Monday, September 30, 2019

Life in College Essay

College has changed my life in many ways. Even though I spent only six months in college, I feel it has helped me a lot with my education and social life. Students who enter college usually collide with many problems, and some may think it is just like high school. From my perspective, college life is a life of freedom because it gives a feeling of being an adult, and also at the same time helping out with necessary needs. Life in college meant a new life for me. When I entered my college for the first day, I looked around with a mixed feeling of perplexity, joy, and a little bit of fear. I was puzzled as I was not habituated to college life. After checking around and looking for my class, I saw other students in batches were moving up and down the corridors for their classes; professors were coming smilingly and exchanging greetings with the students in a friendly manner which helped me to calm down and gave me the confidence to move on without being too nervous. Social life in college is different from high school. Most people do not socialize that much because they are there to get their credits and leave. They just want to finish their courses as fast as they can for business purpose or other reasons (this happens mainly in community college. ) For this reason, college has created many club activities, study groups, library, and other open areas to meet friends or work together, which definitely gives the chance to socialize. Another important thing college has taught me is managing time. I have come to understand how time is precious and how it can improve our lifestyle in so many levels. Balancing time is really important to do well both in college and in other activities like, Jobs, clubs, and spending time with family. After spending some time in classes, I came to realize how fun and easy it can be if a student spends a little bit of his/her time in class activities. College is a wonderful place and one can make it happen by his/her will.

Sunday, September 29, 2019

Netflix

Nettling Is an American provider of on-demand Internet streaming media In the united States, Canada, Latin America, the Caribbean, united Kingdom and Ireland and a flat rate DVD-by. Mail in the United States. Nettling currently has over 20 million members streaming globally, making in it the world's leading internet subscription service for streaming movies and TV programmed. For a monthly fee subscribers are able to watch an unlimited amount of films and TV episodes.The devices available for streaming Is constantly expanding, currently the list consists of 700 devices ranging from game consoles to smart phones. Historically, this industry was focused on stand-alone brick and motor rental stores. Nettling then offered a disruptive service where by DVD's were available through the mall. Because technology has continued to develop the service also had to develop, and digital rentals has become the focus of Nettling, this is done by streaming content directly to consumer's television th rough broadband connected set-top boxes, game consoles, and computers. 2. Company Profile 2. 1 .History of Nettling In 1997 In Scoots Valley, California Reed Hastings and fellow software executive Marc Randolph service, which offered unlimited rentals for a monthly subscription. A personalized film recommendation system that was developed, it's based on the Nettling members' ratings and reviews and accurately predicts choices for all Nettling members was launched in 2000. Nettling initiated an initial public offering (PIP) in May 2002, selling 5,500,000 shares at $15. 00 per share, at this stage the total number of Nettling members was 600,000. By September 2002 Nettling were mailing 190,000 discs per day to its 670,000 members.In 2006 Inflexed ends the year with 6. 3 million members, up 51% from 2005. Then in 2007 Nettling introduces streaming, which lows members to instantly watch television shows and films on their personal computers. In 2008 Nettling partnered with consumer elec tronics companies to stream on the Oxbow 360, Blue- ray disc players, TV set-tops and the Apple Macintosh computer. Then in 2009 it partnered with more consumer electronics companies to stream on the ASS, internet-connected TV's. BY 2010 Nettling is available on over 700 devices including the Apple pod, phone and the Nintendo WI and ends the year with 20 million members, up 63% from 2009.Nettling was launched in Canada in 2010, and then it was launched throughout Latin America and the Caribbean and n 2012 Nettling was launched in the United Kingdom and Ireland. [1] Currently Nettling, Inc. Is the largest online movie rental company on the plant. Its headquarters are based in Los Gatos California. With its mission â€Å"our appeal and success are built providing the most expansive selection of DVD's; an easy way to choose movies; and fast, free delivery' Nettling continues to progress and make new goals. The number of full time employees is over 2, 180. [3] In the year 2010 net inco me of IIS$160 million and $982 million in assets. 4] 2. 2. Consumers Nettling customers can be broken up into two groups the needy consumers and the nonviolence consumers. Needy consumers are those that have a very specific need, be it a tile or genre, they finical and want a rich viewing experience. They must likely want to sit in comfort and watch the film on television screen with surround-sound audio. This means they are more likely to avail of a hardcopy. These consumers tend to be committed to video entertainment; they have no problem waiting for a few days for the film to arrive, as long as their expectations are met.Convenience consumers, which are becoming more and more common, are the opposite they. They will watch a film or TV show where and when they want. What is important to them is fast and easy access, portability and transferability. These consumers are more willing to watch participate in online rental. Convenience consumers tend to be the younger generation who li ves are becoming more and more internet based, where as the needy consumers then to be of an older generation. 2. 3. Business Strategy Nettling employs differentiation for its business strategy.The company tries to take advantage of uniqueness for a broad market. The original business strategy for Nettling was in the DVD rental market, the company's purpose was to offer the already existing product of the rentable movie n a new format. They did this by allowing customers to select the title online and they would receive them by mail and charging a monthly subscription fee instead of paying per title. More recently Nettling has moved into the online streaming of movies through computers, game consoles and handheld devices.This has become the focus of the company, their core strategy is to grow its streaming subscription business within the United States and globally. Among the large and expanding base of devices streaming from Nettling are the Microsoft Oxbow 360, Nintendo WI and Son y ASS console, an array of Blue-ray disc players, Internet- unconnected TV's, home theatre systems, digital video recorders and Internet video players, Apple phone, pad and pod touch, Android devices, as well as Apple TV and Google. Not the DVD rental because they don't have the capability to manually distribute discs. 3. Streaming Service 3. 1 .Drivers for the Change to Streaming Many factors contributed to the shifting of focus at Nettling for DVD rentals to directly streaming movies and TV shows directly through the internet, some of the main drivers were; V 28 day delay distribution agreements: The entertainment studios' made an agreement with Nettling, to protect their DVD revenues. The agreement stated that Nettling and other companies would have to make new releases unavailable for 28 days after they were released on DVD. New releases were Nineteen's most valuable content for its DVD rental business, but it had to agree to keep its distribution deals with the studios.This lef t Nettling fighting with pay-cable networks for content and licensing deals. This forced Nettling to focus on the online streaming market. As result of this deal Nettling built a streaming service with discounted back catalogue content. [5] V Popularity of online movie viewing: In 2010 more members used the streaming service then the DVD rental service. [4] V Reliance on Postal Service: Nettling uses the united States Postal Service (USPS) to deliver its entire DVD, and is thus at the mercy of the postal service.Nettling rely too heavily on profitability and service. V Licensing deals: Nettling made experimental licensing deals with studios and pay- cable networks in 2007. At this stage a no business model for streaming had been made. This deals obtained at prices that would be unrealistic now. 3. 2. Internet Video Steaming Service These drivers, and some other factors, lead to Nettling investing in their streaming service to improve the quality and speed of the stream. Some devices can stream Nettling content at IPPP resolution.Nineteen's strategy with their streaming service has been to made partnerships with companies to allow Nettling to stream their content. While also keeping up to date with advances in by develop their service so that customers can stream through game consoles, pods and smart phones. The first partnership for their streaming service was with Stars Entertainment in 2008. This deal as to during over 2,500 new movies and TV shows to Nettling Watch Instantly feature. Since then Nettling have made deals with Paramount, Eliminate, MGM, Trademarks Animation, open Road Films, Epic, Relativity Media and Film District. Earlier.These are type of consumer who want general entertainment in a relaxed atmosphere and are not too fussy about the form of electronic entertainment. They tend to be young more internet-savvy user. These types of customers can be lost to illegally streaming of programs or Just other forms of entertainment such as video games, music or social networking. 4. Market Analysis 4. 1 . Competition The market industry for the video entertainment is very competitive and can be subjected to rapid change. Many consumers maintain relationships with more than one video entertainment providers and can easily shift form one provider to another. . 2. Principle Competitors Some of the many competitors to Nettling are: Multinational video programming distributors with free TV Everywhere and video- on- demand content including cable providers, such as Time Warner and Compass in America and the likes of RET in Ireland, telecommunication providers such as AT&T and Verizon in America and PUC in Ireland. Internet movie and TV content providers, such as Apple's tunes, Amazon. Com, Hull. Com and Google's Youth. DVD rental outlets and kiosk services, such as Extra-Violin and Blockbusters. 4. 3.Porter's Five Force Analysis Force Effect on Industry Treat of Potential Entrants Unfavorable Supplier Power Unfavorable Buyer power Favo rable Substitute products Favorable Industry rivalry Favorable Summary of Porter's Five Force analysis. Treat of Potential Entrants: The economy of scale for an enterprise to enter the online streaming segment of the video entertainment industry is high. The reason for this is the distribution is controlled by the multi- service operators, like PUC, and the costs of their infrastructure and overhead (occasionally underground) cables are high.In the online streaming segment of the video entertainment industry there is little or no product differentiation. The device through which the consumer is streaming limits the specifications of the stream, I. E. The resolution, audio quality, encoding and special features. Brand identity is an issue for Nettling. As the name Nettling is most commonly associated with DVD rental by mail. On September 18th into two separate businesses. This would see the streaming side remain as Nettling and the DVD bad reaction for the public. 14] The capital req uirements for the online streaming segment of the video entertainment industry is again depend on the multi-service operators. Supplier Power Supplier power is an unfavorable aspect in the video streaming industry. There is prefect product differentiation at supplier level. Video rental is a pull-trough product and trend toward broad differentiation requires full access to all suppliers. Switching costs of suppliers and firms in this industry are low. This is because they maintain ownership over the end-product.If a supplier were to terminate a contract with Nettling it will lower their distribution and lower the sales of the supplier. Presence of substitute inputs is an unfavorable aspect in this industry. Inputs are the content so there is no substituting. Supplier concentration is another unfavorable aspect in this industry. Very few studios make up the majority of the popular titles and the industry revenue. Importance of volume to supplier is a natural aspect of the industry. I t depends on the relationship between the largest company in the industry and suppliers for product to reach consumers.Threat of forward integration by firms in the industry is a favorable aspect of this industry. As suppliers do not have access to the content it would take a large investment to get in to this Buyer power Bargaining leverage is a neutral aspect of this industry. Switching costs are neutral, Nettling operate at a fixed monthly subscription rate, while other companies opt for a pay per title method. There is no product differentiation, which is unfavorable, and no concentration in consumer segments, which is favorable. There no backward integration, which is favorable. Price sensitivity is a favorable aspect of the industry.There is little cost involved from the buyer; some consumers are likely to stream from free channels. Due to the recession people's entertainment budget is shrinking and consumers are more prone to price sensitivity. Substitute products This is a f avorable the convenience consumers are many to substitute stream a movies with video games, listening to music or reading books. The most popular substitute for the in the past has been video games, but with the introduction of streaming through games consoles has reduced that. The price performance of substitutes is favorable, as the price performance of

