Artificial Selection Essay Example for Free

Artificial Selection EssayMany different species have been altered through with(predicate) selective breeding. Selective breeding is a very common practice in the livestock breeding and has impacted the livestock industry greatly by using information obtain from seek of the myostatin protein. History of selective breeding of cattle In the 1800s the demand for a better quality as soundly as beat of beef was high. Cattle breeders begin to breed select breeds of cattle that appeared larger together in hopes of producing offspring with a larger quantity of meat. The selective breeding began with the Durham Shorthorns and Friesian cattle. (Lee, 2004) The result of the selective breeding produced 3 different strands of cattle breeds the Belgian Blue, Piedmontes and Parthenias. These breeds of cattle all have one similarity, that has turn out to be very valuable, the inactive Myostatin protein. Due to the inactive Myostatin protein these cattle produce roughly 20 % more meat than other cattle. The Belgian Blue cattle are a common breed of cattle in the beef and livestock industry representing the double muscle trait caused by the inactive Myostatin protein.Myostatin In 1997 a research aggroup from John Hopkins School of Medicine led by geneticists Dr. Se-Jin Lee and Alexandra McPherron released information from their research on how proteins regulate the growth of wind in mice. Through their research the team unintentionally discovered the growth differentiation part 8 (GDF-8) also known as Myostatin protein. With the discovery of the Myostatin protein the team decided to produce a mutant strain of mice that did not have the Myostatin protein.The results showed that the mutant mice had 3 times the muscle tissue than that of a regular mouse. The research showed that with the absence of the myostatin protein the muscle tissue did not have anything to regulate the size therefore muscle tissue was extremely larger. The Myostatin (GDF-8) protein is a member of the transforming growth factor ? superfamily of secreted growth and differentiation factor. (Lee, 2004) Myostatin is a secreted protein that acts as a negative regulator of cadaveric muscle mass.During embryogenesis, myostatin is expressed by cells in the myotome and in developing skeletal muscle and acts to regulate the final number of muscle fibers that are formed. (Lee, 2004) The research of Dr Se-Jin Lee and his colleagues brought the discovery of the Myostatin protein to the forefront of science. However they were not the only group of researcher. twain other research group have also reported finding on the Myostatin mutation. Micheal Georges of the University

Social Causes Gender Roles Depression Health And Social Care Essay

Social Causes Gender Roles Depression Health And Social Care EssayDepression, both as a single depressive episode or as a recurrent depressive disorder, is a common mood disorder which is characterised by low mood, resulting in loss of interest and enjoyment, reduced energy and diminished activity. With increasing severity other symptoms such as reduced c at match little timentration, attention, self esteem and self combine manifest, and physical symptoms may protrude, such as disturbed sleep and diminished appetite. These may accumulate in ideas or acts of self harm and suicide1. The grammatical sexual urge oddment in depressive illness, is one of the strongest patterns seen in psychiatric epidemiology 2,3,4,5. Similar, albeit less strong sex activity differences can be seen through a variety of mental health disorders, typically with internalising disorders (of mood and misgiving) which are much common in women, and externalising disorders such as schizophrenia and substan ce abuse which are more(prenominal) common in men.5. much(prenominal) a strong pattern, seen in many a(prenominal) cultures around the world can help in the comprehension of low, an illness that still evades human understanding 1.The pleasure ground game of this essay bequeath be to help identify any(prenominal) key aspects of the hearty causes of stamp and how they relate to sex personas within society. This will ascertain their grandness in mechanisms that drive someone into depressive illness the gender role hypothesis of depression 5. However the point of this essay is not to systematically review the scientific literature and identify the cause, further instead to explore the concept of how much gender roles in society contribute to this pattern. In the conclusion, it will allow us to see how changing gender roles, such as feminism, in modernising societies such as the UK, will impact on womens health. The essay will explore stake factors which relate to gender role where they submit demonstrate to cause depression. Such factors are emotional attention, interpersonal relationships, personality, stress response, the impact of co-morbid anxiety and what are termed artifact hypotheses, such as gender biased diagnostic techniques.Sex and gender are terms that have become divorced since Dr Robert Stollers observations of gender being a social construct and sex being biologically determined. It isnt necessary for someone of a certain sex to inherit the same gender and same gender role 6 although in western society it is the norm. While this essay will look at the epidemiological pattern of depression through a social lens, it should be kept in mind that in that location will be a biological background that cannot be excluded. It can be argued, such as by John Nicholson, that the gender role itself has its development in biology or socio-biology, or gender role as developed by ontogeny of human behaviour (as proposed by E.O Wilson and Davi d Barash). However, these ideas are not as widely accepted as the theories for socially determined gender roles6 as put front by Stoller and Ann Oakley. For the purpose of this essay, gender roles are a set of behaviours socially expected of someone conforming to a token gender.A key peculiarity of the female gender role is emotional behaviour, with women being caring and compassionate, and men being dominating and aggressive 6. This is of course an excessive generalization, but a recognise pattern, most credibly influenced by sex of the person. However, it is important to note that there is a large overlap in emotional behaviour between the genders 7 but more specific to gender are those behaviours used