Brain on Ted Radio Hour Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Brain on Ted Radio Hour - Assignment Example fine beaches and very beautiful scenery at their home areas, but they would still prefer to go holidaying in Hawai due to the perceived value and fame associated with the brand. Most ladies, fashionistas and stores believe that certain clothing brands such as Prada are quality hence they should be expensive. Despite having another brand with the same type of material, the history of Prada and certain designs still gets them associated with class and common amongst celebrities and the rich. In conclusion, I agree with the speaker that our beliefs determine our response to products. Such beliefs are what give a brand the value it receives in the market and lays the foundation that becomes the history upon which it is evaluated in future. I base my agreement with the speaker on the fact that the human brain mostly relates quality with what is trending or common rather than the utility of the product. This is proven by the common occurrence that whatever is expensive is always perceived to be of

Planning principles involved in developing a marketing strategy

Planning principles involved in developing a marketing strategy Yum! Brands Introduction Yum! Brands, Inc., based in Louisville, Ky., is the worlds largest restaurant company in terms of system restaurants with more than 37,000 restaurants in over 110 countries and territories and more than 1 million associates. Yum! is ranked #239 on the Fortune 500 List, with nearly $11 billion in revenue in 2009. Four of our restaurant brands KFC, Pizza Hut, Taco Bell and Long John Silvers are the global leaders of the chicken, pizza, and Mexican style food and quick-service seafood categories. The Yum! system including 3 operating segments which are: U.S. market, Yum! Restaurants International, and China Division. In 2009, the Yum! expanded more than 4 new restaurants each day of the year outside of US, making it a leader in international retail development. Results for 2009 once again affirmed Yum! consistent record of success with 13% Earnings Per Share (EPS) growth, which marks the eighth straight year we delivered at least 13% growth and exceeded our 10% EPS growth target. Within 2009, the company opened more than 1,400 new restaurants outside the U.S. Moreover, Yum! brand maintained their Return on Investment Capital (ROIC) of 20% and continued to be an industry leader. YUM! Products KFC KFC is the leader in the chicken segment in the Singapore Quick Service Restaurant (QSR) industry. This is possible because rooted to its cores are simple but real values that allow KFC to offer only the best its customers. Captivating aroma that triggers your senses. A satisfying feast of hearty, mouth watering food specially prepared with the Colonels secret recipe. Generous portions of fresh, succulent side dishes. Salads to balance your diet. At KFC, the restaurant offer high quality and great tasting food in a popular array of complete meals such as Daily Savers Meals, WOW! Meal s and Family Feast, that enable the whole family to share a fun and satisfying experience with all affordability and convenience of Quick Service Restaurant. Pizza Hut Pizza hut operates in 84 countries and territories throughout the world under the name Pizza Hut and features a variety of pizza with different topping as well as pasta, salads, sandwiches and other food items and beverages. The distinctive decor features a bright red roof. Pizza Hut has been named the number one national pizza chain in America according to Restaurant Institution 2001 Choice in Chains survey. Pizza Hut is the recognized leader of $ 25 billion pizza category and has been since 1987. Building the leading pizza company has required innovation, a commitment to quality, and a dedication to service and value. But perhaps as much as anything, it has taken the qualities of entrepreneurship, growth and leadership, which have characterized its business through more than four decades of success. Taco Bell Taco Bell is an American restaurant chain based in Irvine, California. It specializes in Mexican-style food and quick service. Taco Bell serves tacos, burritos, quesadillas, nachos, other specialty items and a variety of Value Menu item. Recently, Taco Bell serves more than 2 billion consumers each year in more than 5,800 restaurants in the U.S., of which more than 80% are owned and operated by independent franchisees. Long John Silvers Long John Silvers, Inc. is a United States-base fast-food restaurant that specializes in seafood. The name and concept were by Robert Louis Stevensons book Treasure Island. Its headquarters are in Louisville, Kentucky. A W Restaurant A W Restaurants, Inc. is a chain of fast-food restaurants, distinguished by its draft root beer and root beer floats. AW was arguably the first successful food franchise company, starting franchise in 1921. Today it has franchise locations throughout the world, serving a typical fast food menu of hamburgers and fries, as well as hot dogs. A number of its outlets are drive-in restaurants with carhops. The company name was taken from the last name initials of partners Roy Allen and Frank Wright. The chain is currently owned by Yum! Brands. Yum! Vision Strategy Yum! brands are committed to continuing the success realized during our first ten years. Our success has only just begun as we look forward to the future, one which promises a long runway for growth, especially on an international level. Yum! is building a vibrant global business by focusing on four key growth strategies. Build leading brands across china in every significant category Our experienced and tremendous local team led by our Vice Chairman of Yum! Brands and President of China, Sam Su, grew our profits a whopping 25% in 2009 on