Characteristics of Business Leadership Term Paper - 1

Characteristics of Business Leadership - Term Paper Example The Byte shop purchased their first fully assembled computer. It is here that the Apple Corporation became founded. The name was based on Jobs favorite fruit and the logo selected to play on the name of the company and the word byte (Lee, 2001). His highly innovative ideas of personal computers took him into changing the software industry and computer hardware. His invention changed the people idea of a Pc from a huge mass of vacuum tubes used by giant corporations to a small item used by the ordinary people. His development of the software for the Macintosh brought the use of windows interface and use of mouse that set a bar for all interface in software application (Halliday, 2003). One significant challenge Apple faces is Jobs himself. Majority of people believe he is Apple, and he has attracted a devotion of followers better known as the Mac faithful and recently the iphone and iPod fanatics. He is like a secular messiah to his followers and a cult leader to his competitors. The unmatched record of Apple’s products got found under his leadership and whose desire for sleek gadgets is unique in the business world (Halliday, 2003). The markets also are hyper about Jobs. To the world whenever he became faced with sickness the Apple share prices decline. The shares of the company significantly dropped by as much as 10 percent after the announcement of his medical leave. Rumors’ were also said that the company would be sued by its investors, who were unhappy with it’s about face on the health of its chief executive. Investors complained that the company was slow to tell about Steve Job’s honest medical status, and to incorporate a succession plan after his treatment of cancer. This is because of his influential role in vetting the organizations future designs (Lee, 2001). The other challenge was the lack of product blockbusters that will excite Apple lovers. Analysts believe that the company has no announcement to

