Indigenous Peoples and Tourism Essay

Theobald (1994) suggested that â€Å"etymologically, the word tour is derived from the Latin, ‘tornare’ and the Greek, ‘tornos’, meaning ‘a lathe or circle; the movement around a central point or axis’. This meaning changed in modern english to represent ‘one’s turn’. The suffix –ism is defined as ‘an action or process; typical behavior or quality’, while the suffix, –ist denotes ‘one that performs a given action’. When the word tour and the suffixes–ism and –ist are combined, they suggest the action of movement around a circle. One can argue that a circle represents a starting point, which ultimately returns back to its beginning. Therefore, like a circle, a tour represents a journey in that it is a round-trip, an activities of persons traveling to and staying in places outside their usual environment for not more than one consecutive year for leisure, business or other purposes. In 1941, Hunziker and Krapf defined tourism as people who travel â€Å"the sum of the phenomena and relationships arising from the travel and stay of non-residents, insofar as they do not lead to permanent residence and are not connected with any earning activity. â€Å"y these definitions, the tourism industry is inevitable since travelling is always a part of a person’s everyday life. Tourism can be seen as major consideration for both developed and developing countries in terms of adding up value to their potential tourism assets. Today, variety of tourism activities has evolved and is continually practice worldwide. There are also different themes or purposes why people travel from their country origin to their preferred destinations, these are visiting friends and relatives tourism, medical, health and retirement tourism, nature and adventure tourism, nautical or cruise tourism, sun and beach tourism, MICE, Leisure and Entertainment and Shopping Tourism, educational tourism, and lastly, cultural or indigenous tourism. The Indigenous Tourism This kind of tourism has a variety of components and relationships. And each indigenous tourism experience is unique in terms of time, space and participants. In 1966, a frameworks was been presented by Hinch and Butler, which highlights some of the key components of indigenous tourism. However, it was of limited value terms of identifying relationships between these components. The tourism system was been influenced by a variety of sources such as the basic geographic dimension of Leiper’s tourism system (1990), and the important role of the media which was highlighted by Ryan and Trauer, (2005). One of the distinguishing figures of an indigenous tourism system in general is the emphasis on the culture. In the indigenous tourism, where cultural overlay can be found, is much more encompassing compared to the tangible manifestation in a culturally based attraction. Basic values and principles, which were infused in the way an enterprise is operated, also reflect. The final component of this tourism system is the broader environmental context. This component also reflects the reality that tourism is not a closed system. But the main intent of the host (indigenous people), is to have income using the destination and also to export positive images of the destination and themselves. Economic Environment The strong performance of the economic aspects will result in higher levels of discretionary spending for travel and more trips, especially if it’s done in tourist market areas. On the other hand, the weak performance of the economic aspects often results in tourism actively supported as an alternative to struggling primary or secondary industries. Oftentimes, communal approach is a successful liaison with traditional indigenous communities but being questioned in places like Australia by Schmiechena and Boyle, Editor’s Note. Private entrepreneurial approaches are being pursued in indigenous communities (Wuttunee, 1992; Altman and Finlayson, 1993). The growing corporatization of the global economy may reflect in such trends in combination with evolving generational differences and changing socio-political structures and programs that can be seen in indigenous communities. Social Environment. One of the shared features of indigenous people is the â€Å"cultural poverty† in which they live (Frideres, 1988). Poverty means there is an insufficiency in participating effectively in society, not having enough to feed and clothe a family, neither a clinic nor a school to go to, or even own a land or a job to earn one’s living, and not having access to credit. It is not very surprising that the constraints and results of the development goals of indigenous people often vary from the goals of non-indigenous communities. Political Environment. Despite the substantial constraints that the indigenous people face, they become increasingly aware and active, as well as informed of their legal and political rights and have increasingly exercised them. There has been a major increase in land claim settlements which resulted in financial gain and increased resource management roles (Hinch, 2001). The internal politics of indigenous groups has political differences as one of the significant aspects which is not surprising that it is very rare to hear a unified voice speaking on their behalf. In Indigenous communities, there are two levels of governance, one imposed by the dominant culture and one embedded in the traditional practices of the community. Also, the reality of dual governing structures; one of them is an elected body while the other looks to the traditional guidance of elders, whose gonna be taking account valued communal and kinship bonds, build and process consensus in the community. And there are two levels of governance in indigenous communities: first is imposed by the dominant culture and secondly, embedded in the community’s traditional practice. Natural Environment The widespread destruction of natural areas throughout the world, actually increases the value of most traditional indigenous lands (Stevens, 1997). Most of the traditional indigenous lands has been lost due to expropriation and been the cause for the displacement of the indigenous people to peripheral places. The traditional relationship of the indigenous people to their homeland compared to non-indigenous people to their own land is also distinct (Notzke, 2006). Because most of the indigenous people believes that they are unconditionally conjugated or inseparable with the nature, unlike with the non-indigenous people who tend to see the land as a resource for human pleasure (Gary, 1991; Hollinshead, 1992). Given the importance of the environment to the indigenous people, any changes in the environment, have significance on the practice of the indigenous tourism (Gardner and Nelson, 1988). Host- Guest Relationshop and the Socio-Cultural Impacts of tourism It’s been the subject of much debate and research in a variety of disciplines such as anthropology and ethnography, as well as tourism studies. Disassociating the impacts of tourism from the boarder context of social and cultural development, is difficult in many ways. Most of the models cited with impact analysis are considered as less useful as tourists proliferate and destinations diversify. Two best-known models perhaps were (Butler’s Lifecycle Model, 1980 and Doxey’s Irridex, 1975). These models allow us to visualize the progression (more often, regression) of many global destinations, though they are by no means universal. In the past few years, the regeneration or rejuvenation of destination has become a more widespread phenomenon. Many products have been upgraded; some were diversified into new forms of tourism, and are targeting higher spending visitors. Though it is uncommon for tourist to be confined to â€Å"enclaves’ where contact with local residents is minimal. This kind of relationship allows for little spontaneity, but worth questioning how far host-guest relations have ever been truly authentic given the contrived nature and typically short duration of the average holiday. Acculturation, Cultural Drift and the Commodificaiton of Culture The fact of tourism is inevitable that the cultural changes primarily seen to the traditions of indigenous society, customs and values rather than to those of the tourist. Although tourism in some destinations, may be intermittent and seasonal. The level of visitation is constant and can have considerable impact on the social and cultural fabric of the host society. Instead of acculturation, cultural drift take place and is a kind of cultural change that appear within the society. (Mathieson and Wall 1992), states that cultural drift is a phenotypic change to the behavior of the host which take place only when they are in contact with tourists, but when tourists leave, it can go back to normal. The Genotypic behavior is a more permanent phenomenon where cultural changes are handed down from one generation to another. The fears of the culture and identity of the host can be assimilated into more dominant or persuasive culture of the tourist. Homogenization of culture is often exacerbated by tourist whose behaviors are sometimes adapted by local residents. This may simply mean to local people, that they are obliged to learn the language of the tourist in order to communicate well, but can also mean the consumption of non-local food or drink, the wearing of non-traditional fashions, and the desire to indulge in the same forms of entertainment as tourists. The majority of tourists tend to crave Western-style amenities. Not only this create economic leakages, but it also threatens the production of local goods, especially if local people develops and prefer Western-style products as well. Authenticity also becomes a key issue esp. when performing rituals in isolation from their traditional context. Staged authenticity in the form of displaced ceremonies, activities and events has become widespread. Although it is somehow important, the authenticity of tourist experience, it is more crucial to ensure that local communities with their role as performers and entertainers must feel comfortable in any ways. And of course, it should be understood as well that some religious or spiritual cultural practices, for tourists gaze, might not be appropriate spectacles. Measuring the socio-cultural impacts of tourism Culture is dynamic and it changes from time to time irrespective of human development: First, distinguishing the impacts of tourism from those of other social or economic developments is difficult. Second, in measuring socio-cultural impacts, only few reliable tools exist, and assessment is oftentimes used to gather quantifiable data. Cooper and et al (1998) suggests to use a number of techniques in measuring sociocultural impacts of tourism, but usually filtering other influences is impossible. The following list suggests some of the indicators that can used to identify socio-cultural impacts: †¢ Ratio of tourist to locals †¢ Nature of interaction between hosts and guests †¢ Local perceptions of tourism †¢ Concentration of tourism in certain locations †¢ Degree of usage of local products and facilities †¢ Extent and nature of local employment †¢ Degree of commercialization of local culture †¢ Changes in family relationships and the role of women †¢ Demonstration effects †¢ Increased social problems (e. g. drug usage, alcohol abuse, gambling, prostitution). †¢ Rises in crimes Cultural Tourism as a positive development option Cultural tourism can often provide an attractive socio-economic development option for many societies. It can also raise the profile of a destination, attracting the interest of both investors and visitors. There are a number of benefits derived from tourism and have been well documented in tourism literature and may include the creation of employment, the receipt of foreign exchange, the expansion of other economic sectors, and infrastructural developments. Some are intangible benefits including the renewal of cultural pride, revitalization of customs and traditions, and opportunities for cross-cultural exchange and integration. One of the major problems with tourism development is the government of those countries, who perceives tourism as a â€Å"quick fix† solution to the economic problems. As suggested by Lanfant and et al. (1995), it is often perceived as the last chance for countries to propel themselves on to the world of stage and to compete in the global arena. International and non-local investment becomes an attractive prospect, esp. in poverty-stricken countries where there are many local entrepreneurs who are able to afford the inflated land and property prices. However, restriction of the government in the extent of outside investment is needed, as this might lead inevitably to ownership and management of facilities and services o f the non-locals and high economic leakages. Another economic difficulty is for the destinations or countries who were not able to meet demands of their tourism industry with their own local products. Other economic sectors such as fishing or agriculture can be strengthened; supply is unlikely to meet demand if tourism increases rapidly. In cases of small island economies, it might be possible to strengthen inter-island linkages, but there is still the need to import goods and still experience the inevitable economic leakages. Although most tourists do shop and buy local handcrafted goods, it is still difficult to insist the consumption of local cuisine. The need for local and tourist education is being recognized. Tour operators, airlines and Western tourism agencies were encouraged to provide info and codes of conduct for visitors. Codes of conduct may be necessary in areas where the environment of local culture is fragile or sensitive. The final point is the marketing of the destination. Most destination practice selective marketing to ensure that tourism development remains small-scale and appropriate. However, this is a delicate balance since many of the tourists may not be the most cultural sensitive. There are certain forms of tourism that are being developed in accordance with these changing trends, which are more environmentally friendly and culturally sensitive. Indigenous Cultural Tourism. According to Smith (2003), The Indigenous Cultural Tourism is used as an overarching terms for together ethnic and tribal tourism, and any form of tourism that involves contact with the indigenous people and their culture. They usually involve visiting native and indigenous people, such as tribal groups or ethnic minorities. An area that is designated cultural landscape, national park, a jungle, a dessert or a mountainous region. Foreign Studies Tourism Industry Tourism is seen as a labor intensive, seven-day-a-week industry, growing at a rate faster than any sector. It is widely accepted that tourism is gaining more and more importance with the end of 20 th century and especially with the beginning of 21 st century regarding to the changing trends. In the study â€Å"Developing Alternative Modes of Tourism† (Berne Tuzcan, 2007), World Tourism Organization has taken the concept of tourism beyond holiday-making and officially defined it as follows: â€Å"Tourism comprises the activities carried out by people during their holidays and their visit to places different from their usual environment or residence, for a consecutive period of time less than a year, with leisure, business or other purposes. † (McIntosh, Goeldner and Ritchie 1995:11). Accordingly â€Å"Tourism refers to all activities of visitors including both overnight visitors and same day visitors† (Lickorish and Jenkins, 1997: 36). Moreover, it may also be defined as â€Å"the sum of relationships arising from the interaction of tourists, business suppliers, host government, and host communities in the process of attracting and hosting these tourist and other visitors (McIntosh, Goeldner and Ritchie 1995: 9-10). † On the other hand tourists can be defined as people who are visiting a particular place for sightseeing, visiting their friends and relatives, taking a vacation, and having a good time. Indigenous Tourism Indigenous tourism is a „special