Analysis Of Katha Pollitt s The Hunger Games Feral...

In Katha Pollitt s essay entitled The Hunger Games Feral Feminism, Pollitt writes about what reality television might look like if taken to extremes. Reality television is a huge part of our culture today, and I not only agree with Pollitt s views and ideas of what reality TV would look if taken to the extremes, but I believe that we have already gotten to that point. Today s reality TV shows such as Keeping up with the Kardashians, The Bachelorette or any of the Real Housewives are among many of today s popular shows that focus on extreme aggression, bullying, physical beauty, and sex appeal. These TV shows teach us that it is not only ok to compromise morals and values, but that type of behavior accepted and rewarded. In today s age, reality TV generally has to go negative and go to the extreme in order for it to be interesting despite the lasting impact that it may have on viewers. Reality TV has an impact on the values of their viewers and alters how they may perceive real-life situations. Therefore, it s important to take a look at some of the standards portrayed by reality TV. Reality television is a huge part of our television viewing culture and the line between right and wrong is not always clear to many of the viewers. The fact is, the extreme behaviors displayed are not real or normal in the world that exists outside of reality TV. Many reality shows depict women idealizing beauty and thinness, giving the impression that a woman s value is based

The North Atlantic Treaty Organization - 1424 Words

The formation of NATO impacted the world because of it’s influence into our political lives today and the political lives of people during the Cold War. This new alliance, called the North Atlantic Treaty Organization was one of the most needed alliances in history. In addition, NATO has also made many large political decisions, even forcing the Cold War into its most tense stage. Finally, NATO has made many large influences into our governments today, keeping each other’s countries up-to-date on such welfare projects, military experiments, or just needing help for a new construction if need be. It keeps the countries in the alliance increasingly involved into each other’s projects and will supply aid to each other when asked for. Why NATO†¦show more content†¦Only then did they form the Warsaw Pact and try to outcompete its adversaries. NATO also had a vital role in how the Soviet Union reacted to the United States. If NATO made a â€Å"bold† sta tement that would somehow benefit it’s own people, the Soviet Union would do the same, but with more vigor and a bolder statement. Then NATO would do the same thing and vice versa it happens again. This made the Soviets angry at NATO and how it made the Soviets seem weak again against another superpower. The Soviets don’t like NATO as well and also wanted to make the countries that founded it pay for the â€Å"Crimes† against the Soviets. So in response to the creation of NATO, the Soviets made the Warsaw Pact, which is basically NATO except the Soviets used the Warsaw Pact as a tool instead of treating it as an actual treaty organization. With the Warsaw Pact, the Americans and the other members of NATO have made open accusations to the Warsaw Pact and the members of it. In addition, the Cold War was massively impacted because of NATO. In fact, NATO was one of the reasons that the Cold War has started, because the Soviet Union wouldn’t remove their troops from Europe, and France, the USA, and the UK allied with 8 other countries to make the North Atlantic Treaty Organization, aka NATO. In retaliation, the Soviet Union created the Warsaw Pact, which in turn, made the US start stockpiling nuclear arms in case of a war, and that made the Soviets do

Powerful Approach To Teaching Physics Education Essay Free Essays

In most local schools, structured enquiry, a really controlled attack, is the most prevailing type of enquiry instruction. Guided enquiry on the other manus is a modified construction in which the elaborate stairss on how to look into are non provided. This helps pupils to explicate their ain solutions when work outing the job. We will write a custom essay sample on Powerful Approach To Teaching Physics Education Essay or any similar topic only for you Order Now Students get critical thought accomplishments during this procedure. Open enquiry may non be suited for secondary degree because of its non-structured attack. Making usage of incompatible events in natural philosophies enquiries, consequences in cognitive struggle that enhances pupils ‘ conceptual apprehension and their attitudes towards critical thought activities ( Fensham A ; Kass, 1988 ) . Discrepant events are fun to utilize because it creates this cognitive struggle that motivates pupils to believe critically, discuss and seek to explicate the incompatible event. There are many more ways of bring forthing enquiry such as utilizing presentations, prosecuting in hypothesis testing, affecting pupils in making scientific discipline and weaving inquiry-based research lab probe into every lesson. I feel that the burden lies on instructors to assist pupils do advancement from structured to guided enquiry by scaffolding the lesson ab initio. As pupils get better and confident at utilizing enquiry, this aid can bit by bit be removed, taking to guided enquiry. By fiting pupils to understand their milieus, they will be able to use the scientific procedure accomplishments learned in the schoolroom to every country of their lives. Harmonizing to Gardner ( 1983 ) , people express their acquisition in eight different ways. Every pupil has a preferable manner of acquisition and showing themselves. Classs are really diverse, therefore differentiated direction is required to provide to the multiple intelligences of pupils. Teachers must be unambiguously cognizant of the pupils in their schoolrooms every bit good as the content they are presenting ( Tomlinson A ; McTighe, 2006 ) . Since pupils think really otherwise and larn constructs with assorted grades of success, it is imperative for instructors to happen ways to ease acquisition for everyone. Effective instructional schemes meet the demands of multiple groups of scholars at the same clip. Teaching with assortment can assist relieve ennui, supply more chances to larn and let pupils to believe and larn in their ain ways. Concurrently, this allows chances for instructors to widen students ‘ thought and acquisition repertory. Amongst there may be loath scho lars of natural philosophies who may hold some ability but deficiency motive. This is where differentiated direction might pull their attending and focal point on the topic. I believe that the key to differentiated larning includes working collaboratively with pupils to be after learning attacks so that many different attacks are available, letting pupils select ways that fit them best ( Kottler A ; Costa, 2009 ) . Everyone additions non merely new information but new ways of larning through different look of thoughts and sentiments. When discoursing hard subjects in natural philosophies, the category can be divided into assorted ability groups. A set of inquiries with different trouble degrees are given to each ability group and pupils are to discourse their solutions to the job. I will name upon weaker pupils to show replies to simpler inquiries and better pupils to show replies to more ambitious inquiries. By using differentiated direction as an instruction tool, everyone learns collaboratively, and assurance can be built when pupils are able to reply the inquiries. Overall, pupils will profit through peer-mediated acquisition. Learning can be thought as roll uping information and apprehension it. It is of class possible to hive away big sums of information in your caput and regurgitate as needed. However, understanding makes productive believing possible ( Moseley et al. , 2005 ) . In natural philosophies, there are many facts and expression to retrieve. Schools have become good at jaming in and proving this sort of information ( Kusukawa and Maclean, 2006 ) . Students are frequently encouraged to memorise facts and expression in order to salvage the fuss of understanding them to the full. However, being able to remember facts and supply the right reply is nil compared to the value of understanding. Teaching for understanding is non easy. Understanding is the procedure of doing mental connexions to fall in spots of cognition into larger units so they make sense to one ( Newton, 2008 ) . Even if a instructor explains natural philosophies good, pupils may non hold grasped the construct because he/she might non understand in the manner a instructor does. As a instructor, we provide them parts of a saber saw and at the same time assist fall in these spots to other saber saw they already possess ( Cerbin, 2000 ) . In my sentiment, developing apprehension of natural philosophies cognitions can be fulfilling and actuating to pupils as it can assist them foretell or explicate new state of affairss. Although some things have to be memorised, we as instructors should promote pupils to construct on their apprehension before memorising the construct. As get downing instructors, we have to bear in head that the twenty-first century demands novel ways of job resolution and critical thought. A bove that, we need to hold the ability to dismantle thoughts and reassemble them. Our present learning methods must be invariably re-evaluated and aligned to the complexnesss of our society by emphasizing â€Å" significance over memorizing, quality over measure and apprehension over consciousness † ( Mintzes, Wandersee and Novak, 1998 ) . Teaching of natural philosophies requires both information and counsel from instructors in order to assist pupils larn. I now realize that there is a profound difference between geting information and gaining true apprehension. As a beginning instructor, I feel that alternatively of merely conveying information through one-way communicating, the instructor should make bipartisan or multi-way exchange, to assist pupils come on on the way to greater understanding. To represent this, I believe that we can do usage of end-of-unit undertakings to measure pupils ‘ apprehension of a peculiar subject by using the relevant natural philosophies constructs to undertake real-world state of affairss or jobs posed to them. Harmonizing to Schon ( 1983 ) , the first measure in looking in front requires one to look back and reflect upon your ain acquisition. It is of import to recognize what learning methods or schemes did or did non work when I was a scholar and interpret this to the same degree when I become a instructor in the current twenty-first century context. How to cite Powerful Approach To Teaching Physics Education Essay, Essay examples

