AIDS Article

The article is written by a gay man, who lost his first partner to AIDS and dedicated himself to spreading information about HIV prevention and campaigning for governmental attention to the problem in order to save ‘other gay and bisexual men from losing the ones they love’ (Williams, 2006, para. 6).Clark Williams also served as the interim executive director of the Billy DeFrank LGBT Community Center at the moment of the article’s release and as a manager of county’s HIV prevention, counseling, and testing initiatves in 2001-2003.The article reports the LGBT community of Santa Clara County joining other concerned citizens at a meeting where the county’s Board of Supervisors Chair promised to attract additional financial resources to strengthen public health system in the face of accelerating rate of HIV transmission.The focus of the effort should be prevention and early diagnosis. The article recalls the start of HIV/AIDS epidemic that was first reg arded as a rare form of cancer endangering gay and bisexual male New Yorkers. In 2006, the number of Americans who died from AIDS reached 550,000 and continued to grow. Approximately 40,000 citizens are getting infected with HIV every year.Santa Clara County, for its part, has lost 2,000 residents to the disease. More than 2,500 were living with HIV/AIDS; this number might have been considerably higher because one in three citizens having HIV remains undiagnosed. 80 percent of new infections with the virus in Santa Clara County were among gay and bisexual males.Santa Clara County is reported as being ‘near the heart of our nation's HIV/AIDS epidemic’ (Williams, 2006, para. 5). Apart from focusing on the human tragedy of living with HIV diagnosis or loosing a friend, a family member, a colleague, or a neighbor to the disease, the article discusses the problem of HIV/AIDS through the prism of financial burden on the county’s social security system.Lifetime cost of HIV treatment is estimated to be as high as $155,000 per patient. These costs are much higher if the disease is not diagnosed at early stages, which is often the case in Santa Clara County, where patients learn about their HIV status in an emergency room.However, the author notes several positive developments in the field of public health, such as risk reduction counseling to people living with HIV/AIDS and public HIV test counseling locations. Santa Clara County is compared with San Francisco, where HIV test counseling facilities are abundant. In Santa Clara County, there is only one public testing facility, despite the fact that the number of LGBT is over 100,000 in the area.The Billy DeFrank LGBT Community Center is deemed as the most appropriate place to establish another full-time test counseling facility, since it is known for its excellence in providing HIV prevention to at-risk population.One additional testing facility will not solve the problem in the county. It is not onl y LGBT population that is especially affected by the spread of HIV/AIDS. Other vulnerable groups include ethnic minorities, homeless and runaway youth, and drug addicts. Therefore, five part-time testing centers should be opened across Santa Clara County.One of the main strengths of the article is the fact that it is written from an insider’s perspective. Rapport between the author and readers is immediately established when Clark Williams shares his personal tragedy of loosing his loved once to AIDS.However, emotional pathos is not the main component of the writer’s credibility: Williams is a leader of Santa Clara County’s LGBT community, knowledgeable of the actual Status Quo with regard to HIV/AIDS prevention and counseling.

