Eroding Local Control & The Influence and Climate of the Courts Essay - 2

Eroding Local Control & The Influence and Climate of the Courts - Essay Example The cost of improper education systems sums up in a downward trend in the national productivity with increased burden of care to the incarcerated persons and the unemployed through public relief (Garfield, Brimley, et al, 2008). Discussion Question 1 The degree to which education meets individual and societal aspirations depends largely on the quality of education received, which in turn tier closely with the resources made available and the extent to which they are properly used. The number of educational institutions is a fundamental contributory factor towards such quality. Thus, reducing the number of school districts in a state generally reduces the difference in ability to support education between the â€Å"wealthiest† system and the â€Å"poorest† system/district in terms of assessed valuation per pupil to be educated. As predicted by scholars like DuBois in the1970s, color line educational problem in terms of state funding in the 20th century seem to be flaring well into the 21st century with recognizable disparities. It is evidently clear that educational outcomes for students of color are proportionate functions of unequal access to educational resources. The US education system is understandably the most unequal in the industrialized world with students receiving different leaning opportunities based on social stratification. It is estimated that the expenditure ratio of wealthiest ten percent and the poorest ten percent of the district schools across states is almost 10 to 1. Averagely, the current strikingly differences are put at 3 to 1. According to Jonathan Kozol, expenditure per student in Chicago public schools in the 1990s was approximately $5000 while their Niles Township High school neighbors spent double the amount student. He also recounted the use of old textbooks, lack of science labs, inadequate teachers and more in elementary schools serving predominantly African Americans. In contrast, schools in New Trier serving 98 p ercent whites were well equipped with superior labs with up-to-date technology, experienced teachers and a wider range of courses provided. By every measure to the degree of qualification – state certification, pedagogical training, content background for teaching, test scores, college attended and the experience attained so far –fewer qualified teachers disproportionately serve in schools with greater numbers of low-income/minority students. It is utterly impossible to reconcile the two extreme scenarios with an expectation of similar student performance. It is on the basis of the foregoing facts that consolidation would be a desirable option in reducing the gap in supporting education between the wealthiest and the poorest. Discussion Question 2 While consolidation of schools would be a desirable option in terms of fiscal and educational auspices, the idea is not a â€Å"generic fits all† proposition. It is well beyond doubt that 5 school districts in Tennesse e County with separate, independent directors translates into appropriate supervisory personnel (instruction, curriculum, federal programs, special services, attendance). However, the ability to save on costs serves as a strong selling point for consolidation. Merging schools into large blocks free up unused resources for other purposes, reduces utility and maintenance costs,

How to end a relationship Essay Example for Free

How to end a relationship Essay Ending a relationship is one of the hardest processes in the development of any bond between two friends. Ending a relationship especially when it is intimate is the most difficult thing to do. Starting a relationship is far much easier than bringing it to a close. Most relationships have ended in violence ( verbal and otherwise) and sometimes even in suicide or murder because most people are unable to cope with the pain associated with it. Most people would prefer suffering than parting ways with their friends or potential life partners. Before ending a relationship it is very important first to do a critical analysis of the reasons of ending the relationship and be certain that the only solution to the problems is calling it quits all together. Therefore one should think twice before making emotional decisions that will back fire much later. (Pushpa Pal Singh) After being certain of ending the relationship, it is equally important to prepare adequately of what you are going to say and the reasons of terminating it, this will help in facing the other partner who is bound to enquire of the reasons. (Pushpa Pal Singh) Ending a relationship can sometimes be dangerous and may result to physical assault, therefore you should strive as much as possible to remain calm and not let emotions drive you. (Pushpa Pal Singh) Ending a relationship also calls for the use of the right approach; this means that you should not use the phone, note or email to end it, being available physically would suffice because you would meet the other partner face to face and avoid the danger of being stalked or confronted that may result to physical attack. (Pushpa Pal Singh) Finally, as much as possible the relationship should not end on a harsh note; rather strive as much as possible to remain friends. Therefore the process should be some sort of relief for you and your partner when the relationship ends on a happy note. It is imperative to assure your partner that ending the relationship will not interfere with you remaining friends and you are going to keep in touch. (Pushpa Pal Singh) Works Cited Pushpa Pal Singh: How to end a relationship in 4 ways: Retrieved on 20th May 2008 from http://EzineArticles. com/? expert=Pushpa_Pal_Singh