Love Theme’s in Emily Dickinson’s Poetry Essay Example For Students

Love Theme’s in Emily Dickinson’s Poetry Essay In evaluating Emily Dickinson’s biography and poems, I surmised that excluding the love of father, brother, and her deceased nephew, Emily’s knowledge of romantic love, by first-hand experience, is questionable. The pure-of-mind reader may believe that what familiarity she had about love matters might have been based mainly on her extensive reading of literature. Emily was an avid reader and was particularly fond of, among others, Ralph Waldo Emerson and Charles Dickens. She especially doted on the Bronte sisters, Elizabeth Barrett Browning, George Eliot (182-183). According to â€Å"The Norton Anthology’s† biographical sketch on Emily, she had never married or had factually known a sexual partner. The Biography relates that some believed that she might have been the lover of any one of the men she had close relations with. Through her poetry and letter writing, her public can only speculate about her having had affairs with married men, and with Susan Gilbert, her childhood female friend, who later became her sister-in-law (182-184). One of Emily’s poems that make the some readers believe that she did in fact not pass on without experiencing carnal knowledge is: Wild Nights! Wild Nights! Were I with thee, Wild Nights should be our luxury! Futile the winds To a heart in port, – Done with the compass, Done with the chart! Rowing in Eden! Ah! the sea! Might I but moor To-night in Thee! In the majority of her poetry, Emily portrays many more poems’ whose themes deal with death, immortality and nature, than with romantic love. Love, however is present throughout a good number of her poem’s, though subtle at times. The latter of course, is left up to the imagination of the reader. In her poetry, Emily writes with ardor; and though she never mentions a lover by name, it is believe that the object of her affections was a reverend from Philadelphia named Charles Wadsworth. The object of her love poems could have also been any of the other male acquaintances mentioned in the biography. She could have, also been fantasizing. Emily’s love themes are ardent, with metaphors that show the many emotions associated with love and even carnal knowledge. Her poems exemplify the very loving and passionate person she really was, though she was a recluse with a selected society of friends (192). This similes were established throughout most of her poems; whether they theme was love, death, nature or immortality. Some of her love poems were intense and give a picture of a volatile and explosive love. Emily love poem’s had very extraordinary settings (202 206). Emily writes of controlled love, and love that could not be demonstrated and had to be suppressed. Her feelings and desires at being more than a clandestine lover are demonstrated in at least two of her poem’s where she mentions either being a wife or not having the title. She frequently ended her love poems in such a way that was not romantic, it seem that one of the parties involved always got hurt at the end (754 1072). Not with a club the heart is broken, nor with a stone; A whip so small you could not see it, I’ve known Emily’s poetry venerates males, (customary of women in that Victorian era), by placing them in an exalted position. To her, men were Lords, Kings, Masters, Fathers and Lovers. Women solely existed to serve, please and complement men. This is illustrated in poem (205). She rose to his requirement — dropt the playthings of her life to take the honorable work of women and wife Some of Emily’s poem’s that tended to make the reader belief that there existed one or more clandestine relationships in her life are poems such as â€Å"Title divine is mine† and â€Å"Tell all the truth and tell it slant† (211212) .u2e54d4597ca0f56b9f9f35ac6c824f6d , .u2e54d4597ca0f56b9f9f35ac6c824f6d .postImageUrl , .u2e54d4597ca0f56b9f9f35ac6c824f6d .centered-text-area { min-height: 80px; position: relative; } .u2e54d4597ca0f56b9f9f35ac6c824f6d , .u2e54d4597ca0f56b9f9f35ac6c824f6d:hover , .u2e54d4597ca0f56b9f9f35ac6c824f6d:visited , .u2e54d4597ca0f56b9f9f35ac6c824f6d:active { border:0!important; } .u2e54d4597ca0f56b9f9f35ac6c824f6d .clearfix:after { content: ""; display: table; clear: both; } .u2e54d4597ca0f56b9f9f35ac6c824f6d { display: block; transition: background-color 250ms; webkit-transition: background-color 250ms; width: 100%; opacity: 1; transition: opacity 250ms; webkit-transition: opacity 250ms; background-color: #95A5A6; } .u2e54d4597ca0f56b9f9f35ac6c824f6d:active , .u2e54d4597ca0f56b9f9f35ac6c824f6d:hover { opacity: 1; transition: opacity 250ms; webkit-transition: opacity 250ms; background-color: #2C3E50; } .u2e54d4597ca0f56b9f9f35ac6c824f6d .centered-text-area { width: 100%; position: relative ; } .u2e54d4597ca0f56b9f9f35ac6c824f6d .ctaText { border-bottom: 0 solid #fff; color: #2980B9; font-size: 16px; font-weight: bold; margin: 0; padding: 0; text-decoration: underline; } .u2e54d4597ca0f56b9f9f35ac6c824f6d .postTitle { color: #FFFFFF; font-size: 16px; font-weight: 600; margin: 0; padding: 0; width: 100%; } .u2e54d4597ca0f56b9f9f35ac6c824f6d .ctaButton { background-color: #7F8C8D!important; color: #2980B9; border: none; border-radius: 3px; box-shadow: none; font-size: 14px; font-weight: bold; line-height: 26px; moz-border-radius: 3px; text-align: center; text-decoration: none; text-shadow: none; width: 80px; min-height: 80px; background: url(https://artscolumbia.org/wp-content/plugins/intelly-related-posts/assets/images/simple-arrow.png)no-repeat; position: absolute; right: 0; top: 0; } .u2e54d4597ca0f56b9f9f35ac6c824f6d:hover .ctaButton { background-color: #34495E!important; } .u2e54d4597ca0f56b9f9f35ac6c824f6d .centered-text { display: table; height: 80px; padding-left : 18px; top: 0; } .u2e54d4597ca0f56b9f9f35ac6c824f6d .u2e54d4597ca0f56b9f9f35ac6c824f6d-content { display: table-cell; margin: 0; padding: 0; padding-right: 108px; position: relative; vertical-align: middle; width: 100%; } .u2e54d4597ca0f56b9f9f35ac6c824f6d:after { content: ""; display: block; clear: both; } READ: Dead Poets Society EssayFor a person who supposedly had no know lover, Emily wrote beautiful love themes that only an experience person, in my opinion, could have written. This observation is based on the many poems’ that portray volatile love affairs, and emotional love and tenderness. She was truly a great writer.

