Sleep and Memory

Sleep and Memory Maria del Rocio Gutierrez University of Texas at Brownsville Sleep and Memory We can define sleep as a period of rest and we can define immediate memory as an organism's ability to store, retain, and subsequently retrieve information. Therefore if the organism rests for a period of time the ability to store, retain and retrieve information will be improved. This study will focus on how sleeping a minimum of 7 hours a day will reflect a notorious improvement in memory.We will also be able to compare if women have better memory than men, if there is a significant difference between these two groups; age will also be compared, we will be able to see if younger people are able to have a better memory than older people. This study will also help us understand the importance of resting on daily bases so we can have a good performance in our daily activities. Past Research Previous Researches have showed that sleep has an impact episodic memory in the long run. Researchers used up to 8 hours of sleep.There were used sixty university students, which were asked not to smoke or drink caffeine during daytime. Students had to do this procedure 12 hours before the experiment. During the experiment 56 words were presented individually to the students on a computer monitor. Two tests were given to the participants. In the first test students were given 10 minutes to see how many words were recalled. Several words were shown to the participants. The second test was 10 minutes as well, with the difference that fourteen text fields were with the category labels were presented simultaneously on a computer.It was found that more words were recalled when they were not categorized, and that students who slept 7 hours had a higher recall of words ,(Olaf ; Reinhard P. ,2007). The importance of this research is to demonstrate how students who slept 7 hours could recall easy words given to them during the experiment, (Lahl ; Pietrowsky, 2007). Previous researches discov ered that sleep improves memory, and that also neuronal activity and regional blood flow during sleep form part of an improvement of memory during the day, (Morgrass, Guillem ; Godbout, 2008).Participants were required to have a night of sleep, there were no other restrictions like in the above study mentioned. Researchers tested the participants twice to control the effect of practice. Participants were tested in the morning and late afternoon. Each test lasted 15 minutes; there were presented different photographs of faces taken in the same condition. Researchers divided their sample into two groups, one slept in the laboratory used and the other group slept at their home. Researchers found no significance difference in recalling memory between one group and another.Researchers found that daytime session questionnaire was higher than those in the afternoon. The importance of this experiment is that researchers show us there is no significance improvement in memory whether they sle ep at home or at a clinic, but there is a difference if the participant just rested or if the participant was already awake (Mograss ; Guillem ; Godbout, 2008). Previous researches done reflect that a deprivation of sleep would affect memory. These researchers mention that the amygdale modulates the consolidation of long term memory by influencing other areas that are involved in memory processing.Researchers used twenty-four volunteers, all of them were students of medicine. Students needed to have a regular sleep schedule for a week and no caffeine for at least 4 days before the experiment. Participants were tested two times, in the morning and at night. Researchers used a shopping list of 16 items presented five times to the participants. Complex figures were presented as well. Participants were given different tests such as Corsi block-tapping test, coding test, emotional odball paradigm, digit span test and word stem test. All of these tests involved words, figures or object re call.Researchers found that memory function may be influenced by log time deprivation periods (Saxvig, Lundervold, Gronli, Ursin, Bjorvatan ; Portas, 2008). Lahl, , Wispel. , Willigens ; Pietrowsky (2007) researched on how a nap can improve memory; where the naps would take from 20 minutes to 45 minutes. Researchers wanted to know if a nap would help improve memory. There were 26 university students used as participants. Half of them were men and half women. Students were required to have a regular night sleep. It was not allowed the used of psychoactive medication or the participation of students with sleep-related problems.Each participant needed to wake up no later than 8:00 o’clock in the morning and do not ingest alcoholic beverages or caffeine. The students were put to sleep and were monitored. After 50 minutes they were woken up and tested for recall. Picture card games, games requiring visuomotoric skills and mathematical strategies were utilized. Researchers found th at after taking a nap the student’s memory would improve. This research is important because it shows us how young students recall was improved after sleeping. Previous researchers were interested in the process of unlearning or reverse learning during sleep.Fifty university students of different ages were used in the research. Students were randomly selected in groups were they slept during night, or students who slept during day and were eventually woken up. They had to be non-smokers, not be using any kind of any kind of psychoactive medication, not have any psychiatric illness, not using alcohol or drugs, they had to be non-smokers and also restricted from napping during the day at least 12 hours before the experiment. During the experiment the participants were given twenty-four neutral photographs of everyday objects.The first group was tested between 0:00 hrs and 7:00 hours and the second group was tested between 9:00 hours and 16:00 hours. Researchers found that parti cipants memory was improved after sleeping (Lahl ; Pietrosky, 2007). Overview of the Current Study Our study wanted to show the improvements in memory through sleep. We were trying to prove our hypotheses through our experiment. This study will benefit people by creating a consciousness about how crucial it is to have enough sleep, if there is a difference in with memory between men and women, and how important it is to keep a good memory through age.The studies mentioned above have a gap where they do not reflect an exact improvement mentioned by the participants, the literature needed more statistical information. Our Three research hypotheses are: RQ1: People who sleep more than seven hours have better memory than people who sleep less than seven hours. RQ2: Gender is related to memory, females will have better memory than men. RQ3: Younger people will have better memory than older people These hypotheses were derived from the studies made on previous researches, who found that s leep has a beneficial effect in memory.We believe the human being must always try to improve memory, it is primordial to have all of our memories available whenever we need them. We believe that a human being can develop in a better way if their memory is well functioning. Method Participants In this study college students will be participating. We hope to have 20 females and 20 males. All of the participants will be students from the University of Texas at Brownsville. Materials Informed Consent Form. An informed consent form will be used in which participants will be informed regarding the materials and procedure(s) used in the study.Students will be assured anonymity and will be given contact information if any question may arise (see Appendix A). Demographic Questionnaire. This questionnaire will collect participant’s demographic information (e. g. age, ethnicity, year in school, etc. ). The purpose of the Demographic Questionnaire will strictly be used to gather basic in formation of who the participants are and any other needed demographic information related to this study (see Appendix B). Memory Word List. 15 words will be presented to each student. They will have one minute to look at them, afterwards they will be asked to write down the ones they remember. see Appendix C). Debriefing Form. The final material used in this study will be a verbal and written debriefing form. This material will help us as researchers to study the immediate term memory and see if people who sleep at least 7 hours a day have a better memory. (see Appendix D) Procedure The procedure taken in this study will be as follows. The principal investigator of the study will hand out a written informed consent to inform the participants the purpose, benefits and length of time the study will take to complete.Once participants agree to participate, the Demographic Questionnaire will be administered to expedite the completion of the task. Following the completion of the demograp hics each student will be presented 15 words for a time of 1 minute, next they will write down on a separate sheet of paper as many words as they can recall in 1 minute. Once participants have completed the task they will be orally debriefed, thanked and dismissed. The total time to complete the study for each participant will be less than 10 minutes. ResultsThe first hypothesis indicated that there would be a significant difference in memory between people who slept seven hours or more (M=8. 14, S. D. =1. 96), and people who slept less than seven hours (M= 8. 14, S. D. = 2. 26). The results showed that there was no significance difference between these two variables. A T-test was used to compare these two groups (see figure 1). The second prediction stated that there would be a difference between gender and memory. Women would recall more words than men. It was found that males (M=1. 67, S. D. = . 48) recalled less words than women (M=1. 78, S. D. =. 4). A T- test was used to compa re these two groups The final hypothesis predicted that age was related with memory. People with age of eighteen to twenty five were considered as younger participants (M=29. 71, S. D. =7. 11), people with age twenty six and above were considered as older participants (M=32, S. D. =11. 56). A T-test was used to compare these two groups. | Discussion The findings for this research did not support our hypotheses. According to other researches or previous literature, people who did not sleep 7 hours or more would have difficulties with memory (Lahl ; Pietrosky, 2007).The literature used for this research did not support our hypotheses because our results did not reflect a significant difference between people who did sleep 7 hours or more hours and those who did not sleep 7 or less hours. We could not find similarities with previous studies. Such studies reflected a significant difference. The same issue happened with our two other hypotheses. Our second hypothesis did not reflected a significant difference between men and women’s memory. Our third hypothesis did not show a significant difference as well.There was no remarkable difference between young people and older people; we classified young people from age 18 through age 25, and older people from age 26 and above. We did notice two major limitations during the experiment. The most important is the amount of participants in the research. We believe that in order to have a significant difference a minimum of 100 participants should be used for the research. Having more participants will give more information to compare with. Our amount of participants were 30 students, which gives very little information and does not help to reflect a significant difference.Another issue was the uneven amount of men and women. We feel there should be a balanced number to reflect a significant difference. Our findings are important because the results are not the same as all of the other studies, this means that there c ould be a probability that our study could make a difference in researches of this type. Future research will involve again memory and sleep, but we will increase the number of participants and consider the time of the day to test participants. 317.

Marriage in a Man’s World

Marie de France’s epic poem â€Å"Lanval† is an outstanding work of satire that pokes fun at the societal norms of the author’s time, including government and the institution of marriage.   Though she never directly states it, de France paints marriage at the court level as a farce, a facade, and an arrangement of convenience rather than passion, love, or commitment. Marie de France wastes no time in laying the groundwork for the subtext of this poem.   Within the first few stanzas, as she paints a picture of the great and noble King Arthur, she manages to slide in a reference to King Arthur providing his Round Table members with wives as â€Å"gifts.†Ã‚   She mentions these gifts in the same breath as â€Å"lands,† which suggests the King views women as property and the institution of marriage as a kind of purchase agreement.   The art here is in the subtlety with which de France inserts this subversive idea into what seems like a simple description of a man’s virtues. The author reinforces her statement on marriage – specifically the sexist nature of marriage and relationships at the time – with the introduction of the mysterious, wealthy and beautiful maiden.   The maiden acts as a caricature of a male fantasy, approaching him out of nowhere with the offer of free love and devotion.   Only her physical and financial features are praised, and when Lanval agrees to her terms, she immediately allows him to sleep with her.   Lanval has found himself in the perfect situation – sex and wealth from a beautiful woman, and all he has to do is not acknowledge their relationship. It is not long before Lanval’s loyalty is put to the test and de France puts another nail in the coffin of marriage.   King Arthur’s wife, the Queen, apparently unconcerned with the fact that that she is married, offers herself to Lanval.   The author treats this as though a Queen coming on to a knight was common practice, even expected.   When Lanval denies her wish, the Queen is incensed; one gets the idea that she is no stranger to such an arrangement and not used to being turned down.   When Lanval professes his love for his fantasy maiden, he does so to disprove the Queen’s suggestion that he is homosexual. As one would expect, King Arthur is extremely angry when he finds out what has happened between Lanval and the Queen, though the version he hears is not the whole truth.   Arthur vows to bring the knight to justice in court, which is heavily swayed in the King’s favor.   However, when he brings the charges against Lanval he fails to mention that Lanval attempted to sleep with his wife.   Instead, he focuses on Lanval’s statement that his lover’s maidens were fairer than the Queen.   As it seems logical that King Arthur would be far more upset with the idea of Lanval sleeping with his wife than speaking these words, readers get the idea that perhaps King Arthur does not believe the Queen’s accusations.   Perhaps he knows and ignores the Queen’s unfaithful ways, and perhaps he is guilty of the same behavior. After a series of ridiculous happenings in which the male members of the court are nearly put into trances by a series of half naked maidens on horseback, Lanval’s beautiful maiden comes to his aid.   Upon witnessing her beauty, all side with Lanval immediately, King Arthur included.   By pardoning this man who has supposedly wronged the Queen, King Arthur gives insight into his priorities.   Since the mystery maiden is far more physically attractive and wealthy than the Queen had ever been, there was no way Lanval could have made such an advance on the Queen.   And even if he said the things he said, he spoke the truth.   In this comical twist by de France, the King is more than willing to put aside his honor and the honor of his wife for an attractive stranger. Marie de France makes her final comment on the male-female, love-marriage tradition with the image of Lanval leaping onto the back of the maiden’s horse and riding into the distance.   Clearly, de France is turning the typical boy-rescues-girl scenario upside down, and perhaps is suggesting that things in her time are out of hand and need some strong women to turn things around.

