Thursday, October 31, 2019

Management of service quality issue Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 4000 words

Management of service quality issue - Essay Example The valet parking service is generally provided by establishments such as hotels, restaurants, big business houses, malls and theatres. In the current research, various advantages and issues of valet parking with respect to the Address hotel has been discussed. The Address hotel is one of the well known and favourite destinations in Dubai. The hotel expects to increase its overall service quality and enhance customer satisfaction through better management of valet parking services. In order to identify the major problems in valet parking service quality, fishbone analysis and Pareto analysis tool have been used. Analysis of these two theories has revealed that there are six major problems which results in customer dissatisfaction and overall damage of the hotel’s brand image. After identification of these exact problems, various possible recommendations were suggested. Valet parking is convenient as well as affordable to the customers. In majority of cases, valet parking is ve ry cheap and affordable. Valet parking helps in improving the overall experience of the customer. The customers are able to start their experience with a pleasurable parking service facility. Introduction Valet parking is a common parking service provided by some stores, businesses and restaurants. The tradition was initiated in North America and then had spread to other parts of the globe such as Europe, Australia and Middle-east (Clarke and Chen, 2012). While self-parking customers need to find a parking place by themselves, in Valet parking the vehicles of customers are parked by an individual known as Valet. This kind of service either requires some charges to be paid by the car owner or it can be free of charge by the business or establishment. The major advantage of valet parking is that it is convenient. Customers need not walk distant places especially when they are carrying heavy things with them. A lot of handicapped customers rely on valet parking services as they cannot walk to the destination from a distant parking space. Valet parking is also convenient during bad weather conditions. In most of the high profile hotels and restaurants, valets are knowledgeable and professionals who are able to drive and place every model in their perfect places. It is also a method of saving space compared to normal street parking. The various venues where valet parking is currently used are single events, bar or restaurant locations, crowded settings, hotel locations, casinos, malls and airports (Kotler and Keller, 2006). Most individuals who provide valet parking services usually fall in the age group of 18-28. However, attendants as old as 60 can also be found working in this valet service. Turnover is quiet high for these services. Valet parking also includes certain types of equipments for example, valet podiums where vehicles are handed over to the valet, key boxes used for protecting and storing the keys and valet tickets to keep a check on the different ve hicles. In some urban areas and exceptional places, valet parking services are also provided for bikes. The purpose of the current project is to investigate and research the management of valet parking service. The project will throw light on how the service is being provided in five star hotels and how it is affecting the overall performance of these hotels. The organization taken for the project is Address hotel in Dubai. The Address hotel in Dubai is one of the well known hotel destinations. It is near by the sea shore and is situated in Dubai

Tuesday, October 29, 2019

If You Have to Ask and Pleasant Personality Essay Example for Free

If You Have to Ask and Pleasant Personality Essay 1.What Is A Pleasant Personality? No matter what you create in life before you can create it you have to know and understand what it is that you are creating. If you are not consciously creating then you will create through default with the outcomes being random, unpredictable and often unpleasant. A personality is your set of characteristics which is made up of your attitudes, your beliefs, your knowledge, your perceptions, your behaviours, your interests and other personal traits that you hold. Your personality communicates your quality as a person . Your pleasant personality distinguishes you and is what makes you appealing to others. We have all met and interacted with those who have unpleasant personalities and have experienced the upsets created that come from our exchanges with them. In order to consciously create your pleasant personality you must first be aware of what your attitudes and behaviours are towards people and life. You have to take ownership of your knowledge rather than pretending not to know or worse, refusing to acquire knowledge and skills . You have to examine your beliefs and your attitudes . Further, what mood level do you operate in? Can you move easily through the different moods or are you chronically stuck or fixed in a low mood level or in the pretense of a high mood level that you really dont feel? 2. Your Pleasant Personality  Your pleasant personality is defining you for those with whom you come in contact or interact with. What do you want people to know about you? How do you want to be perceived by others? What characteristics do you have? Are you helpful? Are you an inspiration to others? Do you have a sense of humor? Are you dependable? Are you empathetic? Are you friendly? Each of us has a unique blend of characteristics that contribute to our individual personalities. Draw on the best of these characteristics, the most positive of them and use your attributes and abilities to create your own, one of a kind, pleasant personality! Make a list of them if you have to. Your pleasant personality will shine through whatever identity you are wearing, be it your business identity, your spousal identity, your parental identity, your friend identity or any other number of identities you wear as you play your games in life. You may not wear the same identity to MacDonalds as you would to the Four Seasons but your pleasant personality will co-ordinate with any identity that you consciously and purposefully choose to wear. 3. Why Develop A Pleasant Personality? You can be the smartest person in the world and you can be willing to tackle whatever task is at hand but if you have failed to develop a pleasant personality you will be hard pressed for an audience and it is unlikely that you will be chosen as a vital member of a team. It is therefore vital that you develop a pleasant personality. It is essential as you go out and about in life that you be aware of what your personality is saying and demonstrating about you. Whether you like sales or not every time you interact with another or others you are giving a sales pitch. You are building a reputation and you are telling others who you are not just by your name but by the knowledge you have and the level or responsibility you take for that knowledge. Of equal importance is the personality you use to convey your messages to others. 4. What Are The Consequences Of Having A Pleasant Personality? From the above you will have identified the characteristics of your pleasant personality. If you find that your personality has been predominantly unpleasant ask yourself, What have been or could be the consequences of having an unpleasant personality? Keep asking yourself that question until all the consequences of having an unpleasant personality have been brought to view. Then, with your identified characteristics of a pleasant personality ask yourself, What have been or could be the consequences of having a pleasant personality? Keep asking yourself that question until all the consequences have been brought to view. If you find that you already have a pleasant personality your having defined the characteristics of that personality will allow you to take full ownership of and empower your pleasant personality. Ask yourself, What have been or could be the consequences of having a pleasant personality? Keep asking yourself the question until you have viewed all the consequence thereby acknowledging yourself while raising your confidence level. Having a pleasant personality and using it to its full extent will empower you in life and it will serve to empower and inspire others. Then, as Dr. Seuss so aptly put it, Oh the places you will go.

Saturday, October 26, 2019

Friday, October 25, 2019

Family-Centered Program of Education Essay example -- Education

What happens when you take the children out of the spotlight and focus on children with their families? You will get a family-centered approach to education. The Family-Centered approach believes that family involvement matters for a young child’s cognitive and social development. Family-Centered Program theories and concepts support the early childhood classroom and the child’s family. This can happen only if parents and educators work together to encourage desired behaviors from pre-school-aged children in both the pre-school and the home setting. The first thing that needs to be looked at to understand a child’s development is attachment. Attachment is a lasting emotional relationship that begins at birth and is a lifelong process. The first attachment a child has sets the tone for development as well as provides the basis of all future relationships (Gonzalez-Mena, 2009). Attachment gives infants a sense of well-being which happens when an adult responds sensitively and appropriately to a baby’s needs. Attachment happens in both children and adults. For adults this can happen almost right away from some. Signs that a parent/adult is attached are giving the child a name, buying items that are for the child, recognizing the child as an individual. Babies take longer than adults to show attachment. You can see when a child is attached when a child shows an emotional bond with someone. Not all cultural attachments happen the same ways. Child care caregivers have many of the same qualities that good parents have, so this promotes attachment as well. An infant caregiver needs to be sensitive to each infants needs to respond appropriately. As with parents attachment grows out of sensitivity and once again a synchronous relationshi... ...rk together to encourage attachment, self-help skills, empowerment, pro-social, and self-esteem behaviors from pre-school-aged children in both the pre-school and the home setting. Works Cited Bartlett, K. (2010, September 21). Empowering children with choices. Retrieved from http://theattachedfamily.com/membersonly/?p=2600 Gonzalez-Mena, J. (2009). Child, family, and community, family-centered early care and education. Pearson College Div. Hussey-Gardner, B. (2003). Parenting to make a difference. Retrieved from http://www.parentingme.com/selfhelp.htm Preusse, K. (n.d.). Fostering prosocial behavior in young children. Retrieved from http://www.earlychildhoodnews.com/earlychildhood/article_view.aspx?ArticleID=566 Sheslow, D. (2008, November). Developing your child's self-esteem. Retrieved from http://kidshealth.org/parent/positive/talk/self_esteem.html