top of 28% in 2008. You dont need to be a math major (and Im not!) to easily calculate thats over 50% growth in two years. The good news is that we achieved these results even though our same store sales were slightly negative as the consumer generally lagged Chinas relatively strong economic growth. We added a record 509 new units in Mainland China and now have nearly 3,500 restaurants that generated near record restaurant margins of 20% in 2009. In spite of this robust profit growth, some investors have asked: Is Yum!s recent relatively weak same store sales performance in Mainland China an early indicator that something is wrong with the business or Yum! is growing too fast? We believe the answer is definitively NO! Drive aggressive international expansion and build strong brands everywhere. Yum! Restaurants International, which operates in over 110 countries and territories outside the US and China, continues to deliver on this strategy as it delivered 5% system sales and profit growth both excluding foreign currency translation which negatively impacted our reported profits by 11 percentage points in 2009. We treasure this divisions high return franchising model with over 90% of our new restaurants built by franchisees that generate over $650 million in franchise fees, requiring minimal capital on our part. Driven by this franchisee development machine, we opened nearly 900 new restaurants in over 75 countries. Thats the tenth straight year we have opened more than 700 new units and our pipeline remains strong as we go into 2010. Dramatically Improve U.S. Brand Positions, Consistency and Returns. Theres no question 2009 was a very disappointing year for our US business. Overall our same store sales declined 5% as we grew profits only 1%, led primarily by a restructuring initiative we took the prior year which yielded a $65 million decrease in our general and administrative expenses. Nevertheless, we remain confident were taking the right steps to deliver stronger brand positioning, higher returns and consistent growth performance to tap the inherent sales opportunity and ultimate value in our 18,000 restaurants. And the good news is we have the marketing strength to do so with category leading brands along with outstanding unit economics on a stand-alone basis. We also have a system that generates a steady earnings stream of over $700 million in franchise and licensing fees. As we go forward, our strategy is to better leverage our large US restaurant asset base and all our restaurants around the world with what we have coined incremental sales layers in these 5 areas: 1) More options for consumers across our menu. 2) More contemporary beverage options unique desserts. 3) Expanded day parts, especially breakfast. 4) Broader protein offerings. 5) Contemporary assets. Drive Industry-leading Long-term Shareholder and Franchisee Value Extremely proud and continue to be a leader among consumer companies with return on invested capital at 20%. The companies defined a global cash machine, with each of our divisions generating free cash flow or effectively funding their own capital investments. As this capital is deployed to high growth opportunities. Planning principles Marketing planning is the process that leads to the creation of a marketing plan. The marketing plan is a systematic design for achieving the objectives of creating value for customers and competitive advantage, growth, and profitability for the organization. Steps of the planning principle can be described as following: Strategy Before Tactics Develop the strategic marketing plan first. This entails emphasis on scanning the external environment, identifying early forces emanating from it, and developing appropriate strategic responses. Involve all levels of management in the process. A strategic plan covers a period of three to five years. Only when this plan has been developed and agreed upon is a one-year operational marketing plan developed. Never write the one-plan first and extrapolate it. Situate Marketing Within Operations For the purpose of marketing planning, put marketing a close as possible to the customer. When practical, have both marketing and sales report to the same person, who is not the chief executive officer. Shared Values About Marketing Marketing is a management process whereby the resources of the entire organization are use to satisfy the needs of selected customer groups to achieve the objectives of both parties. Marketing is an attitude of mind rather than a series of functional activities. Structure Around Markets Organize company activities around customer group if possible rather than around functional activities, and conduct marketing planning done in these strategic business units. Without excellent marketing planning in strategic business units, corporate marketing planning is of limited value. Scan The Environment Thoroughly The following are requirements for an effective marketing audit: Checklists of questions customized according to level in the organization are prepared. The checklists form the basis of the organizations Marketing Information System (MIS). The marketing audit is required activity. Managers a not allowed to hide behind vague term, such as poor economic conditions. Managers are encouraged to incorporate the tools of marketing in their audits, such as product life cycles and portfolios. Summarize Information In SWOT Analyses Information is the foundation on which a marketing plan is built. From information (internal and external) comes intelligence. A SWOT analysis does the following: Focuses on each specific segment of crucial importance to the organizations future Is a summary emanating from the marketing audit. Is brief, interesting, and concise. Focuses on key factors only. Lists key external opportunities and threats only. Identifies