The Cocktail Waitress Analysis free essay sample

Spradley and Mann chose to do their research at Brady’s bar because it is an ordinary setting where they could study interactions between male and female. First, Brady’s Bar provided a setting to define the female role. Secondly, it is a place where both male and female interactions are important and reflect traditional aspects of larger society. Lastly, the traditional aspects of Brady’s signified the traditional view of how women should present themselves as passive sex objects whose status is of lower hierarchy than men. There are three ethnographical principles that guided the study at Brady’s Bar. The first principle states that â€Å"Every human group creates its own reality, a shared culture† (6). This concept was put in place throughout the research by gaining an understanding of the waitress’s backgrounds before working at Brady’s and studying how the employees work and view their status to the bar. We will write a custom essay sample on The Cocktail Waitress Analysis or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page This principle was also applied when the researchers studied the setting of the bar and how the employees, customers, and waitress interacted with one another. The second principle states that â€Å"Everyone takes their own culture for granted† (7). This principle was applied when studying the male and female roles at Brady’s, the many verbal and non-verbal interactions that occurred between the waitresses, bartenders, and customers, and through the language that was used at Brady’s. The last principle that guided the research done at Brady’s bar states that â€Å"There is frequently more than one cultural perspective for any social situation. This principle was applied when researching the differences between male and female customers, male and female roles, male and female tasks, and when studying the differences between regular customers and customers off the street. Each of these people viewed the social situation differently and was shown through their actions. 2. During the investigation at Brady’s Bar there were five research objections. The first objective was to study the division of labor that took place at Brady’s by examining the major tasks of the cocktail waitresses and the other employees. At Brady’s the jobs done by male and female employees signified their position as either male or female. Although, sometimes the waitresses were granted the opportunity to do a male’s work, men never did the women’s work. Researching this particular objective showed that the role of the cocktail waitresses was to always ensure that they present themselves in a way that does not justify the men’s status of hierarchy. The next research objective was analyzing the formal structure of Brady’s bar, the social networks that that took place, and how the social structure reinforces the male and female values in American culture. Due to the fact that there are a variety of customers who all present themselves differently, the waitresses must be able to identify these differences and appropriately interact with each of them. With this, it is important that the waitress is aware of the social hierarchy that is presented at Brady’s and also where she stands in this hierarchy The third objective that was researched at Brady’s Bar was the joking relationship that took place in order to resolve the structural conflict. The structural conflict presented at Brady’s is due to the waitress’s low status in the bar. She is always to ensure that the bartender is satisfied even if it makes her job harder. Although, she may have hard feelings about this, the joking relationship between the waitresses and bartenders helps to create a positive bond between them. The bonds that form from this joking relationship, helps the waitress feel at ease, respect the bartenders, and creates a sense of dependency to the bartenders. The fourth objective researched at Brady’s was to examine the nature of territory at the bar and how it affects the waitress and other female customers. In Brady’s territory is split between the bartenders, the waitresses, and the customers. The bartender’s territory is behind the bar, the waitress’s territory is the waitress station, and the customer’s territory is the rest of the space. The space given to the bartenders is secluded to only them and is only, rarely, invaded with his approval. Whereas, the space provided for the waitress’s is often invaded by both the costumers and the bartenders. Even though the space given to the customers is also where the waitress must work it is often hard for the waitress to move through customers due to their carelessness of her presence. When the waitress’s space is invaded or when they are held back from doing their job they must always remain passive. The last objective researched at Brady’s was to determine the ways that people ask for drinks and how these ways reflect nteractions between male and female. Drinks are asked for in several ways that often make the waitress’s job much harder. In order to serve the customer to his/her satisfaction the waitress must have knowledge of all drinks served at Brady’s, be able to make corrections on any order that is stated incorrectly, give orders to the bartender in the correct way, and respond to interactions appropriately. Again, this objective shows that the role of the waitress is to ensure the satisfaction of the bartender as well the customer in any given situation. The authors used participant observation and interview to do this research. I think the method of field work that provided the most insightful information was the method of participant observation. By watching how each person communicated, in any given setting, the authors were able to clearly show how the male and female roles varying within the bar and the meaning behind these roles. With this, by studying the interactions of people within Brady’s the authors were also able to show how these stereotypes of male and female roles are presented in the aspects of verbal and non-verbal communication. . I would define bar culture as an experience for males and females to interact in a community of people who are all present for similar reasons. Bar culture is adaptive and is expressed by patterns of learned behaviors and shared behaviors. There are many types of customers that go to bars and each one has the ability to experience bar life. Weather the person is new to the bar; he/she can easily learn how to act appropriately in many different situations by simply observing the behaviors of others around them. Although, bar culture is a place to provide such experiences, it also establishes hierarchies and presents symbolism between male and female roles that are also present in everyday culture. Bar culture follows the philosophical views of idealism and materialism through its social structure. Lastly, bar culture provides a place where people can express their human agency. This is because at the bar, people are able to take control of their life in ways they may not be able to in their everyday lives. 4. I have chosen Sharon and Denise to compare and contrast. First, Sharon is the only waitress at Brady’s who has experience in working in a bar and has worked at Brady’s Bar much longer than any of the other girls. Sharon had two jobs, one at Brady’s Bar and the other as a secretary for Acme Insurance Company. Sharon did not attend college and did not enjoy her job at the insurance company nor interact with the employees there. Her job at the insurance company was much different than at Brady’s. She was not used to the language or interactions that she faced at Brady’s when she first started but she quickly got used to it. Brady’s offered a family and she enjoyed working there much more then at her other job. Other waitresses at Brady’s often looked to Sharon for advice or information due to the fact that she had been working there much longer. Sharon was liked by most of the girls but did not get too involved in personal interactions with them. Because Sharon had been working at Brady’s longer than the other girls, she felt she had more authority on calling the shots for which part of the bar she wanted to work in. This often annoyed the girls. Although, Sharon quickly learned how to interact with customers, by not going to college she may have struggled a little more than other girls because college can help people loosen up around others they don’t know or situations they are unsure of. Denise, on the other hand, attended college and applied for the job at Brady’s while she was working at a bank. Brady’s was her first experience as a cocktail waitress. On her first day, she felt scared and unsure of herself. Like Sharon, Denise did not know how to handle the language or the customers. She was unsure of how she was supposed to work in an environment that was as dark as Brady’s. As the night went on, she quickly become accustomed to the dark atmosphere. At first it was hard for her to acquire all the skills necessary to complete her tasks as a waitress. Soon enough, just as Sharon, she was able to perform as a â€Å"good† waitress would and learned how to deal with customers. Unlike Sharon, Denise may have had an easier time adjusting to customers and certain situations because she attended college and may have been exposed to similar situations. 5. The relationship between the waitress’s and their managers is important when working at Brady’s Bar. Since the managers are at the top of the hierarchy, the waitresses must serve to his satisfaction. All the girls at Brady’s respect the managers and pay close attention to their presence and instructions. The waitresses rarely come in contact with the managers, unless he is also a bartender, but when they do, they are all aware of his importance. If a manager is also a bartender the girls will submit to his authority but may also talk back or argue with him. The managers may watch the girls working and give them compliments or any other feedback necessary. If given a compliment by the manager, the waitress feels a strong sense of gratitude. If the manager does otherwise, the waitress still remains gracious and assertive to his requests. The relationship between the waitresses and the bartenders is similar to the relationships between the managers and waitresses. Since he is a bartender, the waitresses are able to talk back, argue, or joke with him but will still obey by his rules because he is of higher status then the waitresses. The relationship between them is often very strong because they each depend on each other in order to do their job and also for moral support. Although, the bartenders may joke or tease the waitresses, they provide her with a sense of acceptance and appreciation by giving her compliments or emphasizing his role as a care taker when needed. The relationships between the male customers and the waitresses vary depending on the type of customer. If the customer is considered to be a regular of the bar, she will accept any sexual remarks he may direct toward her rather than perceive the situation as inappropriate or annoying. Often times she will spend more time with a regular customer than a customer off the street. When a regular enters the bar she notices him and automatically brings him his usual drink or another drink if asked too. Regular customers also create a sense of dependency for the waitresses because they will also play the care taker role if needed. If the customer is a male off the street the relationship is not as significant. The waitresses will satisfy his needs but in a less direct way then regular customers. If a male customer off the street is inappropriate she will passively reject his attempt and may avoid the customer as much as possible. Whether the customer is a regular male customer or just a male customer off the street, the relationship between them and the waitresses is much stronger than any relationship between her and the women customers. This is because men make serving drinks much easier than women. The relationships between the waitresses and her female customers are much different than the other relationships. This is because females make the waitress’s job difficult due to their inability to order drinks simply, without a lot of questions. Also, female customers do not order in rounds, they pay separately, and are never satisfied. When waitresses receive a table of girls they are not pleased. The waitresses often refer to the female customers in negative connotations and do not spend as much time tending to them as they do with male customers. Relationships between the waitresses and her male employees, and the relationships between her and the female and male customers are significant to her work and status. The relationships may make her feel comfortable or uncomfortable and may make her job easier or harder. Unlike, the presence of women, the male presence is always dominant at Brady’s and is to be kept that way. This hidden rule defines the role of the waitresses and with the help of her many relationships she is able to appropriately present herself under any circumstance. 6. When asking for a drink at Brady’s Bar, there are several ways to go about this. First, men may ask for drinks while invading the waitress’s space by touching them or by using sexual remarks. If the waitress is not close enough to them the men may speak quietly so she has to bend over and they are then able to touch her. Even after the waitress rejects him he may continue this type of behavior throughout the night. Asking for drinks in this manner makes the male customer feel that he is achieving qualities of manliness. With this, the men are able to express their fantasies while gaining acceptance into the manhood that is present at Brady’s. Secondly, tone of voice is significant when asking for a drink. Asking for a drink in the right tone of voice may help the customer achieve his/her goals. For example, when a customer ask for a drink in a quiet unconfident way the waitress may sense that he/she is either not yet experienced in bar life or that he/she is underage. By asking for a drink with a confident tone of voice the customer might hide the fact that he/she is underage or not yet experienced. With this, the type of drink that is order also signifies the customer’s knowledge of bar life and again achieve his/her goals. As a man in the bar it is important to present himself in the right way to ensure his manliness and acceptance. By asking for the right drink with the correct tone he is able to achieve these important qualities. Next, ordering the â€Å"right† drink is important for men to ensure their manliness. If a man was to order a girl drink, such as a Pink Lady, he would be perceived as weird or girly furthermore masking his manly qualities. By ordering a girly drink for someone else the man ordering feels powerful for the fact that he is joking about homosexuality in front of the waitress and other members of the bar. Because this is done in a humorous content no one has doubt about the masculinity of the man ordering or receiving the drink. Reciprocal exchange is another that customers can ask for drinks. This type of order is when a customer will order a drink for another person in the bar for whatever reason. This implies that the customer knows other people in the bar; furthermore, expressing their ties amongst the social networks at Brady’s. By giving or receiving drinks, both customers have announced their membership and gain acceptance. When a customer is a regular he/she may order drinks nonverbally simply through his/her presence or through a gesture of the hand or by nodding the head. Asking for a drink in this fashion announces his/her status to the bar. On occasion male customers may chose to express their drinking habits through drinking contests. Participating in a drinking contest proves that the customer can handle his alcohol and has social ties with others in the bar. Drinking contests symbolize his masculine traits through his willingness to compete and ability to hold his alcohol. Drinking contests brings male customers together, while women customers never participate in such contests. Finally, location is important when trying to achieve a high status, masculine qualities, or when trying to express one’s experience to bar life. Sitting at the bar implies that he is a man and is not to be questioned. Sitting at a table implies that the drinker has less experience or in certain cases the drinker is not of age. Women rarely never sit at the bar because they do not perceive bar life in the same meaning as men. 7. Tasks performed by male and female employees at Brady’s Bar are significant to the gender stereotyping we often see in our everyday lives. Men are giving roles that are perceived as more important roles and women are giving roles that are less importance and support the men’s roles. At Brady’s the waitress’s tasks include taking orders, giving orders, collecting payments, clearing empty tables, and emptying ash trays. The men’s tasks include taking orders from customers located at the bar, serving those customers, washing empty glasses, handling the money or other business transactions, and tidying the bar counter. While women express gratitude when giving the opportunity to do a man’s work, the men never do the women’s work because it would degrade their manly status. Within these tasks, there are other smaller tasks that are also performed. For example, the waitress not only needs to remember the drinks that have been ordered but she needs to present the order in a way that makes it easier for the bartender. She also has to do any other tasks that are asked by the bartender. Although, the customer is of importance, the bartender is always first priority. When bringing drinks back to the table she must also try to squeeze her way through customers without spilling any drinks. Unlike, the tasks performed by the waitresses, the men’s job stay the same each day and he is never asked to do anything other than his normal duties. 8. Although, this research was done in 1970 I believe that the author’s findings about gender roles, stereotyping, social positions, and statuses of men and women remain true in today’s culture. For example, men today are still getting paid more than women even if the woman qualifies for the job in the exact same way as the man does. This is because the roles of men in the workforce are still considered more important than the women’s roles in the workforce. There is still a hidden rule that takes place today stating that women should present themselves as passive but efficient in any situation. While men are able to inappropriately touch women or make sexual remarks, women are not supposed to seem appalled by it though they have been clearly disrespected. Men usually dominate most social interactions weather at home, work, or in a bar. 9. I enjoyed reading this book because I feel the ethnography was done very well. The authors provided good information and explained the reasons for doing such studies thoroughly while also explaining the message of the research very well. The ethnography was very structured and captured many observations that can be transformed to American culture and our everyday lives.