Wednesday, October 23, 2019

Agenda Setting

1. Agenda Setting Theory the creation of what the public thinks is important History and Orientation Agenda setting describes a very powerful influence of the media – the ability to tell us what issues are important. As far back as 1922, the newspaper columnist Walter Lippman was concerned that the media had the power to present images to the public. McCombs and Shaw investigated presidential campaigns in 1968, 1972 and 1976. In the research done in 1968 they focused on two elements: awareness and information.Investigating the agenda-setting function of the mass media, they attempted to assess the relationship between what voters in one community said were important issues and the actual content of the media messages used during the campaign. McCombs and Shaw concluded that the mass media exerted a significant influence on what voters considered to be the major issues of the campaign. Core Assumptions and Statements Core:  Agenda-setting is the creation of public awareness a nd concern of salient issues by the news media.Two basis assumptions underlie most research on agenda-setting: (1) the press and the media do not reflect reality; they filter and shape it; (2) media concentration on a few issues and subjects leads the public to perceive those issues as more important than other issues. One of the most critical aspects in the concept of an agenda-setting role of mass communication is the time frame for this phenomenon. In addition, different media have different agenda-setting potential. Agenda-setting theory seems quite appropriate to help us understand the pervasive role of the media (for example on political communication systems).Statement:  Bernard Cohen (1963) stated: â€Å"The press may not be successful much of the time in telling people what to think, but it is stunningly successful in telling its readers what to think about. † Agenda Setting   as   defined in â€Å" Mass Media, Mass Culture† is the process whereby the ma ss media determine what we think and worry about. Walter Lippmann, a journalist first observed this function, in the 1920’s. Lippmann then pointed out that the media dominates over the creation of pictures in our head, he believed that the public reacts not to actual   events but to the pictures in our head.Therefore the agenda setting   process is used to remodel all the events occurring in our environment,   into   a simpler model before we deal with it. Researchers Maxwell McCombs and Donald Shaw have then followed this concept. McCombs and Shaw as pointed out by Littlejohn have best described the agenda setting function   in their book  Emergence of American Political Issues. In this book the authors point out that there is abundantly collected evidence that editors and broadcasters  Ã‚   play an important part   as they go through their day to day tasks   in deciding and publicizing news. This impact of the mass media- the ability to effect cognitive ch ange among among individuals, to structure their thinking- has been labeled the agenda-setting function of mass communication. Here may lie   the most important effect of mass communication, its ability to mentally order and organize our world for us. In short, the mass media may not be successful in telling us what to think, but they are stunningly successful in telling us what to think about. (McCombs and Shaw, 5) The common assumption of agenda- setting is that the ability of the media to influence the visibility of events in the public mind   has been apart of our culture for almost half a century. Therefore the concept of agenda setting in our society is for the press to selectively choose what we see or hear in the media. 2. Development Communication You must also know that communication is used as an empowerment tool. In other words, communication is used as a tool to facilitate the participation of people in development activities.Knowledge and information are essential for people to successfully respond to the opportunities and challenges of social, economic and technological changes. But to be useful, knowledge and information must be effectively communicated to people. Millions of people in developing countries are excluded from a wide range of information and knowledge, with the rural poor in particular remaining isolated from both traditional media and new information and communication technologies which would improve their life. Here, in ‘development communication’, you see that there are two words- ‘development’ and ‘communication’.By now, you know what communication means. You have also learnt that communication is a message understood or sharing of experience. When we refer to communication, in the context of development, we refer to various types of communication like interpersonal, group and mass communication. Now let’s try and understand the term ‘development’. It is not easy t o define this as it depends on the context. Development is about change. It is about changing for the better. It could be about social or economic change for improvement or progress.When we refer to development communication, it is about such communication that can be used for development. It is about using communication to change or improve something. Here we use different types of messages to change the socio-economic condition of people. These messages are designed to transform the behaviour of people or for improving their quality of life. Therefore, development communication can be defined as the use of communication to promote development. Those who write or produce programmes on issues related to development are called development communicators.Role of a development communicator The development communicator plays a very significant role in explaining the development process to the common people in such a way that it finds acceptance. In order to achieve this objective a devel opment communicator: – has to understand the process of development and communication; – should possess knowledge in professional techniques and should know the audience; – prepare and distribute development messages to millions of people in such a way that they are received and understood, accepted and applied.

Tuesday, October 22, 2019

Explaining Marx essays

Explaining Marx essays In Karl Marx's early writing on "estranged labour" there is a clear and prevailing focus on the plight of the labourer. Marx's writing on estranged labour is and attempt to draw a stark distinction between property owners and workers. In the writing Marx argues that the worker becomes estranged from his labour because he is not the recipient of the product he creates. As a result labour is objectified, that is labour becomes the object of mans existence. As labour is objectified man becomes disillusioned and enslaved. Marx argues that man becomes to be viewed as a commodity worth only the labour he creates and man is further reduced to a subsisting animal void of any capacity of freedom except the will to labour. For Marx this all leads to the emergence of private property, the enemy of the proletariat. In fact Marx's writing on estranged labour is a repudiation of private property- a warning of how private property enslaves the worker. This writing on estranged labour is an obvious point of basis for Marx's Communist Manifesto. The purpose of this paper is to view Marx's concept of alienation (estranged labour) and how it limits freedom. For Marx man's freedom is relinquished or in fact wrested from his true nature once he becomes a labourer. This process is thoroughly explained throughout Estranged Labour. This study will reveal this process and argue it's validity. Appendant to this study on alienation there will be a micro-study which will attempt to ascertain Marx's view of freedom (i.e. positive or negative). The study on alienation in conjunction with the micro-study on Marx's view of freedom will help not only reveal why Marx feels labour limits mans freedom, but it will also identify exactly what kind of freedom is being limited. Karl Marx identifies estranged labour as labour alien to man. Marx explains the condition of estranged labour as the result of man participating in an institution alien to his nature. It is my in...

Monday, October 21, 2019

Going It Alone

Going It Alone For some reason, todays quote resonated with me. Whether introverted or extroverted, a writer has to feel comfortable being alone for hours and days on end. While we see lots of blog posts about how a writer needs his tribe or his team, the bottom line is he writes alone. Hes rejected alone. Hes accepted alone. Theres a tremendous amount of alone time in his career, and he has to accept, maybe even enjoy, that experience or he wont last long. All this alone time is probably why writers are indeed so introverted. We enjoy keeping company with ourselves, inside our thoughts. Its safer there. But that also explains why writers, when they venture out of their seclusion, tend to congregate with other writers. This is a trend that is helpful . . . only to a point. After that point, however, its detrimental. In case after case, I see writers pitching their books to other writers when they ought to be pursuing readers. Unless they write FOR writers, in how-to books, or their fiction is about a writer, they are not reaching their targeted audience. Writers are an incestuous lot. Conferences, promoting their books, chatting online. They gravitate to each other, but it becomes a habit because its so comfortable, and we tend to overdo it. And theres been a trend of late to host events where dozens of writers appear at a festival of sorts. Ive been invited to several of them. This is my opinion, keep in mind, but I see these events as not being very effective, possibly even handicapping or detrimental. At least depressing. And this is why: 1) Appearing with thirty or forty authors dilutes you, your voice, your work. The faces start to blur. Attendees remember you as part of a mass, not as you. 2) Attendees can only buy so many books. Lets say two books per attendee. Do the math. Thirty authors x 2 books per attendee = 60 attendees minimum. But lets say a productive day for you means ten books. That means 300 attendees minimum assuming one or two authors dont run away with the show. 3) Such events try to snare one or two well-known authors. Those names draw readers . . . to them, not you. Thats the name that will be remembered when the readers go home. Branding doesnt mean you and others. It means you. Dare to appear alone. Dare to promote yourself as unique, powerful, intriguing and worth reading. Embrace your aloneness. Theres nothing wrong with being alone. Like I preach to shy writers across the country, learn to love who you are. Be unique, be confident in your own skin. Because attempting to blend into dozens, even hundreds, of like souls will only make you fade into the masses. You are better than that.

Sunday, October 20, 2019

Cigarette Smoking essays

Cigarette Smoking essays I. People dying everyday and not by something that they can control, they are dying because they choose to smoke. a. Tobacco use remains the number One preventable cause of death in the United States. i. Every day approximately 3,000young kids light up a cigarette and in most cases choosing their death by becoming a regular smokers. ii. Each year more people die from smoking than AIDS, alcohol, drug abuse, car crashes, murders, suicides, and even fires combined. iii. More than 5 million children will die prematurely because of their decisions as young ones to smoke. b. There are a couple of reason people start to smoke and do not quit. i. Nicotine is addictive and most kids who started to smoke are addicted to nicotine. ii. For some people nicotine is as addictive as heroin or cocaine. It usually takes a person more than 2 times to quit. iii. Cigarette advertisements are designed to make smoking look cool and make it seem like everybody does it. This may not fool everybody, but it fools enough people to get them to start smoking and once they start they cannot stop. iv. Some People think that if they quite smoking, especially women, that they will gain wait and use that as an excuse not to quit. c. What can be done to stop people from smoking? II. Many thing can and have been done to try to prevent people especially kids from smoking. a. Groups are already preaching that it is bad and not to smoke because it will eventually kill the smoker. b. Strict rules have been passed for the suppliers and the retailers, therefore trying to stop the supply and the illegal possession of the cigarettes by minors. c. Police crack down on stories not I.D. kids buying cigarettes. Giving stories fines and sometimes the clerk gets arrested too. III. What else can be done to try to stop the start of smokers? a. Easy, raise the age for people to buy cigarettes, making it harder for younger immature kids to buy and g ...

Saturday, October 19, 2019

Key Characteristics of Natural Knibbles Orientation Program Essay - 1

Key Characteristics of Natural Knibbles Orientation Program - Essay Example The researcher states that since the organization was trying to expand its markets by penetrating into new markets and improving on its profit margins, this required modifying its human resource strategies as well. The main focus was given on improving on employee productivity and performance by making them more efficient. Thus the orientation program was also found to be characterized by changes in the existing equipment and systems and changes in the production processes. The orientation program also demonstrates a training centric approach taken by the management to help employees adapt to the new work structures, equipment, work procedures, and processes. The objective was to equip employees with optimum resources and technologies so that they could use them efficiently and yield the result that was desired in the organization. This is because the new strategic direction that Natural Knibbles had undertaken required the organization’s workforce to attain a greater and a hi gher performance level, Thus it is seen that all key activities of the company were aimed towards aligning organizational functioning with its long-term objectives. Since both Kane and Liza were new in the organization, they were required to be made aware of the organizational goals and objectives clearly before they were introduced to the work procedures. More importantly, they needed to be acclimatized with the work culture existing within the organization and adapt themselves to the same. In other words, they required proper induction training in which they would be informed about the employer’s business, the various terms and conditions of their services and clear idea about the duties and responsibilities that they would have to deliver. Since Kane was without any tertiary qualification, on the job training would be the optimum best option for him. However, this would have to be an experienced instructor who would be only involved with every small detail and requirements in the process. The buddy system does not appear to be optimum because although he would have the requisite knowledge and experience about the job, he would also have his own set of regular responsibilities.