the real issues, is not a list of unrelated points. Is clear enough for reader to grasp instantly the main thrust of the business, even to the point of being able to write marketing objectives. Answers the implied question which mean that..? to get the real implications. Does not leave out important fact, questions, and issues. Skills and Knowledge Ensure that all those responsible for marketing have necessary marketing knowledge and skills for the job. In particular, ensure that they understand and know how to sue the tools of marketing, such as the following: Information and scanning. Positioning. Market segmentation. Targeting. Product life cycle analysis. Portfolio management. Gap analysis. Boston Consulting Group matrix. Directional policy matrix. Four Ps of management-product, price, place, promotion. Marketing personnel also need communication and interpersonal skills. Systematize The Process It is essential to have a set of written procedures and a well-argues common format for marketing planning. The purposes of such a system are as follows: To ensure that all key issues are systematically considered To pull together the essential elements of the strategic plan in a consistent manner In a multi business enterprise, to help corporate management to compare diverse businesses and to understand the overall condition of and prospects for the organization. Sequence Objectives Ensure that all objectives are prioritized according to their impact on the organization and their urgency and that resource are allocated accordingly Style and Culture Marketing planning is not effective without the active support and participation of top management. But even with this support, the type of marketing planning has to be appropriate for phase of the organizational lifeline. This phase is measured before an attempt is made to introduce marketing planning. Accurately describe and critically evaluate a range of tools and techniques use to produce a strategic marketing plan Marketing Audit Marketing audit can be easily identified as an essential part of an efficient marketing planning process. It is a very important process that is not only carried out at the begging but also at regular intervals during the actual marketing planning process. A marketing audit has a lot of influence upon the marketing planning process through the various external and internal factors. There are a number of tools and techniques that are used during a marketing audit. Some of the tools are: SWOT Analysis: One of the most important tools of marketing audit is the SWOT or Strengths, Weakness, Opportunities and Threats analysis. This tool is of a lot of help to the marketers and is used at the beginning of the marketing audit process. The SWOT analysis comes along with a lot of advantages but it has some drawbacks as well. Some of the drawbacks of SWOT analysis are that it is very subjective and cannot be relied upon too much. Thus, it has always been recommended that the SWOT analysis be used as a guide in the marketing planning process and not as a prescription to the various problems. PEST Analysis: This is the analysis of the various factors that have an effect upon the marketing process. The organization undergoing a marketing analysis should be taking into consideration all the environmental factors and give it a thorough analysis. These environmental factors may be internal or external. The internal factors compromise of the staff and queries related to them. The external would be the external customers and the various distributors connected to the concern and the political and economic factors are also taken into consideration. Porter Five Force Analysis: This is an analysis that enables the marketer to have a clear picture of the competition outside in the market. This type of analysis has some similarities with the PEST analysis and is different in the sense that it focuses its attention upon a single business or a single concern. In this analysis the marketer basically goes through five basic areas of concern. These areas can be classified as the areas of treat of entry, the suppliers power the power of the buyers and also the threats revealed by the competitors and the rivals. Some of the advantages associated with this analysis are that it leads to economies of large scale with the help of mass purchase and sales. The various distribution channels can also be easily accessed and also finds out if the cost of switching over to some other supplier is low or not. Yum! Brands, Inc. SWOT Analysis The Yum! Brands, Inc. SWOT Analysis examines the companys key business structure and operations, history and products, and provides summary analysis of its key revenue lines and strategy. Strengths The Companys continuous expansion into Asia and other regions. Well-developed restaurant brands and exceptionally efficient and ever-improving restaurant operations. The idea of multi-branding which causes one establishment to appeal to varying customers. Strong advertising campaigns. Constant updating of menus and specials to appeal to current trends and fads. Weaknesses Some brands (concepts) may weigh down profits of top performing ones. Sensitivity to market fluctuations. Opportunities International expansion and growth. In domestic markets, turning one-brand units into multi-brand units to appeal to more customers, which will cut into competitors revenues. Improvement of operations. Threats The highly competitive nature of the restaurant industry. Entry of competitors into foreign markets first. Menu appeal. Yum! Brands (Yum Brands) operates franchises and licenses a chain of restaurant brands including Kentucky Fried Chicken (KFC), Pizza Hut, Taco Bell, Long John Silvers (LJS) and All America Food (AW). The company operates in over 110 countries around the globe. It is headquartered in Louisville, Kentucky and employs about 336,000 people. The company recorded revenues of $11,279 million during fiscal year ending December 2008 (FY2008), an increase of 8.3% over FY2007. The operating profit of the company was $1,506 million during FY2008, an increase of 11% over FY2007. The net profit was $964 million in FY2008, an increase of 6.1% over FY2007. Task 2 Examine A Range of Marketing Strategy Options Explain with clarity a range of marketing strategy options available and evaluate their benefits and limitations, using supporting examples. 