Etiological Theories Of Autism Spectrum Disorder Essay

Etiological Theories of Autism Spectrum Disorder: A Review of the Literature Nova Southeastern University Abstract Within the last twenty years, the amount of empirical research regarding the possible cause(s) and risk factors for Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) has increased (Lai et al., 2014). According to the United States Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), ASD is currently identified in approximately 1 out of 68 children living in the United States, compared to 1 in 10,000 children in 1980 (Baio, 2014). The rise in ASD prevalence highlights the need to continue research into etiology, risk factors, and effective treatments. Purpose: This paper is a critical review of current scientific studies that have focused on the ASD population about etiology of the disorder, susceptibility, and prevalence. Theories and factors that appear to influence or predict ASD outcome are reviewed. Method: Twenty-two research articles published between January 1, 2009, and November 1, 2014, in scientific, peer-reviewed journals were retrieved from the following electronic databases: ProQuest, CINAHL Complete, and Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews. The articles were evaluated for risk of bias. Results: Recent findings suggest autism is a disorder caused by interplay of multiple genetic, epigenetic and environmental factors. Keywords: Autism, ASD, Autism Spectrum Disorder; in combination with: Etiology and/or Cause, Genetic Risk Factors,Show MoreRelatedGender Theory1544 Words   |  7 PagesThere is a 4:1 boy to girl ratio found in individuals with autism spectrum disorder (ASD). This gender disparity, although heavily studied, is little understood. There are two main theories that attempt to explain this gender disparity: the extreme male brain theory, which is supported by research on fetal testosterone, X-chromosomes, Y-chromosomes, and the female protective effect; and the biased diagnostic criteria theory, which is also supported by many research studies that explore phenotypicRead MoreEtiological Theories And Social Implications Essay1944 Words   |  8 PagesEtiological Theories and Social Implications In this earliest period of recognition, people in the psychiatric community began to formulate theories as to why children developed conditions like autism and schizophrenia. Some theorized about the possibility of a genetic predisposition early on, but the ideas of some influential figures in the field proposed theories with rather damaging implications (Donvan, 2016). Kanner himself initially thought that autism was a result of a distant mother (SilbermanRead MoreThe Classification System Of Mental Health Disorders2431 Words   |  10 PagesThe classification system of mental health disorders is the foundation for diagnosis, assessment, intervention, and research. The necessity that this classification system provides a empirically-supported framework for the conceptualization of mental health disorders cannot be overstated. Currently, mental health fields around the world rely primarily on the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders 5th Edition (DSM-5; APA, 2013) and the International Classification of Diseases 10thRead MoreEssay Psych Research3628 Words   |  15 Pagesthe caseload consists of children ages 2-18 with a variety of child mental health problems (e.g. ADHD, Anxiety, adjustment problems), there is the opportunity to provide specialized services to patients referred by Deaconess-Riley specialists (e.g. Autism, Developmental Delays, childhood diabetes, endocrinology etc.) Requirements: Ph. D. or Psy.D. in child psychology/pediatric psychology including completion of an internship in an APA-accredited child psychology program and licensed (or license eligible)

Obama Calls Preliminary Deal with Iran Our Best Bet Essay

Essays on Obama Calls Preliminary Deal with Iran Our Best Bet Essay The paper "Obama Calls Preliminary Deal with Iran Our Best Bet" is a great example of an essay on politics. In the recent past, there have been calls and moves by the global community to curb the upsurge of the assembling of nuclear weapons by Iran. The world or the United Nations has in the past threatened Iran and indeed effected bans and sanctions against Iran on the purported nuclear weapons and armory collection. However, the surge of other countries and neighboring nations such as Israel have increased their participation and interest in the issue of nuclear expansion in Iran. Obama has since called the renewed surge by the global partners, the best shot and chance of curbing or dealing with the menace of Iran. In principle, Israel has also warned that it would invoke or initiate military actions on top of monitoring measures to curb the threat or surge of nuclear weapons by Iran.   Question: the qualitative possibility of improvement on the success of monitoring Iran nuclear plans by USA and Israel:Obama has since termed the move to join the current move and aim by Israel as the best move in ensuring that the endeavor by Iran to assemble nuclear weapons is defeated. This is so because the U.S cannot afford another military incursion into Iran on such claims and secondly, the sanction by the United Nations Security Council does not yield fruits (Shultz et al 6). In principle, the United States would be better placed to rally behind Israel who is perennial rivals with Iran and instead offer their support to ensure the nuclear plants are monitored. Similarly, it is in the best interest of the United States and the global community to have eyes in the procurement process used by Iran in the nuclear plant. The graph below shows the qualitative likelihood of success of the joint supervision and mission in Iran nuclear supervision.

Analog to Digital Comparison Free Essays

Analog to Digital When the conversion takes place between analog and digital it becomes the base of all communication technologies. Just about all hardware uses digital so it is very important to convert analog signals into digital to perform support for hardware applications. All hardware devices are aimed to be digital. We will write a custom essay sample on Analog to Digital Comparison or any similar topic only for you Order Now Therefore, devices in the future will not need conversion because they will already be digital. There are many examples of analog to digital like a scan picture. The analog information provided by the light present in the picture is converted to digital signal to complete the process. The digital conversion use the means of binary coding for data transmission and output. The digital signals work only by using only two numbers known as one and zero (Analog to Digital). When users convert the signal to digital it allows plenty of data to be stored on a single device. This help save bandwidths and space. There are seven ways that signals are structured; direct conversion, ramp compare, successive approximation, delta encoded, pipeline, time stretch, and sigma delta. When the hardware uses one of those signals the destination hardware will find the best data encryption and utilization. The most common analog to digital conversion are the digital TVs, cameras, and other video captures. The newer microcontrollers’ technologies are used to convert analog to digital by reducing the size of the chip to get a better signal. Frequency Modulation The advantages and disadvantages of frequency, and frequency modulation vary from one application to the next. However, the frequency modulation choice depends on the applications, and system requirements. Knowing the type of system as well as the requirement will help the technician choose the correct form or type frequency modulation to generate to get the required output for use. Comparing, and contrasting Amplitude Modulation (AM) to other forms of modulation frequencies an individual will find that (AM) frequency is relatively inexpensive, minimum circuitry required for connection as well as the demodulation process. (AM) covers a larger area when compared to (FM) greatly with the aid of atmospheric conditions. A disadvantage of (AM) includes a limited amount of bandwidth where-as the bandwidth needs to be double the strength of the highest frequency, noise mixes easily at higher frequencies, and only one side of the frequency carries the signal where-as the other side has a loss of power. Applications that normally use (AM) include radio transmission news, weather, music, aircraft communication to the aircraft tower in a very high frequency (VHF) form, and walkie-talkies for two-way communication. Frequency Modulation (FM) advantages include a stronger signal than (AM), noise control with the aid of increasing or decreasing the deviation, constant power output with no loss. The disadvantage includes cost, the demodulation process that may require knowledge of complicated circuitry. The application for (FM) includes radio communication, and some analog applications. Phase Modulation (PM), which is analog version phase shift keying. The advantages include includes modulation to demodulation made easier when compared to (FM). (PM) is also used to determine speed or velocity. A disadvantage of (PM) will include the displacement of the original signal of more than 180 degrees will cause phase ambiguity. Applications for (PM) include boat radio communications, radio, music, and news communications. When an individual uses his or her wireless Ethernet (802. 11b) he or she does not care as to how the signal is generated just as long as it works. Modulation Techniques Modulation is the method used to transmit and receive signals from a carrier. Different types of equipment make it possible for the signals to be used. Each piece of equipment uses different techniques but is essence offers the same results. The three most common methods by which signals are transmitted are 56K modem, asymmetrical digital subscriber line (ADSL), and Wireless Fidelity also known as Wi-Fi. Throughout the growth of the Internet, each of these processes has proven themselves to be effective ways to transmit digital signals. However, the 56K modem has become somewhat obsolete with the emergence of Wi-Fi. The signal modulation that the 56K modem receives is provided by the telephone network. When there is no interference or problems with the network’s connection, a 56K modem has a maximum speed of 64K but will rarely come close to achieving this because of typical issues with the network. The modulation takes place by converting the digital signal that the Internet Service Provider (ISP) transmits into an analog signal that the telephone company can use. The individual uses a modem to convert the analog signal received from the telephone company back to a digital signal. After the access to the Internet became more demanding, this process proved to be too time-consuming and ADSL emerged. ADSL uses two opposing modulation techniques that rely on Quadrature Amplitude Modulation (QAM). QAM uses a process to conserve bandwidth that was widely used by earlier modems. The first modulation technique used is the Carrierless Amplitude Phase (CAP) that was developed by ATT. The carrier retains no information because it is suppressed before transmission and unsuppressed after it reaches its destination. This process offer two advantages for its users, a less expensive and more flexible way of modulation and demodulation. The other modulation technique is the Discrete Multi-Tone (DMT). The DMT has been selected as the standard for ADSL. This method is a bit more complex because of the way that it separates the bandwidth into 256 channels. Each of these sub-channels uses about 4. 3125 kHz of bandwidth using the QAM process. It also uses more low frequency channels to minimize the noise interference present during high frequency transmissions. It also uses method like Discrete Wavelet Multi-Tone to maximize the separation between the channels to assist in minimizing interference. The final modulation technique is the Wi-Fi. The Wi-Fi uses two radio transmission methods for modulation. The 802. 11b uses the process complementary coded keying (CCK) at around 11Mbps to process the signal with special codes and modulate it using Quadrature Phase Shift Keying (QPSK) (â€Å"Tutorialspoint†, 2013). The other is the 802. 1a and g type that use a 64 channel orthogonal frequency division multiplexing (OFDM) that divides the available radio band into sub-channels to send bits on each (â€Å"Tutorialspoint†, 2013). By using Binary Phase Shift Keying (BPSK), QPSK, or one of the QAM variants, the transmitter can encode the streams of bits carried on the 64 sub-channels. The receiver only uses the informa tion that it needs to construct the information and disregard the redundant information. Sonnet SONET, or synchronous optical network (Gilmer, 2003) was designed in the 1980’s due to the break-up of ATT. The current technology was overwhelmed by the sheer number of new telephone companies around the country. SONET was designed to deliver T-1 and T-3 speeds for data transfers. The SONET frame is designed as an 810-byte setup utilizing nine rows of 90 bits. The remaining bits are left out of the rows to perform separate tasks for each section. SONET is still used today as a means of telecommunication as it has a superior amount of flexibility over cables, such as those utilized by Ethernet that can be only stretched a fraction of the distance achieved by fiber optic cable. Where Ethernet maxes out at 348 feet, fiber optic cable is used at distances over a mile long, a drastic difference in usability. Conclusion It is apparent that as the popularity of the Internet increases, the technology must increase as well to meet the demands. The different conversion method used today for analog to digital has made it easier for users than in the past. The modulation techniques have improved making it possible to transmit information faster and less expensive for users. Finally, the SONET technology has propelled the industry even further with its increased range and flexibility. References Analog to Digital. (2013 April). Retrieved from http://www. wifinotes. com/computer-hardware-components Gilmer, B. (2003). Sonet. Broadcast Engineering, 45(7), 24-24. Retrieved from http://search. proquest. com/docview/204171727? accountid=35812 Goleniewski, L. (2007). Telecommunications Essentials (2nd ed. ). Boston, MA: Pearson. Analog to Digital. (2013 april). Retrieved from http://www. wifinotes. com/computer-hardware-components Tutorialspoint. (2013). Retrieved from http://www. tutorialspoint. com/wi-fi/wifi_radio_modulation. htm How to cite Analog to Digital Comparison, Papers