interest? tourism; its essential components are: first hand, authentic and usually intimate contact with Indigenous peoples whose ethnic and cultural backgrounds are different from those of tourists (Weiler and Harron 84). Indigenous tourism affairs are location-specific, or rather, culture-specific; the history has shown that various Indigenous groups have reacted to tourism in various ways. The approaches of Indigenous communities towards tourism are influenced by a number of factors such as: former experiences with Western world, size of Indigenous population, sedentary or mobile lifestyle, diversity of Indigenous languages in an area, etc. ( Martina Horakova, 2003) Naturally, the overall analysis of Indigenous tourism would require a holistic approach; all the aspects of life in Indigenous communities are influenced by tourism and are interwoven: economic and educational issues, marketing and preservation, land ownership and traditional lifestyles. Indigenous People Indigenous communities are very diverse and specific. No matter where they live, groups from various parts of the world or clans occupying two neighboring regions, all of them are unique and their distinctiveness should be recognized and respected. Thus, to generalize insensitively and refer to all Indigenous peoples as a homogeneous group would be an immense mistake. In Australia, there are more than 700 different nations (Nielsen 213) and as quoted in the said study, â€Å"different groups are responding to tourism in different ways†. In the thesis entitled â€Å"Tourism and its Impact on Traditional Culture: A case study of Sirubari village, Nepal† by Tilak Prasad Kandel (2011) discussed the boom of tourism on indigenous people in the village tourism being practiced by the Gurung people in the Sirubari village of Syangja. For several decades now, this study recognizes the tourism industry as major source of revenue for countries, especially in the Third World. For ethnic tribes such as the Gurung people, Tourism is like a gift. They were given opportunities for employment other than hunting and fishing. Their children was given the benefits for education and they were informed of what it is like outside of their community as they interact with tourists who visited their place. They were proud of their culture but did not deny the fact, that they have the rights for changes and development if choose to. Another study, â€Å"The Impacts of Ethnic Tourism on Hill Tribes in Thailand† (Kayoko Ishii, 2011) stated the economic bene? ts of ethnic tourism for tribal households that affect the division of labor and gender dynamics in the local minority community engaged in the tourism industry. Furthermore, â€Å"Indigenous Tourism in Australia† (Martina Horakova, 2003) deals in analyzing both the positive and negative impacts of tourism in Aboriginal communities in Australia. The thesis shows that no one could really conclude that the overall effect of indigenous tourism on Aboriginal communities is either bad or good. This thesis intends to present that even though there are negative impacts, the positive ones could actually eliminate those and that indigenous tourism could give Aboriginal peoples the opportunity to re-create and state their identities through the interaction and exposure to tourists. The communication between tourists and Aboriginal peoples is productive in many aspects. It provides tourists with information that cannot be obtained elsewhere, and it helps to restore Aboriginal peoples? self-esteem and pride in their cultural heritage. Consequently, they are more willing to share their knowledge with the outer world. And, by telling their stories, they contribute greatly to the reconciliation. Thus, it could be concluded that Indigenous tourism becomes â€Å"reconciliation tourism† (Higgins-Desbiolles 223), when operated sensitively and carefully. Local Literature The Philippine Tourism According to Etravel Philippines (2000), The Philippines, Pearl of the Orient Seas, is very rich in natural resources. Filipinos are by nature creative and intelligent. The richness of the environment is an advantage for their livelihood. Around 15 million hectares, or almost half of the Philippines’ total land area, are classified as timberland. Most of the land here was densely forested before the 1900s. However, the following century saw the loss of half of Philippine forests. Statistics show that deforestation claimed 204,000 hectares per year from 1950 to 1978. From 1989 to 1995, only 116,332 hectares were vanishing annually. Environmentalist groups are trying to protect Philippine forests, but a lot needs to be done in the campaign for reforestation as well as the fight against illegal logging. Philippine forests produce timber for local consumption and for export. Hardwood products coming from these timbers are globally known for their distinct appearance and high quality, which makes them appropriate as home furnishings. Wooden furniture, such as tables and chairs, are usually made of hardwood, popularly known as narra. Most Philippine forests are of the tropical rainforest type. Besides extensive reserves of tropical evergreen hardwoods, the country also has considerable areas of pine in the mountainous regions of Northern Luzon. With a coastal ecosystem stretching almost 20,000 km, the Philippines is likely to become one of the earliest victims of rising ocean temperatures and levels. Centuries-old coral reefs are dying almost overnight, and the destruction is being witnessed not only by divers in remote spots. Regional marine science studies estimated in the middle of 1999 that the Philippines’ magnificent underwater world would be gone by around 2100. Reports say that increased sea temperatures were causing â€Å"mass coral bleaching events† in the world’s best coral reefs. Something has to be done to reduce global warming caused by the burning of oil, coal, and gas. The Philippines has extensive but small river systems and streams, which are mostly depicted by the mountain ranges. The fluvial system of Luzon is made up of (1) Rio Grande de Cagayan and its tributaries (a stream that flows into a larger body of water), which drain the Cagayan Valley; (2) the Agno Grande which drains Benguet and the valleys of Nueva Ecija, Pangasinan and Tarlac; (3) the Abra River system, which receives its tributaries from the Cordillera and drains Lepanto, Bontoc, and the Abra; and (4) the Rio Grande de Pampanga and its tributaries, which drain the fertile valfeys of Nueva Ecija, Pampanga, and Bulacan. Schoolmeester (2004), expound that most of the islands in the Philippines are very small. Many of these small islands as well as the bigger islands, have a lot to offer to tourists. There are many possibilities for typical â€Å"sun, sea and beach holidays† and for specific adventure holidays. You can even meet the whale sharks and swim close to them. For tourists who want to discover geographically interesting landscapes or who want to meet mountain tribes, the Philippines has it all! As an archipelagic island, the Philippines offers countless attractions to see, such as the famous white sand beaches of Boracay, big shopping centers of Metro Manila, rice terraces of Ifugao, diving sites of Palawan, lush forests of Bohol, heritage houses in Vigan, and the cultural attractions of Manila. Metro Manila, the national capital region of the country, is known for being one of the best shopping destinations in Asia; its wide collection of shopping centers offer a range of local and international shops. Numerous shopping malls can be found around the metropolis, especially in the business and financial districts of Ortigas Center and Bonifacio Global City, while high-end shopping centers are mostly located at the Ayala Center in Makati. Despite the rise of modern shopping centers, traditional Filipino shopping areas still remain around the metropolis. Located just approximately 315 km (196 mi) south of Manila is Boracay; it is known for its white sand beaches and has been a favorite island destination for local and foreign visitors. In 2012, Boracay received the best island award from the international travel magazine Travel + Leisure. Boracay was also named as the second best beach in the world. Aside from its white sand beaches, Boracay is also known for being a popular destination for relaxation, tranquility and for an exciting nightlife (Malig, 2012). Mindanao, the southernmost island of the Philippines is home to the country’s tallest mountain, Mount Apo. The mountain features a wide range of flora and fauna and is home to over 272 bird species, 111 of which are endemic to the area. Mount Apo is also home to the country’s national bird, the Philippine Eagle. Mount Apo is a popular destination for hiking and mountain activities. The Indigenous People in the Philippines Jocano (1998) said that the earliest known attempt of classifying Filipinos into specific racial groupings were based mainly on anthropometric measurements and ocular inspections of skeletal remains as well as the physical appearances of living populations. The inhabitants of the country could be divided into: (1) Negritos – the small, dark-skinned group, which included the Negrito of Bataan, Ata of Luzon, and Mamanwa of Mindanao; (2) Malays – the brown-skinned group, which included the inhabitants of Bicol, Bisayas, and southern Luzon (Montano suspected the Malays to have Chinese, Indonesian, and Arabic blood); (3) Indonesian group – the group similar to the Malays in complexion, which included the Samal, Bagobo, Guianga, Ata, Tagakaolo, Tagbanua, Manubo, Mandaya, and Bilaan. Group 2 and 3 were said to have reached the Philippines in two waves of migration. The Indonesians were the first to come, followed by the Malays. The Aetas in the Philippines Of the scores of indigenous communities that comprise roughly 14 per cent of the Filipino people, the Agta are unquestionably the most widely distributed geographically. Popularly regarded as aboriginal, they are variously known as Mamanua in Surigao, Ata Manobo in Davao, Ati in Panay, Ata and Ati in Negros, Batak in North Central Palawan, Ayta and Ita in Central Luzon, Ata in Western Cagayan, and Agta or Aggay along the Sierra Madre Mountain Range facing the Pacific Ocean or more accurately the Philippine Sea from Palaui Island off San Vicente in Santa Ana, Cagayan south or northern Isabela Province. Farther south of the range, in Aurora and Quezon provinces, they are called Dumagat (Galang, 2006). The Aeta live in the northern part of the Philippines on the island of Luzon. Historians and Anthropologists debate precisely when and how they migrated here, the consensus being that they crossed from the island of Borneo between 20 and 30 thousand years ago, using a land bridge that was partially covered by water around 5,000 years ago – the remaining part of which is now part of Palawan. Whatever the migration path was, they are without doubt among the first – if not the first – inhabitants of the Philippines. One area of that country where the Aetas had lived for thousands of years was Mount Pinatubo (Waddington, 2002). Aetas are known to be one of the descendants of the original inhabitants of the Philippines. They previously occupied the outlying areas near the coastline and riverbeds, but were forced to resettle in the mountains by the coming of the migrants. Belonging to the ethnic group, Negrito, these mountain dwellers are classified and identified as Aytas or Aetas — small stature, kinky hair, dark brown skin, and big brown eyes (Hiromu Shimizu, 1989). The small body of Aetas is nicely proportioned of strong, hardy stock, muscular and able to endure hardship of their life, such as going with little food for several days; they also have high forehead, prominent cheek bones, flat nose, round black eyes and scanty beard. They have highly trained and keen sense of hearing and sight since one of their sources of living is hunting. They also have bright, inquisitive minds and an extensive knowledge of woodcraft but they lack of abstract ideas and can hardly count beyond 4 or 5. Though their happiness is like a child’s happiness, they smile and laugh even if they are worried; they are kind and peaceful little folks and very devoted to their relatives, friends and with high moral standard like honesty (Wilson, 1953) The Pinatubo Aytas (Aytas in Zambales). Studies of cultural change following the occurrence of the natural hazards like volcanic eruptions usually focuses on the propensity of the stricken society to suffer from damage caused by an event, they stress the vulnerability or the condition of a society which makes it possible for a hazard to become a disaster (Canoon, 1994). According to Shimizu (1992), In the early years following the awakening of Mt. Pinatubo in 1991, there was a generalized fear that the eruption might turn into a cultural disaster for the Aeta ethnic minority of Central Luzon which was expected to be in a crisis of survival. A decade after the disaster, a certain level of cultural change has indeed been observed in the indigenous society. prior to the eruption, the Aeta in Zambales occupied only the slopes of the Mt. Pinatubo and, in particular, the tablelands stretching from the volcano to the coast range between Botolan and San Marcelino. In April 2001, Banzon-Bautista with the initial signs of the restlessness of the volcano, almost all of the Aetas communities were immediately evacuated. However, an unknown number of Aetas refused to leave their homes and perished during the eruption. According to oral accounts, a score of Aeta found shelter in caves that were eventually buried by pyroclastic flowers. According to Gaillard (2006), All the Aeta communities located on the upper flanks of Mt. Pinatubo prior to the eruption had to abandon their small villages which had been buried under these thick, hot pyroclastic and ash fall deposits, which prevent the immediate reoccupation of the settlements. Most of these Aeta have been relocated in the government resettlement sites, either on the lower slopes of the volcano or on the foothills. Today, these resettlement sites are the largest Aeta settlements. All these settlements are nowadays concentrated on the lower flanks of Mt. Pinatubo in the immediate proximity of lowland villages and towns occupied by Kapampangan people, the dominant ethnic group of the Southwestern part of the Central Plain of Luzon. Henceforth, there are no Aeta communities left isolated on the upper flanks of Mt. Pinatubo. All have established regular contact with the lowlanders. According to 1973 census, the Pinatubo Aytas covers almost majority of the 20,000 population of the Negrito groups. Pinatubo Aytas declined to accept and entertain the influence of the outside forces or the lowlanders and continually preserve their distinct culture and tradition until the Mount Pinatubo eruption in 1996 when they were forced to go down the plains and mountains and lived in the resettlement areas together with the lowlanders. These endanger their culture and tradition because they learned to adapt the ways of the lowlanders (Tubera, 2006). In line with this, they no longer possess their original language instead they adopted the lowlanders’ language called Sambal Language, thus, the acceptance of the jurisdiction of the municipal government which opened them further to the culture of the lowlanders whom they called as bawbanowa (town people). They have not just acquired the Sambal Language but also their techniques and rituals in agriculture; and their concepts of spirits, curing rituals, and burial customs. However, the Aytas assimilated only those cultural elements suitable to their social reality. This selective assimilation contributed to the stability and continuity of the Aytas’ culture. The feeling of antagonism towards the lowlanders made them preserve their own cultural heritage. Despite of being aware of the changing environment and society downhill they insisted to not to adopt and or develop a well integrated sociopolitical system beyond the family groupings and the village order. Hence, without the presence of the integrated system their history is not detailed, only those eve.

