“a Rose for Emily, ” “Young Goodman Brown” and “Good Country People, ”

Isolation: Loneliness from Society The time moves on for all people. If we cannot come to terms with that, bad things can happen. A short story, â€Å"A Rose for Emil,† by William Faulkner, was first published on April 30, 1930. William Cuthbert Faulkner was born in New Albany, Mississippi, on September 25, 1897. He is one of the greatest writers in America and obtained Nobel Prize laureate. As he grew up in New Albany, Mississippi, the Southern society influenced to him.Through his works such a Sartoris (book, 1931), The Sound and The Fury (1929), As I Lay Dying (poem, 1930), The Sanctuary (1931), and A Famle (1954), he depicted chronologically the decaying Southern society. In other words, he mainly pointed out the vice of the southern high society and the pursuit to create the universal humanity. (Meyer 83) Nathaniel Hawthorne, an America author of â€Å"Young Goodman Brown,† born on July 4, 1804, in Salem, Massachusetts, grew up in a very strict Puritan family, whic h is where his inspiration came from.In addition, in most of Hawthorne's short stories, he developed the stories in similar settings in time and characters. The author described that time setting is the seventeenth century in New England, especially, Salem, his hometown. Even though he criticized the Puritanism, he was fully a Puritan. â€Å"Good Country People† is a short story written by Flannery O'Connor. Born in Savannah, Georgia, on March 25, 1925, Mary Flannery O'Connor was a female southern writer who wrote two novels and thirty-two short stories that are mainly in Southern Gothic style and relied heavily on regional setting and grotesque characters (Ditsky 3).Flannery O`Connor`s short stories mainly centers around the author`s characteristics as a Southern writer and her treatment of religious themes based on her Catholicism set in the Protestant South. These authors, William Faulkner, Nathaniel Hawthorne and Flannery O’Conner, had common critical perspectives in religion and region, and they developed the stories in similar tones. In the stories: â€Å"A Rose for Emily,† â€Å"Young Goodman Brown† and â€Å"Good Country People,† all of the main characters experience isolation from the society. To begin, William Faulkner's â€Å"A rose for Emily† shows the reader about lonely woman.Emily, the protagonist, has fallen down the social ladder and cannot recognize that time is moving forward, meaning that everything is changing. In her funeral, the beginning of the story from â€Å"No one save an old manservant – a combined gardener and cook-† had seen in at least ten years (Faulkner 84). Nobody has been to her house in ten years, except for her servant. This sets the framework for Emily's isolation in life by beginning with her funeral. When the city authorities go to her house for a tax problem, she tells them she is not subject to taxes in Jefferson even though Colonel Sartoris had been dead almost ten years.She finds her a lover Homer Barron, whom the reader can guess that he is homosexual. When she hears that he is going to leave her, she buys arsenic and kills him. After her death, the townspeople find the grey hair in the bed next to Homer's remains meaning she has been sleeping with the corpse. The reader can discover isolation in the beginning of part II: â€Å"So she vanquished them, horse and foot, just as she had vanquished their fathers thirty years before about the smell† (Faulkner 85). This moment gives the reader another message of Emily's isolation.Most reader can guess the reason for the smell: Homer Barron was dead. The last proof, â€Å"after her father's death she went out very little; after her sweetheart went away, people hardly saw her at all,† (85) reiterates the fact that Emily is isolated. This quotation has two points; her father makes her isolation and Homer Barron isolates her mind, which seems to be what her father intended. There is n o getting around the fact that â€Å"A Rose for Emily† is a story about the extremes of isolation – by physical and emotional.This Faulkner classic shows us the process by which human beings become isolate by their families, by their community, by tradition, by law, by the past, and by their own actions and choices. In effect, this story takes a stand against such isolation, and against all those who isolate others. In the â€Å"Young Goodman Brown† by Hawthorne, the work centers around a young Puritan, lonely man, in New England, and his deal with the Devil. At the beginning of the story, even though his wife, Faith, tries to dissuade him, Goodman Brown, he leaves on the trip anyway and meets old man.When he follows him on a gloomy forest, he sees many people such as Goody Cloyse, pious woman, and the minister of the church and Deacon Gookin, who are also apparently on their way to the ceremony. Goodman Brown was Shocked; he swears that even though everyone els e in the world has gone to the devil, for Faith's sake he will stay true to God. However, he soon hears voices coming from the ceremony and thinks he recognizes Faith's voice. Faith ignores when he screams and has turned to evil. The next morning Goodman Brown return to Salem Village, and every person he passes seems evil to him.He does not trust anyone in his village. He lives the rest of his life in gloom and fear. This short story is famous for being representation of American Romantic literature. The reader can find just a few important quotes from the short story. In the forest Brown saw a mixture of pious and dissolute people, and it was strange to see that â€Å"the good shrank not from the wicked, nor were the sinners abashed by the saints† (331). Brown chose to see that all were evil and lost his chance at redemption when he chose to isolate himself and to â€Å"shrink from his Faith† and fellow man. By the sympathy of your human hearts for sin ye shall scent out all the places—whether in church, bedchamber, street, field, or forest—where crime has been committed, and shall exult to behold the whole earth one stain of guilt, one mighty blood spot† (332). Near the end of the story, Goodman Brown has seen the evil in every person, and it causes isolating of his life. In the story, the narrator poses an important question: â€Å"Had Goodman Brown fallen asleep in the forest, and only dreamed a wild dream of a witch-meeting? † (Meyer 333). The choice is dream or reality.Whatever the reader chooses to believe, Goodman Brown's own horrible doubts create a central theme of the tale (Fogel 21). Hawthorne’s mental and moral beliefs are revealed throughout â€Å"Young Goodman Brown. † Puritans believed that the fall of Adam was the inheritance of all men, and that redemption came only through Christ. Hawthorne came to believe that the fall was by human contrivance, that damnation is not inherited but chosen and is redeemable through human agency. (Adams 5) The devil reminds Brown about the past and the devil knows his father and grandfather from past encounters.Theme is hypocrisy and deception that would describe the devil's temptations and promises to Goodman Brown, his father, his grandfather, and anyone else. Other theme would be isolation because of the location where Goodman Brown is at which is a dark forest where he is all alone with no one in the area. The short story, â€Å"Good country people† by O'Connor, also has a character of isolation. This story starts in rural Georgia; Mrs. Hopewell runs her family farm with the help of tenants Mr. and Mrs. Freeman. Mrs. Hopewell's daughter, Joy, who got her leg cut off in an accident when she was a child.She now lives at home with her mother. Thirty-three-year-old Joy has earned a PhD in philosophy, but she does not seem to have much common sense. In an act of rebellion, she has changed her name to Hulga, and she lives in a st ate of annoyed anger at her mother and Mrs. Freeman. A Bible salesman comes to the door, claiming his name is Manly Pointer, and manages to get invited to dinner. He and Hulga make a date to have a picnic together the next day. That night Hulga imagines with her superior mind and education that she is in control and that she will seduce him.However, the next day by the time they have climbed into a barn loft, Manly manages to persuade her to take off her glasses and then her wooden leg which he packs in a suitcase, between a â€Å"Bible† which is really a box with liquor and pornographic cards in it. As Manly leaves Hulga without her false leg, he tells her that he collects prostheses from the disabled. She is shocked to realize that he is not â€Å"good country people. † Hulga, main character, is always trying to escape from the Southern social conventions and stereotypes in which her mother and Mrs. Freeman are immersed.Hulga is self-assured about her self and her vi sion of life and people from a nihilistic and atheist point of view; as she says in this story, â€Å"If science is right, then one thing stand firm: Science wishes to know nothing of nothing. Such is after all the strictly scientific approach to nothing. we knows it by wishing to know nothing of nothing. † (381) She is also very proud of her education with a Ph. D. in Philosophy. Hulga rejects any possibility of mixing with the people around her. She creates a condition of self-isolation in her life. â€Å"You poor baby. it's just as well you don't understand. (389) The young woman fails to see that there is much more to life than what you can learn in a book. Due to a heart condition, however, Hulga is forced to remain home on the farm, instead of being in an academic setting where her education would be recognized and encouraged. This attitude that she is above most other people isolates Hulga from everyone around her. Hulga does not understand herself as innocent; indeed , she considers herself quite experienced because her education has given her access to philosophers such as Nietzsche, whose words she underlines with a blue pencil: â€Å"science wishes to know nothing of nothing. (Ditsky 3) These short stories have lonely characters, â€Å"Emily,† â€Å"Goodman Brown,† and â€Å"Hulga,† who avoid from their family or society. These stories' authors teach the reader that they can find isolation in processing when the main characters fight against their life. There is one thing common ground between them. That is a tragic fate at the end of their isolation from the world. However, if they think a little differently, the result does not have to be tragic. Thus, the reader can learn a lesson from these stories that we need to stay positive and not become a part of the isolation.