Benjamin Franklin Gender Roles

Gender and the Age of Reason â€Å"In these two books, we have the story of a young man coming of age and finding success in the world and the story of a young woman coming of age and failing to do so. In either book, what gender roles prevailed? † In The Autobiography of Benjamin Franklin, we are reading the path that one man took to go from a middle class child to a well respected adult. Benjamin Franklin created what we know today as the American dream. Today we understand the American dream to be that one can go from rags to riches with a little hard work.The autobiography is based around the age of reason and a time man was thought to be able to be perfected by means of science and invention. The Autobiography of Benjamin Franklin is full of success, however, the male gender prevails much more than the female gender. The Autobiography of Benjamin Franklin begins in 1706, when Benjamin was born. He was the fifteenth of seventeen children. His father, Josiah, had intended t hat Benjamin go to school to become a minister. However, Benjamin showed a great love for reading and writing and soon enough the path to become a minister was abandoned.At age ten, he was soon taken out of school to begin work with his father Josiah. This work included making candles and soap. During this time, Ben’s father taught him the importance of debate, which would stick with Ben for the rest of his life. Not long after, Benjamin began to work for his brother James, a printer. Ben signed an eight year work contract with his brother. Ben disliked his fathers trade and preferred working for a printer because it allowed him to read and hone his writing skills. This brief history of Ben’s childhood alone shows the importance of the male gender during the 1700’s.A female would never have been given a job at a printing press or put through school in the same way that Benjamin was. His success began right when he was born because of his father putting him throu gh school and finding jobs for him. More importantly, his father teaching him the importance of debate is a groundbreaking moment. Benjamin Franklin is known as a political figure and scientist/inventor. Learning the importance of debate at such a young age clearly served him in great and many ways. Benjamin Franklin spent his teen years practicing his writing. In 1720, James started a newspaper known s the New England Courant. According to Franklin, this was the second newspaper in America. Franklin worked as a delivery boy and would publish his own writings anonymously. Franklin often disputed politics and books with another â€Å"bookish lad† by the name of John Collins. One of their arguments speaks directly about the female gender during the 1700’s. â€Å"A question was once, somehow or other, started between Collins and me, of the propriety of educating the female sex in learning, and their abilities for study. He was of opinion that it was improper†¦Ã¢â‚¬  (Franklin, Benjamin.The Autobiography of Benjamin Franklin. New York: Bantam Books, 1982, pg 14. ) Collins shares the same views and mentalities that many men of the 1700’s shared. At the time, it was understood that education and teaching was not to be wasted on women. Not only was it a waste but Collins specifically states that it is improper. â€Å"I took to the contrary side, perhaps a little for disputes sake. † (Franklin. The Autobiography of Benjamin Franklin, 14. ) This statement, made by Benjamin Franklin, is of great importance. He goes against the general population, whether by choice or simply for the sake of argument.When he states that it was perhaps a little for disputes sake, he leaves room for the reader to assume that he was in fact for the education of women. That being said, this doesn’t mean he is wishing their success in following the American dream like many women are more than capable of doing today. Nonetheless, the fact that Franklin promotes their educational well-being at all is a big step and is of significance. Benjamin Franklin doesn’t mention too much about his own family’s success. However, the beginning of The Autobiography of Benjamin Franklin is written as a letter to his son, William.William did succeed however, quite well in fact. He went on to be the royal governor of New Jersey in 1771. Benjamin’s wife, Deborah Read, was never mentioned as being a very successful woman. In fact, together, they lost a son who was only four years old at the time. This death is only given a brief mention, most likely in order to not relive the tragedy. Within Franklin’s family, the male gender prevails. The most significant sign of this is with William Franklin’s rise to royal governor of New Jersey. However, there is also a great deficit within the male gender of Franklin’s family.The passing of Franklin’s second son shows that while the male gender succeeded greatly d uring the Age of Reason, there was also a great loss as well. The 1700’s were designed for a male to succeed. From the beginning of the discovery of America, which was done by Columbus and mostly men, the male gender has taken leadership. It has taken nearly five hundred years for females to become as successful as they are today, and yet they still aren’t equal with men. In conclusion, even if it wasn’t by choice, Benjamin Franklin and the male gender in general were much more successful than the female gender during the 1700’s and the Age of Reason.

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How does the understanding of the origins and spread of nationalism Essay

How does the understanding of the origins and spread of nationalism inform our reading of Frankenstein - Essay Example Frankenstein saw the light of the day when the modern western World was beginning to evolve. The people desperately needed a change and were fed up of the royal harassments. Most of the monarchies did not care for the welfare of the people and had no concrete plans to improve the living conditions of the people. The French Revolution evolved within the minds of the people, waiting for an opportune time to strike. This book was written during the Romantic movement of the early 19th century. The issues raised then are relevant even today. Mary Shelly is more or less prophetic in her observations as for the causes that led to the evolving of the spirit of Nationalism. If one turns the pages of blood-soaked history of humanity, the conclusion is obvious. An individual’s aspirations should be fulfilled peacefully by the rulers and those occupying the seats of power. If that does not happen, what would be the results when those aspirations are attained by violent processes by adopti ng most irresponsible procedures! The concepts of individual freedom and respect for one’s dignity—these are time-tested concepts for the healthy growth of the society. Any political philosophy that tries to suppress these ideals by force will not last for long. We have seen the rise and abrupt fall of Nationalism evolved by adopting Communist ideology in Russia and some other western countries. The procedures and developmental strategies being officially encouraged by the Communist regime of China would put the Capitalist countries in the backseat. When Mary Shelley (then Mary Godwin) wrote Frankenstein in 1816, political conditions were such that the human spirit was tested to the brink. The prominent authors of the time took to serious writing on the concepts of uniqueness and self-realization. The individual’s emotions amidst their daily struggles became good story topics. These topics had the back up of direct experiences and hence they

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Presentaion on the country Syria - Essay Example It is currently the liturgical language of many Syrian Christian denominations. However, most educated Syrians also speak French and English. The indigenous Christian Western-Aramaic speakers as well as Assyrians make up roughly 400,000 people. Most of them speak the Western Neo-Aramaic language. As for the deaf community, the sign language is used. Traditionally, men wear long gowns and women wear a long robe that only leaves their feet and hands exposed (Antoun 89). These dresses show little of the human skins something which is considered respectable. Music: Syria is one of the earliest centers of Christian hymnody and continues to be the liturgical music of various Syrian Christians. Damascus is among the Arab world centers for artistic innovation, particularly in the field of classical Arab music. Prominent musicians such as Asmahan, Lena Chamamyan, and Farid al-Atrash all come from Damascus (Salamandra 104). Aleppo city is known for its muwashshah; a form of Andalous poetry (Antoun 45). The muwashshah was popularized by stars like Sabah Fakri. It comprises of 5 stanzas that alternate in refrain with a running rhyme. Dance: As cited by Salamandra (103), the Syrian traditional art is manifested in dances like the Dabkeh, al-Samah, and sword dance. The Dabkeh is the national dance of Syria. It involves both line dancing and circle dance. It is commonly performed at weddings and other festivities. The lines usually form from right to left. The Dabkeh and al Samah are also peformed in child’s birth and marriage ceremonies. Food: Core element in parties, weddings, and other festivities. The main dish is the Syrian cuisine. It is rich and varied in its ingredients. It comprises of Kibbeh, fattoish, tabbouleh, hummus, labneh, shanklish, sujuk, baklava, and pastrirma. Manoushi bread is the number one snack food all around Syria. Tea is the ever-present drink and is usually taken with the Manoushi bread in

Assessment of myself Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Assessment of myself - Essay Example One has been exposed to leadership roles in group projects and in other academic endeavors that necessitate assessing the talents of other people and harnessing their potentials. As such, one could deduce that one’s leadership strengths include the skill of introspection and the ability to discern the style of leadership that should be applied depending on the personalities of the followers and of the situation. For instance, some group members need to be told only once of their tasks and are immediately complied, as expected. However, there are others who need to be monitored as to their work progress, need to be guided, or even coerced to follow a defined strategy prior to ensuring that the task assigned is fulfilled according to specification. Still, one acknowledges that leadership is a continuing evolving process that could further be developed through training and actual experience. One looks forward to improving conflict negotiation skills, problem-solving and decision-making skills, as immersion to

Marketing- CRM (customer relationship management) Case Study

Marketing- CRM (customer relationship management) - Case Study Example A feasible generalized definition of CRM is that it is information enabled relationship marketing. This definition, however, doesn't de-link CRM with technology because information management in the modern business world is completely technology enabled. The expected output of CRM is development of positive relationship with key customers or customer segments that improves shareholder value of an organization. In the modern context, CRM is an effective methodology of IT enabled execution of relationship marketing strategies to develop long term & profitable relationships with customers. As per Kaplan and Norton (2000), no strategy is complete without a strategy map. Looking into CRM, the strategic framework of CRM need to be very clearly defined before the implementation begins. The strategic framework of CRM is not established as a standalone framework rather finds its roots deep into the organizational strategic framework starting from the board room. ... The strategic framework of CRM is not established as a standalone framework rather finds its roots deep into the organizational strategic framework starting from the board room. The business strategies of an organization form the foundation of customer strategies, whereby the former is formed at the CEO & board level comprising of business objectives comprising of strategies & directions pertaining to organization wide competencies and the latter is formed at the marketing department level that use the business strategies to target market segments & customers. The root of strategies can be established using the Balanced Scorecard mechanism developed by Kaplan & Norton as shown in Figure 1. Figure 1: Balanced Scorecard strategic framework (Kaplan and Norton. 1996) First of all, the organization needs to have clearly defined Vision & Mission statements pertaining to CRM. The next step is to define the strategic business goals of the organization that is in line with these statements. These goals should be focussed towards achieving unique positioning of the company in the markets & in the perspective of the customers. For example, some companies may like to establish an image that they offer low cost products & services whereas others may like to achieve an image of offering premium & high profile products & services at premium costs. Similarly, some companies may like to establish large market segments comprising of multi-domain areas whereas some may focus on thin market segments comprising of niche areas. Whatever be the positioning defined for the organization, the leadership team may like to establish corresponding CRM goals and then expand them into key CRM