Saturday, September 28, 2019

Company Law 2 Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3000 words

Company Law 2 - Essay Example 5. Regulation 66 of Table A is amended by replacing 'but shall not be entitled to receive any remuneration from the company for his services as an alternate director' with the following sentence: 'An alternate director shall not be entitled to remuneration from the company for his services as an alternate director except that he may be paid by the company such part of the remuneration otherwise payable to his appointor as the appointor specifies by notice to the company'. 6. Regulation 72 of Table A is amended by replacing the first sentence with the following: 'The directors may delegate any of their powers to a committee consisting of such persons as they think fit provided that a majority of the members of the committee are directors'. 7. Regulation 81 of Table A is amended by replacing paragraph (e) with: 'he fails to attend three successive board meetings despite a notice being given to him prior to the third meeting that the provisions of this paragraph might apply and all the other directors (excluding the director concerned and, in his capacity as such, any alternate director appointed by the director) resolve that his office should be vacated'. (b) The 2006 annual general meeting of Vunce Ltd... s despite a notice being given to him prior to the third meeting that the provisions of this paragraph might apply and all the other directors (excluding the director concerned and, in his capacity as such, any alternate director appointed by the director) resolve that his office should be vacated'. PROCEEDINGS OF DIRECTORS 8. Regulation 89 of Table A is amended by adding after 'unless so fixed at any other number shall be two' the words 'except when there is a sole director in which event he shall constitute a quorum'. Please answer the following questions on the meaning and effect of the articles of association. (a) The directors wish to sign a unanimous written resolution instead of holding a board meeting. Which resolution, if any, allows them to do this This can be done via an ordinary resolution of a simple majority, which is fine because it is unanimous. (b) The 2006 annual general meeting of Vunce Ltd is due to start in the Islington Business Design Centre at 9.00 am, Monday 15 May 2006. After 33 minutes there is still no quorum. The directors are prepared to follow the articles for arranging the adjourned meeting except that they have decided that the meeting shall start at 10.30 am to allow for possible transport delays in the morning. State the actual time, date and place of the adjourned meeting: Islington Business Design Centre at 10:30am Monday 15th May 2006 (c) What is the quorum for general meetings according to the articles of association Three persons entitled to vote on the business to be transacted, being a member or a proxy for a member or a duly authorized representative of a corporation, shall be a quorum'. (d) Apart from members, who may attend and speak at separate class meetings The persons entitled to attend and speak at general meetings

Friday, September 27, 2019

Human resources Case study analyze Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Human resources analyze - Case Study Example Now it has often being seen that within this class to be involved with a conflict in normal life is quite a usual and regular job. So when people are coming from this level to any work place a little bit of behavioral effect will be reflected in the work environment also. As all these can affect the output of the company so the Human Resource department has to be very consciously and with lots of patience have to handle the situation. Each and every company has its own policy of how they want to set the rules and regulations regarding the performance assessment of any employee. But still it can happen that in some critical situation employees are to be judge on the basic of situational evidence and witnesses. Like in the situation of Jesse Stansky given in the case study. The complaint against him was he has been found as hitting one of his colleagues. Now this is a serious offence and this situation implies that he was trying to influence any other worked by force and fear. This kind of behavior is a serious offence for any organization. Though Jesse Stansky was working in that organization for many years and has contributed although not very remarkable but as an average employee. While judging this particular situation of Jesse Stansky along with the company policy, the employee handbook, and the labor agreement, the Human Resource department has to give emphasis about what other witness are saying about the situation. This is so because it is important to identify the reality of the situation and this can only be known if the description of the situation is been heard from other employee who was also present in that particular situation. In this particular case Jesse Stansky has been found in a situation with another technician named Gary Lindekin where Jesse was hitting Gary. And this has been observed by another technician who was present there. So for the Human Resource department it

Thursday, September 26, 2019

Walt Disney Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Walt Disney - Assignment Example The vision of Disney was to become the leading laboratory for media convergence and the alliance could facilitate Disney to achieve this vision by adopting the strategies which Jobs had adopted at Apple and Pixar such as boundary-busting energy and industry-shaking. Moreover, Disney is a nimble company and accepts innovative ideas however; still the company’s stock was about at the same level as it was decade ago. Therefore, alliance may influence the strategies of Disney more effective and it may help the company to make its future vision more realistic. How and to what extent is Disney’s new product planning initiatives likely to benefit from Job’s successes at Apple Computer? Jobs mentioned that he was lucky to have grown up with the industry and it actually helped to get successful at Apple and Pixar. Jobs’ successes at Apple Computer made the people to consider Jobs best at launching new products. The entrepreneurial zeal, industry knowledge, sheer ch arisma and intensity of Jobs can help Disney to pursue its new product planning initiatives more effectively. The secret weapon of Jobs to meld technical vision with a gut feel for what regular consumers want and then market in ways that make people want to be part of it, can help Disney to develop the new products which people want in digital media world.

Zara and information system technology Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Zara and information system technology - Essay Example The increasing competition in clothing and Apparel industry has not shaken Zara so much. In that regard, several questions are abounding as to its survival tactics. It is worth to note that the customer base of Zara is significantly large and dominates the better parts of North America, Europe and parts of Asia. The critical aspect of Zara’s survival tactics is attributed to the strategic emphasis on information technology to track customer demands in this dynamic market. In various stores in North America, Spain, and other market segments, the staff constitutes Personal Digital Assistants (PDAs) armed with mobile telecommunication gadgets to gather customer feedback and suggestions for relevant adjustments. This has seen Zara become proactive when it comes to customer’s changing tastes and preferences. Regular update of the customer’s data has yielded a demographic characterized by increasing United States, Mexico, Spain, and Taiwan among others. Online shopping introduced allows customers to choose from the variety and even order customized products. Since the largest customer base of Zara products is in developed nations and emerging economies, it is the obvious use of point-of-sale (POS) system gives important consumer behavior data. The innovative management information system that is reflected in customer base trend across the world is set to carry Zara through the mounting competitive pressure from new entrants and dynamic consumer needs.

Wednesday, September 25, 2019

An Analysis of WTO, European Union, China and the UK relations Essay

An Analysis of WTO, European Union, China and the UK relations - Essay Example In general, MFN means that every time a country lowers a trade barrier or opens up a market, it has to do so for the same goods or services from all its trading partners - whether rich or poor, weak or strong. National treatment: Treating foreigners and locals equally Imported and locally-produced goods should be treated equally - at least after the foreign goods have entered the market. The same should apply to foreign and domestic services, and to foreign and local trademarks, copyrights and patents. Freer Trade: Gradually through Negotiation Lowering trade barriers is one of the most obvious means of encouraging trade. The barriers concerned include customs duties (or tariffs) and measures such as import bans or quotas that restrict quantities selectively. From time to time other issues such as red tape and exchange rate policies have also been discussed. Opening markets can be beneficial, but it also requires adjustment. The WTO agreements allow countries to introduce changes gradually, through "progressive liberalization". Developing countries are usually given longer to fulfill their obligations. Predictability through Binding and Transparency Sometimes, promising not to raise a trade barrier can be as important as lowering one, because the promise gives businesses a clearer view of their future opportunities. With stability and predictability, investment is encouraged, jobs are created and consumers can fully enjoy the benefits of competition - choice and lower prices. The multilateral trading system is an attempt by governments to make the business environment stable and predictable. Promoting Fair Competition The WTO is sometimes described as a "free trade" institution, but that is not entirely accurate. The system does allow tariffs and, in...From time to time other issues such as red tape and exchange rate policies have also been discussed. Opening markets can be beneficial, but it also requires adjustment. The WTO agreements allow countries to introduce changes gradually, through â€Å"progressive liberalization†. Developing countries are usually given longer to fulfill their obligations. †¢ Predictability through Binding and Transparency Sometimes, promising not to raise a trade barrier can be as important as lowering one, because the promise gives businesses a clearer view of their future opportunities. With stability and predictability, investment is encouraged, jobs are created and consumers can fully enjoy the benefits of competition — choice and lower prices. The multilateral trading system is an attempt by governments to make the business environment stable and predictable. †¢ Promoting Fair Competition The WTO is sometimes described as a â€Å"free trade† institution, but that is not entirely accurate. The system does allow tariffs and, in limited circumstances, other forms of protection. More accurately, it is a system of rules dedicated to open, fair and undistorted competition.