Essay on Internet Privacy - Cookies and Privacy on the Internet

Cookies: Privacy on the Internet?      Ã‚   Today, many web sites on the internet can use "cookies" to keep track of passwords and usernames and track the sites a particular user visits (Cookiecentral.com). But, the use of cookies to track user's browsing habits is becoming a concern of many internet users. These concerned people are beginning to think of cookies as an invasion of privacy. Companies with web sites can use cookies to track what sites you visit frequently and then select specific ad banners to send to you on the web while surfing (Cookiecentral.com). Electronic Frontier Foundation's program director, Stanton McCandlish points out, "The potential problem is that companies without a sense of ethics could be doing [the] same thing and selling addresses to offline marketers" (news.cnet.com). The government should realize the hazards of internet cookies and enforce a ban on their use.    For those not familiar with the internet type of cookie, http://www.cookiecentral.com/ provides the definition of a cookie and some of the ways they are used. The site states, "a 'cookie' is a small piece of information sent by a web server to store on a web browser so it can later be read back from that browser." When you visit a cookie-using site on the web, that site will save a small text file in your browser's folder or directory. This file will tell them who you are if you ever visit their site again. The site goes on to explain in more detail the different areas where a cookie can be used. The various tasks that can be performed by a cookie listed include online ordering, targeted marketing, user ID's, and site personalization. It is true that there are some beneficial uses of cookies. For example, personalizing a certain ... ... sites' cookies, these sites will not gain anything from you. If everyone were to stop allowing cookies on their personal computers, web sites would find that cookies do not benefit their business and would possibly stop using them. Tell others about any concerns you may have regarding cookies. You may educate someone about cookies that knew nothing before and help him or her understand why cookies are not an essential part of the internet.         Works Cited Cookies. <http://www.cookiecentral.com /news/0-1003-200-327461.html> (31 Oct. 1999). Privacy in the Digital Age. "Jerry Berman's Testimony". <http://www.cdt.org/testimony/Berman.test.House.5.27.99.shtml> (31 Oct. 1999). Shaking the Cookie Jar. "New Cookie Technology or Existing Cookie Technology Under Attack". <http://www.cookiecentral.com/dscprop.htm> (31 Oct. 1999).   

How Does Drug Influence Teenagers? Essay

Many teenagers get high from abusing substances which range from diverted prescription drugs to street drugs to inhalants to alcohol. Some of these teens will go on to a life of addiction, abusing increasingly dangerous substances. Some teens will have more short-lived experience, as abusing a drug or other substance even one time can be fatal. Parents and interested adults should examine the factors that lead teenagers to abuse substances in an effort to prevent this risky behavior. Peer Pressure The National Institute on Drug Abuse reports that peers have a large influence on drug-abusing behavior. Many teens use drugs for the first time to avoid being stigmatized by their friends or to impress others. The National Youth Anti-Drug Media Campaign advises that the best way for teens to avoid succumbing to peer pressure is to be prepared in advance with ideas of what they want to say. Parents can empower teens by role playing situations. The parent assumes the role of the drug-using peer and the child practices reacting to being pressured into participating in drug use. Sponsored Links Teach English with KBT Lesson plans, worksheet, and activities for ESL students www.KBTeachers.com Genetics According to the National Institute on Drug Abuse, scientists recognize that genetic predispositions to drug abuse exist, but they have yet to pinpoint the specific genes involved. This may have to do with a brain â€Å"feel good† chemical called dopamine, and a person’s gene-controlled relationship with it. While one teen may try a hallucinogen one time, a teen genetically predisposed to have addiction problems may desire to use it again and again as they naturally derive more pleasure from dopamine or have a deficit of it to begin with. While scientists figure all this out, parents should strongly caution teens who have might have a genetic relationship with a drug addict or alcoholic about avoiding substance abuse. Family Growing up in a family that emphasizes getting â€Å"high† from legal or illegal substances can cause an adolescent to think drug use is acceptable. Mayo Clinic explains that this unhealthy family influence may be a factor in a teen’s initial drug experimentation. Exposure to family members who reach for a substance to cure every pain or ailment can cause a teen to do the same. Teens get many of their values from parents and other adult influences, and often mimic what they see. Its never too late to establish healthier family traditions and set a good example for teens. Thrill-seeking Tendencies Teenagers who have a tendency to seek thrills and adrenaline rushes may be at higher risk of abusing drugs due to the â€Å"high† feeling that is achieved