Is Excessive Food Waste an Environmental Concern Essay

Is Excessive Food Waste an Environmental Concern - Essay Example This research will begin with the statement that according to a report by the U.S Environmental Protection Agency (APA), remarkably few citizens know that excessive food waste is an environmental hazard. Excessive food refers to wasteful practices by consumers and during production. Most people argue that since food is biodegradable, it does not pose a threat to the environment. However, a report published by EPA revealed that when food rots, it produces a greenhouse gas known as methane. Amazingly, methane is twenty times more damaging to the environment than carbon dioxide. On the other hand, the U.S Department of Agriculture (USDA) argues that if only five percent of Americans’ food scraps were recovered, it would be enough to feed four million people for a day. USDA reported that close to 26 million tons of wasted food get thrown away in garbage annually. In fact, in 2010, food approximated to 34 million tons went to waste. In addition, food waste formed the single largest component of municipal solid waste reaching incinerators and landfills. EPA notes that the U.S government spends close to one billion dollars just to dispose of all its wasted food. This is exceedingly astonishing. The excess money spent on the management of wasted food can be used to run vital government departments. Experts from the University of Arizona believe that the country’s environmental impact can be reduced by 25 percent if Americans can reduce their food wastage by a half. This appears to be true because the Food and Agricultural Organization (FAO) indicated on 10th January 2012 that one-third of the food produced for human consumption globally, goes to waste every year. FAO reported that consumers and retailers in the U.S waste close to 40 percent of edible food annually. The data from FAO is also astonishing and calls for immediate actions. From the data reported earlier, it is clear that excessive food waste is becoming a serious environmental hazard. Consider ing the report produced by FAO, the U.S is just a representative of many nations whose citizens waste tons of food annually. The most alarming bit is that methane, the gas produced from food rot, traps heat in the atmosphere 23 times more than the widely known carbon dioxide. Since global warming affects the whole earth, stakeholders should consider passing international regulations that regulate the quantity of wasted food a country produces, in order to curb methane overproduction.

Midterm Essay 3 Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Midterm 3 - Essay Example Human development is thus, characterized by the appropriation and transformation of nature by human needs. The idea here is that human beings usually transform themselves according to the demands of the external world. In line with this argument, people do not engage in labor freely, but are rather forced by external forces to engage in labor. Marcuse perceives labor as a means of objectifying a person considering that people are always striving to engage activities that will profit them economically (ibid). As such, capitalism is seen as the primary cause of alienation in the society as it forces human beings to act. The fact that people do not realize that labor and capitalism has enslaved them explains that they do not realize the need for change, thus making them one-dimensional thinkers. As such, instead of fighting against the alienation caused by capitalism and demanding social change, one-dimensional thinkers begin to identify with those who fuel such capitalism, thus becoming complacent in their alienated state. As Marcuse writes, â€Å"†¦the subject which is alienated is swallowed up by its alienated existence†¦there is only one dimension, and it is everywhere and in all forms†¦Ã¢â‚¬  (19). Fundamentally, the working class people are lured into a consumerism system in which labor is essential for production, their artificial needs are met, and these people are slowly integrated into the capitalist society. By ensuring that the workers perceive labor as beneficial and making sure that the worker’s artificial needs are met, the capitalist society eliminates the cha nces of opposition. One of the catalysts of the kind of alienation caused by capitalism is technology. Marcuse argues that technology has revolutionized the mass media such that the capitalist system is able to infiltrate the social lives of its citizens (18). In essence, mediums such as radio and television have been used by the system to take capitalist ideas into the homes of citizens

Fossils and the Geologic Column Essay Example for Free

Fossils and the Geologic Column Essay Starting from the 18th Century, scientist had been able to provide methods of knowing the world’s prehistory. One of this is the use of fossils to determine the relative age of strata. Fossils are the remains of living organisms that had lived long time ago while strata are the geological divisions each made out of contiguous layers that exhibits consistent characteristics. Comparing the sets of fossils that exist within different localities gives a hint for geologist whether the layers concerned are of the same strata or not. The relative age of the localities could be based on the fossil’s relative age that is then determined through carbon dating. As scientist had established that fossils of a certain organism had lived within a certain span of time, it is then compared to other organism which would be also found out to have lived within that same time span. Their similarities would be drawn out that made possible the broader division of the Earth’s history into Eras namely the Cenozoic Era or the Age of Recent life, Mesozoic Era or the Age of the Medieval Life, and the Palaeozoic Era or the Age of the Ancient Life. Each of them would be further divided into Periods, which is then based on the disturbances that had been theorized to shape the earth’s crust. The time span that is believed that no fossils can be found out is called the Precambrian Period. In analyzing figure 3. 6, we could tell that the three localities though bordered many kilometers apart, have fossil assemblages because almost all of them have Dictyoclostus americanus from the Pennsylvanian Period, Prolecanites gurleyi from Mississippian Period, Palmatolepus unicornis from Devonian Period and Bathyurus extans from Ordovian Period. This states that the three localities had been for some time span or period had been part of the earth’s outer crust. Though locality 3 had Stratum D and Prolecanites gurleyi missing, this that not means that locality 3 does not exist as part of the earth’s crust because either stratum D was never deposited there or it may had been there but then removed through erosion. The boundary between C and E then would be a disconformity. References Index Fossils. Retrieved June 6, 2008 from http://pubs. usgs. gov/gip/geotime/fossils. html

Water and Air Population Analysis Essay Example for Free

Water and Air Population Analysis Essay Despite the adverse effects associated with pollution of the environment, countries continue to pollute the air and water with chemicals, green gases, oil and other waste from domestic or industrial entities. The problem of pollution is a universal one, although different countries experience it at varying degrees. In my local community, (Kuwait) is an oil rich country, and is a major exporter of crude oil to US and other countries. Most people in Kuwait depend on oil for energy needs. The climatic and geographic conditions tend to be extreme most of the year. Temperatures can sore up to 510 during summer and drop to -20 during winters. The topography in Kuwait is mostly desert, with only one hill that stands at 300 meters tall. Only 9% of land in Kuwait lends to arable farming or forest growth. Given that Kuwait is an oil rich country with numerous oil mine points, its waters are prone to pollution due to the oil spills that occur regularly despite mitigation efforts employed by the country. In addition, oil reserves often catch fires, which emit allot of smoke causing a lot of pollution inn Kuwait. The situation is further compounded by the lack of forests or plants, which purify the air by seeping carbon dioxide from the oil fires. It takes long for the effects of oil smoke to be erased and the environment is often the victim. Beside the oil fires experienced in Kuwait, air pollution also occurs from domestic sector as well as enterprises that depend a lot on oil energy for production. The desert topography in Kuwait offers very little chance of natural cleansing to occur due to the absence of vegetation or rainforests and thus the air pollution directly affects the dessert and water pollution in Kuwait. It is rare to witness rain in Kuwait, but when it rains, the amount is massive. Water in Kuwait is a rare commodity because even the lakes and rainwater have become acidic and contaminated from the frequent oil spills and smoke from oil fires, which is a common problem. Besides, when it rains top soils are heavily eroded rendering water inconsumable. It seems to me that the climatic and topographical factors in Kuwait contribute very little if any, mechanism of reducing air and water pollution. This is because of the lack of fundamental components to reduce these pollutions say vegetation, land cover and so on. The two obvious victims of air and water pollution in Kuwait are the people in Kuwait and the environment. On a macro perspective, the human race is a victim of the pollution in Kuwait as seen in the destruction of the ozone layer and global warming. The economic impact on Kuwait citizens is that food production has become very expensive. Most food is imported from other countries. For the economically burdened, meeting this basic need is an everyday nightmare. Air borne diseases are also common among Kuwait people especially those who reside near oil lakes and wells. The impact of oil fires, particularly the Persian Gulf fire, is still felt in the economic spectrum of Kuwait. Over time, it has been reported that the oil reserves in Kuwait are sinking by the day thereby reducing the countries GDP. The reason behind this is not clear but perhaps pollution has a hand in it. Children, who are the most vulnerable group to air and water pollution in Kuwait, continue to suffer from respiratory disease due to poor quality air. The extreme temperatures experienced in Kuwait have been underpinned to destruction of the ozone layer due to the carbon emission from oils fires in Kuwait. The result has been wilting of crops in the few oases in Kuwait and solidification of lakes in Kuwait. The situation on air and water pollution is terrible in my community (Kuwait) but the government is keen to impose policies that will reduce the extent of air and water References Topography in Kuwait. Available at http://www. arab. net/kuwait/kt_topography. htm accessed on September 18, 2007