The Supreme Court Of The United States Essays - Free Essays

The Supreme Court Of The United States Essays - Free Essays The Supreme Court of the United States The Supreme Court of the United States is the highest court of the judic ial branch of the United States government. Many of the cases that make it to the supreme court are based on rights set forth by the Bill of Rights. The Bil l of Rights is comprised of the first ten amendments to the United States Consti tution, and is what this nation was founded upon. The first of these amendment s deals with freedoms given to the people, one of these freedoms being Freedom o f the Press. This freedom gives organizations the right to print and publish what they want without being told what they can and can't publish by the governm ent. There are of course restrictions to this such as "prior restraint" which i s the government's right to censor material beforehand that it does not want pub lished, because it would compromise national security (Bender, 136). Prior rest raint was found unconstitutional in the Near v. Minnesota case of 1931. In this case the court ruled that an injunction to stop publication of a newspaper with objectionable material was an example of prior restraint and therefore unconsti tutional (Bender, 136). This became known as the due process clause of the 14th amendment to the constitution. Another part of Freedom of the Press is the rig ht for people to be able to read books, and not have books removed from a public place because certain people feel they are inappropriate (Cantwell, 34). There are two cases that clearly show these two points, and how the Supr eme Court used its power to solve them. One of these cases is New York Times Co mpany v. United States in 1971 which is also k This case shows how the Supreme Court used its position as the top court to rul e against the United States executive branch (Bender, 137). Another case is Boa rd of Education, Island Trees School District v. Pico in 1982. This case had to do with book censorship in a public high school library by the school board of that school (Gold, 17). The Supreme Court has had many cases dealing with free speech, and how t he government has tried to prevent the people from seeing certain pieces of info rmation. One such example of the Supreme Court dealing was the New York Times v . United States case which took place in 1971. This case was brought up by the United States after top secret documents from the Pentagon, known as the Pentago n Papers, were leaked to the New York Times and Washington Post (Bender, 132). These documents contained information about the military presence in Vietnam tha t the U.S. government felt was a risk to national security if known by its enemi es, and therefore only 15 copies of these documents were produced. Daniel Ellsb erg, was a high level Pentagon researcher who had legal access to the documents because he was involved in compiling and editing the Pentagon Papers. Ellsberg made a photocopy of these documents and gave them to Neil Sheehan of the New Yor k Times. Once the Times had these papers, they set a team of reporters to write articles about the U.S. involvement in Vietnam based on the information contain ed in the documents. A short time later, the same Daniel Ellsberg gave parts of the Pentagon Papers to the Washington Post, and that paper wrote articles about nown as the Pentagon Papers case. The federal government objected to the publication in daily newspapers o f these documents which it had deemed top secret. The government claimed that d istribution of the material in the Pentagon Papers would be damaging to the nati onal security of the United States and to its soldiers in Vietnam. Therefore th e government brought legal action against the New York Times and the Washington Post to stop them from publishing articles about this sensitive material (ACLU). Representatives of the Times said the federal government's attempt to st op the publication of these articles about the Pentagon Papers was an example of prior restraint. The Times contended that this would be a violation of freedom of the press, which is guaranteed in the first Amendment. The federal governme nt's side of the argument was that the publication of this top secret

Listening Paper Assignment Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Listening Paper Assignment - Essay Example The factors that influenced my listening behavior were my concern for the money that seemed going wasted, my angriness, and my intent to know the real cause of the bug. I used problem-oriented supportive response to get through the situation. For example, I talked about the problem that occurred with my phone. I acknowledged the description of the support official about the problem at the start of the discussion. Counter-arguments started when the support official started talking about the reason of the problem. I was most attentive when the support official was explaining the causes behind the connectivity issue. I wanted to know what the support official would say about the issue. I was least interested when he was telling me the cost of the service because at that time I had gotten angry at the situation because the phone was in the period of its warranty and the company should have done the service free of cost in my view. The communication situation got some heat due to inattentive listening, cross talk, and counter-arguments. I learned from the situation that one should listen to the viewpoint of others attentively because things are not always the same as we think about them. For example, in my situation, the problem had occurred because of water input and water damage does not come under warranty cover for cell phones. The five personal goals for becoming a better listener are: to know the exact situation; to avoid misunderstandings; to avoid ineffective communication; to get to the solution within less amount of time and with less arguments; and to build good personal

The Fraud Factor by Mathias K. Kopetzky Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

The Fraud Factor by Mathias K. Kopetzky - Essay Example Leary, on the other hand, had a shy personality. These two future business associates met at an organization referred to as CCC Computer Corp, where Leary was the manager at the technical support and assembling center and Kearns was a noteworthy and store computer. These two were very proficient salespeople who often delivered more sales that the company would really be able to sale. The two worked for CCC for many years, but later Kearns quit the job due to low pay, and he decided to start his own business ventures. His planned to call his new business ‘Gamma Computer Inc.’ and with the help of Simon, he hoped to draw all customers to his new founded business (Wells 115). From the author, we learn that this new business showed tremendous growth in quite a short time interval. This was extremely easy for it to achieve since Herbert had learned enough while at CCC Company, hence he would easily apply business practices for all clients. Second Savings Bank, one of the larg est financial corporations in the country supported Gamma in this corporation. Such help is also important as it enhances the market segment of the weaker company since people are always pulled towards a company that has noteworthy performance. From the author, we learn that Second Saving supported Gamma in a variety of ways. ... The article reveals that the Netherlands Holding Company, an Amsterdam based company proposed to purchase 100% of the stock of Gamma. At this time, gamma had sales of about $100million. This made Herbert Kearns a very ecstatic man since this had been his lifelong dream; to be wealthy at aged 45. The deal required that Herbert and Simon had to stay on with the new buyers for a period of three years after the sale, and they would be able to cash in if at all a third of their acquisition proceeded, and the remainder was to be earned through a three year period of business success. We are told that Simon resigned a few weeks later due to ‘family reasons’, which as the author reveals later was a farce. This was astonishing since it went against the requirements of the deal they had made i.e. he forfeited two-thirds of sales of the company’s price since he did not remain for the stipulated period. Later, we see that receivables of the company being sold in unclear circu mstances, albeit the opposition of Jim Muller, the account representative of Gamma. However, eight weeks after, Gamma again bought all receivables and it pledged these receivables to Second savings for purposes of financing. Therefore, the situation reverted to normal in that Second savings exhibited outstanding credit that had receivables of Gamma Computer. This happened in March, and by October of that year, Gamma was declared bankrupt due to its inability to clear its invoices within the required time despite the company has increased sales. The collapse of Gamma shocked Second Savings bank as it was always unaware of the financial difficulties of its client.  