Literature Review of Cultural Leadership Essay Example for Free

Literature Review of Cultural Leadership Essay Cultural leadership is a diverse subject to touch upon. This aspect of leadership is constantly growing and changing. People should not look into cultural leadership with biased opinions. Dividing cultural leadership into sub groups just gives people an opinion on how to look at people differently. Cultural leadership should be looked at as a whole, as we are one, working together, with the same goal to be successful. Cultural leadership profiles are used to classify what followers expect from leaders in ten cultures cluster groups comprising of sixty-two countries. Six different leadership behavior classifications are used to show what profile is dominant in varying strengths in each region. A successful leader involves more than just planning, coordinate, managing and supervising. A successful leader also has the ability to deal with all genres of people. Whether in involves ethnicity, sexual orientation or people with different cultures. The success of an organization is highly impacted by its culture, which is part of a strategic planning of an organization. What is culture? Culture is defined as the universally shared beliefs, values, and norms of a group of people. Two factors that can hinder cultural awareness are ethnocentrism and prejudice. It is challenging for leaders because it averts them from fully understanding the world of others. Prejudice has a negative impression because it is self-orientated and restrains leaders from seeing the many sides and qualities of others. Whatever makes them unique is their culture. Having a clear understanding of one’s culture, communicating with each other will be much more efficient. Culture has been the attention of many findings across a variety of principles. In the past 30 years a significant number of studies have focused on specifically on ways to recognize and categorize the various dimensions of culture. Determining the rudimentary dimensions or charismas of different cultures is the first step in being able to recognize the relationships between them. Ever since World War II, globalization has been progressing throughout the world. Globalization is the increased interdependence (economic, social, technical, and political) between nations. People are becoming more interconnected. There is an increasingly significant amount of international trade, cultural exchange, and use of worldwide telecommunication systems. In the past ten years, our schools, organizations, and communities have become a lot more global. Increased globalization has created many challenges as well, for example the need to design effective multinational organizations, to identify and select appropriate leaders, and to manage organizations with culturally distinctly different employees. Globalization has also fashioned a need to understand how cultural differences affect the leadership performances. Globalization also created the requirement for leaders to become knowledgeable in cross-cultural awareness and practice. First, leaders need to understand business, political, and cultural settings worldwide. Second, they should learn the perspectives, tastes, trends, and technologies of multiple cultures. Third, they basically need to be able to work concurrently with people from many cultures. Fourth, leaders must be able to familiarize to living and communicating in other cultures. Fifth, they need to acquire to relate to people from other cultures from a position of equivalence rather than cultural supremacy. Anthropologists, sociologists, and many others have questioned the meaning of the word culture. Because it is a theoretical term, it is hard to define, and many different people often define it in unrelated ways. Here, culture is defined as the learned beliefs, values, rules, norms, symbols, and traditions that are common to a group of people. It is these shared qualities of a group that make them matchless. In summary, culture is the way of life, different customs, and script of a group of peoples. Related to culture, are the expressions of multicultural and diversity. Multicultural indicates an approach or classification that takes more than one culture into interpretation. It mentions to the existence of multiple cultures such an African, American, Asian, European, and Middle Eastern. Multicultural can also denote to a set of subcultures defined by race, gender, ethnicity, sexual orientation, or age. Diversity signifies to the subsistence of different cultures or ethnicities within a group or organization. Ethnocentrism is the inclination for beings to place their own group (ethnic, racial, cultural) at the center of their interpretations of others and the world. People tend to give importance and value to their own beliefs, attitudes, and values, over and above other groups. Ethnocentrism is the sensitivity that one’s own culture is better or more expected than the culture of others. Ethnocentrism is a worldwide tendency, and each and every one of us is ethnocentric to some degree. Ethnocentrism can be a major impediment to effective leadership because it averts people from fully understanding and/or respecting the perspectives of others. The more ethnocentric we are, the less open or accepting we are of other people’s cultural customs and practices. Prejudice is a general continual attitude, belief, or emotion believed by an individual about another individual or group that is based on defective or unproven statistics. It refers to assumptions about others based on previous decisions or occurrences. Prejudice involves obstinate generalizations that are impervious or change or evidence to the opposing. Prejudice is often thought in the framework of race. In addition to combating their own prejudice, leaders also face the experiment of dealing with the prejudice of followers. These prejudices can be toward the manager or the leader’s culture. Additionally, it is not infrequent for the leader to face followers who symbolize several culturally different groups, and these groups have their own prejudgments toward each other. A experienced leader needs to find ways to negotiate with followers from numerous cultural backgrounds. Training programs about culture and diversity have been admired for many years. At the center of these programs, people are educated about the degrees and characteristics of different cultures, and how to be perceptive to people in other countries and cultures. Considerate about issues about culture is useful in several ways. The discoveries about culture can help leaders recognize their own cultural biases and inclinations. Tolerant of their own preferences is the first step in accepting that people in other cultures might have different predilections Additionally, the findings help leaders to apprehend what it means to be a noble leader. Different cultures have different ideas about what they desire from their leaders. These verdicts help our leaders adapt their style to be more operative in different cultural settings. Third, the findings help leaders correspond more effectively across cultural and geographic boundaries. By considering cultural differences, leaders can become more empathic and precise in their communication with others. Information on culture and leadership has also been applied in very concrete ways. It has been used to construct culturally perceptive Web sites, design new employee orientation programs, organizing programs in relocation training, advance global team effectiveness, and expedite multinational merger implementation. These illustrations clearly specify the wide range of applications for research on culture and leadership in the workplace. GLOBE researchers allocated the data from the 62 countries they studied into regional masses. These masses provided a expedient way to investigate the similarities and differences between cultural groups, and to make significant generalizations about culture and leadership. In sum, these regional masses exemplified a valid and dependable way to differentiate countries of the world into 10 distinct groups. The GLOBE studies compromise the greatest body of findings to date on culture and leadership. GLOBE researchers studied how 17,000 managers from 62 different countries perceived leadership. They evaluated the similarities and differences between regional clusters of cultural groups by grouping countries into 10 distinct clusters; the outcome was a list of leadership attributes that were universally recognized as positive and negative. The representation of an ineffective leader is someone who is asocial, malicious, self-focused, and autocratic. The conceptualization of leadership used by GLOBE researchers was consequential in part from the work of Lord and Maher on implicit leadership theory. Concurring to implicit leadership theory, individuals have implicit beliefs and opinions about the qualities and theories that differentiate leaders from non-leaders and effective leaders from ineffective leaders. â€Å"Leadership is in the eye of the beholder.† Leadership refers to what people see in others when they are demonstrating leadership behaviors. To depict how different cultures view leadership behaviors in others, GLOBE researchers identified six global leadership behaviors: * Charismatic/Value-Based Leadership: Reflects the ability to inspire, to motivate, and to expect high performance from others based on strongly held core values. This kind of leadership includes being visionary, inspirational, self-sacrificing, trustworthy, decisive, and performance oriented. (Peter Northouse 2012). * Team-Orientated Leadership: Emphasizes team building and a common purpose among team members. This kind of leadership includes being collaborative, integrative, diplomatic, non-malevolent, and administratively competent. (Peter Northouse 2012). * Participative Leadership: Reflects the degree to which leaders involve others in making and implementing decisions. It includes being participative and non-autocratic. (Peter Northouse 2012). * Humane-Oriented Leadership: Emphasizes being supportive, considerate, compassionate, and generous. This type of leadership includes modesty and sensitivity to other people. (Peter Northouse 2012). * Autonomous Leadership: Refers to independent and individualistic leadership, which includes being autonomous and unique. (Peter Northouse 2012). * Self-Protective Leadership: Reflects behaviors that ensure the safety and security of the leader and the group. It includes leadership that is self-centered, status conscious, conflict inducing, face saving, and procedural. (Peter Northouse 2012). Cultural Leadership in organizations always seems to miss the discussion of how leadership keeps culture in organizations stable. Charisma is where it all begins. Therefore having multiple cultural leaders helps to resolve this issue. Most leaders do and say different things, but in the end, everyone just wants success. Whether that success is culture, coordination, or a profitable business, or all of those things, many people learn to cope with differences by experience. Experience is the best form of knowing, therefore, to be a great leader; you have to start somewhere. The leader, the followers, and the situation, all have to do with leadership. As well as playing a significant role in cultural leadership. Or any type of leadership for that matter. Personal qualities, perceived situation, vision and mission, followers’ and attributes, leader behaviors, performance, administrative actions, use of cultural forms, and the use of tradition all are key elements to a successful leader, their followers, the business, and the outcome of the business, organization, company. Multicultural is increasing all over the world. Even though America is known as the melting pot, everywhere across the world have cultural behaviors within their organization. Ethics affects leadership, as well as tradition. But studies complied on cross-cultural leadership have been attained, and this helps us to understand the differences between different cultures from our own. Decaregorization is a cultural leadership style for employees to become more aquinted with one another. This style helps companies get to know onw another and interact in a positive manner doing something else besides work. The leader would old a funraiser, etc. Therefore, rather than group-based interactions, this approach will focus on individuality. The following quotes are crucial to cultural leadership, and accepting differences among others. â€Å"Moral excellence comes about as a result of habit. We become just by doing just acts, temperate by doing temperate acts, brave by doing brave acts.† – Aristotle, Nichomachean Ethics (350 BCE). â€Å"Lead them with culture and regulate them by the rules of propriety, and they will have a sense of shame and, moreover, set themselves right.† – Confucius (5110479 BCE). The results of ethical leadership came up with six main themes from the responses of all six societies. Accountability, consideration and respect for others, fairness and non-discriminatory treatment, character, collective orientation – organization and social, openness and flexibility. Each society is unique, and to understand the differences, you must experience it firsthand. Reading and learning will only give your insight. Aforementioned cultural leadership must be learned in person, by the leader and its followers, for they are working towards a common goal. Leadership profiles are used to describe how cultures view leadership behaviors. There are six leadership behaviors identified by Globe researchers, they are: charismatic/value based, team-oriented, participative, humane- oriented, autonomous, and self-protective.( House Javidan, 2004) Charismatic/value based leadership is being visionary, inspirational, with the ability to motivate high performance from others based on strongly held core values. Team-oriented leadership is instilling a common purpose among team members to encourage a team effort by being collaborative, diplomatic, and administrative competent. Participative leadership involves making others in the decision making process and includes being non-autocratic and participative. Autonomous leadership is being unique, independent, and a individualistic leader. Humane-oriented leadership is being modest and sensitive to other people, being supportive, compassionate, and generous. Self-protective is self-centered, face saving, status conscious, ensuring the safety and security of the leader and group. There are ten distinct groups to differentiate countries of the world into regional clusters ( e. g. Ronen Shenkar, 1985) Middle East, made up of Qatar, Morocco, Egypt, Kuwait, and Turkey. Nordic Europe which includes Denmark, Finland, and Sweden. Latin Europe comprising Israel, Italy, Spain, Portugal, France, and Switzerland. Latin America made up of Ecuador, El Salvador, Columbia, Bolivia, Brazil, Guatemala, Argentina, Costa Rica, Venezuela, and Mexico. Southern Asia which includes The Philippines, Indonesia, Malaysia, India, Thailand, and Iran. Sub-Saharan Africa consisting of Zimbabwe, Namibia, Zambia, Nigeria, and South Africa. ( Black caucus) Anglo consists of Canada, the United States, Australia, Ireland, England, South Africa( white caucus) and New Zealand. Confucian Asia includes Singapore, Hong Kong, Taiwan, China, South Korea, and Japan. Eastern Europe is Greece, Hungary, Albania, Slovenia, Poland, Russia, Georgia, and Kazakhstan. Germanic Europe includes Austria, The Net herlands, Sweden, and Germany. Middle Eastern culture and leadership perceived to be effective in this region of the world are the interrelationships among societal culture, organizational culture and leadership methodologies. Data collected from four Middle Eastern nations (Iran, Kuwait, Turkey, and Qatar) provide an insight into the framework of societal and organizational values and management practices in Arab countries. The great majority of the population in Iran, Kuwait, Turkey, and Qatar are muslins. Turkey has a formal state ideology; the state is independent of religious rules and is run by secular rules mostly adapted from the west. Iran, Kuwait, and Qatar are not secular, but religious laws dominate. Also differences in the Islamic sects, Iran being predominately â€Å"shiite†, Kuwait, Turkey, Qatar people largely â€Å"sunni†. Language may account for part of the differences in Middle East region, while Islamic religion seems to be a common attribute. In making plans and forecasts all four nations are below average and very close to each other, which involves the concept of fate embodied in Islamic beliefs. Effective leadership attributes in Middle Eastern societies have universalistic characteristics and some culture-specific attributes with participation having a different meaning compared to western societies, being centered on satisfaction of egos rather than to improve quality of a decision. Organizational leaders tend to be more sensitive to local cultures and traditions and more future-orientated practices, plus promote change.( Introduction to the special issues on Leadership and Culture in the Middle East, Hayat Kabasakal and Ali Dastmalchian) Face saving and status are important characteristics of effective leadership, and deemphasizes charismatic/value based and team- oriented leadership. Looking after one’s job and security is of the upmost priority for most leaders in this group category. Diversity of management systems exist across contemporary Europe, and societal culture diversity remains unquestionable and frequently preserved as much as possible. The formation of the European Union has opened up all borders, increasing diversity if cultures, all intermingling, changing cultural clustering, and cultural divide between eastern and western Europe. Prior studies of cultural distinctions, cross-cultural studies between east-west and north-south European distinctions are changing from prior data and may need further studies. Managers in Germanic countries make more participative decision-making behavior, central Europe makes more autocratic decisions. West European (Nordic, Anglo, Latin) empathize more â€Å"Equality â€Å"or egalitarian commitment. East and near East countries lean more toward hierarchy or conservatism. North Europe has shown to favor equality and participation, while managers from Southern Europe prefer more hierarchy. A coaching leader is preferred in North Europe, while preference is for a directing leader in South Europe. While self centered and malevolence are seen as impeding leadership in all clusters. Eastern Europe leader would be independent while maintaining strong interest in protecting their position as leader. Nordic Europe want leaders who are inspiring and involve others in decision making, not concerned with status and other self-centered attributes. Anglo Europe want leader to be exceedingly motivating and visionary, considerate of others, team orientated and autonom ous and not autocratic. Latin America leader is charismatic/value based but somewhat self serving, collaborative and inspiring. Confucian Asia leader works and cares about others but uses status and position to make independent decisions without input of others. Sub-Saharan Africa sees effective leadership as caring, should be inspirational, collaborative, and not excessively self centered. A portrait of a leader who is high in integrity, is charismatic/value based, and has interpersonal skills is one whom almost everyone would see as exceptional. (Dorman et al. 2004) After major corporate failures and financial failures of banks and other high impact institutions, being honest and trustworthy could be a high priority for leadership positions in all culture groups. Other personal traits or learned skills would be useful and desirable attributes but lower on the priority scale. Being positive and intelligent definitely would be useful as a leader of any type of venture or business. There are a lot of other positive attributes that would be desirable for leadership; among them is one that plans ahead, having foresight to accurately see what is coming up in near and long range time predictions. Being a team builder, instilling confidence in others encouraging them with a just and dependable example. Personal traits such as being administrative skilled, decisive, and motivating people to be excellence oriented would be very beneficial to any leader and followers. Leaders should be aware and knowledgeable of the many undesirable attributes that can be obstacles in being an effective leader. Being a loner and anti-social would be very negative in showing followers your concern for them and gaining their confidence. The most visible and destructive undesirable attribute in recent events is that of being ruthless, as you would think of people in financial leadership of banks and wall street that caused the massive collapse of the world economies. Being dictatorial and egocentric is very bad for keeping a positive relationship with followers. Personal traits like being irritable and non-cooperative would be hard to understand by followers. There are many strengths associated with classifications of culture groups into clusters that can be easily be utilized for leadership profiles so as to provide a data base of reference for managers of international corporations. Providing valuable asset for training more efficient leaders is one of the strength, it also provides a good understanding of how different cultures have an impact upon leading a workforce into better cohesion and productive atmosphere in the workplace. What followers expect from leaders is a signal to upper management as to what type of person would be more effective with a certain culture group. A second strength could be that this provides useful information/guidelines about what is accepted as good and bad leadership, a yardstick for managers/leaders to measure how do I measure up? Leadership and culture are two separate studies, but inseparable in effective leadership programs. There are some criticisms on culture and leadership classification studies in that a lot of findings about perceptions of leadership in different cultures do not provide a clear set of assumptions and propositions that can be used to provide a single theory about the way culture influences the leadership process. Another one would be in that some of the terms used are hard to understand without any education about the diversity of world culture. The meanings of some terms are very vague. The conceptualizations in these studies of culture and leadership integration has had varying reception from people on that it being a process of being perceived by others as being a leader. Also the way a provocative list of universally endorsed desirable and undesirable leadership attributes are presented. Different cultures have different ideas about what they want from their leaders. Understanding the diversity of cultures in the workplace today can be very positive for leaders and followers in their pursuits. While there are many studies on culture leadership and the GLOBE Study, there is also a model that helps leaders in achieving effective cultural leadership. In that it helps them understand the difference that exits among national cultures. The model was developed by Geert Hotstede. In his research he outlines the variation of national culture into five dimensions. They are as follow: individualistic/collectivistic, high power distance/low power distance; high and low uncertainty avoidance, achievement/nurturing; and long-term/short-term orientation. Familiarity with the GLOBE Study and the Hofstede model, leadership culture is made easy and will increase organizational effectiveness. This will also create better relationship among nations. This will benefit the common good of all through respect and better communication. Individualistic people; according to Hofsede, worry about themselves and that of those who are close to them or who are like them. They tend not to trust outsiders. In contrast, collectivistic work in groups, much like team players. The second dimension of Hofsede’s study is power distance. Some cultures have accepted high power distance and others low power distance. High power distance cultures display great respect for those in authority or power holders. This model is seen based on the difference between leaders and their followers. It is obvious in pay scale, benefits and promotions. Though lower power distance: power is distributed more equally among group members; there is much lateral communication line between subordinates and leaders. Third dimension is high uncertainty avoidance. This dimension is concerned with the impact of societal norms, ritual and what is being done in avoiding uncertainty. Organizations want to be able to predict the future based the rules of cultures are used. They live under constant stress because of fear of the future. In contrast; low uncertainty avoidance is comfortable with risks, they do not impose or create friction over differences in behaviors and or others opinions. Those cultures in the low uncertainty avoidance tend to be more tolerant of others. The next dimension is achievement; those belonging to this group tend to be more aggressive. They are assertive, they are confrontational, there is a lot of greed for money and they lack humility. They encourage competitiveness among them and others. Whereas the opposite of that is nurturing, they value relationship and are genuinely concern about the wellbeing of others. The last set of dimension of natural culture is long-term orientation. They are optimistic of the future and they are persistent. Though short-term orientation, they stay in the past, they place high importance on values of the past. In addition to the Five Dimensions of National Culture as described by Hofsete, there is for additional dimensions that affect cultural leadership. They are as follows, and I quote as listed in Northouse (2010): * Institutional Collectivism: An organization or sociality encourages institutional or societal collective action. (Peter Northouse 2012). * In-Group Collectivism: People express pride, loyalty, and cohesiveness in their organizations or families. In-group collectivism is concerned with the extent to which people are devoted to their organizations or families. (Peter Northouse 2012). * Gender Egalitarianism: An organization or society minimizes gender role differences and promotes gender equality. (Peter Northouse 2012). * Assertiveness: People in a culture are determined, assertive, confrontational, and aggressive in their special relationships. (Peter Northouse 2012). * Future Orientation: People engage in future-oriented behaviors such as planning, investing in the future, and delaying gratification. (Peter Northouse 2012). * Performance Orientation: An organization or society encourages and rewards group members for improved performance and excellence. (Peter Northouse 2012). * Humane Orientation: A culture encourages and rewards people for being fair, altruistic, generous, caring, and kind to others. (Peter Northouse 2012). Through all of the studies it has been concluded that there is exact correlation between the culture of an organization and its effectiveness. And it also shows that a lot of those dimensions have a negative impact on the organization. In conclusion, cultural leadership is one of the major principles every organization, company, person needs to fully grasp. For decades, many researchers have been prophesying that globalization, increased technology, civil rights legislation, and changing demographics will generate new encounters for leaders who administer a diverse organization. All of these elements place a considerably improved probability that workers from both genders, diverse nationalities, ethnic backgrounds, numerous races, and a mixture of religious will be essential to work jointly. This in sum, employees must work together to create a positive environment. This is what naturally will happen, and this is an international effort. References Leadership Theory and Practice Fifth Edition Peter G. Northouse Introduction to the Special Issue on Leadership and Culture in the Middle East(2001) Hayat Kabasakal Ali Dastmalchian Cultural Variations Across European Countries(2000) Felix C. Brodbeck Michael Frese THE INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF INTERDISCIPLINARY SOCIAL SCIENCES (http://web.ebscohost.com/ehost/pdfviewer/pdfviewer?sid=a2b5ee8b-a9d2-4bae-a8ed-16919582d9c5%40sessionmgr115vid=4hid=14) Chrobot-Mason, Donna, Ruderman, Marian N. Weber, Todd J, Oholott, Patricia J, Dalton, Maxine A. (Nov 2007) Illuminating a Cross-Cultural Leadership Challenge: When Identify Groups Collide. Volume 18 (11) 2011 (26). Retrieved From http://discover.linccweb.org/primo_library/libweb/action/display.do

