully diluted basis. Prior to Mitsukoshi’s purchase of Tiffany’s common stock from GECC, Tiffany and Mitsukoshi entered into an agreement by which Mitsukoshi agreed not purchase in excess of 19. 9% of Tiffany’s issued and outstanding common shares. This agreement would expire on September 31, 1994.Due to the significant number of Tiffany boutiques already operating in Japan, future openings there were expected to occur only at very modest rate, if at all, in the near-term future. Tiffany’s business was seasonal in nature, with the fourth quarter typicall y representing a proportionally greater percentage of annual sales, income from operations, and net income. In FY 1992, net sales totaled & 107,238,000, $120,830,000, $105,897,000, and $152,431,000 for the first, second, third, and fourth quarters, respectively. Management expected this pattern to continue in the future.Tiffany management believed that a retail price reduction in Japan of 20% to 25% would likely result in a substantial increase in unit volume of jewelry sales. The repurchase of inventory by Tiffany necessitated the reversal of $115 million in sales and related gross profit previously recognized on merchandise sold to Mitsukoshi. Accordingly, Tiffany recorded a gross profit previously recognized $57. 5 million reserve to provide for product returns. , which reduced the second fiscal quarter’s (ended July 31, 1993) net income by approximately $32. 7 million, or $2. 7 per share. Of the $115 million of sales being reversed, only $52. 5 million of inventory held i n Mitsukoshi boutiques was actually repurchased during the month of July 1993 (Mitsukoshi agreed to accept a deferred payment on $25 million of this repurchased boutique inventory, which was to be repaid in yen on a quarterly basis with interest of 6% per annum over the next 4 1/2 years). Approximately $62. 5 million of Tiffany & Company inventory maintained in Mitsukoshi warehouses would be repurchased throughout the period ending February 28, 1998.Payment for this warehouse inventory was to be made in yen 40 days following actual receipt of the inventory. Fees were reduced to 5% on certain high-value jewelry items repurchased from Mitsukoshi. Tiffany Japan would also pay Mitsukoshi incentive fees equal to 5% of the amount by which boutique sales increase year-to-year. Calculated on a per – boutique basis. In Tokyo, Tiffany boutiques could be established only in Mitsukoshi’s stores, and Tiffany-brand jewelry could be sold only in such boutiques (though Tiffany-Japan r eserved the right to open a single flagship store inTokyo). ===============================================================================[ ] The suggested questions †¢ In what way(s) is Tiffany exposed to exchange-rate risk subsequent to its new distribution agreement with Mitsukoshi? How serious are these risks? †¢ Should Tiffany actively manage its yen-dollar exchange-rate risk? Why or why not? †¢ If Tiffany were to manage exchange-rate risk activity, what should be the objectives of such a program? Specifically, what exposures should be actively managed? How much of these exposures should be covered, and for how long? As instruments for risk management, what are the chief differences of foreign-exchange options and forward or futures contracts? What are the advantages and disadvantages of each? Which, if either, of these types of instruments would be most appropriate for Tiffany to use if it chose to manage exchange-rate risk? †¢ How should Tiffany organize itself to manage its exchange-rate risk? Who should be responsible for executing its hedges? Who should have oversight responsibility for this activity? What controls should be put in place?

