Change Management (Business) Marketing Study Essay

Change Management (Business) Marketing Study - Essay Example The report will also examine the global market relative to marketing situation, including an industry-scoped PESTLE analysis. The report will follow with a recommended framework for change management and continuous improvement. The goal of this report is to serve as an informative analysis that can be utilized from its general structure to develop more specific strategies within the management of the construction industry market. According to the Department for Trade and Industry's (DTI 2007) annual report on the construction industry, there are over 250,000 individual firms operating in the UK construction sector which primarily operate within the residential, non-residential and civil engineering sectors. The construction industry employs two million persons. The focus of the construction industry is the acquisition of construction materials, management of suppliers and manufacturers, building design, service, and installation. This includes private contractors, sub-contractors and advisors in design, building, operation and refurbishing of buildings (DTI 2007). It is important to note that the construction industry is the second largest industry in the EU and contributes to slightly over eight percent of the national gross value (DTI 2007). The nature of t Nature Of Construction Market The nature of the construction industry market is that it is based on the national, and sometimes global, economy. The construction industry exists because the individuals within a community desire the building of certain constructs based on factors such as income, interest rates, value of money (in or EU), and thus the construction industry is at once a good indicator of economic health and subjected to the slowing or increasing of a nation's economic health. The construction market can exist on a local or global scale, increasingly the construction company must be able to function on multiple market levels. In 2005, there were approximately 15,000 million new housing orders in both public and private sectors (DTI 2007), not including refurbishment or maintenance of old houses. In the same year, 25,000 million was requisitioned for contracted infrastructure in private, industrial, and public buildings. According to Market & Business Development (MBD 2007) the construction market is expected to reach its peak in development and sales in 2006 with a growth rate of 4 %. Further market analysis by MBD (2007) shows that the construction industry output has an overall growth rate of 35% between 2002 and 2005, yet the construction market is foreshadowed by the upcoming industry pressure due to earnings growth continues to pick up and energy costs increase, combined with a slowing of public sector contracts. Analysis Of The Global Market The EU construction sector is a

Effects of students attitude on their performance

Effects of students attitude on their performance In a developing country like Pakistan, education is considered most important factor in the advancement of a nation. The role of students in developing a country is huge. You cant expect a country to develop if it doesnt have literate people. These students who are studying would be working tomorrow. They would be working for the public, private sector etc. These students, if perform well, can serve as pillars, the country would be standing on in future. And there are several factors which, if identified can improve students performance. In my views among all factors, attitude has a powerful impact on students performance. As Winston Churchill quotes Attitude is a little thing that makes a big difference. Earl Nightingale said that a great attitude does much more than turn on the lights in our worlds; it seems to magically connect us to all sorts of serendipitous opportunities that were somehow absent before the change. Attitudes are generally positive or negative views about person, place, thing, or event-in brief attitudes are judgments. They develop on the ABC model (affect, behavior, and cognition). The behavioral intention is a verbal indication or typical behavioral tendency of an individual. The cognitive response is a cognitive evaluation of the entity that constitutes an individuals beliefs about the object. Most attitudes are the result of either direct experience or observational learning from the environment. Students can increase their performance if they are told that their faulty or negative attitudes are influencing their GPAs badly. The primary objective of this study is to prove to the less scoring students that they can increase their performance by changing their negative attitudes like their beliefs, behaviors or thinking. Most of the students that are unable to perform well thinks that its just the fault of their dumb minds but they do not consider their own attitudes that are significantly affecting their performance. My objective is to prove to them that bringing a change in their faulty attitudes can increase their performance, as those students who have positive attitudes are able to score high. In this way overall class will be performing better and this will * HYPOTHESIS DEVELOPMENT THEORETICAL FRAMEWORK: STUDENTS PERFORMANCE: Students performance or their success is greatly linked with their attitudes i.e their beliefs, feelings or behaviors. Harry F.Bank has quoted that for success, attitude is equally as important as ability. Funmi Wale-Adegbite has stressed more as he said that Success is 80% attitude and 20% aptitude. Sterling W. Sill said that everything depends on attitude. We get good grades or poor grades, it depends on our attitude. Thomas Jefferson say that Nothing can stop the man with the right mental attitude from achieving his goal; nothing on earth can help the man with the wrong mental attitude. H1= Students performance greatly depends upon attitude. STUDENTS ATTITUDE: Attitude is Evaluative statements of judgment concerning objects, people or events. There are three components of attitude that are as follows: Cognitive Attitude: The opinion or belief segment of an attitude Effective Attitude: The emotional or feelings segment of an attitude Behavioral Components: An intention to behave in a certain way towards someone or something. Students performance is affected by all three components. Belief segment of attitude influences students performance significantly as Michael Korda said To succeed, we must first believe that we can. H2= There is positive and significant relationship between Cogniti0n, attitude and students performance Emotions play an important part in our lives, and even more so in self-improvement. Often times, successful people are those who know how to take control of their emotions and use it to their benefit- Ethan Beh H3= Affective component plays an important role in determining attitude and influences performance significantly. When you change your behavior, you change your performance. Author Unknown, from by changing your thinking. Kirby, Winston et al. (2002) focused on students impatience (his time-discount behavior) that influences his own academic performance. H-4= Attitude relies on behavioral segment as well. MODEL: Attitude Students performance Behavioral component Affective component Cognitive component This model shows that attitude significantly effects performance. In this model students performance is an independent variable and attitude is a dependent variable. Whereas cognitive, affective and behavioral are the components of attitude. METHODOLOGY: SAMPLE: As sample we had taken students of MBA 2nd and 3rd semester that are 90 in total. In order to fill questionnaires, Students were selected randomly. 25 questionnaires were made and all were utilized. PREPARATION OF QUESTIONNAIRE: Questionnaire comprised of thirteen questions in total. First question was regarding their performance i.e. GPA in previous semester. It had three options that are 2.5-3.0, 3.0-3.5, and 3.5-4.0. Rest twelve questions were regarding attitude i.e four questions from each component. Every question had three options yes, no and sometimes. PROCEDURE: After questionnaires were filled. We counted the no. of students choosing each option. We also counted the student falling in each category of performance. After it was done we made table showing overall calculations. We also calculated percentages regarding result of each question and also made pie charts for convenience purpose. The purpose of doing all this was to show that good performers have comparatively good attitudes and vice versa. RESULT AND DISCUSSION: Following is the result of first question that was meant to checkout students performance. QUESTIONS 2.4-3.0 3.0-3.5 3.5-4.0 1.GPA in previous semester 11 9 5 *Q.2-Q.5, Q.6-Q.9, Q.10-Q.13 YES NO SOMETIMES 2.Do you feel good about your subjects? 60 30 10 3.Do you feel bad when your friend gets good marks? 40 52 8 4.Do you feel your teacher is competent? 68 20 12 5.Do you feel bored when your teacher delivers lecture? 52 33 15 6.Do you irritate your teacher intentionally by asking silly questions? 24 60 16 7.Do you dream during class? 48 45 7 8.Are you in a habit of producing different sounds during lecture? 52 32 16 9.Do you misbehave in class? 44 50 6 10.Do you perceive that teachers attention is directed towards specific students as favoritism or biasness? 44 40 16 11.Do you perceive that your subjects are challenging? 48 36 16 12.Do you feel your teacher deducts your marks intentionally? 24 64 12 13.Do you feel your outcome is less than the efforts you are putting in? 56 40 4 In beginning of questionnaire development, I set the performance standard. Students falling in GPA 3.0 were considered poor performers or weak students. Those between 3.0-3.5 were labeled good whereas above that GPA were categorized as brilliant students. As in fig. 1 the results showed that 44% students lie in weak category.36% are good students whereas only 20% are brilliant performers. Fig.1 Now our intention was to check up the feelings or affective part of students attitude. So we asked them that do they like their subjects and the result is depicted as follows: Fig.2: We got a higher percentage of students who had a positive attitude towards their chosen subjects. But at the same time there were 30% students who had not actually liked there subjects. Means the problem with attitude of some students was that they didnt feel good about their subjects. There can be many possible reasons to this. But overall affect it had was on their performance. Our third question was directly looking up for sign of jealousy (a highly negative feeling) in students. It straightly asked them that do they feel jealous when any friend gets good marks and the results are shown through pie chart i.e. Fig.3 The result clearly showed that there are a lot of jealous students in class. Jealousy is a form of negative attitude and is related to the feeling or affective segment. This was a big reason for a high percentage of low scoring students in class. it is very important for a student to feel good about his/her teacher and feel that teacher is competent. But when they were asked about their feeling about competence of their professor, 40 percent felt that the teacher is incompetent. Its a fairly high percentage. And clearly told the reason for bad performance of students in exams. Results to the question that do they feel bored during lecture directly favored my hypothesis. Next four questions were aimed at faulty attitudes regarding behaviors. By the results of our next question, we found out that students biggest problem lies with their behavior in class. It was because 60% students admitted that they irritate their teacher intentionally by asking silly questions. We had observed that the backbenchers of our class produce different sounds during lecture in order to interrupt or tease the teacher. So we thought to include this question also. Surprisingly students were honest enough to admit that they are in habit of producing different sounds during lecture. 52% marked yes to this question. Overall result to this question is shown in fig. There were many i.e. 44% who even admitted that they misbehave in class. And the result was this: Attitudes major and equally important component is cognitive component. Here we included last four questions, which purely dealt with students believes or opinions. Our first question regarding cognition was that do they perceive that teacher favors specific students and the answer were: Our thinking can affect our performance sign -ANALYSIS As it is clear from our results that the results show what was intended. The students who try and make progress in there studies with positive attitude are always successful while those who are negative in there behavior are more concerned about the negative outcomes which lead to there failure. The results of the questionnaire are also same as intended. -OVERALL DISCUSSION CONCLUSION AND RECOMMENDATION: -HYPOTHESIS WAS THIS -MY RESULT WAS THIS -COMPARE UR CONCLUSION WITH ANYONES -RECOMMENDATIONS