Horror and Suspense

Horror and Suspense Discuss how horror and suspense are created in two short stories. In this essay I am going to look at how horror and suspense are created by the authors Charles Dickens and his gothic short story ‘The Signalman and Thomas Hardy and his mysterious story ‘The Three Strangers. In Charles Dickens ‘The Signalman, Dickens creates and maintains a sense of horror and suspense throughout the story. There are numerous ways in which he composes this sense to infiltrate the readers mind into the atmosphere present throughout the story. The presentation of the characters help to create this atmosphere throughout the story. The author creates a sense of mystery with the main character as he does not introduce or describe the appearance of the character, but yet sets the story through this characters first person perspective, acting as the narrator of the story. This allows the reader an insight into the thoughts and feelings of the main character. Dickens also introduces the signalman as dark and sinister. He describes his appearance in a gothic fashion, using repetition of the word ‘dark when describing his features; â€Å"he was a dark sallow man with a dark beard†. Dickens also presents the signalman to be a disturbed man who â€Å"had run wild, misused his opportunities, gone down, and never risen again.† The setting in which the story takes place also creates horror and suspense. Dickens gives a description of the railway cutting with intricate detail and encompasses it with a cloud of gloomy and a depressive mood. He associates places and objects with certain impressions which produce this large image of negative and horrifying vibes and feelings. When the narrating character has his first impression of the railway cutting, he compliments it as â€Å"extremely deep, and unusually precipitate†. When Dickens describes the signalmans box, Dickens bombards the reader with adjectives of a morphed and â€Å"depressing† atmosphere. He called it a â€Å"dungeon† which implies a sense of torture and a horrid nature. The description of the signalmans box creates a feeling of suffocation and being trapped. â€Å"On either side, a dripping-wet wall of jagged stone, excluding all view but a strip of sky; the perspective one only a crooked prolongation of this great dungeon. † The emphasis on the gloominess and â€Å"forbidding† â€Å"deadly† environment conveys the relevance to death. The mouth of the tunnel is also described as having â€Å"a barbarous, depressing and forbidding air.† These details combined with the cold wind and loneliness of the place; add up to a feeling of dread and foreboding. This all adds to the horror of the story and creates uneasiness and suspense for the reader. The language used in ‘The Signalman creates an atmosphere of horror and suspense and also draws the attention of the reader. The language used is of a Victorian context as the story was written and set in a Victorian setting. This creates an element of being in the Victorian times. Dickens also uses long sentences to create an element of suspense. Dickens uses the language of the story to create the atmosphere of horror and suspense through many methods. For instance, â€Å"Halloa! Below there!† is a small expression that is used several times throughout the story and was repeated by several characters. This strikes the reader with alarm and fear as Dickens creates a paradox for the reader; is it a coincidence or is it involved with the idea of the supernatural? The imagery used in ‘The Signalman also creates horror and suspense in the story. Dickens describes the place as a repugnant and disturbing place to illustrate the unnatural and gothic vibe of the place. The narrator describes the place as a â€Å"dungeon† and analysiss the cutting as â€Å"†¦extremely deep, unusually precipitous. It was made through a clammy stone, that became oozier and wetter as I went down.† Dickens emphasizes the gloomy and unpleasant elements of the cutting to engulf the reader into this unnatural world so the reader can endow the â€Å"depressing† feelings which the narrator has; â€Å"For these reasons, I found the way long enough to give me time to recall a singular air of reluctance or compulsion†¦Ã¢â‚¬  Note the use of the words â€Å"reluctant† and â€Å"impulsive† which again adds to the suspense of the story. The conclusion of the story also creates horror and suspense. Horror is created in the tragic death of the signalman. The narrator begins to see the specter in the ghostly tunnel, and begins to realize that the death of the signalman had occurred just as he had imagined; â€Å"that only in my mind, to the gesticulation he had imitated†. Suspense is created in this conclusion as it links with the idea of the supernatural and the story concludes with no resolved ending, leaving a mystery to what can happen next. The story gives the impression that it is about the effect of technology and industrialization on the human soul. The signalman is driven â€Å"mad† by the monotony and, at the same time, the awful responsibility involved in his work. He is â€Å"alienated† from his environment; with little to occupy his mind and always knowing the smallest mistake will lead to terrible loss of life. The supernatural element reflects the Victorian fascination with the paranormal as a reaction against the advances in science and the technology during the 19th century that seemed to deny the existence of a spiritual dimension to life. The story is a true mystery; it can have no solution as it is about the impossibility of ever knowing what is real. In Thomas Hardys story ‘The Three Strangers, Hardy creates and maintains a sense of horror and suspense throughout the story. There are numerous ways in which he composes this atmosphere of horror and suspense. Unlike the narrator in ‘The Signalman, the narrator in ‘The Three Strangers does not have the roll of a character in the story. This allows the reader to see the story from a third person perspective which allows the readers to endure the atmosphere of the story. The characters in ‘The Three Strangers appear to have similarities to the characters of ‘The Signalman. One similarity is that the characters present mystery as well in Hardys story. Not much is revealed about the characters at the start of the story which creates a sense of suspense for the reader. The three strangers are the main object of the story and as the story proceeds, so does the readers knowledge of the three strangers. This creates suspense as the readers knowledge of the three strangers is the plot of the story, the strangers being the twist in the tale. Although Hardy describes the other characters in the story with warmth and, the three strangers are the only people who present horror and suspense. Hardy describes the first stranger to be thin â€Å"a man of supple frame† and tall â€Å"He appeared tall†, and considers him to be a dark and mysterious character by saying â€Å"he naturally belonged to the black-coated tribes of men.† Hardy also makes the stranger seem mysterious through some of his reactions such as when â€Å"At the sound of the same the man in the chimney-corner took up the poker†¦ as if doing it thoroughly were the one aim of his existence†. The second stranger also seems to present suspense as when he arrives, he causes the first stranger to do abnormal things, such as the example above. The third stranger also creates suspense as he alarms the people at the party into believing that he is the sheep stealer in which the authorities were after through his reactions of â€Å"his k nees trembling, his hands shaking violently†¦Ã¢â‚¬  Unlike the unnatural world created by Dickens in ‘The Signalman, Hardy sets a very natural scene in agricultural England, complimenting the place with â€Å"grassy and furzy downs†¦Ã¢â‚¬  Yet Hardy also uses this natural scene to build horror and suspense throughout the story. Hardy creates a balance of good and evil in the setting. He presents the party inside the cottage as a warm, comfortable, and cosy environment while on the outside of the cottage, he presents the weather as â€Å"boisterous†, with violent winds and heavy rain. This outside environment creates horror and suspense as it encloses the comfort and cosiness of the inside environment with its euphoric atmosphere. As in The Signalman the language again adds to horror and suspense. Hardys short story employs Victorian context as it too was written in Victorian times. This creates a Victorian atmosphere and engulfs the reader into the old culture of England. Hardy uses language to create an atmosphere of horror and suspense in various methods. For instance, the author maintains the mysterious identities of the strangers by referring to the strangers by their appearance or position, such as the first stranger being referred to as â€Å"the man in the chimney-corner† and the second stranger being â€Å"the stranger in cinder-grey†. This mystery about the strangers identities creates suspense as the reader does not know how the strangers interact with the plot of the story or even who they are. Hardy also uses long sentences in contrast to Dickens to create an element of suspense. The imagery used in Hardys short story is the opposite of Dickens as his imagery is more natural than gloomy and gothic. In the story, Hardy uses imagery to create horror and suspense. Hardy gives an image of a natural countryside in the south of England describing its features as â€Å"grassy and furzy†¦Ã¢â‚¬  An image of a storm is created in the story which compliments the suspense of the story and creates an uneasy atmosphere for the reader. Unlike the conclusion of ‘The Signalman, ‘The Three Strangers concludes in a more vivid tone. The story ends with the reader knowing that the first stranger got away with his crime however, creates a vibe of suspense as nothing is known about the whereabouts of the first stranger. Although ‘The Three Strangers concludes, it has a similarity to ‘The Signalman as nothing is known about what can happen next. We know that the first stranger got away with his crime but we dont know where he had gone to, while in ‘The Signalman we know that the death of the signalman may be partly the fault of the narrator, but we dont know what fate is in store for the narrator. All in all, it is evident that horror and suspense are created in the two short stories; ‘The Signalman and ‘The Three Strangers both writers use character setting, language and plot as a means of creating the desired atmosphere, and both succeed in achieving their aim. However there are differences in which this creation of horror and suspense are orchestrated within these stories. In conclusion, both stories provide a horrifying and suspense experience through different methods and techniques.

Anorexia And What Causes It :: essays research papers

What causes Anorexia Nervosa? Eating disorders are not new. Anorexia Nervosa was first formally diagnosed in 1874, and the symptoms have been observed as far back as 300 years ago.(Walsh and Devlin 1) Although the condition has been known for centuries, it seems to be center stage now during the last decade or so. What is behind Anorexia? Is it inherited? Is Anorexia caused by some type of mental illness, or maybe environmental pressures? Does culture play a role in whether or not someone suffers from Anorexia? These questions are not easily answered,as we know if we have had any family members or close friends who have suffered from Anorexia. It's not as easily diagnosed as the measles or chickenpox, where the doctor knows exactly what the cause is. We will discover that there is no one clearcut cause for Anorexia. According to Women's Health Weekly one research study collected blood from 200 families where at least two of the siblings were suffering from Anorexia, several of the test results suggest a possible link between Anorexia and a shared suseptability gene found in many of the siblings (10) . We must keep in mind that although this research is promising it is still as of yet incomplete data, which in essence makes it a theory. This by no means suggests that there is not a biological link, but that more research needs to be done. There have also been a connection made between Anorexia and mental illness. Indeed recent research has discovered a strong link between Anorexia and several psychiatric disturbances such as; depression, agoraphobia, and social phobics to mention a few. The most promising connection is that many Anorexics are responding to a wide variety of psychiatric medication(Nagel and Jones 2). Although the numbers are not in yet, the fact that many of these people are responding to medication suggests a solid connection between mind and body. If we look at just a couple of behaviors many Anorexics display it does very much mimic that of a psychiatric disturbance. Most Anorexics are overly preoccupied with meal preparation and feeding everyone except themselves. Does this sound somewhat compulsive? Depression also seems to be a common trait among Anorexics, although the mere fact that these people are literally starving themselves can itself induce depression. One study found that 93% of their &q uot;persistant"Anorexic subjects suffered from depression. Interestingly 37% of their "recovered" Anorexics still presented with depression.

Japan Technology :: essays research papers

â€Å"Success is never a destination - it is a journey† (Satenig St. Marie) and there is a company that understands that journey. Kodak has been around for many years providing families around the world with innovative and high quality products. Many homes worldwide recognize and associate film with the Kodak name. â€Å"The company ranks as a premier multinational corporation, with a brand recognized in virtually every country around the world† (Kodak History). However, the changes in technology create a dilemma for Kodak. The company’s considerations for digital imaging will change its long history with 35mm film production. Will the shift from 35mm to digital imaging affect Kodak’s successful journey? To find an answer to this question, we must analyze Kodak from an economic perspective. An economic perspective views many different factors and determines whether it is in Kodak’s best interest to pursue digital imaging, will give enough evidence to support a rational decision. The era of digital photography is well under way. After surpassing sales of film cameras in 2003, the demand for digital devices in the US and other developed markets continues to swell. According to market research firm IDC, during the first nine months of 2004, â€Å"U.S. shipments of digital still cameras grew by close to 50%, vs. the same period in 2003. Conversely, we think U.S. shipments of traditional film cameras declined at a double-digit rate in 2004, and we expect a similar drop in 2005† (Stice). With the technology currently available, digital photography holds several major advantages over traditional film photography. The benefits can be categorized by cost, time, and versatility (Bhatia). Kodak wisely restructured its manufacturing to remain a strong competitor in the industry’s market demand for traditional 35mm film. Film cameras are slowly declining in existing markets. Kodak takes full advantage of the situation by shifting its core focus to the increasingly demanded digital imaging technologies. But since emerging markets continue their demand for traditional products, an efficient number of production factors are still available in China and India, where Kodak will continue service and support products for existing markets. Their strategy is to fill the profit gap left from traditional product sales losses with sales gains from the new digital products plus gain top market share. In 2004, Kodak Operating Systems (KOS), charged with Kodak’s Manufacturing and Logistics, began making manufacturing plans to restructure decisions as they realized the opportunity costs of having un- or under-used factors of production at PPC1 (See Fig.