4.1. The Porter Generic Strategy Model If the primary determinant of a firms profitability is the attractiveness of the industry in which it operates, an important secondary determinant is its position within that industry. Even though an industry may have below-average profitability, a firm that is optimally positioned can generate superior returns. A firm positions itself by leveraging its strengths. Michael Porter has argued that a firms strengths ultimately fall into one of two headings: cost advantage and differentiation. By applying these strengths in either a broad or narrow scope, three generic strategies result: cost leadership, differentiation, and focus. These strategies are applied at the business unit level. They are called generic strategies because they are not firm or industry dependent. The following table illustrates Porters generic strategies: Target Scope Advantage Low Cost Product Uniqueness Broad (Industry Wide) Cost Leadership Strategy Differentiation Strategy Narrow (Market Segment) Focus Strategy (low cost) Focus Strategy (differentiation) Cost Leadership Strategy This generic strategy calls for being the low cost producer in an industry for a given level of quality. The firm sells its products either at average industry prices to earn a profit higher than that of rivals, or below the average industry prices to gain market share. In the event of a price war, the firm can maintain some profitability while the competition suffers losses. Even without a price war, as the industry matures and prices decline, the firms that can produce more cheaply will remain profitable for a longer period of time. The cost leadership strategy usually targets a broad market. Some of the ways that firms acquire cost advantages are by improving process efficiencies, gaining unique access to a large source of lower cost materials, making optimal outsourcing and vertical integration decisions, or avoiding some costs altogether. If competing firms are unable to lower their costs by a similar amount, the firm may be able to sustain a competitive advantage based on cost leadership. Firms that succeed in cost leadership often have the following internal strengths: Access to the capital required making a significant investment in production assets; this investment represents a barrier to entry that many firms may not overcome. Skill in designing products for efficient manufacturing, for example, having a small component count to shorten the assembly process. High level of expertise in manufacturing process engineering. Efficient distribution channels. Each generic strategy has its risks, including the low-cost strategy. For example, other firms may be able to lower their costs as well. As technology improves, the competition may be able to leapfrog the production capabilities, thus eliminating the competitive advantage. Additionally, several firms following a focus strategy and targeting various narrow markets may be able to achieve an even lower cost within their segments and as a group gain significant market share. Differentiation Strategy A differentiation strategy calls for the development of a product or service that offers unique attributes that are valued by customers and that customers perceive to be better than or different from the products of the competition. The value added by the uniqueness of the product may allow the firm to charge a premium price for it. The firm hopes that the higher price will more than cover the extra costs incurred in offering the unique product. Because of the products unique attributes, if suppliers increase their prices the firm may be able to pass along the costs to its customers who cannot find substitute products easily. Firms that succeed in a differentiation strategy often have the following internal strengths: Access to leading scientific research. Highly skilled and creative product development team. Strong sales team with the ability to successfully communicate the perceived strengths of the product. Corporate reputation for quality and innovation. The risks associated with a differentiation strategy include imitation by competitors and changes in customer tastes. Additionally, various firms pursuing focus strategies may be able to achieve even greater differentiation in their market segments. Focus Strategy The focus strategy concentrates on a narrow segment and within that segment attempts to achieve either a cost advantage or differentiation. The premise is that the needs of the group can be better serviced by focusing entirely on it. A firm using a focus strategy often enjoys a high degree of customer loyalty, and this entrenched loyalty discourages other firms from competing directly. Because of their narrow market focus, firms pursuing a focus strategy have lower volumes and therefore less bargaining power with their suppliers. However, firms pursuing a differentiation-focused strategy may be able to pass higher costs on to customers since close substitute products do not exist. Firms that succeed in a focus strategy are able to tailor a broad range of product development strengths to a relatively narrow market segment that they know very well. Some risks of focus strategies include imitation and changes in the target segments. Furthermore, it may be