Monday, September 23, 2019

In finance, risk is best judged in a portfolio context. Is this true Essay - 2

In finance, risk is best judged in a portfolio context. Is this true Why - Essay Example 87). This uncertainty about future value of the assets makes it dangerous for the investors to put all their resources in a single investment opportunity no matter how lucrative it may seem to be. Therefore, it is preferable to spread resources in a collection of stocks as a precaution against total loss of investment due to unpredictable loss. Investors set their investment goals of maximizing their earnings and stabilizing their income from increase in value of their assets between the time of making investment and future period when they anticipate their portfolio to mature (Enrica 2012, p.123). However, the market is full of challenges that investors cannot predict at the time they are making investment. These challenges threaten to thwart investors’ objectives if increasing the value of their assets. Therefore, investors should be cautious in order to avoid losing all of their resources. Some of the risks the investors face in the market include: Liquidity risk, a type of risk that occurs in the event that assets can neither be sold nor bought faster enough to realize the perceived profit or to avert the anticipated decline in its market value (Connor, Goldberg and Robert 2010, p. 187). This scenario may occur when there are no potential buyers for such assets in the market at the current value to enable the owner to make a gain from sale of the assets. Credit risk: this is the risk due to the fact that most of the borrowers may fail to clear their debts in time as the lender had anticipated (Engle 2009, p. 81). Borrowers are required to repay the amount borrowed and some interest within specific period. However, in most cases borrowers fail to meet their targets hence resulting to the decrease in lenders’ earnings as a result of bad debts and expenses incurred when collecting the debts. Foreign investment risk: this is the risk due to the changes in market conditions across different countries that cause the decline in value of transaction i n relation to another country (Sharpe 2007, 104). For example, different currencies have different exchange value across the globe. Similarly, different countries have adopted different accounting procedures in relation to depreciation of assets, stock valuation and so on (Cochrane 2009, p. 323). Therefore, depending on the approach used in the countries involved, international investors will obtain different earning from equivalent value of resources invested. Market risk: This is the probability that the value of the asset portfolio may reduce in value as a result of various aspects affecting demand and supply of that asset (Sharpe 2007, p.111). For example, the nature of market will result to either increase or decrease in value at which the assets are traded in the market. This is whereby the increase in supply of trade commodities results in the decrease of value of those commodities while the decrease in supply followed by the increase in purchasers’ demand will result in the increase in significance for those commodities (Constantinides, Harris, & Stulz 2003, p.301). Operational risk: Different companies or businesses perform better than others though in the same industry due to a number of factors (Connor, Goldberg and Robert 2010, p. 192). For example, some personnel are more

Sunday, September 22, 2019

JetBlue Airlines Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

JetBlue Airlines - Research Paper Example Other airline companies that JetBlue has formed alliances with include Lufthansa, OpenSkies, American Airlines, Virgin Atlantic Airways, Jet Airways and South African Airways among others. In its effort to maintain strong positive relationship with its clients, JetBlue emulates strong advertising strategies by use of local newspapers, televisions and social media including YouTube and Hulu.com (Laurence, 2008). The company has adopted advertising phrases for example we like you too and unbelievable. As the result of extensive marketing strategies, the company has benefited from strong customer awareness and distinctive positioning aspects that have made it to attain a competitive edge in the market. One of the notable core values that make JetBlue Airline to be the option of US travelers is its strong binding with Customer Bill of Rights. According to the company management, the company has to refund the customer’s funds in the event of a cancellation or delay of flights. JetBlue airlines suffered two major incidents that did not result to any casualty. The first one is the 2005 emergency landing of Flight 292 at Los Angeles Airport. The second one happened on Flight 191 when the traveler subdued the captain and locked him out of the cockpit after a panic attack. One of the major weaknesses of JetBlue Airline is that it does not have large number of hubs as compared to other airlines in the US. As a result, the company is not in a position to effectively compete with its rivals that includes Southwest, Pan AM, Northwest, American and Delta among others. This inadequacy in the number of available hubs for the company to use makes it impossible to attend to most of its customers from various locations in the United States. For instance, the company cannot attend to its customers on the west properly without bringing in the services of

Saturday, September 21, 2019

Identification of Morphological and Physiological Characteristics of Unknown Bacteria Essay Example for Free

Identification of Morphological and Physiological Characteristics of Unknown Bacteria Essay Obesity is a word that everyone is currently familiar with. The media and health professionals have been working tirelessly to make the general public aware of its prevalence and detriments to society. With the staggering statistics of 32.2% prevalence in adults and a range of 13.9% to 18.9% prevalence in children and adolescents, these outstanding numbers stand out for themselves. (1) Increasing rates of obesity are associated with higher risk factors for other diseases such as; Type 2 diabetes mellitus, cardiovascular diseases, colon cancer, diverticulitis, cancer of the endometrium, and breast cancer. (2) Knowing how to combat obesity will lead to decreased complications of the condition as well as a lower risk factor for other diseases. In light of these significant numbers, our group chose to explore the relationship of dietary fiber to aid in the prevention and treatment of obesity, therefore also reducing the incidence other diseases. Our focus was on making a hot meal with a simple modification to increase the dietary fiber available. The original recipe is a white rice pilaf with the adjustment being made with a substitution of brown rice. This change will boost the fiber intake from 0.8g per serving to 2.6g per serving. The represents a substantial jump in accessibility to a vital part of our diet. We expect favorable results in the acceptance of our modification. The texture is a bit hardier, cooking time is longer, and cost is slightly higher, but we believe the benefits outweigh these variables. The RDA recommends between 25g-30g a day, but the average American receives only 12g-13g per day.(3) With this easy alteration, we hope to increase these low numbers that the average American receives up to the reco mmended levels. Purpose The purpose of our research study is to substitute brown rice for white rice in a pilaf. This pilaf can be eaten for lunch or dinner as a hot side dish or main dish. It is intended to introduce a serving of a whole grain in the diet and with it bring an increase dietary fiber. Literature Review Introduction The frequent occurrence of this disease, as mentioned above, has produced many scientific research studies concentrating on remedying and reversing the trend. Finding and interpreting the results was uncomplicated. I used the online databases; Google Scholar, Medline, and Cinhal to gather my data. My keywords included obesity and dietary fiber. I assembled strong studies that encompassed sample sizes ranging from 11-74,091 participants, with timelines up to twelve years, and accommodating populations in the United States, Spain, Finland, Brazil, Italy, Greece, the former Yugoslavia, Japan, Serbia, Belgrade, and The Netherlands. These studies centered on three different aspects of the relationship between dietary fiber and weight. These are expanded upon below. A synopsis of the reviewed studies can be found in Appendix 1. Correlations of the Development of Obesity Seven out of the ten studies compared the connection between dietary fiber intake and the development or current status of obesity. (2, 4-9) All studies included self reported questionnaires to collect sociodemographic, health history, physical activity, anthropometric, bowel movements, and dietary data. The most common dietary form used was the Food Frequency Questionnaire, with six complying. (2, 4-5, 7-9) The last study utilized twenty-four hour recalls. (6) Other measurements included height, weight, and subscapular skinfold thickness. The entire body of findings revealed that higher fiber intake was inversely related to long term weight gain and increased body fat. Reporting measures were diverse but included the same positive trend. Higher fiber intake equated to an average weight of 1.52kg less, a 48-49% lower risk of weight gain, and a BMI that was 1.5 less when compared to low fiber intake. Some studies investigated other variables in addition to increasing fiber. One study addressed physical activity in addition to increased fiber as a therapy. (5) This study along with another explored the incorporation of a low fat diet along with the high fiber diet. In both, dietary fat was not directly associated with reduction of body fat or obesity but showed a compounding result when correlated with higher fiber. A lower BMI difference of 2.75 was established on a low fat and high fiber diet. (6) Development of Diseases related to Obesity Two studies were taken on to look into the increased use of fiber to decrease the risk of obesity leading to Type 2 diabetes. (10, 11) In a large cohort with a sample size just under 36,000, self reported dietary and weight figures were collected. (10) After six years of follow up, the statistics were analyzed and the results showed a 22% lower risk of the development of diabetes from the highest quintile of dietary fiber intake. These optimistic results were in consensus with the other study. This study had more stringent controls and divided participants into two groups. (11) One received standard care and the other received intensive exercise and dietary counseling. Oral glucose tolerance tests and body composition measurements were calculated. After a four year follow up, the high fiber group gained 75% less than their low fiber counterparts, 0.7kg gain versus 3.1kg gain, respectively. Treatment of Obesity The last study out of the ten engaged the most scientific disciplines. (12) The sample was already obese. They participated in controlled feeding in a metabolic kitchen. The cross over design allowed for six weeks on either a low or high fiber diet with a six week washout period in between them. Daily logs were kept and an OGTT and Euglycemic hyperinsulinemic clamp was used every two weeks for measuring results. At the conclusion, fasting insulin was 10% lower, the AUC was lowered, and the rate of glucose infusion was higher after the higher fiber diet. Limitations All of the studies employed self reporting figures in some form, whether the basis of all of their information or for at least some part. This may lead to underreporting, overreporting, or misinterpretation. The definition of a whole-grain or high fiber food varied among studies. Recipe and ingredient databases or non-comprehensive food frequency questionnaires may aid in inaccurate recordings of intake. Although the study utilizing the metabolic kitchen was the best scientific representation among the studies it is worth mentioning that it was sponsored and funded by the General Mills Corporation. This could lead to a possible conflict of interest and hence a limitation to the studies findings. Conclusion The complete compilation of studies supports the purpose of our recipe modification. Each emphasized the importance of replacing low fiber foods with fiber rich foods to help prevent or reduce weight gain. The significant correlation between fiber and obesity has been established in this review. The protective role of fiber, along with physical activity and dietary fat, should be included in advice and management therapies tailored to this condition and other related to it. Materials and Methods For our subjective evaluation we designed three separate score cards; demographic, evaluation, and preference. Samples of the score cards can be found in Appendix 2. Sociodemographic For the demographic background we included questions regarding age range, household income range, ethnicity, and educations. We also included six questions probing background information on exposure and open-mindedness of our products.