Shorefast Case Study B March 2013

Table of Contents Introduction†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦.. 1 Financial Analysis†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦. †¦.. †¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦. 1 Strategy Diamond Model†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦7 Internal Analysis†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦. †¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦. 8 Value Chain Analysis†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦. †¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦.. 8 VRINE Analysis†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦. †¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦12 External Analysis †¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦13 Porter’s five forces†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦13 PESTEL†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦.. †¦.. 14 Alternative Evaluations†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦. †¦15 Fit analysis†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦. †¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦. 18 Conclusion†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦.. †¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦. 19 Re commendations†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦ †¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦19Introduction Plant Nutrients Inc. (PNI) is an international company that supplied fertilizer ingredients used by its subsidiaries in 6 geographic area which are Northeastern United States, Eastern Canada, Europe, Australia, New Zealand, and South America. The general manager of PNI is Brian Dunwoodie and the marketing manager is Dave Claussen. Mr. Dunwoodie and Mr. Claussen are the main decision makers within the organization. They were meeting with each other to determine the main issues of the company, which how to improve company’s performance next year (1999).They came up with three potential alternatives, which are strengthening the existing business, adding a seed business and adding precision agricultural services to better PNI’s performance next year. For choosing the best alternatives, this paper will use d ifferent frameworks and models to analyze each alternative, for example financial analysis, strategy diamond model, internal analysis (Value Chain and VRINE), external analysis (Porter’s 5 forces and PESTEL). After analyzing all these parts, the fit between internal and external environment will be analyzed as well. Financial Analysis 1. Operating income statement (Exhibit 1)As Exihit 1 in the case shows that the main product PNI had sold was Fertilizer, the total sales of PNI in 1998 is $4,621,097, which consist of the sales of Fertilizer( $3,339,097), the sales of pesticides ($1,058,000) and the sale of services ($224,000). The sales of fertilizer accounted for 72. 3% ($3,339,097/ $4,621,097) of total sales, the sales of pesticides accounted 22. 9% in the total sales, and the service only accounted for 4. 8% in the total sales, so fertilizer product generate more sales than pesticides and services and this also means the sales of pesticide and services may have huge growth potential in the future.Hence, PNI should focus more on the sales of pesticide and service in the future. In addition, the gross margin of fertilizer was 20. 07%, and the gross margin of pesticides was 18%. Among these products, fertilizer was the major contributor of PNI’s profit. In terms of the sales of each product, the analyst will use the following tables to identify what the major markets and customers of these products. 2. Fertilizer sales No. 1 The percentage of PNI’s customers accounted in the Fertilizer Market. (Formula: Number of Customers in PNI / Number of Customers in the whole market)Market AreaPNI Farm SizeSalesCustomersSalesCustomersMarket Share Small$1,128,000527$986,00040476. 7% Medium$10,635,0001578$1,259,00017110. 8% Large$3,631,00095$319,00099. 5% Total$15,394,0002200$2,564,00058426. 5% No. 2 The percentage of the fertilizer sales for the market and for PNI over the total sales by customer segment, 1998 Market AreaPNI Farm sizeSalesSales Small7. 33%38. 5% Medium69. 1%49. 1% Large23. 6%12. 44% Total100%100% Market AreaPNI Farm sizeSalesSales Small100%87. 41% Medium100%11. 84% Large100%8. 79% Total100%16. 7% No. The percentage of PNI’s fertilizer sales contribute to the market sales by customer segment, 1998 3. Pesticide Sales No. 4 The percentage of PNI’s customers accounted in the Market. Market AreaPNI Farm SizeSalesCustomersSalesCustomersMarket Share Small$797000527$35600020939. 6% Medium$63120001578$4580001066. 7% Large$3,300,00095$244,00077. 4% Total$10,409,0002200$2,564,00032214. 6% No. 5 The percentage of pesticide sales for the market and for PNI over the total sale by customer segment, 1998 Market AreaPNI Farm sizeSalesSales Small7. 66%33. 6% Medium60. 64%43. 3% Large31. %21. 2% Total100%100% No. 6 The percentage of PNI’s pesticide sales contribute to the market sales by customer segment, 1998 Market AreaPNI Farm sizeSalesSales Small100%44. 67% Medium100%7. 26% Large100%6. 79% Total100%10. 16% I nterpretation of tables 1. Table No. 1 and No. 4 For both fertilizer products and pesticide Products, PNI’s major customers are the small farm owner (Fertilizer: 76. 7%, Pesticide: 39. 6%), so the future trend for PNI is to take more medium and large farm size customers (Medium: Fertilizer: 10. 8%, Pesticide: 6. 7%; Large: Fertilizer: 9. 5%, Pesticide: 7. %). 2. Table No. 2 and No. 5 in the market area, the sales of fertilizers, the medium farm account the largest portion of sales (69. 1%). For the sales of pesticides, the medium farm still accounts the largest portion of sales (60. 64%). In the PNI’s area, both the sales of fertilizers and pesticides to the medium farm customers have the highest percentage (Fertilizer: 49. 1%, Pesticide 43. 3%); therefore, PNI should focus on the sales of fertilizer and pesticide to the medium farms’ customers because it accounts the largest part of PNI’s total sales. 3. Table No. 3 and No. The sales of PNI’s fert ilizers and pesticides to the small farms’ customers have already gained the largest sales in the whole market (Fertilizer: 87. 41%, Pesticide: 44. 67%). However, for the sales of PNI’s fertilizers and pesticides to the medium and large farms customers account a very small portion of the total sales in the whole market (Medium: Fertilizer: 11. 84%, Pesticide: 7. 26%; Large: Fertilizer: 8. 79%, Pesticide: 6. 79%). Hence, PNI should also pay more attention to increase the sales to the medium and large farms’ customers due to its huge growth potential. . According to the Exhibit 5 in the case, the large farm size prefer Materials and Regular fertilizers and it contributes almost 54. 3% of the material sales to total sales. Therefore, PNI should focus on selling Materials to large farm size customers. However, the sales percentage of the premium and regular fertilizers, which in the medium farm size contributes the most to the total sales of the market, and the sale percentages are 53. 1% and 59. 7% respectively, and the Exhibit 4 showed that the Premium fertilizers and Regular fertilizers of PNI have the highest ($89. 5) and second highest gross margin ($66. 11); hence, PNI should focus on selling premium and regular fertilizers to small and medium farm size customers. In addition, it is unnecessary for PNI to focus on the sales to dealers because PNI cannot stop the trend that the sales volume to dealers is decreasing year after year. Observation: 1. Medium and large farmers have great grow potential. 2. Small and Medium farms prefer Premium blends fertilizers, which is the most profitable fertilizer product in PNI (gross margin: $ 89. 95/ ton) Strategy Diamond ModelThe strategy diamond, which includes arenas, vehicles, differentiators, staging and pacing, and economic logic, shows how well a company do its business in a strategic level. Arenas: PNI’s current product and service lines consisted of fertilizers, pesticides, custom appli cation services and oil testing. The PNI in Lancaster is one of the subsidiaries in the 6 geographical regions, which are Northeastern United States, Eastern Canada, Europe, Australia, New Zealand, and South America. In terms of distribution channel, the company outsource a trucking company to cut down on their distribution costs.Moreover, the company have modern equipment to produce products and have the best trained operators to provide services in the region. Vehicles: There is no information about vehicle in the current situation. However, if PNI select the second alternative, which is adding a seed business in the near future, the company may alliance with Larson Seed, a regional seed producer, to provide expertise and sales training for PNI sales consultants. Differentiators: PNI bundles their prices so that when a farmer buys their product the services are also included in the price.The services provided are also customizable to the farmer’s needs. They have the most q ualified operators in the region, and because of this, they are able to provide the highest quality services. They have a strong long lasting relationship with their customers as they have been in the business for 20 years. Furthermore, PNI is the only fertilizer supplier in the area with proprietary, premium fertilizers, had invested heavily over the years to develop and test their products. Each customer needs different services that depend on that customer's situation by creating value bundle.Staging and Pacing: There is urgency for PNI to do internal development because the company wanted to perform better in the next year (1999). So, the top management had come up with three alternatives to either adding new businesses or strengthening the current business. Economic logic: There is a great potential for PNI to generate more profits when the company minimize its cost. The case mentioned that PNI didn’t achieve its maximum capacity. For example, the capacity of PNI blendin g plant is 14,000 tons/ year; however, it just blended approximately 10,000 tons in 1998.By achieving the maximum capacity, the company can utilize the economies of scale to assign the fixed costs of the production into each process, so that the company can make more profit. Observations: Overall, PNI didn’t perform very well in 1998 because the operations within the organization don’t function well. The major reason of it is that the production level didn’t meet the maximum capacity, which increases the cost of each product. When costs go up, the revenue will decrease (assume the volume sold is the same).Internal Analysis-Value Chain analysis The Value Chain is a tool to analyze the internal environment of a company and determine where the business concentrates their efforts. Inbound logistics: PNI’s warehouse met the latest U. S. environment standards for fertilizer and pesticide storage; however, its storage is able to handle a substantially larger vol ume than currently required. This means the company have high variable cost per item because it didn’t fully utilize its storage. Operations: The capacity of PNI blending plant is 14,000 tons/ year; however, it just blended approximately 10,000 tons in 1998.This means PNI were not achieving the maximum capacity. The company has two types of application equipment, which are modern and in good working order. The first type is fertilizer equipment, which consist 25 bulk, full-typed spreaders. The cost of the equipment is incorporated in the price of fertilizer, so it is free for customers. However, customers just used bulk spreaders on about 80, 000 acres in 1998, which is about 32000 acres per spreaders, which is less than a spreader’s capacity of about 4000 acres. So, the company can reduce the number of spreader it gave to customers to reduce costs.Air spreader is more attractive to large and medium farmers. The capacity is 8000 acres per year under ideal condition, ho wever, only 4000 acres in 1998, which is only half of the actual capacity. Consumers can choose to pay for it by bundling price of equipment to fertilizers or separate the price for spray equipment and fertilizers. The other type of application equipment is pesticide application equipment. There are two self-propelled applicators under pesticide application equipment, which are small unit applicator and larger unit applicator.The capacity is 8,000 acres per year for smaller unit and 10,000 acres per year for larger unit. In the last two years, these two units are fully utilized, which sprays a total of 18, 000 acres of land each year. The problem is two application units were fully booked, whether lack of application capacity might be constraining pesticide sales. The soil testing lab can handle 14000 samples per year; however, it only handled 6000 samples in 1998. Outbound logistics: PNI deliver raw materials by using an excellent rail service and a local trucking firm handled all shipment to customers.Dunwoodie said that the outsourcing of PNI’s trucking had reduced costs and investments substantially. Marketing and sales: PNI is the only fertilizer supplier in the area with proprietary, premium fertilizers, had invested heavily over the years to develop and test their products, which are urea and ammonium, regular N-P-K, and premium N-P-K. The last product was a proprietary product that carried the Nutri-Plus brand, which provides significant economic benefits to farmers and the sales of it accounted for half of sales in 1988 and an increasing percent percentage of PNI's total sales over time.Most of customers didn’t ask about price, so they are less price sensitive. Dunwoodie estimated that to be about 40% of the total acres treated with chemicals sold by PNI. The market segments are depending on the size of farm, which are sorted by small, medium and large. There are up to 100 acres of crops in small farms, 100-500 acres of crops in medium f arms and over 500 acres of crops in large farms. PNI charge on the basis of the customer's ability and willingness to pay and are sharing in the benefits it create for the customers, which result in higher margin, premium products.However, PNI lost profit on the higher prices of these products due to high cost of service. The company had about $25,000 in its budget for marketing. PNI spent most of them on PNI-sponsored events where 25-50 local farmers were treated to a meal, some entertainment, and an information program. PNI also advertised in local newspaper and gave away hats, pens, and other premiums to customers and prospects. Moreover, $5000 was spent on a corporate brochure in 1998. Service: extensive agronomic services: soil analysis, crop scouting, nutrient consulting, micronutrients analysis, and pesticide and fertilizer application.Sales representative do delivery, application, consultation, consultation, and billing to customers. Also, they kept latest product knowledge and attempted to build strong personal relationships with each customer result in low customer turnover rate. Procurement: Supplied by its mother company. Technology development: PNI use modern equipment to produce products and advanced information system to provide more accurate data and feedbacks to the company. Also, if it decides to enter into the precision agricultural business, it needs to use GPS system and other AgriTechs, such as Yield Mapping and Remote Sensing Mapping.Human resources management: Brian Dunwoodie has 11 staffs reporting to him that includes sales, marketing, accounting, production, administrative functions. Staffs are flexible and empowered, so that they could do what needed to be done. Dave Claussen is responsible for developing PNI's marketing program. There are two services managers who work with sales consultant to determine the types of products and application rates for individual farmer clients. PNI is possible to use high-level technical support bec ause it use full time and better trained employees than competitors.Other company use part-time employees with little expertise with the equipment or procedures involved for applying fertilizers and pesticides. There are 4 sales consultants who is selling PNI products and services, working with existing customers, explaining soil test results, helping develop an annual fertilizer and pesticide program, providing general technical advice and attracting new customers. Average 30 days each year to sales and product training, compared to other competitors less than 15 days on training. Each consultant had a designated sales territory, which has approximately 140 customers. Observations: 1.PNI have extra capacity of warehouse and machinery. 2. Outsourcing trucking service reduce the company’s cost. 3. Staffs are well-trained and be able to provide superior services to customers. VRINE analysis VRINE is a tool to analyze the internal resources and capabilities to determine if a com pany has a competitive advantage over competitors. Value: There is no unique resource within the organization because the technology and resources the company use to produce the products is easy to access by other competitors. However, the company provide customized services and products to customers, which provide benefits to farmers.Also, PNI has the best operators within the organization to serve its customers, which helps the company to build a good relationship with customers. It also used the â€Å"win-win† philosophy and dispatched sales representatives to keep a good long-term relationship with its customers Rarity: The resources the company use are not rare, because it can be access by competitors too. Inimitability: The technology the company use to produce products is easy to imitate by competitors. Non-substitutability: The chemical fertilizer product can be substituted by Biofertilizers, which is made from microorganisms.Pesticide can be substituted if farmers bu y pest-resistant seed to remove the need to by pesticides. Exploitability: PNI didn’t manage its resources well because they have wasted a lot of resources in the process of operations. For example, the capacity of PNI blending plant is 14,000 tons/ year; however, it just blended approximately 10,000 tons in 1998. Air spreader is more attractive to large and medium farmers. The capacity is 8000 acres per year under ideal condition, however, only 4000 acres in 1998, which is only half of the actual capacity. Observation: 1.PNI has a non-sustainable competitive advantage. 2. The exploit of resource within the organization is poor. External analysis -Porter’s five forces Michael Porter's five forces model, which determined industry profitability, included degree of rivalry, threat of new entrants, supplier power, buyer power and threat of substitutes. Rivalry (High) There were five companies sell fertilizers and chemicals to farmers around Lancaster. PNI's largest competi tor is Lancaster County Co-op. It supplied both crop and livestock inputs and purchased grain through a separate division.It also offered application services-farmers were dissatisfied with the quality of these services and co-op didn't provide many value-added services, such as precision agriculture. Another competitor is Smith Farm Supply, which is an independent dealer. It only sold chemicals and fertilizers and provide custom application services using less expensive, poorly trained, part-time operators. Smith Farm Supply offered the best prices in the area. The other three competitors are Archibald Farm Supply, Henderson Farm Supply, Wilmington Crop Services; they all focus on supplying chemicals rather than fertilizer.Threat of new entrant (Low) Since the competition is so fierce, there is less chance that new entrant want to enter into the market. Supplier power (Low) PNI can directly get supplied from its mother company. Plant Nutrients International supplied fertilizer ingr edients to its subsidiaries. And their sales would not be influenced by the suppliers. Buyer power (High) The switching cost for customers is very low, so no matter which company offer good service and lower price customers could switch forth and back. Threat of Substitutes (medium-high)Fertilizer’s potential substitute: Customers may switch to biofertilizer, which is made from organism is applied either by coating seeds with the fungus, because people’s awareness of body health. Pesticide’s potential substitute: farmers may buy pest-resistant seed to remove the need to by pesticides Observation: Overall, the profitability of the market is not attractive because the competition is fierce, buyer power is high and there is some product can substitute the products the company currently sell. PESTEL AnalysisPESTEL analysis is used to analyze the external environment of a company; it stands for Political, Sociocultural, Environmental, Economic, Technological and Lega l. Political: PNI’s warehouse met the latest U. S. environment standards for fertilizer and pesticide storage. Sociocultural: Many of the small and some of the medium farms in Lancaster were owned by Amish farmers, they were hard-working farmers whose religious beliefs called stewardship of the land. Most of them are willing to adopt technology that supported stewardship of the land.Environmental: The chemical fertilizers and pesticides PNI sell have a potential to pollute land, so the company should be careful about the environmental costs regarding ecological or environmental issues. Economic: Asian financial crisis happened in 1997-1998, so it is not a timing to enter market into Asia. However, the financial crisis has limited influence to the United States’ economic environment. Technological: The company use advanced Information System to provide more accurate and detailed data on customers.Moreover, PNI is possible to use high-level technical support because it u se full time and better trained employees than competitors. Legal: Several federal regulations cover fertilizer manufacturing and transportation safety and limit their potential impact on the environment and security. Observation: Overall, there are many factors outside of the company have the power to influence a company’s decision and strategic plan. Alternatives Evaluation 1. Working the existing business harder Dunwoodie says that if they were to make no changes and just work their existing business harder they would be able to meet their objectives.They are lagging in the large farm segment and if they were to add 20 farms from that segment they would be able to meet their objectives. They could use their excess capacity to spread out their fixed costs. Advantages: a. It has a great potential to increase the number of customers from medium and large farmers. b. It can help the company to achieve its maximum capacity, which will reduce the cost of each product because it assigns the total fixed cost into more numbers of products. (Economies of Scale) c.Could meet the financial obligation within one year by attracting more medium farmers (the most profitable market segment) Disadvantages: a. It is hard to attract larger farmers because they prefer low-priced products. If PNI wants to attract larger customers, it should reduce product price, which means the profit will decrease as well. b. They should hire and train more sales consultant to meet the increasing number of customers, which increase PNI’s cost too. 2. Adding Seed Business Dunwoodie thought that adding a seed business to PNI would add value to the company.With the new genetic seed technology chemical sales would decline in the future thus creating more opportunities for seeds. Companies like Larson Seeds were already successful seed suppliers. Larson was looking for a distributer in Lancaster, but Dunwoodie was worried about the already existing competition in the seed market, the n ew staff they would need to hire, and the training for the employees and the company alike to get into this business. Advantages: a. Its new genetic technology might increase seed sales. b. It can help PNI complete the product line. Disadvantages: a. he new genetic technology can also decrease chemical sales in future, which conflict with PNI’s current product line. b. Another challenge for PNI to access to the seed business was that it needed to partner with a good seed producer, so whether PNI can cooperating with a regional producer would became an important question for Dunwoodie to consider if he wanted to enter the seed business. c. This alternative is hard to meet the company’s one year financial obligation because it is a new business to add a seed business, PNI should take times to discover the right strategy to sell seeds. . the competitive market is fierce, for example, Monsanto is a giant in the seed business. It is hard to steal market share from it. 3. Ad ding a Precision Agriculture Services If PNI was to adapt the precision agriculture they would be the first ones to market with this service, thus creating a huge competitive advantage. There would be a huge start-up cost to start such a venture, expenses like; new staff, equipment, trucks, and training. With is new technology they would be able to better serve their customers allowing them to put together superior agronomic packages.A lot of farmers were skeptical of the new technology but after reading the survey, I find that not many of the farmers are educated in the benefits of the new technology. It would be the sales force’s job to educate the customer on the benefits to be able to make the sale. Advantages: a. Many farmers were aware of precision agriculture and precision agriculture was a coming trend, so adding precision agriculture would improve the customer service and increase total sales. b. It can complete the company’s services by providing more precise and accurate method to application service. . It will be a competitive advantage for the company, because no competitor enters into this service. Disadvantages: a. High cost: it would cost $10,000 to set up one pull-type spreader and $225,000 to purchase the truck with six separate tanks. Moreover, PNI still needed people, computers, software, and monitors and so on; the investment would be extremely large. b. The survey found that many farmers had skepticism regarding the real benefits of the precision agriculture. c. It cannot meet the company’s financial obligation in one year. FIT AnalysisInternal: Internally PNI hires the best operators and most experienced sales consultants so that they are able to provide the best services and knowledgeable employees. By meet the company’s goal, which is better financial performance in the next year, PNI should hire more sales consultant to meet the increasing number of customers. Moreover, the company should try to achieve its maximum capacity in the next year, because it will significantly reduce the COGS. External: PNI has 5 competitors in Lancaster, which created a fierce competitive environment.However, PNI has its competitive advantage over other competitors, which is the customized and superior service it provided and also the relationship it built with customers are both the assets of the company Moreover, there are many factors externally have the power to influence a company’s decision and strategic plan. Observation: Overall there is a good fit between PNI’s internal and external environment. It recruited full-time and well trained staff to provide superior services to customers, which is a competitive advantage of the company.Externally, customers and even competitors perceived PNI as superior services providers with knowledgeable sales reps in the region. Conclusion In conclusion we think that PNI has the resource and capability to either entering new business or strengthening t he current business, because they haven’t achieve the maximum capacity of machinery and warehouse. Moreover, medium and large farmers have great growth potential and they prefer premium blends fertilizers, which is the most profitable fertilizer product in PNI.In addition, outsourcing trucking service reduces the company’s cost. Furthermore, PNI staffs are well-trained and be able to provide superior services to customers. PNI has a non-sustainable competitive advantage, which means its competitive advantage can be imitate by competitors. In addition, there are many factors outside of the company have the power to influence a company’s decision and strategic plan, such as government’s regulation and sociocultural factors. RecommendationAfter analyzing the organization’s internal and external environment, and all three alternatives, we recommend PNI choose the first alternative, which is working on the existing business harder. We also suggest that PNI focus on targeting medium farmer because of the following reasons: 1. PNI have a competitive advantage over their competitors because of their superior quality and customer relations. At the same time, medium farmers value good services when buying products, which is what PNI good at to do. 2.They are less price sensitive than larger customers, which can help PNI increase sales. 3. Medium farmers prefer premium blending fertilizer, which is the most profitable products in PNI. 4. There are only 6. 7% of medium farmers buy fertilizers of PNI and 10. 6% medium farmers purchase PNI pesticides. This means there is a great potential for PNI to get more customers from medium farmer segment because the customer base is big. 5. It has a greater potential than other alternatives to help PNI achieve its one year financial goal.Other two alternatives need longer term than the alternative 1 to breakeven, because PNI needs cost more money to implementing the seed business and precision busin ess. However, it costs the company less to implement the first strategy, because the company already have all capabilities and resources to implement the first alternative. However, it is not to say PNI should only target on medium customers. Instead, PNI should keep targeting small and large customers, because it is good to diversify the risk of targeting only one market segment. However, the medium farmers should be the priority of PNI.