fairly easy for a broad-market cost leader to adapt its product in order to compete directly. Finally, other focusers may be able to carve out sub-segments that they can serve even better. A Combination of Generic Strategies Stuck in the Middle? These generic strategies are not necessarily compatible with one another. If a firm attempts to achieve an advantage on all fronts, in this attempt it may achieve no advantage at all. For example, if a firm differentiates itself by supplying very high quality products, it risks undermining that quality if it seeks to become a cost leader. Even if the quality did not suffer, the firm would risk projecting a confusing image. For this reason, Michael Porter argued that to be successful over the long-term, a firm must select only one of these three generic strategies. Otherwise, with more than one single generic strategy the firm will be stuck in the middle and will not achieve a competitive advantage. Porter argued that firms that are able to succeed at multiple strategies often do so by creating separate business units for each strategy. By separating the strategies into different units having different policies and even different cultures, a corporation is less likely to become stuck in the middle. However, there exists a viewpoint that a single generic strategy is not always best because within the same product customers often seek multi-dimensional satisfactions such as a combination of quality, style, convenience, and price. There have been cases in which high quality producers faithfully followed a single strategy and then suffered greatly when another firm entered the market with a lower-quality product that better met the overall needs of the customers. Generic Strategies and Industry Forces These generic strategies each have attributes that can serve to defend against competitive forces. The following table compares some characteristics of the generic strategies in the context of the Porters five forces. Generic Strategies and Industry Forces Industry Force Generic Strategies Cost Leadership Differentiation Focus Entry Barriers Ability to cut price in retaliation deters potential entrants. Customer loyalty can discourage potential entrants. Focusing develops core competencies that can act as an entry barrier. Buyer Power Ability to offer lower price to powerful buyers. Large buyers have less power to negotiate because of few close alternatives. Large buyers have less power to negotiate because of few alternatives. Supplier Power Better insulated from powerful suppliers. Better able to pass on supplier price increases to customers. Suppliers have power because of low volumes, but a differentiation-focused firm is better able to pass on supplier price increases. Threat of Substitutes Can use low price to defend against substitutes. Customers become attached to differentiating attributes, reducing threat of substitutes. Specialized products core competency protect against substitutes. Rivalry Better able to compete on price. Brand loyalty to keep customers from rivals. Rivals cannot meet differentiation-focused customer needs. Sources: Task 3 Explore the implications of changes in the marketing environment of organizations Assess the current changes in the marketing environment for an organization Changing Marketing Environment Professional marketing has become more important as advanced countries have shifted from a supply to a demand environment. For most of history the world has been characterised by insufficient supply: not enough food and material goods to meet human requirements. The key priority in the past has been improving production, purchasing and finance of trade. Today this has all changed. Now, the advanced countries are characterised by excessive supply. The central problem is attracting demand, not meeting it. Faced with an array of alternatives, the customer is spoiled for choice. The priority in management is how to identify and develop goods and services that are more attractive to customers than those of competitors. As the market environment changes, managers have to adapt their strategies and organization. Unless these changes are made obsolete by changes in customer wants, new technologies and new competitors that have adapted more effectively. Fashionisation: In the past fashion was identified with womens clothing. But today more and more markets watches, motorcycles, beer, cars, pharmaceuticals, cinema music, electronics goods, even management courses are characterised by annual model changes, rapid obsolescence and an unpredictable and fickle demand. Companies that cannot handle novelty, rapid model replacement, fashion and style see their market shares slipping and their profit margins. Without novelty and continual feature enhancement, the company will see its prices and market share relentlessly chiselled away. The original iPod was launched in 2001 and updated twice within the next year. By mid -2005 the range had grown to four basic models all targeted at different uses and users and positioned as the music fashion accessory. Micro-markets: The old textbooks to postulate that a company could between a differentiated and an undifferentiated strategy. An undifferentiated strategy is where a company makes a single product for the whole market. The usual example was Coca-Cola, which, it was said, offered one product, in one bottle size, at one price and with one advertising message to all customers, everywhere in the world. No longer. Even Coca-Cola is today offered in an increasing and bewildering variety of forms-new Coke, classic and cherry, with or without caffeine, diet Coke, in cans or in numerous bottle sizes, all advertised in various style and formats. Todays customers expect the manufacture to customise the product and service to their specific needs. Technology has made