Free Billy Budd Essays: A Deconstructive Reading :: Billy Budd Essays

A Deconstructive Reading of Billy Budd Billy, who cannot understand ambiguity, who takes pleasant words at face value and then obliterates Claggart for suggesting that one could do otherwise, whose sudden blow is a violent denial of any discrepancy between his being and his doing, ends up radically illustrating the very discrepancy he denies. - Barbara Johnson, p. 86 With Barbara Johnson's splendid Critical Difference we are willy-nilly plunged into deconstruction. At the moment I shall not attempt to explain this radical and highly subversive critical mode, except to say that what you are about to see is an example of it. At the moment you may well ask (being, as you undoubtedly are, still very impressed by Dryden's splendidly anti-naïve reading), "you mean it is possible to be even more intelligent about Melville's story?" I remember asking myself the same thing when I first noticed the chapter in Barbara Johnson's book on Billy Budd. But I began to read it anyway and I soon found myself in the throes of a critically different excitement! The first thing that truly grabbed my attention was a remark Johnson makes apropos of the following quotation from Melville's story: "innocence and guilt personified by Claggart and Budd in effect changed places" (62). The narrator says this apropos of Billy having killed Claggart. This is what Barbara Jo hnson says apropos of the passage in question: "Interestingly enough, Melville both invites an allegorical reading and subverts the very terms of its consistency when he writes of the murder: 'Innocence and guilt . . .'" (83). Now that's deconstruction, folks! "Both invites . . . and subverts"? Wow! Needless to say, ALL CLAIMS JOHNSON MAKES FOR HER READING ARE SUPPORTED BY MELVILLE'S TEXT. What does Johnson, then, claim? I shall try to be as brief as possible about this splendidly anti-naïve reading. Johnson's first item on the agenda is to put into question Billy's innocence. (Melville himself tells us that "innocence was [Billy's] blinder" 49.) She asks us to consider Billy a kind of "reader" (Johnson calls him a "literal reader" 85). Billy is a "literal reader" in that he seems to take things at face value. He seems to believe, in fact, that things are what they seem to be. If Claggart appears to be nice to Billy (and he does) then Claggart must be nice to Billy (he isn't, of course).

Me Talk Pretty One Day Essay

This essay written by David Sedaris is a walk down memory lane where David tells about his experiences and troubles when he studied French in Paris. The story takes place the first day after the vacation. He moved to Paris with hopes of learning French but it turns out that it was not as easy as he first thought. He only had one month French class before he left the safe hometown of New York. The school is an international school where all kinds of nationalities and languages are gathered but where French is the only language allowed to be spoken. David ´s limited ability to speak French makes him very nervous. Further, it only makes it worse when the rest of the students speak what sounds like perfect French to him just with some different accents. It proves that confidence plays a significant role when you communicate and speak in a foreign language. He feels everyone else speaks perfect French and he is one of the few who is not able to do the same. The school is barely started and he already begins to feel like an outsider. Everybody at the school is expected to perform from day one where there will be no mercy. That’s the way it works. It is as David described with figurative words â€Å"It ´s everybody into the language pool, sink or swim†. It is a rapid way for the teacher to see how the students perform. The class begins and the teacher walks in. From now on the teacher is judging every move and every mistake. You get the impression that this teacher is tough and also a little bit evil. The teacher asks the students one by one which things they like and which they dislike. A student called Anna is asked and answers that she hates mosquitos. The teacher is quick and respond with sarcasm â€Å"Oh really, how interesting. I thought that everyone loved the mosquito†¦.† This illustrates pretty much how the teacher’s personality is. She isn’t a sweetheart who thinks the students need some good care and help because they are unsecure in the French language. She is more old-school and teach according to the old saying â€Å"you learn from your mistakes† she nearly pushes the students to make errors and then point them out. It seems insensitive and cruel but the method may works David later describes, again with a metaphor: â€Å"She hadn’t yet punched anyone, but it seemed wise to protect ourselves against the inevitable† what can be interpreted as the students starts thinking in French even though they ´re not the persons who are being asked. The students are becoming afraid of her with her sarcasm, rough tone and the way she keeps attacking even when the slightest mistake is made. Another student whose name also is Anna was asked the same question about which things she loved and which she hated. Obviously, she was a little bit nervous after having watched her classmates being humiliated by the teacher. Besides that Anna is insecure in French like the rest of the class and limited in terms of vocabulary. This makes her appear more foolish than she really is because she has complications in expressing herself. That part is the most important and interesting in relation to the theme: Language is power. Another example is that people change if they feel uncomfortable and can ´t communicate as much as they want to. David says: â€Å"Before beginning school, there ´d be no shutting me up, but now I was convinced that everything I said was wrong† this shows a big change in his behavior only because he is afraid his French is so bad that the rest of the class can ´t understand him. As already mentioned, a person ´s personality can change if (s)he ´s not able to communicate in a foreign language. David is maybe able to understand a big part of what is being said but understanding and speaking a language doesn’t necessary go hand in hand. There is a big difference bet ween the two things. Understanding is just a small step to speaking a language fluently. If you don’t speak a foreign language in another country this might result in an identity which seems completely diverse from the truth. That is exactly what happened to David. His insecurity gave him an identity he maybe didn’t like. This identity didn’t show the real David. Perhaps the other students considered him as a quiet and boring person just because of his lack of confidence in speaking the language. I think the purpose of this essay is to discuss the subject language. The essay was published in 2000. David Sedaris tried to bring this subject to debate in a time where the globalization brings every nation closer to each other and therefore needs a way to communicate. It was a current theme in 2000 and still is today in 2013. China is growing bigger and is historically not speaking anything else but Chinese. In my opinion this big country needs a way to communicate o ther than their mother tongue as they play an essential role in the international trade. Besides that the subject is relevant to my age as a student in Gymnasium. Pupils in Denmark begin to learn English in 3th grade and later you will be given the opportunity to choose German or French and Spanish. This makes the students able to communicate with, if not the rest of the world, then a huge part of the globe. This opens up the world and gives a lot of possibilities.