To Legalize, or Not to Legalize Gay Marriage Essay -- Homosexuality

Since the beginning of time, Homo sapiens have discriminated against people with differences such as color of skin, religion, politics, and more. Over the years, society has changed to accept these differences, yet Americans still ostracize the gay community as if they were less than human. Currently one specific controversy comes to mind in consideration of gays, and that is gay marriage. The controversies surrounding gay marriage include the legal, religious, and philosophical problems that allowing gay marriage could cause. The United States currently does not recognize gay partnerships as legal marriages, and therefore when gay partners file for a tax refund both partners must mark single for the type of relationship. Though the United States federally does not allow homosexual marriages, states like Connecticut, Vermont, Massachusetts, Washington, Iowa, New York, and New Hampshire allow such marriages, and even more states recognize civil unions such as Illinois California, Co lorado, Delaware, Hawaii, Maine, Maryland, Nevada, New Jersey, Oregon, Rhode Island, Washington and Wisconsin. With these states bringing more attention to gay marriage, the debate over this right has come to the forefront of the 2012 presidential campaign. The definition of marriage is traditionally between a man and a woman which is why the anti-gay marriage groups protest the concept of having two men or two women marry. Research shows that those opposed to gay marriage have used the costs associated with benefits, as well as religious and secular philosophical concerns as points on their flawed platform. When the opposition cites their platform, the legal aspect, including money, is one of the points. The opposition cites a study done in New York ... .... PinkNews, 7 Mar. 2012. Web. 15 May 2012. . "Homosexuality and Buddhism." - ReligionFacts. ReligionFacts. Web. 15 May 2012. Leviticus. Leviticus Chapter 18. King James Bible Online, 2012. Web. 16 May 2012. Mustanski, Brian. "The Sexual Continuum." Why Not Allow Gay Marriage? Sussex Directories, Inc., 28 Nov. 2008. Web. 15 May 2012. Peters, Jeremy W. "Would Gay Marriage Help the State Economy?" City Room. NYtimes.com, 26 Mar. 2009. Web. 15 May 2012. Sterling, Toby. "The Global View Of Gay Marriage." CBSNews. CBS Interactive, 05 Dec. 2007. Web. 15 May 2012. "Suicide Prevention." Warning Signs of Suicide. The Trevor Project. Web. 15 May 2012. "The Catholic Church, Homosexuality and Gay Marriage." The Catholic Church, Homosexuality and Gay Marriage. Catholic News Service. Web. 15 May 2012.

Love: Fascination and Biology Essay

Love.   People have been fascinated by it for centuries, and never more so than in the past hundred years or so, when people began to enter into relationships and marry for love, rather than political or social reasons.   We have also begun to research love further, and have come up with many different types and definitions for love, romantic love being only one type.   The psychology of love is a new area that looks at all these different definitions of love and what they mean to people today. When many people think about love, they are still mystified.   It seems difficult, if not impossible, to describe love.   It is a deep, true emotion that has captivated people for centuries.   Today, we write movies and books about it, feature it in our tabloids, and center our entire lives around it.   Yet, because it is such a large part of our lives, there must be some way to actually define it and understand it.   Psychologists have taken up the study of love for exactly this reason. An article in Psychology Today talks about love in today’s society: what it means, where our modern definitions came from, and how to achieve it.   First of all, love comes from bonding, no matter what people are involved in the situation – parents and children, husbands and wives, or friends.   Bonding leads to attachment, which is a form of love.   In this way, love becomes not a mysterious, other worldly, unexplainable phenomenon.   It becomes an easily understandable part of human life, and a necessary one at that (Johnson and Marano). Read more:  Persuasive Essay About Love Attachment is a part of survival.   If young children do not attach to an older caregiver (usually their mother), they will die.   They need the security that an older person will feed them, soothe them, and keep them warm.   Even once a child outgrows the need for another person to handle all of his or her needs, he still needs a person to help him meet his own needs. That is, to help him find food, make sure that he has clothes to put on himself, and to continue to soothe him.   Even adults need this kind of security, because most people do take care of themselves alone; they rely on others at least for comfort and emotional security, even if they can provide for their own physical needs.   However, families exist because sometimes providing even for physical needs can be such a daunting task that it is shared.   That’s why in a â€Å"traditional† society, one person works, and one person cares for the home (Johnson and Marano). This idea has been thoroughly studied.   Babies learn to attach to their parents when they are young, although depending on the parent’s style, some do not attach.   Babies whose parents respond to them in a consistent and loving manner tend to attach securely – when their parents leave, they cry and seek them; when their parents return, upon making sure the parent is there, they go to explore their world, confident in their parent’s love and availability.   Other babies are insecurely attached. That is, they are very fearful when their parents are gone, and tend to reject them or cling to them (or vacillate between extremes) when their parents return, usually because parents respond inconsistently to them: sometimes they are loving, and other times they are distracted and off-putting.   A third style is when babies are not attached.   They simply ignore their parents, whether they are present or not, and this is usually because the parents resist attempts at physical bonding (Johnson and Marano). If all of this is true even in small children, imagine the ramifications it can have throughout life.   Another psychologist has studied this in her book, The Psychology of Love.   Again, biological reasons are forefront: people need attachment and security to survive, at all ages.   But beyond simple attachment and mutual bonding, there are forms of love in which one person provides more than another does. The author presents situations in which one person feels and expresses love much more strongly than another.   For example, a woman who is depressed may rely much more heavily on her friends than they can rely on her.   A child certainly relies on its mother more than she relies on it.   And in some interesting cases, there is â€Å"unrequited† love, where a person may feel romantic love for another that isn’t reciprocated.   Love, as the author points out, isn’t always equal (Weis). Altruism is an interesting part of love.   A person who loves someone, especially a family member, is likely to behave altruistically towards that person, should a situation arise.   For example, if a family member were sick and unable to take care of himself or anything else, a person may take off work, care for the sick person, and pick up any of that person’s responsibilities as a matter of course.   This is not seen in relationships where there is not love, either because the people are strangers, or because they don’t like each other (Weis). This likely occurs because altruism is not truly action solely for another’s gain.   In fact, by caring for a family member, one is ensuring that the person will survive, and also ensuring that someday, that person will be able to, and more importantly, want to care for them in return.   This behavior protects the connection and attachment that is between two people.   This is why it is not seen in people who have no relationship: there is no need to ensure a stranger’s survival, because they will likely never be able to return the favor (Weis). Love is primarily studied in terms of this bonding and attachment now, because previously, psychologists considered it too lofty a subject.   But, with the real biological and mental basis, love is a phenomenon that is not only well-studied, but a subject that is involved in nearly every part of humankind. Romantic love has a biological basis, too.   Romantic love is the type that is most frequently thought of when a person says ‘love.’   First of all, ‘loving’ someone implies fidelity: that the people involved will be faithful to one another.   It allows constant sexual access, and therefore the possibility for procreation.   It allows a joint effort to survive, both as two individuals and as a family, once children enter the picture (Weis). Romantic love, according to Weis, is comprised of three areas: attachment, attraction, and sex drive.   All of these are biologically based, but there is also more to it than that.   Hormones help a person to feel attracted towards another, and they also signal the sex drive and sexual response cycle.   But if this biology were all there was to it, then our society would be a much simpler place. However, we are obsessed with romantic love.   In today’s world, people are constantly reading magazines and books to learn more about romantic love.   â€Å"Why does he never talk to me?†Ã‚   â€Å"Why does she talk constantly?†Ã‚   â€Å"Why is he such a commitment-phobe?†Ã‚   â€Å"Why is she planning the wedding after the first date?†Ã‚   There are literally dozens of books and magazines on the subject, with more coming out all the time.   Men want to understand women (although they claim they never will) and women want to understand men (although they’re pretty sure they already do, at least most of the time). These books and magazines exist because the world is far more complex today.   We have a myriad of reasons for choosing and staying with our partners.   Temptations and jealousies are everywhere.   We have social rules for behavior that say that it isn’t always possible to come out with your feelings as soon as you’re sure of them.   While the underlying principles are still the same –   hormones govern whether or not you’re attracted to a person, and play a significant role in helping to bond two people together and keep them together – the social rules of communication in love are also highly studied. In Marano’s article, â€Å"Relationship Rules,† this idea is studied.   This article is only one example out of many on this widely studied subject.   Her suggestions: Choose carefully, know your partner’s beliefs, don’t confuse sex and love, know your needs and speak up, view yourselves as a team, know and respect differences, solve problems immediately, learn to negotiate, listen, work hard at closeness, and more.   All in all, there are 25 â€Å"Relationship Rules† in this article (Marano). It has been widely studied that people who do not understand or speak up for their own needs in relationships are often unhappy.   Counselors and psychologists encourage people to always be willing to share their needs.   However, they also encourage recognizing that the other person had needs too, and that negotiation is good thing: being able to respect and work with both peoples’ needs (Marano). As Marano warns, though, too much dependency is not a good thing.   While it is true on many levels, from social to biological, that two people need each other to survive emotionally and physically, it is also possible to have too much of a good thing.   Two people must learn to meet their own needs sometimes, or to seek out another person or source to meet their needs.   Too much dependency causes a lack of focus on the relationship, and a loss of individual identity. For a final warning, Marano states that â€Å"love is not an absolute, not a limited commodity that in of or out of†¦.   It’s a feeling that ebbs and flows†¦.†Ã‚   Because hormones and many other life situations affect perception of love, two people may not always feel love towards one another.   However, if they accept that this is part of the natural way of things, they can still behave in a loving manner towards one another.   Love is about much more than just feeling amazing about another person all the time.   It is about caring for another person, putting him first, and accepting that he is not perfect. There are many ideas and perceptions about love in today’s society.   The original basis for love was biological, and to this day biology continues to be an important part of the process and feelings of love.   It keeps people together by producing incredibly powerful feelings of attachment and security.   But love is also about the tricky ins and outs of relationships.   Both of these areas have been heavily studied by psychologists, and continue to be studied today. As time goes on, we will learn even more about the psychology and biology of love.   We will learn more about how people attach to one another and why they do it.   But even if we never learned another thing about love, the entire world would remain fascinated by it, always falling in and out, and forming attachments to more new people.   Movies will be made, books will be written, and people will watch, read, and listen.   Love is everything. Bibliography Johnson, Susan, and Marano, Hara Estroff.   â€Å"In the Name of Love.†Ã‚   Psychology Today, November 17, 2006. Marano, Hara Estroff.   â€Å"Relationship Rules.†Ã‚   Psychology Today, February 10, 2006. Weis, Karin.   The New Psychology of Love.   Yale University Press, New Haven, CT: 2006.