The Determinants of Corporate Dividend Policy †Free Samples

Question: Discuss about the Determinants of Corporate Dividend Policy. Answer: Data and Research Methodology Sample and Data Selection The essential data that is collected is attained from Prowess Database of Centre for Monitoring Indian Economy (CIME). The selected organizations that are taken as sample are chosen from the huge base of BSE 500 Index. The tenure of the research is 7 years and it initiates from the year 1st January 2001 to 31st December 2007. The researcher has only added the organizations in the sample that has been paying off dividend on a continuous basis during the research period and has not added the financial organizations and the companies that are owned by the government. It is seen that only the final dividends that are paid in cash by the organizations have been taken into consideration as in general, it is seen that the Indian organizations pay only one dividend annually (Krishnan, Kozhikode 2015). The research has even overlooked the stock repurchases and the stock dividends by the selected organizations and has assessed only the dividends that are paid in cash. This mechanism has been able to provide a final sample of 150 organizations that have been chosen from a total of 16 industries. Explanation of the Variables During the past few years of researches, the researchers have incorporated several financial variables that can have extensive level of impact on the dividend policy (A framework has been given in Annexure 1 of this paper). The variables that have been determined earlier, the current research paper looks to select fifteen variables in order to assess their impact on the decisions related to dividend (Patel, Rayner 2015). The validation for selecting these variables are explained as follows. Liquidity is a key element for the decisions related to dividend. The dividend payment and the liquidity attitude of an organization have a relationship that is direct in nature. In case an organization has sufficient cash flows, the organization would look to dispense the dividend received as cash in order to satisfy the shareholders. Furthermore, the organizations needs to undertake their payment of the dividends with the help of cash and therefore the organization has to be sufficiently liquid in order to distribute the dividends and even to stay solvent (Abraham et al., 2015). The cash from the operations and the current ratio are the indicators that address the liquidity scenario of an organization. Therefore, the cash from operations and the current ratio have been chosen as the first two variables for this research. The other key factor that is determined is the leverage. A company that has higher leverage explains that the huge fixed payments for the purpose of external financing is initiated which, is actually an alternate for the payment of the dividends (Baker et al., 2017). The extent of high leverage leads to a rise in the cost of transaction and even the risk of an organization. On the other hand, the extent of increased retention rate lowers the potentiality for the outward borrowings and vice-versa. Therefore, the research has selected debt-to-equity ratio (DER) and the retained earnings to equity ratio (REE) as the substitutions for financial leverage that displays an association that is negative in nature in accordance to the dividend decision. Therefore, retained earnings to equity ratio and debt-to-equity ratio have been chosen as the third and the fourth variable. Additionally, the relationship among the dividend payment attitude and the model of ownership of a company is even appreciated. The management and the supervision of the company may be levied on the promoters or the directors, the organization or the foreign based investors. The insiders would like to restrict the additional dividend payment and on the other hand the institutional owners are generally are much more dividend demanding (Arora, Sharma 2016). Therefore, the shareholding of the promoters, organizational shareholding and the foreign organizational investor shareholding are taken as the fifth, sixth and seventh variables. The extent of profit has been always taken into consideration as the most effective element for the disbursement of the dividend as the rise in the extent of profit indicates more amounts of dividends (Kengatharan, 2018). It is significant to look at the variables for the purpose of long term and short term profitability of an organization. The paper has chosen Return on Investment, (ROI) and Net Profit Ratio (NPR) and the profit ratio prior to the interest and taxes to their overall assets (PTA) as the substitutes and hence, they are chosen as the eighth, ninth and tenth variables. Furthermore, the opportunities for development have an essential role to play in this research. The rise in the operational development and the developments in the profits of an organization would indicate the rise in the payment of dividends by an organization. The developmental factor is shown by the annual sales growth (ASG), earnings per share (EPS) and return on the net worth (NONW) (Chaklader, Gulati 2015). The rate of growth of the above addressed variables is considered as the eleventh, twelfth and thirteenth variables for the research. Market Capitalization matches with the firm size and therefore is taken as the fourteenth variable. The impact of tax is another key indicator as the taxation rates have an impact on the desire of dividend by the investors. The investors who are paying increased level of tax would like to delay gaining the dividend and therefore would like to preserve their incomes and earnings with the company in order to evade the extensive level of taxes and on the other hand, the investors who are falling within the lower tax bracket would look to have increased level of dividends (Muttakin, Subramaniam 2015). It is because of this purpose, the research has taken the corporate ratio to profit after tax (T) which is an alternative and is the fifteenth variable. A comprehensive explanation of all the variables is provided in the Annexure 2. Research Methodology The current research paper reassesses several factors that affect the decisions related to dividend of a company by making use of the two-step multivariate mechanism. The research has even recognized a total of fifteen variables from the aspect of the literature that is taken into consideration while constructing a dividend policy. While undertaking the initial step, the paper will initiate factor analysis on the collected data in order to bring out the key factors out the chosen fifteen variables. In the next step, the research would undertake multiple regression on the factors that have been determined. Results: Factor Analysis The process of factor assessment explains the highlighted factors that address the correlation between the variables that have been observed. The research paper makes use of the Principle Component Analysis (PCA) as the key process of extraction factor in order to recognize the specific groups of the recognized variables. The extensive factors are additionally exposed to the equamax orthogonal rotation. The table below indicates the results attained from Kaiser-Meyer-Olkin (KMO) and the Barletts Test (MEHTA, Joshi 2016). The KMO system of sampling competence addresses the researcher about whether to minimize the variables into the extensive factors or not. The value that is lower than 0.50 addresses that factor analysis would not establish specific and authentic factors and conversely, any kind of value that is near one would specifically address that this process of assessment would be effective and supportive with the data. The outcome attained in this paper provides a value of 0. 554 and this explains that the correlation trend between the variables is comparatively dense and therefore Factor Analysis is able to generate authentic and specific extensive factors. The Barletts Test of Sphericity examines in order to find out whether the actual matrix of correlation is an identity matrix or not. The outcomes that have been attained in this paper explains that Barletts test has discovered a Chi-Square value of 1.500E3 which is essential for p0.01 and thereby approving that the factor analysis for this paper is valid and authentic. Kaiser-Meyer-Olkin Measure of Sampling Adequacy. .554 Bartletts Test of Sphericity Approx. Chi-Square 1.500E3 Df 105 Sig. .000 Table 1: KMO and Barletts Test It is seen that Table 2 provides the Rotated Factor Matrix by making use of the Equamax Orthogonal Transformation, which is a factor loading factor for every variable on each of the factors. The factor loadings that are lower than 0.30 have been compressed and have not been displayed. The institutional shareholdings have been found to be 0.853 and on the other hand the shareholding of the foreign organizational investors is 0.735 and is correlated positively and on the other hand the shareholding of the promoters is -0.824 and therefore is correlated negatively to the first factor, which is known as the ownership framework. The dividend payout leads to a fall in the worth of the stock and therefore an interest conflict takes place for the insiders. An organization that has increased insider ownership recommends for a lower cash dividend payout. However, the institutional proprietors are interested in influencing the increased payouts so as to improve the power over the management for administering and supervising their matters associated to peripheral finance. The results that are attained in this paper strongly assist the results that are observed in the literature. Conversely, there exists a point that has to be noted to the fact that the personal shareholdings for the promoters, organizations and the investors of the foreign companies in association to the overall shareholdings of an organization have not been regarded. This is an essential aspect with respect to which future researches that can be undertaken. It is seen that factor 2 has increasingly negative loadings as the value is seen to be for debt-equity ratio is -0.756, taxation has a value of -0.704 and the earnings per share has been -0.384 and on the other hand the positive loadings for the return on investment is seen to be 0.759 and the return on the net worth is 0.577. This factor has been termed as leverage. This recommends that the company would look to pay increasing amount of dividends if they are making use of their retained earnings, which has the lowest amount of attached risk in comparison to the external financing. In some other word, increased amount of payment of interest, which is known as fixed charge will lead to lower amount of payment of the dividend. Hence, the outcome of the analysis indicates that there is a converse relationship among the rate of dividend and leverage. The third extensive factor is addressed as Profitability. It is incisive of the net profit ratio that attains a value of 0.809 and the market capitalization, which has a value of 0.789. This factor in this research is coined as liquidity. An organization that has increased level of external financing would be in need of cash flow availability, which means the requirement of strong position of liquidity in order to satisfy their financial responsibilities. Thus, in order to raise the level of liquidity, the company needs to lower their dividend payout and conversely, the bigger the company size is, the more is the accessibility of the independent cash flows and the better will be the amount of the dividend payout (Dhanesh, 2015). A company that has better unit of shareholders is anticipated to give out increased amount of dividends so as to satisfy their shareholders. There has been a discovery that increased amount of retained earnings to the equity ratio, which explains the inclinat ion to payout the dividend would make sure that the accessibility of the free cash flow or the cash flow that is residual within the organization. Hence, one would anticipate a direct