Debate the merits and problems of oil nationalisation for Iran Essay

Debate the merits and problems of oil nationalisation for Iran - Essay Example This paper will analyze the various merits and problems that faced Iran as a result of nationalization of its oil industry. Structure of the Paper The basic structured in a manner that its initial page provides a cover page detailing basic information on the paper such as the name, course and institution that the writer attends. A concise thesis statement follows there after and provides a brief highlight of what the paper is essentially all about. The main body of the paper is characterized by an adequate description of the turbulent nationalization of the oil industry in Iran, This is followed by a detailed outline that Iran stood to actually gain from the Nationalization of its oil industry as well as the eventual demerits of the country’s oil nationalization program. All the different sections and subsections of the paper have been adequately outlined by preceding relevant headings. These headings serve to provide a brief overview of what that particular section of the pap er is all about. What is Nationalization? The concept of nationalization can broadly be defined as the general process where by a state or government takes into public ownership the overall running of a private industry or assets that had previously been perceived to be private. Although the concept of nationalization is usually seen to refer mostly to the taking over of private assets by the government, in some instances, it can also be seen to refer to taking the taking control of some of the assets that are normally controlled by the lower levels of a given government. When this form of nationalization occurs, it usually results in lower government assets such as municipalities being effectively owned and operated by the state. History of Nationalization Concerns as to the effects of nationalization were seen to be largely prevalent during the most part of the twentieth century. This concern was mainly as a result of the increased and aggressive nationalization of most of most of the industries in Europe by the various socialist and communist governments. During the 1960s through to the 1970s that there was the emergence of a myriad of newly independent governments all over Africa, Latin America and Asia that sought to take over the operations of the foreign-owned business enterprises that operated in their countries. During the process of nationalization of various industries, there always emergences various questions relating to the establishment of if there was adequate compensation paid out to the owners of the previously private industries during the nationalization process (Schaffer, Agusti and Earle, 2009, p. 606). Soon after the concept behind communism started dying out late in the 1980s, most of the governments that had initially taken to nationalizing their various industries were seen to run these industries to the ground due to several factors. In a bid by most of these government to try and redeem this situation, most of these governments took to trying to sell nationalized assets to various private sectors organizations in a bid to try to privatize these assets by transferring the various assets that were owned by the government to the private sector’s control. This privatization of the previously nationalized business enterprises was basically a reversal of the nationalization-expropriation process. (Schaffer, Agusti and Earle, 2009, p. 606). The Iranian Oil Industry Oil was initially discovered in Iran in 1901 when William Knox D’