Fundamentals of Effective Communication in the Workplace

Fundamentals of Effective Communication in the Workplace Natalie Manuel Professor Thomas Whenever Intro to Business August 3, 2014 There are a few times where I experienced effective communication in a business environment. One time in particular, I believe everyone demonstrated communicating effectively. At work there is a lot of chaos at times because there aren't many plans or guidelines put in place for customers regarding certain aspects of the business. My co-worker and I decided to create a few documents that can be .NET to the customer in certain situations.I work for GE oil & gas and we deal with customers who may need/want to return their blower for many reasons. We created a ARM authorization return form to keep everything organized. The form was very detailed and provided all the information the customer needs as well as the important information we would need to process the return. Along with this form, we created a standard order checklist. A lot of times we receive cus tomer Pop's that has missing information, incorrect pricing, wrong export information or incorrect vendor information, among other things.We created a document that was meant to be distributed to all the distributors and Memo's. The documents were sent to all the sales reps for review. Immediately we were met with issues from them. This is where the communication came in. We set-up for there to be a conference call with us and the sales rep. Once we were able to have the meeting, all questions and concerns were put on the table. Having an open dialogue is important in business and in life. With this conference call, we were able to edit some of the statements on the comments.As well as take some things off. Once that was complete, we were able to send these forms out to the customers. From that point on the effect it had on the business was an increase productivity. There were less Pop send backs to customers for corrections. That pleased the customers so much! Pleasing the customer s is always the goal, they help the business grow. Most of the customers really appreciated the help that the forms provided them. Without the conference call, none of this would have been possible.It could have been easy to take the sales rep issues and ignore them. I see in business a lot that people and their ideas are ignored. It only causes tension and mistrust. We understood that none of this was personal. Everyone had a great interest in seeing the business grow. Talking things out, keeps misunderstandings to a minimum. If I had to do it all over again, I wouldn't change a thing. Effective communication should be the goal for all businesses. â€Å"Effective communication in the workplace helps employees and managers form highly efficient teams. Fundamentals of Effective Communication in the Workplace Fundamentals of Effective Communication in the Workplace Natalie Manuel Professor Thomas Whenever Intro to Business August 3, 2014 There are a few times where I experienced effective communication in a business environment. One time in particular, I believe everyone demonstrated communicating effectively. At work there is a lot of chaos at times because there aren't many plans or guidelines put in place for customers regarding certain aspects of the business. My co-worker and I decided to create a few documents that can be .NET to the customer in certain situations.I work for GE oil & gas and we deal with customers who may need/want to return their blower for many reasons. We created a ARM authorization return form to keep everything organized. The form was very detailed and provided all the information the customer needs as well as the important information we would need to process the return. Along with this form, we created a standard order checklist. A lot of times we receive cus tomer Pop's that has missing information, incorrect pricing, wrong export information or incorrect vendor information, among other things.We created a document that was meant to be distributed to all the distributors and Memo's. The documents were sent to all the sales reps for review. Immediately we were met with issues from them. This is where the communication came in. We set-up for there to be a conference call with us and the sales rep. Once we were able to have the meeting, all questions and concerns were put on the table. Having an open dialogue is important in business and in life. With this conference call, we were able to edit some of the statements on the comments.As well as take some things off. Once that was complete, we were able to send these forms out to the customers. From that point on the effect it had on the business was an increase productivity. There were less Pop send backs to customers for corrections. That pleased the customers so much! Pleasing the customer s is always the goal, they help the business grow. Most of the customers really appreciated the help that the forms provided them. Without the conference call, none of this would have been possible.It could have been easy to take the sales rep issues and ignore them. I see in business a lot that people and their ideas are ignored. It only causes tension and mistrust. We understood that none of this was personal. Everyone had a great interest in seeing the business grow. Talking things out, keeps misunderstandings to a minimum. If I had to do it all over again, I wouldn't change a thing. Effective communication should be the goal for all businesses. â€Å"Effective communication in the workplace helps employees and managers form highly efficient teams.