Wayne Thiebaud

Wayne Thiebaud is an creative person that has been associated with the Pop Art civilization and besides was portion of the pragmatism that came out of the United States west seashore. Thiebaud ‘s existent life representation of his topic has been seen as one of many beginnings photorealism. Before going a painter, Thiebaud worked in New York City as a mark painter and besides as a cartoonist. He merely began to paint in 1949, integrating accomplishments from his former businesss. Thiebaud is best known for the pictures that are associated with the production line of objects that can be found in diners and cafeterias, such as pies and pastries and others objects of common mundane life. The Neapolitan Pie that I found in the Norton Museum embodies the techniques that he frequently used in his pictures. This picture with its thick pigment adding to the deepness and character led me to desire to larn about the creative person behind it. Thiebaud chose to observe and encompass the delectations of the common topographic point and rendered his realistic pictures with a â€Å" superb oculus for abstraction. † Thiebaud ‘s picture technique can be described as a â€Å" cookery book chronicling those that have added sizzle, flavoring or even sprinkle to its prolific pallet † What he wanted to put out to make was to make a different ocular species, which he described as being the ultimate achievement for all painters. Thiebaud says that art needs changeless motion of different facets of itself in order to remain alive. He besides states that art draws inspiration from everything around it. He is non afraid of demoing in his pictures facets from other creat ive persons who inspired him, â€Å" My universe is one offense†¦ I steal from every creative person around the universe. † This may be why Thiebaud wholly followed creative persons that were before him and besides creative persons who were painting in his clip period. Wayne Thiebaud had many creative persons in Abstract Expressionism and creative persons from Pop Art that he gathered techniques from. There were artistic clip periods that he borrowed facets from and combined with others to bring forth his ain characteristic manner. In this paper I will depict all these facets and how their combination gave rise to the celebrated work we know Wayne Thiebaud for today. Thiebaud was a realist painter and painted at a clip between Abstract Expressionism motion and the Pop Art epoch. His growing as an creative person started from when he was a immature kid and as a adolescent made posting designs and on phase sets for theater. Thiebaud worked at Universal Studios and besides as an illustrator for the advertisement section in New York. He subsequently earned a grade from California State College in Sacramento and this was where he learned and became fond of the all right humanistic disciplines. After this he began to analyze art history books intensively and the pictures in them, including the passages in the plants from period to period. Thiebaud, while working, became friends with and interested in the plants of art from Willem De Kooning and Franz Kline who were abstract expressionist painters. This was a â€Å" American station World War II art motion. † the predecessor of this art motion is surrealism, which features elements of surprise an d unexpected appositions. Willem De Kooning besides was involved with action picture, whose features are self-generated, splashed, or smeared onto a canvas. Kooning provinces, â€Å" Peoples are ever seeking to interrupt the dorsums of pictures by anticipating things which pictures can non make†¦ it ‘s merely a picture. A God damned painting. Just a small thing you smear stuff on. You merely hope in the smearing that you have n't insulted people that you ‘re inquiring to look at it. † This statement was a great influence in determining the ideas of Thiebaud. He saw this as a quintessential thought for bring forthing plants of art By the early 1960 ‘s the pictures he had produced now began to derive tenseness, balance, and grace. He placed the signifiers first and objects were pushed frontward and set in a relevant order. He had been doing statements like this with his Neapolitan Pie for old ages before others but was packed together with other creative persons in the Pop Art period when the motion surfaced. Pop Art was a tradition that challenged the graphics at that clip and wanted to demo that anything the creative person used, which was of mass-production of popular civilization could can be connected with all right art. It was widely seen as a reaction and enlargement of the dominant thoughts of abstract pragmatism, which was a self-generated or subconscious creative activity. Pop Art does non mention straight to the art that they made, but the thoughts that moved the whole motion itself. During this clip, Thiebaud besides saw plants of art from the earliest dad creative persons Robert Rauschenberg and Jasper Johns whose pictures were based on Abstract Expressionism to Pop Art. What Thiebaud did was abandoned most of the thoughts that Pop Art committed itself to and respond against it, which is surprising since he was seen as a critical portion to this period. The work that Thiebaud produced is described as â€Å" nostalgic positions of popular civilization and the American scene with which viewing audiences of all sorts can easy place. † Most pictures in the Pop Art period were more daunting for those sing the work in museums and sometimes were excessively rough to appreciate. What Thiebaud said was â€Å" I am non a card transporting Pop creative person†¦ I do n't wish much of it. † Pop to him was more of a concern than an operation of honest picture and he had excessively much regard for the original merchandises that they played off of to be a portion of Pop Art. So while this art period was taking off Thiebaud decided that he was traveling to travel on and became a professor at U-C Davis. Another influence of Wayne Theibaud was of Abstract Expressionism, which was traveling on in the clip he produced work, and can be seen â€Å" in the midst brushstrokes and bold usage of coloring material † which was a changeless subject in his plants. Thiebaud began to paint images based on nutrient that he would see displayed in Windowss, concentrating non on what he was painting but more on the form of the objects. What impacted his picture this manner was his disposition for simple objects, borrowing facets of layouts for ads that he did while working as a cartoonist and mark painter. His simpleness to his designs could be understood and recognized as a method that he took into his pictures. This would besides be around the 1960 ‘s and Thiebaud wanted to demo word pictures of the mundane American life while demoing a new attack to art, representational art. Artists such as Stuart Davis and his Odol Bottle and Gerald Murphy and his Safety Razor were visions of the com ing pop civilization epoch even before Thiebaud began to paint work that would suit into it. As Thiebaud continued to work influences from other creative persons could be seen in his work like the pictures of Giorgio Morandi like his Still Life. Thiebaud long admired Giorgio ‘s work â€Å" for their brooding lull, the tangible sense of drawn-out looking that they convey, and their delicate, varied effects achieved with apparently minimum agencies. † The influence of this was non merely in how Thiebaud structured his work, but besides by how he manipulated the visible radiation and the slow moving shots to heighten the signifier of the object. This facet of pull stringsing visible radiation besides was something he used in his marks and plants, doing a shadow where there is none to pull the oculus to countries that there would be none and giving the work deepness. This facet was besides borrowed from the tromp l'oeil ( gull the oculus ) painter John Peto, who painted the Letter Rack, who besides was said to hold an influence on Thiebaud. Due to this influence, Thiebaud would ne'er hold any infinite of where the object would go forth the page it would be represented in its entireness demoing the readers that it would non be existent. He would set up the object in his picture into a shallow infinite and used shadows, as antecedently stated, to propose some signifier of deepness without there really being any deepness ; tromp l'oeil. The Neapolitan Pie and all the plants Thiebaud has produced had noteworthy influences from his background and creative persons whom he studied and who had an influence on what he produced. Thiebaud had a manner of dragging his pigment across his canvas in a smooth manner that would heighten the juicy textures of oil and transform itself into the really object that he was seeking to portray. This, by the creative persons, refers to object transference and roots can besides be traced to Morandi, but besides in creative persons such as Joaquin Sorolla. He painted objects that are common placed around any single as those of Stuart Davis and Gerald Murphy. Thiebaud had a strong disposition in painting common objects much earlier than those of the Pop civilization motion. When Thiebaud foremost began to paint these common objects though he found it humourous and channeled his cartoonist abilities with his row of pies: â€Å" When I painted the first row of pies, I can retrieve sitting and express joying – kind of a cockamamie alleviation – ‘Now I have flipped out! ‘ The one thing that allowed me to make that was holding been a cartoonist. I did one and thought, â€Å" That ‘s truly brainsick, but no 1 is traveling to look at these things anyhow, so what the heck. † However with all of his pastry pictures he handled the pigment in a manner that makes his work really typical. His pictures bring forth a pragmatism of complete ocular delectation. He made anew the representational capable affair with a bold pallet and used his adept show of brushwork acquired from the Abstract Expressionists he admired. Wayne Thiebaud copied from the Masterss because he respected art so much that he wanted to larn from those greats that came before him. What he did was add his ain manner to it so as to spread out on what he learned into a different class, so as to be seen in a new visible radiation. He delighted in the plants of other art periods like Abstract Expressionism and Realism and saw it as an honor to analyze an be apart of the art motion. He rejected the thoughts of the Pop Art motion that he was classified in because he respected the art work they ridiculed excessively much to do a jeer of it. He was said as feeling honoured that he was able to use himself and that he became a force in the artistic motion that is still germinating today. His work will everlastingly be a basic and used as a tool for creative person that come behind him to analyze learn from and lucubrate on.

Oia Bible Paper Mark 2:23-28

New Testament Survey O-I-A Gospels/Acts Throughout the book of Mark, several themes are found to be present which address the legitimacy of Jesus. Multiple times Jesus’ actions prove He is who He says He is, although through His attempts to hide His identity from the public, people still are in disbelief about His identity. The periscope of the Sabbath helps to explain this. The periscope on the Sabbath according to Mark is found in Mark chapter 2 verses 23 through 28: 23  One Sabbath Jesus was going through the grainfields, and as his disciples walked along, they began to pick some heads of grain. 4  The Pharisees said to him, â€Å"Look, why are they doing what is unlawful on the Sabbath? † 25  He answered, â€Å"Have you never read what David did when he and his companions were hungry and in need? 26  In the days of Abiathar the high priest, he entered the house of God and ate the consecrated bread, which is lawful only for priests to eat. And he also gave s ome to his companions. †27  Then he said to them, â€Å"The Sabbath was made for man, not man for the Sabbath. 28  So the Son of Man is Lord even of the Sabbath. †My own understanding of this periscope is reworded like this: 23 One day on the Sabbath, Jesus was walking amongst His disciples through a field of gain. As they made their way, the disciples began to pick the heads of grain. 24 The Pharisees confronted Jesus and questioned Him as to why the disciples were breaking the law of Sabbath rest. 25 Jesus replied, â€Å"Do you know what David and his friends did when they were hungry? 26 Let me tell you, they entered the House of God during the days of Abiathar the high priest and ate the holy bread in front of Abiathar himself!You all know that the holy bread is only able to be eaten by the priests themselves! † 27 Jesus told the Pharisees, â€Å"I am the Son of Man. The Sabbath was made for man. † 28 Therefore the Son of Man is even Lord over the Sabbath. Multiple observations are obvious throughout the passage. To begin with, it is mentioned several times how the setting of the story is occurring on the Sabbath, which is a day of rest. It is mentioned how Jesus and the disciples are present in the grainfields and the Pharisees are there with them.The Pharisees end up questioning Jesus about the disciples’ actions. Jesus defends them with an allusion of David in the time of Abiathar. There are countless numbers of interpretations that can be made throughout this short passage. These deal with the actions of the disciples, Jesus’ confrontation by the Pharisees, Jesus’ allusion to David’s actions in the time frame noted and the meaning behind the consecrated bread. The disciples’ action of picking heads of grain was completely lawful, even though the Pharisees challenged it (Lane 114).In that time, people followed the Mosaic Law which stated, â€Å"when you come into your neighbor’s s tanding grain, then you may pluck it with your hands, but you shall not bring a sickle to you neighbors standing grain† which is found in Deuteronomy chapter 23 verse 25. The only grounds that the Pharisees had to challenge the disciples were because it occurred on the Sabbath (Lane 115). Their actions could be seen as reaping which was prohibited on the Sabbath by the Mosaic Law in Exodus chapter 34 verse 21. This violates the Sabbath because it is considered work.It was also noticed how the Pharisees question Jesus about the Disciples’ actions instead of question them personally. When someone was considered a â€Å"teacher† it meant that they were responsible for those under them, so Jesus was responsible for the disciples (Keener 142). This is the reasoning Pharisees specifically questioned Jesus directly. It was done in order to satisfy the legal requirement of a warning prior to the prosecution for Sabbath violation (Lane 115). It is also important to unders tand Jesus’ allusion to I Samuel chapter 21 verses 1 through 6. 1 David went to Nob, to Ahimelek the priest.Ahimelek trembled when he met him, and asked, â€Å"Why are you alone? Why is no one with you? † 2  David answered Ahimelek the priest, â€Å"The king sent me on a mission and said to me, ‘No one is to know anything about the mission I am sending you on. ’ As for my men, I have told them to meet me at a certain place. 3  Now then, what do you have on hand? Give me five loaves of bread, or whatever you can find. † 4  But the priest answered David, â€Å"I don’t have any ordinary bread on hand; however, there is some consecrated bread here—provided the men have kept themselves from women. 5  David replied, â€Å"Indeed women have been kept from us, as usual whenever I set out. The men’s bodies are holy even on missions that are not holy. How much more so today! † 6  So the priest gave him the consecrated br ead, since there was no bread there except the bread of the Presence that had been removed from before the Lord and replaced by hot bread on the day it was taken away. According to Cole, Abiathar was Ahimelek’s son who survived the priestly slaying at Nob in I Samuel chapter 22 (129).Abiathar served as high priest and was better known in association with David than his father, so this is known as a common error could have entered tradition before it became known to Mark (Lane 115). Another interesting thing about the David reference is Jesus’ summary of the consecrated bread. He mentions in Mark chapter 2 verse 26 how David and his men ate the consecrated bread, which is lawful only for priests to eat. It is interesting to compare both passages when is mentions the restrictions of who is eligible to eat the bread.In I Samuel chapter 21 verses 4 through 6, it is mention that the requirement is for men to have kept themselves from women. One interesting question that Lan e brings to light is the actual connection between what is happening in the grain fields and the reference that Jesus makes in light of the situation (116). The incident in the grain fields specifically deals with the Sabbath while the allusion that Jesus makes, highlights the fact that God does not condemn David for his actions. This shows how the Pharisees interpretation of the Law was not in accordance with the scripture (117).This can be applied to the biblical understanding of the Pharisees and others in that time period. Many people misinterpreted the text and often even twisted them to have a meaning that applied to their situation. The most important thing that I learned from this scripture is the importance of understanding the background information behind the scripture. I must admit that in this case, I would be no different that a Pharisee. Although I have read this passage and heard it referenced multiple times, I have never fully understood Jesus’ allusion withi n the text and how it applies to the situation at hand.I am constantly guilty of skimming over text or not reading it on a level deep enough to fully understand the message behind the words. This has been a lesson in itself. Works Cited Page Cole, R Alan. The Gospel According to Mark. Grand Rapids: William B. Eerdman, 1989. Print. The Holy Bible New International Version. Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 1984. Print Keener, Craig S. The IVP Bible Background Commentary: New Testament. Downers Grove: Intervarsity Press, 1993. Print Lane, William L. The Gospel According to Mark. Grand Rapids: William B. Eerdman, 1974. Print.