this variety expansion economically viable for companies. New flexible systems, such as computer-aided design and manufacturing and customised software, permit ever-finer market segmentation and product range expansion. Finally, the new communications technology makes it possible to deliver individual messages. Rising expectation: Changing environment Marketing strategy Organization for marketing Fashionisation Speed Breaking Hierarchies Micro-Markets Customisation Small Business Units Rising Expectations Quality Selt-Managing Teams Technology Information Networks Re-Engineering Competition Core Competences Strategic Alliances Globalisation Think Global Transnational Organisation Service Software Augmentation Learning Organisation Commoditisation Partnerships Account Management Erosion Of Brands Innovation Expeditionary Marketing New Constraints Stakeholders Role of the Broad The changing marketing environment and its implication 3.2: Analyse how an organization could respond to the changes Changing Organization for Marketing: The rapidly changing business environment makes existing products and marketing strategic obsolete. Companies have to become faster, more flexible, more innovative and capable of forging new partnerships with customer and suppliers. To put in place such strategies, however, requires sweeping organizational changes. Yesterdays giant organizations such as Marks Spencer, General Motors, ICI, Midland Bank, Sears an

Poems :: Poetry Essays

Poems Star-watching The moon grows smaller As it slips up behind the aspen tree. Warm, night winds rustles the leaves While across the sky white, pin-point stars spread Earlier, the moon was huge and yellow, Sitting low over the eastern horizon. A refreshing sight after the severe heat Of the late August day. The cold, dampness of the ground Seeps into my body. Grass ends tickle through the fabric of my shirt. It is a good night for star-watching. Red Dust Clouds Dragon-shaped clouds are gilded gold by the setting sun As it slips towards the flat, western edge of the desert. The sagebrush, lining both sides of the red dirt road, Houses an assortment of singing insects, Or was it stinging insects. At any rate, Their tracks, along with those of fox, coyote, snakes And a varied assortment of rodents, criss-cross the road. I obliterate them with the toe of my shoe, Kicking up a small cloud of red dust with each scuffing step. On Rain The swirling water runs brown Spring forever rains River banks are swept under The shining sun bakes the earth Green leaves turn yellow The rains are long forgotten Fall rains mat dead brown leaves Carpeting the ground Gray branches pray towards heaven Cold rain becomes falling snow Drifts cover the creek Spring will melt the snow again. Moon Shadows Shining forth from the black sky, a brilliant image, the glowing face of the moon, drawing on the snow-covered ground with its light. The shadows on the ground mirror the moon's own dark shadows. The stark lines make faces on the snow, dark eyes, with white cheeks and lips sparkling. The faces seem to hold a certain brilliance all their own. More than just the tangible night light reflecting in shimmers off slopes of snow, It is as if all of the knowledge stored in the moon had passed through moonbeams to hide in the dark shadows, behind the snow's surface, sparkling. Icy fingers reach out to my soul, the fingers of snow- shadows. Made out of the endless, luminous light from the knowledge of moon-beams and star-beams. Theirs, a brilliant plot, they capture my eyes, my being, with their own sparkling eyes. They see past my eyes into my innermost soul, where it is dark. Poems :: Poetry Essays Poems Star-watching The moon grows smaller As it slips up behind the aspen tree. Warm, night winds rustles the leaves While across the sky white, pin-point stars spread Earlier, the moon was huge and yellow, Sitting low over the eastern horizon. A refreshing sight after the severe heat Of the late August day. The cold, dampness of the ground Seeps into my body. Grass ends tickle through the fabric of my shirt. It is a good night for star-watching. Red Dust Clouds Dragon-shaped clouds are gilded gold by the setting sun As it slips towards the flat, western edge of the desert. The sagebrush, lining both sides of the red dirt road, Houses an assortment of singing insects, Or was it stinging insects. At any rate, Their tracks, along with those of fox, coyote, snakes And a varied assortment of rodents, criss-cross the road. I obliterate them with the toe of my shoe, Kicking up a small cloud of red dust with each scuffing step. On Rain The swirling water runs brown Spring forever rains River banks are swept under The shining sun bakes the earth Green leaves turn yellow The rains are long forgotten Fall rains mat dead brown leaves Carpeting the ground Gray branches pray towards heaven Cold rain becomes falling snow Drifts cover the creek Spring will melt the snow again. Moon Shadows Shining forth from the black sky, a brilliant image, the glowing face of the moon, drawing on the snow-covered ground with its light. The shadows on the ground mirror the moon's own dark shadows. The stark lines make faces on the snow, dark eyes, with white cheeks and lips sparkling. The faces seem to hold a certain brilliance all their own. More than just the tangible night light reflecting in shimmers off slopes of snow, It is as if all of the knowledge stored in the moon had passed through moonbeams to hide in the dark shadows, behind the snow's surface, sparkling. Icy fingers reach out to my soul, the fingers of snow- shadows. Made out of the endless, luminous light from the knowledge of moon-beams and star-beams. Theirs, a brilliant plot, they capture my eyes, my being, with their own sparkling eyes. They see past my eyes into my innermost soul, where it is dark.