Clothes make the man Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Clothes make the man - Essay Example Clothes have always been the most apparent way to display the financial and social well-being of the person who wears them, and theyve been used in these purposes for thousands of years already. Since the beginning of the history of humanity clothes have been the indicator that helped to create an image of the persons status, occupation, and even intelligence and preferred lifestyle without speaking a word to him or her. Up to our times the representatives of some professions can be distinguished from the crowd by their outfit. Clothes are the best way to transfer the desired message to the outer world. Its the great instrument that allows changing social masks as frequently, as it is needed. There is a job interview awaiting you tomorrow, and you want to look like a trusted and qualified professional? Business suit is what you need. A beautiful girl or a handsome man has invited you for a date? Than wear something cute for to create the atmosphere of romance. Pretty skirts or fashionable jeans are the best choice for the party with friends, while the plain sweater and jeans are preferable for the usual day at school, college or at the work place, unless you employer demands some other form of clothing. Clothes are just the instrument that helps you to create this or that impression on people that surround you, and they should be used only for this purpose. Caring too much about clothing is equally unwise as paying no attention to what you are wearing. Like most of the things that exist in our world clothes are nor good neither bad, they can either earn great benefits for the person wearing them or hurt his/her reputation and image in the eyes of his/her surroundings. As youve probably already noticed, there are people in our society who pay lots of attention to their outfits. They spend loads of time for to find and choose the specific items they want to wear and loads of money for to buy them. For

National Curriculum In Schools In England Essay

National Curriculum In Schools In England - Essay Example A national curriculum is therefore the set of courses that a government sets to apply in all the school levels in a country. This implies the uniformity in the education sector owing to the fact that all the schools in the country offer similar courses to their students and follow similar teaching methodologies in doing so. Curriculums require effective formulation following the adequate assessment of the information needs in the learner among other factors that affect the learning process (GOLBY, GREENWALD, & WEST, 1975). After determining these, the curriculum developers determine the best concepts that every stage of the learner requires ad the best methods of teaching such concepts thereby guaranteeing effective acquisition of knowledge. A curriculum should not burden the leaners by ensuring that the developers constitute the most appropriate concepts for every stage of the learning process thereby guaranteeing optimum learning. This requires the consideration of such pertinent f eatures of the learner as their age and the knowledge gap. Additionally, an effective curriculum introduces concepts progressively thereby ensuring that the learner understands each concept at the most appropriate age. Besides the development of the concepts for the learner, curriculums manage the teachers. A curriculum must consider and set feature requirements for the teacher thereby ensuring that only the most effective teachers impart the knowledge in the learners. A curriculum therefore advises the teachers on the best earning aids for every learning stage and the mode of teaching to ensure a productive system. Additionally, curriculums should always reflect the state of the society within which it is applied in a number of ways, the knowledge in the curriculum must have direct relevance with the environment within which it is used. This implies that the curriculum must envision the knowledge growth through time. An effective curriculum therefore has a period lapse within which it is reviewed. In the United Kingdom, the period is four years a time within which the developers remove certain aspects of the curriculum and replacing them with new concepts. This safeguards the technological changes in the society most of which demand different knowledge from the previous period (WILES, 2009). A national curriculum is uniformly implemented in all the schools in the country. Most countries currently have uniform curriculums in their schools. The construction of such curriculums require the consideration of the demographic factors prevalent in every part of the country most of which may affect the learning process thereby developing an effective curriculum which considers the diversities of the different regions in the country. The United Kingdom is one such country with a uniform curriculum in most of the learning institution. The application of a uniform curriculum presents a number of advantages and have the possibility of improving the quality of education in a country. However, such curriculums have a number of disadvantages most of which may impair the affectivity of the learning process. Despite the provision of a uniform curriculum especially in public schools, the government has no mandate to monitor the activities of private schools most of which formulate and implement their own curriculums. Such disparities imply that learners in the country graduate with diverse knowledge possibly resulting in the lack of uniformity in the subsequent institutions of learning. Despite the existence of such disparities, the education institutions implement a national exam at the end of every stage of the learning stage thereby compelling compliance with the national curricul

Strategic Management Analysis. Thomas Cook Group plc Assignment

Strategic Management Analysis. Thomas Cook Group plc - Assignment Example Thereafter, using appropriate analytical tools, the resource capability of Thomas Cook will be evaluated by highlighting its threshold and unique resources, and its core competences. Eventually, the strategic fit of Thomas Cook will be evaluated in the light of its strengths and weaknesses. Thomas Cook Group plc, which was established in 1841, is amongst the world's top leisure travel groups with sales exceeding  £10 billion and over 22.5 million customers. The company operates in six geographic segments in 21 countries and leads in its portfolio of travel brands. It has a flexible asset light business model with an experienced management team that believes in the strategy of delivering top line margin growths. The package holiday industry is a sector that has been fulfilling people’s aspirations in meeting their travel and tourism needs. Companies in the industry are adept in bundling different elements of a holiday into a convenient package whereby charter flights, accommodation, meals and transfers are taken care of at the given price per package. The package holiday industry is large and highly competitive and fragmented because of which companies in the sector have to be very professional and organized in providing the best prices and services. The industry can be segmented into transportation, destination, accommodation, customer management, activities, duration, price and quality. 1.4 Why have you cho

Could the US have won the Revolutionary war without foreign Essay

Could the US have won the Revolutionary war without foreign intervention - Essay Example The Americans needed support because of the logistical difficulties of a protracted war, and so France and Netherlands provided critical support that hastened the victory of the former. Weigley, in his book The American Way of War: A History of United States Military Strategy and Policy, explains the dire circumstances of General George Washington and he stresses that â€Å"military poverty† shaped Washington’s generalship.3 When the British arrived by sea in New York before the raid of Trenton, General William Howe had 31,625 soldiers from all ranks, where 24,464 were well-equipped and ready for battle.4 Aside from these troops, Howe also had ten ships, twenty frigates, hundreds of transport, and 10, 000 seamen.5 To defend New York, General Washington only had 19,000 people, with around 9,000 having military discipline and training.6 In addition, the Americans had no naval forces and limited land transports. Though Washington scored with the elimination of the Hessian garrison at Trenton, throughout the entire Revolutionary War period, he perennially faced the problem of the limited number of soldiers, resources, and money. The Revolutionary confederation and the weakening agricultural sector could not supply enough for these needs of the war. David McCullough dwells in 1776 on the role of the financial backing from France and the Netherlands as well as the support from the French army and navy.7 For him, they were offered critical help in hastening America’s victory instead of merely waiting for Britain to give up on the war or to wait for other foreign nations to realize that America’s independence would result in a greater balance of powers in Europe. If the Revolutionary War had extended due to the absence of foreign intervention, it would not have been impossible for Washington and his generals, as well as the American people who supported him, to maintain their strategies until Britain gave up on its American colonies. In the book A Shattered Nation: The Rise and Fall of the Confederacy, 1861-1868, Rubin expresses the will of the American people to support the war. She mentions letters circulating among the masses, who knew that the revolutionary forces must somehow show some power enough to â€Å"overthrow† the British before foreign nations would start acknowledging America as an independent nation that they should support through money or troops or both.8 The people, as well as Washington and the generals, resisted the idea of becoming a colony once more, especially when they realized that they could be finally freed from the abusive taxation and other oppressive policies of Britain.9 McCullough stresses, nevertheless, that â€Å"†¦it was Washington and the army that won the war for American Independence†¦Ã¢â‚¬ 10 These historians understood the tenacity of the American army in forcing on through their guerilla tactics and attacking Britain where it was at its weakest, specifically in land battles. Other scholars insisted that America could not have won the war without foreign support. In â€Å"

WK3_Performance Management Paper Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