College Success and Personal Responsibility Essay

Honesty is the key component in personal responsibility because it shows that an individual can be trusted with key information or completion of homework assignments. There is a strong belief that one’s word is their bond, meaning what the individual states or a claim is valid and true. Other essential components to personal responsibility are dependability, positive attitudes, and professional competence. Some people say that an individual’s character holds a higher value in personal responsibility over honesty, dependability, or a positive attitude. Everyone will have a different definition regarding what personal responsibility means to them. I would define personal responsibility as honesty, dependability, a positive attitude in every aspect of my life, and professional competence. To even further define what personal responsibility means to me, I would need to explain what the words â€Å"personal† and â€Å"responsible† mean to me. Personal to me means that my actions and materials belong to me. Some examples of personal materials that belong to me are my laptop computer, my car, and my homework assignments. These are things that I have purchased or gifts that have been given to me, however my homework assignments are papers that I have written and not plagiarized. Some examples of my actions would be going back to school, completing tasks at work and going to the gym. These things may be in dollar value or just everyday activities that I do. To me responsibility to means that I have the ability to answer for my actions, knowledge of the possible consequences I could receive for my negative actions, accolades for the positive. As a child I was always taught cause and effect and how my actions would affect myself and others around me. The possible consequence of my action not to pay my monthly car payment is repossession of my vehicle. The long-term effect of such action is not having my own transportation to get to work, school, the gym, or any other locations that I may need to go to or want to go, as well as car insurance getting canceled. When an individual possesses the key elements of personal responsibility, the individual will succeed in areas such as professionalism and academics. Several years ago I took personal responsibility for granted. In my failure to be honest and dependable with my finances and health, I struggled and suffered greatly. In the early part of 2002, someone asked me, â€Å"Where did I think I would be at in my life 10 years from now†? I responded to them I do not know. Over the next several years I had allowed others to dictate to my finances, my personal belongings, and even my health. Yes, when you do not have a sense of personal responsibility, everything in your life becomes compromised. The first steps in taking responsibility is stop blaming others and accept that it is up to me to do better (â€Å"Taking personal responsibility,† 2011). Once I stopped blaming others for the downfalls in my life and started owning up to my own actions, I was better able to fully understand what personal responsibility was and what I needed to do. Because I took an active stand toward personal responsibility I was able to improve my finances, health, and other aspects of my life. You may be wondering how professional competence relates to personal responsibility. Professional competence is the ability to understand varied concepts and ideas and also be capable to accomplish tasks (whether school assignments or career tasks on the job) with little or no supervision (University of Phoenix, 2012). By applying professional competence in your academics you will exemplify high moral values in completing class assignments. You will show yourself, instructors, and employers that you have taken the time to do your own work to your utmost ability, and that you can develop new ideas on how to solve not only everyday problems but also new problems as well. The rewards that will be acquired in having personal responsibility and college success are unlimited. Some examples of the reward that go with personal responsibility and college success is completion of my degree program, earning a degree, or a plus is earning a degree with honors, and having the ability to apply the knowledge of my degree in my career field. Personal responsibility does not just apply to academic success; it also applies to career and general success. Gaining and maintaining college success is not only grades and attendance, but it does play a huge part in academic success. It also includes participation in class, group, and forum discussions and dedicating yourself to do your very best when completing assignments in an ethical and competent manner. According to the Quick hints, study tips for college success article published by the Miami Times â€Å"Studies show that students who study often and read their textbooks thoroughly earn better grades.† (â€Å"Quick hints, study tips for college success,† 2005). A student, who demonstrates personal responsibility in college, will gain administrative support from the university staff and instructor when it is needed and maybe even letters of recommendation. An employee who demonstrates personal responsibility in their career may receive bonuses for jobs well done, promotions into higher positions, and letters of recommendation. There are several methods I would use to maintain my personal responsibilities in my academic career. My top methods include maintaining a schedule, reading all material, arriving to class and team meetings on time, by seeking help through various resources, completing all work assignments in a timely and honest manner, and asking questions in class on material that I do not understand. Other methods may include â€Å"Create a good learning space, free from distraction; Take notes in text; and Return to the beginning and repeat the process† (â€Å"Quick hints, study tips for college success,† 2005). All these methods when combined, will not only help me in my education but also in my career by improving my knowledge of work given, meeting scheduled deadlines, meetings scheduled for specific times, and working as a trustworthy employee. Personal responsibility is more than honesty; it is dependability, positive attitudes, and professional competence. These factors are not just limited to academic success but also career and personal success in multiple aspects of your life. They can be used as guidelines for various learning and promotions in self and team enrichment. Therefore, personal responsibility has both positive and negative effects to yourself and those around you. By exemplifying high moral values in personal responsibility you will achieve success in everything you do. References Quick hints, study tips for college success. (2005, October). Miami Times, 83(7), 3B. Retrieved from http://search.proquest.com/docview/363118060?accountid-35812 Taking personal responsibility. (2011, September). The Daily Gleaner. Retrieved from http://search.proquest.com/dovview/887612423?accountid=35812 University of Phoenix. (2012). Professional Competence. Retrieved from University of Phoenix, Gen200-Foundations for General Education and Professional Success website.

Luminescence Dating in Archaeology

Luminescence Dating in Archaeology Luminescence dating (including thermoluminescence and optically stimulated luminescence) is a type of dating methodology that measures the amount of light emitted from energy stored in certain rock types and derived soils to obtain an absolute date for a specific event that occurred in the past. The method is a direct dating technique, meaning that the amount of energy emitted is a direct result of the event being measured. Better still, unlike radiocarbon dating, the effect luminescence dating measures increases with time. As a result, there is no upper date limit set by the sensitivity of the method itself, although other factors may limit the methods feasibility. How Luminescence Dating Works Two forms of luminescence dating are used by archaeologists to date events in the past: thermoluminescence (TL) or thermally stimulated luminescence (TSL), which measures energy emitted after an object has been exposed to temperatures between 400 and 500 °C; and optically stimulated luminescence (OSL), which measures energy emitted after an object has been exposed to daylight. To put it simply, certain minerals (quartz, feldspar, and calcite), store energy from the sun at a known rate. This energy is lodged in the imperfect lattices of the minerals crystals. Heating these crystals (such as when a pottery vessel is fired or when rocks are heated) empties the stored energy, after which time the mineral begins absorbing energy again. TL dating is a matter of comparing the energy stored in a crystal to what ought to be there, thereby coming up with a date-of-last-heated. In the same way, more or less, OSL (optically stimulated luminescence) dating measures the last time an object was exposed to sunlight. Luminescence dating is good for between a few hundred to (at least) several hundred thousand years, making it much more useful than carbon dating. The Meaning of Luminescence The term luminescence refers to the energy emitted as light from minerals such as quartz and feldspar after theyve been exposed to an ionizing radiation of some sort. Minerals- and, in fact, everything on our planet- are exposed to cosmic radiation: luminescence dating takes advantage of the fact that certain minerals both collect and release energy from that radiation under specific conditions. Two forms of luminescence dating are used by archaeologists to date events in the past: thermoluminescence (TL) or thermally stimulated luminescence (TSL), which measures energy emitted after an object has been exposed to temperatures between 400 and 500 °C; and optically stimulated luminescence (OSL), which measures energy emitted after an object has been exposed to daylight. Crystalline rock types and soils collect energy from the radioactive decay of cosmic uranium, thorium, and potassium-40. Electrons from these substances get trapped in the minerals crystalline structure, and continuing exposure of the rocks to these elements over time leads to predictable increases in the number of electrons caught in the matrices. But when the rock is exposed to high enough levels of heat or light, that exposure causes vibrations in the mineral lattices and the trapped electrons are freed. The exposure to radioactive elements continues, and the minerals begin again storing free electrons in their structures. If you can measure the rate of acquisition of the stored energy, you can figure out how long it has been since the exposure happened. Materials of geological origin will have absorbed considerable quantities of radiation since their formation, so any human-caused exposure to heat or light will reset the luminescence clock considerably more recently than that  since only the energy stored since the event will be recorded. Measuring Stored Energy The way you measure energy stored in an object that you expect has been exposed to heat or light in the past  is to stimulate that object again  and measure the amount of energy released. The energy released by stimulating the crystals is expressed in light (luminescence). The intensity of blue, green or infrared light that is created when an object is stimulated is proportional to the number of electrons stored in the minerals structure and, in turn, those light units are converted to dose units. The equations used by scholars to determine the date when the last exposure happened are typically: Age total luminescence/annual rate of luminescence acquisition, orAge paleodose (De)/annual dose(DT) Where De  is the laboratory beta dose that induces the same luminescence intensity in the sample emitted by the natural sample, and DT  is the annual dose rate comprised of several components of radiation that arise in the decay of natural radioactive elements. Datable Events and Objects Artifacts which can be dated using these methods include  ceramics, burned  lithics, burned bricks and soil from  hearths  (TL), and unburned stone surfaces that were exposed to light and then buried (OSL). Pottery: The most recent heating measured in pottery sherds is assumed to represent the manufacturing event; the signal arises from quartz or feldspar in the clay or other tempering additives. Although pottery vessels can be exposed to heat during cooking, cooking is never at sufficient levels to reset the luminescence clock. TL dating was used to determine the age of  Indus Valley  civilization occupations, which had proved resistant to radiocarbon dating, because of the local climate. Luminescence can also be used to determine the original firing temperature.Lithics: Raw material such as flints and cherts have been dated by TL; fire-cracked rock from hearths can also be dated by TL as long as they were fired to sufficiently high temperatures. The resetting mechanism is primarily heated  and works on the assumption that the raw stone material was heat-treated during stone tool manufacture. However, heat treatment normally involves temperatures between 300 and 400 °C, not alw ays sufficiently high enough. The best success from TL dates on chipped stone artifacts likely are from events when they were deposited into a hearth and accidentally fired. Surfaces of buildings and walls: The buried elements of standing walls of archaeological ruins have been dated using optically stimulated luminescence; the derived date provides the age of burial of the surface. In other words, the OSL date on a foundation wall of a building is the last time that foundation was exposed to light before being used as the initial layers in a building, and hence when the building was first built.Others: Some success has been found dating objects such as bone tools, bricks, mortar, mounds, and agricultural terraces. Ancient slag  left from early  metal production  have also been dated using TL, as well as absolute dating of kiln fragments or vitrified linings of furnaces and crucibles. Geologists have used OSL and TL to establish long, log chronologies of landscapes; luminescence dating is a powerful tool to help date sentiments dated to the  Quaternary  and much earlier periods. History of the Science Thermoluminescence was first clearly described in a paper presented to the Royal Society (of Britain) in 1663, by  Robert Boyle, who described the effect in a diamond which had been warmed to body temperature. The possibility of making use of TL stored in a mineral or pottery sample was first proposed by chemist  Farrington Daniels  in the 1950s. During the 1960s and 70s, the  Oxford University Research Laboratory for Archaeology and History of Art  led in the development of TL as a method of dating archaeological materials. Sources Forman SL. 1989.  Applications and limitations of thermoluminescence to date quaternary sediments.  Quaternary International  1:47-59. Forman SL, Jackson ME, McCalpin J, and Maat P. 1988.  The potential of using thermoluminescence to date buried soils developed on colluvial and fluvial sediments from Utah and Colorado, U.S.A.: Preliminary results.  Quaternary Science Reviews  7(3-4):287-293. Fraser JA, and Price DM. 2013.  A thermoluminescence (TL) analysis of ceramics from Applied Clay Science  82:24-30.cairns in Jordan: Using TL to integrate off-site features into regional chronologies.   Liritzis I, Singhvi AK, Feathers JK, Wagner GA, Kadereit A, Zacharais N, and Li S-H. 2013.  .Luminescence Dating in Archaeology, Anthropology, and Geoarchaeology: An Overview  Cham: Springer. Seeley M-A. 1975.  Thermoluminescent dating in its application to archaeology: A review.  Journal of Archaeological Science  2(1):17-43. Singhvi AK, and Mejdahl V. 1985.  Thermoluminescence dating of sediments.  Nuclear Tracks and Radiation Measurements  10(1-2):137-161. Wintle AG. 1990.  A review of current research on TL dating of loess.  Quaternary Science Reviews  9(4):385-397. Wintle AG, and Huntley DJ. 1982.  Thermoluminescence dating of sediments.  Quaternary Science Reviews  1(1):31-53.