and a better relationship among the dividend payout and liquidity. The next or the fifth factor is called Growth. It is inclusive of the annual sales growth that has a value of 0.816, return on net worth, which has a value of 0.530 and the retained earnings to equity ratio that has a value of 0.485 and this implies that the development in the level of profit and sales is a key element for paying out the dividends. The results obtained from this paper assists the discoveries of Gupta, Sharma (2014) who has recommended that the companies that are having increased amount of rate of growth distribute increased amount of dividends in order to satisfy their shareholders. Components Ownership Structure Leverage Profitability Liquidity Growth IS .843 PS -.824 FIIs .735 .385 ROI .759 .412 DER -.756 T -.704 RONW .577 .415 .530 EPS -.384 PTA .932 NPR .932 CR .546 -.431 CFO .809 MC .789 ASG .816 REE .485 Table 2: Rotated Component Matrix Regression Results In this step, the multiple regressions is undertaken in order to ascertain the effect of the selected five variables that are independent on the rate of dividend. The rate of dividend is a kind of variable that is dependent in nature and comprises of the decisions related to dividends and the five factors are discovered from the process of factor analysis and therefore the liquidity, leverage, structure of the ownership, growth and profitability are considered as the independent variables. As the features utilized in the framework of regression are attained through the orthogonall changes, they are independent from the issues related to the multi-collinearity. There have been additional tests and examinations in order to attain the results for autocorrelation, normality and heteroscedasticity and these outcomes reveal that the information is distributed on an average and there are no associated issues. The model that is given below is known as Table 3 provides the outcome of the regression framework. The R-Square for the paper is 0.244, which explains that it is around 25 percent of the variations in the rate of dividend and this is addressed by the variables that are independent are examined. The F-Statistics that is found to be 9.320 is essential at 1 percent of significance. The Durbin-Watson statistics of 2.079 addresses that autocorrelation is not existent among the variables that is independent. R-Square F Durbin-Watson 0.244 9.320 2.079 Table 3: Regression Model Summary Table 4, which is addressed below provides an outcome of the regression results. By assessing the five factors, it is seen that four factors, which are growth, leverage, ownership model and liquidity have anticipated relationships in accordance to the payout of the dividend. In cases where profitability explains a symbol that is opposing to what was anticipated. In accordance to the concerned literature, the results that are obtained in this paper reveals that the leverage scenario of an organization has an inverse and negative relationship with the rate of dividend and the figures come to -0.239, which is seen to be vital at 5% level of significance. It is seen that higher the disclosure of the company in accordance to external financing, more will be risks and threats of the organization and hence, the dividend payout value would be low. Variables Expected sign Standardized Co-efficient T Sig. Beta Dividend Rate (Constant) Dependent variable 3.840 .000 Leverage Negative -.239 -3.013 .003 Liquidity Positive .341 4.138 .000 Profitability Positive -.007 -0.086 .932 Ownership Structure Positive .091 1.113 .286 Growth Positive .041 .541 .589 Table 4: Regression Results In the same manner, liquidity has a value of 0.341 and this addresses a positive relationship with the rate of dividend at the 1% significance level. The framework of the ownership of an organization that represents the institutional entrepreneurs has a coefficient value that is positive and the value is 0.091, but it is not significant statistically. The growth ratio has a value of 0.41 addresses a coefficient that is positive and this value is not significant. Therefore, the outcome of this research explains that there are two distinct and specific elements for the purpose of making decisions related to dividend and they are liquidity and leverage. Conclusion In spite of few years of active and extensive research on several numbers of theories that looks to address the elements of the corporate dividend policy, there has not been any key answers and judgments that can be concluded. The current study reassesses the elements of the decisions related to the corporate dividends of the Indian organizations, which are listed in the Bombay Stock Exchange within the time frame of 1st January 2001 to 31st December 2007. This research makes use of Principal Component Analysis in order to assess the selected fifteen variables that have an effect over the decision related to dividend of an organization. The final outcome has provided five key factors and they are the growth, leverage, structure of ownership, profitability and liquidity. These elements were then undergone with multiple regression analysis within which the dependent variable was considered as the rate of dividend. The outcome of the regression analysis explains that growth, leverage, o wnership structure and liquidity have addressed signs and symbols whereas the extent of profit did not highlight any anticipated signs. The two factors that are mainly liquidity and leverage were discovered to hold a strong and hardy relationship with the rates of dividend of the companies that are pertinent to India. When leverage was discovered to be related negatively, liquidity on the other hand is related positively. The one point that is worthy of explaining here is that the results that have been obtained are undertaken only from the assessment of the financial factors that have an impact on the dividend policy of an Indian organization. In certain practices, certain non-financial factors like the shareholding of the foreign collaborators, behavior and the attitude of the management, policies of the organization etc may even have a posture on the decision of an organization with respect to dividends. References Abraham, S., Marston, C., Jones, E. (2015). Disclosure by Indian companies following corporate governance reform.Journal of Applied Accounting Research,16(1), 114-137. Aras, G. (2015). The Effect of Corporate Governance Practices on Financial Structure in Emerging Markets: Evidence from BRICK Countries and Lessons for Turkey. Emerging Markets Finance and Trade,51(sup2), S5-S24. Arora, A., Sharma, C. (2016). Corporate governance and firm performance in developing countries: evidence from India.Corporate Governance,16(2), 420-436. Baker, H. K., Jabbouri, I., Dyaz, C. (2017). Corporate finance practices in Morocco. Managerial Finance,43(8), 865-880. Chaklader, B., Gulati, P. A. (2015). A study of corporate environmental disclosure practices of companies doing business in India.Global Business Review,16(2), 321-335. Dhanesh, G. S. (2015). Why corporate social responsibility? An analysis of drivers of CSR in India.Management Communication Quarterly,29(1), 114-129. Gupta, P., Sharma, A. M. (2014). A study of the impact of corporate governance practices on firm performance in Indian and South Korean companies.Procedia-Social and Behavioral Sciences,133, 4-11. Kengatharan, L. (2018). Corporate Finance Practices in Sri Lanka.Asian Economic and Financial Review,8(3), 406. Krishnan, R., Kozhikode, R. K. (2015). Status and corporate illegality: Illegal loan recovery practices of commercial banks in India.Academy of Management Journal,58(5), 1287-1312. MEHTA, D. M., Joshi, K. (2016). Role of regulators in maintaining standards of Corporate Governance.International Journal of Research in Finance and Marketing,6(3), 34-39. Mishra, S., Mohanty, P. (2014). Corporate governance as a value driver for firm performance: evidence from India.Corporate Governance,14(2), 265-280. Muttakin, M. B., Subramaniam, N. (2015). Firm ownership and board characteristics: Do they matter for corporate social responsibility disclosure of Indian companies?.Sustainability Accounting, Management and Policy Journal,6(2), 138-165. Patel, T., Rayner, S. (2015). A transactional culture analysis of corporate sustainability reporting practices: Six examples from India.Business Society,54(3), 283-321. Rani, N., Yadav, S. S., Jain, P. K. (2015). Financial performance analysis of mergers and acquisitions: evidence from India.International Journal of Commerce and Management,25(4), 402-423.

The Giver By Joe Smith Essays - The Giver, Jonas,

The Giver by Joe Smith The story starts as Jonas, a twelve- year-old boy, who is waiting for his life assignment. When he is given his assignment, he is chosen to be the Receiver of Memory. As the Receiver he has to get every memory from all over the world from the old Receiver he calls The Giver. The Giver: The Giver is the man who is the old Receiver. He is also the one who gives Jonas the memories. In the community were Jonas lives is everything is controlled, even people's memory. The Giver is the only one who is not controlled. It is the Receiver's job to store the memories of the community and pass them on to the next Receiver. Gabe: Gabe is an infant who was part of Jonas's father's work that Jonas's father brought home so he won't be released from the community(killed). Jonas's Family: Jonas's family is not like our idea of a family. They don't love each of there family members like we love ours. There is no privacy between anybody. They shared there dreams at breakfast and there day at dinner. Introduction of Characters: Lowry introduces Jonas and his family, with Gabe, plus The Giver. Rising Action: Jonas receives the assignment of Receiver of Memory. Complication: Jonas finds out that not all memories are nice. Conflict: The conflict is man vs. man. Jonas can't turn down his assignment without being released. Climax: Jonas runs away from the perfect community so that Gabe won't be released. Falling Action: People search for Jonas and Gabe. Resolution: Finally Jonas and Gabe make it elsewhere, and they were safe. Setting #1: ?Now the landscape was changing. It was a subtle change, hard to identify at first. The road was narrower, and bumpy, apparently no longer tended to byThe Giver By Joe Smith The story starts as Jonas, a twelve- year-old boy, who is waiting for his life assignment. When he is given his assignment, he is chosen to be the Receiver of Memory. As the Receiver he has to get every memory from all over the world from the old Receiver he calls The Giver. The Giver: The Giver is the man who is the old Receiver. He is also the one who gives Jonas the memories. In the community were Jonas lives is everything is controlled, even people's memory. The Giver is the only one who is not controlled. It is the Receiver's job to store the memories of the community and pass them on to the next Receiver. Gabe: Gabe is an infant who was part of Jonas's father's work that Jonas's father brought home so he won't be released from the community(killed). Jonas's Family: Jonas's family is not like our idea of a family. They don't love each of there family members like we love ours. There is no privacy between anybody. They shared there dreams at breakfast and there day at dinner. Introduction of Characters: Lowry introduces Jonas and his family, with Gabe, plus The Giver. Rising Action: Jonas receives the assignment of Receiver of Memory. Complication: Jonas finds out that not all memories are nice. Conflict: The conflict is man vs. man. Jonas can't turn down his assignment without being released. Climax: Jonas runs away from the perfect community so that Gabe won't be released. Falling Action: People search for Jonas and Gabe. Resolution: Finally Jonas and Gabe make it elsewhere, and they were safe. Setting #1: ?Now the landscape was changing. It was a subtle change, hard to identify at first. The road was narrower, and bumpy, apparently no longer tended to by