Opening an Italian Restaurant in Ilford Essay -- GCSE Business Managem

Opening an Italian Restaurant in Ilford Introduction I am planning to open an Italian restaurant which will be located in Ilford. The business will be owned and operated by me. My goals are to combine my skills in developing an up market, price competitive restaurant catering for 18 – 35 year old males and females. The restaurant will be focused on meeting customer’s needs, which will ensure steady repeat and referral of the business. In my first year of business, I will work on a rented building. There are many reasons why I am opening my own business. Starting with the fundamentals, I have a strong belief that to be in business you need to have a passion and interest, which can be translated into commitment and dedication to the success of the business. My primary reasons for starting my own business are:  · To be my own boss and take full responsibilities for my decisions  · To support my lifestyle financially  · To be challenged in the work place and build a successful business I can take pride in  · To provide a quality service to my existing and new clientele in a relaxing environment Sole Trader Sole trader is a person who sets up a business by themselves. As a Sole trader the owner himself is responsible for every action made and also keeps all of the profit. This could be a newsagent's shop, for example. Individuals, who provide a specialist service like hairdressers, plumbers or photographers, are also sole traders. Sole traders do not have a separate legal existence. As a result, the owners are personally liable for the firm's debts, and may have to pay them out of their own pocket. Advantages of Sole Trader ========================= - The business is to be set up. Apart from any necessary licenses or planning permission, there are very few legal formalities. - Although accounts are seen by the Inland Revenue, they do not have to be made public. - The business is usually small, and the owner is in charge of the management. Decisions can be made quickly - The owner gets all of the profit from the business - Being a small business can provide attention to the customers Disadvantages of Sole Trader ============================ - Sole traders have to work very long hours particularly when setting up a business. - Difficult for the business to expand - No cont... ...usinesses lose a lot of money through sickness absence, not all of it medically justified. While many of the issues can be handled on the basis of give and take, there are times when clear policies and decisive action are needed to resolve difficult situations. A1 The great majority of new businesses set up each year in the UK choose to do so as sole traders. This arrangement has the advantage of being reasonably free of formalities and restrictions, unless you intend to register for VAT, there are no rules about the records you have to keep. Other than you do have to keep records. As a Sole Trader you take complete responsibility for the running of the business. Your business is one of your assets just like your house or car. An important consequence of this is that if your business fails, your creditors have a claim not only on the assets of the business, but also on your personal assets, subject only to the Bankruptcy Act. Note that being a Sole Trader does not imply that the business only employs one person, If your business grows you may employ extra staff however you will still be a Sole Trader, because it will be your business and your liability.

Feasibility study Essay

Sometimes a full-scale study cannot be justified because there are too many unknowns, or because a critical piece of information is lacking. In such circumstances a feasibility study may be warranted. A feasibility study is undertaken before the real work to determine whether to proceed with a project and decide the best approach to adopt. Feasibility studies can be extremely important in reducing uncertainties for planning the definitive study, and often provide reassurance to funding bodies that the work has been thoroughly thought through.s Our business Queen Pitahaya Fruit Shake (Dragon Fruit) bears the vision of providing fun, deliciously appetizing, uniquely enchanting food and beverage products while maintaining our commitment to uncompromised quality at economical rates with a heartening purpose to cater to society’s needs, taste and preferences: rather than simply convincing our customers to try and like whatever products we develop. Dragon fruit contains much health benefit and uses, that is why we develop something that will really help customers satisfied their needs and wants. Queen Pitahaya Fruit Shake keeps our body healthy, inside and out. Developing a new product for the public is never an easy undertaking. The number of new products that actually make it is insignificant to the total numbers that are actually produced. We as a student believe we have found one of those products that will make an impact and ultimately be successful is a shake. The healthy shake will provide our customers with an almost endless amount of healthy alternatives to the other drinks. This information will provide sales, costs, profits, market, competitors, distribution, and the macro environment balance. The healthy fruit shake will promise you customers to provide the quality, reasonably priced product in industry. We aim for continuously generate awareness, interest and desire for our product, resulting in frequent purchases by the customers. II. INTRODUCTION A. Background of the Study Dragon Fruit Shake has a delightful and pretty mild taste, not too sweet but just perfect to appeal with the consumers taste buds. It is made from fresh dragon fruits, non fat milk, and green stevia. Our product will offer numerous health benefits that are good for the body and will cater the ever increasing demand for a healthy food and beverage choice, diets and losing weight. Dragon fruit are among the many wonder fruits that are said to provide multiple health benefits and include a whole array of nutrients, vitamins, fiber and anti-oxidants. It is best for all diets because it has low calories and is rich in fiber that can help avoid constipation, improve your digestive health and help you reduce weight naturally without health risk. Others call this as a super food due to its powerful healing properties. Non-fat milk which is also one of the ingredients of the product offers the goodness of milk but minus the fat, which makes it an easy addition to one’s balanced diet. It gives nutrition to those who put importance to managing to control their weight and staying fit. We use green stevia as a sweetener. It is an all-natural food supplement that is said to be 300 times sweeter than ordinary sugar. Proven by experts, green stevia has zero calories, zero fats, zero sodium and zero cholesterol. B. Name of the Enterprise The name of the enterprise is one of the most important things that are needed in the business. QUEEN PITAHAYA FRUIT SHAKE is the primary name of the business. PITAHAYA originated from the word Hylocereus undatus commonly known as dragon fruit is among the most nutritious and wonderful exotic fruits. Hylocereus undatus is one of the most popular and cultivated cacti species of the genus Hylocereus, especially for the fruit industry while we choose the name QUEEN because the 4 partners in the business are all girls. We create this kind of name in our business because it’s easy to memorize or to familiarize by the customers, its unique name and it’s our way to attract them and it could be a trademark for quality products. C. Statement of the Problem These days, consumers are considered as the king of the market. Their needs and demand varies from time to time because of the changes in technology, fashion, tastes, behavior and lifestyle. Consumers of today are becoming more conscious about their health so as to manage health related concerns, thus consumers demand for a healthy food choice, diets and losing weight. D. Objectives of the Study Stated below are the lists of objectives that this study is contemplating on pursuing. 1. To offer a healthy beverage that satisfies the fast changing consumer preferences for a shake drink. 2. To be able to earn profit 3. To gain market share III. MARKETING PLAN A. Analysis of the Customer Environment There are groups of customers for our Dragon Fruit Shake and the needs are different from segment to segment. It is primarily focused on segments including Kids, Adults, Health Conscious, and the Youth market. The table shows the segments for Dragon Fruit Shake. Not a child yet not an adult Possibly wanting to drink what adults drink but without the adult taste Intense competition with both direct and indirect competitors Unbounded changing of customers demand and preferences E. Marketing Mix Product Dragon Fruit Shake is made from pure, fresh and naturally grown dragon fruits. We do not use artificial sweetener but rather an all- natural sugar substitute. It has a delicious, creamy, delightful taste. Each cup of our shake offers a lot of health benefits for our customers at an affordable price thus, making their money worth spending on. Place Dragon fruit shake will be having its first store at food court of SM Dasmarià ±as. We will not place our store at roadside locations as we promote healthy beverage and we don’t want our product to be exposed on different toxins and smoke coming from the vehicles. We will operate on a safe and clean environment. Price The business will use the Cost-plus pricing strategy to calculate for the price of dragon fruit shake. The price will be set based on the production cost, including both direct and indirect cost at our projected sales volume, and our standard mark-up. Our product is competitively priced and is very affordable for consumers to buy. Taking into account the extreme health benefits our product can offer, we are very sure that their money will be worth spending on consuming our product and making it as a staple on their healthy diet. Projected market price for Dragon fruit shake will start at: P 26 for small; Sales Promotion In- store Sampling – will be conducting sampling program at SM Dasmarinas supermarket and at the same time, giving away fliers and encouraging them to visit and try to buy the product at the store located at the foodcourt. Exposition/ Trade fair – join trade fairs to increase awareness of the existence of our business. This would also give us the chance to showcase the goodness of our product. We will have free taste of our product and we will also sell our product if people would love to buy. We will also have the chance to be seen and known by a lot of bloggers. Public Relation Social Media – integration to social media can create dynamic, measurable ways to engage the community and drive bottom-line results. We will create fan pages on websites, such as Facebook, to start marketing our product online. Often post interesting information about our product, entertaining stories, comments to continually draw interest from consumers. Place ads on Facebook to attract even more consumers to our fan page. We could also have fun games, surveys, contests and customer testimonials. Direct Marketing (For future Direct Marketing efforts) Television, newspapers and magazines will be use to advertise our product. Our existence as well as the health benefits of the product will be the main focus of the advertisement. Television Shows – catering sponsorship on Television Health Shows like Salamat Dok Newspaper – advertisement on newspapers like Philippine Daily Inquirer and Manila Bulletin will increase people’s awareness especially the professionals Magazine – advertisement on magazines like Women’s health and Men’s health is directly targeted towards the health conscious market. We will also have advertisement on Candy Magazine. This will be directly targeted towards the Youth market. All this direct marketing efforts can generate awareness and induce them to try and purchase or product. Feedback from Customers The Dragon Fruit Shake will be operated by 4 persons as partners. Dragon Fruit Shake was a partnership business accounted as limited firm and owned by the following persons: Ma. Fe Victoria N. Alano, Dyann Bucaling, Sharmaine Lyka P. Vecino, and Melody M. Ramos. The business started with a capital amounted to 100,000.00 having equal contributions from the owners. E. Organizational Structure The figure has shown the organizational structure of Dragon Fruit Shake which composes an Operational Manager, Bookkeeper Personnel, Marketing Personnel, and Financial Analyst which all of them contributed to the company. Operational Manager – is an area of management concerned with overseeing, designing, and controlling the process of production and redesigning business operations in the production of goods or services. It involves the responsibility of ensuring that business operations are efficient in terms of using as few resources as needed, and effective in terms of meeting customer requirements. It is concerned with managing the process that converts inputs (in the forms of materials, labor, and energy) into outputs (in the form of goods and/or services). Bookkeeper – in the context of a business is simply the recording of financial transactions. Transactions include purchases, sales, receipts and payments by an individual or organization. Many individuals mistakenly consider bookkeeping and accounting to be the same thing. This confusion is understandable because the accounting process includes the bookkeeping function, but is just one part of the accounting process. Cashier – the officer of a bank or business concern in charge of paying and receiving money and handles cash transactions with customers. Sales Personnel – refers to those who work as part of the sales team either in a retail store, call center or individually from home. Sales personnel are employed to sell to other businesses or to individual consumers. Working in sales can be demanding or stressful, as much of the role involves working toward sales targets. Sources of Literature www.pinoybusiness.com/food-business/starting-a-fruit-juice-and-shake-business/ www.quennsland.qld.gov.au/industry/food/food-innovation/innovative-food-beverage-products/healthy-foods-biodegradable-packaging www.tutor2u.net/business/marketing/pricing_cost-plus.asp bizfinance.about.com/od/pricingyourproduct/a/Pricing-your-product-using-mark-up.htm kimberlysnyder.net/blog/2013/01/08/superfruit casaveneracion.com/dragon-fruit-shake/ prezi.com/k9oj8jyers1/feasibility-study/ www.greenstevia.com.ph thenutritionguruandthechef.wordpress.com/2012/05/13 www.cookinglight.com www.fruitasgroup.com www.cavite.go.ph/home/index.php/investment/cost-of-doing-business/minimum-wage Belch (2003). Advertising and Promotions. The McGraw-Hill Companies Kotler et.al (1999). Principles of Marketing. New Jersey, USA. Prentice hall

Strategic Human Resource Management (SHRM) Practices and the Performance of a Nigerian Small and Medium Size Enterprise (SME).