Call vs Put Options Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Call vs Put Options - Essay Example Again, they are guaranteed of no losses. Financial options are perhaps a better way to attract investors in stock companies and encourage them to invest. However, I think because they are not ready to take risks with their shares they could be at a disadvantage if their stocks are bought or sold at higher values other than the agreed upon values. In my opinion, financial options can be good or bad. The buying contracts reduce risks in the event of a negative outcome. The buyer is somewhat protected while the trader increases gains and reduces losses. This is especially important given the volatile nature of the stock market as affected by issues such as fluctuating interest rates, exchange rates, and other market forces. Perhaps a major disadvantage of the two options is losing part of, or the whole contract price. Again, there is the risk of broker insolvency or non-fulfillment of contractual

Research and analysis Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Research and analysis - Assignment Example One of the limitations is that the outcome of the research is based only on the surveyed businesses. Another limitation is that the participants may not fully understand the survey questions. Consequently, the survey outcomes may not be fully reliable. Uncooperative employee respondents may lead to learning organization failure. Question 3 The research used surveys on each department or group within the organization. The surveys focus on the three learning blocks. The findings are tallied using statistical tools. The findings of one department or group are compared with the findings of other groups or department within the organization. The conclusion generated from the statistical outcomes (Garvin et al., 2008). Question 4 The article generates several conclusive findings (Garvin et al., 2008). Leadership must be coupled with other activities to ensure success in the learning organization. Asking open- ended questions, hearing blame-absent feedbacks, accepting several options (especially opposing views) enhances learning organization’s successes. Next, organizations need tailor made diverse learning organization strategies. Further, comparing the learning organization outputs of different departments or groups will enhance the learning organization’s outputs. Furthermore, learning in the organization has many dimensions. All possible factors that will affect the learning organization must be taken into account. The factors include business processes, people, customers, laws, and other inputs. Question 5 The managers can significantly learn from the article (Garvin et al., 2008). The article discusses the meaning of the learning organization. The learning organization creates new relevant knowledge. Next, the learning

The Boy Is Stripped Pajama Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

The Boy Is Stripped Pajama - Research Paper Example The story begins with the family of 8 years old Bruno who have to shift from Berlin to a new home in an unknown place called out-with. As Bruno tries to adventure in his current surrounding he is informed that there are places that forbidden at all times with no expectation. Bruno is unable to control his adventurous spirit and ventures into the unknown places. The story is interesting since the writer has combined youthful innocence and naivety of what the reader knows. Comparison on the film "the boy in the striped pajamas" and the book "the boy in the striped pajamas In the book, it does not have drama and action but it still works. Drama is happening between the two boys, and this makes the book to be fascinating. The two boys do not understand anything going around the camp and this makes their relationship honest and simple. The two boys are the same only that they are born in different circumstances. One boy is born into wealth and respect while the other boy is born into pers ecution and imprisonment. At the young age of 8, neither of the boys understand what is happening around them, and their way of viewing the world is what drives the book forward. On the contrary, The Boy Is Stripped Pajama film is more dramatic than the book. Some characters get more roles than they get in the book since there is no perspective limit. The mother played by Vera goes slowly crazy into horrific and compelling at once. Bruno’s sister is also horrifying as she gradually progresses from sweet young teenager into Nazi activist. She enjoys her lessons, a factor that explains the amount of money Germans spend on the Jews and how life would be easier if they were disposed. Her sister scolds Bruno as he likes reading adventure books and does not take into new lesson plan. In the film, the dad is played to be the authoritarian family person performing his role. The arguments with his wife are moving because he wants to set a good example to his soldiers. He starts to rea lize that living in a camp is a bad place to bring up children. Overall, the film sticks to the book’s event perfectly well. The only change is the dramatic ending as it is much slower in the book compared to the film. Both the book and film are brilliant, but the book is more appealing. The book sticks to the film very well but on its own, it is not compelling. The film loses innocence and naivety of Bruno’s viewpoint, and this is what makes the book unique. On rare occasion do people get such an impact when the film ends that they exit the theater in total silence (Lasalle, 2). Many people are speechless from the stigma they get from the movie. Holocaust movies are not something new since they are moving stories that show perspective of explored situations. The movie boy in stripped pajamas sets asides evil actions of the Germans and besieged Jews but instead offers two innocent boys. These two boys are Jewish and German, and they do not know they should hate each ot her. The movie presents something tragic to the audience sending them with a strong message to consider than historical atrocities. Comparison on Plot In The Boy Is Stripped Pajama film, Bruno’s father is a young commandant who is promoted; hence, his family was forced to shift. This means that they have to leave their comfortable home in berlin and shift to a Spartan country compound. Bruno thinks the camp is a farm where odd people work in pajamas. His parents are not ready to reveal the truth to protect him from the truth. The place has little meaning to Bruno since his only concern is that he does not have anybody to play with in his new home. The only company Bruno and his sister enjoy is a propagandizing tutor (Lasalle, 2). One day Bruno sneaks out of the compound and moves on the direction of the

Market Trend Analysis For Art Gallery Research Paper

Market Trend Analysis For Art Gallery - Research Paper Example Market trends reports show that there is a growing demand for Chinese art pieces and the million dollar auction graph for 2010 reflects 401in the US to 491 in China. Thus in keeping with the trend of buyer demand for works from artisans from China, the gallery should plan for a theme exhibition which would showcase local and foreign talent. The media mix should include advertising and promotion by newspapers, the internet and local radio shows. The art industry is forecasted to continue to revive in the coming years with more focus on private sales and smaller auctions. The use of vertical co-operative advertising would help in keeping the advertising budget at minimum. The use promotional sales by giving loyalty discounts to repeat customers, awarding bonus points for referrals, help in getting patronage and increase the volume of footfalls into the gallery. The gallery should also retain the local focus by showcasing one local talent in the week which proves germane to pulling in s upporters and providing deeper market reach.The prime competitors would be the multitudes of galleries with established clientele which abound the area around Dragon street and thus there has to consistent effort to develop and maintain a loyal customer base. The Cameron Gallery, HCG gallery and others which grace the design district of Dallas are competitors for our gallery and the primary mode of competition is divertive in nature and thus the gallery needs to focus on its USP and build a niche for itself in the competition.

Negative effect of popular culture on teenage girls Essay

Negative effect of popular culture on teenage girls - Essay Example The unprecedented advances in digital communication have redefined the communication landscape in many positive ways (Shay and Cynthia 23). However, this communication has given rise to emotionless individuals whose communication is akin to robots. For example in instant messaging, which is a popular form of communication among teenagers, emotions can only be shown by a combination of punctuation marks or icons called emoticons. An agent of popular culture, media has created images on the ideal appearance of ladies by selecting very beautiful news anchors and talk show hosts. Research has shown that the more exposure a girl has to media, the higher the chances that she will be dissatisfied with her body. Media portrays the ideal ladies as those who exhibit these characteristics: a thin body frame, flawless and with impeccable beauty. This has changed the perception of teenage girls on beauty and for this reason most of the girls strive to be thin and flawless so as to meet these unre alistic standards. In a study done in North America, most anorexic girls were between 15 years and 20 years and 60 percent of them expressed their fear of being fat. The statistics further showed that 13 percent of North American high school teenage girls eat one meal in 24 hours, 6 percent use weight loss pills while 30 percent of the students are dieting (Sharon and Norma 32). These statistics clearly manifest the effect of pop culture on the deteriorating health of teenage girls in America. In some extreme cases, girls who consider themselves fat have attempted suicide because they feel unworthy living in a world that depicts only thin girls as... Popular culture has greatly diluted the importance of values in the society. These values include: hard work, humility and respect. Through mainstream media, popular culture emphasizes on the need for money and flashy things over hard work (Hannah and Peg 35). Some genres of music praise crime by showing the amounts of money they derive from criminal activities. Video game vendors cash in on this premise by creating games in which players get awarded sums of money for committing crimes in the game. Teenage girls may lose interest in studies because they do not see the possibility of raking in huge sums of money from academic excellence. Moreover, the emphasis on how power is desirable may have negative implications on teenage girls. Everyone will desire to be the decision maker and this will diminish the importance of respect in the society. This situation is further compounded by parental control which is deemed as unreasonable by teenage girls. They may therefore resist directives and violate rules so as to feel powerful inconsiderate of the fact that such behavior is inconsistent with the moral convictions of the society. The effects of popular culture may be diverse with some being positive and others in the contrary. Through the essay, it is clear that the implications of popular culture on teenage girls in North America is largely negative. The precedents in our constitution advocate for freedom of expression. However, no type of legislation can shield us from the consequences resulting from irrational actions that are undertaken under the guise of freedom of expression. It would be erroneous to declare anyone the villain of negative popular culture.