Life before meeting Mike Essay

Living each day with fear, unhappiness and without peace of mind was an experience that has taunted me when I started studying Mechanical Engineering at Iowa State University. Adjusting to the environment of homophobia and discriminating behavior gave me a feeling that I was extremely different from the rest of the people in the campus. I was uncomfortable with the discriminating stares, the constant bickering and the behind the back talks that relates to my sexual orientation. Each day, I just want to stay in my room due to the fear for my safety. Studying and living in the environment has never been enjoyable. As days and months passed, my studies were affected. The pressure of taking Mechanical Engineering as my academic major to please my father took a toll on me. My Dad was a Mechanical Engineer by profession and he wanted me to follow his footstep. I started my college education at the age of 17. Due to my desire to study in a gay friendly community and take a course that is of my interest, I decided to study in Canada and switch my major to a program that had both Business and New Media Studies. Toronto University was a perfect fit and I was so blessed to be accepted to study Information Technology Management at Toronto School of Business. Finally, I felt like I was given a refreshing dose of cold water in a sizzling hot summer season. Our First Meeting Going to the DJ Carl Cox and Richie Hawtin concert in Pure Club was a way to get away from the hustles and bustles of school life. While having a great time singing, dancing, cheering and enjoying the music, my eyes suddenly caught the attention of a young man named Mike who bumped into me while I was dancing my way through the crowd. Mike and I were like magnets that got attracted to each other. I liked the way he smiles and I enjoyed his sense of humor. He cracks jokes in any given situation and there are no dull moments with him. After a few exchange of pleasantries, we found out that we were both living in 100 Yonge Street apartments. I was living on the 9th floor and Mike was living on the 15th floor. Other than that, we were also studying in Toronto Business School and in the same department. After many months of staying in my apartment and going to school, I wonder why I met Mike at an unexpected place and not in Yonge Street or in the school campus. It seems that the concert truly paved the way for us to meet each other. We discovered later on that we share the same love for electronic music. Despite our compatibilities in terms of interest, we stayed as friends, hang out mostly within the school premises, and went to parties together from time to time. Unlike in my previous school in Iowa, I have found so many gender friendly people and amenable places in Toronto. I am so happy in Canada and I have considered this as my second country. When Mike came into my life, I felt like I was given an extra shot of adrenalin. I am more inspired to explore new things and to discover my inner strength. Mike is the missing piece of the puzzle in my life. It was in December 2005 that faith orchestrated its way for Mike and me to deeply explore our relationship. By an unfortunate incident, Mike broke his left wrist after a bad fall on the street when he was rollerblading. It was at that time when he had to move out of his apartment due to a financial situation, forcing him to mostly live with his sister Laurie or with me. When the accident occurred, Laurie was out of town for a conference. Hence, Mike got stuck with me. I took care of him when he was confined in the hospital. When he was discharged, he stayed in my house and instantly, I became his caregiver! We have spent the entire holiday season together and our friendship turned into a serious relationship. We loved every moment of our intimacy and we never want to live apart anymore. The deep love, trust, and warmth feeling that we have shared as partners is indescribable. Because we were always in a whirlwind of passion, Mike forgot the extreme pain in his left wrist! Love is indeed a great healing potion. Plans of Settling Down After living together for a year, Mike and I decided that it was the right time to get married. We want our relationship to be built on solid foundations of the love and support that we have for each other. Although we have been talking about getting married as soon as Mike finishes his studies on September and gets a job, we both cannot wait to legalize our relationship. However, since I am not a Canadian citizen, one of the reservations that we had was my capacity to stay in Canada legally. Even if I still have a year and a half to complete my studies and a possible employment of another year, it would be a great relief to get this issue out of our way to avoid any future problems. After getting the support of our best friends, we made a decision on December 2006 to get married on Valentine’s Day, February 14, 2007. Unfortunately, we could not make any reservations as that day was already fully booked. Hence, we settled for February 16, Friday which turned out to be a more convenient date for all our friends who will attend our wedding. This was the second holiday season that we have made a memorable decision. December was indeed marked for our love to flourish and grow deeply. Our Wedding Day Getting up early on that day and looking at the person that I am going to marry gave me an overflowing feeling of happiness. I could not explain the feeling of excitement when I get dressed and boarded the limo with Mike. We held each other’s hand and couldn’t stop smiling as we travel to the City Hall. This is the day that we have been waiting for and we could not wait to exchange â€Å"I do’s! † Our exceptional wedding day has proven that a limited student budget is not a hindrance to make the special occasion a reality. We had a simple wedding at the Toronto City Hall witnessed by our best friends Ruth, Naomi, Tanya, Ali and Dan. While we were standing in front of the Judge who was officiating the wedding ceremony, our hearts were throbbing with happiness as we exchange our marital vows. Chills run down through our spines as we hear the words of the Judge saying, â€Å"I pronounce you _________ †. Our eyes were tearful as we hugged and kissed each other while our friends were giving their warm of applause and congratulatory greetings. Our Families Our families were not present in our wedding day. Mike’s parents had a legal battle of divorce during his childhood years. He never got along with his mom in his entire life and he moved out of their house at an early age. He could not relate to his brothers who were homophobic. He was only close to his sister Laurie who has provided him with care and support since he moved out of their house. She has also been very supportive of our relationship. Unfortunately, Laurie is a conference organizer and her frequent travels prevented her from attending our wedding. My family was not aware of my sexual orientation although they were suspicious. They never had a chance to know me well because I moved to the United States during my high school years when I was about 15. When I informed my mother and sister that I was dating Mike and we were getting married, she became worried about how my father would react to my unexpected revelation. Since I am the only son, my Dad became disappointed. He could not understand why I turn out to be gay. He did not talk to me until the summer of 2007 when my Mom and sister paid us a visit in Toronto and congratulated us on our marriage. In Toronto, Mike and Laurie became good friends and we promised her that she would be part of our honeymoon vacation in Turkey so we could spend quality time with her. My Dad and I had a heart-to-heart talk over the phone and I can sense the pain that he was feeling and his disappointment in learning about my sexual orientation. Dad is a strong person who wanted to give his best for our future. During our talk, I learned that he was concern about the discrimination that I may experience and the legal challenges that I need to face with the choices that I have made. It took a long time for my father to accept me but with the help of my mother and sister, he eventually accepted me for what I am. We are currently in good terms and someday Mike and I will visit my Dad in USA. It was a great feeling to be fully accepted by my family. Mike has been honest about his problems with his family. Since his brothers could not accept him for being gay and his mother was so hurt when her marriage ended in a divorce, it was difficult for him to talk to them. His only way of knowing about his family is through his sister Laurie. Because of this, I have never met any member of his family personally. I have only seen their pictures in Laurie’s home. We can only hope that they would get along someday and make up for lost time. My family is also eager to see my partner’s family in the future. The problem that Mike’s family is encountering is beyond Mike’s sexuality. The conflict is deeply rooted in the negative memories of his parent’s divorce and the painful events that followed. It is in Mike’s longing for family love and support that push me to understand, love and care for him more. Mike and I made a vow never to allow our relationship to reach a point where we would end up like his family. We will value our marriage and extend mutual respect, open and honest communication and unconditional love for each other for the rest of our lives. Our Life as a Couple Our lifestyles have drastically changed since we got married. As a couple, we have shared so much of our leisure times together. We love to relax at home or spend time in a coffee shop while reading books relating to personality development, marketing and scientific research and studies. We are both into arts and music appreciation and occasionally we work our minds and hands on the canvass together. We still love to support local artists. Recently, I have introduced Mike to the community work that I have been supporting. We have spent time in supporting and visiting cancer patients as research on natural treatments is one of my hobbies. In my 5 years of volunteer service, I have developed friendship with Christina, who has successfully recovered with our support. Our Future Plans Mike was hired as a Production Director at X Agency in Mississauga. We are planning to move to Mississauga after we are officially united in Canada. We want to spend our late honeymoon in one of the tourist spots in Turkey. I still intend to finish my college in Toronto University. Hopefully, when I obtain my permanent Canadian residency, my tuition fee will be more affordable. We are saving for my education and we aim to achieve our goals on the summer of 2008.