Attention Teens Essays

Attention Teens Essays Attention Teens Essay Attention Teens Essay Essay Topic: Teens Attention all teens! After a long long long time of waiting on hand and knee of the evil adultarchy, we the teens and the Council of Teenage Freedom have decided to revolt! just Sure, we are Just a bunch of teens funded by the first national bank of dad, we have no say in politics until we are 18, The truths that we hold self-evident is; the right to have a myspace page. The right to be able to play video games whenever we want. In addition, to have the right to have a cell phone at any age. We would like the right to be able to watch T. V. any time of the day. The right to go places by ourselves. We would like the right to receive money from our parents whenever needed or wanted. The right to be able to watch any movie of any rating we desire. Last but not least, to abolish the child labor, which they call chores. The adultarchy have put us through many injuries and usurpations. They have caused us much pain and agony, Just to list a few: Our parents have forbideth us the right to have a reasonable curfew time. They have forbade us to go to places by thyself. Our school administrators hath not let us chew gum or wear hats in class. Our school administrators have forced us to wear uniforms to hide our expression and individuality. Our school administrators have placed unreasonable exit times and have instructed the teachers to give us unreasonable amount homework. Our parents have forbid us to borrow money in need of emergencies. They have not let us watch certain PG-13 and R movies. They have forbade us of having loud music on. They have forbid us of having parties or going to parties. They have compelled us to do homework as soon as we get home. They have forbid us to go places alone. They have even taketh away our prized possessions when we have a done something afoul. I and other members of the Council of Teenage Freedom have tried fruitlessly to peacefully resolve problems with the adultarchy. We have asked politely, respectfully and with a clear mind for them to give us a little leeway in our way of life. We have finished our homework on time, gotten good grades, even not acted badly. However, the have stayed quite stubborn. We will not let this mockery of us keep going, so we will strike back. On behalf of the Council of Teenage Freedom, and those being butchered and maimed by the tyrannical adultarchy, hereby declare the official breaking away from the government system of the adultarchy. We will create our own government and we will become independent. We will be led and guided by our heavenly god Gene Simmons, there is to be no arguing about this proclamation from teenagers or adults alike. If any do so, they will be banished to live among the adults. Attention Teens By Shanteria09

The first piece of coursework requires you to assess an ecommerce Assignment

The first piece of coursework requires you to assess an ecommerce business solution for your chosen organisation - Assignment Example Hennes & Mauritz operates in more than 38 countries across the globe with its main operations in North America, Europe and Asia. The headquarters of Hennes & Mauritz is located in Stockholm in Sweden. Currently, Hennes & Mauritz is one of the global leaders in the business of fashion products and is highly renowned for the robust strategic management processes employed by the management of the company over the many years of its operations. The valuation of the company is over USD 100 billion as of 2013. The electronic commerce market is a high potential market which is experiencing exponential growth (Laudon and Traver, 2003). As such, Hennes & Mauritz has focused in tapping in the large online marketing domains, especially in the delved countries like the United States of America and the United Kingdom. The company has introduced the electronic commerce business wing from 2010 when it had started selling its products through its corporate electronic commerce website. The online shopping website of H&M, was launched in the year 2010 which offered online retail sales only in the European countries. The electronic commerce wing of H&M was launched as a part of their strategic management function. The main aim of launching the electronic commerce business in the company was to ensure higher levels of competiveness and sustainability in the dynamic business environment, the fact that the electronic commerce domain of businesses across various industries had been experiencing a boost in the last 10 years had made it necessary for Hennes & Mauritz to invest and focus on this part of conducting business so as to ensure higher levels of competitiveness in the global markets of operation of the company (Dave, 2008). The company used to operate with 2200 physical stores locate in diverse geographical locations across the globe. However, currently, Hennes & Mauritz has also entered into the electronic commerce business domain by providing internet based services to its

Health Promotion Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2750 words

Health Promotion - Essay Example It has been seen that the period of adolescence is like a conversion phase which brings unpredictable emotional sufferings, and it takes a shape of depreciation and anxiety. Similarly like young adults, middle aged people also suffer from severe mental disorders because women and men in their mid life think themselves as a old generation who have difference needs and choices than the younger ones, thus in many cases they feel a sense of loneliness and ignorance. During the age of 50, people experience transitions and changes in their decision regarding work and life balance, death of older parents and children growing up and creating their separate lifestyle. It is the when men and women find that their taste and preferences are changing, mood swings, anxiety about spouse and children. Mental issues should be resolved before it creates any serious situation and life risk. This part of the project includes the reason behind carrying out the project. This research has been undertaken to understand about the difficult part of human psychology and the various mental disorders that are faced by young adults and middle aged people. The research has mainly focused on the population of UK. Participants are residents of UK and the target groups are young adults who belong to the age group of 14-25 and middle aged people. Several questions and approaches have been taken for the intervention process. Different types of mental disorders and theories of health promotion have been discussed in the project. This project will be useful for general public to understand about mental health disorders and it will also be helpful for future researchers to understand the concept. Aim of the research is to create various policies for several mental disorders that are affecting the young adults and the middle aged people throughout the world. It also aims to create

International trade Term Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

International trade - Term Paper Example Can you explain why? Trade restrictions are put by government including tariffs, import quotas and trade barriers. This is done to increase net exports by limiting imports. When net exports increase it creates a more favorable balance of trade, the domestic production of the country boost up, which results in increased domestic income and employment. But Most economists realize this argument is wrong because trade restrictions can prove to be harmful as well, if there will be trade restrictions the domestic prices of the goods will increase, and people will be forced to pay higher prices for the domestic products, also the countries won’t be able to benefit from â€Å"Comparative Advantage†. Putting trade restrictions won’t only be harmful for the customers but it will also be harmful for the firms because usually they take advantage of Comparative Advantage and import raw material that are not available in their country, but by putting trade restrictions they wi ll have to find that certain raw material in their own country which will eventually cost them more and it will ultimately effect the price of the final goods, making it more expensive. In long run Trade restrictions can also gives fewer choices to the customers and no variety because they will only have the option to buy the domestic products. Also putting trade restrictions would result in inefficiency from the domestic producers because there won’t be a competition on a global scale and their productivity will decrease. Also International trade is the basic source of bringing â€Å"FOREX† in the country. By putting trade restrictions the country won’t be available to avail from all these advantages. 2) Suppose that in the absence of trade, the Canadian price for bicycles was higher than the world price for bicycles. Would allow international trade mean that Canada would import or export bicycles? Who in Canada would benefit and who would lose with a free trad e policy, and would the gains be greater than the losses?   Free trade policy is also called â€Å"laissez-faire† which means there won’t be any interference from the government side, and manufacturers are free to import and export and manufacture according to their own will. If Canadian price for bicycles is higher than the world price for bicycles then Canada would advantage from â€Å"Comparative Advantage† and import bicycles rather than exporting it. Allowing trade would benefit Canada in long run because domestic prices for bicycles are higher than the world price and the citizens of Canada are paying higher prices unnecessarily, Trade will increase competition in Canadian bicycle market and it will help in reducing monopolistic pricing and the cons that generate from that. It will also encourage local investors and manufactures to perform better and keep stable bicycle pricing in the market. It will also increase the variety in Canadian bicycle market a nd citizens will have more options. Also this will benefit the local producers as they can import raw material for bicycles from other countries who are selling it for cheaper rate and this will help lower marginal cost and decrease the prices of bicycle in Canada. 3) What benefits are to be gained from countries producing according to the law of comparative advantage? What if a country is absolutely more productive in all goods?