Introduction The contribution of small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) to the economic growth and development has been enormous. This contribution is significant for both the developed and developing world. Many governments acknowledge the fact that SMEs play a significant role in the growth and development of their economies. Consequently, a number of government investment projects are geared towards fostering the growth and development of local SMEs. The institution of policies geared towards the facilitation and empowerment of SMEs as well as improving the performance of SMEs remains a major objective of many economic policy makers and governments. In addition, international economic and financial bodies such as the IMF, World Bank, the European Investment Bank (EIB) and the International Financial Corporation (IFC) have invested heavily in making SMEs robust and vibrant in developing countries. Furthermore, non-governmental organisations (NGOs) in developing countries such as Nigeria have employed advocacy and capacity-building campaigns to promote the growth of SMEs. Despite the importance accorded to SMEs as well as their contribution to economic growth, Onugu (2005) argues that the performance of SMEs in Nigeria has been below expectations. Unlike SMEs in other countries, the contribution of Nigerian SMEs to economic growth has not been very impressive (Onogu, 2005). Following from its independence, the Federal government of Nigeria has invested significant sums of money to promote entrepreneurial and small business development projects (Mambula, 1997, 2002). However, results from these projects have not been very impressive. In order words, most of these projects have often been unable to yield their expected returns. Despite the country’s endowment with raw materials and other natural resources, there has been little progress towards the development of the manufacturing sector, which could have increased the production of value added products thereby substituting imports, increasing exports and increasing employment (Mambula, 1997, 2002). Business failure often comes as a result of a number of factors. This could be as a result of poor customer service, poor management and poor human resource management. While the poor performance of SMEs in Nigeria can be attributed to a number of factors, human resource management could be a major factor in determining this poor performance. Human resources are a principal source of economic growth. Like other resources, human resources require effective and efficient utilisation so as to ensure maximum contribution is achieved from them. Approximately 50 per cent of people work in small and medium sized enterprises. Despite this high proportion of human resources in SMEs, most studies that study human resource management have focused on large corporations with very limited attention to SMEs. Moreover, most studies on the practices of human resource management have been carried out in the developed world with very limited attention paid to developing countries like Nigeria. This study is one of the few studies that focus on the management of human resources in SMEs in a developing country. The country that has been chosen for the study is Nigeria. The paper examines the factors that affect the practices of human resource management in an SME in Nigeria and how these practices can affect the performance of the SME in particular and its contribution to the overall growth of the economy as a whole.Objectives of the Study The objective of the study is to examine the SHRM practices of an SME in Nigeria. The study will also examine how those practices affect the performance of the SME and provide polic y implications of the findings for future strategy development.Research QuestionsThe paper will be providing answers to the following questions: What are the Strategic human resource management practices of the SME How do these practices affect the performance of the SME What are the implications for future development of strategic human resource management practices at the SMEResearch OutlineThe paper is going to follow the following areas: Section one will cover the introduction; section 2 will be dealing with the literature review; section 3 will be discussing the methodology and describing the data; section 4 will provide the results and analysis; and section 5 will present conclusions and recommendations. Literature Review Strategic human resource management (SHRM) practices refer to those activities that are specifically developed, executed and implemented on a deliberate alignment to a firm’s strategy (Huselid et al., 1997). The phrase â€Å"strategic human resource management is an indication that people in the firm are regarded as strategic resources (i.e human capital) that must be managed and leveraged when implementing and executing the strategy of the firm. In early years, efforts made to develop a conceptual framework on strategic human resource management were based on the assumption that in order to promote human behaviour that would fulfil the strategic objectives of the firm, the firm had to implement specific human resource management practices (Fisher, 1989; Schuler and Jackson, 1989; Snell, 1992). A strategic approach to human resource management is an approach that links the human resource management policies with the strategic objectives of the firm. There has been significant debate over the term SHRM as has been the case for human resource management (HRM). Many researchers argue that SHRM lacks conceptual clarity (e.g., Bamberger and Meshoulam, 2000). Three competing frameworks on SHRM have emerged: the contingency, universal and configurational perspectives (Miles and Snow, 1984; Schuler and Jackson, 1987; Delery and Doty, 1996; Pfeffer, 1998; Youndt et al., 1996; Boxall and Purcell, 2000, 2008). According to the universal perspective, all HR practices in all firms have a positive impact on firm performance (Delery and Doty, 1996). The configurational perspective suggests that firm performance depends on unique HR practices while the contingency perspective suggests that a firm’s HR practices are a function of its strategy (Miles and Snow, 1984; Schuler and Jackso n, 1987). A number of studies have tested the different frameworks and found contradictory results. For example, Youndt et al. (1996); and Chang and Huang (2005) argue in favour of the contingency perspective while Tackeuchi et al. (2003) favour the configurational perspective. The frameworks suggested above are mostly relevant for large organisations. Little effort has been devoted towards the development of SHRM in SMEs. For example, Saini and Budhwar (2008) in a study of SHRM practices in SMEs in India argue that bounded rationality tends to constrain the willingness to implement innovative HR practices in SMEs in India because most owners of SMEs tend to believe that they are doing their utmost best. Barber et al (1999) observe that HRM practices that work well in large organisations do not work properly in small firms. As a result, Heneman and Tansky (2002) stresses the need to develop different HRM models for SMEs rather than simply extending existing models that are suitable for large organisations to SMEs. The literature on Human resource management in SMEs suggests that a strategic approach to HRM in SMEs is yet to be developed. Conceptual models that relate human resource management practices in SMEs to the strategic capabilities of these organisa tions need to be developed in order to enable SMEs achieve the full benefits of their human resources. As can be observed, most of the studies of HRM practices in SMEs have been limited to SMEs in Western Europe, U.S.A and India with very limited attention given to Africa in general and Nigeria in particular. In the light of the above limitations, this study aims at contributing to the literature by studying the SHRM practices of SMEs in Nigeria. The study does not intend to test any hypothesis. Rather it intends to focus on providing an in-depth analysis and discussion of the HRM practices of a Nigerian SME. Research Methods and Data Research Methods are the approaches taken to achieve the objectives of a research project (Saunders et al., 2009). There are two main approaches to research including the inductive and deductive approaches. The inductive approach is an approach that aims at developing testable hypotheses while the deductive approach focuses on testing existing hypotheses. The inductive approach can use a single case study to multiple case studies while the deductive approach depends on the use of multiple cases. Moreover, the inductive approach can use either qualitative or quantitative methods whereas the deductive approach relies heavily on the use of large data sets and quantitative research methods. The inductive approach is advantageous over the deductive approach in that it does not generalise its results to all cases. It aims at providing an in-depth analysis of a small number of cases. Therefore, it is the approach that will be used in this study. In other to achieve the objective of this study, this paper will use a case study approach. In order to do this, a Nigerian-based SME will be selected. An in-depth analysis of its SHRM practices will be examined and related to its performance. In order to gain detailed understanding of the approaches, the â€Å"Interpretative phenomenological Analysis (IPA) will be used to gain an in-depth analysis of the HRM practices of the SME. The Interpretative phenomenological analysis (IPA) is an experimental qualitative approach to research in psychology and the human, health and social sciences (Smith et al., 2009). The human resource practices that will be investigated include recruitment, selection, training, remuneration, leave of absence, interpersonal communication, sick pay, and promotion. The practices of these variables will be analysed and an evaluation of how they affect the performance of the SME will be conducted. The performance measures that will be used include profitability , liquidity, management efficiency and leverage ratios. The ratios will be analysed in relation to the SHRM practices identified along with the Nigerian economic environment in which the SME is based. Data The research will use both primary and secondary data. Data for the SHRM practices will mainly be primary data. This data will be collected using survey questionnaires issued to the employees of the SME and interviews conducted with key management staff. Performance data will be collected from the financial records of the SME. Data on the performance measures will be gathered from the financial records of the SME. References Boxall, P., & Purcell, J. (2000). Strategic human resource management: Where have we come from and where should we be goingInternational Journal of Management Reviews, 2(2), 183?203. Boxall, P., & Purcell, J. (2008). Strategy and Human Resource Management. Hampshire: Palgrave MacMillan. Chang,W. J. A., & Huang, T. C. (2005). Relationship between strategic human resource management and firm performance: A contingency perspective. International Journal of Manpower, 26(5), 434?449. Delery, J. E., & Doty, D. H. (1996). Modes of theorizing in strategic human resource management: Tests of universalistic, contingency. Academy of Management Journal, 39(4), 802?835. Huselid, M.A., S.E. Jackson, and R.S. Schuler. 1997. â€Å"Technical and Strategic Human Resource Management Effectiveness as Determinants of Firm Performance,† Academy of Management Journal 40(199), 171-188. Miles, R. E., & Snow, C. C. (1984). Designing strategic human resources systems. Organizational Dynamics, 13(1), 36?52. Schuler, R.S. and S.A. Jackson. 1989. â€Å"Determinants of Human Resource Management Priorities and Implications for Industrial Relations,† Journal of Management 15(1): 89-99. Snell, S.A. 1992. â€Å"Control Theory in Strategic Human Resource Management: The Mediating Effect of Administrative Information,† Academy of Management, Journal 35(2), 292-327. Schuler, R. S., & Jackson, S. E. (1987). Linking competitive strategies with human resource management practices. Academy of Management Executive, 1(3), 207?219. Pfeffer, J. (1998). Seven practices of successful organizations. California Management Review, 40(2), 96?124. Onugu, B. A. N. (2005) Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) in Nigeria: Problems and Prospects, St. Clements University Smith, J. A., Flowers, P., Larkin, M. (2009) Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis: Theory, Method and Research, Sage Publications. Heneman, R. L., & Tansky, J. W. (2002). Human resource management models for entrepreneurial opportunity: Existing knowledge and new directions. In J. Katz, & T. M. Welbourne (Eds.), Managing people in entrepreneurial organizations, vol. 5 (pp. 55–82). Amsterdam: JAI Press. Barber, A. E., Wesson, M. J., Roberson, Q. M., & Taylor, M. S. (1999). A tale of two job markets: Organizational size and its effects on hiring practices and job search behavior. Personnel Psychology, 52, 841–867. Saunders M, Lewis P and Thornhill A (2009) Research Methods for Business Studies, 5th edition, Prentice Hall FT Harlow Saini, D. S., Budhwar, P. S. (2008) Managing the human resource in Indian SMEs: The role of indigenous realities, Journal of World Business, Volume 43, No. 4, Pages 417-434 Takeuchi, N., Wakabayashi, M., & Chen, Z. (2003). The strategic HRM configuration for competitive advantage: Evidence from Japanese firms in China and Taiwan, Asia Pacific Journal of Management, 20(4), 447?480.