The Pitfalls of Thinking - The Road essays

The Pitfalls of Thinking - The Road essays The Road, by Cormac McCarthy, is a story of a post-apocalyptic world seen through the eyes of a father and son, while traveling in a seemingly desolated environment searching for a civilized society. The Road portrays what is left of the world and its inhabitants in a cold, unforgiving, and depressing manner. Traveling the road the father and son strive to carry the fire with them as they keep pushing on through what seems to be a futile and endless journey. Many characters in The Road are depicted as savages who have resorted to barbaric and cannibalistic methods in order to survive the environment they are placed in, which no longer contains any type of plant growth or animal food source, except humans. While traveling down the road, many of the characters in the story have resorted to survival by any means necessary, in doing so they have forgotten what it means to be human, thus creating many pitfalls in their thinking. The father in The Road creates many errors in his thinking that become recognizable and pointed out to him more and more by his son as the story progresses. The error of perspective the father makes the most is their error of the either or outlook. There are many factors to consider in thinking about surviving in a post-apocalyptic society. The father tells his son that they are the good guys while the cannibalistic murdering characters are the bad guys. The father tells the son that the good guys carry the fire, which represents internal human strength in the form of qualities as hope, perseverance, and resilience as well as morality, and the ability to retain ones humanity in the face of ultimate destruction and evil. The father explains to his son that there are either good guys or bad guys in this post-apocalyptic society. Unfortunately, their situation does not exactly lend themselves to such clear cut definitions of these terms and the son begins to realize this. Along their journey the son begins to c...

Cointelpro essays

Cointelpro essays The United Sates Federal Bureau of Investigation put together a counterintelligence program or Cointelpro to investigate and disrupt political dissent within the United States. Cointelpro operations targeted organizations that were thought to have politically radical movements. It started in 1956 and went on until 1971. During the Cold War, the communist and socialist party were targeted by FBI counterintelligence, whose purpose was not only to investigate, but take actions to neutralize any political dissent. As the years went by, the FBIs focus shifted to emerging anti-war and civil rights groups. These groups were thought of as communist front organizations. The largest cointelpro campaigns targeted the Social Workers Party, the New Left (which included many anti-war groups such as Students for a Democratic Society and the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee), and Black nationalists groups such as the Black Panther Party and the Nation of Islam. Other groups targeted were the American Indian Movement, Feminists, and gay and lesbian groups. The methods that were used in cointelpro were: infiltration, psychological warfare, harassment through the legal system, and illegal force and violence. The FBI would try to infiltrate organizations by becoming members so they could find out information from the inside. They would use psychological warfare by spreading misinformation and making anonymous letters and phone calls. One of the FBIs most harmful tactics in cointelpro was harassment through the legal system. They presented false evidence and gave perjured testimony against some activists, while they falsely arrested and imprisoned others. The FBI would also use illegal force and violence to intimidate political dissidents. An example of a cointelpro tactic is the Black Panther Party coloring book that was created by the FBI and sent to sponsors of the organ ...

Biography of George Pullman, Sleeping Rail Car Inventor

Biography of George Pullman, Sleeping Rail Car Inventor George Mortimer Pullman (March 3, 1831–Oct. 19, 1897) was a cabinet-maker turned building contractor turned industrialist who developed the Pullman sleeping car in 1857. Pullmans sleeper, designed for overnight passenger travel, was a sensation that revolutionized the railroad industry, replacing the uncomfortable sleeping cars that had been used on American railroads since the 1830s. But he paid a price in labor union animosity that followed him to his grave. Fast Facts: George M. Pullman Known For: Developing the Pullman railroad sleeper carBorn: March 3, 1831 in Brocton,  New YorkParents: James Pullman, Emily PullmanDied: Oct. 19, 1897 in Chicago, IllinoisSpouse: Harriett SangerChildren: Florence, Harriett, George Jr., Walter Sanger Early Life Pullman was the third of 10 children born to James and Emily Pullman in Brocton, New York. The family relocated to Albion, New York, in 1845 so that Pullman’s father, a carpenter, could work on the  Erie Canal. James Pullmans specialty was moving structures out of the way of the canal with jackscrews and another device he patented in 1841. Move to Chicago When James Pullman died in 1853, George Pullman took over the business. He won a contract with the state of New York the next year to move 20 buildings from the canals path. In 1857, Pullman opened a similar business in  Chicago, Illinois, where much help was needed in raising buildings above the  Lake Michigan  flood plain. Pullman’s company was one of several hired to lift multistory buildings and whole city blocks by four to six feet. Ten years after he moved to Chicago, he married Harriett Sanger. They had four children: Florence, Harriett, and twins George Jr., and Walter Sanger. Working on the Railroad Pullman realized that new buildings with better foundations would reduce the citys need for his services and decided to go into manufacturing and leasing railroad cars. The railroad system was booming, and although the greatest need was for transporting raw materials and finished goods, he had a different idea. He frequently traveled by railroad in pursuit of business but found regular cars to be uncomfortable and dirty. The sleeping cars were just as unsatisfactory, with cramped beds and poor ventilation. He decided to focus on the passenger experience. Partnering with  Benjamin Field, a friend and former New York state senator, he decided to build a sleeper that was not just comfortable. He wanted luxury. He persuaded the Chicago, Alton, and St. Louis Railroad to let him convert two of its cars. The Pullman Sleepers debuted in August  1859 and were a roaring success, with reviewers comparing them to luxury  steamboat  cabins. Pullman briefly succumbed to gold fever, relocating to Colorado and catering to miners before returning to Chicago in the 1860s. He devoted himself to making the sleepers even more luxurious. A Better Sleeper The first made-from-scratch Pullman- the â€Å"Pioneer,† developed with Field- debuted in 1865. It had folding upper berths and seat cushions that could be extended to make lower berths. The cars were expensive, but they gained national attention and increased demand when several of them were included in the train that took Abraham Lincoln’s body from Washington, D.C., back to  Springfield,  Illinois, following his assassination in 1865. (The slain president’s son,  Robert Todd Lincoln,  succeeded Pullman as president of the Pullman Co. after Pullmans death in 1897, serving until 1911.) In 1867, Pullman and Field dissolved their partnership and Pullman became president of the new  Pullman Palace Car Co. In 12 years the company was offering 464 cars for lease. The new company also manufactured and sold freight, passenger, refrigerator, street, and elevated cars. As the railroad industry continued to develop and Pullman prospered, he paid $8 million in 1880 for construction of the town of Pullman, Illinois, on 3,000 acres adjacent to his factory west of Lake Calumet. It provided housing, shops, and other amenities for his company employees at all income levels. Union Strike Pullman, which eventually became a neighborhood of Chicago, was the site of a vicious labor strike beginning in May 1894. Over the previous nine months, the Pullman factory had reduced its workers wages but did not lower the cost of living in its houses. Pullman workers joined labor organizer and American socialist leader Eugene Debs American Railroad Union (ARU) in the spring of 1894 and shut down the factory with a strike on May 11. When management refused to deal with the ARU, the union prompted a nationwide boycott of Pullman cars on June 21. Other groups within the ARU started sympathy strikes on behalf of the Pullman workers in an attempt to paralyze the nations railroad industry. The U.S. Army was called into the dispute on July 3, and the arrival of soldiers sparked widespread violence and looting in Pullman and Chicago. The strike unofficially ended four days later when Debs and other union leaders were jailed. The Pullman factory reopened in August and denied local union leaders an opportunity to return to their jobs. Following the strike, the Pullman Co. continued to thrive. While his factory maintained production of railroad sleeping cars, Pullman also ran the company that built the elevated railway system in  New York City. Death Pullman died of a  heart attack  on Oct. 19, 1897, at the age of 66. The bitter strike left Pullman reviled by the labor movement. So deep was the lingering animosity and fear that, to ward off vandalism or desecration of his body, Pullman was buried in a lead-lined coffin inside an elaborately reinforced, steel-and-concrete vault with walls that were 18 inches thick. Over this were laid steel rails placed at right angles to each other and bolted together. Everything was then covered in tons of concrete. The pit dug for the elaborate vault was the size of an average room. Legacy The Pullman Co. merged with the Standard Steel Car Co. in 1930 and became the Pullman-Standard Co. In 1982, the company built its last car for  Amtrak, and soon afterward the company faded away. By 1987, the assets had been sold off. Pullman transformed the railroad sleeping car from a smelly, cramped mess into rolling luxury, making overnight train travel more appealing to those who could afford it. He created an enormous business that made his name synonymous with a major component of the railroad industry. Sources George M. Pullman: American Industrialist and Inventor. Enclopedia Britannica.George Mortimer Pullman. Pullman-Museum.org.