The five pillars of today’s security techniques

With increased incidents of security intrusions more emphases is being put in Information Systems Security. Corporate data needs to be protected at all cost. A compromise on system security could cost an organization millions in data loss and strategic information spilling. Thus, a formidable security system is an investment any organization running data traffic on corporate and public networks should implement. Information system security can be enhanced through the following:Protection:Firewalls employ selective rules to grant or deny access to data traffic in to the intranet. To limit access to a website, you might decide to block the associated FTP port.   Firewalls may also be configured to block all traffic apart from a few, listed. For example to limited access to common World Wide Web traffic, you may just block port 80 or 8080.Intrusion prevention:Intrusion prevention systems combine the strengths of firewall and IPS. It examines network traffic like IDS and determines whe ther to pass any given traffic like firewalls.The IPS assesses traffic patterns to evaluate the type of network access and to determine whether it should be permitted. While IDS can only note an ongoing attack and pass the alert to an analyst, the IPS will stop the attack by blocking traffic between the attacker and its victim.Intrusion Detection:Intrusion detection systems (IDS) actively look for intrusions in process such as forbidden websites access or Trojan horse attempting to control a workstation activity. They record dangerous patterns and alert the network security personnel. They have to be configured carefully for purposes of sending the correct information to the security personnel.Reaction:In the event of a security compromise in your organization, there is always an expected reaction.   You may react by sealing the loops e.g. in a web based information system, a poorly coded script code that skips password encryption may be corrected on an in-house programming exerci se. An off shelf application whose security has been compromised may be reported to the vendor for future provision of security updates.Documentation:All security attacks, their impact on the information system and possible sources and causes should be documented. This gives an audit trail for future consideration. Adaptive development, also takes into consideration such incidences for purposes of fixing the bugs.  

Why Is Ghana Still an Ledc?

Why is Ghana still an LEDC? Peilin Cheng 9A Although Ghana is rich in raw materials and precious metals, it is still a Less Economically Developed Country (LEDC). There are many different reasons ranging from the environment and climate to their debt problem. Ghana is in the tropics of Africa near the equator which means the temperature is very hot, there is also a hot dry North East wind called the harmattan which blows between December and March. Ghana’s climate and ecosystems are split into three different climate and ecosystems: The Tropical rainforest is hot and wet all year round.This means that it is a good source of timber wood however more of the rainforest is being cut down for firewood or by farmers to clear land for farming, Ghana is the second largest cocoa producer in the world because of the ideal growing climate. The farmers gain more land to grow on but once the nutrients have been used up the soil becomes useless and most farmers cannot afford fertiliser so t he land is abandoned. Over three quarters of the rainforest has been destroyed so deforestation is a problem. Diamonds, gold, bauxite and many other useful ores or precious metals are also found in the rainforest area.The Savannah is hot and very dry due to drought, deforestation and overgrazing and there are not as many useful natural resources there, unfortunately more of the North of Ghana is turning into desert. Desertification is a growing environmental problem because the ground is too dry for agricultural uses and so it slows down Ghana’s development. The majority of Ghana’s workforce is farmers so the state of the land is very important to them. Both desertification and deforestation mean fewer crops to sell and eat so there is more poverty.The Coastal Savannah is quite hot and dry but some oil has been found offshore (although it is not enough, it has to import a lot more), it has more natural gas which Ghana has begun to use. The River Volta is used for hydro electricity and fishing which has helped Ghana develop. There are also some historical reasons on why Ghana is still in poverty. Ghana was not always one country; it used to be made up of separate kingdoms and so some people were wealthy. Then some Europeans arrived in 1650 and began trading gold with Ghana.Later, the British began demanding slaves for their plantations in America so they bought at least 5000 people per year from the country, this held back development. The kingdoms went to war for over 150 years for people to sell. Many Europeans competed for trade but the British soon took over and by 1901 the kingdoms had been forced together and Ghana had become a British colony, this is a mixture of both helping and hindering development because the British did build railways to speed up the process as well as roads, schools and hospitals for the people but they had to pay taxes for them.The British exported diamonds, gold, ivory, timber, pepper, corn and cocoa which made the E uropeans very rich but not the people in Ghana. In 1957 Ghana finally gained independence but problems soon arose, they had no factories, few services and not many educated or skilled people. Since Ghana had just gained independence, it wanted to develop fast so they borrowed a lot of money from the World Bank and other governments. When people borrow money they have to pay an interest on the loan, most of the bank loans were made in the early 1970s when the rates were low.Then they suddenly rose so poorer countries like Ghana could not maintain their repayments and so had to spend more money than they were earning on repaying their debt than actually developing. This meant less money for building schools, hospitals, clean water supplies as well as other things the people desperately needed. Being in debt can have a huge impact on