Kung-Fu Panda 2 Belonging

In the film Kung-Fu Panda 2, the extended metaphor of â€Å"Inner Peace† in the film symbolizes the need for a person to acknowledge their own weaknesses, their past and their faults, which conveys the importance of finding and accepting one’s identity. Furthermore throughout the film, there are various scenes where water droplets are dropping and flowing in slow motion, combined with flashbacks of the past, demonstrates the power of spiritual connections and nature. The importance of belonging and loving your family is also emphasised in Kung-Fu Panda 2.Through the protagonist, Po’s, exploration of his true parentage, the power of common memories to influence the bonds between people is displayed. It is important to accept who yo9u are as it can affect where you belong and how you feel. When he questions his dad about his true parentage, saying he had a dream about his mother, his adoptive father, Mr. Ping, freezes and looks agitated, showing that he is scared t hat he will lose Po if the truth is revealed. Whenever Po questions his lineage, sad music is played, making the audience feel sympathy for Po’s turmoils.Even after all the events that happens throughout the film, Po comes home back to Mr. Ping he says to him â€Å"I know who I am now, I am your son, I love you dad. † While this is happening, there is soft and happy music playing in the background, showing that even though they aren’t blood related, they are still happy together. This is true belonging. Even though they have no blood relations, they are truly happy together and value each other’s company, showing that they belong together. This relates to belonging and accepting yourself.The importance of individuality in finding a role in society is emphasised heavily throughout the film. The film follows the growth of Po in his journey of achieving â€Å"Inner Peace†. In the film you see Po’s idolization of other Kung Fu legends displays h is own inner emotional insecurity and spiritual turmoil. This is also reinforced through the technique juxtaposition, shown through Po’s fatness and Tigress’s hardened self. The need for you to accept your true self in forming meaningful relationships is shown through this.It is shown through the dramatic irony of Po’s insensitive comment â€Å"I have to know, the hard-core wouldn’t understand† directed at Tigress, saying that she is unable to feel both physically and emotionally. The close-up shot of Tigress’s saddened and hurt face combined with the sad; non-diegetic music further incites the audience’s sympathy of Po trying to find out about his own individuality with Tigress stopping him. Throughout the film you also hear the metaphor of â€Å"Inner Peace† used excessively.The phrase â€Å"Inner Peace† means to be spiritually and mentally at peace, with enough knowledge to keep oneself strong when under great hardshi p and stress. Throughout the film, Po is plagued by nightmares of his past and his own insecurity compared to Tigress and the others. In the beginning, Po witnesses Master Shifu moving a droplet of water all over his body without it splashing or breaking its form. When Po inquires how he did this, Shifu responds by saying â€Å"Inner Peace†. It is implying that having inner peace allows you to do things that are impossible, which is also shown when Po catches a cannon ball and throws it back.In the film, having inner peace symbolises that you have accepted yourself for who you are, complete with strengths and weaknesses. By having inner peace, it is saying that you can achieve things that you couldn’t achieve before & to be able to find out where you truly belong. The director of this movie positions the audience to sympathise with Po through the demonstration of the fallibility of one’s memory, which is shown through the flashbacks and dramatic devices used as Po lies to himself. Po couldn’t accept his own self throughout the film, which draws in the audience to feel sorry and sympathise for him.The differing perspectives of Po and his companions are comically shown through his fights with them. However, the audience is positioned to support Po though the uses of Mise-en-scene, as screen elements’ visual size are diminished whenever Po is in the screen. As Po zooms towards the audience and takes the centre of the screen, it enables the audience to see things through Po’s perspective. At the end of the film, Po is hailed as a hero & feels that he has finally found that he has been accepted by Tigress and the others. He finally feels that he belongs.