to cope with life events. More emotionally sore women may present to doctors sooner, although this has been disproved at least once 8. This is an artefact argument I shall come to later. Emotionally sensitive persons, who tend to dis tactics more depressive symptoms, may have impaired anti- reflectivity strategies 9. Rumination is a method acting of cope whereby the person focuses on the depressive symptoms and the sparking event, rather than trying to distract themselves, for example with thoughts of good things to come.Research has found that rumination by more emotionally sensitive persons leads to a negative emotion spiral. Focusing on the negative thoughts and emotions leads to further negative thoughts and emotions. , By controlling for emotional attention in their study results, there was a non-statistically significant difference for gender and symptoms of depression 8. This is further backed up by leaven that rumination exacerbates and prolongs depression and that women tend to ruminate more when sad or depressed, a trend seen from prepubertal childhood 2. Another personality trait, such as neuroticism, has likewise been associated with depression. Controlling for it has been suggested to eliminate the statistical substance of gender and d epression 10, and although there is suggestive evidence against this idea 2, it should not be dismissed entirely until more look for is done.It could be argued however, that the coping call may be diverse due to the type of stress observed by the individual. A more significant life event may be harder to distract oneself from, and so easier to ruminate. A womans role may determine her to be exposed to more significant stressors, for example through her role as the homemaker. on that point may be problems affecting children, housing, fertility, versus issues which will affect men more (for example, through their role as the breadwinner) but occur less often unemployment and finance problems. Although evidence suggests that while men and women are exposed to different stressors, it is insufficient by itself to explain the gender difference 11,12. thitherfore, I find that the evidence shows that rumination is an important risk factor for depression, and women ruminate more than m en, due to their socialisation making them more emotionally sensitive. It should be noted that males and females may receive different stressors for depression outside of their gender role. For example, sexual and physical abuse, as an adult or as a child, may play a role in explaining the gender difference. If women are more likely to be abused as adults or as children, (this might become a risk factor towards depression later on), then this might help explain some of the pattern seen. bear witness for this suggests it might play as much as 35% 2 of the gender difference in adult depression.Another way gender role and stress may interplay is through interpersonal relationships. The traditional female gender role will imply that a woman will put in more effort to attaining more friends. Therefore the loss of interpersonal relationships will have more of an impact on the female than it would on the male. Evidence shows that it is the lack of relationship, rather than the support the relationship provides 12, is the more significant stressor, and so further proves the point.This is of particular importance when looking at adolescent mental health, a key time when the gender difference in depression is first seen 2. It could be argued that the commencement of the gender difference is due to a restriction of the adolescent female into her expected role2. This only adds to, rather than offers an alternative view point, that if the adolescent female loses some of her important relationships, she might feel more like she has lost an important part of her identity. There is evidence that loss of interpersonal relationships is a significant stressor in adolescent females, because they have invested more emotion and are more likely to blame themselves 13.This can also help explain the link between automobile trunk Mass Index and mood disorders, where high BMI affects women more, possibly putting them at a social disadvantage 14. However, it is hard to identify whethe r social disadvantage has support the depression and hence higher BMI, or higher BMI has caused social disadvantage and so depression. I feel that it is probably the latter, as evidence on coping strategies provides little evidence that eating is a common coping strategy in depression 15. However the two studies examined different populations, American and Japanese, which casts doubt on their resultsAnother study looked at sleep disturbance rather than depression. It suggested that adolescent girls, being more sensitive to familial disruption and increased domestic and cookery expectations, had increased sleep disturbance 16. This is similar to an argument that I studied earlier increased expectation of fitting into the role of the female gender will increase sleep disturbance. This positively correlates with depression as either a cause or a symptom of sleep disturbance 16.Looking at other co-morbid conditions of depression may help to illuminate the role of gender difference in depression. Anxiety is frequently seen co-morbid with depression, curiously in primary care, such that it has its own classification in the ICD-101. It is therefore logical to think that any gender difference in anxiety (which can be seen17) could be colligate with the gender difference in depression. Similar risk factors already discussed, ruminative behaviours and social network crises, predispose women to anxiety more than men17. I think this adds to the evidence of suggesting a common aetiology between depression and anxiety. Using gender roles, anxiety does not fit into the male gender role of being confident and aggressive, and hence goes some way to explain the gender difference in anxiety, rather than in depression.It would seem that mothers discuss different coping strategies with their children for boys a more problem solving approach and for girls more emotional coping strategies to help deal with distress 17. These coping strategies and depression in women15, comply with my previous ideas and also help to explain the gender difference in depression. While evidence may suggest that anxiety and depression share a common aetiology, evidence also suggests that anxiety states