The History of Jamestown essays

The History of Jamestown essays The New World had been founded and during the 17th century England still had no claims to any part of it. King James I established two companies, made up of merchants and adventurers, the London Company and the Plymouth Company, combined they were known as the Virginia Company. The London Company was the first company to send three ships in search of three particular things, gold, the Lost Colony of Roanoke, and a route to the South Seas. These three ships were called, the Susan Constant, the Godspeed, and the Discovery. Stormy weather and high winds delayed their voyage for 6 weeks. On May 14, 1607 the three ships arrived at an island in the James River, named for their King. They landed 60 miles from the mouth of the Chesapeake Bay. It had been a long and difficult journey but 105 out of 150 colonists survived. They sanctioned the island on which they landed, Jamestown. Many traditional scholars feel that the pioneers above the ship were very ill suited for the task since Captain John Smith identified half of the men as gentlemen. If they were gentlemen then what would they know about building colony? Almost immediately after landing, the colonists were attacked by the Algonquian natives. In a little over a months time the colonists had built a wooden fort to protect themselves. Jamestown was chosen because of the military advantages it supplied in case there was any warfare. It was protected on three sides by the river and marshes, it was out of sight from the Spanish, and it had a deep-water mooring for the ships. It was mostly swamp land and finding fresh water was a major problem. The first few winters in Jamestown were the hardest for the colonists. Of the 105 who landed on May 14th, only 38 survived the 1st winter. In 1608, 200 more colonists arrived followed by 400 more, a year later. During 1609-1610, the starving time, the colonists population was reduced to 60. That ...

WILKINSON Surname Meaning and Family History

WILKINSON Surname Meaning and Family History The Wilkinson surname is a patronymic meaning son of Wilkin, from Wilkin, a diminutive for William from the Germanic name Wilhelm, which in turn derives from the elements wil, meaning will or desire, and helm, or helmet or protection. Wilkinson is just one of many surnames derived from William, or son of William. Wilkinson is the 72nd most common English surname. Surname Origin:  English, Scottish Alternate Surname Spellings:  WILKENSON, WILKERSON, WILKINS, MCQUILKIN, MCQUILKEN, MCQUILKAN, MACQUILKIN, MACQUILKEN, MACQUILKAN Famous People with the WILKINSON Surname Signe Wilkinson  -  Pulitzer Prize-winning editorial cartoonistTom Wilkinson  - Popular British character actorMark Wilkinson  - English furniture designerSir Geoffrey Wilkinson  -  won the Nobel prize for chemistry in 1973John Gardner Wilkinson - one of the founders of EgyptologyJane Wilkinson Long -  considered the Mother of Texas for giving birth to the first child of European descent in Texas Where is the WILKINSON  Surname Most Common? Surname distribution information from  Forebears, tells us that the Wilkinson surname is most prevalent in England, particularly in the northern half of England.  Data from  WorldNames PublicProfiler  supports this, demonstrating that Wilkinson is most prevalent in the North region of England, followed by Yorkshire and Humberside, North West and East Midlands. Wilkinson is also more common in Tyrone in Northern Ireland, as well as throughout Australia and New Zealand. Genealogy Resources for the Surname WILKINSON Wilkinson Family Crest - Its Not What You ThinkContrary to what you may hear, there is no such thing as a Wilkinson family crest or coat of arms for the Wilkinson surname.  Coats of arms are granted to individuals, not families, and may rightfully be used only by the uninterrupted male line descendants of the person to whom the coat of arms was originally granted. WILKINSON DNA ProjectMore than 130 members have joined this project for the Wilkinson surname to  work together to find their common heritage through DNA testing and sharing of information. WILKINSON Family Genealogy ForumThis free message board is focused on descendants of Wilkinson ancestors around the world. Search the forum for posts about your Wilkinson ancestors, or join the forum and post your own queries.   FamilySearch - WILKINSON  GenealogyExplore over 6  million  results from digitized  historical records and lineage-linked family trees related to the Wilkinson surname and variants on this free website hosted by the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. GeneaNet - Wilkinson RecordsGeneaNet includes archival records, family trees, and other resources for individuals with the Wilkinson surname, with a concentration on records and families from France and other European countries. Ancestry.com: Wilkinson SurnameExplore over 5  million digitized records and database entries, including census records, passenger lists, military records, land deeds, probates, wills and other records for the Wilkinson surname on the subscription-based website, Ancestry.com. - References: Surname Meanings Origins Cottle, Basil.  Penguin Dictionary of Surnames. Baltimore, MD: Penguin Books, 1967.Dorward, David.  Scottish Surnames. Collins Celtic (Pocket edition), 1998.Fucilla, Joseph.  Our Italian Surnames. Genealogical Publishing Company, 2003.Hanks, Patrick and Flavia Hodges.  A Dictionary of Surnames. Oxford University Press, 1989.Hanks, Patrick.  Dictionary of American Family Names. Oxford University Press, 2003.Reaney, P.H.  A Dictionary of English Surnames. Oxford University Press, 1997.Smith, Elsdon C.  American Surnames. Genealogical Publishing Company, 1997.

Distance versus Intimacy in child raising Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Distance versus Intimacy in child raising - Essay Example We thrust our intellectual prudence in to the brains of our children. To emphasize the psychological well being of children, the arguments made by two authors namely, Lisa Firestone and Steve Nelson are now taken for debate. Although both the authors want the parents to focus on the emotional aspects of their children, they differ in the execution modality. Firestone advocates an attentive caring on children in her essay How To Raise an Emotionally Healthy Child. However, Nelson encourages an autonomous style of living for children in his essay Leave Your Child Alone. To reach the focal point of robust child rearing, both the authors traverse in two opposite directions. FIRESTONE SUMMARY Lisa Firestone asserts through her essay that communication is the key to understanding the way children respond with their emotions. She claims that parents should be aware of emotional problems that can go untreated. For example, when television, video games or excessive eating to cope with emotion s such as fear, anger, or anxiety that they might be avoiding overly consumes a child. Firestone’s rational on the subject is directed to children that regress rather than progress and challenge unpleasant emotions. She also proposes parents to intervene to help children address the source of unwanted feelings and what to do with them.

Assignment Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words - 65

Assignment - Essay Example Moreover, in such cases any sort of negative complications of pets relating to death or illness, may distorts the sentimental balance of the attached persons. At that moment, the written descriptions made by such emotionally hurt individuals often termed as lossography. People suffering from such pain and misery often tend towards expressing their emotions for loosening up the excessive level of mental stress to which they are subjected. In this respect, an individual presenting emotion in writing is an effective way of understanding psychological distress. Presenting emotional distress in writing is considered as a form of psychological treatment. Thus, lossography is an effective measure based on which pain and sufferings of an individual can be analyzed at the time of loss (Sheridan 20-50). Considering the above aspects, it can be stated that human beings have different ways of expressing their feelings and emotions. One of such techniques is the lossography that can be considered effective enough under such circumstances. This technique also helps in describing the behavioral and emotional attachment trends of an individual. Sheridan, Thomas. A complete Dictionary of the English Language, Both with Regard to Sound and Meaning; to which is Prefixed a Prosodial Grammar. The 2. Ed. Corr. and Enlarged. - London, Dilly 1789. North America: Dilly, 1789.

Paraphrase Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words - 2

Paraphrase - Essay Example Needless to say, there is a favourable connection between job feat and high levels of acumen. Self-awareness is the most important components of all. Individuals with an internal locus of control can be managed and motivated easily. Managers can employ the use of apprehension of selective perceptual and organizational perceptual to gain insights on why different people perceive things differently. These principles can be enforced in communication and responses to attract attention. Managers can employ catchy stimuli to â€Å"cut through the noise† of the environment. This assists in improving communication between the managers and the employees. The learning techniques of an accommodator are fundamental in improving management decision making. Needless to say b, an accommodator is proficient at enforcing decisions, plans and innovation. Such a learning style is appropriate for a practicing manager like me. In essence, this depends on the condition or the surrounding where a manger is to carry out the learning style. In this case, Daphne portrays high level of extraversion. This si portrayed by rapid open relations with her daughter. She shows moderate levels of meticulousness, openness to experience and kindness. Kindness is portrayed by her good-natured character while her meticulousness is shown by her yearning to help Millie. In addition, her openness to experience is depicted by her need to talk to Jason. In essence, low emotional steadiness in Daphne’s dealings with Millie typifies her behavior. Perceptual selectivity refers to the process by which an individual tests and chooses numerous stimuli which content for their attending. Individuals emphasize on stimuli that fulfills their desires and which are coherent to their values, personality and attitudes. Stimuli attributes affects perceptual selectivity. A catchy stimulus attracts the attention of most people. In addition, people recognize both familiar

On the Natural Order of Opulence Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

On the Natural Order of Opulence - Assignment Example the occurrence exploitation in that system along with mentioning the oust and superseding of that system with bartering system that commeasures the whole society along with establishment of robust enforced system (Smith). The article further asserted upon the accent of megalopolis for being a platform for accession of surplus as well as economy. By keeping emphasize on metropolis and metropolitans alms for the city. Ultimately, the writer makes a contrast between those citizenry in which dearth of equity is observed along with the termination of provision of privileges to their skilful and laborers with those societies where egalitarianism is followed along with justified privileges to the artificers. He further laid stress on the comparison of development of affluence along with thriving of both countries which reveals a healthy difference along with superimposing of egalitarianism based country (Smith). Although a little partiality is observed as well the accent of the found to be was city dwellers and artificers with a little tint of sarcasm in the tone but the deliverance of the argument was well written. Regarding the feudalism I have gone through one article before titled â€Å"Feudalism in Europe during the Middle Ages† by Michael Totten that supports the argument followed in this article. However, I have never been through any article opposing this argument. Conclusively, this article is a scaffold to comprehend the facts and figures regarding the natural order of opulence that will flourish a country towards