WK3_Performance Management Paper - Essay Example At the same time, the role of Human Resource Management (HRM) is perceived to be extremely crucial for attaining the increased performance of an organization (Huselid, Jackson and Schuler 171-188). In order to ascertain comprehensive understanding about the performance management, this paper will critically review the selected article â€Å"Technical and Strategic Human Resource Management Effectiveness as Determinants of Firm Performance†. Furthermore, the article will apply the derived understanding from the article in the context of Ford Motor Company (Huselid, Jackson and Schuler 171-188). SUMMARY OF THE ARTICLE The article is primarily based on the learning relating to the performance management system of different firms in the United States. The article also explains the effective Human Resource Practices that can be utilized for delivering effective performance management practices. It predominately propagates the combination of various strategic HR practices that can p rovide great aid in determining and achievement of the broad objectives of a business. Furthermore, this article highlights the importance and broad functions of technical along with strategic HRM effectiveness. This article critically reveals the relation between effectiveness of HRM and a firm’s performance. ... COMPARISION OF THE COMPONENTS IDENTIFIED WITH FORD MOTOR COMPANY’S PERFORMANCE MANAGEMENT SYSTEM The critical review of the selected article broadly propagated the role of strategic HRM in enhancing the performance of an organization. Additionally, it has been ascertained that the strategic HRM within an organization facilitates in embedding the organizational strategies and policies with HR strategies which ultimately contributes towards increasing the overall performance of the organization. The comparison of the performance management processes as identified in the selected article with Ford Motor Company reveal that there persists certain differences within the Ford Motor Company in their current practice. Essentially, Ford Motor Company believes in maintaining all round transparency regarding the expectations of the company from its employees and further seeks to attain reliable commitment of employees towards the accomplishment of the organizational goals and objectives. On the contrary, the selected article firmly emphasized that the US organizations largely relies upon creating broad strategic HRM practices so as to ensure proper performance management of the employees as well as the organization. Ford Motor Company is also working upon various plans to incorporate new and improved performance management strategies in the future. In contrast the selected article showed that the US organizations primarily believed on statistical analysis and processes as well as on various feedback collection methods on order to measure outcome generated from performance management activities. Nonetheless, it can be argued that the performance management techniques followed by Ford Motor

The falliability of sense experience Essay Example for Free

The falliability of sense experience Essay One of the foremost notions concerning the rise of empiricism and the natural sciences, French thinker and mathematician Rene Descartes, also considered as the father of modern philosophy, proposes the use of methodological doubt in order for knowledge to be determined with absolute certainty. His work, Meditations on First Philosophy, contains ontological arguments which deny the reliance on the senses as the ample source in determining absolute knowledge. As a mathematician, his approach concerning the acquisition of knowledge is through substantial proof which forms the groundwork of empiricism, as well as the foundation of the different disciplines in science. Cartesian rationalism provides the understanding of empirical evidence in order for a phenomenon or study to be considered true. The work is narrated in the first person perspective as Descartes acts as the ‘mediator’ on the infallibility of the senses through the use of ontological arguments which determine the source and essence of knowledge as well as the proof of God’s existence. The first-person point of view is essential in understanding Descartes philosophy as an objective refutation of all the given objects that are naturally perceived by the senses. The concept of universality on sense experience, through the narration, provides an objective analysis of the problem which Descartes offers to solve through the use of doubt. This doubt however is not of the skeptic nature which ultimately denies the possibility of acquiring knowledge; the Cartesian doubt is methodological, it offers a complete denial of all existing objects generated by the senses in order to determine the ‘real’ underlying truth which in turn becomes the foundation of true knowledge. As such, the ‘dream argument’ from the first part of the Meditations presents the unreliable nature of sense experience in terms of determining reality or universal objects of experience. The argument generally centers on the distinction between the process of dreaming and the waking experience which completely garbles the concept of a true reality. The Dream Argument The dream argument is narrated as thus: Suppose then that I am dreaming, and that these particulars – that my eyes are open, that I am moving my head and stretching out my hands – are not true. Perhaps, indeed, I do not even have such hands or such a body at all. Nonetheless, it must surely be admitted that the visions which come in sleep are like paintings, which must have been fashioned in the likeness of things that are real, and hence that at least these general kinds of things – are things which are not imaginary but are real and exist. (Descartes, 1996, 13) The first part of the Meditations deals with the proposal of doubt, which argues for the indemnification of the senses as a fallacious source of determining experiences: â€Å"But from time to time I have found that the senses deceive, and it is prudent never to trust completely those who have deceive us even once. † From all experiences that have deceived the mediator, it is deemed prudent to be doubt present knowledge in order to know the truth. The dream argument follows from the methodological doubt as a way of determining real experiences from illusions. Descartes narrates that a dream experience provides him an understanding of an object itself. For example, a dream involving a chair may be interpreted that the chair is indeed real because we sense it. We see the chair in the mind’s eye and there we perceive it to be true. However, when we wake, we still perceive a chair which is outside the dream and therefore can still be considered real. The confusion between two realities is the main thesis of Descartes’ dream argument where he places disregard with the sense. Thus, he relates the relationship between dreaming and real experience as that of a painting. The painter creates a mermaid where each part of the character is based from an existing or real object. The mermaid has a body of a fish and the torso of a human which are two separate objects forming a whole picture. The real object of experience becomes the basis for the formation of objects in dreams and both experiences provide a sense of reality. The problem arises whether the realness in dream experience may be considered to be true. Descartes answers this problem with doubt; an individual cannot doubt the specific parts of a whole. Taking from the painting analogy, doubt can only be applicable to the painting itself (e. g. mermaid) whether it really exists but the parts such as the legs, arms, torso, and body cannot be doubted since they are real that provide the basis of the illusion. Descartes relates the analogy to the study of the different sciences wherein each discipline which depends on the study of composite objects can be considered doubtful (e. g. physics, astronomy) while disciplines that deal with the simplest or general form (e. g. mathematics, geometry) are considered universals or certain. Thus, the dream argument may be summarized as follows: the senses are an unreliable source of determining knowledge since dream experiences may be considered real because it relies on the senses to be real. Therefore, when we wake up, the objects around us lead us to doubt its existence because we perceive such objects through the senses. The dream argument leads to the formation of the Cartesian doubt, which necessarily denies the reliance of sense perception and offers as logical argument concerning the acquisition of truth. Critical Evaluation The dream argument provides the basis of Descartes methodological doubt where the senses provide a false impression of reality. His propositions are based on the dependence of empirical evidence rather than reliance to illusion. Indeed sense perception may fully deceive the person, through the ‘objects are not what they seem’ argument. The dream argument’s distinctions provide support on method to doubt all existing forms of knowledge perceived by the sense in order to be proven its validity. Descartes’ propositions are considered true in the sense that the dream argument provides substantial evidence supporting the infallibility of sense perception. The evidence provided in the dream argument as well as in the painting analogy offers enough proof to distinguish illusion from reality. For instance, when a person is awake, he or she experiences object through the sense; thus he or she perceives such experiences or objects to be true. These experiences leave an imprint on the mind and when we dream, these objects come into reality because we perceive it as such. This argument reinforces the process of doubt in order to determine with absolute certainty the real foundations of knowledge. The doubt that comes after the unreliability of the senses is then necessary to determine a firm foundation in which true knowledge to be based. This doubt is clearly distinct from the classical conception of skepticism wherein it denies the possibility of existing knowledge and offers doubt as a means of achieving intellectual tranquility: â€Å"It [skepticism] is also the ephetic (suspending) from the experience which the inquirer feels after the search† . The distinction between the two systems of thought is that Cartesian doubt offers a denial of existing knowledge created through perception whereas skepticism doubts the possibility of acquiring knowledge itself. However, the dream argument necessarily implies the universal experience of dreaming or a selective dream experience. The selective dream is identified when an individual is dreaming, he or she wakes up from such and the dilemma lies whether which reality is true. The universal concept of dreaming on the other hand falls under the general experience of individuals that life is in itself a dream and there is no such thing as a waking experience. This poses a problem on the existence of a true reality which leads to confusion between the relationship of the senses, body, and the intellect. If the senses cannot be trusted, then what do we use to determine real objects from mere illusions? It may be considered as one of the weak points in the dream argument as there is no clear identification of what can be considered to be a true reality. The images perceived by the sense ultimately influence the objects in dreams and since it relies on the sense, it is considered to be real. This problem is answered with the Cartesian doubt itself; it merely provides a persuasion for the individual to not rely on the senses and instead empirically categorize knowledge based on substantial evidence and proof through logic and deduction reasoning. This process inevitably leads to the foundation of the scientific method wherein facts are proven through observation, evidence, deduction, and conclusion in order to be construed as valid. From this notion, proof provides objectivity and universality which Descartes does not consider such subjects to be placed under doubt because it is already considered certain. Mathematics and Geometry are considered certain knowledge and physical existence is not a concern because of its deterministic essence. However, objects which fall a composite essence are subject to doubt. In conclusion, Descartes’ dream argument and the dilemma of reality are answered through the use of doubt and logic. Doubt counters the infallibility of the sense; to clearly deny all prior knowledge since the senses provide misinterpretations or illusions. Logic on the other hand answers to the problem posed by the dualistic reality caused by the dream and waking phenomenon. Logic dictates the identification of the true reality even with the problem of the senses as something that can be physically proven in order to be considered real. This physical essence is not of the material sense but instead uses deduction in order to be considered true. For example, a chair conceived in a dream may be logically explained as an immaterial existence because it does not fully provide the ‘real’ essence of a chair (e. g. form, shape, measure) which are considered as certain subjects or universals. As the senses cannot entirely function as a basis in determining true knowledge or experience, logic becomes the characterizing means in order to counter the illusions perceived by the senses. Metaphysically, the use of logic enables the mind to think and prove experiences based on evidence rather than a garbled and subjective conception of an idea. Bibliography Descartes, Rene. Meditations on First Philosophy; with Selections from the Objections and Replies. Translated by J. Cottingham. New York: Cambridge University Press, 1996. Empiricus, Sextus. Selections from the Major Writings on Skepticism, Man God. Translated by Samuel Etheridge. Indianapolis: Hackett Publishing, 1985.