Intangible Assets †Woolworths limited Essay

Intangible Assets: An intangible asset, despite not having a physical form to it, has great value to a company and is to be disclosed in the financial reports. Some companies only disclose the brand and goodwill as their only intangible assets, while others include more such as software and the company trademarks (Loftus et al. 2012). The Accounting Standard AASB 138 advises businesses on the accounting treatment of these intangible assets, but only if the specific criteria have been met for an asset to be recognized as intangible. An intangible asset must encompass three characteristics: Identifiable: An asset has to meet one of the following in order to be considered identifiable. It has to be separable, so that it is recognizable to be different than goodwill. This means it is capable of being sold, licensed, rented, transferred or exchanged, resulting with separation from the business. Or it has to arise from contractual or other legal rights, whether it is separable or not (AASB 2010). Non-monetary in nature: The asset has to be non-monetary. This characteristic is required so that receivables are not considered as an intangible asset by businesses just because the money has been recognized but not received yet (Loftus et al. 2012). Lack of physical substance: This is required so that tangible assets of property, plant and equipment are not being recognized as an intangible asset (Loftus et al. 2012). Also, an asset is strictly only recognized as intangible if it meets both of the following in the recognition criteria: (a) It is probable that the expected future economic benefits that are attributable to the asset will flow to the entity; and (b) The cost of the asset can be measured reliably (AASB 2010) Classes of intangible assets: A class is a group of intangible assets that are of similar nature. Some examples of classes include Brand names, Computer software or Licenses and Franchises, just to name a few. Compliance with Accounting Standards: There is a set of disclosing rules that has been set out for Woolworths to apply to their reporting of intangible assets. It is stated in AASB 138 that for each class of intangible assets, the following shall be disclosed by a business: If the useful lives of the asset is either indefinite or finite and the useful lives or amortization rates if it is finite; Woolworths have clearly stated in their annual report a description on whether the useful life of each class is indefinite or finite. 4 out of 5 classes (excluding goodwill as it was reported separately from the other intangibles) were stated as assets with an indefinite useful life, so no amortization was charged (Woolworths Limited 2012). The method used for amortization on intangible assets with finite useful lives; The research and development class of intangible assets for Woolworths had stated that any spending on development activities where their research results are applied to a development for a new or improved product is to be capitalized if the plan is deemed to be commercially possible, and the business has sufficient resources to complete it. It is explained that this capitalized expenditure is expressed as cost less accumulated amortization and impairment losses (Woolworths Limited 2012), however no specific amortization rates were defined. The gross carrying amount and any accumulated amortization and impairment losses at the beginning and end of the period; The line item(s) of the statement of comprehensive income in which any amortization of intangible assets is included; A reconciliation of the carrying amount at the beginning  and end of the period (AASB 138); Woolworths Limited provided a reconciliation of movements in Intangibles (Appendix 1) from 2011 to 2012 in their 2012 financial report to shareholders (Woolworths Limited 2012). The report was presented with each class of intangible asset separated into their own headings with their own amounts written under it before the total amount of intangibles. This made the amounts of amortization and impairment more recognizable from where it had arisen. This reconciliation provided a carrying amount at the beginning and end of the period as requested by the Standards. Also included were the additions arising from acquisition of businesses, other acquisitions and disposals that were required to be shown in the reconciliation. 2011 ($M) 2012 ($M) Carrying amount at end of period $5236.6 $5282.0 (Woolworths Limited 2012) Woolworths had applied the relevant Accounting Standards, AASB 138, towards the treatment of their intangible assets and disclosure of them very well. Their intangible assets presented in the reports were separable, non monetary in nature and didn’t have physical substance. Woolworths could have explained the amortization rates used for their intangible assets, but that was the only limited information provided by Woolworths limited. The disclosure rules were applied into their financial reports, showing that Woolworths Limited’s treatment on their intangible assets conformed to the relevant accounting standards. Recommendations: The guidelines in the AASB 138 seem to already make companies scrutinize their intangible assets intensely and reveal every bit of it in their financial reports. An improvement could be to state in the guidelines which type of report and where in the report that this information should be  disclosed so users can have access to all the information in one go without having to search through many files to find certain information about a company’s intangible assets. AASB 2010, AASB 138 – Intangible Assets, Available on: http://www.aasb.gov.au/admin/file/content102/c3/AASB138_07-04_ERDRjun10_07-09.pdf [25 September 2013] Loftus, J, Leo, K, Picker, R, Wise, V, Clark, K 2012, Understanding Australian Accounting Standards, Wiley, QLD Woolworths Limited 2012, 2012 Financial Report for Shareholders http://www.woolworthslimited.com.au/annualreport/2012/pdf/WW_AR12_FinReport.pdf Appendices Appendix 1:

Business-accounting information systems Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Business-accounting information systems - Essay Example The purpose of this report is to provide a company with an inadequate accounting system the basic elements of an accounting system and which computerized accounting system can provide assistance for the company. Accounting is the information system that identifies, records, and communicates the economic events of an organization to interested users (Weigant & Keiso & Kimmel, 2002, p.2). The identification process involves the recognizing economic events which create activity that affects the bottom line of a business. These activities include expenses, sales of physical goods or services, purchase of materials or inventory, payroll, accounts payables, account receivables, recognition of liabilities and equity investment transactions. The activities must be recorded in a book called the general journal which can be either manual or electronic. The general journal is a simple system which records transactions as two input transactions where a debit and its corresponding credit are recorded for every economic transaction. In all accounting systems the sum of all credits must equal the sum of all debits. The reporting of the financial results of a company is illustrated within its financial sta tements. These must be created at the end of an accounting cycle which is typically a one year cycle. The four basic financial statements are The Income Statement, The Balance Sheet, The Statement of Cash Flow and the Statement of Stockholders Equity. In order for a company to create the end result of the accounting system which is the financial statements, a series of procedures occur over the course of a year which is called the accounting cycle. Appendix A provides a flow chart which illustrates the 9-step process of the accounting cycle. The accounting discipline is self regulated and people practicing accounting must follow a strict set of standards which are called generally accepted accounting

Module 01 and module 02 Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Module 01 and module 02 - Essay Example From the exercise, I learned that success in online environments in related directly with structured approached towards time management in which one can give proper time to each course. In my typical day, school fits at the place of most important value. The fact that I have learned about my future career within school is that students need positive attention from teachers. If they do not receive it, their focus can shift away from studies forever. Teachers need to handle each student individually during early childhood education to make the students feel valued and gain confidence. I chose multimedia technology because of my interest in this field. Studying multimedia will not only help me get a deep understanding of different technologies and the way they work but also it will help me gain success in online environment because use of multimedia technologies is the backbone of online mode of study. Everyone wants to do something exceptional in life. I have planned to use my multimedia education in research and teaching areas. I have focused my attention not only towards creating new multimedia technologies to assist students and teachers communicate and study in online environments but also towards using such technologies as my professional teaching

Explain the Role of Pricing within the Marketing Mix Essay

Explain the Role of Pricing within the Marketing Mix - Essay Example In order to use the best pricing strategy for the products, a good estimate of the quantity of money the consumers are willing to spend on the products is required by the company. It is important to note that most companies do not use adequate pricing strategies for the products they generate. Majority of the pricing decisions are cost oriented instead of being value-based as perceived by the consumer (Breidert 2006, p10). Product differentiation entails the modification of the product to make it appear more attractive to a particular group of consumers, thus making it different from the competitor’s products. The main purpose of differentiation is to divide the consumers into segments â€Å"and optimizing the products for the specific needs of the segments. Differentiation requires a sophisticated pricing strategy based on the perceived values of the products† (Breidert 2006, p10). In most cases, product pricing is placed within the penetration strategy. Penetration st rategy determines the factors affecting pricing as noted by Cohen (1983). For instance, a company may want to look for short-term objectives using a defined strategy for a particular type of product. The common objectives mostly used are current product profit maximization or market share increase. Both objectives depend on the knowledge of how the market will respond to diverse pricing patterns. Price is the crucial element for such short-term objectives. This is because it is the mainly flexible component in marketing mix. Price can be adjusted and changed rapidly and short-term adjustments indicates changes in market shares and profits (Breidert 2006, p10). The price of a particular product for most of the companies is based on the consumer’s perceived value, that is, the company uses value-based pricing. The price of the product is considered with other marketing elements before setting the marketing program (Colin 1989). In order to develop a value-based pricing strategy , the company is required to estimate the present perceived value of its product(s). In such a case, the company attempts to measure the products demand and the demand is dependent on the historical sales data and the competitor’s prices. External factors such as holiday and weekends, and advertising also affect the demand for the products. Lastly, the introduction of a new product into the market by a company requires the adoption of different strategies. The launch of a single product requires a pricing strategy such as penetration or skimming strategy. Adoption of a skimming strategy entails charging the consumer for a short period of time a relatively high price for the launched product. Penetration strategy entails setting a lower price for the product to gain a large market share (Breidert 2006, p11). 2. Visit the Easyjet London (Luton) to Madrid for various periods. Return flights assumed with a duration of one week a. Leaving tomorrow 21-28 Jan 21 January, 2012 - Outb ound -â‚ ¬ 73.99 21 January, 2012 - Return - â‚ ¬ 46.99 Total = â‚ ¬ 120.98 b. Leaving in 1 weeks time 28 January, 2012 - Outbound - â‚ ¬ 73.99 4 February, 2012 - Return - â‚ ¬ 46.99 Total = â‚ ¬ 120.98 c. Leaving in 1 months time 21 February, 2012 -Outbound -â‚ ¬ 25.99 28 February, 2012 Return - â‚ ¬ 10.99 Total = 36.98 d. Leaving in 3 months time. April 21, 2012 Outbound - â‚ ¬ 35.99 April 28, 2012 Return – â‚ ¬ 89.99 Total = 125.98 Easyjet generally offers competitive prices to customers on the same routes and

Are certain democratic institutions more or less democratic than Essay

Are certain democratic institutions more or less democratic than others - Essay Example Russia is a federal presidential government with the executive power split between the President and the Prime Minister, however, President is the supreme head (Hale, 2006, p. 243). Two chambers represent the legislative system, the State Duma (lower house) and the Federation Council (upper house) (Chaisty, 2006, p.73). The Federation Council acts as a voice of Russia’s federated entities, and it forbids political factions. The Council is not directly elected, and consists of representatives from federal entities. It works with the lower house to complete and vote on draft laws. In addition, the Federal Council has special powers to declare presidential election, impeach the president and decides on the use of military forces outside Russia’s jurisdiction. However, the State Duma is the lower house and it consists of 450 deputies elected for terms of five consecutive years. Any Russian of age 21 years is eligible to run for parliamentary seat in the state Duma. The depu ties are elected from party lists through proportional representation. State Duma first considers all the bills. Immediately the majority in Duma State  passes the bill, a draft law is returned to the Federation Council. If the Council rejects the bill, the two chambers form a commission to work out a compromise. Norway is a constitutional monarchy having a parliamentary democratic system of governance.  The head of state is the King  whereas Prime Minister is the head of government (Wardahl, 2011, p.379). The government structure consists of three branches, the Executive Branch, the Legislative Branch, and the Judicial Branch. Norway has a unicameral legislature. The parliamentary system consists of the Stortinget that has two significant functions. It enacts legislation and approves the national budget. Stortinget also votes on proposals and the bills introduced by the Executive Branch. It monitors the executive and

Hedonism in Terms of Philosophy Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Hedonism in Terms of Philosophy - Essay Example How can hedonism claim to be a universal philosophy when its foundations are weak and merely transitory at best? An enjoyment of pleasure by the senses is at best temporary and as people age, their enjoyment of such pleasures diminish, in a case of diminishing returns. Is it a valid argument to claim hedonism when a person is already old or infirm? Further, a sense of pleasure is a very subjective matter, and what are the standards by which to measure it in its exact terms or magnitude? Can subjective feelings be accurate measurements when there is a plurality in all kinds of pleasures?. A more basic question is how hedonists can know for certain that there is no afterlife when no person has come back from the dead? Is hedonism able to claim that as an alternative lifestyle or philosophy of life, it is an epistemic normative theory that all people ought to believe in when others doubt its validity? Is pleasure the sole purpose of life or is man destined for other greater things in th e universe?Hedonism commits a so-called naturalistic fallacy. This means the claim of pleasure as something that is natural and therefore is right or morally correct does not always follow in the same line of reasoning of what is moral or ethical. This is the argument put forward by the philosopher George Moore who said that equating pleasure with something good, natural, desired or pleasant is a fallacy; the critics of hedonism had pointed out the senses are not intended for physical pleasures alone.