Personal Philosophy of higher education Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Personal Philosophy of higher education - Essay Example In particular, learning is an evolutionary process that enables the humans to survive naturally under this phenomenon, and individuals lacking in such natural skill are dead. On the other hand, education is a wider concept existing in contrast with the phenomenon of learning, as it includes different aspects that are absent in learning, such as teaching, knowledge, discipline, and procedural proficiency (Daniels, 1996). In other words, education involves intellectual, ethical, and artistic development of individuals, and thus is a process of creating hierarchy among people, families, societies based on certain principles. In this regard, it is very imperative that educators and scholars should put some efforts to distinguish the two different notions that might enable them to improve and enhance the effectiveness of current higher education system. Besides, in the past, higher education system had no requirement of global perspective; however, it is an understanding that after huge advancements in the field of science and information technology, it has now become essential to include a global perspective in the philosophy of higher education. In addition, until today, higher education institutions, particular universities are still enjoying the status of stable bodies, although there might be an alteration in their forms, however, higher education institutions will always enjoy their importance and demand in the human society. One of the reasons of such significance will be their crucial role in providing extensive interpretation of a number of things that do not make sense in the world. However, as the world is changing its form, the term stable itself has become unstable, and constancy is now becoming a short-term phenomenon. In the result, there has been a constant alteration in personal philosophy of higher education since the day one until today that is something very constructive, and it is an understanding that this process of change