Research Project Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words - 1

Research Project - Essay Example Tesco deals in electronics, food, cloths, mobile, and internet service with competitors being â€Å"Morrison, Asda, Sainsburry’s, Waitrose, Iceland, and Aldi’s† (Jennifer, 365). The main reason for the business high sales and profits are that the business aims at always being the best in whatever it sets to do (Humby et al, 2008). Tesco prides itself of three main pillars aimed at augmenting their satisfaction as a means to up sales as customers, communities and the employees. From an abstract position, this would seem to be the case, but is it? This study aims at answering the question by investigating if Tesco’s loyalty program measures up to customer’s expectation (Pearson Education, 2011). The study will make great use of secondary data for the formation of the conclusion. The study will mainly consider the various ways Tesco uses to meet customer needs and make the overall conclusion if these efforts are bearing enough fruit for effective custo mer expectation delivery. This will allow the study to make a concrete conclusion to meet the need for the formation of a conclusion that will be a guide for us to meet the needs of this research on if it is meeting customer expectations (Egan, 2001). ... The introduction of customer loyalty card was aimed at meeting customer expectations and needs better through the following ways. Tesco Loyalty Card Tesco in the aim to augment consumer satisfaction and retention of loyal customers through rewarding them introduced loyalty cards for its consumers. This was a revolutionary technique aimed at gaining a competitive advantage over its main rivals Marks and Spencer, Waitrose and Sainsbury (Plimmer, p. 377). The Club card aimed at rewarding loyal customers for the purchase of items at Tesco shops. One point was awarded for every dollar spent and other currencies earn a one point to the client for each unit of currency spent and the use of Tesco cards for access to all other products of the company (Jennifer, 366). The points can be redeemed for flying time, used for club card deals for use for three times the value and the ability to be converted to Avios. These allowed the company a means to offer appreciation to their clients and the cus tomers feel cared for and appreciated to make the comeback increasing service and retention of customers. Tesco Baby Club and Student card There have been improvements to the loyalty card by Tesco with the aim of augmenting the benefits and tailoring the uses of these cards to the specific needs of the customers. The student card was aimed at rewarding students for making purchases at Tesco through the incorporation of benefits and bonuses on products tailored for students. Increased utility by the teens increased their allegiance to Tesco and allowed the company to meet their demand by giving their preference and requirements feedback. The Tesco Baby Club was aimed at women in their pregnancy terms and through to two years after child birth.

Starbucks Issues and Solutions Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Starbucks Issues and Solutions - Essay Example Certain solutions for resolving the ethical dilemma of becoming a curator of popular culture for Starbuck’s are presented here. First are the alleged financial links to the Israeli government. The strategies used by boycott organizers to generate awareness for their campaign and to manage media usage to target desired audiences are also discussed (Knudsen, K., Aggarwal & P. Maamoun, A. 2008). Starbucks was targeted because of its CEO’s comments on Israel-Palestinian conflict issue. Starbucks was the prime target of an Arab boycott after remarks CEO Howard Shultz made in Seattle. Boycott strategies have been classified into three domains: awareness, media, and targeting. Many people have begun to regard Starbucks’ corporate image as snooty. Customers are of diverse ethnic, income and age groups (Cherian, C., Dasgupta, N. & Doreswamy, A. G., 2007). Starbucks has learned to embrace the diversity and provide better customer service. Every campaign is approved through a panel about potential issues the adjusted based on its recommendations. The best course of action is a method of strategic cooperation (Mahapatra, S. & Saklani, A., 2007). Three things can trigger boycott calls: government actions, corporate actions, and individual actions. Starbucks should respond to rumors, distance itself from controversial issues, making charitable contributions, emphasize local connections, demonstrate the impact on the local economy, localize the marketing mix and influence government actions.

Research Project Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words - 1

Research Project - Essay Example Tesco deals in electronics, food, cloths, mobile, and internet service with competitors being â€Å"Morrison, Asda, Sainsburry’s, Waitrose, Iceland, and Aldi’s† (Jennifer, 365). The main reason for the business high sales and profits are that the business aims at always being the best in whatever it sets to do (Humby et al, 2008). Tesco prides itself of three main pillars aimed at augmenting their satisfaction as a means to up sales as customers, communities and the employees. From an abstract position, this would seem to be the case, but is it? This study aims at answering the question by investigating if Tesco’s loyalty program measures up to customer’s expectation (Pearson Education, 2011). The study will make great use of secondary data for the formation of the conclusion. The study will mainly consider the various ways Tesco uses to meet customer needs and make the overall conclusion if these efforts are bearing enough fruit for effective custo mer expectation delivery. This will allow the study to make a concrete conclusion to meet the need for the formation of a conclusion that will be a guide for us to meet the needs of this research on if it is meeting customer expectations (Egan, 2001). ... The introduction of customer loyalty card was aimed at meeting customer expectations and needs better through the following ways. Tesco Loyalty Card Tesco in the aim to augment consumer satisfaction and retention of loyal customers through rewarding them introduced loyalty cards for its consumers. This was a revolutionary technique aimed at gaining a competitive advantage over its main rivals Marks and Spencer, Waitrose and Sainsbury (Plimmer, p. 377). The Club card aimed at rewarding loyal customers for the purchase of items at Tesco shops. One point was awarded for every dollar spent and other currencies earn a one point to the client for each unit of currency spent and the use of Tesco cards for access to all other products of the company (Jennifer, 366). The points can be redeemed for flying time, used for club card deals for use for three times the value and the ability to be converted to Avios. These allowed the company a means to offer appreciation to their clients and the cus tomers feel cared for and appreciated to make the comeback increasing service and retention of customers. Tesco Baby Club and Student card There have been improvements to the loyalty card by Tesco with the aim of augmenting the benefits and tailoring the uses of these cards to the specific needs of the customers. The student card was aimed at rewarding students for making purchases at Tesco through the incorporation of benefits and bonuses on products tailored for students. Increased utility by the teens increased their allegiance to Tesco and allowed the company to meet their demand by giving their preference and requirements feedback. The Tesco Baby Club was aimed at women in their pregnancy terms and through to two years after child birth.

Annotated Bibliography Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words - 4

Annotated Bibliography - Essay Example According to the authors, the need is to establish a strong link between theory and practice in order to improve the supervision of students’ activities within the classroom. This article also relates to the subject of supervisory principles in education in a sense that it provides an effective framework for supervisors’ training which teachers can use to improve their supervision skills. The purpose of this article as mentioned by the authors is to identify the key empirical and theoretical considerations that should be able to support the need of effective training for educators and supervisors. The authors have explored the content of different training courses to know whether an appropriate model of supervision exists in the field of medicine or not. In this article, the authors argue that if there is no explanatory model in place for training, the training of supervisors should be based on relevant existing information about models of supervision and learning processes. This article is based primarily on the need to improve teacher efficacy and supervision in the education resource-room context. The objectives of the research were to prove the validity of the Gibson and Dembo Teacher Efficacy Scale in the special education context, as well as to examine the association between the use of instructional supervision and teacher efficacy. The authors of this article examined the relationship in order come up with the judgment about the strength of the relationship and its role in improving students’ learning. The article contains a good amount of information on the relationship between teacher efficacy and instructional supervision. In this article, the author discusses the importance of translating the principles of managing human behaviors and organizational activities into successful business practices. The main idea presented by the author is that the