from early substance use. While everyone enjoys a rush of feel-good chemicals from appropriate sources, some teens get a feeling from drugs that causes them to continue their use despite negative consequences. If a parent sees a pattern of thrill-seeking behavior in his child, he can discuss safe outlets for it versus unsafe drug use. Stress Some teens, like some adults, reach for substances as an attempt to relieve stress. This can be the root of substance abuse in adolescents with underlying mental conditions such as generalized anxiety disorder or social anxiety disorder. Child abuse—past or current—can create the level of stress that triggers some teens to abuse drugs. If your child seems to be under undue stress, insist on a mental health evaluation and counseling if needed. Low Self-worth A teenager with low self-worth is more likely to engage in self-abusive behaviors such as drug use. This likelihood is heightened if some of the other mentioned influencing factors are also present in a teen’s life. Parents can help a child find skills in which she excels to help avoid or counteract low self-worth. Desire for Performance Enhancement According to the National Institute on Drug Abuse, some teenagers begin using drugs as a misguided attempt to improve sports or academic performance. These teens often have a sense of immortality and do not feel that the drug’s negative effects can harm them. All teen athletes should be educated on the dangers of performance enhancing drugs and all students should understand that doing the best they can in their schoolwork is all that is required for their parents to be proud of them.

Ethical Decision Making by Individuals Essay

Existing theoretical models of individual ethical decision making in organizations place little or no emphasis on characteristics of the ethical issue itself. This article (a) proposes an issue-contingent model containing a new set of variables called moral intensity: (b) using concepts, theory, and evidence derived largely from social psychology, argues that moral intensity influences every component of moral decision making and behavior: (c) offers four research propositions, and (d) discusses implications of the theory. Conclusions and Implications Existing theoretical models have ignored the effect of characteristics of the moral issue itself on ethical decision making and behavior in organizations. Taken at face value, these models suggest that individuals will decide and behave in the same manner regardless of the nature of the moral issue involved. An employee of a drug manufacturer would view the release of a dangerous drug by his or her firm with the same alarm (or lack of alarm) that he or she viewed the theft of a few diskettes from the company supply cabinet by a fellow employee. The issue-contingent model proposed here explicitly rejects this view and suggests that the moral intensity of the issue itself has a significant effect on moral decision making and behavior at all stages of the process. If this model is found to have empirical support, the testing of other models would be significantly affected. Controlling for issue traits would become an integral part of a meaningful test of Trevino’s (1986) person-situation interactionist model, for example; the relative importance of personal factors and situational factors might vary considerably, from issue to issue. Similarly, issue charucteristics could alter the balance of teleological and deontological considerations in the moral evaluation stage of Hunt and Vitell’s (1986) general theory model of marketing ethics. Perhaps the most important potential impact of an empirical finding that ethical decision making and behavior are issue contingent involves the applicability of the models themselves. Moral intensity is expected to play a major role in the recognition of moral issues and, hence, in the actual engagement of moral decision-making processes instead of, or in addition to, other decision-making schemata. Simply stated, the details of moral decision-making and behavior processes become irrelevant if the person does not recognize that he or she is dealing with a moral issue. Future models of ethical decision making should include some consideration of the effect of the moral agent’s failure to recognize the moral issue. Moral intensity is also relevant to the general applicability of Kohlberg’s (1976) theory of cognitive moral development. If moral development is issue contingent, as this article and some emerging empirical evidence suggest, then Kohlberg’s theory would have to be substantially revised, and much of the research based on it would have to be reappraised. Future research based on his developmental theory would have to control for traits of the moral issues involved. From a practical point of view, issue contingency is important to normative judgments of moral decisions and of the people who make them. Many of the elements of moral intensity (magnitude of consequences, probability of effect, temporal immediacy, and concentration of effect) are directly related to judgments of the importance of moral issues. If these elements of moral intensity are found to be positively linked to moral behavior, it can be concluded that people generally behave better when the moral issue is important than they do when it is unimportant. Regardless of a person’s views regarding the overall moral tenor of society or its alleged decline in recent years, he or she could easily be encouraged by the finding that people’s best moral behavior is inspired by issues of substantial importance.