Marketing and Strategic Analysis of Virgin Active

Marketing and Strategic Analysis of Virgin Active 1. Introduction The UK has had an overwhelming increase in the leisure industry market involving gymnasiums. This report will include a strategic review of Virgin Active and also evaluate the challenges and opportunities faced by Virgin Active. The topics, included in this report will be: description of the organisation, comprehensive strategic analysis (detailed analysis of internal scan, environmental scan and core competencies), a SWOT analysis of Virgin Active and challenges faced by the organisation. Furthermore, alternative strategic options and managing change will also be discussed. Strategic management is important for all organisations, with out regards to their size or position in the market. The definition strategic management has not been agreed, however, the outcome of defining strategic management is similar. Armstrong (2002, p. 38) suggests strategic management is, that managers are looking ahead at what they need to achieve in the middle or relatively distant future. Also, Constable (1980) suggests strategic management as the management process and decisions that determine the long-term structure and activities of the organization (Thompson, 1993, p. 6). Both definitions focus on the importance of decisions to be taken for the future, by managers, so that the organisation is sustainable. This report will analyse the effectiveness of Virgin Actives strategies and also, strategies they can initiate. 2. Virgin Active 2.1 The Business Virgin was founded by Sir Richard Branson in 1970 and is one of the most well known brands in Britain. Their portfolio is diverse and ranges across from market to market such as trains, soft drinks, publishing, cosmetics, holidays, mobile phones, extreme sports, music, space tourism and the finance industry. (Appendix 1) The organisation has over 200 companies globally, and has approximately 50,000 employees. The total for Virgin in 2008, exceeded  £10 billion (Virgin, 2009) Sir Richard Branson (1990) was anxious to build the best, state-of-the-art club on the market, providing genuine value for it customers, in first class surroundings. Hence in 1999, Virgin opened their first gymnasium. Customers were attracted to the facilities and high level of customer service, and demand has grown steadily over the years. There is now 167 gyms and, approximately 900,000 members worldwide (Virgin Active, 2009). Despite Virgin Actives success, like all other organisations, they have competitors. Virgin Actives main competitors are Living Well and Fitness First, who are also globally known and placed. 3. Strategic Analysis 3.1 Internal scan The brand name Virgin, is a very valuable asset for Virgin Actives. Richard Branson (2002) said; In our customers eyes, Virgin stands for value for money, quality, innovation, fun and a sense of competitive challengeà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦ We often move to areas where the customer has traditionally received a poor deal, and where the competition is complacentà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦ We also look to deliver old products and services in new ways. The brand name Virgin is extremely well known throughout the UK. A brand name is an indication of what to expect from a product a quality statement of a value-for-money signal (Hollensen, 2006). The most successful move Virgin Active have made so far, is the  £20 million invested, for a major refurbishment and upgrade programme. Despite these strengths, these can become weaknesses of the organisation. Frequently companies can become overly convinced with their brand name, and start putting less attempts in developing the business. Thus, the organisation is under threat of not developing, or being able to sustain gloomy days in the future. The development in staff can also decline. Although  £20 million was invested by Virgin, none of it was spent on employees. And so, a opportunity for Virgin is to invest more time and finances on staff training. Leaders in the UK often lack dedicated attention from their supervisors to help develop in a planned fashion through continuous learning, both from job experience and more formal training activities (Addison, 2006, p380). It is important to have up-to-date staff development and training, as technology and the environment is constantly changing. If employees performance is weak, then the main priorities and strategies of the organisation become weak. 3.2 Environmental scan External environment must be taken in to consideration, when developing a organisations strategies. The environmental analysis determines the organisations opportunities and threats. Thompson (1993, p. 246) said, managers should always be attentive to changes and their decisions and actions should be both reactive and proactive as appropriate (Appendix 2). Thompson is defining the significance of managers adapting to different strategies depending on the environmental changes. The social environmental issues in the gymnasium market, is always changing and plays a crucial rule on deciding strategies. Virgin Active have forecasted expectancy growth, so they have a special discount for elderly people (55 years old plus). These grey consumers are relatively rich. The over-fifties own around three-quarters of the worlds financial assets and control half of the discretionary budget (Hollenson 2006, p. 48). Yet, there is also many elderly who are financially restricted due to the increase i n utility bills, and were unfortunate to have no savings. This is why Virgins strategy of decreasing prices for the elderly has been effective and also, as the elderly have started becoming more fit in this day and age, it has also had a positive outcome. Additionally, the smoking ban in Britain, showed signs of a healthier Britain. Also, due to many campaigns and advertisements issuing obesity and illnesses, the majority of the public have become self aware of health issues. Due to Hollywood/Bollywood and the general media, people are also becoming self conscious about their appearance. The stereotypical students have also changed theyre appearance, from the well known drinking, junk food eating, smoking danger zones to a more healthy-living lifestyle, recent surveys show. About one in four students is now teetotal, says National Union of Student Services and among the rest of the student population there is a growing appetite for exercise facilities and healthy eating (Coughlan, 2006). Technology is ever changing, hence why Virgin Active spent  £20 million to update their systems and keep up-to-date with modern technology. Taking these aspects into consideration is vital whiles planning strategies. According to the environment, changes in strategies should also be taken into consideration. 3.3 Purpose, objectives and strategy When developing an organisations purpose, it should take into consideration why do they exist, whom will they serve and how its value will be increased. It is vital to consider the organisations future challenges and opportunities. According to Lynch (2006,p. 340), there is three sections that help build the purpose of the organisation and should be examined at an early stage. The purpose of a organisation: shaped by vision, leadership and ethics Virgin Actives vision is to promote wellness by bringing positive change in youre life (Virgin Active, 2008). This vision shows that it is going beyond its current climate, which is achieving sufficient revenue. Leadership in an organisation is crucial as the directors choices and the social responsibilities policies influence the purpose they define. Virgin Active is run by an independent board and is mostly shareholder owned. The Executive Director, Mathew Bucknall, has combined industry experience and who also developed Virgin Active by overtaking Holmes Place, an established, popular gymnasium in the UK (Murray, 2006). This shows that the business is run by specialists who have great expertise in their field. Meaning, taking these elements in to account the objectives of the organisation is to expand their gyms by promoting health and wellness. Virgin Actives mission statement (Appendix 3) , shows that their goal is to be known around the world as a fun unique gym, available to everyone, who is offered, regardless of age or body size. Also, their goal is to expand their business in Europe within in the next three years (Virgin Active, 2008) . Also, without a capable strategy, Virgin would not have been able to become globally known (e.g. South Afica). Strategies used by Virgin Active in order to expand and also become available to all ages where: By offering different memberships to customers with various needs, E.g. offering 2 month old babies to 15 year olds a class called Club-V. Virgin Active recently invested  £20 million throughout their clubs to up-date workout machines and for refurbishment. They also took over Holmes Place, gaining all their current locations throughout Britain, tremendously helping their goals for expansion. 3.4 Core competencies A core competency makes the company different from others. Hamel and Prahalad (1990) said, core competency has three issues; it provides customer benefit, it is hard for competitors to imitate and it can be leveraged widely to many products and markets. Virgin Actives core competency would be their brand name. As mentioned before, their brand name is what makes them stand out from other gymnasiums and is generally what customers would pay extra for. Virgin Actives competitors can not take away the well known reputation that the name Virgin holds, for example, respected and trustworthy. However, the smaller gyms such as LA Fitness also have a selling unique selling point (core competency). LA Fitness are very well known for their as their personal trainers are highly qualified and highly skilled in getting the results the customer wants. This shows that all organisations have their unique selling point, which should be sustained by effective strategies. 4 SWOT Analysis 4.1 Strengths Virgin Actives most crucial strength is there successful brand name and also their strong management skills. Every venture Virgin has taken part in, it prioritises its consumers needs and wants. Virgin is an organisation that is market-driven. Market-driven organisations focus on the consumers concern throughout the company. All departments recognize the importance of the customer to the success of the business (Jobber 2004, pp. 8-8). Virgin has an exceptional reputation throughout Britain. A brand name is an indication of what to expect from a product a quality statement of a value-for-money signal (Hollensen Svend, 2006). The managing director, Mathew Bucknall invested the  £20 million for refurbishment and upgrades. This was a powerful strategy for Virgins present and future. Virgin Active accommodate all ages by providing different memberships; with special classes for the elderly to special classes for children Club V (Special child care fitness for children and entertainment) Allowing parents work out freely. Other gymnasiums do not offer this, including Fitness First. Due to the acquisition of Holmes Place, Virgin Active has gained central locations for its gyms, increasing the reputation and accessibility to the consumers. 4.2 Weaknesses Virgin Active do not reduce their price and also sale volumes are limited as the gymnasiums can become overcrowded. Virgin Active depend on the brand name, too much. Fitness First and Living Well are two large competitors The club has increased their fee, for a normal member, from  £45 in 2005 to  £61 in 2007. This is due to the refurbishment, however, no member was given a news letter. Members were given a small letter Members are not informed in the correct method about changes, as fees increased from  £45 to  £61 from 2005 to 2007 (due to refurbishment) and members were given a small letter, not a sincere letter or a newsletter. 