Final Paper Term Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3000 words

Final - Term Paper Example It even takes place among homosexual partners also. Every year, every corner of the world; many cases of domestic violence come in focus and some of them are suppressed within the four walls of the house. Many reasons are there which compel them to hide the abuse, and one very common reason is that they are feared of spoiling the family status. The major target in domestic violence is most of the time women. The children suffered a lot and they are crushed physically and mentally and consequently it creates a long-lasting trauma in their life. â€Å"Behind closed doors, or hidden beneath a blanket of silence,  domestic violence bruises the lives of an estimated four million people every year – the overwhelming majority of them women– and impacts expanding circles of millions more: children, relatives, friends, employers.†(Rosen Lee) Domestic violence further results to another social problem and it is the broken and shaking marriage institute, which is one of t he pillars of healthy society. Each country has its laws regarding domestic violence. Divorce and domestic violence may or may not be concerned with each other. Divorce is like a legal aid to the person who has been the victim of domestic violence. Yet divorce has many other causes and so it is the separate issue to be discussed. The consequences of domestic violence are very dreadful and everyone involved in this incident has to suffer a lot. The small children in such families are likely to continue the same legacy to the next generation. There are number of books, movies and research articles, which have thrown light on this atrocious act of domestic violence. It is a widely discussed topic for many psychologists and sociologists, who have researched on these two topics. The paper also aims at throwing the light on one of the stigmatic issue, domestic violence. The issue has been discussed with the example of a

Explain the economic basis of African Slavery and its impact on the Essay

Explain the economic basis of African Slavery and its impact on the emerging nation - Essay Example At the time of slavery, cotton from the South comprised the majority of all cotton grown world wide. With the invention of the cotton gin, cotton could not be grown fast enough to meet the demand. Without slaves cotton production would have dramatically decreased, effecting not only the slave owners, but the pious abolitionists and everyone that wore cotton harvested by the slaves. This is just one example of slaves being cheap labor. Many other professions in the South were based on this cheap labor, such as housekeepers, ironsmiths, and various other jobs slaves worked at for fee. The second economic reason slavery lasted so long was the monetary value of each slave. Each slave cost from two hundred to two thousand dollars depending on gender and age. These prices are an example, different sales had different prices, but slaves had monetary value. Southern slave owners would complain that the government was taking valuable property if slaves were freed. Slave owners did not see slaves as humans with souls, but as property. The monetary value of a slave leads to the third economic reason slavery lasted so long. If slaves were freed, could the government afford it? Questions were raised such as who would pay slave owners for their loss? And who would give slaves money to start their new life as free in America? And lastly who would pay to have the slaves returned to Africa? Would slaves take jobs from whites? The North and the South were at loss concerning what to do once slaves were free. No one took into account that once the slaves were free that they would work for wages to be integrated into American society. The North and the South were overly concerned with the economic issues of slavery. Although the North had many people against slavery, many looked the other way because of the imported goods from the South because of the cheap labor of slaves. The United States government did not want

Deception Point by Dan Brown Essay Example for Free

Deception Point by Dan Brown Essay A techno-thriller Deception Point is a typical Dan Brown novel decent far-fetched plot Dan Brown, once again does a delightful job. Rachael Sexton, estranged of her father, a charismatic leading Presidential nominee Senator Sedgewick Sexton, and herself a highly competent â€Å"resource† working for the little known but highly efficient intelligence agency NRO (National Reconnaissance Oficce), one day gets an unexpected audience with the President himself. On his request, she soon finds herself in the icy depth of the Arctic sent to verify a astonishing discovery by NASA. At that time, when NASA’s existence is threatened by Sedwick’s rhetoric condemning its very expensive failure, Rachael finds the discovery too coincidental. But outside experts like Michel Tolland, a world-famous oceanographer, convince Rachel of its authenticity. Just hours before the President announces this information, Rachel and Michel discover a deadly deception. The 557 pages of this novel is not only thrilling, intense and enthralling but also thought-provoking. Brown’s painstaking research is evident in the authentic facts mentioned in the plot. Flawless creation of characters, the visual descriptions and a mild romance amidst the intense plot- it all adds up to a perfectly paced, gripping story. With its slightly stilted style and incredible turn of events, Deception Point falls short of the standard created by The Da Vinci Code and Angels and Demons. None the less, the 5$ paperback edition of the book has wooed readers all over the globe and has remained another best seller. Dan Brown is a master story teller and this novel is a good example of his ability to craft ingenious plots that grips readers with intrigue and awe.

Impact Of Climate Change On Arctic Ice Environmental Sciences Essay

Impact Of Climate Change On Arctic Ice Environmental Sciences Essay Climate change concerns to a statistically momentous deviation in either the mean state of the climate or in its variability, remaining for an extensive period (normally decades or longer) (What is climate change, 2001). Climate change is term that adverts to any major and long-term change in average weather in a specified region or whole Earth. Fundamentally important variability of average weather over longer time period can be depicted as climate change. Climate change is due to natural internal procedures or external pressures, or to relentless anthropogenic alterations in the composition of the atmosphere or in land utilization. Earlier in the beginnings of earths history climate changes were normally induced by different vibrant processes on earth but recently it is caused by human activities. This is the reason that in our everyday talks the term climate change refers to climate change caused by global warming. The most disposed signs of climate change are Arctic Sea Ice. Arctic Sea Ice is declining at rapid level which shows that change has already began. This time, climate change is only due to the recent human activities and had resulted in various negative outcomes. From last two centuries, the worlds global mean temperature has amplified by 0.6Â °C (1Â °F) and it appears that the present trend goes beyond the natural climate variance. Due to this increased warming, the average temperatures of Arctic region have mounted almost twice as fast as in the rest of the world and in this region climate changes are being felt extremely (Eilperin Sheridan, 2009). This warming in the region can be attributed to the present human activities that are directing towards climate change. With the effect of the climate change, the Arctic sea ice cover is continually shrinking and becoming thinner and the region is warming more rapidly than scientists had anticipated. This is only due to the increased amount of carbon dioxide (CO2) in the atmosphere. The amount of carbon dioxide has increased by 35% since the industrial revolution and it is mostly due to human activities like burning of fossil fuels and the clearing of land. In addition to this, extending greenhouse gas releases are also causing momentous change in climatic conditions, which in turn is affecting the Arctic sea ice. This impact of climate change on the Arctic Sea Ice is making numerous negative effects on wildlife like polar bears and augmenting erosion of coastlines in Alaska and Siberia. Arctic sea ice loss is also resulting in the changes in atmospheric patterns that are causing condensed rainfall in the American West or amplified precipitation over western and southern Europe. If this situation of climate change is not managed, the decline in Arctic sea ice could also affect the whole world. Discussion Significance Scope of the Issue The management of the issue of climate change and its impact on Arctic Sea Ice is essential as it could profoundly influence Arctic ecosystems, global climate and flow of oceans and atmosphere in the north. Sea ice impacts coastal areas in countless ways. Bottom ice in trivial water acts with sub-sea permafrost, which in turn controls erosion and sediment transport. The existence of sea ice precludes waves from eroding coastlines (Eilperin Sheridan, 2009). The features of near-shore ice are critical in numerous respects and need to be prevented as soon as possible as otherwise it could direct in drastic results related with coastal area. In addition to the impact on coastal areas, the Arctic sea ice also plays a prominent role in Arctic ecology, most noticeably for the numerous fish, bird and mammal species that live in, on, or beneath sea ice, or are otherwise inhibited or supported by its existence. The present altering sea ice conditions will not only make an impact on the marine ecosystem, but also it will have complications for terrestrial surroundings and the wildlife and people settled there (Sea Ice: Implications of changes in arctic sea ice, 2001). Sea ice shelters the fundamental water column and blocks sunlight that in turns affects the productivity of the Arctic Ocean that is impelled by plankton and algae. With the sea ice changes all these sea related aspects are facing disruption. Ice-associated species had also started conferring radical changes and destructions (Scientific Facts on Arctic Climate Change, 2009). Inquiring these and other such alterations and their significances is decisive to comprehend the full role of sea ice in arctic ecology. With the changes in sea ice, humans living in the Arctic region are also affected in numerous ways. Marine mammal hunters necessitate access to prey, which depends on the distribution, quality and movement of the ice fields. All these aspects impact the capability of the hunters to arrive at and carefully recover the animals that are gleaned (Sea Ice: Implications of changes in arctic sea ice, 2001). Changes in ice distribution may influence both access and scheduling of harvest, potentially conflicting with other seasonal activities. Specific Causes of Change in Arctic Sea Ice The specific causes of change in the Arctic Sea Ice are global warming, atmospheric changes and greenhouse releases. With the ever increasing release of greenhouse gases prominent changes has occurred in atmosphere, which in turn had increased the temperature. All these aspects are causing global warming, which directly or indirectly makes an effect on Arctic sea ice. On the whole it could be said that the most important reason of this change in Arctic sea ice is due to the climate change, which in turn is the result of following factors: The most prominent reason of climate change is releasing of greenhouse gases and aerosols into the atmosphere. From last two hundred and fifty years, the concentrations of greenhouse gases and carbon dioxide have increased due to the burning of fossil fuels for energy production (Climate Change, n.d.). Another prominent reason of climate change and atmosphere change is deforestation, which is related with agriculture and urban development and harvesting timber for fuel, construction and paper (What causes global climate change, 2005). Sulphate Aerosols and Black Carbon are other two crucial instances of anthropogenic forcings. Current industrial activities have recently increased the concentration of sulphate aerosols and black carbon in the atmosphere that is making imperative effect on our climate in the form of drastic weather events and reduction in Arctic sea ice. Critical Analysis Evaluation of Environmental and Ecological Consequences Climate change and its effects on the Arctic sea ice is the most serious environmental issue in present as it is frightening the world environment and Arctic ecology. Average annual temperatures in the Arctic region have altered greatly in comparison to the increase in global average temperatures. With the impact of global warming, effects like higher temperatures rise in sea-level, melting of sea ice and glaciers, augmented precipitation in some regions and drought in others are become very common (Arctic Sea Ice Decline May Trigger Climate Change Cascade, 2007). With this global warming and climate change, the Arctic region is warming at an alarming rate and this had a distressing affect on Arctic ecosystems, admitting sea ice, permafrost, forests and tundra. Melting sea ice is affecting populations of marine mammals, caribou, polar bears and the continuation livelihoods of people, which in turn is creating an imbalance among the ecological system (Scientific Facts on Arctic Climate Change, 2009). With these changes in sea ice, a number of wildlife populations of Arctic region are forced to adapt to changes in their habitats. Thawing permafrost the result of sea ice changes has damaged houses, roads, airports and pipelines and is inducing landscape erosion, slope unsteadiness and landslides. All these environmental consequences are becoming unmanageable. The important features of Arctic environment like forest and tundra ecosystem had started damaging due to this impact of climate change (Effects of Climate Change Today, 2010). This in turn is resulting into forest disturbance, insect outbreaks, blow down and fire. Climate warming Climate warming and insect infestations are making forests more susceptible to forest fire. On the whole, it could be said that changes in Arctic sea ice is causing significant environmental and ecological consequences. Success of Solutions Proposed Applied Climate change is affecting the whole world and prominently the Arctic sea ice. Number of developed and developing countries are working together to discover the solution of environmental challenge of climate change. From the time, this issues has emerged a number of efforts had been done some of which had attained success and some had failed. In June 1992, 154 countries signed the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCC) that corresponded to alleviate the amount of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere at levels that would not cause destruction and further consequences. In Kyoto, in December 1997, Japan, Canada and 160 other industrialized nations committed to cut down their greenhouse gas emissions, as component of an international agreement on climate change identified as the Kyoto Protocol. This eventually came into force throughout 2005 (Climate Change, n.d.). In addition to this another environmental agreement, World Heritage Convention is also made in this regard. Till the time these efforts had not attained immense success but with these efforts modest emission reductions had been encountered from industrialised countries. Countries are trying to reduce their emissions as now they had become aware with its severe results and further consequences that are resulting in decrease in Arctic sea ice. Conclusions With this detailed discussion, it could be said that sea ice is a key constituent of the Arctic environment. Directly or indirectly it is striking many of the oceanographic, climatic, ecological and human patterns that portray the region. Changes in sea ice need to be controlled as otherwise it could have significant negative implications for all the above discussed systems. For maintaining present situation, it is essential that all of us become aware with the future consequences of climate change as without this it is not possible to reduce the processes through which climate change is occurring actually. With the understanding of its environmental and ecological consequences it could be said that it is the most severe environmental issue in present.