Friday, September 20, 2019

The IMPACT OF A MARKETING MIX

The IMPACT OF A MARKETING MIX Marketing Mix is defined as the collection of various marketing tools which can be blended very well to obtain greater response from the market. Anything and everything which a company or an organisation does to influence and encourage consuming them also will be key factor in the market mix The term marketing mix has been used for almost 50yrs to describe that mix of factors over which an organisation has some specific control. It affects far more than the basic product or service, embarrassing not only aspects of total product but everything that can be considered as part of total marketing offering Adock 2001:168 There are several marketing tools but the major four marketing factors which are very common in business relates to the marketing sector are Product, Price, Promotion and Place Considering Indian Premier League (IPL) in an entertainment industry framework, we are doing the service marketing mix, three additional variables are also there- People, Physical Evidence and Process are included to produce a 7Ps mix. Based on the above stated seven factors we are attempting to do the Marketing Mix of the Indian Premier League (IPL) in our coursework. While non-cricketing attributes that matter in IPL, the success is mainly relying on the core competencies of cricket players. Always a new business model is understood to mean a value proposition which is offered to the market as the revenue sources or targeted consumer segments. The key elements are: Matches customer needs Effective Marketing Mix Well Blended Creates competitive advantage Matches Corporate Resources Fig No 1: Hallmarks of an effective Marketing Mix (Jobber 2010: 20) PRODUCT The Indian Premier League (IPL) is a service that used to meet the needs of the spectators, because product is not to be necessarily an object it can be related to services, ideas and some situations it can even relates to the people and place also. Physical products can be tangible but pure services are intangible. This means the customers suffer high risk in their decision making and three elements of extended marketing mix are important to influence the customer of service quality. A product can be defined as anything that satisfies a want or need through use, consumption or acquisition John 2010:250 The Indian Premier League is an International brand which is implemented by the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI).The IPL consists of eight different teams which is located in some of the Indias biggest cities. The IPL is the Twenty20 (20 overs per team) tournament contested between this eight Indian city franchises. When we take IPL as a business rather than a game then IPL is the product or service the assets are the players of these teams and the market is the spectators and the television audience. Revenues can be generated from different ways like entry ticket, stadium advertising, player endorsements and television rights. The change that happened to the cricket in the recent years is the establishment and success of the IPL. The tournament consists of around 60 matches and team consists of international and domestic players as well as new players. The first season began in April 2008 in India. The second was moved to South Africa because of security concerns due to the Indian general elections. The concept of the Indian Premier League (IPL) has been accepted by International Cricket Council (ICC). As Indian Premier League (IPL) was created by BCCI particularly by Lalit Modi IPL Commissioner and vice president of BCCI modelled on the basis of English Football Premier League, which clearly stated the power of BCCI over Indian Cricket. The huge success of the second season in South Africa shows that the location is only secondary stage to entertainment value. IPL has rather made big changes in Indias socio economic path. The important point is that IPL has made the level of professionalism which was not seen before in BCCI. BRAND IPL is a service of its kind which has made its own image in marketing prospective globally in entertainment service. The brand name of a service can also influence the perception of a service. The characteristics of a successful brand name are distinctiveness, relevance, memorability and flexibility Jobber 2010:841 The UK based brand consultancy, brand finance has valued IPL at $4.2billion in 2010.It has valued $2.01billion in 2009 by the same consultancy. The eight franchises was also being part of this growth. The London Times reported that all but Kings XI Punjab made a profit in the first season. Rank Franchise Brand Value 1 Chennai Super Kings $ 48.4m 2 Kolkata Knight Riders $ 46m 3 Rajasthan Royals $ 45.2m 4 Royal Challengers Bangalore $ 41.9m 5 Mumbai Indians $ 40.8m 6 Delhi Daredevils $ 40.5m 7 Kings XI Punjab $ 36.1m 8 Deccan Chargers $ 34.4m PLC Reasons for the success of IPL The main reason for the success of the IPL was demand. The fan base determines demand and this made the revenues, profits and the franchise values. The IPL was financially viable because of the entertainment that is packaged, markets and sale was fulfilling the fans demand. Product Market The service market establishes the different ways on the basis of business marketing concepts. As far as IPL is concerned the interest will depend upon the level of competition in the league. That is based upon the interest of BCCI, to make sure the level of competition which sustains the demand and determines the long term liability of the league. The level of competition depends upon the number of teams in the league, the structure of the league system versus a single tier system number of matches in a season, end of season, play offs and tournaments, salary caps and the free agency. Customer function dimension: This involves the benefits that are provided to satisfy the needs of organisational buyers (Thomas 2010: 220). In IPL the franchises are engaging in activities that strengths the demand generating fan base. They made themselves financially viable by implementing brand value maximising decisions to make what viewers need from the IPL matches and how they are imperative to increase their franchise value. IPL matches are widened their viewer base attracted a number of women and children. Technology based dimension: There are alternative ways to perform a particular function (Thomas 2010:220). At a technical level based on Packers World Series Cup (WSC), IPL has scheduled every matches in evening and night, more camera angles, video replays, best commentary teams and onscreen statistics on an impressive way. It improved television coverage, sponsorships and marketing. Value Added system dimension: Competitors serving the market can operate a long sequence of stages (Thomas 2010: 220). In IPL the paying capacity will defer for different spectators. The franchises are recognising this and the price is changing according to the fans willingness to pay made a huge impact in the revenues. As an example, decision regarding seat allocation in the stadium daily tickets versus season tickets versus box seats and pricing of seats in the various sections of the stadium by a good understanding and consumer behaviour. PRICE Price is basically the odd one out of the marketing mix as it is the revenue earner, when compared to the rest of the three elements of the marketing mix (Product, Promotion Place) which are costs. Price is a really important element of the marketing mix as it drives the product to the customers vicinity. (Jobber 2004: 376). Price is a key marketing tool for various reasons, it is difficult to evaluate a service before purchase there price may act as an indicator of quality and creative pricing can help for smooth demand (controlling demand). IPL has made contracts with different private sector and nationalised banks for selling the tickets through them, by this they can reach to the public quite easily. The IPL has generated the income through different ways. The auction for the eight franchises fetched $723.59million in 2008.On 2010 there was auction for two more teams which fetched $703million and the teams has spent $650.4 for bidding the players . IPL got the deal with DLF, Indias largest construction firm for $200 million for the title sponsor IPL signed up Kingfisher Airlines as the official umpire partner for a series at $ 24.06 million. The deal was the umpire uniforms will be of Kingfisher brand and also on the giant screen on the third umpire decision. IPL has made a contract with India Sony Entertainment television and Singapore based World Sport Group (WSG) for the global broadcasting rights on a record deal of $1.97billion for ten years including 2017 IPL season on 15th Jan 2008 Demand curve graph Whatever the amount collected 20% of these proceeds would go to IPL, 8% as prize money and 72% would be distributed to the franchises. After the first successful first season in 2008 the second season which was held at South Africa proved that this league has shaken the sport at an international level, showed the shift of power from the developed world to emerging economy like India. The auction process showed that commercial values were not the same as cricketing values. The creation of the IPL has resulted in an instant windfall for BCCI with the league signing up deals worth over $1.749billion in terms of broadcast right, franchise sales and sponsorships .The 64% of the revenue generated through all broadcasting and sponsorship will go to franchises and as guaranteed the franchises get 80%of television revenue in first two years declining to 50% in the third year. To add this they receive 60 %of central sponsorship for the first 10 years and 50% thereafter. This is because the league wants to maximise the value of team owners. Sponsorship has played a critical role in IPL to make the other companies in Indian market to make deals with either team or individual players to promote the brand to the public. When the league was shifted to South Africa, to maintain revenues, team owners and co-sponsors came up with innovative ideas to make presence of IPL in Indian and South African markets. As an example the UB Group owner of the (Royal Challenger Bangalore) announced special travel packages on Kingfisher Airlines (an international airline owned by UB Group) for Indians heading to South Africa to watch the tournament. PROMOTION The intangible element of any service is difficult to communicate. Promotion is the most essential part of the organisation which helped to communicate to the world about the service. There are different ways for promoting a service. Advertising Any kind of promotional activity that has been paid by the company, but the company is not directly involved can be termed as advertising. The sources for that kind of promotions are newspaper, television, radio etc. The advantages of these kind of promotions are that you get support from the people who know about what customers like to see read and hear. The benefit of this is you dont need to put extra effort to promote by yourself. As newspaper, television and radio are commonly accepted for their widespread network in the advertisement field so that it will reach to most of its customers. The drawback for this kind of advertising is that the lack of customer interaction. They will be telecasting different advertisements on all the channels in every ad break throughout the day so that it will help the people to remember about it. Television Advertisement (Ref: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dBBIrcKBMWkNR=1feature=fvwp) Public Relations In public relations word of mouth plays an important role to success for services because of their experiential nature. Viral communications-sometimes called electronic word of mouth is been effectively used to promote IPL Online Promotion The new media like online promotion can also be used to promote services. Indian Premier League (IPL) use targeted emails to encourage customers. IPL will be sending online advertisements to keep reminding about the dates of the matches .The sponsors will also be telecasting there advertisements on the basis of IPL and promoting the merchandisers Social Media Environments IPL is making a very good social media environment like Facebook and twitter very well to interact with the individuals. This will help to get the feedback which can be taken as a suggestion. Through Facebook and twitter IPL is updating the match reviews and live scores so that it can be beneficial those who doesnt have access to the television. In 2010 IPL has made a successful venture to keep live streaming in social networking site You Tube (www.youtube.com/t20) PLACE PEOPLE As far IPL is concerned the market comprises spectators and the television audience. The IPL can be said as a step for globalisation of cricket from India. It can appeal to market as diverse as Europe, Japan, Malaysia US. Around 20million Asian and Caribbean fan base migrants are in North America. China is one of the other potential market of interest which made a recent interest to participate in the 2019 cricket world cup by the Chinese authorities.IPL is expanding the cricket viewership. The principle form of change in the success of IPL is geography and innovation. The Asian sub-continent which consists of top of ten cricket playing nations is India, Pakistan, Sri Lanka Bangladesh. Therefore it provides largest audience for cricket. The Indian market alone is the worlds pay-television market, with almost 70million households subscribing to sports channels. In 2010 the third season has been attracted to 200million viewers in India alone. That compares with a global audience of 4 50million of the last FIFA world cup. When people enjoy their work it is clear from their body language and the tone of their voice. They give of positive messages about their employer and will go the extra mile for their clients too. The company brand enjoys a very real boost as a result. Ross Urquhart, MD of RPM (Jobber 2010: 846). During the off season the interest in IPL format is being sustained by creation of trade window, during which players can be traded between franchises. Research by the IPL suggest that 70% of those attending a match having never been to one before. From this 70% around 90% of this people went to more matches. PHYSICAL EVIDENCE It is an environment in which the service is delivered in IPL, venues are the environment in which games performs. A very well organised opening and closing ceremonies will be conducted where it will be performed by world class performers and a spectacular laser show will be a centre of attraction. All the franchises have the cheer leaders to support their team throughout the match progresses. In an attempt to emulate the American Sports teams one of the franchises even imported cheerleaders from Washington Redskins. PROCESS It is a procedure, mechanisms and flow of mechanisms by which a service is acquired (Jobber 2010: 846). A good marketing means it has to happen in all the levels from marketing department to where its service is provided. IPL is providing a good spectacular event for all the spectators even in television as well as live. They have scheduled the matches in prime time so that it is good time for the targeted customers. The major key for the long term success of IPL is that rearing of the solid fan base. They can provide a cost effected entertainment demanded by the fans. Team composition should be reflecting the demand of fans. They can add celebrity players, local players, foreign players, hard hitters, all-rounders as well. The spectators will analyse the team on basis of these factors and the price it is willing to pay. Even they can make use of this social networking websites to get more supporters for their own teams in the matches.