A cultural analysis of Greece Essay

This paper presents a cultural analysis of Greece and how this translates into the country’s business practices. The importance in such profiling can be seen in the emergence of many cross-cultural studies that aim to come up with an effective theoretical framework that guides international companies to relate to other companies from different countries with different cultures. One of these frameworks was formulated by a series of national studies conducted by Hofstede in which the author identified cultures according to five indices. Basically, Hofstede’s approach presents that culture can be described as a set of characteristics ingrained or â€Å"wired-in† to the brains and the psyche of the members of a particular society thereby affecting behavior. With such understanding according to national cultures, cross-cultural managers can therefore make use of this information that can serve as a basis for cross-cultural and international initiatives of the organization. In application, this paper examines Greece according to Hofstede’s five dimensions and how this translates into the country’s business culture; this paper then compares this with the business culture in the United States. The conclusion then leads to the identification of the different points of compatibility and conflict, and the areas which the Greek and the American business cultures can reconcile for a more successful business communications and relations. Global Business Cultural Analysis: Greece I. Section One Introduction Communication plays an important role in any cross-cultural relations, and in the aspect of business, communication in the international context spans beyond language and includes protocols, perceptions and other elements pertaining to business practices. According to Hendon, Hendon and Herbig (1996), the challenge is that although two or more parties are trying to reach an agreement aiming to serve each other’s interests, cultural factors — whether in terms practice and perception — significantly contribute to the processing of information that would lead to either the success or the failure of the negotiations or the management strategy should international companies decide to operate together. As Hendon, et al. (1996) pointed out, cultural aspects influence managers, thereby affecting their behavior; this also reflects at the organizational level thereby the degree of the embodiment of the national culture of these companies is constantly present. Cross-cultural issues have become crucial given that more and more businesses are taking advantage of the opportunities brought by globalization. One of the issues that emerged from this is that there was an identified potential point of conflict based on the precept that the differences in the values of the different groups may lead to problems, thereby jeopardizing the advantages offered by the global and international markets (Fontaine, 2007). As a result, international organizations have invested in cross-cultural management initiatives in order to create the most effective approach should the company reaches the point of venturing into foreign operations or cross-cultural negotiations. In addition to the organizational dimension in cross-cultural issues are the elements that can further influence the operations of any business. Kanungo (2006) identified that globalization ha also created a significant impact to the consumers’ behavior now that they are aware of the strong global forces; technological innovation; and the environment. These elements do not only represent modifications in terms of the markets and the societies global businesses cater to but also the potential overall shift and cultural perceptions that resonate at various levels, from the individual to the organizational behaviors. Which is why given that globalization has become a phenomenon that represents present-day reality (Steger, 2003), even companies who are not â€Å"internationalized† are still subject to many global forces such as buying or selling their supplies from sources overseas. It is also possible that the company may have to work with a foreign employee or a worker from a different cultural background. In any case, the instances of a â€Å"cultural add-on† has become more and more regular (Berger, 1998, 124). However, it is important to look at the many theoretical foundations on cross-cultural studies, especially as to how national cultures are perceived as an important influence in organizational and management behavior. There is one distinctive studies that can be considered to have created a substantial buzz in the entire context of cross-cultural studies: Geert Hofstede’s four dimensions, which would later add another component. Hofstede’s studies gave way to conclusions that would help in the different approaches towards understanding different cultures, and how these can also create effects at individual, organizational and national levels. Hofstede’s Four Dimensions One of the most commonly used model in cross-cultural studies is Hofstede’s four dimensions; these dimensions emerged from Hofstede’s studies on 40 different countries in which he identified four major prevailing factors in terms of the cultural aspect (Bjerke, 1998): ? Power distance ? Uncertainty avoidance ? Individualism/collectivism ? Masculinity/femininity In order to understand these four dimensions, it is important to look at how Hofstede views culture and how this plays a role in global business applications. Hofstede is renowned for his research on differences among countries in terms of their culture and how these differences are essential. Hofstede operated based on the concept that comparisons among cultures can play a significant role in the making the right decisions based on the acquired information about other cultures; this is deemed helpful when it comes to making negotiations and even designing business strategies should companies decide to enter a foreign market. Hence, Hofstede’s works have been founded on how the differences of these cultures are influential to behavior across may social levels. Hofstede’s dimensions tend to generalize groups, hence, for instance, multicultural nations are taken as a singular culture (Fontaine, 2007). The four dimensions Hofstede formulated are the main indicators that can identify the points of similarities and differences across these many national cultures (Vinken, Soeters & Ester, 2004). His studies on many national cultures have therefore served as a reference point among many cross-cultural managers. Hofstede’s approach is known to adapt a more scientific approach as he argued that cultures can be â€Å"measured† and analyzed (Hofstede, Neuijen, Ohavy & Sanders, 1990); such can be seen not only in his database which analyzed countries according to their measures in power distance, uncertainty avoidance, individualism/collectivism, and masculinity/femininity but also in terms of how these factors can impact many organizational tasks such as business negotiations. Culture is therefore an important indicator of behavior and at the same time, it acts as a binding force that defines a group, a society or a region. The four dimensions Hofstede identified are based on how a culture can be also defined according to relations, attitudes and values; in specific contexts, it can be observed that these four dimensions that pertain to Hofstede’s definition of culture — â€Å"the programming of the mind that differentiates one group of another† (as cited in Fontaine, 2007, 125) — presents a predictable framework of characteristics. A fifth dimension was also introduced by Hofstede by including Confucian framework to his dimension, and he identified this as the long term/short term orientation. The long term/short term orientation, a recent addition to Hofstede/s dimension, was founded on the perceptions of time, and how this can affect the behavior of people. This dimension was based on the Confucian orientation with respect to past, present and future, and for Hofstede, this fifth dimension can reflect a society’s perception of time, especially as to how this affects their perseverance and regard for values, and how societies also wish to command respect and gain stability (Jacob, 2005). This orientation is seen as an important component as this can reflect how some people can act as based on their expectations with respect to time, such as, for instance, whether their actions are motivated by long-term causes or their short-term goals. The power distance aspect refers to a culture’s orientation towards authority. This orientation includes how people understand power and how power works in their communities. With this component, power distance serves as an indicator of equality such as whether some cultures tend to be more democratic or practices a great amount of inequality (Hofstede, 2001). Another index identified by Hofstede (2001) is the uncertainty avoidance. Generally, this refers to how society can tolerate uncertainty. This therefore shows how a culture may be more comfortable in a more structured and rational framework because the tolerance of ambiguity is low whereas some societies may tend to live in the uncertainty, hence, their systems do not adhere to strict rules. Individualism/collectivism pertains to how a culture tend to be more individualist and autonomous or the spirit of the collective fills the members of its society (Hofstede, 2001). In the former, there is a greater sense of independence because the individual is encouraged to think for himself or herself. A collectivist culture, its opposite, tends to have a greater degree of influence according to the social or cultural psyche and norm. Although individuals can be said to initially come from defined groups such as families, the degree of cohesion across social levels differs from one culture to the next. Last but not the least, the masculinity/femininity index measures gender roles in a culture, especially as to how each of these genders are positioned in the society. The values among these two genders are among the fundamental elements in any society because one tends to dominate the other, if not, the attempt to equalize roles can be said to be also present in some cultures (Hofstede, 2001). In addition to the aspect of the relevance of power in these roles, this indicator also describes whether the country is â€Å"masculine† or â€Å"feminine†; the former associates the culture as more assertive and competitive, thereby embodying the male characteristics whereas feminine cultures are viewed as caring and more modest. The strength of Hofstede’s approach is that the study and the gathered data have come up with a set of information that generally describes the national cultures thereby demonstrating a general sense how people in a certain country can be expected to behave. The five dimensions have served as an important framework and Hofstede’s model has served many nation-level researches especially as to how the applicability of his collected data can be regarded to be valid at a certain point (Smith, 2006). However, the model is not without any criticisms as this brings the issue on how many dimensions must be used as a means to measure culture (Smith, 2006). Another study conducted by Blodgett, Bakir and Rose (2008) that the model has limitations especially as to its validity among individuals. From this, it can be gathered that applicability of Hofstede’s framework mainly gives a good reference for a cultural overview of nation, but in more specific terms, there is still some debate as to the design of a more effective cross-cultural analysis model. II. Section Two Greek Culture: an Overview Greece can be easily associated with its glory during the antiquity, with the country immersed in a rich culture of intelligence and might, in addition to the production of several works of art and architecture that can be considered to still have an influence in the modern world. Hence, Greece has always had the impression of classicism, especially with the mark left by Hellenism in the world and Greek history transcending fact and has become an interesting subject for literary works. From political thought to mythology, Greek as a culture remains to be an object of fascination, especially as it has founded an important definition where the Western world begins in this Mediterranean archipelago. Culture can be basically defined through customs and traditions, and in Greece, albeit its development into modernity, has maintained a strong grasp for tradition; this tradition is defined by the roles played by religion and paganism in the country. Greece is dominantly Orthodox Christian although some variations of the faith, as determined by paganistic influences, can be seen to be present and also vary from island to island. This is why Greek culture is generally regarded to have a higher degree of mixed beliefs and that Greeks also tend to be superstitious (Buxton, 1999). Early Greek civilization has demonstrated a significant amount of intellect yet at the same time, the society was also driven by its mythological past. Such combination can be seen to present an attempt to balance myth and reason, and in modern Greece, this can be seen to have developed as modern Greek society remains to take pride in its past through the continuous presence of its customs and traditions, yet at the same time, modern Greek culture has demonstrated significant social changes that have take place in the last century. This is discussed by Mouzelis (1978) who mentioned how societal values remain to be dictated by its core values, and these core values, evidently, play a significant role in the definition of a society’s culture. The economy, in the past centuries, has created a significant impact to the social development of any society, and Greece, as it moved on to the modern times, had adapted to these changes. In the social context, Greece had demonstrated the ability to adjust to these new economic demands, and its society, inevitably, has redefined social classes. Its economy also started to redefine itself especially as to how it would define its role in the modern world. All in all, the modernization of Greece has created a degree of impact to its modern culture, but interestingly, Greek culture has strongly maintained what it has always been. As previously mentioned Greek culture has been distinct in terms of the roles religion plays in the lives of the people; this religion fuses the more organized leanings of the Christian Orthodox Church and the more paganistic or mythical practices that many Greeks still practice today. In addition to customs and traditions, Greek culture has maintained its strong identity across many cultural facets, from its art, music, food and wine. The Greek people has demonstrated a strong sense of resilience considering the number of wars they had to endure in the modern times. These wars include its conflict with the Ottomans in which the country fell under rule for a long time, the Balkan Wars, the First World War, and the Greco-Turkish wars. The country also fell under military dictatorship from 1967-1974. With their wounded past, the Greek people had redeveloped a strong national