The Increasingly Competitive Business Environment Marketing Essay

The Increasingly Competitive Business Environment Marketing Essay The increasingly competitive business environment is due to the tremendous increase of organizations is pressing businesses to rethink its marketing philosophy, in order to stand out from the crowded and information overload global environment. Many marketing concepts and philosophies are suggested, by theoreticians, academicians, practitioners and consultants. In this writing, the most basic but practical marketing concepts and ideas will be introduced. These concepts and models are powerful as it is straightforward, rational and have been applied successfully in many business contexts. The effective marketing concepts to be introduced and discussed here is the Segmentation-Targeting-Positioning Value Delivery Process and the 4P Marketing Mix framework. For practicality purposes, a case study on these subjects will also be presented, to understand how these concepts are being applied successfully in the real life. Recommendations on how to further improve marketing activities are al so presented later. The article conclude with acknowledgement that although complicated marketing theories and frameworks are available, successfully executing the fundamentals and marketing principles is already sufficient to ensure a company to achieve competitive advantages in the marketplace. LITERATURE REVIEW The Concepts and Definition of Marketing Theoretically, marketing is a broad term dealing with identifying and delivering value to human and society. Marketing is about meeting human and society needs, and from the business standpoints, to meeting those needs in a profitable manner. There are various definitions concerning the subject of marketing. For example, a widely cited definition of marketing as defined by the American Marketing Association is as follow: marketing is an organizational function and a set of processes for creating, communicating, and delivering value to customers and for managing customer relationships in ways that benefits the organization and its stakeholder. Some researchers argue that such a definition is commercial-oriented and have been proposing a marketing definition that is more socially oriented. From the sociology perspective, marketing is the process whereby individuals or a team of individuals attain their needs by creating, promoting and exchanging valuable products and services with one another. Generally, in today business environment, there are three broad categories of marketing concept. All of these concepts are based on a customer-oriented and sense-and-respond selling philosophy. The first type of marketing concept is called the reactive market orientation concept, where a company tries to understand and meet the customers expressed needs. The second type of marketing concept is the proactive marketing orientation concept, where the company takes initiative to understand the hidden needs of customers and find ways to meet those untold needs. Lastly, the third one is the total marketing orientation concept, where the company will practice both the reactive and proactive marketing philosophy in delivering values to the society. Marketing is essentially a process to create, deliver and satisfy consumers or customers needs and wants. The entire marketing process is thus often described as a value delivery process where it is concerning about how an organization create and deliver its value proposition to the society. There are various philosophy and perspectives in defining how an organization should deliver value to the society. Generally speaking, the value creation and delivery process contain three stages. The first stage is to choose the specific value proposition. In this stage, the market must perform comprehensive researches on the marketplace before he can expect to successfully deliver valuable goods and services to the marketplace. The STP formula is a widely known marketing concept in this stage, where STP stands for segmentation, targeting and positioning. Specifically, the marketer must segment the market, select the relevant market target and then to develop the value offerings positioning. In the second stage, marketer provides value to the society. The concepts of marketing mix, namely the 4P or the 7P framework is often applied here. In this stage, marketer decides how he is going to provide the value to society from the products, price, place, and promotion dimensions. In the t hird stage, the market must communicate the value proposition to the society, and this can be done through promotion, advertising, sales force, branding and even by exercising Corporate Social responsibility in the marketplace. The STP Process Segmentation, Targeting and Positioning According to Kotler et. al. (2004), the formula of STP, namely segmentation, targeting and positioning is the essence of strategic marketing. As mentioned before, the three steps are important for a marketer to plan how the value offered is to be delivered to the society. The paragraphs below will discuss these steps in details. Market Segmentation. Market segmentation is an adaptive strategy. It consists of the partition of the market with the purpose of selecting one or more market segments which the organization can target through the development of specific marketing mixes that adapt to particular market needs. But market segmentation need not be a purely adaptive strategy: The process of market segmentation can also consist of the selection of those segments for which a firm might be particularly well suited to serve by having competitive advantages relative to competitors in the segment, reducing the cost of adaptation in order to gain a niche. This application of market segmentation serves the purpose of developing competitive scope, which can have a powerful effect on competitive advantage because it shapes the configuration of the value chain. Through market segmentation the firm can provide higher value to customers by developing a market mix that addresses the specific needs and concerns of the se lected segment. Targeting. Once the firm has chosen a market segment it must choose a generic competitive strategy. At this point it is also necessary to review the selected strategy across segments and explore general strategic approaches. In some cases it might become apparent that a counter-segmentation strategy is applicable. In other cases, the development of distinct mixes for each segment uncovers inconsistencies or lack of resources at the corporate level and so it is necessary to revert to the segment evaluation stage. According to Kotler (2004) the only sustainable generic strategy in a segmented market is differentiation. He explains that the only other generic competitive strategy alternative (low cost) is not sustainable in a segmented market. In addition, a strategy successful at differentiating must generate customer value, provide perceived value, and be difficult to copy. At this point in the process the company selects those ways in which it will distinguish itself from its competi tors. In most cases the differentiation involves multiple elements. One way to differentiate is through brand equity building. A strategy based on brand is likely to be sustainable because it creates competitive barriers. A brand strategy permits the strategist to work with complex concepts and not limit the differentiation strategy to just a few competitive differences. This approach is consistent and reinforces the STP approach. A successful brand strategy builds barriers to protect the selected position by creating associations of the positioning variables with the brand name in the prospects mind. Positioning. According to researchers, the positioning strategy should include three components: customer targets, which are the product of the segmentation study; competitor targets, which are a product of the analysis of external environment; and competitive advantage, which is also a product of the environmental analysis. In developing the positioning objective, researcher is arguing that positioning is not what you do to the product, but what you do to the mind. Understanding how the mind receives, stores or rejects information will improve the chances of making the positioning objective coincide with actual positioning in the target audience. Marketing Mix The 7P marketing Mix Framework is a famous and practical tool widely used by researchers or practitioners. In the following section, all these elements of 7P will be discussed in details. Product. This is about defining the characteristics of your product or service to meet the customers needs. It must provide value to a customer but does not have to be tangible at the same time. Basically, it involves introducing new products or improvising the existing products. Price: This is about deciding on a pricing strategy. Even if you decide not to charge for a service, it is useful to realize that this is still a pricing strategy. Identifying the total cost to the user (which is likely to be higher than the charge you make) is a part of the price element. Pricing must be competitive and must entail profit. The pricing strategy can comprise discounts, offers and the like. Lots of factors affect the end price of a product, for example, the costs of production or the business need to maximize profits or sales. A products price also needs to provide value for money in the market and attract consumers to buy. There are several pricing strategies that a business can use: (a) Cost based pricing this can either simply cover costs or include an element of profit; it focuses on the product and does not take account of consumers, (b) Penetration price an initial low price to ensure that there is a high volume of purchases and market share is quickly won; Thi s strategy encourages consumers to develop a habit of buying, and (c) Price skimming an initial high price for a unique product encouraging those who want to be first to buy to pay a premium price; This strategy helps a business to gain maximum revenue before a competitors product reaches the market. Promotion. Promotion is how the business tells customers that products are available and persuades them to buy. Promotion is either above-the-line or below-the-line. Above-the-line promotion is directly paid for, for example TV or newspaper advertising. Below-the-line is where the business uses other promotional methods to get the product message across: (a) Events or trade fairs help to launch a product to a wide audience. Events may be business to consumer (B2C) whereas trade fairs are business to business (B2B), (b) Direct mail can reach a large number of people but is not easy to target specific consumers cost-effectively, (c) Public relations (PR) includes the different ways a business can communicate with its stakeholders, through, for example, newspaper press releases. Other PR activities include sponsorship of high profile events like Formula 1 or the World Cup, as well as donations to or participation in charity events, (d) Branding a strong and consistent brand identity di fferentiates the product and helps consumers to understand and trust the product. This aims to keep consumers buying the product long-term, and (e) Sales promotions, for example competitions or sampling, encourage consumers to buy products in the short-term. Public Relations are included within Promotion by many marketing people (though PR people tend to see it as a separate discipline). It includes the various ways of communicating to the customers of what the company has to offer. It is about communicating about the benefits of using a particular product or service rather than just talking about its features. Place/ distribution channel. Place refers to: (a) how the product arrives at the point of sale. This means a business must think about what distribution strategies it will use and (b) where a product is sold. This includes retail outlets like supermarkets or high street shops. It also includes other ways in which businesses make products directly available to their target market, for example, through direct mail or the Internet. People. Good information services are not likely to be delivered by people who are unskilled or de-motivated; People refer to the customers, employees, management and everybody else involved in it. It is essential for everyone to realize that the reputation of the brand that you are involved with is in the peoples hands. Process. This is about the way in which the user gets hold of the service (e.g., the way in which a document or a search can be ordered). It refers to the methods and process of providing a service and is hence essential to have a thorough knowledge on whether the services are helpful to the customers, if they are provided in time, if the customers are informed in hand about the services and many such things. Physical evidence. It refers to the experience of using a product or service. When a service goes out to the customer, it is essential that you help him see what he is buying or not. For example- brochures, pamphlets etc serve this purpose. It