Critically evaluate the rules that apply to misrepresentation and Essay

Critically evaluate the rules that apply to misrepresentation and non-disclosure in insurance contracts - Essay Example Incorrect, incomplete or incorrect answers during application or material fact non-disclosure may go up to the contract’s roots and jeopardize its continued existence. The association between the insured and the insurer is regarded as one where mutual responsibilities of good faith and trust are overriding. During application time, indispensable facts are customarily recognized by the applicant but may be challenging to the insurer to make certain. The insurer is thus, vulnerable and needs the material facts so as to establish whether to issue a policy or not, what particular omissions it may need, and the amount of premium to charge. In fact, there are two diverse duties on the applicant at the time of the application. Normally, a broker or an agent interviews an applicant to complete the process of application. Based on the nature, as well as, type of the insurance coverage wanted, the application will have numerous questions concerning the background, health, business activities and various other aspects of the applicant. The application will characteristically have a declaration that is executed by the applicant and that the answers availed are complete, full, and true. Consequently, there are two isolated essential issues2. The first issue is that of any misrepresentation of answers by the applicant in the questions on the application. The second issue is that of non-disclosure of any facts by the applicant that are within his or her knowledge, and which are essential to the insurance. In the event that an insurer takes a stand that a policy is void because of non-disclosure or misrepresentation, it is not required of the insurer to determine the insured’s motives. The motives of the insured are irrelevant provided the misrepresentation are of a fact identified by the insured that could be viewed by a rational insurer as substantial to the risk. Typically,

Critical issues in criminal justice Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2250 words

Critical issues in criminal justice - Essay Example The police-dogs are considered as complete or full-fledged police officer. Assaulting them is therefore punishable by the federal laws. Initially protected by the state laws, the police dogs are now protected by federal laws with individuals found guilty of assaulting the law enforcing animals standing the risk of serving ten years in prison or paying a fine of at least $1 000. This paper will address the topic by discussing the various legal and social issues surrounding the use of the canines in law enforcement. It is important to note that the police dogs being relied on to establish links in various crimes such as searching of cadavers, explosives, drugs etc., need to be protected by the law due to the sensitivity of the areas they are involved. For instance, in a case where a police dog injures a civilian in the course of duty, the police department from which it serves are held liable. In the same way, if an individual is found to have assaulted the police dog popularly known as K-9 a homophone of canine in the United States, they are made to stand trial and risk a possible conviction for the felony. This paper will therefore look at the federal laws and how different states protect and set laws in line with the use of the canines in law enforcement. A police dog just like any other personnel in the law enforcement sector has various responsibilities and rights that define the scope of their work. However, in the use of police dogs, there is no set or standardized set of laws that define how the dogs should be used. For instance, in trying to hunt down a suspect and presentation in court to assist in investigations or stand trial, the use of police dogs and the force applied may only be justified by the immediate behavior of the suspect such as resistance to arrest or the severity of the crime. The use of canine force is not always justified. In some cases, the police can

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Business Communications - Essay Example In case you choose to confirm, the orientation starts from Monday, 6th August 2012 at 9.00 am, which is also your hire date. I will contact Mr. Smith by first emailing him, after which I will give him a call to request for an in-person meeting. The email will be a follow up of the offer letter. In the email, I will briefly indicate the contents of the employment offer letter, such as the salary, the benefits, and the company policies. Additionally, I will give a brief description of the format of filling the documents enclosed to the offer letter. I will also inform him of his duties in case he decides to take the job offer. In addition, I will give him the contact details he can use in case he needs clarification of any data. I will offer details regarding the location of our offices and inform him of the stating date and time for orientation, which will also be your hire date. Another aspect that I would include in the email is the name of a Smith’s superior and how he can get into contact with him if need be. I will explain to him why it is important that he accepts the employment offer but assure him that he is free to make the decision on his own upon reading all the enclosed documents. One day after sending the email, I will give Smith a call to confirm that he had understood the terms and conditions as well as what is required of him in case he chooses to accept the employment offer. Using the email is an appropriate choice because email is a widely used form of communication due to its effectiveness. Email is a favourable communication means; since emails are sent instantly, they are easy to use, are widespread means of communication, and are accessible through varying means such as computer, phone or PDA from nearly anywhere in the world (Merrier, Logan, Krizan, and Williams 447-450). Writing an email takes some time, so it is an

All forms of tobacco should be made illegal Essay

All forms of tobacco should be made illegal - Essay Example In light of this, the discussion on whether to legalize all forms of tobacco or not is critical in ascertaining the best course of action. Additionally, it is indispensable to focus on both the advantages and disadvantages of legalizing them. With this in mind, it is arguably correct to assert that the current findings of the effects of tobacco can form the basis for the argument. Therefore, as Gottfried (21) noted, legalizing all forms of tobacco would be creating more problems in the society than the perceived gains accrued to them. Drugs in general have been linked with the increased cases of crime in many states. For instance, a study on the effects of marijuana by Morgan (12) found out that although there are unconfirmed facts of the medicinal advantage of the use of marijuana, it is yet to be scientifically confirmed that this can help in curing different disease. Therefore, the most obvious consequences outline the reasons why marijuana should not be legalized. For example, when people engage in drugs, they tend to neglect most of their duties and responsibilities due to the addictive nature. Cigarette has been found to have very addictive nature to the smokers. Since many people start smoking in childhood, their behavior changes and most of them engage in different anti-social behavior. To a broader sense, smoking has been viewed as an activity of people that have reached maturity, and this has always brought problems in the society. For example, youths and older children smoke cigarette as a sign or proo f to their peers that they have also reached the maturity age. In the event, some of them engage in different forms of crime especially fighting as a way of proving their maturity. Since marijuana is form of a tobacco, it is clear that all negative effects associated with it would be increased by deciding to legalize it. For example, marijuana has been associated with mental

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Reflection5 - Assignment Example Mentalese is the global grammar that is found in all languages. In order to master language, all a child needs is to code the details of their native language(s) to the innate mental language (Clark et al., 45). Since mentalese has the ability to combine noun and verb phrases, a child is able to master language(s) by identifying the verb and noun phrases found in their native language. Consequently, the children are able to identify the grammatical patterns and structure of their native language. However, nurture also plays a very important part in learning language, especially in terms of understanding the sentence structure. The period between birth and six years represents a crucial period for language development and is referred to as the automatic acquisition stage. From six years to puberty, further acquisition of language can be acquired but will be impaired. The first few months after a child is born represent a time when the brain develops synaptic connections that are necessary for grasping information and other skills. However, as people grow older, the synaptic connections are lost and that is why it is difficult for adults to learn new languages. But while the ability to learn new languages wears off, other systems like the reproduction system are developed. Therefore, the reason why language is innate, is because while babies are faced with many linguistic challenges when they are born, they automatically manage to learn their mother tongue. Additionally they lack the necessary linguistic stimulus to learn a language but still learn it. Simply, there is a poverty of

Was the Iraq war legal Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Was the Iraq war legal - Essay Example The reason is that the US adopts a realist policy as the basis of carrying out its foreign policy. Successive American governments have followed offensive realist approaches and refused to agree or endorse any treaties, whose objectives do not correspond to United States interests. In a bid to strengthen its power, United States has repeatedly called for greater global acceptance of democratic ideologies, as well as an increased role of global institutions. Ironically, the United States has ignored global institutions like United Nations (Jakobsen and Jakobsen 2009). Another underlying reason behind Iraq incursion is the US energy policy, despite perpetrators stressing that Iraq war was solely for self defense against weapons of mass destruction, and for humanitarian intercession, as well. US policy on energy is based on a strong fervor that the nations’ needs may only be met through economic and military superiority. A principal upshot of this policy is that corporations that have associations with the oil sector are not to be defied in any manner. America tolerates sufficient refinery capacity and seeks alternative sources of energy elsewhere. Accordingly, once publicized policies to develop artificial fuels to recover oil from shale have resulted into a scam on the country’s taxpayers. Additionally, United States vehicle makers whose profits depend on guzzlers have the lowest convoy average mpg in many years. As global demand for oil increases, American leaders have come to increasingly depend on their military strength when required to take control of oil producing nations such as Iraq, which are less accustomed to America’s fuel precedence. Hence, United States decided to meet its energy needs by continuing a geopolitical realm... Another underlying reason behind Iraq incursion is the US energy policy, despite perpetrators stressing that Iraq war was solely for self-defense against weapons of mass destruction, and for humanitarian intercession, as well. US policy on energy is based on a strong fervor that the nations’ needs may only be met through economic and military superiority. A principal upshot of this policy is that corporations that have associations with the oil sector are not to be defined in any manner. America tolerates sufficient refinery capacity and seeks alternative sources of energy elsewhere. Accordingly, once publicized policies to develop artificial fuels to recover oil from shale have resulted into a scam on the country’s taxpayers. Additionally, United States vehicle makers whose profits depend on guzzlers have the lowest convoy average mpg in many years. As global demand for oil increases, American leaders have come to increasingly depend on their military strength when req uired to take control of oil-producing nations such as Iraq, which are less accustomed to America’s fuel precedence. Hence, United States decided to meet its energy needs by continuing a geopolitical realm using force on Iraq (Hinnebusch 2007). Some manifestations to this assertion were the posting of more than one hundred thousand troops and additional fourteen thousand oil infrastructure security guards in Iraq in 2005. America also puts some warships to defend oil tankers in and around the Persian Gulf.