Friday, October 18, 2019

Philosophy-Contemporary Ethical Theory4 Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3500 words

Philosophy-Contemporary Ethical Theory4 - Essay Example The ethical realist believes that ethical statements are descriptions of the states of the world, hence are like other fact-stating assertions, true or false independently of the beliefs of the speaker (O’ Neill: 163). According to G.E. Moore’s (1873-1958) intuitionism, good is a simple, unanalysable property similar to a primary colour. Adapting a version of Utilitarianism, Moore believed that right acts are those that produce the most good; but he stated that goodness cannot be defined or identified with a natural property such as pleasure. Moore, an ethical intuitionist believed that good could be understood directly, through moral intuition, so that it is possible to say whether a moral statement is true or false. The simple notion of describing goodness when it is seen, is like trying to define the colour yellow. It is not possible to define the color yellow, but only by showing someone an example can the color yellow or similarly the concept of goodness be explained (Oliphant & Mayled: 10). W.D. Ross’ (1877-1971) intuitionism also believed, like Moore that â€Å"right† and â€Å"obligatory† are as indefinable as â€Å"good†, and stated that certain types of actions called prima facie duties were right. Ross’ seven classes of prima facie duties were: duties of fidelity, reparation when we have done something wrong, gratitude, justice, beneficence or helping others, self-improvement, and duties of non-maleficence or not harming others. When these prima facie duties, which mean duties at first sight, oppose each other, it is essential to follow the one which is right for the situation. Hence, one prima facie duty may have to give way to another. However, deciding on which one to obey in cases of conflict, depended on a person’s moral maturity, realization of self-evident truths and intuition (Oliphant & Mayled: 12). Some criticisms of intuitionism are that if value

BUSINESS MEMORANDUM ASSIGNMENT Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

BUSINESS MEMORANDUM ASSIGNMENT - Essay Example uld be authoritative, knows how long the document should be, who should contribute which, aware of the time element of deadline and submission, consider her reader, and what information to disclose. An overview must be presented first before the details. (5) Everything should be in orderly manner with the use of headings and subheadings, with related information grouped together. Plain English uses ordinary everyday words, short sentences, active voice, regular print and personal pronouns speaking directly to the reader. (5) Color. Refers to the effective use of document text color especially black which is the most common font or text color. It should be properly balanced with a theme using shades, graphics, rules or lines and colored paper stocks. Office of Investor Education and Assistance. U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. A Plain English Handbook: How to create clear SEC disclosure documents Accessed from

KFC Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

KFC - Essay Example This is essential in the company's operation as consistency and reliability of its products are at stake. Consistent processes across the company's outlets ensured that each of the branches is operating at a predefined standard. Also, the image of the company which is already instilled in the company's market should be met by all the outlets. All of the above measures are instrumental to KFC's success. 2. At first, Loy made a mistake in the strategies that he employed to conquer the Japanese market. This was evidenced by the huge losses he incurred during KFC's operation of its first restaurant in Osaka. However, as he got to know the Japanese market, he proved to be effective. Loy was able to identify a target market which is the group of trendy Japanese. This new market required fresh marketing strategies. It called for the modification of the product line, place, promotion and pricing. Fortunately, Loy had essentially adopted strategies which were just appropriate for his target market. Loy's strategies involved offering products which appealed more to the Japanese market.

Thursday, October 17, 2019

SAMPLING Speech or Presentation Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

SAMPLING - Speech or Presentation Example Simple random sample? Explain. This sampling plan results in a random sample, but not a simple random sample. The sample collected is a random sample because every school has the same chance of being selected. The sample is not a simple random sample because no teacher will be selected from schools that were not included in the ten schools selected. In other words, some schools have 100% representation in the sample while some schools have no representation at all. 4. A polling company obtains an alphabetical list of names of voters in a precinct. They select every 20th person from the list until a sample of 100 is obtained. They then call these 100 people. Does this sampling plan result in a random sample? Simple random sample? Explain. This sampling plan results in a random sample, but not a simple random sample. This is a case of systematic random sampling. This is a random sample because each person on the list has an equal chance of being selected. This is not a simple random sample because once the first person is selected, the rest of the selections are already determined. 5. The personnel manager at a company wants to investigate job satisfaction among the female employees. One evening after a meeting she talks to all 30 female employees who attended the meeting. Does this sampling plan result in a random sample? Simple random sample? Explain. No, this sampling plan does not result in a random sample and therefore not a simple random sample. This is a case of convenience sampling, as the personal manager only talks to all 30 female employees who attended the meeting that is whoever happens to be

Research Methods Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words - 1

Research Methods - Essay Example me teachers functioning on a split site system since they spend more time travelling from site to site, thus losing contact time with other colleagues. Although departmental meetings are well attended, there are noticeably fewer discussions in the staff room, as break and lunch times are also travelling times. These issues, with their underlying themes, are generic in nature and are relevant in a variety of contexts and are listed below: Action research is about problem solving to extend knowledge (Hult & Lunnung, 1980, West et al., 1995, McConnell, 2000). My research question involves qualitative research, which lends itself to problem solving in a cyclic manner. It involves a planned reaction to a problem, followed by feedback, evaluation, critical reflection and discussion, to redefine issues concerned with the sharing of information. A greater awareness and understanding of an identified problem is developed over time, which should lead to a solution or improved practice. As Cohen and Manion (1994) point out, â€Å"An important feature of action research is that the task is not finished when the project ends. The participants continue to review, evaluate and improve practice.† However, Cohen and Manion’s approach of ‘review, evaluate and improve’ works well with quantitative research, or for one person trying to affect a change. It does not appear appropriate for uniform progression of a group and group activity over a longer period of time. Hence for a group to progress as a unit, emphasis on developing a consensus between its members is important. For these extended studies a conductor is necessary to form an extended cyclic approach including review, evaluate, conduct and improve. Improved practice and the opportunity to develop my own relationships within the group are important to me in order to develop a sense of worth. I have chosen action research as my method as it brings the interviewer closer to the interviewee, hence it lends itself to

Wednesday, October 16, 2019

KFC Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

KFC - Essay Example This is essential in the company's operation as consistency and reliability of its products are at stake. Consistent processes across the company's outlets ensured that each of the branches is operating at a predefined standard. Also, the image of the company which is already instilled in the company's market should be met by all the outlets. All of the above measures are instrumental to KFC's success. 2. At first, Loy made a mistake in the strategies that he employed to conquer the Japanese market. This was evidenced by the huge losses he incurred during KFC's operation of its first restaurant in Osaka. However, as he got to know the Japanese market, he proved to be effective. Loy was able to identify a target market which is the group of trendy Japanese. This new market required fresh marketing strategies. It called for the modification of the product line, place, promotion and pricing. Fortunately, Loy had essentially adopted strategies which were just appropriate for his target market. Loy's strategies involved offering products which appealed more to the Japanese market.

Tuesday, October 15, 2019

Research Methods Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words - 1

Research Methods - Essay Example me teachers functioning on a split site system since they spend more time travelling from site to site, thus losing contact time with other colleagues. Although departmental meetings are well attended, there are noticeably fewer discussions in the staff room, as break and lunch times are also travelling times. These issues, with their underlying themes, are generic in nature and are relevant in a variety of contexts and are listed below: Action research is about problem solving to extend knowledge (Hult & Lunnung, 1980, West et al., 1995, McConnell, 2000). My research question involves qualitative research, which lends itself to problem solving in a cyclic manner. It involves a planned reaction to a problem, followed by feedback, evaluation, critical reflection and discussion, to redefine issues concerned with the sharing of information. A greater awareness and understanding of an identified problem is developed over time, which should lead to a solution or improved practice. As Cohen and Manion (1994) point out, â€Å"An important feature of action research is that the task is not finished when the project ends. The participants continue to review, evaluate and improve practice.† However, Cohen and Manion’s approach of ‘review, evaluate and improve’ works well with quantitative research, or for one person trying to affect a change. It does not appear appropriate for uniform progression of a group and group activity over a longer period of time. Hence for a group to progress as a unit, emphasis on developing a consensus between its members is important. For these extended studies a conductor is necessary to form an extended cyclic approach including review, evaluate, conduct and improve. Improved practice and the opportunity to develop my own relationships within the group are important to me in order to develop a sense of worth. I have chosen action research as my method as it brings the interviewer closer to the interviewee, hence it lends itself to