Thursday, September 19, 2019

Welfare Reform: Temporary Assistance for Needy Families Legislation Ess

In August 1996, the Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act (PRWORA) passed. This legislation ended the Family Aid with Dependent Children (AFDC) and replaced it with Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF). Unlike AFDC, TANF is not an entitlement program. This means that states are under no obligation to provide cash assistance to eligible families. Instead the federal government gives block grants to assist poor families with the emphasis on moving them from welfare to work or deterring them from applying for welfare in the first place. States are no longer obligated to match federal funds, creating an incentive to eliminate their previous portion of the funding for critical programs. Now due to less funding and no standard rules or regulations in place, thousands of families never find out that they still qualify for health insurance, childcare or food stamps. ?By eliminating the whole architecture of the old entitlement program, the federal government eliminated a lot of the existing protections for people? (Cahn pg. 1997). A recent study found, 60 percent of former welfare recipients in South Carolina did not know a parent could get transitional Medicaid, and nine states have no outreach efforts to inform parents that they were still entitled to receive childcare assistance after welfare benefits were closed (Sherman, Amey, Duffield, Ebb, & Weinstein, 1998). By denying or reducing coverage the state creates surplus (left over) funds that they are allowed to be used in other programs. Some states even went further using part of its welfare surplus to fund tax cuts for the middle class (Rose 2000). This new popular movement is in contrary to the original purpose of programs like TA... ...households (Sherman et al., 1998). This non-profit investigation recommended Bibliography: Cahn, Naomi, R. 1997. Representing race outside of explicitly racialized contexts. Michigan Law Review. 95 (February):965-1004. Gilens, Martin. 1996. ?Race Coding? and white opposition to welfare. American Political Science Review. 90 (September):593-612. Rose, Nancy E. 2000. Scapegoating Poor Women: An Analysis of Welfare Reform. Journal of Economic Issues. 34 (March):143 Sherman, Arloc, Cheryl Amey, Barbara Duffield, Nancy Ebb, and Deborah Weinstein. Welfare to What: Early Findings on Family Hardship and Well-Being. Washington, D.C.: Children?s Defense Fund and National Coalition for the Homelessness, November 1988. U.S. Bureau of the Census. 1993. Statistical Abstract of the United States: 1993. Washington, DC: U.S. Government Printing Office.

Wednesday, September 18, 2019

The Creation of Barbie as an American Icon Essay -- Exploratory Essays

The Creation of Barbie as an American Icon Barbie, at the age of 41, is one of the longest living toys in America. Analyzing her early history can give a person a look into the societal trends and culture of the late 1950's and early 1960's. There is evidence of fashion innovations in Barbie's wardrobe. Also, one can see the perception of females by society, such as what they should look like, how they should act and dress, as well as what their future goals could be. The following essay follows Barbie's history from 1959 to 1963, covering her development, her appeal to children, and her existence as a cultural artifact of the time period. History: Barbie's Debut in 1959 In February of 1959, Barbie was first introduced at the American International Toy Fair in New York (Barbie Dolls). Her creators, Ruth and Elliot Handler (co-founders of Mattel) modeled Barbie after the German doll known as Lilli. Lilli began as a cartoon character in a daily newspaper called the Bild-Zeitung (BillyBoy 19). This character, known for her large breasts and sexy clothing, was created for adult entertainment "a symbol of sex and pornography for the men of Germany" (Johnson "History"). Handler discovered Lilli while shopping in Switzerland and brought the doll home for her daughter to play with. Ruth was inspired to create an adult doll for little girls. Handler had Jack Ryan, executive of Mattel, purchase the rights for Lilli and negotiate with a company from Tokyo to create a doll like Lilli. The reason for going overseas was in order to create an inexpensive new doll. American male designers told Handler that it would be impossible to make such a doll (with stylish clothing and accessories) for an affordable price. The new doll had a s... ...Barbie's Effects on American Suburban Culture. (6 March 2000) http://www.otal.umd.edu/~vg/mssp96/ms07/cult.htm Johnson, Kristi. Evaluation. (7 March 2000) http://www.otal.umd.edu/~vg/mssp96/ms07/eval.htm Johnson, Kristi. History. (6 March 2000) http://www.otal.umd.edu/~vg/mssp96/ms07/hist.htm Kehoe, John. "Barbie." Biography 2.12 Dec. 1998. (28 Feb. 2000) http://www.ebsco.com Lord, M.G. Forever Barbie. William Morrow and Co.: New York, 1994. Origin of Barbie. (6 March 2000) http://www.nondairy.com/People/Raven/Barbie.html Riddick, Kristin. Introduction. (6 March 2000) http://www.people.virginia.edu/~tsawyer/barbie/barb1.html Weiss, Michael. Toys Were Us. (7 March 2000) http://www.discovery.com/stories/history/toys/BARBIE/shoulda.html 40 Years with Barbie. (29 Feb. 2000) http://www.barbie.com/40th_Anniv/40Years/1959.asp

Tuesday, September 17, 2019

The Opportunities for Excellence :: Philosophy of Teaching Education Essays

The Opportunities for Excellence Like many other students in the public school system, I had my share of â€Å"good† teachers and â€Å"bad† teachers, but I learned valuable things from each of them: from the â€Å"good† teachers, inspiration to enter education and how to be a good teacher, from the â€Å"bad† teachers, if nothing else, what not to be. As important as education is to children’s success in life, they should have as many positive influences as possible. I will strive to be the best teacher I can be, not only to be marked as one of the â€Å"good†, but one of the â€Å"great† teachers of education. As a student, I found the â€Å"good† teachers to be those that went the extra mile to help children fulfill individual interests. Sponsorship of clubs and organizations, home visits, etc. have been traditional methods of supplementing education, but computers and the Internet have given rise to many new avenues, such as e-mail correspondence and more powerful, contemporary research information. Recent coordination of colleges and high schools has also provided students interested in attending college the opportunity to advance their pursuits in continued education by allowing them to correlate their high school classes with the college curriculum for dual credit. I will use these tools, along with many others, to heighten the educational experience for my students. I also recall my â€Å"good† teachers as moral role models. Their upstanding character, fairness and general nature were reflected in their students, as will the traits of future teachers for many years to come. Also, the trend continues for children to have less and less influence at home, be it due to non-traditional families, both parents working, etc. Even more, a greater diversity of classroom ethnicity introduces a broader set of values, and further challenges teachers to be open to other cultures. They are also given the responsibility of enculturation, conveying the appreciation of other cultures to their students. This can amount to as little as contribution and additive methods, appending other cultures’ ideas into core philosophy, to as much as transformation or social action, integrating other cultures into the curriculum as part of the norm. All of these factors leave a greater weight of shaping children’s mindset on teachers. As an upcoming educator, I feel a great responsibility to maintain respectability and general good character as a positive example for my students.