Reflection5 Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

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Purchasing Power Parity Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

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Stackelberg Leader Follower Models For Strategic Decision Making Engineering Essay

Stackelberg Leader Follower Models For Strategic Decision Making Engineering Essay This paper reviews some Stackelberg Leader-Follower models used for strategic decision making. The simple Stackelberg duopoly is looked at first, and a generalisation of the Stackelberg duopoly problem is given. By studying the models by Murphy et al. (1983) and Smeers and Wolf (1997), the paper reviews Stackelberg model from its classical form to the recent stochastic versions. The paper looks at the mathematical formulation of both a nonlinear mathematical programming model and a nonlinear stochastic programming model. Towards the end of this paper, a simple numeric example is given and practical applications of Stackelberg Leader-Follower models are discussed. Chapter 1: Introduction In economics, an oligopoly is considered to be the most interesting and complex market structure (amongst other structures like monopolies and perfect competition). Most industries in the UK and world- from retailing to fast food, mobile phone networks to professional services- are oligopolistic. Given the current financial climate, it is imperative for firms to be sure that they make decisions accurately, maximising not only their profit, but also their chances of remaining competitive. Many mathematicians and economists have attempted to model the decision making process and profit maximizing strategies of oligopolistic firms. For example, A. A. Cournot was one of the first mathematicians to model the behaviours of monopolies and duopolies in 1838. In Cournots model both firms choose their output simultaneously assuming that the other firm does not alter its output (Gibbons, 1992). Later, in 1934, H. V. Stackelberg proposed a different model where one of the duopoly firms makes its output decision first and the other firm observes this decision and sets its output level (Stackelberg, 1934). The classical Stackelberg model has been extended to model a variety of strategic decision making. For example, Murphy et al. (1983) model the output decision making process in an oligopoly. Later works by Smeers and Wolf (1997) extend this model to include a stochastic element. More interestingly, in a model by He et al. (2009), the Stackelberg theory is used to model the interaction between a manufacturer and a retailer when making decisions about cooperative advertising policies and wholesale prices. The objective of this paper is to review the Stackelberg models from its classic form to the more recent stochastic versions. In chapter 2, the simple Stackelberg duopoly is reviewed and a generalisation of the Stackelberg duopoly problem is given. In chapter 3, more complicated and recent models are reviewed. The mathematical formulation of Murphy et al.s (1983) and Smeers and Wolfs (1997) model is given. At the end of chapter 3, a numerical example is applied to Smeers and Wolfs (1997) model. In chapter 4, practical applications of Stackelberg leader-follower models are discussed. Chapter 4 also looks at the drawbacks of and possible extensions to Stackelberg models. Appendix 1 explains the Oligopoly market structure and economics involved in profit maximisation. Chapter 2: Classical Stackelberg Leader-Follower Model 2.1 Duopoly Behaviour Stackelberg (1934) discussed price formation under oligopoly by looking at the special case of a duopoly. He argued that firms in a duopoly can behave either as dependent on or independent of the rival firms behaviour: Referring to the two firms as firm 1 and firm 2, respectively, firm 1s behaviour can be generalised as follows: Firm 1 views the behaviour of firm 2 as being independent of firm 1s behaviour. Firm 1 would regard firm 2s supply as a given variable and adapts itself to this supply. Thus, the behaviour of firm 1 is dependent on that of firm 2 (Stackelberg, 1934). Firm 1 can view the behaviour of firm 2 as being dependent on firm 1s behaviour. Thus, firm 2 always adapts itself to the formers behaviour (firm 2 views firm 1s behaviour as a given situation) (Stackelberg, 1934). However, according to Stackelberg (1934), there is a difference in the firms actual positions; each of the firms could adapt to either of these two positions, making price formation imperfect. Stackelberg (1934) describes three cases that arise from this situation: Bowler (1924) first described a situation when both firms in the duopoly strive for market dominance. According to Bowler (1924), for this to happen the first firm supplies the quantity it would if it dominated the market with the second firm as a follower. This supply is referred to as the independent supply. By supplying this output level the first firm tries to convince the second firm to view its behaviour as a given variable. However, the second firm also supplies the independent supply since it is also striving for market dominance. This duopoly is referred to as the Bowler duopoly with total supply of the duopoly equalling the sum of two independent supply. According to Stackelberg (1934), the price formation under the Bowler duopoly is unstable because neither of the firms tries to maximise profit under the given circumstance. The second case described by Stackelberg (1934) is a situation where both firms favour being dependent on the other firms behaviour. The first firm would have to match (in a profit maximising manner) its output level to the each output in the second firms feasible set of output. The second firm does the same and both firms are thus followers. This is a Cournot duopoly, first described by A. A Cournot in 1838. According to Stackelberg 1934, the price formation here is unstable because neither of the firms tries to achieve the largest profit under the given circumstance. The third case is a situation where one firm strives for independence and the other favour being dependent. In this case both firms are better off doing what the other firm would like. Both firms adapt their behaviour to maximising profit under the given circumstance. This situation is referred to as the asymmetric duopoly or more commonly as the Stackelberg duopoly. The price formation is more stable in this case because, according to Stackelberg (1934), no one has an interest in modifying the actual price formation. The Stackelberg model is based on the third case of a Stackelberg duopoly. 2.2 The Model In the Stackelberg duopoly the leader (Stackelberg firm) moves first and the follower moves second. As opposed to other models like the Bertrand model and Cournot model where firms make decisions about price or output simultaneously, firms in the Stackelberg duopoly make decisions sequentially. The Stackelberg equilibrium is determined using backwards induction (first determine the follower firms best response to an arbitrary output level by the Stackelberg firm). According to Gibbons (1992), information is an important element of the model. The information in question is the Stackelberg firms level of output (or price, Dastidar (2004) looks at Stackelberg equilibrium in price). The follower firm would know this output once the Stackelberg firm moves first and, as importantly, the Stackelberg firm knows that the follower firm will know the output level and respond to it accordingly. Inspired by the work of Gibbons (1992), Murphy et al. (1983) and Dastidar (2004), a general solution to the Stackelberg game (duopoly) is derived in the parts that follow. 2.2.1 Price function, cost functions, and profit functions Suppose that two firms in a duopoly supply a homogeneous product. Denote the demand function of this market as, where is the total level of output supplied by the duopoly (is the Stackelberg firms output level and is the follower firms output level). The price function can be re-written as. Denote the cost functions (Appendix 1) as for the Stackelberg firm, and for the follower firm. The profit function of the Stackelberg firm is given by: Similarly, the profit function of the follower firm is given by: 2.2.2 Backward induction to derive the best response functions and Stackelberg equilibrium According to Gibbons (1992), the best response for the follower will be one that maximises its profit given the output decision of the Stackelberg firm. The followers profit maximisation problem can be written as: This can be solved by differentiating the objective function and equating the differential to zero (as seen in Appendix 1). Using chain rule to differentiate equation [2] and setting the differential to zero, the following result is obtained: Note that this is a partial differentiation of the profit function since the function depends on the demand function which depends on two variables. Equation [4] gives the followers best response function. For a given the best response quantity satisfies equation [4]. As a result, the Stackelberg firms profit maximisation problem becomes: By differentiating the objective function in equation [5] and equating the differential to zero, the following result which maximises the Stackelberg firms profit is obtained: By solving equation [6] with the follower firms best response profit maximising output, is obtained by the Stackelberg firm given the followers best response. Gibbons (1992) describes as the Stackelberg equilibrium (or the Nash equilibrium of the Stackelberg game). 2.2.3 Example Gibbons (1992) considers a simple duopoly selling homogeneous products. He assumes that both firms are identical and the marginal cost of production is constant at. He also assumes that the market faces a linear downward sloping demand curve. The profit function of the firms is given by: where, with representing the Stackelberg firm and representing the follower firm. Using backward induction, the follower firms best response function is calculated: Solving equation [8]: The Stackelberg firm anticipates that its output will be met by the followers response. Thus the Stackelberg firm maximises profit by setting output to: Solving equation [10]: Substituting this in equation [9]: Equations [11] and [12] give the Stackelberg equilibrium. The total output in this Stackelberg duopoly is. Note: Gibbons (1992) worked out the total output in a Cournot duopoly to be (using this example) which is less than the output in the Stackelberg duopoly; the market price is higher in the Cournot duopoly and lower in the Stackelberg duopoly. Each firm in the Cournot duopoly produces; the follower is worse off in the Stackelberg model than in the Cournot model because it would supply a lower quantity at a lower market price. Clear, there exists a first mover advantage in this case. In general, according to Dastidar (2004), first advantage is possible if firms are identical and if the demand is concave and costs are convex. Gal-or (1985) showed that first mover advantage exists if the firms are identical and have identical downward sloping best response functions. Chapter 3: Recent Stackelberg Leader-Follower Models The classical Stackelberg model has been an inspiration for many economists and mathematicians. Murphy et al. (1983) extend the Stackelberg model to an oligopoly. Later, Smeers and Wolf (1997) extended Murphy et al.s model to a stochastic version where demand is unknown when the Stackelberg firm makes its decision. In a more recent report by DeMiguel and Xu (2009) the Stackelberg problem is extended to an oligopoly with multi-leaders. In this section the models proposed by Murphy et al. (1983) and Smeers and Wolf (1997) are reviewed. 3.1 A Nonlinear Mathematical Programming Version The model proposed by Murphy et al (1983), is a nonlinear mathematical programming version of the Stackelberg model. In their model, they consider the supply side of an oligopoly that supplies homogeneous product. The model is designed to model output decisions in a non-cooperative oligopoly. There are followers in this market who are referred to as Cournot firms (note that from now onwards the follower firms are referred to as Cournot firm as opposed to just follower firms) and leader who is referred to as the Stackelberg firm (as before). The Stackelberg firm considers the reaction of the Cournot firms in its output decision and sets its output level in a profit maximising manner. The Cournot firms, on the other hand, observe the Stackelberg firms decision and maximise their individual profits by setting output under the Cournot assumption of zero conjectural variations (Carlton and Perloff, 2005, define conjectural variation are expectations made by firms in an oligopolistic market about reactions of the other firm). It is assumed that all the firms have complete knowledge about the other firms. 3.1.1 Notations and assumptions For each Cournot firm, let represent the output level. For the Stackelberg firm, let represent the output level (note that is used here instead of, as seen earlier, to distinguish the Stackelberg firm from the Cournot firms). is the total cost function of level of output by Cournot firms and is the total cost function of level of output by the Stackelberg firm. Let represents the inverse market demand curve (that is, is the price at which consumers are willing and able to purchase units of output). In addition to the Cournot assumption and assumption of complete knowledge, Murphy et al. (1983) make the following assumption: and are both convex and twice differentiable. is a strictly decreasing function and twice differentiable which satisfies the following inequality, There exists a quantity (the maximum level of output any firm is willing to supply) such that, For referencing, these set of assumption will be referred to as Assumption A. Assumption 2 implies that the industrys marginal revenue (Appendix 1) decreases as industry supply increases. A proof of this statement can be found in the report by Murphy et al. (1983). Assumption 3 implies that at output levels the marginal cost is greater than the price. 