Cognition, Memory and Perception Essay Example for Free

Cognition, Memory and Perception Essay Forgetting is the inability of a person to retrieve, recall or recognize information that was stored or still stored in long term memory. (McLeod, S. A. 2008). In terms of short term memory, forgetting is caused by interference between past and new information that most modern accounts that holding on to. In some older models, forgetting is explained using a process of passive deterioration of information. Comparing both accounts, interference seems to have a better explanation of forgetting. Secondly in terms of long term memory, forgetting occurs when one fails to remember and unable to reactivated the memory circuit of given information. In general, forgetting seems to happen in between short term and long term memory. It will occur when information is to be encoded or information is not linked to any memory circuit through interference. (â€Å"What is forgetting in psychology? †, 2008). However, nowadays, there are theories of forgetting in cognitive psychology that are still difficult to test by researches, because one may in fact not forget, but have trouble retrieving information from one’s memory storage. For examples, one forgets about an event such as attending a friend’s birthday party just because the individual were only remembering another event that is more important to him such as a wedding dinner. The examples of the theories of forgetting are encoding failure, decay theory, interference theory, retrieval failure, motivated forgetting and repression. The author of this paper will going to critically asses on the psychological theories on why people forget. According to Freud (1901), the father of the psychoanalytic school, believed that one will forget of what threatens them. For example, experiences that express in abusing, horrifying, hurtful, tense and ego-dissatisfying will pushed back to the unconscious. Based on the opinion of writer on this paper, it is not necessarily that one just forgets about what threatens them but also forgets the information that does not seem important to them. This scenario is similar to the theory of encoding failure whereas the particular information in short term memory that did not manage to encode in the long term memory and the information did not enter to the memory. Besides that, encoding failure also can be result of stress. Based on Yerkes-Dodson Law, too much stress results can cause performance to decline, sometimes sharply if cognitive or nervous breakdown is triggered. A downturn can also be caused by excessive attention to a task such that extra factors that are important get missed. Secondly, the decay theory, this theory suggests that memory traces in the brain will fade over time through lack of use and become inaccessible. Decay theory suggest that forgetting is a psychological process and it is an idea that when a memory has a physical or chemical trace of the experience in the brain when it is laid down. This traces will fade as time passes unless it is reinforced through repeated times of use. For example, when a person meets a new friend, the name of the friend is just like a trace to the brain. But when the person did not manage to meet up with that new friend for a few days, the name of the friend will slowly decay and might not recall it after. However, researchers have not shown that decay theory causes forgetting of something that is stored in the long term memory. In addition, based on the author’s opinion, memory such as driving skills, riding bicycle skills and swimming skills would not decay even though after a period of time, not every memory trace will fade over time. Some studies of the hippocampus have shown a pattern of rapid and then gradual decline of neutral pathways by Anderson (1995).Besides that, there are two types of the interference theory that is, proactive interference and retroactive interference. The definition of the proactive interference is when old information interferes with the new information that cause forgetting. Example of proactive interference theory is when a person who learned many formulas in additional mathematics for a year and learned new sets of formulas for modern mathematics for a month and the person will interfere with the knowledge of additional mathematics while doing modern mathematics. On the other hand, retroactive interference occurs when new information learned interfere with the old information that stored in the memory. Remembering the names of the new students by a lecturer is an example of retroactive interference where the new students name will nterfere with the names that were previously stored. However, researches pointed out that real life interference might not occur so readily. The retrieval failure theory was proposed by (Tulving amp; Thomson 1973). This theory is known as a cue dependent forgetting that explains forgetting as inability to retrieve material due to an absence of the right cues. In order that one person to retrieve information from the long-term memory, they must depend on the type of cue or prompt which they use and this theory explained that why sometimes that one who unable to remember the material that is certain in our memory. For example, a person cannot remember doing his homework until him or her saw the workbook on the table. This proves that the workbook provide the right retrieval cue. According to Freud (1901), the retrieval of the repressed memories is possible only under special circumstances using a few psychoanalytic techniques. On the other hand, there is a tip-of-the-tongue phenomenon (TOT) that could help one to retrieve forgotten memories. TOT is an example of how we intentionally search for cues that will prompt the retrieval of a specific memory. For example, a person that forgets their neighbor pet’s name and only remembers the dumbbell which hangs around the neck of the pet. By reading the word dumbbell, TOT assists the person to recall that the neighbor pet’s name was Dumble. Furthermore, the motivated forgetting is a case of retrieval failure referred to Freud, (1901). What it actually meant by motivated forgetting? According to Freud (1901), motivated forgetting is that we are motivated to forget the events or actions that is painful that cannot be solve in the memory by pushing it into the subconscious and actively repressing with it. In other words, these experiences are repressed in the unconscious and unable to retrieve when needed. Besides motivated forgetting causes oneself repression of memory, it is possible that one forgets is based on instructions of others and also known as the intentional forgetting or directed forgetting. Anderson, Baddeley and Eysenck (2009) stated that intentional forgetting also refers to forgetting which is initiated by a conscious goal to forget. McNally, Clancy, and Schacter (2001) also stated that loss of autobiographical memories, especially memories for unpleasant or disturbing events has used to explain the intentional forgetting. However, based on the author’s opinion, motivate forgetting on the memories of pain, unpleasant, and disturbing events are unhealthy to one’s body, physically and mentally. What if the capacity of the subconscious has a limit and it cannot continue to repress any more of the memory of negative events, it will causes an unwanted pressure and stress on the individual emotionally and lead to suicide if it reaches the limit. Last but not least, theory of repression, proposed by the psychologist Sigmund Freud. Freud (1901) stated that the unpleasant memories such as sexual abuse, bullying, torture or any traumatic experience which undergoes the psychological process which automatically and unconsciously prevents emotionally distressing memories from coming into our conscious awareness. In the event or experience in the present such as watching a video, hypnosis or hearing music may triggered the repressed memories back into conscious awareness. However, he stated that, repressed memories cannot deliberately bring back unless it was triggered. The memory researches pointed out that the retrieval memories come back into awareness through suggestion by the patient’s therapist in fact are false memories. In the nutshell, all the theories above that have discussed which are the encoding failure, decay theory, interference theory, retrieval failure, motivated forgetting and repression. Overview of this research, readers can determine that every theories of forgetting have relation between one another and it is all related to the short-term memory and long-term memory. If the short-term memory does not exist, there is no long-term memory. In the author’s point of view, some of the theories that have discussed above are too narrow in scope and did not manage to cover all the factors such as emotion of a person that will lead to forgetting. In the author’s opinion, every psychologist that is doing on the same research should investigate and plan the experiments together so that all the psychologists able to brainstorm on their findings and share their thoughts together in order to improve their theories. Besides that, I believe that, all the human being does not want to repress all those negatives events that had ever happened in their lives into their subconscious mind. This is because after repressing or suppressing those memories into the subconscious mind, it would not provide safety precautions in terms of physically and mentally to everyone. What if one day, one person those who suffer from sexual abuse and torture since childhood and triggered that memory back and do the same thing to others. This will lead to even more people suffers.