Free Essays on Minister Black Veil

â€Å"The Minister’s Black Veil† by Nathanial Hawthorne In â€Å"The Minister’s Black Veil,† Father Hooper wears a black veil over his eyes and nose, never revealing the reason of the veil to a soul. At times the sexton would insinuate a reason behind the veil but never revealing the answer to the mystery. Father Hooper is a very imaginative and creative individual to innovate the idea of wearing a black veil to express an idea. He is angry towards the response of the veil to his parishioners, since they treated him differently with the veil compared to without it. Most of the parishioners are clueless to why he wears it and some try to imagine why he would ever want to wear it, but there are only ideas and arguments to why a minister would wear it. One of the reasons behind the veil might be secret sin. Father Hooper might have committed a very bad sin, which he does not want to unveil to anyone. Instead of not telling anyone the sin he shows it clearly on his face with the aid of a black veil. This black veil might relieve tension in his body that has accumulated due to his sin. In the story, Father Hooper says that everyone wears a black veil, meaning that everyone commits secret sins without revealing them to anyone. If you do not express your secret sin you would be keeping stress and tension locked up inside you, but if you express it, the stress and tension will be relieved. Another reason behind the veil might be sorrow. Deep, dark sorrow for someone or yourself might be expressed and shown with the help of a black veil. By wearing the black veil for eternity, you are exhibiting great love and sorrow for someone or yourself. If the black veil was removed, the sorrow and love would be dead. This might be how Reverend Hooper expresses the veil. Father Hooper might have also used the veil as a friend and a device to test Elizabeth’s love for him. The black v... Free Essays on Minister Black Veil Free Essays on Minister Black Veil â€Å"The Minister’s Black Veil† by Nathanial Hawthorne In â€Å"The Minister’s Black Veil,† Father Hooper wears a black veil over his eyes and nose, never revealing the reason of the veil to a soul. At times the sexton would insinuate a reason behind the veil but never revealing the answer to the mystery. Father Hooper is a very imaginative and creative individual to innovate the idea of wearing a black veil to express an idea. He is angry towards the response of the veil to his parishioners, since they treated him differently with the veil compared to without it. Most of the parishioners are clueless to why he wears it and some try to imagine why he would ever want to wear it, but there are only ideas and arguments to why a minister would wear it. One of the reasons behind the veil might be secret sin. Father Hooper might have committed a very bad sin, which he does not want to unveil to anyone. Instead of not telling anyone the sin he shows it clearly on his face with the aid of a black veil. This black veil might relieve tension in his body that has accumulated due to his sin. In the story, Father Hooper says that everyone wears a black veil, meaning that everyone commits secret sins without revealing them to anyone. If you do not express your secret sin you would be keeping stress and tension locked up inside you, but if you express it, the stress and tension will be relieved. Another reason behind the veil might be sorrow. Deep, dark sorrow for someone or yourself might be expressed and shown with the help of a black veil. By wearing the black veil for eternity, you are exhibiting great love and sorrow for someone or yourself. If the black veil was removed, the sorrow and love would be dead. This might be how Reverend Hooper expresses the veil. Father Hooper might have also used the veil as a friend and a device to test Elizabeth’s love for him. The black v...