3.1.2 Stackelberg-Nash-Cournot (SCN) equilibrium The Stackelberg-Nash-Cournot (SCN) equilibrium is derived at in a similar way to the Stackelberg equilibrium seen in chapter 2. Using backward induction, Murphy et al. (1983) first maximise the Cournot firms profit under the assumption of zero conjectural variation and for a given. For each Cournot firm let the set of output levels be such that, for a given and assuming are fixed, solves the following Cournot problem: According to Murphy et al. (1983), the objective function in equation [15] is a strictly convex profit function over the closed, convex and compact interval. This implies that a unique optimum exists. The functions can be referred to as the joint reaction functions of the Cournot firms. Murphy et al. (1983) define the aggregate reaction curve as: The Stackelberg problem can be written as: If solves, then the set of output levels is the SNC equilibrium with To get this equilibrium, the output levels need to be determined. Murphy et al. (1983) use the Equilibrating program (a family of mathematical programs designed to reconcile the supply-side and demand-side of a market to equilibrium) to determine: Let the Lagrange multiplier associated with the maximisation problem [19] be. Murphy et al.s (1983) approach here is to determine for which the optimal. The following result, obtained from Murphy et al. (1983), defines the optimal solution to problem [19]: Theorem 1: For a fixed, consider Problem suppose that satisfy Assumption A. Denote by the unique optimal solution to and let be the corresponding optimal Lagrange Multiplier associated with problem [19]. (In case since alternative optimal multipliers associated with problem [19] exist, let be the minimum non-negative optimal Lagrange Multiplier.) Then, is a continuous function of for. is a continuous, strictly decreasing function of. Moreover, there exist output levels and such that and . A set of output levels optimal to Problem, where, satisfy the Cournot Problem [15] if and only if, whence, for. (This theorem is taken from Murphy et al. (1983) with a few alterations to the notation) The proof of this result can be found in the report by Murphy et al. (1983). This theorem provides an efficient way of finding for each fixed. For example, one can simple conduct a univariate bisection search to find the unique root of. 3.1.3 Properties of and Murphy et al. (1983) describes the aggregate Cournot reaction curve as follows: is a continuous, strictly decreasing function of. If the right hand derivative of with respect to is denoted as (the rate of increase of with an increase in ), then for each : The proof to these two properties can be found in the report by Murphy et al. (1983). Murphy et al. (1983) state that if solves the Stackelberg problem [17], then the profit made by the Stackelberg firm is greater than or equal to the profit it would have made as a Cournot firm. Suppose that is a Nash-Cournot equilibrium for the firm oligopoly. is the output the Stackelberg firm would supply if it was a Cournot firm. solves: But since solves the Stackelberg problem [17], the following must hold: In fact, is the lower bound of. The proof to this can be found in Murphy et al. (1983) From assumption 3 in Assumption A, it is clear that. Thus, it is clear that is an upper bound. However, according to Murphy et al. (1983) another upper bound exists. In a paper by Sherali et al. (1980) on the Interaction between Oligopolistic firms and Competitive Fringe (a price taking firm in an oligopoly that competes with dominant firms) a different follower-follower model is discussed. In this model, the competitive fringe is content at equilibrium to have adjusted its output to the level for which marginal cost equals price. Murphy et al. (1983) summarise this model as follows: For fixed and suppose is a set of output levels such that for each firm solves: and For the Stackelberg firm, let satisfy: In addition to Assumption A, if is strictly convex, then a unique solution exists and satisfies conditions [23] and [24]. The Equilibrating Program with a fringe becomes: Theorem 1 holds for with and which implies that. In fact, if is strictly convex, is the upper bound of. Collectively, is bounded as follows: 3.1.4 Existence and uniqueness of the Stackelberg-Nash-Cournot equilibrium Murphy et al. (1983) prove the existence and uniqueness of the Stackelberg-Nash-Cournot (SCN) equilibrium. Their approach to the proof is summarised below: Existence For the SNC equilibrium to exist, and for should satisfy Assumption A. Since is bounded and is continuous (as is continuous), the Stackelberg problem [17] involves the maximisation of a continuous objective function over the compact set. This implies that an optimal solution exists. From Theorem 1 it is seen that a unique set of output levels, which simultaneously solves the Cournot problem [15], exists. As a result the SNC equilibrium exists. Uniqueness If is convex, then the equilibrium is unique. Since is convex, the objective function of the Stackelberg problem [17] becomes strictly concave on. This has been proven by Murphy et al. (1983) and the proof can be found in their report. This implies the equilibrium is unique. 3.1.5 Algorithm to solve the Stackelberg problem Murphy et al. (1983) provide an algorithm in their report to solve the Stackelberg problem. This algorithm is summarised as follows: To start with the Stackelberg firm needs the following information about the market and the Cournot firms: Cost functions of the Cournot firms, satisfying Assumption A. The upper bound as per Assumption A. The inverse demand function for the industry, which also satisfies Assumption A. With this information, the Stackelberg firm need to determine the lower bound and split the interval into grid points with, where and (from [26]). A piecewise linear approximation of is made as follows: Here, is an approximation to and from equation [20] it follows that: Note that at each grid point the approximation agrees with. The Stackelberg problem [17], thus, becomes: can be re-written as: Where and Thus problem [30] becomes: The objective function is strictly concave and solvable. Let be the objective function of the Stackelberg problem [17] and the objective function of the piecewise Stackelberg problem [32], then: Suppose is the optimum level of output. First, suppose that is an endpoint of the interval, then. Now suppose that, that is, . Then needs to be evaluated in order to determine. Theorem 1 can be used here. Recall that is a continuous, decreasing function of. To find the point where (part iii of Theorem 1), the following method is suggested by Murphy et al. (1983): Figure : Method for determining Source: Smeers and Wolf (1997) (alterations made to the notation) First determine using the bounds. Next, determine using the bounds. Then determine using the bounds.Next, determine using the bounds and so on. If then evaluate using the bounds. Having evaluated for some grid points, the game can either be terminated with the best of these grid points as an optimal solution or the grid can be redefined at an appropriate region to improve accuracy. Murphy et al. (1983) go on to determine the maximum error from the estimated optimal Stackelberg solution. This is summarised below: Let be the derivative of with respect to , then: Let be the marginal profit made by the Stackelberg firm for supplying units of output, Let be the actual optimal objective function value in the interval with the estimate being . Then the error of this estimate is defined as: satisfies the following: This concludes the review of Murphy et al.s (1983) nonlinear mathematical programing model of the Stackelberg problem in an oligopoly. 3.2 A Stochastic Version Smeers and Wolf (1997) provide an extension to the nonlinear mathematical programming version of the Stackelberg model by Murphy et al. (1983) discussed in subsection 3.1. In the same way as Murphy et al.s (1983) model, the Stackelberg game in this version is played in two stages. In the first stage, the Stackelberg firm makes a decision about its output level. In the second stage, the Cournot firms, having observed the Stackelberg firms decision, react according to the Cournot assumption of zero conjectural variation. However, Smeers and Wolf (1997) add the element of uncertainty to this process. When the Stackelberg firm makes its decision the market demand is uncertain, but demand is known when the Cournot firms make their decision. This makes the Smeers and Wolfs (1997) version of the Stackelberg model stochastic. Smeers and Wolf (1997) assume that this uncertainty can be modelled my demand scenarios. 3.2.1 Notations and Assumption For the costs functions, the same notations are used. is the total cost function of level of output by Cournot firms and is the total cost function of level of output by the Stackelberg firm. The demand function is changed slightly to take into account the uncertainty. is a set of demand scenarios with corresponding probabilities of occurrence As such, is the price at which customers are willing and able to purchase units of output in demand scenario . has a probability of occurrence. The same Assumption set A discussed in subsection 3.1.1 apply here with alterations made to conditions [13] and [14]. Assumption set A can be re-written as: and are both convex and twice differentiable, as before. is a strictly decreasing function and twice differentiable which satisfies the following inequality, There exists a quantity (the maximum level of output any firm is willing to supply in each demand scenario) such that, For referencing, these set of assumption will be referred to as Assumption B. 3.2.2 Stochastic Stackelberg-Nash-Cournot (SSNC) equilibrium Smeers and Wolf (1997) use the same approach seen before to derive the SSNC equilibrium. The Cournot problem [15]can be re-written as follows: For each Cournot firm and each demand scenario, let the set of output levels be such that, for a given and assuming are fixed, solves the following Cournot problem: Note that is the output level of Cournot firm when the demand scenario is . For each, according to Murphy et al. (1983), the objective function in equation [40] is a strictly convex profit function over the closed, convex and compact interval. The functions can be referred to as the joint reaction functions of the Cournot firms for a demand scenario. The aggregate reaction curve becomes: The Stackelberg problem with demand uncertainty can be written as: Note the Stackelberg problem defined problem [42] differs from that defined in [17]. This is because of the element of uncertainty. The Cournot problem [40] is similar to the Cournot problem [15] because the demand is known when the Cournot firms make their decision. In the Stackelberg problem [42] note the element. This is the estimated mean price, that is, the Stackelberg firm considers the reaction of the Cournot firm under each demand scenario and works out the market price in each scenario, and it then multiplies it by the probability of each scenario. The summation of this represents the estimated mean price. If solves the stochastic, then the set of output levels is the SSNC equilibrium for demand scenario. To get this equilibrium, the output levels need to be determined. Smeers and Wolf (1997) use the same approach as Murphy et al. (1983) in doing so. The Equilibrating program is the same as that in [19], with changes made to the Cournot output and demand function: For each demand scenario , Theorem 1 lays out a foundation on how to solve the Equilibrating program in problem [19] and can also be used to solve [44]. Smeers and Wolf (1997) Summarise Theorem 1 as follows: Theorem 2: For each fixed, An optimal solution for the problem satisfies the Cournot problem [40] if and only if the Lagrange multiplier,, associated with the Equilibrating program [44], is equal to zero. This multiplier is a continuous, strictly decreasing function of . Moreover, there exists and such that: (This theorem is taken from Smeers and Wolf (1997), with a few alteration to the notations) The properties of are the same as those discussed in subsection 3.1.3. The existence and uniqueness of the SSNC equilibrium is shown in the same ways as the SNC equilibrium of Murphy et al.s (1983) model discussed in subsection 3.1.4. 3.2.3 Algorithm to solve the Stackelberg problem The Stackelberg problem here is solved in the same way Murphy et al. (1983) proposed (discussed in subsection 3.1.5). In their report, Smeers and Wolf (1997) do not specify the upper and lower bound of, thus, it is assumed that is bounded by.The interval can be split into grid points with, where and . The piecewise linear approximation of in [27] can be re-written as follows: Here, has the same properties as [29]. The Stackelberg problem [42], thus, becomes: Hereafter, the algorithm summarised in subsection 3.1.5 can be used to solve this problem. 3.3 Numerical Example In Murphy et al.s (1983) report a simple example of the Stackelberg model is given. They consider the case of a linear demand curve and quadratic cost functions: It is assumed that the Stackelberg firm and Cournot firms are identical. The Cournot problem [15] becomes as follow, with as the optimal solution: Solving this problem yields: Note the upper bound of is found by setting. The working to get equation [51] is shown in Appendix 2. The aggregate reaction curve can be written as: Using this information, this example is now extended to Smeers and Wolfs (1997) model with numerical values. Note that the functions listed in equations [49], [50], [51] and [52] satisfy Assumptions A B and other properties discussed in previous sections. Suppose and. And suppose demand is unknown when the Stackelberg firm makes its decision. The cost functions of the firms will be as follows: Figure : Different Demand Scenarios The tables below describe the possible demand scenarios, probability of each scenario occurring, the joint reaction curve and aggregate reaction curve for, and: Scenario, Demand, Probability, = Demand falls, = Demand remains unchanged, = Demand Increases, Scenario, Joint reaction curve, Aggregate reaction curve, Using this information, the Stackelberg problem [42] can be solved. First, the estimated price element can be calculated as follows: Substituting this result back into the Stackelberg problem [42] gives: This problem can easily be solved by differentiating the objective function and finding the value of for which the differential is equal to zero. The working to obtain the following optimal solution is shown in Appendix 2. Using this result, the following result is obtained for each demand scenario: Figure : Optimal Output, Price and Profit 1 260.870 98.02 652.96 147.04 2 260.870 134.39 798.42 201.58 3 260.870 170.75 943.87 256.13 Stackelberg firm Profit, Cournot firm Profit, Industry Profit, 1 21,243.87 12,010.81 69,387.12 2 35,573.12 22,574.95 125,872.92 3 49,802.37 36,444.87 195,581.87 The tables in figure 3 state the SSNC equilibriums for each scenario, and the profits made by each firm in this oligopoly and the total industry profit in each scenario. Note that since is strictly convex, the equilibrium obtained for each scenario is unique. Also note that in all three scenarios, the Stackelberg Output and profit is greater than that of the Cournot firms, illustrating the first mover advantage. Chapter 4: Discussion In this section, the practical applications, drawbacks and possible extensions to Stackelberg models are discussed. 4.1 Practical Applications of Stackelberg models Stackelberg models are widely used by firms to aid decision making. Some examples include: Manufacturer-Retailer Supply Chain He et al. (2009) present a stochastic Stackelberg problem to model the interaction between a manufacturer and a retailer. The manufacturer would announce its cooperative advertising policy (percentage of retailers advertising expenses it will cover-participation rate) and the wholesale price. The retailer, in response, chooses its optimal advertising and pricing policies. When the retailers advertising and pricing is an importan