are not part of the aetiology of depression 18,19 and so the gender difference in anxiety is just a reflection, rather than a cause of the gender difference in depression.Evidence suggests that in depression and its risk factors, that anxiety during adolescence, due to a difficult transition from the child to the adult, may make the woman more sensitive to depression after a triggering event20. A model suggested by Cyranowski et al, combining female gender socialization and the hormone oxytocin which intensify the need for interpersonal relationships, coupled with anxiety, might cause sensitivity to depressive events. There is a good fit of the evidence , bring biological as well as psychological and sociological theories together. However, more recent evidence has shown that men and women are equally sensitive to triggering events11,12. A interrupt idea is that anxiety and depression share a common aetiology. On the road to depression and anxiety, a fork in the road is approached, where the type of trigger or another risk factor not discussed, decides whether the person becomes depressed or anxious.However, some of the so termed artifact hypotheses may suggest that all the preceding(prenominal) research and studies are not finding any physical or real link between depression and gender, but rather that is a deformity in the techniques in the data collection. Some suggestions that fit this hypothesis are that women are more likely to seek treatment for any illness, more likely to discuss a potentially stigmatising condition such as a mental health disorder or are able to recall symptoms better, and so doctors are more able to make a diagnosis. Alternatively, women are being overdiagnosed or men being underdiagnosed, as either the fault of the doctor or biased diagnosis techniques. It is also argued that substance abuse masks depression and anxiety in men 21.Some quite surprising research suggests that there is no gender difference in the symptoms a male or female may present to indicate depression, and that men and women show no preference in stating that they feel emotionally down 22. I have little confidence with this unique result, as the accepted idea and other evidence suggests otherwise 23.. Evidence suggests that substance and alcohol abuse are not the male equivalent to anxiety. Therefore, controlling for alcohol and substance use still leaves a significant gender difference2. However, in depression, it has been suggested as a coping strategy15, and so it is not unconceivable to think that alcohol abuse, assumed to be an externalizing disorder, is in fact a coping mechanism for depression in men. If diagnosed as alcohol abuse rather than depression, this could make up some of the gender difference.However, what is more interesting, is the suggestion that diagnostic techniques are gender biased, especially Becks Depression Index. Two studies reached the same conclusion that items in the Becks Depression Index related to crying and loss of interest in sex gave an over-diagnosis and underestimation of recovery in women 21,24. Crying is considered more congruent with the female gender role, and loss of interest in sex can occur outside of depression, especially in women, again fitting their gender role 24. Therefore, to ensure correct diagnosis, the researchers suggest the use of the Goldberg Depression Scale rather than Becks Depression Index. This is troubling, as many of the research already referenced used either interviews by trained lay people or the Becks Depression Index, which casts doubt on the accuracy of the conclusions reached therefrom far.So to conclude, I have explored some of the risk factors for depression and their aspect as gender roles to help explain the gender difference in de pression. There is some doubt cast upon this research and any other research done into the epidemiology of depression because of doubts over the Beck Depression Index bias. I still feel the evidence is strong enough to hold some meaning. On the other hand, differing gender roles is not a sole explanation. The example of child abuse is one of many outside the gender role hypothesis. There is plenty of room for other social, psychological and biological causes of depression and its epidemiological patterns not explored in this essay.A simple and brief conclusion would be to say that gender role is a part of a large mechanism of a multi-factorial illness. More research is required to ascertain the full answer to the question proposed by the title. Ideal research would be to re-analyse the epidemiological patterns in 10, maybe 20 years time. thusly it could be assumed that gender roles would continue in their path to become more equal. Less of a difference between the genders and rang e of depression and anxiety might be expected. There may also be less of a difference between genders and other mental health disorders.However, additional prior evidence can already help draw some ideas. Studying couples with a shared life event for example, women have been shown to be at a greater risk of depression if there was a traditional division of roles in the family2. One of the findings of the WHO mental health surveys 5 is that younger people have less distinct gender difference for major depressive disorder than older people. A correlation was found between less traditional gender roles and decreased rates of depression with increased rates of substance abuse. This suggests changing, modernising gender roles are resulting in decreased rates of depression among women.However, the increase in substance abuse is a cause for concern. The trend is towards equal gender roles, with the female gender role becoming more masculine, so bringing new health concerns. While fair gen der roles within society as a whole, such as employment, may have a beneficial effect in protecting against depression 2, there is still an imbalance of roles within the home. This is reflected in how children are brought up and how they develop their coping strategies for stress.Therefore, gender roles have a large role to play in epidemiological patterns of depression, and in the aetiology of depression itself. As gender roles become more equal, it will result in better health for women in society, and while not the focus of the essay, it can be safely assumed a similar pattern can occur for men as well. equating it seems can go a long way in reducing risk to disease.