Martin Luther King – I Have a Dream Analysis

Topic Choice: The topic choice ‘I have a dream’ was chosen after a lot of soul searching. It reveals the speaker’s previous experiences growing up and living in a segregated society. He only dreamt of being treated as an equal citizen, not based on the colour of his skin and ethnic background. This topic was directed at millions of African Americans suffering from extreme poverty as a result of being denied opportunities in their own country. The topic resonated with everyone in the crowd on that day and would be repeated several times in the speech.The majority of the people taking part in the march for freedom on that day only dreamt of being accorded the same opportunities and rights that their fellow white citizens enjoyed. ‘I have a dream’ was an excellent topic choice for the event and still remains synonymous with the struggle for freedom up to this day Word Order: In [1], the speaker acknowledges and thanks the audience for attending the histo ric march for freedom and equality, and he reminds them that that particular day would go down in history as the greatest for freedom in the United States of America.He takes them back five years ago and reminds them that despite all the joy and hope they felt when Abraham Lincoln signed the Emancipation Act, freedom was still far away. Nothing had changed among blacks, Hispanics and other visible ethnic minorities living in the United States: [1] â€Å"Five score years ago, a great American, in whose symbolic shadow we stand signed the Emancipation Proclamation. This momentous decree came as a great beacon light of hope to millions of Negro slaves who had been seared in the flames of withering injustice. It came as a joyous daybreak to end the long night of captivity†.Martin Luther King’s demeanor was calm and collected and waited for the words to sink in the audience’s mind before proceeding with the next part of the speech. The order of his words was well org anized right from the start: [1] and [2] talks about the Emancipation Proclamation and its mirage sense of equality. [3], [4] and [5 is a reminder for the United States Government to apply the Emancipation Proclamation to all men black and white. [6] and [7] is a declaration that unless the situation was corrected by the government, revolutions and disturbances will continue. 8], [9] and [10] is a reminder to the audience of the importance of avoiding violence and to restore to peaceful and dignified protests. [11], [12], [13], [14], [15], [16], [17], [18] and [19] are all an inspirational talk that is the essence of the speech ‘I have a dream'. Stress, Intonation and Coherence: The speaker stresses the importance of his message through his tone. This was not considered an ordinary message. This was supposed to be an extraordinary message from an extraordinary man at a crucial point in the history of African Americans in the United States of America.This was the only non viole nt weapon available to millions of disadvantaged people and the speaker knew the importance of this historic occasion. The speech had been written and revised several times until the Reverend Martin Luther King felt it was now ready to be delivered. Despite all the care, thought and effort put into drafting this speech, its message would be useless if it was not delivered in a coherent and logical manner. In [2] people are still reminded that the Negro is still not free. By invoking the word Negro, he really wanted to bring the message home to thousands of African Americans across America.The tone of his voice was authoritative, commanding as well as captivating the audience. He constantly reminded black people in America how they were living in dire poverty when in fact they were living in the richest country on earth. He was aware that his message would be broadcast in millions of homes across America and the world at large. There were applauses and cheering coming from the thousa nds of people standing in the crowd urging him to go on with the speech. His message was being well received: [2] â€Å"One hundred years later, the Negro is still languishing in the corners of American society and finds himself an exile in his own land.So we have come here today to dramatize a shameful condition†. In [2], Martin Luther King was not only reminding black people that they were languishing in poverty and being denied all the available opportunities in the land of plenty, but he was speaking directly to the United States government and the majority of white people in America. He was merely telling them they should not forget how wealthy they were at the expense of the suffering poor black people and it was time to change the status quo.Therefore, his audience was not just the thousands of people gathered at the Lincoln Memorial, but the millions of white people who would be watching and listening to his speech in their luxurious homes. Local Semantic Moves: The s peaker does not use just ordinary language to convey his message. He makes use of a number of semantics to enrich and make his message bold. In [3] he speaks of having come to the nation’s capital to cash a cheque and refers to the Declaration of Independence as a promissory note signed by the government.Once a promissory note is signed one cannot go back on that promise and by this he was reminding as well as warning the government that they had to act on their promises and failure to do so