Graduation Speech: Its Been Fun :: Graduation Speech, Commencement Address

Hello students, faculty, members of the school board, Superintendent, and parents. When I was first told that I was going to be the speaker for graduation, I was overcome. I was overcome with pride and excitement, as I'm sure we all are today as we close this chapter on our lives, but most of all, I was overcome with a feeling. A feeling that I have fooled you all into electing a Canadian to speak on this very important occasion. (Canadian Accent) I bet about now, you are all finally realizing just what it is you've done, eh? But it's too late, eh? I can't be stopped.... (Drape Canadian flag over top of podium) The rich history of Canada is a very long and interesting one. One that begins in the early years of. ...(Trail off and give a moment of thought)" **remove flag" or better yet have someone do it for you.) Seriously though, after I got over my initial reaction, I realized that this was going to be a very difficult undertaking. So I did what any teen-age boy would do in a similar situation. I turn to my friends! I received two pieces of advice that not only helped me with the situation at hand, but I feel will be the predominant source of motivation for the next big step in my life and everything that follows thereafter. These two pieces of advice were. (Hold up palms with numbers inked on them) No. 1: Don't Screw up! No. 2: Be Funny! Obviously after these two gems of advice, I was prepared to write a stunning and powerful speech that will remain with every one of us till the day we die. Or at least until one of the real speakers come up here and says something meaningful. It's hard to believe that we'll all be leaving this place finally. It is even harder to believe that from now on, we're going to pretty much have to fend for ourselves. I think that whether we know it or not, we've gained a lot of the tools that we'll need to make it out there, right here at Welch. Personally, I've learned some of the most important messages of my life within these hallowed halls. I've learned that it's important to walk the road less traveled, because after a while, running down freshman in the packed hallways just loses some of its appeal.

Murray Shisgals The Typists :: essays research papers

The play by Murray Shisgal, The Typists, is about two people who work during their lifetime at a firm, typing the addresses of prospective customers. Through their speeches we see that the play talks about hopelessness, routine and fear of change. Most of the character’s motives are explained through the Freudian concept of superego, or, in other words, the part of people’s psique which is related to discipline, judgment of the society, guilt, pride, self-discipline and self- punishment. In this paper, I’ll make an attempt to illustrate these themes in the play.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Hopelessness is seen through the setting. At the rear of the stage there is a window and through it the sun streams â€Å"as the play progresses it fades imperceptibly until, at the end, the room is almost in complete darkness.† Apart from the obvious reason, which would be the course of a day, the sun, here, is a symbol of glory, success and faith. We can interpret it by saying that at the beginning of the play, when Paul and Sylvia are still young, â€Å"at twenty-odd years of age†, they still have hopes of a better future. It is shown through Paul’s ambition of working and studying law to guarantee a better living, and Sylvia’s intentions of marrying and abandoning her family. As the time goes we notice only disappointments and attempts to change their lives. These attempts are not successful as they are hopeless, shown by their fear to abandon the firm and conquer a better job. Working in that office is for them the only way of livi ng.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Another theme that appears in the play is the routine. Samuel Beckett’s Waiting for Godot explores the same theme. Habit is something that makes us feel secure. It is a guarantee that we will be alive the next day as the present has a succession, which is to wake up next morning and do everything again. Since Paul starts working in the office, Sylvia passes to him her routine. Nothing can be alternated. She tells him: â€Å"strike each key with the same steady rhythm (†¦) don’t move your head, keep your eyes on the material you’re typing†. The steady rhythm to strike the keys, the expressions â€Å"don’t move† and â€Å"keep† refer to lack of alternation and it means routine. Not only this, when Paul suggests to break Sylvia’s habit of having lunch always at 1p.m. and have it at 1:30p.