GORE TEX Essay Example for Free

GORE TEX Essay Gore-Tex is a multinational textile company. It was first founded by Bill and Vieve Gore as W.L. Gore Associates in 1958. The company started with serving the electronic products market. In 1969, Bob Gore independently discovered expanded polytetrafluoroethylene and introduced in the market as Gore-Tex. In today’s date Gore-Tex is more focused on electronics, fabrics, industrial and medical products. It is a company that keeps on sustain its business with innovative design and improving the quality and service by understanding customer’s need and requirement. It is one of the 200 largest privately held U.S. companies. It has also been awarded as 21st best place to work in overall â€Å"100 best companies to work for in United States† in 2013. As it is a multinational company it has revenue of $ 3 billion and overall 10,000 employees working for the company all over the world. (Gore, 2013) As we look into the company they function in a very unique way. They follow the inversion of traditional management principal through which there are no manager, bosses and fixed assigned job. They only have leaders that they have to follow as per their wish and contribute their knowledge and skills to make the project successful. At Gore-Tex people are free to come up with their own ideas and innovation. As there is no position hierarchy they are all fair to each other. They also encourage each other to grow in knowledge and responsibility as they believe growth within the staff member will help in the growth of a company. Gore-Tex Company once has hired outsider to work on project which had a negative impact on the company, they had to bring their existing staff member from other branch to help them improve. When associates are hired, they are guided by sponsor, growing understanding of opportunities and team’s goal. This all happens in an environment that combines freedom w ith cooperation and autonomy with synergy. (Gore, 2013) So, Building trust and organizing team work with the  employees is the one of the key success factor of the company. Leader at Gore-Tex â€Å"Leadership is a process whereby an individual influence’s a group of individual to achieve a common goal’’ (Northouse, 2013). At Gore-Tex Company there is fairness among all the leaders and associates. The leaders in Gore-Tex consult with other associates within the company before undertaking any action that would impact the company’s reputation. They have different types of leader some are leaders of project, some are team leader. When an individual survey was done at Gore 50% of the associates said they are leaders. Leaders at Gore are followers as well. They believe to be a leader you need to be a follower as well. Leaders can’t be leader without having any followers. As a leader when they come up with their innovative design they share with the associates and convince them to follow them. The leader can only influence people to follow them if they have earned respect with their knowledge and skills. The company believes that one should be able to convince other associates if they want to come up a leader. In other word they should earn their position as a leader. Being a leader in Gore-Tex is hard as compared to other organisation. In other companies they have their positional power as a leader. When it comes to Gore-Tex they should be able to convince their follower to maintain their position (Hamel, 2010). We can see there is a very high level of trust within the leader and associates in the organization. As today they may be the leader but tomorrow they will another leader. The leader of the team is also elected from the team member itself. The leader is not chosen to command the team members, but to act as the representative of the team and to create coordination among them to achieve goal. Leaders in Gore-Tex are seemed to be transformational leadership as they are energetic, enthusiastic and passionate and they seemed to be concerned about the growth of their team members. (Cherry, 2013) They are also emergent leaders as they are emerged with respect to the respond they get from group of employees that work in Gore-Tex. â€Å"When others perceive an individual as the most influential member of group or an organization, regardless of the individual’s title, the person is exhibiting emergent leadership†. (Northhouse, 2013) As we looked into the case study we can identify that company operates in a very distinctive way. There are no  managers or bosses in the company but only leaders and associates. When an independent survey was done 50 % of Gore’s associates said that they all are leaders. In Gore Individual employee become leader by convincing other associates about their ideas. They create their own idea and share among the associates and the people who believe in the idea will support and follow them. There are different types of leadership styles and theories like Transactional and Transformational. When we look into transactional leaders there are usually rewarding and punishment. Although the performance is based on the followers, both leaders and associates maintain their relation as give and take. When someone performs well then they will be rewarded and if they are not performing properly they will be punished. (Cherry, 2013) â€Å"Transformational leadership is the process whereby a person engages with others and creates a connection that raises the level of motivation and mora lity in the leaders and the followers†.(Downton, 1973) The concept of Transformational leader was introduced by James Burns, he explained Transformational leader are those who come up with their own creative ideas and innovation which will help to lead the top level management of an organization to achieve similar goal. It is also a process that changes, transforms people, concerns with emotion, values ethics, standard and long-term goal (Northouse, 2013). As in Gore-Tex there is no layer of positioning among the staff members. They have different team and the team are led by team members. They all show the characteristics of transformational leadership. They come up with their own ideas and strategy which they put among their associates and convince them to follow. Not only ideas, but the contribution or effort they put will help them to show the direction through which they can achieve goal. Comparing with the case study we can see that Gore-Tex influence there associates to come up with their idea and lead the group. Unlike in other company, associates in Gore-Tex do what is beneficial for the overall company. There is no pressure or fixed job assigned to the associates. So, they have to be leader when they come with their own innovative ideas. There is high level of trust among the employees within the company, which will help the leader to convince their follower. It is also said to be a leader you need to be a follower as well. We can also see when an associate come with a new idea, they share with everyone so that other employee interested in the idea will support and contribute. As a leader in Gore-Tex you should understand that their job is to unite team member and organize them to accomplish the objective. As we look into the Managerial Grid it helps us to give the idea about how leaders will help an organization to achieve its goal. This model is based on two factors that are â€Å"Concern for production† and â€Å"Concern for the people†. This theory was introduced by Blake Mouton, where they stated that leaders are likely to be successful if there is a balance between concern for people and the common objective. It can also be taken as a graphical plot where leader should evaluate the importance of task and the employees. As shown in the above figure leader’s behaviour are separated in two dimension, concern of the production fall in x-axis and concern of people falls in y-axis. It helps us to show the different leadership style followed by the leaders. The managerial grid also helps us to rate the leaders according to their orientation towards the production and the people. The leaders who values the importance of their team and is also focused in the personal growth of their team members while moving forward towards the objective belongs to the concern for people. Similarly, the leaders who are more focused towards achieving the concrete objective falls in concern for the production. There are different types of leadership style shown by the Managerial Grid. They are as follows: 1) Country club leadership (1,9) :- In this leadership style, leaders are usually focused in the maintaining their relationship with their people. They are more concerned about the creating a friendly and pleasant working environment. In this leadership style the outcome level of production in low. 2) Produce or perish leadership (9,1):- In this leadership style, leaders basically focused on their work to be completed. There are less bother about the employees need and their personal development. Their main target is to achieve the objective. In this style the production will be high and the concern for the people will be less. 3) Impoverished leadership (1,1):- In this type of leadership, leader is neither much interested in maintaining relationship with people nor concerned about the production. This type of leadership style will lead towards less production and low satisfactory level of their people. It is likely to result in failure or dissatisfaction. 4) Middle of the Road Leadership (5,5):- In this leadership style, leader tries to balance both the relation with employees and production. These kinds of leaders are average performers as they tries to maintain and compromise both the concerning factors. 5) Team leadership (9,9):- The leaders are highly focused on maintaining both the production and satisfaction level of the people. This type of leadership will lead towards high production and satisfaction level. These leaders are also successful leader as they balances the both concerning factors to the maximum level. This kind of leadership will helps organization to achieve its objective. When we look into the case study we can see that leaders in Gore-Tex are highly focused in maintaining the outcome of production and the relation of their fellow employees. They also have a strong relationship between the company and the associates. The member of the team is also focused towards reaching their target. The team leader will balance everything thing in a very high level. They will increase the production as well as help their people in the personal growth. As we know the (9,9) managerial grid explains that the employees understand the value of the organizations objective and is determined to achieve it. So, these characteristics can prove that, leaders in Gore-Tex belong to the (9,9) Team management where leaders are highly concern about the production and their people. Motivation at Gore-Tex â€Å"Getting the best from people, achieving results through individuals and teams, maintaining consistent high performance, inspiring oneself and other into action is known as motivation† (Adair, 2004) In Gore-Tex motivation has been another key factor for the success of their business. They motivate their staff members by encouraging them to work in their own interested areas. The associates are allowed to choose their own work field. If you work at Gore-Tex you are not paid for your work but for the contribution you have made towards the project. In Gore-Tex the associates will evaluate the contribution made by their colleagues and hence the earning is determined. This will lead to self-motivation where all the associates will be satisfied and there won’t be any discrimination. If Gore-Tex makes more profit than the company’s expectancy, it is divided among the leader and the associate though which can motivate staff member to be more focused towards their work. Another motivating factor at Gore-Tex is there is no restriction for anything. The information freely flows within the organization and anyone can directly contact anyone and get what they needed to be successful. (Hamel, 2010)Bill Gore was influenced by the theory of Douglas McGregor, â€Å"The Human Side of Enterprise†. It explained the theory X as the traditional view of direction and control and theory Y as the integration of individual and organizational goals. (Hamel, 2010) Douglas McGregor has developed the above theory X and theory Y based from Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs. In this theory he explains that management should be aware of this given factors to motivate their employees. Both the theories have factors that belong to human behaviour, but if the management choose the theory Y rather than theory X then they will have a better result. (Adair,2004) This theory simply explains the human behaviour at their work place and towards their organization. Theory X:- Theory X explains that the human behaviour will try to ignore the work and will try to negotiate as much as possible. The reason for them to dislike or avoid the work is because they are controlled, pressurized, directed or used them to provide the adequate effort towards the organizational goal. As the employee is not willing to take the responsibility, a close supervision is required in form of supervisors and manager. When manager and supervisors take their action they mostly use directive style. In this way the employee will lose their working ambition. Theory Y:- This theory explains that supervision, punishment, control are not only the factors that will make people to add effort in their work to achieve the organizational goal. If people are committed to the work then they will be give their best without anyone supervision. It also says that average employee will not only accept the responsibility but they will look for more responsibilities. The people have their own style of creativity and understanding. Organization should be able to use people the creativity, skills as a means of resource and solve their problem. According to the case study, In Gore-Tex they are free to choose and work in their interested areas. There is no specific job assigned by their leader it’s only the contribution they make towards their work. They don’t have any form of close supervision to control them. There are only leaders and they help to guide them in moving forward towards their goal. The Gore-Tex follows theory Y as their motivating factor. People in Gore-Tex are highly motivated as there is independence in work and the environment within the company helps them to be responsible and to seek more responsibility. Groups, Teams and Team leaders at Gore-Tex â€Å"A group of individual who are united to achieve a common objective that is too large to achieve by single individual is known as team† (Boller, 2005). Team work is required in each and every business organisation. In Gore-Tex Team work Play a vital role in functioning and operating of the business. The team member in Gore-Tex plans own way of functioning, objectives and plans to achieve the goal. The team members are the ones who elect their leader. Although leaders will help them to facilitate the achievement of objective, the team member will have the knowledge of the product they are working on. In Gore- the team members will decide the earning of the colleagues according to the contribution they have made towards the project. If an employee is interested in a project and feels like they can contribute, the team members will discuss the commitment and decide their involvement in new team. The team members directly communicate between themselves easily and are aware of the changes happening in the company. Gore-Tex is a team based, Flat Lattice Organization where all team members are equally responsible to help each other to gain the objective. (Gore, 2013) Team work has always played a vital role in each and every organization. Team works helps the work to be more efficient, convenient, faster and easier. It also helps the work level to be divided among all the team members so that an individual alone will not be pressurized. An effective team work will lead an organization towards its goal. Now-a-days each and every organization is focused in creating effective teams. Teams are usually build with respect, trust, understanding and similar goals. A team can only be effective if each and every member of team contributes equally. There are different types of team according to its nature. They are as follows: 1) Functional teams 2) Cross functional teams 3) Self-directed teams 1) Functional teams: These are the teams that work on particular department with the vertical layers. These are the team that has a manager and his fellowship of a particular sector. For example, a team working on a marketing sector consists of a manager and the staff members who will be focused in marketing department only. Basically it is a layer of staff members from different hierarchy functioning together in particular sector to achieve a goal. 2) Cross-functional teams: The expertise of different department but will come and work together as a team to achieve the organization goal are known as Cross-functional team. The cross functional team are usually temporary. They have specialized skills and experience. They are bought together to achieve or complete a particular task. 3) Self-directed teams:- These are the team that works without any supervision. These team take relative action themselves to solve day to day problems. These team members also have access to information that helps them in making decision, operating day to day function and improving their operation. When we compare the different types of team with the case study we can see that the teams in Gore-Tex fall into self-managing team. They team member in Gore-Tex are self-responsible for the functioning and operating of the business. They don’t need any supervision and they are also allowed to access to all the information. The teams in Gore-Tex are also independent as they have greater flexibility. In Gore-Tex the team member has better response for their work done. It will help to increase more commitment towards their work and organization. We can also see that associates in Gore-Tex are self-motivated and they don’t depend on anyone. Recommendation Conclusion:- From the above study we can see that in Gore-Tex leaders are using transformational leadership style to lead their people. They have been successful in motivating their staff to meet the company’s objective. Although we can see that in Gore-Tex they don’t assign any particular work for their associates the company is still doing well. They believe there should be trust and understanding between the team members. The leader leading the team should be admired by their followers. The leaders also influence and help their associate in their personal development. The team members are self-motivated and help each other to function properly. We can also acknowledge that Gore-Tex has a very distinctive working environment. Although they are successful in running their business they should still maintain some rules and regulation within the organization. They should also create a hierarchy level because money is not only the motivating factor. Employee can get motivated by their job position. As there is no seniority level in the company and if they hire a new staff member they might have misunderstanding which may lead to divided teams within the organization. As Gore-Tex is multinational company and they have branches in different part of the world. So, they should adjust their company’s policy putting diversity factors in account. They should at least have a department head that should be responsible for running day- to day operation. Gore-Tex doesn’t assign any task to their associates which may lead into missing of the task that was supposed to be competed. As in Gore-Tex people get paid according to amount of contribution they make towards their work. This sometime may be demotivating as the associates may not be satisfied with the  money they received for they contribution they made to complete the task. In overall, Gore-Tex should have a layer of hierarchy. They should also maintain some regulation which should be followed by all the associates. They should also introduce some professionalism such as formal communication in their organization. They use transformational leadership which might not work in each and every situation. As they are free to choose their task, associates who doesn’t like challenges will always choose easier task. So, the task level should be equally divided. References:- Gore-Tex company information available at www. gore.co.uk Gore-Tex leadership Style available at www.gore.co.uk Peter G. Northouse, (2013) leadership: theory and practice. 6th edition, California; Sega publications Neil Thomas Ed, (2004) The John Adair handbook of Management and leadership. Thorogood Garry Hamel, (2010) Innovation Democracy: W.L Gore’s original management model available at www.managementexchange.com Kendra Cherry,(2013) transformational leaders available at www.psychology.about.com Leadership image available at www.google.co.uk

