Killing Their Innocence - 671 Words

Killing Their Innocence So here I was, watching a couple of kids, a brother (9) and a sister (11), during the Super Bowl this year while their parents were downstairs watching the game. We were playing the board game â€Å"LIFE†. All was going well, and then the brother (we’ll call him Sam) got bored as kids do. So Sam pulled out his iPhone and started looking for an app to appease his boredom. Before I knew it, Sam opened a gun app. This application allows the user to select any type of gun, ranging from hand pistols to machine guns, and make it â€Å"shoot† by shaking the phone which is augmented by the camera flash going off each time the gun fires. My blood ran cold as I watched him â€Å"play around† and â€Å"shoot† his sister. The only thing missing from the reality of shooting someone for this precious boy was the bullet ripping through his loved one. It was all I could do to stop him from running downstairs and pretend to kill his dad with an AK 47. We eventually moved on to a kid-friendly movie as Sam again grew bored, but the affect does not end there. To this day, this event still haunts my conscience. How do we as society come to see our youth play-shooting family members as normal?! This is unacceptable! And here is where I take my stand: We as the role models for the next generation need to stop standing idly by as our children become more and more desensitized to wanton violence in our media. In the long run, apps and games have a strong, long-lasting effect on the youth ofShow MoreRelatedTerrorism Is Morally Unjustifiable By Stephen Nathanson1477 Words   |  6 Pagesthat Nathanson’s definition of innocence, which is mostly used as the core gauge of why terrorism is morally unjustifiable, is badly restricting in that it excludes the cases of political assassinations. Consequently, this insinuates that when using his definition of innocence, attacks on political figureheads may be morally justifiable if it is done for a just cause. To support this thesis I will argue that, although, political assassinations do not involve the killing of innocents they are, in mostRead MoreLord Of The Flies Innocence Theme Essay927 Words   |  4 Pageschildren is not present in this novel. Face paint, pig killings, and disrespect towards one another show the diminishing innocence in the book. Therefore, as the boys turn to savageness, they lose their innocence and display evil.   Ã‚  Ã‚   In a literary criticism done by Gale Student Resources, the major theme pointed out is that there is an element of evil within us all. In the story, Golding shows that the young boys are capable of evil acts. The innocence is not within the children. (â€Å"Lord of the Flies†)Read MoreLord Of The Flies Nature Analysis1027 Words   |  5 PagesCline Ms.Tantlinger Honors English 10 2 January 2018 Man’s Evil State of Nature shown through the Loss of Innocence in Jack and the Hunters The novel Lord of the Flies, is an excellent exemplar written by William Golding in showing the true evil state of man’s nature. It captures young british school boys who have landed on an island due to a plane crash who work their way into losing innocence, acting like adults and starting caos. The boys were placed into a dream location for kids with no adultsRead MoreKill A Mockingbird By Harper Lee1394 Words   |  6 Pagestheme in the novel, innocence. When teaching the kids how to shoot rifles, Atticus declares firmly, â€Å"Shoot all the bluejays you want, if you can hit em, but remember it’s a sin to kill a mockingbird† (119).Scout learns from Miss Maudie, a neighbor, that a mockingbird doesn’t harm people in anyway and to kill them would be a sin because of their innocence and inability to defend themselves for merely existing. Because the novel is written from a child’s perspective, innocence hovers in many aspectsRead MoreLord of t he Flies by William Golding725 Words   |  3 Pagesby William Golding, the author utilizes symbolism to convey the regression the boys undergo from being civilized to being barbaric. The mask symbolizes the boys freedom from societys expectation and there is the brutal killing of the sow, which illustrates their loss of innocence and fall to savagery. By portraying this relapse into barbarism, Golding seems to be commenting on the violent nature of humanities’ basic instinct. Golding utilizes the mask as symbol of liberation from societalRead More Loss of Innocence in Truman Capotes In Cold Blood Essay870 Words   |  4 Pagesthings truly wicked start from an innocence,† states Ernest Hemingway on his view of innocence. Innocence, what every youth possesses, is more accurately described as a state of unknowing but not ignorance- which connotation suggests a blissfully positive view of the world. Most youth are protected from the harsh realities of the adult world. Therefore they are able to maintain their state of innocence. While innocence normally wanes over time, sometimes innocence can be abruptly taken away. SomeRead MoreJust Lather, Thats All1312 Words   |  6 Pages(government official) are