Teachers and Computers :: Technology Education Essays

Teachers and Computers: The Task Ahead Our world is becoming increasingly dependent on technology. In factories, offices, highways, and homes, one can find a plethora of machines in use. It makes sense then, that one would find some of the same technology in the schools. There is an obvious need for incorporating technology into the schools and curriculum. The task ahead for today’s educators is to learn how to use computers efficiently, develop a technology team in their school, and successfully include computer-based instruction in their classroom. The purpose of this paper is to present a process for bringing computers and teaching together. The first step is to educate the educators. A surprising number of teachers have very limited computer and technological skills. It is ridiculous to think that someone who is technologically inexperienced could teach a lesson involving multimedia presentations or computer simulations. The first standard of the National Educational Technology Standards (NETS) states that teachers need to â€Å"demonstrate introductory knowledge, skills, and understanding of concepts related to technology† (NETS 9) There are eight basic types of technology with which educators need to be familiar. Each one provides a different educational benefit. A word processor encourages editing. Multimedia presentation software provides for different learning styles. Drill and practice software helps to reinforce things that the students have learned. A database helps students find the information that they need. Simulations provide a fun and effective way to learn, in which students take on role s in a story or event. Spreadsheets allow the user to perform several calculations at the same time for easy comparison. Tutorials work well for a group with diverse learning abilities because it provides self-paced instruction. The eighth and final basic technology type is telecollaboration over the internet. This allows students to experience parts of the world that they may never see. With all this technology available the question becomes, how are the teachers going to learn to use it all? The key word here is professional development. Professional development is â€Å"collaboration between partners to provide opportunities for teachers to strengthen their ability to contribute to the students they serve† (George 311). There are many ways teachers can strengthen their ability to contribute to students. One of which is attending seminars.

Creative Story: The Chronic Swamp Murders :: essays research papers

Creative Story: The Chronic Swamp Murders   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  One day while Joe and Jill Hemp were walking through Chronic swamp they came across a trail of blood in the water. They followed the trail until it stopped at a dead body. The body was of a man who was wearing a camouflage outfit. They immediately ran back to their house, which was not far from the murder site and called the police. Their house was located right on the edge of the swamp.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  When the police got there they roped off the whole area so they could start their investigation. At first it looked as if it was definitely a murder, but after a few days of investigation the police concluded that the man was probably a hunter who had either fallen out of a tree or just tripped and broken his neck. A broken neck was definitely what killed the man. The only problem with this hypothesis was that it left a few unanswered questions. If the man was a hunter where did his gun or bow go? How often did you find a dead hunter just lying in the middle of a swamp? Even with these questions police told the Hemps that it was an accident and they were in no danger.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The Hemp's life went on with no interruptions until about two weeks after the hunter was found. Another body had been found in the swamp. This time the body was a male whom had a business suit on. The police came back and investigated this death. After about a week they concluded again that it was a broken neck that had killed the victim. There were no signs of a struggle so the investigators said that it was some type of freak accident. They also told the Hemps to stay out of the swamp.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The Hemps never went back into the swamp again, but one night they were awakened by a loud pounding noise on the front door. When Mr. Hemp got up to see what it was, all he saw was something large running into the swamp. He then made sure that all the doors were locked and he got his shotgun out of the closet. He waited in his dark living room for about an hour and then went back to his bed. He didn't tell his wife what had happened so she wouldn't be scared   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The next day when Joe was coming home from work he noticed the door was wide open. When he got closer he noticed that the door frame was broken and the Creative Story: The Chronic Swamp Murders :: essays research papers Creative Story: The Chronic Swamp Murders   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  One day while Joe and Jill Hemp were walking through Chronic swamp they came across a trail of blood in the water. They followed the trail until it stopped at a dead body. The body was of a man who was wearing a camouflage outfit. They immediately ran back to their house, which was not far from the murder site and called the police. Their house was located right on the edge of the swamp.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  When the police got there they roped off the whole area so they could start their investigation. At first it looked as if it was definitely a murder, but after a few days of investigation the police concluded that the man was probably a hunter who had either fallen out of a tree or just tripped and broken his neck. A broken neck was definitely what killed the man. The only problem with this hypothesis was that it left a few unanswered questions. If the man was a hunter where did his gun or bow go? How often did you find a dead hunter just lying in the middle of a swamp? Even with these questions police told the Hemps that it was an accident and they were in no danger.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The Hemp's life went on with no interruptions until about two weeks after the hunter was found. Another body had been found in the swamp. This time the body was a male whom had a business suit on. The police came back and investigated this death. After about a week they concluded again that it was a broken neck that had killed the victim. There were no signs of a struggle so the investigators said that it was some type of freak accident. They also told the Hemps to stay out of the swamp.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The Hemps never went back into the swamp again, but one night they were awakened by a loud pounding noise on the front door. When Mr. Hemp got up to see what it was, all he saw was something large running into the swamp. He then made sure that all the doors were locked and he got his shotgun out of the closet. He waited in his dark living room for about an hour and then went back to his bed. He didn't tell his wife what had happened so she wouldn't be scared   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The next day when Joe was coming home from work he noticed the door was wide open. When he got closer he noticed that the door frame was broken and the

Gay Marriages Essay -- Argumentative Persuasive Essays

Gay Marriages Growing up in a heterosexual neighborhood, gay couples were not something that you came across every day as you do in today’s time. At the age of 22, Dawn was introduced to her first gay couple, Mike and Thomas. They were friends of her husband. She had never known a gay couple before or even a gay person. It was extremely strange and uncomfortable for Dawn to be in the presence of two gay men. It was nothing out of the ordinary at first. To Dawn, it was just like two men living together as roommates until they kissed. Dawn felt like she was invading on their privacy as she sat and watched them kiss. She quickly turned her head so she would not be intruding. Now, Dawn is extremely close to Mike and Thomas. She claims them to be some of her best friends. They have shared many life experiences together; their children have grown up together. Over the years that have past, Dawn has come to realize how unfair it was for her to be married to the love of her life. When two people who love each other just as much could not have, their love recognized in the court as hers is. Years have passed since that first day she was introduced to her first gay couple. Seven years to be exact, Mike, Thomas, Dawn and her husband are still very close friends to this day. She is extremely glad that day happen in her life because her life has been enriched with two of the most awesome men. Dawn will know or ever know. Dawn hopes one day that every state will recognize same-sex marriages as not something to frowned upon but something that will make our country thrive. Dawn hopes in writing this paper it makes some people change their minds on same-sex marriages. Gay and lesbians face as many challenges as minorities if not more... ...criminate just because someone is different from us or believes something different from us? If so, we would have a lot more discrimination going on than what we do now. Because no one is going to agree with everything, we do or believe in. Who has the right to say that two people should not be given the right to marry? Why should two homosexual people not be given the same rights to marry as a heterosexual couple? Works Cited D, Emilio, John, Turner B. William and Urvashi Vaid. Creating Change: Sexuality, Public Policy and Civil Rights. New York: St. Martin’s Press, 2000. Kranz, Rachel and Tim Cusick. Gay Rights. New York: Facts On File, Inc. 2000. Merriam-Webster. Merriam-Webster Online Dictionary 2004. 28 Jan. 2004 Oliver, Marilyn Tower. Gay and Lesbian Rights: A Struggle New Jersey: Enslow Publishers, Inc, 1998.