Integrating health care systems Essay Example for Free

Integrating health care systems Essay Integrating health care systems Introduction   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Integrated health systems deem to be component of the resolution to the general glitch of sustaining global healthcare structure. Various methodical literature reviews have been developed to funnel decision-makers and other stakeholders to strategize and execute integrated health schemes. The inefficiencies and inequality in health systems have persisted for long due to economic breakdown. The rationale of advancement of health systems is to improve efficiency and equity in health care provision (Boslaugh, 2013). The rationale of this paper is to compare, contrast and describe two articles related to integration of healthcare systems. â€Å"Integrated health care networks in Latin America: toward a conceptual a framework for analysis† is an article by ML Và ¡zquez, and â€Å"Ten key principles for successful health systems integration† by E Suter (Retrived from http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3004930/).   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Integrated health systems are considered as right step towards the challenge of sustainability (Lorenzi, 2005). The efforts to ensure that the state of health care system across countries include introduction of health care networks. This system is also known as integrated health care delivery system. Other efforts include guiding health professionals and other related stakeholders to strategize and execute integrated health care configuration (Kronenfeld, 2004). Integrated health care systems are generally believed to offer greater performance in terms of safety, quality as a result of standardized protocols and effective communication. However, these results have not been fully realized (Joumard , 2010).   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   These two articles were published in 2009. There is need to integrate health care systems since they are characterized by overrated expenses, sluggish public disbursement on health as part of gross domestic product, as well as gross inequalities (Mesa-Lago, 2007). In both articles the health care systems are integrated to meet patient needs, to ensure comprehensive services across the health care scheme, consistent care delivery between professional groups, information coordination, performance management, physician integration, organization leadership and culture, financial management, and governance construction (Retrieved from http://www.scielosp.org/scielo.php?pid=S1020-49892009001000012script=sci_arttext).   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Suter descried the condition of health systems in Canada while Và ¡zquez elaborate about the state of health care condition in Latin America (Geyndt, 2001). Health care system in Latin America has been jeopardized by economic breakdown, gross inequalities, and overrated expenditure. On contrary, health care is greatly affected by service demand, gradual cost inflation, as well as staff shortages. In both articles endeavors to integrate health care structure face hindrances. In Canada, efforts for integration are affected by inadequate information related to executing and integration-linked initiatives (Rathwell, 1994). That is the information is isolated and not easily accessed. On the other hand, despite integration in health structure in health systems, the issues of inequalities still prevail in health services. Recent study reveals that health care integration in Canada is not sustainable in the modern form (Morrison, 2013).   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   In conclusion, calls for superior integration of health care service delivery, as an approach to attend to equity of efficiency and access, have been demonstrated in health reforms by multilateral institutions and national governments across the world. These efforts include proper planning to help the health care professionals to make superior decisions as well as the introduction of integrated health care networks. These efforts will strengthen the capacity of health care systems. The objective of these reforms is to improve overcoming inequalities as well as improving efficiency. The only remaining part is to ensure there are appropriate strategies to analyze the capability of the alterations being put into place to deliver integration plans. References Boslaugh, S. (2013). Health care systems around the world: a comparative guide. New York, NY: SAGE publishers. Geyndt, W. D. (2001). Improving the quality of health care in Latin America. International Journal for Quality in Health Care, 13(2), 85-87. Health care comes home the human factors. (2011). Washington, D.C.: National Academies Press. Integrating mental health into primary care: a global perspective.. (2008). Geneva, Switzerland: World Health Organization ;. Joumard, I., AndreÃÅ' , C., Nicq, C. (2010). Health Care Systems. Paris: OECD. Kronenfeld, J. J. (2004). Chronic care, health care systems, and services integration. Amsterdam: Elsevier JAI. Lorenzi, N. M. (2005). Transforming health care through information (2nd ed.). New York: Springer. Mesa-Lago, C. (2007). Social Security In Latin America: Pension And Health Care Reforms In The Last Quarter Century. Latin American Research Review, 42(2), 181-201. Morrison, J. (2013). CPhA and other health care professions: Working for a better health care system. Canadian Pharmacists Journal / Revue des Pharmaciens du Canada, 146(3), 171-172. Rathwell, T. (1994). Health Care In Canada: A System In Turmoil. Health Policy, 27(1), 5-17. SciELO Salud Publica. (n.d.). SciELO Salud Publica. Retrieved August 25, 2014, from http://www.scielosp.org/scielo.php?pid=S1020-49892009001000012script=sci_arttext Suter, E., Oelke, N., Adair, C., Armitage, G. (1930, March 6). Abstract. National Center for Biotechnology Information. Retrieved August 25, 2014, from http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3004930/ Source document