life, especially if you are living in a developing country. There were fewer schools which meant there was a very low literacy rate so it was harder to fi nd work which meant unemployment.Plans to create a clean water supply were put on hold which meant an unhealthy workforce due to dirty water, bad healthcare and unhygienic living conditions, this also lead to unemployment. Unemployment meant no income and money so people lived in poverty and was not able to pay for medicine or school. This resulted in a cycle which was hard to break. Most poor countries depend on selling their crops (e. g. sugar, cocoa, coffee, bananas, etc. ) to other countries but despite that fact, Ghana is not getting richer.When Ghana tries to sell their crops to a richer country, it faces large tariffs which put buyers off. The world price of many crops are falling because too much is being grown and also big food companies who buy most of their crops force the price down. The tariffs stop crops being sold and the falling world prices mean they earn less. At the same time, farmers in richer and more developed countries who grow similar crops get subsidies for them. Those crops are the shipped to poorer countries at such low prices the local farmers cannot compete with and so hey go out of business. Poorer countries cannot stop those imports because the World Bank has forced them to lower tariffs in exchange for their loans. In 2000 there was a campaign in the UK to cancel the debt of some of the world’s poorest countries. The campaign was a success and this meant that the money that would be used to repay their debt could be used to develop their countries. They could spend it on clean water supplies, healthcare, education and other things.Ghana has many natural resources and the discovery of oil meant it could be used or sold and the natural gases could be used to power objects and generate electricity. I think that the main reason why Ghana is still an LEDC is because it cannot repay its huge debt since it cannot sell its crops fairly because powerful companies force their prices down unfairly. Hopefully their debt will be cance lled by the richer countries so they can concentrate on developing their country. Sources: http://www. economist. com/content/global_debt_clock , geog. 3- Oxford

body modification essays

body modification essays Dictionary definitions are always helpful in making things more clear. The definition of mutilate is: to make imperfect by excising or altering parts. Mutilation is making imperfect. There are a few listed definitions of art. The first is: human effort to imitate, supplement, alter, or counteract the work of nature. The second definition is: the conscious production or arrangement of sounds, colors, forms, movements, or other elements in a manner that affects the sense of beauty, specifically the production of the beautiful in a graphic or plastic medium (American Heritage...). Here is the loophole. Altering what is natural is part of a definition for both mutilate and art. Therefore, mutilation is art. However, art is not making imperfect. Why is body mutilation viewed so differently than many other art forms? Body mutilation is a form of art that should be accepted, as so many others are. Before one can make a judgment on this subject, a good bit of knowledge is needed. Fear of the unknown can sometimes lead people to form harsh opinions, or to even hold them back from doing things they really want to do. Here is a clear explanation of how these basic types of body modification are actually done, and how the human body is transformed into a beautiful work of art. Tattoos: A Tattoo is a body modification in which the skin is permanently colored by ink being placed under the skin in a desired pattern. Traditionally, tattoos were merely done with a small sharp object that had been placed in ink and then pierced into the skin. This method is commonly used by amateur tattoo artists and often only used on themselves and their close friends. Professional tattoo guns are built on the same concept except that they are normally powered by a small motor and controlled by a foot pedal (Tattoo Information). Tattooing is an expressive, dramatic, and diverse art, whose only limitation is imagination. Tattoos can take up to any amount of tim...

As Good As It Gets essays

As Good As It Gets essays In this essay review of As Good As It Gets I will discuss the genre of the film, the form of the film (narrative), and narrative elements within the film. One way to categorize a film is to determine what genre it is. Genres, by definition are various types of films that audiences and filmmakers recognize by their familiar narrative conventions (Bordwell et al. 503). The genre of the film As Good As It Gets would be classified as a romantic comedy. Genre conventions are common characteristics that reappear in a certain type of genre of a film again and again. In a romantic comedy one would anticipate a funny film with a romantic storyline between a man and a woman in a traditional sense. Genres can also be defined through conventional iconography, which are reoccurring symbols or images that carry meaning from film to film. Even certain actors can serve as iconography for a film. In this case, As Good As It Gets has many actors that are typically cast in comedies. Helen Hunt, who has been on a sit-com on television with Paul Riser, a real-life comedian, took her shot at the silver screen cast along side Jack Nicholson in the romantic comedy. Cuba Gooding Jr. who plays a small role in the film is best known for his comic roles. Nicholson who has an extensive resume in film has starred in many different roles from comedies, to drama, and horror. Therefore, one may associate certain actors with a specific type of genre of film. In addition to the genre of the film we can also consider the films form. As Good As It Gets is a narrative, or story where a chain of events takes place that are derived from a cause and effect relationship. The narrative will start with a certain situation and through a cause and effect relationship a series of events will take place in the film that brings about a new situation for the outcome of the film. In the film As Good As It Gets, the narrative begins with an obsessive-compuls...