Predatory Lending Practices Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Predatory Lending Practices - Essay Example When lenders began offering loans to deprived borrowers with low or bad credit standing, sub-prime loans were priced higher to compensate for the risk. Regardless of the a client's personal credit history, these finance companies offer the chance and allowance of refinancing or new mortgage that overwhelms he borrower with high fees and expensive often unhelpful terms. Minority borrowers composed of hard working people and low-wealth are the usual of consumers availing this type of loan to obtain financing. Availability of fair credit terms should be a major priority for responsible lenders as people no matter what the noted deficiencies are members of a civilized society with moral rights to uphold regardless of condition of credit orientation. However, seemingly cognizant of the needs of this minority sector, financing institutions have blossomed giving effect to what has been observed as a tragic loophole in Federal reserves that charges people with exorbitant interests and penalt ies. When the growth in equity lending has created risk management practices in response to financial institutions with equity lending programs, financial institutions' credit risk management practices for home equity lending have not kept pace with the product's rapid growth and easing of underwriting standards. We have seen numerous fore-closures on home properties in the past years that would eventually reflect in an economic meltdown. Further studies revealed predatory practices of lending institutions as the culprit in this scenario that charged exorbitant and often unnecessary fees and interests into the gross amounts that may no longer be viable for a medium to low wage earning homeowner. How can management eliminate the negative symptoms How can management fully capitalize on an opportunity Risk Management standards would create a favorable scenario over the increased lending with favorable tax treatments that may allow home equity loans and lines attractive to its consumers that offers a modest repayment schemes and relaxed structures that was currently devoid in its system. Institutions should capitalize on the rise on home values coupled with lower interest rates that make a product more attractive yet attainable and helpful to its user. The identification of certain risk factors in the system of practices in a financial lending institutions helps to identify the culprits that serves to practice certain features that offer an "interest-only" amortization that requires no principal amount applied. Documentation or its absence provides no room for evaluative measures and appraisals within the healthy structure. Risk management systems call for lending measures conducted in a safe and sound manner pursued with adequate allowances for loan losses and appropriate capital levels without negating sound practices in the accepted lending policies. Management principles actively assess the changes in the consumer's ability to pay and the potential decline of a home value and entertain this scenario without generating allowances that charge exorbitant fees disabling the capacity of the borrower from paying his dues and eventually leading to the

ANALYSIS OF THE MOVIE TABLOD Review Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

ANALYSIS OF THE TABLOD - Movie Review Example the old style of interviewing or reporting, where the audience has the same feeling of listening the story as the filmmaker experiences while listening it. The fact that I like about the documentary is that Morris trains the Camera on McKinney. In this way, McKinney tells her story on her own. She highlights different aspects of the case, yet she can be observed not telling the truth or hiding things at some places as she forces so intently to believe her story (Tabloid). Morris has used different strategies to gain audience’s attention such as he has added a bit of tabloidism himself to make it more appealing. He has also used different clips of the movie named ‘The Godmakers’ that gives the better insight about the role of Mormons and their work. He has made use of attractive headlines one after another in order to keep audience interest  in  the movie such as different journalists  and reporters resembled  the chained up position of Kirk Anderson as ‘Spread-Eagle’. In that way, the phrase flashes on the screen each time he does

Inaugural addresses by U. S. Presidents Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Inaugural addresses by U. S. Presidents - Essay Example Kennedy was worried over the present status of affairs where nations are overburdened by the cost of modern weapons, including the deadly nuclear weapons. It makes Kennedy insisting that â€Å"Let both sides [America and its allegories]...formulate serious and precise proposals for the inspection and control of arms and bring the absolute power to destroy other nations under the absolute control of all nations† (Kennedy, 1961). Jimmy Carter, Ronald Reagan, former American presidents like Kennedy, agrees with disarmament saying that America’s ultimate aim is to eliminate all nuclear weapons from the world. Regarding the handling of the these weapons, Kennedy recommend that it would be better for the nations to use these weapons ‘to invoke the wonders of science instead of its terrors’ (Kennedy, 1961). Kennedy’s remarks on disarmament bring to us the historical importance of the 1960s which marked its indelible mark with America’s exploration in Vietnam that tolled the lives of thousands of people. Balance of Power is â€Å"a distribution of military and economic power among nations that is sufficiently even to keep any one of them from being too strong or dangerous† (yourdictionary.com, 2010). Most of the world nations shore up balance of power as a means to regulate the arm race. It is quite evident from the inaugural addresses of majority of the American presidents indicating the real requisite of balance of power. The former president Ronald Regan reveals America’s plan to reduce the number of nuclear weapons concurrently with Soviet Union (Regan, 1985). Bush and Clinton also were of the same opinion concerning the regulation of nuclear weapons and maintaining balance of power. The words of former president, George W. Bush (2001) unveil America’s policy with regard to balance of power when he says, â€Å"American remains engaged in the world by history and by choice, shaping a balance of