Water in Architecture and Spaces

Water in Architecture and Spaces The paper focuses on how the presence of water – either as a feature or a function – enriches the design of public buildings, and how this relationship is perceived through sensory human experience. Four case studies are used. Case study one is the Roman bath complex at Bath, Avon; case study two is an early Modernist design of a glass pavilion by Bruno Taut; case study three is an example of a Post Modernist piazza in New Orleans designed by Charles. W. Moore; and case study four is the contemporary design of a thermal baths in Vals, Switzerland by Peter Zumthor. In each case there will be an analysis of the architectural design including aspects such as symmetry and balance, colour, texture, materials, form, and scale. Findings will include how water is used in the design space and its effect upon the human senses. The study expects to see a strong relationship between the presence of water and the surrounding design of the building. Furthermore, the study hopes to establish a difference in the relationship between the sensory experience of the two case studies where water is used as an aesthetic feature and has no practical function compared to the two baths where water is used to bathe in. The studies are ordered chronologically to enable clear identification of the evolving architectural differences between the ancient bath building, and the two twentieth century examples. Investigation aims to explore the potential of water as an instrument to aid the architects attempts at creating illusion. Aspects such as colour, and representation of form will be analysed in the two twentieth century examples. The study will culminate with the contemporary innovation and dynamism so supremely represented in the work of Peter Zumthor. In this fourth and most important chapter the work aims to identify how contemporary developments in architectural design – in comparison with the older case studies – expands and enriches the relationship between water and the human senses. Methodology The data for this study was collected through documentary research. Chapter one draws from Barry Cunliffes Roman Bath Discovered as a primary source and archaeological context.The baths went through several stages of development before they were abandoned: this study will use the simple plan of the first stage as an example to avoid any confusion. Because of the age of the case study it is not possible to replicate with certainty the exact nature of the sensory experience of using the baths. Therefore some suppositions had to be hypothetical based on the archaeological and architectural evidence used. Throughout the dissertation I will draw on Veronica Strangs book The Meaning of Water (2003) which provides a useful insight into the nature of the element in discussion. In the study of Bruno Tauts glass pavilion the sensory experience will also have to contain a hypothetical element based on documentary research as the pavilion itself no longer stands. For chapter four, internet sourc es were used in conjunction with journals and books to locate a firsthand account of the sensory experience of Peter Zumthors baths. As a fairly recent design of a relatively unwritten about architect it was difficult to locate a diversity of sources for the baths so the chapter will draw mainly from articles both from internet sources and from publications. IntroductionThe first chapter will look at the Roman Baths in Bath, Avon. It will explore the relationship between the architectural design, the materials used, and the human senses, focusing on the original plan of the baths in their first phase as depicted by Cunliffe (1971). This chapter will introductory to the study as it will bring into discussion aspects such as the relationship between the interior and exterior of the building as perceived through human sensory experience, and the atmospheric effects created by thermal waters which will be explored more thoroughly in the final chapter. It will evaluate aspects of the Roman design such as symmetry, colour, and decoration and how these might have enriched the bathing experience. Chapter two uses the case study of a glass pavilion, imagined by the poet Paul Scheerbart, and designed by Bruno Taut in 1914. The ornamental structure was designed to be exhibited at the Werkbund exhibition and was demolished soon after. The water feature is centrally placed, designed to reflect the changing light through the multicoloured glass panels of the surround. Its vision of a Utopian form of architecture using glass prisms provides a unique contrast to the functionally aesthetic Roman baths. It will be used to develop the idea of architecture testing the boundaries between the perception of interior and exterior and between public and private space. The presence of the water and its interaction with the light from the pavilions coloured glass means that these concepts are explored through sensory experience. Using relevant source material this chapter constructs an independent interpretation of Bruno Tauts design, focusing on its inner circular form and tiered space.In Chap ter Three the case study used will be the Piazza dItalia built by Charles W. Moore between 1974 and 1978 for the Italian community of New Orleans. The Post-Modernist design is characterised by Moores ironic interpretation of historical forms of architecture placed around a fountain in the shape of Italy. The study provides a useful contrast to the previous examples – it raises questions of how symmetry in architectural design affects the sensory perceptions. The focal point of the structure is the water feature which serves as a paradoxical unifier and separator of the experience. Furthermore, this example brings into discussion the concept of a more complex relationship between the human senses and water in architecture which will culminate in the final chapter. Chapter four concerns the thermal baths at Vals, Switzerland, designed by Peter Zumthor in 1996. This last and most important chapter aims to bring together aspects of the three previous examples through analysis of a contemporary design. The focus will be on Zumnors imaginative interpretation of the use of water in a natural environment. Research into his combination of technical innovation and sensitive perception hopes to establish how water can be used in contemporary architectural design to enrich the sensory human experience. Study will also focus on aspects of the design such as the careful attention paid to achieving balance and unity – through features such as the combination of different materials used. Features of the earlier case studies – such as the ambiguity of form in Moores piazza are discussed in light of Zumthors design of the baths interior. Finally, the study will assess how successful Zumthors example is in uniting traditional concepts in a contemp orary space. The Roman Bath Buildings at Avon, Bath. During the first century AD the Temple of Minerva and the baths were built at Bath over a thermal spring. As part of the building process an enclosed reservoir was constructed with the point at which the water poured into the drain being open with a flight of large steps from a platform above, allowing visitors to get close to the source of the water. The opening through which the water was accessed boasted an impressive archway creating the impression of the steaming water flowing through the mouth of a cave from the centre of the earth. (Cunliffe 1971, p.26). The original entrance hall boasted three massive windows through which could be seen the sacred spring and the altar beyond. The Great Bath would originally have been covered by a masonry vaulted ceiling also with large windows in its second tier plate xxiv cunliffe. Roman glass was translucent so the baths would not have been lit as well as an open air pool. This means that there would have been no views from the windows and little sun, resulting in minimal interaction between the experience of being inside the building and the conditions outside. It appears that the lighting of the establishment took second place to the organisation of space within the interior. Aside from the Great Bath the block contained two smaller chambers – the calidarium (hot room), and tepidarium (a warm acclimatising room) (Rook 1992, p.23-4), and another smaller swimming bath now known as the Lucas bath. (Cunliffe 1971, p.45). High vaulted spaces covered the thermal waters of the Great Bath to allow the steam to rise.As Macdonald says of this style of Roman roof, the chief key to the kind of sensory reaction or emotional response evoked by these buildings was the capacity of their concave shapes to induce an impression of expanding or rising hollowness.'(1982, p.176) The perception of space inside the baths would indeed have been altered as the bather left the small heated changing rooms and entered the area of the Great Bath. The warm bubbling water, with the cooler tranquil space above would have created two contrasting, yet complementary, sensory experiences. This design meant that the activity of the water environment could be enjoyed while the eye followed the path of rising vapours, travelling upwards to the still serenity of the domed roof. Allowing the eye to travel, while bodily remaining in the same place would have been an integral part of the relaxation process. The height of the ceiling would have also added to the ambience by causing sounds to echo. White limestone surrounded the bath which would have been smooth to the touch, and excavated evidence suggests that statues and other shrine-like images decorated the interior, with a fountain in the centre. It is possible to imagine how the continually changing state of the waters would have played upon the surrounding surfaces of the decoration, appearing to produce variations in colour and texture. As Veronica Strang says in her publication on water: The mesmeric qualities of water are of particular interest in considering sensory perception and the creation of meaning. Schiffman (1996:101) notes that the eye is automatically drawn to flickering or moving stimuli, and Gell (1992) and Morphy (1991, 1992, 1994) have shown that shimmering or visually exciting patterns can stimulate affective responses in many different cultural contexts. The shimmer and brilliance of water provide visual stimuli that are quite different from those of most objects. The visual interest of inanimate objects is gleaned by the eye actively tracing the form and colour and detail. With water (†¦) the eye is presented with a luminescent image it cannot hold. Instead, it must simply absorb all of the rhythms of movement and the tiny shifts and changes. (2003, p.51). As in contemporary swimming baths it is likely that the Romans would have enjoyed sitting beside the water to watch the play of light and absorb the atmosphere. From the remains found at Bath it appears that the design included viewing areas: the bath itself lay in the centre of an aisled hall 109ft long by 67ft wide, divided into a nave and two side aisles, or ambulatories, by continuous arcades framed with pilasters and entablature like those in the entrance hall. Each ambulatory was provided with three exedrae, a central rectangular recess with semicircular ones on either side, each framed by piers supporting arches in harmony with the main arcades. (Cunliffe 1976, p.45). These recesses, placed within a symmetric plan, would have provided places for people to sit and view the baths, while the continuous arcades would have led the line of vision around the interior, with the effect of there being no beginning or end. This continuity of form in the main area reflects its function as a unifying space in two ways: one, architecturally linking the four different areas of the building, and two, providing a public space befitting of the social function of bathing itself which brought people together. To aid the concept of bathing as a social and a sacred experience certain features were designed to appeal to the human senses. The floors and walls were decorated with mosaic patterns in different colours; contrasts of colour being common in Roman architecture (Macdonald 1982, p.176), and as part of the roof structures there stood tall columns in the decorative Corinthian style. As a sacred place, dedicated to Minerva, the healer, visitors were tempted to throw offerings into the sacred water of the spring in hope of their wishes being granted. The act of parting with money or something dear is a ritual made possible by the spring being situated beneath the main entrance hall. Excavations in 1878 by Mann discovered valuable offerings including pewter ornaments, a gold earring, and a pin with a pearl attached. (Cunliffe 1976, p.28). The presence of the water source provides an enticement to the baths within, and moreover the motion of the spring beneath would have created a rich bubb ling pool easily transforming the solid masonry and concrete walls into an aesthetically pleasing yet functional space. The architecture of the baths building appears to have been entirely devoted to the ritual of bathing itself which occurred inside. As Michael Wheeler says in Roman Art and Architecture (2001):you went to the baths in great numbers to talk to and about your friends and to work off the night-before. But one thing you certainly did not do; you never glanced at the untidy complex of domes and gables outside as you entered. It was the inside of the building that mattered, with its towering wall-spaces that stretched the minds of architect and sculptor and gave a sense of well-being to patron or client. (p.16). The experience of bathing was completed in a series of stages. The bathers first entered the dressing room to change, then after being anointed with oil proceeded to the series of main bathing rooms that varied in temperature (net ref. 1). In the calidarium bathers had their bodies scraped of oil and perspiration, before entering the frigidarium (cold room), where there was a small cold pool. The bather then entered the Great Bath. The Romans had no quantitative measurements for temperature, (Rook 1992, p.13) and despite the use of the walls as heating in conjunction with under floor heating there would have been relatively little control over humidity compared to contemporary bath complexes. Walls would have been damp from capillary moisture seeping up through the porous building materials and from condensation when warmer humid air came into contact with colder surfaces. This meant that the light and heat of the bath might have varied according to how many other people were using i t at the time. Certainly, these baths were designed to look their best when full of people – when the waters were moving and the steam rising and breaking in the space above. The baths were unique in that they provided a highly esteemed environment (baths were often owned by emperors) where personal ritual could be conducted in a public space – which only the presence of the water would allow. The baths were peoples palaces, providing a cultural focus where everyone could enjoy luxury on a regal scale every day. (Rook 1992, p.20). It is not difficult to imagine the many different smells – of different scented oils, steam, and hot bodies. The baths complex was a wealth of money, leisure and sensual experience, and the different materials used in the design reflect this. In the hall of the Great Bath lead lined the pool which met with the limestone beside it. This contrast of material was continued throughout in the broken forms of mosaic pattern interspersed with bronze objects such as a bronze sluice in the north-east corner of the main bath. (Cunliffe 1976, p.45).As expected there appears to be a close relationship between the design of the baths at Avon and the sensory experience of the spring water which was both a functional and an aesthetic feature.These two aspects appear to have been integral to one another and it will be interesting to see how the relationship between architectural design and the human senses alters in the next case study where water within the glass pavilion is present purely for aesthetic reasons. The Glass Pavilion designed by Bruno Taut for the Werkbund Exhibition, 1914. This case study looks at the interplay between water, light, and the senses in the early Modern Expressionist design of Bruno Tauts glass pavilion. The construction was commissioned by poet Peter Scheerbart who dreamed of a soaring glass architecture as a freeing up of architectural design. (Crasemann Collins 1962, p.12). It was a fourteen-sided prism roofed by a dome with blue, green, and gold glass panels which reflected the sky. (Ward 2001, p.65). Inside was a seven-tiered chamber whose walls were made of glass panels lined with glass mosaic, and a circular staircase – an unreal, unearthly flight of stairs that one descends as if through sparkling water (Pehnt 1973, p.76). On the lower level there was a rotunda with a pool and water cascading down layered steps so that the travelling sound of water would have echoed up to the highest tier. Taut claimed that the structure had been designed in the spirit of a Gothic cathedral. As Kenneth Frampton (1994) says, In effect a city crown, that pyramidal form postulated by Taut as the universal paradigm of all religious building, which together with the faith it would inspire was an essential urban element for the restructuring of society. (p.116). This comment is reflected in the use of water as a symbolic unifier in two ways. Firstly as a physical presence that mirrors the refracted light from the glass panels, creating a harmonic balance between floor and ceiling and a sense of unity within the structure, and secondly as something that all living things and people need and understand as an essential part of life – an essential ingredient if you like of Tauts Utopian ideal. When standing at the top of the water cascade it was possible to see upwards through the circular space in the middle to the arching space of the upper tiers beyond. This provided a visual contrast between the fluid downward movement of water and the arching pyramidal form of the roof above. Further visual delights were to be found in the wealth of colours used in the design. The cascade of water travelled over pale yellow glass, terminating in a recess of deep violet in which pictures were projected from a kaleidoscope. (Pehnt 1973, p.76.) The pres ence of the water served to unify peoples experience of the light into one visual component. Because this construction was not designed to be a permanent structure it did not need to meet the heavy physical demands of wear and tear. Thus it is more aesthetically pleasing than the roman bath building, which in many ways was more functional.The aisled hall of the baths had a basic rectangular form surrounded by solid stone masonry which gave the building a sense of permanence. In contrast, the circular form of Tauts skeletal structure would not have stood by itself: the upper hall was domed with different coloured glass panels set into reinforced concrete ribs and relied on the stiffening effect of the panels for stability. The aesthetic function of the arched roof has not changed since the time of the Roman baths at Avon; in both structures the opening out of the roof provides space in which the mind is set free to experience the sensual delights of the interior. Yet what differs in Tauts pavilion is the temporality of the structure. The height creates a paradoxical feeling o f temporary permanence – a brief feeling that one is almost liberated from the confines of earthly structures into the realm of the sky – while the presence of the running water beneath reminds the viewer that they are still on earth. In a 1928 essay on The Aesthetics of Architecture, Bruno Taut spoke of his love for clean smoothness (quoted from Ward 2001, p.56.) This philosophy is echoed in design of the pavilion where the light which is cast down through the glass surrounds hits the lower tier and is immediately washed away and diffused by the running water. As Strang (2003, p.50) says, the most constant quality of water is that it is not constant, but is characterised by transmutability and sensitivity to changes in the environment. Thus it is possible to picture the experience of the pavilion: the senses being continually stimulated by the changeability and echo of the water, the shifting light through the glass and its reflection in the water, even the smell of the humidity – all of which are simultaneously and subtly changing according to the nature of the conditions outside. It is not hard to imagine how a glint of sun might suddenly have transformed the pavilion into a thousand glimmering pieces. F urthermore, the seven tiers allow the spectator to control their sensory experience by moving as close and as far away from the changing light patterns as they desire. Differing levels which induced different experiences was not a feature of the design in the Roman baths but a parallel can be drawn between this aspect of the pavilion and the galleried hallway of the baths where the public could view the spring beneath. In the comparison between the two case studies so far, the ritual of bathing with its associated sensory delights becomes replaced by the ritual of aesthetic and sensory appreciation alone – without the water having any practical function whatsoever. It provides an essential focal point, detracting attention away from what would otherwise be a cold empty space. As Strang (2003) says of the properties of water: Physically, it is the ultimate fluid, filling any containing shape and, equally easily, shrinking and disappearing into the earth or evaporating into the ether. It has an extraordinary ability to metamorphose rapidly into substances with oppositional qualities, that is, the highly visible, concrete solidity of ice, and the fleeting dematerialisation of steam. Each state is endlessly reversible, so that this polymorphic range is always potentially present. (p.49). It is this changeability and potential of water that enables the pavilion to function as a dynamic public, yet personal, building. The tiered levels above allow room for private contemplation in a public space. It is clear that the function of the water differs to that of the Roman baths, however, the aesthetic experience in both fulfils a maxim quoted by Walter Gropius – that art is none other than the transformation of supramundane thoughts into objects of sensory perception. (quoted from Pehnt 1973, p.35). In terms of the baths at Avon and Tauts pavilion, what could have been an ordinary mundane experience – the act of bathing, the observation of an ornamental structure, – is transformed by the design of the building in conjunction with the presence of water and its effect on the senses into something extraordinary. The circular form of the interior creates a bubble where the spectator becomes isolated from the outside world; the changing light and the movement of water creating a sense of timelessness. As Simon Urwin (2003, pp.125-6) says: every body has around it what might be called a circle of presence that contributes to its own identification of place. When a body is in relationship with others, their circles of presence affect each other. When a body is put into an enclosure or cell its circle of presence is also contained and perhaps moulded. If this is true then the sensory experience of the individual in the pavilion would be shaped by the circular presences of the tiers and the water below culminating in a rich and lasting personal experience. In the roman bath building we see a fine contrast to this experience – where the functional aspect of the water would have caused Urwins circles of presence to be broken down so that public and private space become one. Indeed Taut himself stared that he demanded no distinction between public and private buildings. (quoted from Jencks 1985, p.61). As a final point for the case of the pavilion, it is worth considering the very structure itself and the space it contains. Its function – although not practical like the baths – is to provide an intermediary place between the exposure of the outdoors and the confines of the indoors, a space out of time. The use of different coloured glass creates a fascinating interplay between light and water while creating an enclosure without the feeling of being enclosed. This brings up interesting issues relating to the boundaries of interior and exterior which will be looked at in greater detail when comparing these studies to Zumthors work later on. The next case study explores an open air piazza the design of which provides a stark contrast to Tauts pavilion. The chapter aims to identify the evolving complexity of the relationship between architectural design, water and the senses – moving on now to an example built in 1974.