Monday, October 14, 2019

MRI for Diagnosis of Mycetoma or Madura Foot

MRI for Diagnosis of Mycetoma or Madura Foot â€Å"Dot in Circle† sign — a unique attribute of mycetoma foot on MRI: a report of two cases Aggarwal A, Gupta M, Patel B N, Patel S B Abstract Mycetoma or Madura Foot is a chronic localized granulomatous disease characterized by exuberant granulomatous tissue formation involving the subcutaneous plane. It is most common in tropical countries. Diagnosis has been traditionally done by microbiological culture and histopathological tissue diagnosis but these are often difficult to obtain and frequently inconclusive. MRI has recently emerged as a promising technique for early and prompt diagnosis of Mycetoma with the description of a highly specific sign called as â€Å"Dot in Circle† sign. We hereby present 2 cases showing this characteristic â€Å"Dot in circle† sign on MRI and thereby establishing the diagnosis of Madura Foot. Patient 1 A 52-year-old male farmer by occupation presented with a painless swelling involving the left foot, which had been operated on elsewhere two times. Previous reports of surgery were not available. Examination revealed a non tender, large swelling involving whole of the left foot and the ankle joint. It was associated with numerous chronic discharging sinuses. (Fig 1) General examination was unremarkable and the soft tissue was normal. Rotuine blood and biochemical investigations were also unremarkable. Plain radiograph revealed a soft tissue mass in the left foot with advanced bony destruction mainly involving the tarsal, metatarsals and phalanges without any calcification. MRI scan was performed to evaluate the disease further. MRI showed a soft tissue mass lesion, diffuse hyperintensity involving subcutaneous tissue, muscles, and intermuscular fascial planes. There were also multiple focal fluid collections seen in the fascial plane with ulceration of overlying skin. The mass demons trated characteristically conglomerate areas of multiple, inconspicuous, small 3–4 mm oval to round hyperintense lesions, which were separated by a low-signal-intensity rim in the subcutaneous plane of the dorsum of the foot. The centre of few of these lesions showed a small hypointense focus, resulting in the dot-in-circle sign (Figs. 2, 3). The underlying bones showed cortical erosions mainly involving the tarsal, metatarsals and phalanges. On the basis of the above clinical and radiological findings, a diagnosis of mycetoma foot was put forward. A biopsy was performed to confirm the diagnosis which revealed granulomatous inflammation and presence of eumycetoma (Fig. 4). Patient 2 A 37 year old male, complained of mass in the left foot for the past 2 years. Examination revealed multiple numerous discharging sinuses with skin ulcerations. The discharging sinuses did not contain any grains which is usually pathognomonic of Madura mycosis. Plain frontal radiograph of the left foot shows soft tissue mass with severe destruction of the bone along with a palisade type of periosteal reaction mainly involving the tarsals and metatarsals (Figs. 5). The patient underwent MRI for evaluation and extent of the disease. Similarly, the lesion showed marked inflammatory changes in the left foot with cortical erosion, with micro-abscesses formation. The characteristic dot in circle sign (Figs. 6) was described and diagnosis of mycetoma foot was made. The patient underwent an excision biopsy. Histopathology showed eumycetoma. Images Figure 2. T2-weighted axial MR cut sections  of the left foot shows extensive inflammatory  changes. Multiple hyperintense lesions which were small and round in shape and separated by tissue of low signal intensity  are noted. Some of these lesions (arrows) show a  central small focus of hypointensity, resulting in the characteristic  dot-in-circle sign. Figure 3 T2-weighted fat-saturated coronal MR image of  the left foot shows multiple microabscesses separated by  a low-intensity matrix seen posteriolaterally. Marked inflammatory changes with multiple fluid collections are noted in the fascial plane. Figure 4 Haematoxylin and Eosin( HE) : Fungal organisms  surrounded by granulation tissue. Figure 6 T2-weighted axial MR image  of the left foot shows extensive inflammatory  changes with cortical erosion. Multiple small spherical  hyper-intense lesions separated by tissue of low signal intensity  are noted. Some of these lesions show a  small foci of hypointensity centrally, resulting in the  dot-in-circle sign. Note the presence of multiple  microabscess. Discussion Madurai Mycosis is a chronic granulomatous disease caused by 2 group of organisms, the Eumyces which are also called as true fungi or eumycetoma, and the Actinomyces, which are the filamentous form also called as Actinomycetales or actinomycetoma. The disease was first described in the Madurai district in the state of Tamil Nadu, hence the eponym Madura foot. The infective organisms are normal inhabitants of the soil and cause infection by direct implantation into the skin, most commonly the foot in individuals walking bare foot. Patients classically present with multiple subcutaneous nodules which are characteristically painless. These may give rise to fistulae formation, often associated with a purulent discharge. The disease progresses slowly and over long term leads to abscess formation, sinus tracts, osteomyelitis, and fistula formation ultimately resulting in severe deformity and disability if treatment is not provided [4] . Histologically the disease is characterized by formation of so called ‘‘grains’’, which are found embedded in the abscesses. These grains are nothing but aggregates of the organism and are surrounded by extensive granulation tissue. Initially there is soft tissue swelling with induration which later progresses to form multiple discharging sinus with or without bone involvement. [5] Radiological investigations play a significant role in arriving at the diagnosis swiftly especially since tissue cultures are seldom diagnostic. Radiographs may be normal early in the disease process but later show varying degree of soft tissue swelling with destruction of the bone in form of sclerosis, cavity formation and classical palisade type of periosteal reaction. This is followed by expansion of the bone with scalloping of the cortex or osteoporosis. This condition mimics bacterial osteomyelitis but in mycetoma the bones are usually detsroyed from the outside, giving rise to characteristic â€Å"Moth eaten appearance†. [2] The â€Å"Dot in circle† sign has emerged has a highly specific sign for the diagnosis of this condition and is based on the understanding of the pathogenesis of the disease process. It reflects the unique pathological feature of mycetoma and consists of multiple small round hyperintense lesions of size measuring around 3-5 mm surrounded by a hypointense rim. The small hyperintense lesions represent the granulation tissue and the surrounding hypointense rim represents the intervening stroma having fibrous septations. The low-signal intensity dot in the centre is due to the presence of fungal grains which causes a susceptibility effect on MRI. This is a unique appearance and is easily recognisable in mycetoma. [1] This sign was proposed by Sarris et al. in 2003 on T2-weighted, STIR, and T1-weighted fat-saturated gadolinium enhanced images. Conclusion We conclude by saying that mycetoma is a severe debilitating disease with high morbidity. Until now the diagnosis of the disease was limited to clinical picture supplemented by biopsy and microbiological culture which were difficult to obtain and proved to be inconclusive in many cases. MRI has emerged as an excellent investigation in mycetoma and helps to arrive at the diagnosis much earlier in the course of disease thereby further helping in reducing the morbidity and rate of complications. Awareness of this characteristic sign is important in view of the scarcity of reports that describe it in the literature and with increasing use of MRI in the evaluation of soft tissue tumours. [3] Ref: S, Betty M, Manipadam MT, Cherian VM, Poonnoose PM, Oommen AT, et al. The â€Å"dot-in-circle† sign A characteristic MRI finding in mycetoma foot: A report of three cases.Br J Radiol.2009;82:662–5. Mycetoma revisited. Incidence of various radiographic signs. Abd El-Bagi ME, Fahal AH Saudi Med J. 2009 Apr; 30(4):529-33. Kumar J, Kumar A, Sethy P, Gupta S. The dot-in-circle sign of mycetoma on MRI.Diagn Interv Radiol.2007;13:193–5. Lewall DB, Ofole S, Bendl B. Mycetoma. Skeletal Radiol 1985; 14:257–262. Magana M. Mycetoma, some clinical and histopathological features.Turk J Dermatopathol.1994;3:94.

Sunday, October 13, 2019

Autism :: essays research papers

Autism 3 An Assessment of Autism   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Autism is a physical disorder of the brain that causes a lifelong developmental disability. The many different symptoms of autism can occur by themselves or in combination with other conditions such as: mental retardation, blindness, deafness, and epilepsy. Children with autism vary widely in their abilities and behavior. Each symptom may appear differently in each child. Children with autism often show some forms of bizarre, repetitive behavior called stereotyped behavior.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Each child with autism is unique, with their own individual range of symptoms and behaviors. Broad areas of similarity have been identified so that it is now possible to make some basic general statements about what children with autism are like as a group. Some symptoms and characteristics are: failure to develop normal socialization, problems in speech, language, and communication, strange relationships to objects and events, unusual responses to sensory stimulation, and progress delays.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Autism 4 Scientists do not know why some children have autism. Studies have found that people with autism have differences in the structure of their cerebellums. Research is still unclear to be able to draw conclusions to biological and genetic causes.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Scientists have only identified one specific genetic connection with autism. A genetic syndrome called, fragile X syndrome. Fragile X syndrome is a recently discovered form of genetically caused mental retardation. Both sexes are affected by fragile X syndrome, with males usually more seriously affected. Children with fragile X syndrome can have behavior problems such as: hyperactivity, aggression, self-injury, and autistic-like behaviors. Severe language delays and problems are common. Delayed motor development and poor sensory skills are also disabilities associated with fragile X syndrome (Jordan & Powell, 1995).   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  In the United States, there are at least 400,000 people with autism, about one-third of them are children. Autism is one of the most common developmental disabilities (Harris & Weiss, 1998). Autism 5 For reasons researchers don not know, autism occurs about three to four times more frequently in boys than in girls. For children with more severe cognitive limitations, the ratio is closer to two to one. For the group of children with higher cognitive skills, boys are more frequently represented at a rate greater than four to one. Girls, when affected, are more likely to be more seriously affected by symptoms of autism (Quill, 1995, p. 219).   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  To many experts and parents the number of children with autism seems to be increasing at a faster pace than before.