Interpersonal communication Essay Example for Free

Interpersonal communication Essay The book basically talks about the different ways on how to win friends and become popular. Dale Carnegie gives different tips on how to make different people like you, and how to make others accept and believe in what you are thinking. Carnegie basically makes it easier for readers to understand more effective relationship styles. Carnegie used to teach general public speaking. However, he realized that such wasn’t enough for effective business and felt that his students lacked the skill of simply making friends with new people, which is why he made a book on how to make new friends and other relational issues. Dale Carnegie also felt that he lacked such skills himself. So this is a two way experience for him, both teaching and learning at the same time. Digging in to the deeper purpose of creating such book, the Carnegie Institute of Technology made a study which showed that a financial successful person owes 15 percent to their technical knowledge and the rest to â€Å"skill in human engineering-to personality and the ability to lead people† (Carnegie, 1964). Another reason was that, it is easy to find applicants who had the perfect skills for their jobs- engineering, medicine, accounting, you name it, there are plenty of skilled professionals out there. However, there are not a lot who possess such skills and at the same time have the ability to have effective interpersonal communication and relational skills, which is why Dale Carnegie developed a book which serves as a manual for those who lack such skills. Lastly, there is a need for a book which basically serves as a guide for dummies on how to get other people to like them and how to find more friends. Becoming an effective leader is also a part of what the book teaches, and is what readers will get out of reading it. During the first part of Dale Carnegie’s â€Å"How to Win Friends and Influence People†, he talks about the basic styles and techniques that you can handle people. He basically had three principles in this topic. The first principle is to work with people without criticizing, condemning or complaining. It is important for aspiring leaders to omit such acts because people will not follow a leader who does not listen to what they are saying. The second principle says to â€Å"give honest and sincere appreciation† (Carnegie, 1964). According to Carnegie, flattery is always effective. Of course, everybody wants to feel good. It is so effective in fact that â€Å"Even Queen Victoria was susceptible to flattery† (Carnegie, 1964). However, the negative thing with flattery is that, it is fake and insincere. What Carnegie suggests is for us to give out something positive and honest- which is called appreciation. There is always something positive in everybody, and that is what every effective leader needs to look for. The last principle is to get from other people the â€Å"eager want†. Carnegie mentioned that, we should not talk about what we want, because nobody else will listen to us. Instead, we should talk about something we know others would like to talk about. This will definitely get them interested, especially in doing something for you. Part two of the book discusses the different ways to get people to like you. The first principle tells us to become genuinely interested in other people. Carnegie used his dog as an example or even just dogs generally. They did not study psychology to know how people could like them. They simply liked people genuinely, which is why people liked them back. If you like someone, it becomes almost impossible to resist liking you back. If you genuinely like other people, then you will be welcome anywhere you go (Carnegie, 1964). The next principle is fairly easy and sounds quite simple. However, it is forgotten most of the time, and people forget the magic that it does. One word: Smile. Carnegie mentioned that the smile that people wear on their faces is far more important than what clothes they wear. And the saying â€Å"actions speak louder than words† is very true. Smiles are very important because they say â€Å"I like you, you make me happy. I am glad to see you. † (Carnegie, 1964). This can be proven when babies smile and everybody around them melts. It is the same thing with adults, as long as smiles are genuine. Third principle for people to like you is the simple gesture of remembering the names of the people you meet. It always isn’t a good impression to ask for people’s names the second time around, much more the third. Remembering names are so important in fact that when you â€Å"Remember that name and call it easily, and you have paid a subtle and very effective compliment† (Carnegie, 1964). However, when you forget one name, it will give you a bad impression and will work to your disadvantage. The last three principles of the second part of Carnegie’s work are all connected to each other. First is to â€Å"be a good listener and encourage other to talk about themselves†, next is to talk about the other person’s likes and interests and not talk about you. And the last, is to â€Å"make the other person feel important, sincerely†. These three are very important because if you only care about yourself and talk only about what you feel is interesting, and act like you are the only important person in the world, then no one will want to neither talk nor work with you. In fact, no one will even want to see you. Being egotistic and self centered will not do a person any good in this world. (Carnegie, 1964) Part three of dale Carnegie’s book is How to Win People to Your Way of Thinking. Principle one talks about arguments. The only way to get the best of an argument is to avoid it†, this is what Carnegie (1964) thinks about arguments. This is very true as, while you think you are good in winning arguments, you will never know when you might find someone who is better than you. And people always admire those who walk away from trouble. To sum the third part up, it simply says that you are to respect the way others think, a nd acknowledge their opinions. Even though you do not believe in what they are saying, you must let them speak out, because your opinion is not the only important one. Others should feel like they have a say in things, before they will believe in what you are saying. It is just a matter of reciprocity. â€Å"If we know we are going to be rebuked anyhow, isn’t it far better to beat the other person to it and do it ourselves? † (Carnegie, 1964) It is always good to admit your mistakes. Owning up to your mistakes makes people admire you more, and believe that you are actually human. In the same way that you are never to tell someone that they are wrong just because they do not agree to what you think and they have their own opinions. The first thing that you will need to get from others is respect, and the only way to get that is by showing respect to them first. For the last principles, it just says that in order to get people to believe in the way you think, you must believe in theirs as well. So in conclusion for the third part of the book, it simply means that you have to respect other people’s views, opinions and ideas in order to get them to believe yours as well. Be a Leader: How to Change People Without Giving Offense or Arousing Resentment. This is the last part of Dale Carnegie’s book. Being a leader is never easy. It may look like the easiest part of a job because you get to tell others to do the job for you. However, more responsibilities come with being a leader, such as all the different decisions that should be made. Carnegie mentions that a leader should develop an attitude that praises and appreciates the people that work for him. Another major thing that leaders should develop is before telling others what they have done wrong, tell something that they have done right first because â€Å"It is always easier to listen to unpleasant things after we have heard some praise of our good points. † (Carnegie, 1964). One more important thing for leaders to do is to â€Å"talk about your mistakes before criticizing the other person† (Carnegie, 1964). This is important, as it will not make the others feel so inferior to you as a leader. Leaders should be more humble than the rest because once superiority complex works its way in, the system will stop working. Becoming an example is another one of the most important things that a leader should follow. Encouragements are also one of the best things to do, most especially after some criticisms. I used to believe that I could communicate to others fairly well. I had a lot of friends and people liked to be around me. But after reading Dale Carnegie’s book, I have realized that I was not that effective and that there are still a lot of areas that I need to improve in. First of all, I criticize, condemn and complain a lot. I lack giving out appreciations as well. Most of the time I am self centered and whenever there are conversations I engage in, I mostly talk about topics that I prefer without even considering whether or not the one I’m conversing with is interested with what we are talking about. I also lack the heart of admitting my mistakes quickly. I sometimes tell people that they’re wrong directly, even just for not sharing the same opinion as I do. I even have the tendency to always get into arguments, even when I have the chance to avoid or get out of it. I am not comfortable in talking about my mistakes as I feel embarrassed and want to bury them in the past. One of the things that I know I am strong at is remembering a person’s name. Carnegie has mentioned that this will make people feel very important, which means I have made a lot of people important already, just by this gesture. Although I talk a lot, I make it a point to let others talk as well. I believe I am a good listener, which makes people look for me when they need someone to talk to. I am very free in giving out encouragements, as long as I feel the people are down in whatever they are doing. Even in the littlest improvement a person makes or adjusts, I notice it and give them praise. I give out constructive criticism as well, and is open to taking some for myself from others. So all in all, I have a lot more to work on, even though I have some positive traits that I already carry with me. Reading on will definitely help me improve in different aspects. I have asked my father, brother and mother to give me a peer analysis in my communication skills and my different ways of dealing with other people. They have more or less the same answers and I will only generalize and summarize the answers that they have given. They have mentioned that I criticize and condemn other people a lot may it be directly or even behind their backs. My brother told me that I judge immediately anything I see that does not pass my so called standards. Carnegie believes that this should be avoided in order to find more people to like you, to have more friends. One thing that they appreciate about me is that I give a lot of encouragements to people. They feel that this is when I am most effective when dealing with people. Even my father told me that he appreciates it when he sees me encourage different people. He also mentioned that he has seen how this affects the different people I am dealing with, and can see the changes that such encouragements have brought about. My mother mentioned that I do not easily admit my mistakes. She said that I even reason out to my actions, even if I already know that what I did was wrong. As much as I hate to admit this, it is nothing but the truth. I find it hard for me to say that I was wrong, mostly because of pride. They all agreed to one thing however, and that is I only like to talk about things that I like, and that I do not even ask them what they want to talk about or what they are interested in. This is one of the things Carnegie has mentioned that should not be around when we want to have more friends or when we want people to like us. Again, I can see that there is a lot of room for improvement when it comes to relationships and communication. The first thing that I want to remove from my negative attitude is the inability to admit when I am wrong or I have made a mistake. I think this is the first thing that would turn other people off from wanting to talk or become friends. I believe for me to be able to do this, I must lower down my pride. This will not be easy, and will take a lot of time. But if I want to improve my lifestyle, then this will definitely have to be the first thing off my negative list. The next thing I must make a move on is towards removing the act of always criticizing other people. It has almost become automatic for me to do this, as I easily judge people even at the first look or impression. This has cost me a lot of friends and friendships that might have started. I think the way to start taking this negative act from me is by always thinking positively and giving other people a chance- a chance to show their true selves. Being judgmental has always been a problem and will be a bigger problem if I do not act up on it immediately. Being less self centered and egotistic will be very important if I want to start new and stronger relationships with other people. These are only some of the things that I think I need to change. Dale Carnegie has helped me realize a lot of things. His work has definitely taught me a lot of things; things that are essential in day to day living. After all, no one can live alone. Friends and relationships with people will help us live more harmoniously and Dale Carnegie’s â€Å"How to Win Friends and Influence People† has taught me how I can have more friends and develop friends a lot easier.

Economic Evaluation in the National Health Service (NHS)