Homeschooling and Family Education

Homschooling is the education of children at home, rather than other formal settings of public or private schools. Homeschooling can affect a child negatively in some cases. Some of the effects include lack of social interaction, too much protection from the parents and limited exposure to extra curricular activities. One of the negative effects of homeschooling is that it decreases the ability of the child to interact socially with others. As stated by John 2012, â€Å"homeschooling do not teach homeschoolers how to interact with peers and authoritative figures†. Homeschoolers are less exposed to other poeple compared to those who get a formal setting of education. Also, they lack of communication skills with children from different backgrounds (Mead 2009). Other than that, homeschoolers get too much protection from their parents, making it hard for them to adapt in real life situations without their parents protection. Parents must realize they cant protect their children forever ( Family Education 2012). According to Schroeder 2011, real life situations are introduced at schools such as bullying, teasing and public humiliation are a part of life. Children from homeschools may suffer from culture shock when dealing with real life situation (Family Education 2012). Next, another negative effect of homeschooling is the limited exposure of homeschoolers on extra curricular activities. Homeschooled children lack the diverse enrichment activities(Mead 2009). They are also not exposed in group works such as team sports amd performing art clubs as mentioned by Family Education 2012. In conclusion, there are many disadvantages of homeschooling that could have a negative effect on children. Therefore, parents should think wisely before sending their children to homeschools because it lacks of social interaction, too much protection from parents and has limited exposure to extra curricular activities.

Challenges Faced by a Country for Economic Development Essay

An economy is flourishing and is shown to be beneficial and fruitful for the people living in it only when the growth of the economy goes up continuously. It is essential for a country to not only develop politically or socially but it also needs to demonstrate economic development in order to sustain in the international market and in order to come ahead of other countries. But it is not very easy for any economy to economically keep growing because an umpteen number of internal and external factors that affect the growth and the economic development and it is essential and crucial for the countries to address the issues and move ahead. There are some very common challenges that are faced by an economy that are discussed below. The presence of external imbalances in the global economy is one of the most influential causes that impose a challenge on the economic development of any country. There can be reasons such as political disruptions, changes in import-export scenario or foreign currency reserve changes that can lead to imbalance in a country that is external to an economy. But the disruptions taking place in one country can adversely affect the economy and economic growth of other countries as well. The monetary and fiscal policies adopted by the government of an economy also have a huge role to play in the economic development. These policies tend to impact the interest rates, money supply and foreign exchange rates of an economy and if the policies are not in the favor of the growth, they can become major challenges and major issues all over the country. Read more: Essay About Disadvantages of Population The change in trade situations can also affect the economies. Exports of a country help it in generating external revenues while imports can be done for different purposes such as facilitation of a manufacturing process, providing basic necessities to the people etc. And hence if there is an imbalance in the external trade that is taking place in a country, it can lead to severe turbulence and can adversely impact the economic growth. Other economic factors such as poverty, inflation rate, population also are dependent on an economy and also impact the economy. If a nation has higher level of poverty, it is more likely to have economic challenges and similarly high population is not desired and not advisable for high economic growth. And that is the reason why the governments usually try to avoid these unfavorable situations and try to maintain a balance in the countries by different measures. There are many more reasons why the economies face severe challenge of demonstrating growth and hence it is crucial for the countries to adopt different and new policies in order to avoid these challenges and facilitate growth. Reference: http://classof1.com/homework-help/international-economics-homework-help/ View as multi-pages

The Bald Eagle

The bald eagle or Haliaeetus leucocephalus, a specie of sea eagles, is the only eagle that is unique to North America. Recognized for being the national bird of the United States, it can be found today over the North American expanse from northern Mexico, to Canada and to Alaska where approximately half of the estimated total population of 70,000 live (Bald Eagle Information).Together with the Golden eagle, the bald eagle or American bald eagle, is the largest of the eagles. It has a wingspan that reaches some 79 to 89 cm.  long, an average weight of around 14 pounds for males (females are slightly larger and heavier) and a strong and large hooked beak two inches long and one inch deep (Merry  ¶ 1).Classification Class: Aves (birds) Order: Falconiformes (along with falcons, hawks, old-world vultures, condors, buzzards, kites, caracars, ospreys, harriers, accipiters, secretary birds and bateleurs) Sub-family: Buteoninae (together with true buzzards, true eagles and other sea eagle s) Family: Accipitridae (hawks and eagles) Genus: Haliaeetus (all sea or fish eagles) Species: leucocephalus (derived from the Latin word â€Å"leukos† that means white)There are two sub-species of bald eagles: Haliaeetus leucocephalus leucocephalus or the traditional â€Å"southern† variety, which lives in the gulf states, south of 40 degrees north latitude and the slightly larger Haliaeetus leucocephalus alascanus or â€Å"northern† bald eagle, which inhabit the states north of 40 degrees north latitude across North America (Bald Eagle Information P 1-3). Living Habits Bald eagles inhabit North America because of the abundance of their diet sources. The rivers and streams in Washington, Montana and Alaska are visited by the American eagles in large numbers during the spawning seasons of salmon, shad and eulachon.The bald eagle is primarily a scavenger bird that feeds on dead, dying or weakened fish and other prey but they have the predatory skills and equipmen t when needed (Merry  ¶ 4-5). Based on radio telemetry, the American bald eagles have been shown to regularly roost right after dawn, alternatively glide and flap on its flight direct to their favorite feeding perch and roost back in the evening (Merry  ¶ 8). Maturity, Mating and Nesting At juvenile age, the American bald eagle is a mix of brown and white feathers. They attain sexual maturity when they reach four or five years of age.Adult eagles are covered with white head, neck and tail feathers and blackish-brown breast and back feathers (General Fact). They build their eyries or nests atop tall trees near bodies of water or coasts where they perch. Bald eagles, who mate for life or until the death of their partners, use and add sticks and leaves to the same eyrie year after year. Two to three eggs are laid every spring; the males help the females in incubating the eggs from 35 to 40 days. The eaglets, when hatched, are covered with grayish-white downy and will need to be fed by their parents until they become six eight weeks old.At 9 to 14 weeks, they fledge and at 4 months old, the eaglets come of their own. As Endangered Specie The American bald eagle was categorized as endangered for over half a century until the United States Fish and Wildlife Service upgraded its status to ‘threatened' in July 1995. Earlier in 1967, the specie was officially listed as an endangered species in most of the lower parts of the country because of continuing decline for several decades because of the loss of habitat, prey and the then widespread use of the pesticide DDT.In 1973, the Endangered Species Act was passed in a bid to halt the loss of several endangered animal species and to help reverse environmental degradation. The Endangered Species Act has been shown to be at least fairly effective at preventing the extinctions of many animal species, including the bald eagle whose number increased from under 500 in 1963 to over 9,000 pairs in 2006 (Wikipedia, Endan gered Species Act  ¶ 19). References bald eagle. (2007). In Encyclop? dia Britannica. Retrieved March 5, 2007, from Encyclop? dia Britannica Online: http://www. britannica. com/eb/article-9011927 Endangered Species Act. (2007, March 1).In Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. Retrieved 12:35, March 5, 2007, from http://en. wikipedia. org/w/index. php? title=Endangered_Species_Act&oldid=111852673. General Facts About Bald Eagles. American Bald Eagle Information Site. Retrieved 05 March 2007 from http://baldeagleinfo. com/eagle/eagle-facts. html. Homepage. American Bald Eagle Information Site. Retrieved 05 March 2007 from http://baldeagleinfo. com/index. html. Merry, Sondra. Species: American Bald Eagle or Haliaeetus Leucocephalus. University of Wisconcin. Retrieved 05 March 2007 from .

Analysis of “Mr Sookhoo” and “A Cat Within”