similar because they both value human life whereas they are different because the barber values his occupation and innocence and Captain Torres values the government and his reputation. The barber and Captain Torres show that they both value huma n life as they both show a dislike for murder. The barber shows that he values innocence when he says that no one deserves the sacrifice of becoming a murderer and he shows that he values his occupation because he constantly talksRead MoreThe Flea: Rhetoric and Poetry Mingling1180 Words   |  5 Pagesand the woman, transcend the institution of marriage. The speaker brings the woman’s attention to how killing the flea would not just be murder; it would be suicidal and sacrilegious. He warns the woman to not â€Å"[l]et†¦that self-murder added be,/And sacrilege, three sins in killing three†¦Ã¢â‚¬ , thus three sins would weigh on her. In killing the flea she metaphorically kills herself, the speaker, and killing their metaphorical marriage (which is only present within the flea) thus enacting blasphemously (DonneRead MoreLoss of Innocence in A Long Way Gone: Memoirs of a Boy Soldier1486 Words   |  6 PagesA prominent theme in A Long Way Gone is about the loss of innocence from the involvement in the war. A Long Way Gone is the memoir of a young boy, Ishmael Beah, wanders in Sierra Leone who struggles for survival. Hoping to survive, he ended up raiding villages from the rebels and killing everyone. One theme in A long Way Gone is that war give innocent people the lust for revenge, destroys childhood and war became part of their daily life. In the A Long Way Gone, Ishmael Beah, a twelve-year-old explainsRead MoreTo Kill A Mockingbird Analysis Essay805 Words   |  4 Pagescreativity produces a now, award winning book that she considers to be a simple love story that has transformed into a masterpiece. (Cover copy) To Kill a Mockingbird takes place in the town of Maycomb with a small population full of big personalities. â€Å"Killing a mockingbird† is something that almost everyone in the town did because of all the racist and unjust actions they did whether they realize it or not. To Kill a Mockingbird starts with the main character Scout, her brother Jem, and her father Atticus

SAS Institute Case Analysis Free Essays

1. Basic Business Model The business model of SAS is such that it in general it offers services coupled with software. Unlike typical firms in the industry it follows an annual software subscription model. We will write a custom essay sample on SAS Institute Case Analysis or any similar topic only for you Order Now Rather than sell its software, SAS leases to its customers – a strategy of immense importance in understanding the company’s relationship to its users. The fact that leases must be renewable annually creates a tremendous emphasis on customer satisfaction and quality in addition to stabilising its revenue. Furthermore, its products are made based on what customers require and its developmental process is almost wholly customer driven. There is also a strong focus on employee satisfaction leading to customer retention and loyalty which SAS believes is directly linked to customer satisfaction. As seen by the SAS Institute, the leasing strategy helps keep the company sharp by ensuring that technological advances are driven solely by customer needs. 2. Capabilities and Core Competencies to execute its Business Model SAS possesses many capabilities and competencies to help execute its business model effectively. These include flexibility from being a private company, an effective tacit leadership, unique corporate culture, strong brand, dedicated human capital and a considerable amount of financial resources which they efficiently allocate to certain projects whenever required. Being private, it is able to focus on the long term, continue to implement activities which have a strong focus on employee satisfaction and focus on slower but steady growth, something that would have most likely have not been possible had SAS been a public company. With a strong leadership spearheaded by CEO Jim Goodnight, coupled with a strong brand, SAS is able to recruit and retain the key talent it requires to execute its business model. Having a corporate culture which is egalitarian and based on mutual trust and respect also plays a significant role in retaining talent and keeping employees loyal and happy. With a dedicated human capital striving to continue the company’s growth, SAS does not only come up with innovative products which increase its revenue, it also saves more than $100million due to its low attrition rate. Key Success Factors The key factors are its unconventional management philosophies, customer driven developmental process and it being a private company. Unlike other software companies that focus on monetary benefits, SAS’s management philosophy is mainly employee centred with the provision of many intangible benefits. It also believes in a long term view of all issues and does not actively strive to reac h specified short term financial