would continue to be met with demonstrations across the country. In [4] the speaker, reminds the authorities of having defaulted on their promissory note and the black people’s refusal to believe that there are â€Å"insufficient funds in the bank of justice† and that there are insufficient funds in the† great vaults of opportunity â€Å"of this nation.He invokes colorful language of banking to add meaning to his speech. He maximizes the use of his great oratory skill s. By using semantics, he keeps his audience attentive and wanting to hear more. Martin Luther King chooses his words carefully to inspire in his audience the attitude he wants them to adopt in their quest for freedom, a non violent pursuit o freedom: [8]†We must forever conduct our struggle on the high plane of dignity and discipline. We must not allow our creative protest to degenerate into physical violence.Again and again [slightly rising intonation] we must rise to the majestic heights of meeting physical force with soul force. † Words such as â€Å"dignity, discipline, creative protest, majestic heights, and soul force† inspire a sense of self worthiness and mature dignity in the audience. In [10] King chooses his words brilliantly to reinforce the notion of a peaceful protest. He tells his audience that he is not â€Å"unmindful† of their situation. He totally understands and shares their plight and hardship. The speaker uses adjectives such as †Å"storms nd winds† in describing the audience's fight for freedom. It is like a typhoon that twirls them around and rips them apart but they have to endure it with â€Å"creative and redemptive suffering† and go back to their towns, to their demeaning jobs and to their ghettos to continue their dignified struggle for freedom. King used stimulating words to inspire his audience to seek their lost freedom but at the same time he chose his words carefully to control the probable physical effect of his inspiring words.He was protecting his hearers from any form of violence and brutality that might erupt after the speech. Speech Acts and Schematic Organisation: Throughout his speech, the speaker shows an impeccable sense of organisation and shows how gifted he is in the art of speaking. In [5] and [6] he invokes a sense of urgency of attaining freedom. He reminds the authorities of the seriousness of the matter despite the fact that he might be put in jail after the speech. Here is a man who knew anything could happen to him immediately after addressing this crowd and the nation.He displays his charisma and fearlessness: [5] † NOW [rising intonation] is the time to make real the promises of democracy. † â€Å"NOW [rising intonation] is the time to rise from the dark and desolate valley of segregation to the sunlit path of racial justice. † â€Å"NOW [rising intonation] is the time to lift our nation from the quick sands of racial injustice to the solid rock of brotherhood. † â€Å"NOW [high intonation] is the time [pause] to make justice a reality for all of God's children. He emphasizes the word ‘now’ in [5] indicating that they were tired of waiting and something had to be done immediately to address these social injustices. In [6] the speaker warns the authorities of the repercussions of ignoring their requests: â€Å"There will be neither rest nor tranquility in America until the Negro is granted his citizen ship rights. † This was no joking matter. Although the speaker was addressing the audience gathered at the Lincoln Memorial, this particular message was directed at the United States government and the whole world was listening and watching.In [7] his tone changes as he reminds the authorities once again of what awaits them if they don’t address their concerns: â€Å"The whirlwinds of revolt will continue to shake the foundations of our nation until the bright day of justice emerges. † Despite these seemingly harsh and inciting words, the speaker quickly turns his speech around and addresses the black people warning them never to use violence or revenge as a means of attaining freedom. He displays his rhetorical and organizing skills in the process.In [8], [9] and [10] he skillfully urges all black people in America to continue fighting for freedom none violently. Propositional Structures turn Takings, Repairs and Hesitation: In [11] the speaker shows that he is a great man of faith and strength. Despite all the injustices and persecution, he is prepared to continue leading his people in the fight for freedom. He strongly believes that all human were created equal and should be entitled to the same opportunities.In [12], [13], [14] and [15] he starts each of the next paragraphs with a very strong and authoritative voice making the same utterance ‘I have a dream’. This is met by thunderous applauses and delight from the audience. At times he seems to hesitate to start the next sentence. He is simply making sure that his message is sinking deeper into his audience’s hearts and minds: [12] â€Å"I have a dream that one day on the red hills of Georgia the sons of former slaves and the sons of former slave owners will be able to sit down together at a table of brotherhood. [13] â€Å"I have a dream that my four little children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the color of their skin but by the content of their character. † [14] â€Å"I have a dream that one day [pause] down [long vowel] in Alabama, with its vicious racists, with its governor having his lips dripping