English Copyright Law

English Copyright Law English copyright law does not protect ‘ideas but the ways in which these ideas are expressed. This was established in Harman Pictures NV v Osborne (1967) and recently affirmed in the case involving the Da Vinci Code novel, Baigent and Leigh v The Random House Group (2006).Where the work has been literally reproduced there can be no question of copying. However, difficulty arises where use is made of subtle aspects of style, commonly referred to as ‘non textual copying. The impact that copyright law has had on the computer industry and internet use has also led to much discussion about the effectiveness of the law in this dynamic and ever changing area. The courts, who see the matter as being one of degree, continue to adopt a narrow perspective on what constitutes infringement of copyright. The Copyright Designs and Patents Act 1988 aims to protect work in the following categories: literary, musical, dramatic, typographical arrangement and artistic. The Copyright Computer Program Regulations 1992 included computer programs within the list of literary works along with books and song lyrics. The protection afforded by the Act includes prohibition against any work in the above categories being copied, adapted or distorted without the consent of the copyright owner. Based on s16 of the CDPA 1998 the court has formulated the following test to establish whether there has been an infringement of copyright. Firstly, the work for which copyright protection is being claimed must be clearly identified and established as original. Secondly there must be evidence that this original work has been copied. Thirdly, if the work has been copied, then the courts must decide whether a substantial part of the work has been reproduced. This test was outlined by Jacob J In Ibcos Computers Ltd v Barclays Mercantile Highland Finance Ltd (1994). The defendant created a computer accounting package and licensed it to the claimant. Together, they later marketed the package as (ADS) under the company name PK Ltd where the defendant was the sole employee and Managing Director. The defendant then left the company and joined a competitor as a consultant. There he wrote a programme called ‘Unicorn designed to compete with (ADS). Later the Claimants claimed the Unicorn was developed from (ADS) and therefore infringed their copyright. The court held that (ADS) was a compilation and that copyright existed in the individual programs, their various modifications as well as the whole suite. On comparing Unicorn and (ADS) there appeared to be overwhelming evidence of copying. The latter was an enhancement of the former and not an independent creation. In the absence of independent evidence similarities were due to copying as opposed to the defendants individual programming style. The striking similarities in the interaction of individual components in both packages caused the court to conclude that the ‘substantial part arm of the copyright infringement test had been satisfied. The copyright in the whole (ADS) package as well as the individual copyrights had been infringed. In arriving at his decision, Jacob J provided some guidance on general and detailed ideas rejecting the analysis in the earlier case of John Richardson Computers v Flanders (1993) where the American model for assessing infringement was adopted. He held that this was an incorrect approach which would lead to unnecessary complications. ‘For myself I do not find the route of going via United States case law particularly helpful. It is likely to lead to [the] over citation of United States authority based on a statute different from ours. In the end the matter must be left to the value judgment of the court He dissented from the view held by Judge Baker in Total Information Processing Systems Ltd v Daman Ltd (1992) and was of the opinion that the table of contents of a novel could be compared to the data division component of a computer programme. They could both be integral to the success of the work and sufficient to constitute a detailed idea. They could also constitute a substantial part of the work depending on the skill labour and judgement involved their compilation. In deciding whether a substantial part of a work has been copied one must look at the words of a novel and source code of a computer program as well as other factors such as, the plot of a novel and general structure of a computer programme. He held, ‘I therefore think it right to have regard in this case not only toà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦literal similarities but also to à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦ program structure and design features Later on in his judgment he questioned whether copyright subsisted in the ‘design features of the programme as highlighted by the plaintiff. In any event he was of the opinion that even if they could be afforded copyright protection the ideas were not detailed enough to form a substantial part of the work. ‘We are here at a level of generality where there is little of the programmers skill, labour and judgment. Even if the set were copyright, the mere taking of those functions would not be an infringement-it would be the taking of a mere general idea or scheme In relation to the contention that if there is only one way of expressing an idea that way cannot be subject to copyright, Jacob J held that this was an error and copyright could still exist. Again dissenting from the opinion of Judge Baker in Total he submitted that Kenrick v Lawrence (1890) was not authority for this proposition. In the Kenrick case the issue was whether copyright existed in the picture of a hand showing voters how to vote. He held that this was an idea and the decision in this case is authority only for the proposition that there is no copyright in an idea as a different picture displaying the same idea would not constitute infringement. Speaking directly about general and detailed ideas, Jacob J asserted that in relation to all work, ‘The true position is that where an idea is sufficiently general, then even if an original work embodies it, the mere taking of that idea will not infringe. But if the idea is detailed, then there may be infringement. It is a question of degree It is therefore important to assess how the courts have set out to separate the expression of the idea in detail from the general idea itself. It seems that in the former, attention is given to finer details of the work. In the final analysis, a balancing act must be performed to protect the author of the idea and encourage literary and technological innovation. Over the past decade there have been many cases involving the protection of computer source and object codes much like an author would seek to protect the words of a book. In John Richardson Computers v Flanders the courts extended the concept of an idea to include user interfaces stating that the way a program is used and responds to a user should also be copyrighted. Here the plaintiffs claimed that the defendants had copied the ‘look and feel of their computer software developed for the pharmaceutical industry. However as computer use became more widespread courts had to reconsider copyrighting ‘look and feel or ‘business logic of programs. This was highlighted in the case of Navitaire Inc v Easyjet Airline Co Ltd (2004) where Navitaire claimed that Easyjet online ticketless booking system eRes was a copy of their original programme, Openres. Navitaire owned the copyright in the source code for the computer programme and did not allege at any time during the case that this was copied. The allegation centred on the fact that eRes was almost indistinguishable from OpenRes in relation to the ‘user interface or interaction between user and programme. The Plaintiffs alleged non textual copying in relation to the ‘look and feel of running OpenRes, user commands to achieve particular results and screen reports in response to user instructions. Copying was alleged of the whole of OpenRes or the various modules that make up the system. What was further considered in this case was whether there could be an infringement where two computer programs produce the same results but the author of the latter had no information of the former apart from the end function. In this scenario the question arises as to whether the general idea alone has been copied or something more detailed. No infringement was found in Navitaire and it was held that to side with the plaintiffs in this case would be â€Å"an unjustifiable extension of copyright protection†. Simon Stokes in The development of UK software copyright law notes, ‘In light of Navitaire, the chances of a successful software copyright look and feel case appear limited unless there is a clear misappropriation of a copyright workà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦ or underlying source code. In Nova Productions Ltd v Mazooma Games Ltd (2006) the restrictive approach in Navitaire was reaffirmed. Here the defendant produced a computer programme based on the game of pool that was similar to that of the plaintiff although he had no access to the original source codes. Again the plaintiff here alleged that although the computer programme language or sources were not copied, the user interface or ‘look and feel of the programme was. It was held that parts of the computer programme copied were of a â€Å"high level of generality or abstraction†, common in the industry and did not form a substantial part of the program itself. The court agreed with the Navitaire judgement and stated, â€Å"merely making a programme which will emulate another but which in no way involves copying the programme code or any of the programs graphics is legitimate† The present state of the law is that copying the end result of a computer programme in itself does not constitute infringing its copyright. In both Navitaire and Nova, the court included in its judgement the provisions of the Software Directive recitals 13-15. The Directive provides that, the expression of a computer program is protected but ideas and principles which underlie any element of a program or its interfaces are not. Many believe that spells bad news for creators and brand owners. In the European Intellectual Property Review, Peter Nunn states, ‘As the law currently stands, non-textual copying claims in the software field appear doomed: ideas and user interfaces can seemingly be freely copied It would be useful to consider the courts approach in other cases regarding protected work. In the case of Green v Broadcasting Corporation of New Zealand [1989] the issue of general and detailed ideas were also discussed in relation to a television broadcast. Here the British presenter Hughie Green sought to sue a New Zealand television station for copyright infringement of the format of his game show, Opportunity Knocks. The English Privy Council however rejected this attempt to claim that the format was a dramatic work, asserting that there was no copyright in an idea and the format as presented was ‘conspicuously lacking in certainty. This has led to difficulties in the television industry in relation to protecting various unscripted game show formats however unique and original they might be. Lord Bridge stated that there was, â€Å"difficulty [in] the concept that a number of allegedly distinctive features of a television series can be isolated from the changing material presented in each separate performance (the acts of the performers in the talent show, the question and answers in the quiz show etc.) and identified as an â€Å"original dramatic work† In the more recent case of Miles v ITV Network (2004) again involving television format rights it does not appear that English copyright law has moved any further forward. The claimant James Miles supplied ITV with promotional material for a cartoon programme where the main characters were a traffic light and traffic furniture. Later, ITV launched a programme called Dream Street where a recovery truck was the main character. Although Mr Miles conceded that the look and feel of the two programmes were very different, there were similarities between the characters and the presence of traffic equipment. However, the creator of Dream Street produced evidence to show that his work had been in existence before Mr Miles sent his material to ITV. The appeal was dismissed on the basis that the only similarity between he two programmes being the use of traffic equipment meant that the claim was ‘hopelessly weak Mr Justice Laddie in IPC Media Ltd v Highbury-SPL Publishing Ltd [2004] drew on the Green case in his ruling on whether IPCs Ideal Home Magazines design, subject matter and presentational style had been copied. Perhaps it is the presentation of its case in this manner that caused the judge to conclude that what they were trying to protect was the general idea behind the magazine as opposed to the expression in the idea evidenced by the detail, in content cover and articles. Justice Laddie quoted from the Green Judgement as follows: ‘The protection which copyright gives, creates a monopoly and there must be certainty in the subject matter of such monopoly in order to avoid injustice to the rest of the world: The issue here is of course as with television programmes magazine formats remain skeletal as to allow a dimension of spontaneity and creativity within the series. It is therefore difficult to pinpoint a detailed format and attach a copyright to it if details change monthly or even weekly. Justice Laddie concluded that the design techniques used by IPC were common in the industry and could have been applied by anyone designing a home magazine. Because the nature of a magazines cover and contents is to keep the buyer interested by constantly changing various features, it was difficult for IPC to state clearly what had been copied. No infringement was held to have taken place and again the English courts refused to extend copyright protection to general ideas. Justice Laddie concluded, â€Å"à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦even if, contrary to my findings, Highbury had been â€Å"inspired† in some of its design choices by what it saw in IDEAL HOME, it would have been at far too high a level of generality to amount to infringement of copyright.† The plaintiffs in IPC struggled to prove their case for copyright protection and may have succeeded if they had alleged ‘passing off as their focus seemed to be on a visual comparison of the two magazines. This matter was addressed in Designer Guild Limited v. Russell Williams (Textiles) Limited (Trading As Washington Dc) [2000] and referred to in the IPC judgement as well as other subsequent cases. Here both parties were designers of wallpapers and fabrics. The plaintiffs alleged infringement of one of their designs. The trial judge found that the defendants had access to the original work and had copied a substantial part of it. The defendants appealed to the Court of Appeal who after making a visual comparison held that the two designs were not sufficiently similar and highlighted a number of differences. The Court of Appeal held that although there was some copying this did not form a substantial part of the work and therefore allowed the appeal. The claimants then appealed to the House of Lords who agreed with the initial trial judges decision that the copied features formed a substantial part of the plaintiffs work. Lord Millet commented that the judge who found for the defendants in the Court of Appeal erred in his approach as he treated what was a copyright case as though the claim was one for ‘passing off. If passing off had been alleged, it would have been sufficient for the court to have used visual similarities as a main point of comparison as here the charge would have been the defendants taking the plaintiffs goods and trying to ‘pass them off as their own. Where there is insufficient similarity on a visual inspection the action will fail. In the case of copyright however, the preoccupation is not with the appearance of the defendants work but with its origin. In the area of film, the extent of protection offered by copyright law has also been discussed in Christoffer v Poseidon Film Distributors Ltd [1999]. Here the court had to decide amongst other matters whether Mr Chistoffers copyright in the film script of the story of the Cyclops based on Book IX of Homers Odyssey had been infringed by the film production company Poseidon. On the basis that there was evidence of direct copying and adaptation of the Cyclops script in which Mr Christoffer held the copyright, infringement was found on the part of Poseidon. Justice Parks highlighted that words in the final script do not have to be identical in order for there to be sufficient evidence of copying. ‘In the context of a literary work the concept of copying embraces taking the content of the work, or of a substantial part of it, and reproducing it, whether or not the alleged infringer reproduces the content by using the original authors words or by using his own words In relation to books, protecting the expression of ideas was discussed in Harman Pictures v Osborne (1967) where an injunction was granted to restrain the production of a film on the grounds that it infringed the copyright in the claimants book as phrases and expressions were directly copied and they both ended with exactly the same quotation. Baigent and Leigh v The Random House Group (2007) is the most recent case in which the court have had to decide on the issue of copyright in books and whether a substantial part of a work had been reproduced. The claimants were publishers of a 1992 book, the Holy Blood and the Holy Grail and the defendants the publishers of Dan Browns 2003 novel entitled Da Vinci Code. Baigent and Leigh contended that in writing six chapters of Da Vinci Code a substantial part of their work had been copied. The claim was dismissed at trial however the claimant were granted leave to appeal to the Court of Appeal. Mr Justice Smith who heard the case in the first instance agreed that the six chapters highlighted were based largely on the claimants work but still went on to reject the copyright claim. Lord Justice Floyd in the appeal judgement reiterated how the courts would assess a claim for breach of copyright in a literary work. Firstly if there was material in both an early and later work and the author of the later had access to the former, an inference of copying is made. The court would then look closely at the material to establish if there was in fact any copying and whether this amounted to a substantial part. Baigent and Leigh did not contend that the text of their work was copied directly or that it was in some way adapted. The claim was that Dan Brown had copied the ‘theme of their work in his novel. The courts therefore had to decide whether the theme was protected by copyright bearing in mind the established law that copyright does not subsist in ideas but the expression of these ideas. Dan Brown did not deny that there was a similarity in theme between the two works but contended that he derived this material from other sources. Dan Brown also argued that if the claimants work had been used, the part copied was at a high level of generality and for this same reason could not be said to constitute a substantial part of the claimants work. The judge concluded that a central theme did not exist in the original work as if it did, it would have been recorded somewhere. â€Å"If it was one would have expected at least to find somewhere a statement that this is the Central Theme. This is where the Green case [Green v Broadcasting Corporation of New Zealand [1989] RPC 700] is relevant.† He went on to conclude that if there was such a theme it was too generalised and therefore on the wrong side of the line between ideas and their expression. The judge held that the claimants failed to show structure and architecture to their scheme which remained a number of facts, ideas and assertions. This being the case, there is insufficient evidence of the skill labour and judgement needed in order to attach copyright to it. On appeal, Lord Mummery agreed with the courts decision and dismissed the appeal after clarifying the need to separate issues of copyright subsistence and infringement. The issue was not whether what was outlined by the Claimant as a central theme was copyrightable but whether it had been copied and whether it formed as a substantial part of the original work. It is in relation to these two points that the judges found the claimants had failed to establish their case. The above cases highlight the complexities faced by claimant, defendant and judge in protecting copyright in any given work. The efforts expounded in the original work and the need to encourage creativity are both in fierce competition with each other. Simon Stokes seems to suggest the reason for this balancing act is because, ‘à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦go too far one way and innovation is stifled because the public domain of ideas is encroached upon; go too far the other way and copyright creators may be disinclined to create copyright works if the law does not adequately protect their works Non textual copying where there is no clear evidence of a direct reproduction of the work will continue to be difficult to prove for so long as it is the expression of the idea that attracts copyright and not the idea itself. In relation to magazine and TV industries, the IPC case indicates that it would be extremely difficult to succeed in a copyright claim where there are changing formats envisaged. Peter Nunn States, Laddie J. found that so many elements of the â€Å"format† which the claimants sought to protect were commonplace, including the strapline on the front coverà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦that he arguably shut the door on future claims to protect a magazines format It would be fair to say especially on analysing the Baigent judgement that the ideaexpression dichotomy works on two levels, both in relation to copyright subsistence and also to its infringement. In relation to subsistence the courts continue to assert that there can be no copyright in a general idea as was the case in Green and IPC. In relation to copyright infringement, Baignet shows that taking a general idea in a copyright work will not constitute infringement. The balance to be struck by the court appears to be a ‘work in itself as the facts of each case must be carefully examined as what may appear to be an expression is only an idea due to its generality, the fact that it could have been obtained from a number of other sources or it is common practice in a particular industry. What follows in establishing infringement is the concept of substantiality which the courts assess by weighing the amount of skill and judgement applied to the original work. Perhaps Chen Lin Saw rightly observes in Protecting the Sound of Silence in 433†, ‘While the idea-expression dichotomy is well established in copyright law and is easy to state in theory, its actual application in practice is still masked by a cloud of mystery and uncertainty