goals. These have led to a build up of a loyal and talented workforce and sustainable long term growth. Moreover, its products are built on customer needs and customer feedback is taken very seriously. Using the Voice of the Customer (VOC) approach, customer opinions and suggestions are compiled and used to guide the development process. Being a private company with no debt has allowed Goodnight to have a long term view of issues and also implement the abovementioned policies to provide employee satisfaction and consequently customer satisfaction as well. . Building of Capabilities and Core Competencies via People Management Practices With attraction and retention of talent central to the company’s continuing success, it has developed certain principles in its recruitment, compensation, employee benefits and outsourcing policies. It has a stringent recruitment process to ensure the cultural fit of its new hires and thereafter gives its employees as much autonomy as possible. It also actively promotes a work life balance and egalitarian culture with a promotion of non financial incentives, unlike other software firms thus creating a unique corporate culture, â€Å"One of cooperation, teamwork and mutual respect† . Moreover its flat organization structure, open door policy and informal work environment encourages communication at all levels of the organization.. This has also led to the development of a strong brand and increased employee satisfaction which not only enables the company to attract but also retain talent. As shown in the diagram above, this leads to increased customer satisfaction and thus increasing revenues. All in all, these practices have helped promote the building of its capabilities and competencies to a large extent ?Is the SAS Model perfectly in balance? With SAS focussed on long term growth and emphasizing non monetary benefits for its employees, this model has been almost perfect for them. It is not fair to say that the model is perfectly in balance as a firm’s model is largely determined by its capabilities and core competencies. A public company for instance would not enjoy the flexibility that SAS enjoys. It would not be able to provide such extensive employee benefits or focus on long term growth at the expense of short term profitability. No model can fit all organizations and be perfectly in balance and SAS is not different. For example, if its model is in balance, its attrition rate despite being low would be 0 and not 4%. 4. Difficulties in imitating SAS’s approach Being such a differentiated company compared to the rest of the industry in many aspects, it is difficult to duplicate SAS’s approach which is based heavily on intangible assets. â€Å"†¦intangible assets almost never create value by themselves. They need to be combined with other assets. † Hence, not only do these intangible assets such as SAS’s unique corporate culture take years to implement, it is also hard to imitate as the social complexity of a company’s culture is so ambiguous that it is almost impossible to find out how it works and combines with each other. ?Why few firms have tried to implement many of its People Management Practices Big companies with strong brands such as IBM could follow its stringent recruitment process but would not be able to imitate its unique culture as easily. With most companies providing incentive compensations and stock options, it would not be easy to eliminate that and emphasize non-monetary incentives. This is especially so when public companies would have to go through its board just to provide employee benefits on a similar scale as SAS. It would also be unfeasible to bring outsourced functions back in-house as it would most certainly drive up labour costs and hence be blocked by a hard-nosed board. 5. Extent to which SAS is dependent on continuation of its CEO With a flat organization structure and having 27 direct reports, Goodnight also appears o be very much on top of all the details of the organization. Conversely, he appears to give his direct reports a clear direction of where SAS Institute is going on the product or technology front, and then let them run their own areas. Even though Goodnight is no longer directly involved with most decisions related to SAS’s work culture, his original vision has spawned a self-perp etuating culture, and â€Å"new† decision makers now share his vision, which governs the variety of philosophies, strategies, and practices adopted by the company since its inception. Even though the culture looks so strong that it would survive a change in leadership, the new CEO would not only have to possess business leadership ability but also shares the same values as Goodnight so that SAS does not deviate from its current approach to its business and management. Hence, with no formal succession planning and still being heavily involved in almost all aspects of the organization, the SAS institute approach to its business and management is heavily dependent on Goodnight’s continuation. . Theory of Human Motivation and Behaviour underlying SAS’s Management Approach Maslow’s Needs Hierarchy seems to underlie SAS’s approach to people management. 