Honour & Shame Essay

One Sunday morning I was driving my children back from their regular soccer game. It was a warm summer day, sun shining ever so brightly, making the uneven town picturesque. As I drove along in my Holden with rigid brown seats and the windscreen wipers that didn’t work, I looked over to my sixteen year old daughter sitting next to menodding and shaking her head rhythmically to, in her words, ‘legendary’ music band One Direction. An image of Asreen flashed through my mind†¦ †¦Ã¢â‚¬Å"Kiran?† the voice on my mobile phone was barely more than a whisper. â€Å"Kiran? Is that you?† .The train ride back home was a typical for Friday eveningIt was very busy Friday evening train ride back from work, â€Å"Are you able to speak up a little?† I asked, raising my own voice overagainst loud chatterschatters from fellow passengers and rattling noise from the train. â€Å"I found your number in Indus Age, My – † the line went suddenly went dead. Indus Age is a local monthly newspaper. iIt has largest circulation to Indian and South East Asian community in the country. I was interviewed a week ago concerning about my plight with honour based violence. After two years of lengthy legal proceeding over evidence of injury which included tampered medical records I managed to get a divorce. I was sure that such crimeshonour based violence against women was prevalent and practiced behind closed doors, after my divorce I wanted to assist other women in similar situation and have my phone number published in the newspaper. I thought I lost her but then, few minutes later, she was back. â€Å"Sorry I had to hang up I thought someone was coming. My parents are forcing me to marry a 35 year old man who I don’t even know. I am a prisoner in my own house. I can’t take it any longer. I need help.† She stopped for breath. â€Å"Please help me,† she said in a trembling voice. She sounded frantic; it seemed that she was at the mercy of her family. I didn’t know who I was talking to but I knew I had to help. I spoke quickly, â€Å"Can you get out? There are all sorts of help available if you can get out.† I knew from my own experience that if a girl has made up her mind to run she usually finds a way to do it. This woman could be anywhere in the country but she was desperate and I had to reassure her. â€Å"There is help for you,.† I said. â€Å"There are women refuge houses, people to support. I would support you. You’ll be okay.† â€Å"But how†¦Wait, that’s Dad. He’s coming. I have to go† Her phone went dead. I felt anxiousiety, my pulse shot up as I tried as best I could to get on with my daily household choresroutine and parental responsibilities. Later in thethat evening while I was preparing dinner my phone rang again. I tried hard to understand but couldn’t make out anything except the gasping sound panting. I turned off my range-hood and enquired, â€Å"Hello?† â€Å"It’s me, Asreen,† she spoke, her voice penetrating as if she was right next to me. â€Å"I did it, I ran away† â€Å"Where are you?† â€Å"Redfern.† â€Å"Asreen, you have to call the police. DailDial 000† I had put my phone on speaker as I washed my hands. â€Å"No, I don’t want police. My family will never see me again. My community will disown me,† she said claimed almost hysterical. I could imagine why Asreen didn’t want police to be involved. She was in a state of fear and frustration. Her parents who loved her dearly until very recently changed overnight and now consider family’s honour more important than that of their daughter’s well-being and happiness. â€Å"Meet me at Redfern railway station in 45 minutes,.† I said cleaning up my kitchen. â€Å"Please don’t be late,.† she hung up. I called on my children and explained them that I need to go out on an emergency. I drove as fast as I could past the motorway speeding up to maximum limit. I reached Redfern at 8 p.m. it was crowded, people pushing one another to get ahead in line. Few country trains hurried past while the intercity trains stopped at the platform for passengerss dark and deserted. I walked across the automatic ticket machine to find myself staring at a tall slim woman leaning against the closed door humming what I could understand a very popular song. from Justin Beiber. She looked no more than sixteen dressed in a traditional outfit her head was covered in a veil. I caught her eye and she smiled and then waved at me. â€Å"Kiran,† she said enthusiastically. â€Å"Yes.† I walked closer I could see her eyes swollen lips dried smeared make up over her face. I offered her a bottle of water and walked with her to my car. No one spoke, the two minute walk felt like an eternity. Breaking the silence she spoke softly, â€Å"Thank – thank you Kiran. You saved my life. I read your story and only after I spoke to you I found courage to leave my house.† I didn’t know what to say, I was in a state of shock. I felt rage I could barely focus on my driving I wanted to say something. Asreen continued, â€Å"There were bolts on all doors and someone from the family was always home. I didn’t know how to get out. And if I did, where would I go?† We talked about family, food, school, fashion and many other issues on our way back. We talked as if we were best friends and had known each other for many years. I introduced Asreen to my children Maya and Vicky and offered her rice and lamb curry for dinner. It was close to midnight she looked very tired and fell asleep as soon as she sat on the lounge. I imagined her situation; it was her mother who arranged her marriage. She grew up knowing that one day the subject of her marriage would come up but didn’t expect it when she was sixteen. She was one of the smartest girls in her school; she wanted to become a psychiatrist. One day when her parents woke her up and told her that she was going to get engaged Asreen said bluntly, â€Å"But I don’t want to.† For the next few days I enquired at women’s refuge centre, department of community services, legal aid and other community based organisations. What followed was another court proceeding lasting more than 12 weeks. I became Asreen’s foster parent while she continued her education. Later that year Asreen and I started Honour to help other women from South East Asian family facing honour based violenceI sat next to her contemplating on the events of the day. I wanted to help Asreen and reach out to other women in similar situations confronting criticism and oppression from inside their communities and often close family members for not being obedient to the traditional rules set by men for thousands of years. â€Å"Are you alright?† Asreen said waking up suddenly. I realised that I accidentally dropped my glass on the wooden floor breaking it into pieces. â€Å"Why can’t I live like any other sixteen year old girls? Why can’t I have boy-friends like girls from my school?† she cried while cleaning up broken pieces of glass. It was close to two, I was so exhausted I could barely feel any strength in my legs. I could hear Asreen’s voice slowly fading away. With my eyes closed I tried to seek explanation for such acts against own daughter. The issue of status of women is always in question in a patriarchal society. For thousands of years people from Indian sub-continent had considered daughter a painful burden, a potential source of shame to her father. Family is vital principal group and marriage hallowed as sacred. Women are deprived of their freedom and those who rebel or go against the norms faces threat the people of the community so much so that they are even killed for honour. †¦perhaps this comes out as it makes it like a newspaper article, not a narrative. †¦ As we arrived home I hugged my daughter tightly and said with tears running down my cheeks, â€Å"I love you.† The time frame here doesn;’t work, you’ve already taken the story on years but now go back to the present†¦