is the material part of a service. Strictly speaking there are no physical attributes to a service, so a consumer tends to rely on material cues. There are many examples of physical evidence, including some of the following: packaging; internet/web pages; paperwork (such as invoices, tickets and dispatch notes); brochures; furnishings; signage (such as those on aircraft and vehicles); uniforms; business cards; the companys building and etc. CASE STUDY: NIVEA Introduction to the Company NIVEAÂ ® is an established name in high quality skin and beauty care products. It is part of a range of brands produced and sold by Beiersdorf. Beiersdorf, founded in 1882, has grown to be a global company specializing in skin and beauty care. In the UK, Beiersdorfs continuing goal is to have its products as close as possible to its consumers, regardless of where they live. Its aims are to understand its consumers in its many different markets and delight them with innovative products for their skin and beauty care needs. This strengthens the trust and appeal of Beiersdorf brands. The business prides itself on being consumer-led and this focus has helped it to grow NIVEA into one of the largest skin care brands in the world. Beiersdorfs continuing programme of market research showed a gap in the market. This led to the launch of NIVEA VISAGEÂ ® Young in 2005 as part of the NIVEA VISAGE range offering a comprehensive selection of products aimed at young women. It carries the strength of the NIVEA brand image to the target market of girls aged 13-19. NIVEA VISAGE Young helps girls to develop a proper skin care routine to help keep their skin looking healthy and beautiful. The market can be developed by creating a good product/range and introducing it to the market (product-orientated approach) or by finding a gap in the market and developing a product to fill it (market-orientated approach). Having identified a gap in the market, Beiersdorf launched NIVEA VISAGE Young using an effective balance of the right product, price, promotion and place. This is known as the marketing mix or four Ps. It is vital that a company gets the balance of these four elements correct so that a product will achieve its critica l success factors. Beiersdorf needed to develop a mix that suited the product and the target market as well as meeting its own business objectives. Analysis on the Marketing Mix of NIVEA Product The first stage in building an effective mix is to understand the market. NIVEA uses market research to target key market segments which identifies groups of people with the same characteristics such as age/gender/attitude/lifestyle. The knowledge and understanding from the research helps in the development of new products. NIVEA carries out its market research with consumers in a number of different ways. These include, (a) using focus groups to listen to consumers directly; (b) gathering data from consumers through a variety of different research techniques; and (c) product testing with consumers in different markets. Beiersdorfs market research identified that younger consumers wanted more specialized face care aimed at their own age group that offered a beautifying benefit, rather than a solution to skin problems. NIVEA VISAGE Young is a skin care range targeted at girls who do not want medicated products but want a regime for their normal skin. Competitor products tend to be problem focused and offer medicated solutions. This gives NIVEA competitive advantage. NIVEA VISAGE Young provides a unique bridge between the teenage market and the adult market. The company improved the product to make it more effective and more consumer-friendly. Beiersdorf tested the improved products on a sample group from its target audience before finalizing the range for re-launch. This testing resulted in a number of changes to existing products. Improvements included: (a) Changing the formula of some products. For example, it removed alcohol from one product and used natural sea salts and minerals in others, (b) I ntroducing two completely new products, (c) a new modern pack design with a flower pattern and softer colors to appeal to younger women, (d) Changing product descriptions and introducing larger pack sizes. Each of these changes helped to strengthen the product range, to better meet the needs of the market. Price As NIVEA VISAGE Young is one of the leading skin care ranges meeting the beautifying needs of this market segment, it is effectively the price leader. This means that it sets the price level that competitors will follow or undercut. NIVEA needs to regularly review prices should a competitor enter the market at the market growth point of the product life cycle to ensure that its pricing remains competitive. The pricing strategy for NIVEA is not the same as that of the retailers. It sells products to retailers at one price. However, retailers have the freedom to use other strategies for sales promotion. These take account of the competitive nature of the high street. They may use: (a) loss leader: the retailer sells for less than it cost to attract large volume of sales, for example by supermarkets, and (b) discounting alongside other special offers, such as Buy one, get one free (BOGOF) or two for one. Place NIVEA VISAGE Young aims to use as many relevant distribution channels as possible to ensure the widest reach of its products to its target market. The main channels for the product are retail outlets where consumers expect to find skin care ranges. Around 65% of NIVEA VISAGE Young sales are through large high street shops such as Boots and Superdrug. Superdrug is particularly important for the young-end market. The other 35% of sales mainly comes from large grocery chains that stock beauty products, such as ASDA, Tesco and Sainsburys. Market research shows that around 20% of this younger target market buys products for themselves in the high street stores when shopping with friends. Research also shows that the majority of purchasers are actually made by mums, buying for teenagers. Mums are more likely to buy the product from supermarkets whilst doing their grocery shopping. NIVEA distributes through a range of outlets that are cost effective but that also reach the highest number of consumers. Its distribution strategies also consider the environmental impact of transport. It uses a central distribution point in the UK. Products arrive from European production plants using contract vehicles for efficiency for onward delivery to retail stores. Beiersdorf does not sell direct to smaller retailers as the volume of products sold would not be cost effective to deliver but it uses wholesalers for these smaller accounts. It does not sell directly through its website as the costs of producing small orders would be too high. However, the retailers like Tesco, feature and sell the NIVEA products in their online stores. Promotion NIVEA chooses promotional strategies that reflect the lifestyle of its audience and the range of media available. It realizes that a one way message, using TV or the press, is not as effective as talking directly to its target group of consumers. Therefore NIVEA does not plan to use any above-the-line promotion for NIVEA VISAGE Young. The promotion of NIVEA VISAGE Young is consumer-led. Using various below-the-line routes, NIVEA identifies ways of talking to teenagers (and their mums) directly. A key part of the strategy is the use of product samples. These allow customers to touch, feel, smell and try the products. Over a million samples of NIVEA VISAGE Young products will be given away during 2008. These samples will be available through the website, samples in stores or in goody bags given out at VISAGE roadshows up and down the country. NIVEA VISAGE Young launched an interactive online magazine called FYI (Fun, Young Independent) to raise awareness of the brand. The concept behind the magazine is to give teenage girls the confidence to become young women and to enjoy their new-found independence. Communication channels are original and engaging to enable teenagers to identify with NIVEA VISAGE Young. The magazine focuses on first time experiences relating to NIVEA VISAGE Young being their first skincare routine. It is promoted using the Hit40UK chart show and the TMF digital TV channel. Discussions on NIVEA Marketing Mix NIVEA VISAGE Young is a skincare range in the UK market designed to enhance the skin and beauty of the teenage consumer rather than being medicated to treat skin problems. As such, it has created a clear position in the market. This shows that NIVEA understands its consumers and has produced this differentiated product range in order to meet their needs. To bring the range to market, the business has put together a marketing mix. This mix balances the four elements of product, price, place and promotion. The mix uses traditional methods of place, such as distribution through the high street, alongside more modern methods of promotion, such as through social networking sites. It makes sure that the message of NIVEA VISAGE Young reaches the right people in the right way. RECOMMENDATIONS All aspects of the marketing mix must function together as a whole in order to create a useful marketing campaign and get a product the sales it needs. The marketing mix must suit the company and the products it sells. Luxury items like mp3 players must have a good promotional campaign, be a quality product, be distributed in all the needed places and also have a competitive price that shows its value. This marketing strategy is extremely important to the success of a particular good or service which in turn could determine the success of the organization in the future. When marketing managers attempt to develop and manage their product it is extremely important that they look at various different aspects. Firstly, they must look at those relating to the marketing mix: which the company has control over because they are able to develop their marketing strategies depending on the consumers needs and wants. Then, managers should also investigate those that make up the marketing environ ment: which include elements that the company has little or no control of e. g. certain government rules and regulations. Thirdly, a market opportunity analysis should also be performed: this exists when a company is given the chance to take action towards researching a particular group of customers. Fourthly, it is critical to research on the subject of target market selection: which involves selecting a group of potential customers for whom a firm creates and maintains a marketing mix that specifically fits the needs and wants of that particular group. Last but not least, the process of Marketing Management should be applied: this is the process of planning, organizing, implementing, and controlling marketing activities to facilitate changes effectively and efficiently. By using this type of marketing strategy organizations are given the opportunity to market a very successful product, so it would be true to say that the marketing mix and its manipulation are vital for the success of a business. However, their good or service may only be successful if the organization provides products that satisfy consumers needs and wants through a coordinated set of activities that also allow the organization to achieve its goals. Customer satisfaction should be the major aim of the marketing concept. But the process does not end here because the organization should continue to alter, adapt and develop products to keep pace with customers changing desires and preferences. Organizations should be aware of the importance of customers and release that marketing activities begin and end with the customer. In attempting to satisfy customers, businesses must consider not only the short and medium term needs but also the long term desires as it is vital to the long term success of the business and probably the best way to do this would be to link the different departments of the company together i.e. Production, Finance, Accounting, Personnel etc A company adopting this particular marketing strategy must not only satisfy its consumers preferences but it also must achieve the objectives that it hoped to achieve by using this strategy. The best way of achieving your objectives is to satisfy the customer and an adequate marketing mix strategy is an excellent way to satisfy the customer who means that implementing the marketing mix strategy should benefit the organization as well as the consumer. CONCLUSION In short, we have seen how the traditional, simple but highly practical method of 4P framework is used successfully in our case study. The concepts of STP and Marketing Mix is very important in assisting managers to plan for marketing efforts to local and international market, and in fact, such a framework serves as the founding principles for development of more complex and advanced marketing strategies in the modern days. These concepts are not only theorectical popular and widely taught in business schools, but are also useful in practice, in analysis or planning successful marketing campaign or strategies for organizations.