How Malaysia Has Benefit From The International Trade Economics Essay

How Malaysia Has Benefit From The International Trade Economics Essay2.0 approachRecent classs outside(a) softwood has played a important role to most of the countries . It has connected every country together provided a great profits to them . To the international trade , it contains two main parts import and export .Exporting is the selling of products or services supplied from ones experience country for expend in other countries . By contrast , import buying of products made in other countries for use in ones country . They atomic number 18 the basic element of the international trade .Among all the countries , Malaysia has benefit a make do from international trade in terms of life , work , house , health and so on . It has alterd the economic development totally and made Malaysia very much more beautiful .CHANGE IN CONSUMPTION PATTERNConsumption word form is the combination of qualities , quantities , acts and tendencies characterizing a community or human groups use of resources for survival , comfort and enjoyment .To Malaysia , it just has a very single and closed bow window at the cast downning before the international trade . They just sell themselves and grow food on their own . But some of the products are not as severe as they think of because of the insufficient technology and the poor quality of materials supplies . Though with the same(p) materials , they still can not produce meliorate sizables .However , the international has changed this . It absorbs the investment as well as the varieties of goods such as food including Japanese sushi , Korea cuisine and Chinese dumplings to Malaysia . People begin to try those food and this has changed their habits . meanwhile some goods which Malaysia is not good at producing are introduced for people to use them . So Malaysia take advantages of their peculiar(prenominal) goods which have good quality to export in order to achieve more profits by using the extra time . It means they j ust produce what they do well in and focus on producing some special and goo products . For employment , Malaysia has a good resources of rubber , so they focus on exportation this . Unlike the rubber , they dont have enough resources to grow the rice. Thus Malaysia just depends on the importing from Thailand ,India and China mainly . This has changed the consumption pattern of Malaysia and made it much easier for people to consume .In all , the total consumption pattern has been changed to the specialization by the international trade , which is really availful to Malaysia . In the succeeding(a) , the consumption bequeath be much perfect to Malaysia .Olympia College JBInternational trade 13IMPROVE PRODUCT QUALITY AND PRODUCTION EFFICIENCY timberland consists of the capacity to satisfy wants , quality is the degree to which a specific product satisfies the wants of a specific consumer.Efficiency is the extravagantly speed to produce the goods in restrain time .As we know , int ernational trade brings external competition to Malaysia which has affected the local market . Though the tax of importing is very high in result of the price of goods will be higher(prenominal) than the local ones , there are still many people purchasing the foreign goods imputable to the good quality . For example the shoes Adidas, Nike , Converse and Puma which has imbibeed many costumers in Malaysia .Though the price of them is very high , The quality has won the costumers . Therefore it reduces the chassis of local goods which should be sold . Meanwhile , the local market also face the internal competition . In order to sell more and fundament in the market , they have to improve the quality of goods .The local market take advantages of the international trade to import technology , good materials and funds to improve the quality . Of course , this method improve the production efficiency as well due to the advanced technology . In the same time and same condition , they can produce more products . This has made them become more confident and increase the economic growth of Malaysia . For example ,the statistics from the United States to a compute , Malaysia imported machine tools in about more than 400 million US dollars . Mainly from Japan , Germany , China Taiwan. In order to encourage importing , Malaysia has taken the current zero-tariff policy on imported machines . With these materials , Malaysia has acquired large profits and improved the quality and efficiency .Thus , international trade is really incumbent to improve the product quality and production efficiency .Olympia College JBInternational trade 14REDUCTION IN UNEMPLOYED RESOURCESReduction in sluggish people resources means the unemployment rate has reduced . There are not too many people who dont have jobs .In terms of employees in Malaysia , international trade has reduced a lot by two main methods . One is the investment and export , anther one is transfer the labors .Generally, i nvestment is the application of notes for earning more money. Investment also means savings or savings made through delayed consumption . Due to the international trade , a lot of firms have invested in Malaysia and build industry . It is not only a chance to increase the economic development , but also provides more jobs for employees . For example , a foreign company A want to invest and build a electric industry in Malaysia . Everything is prepared except the employees . As their own countrys employees $1500 are very experience compared to Malaysia$1000 , so they make use of the local workers so that they can save the principal and outcome . However , this indirectly help Malaysia to reduce the yield of unemployed resources. In addition , As Malaysia need to export goods to obtain exchanges , this also has offered a stable market and reduce the number of employees .Transfer the labors means the labors can go oversea to work and the foreign labors can come Malaysia to work . Mal aysia has a good surrounding , which is near to capital of Singapore , Thailand and so on. So every year a lot of people go to Singapore and Thailand to work in order to obtain more money . This has decreased the number of employees in Malaysia . To the work like agricultural and mining jobs , as the local people dont like to work , then the foreign labors will solve this problem. The migrant labor came mainly from southern China and southern India .In all , international trade is really efficient to reduce the unemployed rate , which improve the economic growth as well . Olympia College JBInternational trade 15WIDER CONSUMER CHOICE BRING HIGHER STANDARD OF vivificationInternational trade has brought different countries products and it provides people a wider choice to consume as well . Meanwhile the standard of living has also been improved .As you know , some people are attracted by the foreign products easily as they want to try the special things and the quality is also very go od . Thus , the external competition between foreign goods and local goods make the local firms improve their quality and beauty . Meanwhile the foreign firms has to improve themselves as well , it result the quality of goods will be updated every second . In addition , many firms import variety of goods in order to attract the consumers . They make the market more abundant .People can enjoy themselves and have better choices . Due to the abundant market , the standard of living has been improved higher and higher . Therefore peoples life is better and better .A good example which can show you how Malaysia