Thesis on Pr and Advertising Essays

Thesis on Pr and Advertising Essays Thesis on Pr and Advertising Essay Thesis on Pr and Advertising Essay Essay Topic: A Very Old Man With Enormous Wings Push Precious Summer Internship Report Development Credit Bank Present and Future Report submitted in partial fulfillment of degree of Bachelors of Business Administration (MS) Submitted to: Mrs. Apeksha Huda Faculty Guide Submitted By: Raghav Mehra BBA(MS) 2008-20011 Roll No. A3914708014 Amity School of Business Amity University Acknowledgement I, Raghav Mehra, owe enormous intellectual debt towards towards my dissertation guide Mrs. Apeksha Huda, Faculty, Amity School of Business, Amity University who has augmented my knowledge in the field of marketing and has given me invaluable insight into the subject. I am obliged to him for being extremely patient and helpful towards me and giving me sufficient time for discussion and guidance at all stages of my work. My increased spectrum of knowledge in this field is the result of his continuous supervision in directing me to absorb relevant and high quality information. I would also like to thank our respected Director Mam, Mrs. Alka Munjal for giving me such an opportunity and platform to accomplish my dissertation report successfully. I would like to thank all those people who helped me in the successful ompletion of my project by giving their precious time in filling my questionnaires without which it would not have been possible to complete my project. Raghav Mehra Contents Banking System in India Executive Summary Introduction About the Project Objective Research Methodology Literature Review 1. Public relation 2. Understanding PR 3. Advertising 4. Advertising- types and how to use it in the 5. present Business Scenario 6. The Objective of an Advertiser’s Right Selection 7. Role of media vehicles in Advertisement 8. The Better Tool of Communication 9. An Analysis PR Vs Advertising 10. The Present scenario 11. The Research 12. Findings, analysis and recommendations 13. Future of advertising Banking System in India Currently, India has 96 scheduled commercial banks (SCBs) 27 public sector banks (that is with the Government  holding a stake), 31 private banks (these do not have government stake; they may be publicly listed and traded on stock exchanges) and 38 foreign banks. They have a combined network of over 53,000 branches and 49,000  ATMs. According to a report by ICRA Limited, a rating agency, the public sector banks hold over 75 percent of total assets of the banking industry, with the private and foreign banks holding 18. 2% and 6. 5% respectively In the early 1990s, the then  Narsimha Rao  government embarked on a policy of  liberalization, licensing a small number of private banks. These came to be known as  New Generation tech-savvy banks, and included Global Trust Bank (the first of such new generation banks to be set up), which later amalgamated with Oriental Bank of Commerce,  Axis Bank(earlier as  UTI Bank),  ICICI Bank  and  HDFC Bank. This move, along with the rapid growth in the  economy of India, revitalized the banking sector in India, which has seen rapid growth with strong contribution from all the three sectors of banks, namely, government banks, private banks and foreign banks. The next stage for the Indian banking has been set up with the proposed relaxation in the norms for Foreign Direct Investment, where all Foreign Investors in banks may be given voting rights which could exceed the present cap of 10%,at present it has gone up to 74% with some restrictions. The new policy shook the Banking sector in  India  completely. Bankers, till this time, were used to the 4-6-4 method (Borrow at 4%;Lend at 6%;Go home at 4) of functioning. The new wave ushered in a modern outlook and tech-savvy methods of working for traditional banks. All this led to the retail boom in India. People not just demanded more from their banks but also received more. Currently (2007), banking in India is generally fairly mature in terms of supply, product range and reach-even though reach in rural India still remains a challenge for the private sector and foreign banks. In terms of quality of assets and capital adequacy, Indian banks are considered to have clean, strong and transparent balance sheets relative to other banks in comparable economies in its region. The Reserve Bank of India is an autonomous body, with minimal pressure from the government. The stated policy of the Bank on the Indian Rupee is to manage volatility but without any fixed exchange rate-and this has mostly been true. With the growth in the Indian economy expected to be strong for quite some time-especially in its services sector-the demand for banking services, especially  retail banking, mortgages and investment services are expected to be strong. One may also expect MAs, takeovers, and asset sales. In March 2006, the Reserve Bank of India allowed Warburg Pincus to increase its stake in Kotak Mahindra Bank (a private sector bank) to 10%. This is the first time an investor has been allowed to hold more than 5% in a private sector bank since the RBI announced norms in 2005 that any stake exceeding 5% in the private sector banks would need to be vetted by them. In recent years critics have charged that the non-government owned banks are too aggressive in their loan recovery efforts in connection with housing, vehicle and personal loans. There are press