7. Barriers in implementing knowledge of how SAS manages its people Firstly, a barrier in trying to implement freedom and autonomy coupled with possessing employees with intrinsic motivation is not only the lack of talent but finding talent with the required characteristics. Secondly, extensive employee benefits such as a gym, day-care and the absence of commission-based pay for its account representatives would most likely not been possible if a company is public. Thirdly, a lack of explicit support and encouragement from top management would be another barrier as this is important for the promotion of an egalitarian culture based on trust and mutual respect on top of a family-friendly atmosphere. 8. Major Challenges SAS may face in the next 5 years and its Impact Due to the changing dynamics of the software industry and increasing global competition, the company has to expand its talent pool which is already in shortage. Hence, there might be a need for the company to come out with new ways to attract talent. Practices such as providing more career advancement opportunities would be important in retaining them. Another challenge would be to develop current staff to meet future needs whilst nurturing its talent to fulfil their potential. SAS might have to change its current unstructured approach where employees are free to come up with and develop their own projects and idea. A more structured approach to its job design could be considered to help nurture and develop staff. In general, SAS’s practices have been working for them and look to be able to continue to help them succeed. However, certain aspects could be improved in the future to overcome potential future people management problems such a new generation of workers demanding a different set of benefits than the one SAS currently offers. . Lessons drawn By paying extraordinary attention to its customers and employees, the company has differentiated itself from other companies in the competitive industry, and subsequently has created this â€Å"wheel of loyalty† which resulted in both employee and customer retention. For various HRM practices such as recruitment and selection, great care must be taken to ensure all practices are designed to fit t he company’s business model and culture and at the same time also highlights its strengths, to promote a competitive advantage. For instance, during recruitment, SAS took great care to hire people to ensure a cultural fit. In addition, its job design was such to fit into its philosophy of trust and autonomy between its employees. There should also be a strong relationship between management and employees to produce competitive advantage, hence SAS’s promotion of an egalitarian culture. ?Future of HRM in firms like SAS The future of HR should be one that is committed to working with line managers to improve SAS’s bottom line, create service value for customers and create workplace value for employees. Leadership and management training should be initiated for senior managers while knowledge sharing within the HR function would be vital for SAS to move forward and expand globally. HR should also become a champion for employees while working to increase employee contributions, specifically commitment and ability to deliver results, be an agent for continuous transformation, and cultivating a culture that will improve SAS’s capacity for change. How to cite SAS Institute Case Analysis, Papers

Sop for Design Management free essay sample

Statement of Purpose In writing my personal statement, I have come to find that the entire process is actually a process of introspection and summarizing, and conducting deep reflections on the course of my life over the past ten years. In the high school, I accidentally came across a book about branding and retail management that triggered my vague interest in marketing communication and management. In retrospect, it was precisely this vague notion that developed into a strong desire, an unshakable ideal that I am determined to pursue with lifelong dedication.But when I succeeded in my National Institute of Fashion Technology, exam, I started loving art and fashion, and creativity and imagination became natural extensions of my enthusiasm. Inventing, experimenting, growing, taking risks, breaking rules, making mistakes, and having fun is what creativity to me is, and my imagination became the beginning of any creation. This was the first opportunity that I missed. We will write a custom essay sample on Sop for Design Management or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page After graduating from my college, I was recruited by an export house in India as a garment designer.Even though my distinguished professional performance brought me honours, status, generous salaries and perquisites and to some extent a creative satisfaction, my dream to be involved in brand design, marketing and strategic alliance failed to materialise. But deep inside my heart, I had