4.3 Opportunities Although Virgin Active give discounts to the elderly, can take more advantage of the increasing grey population by having special classes, helping the elderly and making things easy for them. Virgin Actives current opening times are 6:00 am to 10:30 pm, Monday to Friday, but as many people find it hard to go to the gym in these times e.g. taxi drivers, bus drivers, restaurant workers, bar staff etc, the gym should have a couple of late night openings available for consumers that cant attend before 10:30pm. 4.4 Threats The gymnasium may have to invest in new services, as with a rising life expectancy, the elderly that are members me not stay satisfied with the current service. A decrease in an active population is also a threat. Fitness first, one of Virgin Actives competitors has given women a specialised section for weight training, this could become a threat in the long term as women may enjoy the privacy. small percentage would pluck up the courage to enter the male dominated free-weights area (Kiernainder, 2006). 5 Strategic Challenges One weakness from the SWAT analysis affecting the way Virgin Active operates is its two main competitors, Fitness First and Living Well. These competitors can have a direct impact on Virgin Active, in many ways, such as both competitors have branches world wide. A issue that is confronting Virgin Active, is that of Fitness First. Fitness First has recognised that 54% of customers going to the gym are women, thus giving them more priority. The organisation have decided to give a free-weights section, dedicated just to woman. small percentage would pluck up the courage to enter the male dominated free-weights area (Kiernainder, 2006). Also, they have health clubs run by women, for women (Fitness First, 2008). This has proved to be a success, and Virgin Active should consider to implement afew changes, to make sure they are reaching their goal, of a business that evolves around the consumer. It is important that a organisation is doing the best it can, so that customers truly believe th ey have made a good choice by joining. Living Well is also a globally known gymnasium, but, they do not offer anything special except from one day free passes which Virgin Active and Fitness First do not offer. Fitness First offer a free day pass, but afterwards, the customer must pay for their memberships. Virgin Active does not offer neither. The membership for Fitness First and Living well are relatively cheaper than Virgin Active. Virgin Active do not invest in training staff, hence customers could leave, due to bad customer service. See Appendix 4 6. Strategic options and choice Virgin is a global brand. Meaning, Virgin Actives strategy should be based upon expanding the business and developing the numbers of members. This form of strategy option is defined as the expansion option. The model (See Appendix 5) identifies the essential characteristics of this strategy option. Strategies must remain sustainable, for Virgin to continue with its expansion. As mentioned before, their goal is to open more clubs in Europe, they are already globally operated and have also recently acquired Holmes Place. Yet, there is more strategies that Virgin can consider without major costs included. As the grey population is rising, the organisation can take advantage of this and provide special classes, made for the elder. This would make it less complicated, easier, and user friendly for the elderly. In addition, Virgin Active could start opening later hours a couple of days a week, as this would differentiate them from there competitors and increase customers as the very few gy ms that are open till late, are reasonably busy. This would be a good strategy option for customers who currently cant make it to the gym, due to work. Another, relatively low cost strategy, would be to cater for woman. As Fitness First have already started a exclusive section for woman only, this would be a good choice to make Virgin Active diverse and would give them a unique selling point over most competitors. These are fairly low cost strategies that would bring more customers, meaning expanding the company. 7. Management of implications and uncertainty Every business should implement their strategies, in other words put them into practise The prime aim in implementing strategy is to deliver the mission and objectives of the organisation (Lynch, 2006, p. 610). Taking uncertainty into account is important when undertaking strategies. Driskill and Goldstein (1986) defines uncertainty as the perceived lack of information, knowledge, beliefs and feelings necessary for accomplishing organizational tasks (Palenchar and Robert, 2007, p. 126). The uncertainty table (Appendix 6) defines the two types of uncertainty as fuzziness and ambiguity. Fuzziness is present when definitive, sharp, clear or crisp distinctions are not made ( Emblemsvag and Endre, 2002, p. 844). Ambiguity is present when there is a inconsistency in deciding among different alternatives or a couple or more alternatives have been left unspecified. Virgin Active has ambiguity uncertainty, because there is uncertain issues the might deal with, such as customers may want to st art exercising outdoors rather than indoors or the more elderly may want to join the gym. Another threat could be, people becoming more green or because of nowadays easy lifestyle people may become lazy or obese, having a knock on affect on memberships. Managers maybe making the correct decisions, but staff who execute these strategies might not be doing it in the correct way. This could lead to deficiency. Managers must be ready and aware for changes that could take place, and should try utmost to apply correct strategies depending on the current issue taking place. An example of this could be, that there is no certainty that people will feel the same, as they could go towards being green. There are already fifty Green Gyms operating in the UK (Valle, 2007). Green Gyms are allowing people to exercise in the outdoors, without destroying the environment. Green Gyms are targeting people who want to make new friends, loose weight, and improve the environment. Research shows that, because the activities they undertake are not repetitive and aimless like other types of physical training, Green Gym participants tend to become more active in their daily life (ibid). To tackle this uncertainty, Virgin Active could have some outdoor classes, instead of indoor. The outdoor classes could be yoga or jogs in a remote park. And if it becomes popular, Virgin Active could advance more outdoor activities. The process of implementing a strategic change and doing it in such a way that it lasts, is evidence of the close relationship between an organisations personnel and any external specialists concerned. (Sadler.1993) Virgin Actives main purpose was to expand their club by promoting wellness. Virgin Active have implemented their objective, which is open to everyone, without age or build being a problem. The strategies the club achieved were; The Club-V for infants, discounted memberships for the elder, the acquisition of Holmes Place and spending  £20 million for improvement to the gymnasiums. The Virgin brand name, is definitely a asset to Virgin Active. Although the brand name is a strength, it can also become a weakness as some businesss become to proud of the brand name and forget to put effort into the organisation. There is also none indications of staff development. Invested my management, was  £20 million but none of the finances were spent on staff. Uncertainty can also impact on the strategies being planned. Thats why scenario planning were suggested so Virgin has an idea of issues which may occur in the future or impact current strategies. This is very useful as it produces problems and solutions. For any business to be successful, it is vital that they are ready for change and that correct planning has taken place to ensure the success of which ever strategies are chosen. 8. Appendices Appendix 1 1968 First issue of student magazine 1970 Start of Virgin Mail Order operation 1971 First Virgin record shop opens in Oxford Street, London 1972 First Virgin Recording Studio opens at The Manor near Oxford 1973 Launch of Virgin Record Label. Virgin Music Publishing is established 1977 Virgin Records signs the Sex Pistols 1984 Virgin Atlantic Airways and Virgin Cargo are born 1985 Virgin Holidays is formed 1987 Virgin Records America is founded. 1988 Virgin Megastores opens new stores. Virgin Hotels launches. 1990 Virgin Megastores arrives in Japan 1991 Virgin Publishing (Virgin Books) is formed 1992 Virgin Records is sold to Thorn EMI 1993 Virgin Radio hits the airwaves with Virgin 1215AM 1994 Launch of Virgin Vodka and Virgin Cola 1995 Virgin Direct Personal Financial Services opens for business. 1996 V2 Music is created. Virgin.Net launches. Virgin Trains is launched. 1997 Virgin Radio is acquired by Chris Evans. Virgin Cosmetics launches 1999 Virgin Mobile launches Virgins first telecomms venture. 2000 V.shop, Virgin cars, Virgin Wines and Virgin Travelstore all launch 2001 Virgin Money brand is created. Virgin Experience launches 2002 Virgin Money introduces the Virgin Credit card. Virgin Mobile in the USA. 2003 V.Shops merges completely with Virgin Megastores 2004 Virgin announces the launch of Virgin Galactic developing space tourism for everybody 2005 Virgin Mobile launches in Canada 2006 Two new businesses in South Africa Mobile and Money http://www.virgin.com/aboutvirgin/allaboutvirgin/thewholestory/default.asp Appendix 2 Definition of reactive and proactive outcomes Reactive outcomes. The environmental analysis will highlight important strategic changes over which the organisation has no control but to which, if they happen, it will need to be able to react. Proactive outcomes. The environmental analysis will identify positive opportunities or negative threats. Then, the organisation will have to develop a proactive strategy to deal with the situation. (Ref: Lynch, 2006, p. 79) Appendix 3 Virgin Active mission statement: To challenge the norm, shake up the fitness industry, and restore average gym offerings with the revolutionary concept of a life centre.   Our huge all-encompassing facilities deliver innovative solutions for health and wellness, while providing excellent value for money. Accessible to everyone; young, old, big, small, Virgin Active is a place where individuals can uncover their personal potential and have fun in the process! (Virgin Active, 2008) Appendix 4 1 Members who left due to bad customer service. 2 Members who left due to other reasons. Appendix 5 Expansion method matrix Company Inside Outside Internal development Exporting Overseas office Overseas manufacture Multinational operation Global operation Merger Acquisition Joint Venture Alliances Franchises Merger Acquisition Joint venture Alliances Franchise Turnkey Licensing Home Country Internati-onal (Ref: Lynch, 2006, p. 467) Appendix 6 Management of implications and uncertainty Uncertainty Fuzziness The lack of definite or sharp distinctions Vagueness Cloudiness Haziness Unclearness Indistinctiveness Ambiguity One-to-many relationships Discord Disagreement in choosing among several alternatives Dissonance Incongruity Haziness Conflict No specificity Two or more alternatives are left unspecified Variety Geniality Diversity Imprecision (Ref: Klir and Yuan, 1995)