Descartes Essay -- essays research papers

Descartes is famed by is familiar notion, “I think therefore I am (Cogito, ergo sum.).'; It is a conclusion he has reached in his second meditation after much deliberation on the existence of anything certain. After he discovers his ability to doubt and to understand , he is able to substantiate his necessary existence as a consequence. What we doubt or understand may not ultimately correspond, but we can never be uncertain that we are in the process of thought. This idea is a major component in Descartes’ proof of the external world.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  He relies on the existence of a non-deceiving God to ensure that an external world exists after calling it into doubt by the invocation of the dream argument. In this argument, Descartes suggests the possibility that none of our ideas are caused by external objects and therefore, such objects may not exist. He also raises the idea of a demon that may deceive us and allow us to perceive what is not really there. Although he assures himself of his own existence by his modes of thought, he remains uncertain of the reality of an external world. He doubts whether there is anything of material substance that provokes thought within him rather than it being conceived in his mind completely independent of anything else. Descartes then considers those reasons that have inclined him to believe these material things exist in the past. “I know by experience that these ideas do not depend upon m...

Analysis of film poster

The white In the centre makes you look at the tree just in front of the light, using it to draw attention. Although this image is strongly rooted, black is still used in the design a lot, which takes away a bit from the image of it as a death color, yet keeps its air of elegance and sophistication. In movies in particular, the dark color is used a lot in movies with horror or gothic themes, using our fear of the unknown and unexplored – the dark spaces we know nothing about – to promote their themes. So, these three mall color showing that the poster a sense of darkness and mystery, as well as a Mathew sickening feel to it.It's quite obviously a fantasy color palette, and it matches the genre of the movie and makes people focus on the intriguing picture in the middle. Key Image: The main image in the picture is of the back of the girl. The small girl is walking towards and standing In front of what look like an old time portal. The shadows and the shapes of lurching tre es surrounding on her. The girl looks as If she is wandering off into the unknown, showing that there's going to be some suspense and possibly scary parts in the movie. The large dark arches with the goblin face on hem also give off the essence of creepiness.She may be stepping into the unknown. Background: The poster as it includes a lot of the clear blue color of laser rays that are something of a staple of the genre. It Is a support by the environment the characters are In, space, adding the darkness and unknown element to the design. The edges of the picture are pitch dark, which means people are supposed to focus on the central image. Behind the title of the film can see that was a brazen, this may indicate that there is something on the other side. Realism: There is nothing realistic about the image on the poster except for a small RL standing at the bottom.Everything else in the poster looks to be pure fantasy. It does not look Like a photograph or picture. Therefore, It does n't have much realism Text Color: White provides a good contrast to strong colors, such as black and blue. It can be used in small amounts or large amounts without becoming too overpowering or overwhelming, a positive aspect of the color. The negative point is that it is the color associated with surrender and cowardliness as the symbol of surrender is a white flag. We can see that the main title, Pan's Labyrinth, is printed in dark brown with gold-rimmed lettering.The dark brown of the lettering contrasts with the bright white background, attracting the viewer to read it. The font is a classic looking, sophisticated lettering style, possibly showing that this labyrinth or story is timeworn. The ‘R' in the word ‘Labyrinth' carries on at the bottom into a branch, showing that the little girl could be entering the labyrinth, as it all entwines. It draws our eyes to it. Tagging: The tagging at the bottom of the poster says â€Å"Innocence has a power evil cannot imagine. à ¢â‚¬  The tagging tells you that this girl is walking into danger and that it's a film all about an innocent young girl facing evil.At the top of the poster, there is a quote saying â€Å"Beautiful and exhilarating†¦ A fairy tale for grown-ups† Because it is at the top of the poster, but smaller than the title, it should be the second thing that the viewer reads. Positive reviews and laurels on the posters will intrigue customers as they know that they can trust the professionals. Text Font: The font is a classic looking, sophisticated lettering style, possibly showing that this labyrinth or story is timeworn. The ‘R' in the word ‘Labyrinth' carries on at the OTTOMH into a branch, showing that the little girl could be entering the labyrinth, as it all entwines.The letter â€Å"R† has been Joined with the trees around the border of the poster, showing that the tree and the letter â€Å"R† were inseparably intertwined. Target Audience: The target audience of the movie poster for this movie would be fantasy lovers. Even though it looks pitch dark, perhaps many children as it has an element of mysterious adventure about the movie. There are three laurels from film festivals, including Cannes Film Festival and the New York Film Festival, which are tot immense festivals in the film business.It shows that the film has been the love by the harshest of critics and film experts. Reaction: In my opinion, I think this is a great poster, and it matches the film itself, its genre and its look very mystery. The cinematography and magic-realism is a visual treat, and the movie will leave people thinking of it for a long time. It is one of those films that only get better when it reattached again. It shows to people there will be an adventure, and although people don't know the significance of the small girl, people will assume she will be part of it.There ‘re lots to look at, but it's not overly busy. Layout: I like the layout of t his poster. It is very clever how the edges blackened around the poster. So people will only see the central image. When the people look in the centre, then gradually look further out, it notices the giant moon above what looks like a portal, people can see the trees and the gremlin or goblin type sculpture in the arch. It is very detailed, even the small print at the bottom has the details of everything, but the main focus of the layout is a small girl who standing on the bottom.

Topcoder Case Study

If you were a senior manager at TopCoder, what are the main capabilities you would need to develop to succeed at running the firm? Are these capabilities similar or unique from managing a more traditional firm In order to develop and execute the highly non-traditional business approach and vision of TopCoder, the senior management has to regularly challenge existing industry practices and innovate better methodologies to improve the quality of deliverables to the client. . Since the business model for TopCoder is highly reliant upon participation from the develop community they need to keep a continuous track of the activities in their forum and need to devise the competition in such a way that it attracts more and more better quality coders. To make this happen, the senior management has to develop high level of marketing skills so that they can promote their product and keep the coders interested. 2.The main challenge which company faces is that though the customers are getting hig h quality defect free products in a short span of time they are usually suspicious of the product quality since they do not have any relationships and in person/on call interaction with the developer community. Due to this suspicious outlook of the customers, the management needs to have high level of negotiation and convincing skills so that they can keep the customers. 3. Software product requires regular maintenance and updation after certain period of time and thus vendor selection for development is a long term investment.Now, the customer knows that the developer community of TopCoder is usually interested in complexity of the competition and intellectually challenging tasks and thus the top coders in the community might not take up such tasks. Thus, it becomes very important for TopCoder management to keep the clients interested. 4. The TopCoder community is innovation and competition driven, thus managing innovative and creative people who can be blunt and too direct to the customers may diminish and even destroy the reputation of company with he customer thus they need to be capable to handling not only the customer but the coders, who are primarily independent and can move out at any given time, given a better opportunity Most of the capabilities required by the senior management at TopCoder are rather similar to managers at a more traditional IT company, but the fact that they have to manage both the customer relationships, as well as the virtually located coder community, which can be challenging.Also, they have to additionally handle the feedback from both these communities and have to keep a balance between these two parties, which I not desired to such an extreme from a normal IT manager. What are barriers to entry in this type of a business? TopCoder is competing with in the tough and saturated space of IT Product development and Services. Gaining a market share in the high tech industry with already established and trusted brands along with re latively newer but technologically advanced businesses is a mammoth task. The entry barriers are the result of competitive behavior by existing businesses within the marketplace.TopCoder faces a variety of entry barriers that must be overcome or adapted to in order for its non-traditional business approach to create trust and standing with the customers and gaining a foothold within any given marketplace. According to the Journal of Business and Industrial Marketing, the most common entry barriers are: 1. Established businesses attempt to prevent new competitors from entering their market because they could lose business and profits. 2. Absolute cost and capital advantages of existing business 4. An existing large company with high bench strength is more capable to cope ith new competitors by developing high complexity products at a lesser cost than a new company. 4. High entry barriers present a difficult challenge for new businesses to overcome to be profitable in the market. If t he barriers are too high, incumbent businesses in the market have a distinct advantage over any new entrant which can prevent the new business from being a significant threat to their market position 5. There can be many customers, who prefer contracts of multiple projects with an established brand which may prevent them to source their requirements to a relatively smaller new company, 6.Several times the processes and specialized business knowledge available with established companies are aligned with the processes and business needs of the customer and they prefer to work with each other. 7. Having worked in multiple projects together and knowing the quality of deliverables customers develop a preference to certain companies 8. Some customers, such as banks, have a lot of sensitive and secure data which they want to share with only already established and trusted IT firms 9. Usually high performing IT firms have a highly sophisticated infrastructure and quality control mechanism i n place.

Police Brutality in New York City misc essays

Police Brutality in New York City misc essays Civil rights advocates in the city note, however, that there has been a cost to the new strategy, revealed by steady citizen complaints against more aggressive NYPD officers during the past several years and continuing impunity for many officers who commit human rights violations despite the recent reorganization of both the civilian review board and the police department's internal affairs bureau. In August 1997, after the alleged torture of Haitian immigrant Abner Louima by police officers made national headlines and outraged city residents, the anti-crime record of the mayor and police department was tarnished. In uncharacteristic fashion, Mayor Rudolph Giuliani and Police Commissioner Howard Safir condemned the officers implicated in the incident as well as those who reportedly did nothing to stop it or report it. In the city's Civilian Complaint Review Board's (CCRB) semiannual report for the first half of 1997, African-Americans and Latinos filed 78 percent of complaints again st the police. The police force is 68 percent white. During the independent CCRB's first three-and-a-half years, only 1 percent of all cases disposed of led to the disciplining of a police officer, and out of 18,336 complaints, there have been just one dismissal of an officer stemming from a CCRB-substantiated case. If the studies by civil rights groups and the Mollen Commission are any indication, officers who commit abuses are not being dealt with adequately. In that incident, after protesters allegedly threw items at mounted police officers attempting to clear the park, police reacted by beating anyone nearby with their nightsticks, including uninvolved restaurant patrons and business owners. In the end, administrative charges were presented in seventeen cases, with officers disciplined in thirteen of them. Officers primarily from the 30th, 9th, 46th, 75th and 73rd precincts were caught selling drugs and beating suspects. Concluded Cawley, "They [re...