always cherished the unquenchable wish to demonstrate my talents in building up a brand, marketing and management, to taste the real joy of doing what I like.My first introduction to design management came as a result of an encounter with Sudipt S G, Director Operations and Branding, Catmoss India Ltd. , a retail brand in India for kids wear. It was a result of this encounter that I was able to get detailed understanding of the subject and in light of this, my passion, focus and interest reinvigorated and I decided to take up Master’s program in Design Management.My more than five years of experience in the apparel and fashion industry of India and my degree from National Institute of Fashion Technology in Fashion Designing and Information Technology has provided me with a strong foundation as well as fortified me with good communications skills, personal communications as well as organizational communications skills, bearing in mind that the i mportance of proper communication in the business environment cannot be ver-emphasized. I have received thorough professional training in elements of design, fashion styling, marketing and merchandising, fashion art illustration, traditional Indian textile, surface ornamentation, history of costume, garment construction, pattern making and graphic based software. I have been taught by some eminent fashion designers like Ms. Ritu Beri, Mr. Manish Arora and renowned artists of India and have interned under their guidance.Being in the fashion and apparel industry for five years, I have learnt a lot about forecasting and trends of the upcoming seasons and applied my knowledge of graphic software for making illustrations, mood boards, layouts, trend boards and CADs of various prints and can visualize style and design the actual product. I have given my previous organizations a profitable business through selection of various samples by international buyers such as Zara, Mango, Next, Chico’s, Esprit, Top Shop, Miss Selfridges, River Island and others.My professional qualifications and work experience has provided a strong foundation for my creativity and imagination. It has enhanced my analytical and critical skills. I am adept at presenting complex material and analysis to clients and all levels of management. I can develop design strategy towards production and can plan and develop the production process effectively. I plan range from concept through finished layout and have highly developed artistic vision and proficiency in related artwork and illustrations.I’ve also developed visual products like logos, brochures and trademarks to formal acceptance as registered designs and greeting cards, catalogues, magazine cover for various retailers in India as freelance projects. I’ve also designed catalogues, layouts of children’s book and brochures for a company named ‘Blue Fish’ and website for my brand of glass paintings named Arte en Glas. I’m empanelled as a Designer in ‘O/o’. Development Commissioner of Handicrafts, Ministry of Textiles, and Govt. f India where I work with various non-profit organizations to teach women and children various handicrafts for their up-liftment by developing a unique and artistic range of handicraft produc ts like accessories, lifestyle products, paintings. I have been appreciated by the director of Development Commissioner of Handicrafts for contemporizing the Indian craft to suit the interests of the modern age public. The products are well received in the Indian market and are available at various retail outlets and emporiums of India for sale.Presently I’m working on a project with an NGO named URIDA for developing a range of handicraft products with embroidery as their craft by the artisans of this NGO who are especially women from the lower sections of the society. I teach and get the lifestyle products made which we market across New Delhi to generate revenue and employment for these women by taking orders from various retail outlets and exporters. These products are also exhibited by the government organized exhibitions all over the country.I want to pursue Master’s in Design Management for the Fashion Industries, majoring in brand design, marketing and technological innovation in London college of Fashion, Univer sity of the Arts, London. The Design Management for the Fashion Industries course offered at the college offers flexibility to suit my interests. I believe that studying at LCF would infuse the knowledge needed to cope with ever-changing social and environmental factors, and creative departments which are starving for competing designers who are capable of upholding brand identities.It would be an important opportunity to study in a hub city like London, where I would not only gain firsthand experience, but broaden my horizons due to its rich cultural and ethnic diversity. This would enhance my intellectual exposure and will significantly improve my future prospects in the fashion marketing field. With my background and ambition, I believe that I can be an asset to your college and make many positive contributions.