Saturday, October 12, 2019

Essay --

Rebecca Pierce Professor Engbers ENGL 230 13 December 2013 Creative Portfolio Author Statements Free Verse Poem Free verse is a type of poetry in which is referred to as poetry that does not have any consistent meter patterns, rhyme scheme or rhythm scheme, or any other type of pattern applied. There is no specific length that is has to be either. One would tend to view free verse poetry as if it were someone speaking. By having a free verse poem, it allows the reader to have a better understanding of what the poem is about. The various structures that a poem can take on sometimes can take away and distract from the meaning and intention of the poem. In this poem, there isn’t much imagery for the imagery would take away from the meaning of the poem. As an author, it is important to use figurative language to create sentences that show and not tell. Within this poem, there is an attempt to capture and convey meaning through the emotion that is presented in the phrases. There was a hope that there would be a strong impression left with the reader as well. While the poem reflects many as pects of free verse poetry is displayed, it isn’t the best that could have been done. More metaphors and similes could have been used to better create the phrases. Also, while there was an attempt to make it like spoken words, there still seems to be a rhythm taste to it. There were many changes that were made to poem from the help of peer reviews to try and remove that rhythm aspect that it had but with all those changes, it didn’t seem to disappear. Sonnet Sonnets are yet another form of poetry that is out there. A sonnet usually consists of fourteen lines and have iambic pentameter. There are many different rhyme schemes in which these... ...nto it as well. â€Å"Come over here, Buddy We are going on an adventure!† Excited she ran after me. It was as if she could actually understand me. I took one final look into my hideout before I shut the door, for wherever I was going or headed, I surely wasn’t going to be returning. Even though I spent most of my time down there being afraid of dying, it was the only safe place I could go and I will miss that place. It had been my home for so long, and probably was where I would have been spending the rest of my short lived life if I hadn’t felt this sense of uneasiness. I sighed deeply, and began shutting the door. â€Å"Calm down, Buddy†, I muttered as he was barking at something. He had a tendency to bark at objects and things that actually never existed, so I didn’t think twice about it. However when I turned around, I laid my eyes on something, or rather yet someone.

Friday, October 11, 2019

A Love Song for Bobby Long Analysis Essay

â€Å"A Love Song for Bobby Long† written by Grayson Capps and â€Å"The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock† written by TS Eliot remind the world of men who struggle with the demons of life. The little voices in your head saying â€Å"I don’t think you can do that.† These voices cause you to doubt yourself and your talents. They take the life out of you, and cause you to wonder if you even have a purpose here on earth. Now let’s take a deeper look into these poems and closely analyze their similarities and differences. Bobby Long, a handsome football prospect who possessed the talent of superior acting, was a man who was known for wasting his talents and making the wrong decisions. He chose a â€Å"road less traveled† : a path through life that many people tried to avoid. He was a drunken old man who looked back on life, not because he could change his decisions, but because the people around him wish he had made smarter ones. Years pass, and he finally realizes how his poor decisions led him to the black hole he is now stuck in. A hole dug so deep that he can’t see outside of it. It’s all dark around him and he feels all his problems will be solved when he is finally six feet under. Prufrock won’t build the courage to go up to someone he likes, but only because he lacks Charisma. He lacks the confidence needed to go and be the courageous man he once was. He can no longer find what he needs or wants and he feels it is the end of the world, with no hope left in him. He realizes he is reaching a point where he is coming to anempty closure. He wants the answers to his unknown questions but he second guesses his every move. Does she like me? Does she not? These questions linger in his mind but they will never get answered because he never builds the courage to tell the women he likes or admires. Instead, he just gets wrapped up in the scent of their perfume and the sound of their voices, behind their masked face. He realizes nonone is perfect and everyone makes mistakes However, he wants to know his own and wonders why he was possessed with unfortunate events. He just wants answers. Answers to questions he doesn’t even have the courage to ask†¦ In both poems, the main character, or speaker is referring to themselves as a low life failure. They don’t ever build the courage to face their inner demons. They never realize their true talent, instead just doubt themselves, even when people give them compliments that come from the heart. In their eyes, they will never be good enough. They will never be the ideal husband, but instead, just the weird man everyone points to and laughs at. In Bobby Long’s love song, he realizes he isn’t the ideal husband; however he still womanizes the women and doesn’t care, as long as he never gets sexually frustrated. However, Prufrock struggles with even approaching a woman. His nerves get the best of him and he cannot build the courage to approach her and aska her the tough question. Bobby Long struggles with the confusion of not being able to pick sides (between the devil and God.) He suffers from the struggle of being able to make the right decions, or which to follow. Prufrock struggles with his inner demons. He is his biggest enemy. He causes himself to suffer and keep wondering. Wondering why he could never be the leading role in his own life. He wonders why he could never be â€Å"Prince Hamlet.† Then later realizes maybe he just was never meant to have that role. In Bobby Long and Prufrock’s life, they doubt their ability to be great. They feel that they have reached the end of the world therefore why try? They are giving up on life just because of a few misfortunes and bad decisions. They will never be satisfied with themselves until they are gone forever, or dead. No matter how other people view them, they both believe they were never meant to be the star of their OWN life, but instead a role player who no one really pays attention to.

Thursday, October 10, 2019

Drama Performance

Elements belonging to personal stories enable audiences to gain wider insights and respective into stories. Ann Frank is a character who is quite lovable; Frank is a typical teenage girl the responder perceives Frank as a positive persona for the situation she is in. Although Frank is growing up in a corrupting society she is still talking about stereotypical teenage conversation such as boys and fighting with siblings. Despite her situation Frank gets on with her life â€Å"l live in a crazy time†, Ann Frank shows naivety and needs to be protected this manipulates the audience to empathic her suffering.Her Diary entries are typical of a thirteen year old such as gossip about school friends and Jokes. Frank is in a terrible situation during WI and the holocaust, Franks positive view intrigues the audience into loving her character. The responder gets an insight into the frightening atmosphere the Frank family endured through Anne Franks use of first person and detail. Ann Fran ks story is a voice for those who were harmed because of their ethnicity, race or color. The Diary of a Young Girl by Ann Frank reveals the racial segregation Jewish people faced during the Holocaust in the sass's and sass's.HOC Online Recommendations tort Critical Important questions to ask yourself: Do I enjoy research? Analysis: Ђ Do I have access to enough resources? Do I have areas I wish to explore that are within the perimeters or the research criteria? Do I have a clear area of focus within my set topic? Will I be able to make solid conclusions from the materials I research and the topic I have chosen? Do I have the time to do this task adequately? Do I have a solid knowledge of language and clarity in my ideas and expression? Ђ Do I have access to a computer where I can edit, type and amass my ideas and eventually present them in the correct format? Unique: The Applied Research Project gives you the opportunity to frame your own specific rear of study within a topic of interest to you. It gives you the further opportunity to approach it using any sources or resources at your disposal and to conduct research t your pace. Furthermore, because it is a constant work in progress you do not nave the pressure of performing and being assessed on the ‘day but being able to present your months of work in submitted form and thus all your process can be evidenced.Skills: The ability to synthesis information The ability to communicate ideas The ability to make assumptions and assertions from well-rounded sources and evidence An ability to use language concisely and appropriately Good analytical skills HOC Online Recommendations for Performance Individual Project Christmas holidays plus Year 12 term one: Begin performance practice, before an audience, with a short dramatic work. This may be the piece you are presenting for the HOC or something else. Year 12 term two: decide on your piece and perform it within the set time, remembering you will be stop ped if you go overtime.Year 12 Term 3: Polish your piece and make it performance ready. Checkpoints: Do I understand the requirements of the project? Ђ Do I know the type of performance I want to present? Have I looked through a large number of scripts? Is the text I'm studying being studied by me in any other part of the HOC? (You cannot perform a play you are studying anywhere else in the HOC) Have I performed for an audience? Have I checked the timing of my performance? Have I organized my costume and props? Does my performance display strong characterization? Coherent? Do I know my lines?Tips (10): see plenty of performances get some performance practice read past exam reports don't forget it is a performance and not Just a speech Ђ use minimal props don't rush your performance Is my performance know how to use your ensure you have an appropriate relationship with the audience heavily on recorded sound know your lines don't rely know your performance space and use it wel l A list of pitfalls: Students fall into these traps: thinking they have plenty of time and failing to complete the performance project not knowing the lines not working with an audience during the development of the performance. Leaving all your performance until the last moment relying too heavily on props, costume or sound during the performance. Ђ going overtime going undermine Generating ideas Brainstorm Possible themes, situations, characters, settings, performance styles and other material that interests the student. Select Students should select material which interests them and has possibilities. Research Collect newspaper and magazine articles, samples of scripts, extracts from plays, poems, monologues, short stories, pictures, song lyrics, letters, scenarios or advertisements.Trial Trial some of the material by reading, dramatist's and improvising dialogue, movement and theatrical styles. (This could be done with partners). Shape and analyses your material Select, wri te, redraft, adapt and edit while focusing on the idea of a one-person performance. At this point a concept should begin to emerge from the material. The performance at this stage may be a work in progress which will eventually evolve into a full performance. Staging the material Consider the material in terms tot a whole integrated theatrical performance. T n ere needs to be a sense of a beginning, middle and end within the performance. It is not simply an audition piece.The following questions need to be considered: What is engaging about the performance? How can the engaging elements be emphasized? Is it clear what the performance is about? What are the key moments? How do the staging anticlerical techniques heighten these moments? How are setting, mood, situation and character established? Is there enough variety, I. E light and shade ? Does the blocking keep the audience interested? Are there any transitional moments? How do these add to the performance rather than detract from it? How does the character develop within the piece? Is the stage space used effectively, maintaining a clear actor audience relationship?Creating the character Students should have developed reasonable skills and resources for creating and developing a character in the preliminary course. These skills should be used as the basis for character development. The following strategies will help students create a character; Develop a character profile. Analyses the character's motivation and subtext. Exercises in physicality's the character: stance, movement, gestures and facial Develop the character's voice, focusing on key words, expression, expression. Create a sense of the character's development from start to finish. Timing, etc. Incorporate business (attributes and actions) that reflects the character and his or her emotional state. Include essential props and costumes. Ђ Hottest and use other belief building exercises that involve the rest of the class. Adding production elem ents Students need to approach this area with caution. An over reliance on production effects can detract from an effective performance. The rule of thumb is that the focus should always remain on the performer and production effects should be minimal and limited to those essential to the work's meaning (Creative Arts KOLA Handbook. Page 69). Production guidelines Ђ Setting: use only what is required on stage to suggest the setting, or what is actually used by the performer. Costumes: costumes should complement and enhance the character. Remember that performers in dark colors can be lost against a dark background. Ђ Sound: often provides an effective introduction to the mood and location. It may also give a performance a sense of completion or provide a heightened effect to a dramatic moment. Ensure you obtain a good quality recording. Lighting: should be kept simple and not used to solve staging problems. It is usually best to use the lights up at the start and leg lockout during an individual performance. Rehearsing the performance ants down at the end approach . Avoid a The following steps can be used by students to bring the performance to its final stage: Book the performance space early and organize for the technician, partner or teacher to sit in with a stopwatch.