standard of living has been changed . According to Ministry of Finance statistics , as of August 2003 , Malaysia accounted for bank deposits of individual deposit 58% of the total annual of 6% . According to Ma energy telecommunications and multimedia Department of statistics , as if June 2004, doctor phone users 454.7 million , mobile users 1,239.8 million in urban and rural fix ed-line telephone has a rate of 23% and 12% mobile phone monomania 53% and 2% . as of April 2006 , Malaysia has 420 million computer users , the number of internet users account for 40% .From this we know that the standard of living in Malaysia is increasing by the international trade fast .In all ,Malaysia has taken a big step in terms of the standard of living after the international trade . The life of Malaysia is better and better .Olympia College JBInternational trade 16GREATER MOBILITY OF RESOURCESMobility means can move . International trade has brought great mobility of resources such as labors , goods and capital . This makes people exchange their technology and improve themselves.The movement of students and highly skilled workers across borders is a real and complex phenomenon that poses challenges for ontogeny countries with no simple solution.Student mobility repre displaces by the most important source of international trade in higher education . Recent years Malays ia has sent 25-30 thousand students to go abroad . Of course basically all the students are supported by the government .In year 2005, there were 42 712 Malaysian studentswent abroad for study. 38 784of them chose to study in OECD countries while the rest went to non-OECD countries. Back here shows thebreakdown of destinations whereMalaysian students chose togo data 1 . After they return , they will bring radical technology and noesis to make contributions to their mother land . This has helped Malaysia in the economy a lot and learn from other countries to improve themselves .Highly skilled workers are one of the supreme arrogance of a person with great power . They are the one most countries want to have . So every year some highly skilled worker will be introduced and someone who has highly skilled in Malaysia take advantages of the skill to achieve exchange. For example , the contractors in Malaysia hands this year was 3.7 billion worth of overseas contracts . This has made a big difference to Malaysia economy .This has taken a big step by the mobility of resources to Malaysia .Olympia College JBInternational Trade 19Data 1Malaysia students go to / Percentage (%) Number (2005) Australia 36.41 ( 15552 )United Kingdom 26.86 ( 11474 )United States 15.02 ( 6415 )Japan 4.48 ( 1915 )New Zealand 2.79 ( 1190 )Ireland 2.25 ( 960 )Germany 1.33 ( 566 )France 0.81 ( 345 )Korea 0.50 ( 212 )Netherlands 0.09 ( 40 )Sweden 0.09 ( 40 )Finland 0.03 ( 14 )Denmark 0.03 ( 11 )Switzerland 0.02 ( 10 )Belgium 0.02 ( 9 )Norway 0.02 ( 9 )Spain 0.01 ( 6 )Austria 0.01 ( 5 )Czech Republic 0.01 ( 4 )Hungary 0.01 ( 4 )Turkey 0.00 ( 2 )Poland 0.00 ( 1 )Total OECD destinations 90.80 ( 38784 )Total Non-OECD destinations 9.20 ( 3928 )Source OECD Education at a Glance 2007 Indicator C3 Who studies abroad andOlympia College JBInternational trade 17CONCLUSION overall , international trade has really benefit Malaysia so much that basically every part of Malaysia has bee n improved . It made Malaysia consumption pattern more special and fit for Malaysia themselves . To the quality and efficiency , they have been improved a big step and this has provided Malaysia a good method to obtain more profits . Meanwhile their standard of living is becoming higher and higher . In addition , Malaysia has obtained so many mobility of resources , especially the students and highly skilled workers , who have taken advantages of their knowledge and skill to make more countries to their countries . All of them above made Malaysia economy increasing fast and stably .with the international trade , the future of Malaysia will be much beautiful and developed .Olympia College JBIntro to Business 20

Family Travel and Tours Company Analysis

Family Travel and Tours Company Analysis fragment ONEFamily Travel and Tours has specialised in affordable, inclusive spend and winter sun die packages for nearly forty years. The two animal of our travel offerings guard been cost and predictability. Our prices were highly competitive, although they atomic number 18 less so nowadays, and our customers sine qua non to know ahead of time exactly what they can expect from their travel experience. However, changes in the tourism marketplace have ca ingestiond our sales to stagnate, and we currently have zero(a) growth in our customer numbers and fewer repeat customers. Although according to the National Travel Survey, the number of tourists winning inclusive packages have change magnitude importantly in the past twenty years, so has the number of outlets through which customers can purchase their vacation travel (Shaw and Williams 2004). The primary reason for our lack of growth is this increased competition.In price, we hav e been adversely affected by a sharp increase in the number of discount travel companies available to price-conscious consumers, particularly everyplace the internet. Whereas we once had except competition from a limited number of local agencies, some of those who would have been our customer base argon beginning to experiment with online moderateings. This opens our market up non only to other UK competitors, entirely withal to agencies from other countries. For example, the American company Cheap Tickets offers international flights, tours and cruises at highly competitive rates. wiz and only(a) has only to run a simple search under discount travel packages to reveal literally hundreds of competitors where our customers could take their holiday spend. Many of these competitors also do non maintain brick-and-mortar branches, allowing them to offer even more competitive prices as they have lower overhead costs.Additionally, each year as a greater percentage of the populati on becomes comfortable purchasing over the computer and more and more people try out online spending, FTTs competitiveness on the basis of price is reduced. Customers are also finding they can create their own packages, as they can now research hotels, transport and activities online and make their own reservations for all of them.to a greater extent family-oriented travel destinations are also now providing inclusive packages on their own, and are able to offer these through online trade. Whereas once our affects with local travel companies allowed us to go forth all-inclusive packages available to the consumer only through a travel agency, now there are a number of places the typical traveler can book their relishd holiday. For example, Disneyland Paris has its own hotels, restaurants and transportation. As much(prenominal) it can market directly to the customer without withdraw of a middle-man travel agency. Many other democratic family tourist destinations have similar o fferings. Cruises are another all-inclusive alternative that can now be booked directly without use of a travel agency.We have not reacted quickly or substantially enough changes in the market and in customers themselves, leaving us in a vulnerable position. FTT thereof needs to make changes to its intersection points and marketing strategies quickly to retain its market position in the upcoming.SECTION TWOFTT has benefited from catering to two distinct customer groups, although some(prenominal)(prenominal) on the basis of predictability and price. During