The Imperfect Tense in Spanish

The Imperfect Tense in Spanish The imperfect tense in Spanish is the tense that expresses action in the past that has not been completed, that occurred habitually or frequently, or that took place over an indefinite period of time. It contrasts with the preterite tense, which expresses​ an action that took place at a definite time or has been completed. English does not have an imperfect tense per se, although it has other ways of expressing the concept of the Spanish imperfect, such as by context or by saying that something used to happen or was happening. The preterite and imperfect tenses are often referred to as the two simple past tenses of Spanish. The imperfect tense can also be contrasted with the perfect tenses of Spanish, which refer to completed action. (Although the usage is no longer common, the English perfect is sometimes a synonym of complete.) Spanish has past perfect, present perfect and future perfect tenses. By itself, the term imperfect tense usually refers to its indicative form. Spanish also has two forms of the subjunctive imperfect, which are nearly always interchangeable. The imperfect is known as the pretà ©rito imperfecto in Spanish. Forming the Imperfect Tense The indicative imperfect is conjugated  in the following pattern for regular -ar, -er and -ir verbs: Hablar: yo hablaba, tà º hablabas, usted/à ©l/ella hablaba, nosotros/nosotras hablbamos, vosotros/vosotras hablabais, ustedes/ellos/ellas hablaban.Beber: yo bebà ­a, tà º bebà ­as, usted/à ©l/ella bebà ­a, nosotros/nosotras bebà ­amos, vosotros/vosotras bebà ­ais, ustedes/ellos/ellas bebà ­an.Vivir: yo vivà ­a, tà º vivà ­as, usted/à ©l/ella vivà ­a, nosotros/nosotras vivà ­amos, vosotros/vosotras vivà ­ais, ustedes/ellos/ellas vivà ­an. The subjunctive form in more common use is conjugated as follows: Hablar: yo hablara, tà º hablaras, usted/à ©l/ella hablara, nosotros/nosotras hablramos, vosotros/vosotras hablarais, ustedes/ellos/ellas hablaran.Beber: yo bebiera, tà º bebieras, usted/à ©l/ella bebiera, nosotros/nosotras bebià ©ramos, vosotros/vosotras bebierais, ustedes/ellos/ellas bebieran.Vivir: yo viviera, tà º vivieras, usted/à ©l/ella viviera, nosotros/nosotras vivieramos, vosotros/vosotras vivierais, ustedes/ellos/ellas vivieran. Uses for the Imperfect Tense One of the most common uses of the present tenses is to tell of past actions that did not have a clear beginning or end. These may involve situations or repeated actions that occurred over an indefinite period of time. A simple example is Asistà ­amos a la escuela or We attended the school. Use of the imperfect tense indicates that it is unimportant when the attendance began and ended- in fact, asistà ­amos could be used even if the speaker is still a student at the school as long as the students attended in the past. Note that there is a subtle meaning of difference from the preterite equivalent, Asistimos a la escuela, which also could be translated as We attended the school. The preterite suggests the speaker no longer attended the school, or that the reference is to a specific time. Similarly, the imperfect is used in specifying the background of another event. For example, Nos conocimos cuando asistà ­amos a la escuela, or We met each other when we were attending the school. Conocimos is in the preterite from because it refers to an incident that occurred at a specific time, but the background portion of the sentence uses the imperfect. Translation of the imperfect to English depends on the context. The most frequent translations for asistà ­amos include we attended, we used to attend, we were attending, and we would attend. Sample Sentences Using the Imperfect Tense Spanish imperfect verbs (in boldface) with possible English translations are shown below. Él cantaba. (He used to sing. The English translation shows how the activity occurred over an indefinite, extended period of time.)Ella escribà ­a la carta. (She was writing the letter. Note that in this and the above example, out of context the verb doesnt indicate when or even whether the action came to an end.)Yo conocà ­a a Eva. (I knew Eva. Conocer can mean to know or to meet. The use of the imperfect here shows that the activity took place over an indefinite period of time, so knew makes sense here.)Una mujer murià ³ en el hospital mientras estaba bajo custodia. (A woman died in the hospital while she was in custody. This sentence shows the use of the imperfect for background.)Cuando era estudiante, jugaba todo el tiempo. (When he was a student, he would play all the time.)Dudo que mi madre comprara alguna vez esa revista. (I doubt that my mother ever bought that magazine. The imperfect is used here because the possible event wouldnt have happened at a particular time.)U n gran buffet estaba a la disposicià ³n de ellos para que comieran todo lo que quisieran. (A huge buffet was at their disposal so they could eat whatever they wanted. Note how the context requires different ways of translating the subjunctive.) Key Takeaways The imperfect tense is one of the two Spanish simple past tenses, the other being the preterite.The imperfect tense is used when the beginning and end of the action are unknown, unspecified, and/or unimportant.One common use of the imperfect is in describing events that serve as background for another event.