Monday, September 16, 2019

Reading Skills Essay

Introduction Reading is a complex cognitive process of decoding symbols in order to construct or derive meaning (reading comprehension). It is a means of language acquisition, of communication, and of sharing information and ideas. Like all language, it is a complex interaction between the text and the reader which is shaped by the reader’s prior knowledge, experiences, attitude, and language community which is culturally and socially situated. The reading process requires continuous practice, development, and refinement. Readers use a variety of reading strategies to assist with decoding (to translate symbols into sounds or visual representations of speech) and comprehension. Readers integrate the words they have read into their existing framework of knowledge or schema. Reading is a process very much determined by what the reader’s brain and emotions and beliefs bring to the reading; the knowledge/information (or misinformation) strategies for processing text, moods, fears and joys—all of it. The strategies one uses  vary according to one’s purpose, including whether one is reading for oneself only (still the purposes vary) or for somebody else, such as reading to answer comprehension questions, reading to perform for listeners (including the teacher and classmates), and much more. Of course these social factors may generate confidence, fear, anger, defiance, and/or other emotions—it just depends. In sum, reading is both a psycholinguistic process (involving the mind actively processing the text) and a sociolinguistic one (with multiple social factors that can affect how one reads, how much one gleans from the reading, and more). Even word identification itself can be affected by these factors, because reading is as much or more a brain-to-text process as a text-to-brain process. For strong readers, the reading process may take only milliseconds. For beginning readers the process may be slower, yet rewarding, and over time will become automatic. For readers who are challenged, this process can be tiresome and frustrating. 2 Importance of Reading Process It is a well-known fact that when there were no televisions or computers, reading was a primary leisure activity. People would spend hours reading books and travel to lands far away-in their minds. The only tragedy is that, with time, people have lost their skill and passion to read. There are many other exciting and thrilling options available, aside from books. And that is a shame because reading offers a productive approach to improving vocabulary and word power. It is advisable to indulge in at least half an hour of reading a day to keep abreast of the various styles of writing and new vocabulary. It is observed that children and teenagers who love reading have comparatively higher IQs. They are more creative and do better in school and college. It is recommended that parents to inculcate the importance of reading to their children in the early years. Reading is said to significantly help in developing vocabulary, and reading aloud helps to build a strong emotional bond between parents and children. The children who start reading from an early age are observed to have good language skills, and they grasp the variances in phonics much better. Reading helps in mental development and is known to stimulate the muscles of the eyes. Reading is an activity that involves greater levels of concentration and adds to the conversational skills of the reader. It is an indulgence that enhances the knowledge acquired, consistently. The habit of reading also helps readers to decipher new words and phrases that they come across in everyday conversations. The habit can become a healthy addiction and adds to the information available on various topics. It helps us to stay in-touch with contemporary writers as well as those from the days of yore and makes us sensitive to global issues. Fluent reading: During the reading process, there is interplay between the reader’s preexisting knowledge and the written content. Fluent reading is an active process in which the reader calls on experience, language, and prior knowledge to anticipate and understand the author’s written language. Thus, readers both bring meaning to print and take meaning from print. The nature of the reading process alters as person matures in reading. In the early stages of reading, word identification requires a reader’s concentration. Eventually, however, readers are able to use their reading ability (ability to interpret written language) for pleasure, appreciation, knowledge acquisition, and functional purposes. Thus, reading competence has many faces. Proficient, fluent readers locate materials and ideas that enable them to fulfill particular purposes, which may be to follow directions, to complete job applications, or to appreciate Shakespearean plays. In addition, fluent readers adjust their reading style as they move from narrative to expository content. 3 Three Stages of Reading: In order to achieve your goals regarding flexible and fluent reading, you must learn certain reading behaviors and then practice them until they become automatic. We call this practicing to the point of automaticity. In this way you will learn to increase your reading rate, maintain your focus and concentration, and enhance your comprehension. Reading process organizes itself most naturally into an examination of three phases: * Pre-reading. * Active reading . * Post-reading. * Pre-reading: It involves following functions: * Get the big picture – overview skimming * Identify the main idea/thesis. * Read headings and sub-headings * Read captions accompanying pictures/graphics * Active Reading: * Think as one reads; read for ideas and concepts. * Visualize patterns. * Actively construct meaning. * Anticipate upcoming information. * Verify the main idea and identify significant details. * Consciously add to or modify schema integrating old and new knowledge. * Self-monitor; assess one’s understanding. * Evaluate comprehension. * Employ fix-up strategies as appropriate. * Post Reading: * Evaluate understanding/ comprehension * Evaluate one’s reading processing. * Did one choose an appropriate mode? * What changes do one needs to make in his/her reading? * What did one do well that he/she wants to repeat in future reading? 4 Types of Reading Following are the types of reading: * Scanning type of reading * Skimming type of reading * Light type of reading * Word by word type reading * Reading to study type of reading * Sub-vocalization †¢ Scanning Type of Reading: This type of reading involves running the eyes over quickly, to get the gist. For example, scanning a telephone book: * You are looking for it quickly. * You know what you are searching for (key words and names). * You ‘see’ every item on the page, but you don’t necessarily read the pages – you ignore anything you are not looking for. Thus, when you discover the key words being searched for, you will be unable to recall the exact content of the page †¢ Skimming Type of Reading: When you read quickly to gain a general impression as to whether the text is of use to you. You are not necessarily searching for a specific item and key words. Skimming provides an ‘overview’ of the text. Skimming is useful to look at chapter/section headings, summaries and opening paragraphs. Looking over the text quickly to get a general idea of the content. Your eyes move quite fast, taking in titles of chapters, their beginnings and ends, and the first sentences of paragraphs. The purpose of skimming: * To check relevance of text. * Sets the scene for the more concentrated effort that is to follow, if the text is useful. †¢ Light Type of Reading: Reading for leisure tends to be ‘light’. For example: * Read at a pace which feels comfortable. * Read with understand. * Skim the boring, irrelevant passages. 5 An average light reading speed is 100-200 words per minute. This form of reading does not generally require detailed concentration. This is reading fairly quickly without concentrating too hard or worrying about every single word. We often use it when reading an enjoyable novel. †¢ Word by word Type of Reading: This type of reading is time consuming and demands a high level of concentration. Some material is not readily understood and so requires a slow and careful analytical read. People use this type of reading for unfamiliar words and concepts, scientific formulae. It can take up to an hour just to read a few lines of text. †¢ Reading to Study Type of Reading: A method of reading for with the aim to understand the material in some depth. The method involves five simple steps; Survey, Question, Read, Recall and Review. Study reading involves thinking about what is being read so that it is understood and can be recalled. It needs to be worked at, with time for reflection, thought, analysis, criticism, comparison, notes made, points highlighted and emphasized, arguments followed and evaluated, the whole summarized. * Survey: skim through to gain an overview and not key points. * Question: devise questions you hope the text will answer. * Read: slowly and carefully. * Recall: from memory, write down the main points made by the chapter. * Review: revisit your questions – compare these to your recall and establish how well the text has answered them; fill in any gaps by further reading and note-taking. †¢ Sub-vocalization: This is reading very slowly and methodically, either saying the words out loud or at least with a ‘voice’ in your head. It is painstaking but very slow. We tend to use it when trying out a recipe for the first time, or carrying out instructions as to how to assemble something we’ve bought. 6. Reading Skills Reading involves a combination of skills used simultaneously. Children begin with basic phonics but soon learn fluency and comprehension skills to make their reading experiences meaningful. The main goal of reading understands. If students can pronounce words but do not understand what they are reading, they are merely reciting word. Some of the important reading skills are: * Decoding * Fluency * Comprehension * Critical reading skills †¢ Decoding Skills: Decoding (also known as Word attack skills) is an early reading skill students learn in kindergarten and first grade. Decoding (sounding out) words are the foundation of reading instruction. Phonics is the method teachers use to instruct students. Letter-naming and recognition is taught along with initial sounds. Children must understand that each letter is represented by a corresponding sound before they can read text. Once children know sounds, they learn to blend them into words. This skill, phoneme segmentation, should be practiced daily along with alphabet and sound fluency until decoding becomes an automatic procedure. †¢ Fluency Skills: Fluency is the ability to read accurately and expressively while maintaining a rate of speed that facilitates comprehension. Students learn fluency in a variety of ways. Teachers model fluent reading in the classroom, and students listen to books on CD. Students receive direct instruction in fluency through guided practice using methods like choral and repeated readings. Teachers assess fluency with timed readings that give a score in words read per minute. Students who fall below the average score for their grade level receive additional, individual help. †¢ Comprehension Skills: Comprehension is the ability to understand what has been read. Comprehending involves strategies that students learn to use when reading independently. Teachers focus on several key comprehension skills. These are inferring, predicting, comparing and contrasting, sequencing and summarizing. Students usually learn how to use these strategies in a small group guided by the teacher who demonstrates their use. Students then practice comprehension techniques with a partner by discussing what they read, making connections with prior knowledge and identifying the main ideas in the story. 7 †¢ Critical Reading Skills: Critical reading skills are the ability to analyze, evaluate, and synthesize what one reads. They are the ability to see relationships of ideas and use them as an aid in reading. As readers make sense of what they read, they use various relationships of ideas to aid recognition and fluency. Critical reading as a goal includes the ability to evaluate ideas socially or politically. 8 Reading Strategies Reading is not just pronouncing words—it requires understanding. Most experienced readers use a variety of strategies to understand texts. Reading strategies are used many times rapidly, in unison with one another. Therefore, most reading strategies are evident before, during, and after reading, although not necessarily with the same emphasis. Some of the reading strategies are: * Predicting * Connecting * Inferring * Synthesizing * Visualizing * Self-Questioning * Skimming * Scanning * Determining Importance * Summarizing/Paraphrasing * Re-reading * Reading On * Adjusting Reading Rate * Sounding Out * Chunking * Using Analogy * Consulting Reference The following descriptions of each strategy give some indication of when in the reading process they are generally employed. Different texts and different contexts require readers to use different reading strategies at different times. For example, â€Å"synthesizing† is used during and after reading while â€Å"scanning† is typically used before close reading. Here are the major reading strategies associated with the process of reading: * Predicting: Predicting helps readers to activate their prior knowledge about a topic, beginning the process of combining what they know with new material in the text. Predictions are not merely wild guesses, they are based on clues within the text such as pictures, illustrations, subtitles, and 9  plot. Clues for predictions will also come from readers’ prior knowledge about the author, text form, or content. Readers can be encouraged to make personal predictions before and during reading. During reading, effective readers adjust and refine their earlier predictions as new information is gathered and new connections are made. They tend to rehearse what they have learned and move on with some expectations of what comes next. * Connecting: Efficient readers comprehend text through making strong connections between their prior knowledge and the new information presented in text. The type of connections made by efficient readers can be categorized into: * Text-to-Self Connections: Involves readers thinking about their life and connecting their own personal experiences to the information in the text. * Text-to-Text Connections: Involves readers thinking about other texts written by the same author or with common themes, style, organization, structure, characters or content. * Text-to-World Connections: Involves readers thinking about what they know about the world outside their personal experience, their family, or their community * Inferring: Efficient readers take information from a text and add their own ideas to make inferences. During the process of inferring, readers make predictions, draw conclusions, and make judgments to create a unique interpretation of a text. Making inferences allows students to move beyond the literal text and to make assumptions about what is not precisely stated in the text. Efficient readers also can infer the meaning of unknown words using context clues, pictures, or diagrams. * Synthesizing: When comprehending text, efficient readers use synthesizing to bring together information within a text. Synthesizing involves readers piecing information together, like putting together a jigsaw. This activity encourages them to keep track of what is happening in the text. During the process of synthesizing, readers may be connecting, inferring, determining importance, posing questions, and creating images. * Visualizing: Efficient readers use all five senses to create images continually as they read text. The created images are based on their prior knowledge. Sensory images created by readers 10 help them to draw conclusions, make predictions, interpret information, remember details, and assist with overall comprehension. Images may be visual, auditory, olfactory, kinesthetic, or emotional. * Self-Questioning: Self-questioning is the strategy effective readers use to draw on existing knowledge, to investigate a text as it is read, to analyse the beliefs and motives behind the author’s surface meaning, and to monitor comprehension. Whether posed in-head, sub-vocalized or noted in writing, self-questioning is critical to maintaining connections between existing and new knowledge. Self-formulated questions provide a framework for active reading by directing the reader’s attention to key information. Efficient readers continually form questions in their minds before, during, and after reading to assist in comprehending text. Often these questions are formed spontaneously and naturally, with one question leading to the next. Questions may relate to the content, style, structure, important messages, events, actions, inferences, predictions, author’s purpose, or may be an attempt to clarify meaning. Self-formulated questions provide a framework for active reading, engaging readers in the text as they go in search of answers. * Skimming: Skimming is glancing through material to gain a general impression or overview of the content. It involves passing over much of the detail to get the gist of a text. Skimming is the most common strategy used by a reader to assess quickly whether a text is going to meet his or her purpose. Effective skimming lets a reader know in general terms how difficult a text is, how long it is, how it is structured, and where the most useful information can be found. Effective skimming strategies are critical for adolescents due to the volume of electronic text they read. Websites, CD ROMs, and multimedia texts are designed for, and subject to rapid reading practices where the reader gets the gist from sub-headings and key points, determines difficulty and usefulness, and assesses the content flow. Skimming is often used before reading to †¢ assess quickly whether a text is going to meet a purpose; †¢ determine what is to be read; †¢ determine what’s important and what may not be relevant; †¢ review text organization; †¢ activate prior knowledge. * Scanning: Scanning involves glancing through material to locate specific details such as names, dates, places, or some particular content. For instance, readers might scan a contents page or index to find the page number of a specific topic. They may scan a dictionary or telephone book in search of a particular word or name, or they may scan as they re-read 11 a text to substantiate particular responses. Like skimming, scanning is particularly important for comprehending selected parts of websites, CD ROMs, and multimedia texts. Readers may also scan a text looking for picture clues that may help them to identify any unknown words. * Determining Importance: Efficient readers constantly ask themselves what is most important or what the main idea is of what they are reading. They benefit from understanding how to determine the important information, particularly in informational texts. Factors such as purpose for reading, knowledge of topic, prior experiences, beliefs, and understanding of text organization help readers to identify important information in a text * Summarizing/Paraphrasing: Linked closely to the strategy of determining importance, summarizing/paraphrasing is the process of identifying, recording, and writing the most important information from a text into one’s own words. The ability to reduce a larger piece of text to its most important messages is done through summarizing. The re-statement of the text is referred to as paraphrasing. Summarizing/paraphrasing involves using key words and phrases to capture the general gist of a text. * Re-Reading: Efficient readers understand the benefits of re-reading whole texts or parts of texts to clarify or enhance meaning. Reading or hearing a text more than once benefits all readers, allowing them to gain a deeper understanding of the text. Re-reading can also be used as a word-identification strategy. Efficient readers sometimes re-read to work out the meaning of difficult words using context clues. The opportunity to re-read a text also helps to improve fluency * Reading On: When readers cannot decode an unfamiliar word within a text, they can make use of the â€Å"Reading On† strategy. Skipping the unfamiliar word and reading on to the end of the sentence or the next two or three sentences often provides the reader with sufficient context clues to help determine the unknown word. Once the unknown word has been determined it is important for students to re-read that section of text. â€Å"Reading On† also refers to continuing to read in an attempt to clarify meaning that may have been lost. * Adjusting Reading Rate: It is important that students give themselves permission to adjust their reading rate and to recognize when this may be necessary. The purpose for reading will often dictate the 12 most appropriate rate. Readers may slowdown to understand new information, to clarify meaning, to create sensory images, or to ask questions. Readers may also speed up when scanning for key words or skimming to get an overall impression of a text. * Sounding Out: When adolescents meet new and unfamiliar words, they will use their knowledge of letter/sound relationships to identify them. * Chunking: As readers encounter greater numbers of multi-syllabic words, it is important to encourage students to break words into units larger than individual phonemes or single sounds (/b/). Readers might chunk words by pronouncing word parts such as onset and rime (spr-ing), letter combinations (ough), syllables, or parts of the word known as morphemes which carry meaning (ed, ing). * Using Analogy: When readers manipulate or think about words they know in order to identify unknown words, they are using analogy. They transfer what they know about familiar words to help them identify unfamiliar words. When using analogy, students will transfer their knowledge of common letter sequences, onset and rimes, base words, word parts that carry meaning, or whole words. * Consulting Reference: The use of word-identification strategies such as â€Å"sounding out† or â€Å"chunking† may unlock both the pronunciation and meaning of words. However, if the word is not in a reader’s meaning vocabulary, the reader may not be able to understand the meaning of the word. Consulting a reference is an additional strategy that supports students to unlock word meaning. Being taught how to use a dictionary, thesaurus, reference chart, or glossary will help students locate the meanings, pronunciations, or derivations of unfamiliar words. 13 Conclusion: As the discussed topics demonstrate, the process of reading for meaning has bottom-line commonalities. Among these, perhaps oddly, is that at any given moment, one cannot reliably predict what a reader will do next. Eric Paulson (2005) has drawn an analogy between eye movements and the weather, both of which can be described in terms of chaos theory in physics, he argues, but neither of which is exactly predictable. And he writes: â€Å"When looked at through the lens of chaos theory, reading is clearly not a process of plodding along the text at some regular, predetermined rate but is instead a process that ebbs and flows† (p. 355). We set our purposes (or not), begin to read, perhaps question what we are reading, maybe return and reread, sometimes read ahead, go back again, maybe skim or skip some, occasionally decide not to finish reading whatever it is, maybe go ahead and read at least the headings (of an informational selection) and the conclusion, or  the final chapter or page (if a novel or short story)—all the while using strategies that are universal among proficient readers, but uniquely applied. Metaphorically, during any reading event, reading ebbs and flows, like waves. We might think of waves crashing upon the beach as meaning achieved (and perhaps examined critically), the end product of reading a stretch of text. But with such achievement, the reader is simultaneously and near simultaneously processing other parts or aspects of text and the ideas in ways that are unpredictable at the micro level. This is akin to what we often see on a beach: different waves, and different aspects of the reading process, forming, swelling, cresting, crashing, and ebbing. While one part of the reading process and event crashes and ebbs—with something processed into short- or even long-term memory, perhaps—other facets of the process are just beginning again, increasing, coming to a head, collapsing into memory (or not), and receding from the reader’s immediate attention. Yes, while I often speak of the reading process, as if this cognitive and constructive process were totally uniform, during any given reading event, whoever the Although, reading means different things to different people and skills vary with every individual, reading is a skill that can be improved. Students from various backgrounds are in reading courses for a variety of reasons. Weaknesses in vocabulary, comprehension, speed, or a combination of all three may be the result of ineffective reading habits. Active reading is engaged reading and can be achieved through comprehension regulation strategies. We should never take reading for granted, for many, these skills come slowly and with a great deal of difficulty. It is important to use a multi-sensory approach whenever possible, some memory training, tap into previous knowledge before moving forward and make it meaningful. 14 References * http://en. wikipedia. org * http://www. heinemann. com * http://www. palomar. edu * http://ababasoft. com * http://www. scribd. com * http://www. sil. org * http://www. ehow. com * http://www. stepspd. com * http://www. palomar. edu.