How to Create a Bug :: Viruses Computers Technology Essays

How to Create a Bug ATTR newbie on items for sale ? hair item nebie status is lost ? with client 3.0, does a .sleep then walks, and it generates hair tiles, did a .set flags 4 to freeze him and he insta-died.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  then when i ressed him he kept his death shroud. port 3593 for the accounts ? no sparring for a long time before goin to war is frustrating but can be handled but resignin towns and loggin off need changes. 1 resigning - a person can resign a town while you are attacking him then call the guards on you or what happened to me last night i killed a guy i let him live after than he resigned his town few minutes later he walked close by me and my char auto attacked him i got guardwhacked(can we say insane?) 2 often when you start killing someone in town they will log off making their char disappear(whats the point to war if they just log off to be safe?) ps guys that make a wad of bears THEN join a town and attack you needs fixed also means if you are gonna be safe you need to take out the bears of everyone around you incase they do join the town thats a fast way to make people mad for no reason  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   if you double click your axe, and then on a tree it says something like   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  'try chopping a tree' after numerous trys all over the globe,   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  I found that if you chop at a tree with your daggar (make some kindling! WHOOHOOO!)   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  you can then chop the tree with your axe, afterwards. Hope this helps anybody else   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  who's having trouble with this! @INPVAL for a simple value input ! console - turn Off logging, you cant turn it on 3) Provocation still :) 4) A function's for skill menus to got a dialog spider webs people get stuck in dont time out, they are stuck forever started .ACCOUNT ADDMAIL name email when taking too much alcohol all your stats goto 0, and you need to kill yourself to get them back. Any keyword to turn that off in the ini? TEST - saving house region tags house 4270 skill to gump ? wack = fail speelll for npc;'s keyword to route skill creat to gumps MAKEITEM replication for shafts? jail return point = TAG.JAILRETURN log out while sleeping. There's also some problem with healing animals with bandages (veterinary). When you start healing them it keeps on healing at a quick rate, as if you were holding down "last object / last target" macro button

Clue and the Crisis of the American White Male Essay -- Movie Film Ess

Clue and the Crisis of the American White Male Nothing is more American than the crossover appeal of products in the mass media; this appeal is what propelled the idea for the 1985 release of the film Clue, based on the Parker Brothers board game. Furthermore, in keeping with the game's theme, the film appeared in theaters across the country with different endings. With an ensemble cast of talented but little known actors—Tim Curry, Christopher Lloyd, Lesley Ann Warren, Martin Mull, Madeline Kahn, Eileen Brennan and Michael McKean—Clue seemed like a film destined to slip into obscurity. After all, it was a comedy, clever but crass. A deeper analysis of the film provides some insight into a running commentary that presents not just a murder mystery involving several comedic characters, but rather a complex allegorical situation that presents characters as archetypal figures for repressed forces in the dominant American ideology. In reality, Clue is a film about the crisis of the upper class white male in Ameri can culture. In the piece â€Å"Cinema/Ideology/Criticism,† Jean Luc-Comolli and Jean Narboni define the critic's job as the discernment of â€Å"which films, books and magazines allow the ideology a free, unhampered passage, transmit it with crystal clarity, serve as its chosen language† and which films â€Å"attempt to make it turn back and reflect itself, intercept it, make it visible by revealing its mechanisms, by blocking them† (753). Through their examination, seven film categories are outlined. Clue falls into the â€Å"E† category, which is defined as â€Å"films which seem at first sight to belong firmly within the ideology and to be completely under its sway, but which turn out to be so only in an ambiguous manner† (75... ...itty dialogue. As Wadworth said, it should be no surprise that the FBI (dominant ideology) is trying to cover up the murder of these repressed forces. â€Å"The FBI is used to cleaning up after multiple murders. Why do you think it's run by a man called Hoover?† By continually making fun of the very powers it is supposedly reinforcing, Clue becomes an important film in criticizing American bourgeois ideology. Works Cited Gledhill, Christine. â€Å"Recent Developments in Feminist Film Criticism.† Braudy and Cohen, 251-72. Braudy, Leo and Marshall Cohen, eds. Film Theory and Criticism: Introductory Readings, Fifth Edition. New York: Oxford UP, 1999. Comolli, Jean-Luc and Jean Narboni, â€Å"Cinema/Ideology/Criticism.† Braudy and Cohen, 752-59. Lynn, Jonathan. Clue. Paramount, 1985. Mulvey, Laura. â€Å"Visual Pleasure and Narrative Cinema.† Braudy and Cohen, 83