Economic Evaluation in the National Health Service (NHS) The National Health Service is built on the Benthams concept of utilitarianism of maximising utility for greatest number (Lockwood,1988), enabling risk sharing across the entire population by confronting moral hazard and adverse selection. This can be linked to the microeconomic theory of supply and demand (Frank, 1994). Supply and demand underlies the allocation of limited resources or commodities used to achieve maximum health output. In this situation, demand refers to both willingness and ability to pay, and supply is the willingness and ability of potential sellers to produce and sell a particular commodity (Schafermeyer, 2000). Consumers subject to their individual income constraints, maximise their individual utility through their purchasing of particular goods. As such, health in this respect has both aspects of an investment good and a consumption good. The demand for health care services is very different to that of food. Health, unlike other resources, cannot be traded over time. It is a derived demand, in which consumers have a demand for health but cannot directly purchase it (Ringel, 2002). Like a capital good, health is capable of depreciation over time and as such; its demand is a time-dependent variable, which changes with exogenous and endogenous factors. Therefore, one could suggest there is unlimited health care demand that will always exceed limited supply due to the overall burden of ill health being impossible to anticipate due to changing constantly. As such, health care in an important determinant of health but the demand for it is often unpredictable (timing, frequency, intensity, costs) and therefore, expensive. Markets favour consumers with purchasing power. The food industry is a free market, dictated by consumer choice and demand, the emergence of new suppliers and the exit of under performing suppliers. Within the food market, elasticity is driven by the premise of consumer sovereignty, in which consumers have information about every product, therefore can choose an enormous range of options and exactly how much of any given thing we want to purchase. In a free market, no one producer can manipulate the market price of a product. Producers are incentivised to satisfy consumer wants and produce efficiently to gain maximum profit. Economic theory suggests that under certain circumstances a free market promotes the optimal outcome for consumers and providers. As such, equilibrium in price and quantity are eventually met. While markets may be efficient, the allocation of resources by markets may not result in equity Do we have purchasing power as consumers in health care? In simple terms, we can predict when we will be hungry but we cannot predict when we are going to be ill and we know how to treat hunger but not all the eventualities of ill health. It is likely that without a national insurance system like the NHS an oligopolistic market would exist as there would be a few dominant sellers capable of influencing the overall market price of a commodity due to great market power.The universal NHS exists to meet this variable demand and ensure equity by providing a comprehensive, high quality service available on the basis of clinical need and not ability to pay; ensuring individuals arent victims of the market forces that could be derived from a market in which access to services is driven by the law of demand. It exists under a command market with no competition ensuring horizontal equity in distribution. In health care, consumers dont have the necessary information for driving a perfect market . To have perfect information they would need to know their current health status, prospective health status, available treatments and the cost of treatments. We rely upon doctors acting as agents (principal-agent relationship) or gatekeepers to assist in our decision making and to purchase healthcare based on their knowledge. In the Grossman Model based on a human capital approach to health (Grossman 1972; Grossman 2000) demand for health care is derived from the demand for health. In this model, it is recognised that consumers have imperfect information about their health and therefore may be subject to adverse selection problems. For a perfect market to exist within Health Care Services there is a need for prefect competition. For perfect competition to exist, asymmetry of information between consumers and producers should not exist, there should be uniformity in product and producers should be able to freely enter and exit the market. Rational purchasing decisions are often diff icult if not impossible to the non-medical population. Consumers are often unable to make an informed decision regarding whether treatment is required and, if so, which therapies are most effective. Markets in health care are not efficient, mainly because consumers do not have good information. In making resource decisions, allocation efficiency is also important. The concept of allocative efficiency takes account the efficiency with which outcomes are distributed among the community. Question 2 What are the disadvantages and advantages of using quality adjusted life years (QALYs) in economic evaluation? (800 words maximum) Within the National Health Service, according to Morris, Devlin and Parkin (2007), economic evaluation is used for the following reasons: To maximise the benefits from health care spending. To overcome regional variations in access. To contain costs and manage demand. To provide bargaining power with suppliers of health care products. QALYs are a type of health status index, based on population-level information that measure health gain (Spencer, 2003 p.1) to allow for economic evaluation of different health interventions. A single QALY is the arithmetic product of life expectancy, weighted by a measure of the quality (utility) of the remaining life-years to reach a single index value (Prieto and Sacristà ¡n, 2003). The utility value is 0 for dead and values one year of perfect-health life expectancy to be equal to one. These values are derived from scales, namely, the rating scale; time trade-off; or standard gamble. Each is subject to forms of bias. The QALY model offers consistency and limits budgetary waste, allowing for the greatest good to be achieved for the greatest number, so called distributive justice. It also allows for direct comparison of interventions in a common currency regardless of clinical discipline. This is because the cost per QALY does not confer the price of treatment but the price of the outcome that results, may that be in years or quality gained or lost. Phillips and Thompson (2001) summarise this as an expensive treatment may have a low cost per QALY if it brings significant benefit to patients; likewise, a cheaper treatment may have a high cost per QALY if the degree of benefit is relatively low. There are however specific criticisms held as to the generalisability of this model, the lack of consideration for baseline health status and whether QALYs perpetuates the issue of health inequalities (Wagstaff, 2002). The use of QALYs implicitly assumes that there are no other objectives to health care than health maximization. QALYs are considerably crude measurements, leaving vulnerable the question what exactly constituted the quality for which life years are adjusted. The utility measurement instruments each hold inherent bias as they are subjective aggregation of values. Individuals do not place the same value on each year of life. As such, the QALY model is inherently flawed as a health state utility of 0.6 is the same as three extra years of life at a health state utility of 0.2. As such, concerns have been expressed about the appropriateness of using QALYs calculations to inform resource allocation decisions (Dolan et al, 2008) as they are attempting to make subjective conce pts explicit numerically when there really is no consensus, leaving ambiguity in assessing overall improvement or detriment in health. Criticism has been expressed about the discriminatory aspects of the QALY model. The model favours those with more treatable conditions and those with greater potentials for health- be it in terms of functioning or longevity (Nord et al, 2009). Question 3 Outline the main methods to remunerate general practitioners (GPs) in the United Kingdom. (300 words maximum) GPs are self-employed providers, which under the 2004 GMC negotiated contract are paid by mixed payment remuneration, consisting of salary based on weighted capitation, fixed allowances, QOF and fee for service. Individual GP practices are allotted a practice income under the contract, from which expenses and staffing costs are funded. This payment, representing the largest part of their income, is a capitation fee per enrolled patient adjusted for age, gender, morbidity and mortality, with additional fixed allowances for maintaining particular services. GPs working in underserved geographic areas receive additional payments. Distribution to individual GPs within a practice is dependent upon seniority, practice efficiency and maintenance of operational costs through cost containment. GPs can also receive additional payments based on the quality of services provided in designated areas such as child health, maternity, family planning, and chronic diseases as part of a quality enhancin g framework (DH, 2004). The Quality and Outcomes Framework (QOF) is a voluntary, evidence-based framework spanning four domains: clinical, organisational, patient experience and additional services (DH, 2003). GPs are challenge to meet a range of evidence-based indicators within these domains from which they can accumulate points based on the breadth and depth of quality. As a result, payments are awarded according to the level of achievement. Practices receive about  £125 per point for an average sized practice with a maximum of 1000 points available to them. QOF is often revised to reflect changing population priorities, clinical advancements and best evidence to remain a pragmatic funding model. Thirdly, practices can enter into so called Enhanced Service agreements, based on the fee for service model. In Enhanced Service agreements, payments are awarded for meeting targeted requirements, such as flu and childhood immunisations and providing other specific services. ii) Compare and contrast 2 of these methods outlining advantages and disadvantages of each. (300 words maximum) Different financial incentives given to GPs might affect their behaviour and treatments plans for individual patients. Fees for service compensation is awarded based on a service being given to an individual patient. Care is clearly linked to payment and each service that is delivered has a specific payment rate. It has been argued that such a system of compensation induces GPs to put quantity, over quality of care in a bid to get increasing numbers of patients through their practice door and allows for unnecessary, potentially more lucrative, treatments to be performed at a financial benefit to the GP. This compares quite dramatically to the capitation system, which remunerates practices based on the population demography, regardless of the health status of the population. This means GPs have better budgeting capabilities, as each payment is fixed regardless of case mix meaning it is an equitable system for all patients. Capitation removes the need for GPs to see a high volume of patients within an allotted time frame but places incentives upon general practioners to enrol large numbers within their practice. As such, Capitation comes with the added risk of the potential to have a difficult case-mix due to increased numbers and allows for cream skimming to take place in which GPs exercise the potential to choose patients that are easier to care for, leading to health inequalities in certain demographics, i.e. the elderly. Outline the equity implication of patient co-payments for primary care services. (300 words maximum) Concern with equity implies the availability of some goods, including health care, should not be based, or based solely, on willingness to pay. Indeed, equity is an ethical concept built on the principle of distributive justice. In health, it is considered to be the absence of systematic disparities in health between groups with different levels of underlying social advantage/ disadvantage (Braveman, 2003, p1). Co-payments are flat fees or means tested payments, based on the willingness to pay model that a patient pays for a named health care service, such as a GP visit, dental treatment or prescription. Basing health care treatments on being able to pay is contentious. Co-payments have the potential to widen the equality gap by discouraging or restricting people from seeking important treatments or forcing individuals from lower socio-economic groups into making decisions about their health care based on price not their need. Equity assumes equal utilisation (use) for equal need. References Braveman P Gruskin S. (2003) Deà ¯Ã‚ ¬Ã‚ ning equity in health. Journal of Epidemiology and Community Health 57 pp. 254-58 Department of Health (2003) Investing in General Practice; The New General Medical Services Contract, Department of Health, London Department of Health (2004) Updated version of the QOF guidance and evidence base, Department of Health: London; 2004. Dolan, P (2008). Developing methods that really do value the Q in the QALY. Health Economics, Policy Law;3 pp.69-77. Dolan P. Kahneman D. (2008). Interpretations of utility and their implications for the valuation of health. Economic Journal; 118 pp. 215-234 Frank, R (1994): Microeconomics and Behavior. New York: W.W. Norton Company Goddard M. Smith p (2003) Equity of access to health care services: Theory and evidence from the UK, Social Science Medicine 53 (9) pp. 1149-1162 Grossman, Michael (1972a), The Demand for Health-A theoretical and Empirical Investigation. New York: National Bureau of Economic Research. Grossman, M. (1972b), On the Concept of Health Capital and the Demand for Health, The Journal of Political Economy, 80 (2) pp. 223-255. Grossman, Michael. (2000), The Human Capital Model, in Handbook of Health Economics, 1, pp. 347-408 Lockwood, M. (1988). Quality of Life and Resource Allocation. Royal Institute of Philosophy Supplement, 23, pp 33-55 Morris S, Devlin N, Parkin D.  (2007) Economic analysis in health care. John Wiley Sons, Ltd. Pinto-Prades, JL. Loomes, G. Brey, R. (2009)Trying to estimate a monetary value for the QALY ,Journal of Health Economics, 28 (3) pp. 553-562 Phillips, C. Thompson, G. (2001) What is a QALY? [online] at: http://www.evidence-based-medicine.co.uk/ebmfiles/WhatisaQALY.pdf Prieto, L Sacristà ¡n, J.A. (2003) Problems and solutions in calculating quality-adjusted life years (QALYs) Health Quality Life Outcomes; 1 pp. 80 Ringel, J ( 2002) The elasticity of demand for health care: a review of the literature and its application to the military health system, United States. Department of Defense, National Defense Research Institute (U.S.) Schafermeyer KW (2000) Health Economics I: Basic Economic Principles, Journal of Managed Care Pharmacy 43-50 Spencer, A. (2003) A test of the QALY model when health varies over time, Social Science Medicine; 57, (9) pp. 1697-1706 Wagstaff, A (2002) Inequality aversion, health inequalities and health achievement,  Journal of Health Economics, 21(4) 627-641