An Introduction to Dog Intelligence and Emotion

An Introduction to Dog Intelligence and Emotion We feed them, we let them sleep in our beds, we play with them, we even talk to them. And of course, we love them. Any dog-owner will tell you that their pet has a remarkable capacity to understand the world around them. And they’re right. Scientists have figured out great ways to find out exactly what human’s best friend is capable of. The Science of Animal Cognition Over the past several years, one of the biggest advances in our human understanding of doggie cognition has been the use of MRI machines to scan dog brains. MRI stands for magnetic resonance imaging, the process of taking an ongoing picture of what parts of the brain are lighting up through what external stimuli. Dogs, as any doggie parent knows, are highly trainable. This trainable nature makes dogs great candidates for MRI machines, unlike non-domesticated wild animals like birds or bears. Ragen McGowan, a scientist at Nestlà © Purina specializing in dog cognition, takes full advantage of a certain type of MRI machine, the fMRI (which stands for functional MRI), to study these animals. These machines detect changes in blood flow and use that to measure brain activity. Through ongoing research, McGowan has found out a lot about animal  cognition and feelings. In a study done in 2015, McGowan found that a human’s presence leads to increased blood flow to a dog’s eyes, ears and paws, which means the dog is excited. McGowan also studied what happens to dogs when they are being petted. We’ve known for some time that for humans, petting a beloved animal can lead to lower rates of stress and anxiety. Well, it turns out the same is true for dogs. When humans pet shelter dogs for 15 minutes or more, the dog’s heart rate decreases and it becomes less anxious overall. Another recent study on dog cognition found that our beloved companion animals can tell the difference in our emotional expressions. In another study done with the fMRI machine, scientists found that not only can dogs tell the difference between happy and sad human faces, they also respond differently to them. As Smart as Children Animal psychologists have clocked dog intelligence at right around that of a two to two-and-a-half-year-old human child. The 2009 study which examined this found that dogs can understand up to 250 words and gestures. Even more surprising, the same study found that dogs can actually count low numbers (up to five) and even do simple math. And have you ever experienced the emotions of your dog while you’re petting another animal or paying attention to something else? Do you imagine they feel something like human jealousy? Well, there’s science to back this up, too. Studies have found that dogs do, in fact, experience jealousy. Not only that, but dogs do their best to figure out how to â€Å"handle† the thing that’s taking their parent’s attention - and if they have to force the attention back on them, they will. Dogs have been studied for their empathy, as well. A 2012 study examined dogs’ behavior towards distressed humans that weren’t their owners. While the study concluded that dogs display an empathy-like behavior, the scientists writing the report decided that it may be better explained as â€Å"emotional contagion† and a history of being rewarded for this type of emotional alertness. Is it empathy? Well, it sure seems like it. Numerous other studies on dog behavior, emotion, and intelligence have found that dogs â€Å"eavesdrop† on human interactions to assess who is mean to their owner and who isn’t and that dogs follow their human’s gaze. These studies may just be the tip of the iceberg when it comes to our learning about dogs. And as for doggie parents? Well, they may know a lot more than the rest of us, just by observing their best canine companions every day. The studies done on dog cognition all illuminate one thing: that humans may know much less about dog brains than we previously thought. As time goes on, more and more scientists are becoming interested in animal research, and with each new study done, we find out more about how our beloved pets think.

Conclusion and Recommendation for report evaluate 3 e-business website Assignment

Conclusion and Recommendation for report evaluate 3 e-business website - Assignment Example Though, they might not be willing to make a purchase but they may have friends that find the products being sold there interesting and hence, act as potential customers. So, a person that clicks â€Å"Recommend to Friends† button indirectly becomes a sales person for the website. Unfortunately, Baskinrobins.com, maggiemoose.com and benjerry.com did not think of using any such option. This websites however, can greatly benefit from this entity not just in terms of generating online traffic, but also in increasing sales and profitability. There are some other factors on which these websites need to focus upon, following are few of them. Segmentation The segmentation of baskinrobbins.com is well managed, giving ease to client’s understandability. It can be seen that the website categorizes the demand of cakes in three categories based on special day, membership and geography. In comparison to baskinrobbin.com, the two sites, maggiemoos.com and banjerry.com lack such effect ive segmentation. There is a dire need of segmentation in these two websites based on the customer's purchase behavior across several product categories. It has been seen that benefits sought can also make use of more analytical information rather than plain descriptive demographic profiling (Bhatnagar & Ghose, 2002). Customers’ reviews On the broad canvas of e-commerce, where