Business-hospitality and tourism Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Business-hospitality and tourism - Essay Example In early days, where ships used to be the primary means of transport, Fremantle was used as the gateway to Australia. Various immigrants and explorers from across the globe entered Australia via this route and settled there. However, with the passage of time and development of newer means of transport such as air travel, the significance of Fremantle as a tourist destination changed drastically. Although the port city retained its prominence in the subsequent years, mostly on account of the role it played during the America’s Cup in the year 1987. It has an old world charm to it owing to the various historical structures, the picturesque locales overlooking the Swan River, old historical architectures and the wide cultural diversity. This unique quality / charm of the place sets it apart from the other popular tourist destinations. The port is highly active and has a huge fishing fleet and container ships which ensures a rich and vibrant lifestyle making it a favourite tourist spot. Due to the large number of people who immigrated to the port in the early years, the city has a cosmopolitan culture, which is still retained and preserved by the residents (City of Fremantle, 2011). Figure1: Fremantle – Ariel view Source: Wikipedia II. ... Some of the other key areas of attraction include the Roundhouse Whalers Tunnel, Fremantle Chocolate Factory, Fremantle Prison & Museum, Western Australian Maritime Museum, the Fremantle Arts Center, Fremantle markets, Fremantle town hall, and the Carnac Island etc among various others (Stayz.com.au, 2011). Tourist Attractions: The Fremantle Fishing Boat Harbour is a working harbour which is lined up with a variety of waterfront restaurants which offer spectacular views of the Indian Ocean. These restaurants are a major tourist attractions, mainly on account of the wide variety of international cuisines served. Figure: The Fremantle Fishing Boat Harbour Source: http://www.australianexplorer.com/tourist_attractions/9028476/profile.htm The Roundhouse Whalers Tunnel is a purposely built gaol, to house those who broke the local laws. It was established in the year 1831 and has been preserved ever since, and today, it is a historical landmark. The view from the Roundhouse is spectacular, as it overlooks the Bathers Beach and the Indian Ocean. There is a tunnel just below the Roundhouse, called the Whalers Tunnel. This tunnel was built in the year 1837 to allow the members of the Fremantle Whaling Company an easy access between the Fremantle town and the Bathers Beach. There is a signal station which was used in olden days, to signify the correct time to the navigators of ships entering the town. Although this process of discontinued eventually by the year 1937 the structure still stands today signifying a bygone era (Fremantle.com.au, 2011). Figure: The Roundhouse and Whalers Tunnel Source: http://www.fremantlewa.com.au/accom_result1/round-house-and-whalers-tunnel/ The Fremantle Chocolate Factory is one of the most popular tourist attractions in the city. The factory is

Roles Played by Financial Institutions in an Economy Essay

Roles Played by Financial Institutions in an Economy - Essay Example Financial Institutions play a very important role in the economy by the provision of various financial instruments (Frank, 2003). Different types of Financial Institutions provide different services to its members or clients. For example, Banks provide such services as mortgages, loans, and credit cards while on the other hand a financial institution such as Insurance Firms provide services such as insurance services, securities and buying and selling services of real estate. These financial institutions, however, interconnect with one another to provide different roles in the economy. Some of the major roles of Financial Institutions are discussed in this essay as follows. The first major role of financial institutions in the economy is that the financial institutions motivate the financial sector of the economy. Financial institutions such as banks in most cases will use the resources that they own to benefit themselves (Sera, 2005). They will use these resources to make profits for themselves and for their own growth. This is however helpful to the economy of a country as there will be an increase in the business of investing when these financial institutions grow. This because there will be a boost in the financial instruments such as an increase in the number of loans that a bank can give to an individual or to other companies. With the growth of these financial institutions, the financial sector of the economy becomes motivated and the economy of the country is strengthened. The second role of the financial institutions in the economy is that the financial institutions will introduce and develop Niche strategies.  

Shell company's efforts, actions and initiatives regarding Assignment

Shell company's efforts, actions and initiatives regarding sustainability - Assignment Example They have divided their whole work strategy into two directions, Up-stream and down-stream. In the Upstream strategy they are actually looking forward to discover newer oilfields and at the same time also working on the existing methods to increase efficiency and productivity. In the downstream strategy they invest the earnings to earn financial gains. They focus on providing the supply to the demands of the energy of the world and that to in an environmentally friendly way and at the same time focus on sustainable development. ROYAL Dutch Shell plc commonly known as â€Å"SHELL† is a multinational BRITISH-DUTCH oil and gas company. Its headquarter is situated in THE HAGUE, NETHERLANDS and a registered office in LONDON, UK. SHELL is amongst one of the leading company in the field of oil and gas industry; indulge itself not only in the production and refineries of petroleum products but also paved its way in the major energy products like â€Å"bio fuel, hydrogen and power gen eration†. SHELL is keen in fulfilling and guaranteeing energy needs of people in ways that are highly economical, environmental and social responsible. Owing to the future challenges and threats regarding our energy demands, environment and its safety such as â€Å"increasing population and rising urbanization† will hit our energy sources hardly and will eventually bring us to the verge of shortage of energy sources, according to an estimation that our world’s population will reach to 9 billion by 2050 which means that many people will fall in the hands of energy poverty. Also it was estimated by INTERNATIONAL ENERGY AGENCY that $38 trillion will be required for infrastructure to meet energy demands by 2035, beside these GLOBAL CLIMATE CHANGE is a great threat. As a result SHELL has molded its approach in accordance with these challenges in order to neutralize energy needs and energy sources, framed its policies and strategies under thorough case examinations of challenges in a very effective and righteous manner, reach to the conclusion in which they prioritized â€Å"SUSTAINABILITY† above all. Thus the energy sources that SHELL provides must be able to face these global challenges and threats which will lead towards building a â€Å"SUSTAINABLE ENERGY FUTURE†. In the words of PETER VOSER, CEO, SHELL: â€Å"with tough economic conditions prevailing, and momentous social change taking place in some countries, the world must not lose sight of longer-term challenges.† SHELL considers the two most dominating factors in putting a fight against these challenges. 1st is the GREEN HOUSE REGULATION.2nd is the development of sustainable urban cities i-e, smarter cities. These two factors effects the growing energy need to the extent of much reduction in energy demands as these smarter cities will set independency in the transport, energy systems etc. As a matter of fact that SUSTAINABILITY development is a basic need of todayâ⠂¬â„¢s era. All of sustainable developments and standards are framed by â€Å"HEALTHY, SAFETY, SECURITY, ENVIRONMENT and SOCIAL PERFORMANCE (HSSP & SP). It governs all the related issues. It sets basic priorities, rules, regulations and all concerns bodies ought to abide by them. The CEO chairs the (HSSP & SP) and accesses management of sustainability development. These policies and performances are thoroughly inspected with respect to the SHELL general business principles and (HSSP

Relationship Between Shape and Diffusion Rate Essay Example for Free

Relationship Between Shape and Diffusion Rate Essay Aim To see whether there is a relationship between the surface area and the diffusion rate Hypothesis I predict that the smaller blocks of agar will turn clear, or diffuse first, as it has a smaller surface area. This is because there is less surface area and volume for the sulphuric acid to diffuse into. Apparatus * Three sizes of agar, 20x20x20mm, 20x20x10mm, 20x20x5mm * 240ml of sulphuric acid [80ml per beaker] * 3 100ml beakers * Tile used for placing the agar * Tissue to wipe off the sulphuric acid off the agar * 3 scalpels * Ruler, measurable in mm * Stop clock * Calculator Method 1. First, cut three pieces of sulphuric acid in the following sizes 20x20x20mm, 20x20x10mm, 20x20x5mm, as accurately as possible 2. Next, fill the three beakers with 80ml of sulphuric acid each 3. Then, prepare the stop clock, and make sure it is has been reset 4. After, place the three blocks of agar into the sulphuric all at the same time, as well as starting the stop clock once the agar is in the sulphuric acid. 5. Carefully stir the three beakers using the scalpels. 6. Watch until one of the blocks have gone completely clear. 7. Once one of the blocks have gone completely clear, stop the stop clock and take out the three blocks of agar and place on the tissue, and wipe off the excess sulphuric acid from the blocks of agar to prevent further diffusion with the two other blocks which have not been fully diffused to fully diffuse 8. Cut the blocks in diagonal, through the middle and using a ruler, measure how much of it has turned clear on each side. 9. Record the data for time taken, and the depth of the clear part on the table. Results Block number 1 2 3 Block dimensions/mm 20x20x20 20x20x10 20x20x5 Predicted order of clearing 3 2 1 Actual order of clearing 3 2 1 Time taken for clearing 8mn56.29s Depth of clear part on block/mm 3 4 5 Surface area/mmà ¯Ã‚ ¿Ã‚ ½ 2400 1600 1200 Volume/mmà ¯Ã‚ ¿Ã‚ ½ 8000 4000 2000 Surface are to volume ratio O:O.3 O:O.4 O:O.6 Conclusion My prediction as to which block will go clear first was correct, being the smaller block, as its surface area to volume ratio was the greatest out of all three, even though there was not much difference between the three values. This is because the third block has a greater surface area for the sulphuric acid to diffuse into the agar, causing the diffusion rate to be greater. The blocks have become clear through diffusion caused by neutralization between the sulphuric acid and the agar, which is an alkaline. Evaluation Quite a few things did not go as planned in this evaluation, but I have come up with ideas on how to improve them if we do an experiment like this again. Firstly, the jelly size may not be accurate from cutting it, and when it has been stirred, bits of it may have chipped off causing a change in its surface area. Next time, to avoid this, we could measure the block of agar more accurately when cutting it, and also be more careful when stirring the agar and stir softer so that no bits may get chipped off. Not only that, but the time we place the three blocks of agar into the sulphuric acid may be different, as well as the time we started the stop clock. Next time, we may possibly find a different method of putting in and taking out the agar so that it remains a fair test, and so that there are less mistakes in the test, which may be reduced by having one person per block of agar and beaker, as well as another person for the stop clock and placing it in and taking it out all at the same time as well as starting and stopping the stop clock. Another complication may have come from the amount of sulphuric acid in each beaker, which may not have been equal. This problem may be reduced by measuring the sulphuric more carefully, maybe with a measuring cylinder before then placing it into the beaker, instead of measuring it into the beaker straight away. Our measurements of the depth of the clear layer of the blocks of agar jelly may have been incorrect as well, and to prevent this, we could possibly use a microscope next time and use a graticule to measure the depth that the jelly has diffused to obtain a more accurate result. The last problem I noticed while doing the experiment was when we were blotting the sulphuric acid off the agar. I found that there may have been some sulphuric acid left on the agar after we have blotted it, which may have caused further diffusion and adjusting our result. This is caused from not blotting off enough sulphuric acid off the agar. Next time, we could carefully blot all the sulphuric acid, and use one piece of tissue for each block of agar so that there is no sulphuric acid on the tissue before blotting each block of agar.