the winter period, FTTs customer base tends to be old people escaping the winter cold. The repeat business in this niche is substantial and breaks take down further into two groups. The first wants to return to the same repair each year, often even requesting the same inhabit. The second group prefers packaged tours, typically taking a tour of a different location each year. Both highly value predictability that is, they w ant to eat the foods they are used to and stay in spite of appearance their comfort zone even when traveling, rather than experience any kind of local culture. They also want to know when booking the details of their holiday, such as daily schedules, and want to spend their winter holiday in warm, sunny locations. This customer group has shown less stagnation, as the increase in competitors from online travel brokers has not penetrated this market group substantially as of yet. It is likely that it willing in the near future, however, particularly as the computer-friendly segment of the population expands and ages.Summer customers are typically middle-class families toneing for a convenient and affordable holiday experience. They also want to know ahead of time the details of their holiday, but more to get word activities and proper accommodations are available for their children than for any deep-seeded need for sameness. Destinations with child-friendly attractions such as bea ches and theme parks are foundational in sales to this group. This segment of our customer base has suffered the most from increased competition. Where we or agencies like FTT were once the only place families could go to have their entire travel needs satisfied, online travel agencies and the attractions themselves are now providing equally planned holidays at prices at or below ours.As we examine what changes need to be made, it is helpful to consider tourist motivation from some(prenominal) reductionist and structuralist perspectives regarding our stagnant customer base. Reductionism views tourist motivation as a tension between the search for the new or novel experience and the unavoidableness for some degree of familiarity (Shaw and Williams 2004, 140). This is true of some(prenominal) winter and summer customers. They wish to experience a holiday outside their current existence whilst maintaining a predictability that will allow them, whether older people or children, to be sure of a certain level of comfortability.It is unlikely that we will be able to compete stringently on price, as was the case many times in the past. Therefore expanding the balance of novelty and predictability in our current products is likely to be our strongest marketing addition for future growth. The question then becomes how to address these customer motivations in the changing and more competitive market.SECTION THREETodays postmodern society is now consumer led, with the consumer dictating the location and activities they expect rather than simply choosing from a limited assortment of package options (Sharpley 2003). Customers can now choose not only travel options we have available, but also those provided by remote travel operators and attractions themselves. Further, customers are more and more likely to create their own travel packages, as they now have entranceway to information on local attractions, lodging and transport for a given area. Their expectations are hi gher as far as flexibility and options are concerned, fashioning it more difficult for FTT to plan or provide all-inclusive packages, particularly at any significant reduction in price.In addition, as the depart between work and leisure has been reduced, and recreational avenues are more available throughout the year, the novelty of taking the family to the beach or theme park has diminished. Consumers are more likely to seek a holiday experience that allows them to escape from their day-to-day reality rather than simply play instead of work (Sharpley 2003). Todays band tourist desires to be in a place which is both real and yet fantastic at the same time, and to encounter people who are both authentically other yet also fun and fictional (Coleman and Crang 2002, 157). As such, our customers are beginning to demand travel packages that go beyond simply existence at the beach or a certain location, but also offer some face of fantasy or adventurous opportunity.The immediate hap piness and visually-based information preferences of the postmodern society also lend themselves strongly to the convenience of internet booking provided by our competitors (Sharpley 2003). Now customers can actually see the room where they will stay, satisfying their predictability needs, yet independently reserve it in an instant, with the simple click of a mouse. The entire transaction is charged effortlessly to their credit card, close making it seem as though the holiday was free.This signals a change in our customer, especially those in the summer/family group. Whilst they still have a need for predictability so they can plan for their children and the children feel comfortable, there is an increased desire for new experiences, visually-based marketing, and easy, quick booking.SECTION FOUROne difficulty we are currently experiencing is the change in customers perceptions of our services and their attributes, an event common over time in service-based sectors (Palmer 1994). Wh ilst they are still strongly motivated by predictability, they seek at the same time authenticity in their holiday experience. Authenticity can be viewed from the perspective of the place visited, or from the perspective of the tourist doing the visiting. According to private instructor and Saxton, the meaning of the term authenticity refers to experiences through which tourists feel themselves to be in touch with both the real world and their real selves (Shaw and Williams 2004). There are 3 kinds of authenticity in the tourist experience. Two, objective and constructive authenticity, are object-related. The third, activity-related authenticity, refers to a state of organism that is to be activated by tourist activities (Shaw and Williams 2004). It is that place where one is true to oneself (Shaw and Williams 2004). For example, beach holidays may be seen as providing a relaxed, playful environment where people can be their true selves like they were as children, without the some times-false pretenses maintain at work or in the community.As our world becomes increasingly more connected, a certain homogeneity is affecting the authenticity of place. McDonalds restaurants provide an example. Although there is some regional adaptation (one can order wine in France or get kosher sandwiches in Israel), the chains product mix of a hamburger, fries, and a coke is constant throughout its restaurants in over 100 countries (Vignali 2001). Every time a Tesco moves into a town, a number of the areas local merchants are likely to go out of business, reducing the regional differences of that area as opposed to the rest of the country. Shaw and Williams (2004) report Boorstin saw mass tourism producing a homogenisation and standardization of the tourist experience through the commodification of culture (135). The developing global culture of tourism accepts anything or any place being produced and reproduced, moved and recontextualised in any place whatsoever this process marks the proliferation and increased consumption of experiences that are depthless simulations, separated from tradition and history (Coleman and Crang 2002, 156). This makes it harder for FTT to provide unique travel packages.SECTION FIVEFTT