Influence of Product Packaging on Consumers

Influence of Product Packaging on Consumers The manner and importance of Packaging Design in Terms of Practical Business and Shipping Considerations as well as in the Marketing and Consumer Context with Respect to Design, Construction and Content. Chapter 1 – Introduction The concept of product packaging along with design represents an understanding that to market one’s item to consumers entails an understanding that they have choices and the core idea in implementing the preceding represents swaying that choice to one’s particular brand. Product packaging, in terms of human history and civilization, is a relatively new concept in that the early tribal and village cultures caught and consumed food where it was located, moving frequently to avail themselves of game and growing produce (Berger, 2002). The self contained and self sufficiency nature of this type of existence created little need to store, transport or package items as they were consumed almost instantly. Containers of that period consisted of leaves, shells and gourds which later gave way to materials that were of natural origin, such as animal organs, containers made of woven grasses and logs that were hollowed (Berger, 2002). As humankind progressed, gathered into larger vi llages and what could be termed towns the increased nature of commerce included foodstuffs as an item of trade. Trading marts sold not only woven materials and fashioned implements, but were a location where hunters and farmers brought items to market to be sold. The earliest example of pottery and earthen containers has been traced back to the Paleolithic period around the 11th millennium where samples were found in the Japanese islands (Wikipedia, 2005). The initial uses with respect to food and other products was the mass or volume storage of grains, jewels, and weapons such as arrows and other items, with this evolving into farmers and merchants devising means to measure amounts and weigh items to sell to buyers and purchasers on an equal basis. The development of a uniform size for varied containers which held differing amounts provided a quick and consistent measurement via which merchants could relatively quickly dispense varied amounts in uniform measurements and as commerce grew, crude packaging was utilized to (Berger, 2002) Hold specific amounts of products that helped to define the size or amount that would be purchased by consumers. Protect products from being contaminated as well as from varied forms of environmental damages such as rain, dust, etc. and to help to limit or prevent theft. Aid in the transport of products as well as storage and movement. And later to provide a means of identification which evolved into the utilization of designs and markings that made attractive display additions. 1.1 Types of Packaging There are varied types of packaging which have been employed through the ages as the innovations and discoveries in other fields impacted upon this area. As a result packaging categories can be divided into the following segments: Flexible: This is comprised of material that easily bends and conforms to the contents, and in the case of modern packaging consists of containers that hold sugar, potato chips and the varied packages that we utilize to put items into for carting home from the market. The utilization of cloth, leaves and woven grasses falls into this category and represents some of the earliest forms of packaging utilization. Flexible packaging is termed â€Å"source-reduced†, which means that it adds and or has the least amount of material when compared with other packaging types that could be utilized, thus adding minimal weight (Integrated Waste Management Board, 2005). The advantage is also that flexible packaging is easily discarded after use. Flexible packaging use on a commercially wide scale basis has been traced back to the Chinese in the first or second century BC, who utilized sheets of mulberry bark that was treated as a wrapping for foods (Logan City Council, 2005). The Chinese refined and further developed packaging techniques in the ensuing centuries as a result of innovations in the art of making paper and as the knowledge of papermaking spread across continents as a result of exploration and trade, it made its way through Asia and eventually Europe. Papermaking was first introduced in England in 1310 and arrived in the United States in 1690, when it was introduced to Germantown, Pennsylvania (infoplease.com. 2005). Paper then consisted of a thin sheet of cellulose and its early development comprised cellulose fibers that were derived from flax, which is the same plant that is utilized to make fibers for linen. The early demand for paper actually created a situation whereby old linen rags were utilized as a fibe r source in its making. It was not until 1867 that making paper from wood pulp, the process we commonly are familiar with, came into use (Berger, 2002). The plentiful and inexpensive nature of this supply source resulted in its becoming the primary source of papermaking and permitted the utilization of paper based products to be used in various manners. As wood pulp replaced cloth, the use of paper became widespread as the cost to manufacture it rapidly decreased. The first important development in packaging came with the creation of paper bags in 1844 when this was introduced in Bristol, England. Francis Wolle in the United States invented a machine in 1852 that made paper bags and this made the use of this type of packaging to become one of the primary sources of that time (TheGreatIdeaFinder.com). Developments along these lines continued in the 1870 ´s as glue was utilized to make paper sacks, along with the introduction of the gusset design which is the construction method we are familiar with today. Further advancements included the invention of machinery that produced what is termed as in-line printed paper bags which aided in marketing and merchandising differentiation. The development of the glued paper sack enabled the replacement of the more expensive cotton flour sack, and eventually the creation of multi-walled paper sacks permitted this material to replace cloth when the method to sew multi-walled paper sack ends was invented in 1925. The development of plastics as a packaging material came into being in the early 1970s and as a result of its many forms, it occupies the flexible, semi-flexible and rigid categories along with paper. Semi-flexible The utilization of paper based packaging as a material took a further step with the development of paperboard, which we understand in today’s context as the type of paper utilized in cereal packaging. This innovation was first produced in the United Kingdom in 1817, which is approximately two hundred years after the Chinese invented this process (Logan City Council, 2005). Corrugated paper, which is another form of cardboard or paperboard, first appeared in the 1850s. This method entails utilizing then sheets of paperboard which are processed into a wave shape for additional rigidity and then these sheets are placed between two flat paperboard sheets (paperonline.com, 2005). The method provides for added strength as well as light weight, the foregoing along with the inexpensive nature of the material makes it particularly well suited to shipping as well as for storage use. During the early 1900 ´s the preferred method of shipping many products was in wooden crates, which added considerable weight as well as the initial cost to produce, but they are prized for their durability (paperonline.com, 2005. The manufacturers of these crates put up a valiant battle to delay the utilization of cardboard crates made of corrugated paperboard, and after considerable litigation the paper based carton was introduced. Today, these crates are called C-flute corrugated paperboard cartons (Michigan State University, 2005) and represent the major shipping container in utilization. In reality, the development of what is termed flaked cereals hastened the utilization of paper based cartons. The Kellogg Company located in Battle Creek, Michigan in the United States was the first company to utilize cartons for cereal. The product started as a health food for sanatorium patients that soon caught favor with the public and the Kellogg Company took their product mass market. Th e packaging originally consisted of a heat sealed bag of Waxtite that covered the outside of the box. This outer wrapper contained the Kellogg name as well as advertising printing (Kellogg’s.com. 2005). Today’s cereal boxes utilize a wax type inner container to hold the product with the outside paperboard carton as the sturdier material. This outer box contains the brand identification and advertising copy. The paperboard containers as well as other forms of paper based packaging gained popularity with consumers as a result of their light weight, markings and ease of storage. On the business side of the ledger, the low cost and ability to create a meaningful differentiation from other products helped to found the packaging design revolution which is prevalent everywhere we look. The continued development of plastics saw this material introduced as a packaging item during the late 1970s as it began to replace paper utilization in varied packaging instances (British Plastics Federation, 2005). The relative strength to weight ratio of plastics as well as its ability to be easily molded into any conceivable shape as well as color combinations that designers wanted provided marketers with unlimited variables to create differences. At first, plastic packaging as we know it today did not immediately land on store and counter shelves, the utilization of shapes, colors, and unique packaging conc epts evolved as is the case with any innovation. The manufacturing advantage of plastics in addition to the aforementioned benefits is also a factor of its weight to contents ratio which significantly decreases shipping costs. Plastics, as with some types of paper, occupy all three classifications, flexible, semi flexible as well as rigid, depending upon the method utilized. Rigid The first rigid material utilized in product packaging, as mentioned, was earthen pottery and this was primarily utilized as a storage and measuring device rather than for the packaging of products. Glass and metal containers, in terms of their utilization in packaging, although not in our modern mass merchandising format, came into use in 1500 BC and 1200 AD respectively (glassonline.com). The art of glass making first began as an alternative to pottery in 7000 BC, yet it did not become industrialized until 1500 BC when the Egyptians mass produced it. The materials required for the formulation of glass, soda, limestone, sand and silica, were plentiful in the Egyptian region (glassonline.com). The basic process of melting the indicated materials and molding them while heated has changed very little through the ages, however, the techniques regarding molding have progressed. At first, the molding process consisted of pressing the hot molten material into cups and bowls. The invention of the blowpipe by the Phoenicians around 300 BC advanced production dramatically and permitted the formulation of round containers which enabled food to be stored as well as transported (glassonline.com). It was not until the late 17th century, when the split mold was invented that the use of glass containers became more suitable as a packaging item on a large scale as it enabled the formation of shapes that were irregular as well as decorative designs that were raised. The preceding permitted placing the manufacturer as well as the name of the product onto containers thus providing marketing identification. Improvements in manufacturing processes during the late 18th and early 19th centuries reduced the cost of manufacturing glass containers through increased production techniques and other refinements thus making them economical in terms of utilization for mass consumer marketing whereas they were heretofore mostly utilized as vessels in shops and for higher end product sales such as drugs and other expensive mixtures (glassonline.com). The preceding was a result of Owens invention of the automated rotary bottle machine, which was patented in 1889 (glassonline.com). From that point on, until the late 1960s, glass dominated the container market for liquid based product, later replaced by plastics and coated paperboard containers, such as used in milk, juice and other formats. The preceding developments in plastics and paper based liquid containers once again relegated glass back to utilization for high end products as a result of its higher weight ratio, relative fragile nature and high cost relative to other materials (glassonline.com).   Tin plating samples were discovered in the Bohemia region of Europe that date back to 1200 AD, and samples of iron coated tin cans were discovered in Bavaria dating back to the early 14th century (Kratzsch. 1999). Tin was utilized as it can be plated in very thin layers over other metals, such as iron. In ancient times, cups, plates and eating implements for royalty and boxes were made of gold and silver.   The tin plating process was held as a closely guarded secret by Bavaria until it was stolen by the Duke of Saxony in the late 1600s and thus the method found its way to France and England by the early 1900s (Kratzsch. 1999).. The process of tin plating was brought to the United States in the early 1900s by William Underwood and very quickly, it replaced iron in the manufacture of many items as a result of its light weight, low cost and higher rigidity (Maine Preservation.com, 2005). The first utilization of tin for food packaging came as a result of an offer proffered by Napoleon Bonaparte in 1809 who was seeking a means to feed his troops (hyperhistory.com, 2005). Until that time, metal was considered poisonous in terms of using it for food storage. A Paris chef, Nicholas Appert, discovered that tin was not poisonous, nor did it affect the taste of food stored in it as long as the food had been boiled and then sealed into the container (hyperhistory.com, 2005). This was development was followed in 1810 by the creation of the tin cylindrical can, patented by Peter Durand of the United Kingdom (Cookery-Online.com, 2005). Until this time, metal was utilized to store and sell tobacco products, which had begun as early as 1764 in London. The discovery of tin’s applicability for long term food storage in varied sized containers found its way to its use for cookies and matches in the early 1830s (Cookery-Online.com, 2005). At this point, its utilization on a mass scale for food storage had not taken off as a result of the relatively high cost as cans were lead soldered on a hand made basis with a hole of 1  ½ inches at the top which was utilized to squeeze the food through. Then a small patch with an air hole was left and the food inside was boiled and the patch then closed (hyperhistory.com, 2005). The process was lengthy and prohibited mass production as approximately sixty cans could be so completed in this manner. The development of the aluminum can took off in earnest in 1852, with prices declining at a steady rate until 1942. Aluminum gradually replaced tin cans utilized in food storage applications. Rigid containers can be fashioned from paper based products, plastic, glass, as well as metals, and all h ave and do have their place in the modern forms of packaging, design and marketing. Chapter 2 – Importance of Packaging The advance of civilization from a tribal based existence is due to humanity’s consistent innovation and adaptation to find new methods of feeding, clothing and conducting commerce. The development of new packaging techniques and innovations have been innovated through the ages as a result of the aforementioned, as well as the vision of individuals who