reports that the banks loan recovery efforts have driven defaulting borrowers to suicide. Executive Summary Today’s business world has become very competitive. To keep pace in this competitive environment it is very necessary for a marketer to communicate about the company’s offerings to consumers. All the element of promotional mix work to communicate with the audience. Marketers use communications in an attempt to persuade customers to act in a desired manner. Thoughts about the Future of Advertising Skeptics who forecast the demise of advertising ignore the fact that business and other enterprises have an innate need to communicate with their publics. The real question is not will advertising continue to be an important tool of business communication but simply, what forms will advertising take in the future? Certainly a host of issues related to change face the advertising business. Such issues include the relative importance of the various types of advertising over time, who will pay for what, what controls might be appropriate in light of the changing media environment, and so on. While changes and improvements in traditional mass media continue to occur, a massive change is underway which blends the efficiency of traditional mass media and the marketing potential of ones of this blending include, most importantly, the internet, but also personalized supermarket checkout coupons and personal in-flight video screens. Now the issue arise how advertisers can participate in the development of such media to the benefit of all the parties involved. Development Credit Bank A Quick Brief A new generation private sector bank, Development Credit Bank (DCB) is the preferred banking services provider across 80 state-of-the-art branches across 10 states and two union territories. The Bank has recently launched several value added initiatives and intends to become one of the country’s preferred and profitable private sector banks, providing a comprehensive suite of â€Å"best in class† products for customers in Retail, SME and Corporate Banking market segments in chosen geographies. DCB has deep roots in India since its inception in the 1930’s. Its promoter the Aga Khan Fund for Economic Development (AKFED) holds over 23% stake. AKFED is an international development agency dedicated to promoting entrepreneurship and building economically sound enterprises in the developing world. It had co-promoted HDFC in India in the late seventies. AKFED operates as a network of affiliates comprising 90 separate project companies. Employing over 30,000 people, it reported annual revenues in excess of US$1. 5 billion. The Fund is active in 16 countries in the developing world. The Past Built on over 78 years of trust, tradition and togetherness, DCB was converted into a Scheduled Commercial Bank on May 31,1995, in the wake of India’s economic liberalisation. It was the only co-operative bank, which successfully crossed over and thrived in the face of change. The Bank has a network of 80 state-of-the-art, customer friendly, and conveniently located branches across the states of Maharashtra, Gujarat, Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, Delhi/ NCR, Rajasthan, Goa, Tamil Nadu, Haryana, West Bengal and the Union Territories of Daman ; Diu and Dadra ; Nagar Haveli. Spreading wings, with the wind beneath Under the table guidance of an experienced Board of Directors and the leadership of a dynamic senior management team DCB strategically aims to enhance its reach and spread, while introducing exciting new banking products for its customers. Seamless, flawless and timely service To adhere to its vision of becoming the gold standard in customer service in Indian banking, intensive training and service quality programmes have been initiated with customer delight becoming the key focus of the Bank. This will become the lifeblood of DCB and act as its key differentiator. Not just a Bank, a Financial Supermarket DCB intends to offer an extensive range of products across its branches. Suitable variants of the basic products like savings and current accounts as well as innovative products such as the ‘DCB Trio’ and ‘Easy Business,’ keep DCB ahead of the pack. Demat Account and a range of investment products like mutual funds, insurance and bonds make the product offering complete. Close to its roots, yet flying high Since its inception, DCB has always taken an active interest in developing low-cost customer deposit products and providing for the needs of small and medium businesses in select regions. It continues to fulfil every consumer need with great enthusiasm. The Bank is also suitably equipped with the latest versions of Finacle from Infosys and Oracle to provide seamless service to its customers. A Bank for its people The pan-India employee teleconferences and introduction of performance-based incentives have already charged the existing work force. Given its reputation for being a non-hierarchical and dynamic organisation, DCB is one of the chosen destinations for aspiring banking professionals. A grip on the future The Bank has an active and robust treasury, managing its interest rate risks nd liquidity by providing an uninterrupted flow of funds, positioning the Bank for future growth. About the Dissertation Objective:- The aim of choosing this bank is â€Å"to provide a guideline to businesses, based on which, they can frame and implement suitable strategies pertaining