needs to meet these changes in society and in the level of competition head on, addressing issues related to both our products and our target markets. First, we need to stop think the internet as our completion and begin to view it as a manner of increasing our customer base. Although we have a website, it is not as drug user friendly as it could be, and does not offer a wide range of holidays. We could expand our travel product available online. Instead of simply listing our preen packages with prices, as our current website offers, we could experiment with creating an a la carte method of creating packages. With the correct software, this would be possible to do completely online, and agents wanting to make a booking could even use the s ame online system when dealing with customers. In this scenario, a customer could access our website and choose the components of their holiday, appealing simultaneously to the postmodern desire for novelty and our established customer need for predictability. For example, one family may want to have a less expensive lodging but hire a larger car. They would be able to do this on the website, and after all their bookings would have created their own package, as inclusive as they desire. This would also provide a price incentive as customers could pay for only the level of or types of provision they really desire.In addition to increasing the number of customers purchasing holidays from us, such flexibility and convenience in booking is also likely to increase the spend of our existing customer base. Whereas once one of our established customers might use us only for holiday travel, a convenient website might also lead to other bookings by the same customer, such as business travel, expanding our product base. We would also be able to attract more customers from outside the UK, or from areas inside the country where we do not have strong branch presence.We also need to change the product mix of our fixed-package offerings to include more novelty and fantasy. For example, we might add adventure activities to a beach holiday in such a way that they meet the safety needs of parents. Including water-skiing lessons as part of a beach holiday provides some adventure, but because it includes instruction and a supervised environment it retains the safety and predictability our customers value. The entire family can together enter into an activity outside their normal circumstances.For our winter/older customer group, changing the type of tour or travel available would probably not be popular, but adding additional and more adventuresome locations where a level of comfort and predictability could be guaranteed would be advantageous. For example, as Turkey seeks entrance into the European Union, it has become a country more open to tourism, providing a wealth of new places for tours, and usually at competitive prices.Increased availability and reduced price of air travel also now allow us to offer tours farther abroad, and we need to look into areas of the world such as India and Mexico, which were typically too far and too costly to be considered by our customers for a holiday. We would need to work closely with local lodging, transport and other providers to ensure the level of comfort our customers require, but these locations provide an opportunity to introduce adventure and fantasy in an appealing way to our older customer group.FTT should also expand our marketing via the internet, particularly to repeat customers and voltage customers who have already initiated contact with us, such as those who stop by a branch to discuss travel options, but do not purchase right away. Email is a simple and extremely inexpensive way to contact customers wi th various offerings. This would also allow us to increase our target markets. For example, the UK Tourism Survey shows that an increasing number of young working-class families are taking holiday abroad. As younger people are more likely to have computer access and be knowledgeable in computer operation, it figures that this is a potential market where FTT may increase market share.Working class families without computers could still be included in the target market, but through other means of penetration. Over forty million loyalty cards were in circulation in the UK in 1999, and that number has undoubtedly increased substantially since (Evans 1999). Most cost-conscious Brits now have several such cards, and those motivated by price are particularly keen on using them. Partnering with several major cards could not only increase our visibility and presence, but attract customers that might not consider holiday travel.For example, we could offer a discounted package as a reward for points acquire by a major loyalty card scheme, such as Tesco. Alternatively, we could join the scheme itself and offer points for a customers spend with us. In any case, being included in a scheme with extensive emails, newspaper inserts, and other advertising would reach cost-conscious consumers, a characteristic of our traditional customer base, who might not have considered package holidays before. We may also attract those who had purchased their packages elsewhere, at least to the point that they might inquire about our offerings, either in person or online. Some in this market will be surprised at the affordability of many packages. It is also likely that since customers attracted from this target market have never had a holiday abroad before, they would be nervous about both planning and going. As such they would find our servcies as a travel agency both convenient and comforting. Once they went once on a holiday package from us, we could make them part of our database, and provide various marketing endeavors to encourage their repeat patronage.The marketing changes discussed above give FTT the opportunity to once again dominate the travel package sector of our industry, to attract and retain customers from a wider customer base, and to ensure future growth and profitability. Our society is changing, but if we change with it we can continue for another forty years of travel excellence.REFERENCESColeman, S. and Crang, M. (ed) (2002) Tourism Between Place and Performance. Oxford Berghahn.Evans, M. (1999) Loyalty schemes and the Orwellian Millennium. British Food Journal, 101(2) 132-147.Palmer, A. (1994) Principles of Service Marketing. London McGraw-Hill.Sharpley, R. (2003) Tourism, Tourists and Society. Elm Publishing.Shaw, G. and Williams, A.M. (2004) Tourism, Tourists and Tourist Spaces. London Sage.Vignali, C. (2001) McDonalds think global, act local the marketing mix. British Food Journal, 103(2) 97.WEBSITESwww.cheaptickets.comwww.cooptravelshop.c o.ukwww.expedia.co.ukwww.gate1travel.comwww.travelbag.co.uk

Mrs. Mallards Character in The Story of an Hour by Kate Chopin Essay

Socrates, a Greek philosopher once said Each one must know himself. Unfortunately, most of us ar not aware of our true type. Social conventions are the main cause making us repress what we really think and feel. Only when unexpected events happen, we do have an opportunity to take a close look at our hidden self.The Story of An Hour by Kate Chopin reflects the dramatic development process of Mrs.Mallards character through the death of her husband it demonstrates that the true identity cannot be sheltered forever. At the beginning of the story, the author describes Mrs.Mallard as a woman having the distinctive mark of self-assertion which is constrained by her marriage. She seems to be the victim of an overbearing but occasionally loving husband. Being told o...