A Students Comments on Habitat for Humanity Websites :: Sell Websites Buy Web Sites

A Student's Comments on Habitat for Humanity Websites While sitting in my dorm room watching a DVD, I looked around and suddenly realized how lucky I was. I lived in a decent sized room with lighting and air conditioning that I could adjust to make myself comfortable. Then I thought how even more lucky I was to be able to go home too yet a nicer living facility at my own house that I have to share with nobody but my immediate family. It made me begin to wonder how many people there are that do not possess this luxury. That is when I thought of Habitat for Humanity. The only thing that I knew about it was that they built homes for underprivileged families with inadequate shelter. I wanted to see though exactly how this specific organization made a difference in peoples lives. Hopefully my research will enlighten my readers of the living situations of many families around the world, maybe even convincing some to volunteer themselves. Habitat for Humanity is a nondenominational and nonprofit Christian organization(Habitat for Humanity International). It is involved in the manufacturing and building of houses for those in need of an adequate shelter. Habitat for Humanity was established in 1976 and since, has built more than 150,000 attainable, sturdy houses in over 89 different countries(Habitat for Humanity International). This is a very impressive statistic considering all the political and economic issues that are going on in today’s world. No matter where the home is being built across the globe there are three factors that give those in need access to an affordable home like these(Habitat for Humanity International). The website states that the first attribute of a successful and complete home is that homeowners are able to buy their new house at no profit with no interest charged on the mortgage. Secondly, it states that there are trained professionals there to supervise the volunteers and homeowners in building each home. Finally, financial support is provided to the organization by individuals, corporations, faith groups, and others. These three elements contribute equally to the success of Habitat for Humanity (Habitat for Humanity International). Habitat for Humanity has branches that are building right now in towns, cities, and countries all across the earth.