Wednesday, October 9, 2019

The Hobbit, Supreme Ordeal Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

The Hobbit, Supreme Ordeal - Essay Example Tasha Martin, the author builds the character in a series of hero journey steps that ultimately points out to the common path of heroes in the narrative. Bilbo lives a lavish life, enjoying seven meals per day, in this narrative; he wins this honor through a series of the ordeal that persistently depict his ultimate courage, pride, and persistence. His ordeal begins when he refuses to go with the wizard on adventure despite the arrival of the thirteen dwarves. In this episode, the wizard had tried his best to plead with him to accompany him on an adventure, after this he noticed that his mentor convinced him to accompany him for the adventure after the dwarves had gone (Tolkien 35). Initially, he is convinced that respectable Hobbits like him should not go for adventure. Elrond remarks â€Å"Ah, I shant be missed,† and Bilbo reply â€Å"The truth is most of them don’t think I should be on this journey,† reveals how other characters detested his presence in the journey. However, the change of mind to pursue dwarves becomes one of the biggest ordeal in his journey to be a hero. Later on, he realized that he had erred in judgment and decided to pursue the dwarves. On this journey, he meets both allies and enemies. It became a journey that shaped his personal stature and rise to be a recognized hero. Arguably, his pursuit of the dwarves is the best moment that helps bring out his heroism. Evidently, the most important event was the trial with the three trolls, the giant spiders and Gollum. Although he had encountered a number of trials during his pursuit, this special trial almost broke his stature.

Tuesday, October 8, 2019

Outlined and it varies Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words

Outlined and it varies - Essay Example However, in the case of emotion, it is usually much difficult to really create the link. For instance in making decisions through emotions, one can be driven by such factors like nostalgia while they might be well aware (through cognition) that such a decision is not really the best (Norman, 2005). The traditional hard science approach in decision making faces much antipathy in the conventional practical situation. It relies much on positivism and logical sense. However, in today’s science, decision making and decision calls for more than mere objectivism. The world is indeed inundated with many situations and options which have made human beings to be accustomed to different experiences. In this regard, in making decisions and designs, it is important to demonstrate a subjective mind that highly promotes experientialism. It is further realized that the reaction of human beings to design normally occurs in three different levels: visceral, behavioral and reflective. The viscer al level is very important as it creates the first impression in terms of appearance. In this case, one is attracted by what their see before they can consider such aspects like functionality. Secondly, people are also driven by behavioral factors which include the ability of the item to perform the required needs. Lastly, the reflective level regards the effects of the item on the self-image and satisfaction of the individual. The subjective and post-positivist approach is realized in the design of such products like watches and autos in which case the mere functionality of the item does not really drive people to be interested. In the technological field, image and sound are some of the most fundamental factors that drive people to purchase specific items like computers and phones. The designers of these products should therefore move away from the traditional focus on objectivism and realize the very importance of creating an item which lures people through sight, sound and perfo rmance. The products used in everyday life should therefore be designed in a way that evokes certain emotions on the users. Most designers still hold on to the traditional objective ideas regarding science where emotional concerns of the users are not given much consideration in the design process. However, companies like Apple have realized this crucial value and are not only enhancing functionality but also image and visual characteristics of their products. The results are basically the increase in sales as people tend to be attracted visual efficiencies of such products. The subjective orientation places much focus on creating experience on the part of the users. For instance, in information technology, the designers should make products which are identified with specific features such as efficiency. Therefore the present usability design places greater emphasis on such critical factors that create a mental attitude on the part of the consumers who are then driven to purchase su ch items. PHILOSOPHY--A CRASH COURSE Philosophy is normally a subject of many debates and questions regarding its very nature and its importance in conventional human practice. While some people normally feel that it is almost unnecessary owing to its excessive indulgence in rational argument, the core of the matter is basically with respect to the importance of philosophy in

Monday, October 7, 2019

James Booker Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

James Booker - Research Paper Example ker recognize the art of music playing like never before and although he was pretty talented himself recognition of music at such an early age made that him the musician he was at his prime. Rightfully so music influence in the life of James booker was effectively extended with a saxophone being gifted to him by his mother as a birthday present. He spent greatest of his juvenile age ashore on the Mississippi Gulf Coast, while at the place his father pastored a church. Although receiving a saxophone in in his age his talent with the instrument was somewhat modest but all the while he truly and to the best of his abilities demonstrated a resilient concern in effectively playing the keyboard. It is safe to complement that his first musicals came by performing with a mere organ in his father’s church sermons. The return to his originated birth place the city of New Orleans came in the preliminary rounds of the adolescence age, and he successfully completed his elementary schooling form the prestigious Xavier Academy Institute. He academized many particular fundamentals of the keyboard playing panache from Tuts Washington and Edward Frank. Booker illustrated to become one of the best and utmost masters of classical music and hence was paraded to play Bach and Chopin as one of his ideal composers along the way of his career. He further to such feats he correspondingly become proficient at and committed to memory the more challenging solos of Erroll Garner, and also some enhancing material by Liberace. Booker’s imperative systematic circumstantial upbringing in close to the collected works of many piano masters had fundamentally empowered him to easily and most notoriously create unique, original and conspicuous understandings, implementation and interpretation of jazz and other supp lementary American prevalent music. These recitals and performances by booker shared essentials of stride, blues, gospel and Latin keyboard flairs. Booker debuted his recordings the

Sunday, October 6, 2019

Analysis of Hayek's The Road to Serfdom Term Paper

Analysis of Hayek's The Road to Serfdom - Term Paper Example Ultimately, Hayek believes that these two states and others did not intend to go down this road to serfdom; however, he thinks, it is the natural result of a certain philosophy and a particular concept of freedom. These inconsistent ideas make possible the kind of unjust distribution and allocation of resources resulting in the tyrannical socialist state: where conflict is unstopping, economic principles are ignored, and suffering is taken to be the norm. Hayek intended the content and theories in this work not only to apply to the climate in which he wrote it but to the condition of societies as they exist decades and even centuries into the future. Hayek begins his work with a worry: that socialism and central planning is essentially a â€Å"road to serfdom† and that if one goes along this road, one will be traveling down the same road as the most brutal totalitarian states of the 20th century. Citing Hitler’s 1941 proclamation that â€Å"basically National Socialism and Marxism are the same†, Hayek begins his work with that basic theme. ... Using this thrust of the argument, Hayek analyzes the central planning aspect of many economies in the world. If societies might be better off using a spontaneous order, then what is the purpose of a central plan, Austrian economists might argue. The idea of spontaneous order is inherent in the â€Å"invisible hand† economic proposal in Adam Smith’s The Wealth of Nation; however, Hayek elaborates on the likelihood of acting on more complete information in the case of spontaneous order, whereas the centralized authority operates on a limited set of information, attempting to make decisions affecting the economy. Hayek’s second chapter deals with something he calls â€Å"The Great Utopia†, which is a reference to the socialist state that utilizes central planning. The most important part of this section is the argument that socialism and communism together are â€Å"an illusion† (Hayek 165). That is, they are merely the first step in a process that ul timately ends in fascism and tyranny. This is the lack of agreement on the ends but an agreement on the means.  Ã‚  

Saturday, October 5, 2019

Succesful Marriage Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Succesful Marriage - Essay Example Team work as explained by Coontz (2005) is the greatest of the factors to make a marriage successful. Team work involves doing things together and sharing all the details of the couples. It also involves sharing all the decision as well as making decisions together without one going behind the other’s back which in the end lead to lack of trust, fights and ultimate breakup. However, if the couples share all the information including secrets even the most trivial of them all, it means that in any difficulty or misunderstanding which is the likely recipe for divorce, the couples will go through it together as a team. Just like teamwork in workplaces requires contribution of all the parties involved, team work in marriage works in the same way with both partners contributing equally whether it is in time, finances or otherwise. When there are children in the marriage, teamwork is expected in raising them and this means being on the same page regarding curfews, deadlines, allowanc es and school work. Trust is the other greatest factor. Trust is different from team work in that without trust, team work is likely to fail, but a couple can last more in marriage with trust only than with team work only without trust. Trust means an in depth believe in one’s partner and especially when they are around people of the opposite sex or away from each other. What destroys most couples is lack of trust which leads to paranoia that the partner is going to leave you for another beautiful or handsome and more financially stable or younger partner. If these doubts and paranoia thoughts start entering the mind of the couples, trust starts crumbling, arguments increase, there is secret surveillance and this is the high road to divorce. Discussing insecurity issues is the best way to trust. The other most important thing is communication. Communication goes both ways if understanding and