character that had adapted to the realities they faced, especially as Greece’s glory would seem to be stuck more in the past and the modernity seems to have favored more the Western nations (Chilton, Dubin, Edwards, Garvey, Fisher, & Ellingham, 2008). Interestingly, as Greece would struggle to find its place in the modern world, the Greek society and the people had gone through periods of diaspora in order to escape the conflicts at home. Those who were left behind would be stuck in the chaos of the country in which the economy would find a hard time adjusting to the greater powers coming from the western world, more specifically Europe. The Greek people experienced lack of opportunities in addition to poverty, especially as the country would prove to lack in enough economic resourcefulness until recently. Greece, for a significantly portion of the 20th century, was under-developed, but it was not until in the 1980s that the country would start to catch up and become more integrated with the rest of Europe (Chilton, et al. , 2008) There are some interesting factors in Greek culture that can be regarded to have influenced attitudes of its people. One of these concepts is filotimo. Although hard to translate, filotimo generally refers to the Greeks’ love for deep honor that they should possess; this goes well with anther important Greek characteristic of integrity which is about behaving as an upright individual. Although a sense of deep honor, as a translation, does not provide enough interpretation of the concept, filotimo can be considered to refer to a character that is highly desirable, but basically, it can be associated with a sense of self who is intrinsically good (Makedon, 1995). In addition to the concept of filotimo, modern Greece had emerged with additional cultural concepts in terms of character, and these are leventia and palikaria. Leventia refers to a sense of â€Å"manly excellence† thereby emphasizing the importance of having certain male characteristics. Leventia is paired with palikaria which also refers to the same meaning. As pair, possessing or being leventia and/or palikaria is about the ability to survive through hard times, especially if the individual or the family has been subject to a critical amount of duress. Having leventia and palikaria can gain an individual substantial admiration from those around him because of the display of a strong sense of self as seen in courage or proactiveness that addresses the source of any problem (Makedon, 1995). Last but not the least, albeit its painful periods of oppression, the Greek people have a great amount of love towards freedom. The love for liberty has always been a Greek characteristic, as seen from the ancient Greek civilization to the modern Greek society. Many themes in the Greek arts have portrayed the importance of freedom, and evidently, as the cradle of democracy, Greek culture had long wanted to fight oppression and aimed for a more liberal and democratic society in which they get to possess a certain amount of freedom despite the restrictions posed upon them (Makedon, 1995). Generally, these characteristics show how modern Greece have managed an important element of its identity, and that is its Orthodox church; however, despite the practice of orthodoxy, this aspect of â€Å"freedom† is practiced in such a way that the Greek people remains to have an open mind towards its paganistic past. In a way, the Greek culture can be regarded to have managed to lessen the conflict between mythos and logos, and today, the Greek people has been finding ways to make room for the modern and how it fits to its long standing tradition. Greek Business Culture Studies on the Greek business culture has had references to Hofstede’s cultural framework. In terms of the scores of Greece according to Hofstede’s four dimensions, Greece has the following measures in these four indices (Hofstede, 2001): ? Power distance index: 63 ? Individualism: 35 ? Masculinity: 57 ? Uncertainty avoidance index: 112 In terms of Greece’s score in the power distance index, this score shows how its people, according to Hofstede’s framework, demonstrates the emergence of the social classes in Greek society. This is to say that people are aware of the powers that are present in the society and they know their place with respect to that power. The score of the country in this index can be considered to be average, hence, demonstrating that although people do recognize the presence of inequalities in its society, they see the presence of means to get over certain barriers. The median score for this index is 55, and with Greece at 63, the amount of inequality is above average yet not as drastic as compared to other countries. Basically, this shows how hierarchy plays in the society which can be considered as a paradox considering the Greeks’ love for liberty and democracy. In a sense, such score shows how the Greeks have embraced reality and that certain powers have created a strong influence in the country. The next score shows that the country has lower measures of individualism thereby showing that Greece is a highly collective society. This shows how Greeks have a strong regard for family and community, and how individuals are strongly influenced by their environment. Kessapidou and Varsakelis (2002) mentioned that when Greeks enter an organization, there is already the expectation that the Greek employee expects to work for this company for the rest of his or her life, and at the same time, in exchange for this loyalty, they expect that the firm will also look after their family. The next indicator is masculinity, and Greece scored slightly above the global average of 50 (Hofstede, 2001). This is an interesting score as generally, the Greek society has demonstrated the strong male influence in terms of their position in the family and the society. The roles between males and females have been regarded to be also more distinctive, in which case the women know their positions and the limits of their power and influence. The uncertainty avoidance index shows the highest score for Greece, and based on this, there are many rules that prevail in the Greek society. Again, this is an interesting score because this contradicts the Greeks’ love for freedom, but then again, such rules and restrictions may have brought the Greek people to be hungry for more liberty in its societies. The many bounds in Greek society can be seen in its history where the country went through oppression through foreign occupancy and dictatorship. Overall, as employees, Kessapidou and Varsakelis (2002) discussed the characteristics of Greek employees, as follows (273): â€Å"For Greek people, the working culture is based on sense of honour, dignity, loyalty, and sense of duty reflected in the Greek word ‘filotimo’†¦ which is similar to the concept of ‘face’ as reported for China†¦ in these societies, ‘filotimo’ or ‘face’ becomes an asset for organizations. In cases, however, where expectations are not met, the personnel can be alienated†. From the results of Hofstede’s study, Greece can be summarized as â€Å"high power distance, strong uncertainty avoidance, collectivistic and masculine† (Joiner, 2001, 232). This profile, as translated into Greece’s business culture, strongly demonstrates its association with societal values. According to Hofstede (2001), among the four indicators in his cultural model, the most relevant in the aspect of organizational design can be attributed to power distance and uncertainty avoidance which is why these factors are important in assessing the relationship of national cultures and the organization. In the organizational context, the Greek business culture shows a strong sense of hierarchy and the partenalistic relations that exist in Greek companies; this is evident in the high score in the power distance. In further putting this with respect to Hofstede’s description of this dimension, the Greek society as well in Greek organizations, there is the accepted presence of inequalities in terms of the distributio of power. The acceptance in human inequality, interestingly, may not fair well with the Greek fundamentals on democracy but apparently, such cultural characteristic is more of an indicator of a strong sense of respect towards authority (Joiner, 2001). Leadership is therefore emphasized in Greek organizations, and in business, there is much dependence on the company’s leaders when it comes to making decisions. Such cultural factor can then be attributed to the historical development in Greece which, accoding to Psychogios and Szamosi (2007), lived in a society with the centralized Greek political system that highlights the â€Å"powerful state and the large public sector† (8). In terms of the reflection of Greece’s high uncertainty avoidance index, many studies have actually revealed that groups with hih uncertainty avoidance index demonstrate a fear of making decisios, hence, the presence of many rules that can be easily referred to. In Greece, according to studies by Bartholomew (1995), Bourantas, et al. (199), among others (as cited in Joiner, 2001), fear of decision-making has been found among Greek managers and subordinates, hence, much of these activities are left to the upper management. There is indeed the influence of culture in terms of the business’ own practices. Although this may not be true in all cases, the general perception towards Greek businesses reflect how the business culture have its foundations according to its societal values, these values are which influenced by the country’s culture. III. Section Three In Comparison with the US Business Culture Based on Hofstede’s cultural model, Greece scored high in power distance index, masculinity and uncertainty avoidance index, whereas it scored low in individualism. These scores translate to the Greek business culture of centralization, concentrated power, more distinct gender roles, and high reliance on the organizations to take care of the employees’ family. Greek employees are also found to possess the characteristics of loyalty, integrity and dignity, as guided by the concept of filotimo. In comparing this to the American culture, the contrasts can be immediately seen the differences in the scores Hofstede gave the United States (Hofstede, 2001). The US scored high in individualism, low in power distance index, uncertainty avoidance index, and long term orientation, whereas in terms of masculinity, the US scored above average. The similarities can be therefore seen in the masculinity aspect in which both shows that gender roles remain to be differentiated in the American business culture. However, the similarities end there. Based on the scores, the American culture can be described as highly individualistic, with a greater sense of equality and fewer rules thereby showing greater tolerance in new ideas and beliefs. Basically, the American business culture does embody these characteristics. As the country embraced capitalism and industrialization earlier than Greece, the country’s business culture tends to have a more progressive and liberal approach. There is a strong presence of market economy forces in the United States, and employees are also driven by the economic opportunitis presented to them. One of the important aspects in the American business culture is the presence of competition, and competition is present not only among businesses but among individuals as well (McCraw, 2000). Hence, unlike in Greece where a bulk of the important responsibilities are left to upper management, American organizations and their employees grab these opportunities to hold more responsibilities because it means more opportunities for them to gain better positions. Competitive is therefore a characteristic of the American business culture, and this makes sense according to the results of the scores of the United States according to Hofstede’s model. Although these scores and comparisons between national and business cultures can be regarded to be applicable, it should be noted that the degree of relevance may not be true in all cases. In addition to the challenges as to the validity of Hofstede’s model (Blodgett, et al. , 2008), there is also the case of change that can possibly take place at social and business levels. As discussed in the first section, the applicability is limited as to the relevance of national cultures to business cultures although the fundamentals of a national culture tends to become apparent generally. For instance, the Greek concept of filotimo can be considered to be true even at business levels, and at the same time, the collective spirit can be seen in how many Greek corporations are family-owned. Such is true in the case of the United States in terms of the masculunity scores. Although in some instances gender roles remain defined in the US, in the business world, more and more women have started to hold significant positions across many organizations. Therefore, the relevance of national culture perceptions are only true up to a certain extent but information such as those gathered by Hofstede’s studies serve as useful references to the basics of the social and business dynamics in a country. IV. Section Four Opening an American Business in Greece Based on the scores in Hofstede’s cultural framework, the USA’s national culture distance from Greece is at 3. 47 according to 42 surveyed American firms in the country (Kessapidou & Varsakelis, 2002). With this number, it can be assumed that there will be greater difficulty in the successful establishment of the American company in Greece; however, this may not be the case, and the same is true even if the company has a Greek affiliate. According to Kessapidou and Varsakalis (2002), the strength lies in the Greek’s characteristic to be collective, hence, they tend to comply with the requirements of the company. In addition, the concept of filotimo can drive Greek employees to perform better, thereby filotimo, in a sense, serves as a source of competitiveness, which is compatible with the American busines culture. However, there may be some problems in terms of the management aspect between the American and the Greek managers, or the Greek managers needing to comply with the demands of American management practices. Although there are highly centralized American companies, the delegation of power and responsibility is one of an American’ company’s assets, hence, should decisions need to be made, even some subordinates may step in and show a sense of leadership. This may intimidate Greek managers and employees, especially if the firm would have American employees working in the Greek operations. In addition, the Greek employees may think that the Americans are too aggressive and ambitious in the workplace, thereby possibly creating a rift among the employees. Hence, the recommendation is that prior to the establishment of the American operation in Greece, both sides need to be educated about the cultures they are about to encounter. Since that Greece is going to host the company, the American company needs to comply more with the Greek culture, but since it is the American company that is going to establish the business, the Greek employees and managers also need to