to the form of Advertising as a part of marketing communication with respect to the continues changi ng business scenario†. The thesis has overall identified the need of Advertising and PR, how is it different from each other and how it is effecting the business of today. We all know that these tools of communication become the bread and butter of any organization. This is because they want to be noticed and known in the business environment. The brief giving how this dissertation aims to find out the true analysis of these two most effective communication tools are: * The research would aim at giving an insight of the importance and need advertising and PR in marketing of products and services with the aim of brand building and recall building initiative. * The research would give an analysis how each of the above affect the present business in Indian scenario and what is its impact on the same. The present status as a tool of marketing communication * The future prospect as a tool of marketing communication * To find out why should a particular company take the strategy of undertaking Advertising or PR as tools of marketing * To examine which is the best tool of marketing among the two. * To find out the perception of advertising from the perspectiv e of customer. Research Methodology Apart from the Secondary data analysis, to give it a back up with the perceptions and suggestions certain methodologies have been undertaken to make this dissertation or thesis a more proactive. The research methodology would be kept very simple. The research would concentrate on both Primary and secondary data research, wherein; the following resources have been followed to collect the data. For primary data collection * Questionnaire design * Personal Interviews For secondary data collection * Articles * White Papers * Management Books * Magazines * Internet A total of 60 respondents were selected Filling up of questionnaire- 55 Personal Interviews- 5 This is a very interesting and hot topic in the business scenario. So the businesses should understand, what were there achievements in satisfying there customer in the Indian market, and accordingly should make strategies for the same. All business wants to market itself and so PR and Advertising have become two of the most suitable methods to build the brand, which would help them to be profitable in the competitive world. Thus, the research and the thesis would provide an analysis from all aspect- be it the need, importance, the current status, satisfying the present to fulfill the future. The perceptions and suggestions would give the reader a thorough understanding and help to take future decisions. The total thesis would be made after proper research and inputs from best of the people in the industry. Suitable examples, references of the persons contacted would be provided. Literature Review Chapter 1 Public Relation Public Relations as a subset of marketing communication is becoming increasingly important in India. Public relations helps an organization and its public to adapt mutually to each other. Often, it is a term used to describe both, a way of looking at an organizations performance and a program of activities. The public relations function takes many forms in different organizations, including public information, investor relations, public affairs, corporate communications, employee relations, marketing or product publicity, and consumer service or customer relations. Basic to all public relations, however, is communicating. Well-planned, effectively handled communications are increasingly seen as essential to the success and even existence of organizations and causes in todays changing world. Every organization-government, business, labor, professional, trade, health, cultural, financial, recreational, educational and public service-depends on people. Their attitudes, attention, understanding, and motivation can be critical to the success or failure of an organization or idea. A public relations, at its best, not only tell an organization’s â€Å"story† to its publics, but also helps in shaping the organization and the way it performs. Through research, measurement and evaluation, public relations professionals determine the concerns and expectations of the organizations publics and explain them to management. A responsible and effective public relations program is based on the understanding and support of its publics. PR is a non-personal form of promotional communication but (in contrast with advertising) is a non-paid form. For example many newspapers and magazines regularly carry news about new launches etc with a view to inform their readers. At random if we pick up the Financial Express of 18. 10. 99. Then on page-7 of the newspaper there are three news items: * Sikkim Dairy Products and Ind. Swiss company had introduced a range of fresh and natural cheese. * Mercedes Benz is offering pre-owned (i. second hand) Mercedes at Rs. 12. 5 lakh onwards: against the new Mere price of Rs. 28 lakh. * Navneet Publications has introduced games for children. Since these items of news, even if they occupy newspapers space, they dont have to be paid for by the marketers. This is what is PR of the respective brands. General Features of PR: * Unpaid: Already explained above. * No identified sponsor: Here the news is supposedly given by the PR firms to the respective media, through which the news get published; and not by the company. To that extent it is more believable. In other words when the main objective of communication is to create conviction then PR through independent media exposure may prove to be better than through advertising. * Credibility: Since the news seems to have come from an independent unbiased source it appears more authentic. For instance, on 7. 