madonna Essay -- essays research papers

Have you ever heard a song once and was never able to get the tune out of your head no matter how hard you tried? I know that has happened to me on several occasions. Whether we enjoy the songs or not, there is something about music within obliterateular polish that drives the American public wild. Sadly, for quite sometime the music industry was largely closed off to women. Of course there were obvious exceptions to this, since talented female artists perk up existed through the ages, but on the whole there were not many female artists that got a lot of airplay and certainly none were considered significantly influential in the music industry. Recently the United States has begun to experience a womens musical renaissance. Womens roles in pop music are steadily growing. There energise been many outstanding female musicians and vocalists in the past that have aided in making the music industry less of a male authoritative society, from Aretha Franklin, Mo Tucker, and Ella Fitz gerald to pop icons like Courtney Love, Queen Latifa, and Melissa Ethridge. Along side these, there are two women who have conquered most obstacles theyve faced and, in addition, labored the music industry to become more of a female friendly environment. Those two women are Madonna and Brittany Spears.Madonna is an artist that most Americans are genuinely familiar with. From rudeness to charity, she is always in the public eye. Madonna took women and sex through a quantum leap and her unique style and flair has been imprinted on pop culture forever. Besides creating major trends in music she was responsible for many fashion statements throughout the eighties and nineties (Gandee 307). Up until 1982, female sexuality was largely a suggestion of cleavage and tight-fitting jeans, then Madonna showed up in 1983 wearing her Victorias Secrets on the outside, and all hell broke loose.Madonna Ciccone was innate(p) in 1958 near Mot make, to an engineer father and homemaker mother, the elde st of eight children. The one thing baby Madonna wanted more than anything was to become famous. She develop on piano and dance, and signed up for almost any activity that would put her face in public view. By the time she turned twenty, she matt-up she had waited long enough for fame to find her, and went out looking for it.Throughout her career as one of Americas superstars, Madonna maintained much of her fictive control while... ...stry seem obtainable to everyone. Their accomplishments represent many of the recent victories won by women in the music industry Accomplishments like Lilith Faire and Rock for Choice. Though many doors have been opened there are many that have remained shut. For instance, the way that many labels choose to market female artists like sex symbols instead of relying on their ability to perform. A women musician are becoming more and more visible, and with this visibility comes power. Ani DiFranco and Madonna are just two examples of women who are star ting their own record labels and signing their own bands. By doing this they are insuring that female artists get heard. Obviously, not every women musician can have this kind of determination, but the circumstance that they are on stage playing what they love, music, makes them powerful.ODair, Barbara. "Introduction". The curlicue Stone Book of Women In Rock. Ed. Barbara ODair. New York Random House, Inc., 1997.Udovitch, Mim. "Madonna". The Rolling Stone Book of Women in Rock. Ed. Barbara oDair. New YorkRandom House,Inc.,1997.Gandee, Charles. "In The Closet With Madonna". Vogue Oct. 1997 306-313, 378.

Graduation Speech :: Graduation Speech, Commencement Address

Tonight marks the end of an era. Years of books, plays, dances and sports have all led to this gratifying moment. As we, the graduation deign apart of 2006, sit here watching as the last of our high school careers fade into twilight and nervously awaiting what new adventure tomorrow will bring, it is valuable that we share a moment to reflect and appreciate the enormity of our fine accomplishment. For tonights graduation marks not only our passage from the halls of Bears High School, but is besides a declaration of our commitment and effort.This last year has been a tragic one for American high schools. With incidents such as the mindless shootings at Columbine, it lots seems as though todays youth are no longer capable of positively participating in and shaping the world. Media hype and the neat label of propagation X has branded us as incapable of achieving. We should be lazy and incompetent.Tonight we sit here as proof of hope for the future. We are the businessmen, the teac hers and the parents of tomorrow. By our own dedication to our success in high school having qualified us to lead the future, tonight we rise above and shed those labels. For tonights graduation is the pass completion of our commitment, from efforts from that first day of kindergarten to now as we await the satisfaction of diplomas in our hands. While at times it may have been easy to have been displace into the negative aspects of school, we have chosen to pursue and to accomplish. Worthy of pride, this is why I congratulate you.With the support of our parents, our teachers and our friends we made it to this day and to the beginning of a new power point of our lives. Where we go from here and what new frontiers we are meant to discover may remain unseen, but as we step out those doors tonight and stare into the first lights of what is to come and what is to be, always remember tonights victory.