with the words of interposition and nullification, one day down RIGHT THERE [high voice] in Alabama little black boys and black girls will be able to join hands with little white boys and white girls and walk together as sisters and brothers. [15] â€Å"I have a dream that one day every valley shall be exalted, every hill and mountain shall be made low, the rough places will be made plain, and the crooked places will be made straight, and the glory of the Lord shall be revealed, and all flesh shall see it together. † The power of the speech’s title is clearly visible in all these words and they get the crowd jumping up and down, clapping their hands and nodding their heads all in agreement with the speaker. Hope and Freedom In [16], [17], [18] and [19] in the closing stages of his speech, Reverend Martin Luther King changes his speech act in order to drive the final message home.While he has been addressing the United States government and other stakeholders, his attention now turns to the African American gathered here and listening across the United States. He reminds them that despite all the suffering there is still hope and freedom is coming. People just need to persevere. In [18] he reminds the whole nation that freedom is coming to all corners of their country: [18] â€Å"So let freedom ring from the prodigious hilltops of New Hampshire. (a) Let freedom ring from the mighty mountains of New York. (b) Let freedom ring from the heightening Alleghenies of Pennsylvania! c) Let freedom ring from the snowcapped Rockies of Colorado! (d) Let freedom ring from the curvaceous peaks of California! (e) But not only that; let freedom ring from Stone Mountain of Georgia! (f) Let freedom ring from Lookout Mountain of Tennessee! (g) Let freedom ring from every hill and every molehill of Mississippi. (h) From EVERY MOUNTAINSIDE [high intonation] let freedom ring. † The tone in his voice changes considerably when he makes these utterances. His voice displays the seriousness, urgency and boldness associated with the quest for freedom.His concluding remarks show a man who has devoted his life fighting for equality and social justice. He reminds the American people of the beauty of allowing every human being to be free. In his mind, despite all the challenges and struggles of life, the black people will definitely be free one of these days: [19] â€Å"FREE AT LAST, FREE AT LAST! THANK GOD ALIMIGHTY, WE ARE FREE AT LAST! â€Å"[high intonations][applause and cheering]. The Results of the Analysis: The analysis of this speech illustrates how the Critical Discourse Analysis can explain hidden meaning in language.It does not dwell on one particular theory of discourse analysis but embraces a number of theories available. Using a number of different ling uistic markers has revealed a number of linguistic traits displayed by Martin Luther King. A critical analysis of the topic choice reveals that it was chosen after a thorough and thoughtful process. ‘I have a dream’ becomes engrained in most parts of the speech as a way of emphasising the central theme of the message. The speaker’s style of presentation and rhetorical skills are unique.The speech invokes historical injustices that are still visible in American society and need to be urgently addressed. Just like the urgency with which poverty, injustice and lack of freedom has to be addressed, the speaker delivers his speech with so much punch and vigour. He uses very colourful language in trying to add more meaning to his speech. The audience are mesmerised by the strong and powerful message conveyed by the speech itself. The speaker switches his attention between the people gathered at the Lincoln Memorial and the United States Authorities as he subconsciously addresses them every now and then.Overall, this was a brilliant speech on a historic occasion which managed to achieve its main objectives. The message was heard by African Americans and the United States government loud and clear. This speech has gone down in history books as one of the best speeches ever to be delivered and still remains an inspiration to millions of people around the world up to this day. The Conclusion: Critical Discourse Analysis is a powerful tool for analysing speeches. Often, some speeches especially media texts, may not be comprehensible to the audience.Critical Discourse Analysis aims to demystify anything not apparent from the speeches and it tends to be more associated with power, struggle and politics, hence it has been appropriate to analyse Martin Luther King’s speech using Critical Discourse Analysis. Additionally, Reverend Martin Luther King’s speech owes its background to years of struggling, poverty and denial of opportunities for th e majority of black Americans. He delivers the speech in a perfect setting after a long March for freedom when everyone was quiet anxious and expectant by the end of the day.The authorities were carefully watching him and scrutinising every word that came out of his mouth. Despite all the attention, he delivered the speech flawlessly and without any fear. His style and rhetoric was just unique and his speech was very well received by those gathered and everyone else watching at home. He continually repeated the title of the speech, ‘I have a dream’ as he attempted top drive his message home. In using the critical analysis approach, the writer attempted to unravel some of the hidden meaning engrained in this speech.