Friday, October 4, 2019

DQ's 10 & 9 Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

DQ's 10 & 9 - Essay Example Considering only diagnose and design model elements, explain how you as a manager would assist the team or group of employees starting the change management process regarding a specific process at work. Ans.: There is no ‘one-fit-for-all’ approach in formulating a change management strategy though each proposed management change is expected to be successful. Given only diagnose and design model elements to work on, a Manager can help introduce and manage the change by knowing the characteristics of this change like its purpose, scope, time frame, its possible effects on the impacted group, etc. Second, he must have prepared tactical solutions addressing anticipated resistance like communication and education. â€Å"From an individual level especially if these changes bring fear of the unknown, threat to one’s security, cause threat to economic stability and cause selective information processing to keep perception clear. On the organizational level, resistance to change may be caused by structural and group inertia, threat to expertise, threat to established power relationship and the limited focus of change in the organization whereby other subsystems will be declared obsolete or ineffectual† (Robbins & Judge, 2013, p. 580). Ans.: Diversity plays a major role in managing change in an organization. According to Robbins & Judge, this may be categorized to be â€Å"surface-level diversity (referring to thoughts and feelings) or a deep-level diversity which differentiate individuals through their inner self, inner values or their personalities, in general† (Robbins, 2013, p.42). â€Å"Contributing to the diversity are the following: age, country of origin, race, ethnicity, religion, physical abilities and sexual orientation, among others† (p.43). Components of diversity pose a greater and significant challenge for company leaders. Ans.: To achieve effective work diversity,

Wednesday, October 2, 2019

Environmental sustainability

Environmental sustainability ABSTRACT Universities, as centres for training responsible and knowledgeable humans, prepare students to respond to the intellectual, social, and personal challenges that they will face in community. To this end, universities will take use of various resources. In this regard, the question which rises is to what extent the world leading universities take their environmental responsibility into consideration and how committed they are to environmental sustainability. This paper aimed to explore this issue by studying the world top 10 ranked universities. The study sample included Harvard University (US), University of Cambridge (UK), Yale University (US), University College London (UK), Imperial College London (UK), University of Oxford (UK), University of Chicago (US), Princeton University (US), Massachusetts Institute of Technology (US), and California Institute of Technology (US). The required data was collected through the content analysis of the websites and annual reports of the mentione d universities. Findings of the paper showed that all the studied universities were involved in a number of various environmental activities and were committed to their environmental responsibilities. The findings of the paper can be a benchmark for other universities. Since the environment is an important pillar of corporate social responsibility (CSR) and vital part of sustainability, the findings have important implications for CSR policy of universities. INTRODUCTION All humans have a moral obligation to preserve the planet and there is no excuse for doing nothing to improve the environmental state of the globe. This also applies to institutions of higher education (Christensen et al., 2009). Organizations such as companies or universities are usually responsible for the severe environmental degradation we have witnessed (Alshuwaikhat and Abubakar, 2008; Hoffman and Woody, 2008; Haden et al., 2009). Nowadays, higher education institutions can cause significant environmental impacts (Jabbour, 2010). Many of them, due to their large size, expressive movement of people and vehicles, high consumption of materials, and strong development of complex activities, may be considered as small towns (Alshuwaikhat and Abubakar, 2008). Therefore higher education institutes have a great environmental responsibility toward society. This could be through training graduates with suitable environmental knowledge as well as environmental plans and programs to reduce waste and preserve environment. Now, the question which arises is how aware universities are toward their environmental responsibilities toward society. To answer this question, this study will investigate the issue among world top 10 universities through reviewing their website content and annual reports. Although previous studies have been conducted in this area, they are mainly case studies considering only one university. This study, however, considers 10 International universities at the same time and tries to provide a general picture of how aware and responsible world top universities are toward environment. Since the environment is an important pillar of corporate social responsibility (CSR) and vital part of sustainability, the findings of this study have important implications for CSR policy of universities. ENVIRONMENTAL SUSTAINABILITY IN UNIVERSITIES Sustainability is a pattern of resource use which meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their needs. The main idea of sustainable development is to achieve the lasting satisfaction of human needs. Environmental management may be defined as the study of all technical and organizational activities aimed at reducing the environmental impact caused by a companys business operations (Cramer, 1998, p. 162). Although initially targeted for companies, this definition can also be applied to service sector and universities. Universities apply various resources to provide quality education for students. This, in turn, will cause impacts on the environment. Several simple examples of these impacts are electricity consumption, production of waste and CO2 emission caused by daily printing of large numbers of papers. A number of dimensions define environmental management practices (Aragà Ã…’n-Correa, 1998; Klassen Angell, 1998; Klassen W hybark, 1999). As Cà ©spedes-Lorente et al. (2003) mention, Peattie and Ringler (1994) drew a distinction between software and hardware environmental activities. Software activities are those focused on organizational issues such us systems, procedures, audits and manuals, whereas hardware activities are concerned with technological change to reduce the environmental impact of the firm. Environmental sustainability refers to the environmental actions or impacts of what we do. There are a number of studies considering the issues of sustainability and environment in higher education. A study by Wright (2010), examined how a cohort of university presidents and vice-presidents in Canadian universities conceptualize sustainable development, sustainable universities, the role universities play in achieving a sustainable future, key issues facing the university, and the barriers to implementing sustainability initiatives on campus. They showed that although the majority of participants we re well versed in the concept of sustainable development, they were less familiar with the concept of a sustainable university. However, majority of them were dedicated to having their university become more sustainable. The participants also listed financial predicaments, lack of understanding and awareness of sustainability issues amongst the university population, and a resistance to change as the main barriers in the path of sustainability. Pollock et al. (2009) also insisted that complex and ineffective governance, traditional disciplinary boundaries, and the lack of a shared vision at academic institutions often hinder universitys progress toward leading the world to a more sustainable and desirable future. Furthermore, a study by Rauch and Newman (2009) in Yale University explored how an institutional target can lead to greater community action and long-term commitment than if no specific target is established. METHODOLOGY Similar to a related study by Capriotti and Moreno (2007), this paper used a content analysis methodology to analyze the websites of the top 10 world universities ranked by Times Higher Education (THE, 2009). This research studied the content of the university official websites and tried to identify universities environmental practices, procedures and plans. To this end, we have reviewed all the related web pages of the universities (including news, media, department web pages, etc.) and not just direct links from the homepage. The study sample included Harvard University (US), University of Cambridge (UK), Yale University (US), University College London (UK), Imperial College London (UK), University of Oxford (UK), University of Chicago (US), Princeton University (US), Massachusetts Institute of Technology (US), and California Institute of Technology (US). FINDINGS AND DISCUSSION The findings of this research shows that world leading universities are in some way or another involved in environmental practices and committed to their environmental responsibility. Table 1 summarizes the diversity of the areas which these universities are involved in. Table 1 Environmental practices of studied universities Environmental Practice 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 Reduction of greenhouse gas emissions a a a a a a a a a a Reduction in the use of fossil fuels and increase in the use of renewable resources a a a a a a a a a a Waste recycle and management a a a a a a a a Reduction of water use a a a a a a Green buildings and environmentally responsible architecture a a a a a a a Running an specialized environmental centre/ network a a a a a a a a a a Reduction of the environmental impact due to the use of paper a a a a Increase of environmental awareness among staff students a a a a a a a a a a Minimisation of environmental impact due to materials and services used by the university a a a a a a a a Minimisation of environmental impact due to travel a a a Maintenance of university sites in an environmentally sensitive way a a a a a a Green purchasing for university procurement a a a a a 1: Harvard University (US), 2: University of Cambridge (UK), 3: Yale University (US), 4: University College London (UK), 5: Imperial College London (UK), 6: University of Oxford (UK), 7: University of Chicago (US), 8: Princeton University (US), 9: Massachusetts Institute of Technology (US), 10: California Institute of Technology (US). With the growing concern on climate change around the globe, most of the universities are taking this issue into consideration. For instance, Harvard University monitors and publishes its greenhouse gas emissions statistics across its various schools in North America campus. As shown in their report (Harvard, 2008), the university managed to totally decrease its greenhouse gas emission to the amount of -2.3% in year 2008 compared to year 2006 in their North America campus. At Harvard, they also notice the issue of green buildings through defining Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) projects. As mentioned in their environmental report (ibid.), LEED is a rating system for green buildings and provides a nationally accepted third-party verification that a building project meets the highest performance standards. Similarly, in University of Cambridge, a student network named Architecture sans Frontià ©res (ASF) considers the possibilities of a new socially and environmen tally responsible architecture. Through lectures and exhibitions, this network aims to get people thinking about how buildings can respond to the needs of society and the environment (Cambridge, 2007). Yale University also has an office of sustainability where they run various projects such as LEED rating. Similarly, California Institute of Technology utilizes the LEED standard to ensure its buildings meet and maintain a high level of energy, water and resource efficiency. In another instance, Imperial College London was recognised by the Chartered Institution of Building Services Engineers (CIBSE) for the efforts of the Facilities Management department to reduce its carbon production. Interestingly, University of Chicago has an interesting website called green guide where they provide information related to health and environmental topics at the University of Chicago and share tips with visitors on how to live a greener life (Chicago, 2006). The university also provided eco-tip of the month in its website. Overall, all the studied universities take their environmental responsibility seriously and are involved in this regard. CONCLUSION This study showed that world leading universities are aware of their environmental impacts and have taken necessary steps toward sustainability. Many of them have defined annual plans with objectives to achieve. This can be considered as a benchmark for other universities around the globe. However, the key to success of such plans is commitment from all levels of management specially top leaders. As discussed by Wickenberg (2006) and cited by Axelsson et al. (2008), the norm support given by the leaders of the universities is necessary and crucial to success in local implementation of sustainability plans. This is supported by the research of Christensen et al. (2009) who showed that in spite of adopting an environmental policy and signing an agreement to work for sustainable universities, Aalborg University (Denmark) failed to reach its objectives due to the lack of commitment from top management, the missing acceptance from technical staff, and a narrow understanding of the univers itys environmental impacts. Other universities and their leaders can benchmark these plans and culture to organize their own sustainability and environmental plans. ACKNOWLEDGEMENT The first author would like to thank Universiti Sains Malaysia (USM) for supporting this research through providing Vice-Chancellor Award. 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