Sunday, September 15, 2019

Personal Learning Profile Essay

B. How I Use First, Use as Needed, or Avoid Sequence (Write a paragraph of four to five sentences describing the degree to which you use this Pattern.) Sequence is a routine of my life, I use it lot weather it is good or bad. I feel the need to follow a plan. I also need to have a clear explanation of what I’m expected to do. At work I am usually the one that needs to write out a plan of how am going to execute it before doing so than follow up with consist review of instruction to make sure accurate. These sometimes becomes very time consuming as I am always needing more time to ensure I get things done right the first time around. I cannot relax or focus on other things when everything is in chaotic. I feel  cutter anything equals to clutter mind. Being organized is one step I think necessary in becoming a successful student. C. How I Use First, Use as Needed, or Avoid Precision (Write a paragraph of four to five sentences describing the degree to which you use this Pattern.) Precision another pattern I use first. I tend to have the need to have the correct information. I do not like making mistakes and I ask a lot of questions in order to obtain more information. I like it when I am given detailed answers about what is going on. I with anything give to me I immediately jumped onto the internet to search for additional information to learn and better understand. In school tend to the most because of learning disability it has driven me to always not want to make mistakes and if I can avoid it by asking questions that will give me the information why not. D. How I Use First, Use as Needed, or Avoid Technical Reasoning (Write a paragraph of four to five sentences describing the degree to which you use this Pattern.) Technical reasoning I use as needed to figure things out alone but do not avoid interactions with others. I do not like people to tell me how to do things or how to fix it. I like to figure it out myself if gives me a sense of accomplishment. I would say that I am pretty good with figuring out most things and will navigate through it until; I have learned how to use it. How I Use First, Use as Needed, or Avoid Confluence (Write a paragraph of four to five sentences describing the degree to which you use this Pattern.) I use Confluence as needed ad I like exploring new things, new ideas, and new places. When it comes down to it I like to do new things it excites me and interest me .I like to learn more and that is just in everyday life whether it be a new way to cook something or visiting new places. I am not a big risk taker though. I will only take risk when the outcome outweighs it. I function with rely of being in certain pattern and schedule.