sellers and buyer do not really interact in tangible manner, there always comes a problem of decision making. A person may not be sure of its reliability and may hesitate in placing the order. However, this dilemma will automatically be resolved if the person is recommended of the website by some other customer who has used the product before. In e-commerce websites, customers review acts as word of mouth. If a website lacks customers review, one can lose several doubtful but potential customers. Same is the case with baskinrobbin.com, maggiemoos.com and benjerry.com. A scrap book or comment on several new or famous cakes should be provided to give an insight of products and services to eliminate doubts and boost up customers confidence. Online security When it comes to online shopping, the only threat that hinders decision of customer is financial security. In case of baskinrobbin.com, it has not only provided personal information security, but also financial security. When a customer enters his/her credit card number or bank account it is encrypted by sophisticated software program (secured socket layer technology or SSL), so any potential hacker cannot access it. On the other hand, Maggiemoos.com and benjerry.com lack security measurements. Recent security glitch has been disclosed about benjerry.com where an invoice of a lady was shown by simple Google search. Though, it only showed personal information and address, but fraudster could use this data as a starting point of their fraud scheme. Security should be provided to the fullest to retain potential customers (Woffenden, 2 010). Content It is commonly said that content is king. It is what search marketers have been harping for years, because a site rich in content is definitely more useful than a site with poor/copied content. Creating rich content provides value to readers, who may be willing to pass this nugget of knowledge to others through links on their blogs, forwarded e-mails or simply word of mouth. In maggiemoos.com, benjerry.com and

Entrepreneurial characteristics Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Entrepreneurial characteristics - Essay Example Risk taking Risk taking is defined as a factor thing or element which exposes a person to a certain danger or which has negative impact on the person. Risk taking in business entails venturing into an idea or activity that might have negative impact on entrepreneur yet the same idea can bring positive outcome to the entrepreneur. Successful entrepreneurs need to have the ability to take risks in order to gain maximum benefits in case the idea succeeds. In many condition, opportunities are full of uncertainties as there are no ways to confirm if the move will be beneficial or not. As a result, many entrepreneurs are unable to venture in such ideas an aspect that makes them lose the ability to succeed. This enables an entrepreneur with this characteristic to fully own the idea and reap its benefits without intense competition (Gerber, 2009). If the idea succeeds, other business people utilize the idea but the entrepreneur who invented it will have created customer trust and barriers fo r the competitors to make use of the idea. This helps him in succeeding in the markets through gaining the largest market share and creating loyalty of the target customers towards the idea or product. One of the entrepreneurs who had taken risks in venturing in business is Michelle Moan. Despite her age she took a risk of investing in making bras that were more comfortable. As a result of going against all odds, she became successful and established MJM international which is one of the leading businesses in the world. The success of Moan was as a result of risk taking in an area that looked unpromising for many entrepreneurs. In 2000 she was awarded a world business achiever award which is a prestigious award given to entrepreneurs who has shown outstanding performance and innovation. This puts a challenge to entrepreneurs to be innovative and create ideas out of a challenge that they might be experiencing or a challenge facing the society. For a successful entrepreneur, an idea d espite how challenging it looks must be analyzed to look at its potential. Response to change Response to change is the act of reacting as a result of a certain change that has occurred in the sector, government or country at large. The world has become dynamic with many changes being experienced each day. For an entrepreneur to be successful he must monitor these changes as they might create an opportunity. New government policies are some of the changes that might create an opportunity for an entrepreneur. When an opportunity unveils an entrepreneur must be quick to respond to it through investing. This provides the entrepreneur with the opportunity to retrieve maximum benefits from the opportunity (Gerber, 2009). Response to change in case of an opportunity is determined by the flexibility of an entrepreneur. A flexible entrepreneur is one who is ready to shift from one way of doing things to another in order to fit in the new procedures that might be of great benefit. The best s trategy for an entrepreneur to become flexible is through setting aside capital that could be used to invest in a new opportunity. Such an act creates a difference between successful entrepreneurs and those who are not successful. In an example, changes in technological levels in the world created an opportunity for Steve Jobs to start Apple Inc which deal with various electronics such as iPod, iTunes, Mac laptops, desktop etc. His reaction was first despite the risks that faced investing in a sector that recorded major failures from previous