Money has been, throughout the history of humanity, an end and an aim for human action. In their pursuit of money, people have followed different paths; some honourable, legitimate and legal and others devoid of legality, honour and legitimacy. Indeed, in the short story collection Stories from Around the World complied by Hilary Patel, many stories examine the impact of money and financial considerations on the decisions that many characters make. In â€Å"Mr Sookhoo†, the eponymous character is immediately identified to the reader as someone whose sole concern in life is the accumulation of wealth and riches. Mr Sookhoo, sitting on his porch and chewing at a tooth pick discloses an ingenious idea to his helpless wife: he informs her that he aims to deploy religion as a tool for making easy money. Mr Sookhoo's plan is simple; knowing that religious people give generously around the festive season especially when presented with a group of innocent carol singers raising money for charity, he decides to fabricate an institute for the blind, deaf and dumb and to use local school children to achieve his selfish money-making aims. Sookhoo shows total disregard to morality putting his personal financial gain at the top of his priorities. Also you can read Analysis July at the Multiplex When Mr Sookhoo's plan starts paying dividends in the form of good takings on the very first day of his carol singing project, he immediately resolves to work his young assistants (who are not, of course, aware of his malicious intentions) longer hours giving them little rest. Moreover, when Mr Archibald, the Headmaster of the local school attended by the carol singers, suggests treating the children to ice-cream, Mr Sookhoo chooses to ignore the suggestion buying the children only a carbonated drink that clearly costs less than the ice-cream. It is clear here that Sookhoo is oblivious to anything but his obsession with making easy money. In Christianity, Sookhoo is guilty of the sin of avarice or greed which is one of the seven deadly sins that signal total loss of faith. In the story, Mr Sookhoo is not a Christian but pretends to be one convincing Mr Archibald that he had â€Å"seen the light† in order to gain his approval for sending children with him on the carol singing mission. Mr Sookhoo's avarice leads to his eventual downfall when he is found out and captured at the end of the story. Sookhoo's avarice leads to a snowballing of unfortunate occurrences that upset the money-making plan that seemed to be going too well. All at once many characters appear in the story pushing, as it were, one more nail into Sookhoo's coffin. First, Mr Ali, who had previously paid Sookhoo to deliver some gravel for him, appears and exposes Sookhoo's failure to keep his end of the bargain. In addition, Mr Archibald, who started harbouring doubts about Mr Sookhoo when the latter's account of the carol singing successes did not correspond to what Mr Archibald was told by a young pupil called Horace, receives a visitor by the name of Mr Harris (who is a real philanthropist working in the charity field) who confirms to him that the deaf, dumb and blind institute does not exist. These revelations and findings raise tension in the story and drive the plotline towards its climax when Mr Sookhoo's love of money brings about his downfall and arrest. Read also Analysis of Characters in Flannery O’Connor’s â€Å"The Life You Save May Be Your Own† At the end of the story, poetic justice is upheld as the aggressor and wrong doer is punished while the good are rewarded. â€Å"Mr Sookhoo† ends on the note that a blind love of money can only lead to negative consequences. The price that Sookhoo pays for being a slave to money and materialistic gain is no less than his freedom. Mr Sookhoo's metaphorical slavery (signaled by his servitude to anything that can lead to making money) at the beginning of the story becomes the cause of his physical incarceration, which is a form a slavery, at the end. Although in the case of Mr Sookhoo, poetic justice is upheld as good is rewarded and evil is punished, the so-called â€Å"cliff-hanger† ending of â€Å"A Cat Within† where the reader is left to decide whether justice will be at all served, contrasts to the message of â€Å"Mr Sookhoo. † In â€Å"A Cat Within,† where the symbol of the cat acts as a reminder of a dark secret that comes back to haunt the un-named â€Å"Shopman† in the story, the love of money seems to have caused a series of crimes much weightier than those committed by Mr Sookhoo, but there is no indication that these crimes will be punished. In fact, one possible interpretation for the blurred ending of the story is that the Exorcist's own love of money will prompt him to eternally blackmail the Shopman in order to keep his crimes safely tucked away and hidden like the cat's head stuck in the metal urn. â€Å"A Cat Within† ends with the Exorcist withdrawing into his room but reminding the Shopman that he will request his pay later. This reminder could be read as a covert threat and a prelude to a life-long blackmail project the Exorcist hopes to embark on. In â€Å"A Cat Within,† both the Shopman and the Exorcist display their extreme attachment to money. On the one hand, the Shopman keeps his tenants in dire living conditions and sacrifices his own comfort by sleeping in the doorway to stop intruders from coming into his house. On the other hand, the Exorcist makes his living by giving the false impression that he is curing people from obsessions by demons and other supernatural evil beings. When the Exorcist is called upon to help with the assumed â€Å"evil spirit† wreaking havoc in the shop store, his world that places money at the top of the consideration list and the world of the Shopman, where money occupies the same place, meet. Read also  Case 302 July in Multiplex The Exorcist being adept at reading people like a book, manages to speculate accurately about the Shopman and the way he came to accumulate his wealth. It transpires that the Shopman killed a man and his widow before taking their land and money. However, unlike Mr Sookhoo, the Shopman remains free at the end with the cat, a symbol of his dark secret, roaming in the streets with a jug on its head. The symbolism of the cat slipping out of the store but with its head still caught inside the jug suggests that the Shopman's secret is only half revealed.

Why is it important for managers to have an understanding of equal Literature review

Why is it important for managers to have an understanding of equal opportunities legislation and skills of managing a diverse workforce - Literature review Example This is the part of leading individuals towards achieving a predetermined common goal. Further, it is known that one of the most important jobs of a manager is allocating and utilizing the resources in the best possible manner and one of the most crucial resources of any organization is their human resource or manpower. This clearly shows that the manager’s most important duty is leading the workforce. The role of managers within the changing dynamics of business is a significant one. This is because the managers have a clear cut task at their hands. They need to be answerable for their actions and this must be performed in a way that there are equal opportunities for growth and development for the people who work under their realms. What is most significant here is the fact that the managers will outsmart their subordinates and employees, and discern ways through which success domains could be achieved at the end of the day. It is required that a manager shall take care of th e management realms by devising plans which are up to date and current with the organizational ranks. Furthermore, how these managers manifest their basis is through application of activities and tasks, all of which are dependent on the organizational domains. The diverse workforce must be given the respect, both in terms of their personal characteristics as well as work routines, so that they can manifest their truest basis time and again. The managers must back up their tasks by providing the subordinates solid support and the much needed confidence so that they develop a sense of belonging and attachment with the organization in essence. It is a fact the world over that the present day workforce, mostly comprising of young adults are focused on reaching the top with little hassle (Ford, 2005). This setting is so much different from what their ancestors relied on – hard work, commitment and total dedication towards reaching their coveted goal. However the young workforce of present times wants to strike gold and that too in a quick way. There is reason behind this madness and the fact for the same lies in their upbringing regimes. Also the manner in which they undergo interaction with the changing technological times is something to write home about nonetheless. They are constantly finding out that their peers are doing better than them and thus their desire to outshine is what is proving to be a destructive influence in such discussions of today’s workforce. Management through leading is not an easy task and involves several different steps and measures. These steps will insure that the manager inspires the people who look up to him and creates an environment that allows creativity and maximizes efficiency. Firstly, it is very important to select the right type of people for a specific task. Wrong people putting in cent percent effort cannot produce the effect that the right type of people with half the effort and energy can (Davies, 2007). Th erefore, the group or team should be inspected and finest of details considered before finalizing a particular set of people. Factors that need to be considered include the talents and knowledge related to the task at hand, the terms that individual has with the rest of the team members and head or supervisor and also are these individuals comfortable with the leading style of that particular manager. This though is considered a step of organizing however, due to its close connection with the leading part of management it becomes a crucial part of the topic under consideration. Once this step is successfully implemented the managers can smoothly move to the next agenda on the leading list and that is

Management of Human Resources 6 Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Management of Human Resources 6 - Essay Example Patton-Fuller Community Hospital states its mission and objective as being the treatment of the most important health concerns – the patients. It also states that it is keen to provide healthcare services that are carefully designed to effectively meet the patient’s needs at every stage of their lives. Patient care is their most important job. The hospital also seeks to ensure that a patient’s stay at the hospital is the most pleasant experience possible for the patient (Patton-fuller Community Hospital). A good method that can be used to effectively analyze Patton-Fuller Community Hospital’s human resources contribution to the organization’s missions and objectives is to conduct a SWOT analysis. A SWOT analysis is crucial in the establishment of an organization’s strength’s, opportunities, weaknesses and threats. The analysis is seen to force an organization’s management to carefully take an objective look at the external (threats and opportunities) and internal (weaknesses and strength) aspects of its overall operations so as to be able to identify both the areas of concern and those of opportunity. This will enable them to be able to take actions that will be necessary to help increase or defend the organization’s market share (Walker & Miller, 65). The human resources at Patton-Fuller are seen to offer several key strengths that can be seen to actively contribute towards the support of the organization’s objectives and missions. Key among these strengths is the fact that the hospital boasts of employing a stable and experienced workforce across the board in all departments (Wilson, 147). This has played a pivotal role in ensuring that the medical procedures and every day operations at the hospital run smoothly and effectively. This is seen to be in line with the hospital’s objective of ensuring that a patient’s experience is as pleasant

Television programming Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Television programming - Essay Example These questions are basic essence of my research conducted and ABC channel being my prime lab rodent to experiment upon. What programs they air, why they air them and what strategy they are implying to attract the maximum number of audience in the post-dinner time. TV Ratings Any guesses how the intelligent people sitting in the ABC production offices know, when to air what, when most people are tuned in and most importantly which slots to offer the highest advertisement rate to add agencies and commercial vendors. The answer to this question lies in the name â€Å"Nielsen ratings†. It is an audience measurement system developed by Nielsen media research to do exactly the magic described above. The program uses set-meters, small devices installed behind television sets to monitor the channel activity and record time data of TV programs being watched at what time. A further sophisticated method implies that what audience is watching what. This is done by the help of viewers inp ut in the very same device. The audience enters this survey voluntarily and is a big help to create a data base and analysis which helps in securing maximum advertisement rates for the prime time slot (Frank, 20). American Broadcasting Company The TV channel under research is ABC. Some of the basic questions mentioned in the start of the paper will be answered with the help of forensic research into the media world of today where people can choose to record there TV shows and watch them add-less. What are they trying to accomplish? The basic purpose of any television broadcast company, to earn maximum profits. For that purpose on Thursday nights ABC airs the program â€Å"wipeout† to kick-off the evening. This reality game show has fast gained popularity to an extent that it is the second most watched TV show in the American TV broadcasting. They follow it up with â€Å"Grey’s Anatomy†, a well renowned serial related to doctors practicing and their issues. A tru ly griping hi-paced drama of common people saving people’s lives and complicating their own in the process. This medical drama is followed by a follow-up medical drama named private practice which is a spin-off of grey’s anatomy. A wide variety of household people have a keen interest in every new upcoming episode that is being shown. The people targeted with this include adults and also the ones in the bracket of being grandparents. Do not bold, italicize or underline the subheading. What audiences are they targeting and how? If you compare the first hour of the prime time with other network channels being broadcasted, ABC has created a clever strategy by targeting the young and adult audience by broadcasting wipeout, a funny reality game show whereas the other channels are broadcasting one after the other serious genre serials which are not a huge attraction to children and young alike. After that, they target the sample of audience that is parents and grandparents b racket by airing similar set up medical dramas. Coming to the fact that how did they end up devising a clear edge among the top ranked broadcasters? The answer lies in the post writers strike era, when a new team was formed to sail them out of a storm without a lot of financial blocks crumbling over them and sailed they did. They indeed came out on top of the storm and ended up being the most watched channel according to the post wipeout season ratings. The team had a