saw needs, voids and opportunities to be filled. Without our modern forms of plastic, metal, paper, cardboard and glass containers, carton and other packaging types, civilization could not exist. Taking the preceding past the simplistic need variable, the existence of all these differing forms of containers has spurred a climate of competition which benefits mankind in that consistently newer and better methods are being devised to create products, convenience, longevity, lower costs and develop new products. And while food packaging has formed the primary undertone of the examples thus far provided, the evolution of packaging has also made possible our modern world of commerce which provides medicines, all manner of processed as well as unprocessed foods, perfumes, smoking products, health and beauty aids, clothing, furnishings, fixtures, and whatever you see have either been delivered by, packaged in or still remain in one of the three packaging classifications of flexible, semi-flexible or rigid containers. Those television programs we watch would not be possible save for the safe and dependable containers T.V sets are shipped in, and even the design and outside container holding the picture tube or high definition contents is a packaging element distinctive to its brand. The toothpaste, toothbrush, soap, body powder and other articles found in one’s bathroom are in containers or packaging made possible by advances in plastics, paper and metal components as well as compositions. Life as we know it would not be the same without our potato chips, coffee, tea, bread, eggs, meats, vegetables, fruits and the like all which were either processed or put into containers made from paper based products, plastics, metal or glass. The foregoing represents the broader societal aspects concerning the importance of packaging in general terms. More specifically, the processes and allied aspects of packaging in terms of marketing, mass distribution, quality of life, benefits to mankind, truth in advertising and contents, along with environmental factors are the broader considerations which shall be broached, along with other aspects. In terms of marketing and differentiating one’s product from other competing brands, packaging does indeed matter. The look, style, colors, shape and other features help to distinguish one’s brand from others thus enabling consumers who are used to or seek to purchase a brand to locate it easily (Sheffield, 2003). In a world crammed full of like product types, â€Å"†¦a unique bottle design†¦Ã¢â‚¬  or unusual box could very well be the reason a consumer elects to purchase a product for the first time (Sheffield, 2003). Thereafter, the product’s fulfillment of its promise in terms of taste, performance, features, durability, usability or other factors helps by and large to determine is continued selection by consumers. But, in order for the second equation to take place, the first one must occur (Sheffield, 2003). This however was not always the case. Recent innovations in plastics and formulation techniques have driven down the costs of manufacturing unique shapes and designs, some of which are of ergonomic benefit, convenience, usability, or simply for eye appeal. An example of the preceding can be found in Nestlà ©Ã¢â‚¬â„¢s new tough bag introduced for its Purina Dog Chow line. The company replaced its prior multi-wall paper package â€Å"†¦ a woven polypropylene material†¦Ã¢â‚¬  (findarticles.com, 2004) that resists tears from fork lifts and consumer use, has an improved appearance on selling selves and offers an easier to utilize opening technique that is more convenient helped to increase store sales as a result. The foregoing is in light of the fact that the packages contents remain unchanged. Other innovations by the same company includes an improved Nesquick syrup bottle that is easier to hold and grip for kid sized hands, offered an improved shelf look and the open top left less of a syrup mess through the use of an inverted bottle that featured a no drip cap. The innovation helped Nesquick to increase sales to the consumer market while not making any changes to the actual product itself (findarticles.com, 2004).   The c ompany claimed that since the introduction of the new container its syrup sales rose 15% over the same fiscal period one year prior and that the company gained 2.6 points in market share points (findarticles.com, 2004). The foregoing points out the importance of packaging in offering new ideas, convenience, usability and function to consumers that can aid in driving sales. The preceding is an example of function defining form. Another example of the preceding is the introduction of ring-pull pop top cans. We now take this innovation for granted all but forgetting how we ever opened soda cans in the past by pushing down on a perforated opening that usually found us spilling some soda in the process. Since the introduction of this new opening feature ring-pull pop top cans now comprise one-third of the soda can market and it is expected to increase to two-thirds by the year 2008 (Gubero, 2005)   The importance of packing in its purest sense means that it fulfills the objective of utilizing a minimum of resources and waste to accomplish its object of delivering its contents to the end user in safe manner whereby the contents arrive as intended. It must be remembered that our entire way of life is held together by the innovative means that we utilize to wrap, protect, ship, store and market all types of products. The foregoing is made even more dramatic by the following (Pongracz, 1998): Food packaging conserves perishable items from spoiling early and thus in the long run extents the useful life of foods which for all intents and purposes could not be brought to market for the millions of global urban dwellers to utilize and enjoy. Packaging in general enables us to improve the quality of life by manufacturing items which can be essentially transported to any corner of the globe, be it food, cosmetics, medicines, appliances, furnishings, electronics, etc. The increased urbanization of the globe is placing an ever increasing reliance on packaging as a means to support this explosion. The facts are that (Pongracz, 1998): 150,000 individuals are added to the current urban population totals each day. 35 years ago only one-third of the earth’s population lived in cities It is predicted that by 2025 two-thirds of the global population will be living in urban locales. The preceding translates into the fact that in 2025 more individuals will be living in cities than the entire population of earth just ten years hence. By 2015 there will be a total of 33 mega cities, each with a population count in excess of 8 million each, and over 500 cities with populations in excess of 1 million. The preceding population aspects dramatize the extent to which packaging plays in our daily lives and how it has influenced our mode of living. The indicated figures are made even more meaningful when one considers that Tokyo is a city of 27 plus million, and that Sao Paulo in Brazil has a population in excess of 16.4 million. Food packaging, as an example, economically utilizes resources that if prepared in another manner would result in massive waste. The processing and packaging of food permits the residues to be utilized as either feed for animals, food by products or fuel. It is estimated that food waste in under developed countries is between 20% to 50% as a result of either poor packaging and or preparation methods, and or the absence of packaging altogether. The foregoing becomes dramatic when compared against Europe where food wastage is approximately 2 to 3 % (Pongracz, 1998). The fact is we must increase our efforts at conservation as efficiencies not only in foods, but in all aspects of resources.   It has been estimated that for each one percent increase in the utilization of food packaging, the resultant waste decreases by approximately 1.6% (Pongracz, 1998). 2.1 Packaging Content The ramifications of packaging encompass those desiring to have their products purchased, with those who are the objects of this activity and governmental regulation that is empowered to act in the best interest of society. This triumvirate represents the real world factors which companies must consider if they desire to be successful in their long term interests. The dichotomy that exists as a result of the foregoing is as follows; Business The companies that manufacture products must be mindful of the ramifications of end use from not only a consumer and governmental perspective, but also in terms of competitor activities and their introduction of continued new, improved and innovative products. This playing field however is fraught with aspects that create a marketing environment that has resulted in increased rounds of governmental regulation. The FTC states (Vitamin Lawyer, 2005): â€Å" Advertising claims based solely on traditional use should be presented carefully to avoid the implication that the product has been scientifically evaluated for efficacy.† The purpose of the Food and Drug Administration is (U.S. Food and Drug Administration, 2005): â€Å"†¦ protecting the public health by assuring the safety, efficacy, and security of human and Veterinary drugs, biological products, medical devices, our nation’s food supply, cosmetics, and products that emit radiation.† This broad mandate stretches far beyond the actual words used to comprise the agency’s title, Food and Drug Administration. The FDA’s mission statement goes on to add that is also assumes responsibility to advance the health of citizens in the United States by helping to â€Å"†¦ speed innovations that make medicines and foods more effective†¦Ã¢â‚¬  (U.S. Food and Drug Administration, 2005), as well as â€Å"†¦ helping the public to get the accurate, science based information they need†¦Ã¢â‚¬  with respect to the utilization of medicines along with foods for the purpose of improving their health. The counterpart of the FDA in Europe is the Food and Veterinary Office (FVO), and it is responsible â€Å"†¦ for ensuring that Community (EU) legislation on food safety, animal health, plant health and animal welfare is properly implemented and enforced.† (Food and Veterinary Office, 2005) The Food and Veterinary Office fulfills its mission through the promotion of effective systems of control with respect to food safety as well as quality in the animal, plant and health sectors along with maintaining compliance of the European Union food safety and quality, plant and animal legislation concerning health for countries within the European Union as well as those exporting to the EU. Labeling and nutrition governance within the European Union consists of specific rules, guidelines and regulations for the labeling of food items to permit consumers to have comprehensive information with regard to the composition as well as contents of the products they purchase and to aid them in making informed choices. A recent change in the legislation in this area is the abolishment of the 25% rule that indicated it was not mandatory to list on labels the components of ingredients which were less than 25% of the final food total. This means that all ingredients must be listed and included as well as those which might cause â€Å"†¦ allergies or intolerances†¦Ã¢â‚¬ (Food and Veterinary Office, 2005). The Food and Veterinary Office aim is â€Å"†¦ to ensure that the consumer gets all of the essential information as regards the composition of the product†¦Ã¢â‚¬  (Food and Veterinary Office, 2005) along with the manufacturer and the methods utilized in stora ge and its preparation. The companies producing these items â€Å"†¦ are free to provide whatever additional information †¦Ã¢â‚¬  (Food and Veterinary Office, 2005) they so desire as long as said additional information is not misleading and is accurate. The preceding means that companies are supposed to tell the truth about their packaging contents as required by the foregoing statements. Similar rules, regulations and guidelines can also be found for other countries throughout the world in varying degrees of specifics and governance, depending upon the laws in place. Unfortunately, companies do find means via which to bend, stretch and slightly circumvent these rules and regulations which basically keeps them within the letter of the law, but introduces elements of confusion or uncertainty. Some examples of the preceding are illustrated by what is termed â€Å"genetically modified organism† or GMO. A genetically modified organism is one where the generic material has been changed utilizing techniques that are generally known as recombinant DNA technology (wikipedia, 2005). The foregoing enables the combining of DNA molecules from differing sources into one molecule in a test tube situation. The controversy that exists in this instance is that some groups see this as meddling in nature. Their views are in spite of the many benefits that have resulted throughout history from such scientific utilizations. Some consumer groups would prefer GMO be banned, while others want it stated as required labeling. On the international side there is no clear consensus with respect to the acceptability of GMO. The United States stance on this issue remains neutral while in Europe the position is that GMO has not proven to be safe, thus it is banned from importation or domestic manufacture (wikipedia, 2005). The preceding has led to some specific cases of misuse in the United States as cited by an FDA order to several food manufacturers to cease from indicating that their food products were GM free (Food Chemical News, 2001). The labeling practice that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration found to be misleading is that these companies were giving the misleading impression that their foo d products were safer than products made with GMO ingredients. Consumer Faced with a plethora of purchasing possibilities in all manner of products, from food items to electronics, vehicles, clothing, toys, furniture and other areas, consumers are barraged with all manner of subtle advertising and copy tricks to sway them from one brand to another. Faced with these realities, companies employ subtle copy tricks to appeal to consumer sensibilities, as even a small difference can make a favorable increase in register sales. That image of a real strawberry on your favorite cereal package is not what is contained in the box, nor is the bread that states it is made from real wheat flour which is fortified with â€Å"†¦ vitamins and minerals †¦ that build strong bodies in 12 ways†¦Ã‚ ¨(Crawford, 2004). In fact, the additional information contained on labels as a result of governmental regulation might actually be helping companies to promote their hype as few consumers actually read this information which is a part of everything they buy (Crawf ord, 2004). The amazing graphics, colors and packaging utilized for containers often convinces consumers to purchase it, rather than what is actually inside. The prior examples of Nesquick ´s new syrup bottle, and Purina’s new woven container are illustrations of this point. An example of copy innuendo is reduced fat. Katherine Tallmadge, the national U.S. spokesperson for the American Dietetic Association, explains that â€Å"Reduced fat does not mean low-fat† (Crawford, 2004). Tallmadge (Crawford, 2004) goes onto explain that whole milk is comprised of four percent (4%) fat, thus a measurement of two percent (2%) of milk still contains five (5) grams of fat in each serving, thereby one is still getting forty – five (45) out of a total of one hundred and twenty (120) calories which is fat. Tallmadge indicates that if one is seeking low fat then this means to purchase skim milk. The foregoing points out the detailed and precise information consumers need to have to read through the mountains of da