4. 2000 Times of India Delhi edition carries a news item discussing the virtues of Compaq 7800, their latest offering. This naturally will be believed more by a potential buyer than an advertisement for the same product. * Additional Reach: This information reaches even those who otherwise may decide to ignore an advertisement. More so because while reading a newspaper one may decide that he has bought it to read news not ads. * No/ low cost: Thus as explained earlier, when a Fashion columnist covers the show organized by say Ritu Beri, she only extends her courtesy of an invitation card and may be a cocktail party post fashion show. * No Control: Greatest demerit is that we cannot control PR. Thus, it could be negative PR whereby the product may be criticized. The newspaper may decide to ignore the particular brand, since it may not find it worth publicizing. Chapter 2 Understanding PR Today business success depends not just on new and better products but equally on being heard in public forums. As the country begins to develop new rules of the economic game, business needs a credible presence – with customers, employees, shareholders, financers, journalists, government officials and law makers. This will provide the cutting edge to competitiveness. Dealing with the scrutiny of various interest groups, being heard in various forums through public affairs communication, is what Public Relations is all about. The main functional area of Public Relations encompasses the following aims: * Understanding and analyzing public opinion, attitudes and issues which might have an impact on the organisation’s plans and operations. * Counseling organisation’s management on policy decisions, courses of action and communication with regard to organisation’s social responsibilities. * Researching, conducting and evaluating on a continuing basis, programs of action and communication to achieve informed public understanding necessary to the success of an organization. * Planning and implementing the rganisation’s effort to influence or change public policy. * Managing the resources needed to perform all above. Media is the all-pervasive means of building perceptions and images. When a PR program is planned, each medium gets its own individual consideration. In-depth study of the present communication strategy in your organization marks the beginning of a committed relationship. Even specific short term projects involve being responsive and proactive to public opinion. Our expertise in the consultancy arena is an added advantage. The Activities of PR The basic Activities concerned are: * Media Relations * Editorial Services Media Update * Image ; Brand Management * Event Management * Communication Workshops * Government Relations ; Lobbying * Crisis Management * Employee Relations ; Consumer Relations * Advertisement Management * Corporate Films * Investor Relations * Public Opinion ; Market Research MEDIA RELATIONS This is the first step towards being known in the media. For this, their media relation team needs to give that extra push in generating newer media contacts on a regular basis. The stronger the relationship with the media, the easier it gets to get you covered in the publications and electronic media. The main activities pertain to: * Create strategies to effectively work with the media. * Build proactive relationships with the media that benefit the clients. * Plan, publicize and provide services for press conferences and media briefings. * Work on an ongoing basis to position your company in a positive light. EDITORIAL SERVICES This is a very specialized service wherein, after understanding the client requirements, seasoned client servicing and copywriting experts develop editorial write-ups to get printed in the various target publications. The main activities pertain to: Create support products, including fact sheets, brochures and other forms of marketing material. * Develop news releases, news advisories and media kits, in journalism form. * Pen guest commentaries and letters to the editor for submittal. * Write speeches and presentations. MEDIA UPDATE An active PR campaign for a client goes waste, if the media is not informed about the right things at the right time. The me dia update service helps its clients to stay in news always. The main activities pertain to: * Insight on what to expect from the media in its news and editorial coverage. Advance warning on what reporters may ask and how they may ask it. * Timely updation of newsworthy information to the target media. GOVERNMENT RELATIONS ; LOBBYING It is very important to know how to communicate with all levels of government, in ways they appreciate and understand. Whether the political participation at an event is to be catered to, have the intention to reach a politician on an issue, or simply need an appropriate political invitation list, we can provide access to the policy makers. The main activities pertain to: Conduct thorough, accurate research to acquire an in-depth picture of the community and its governmental structure, policies and procedures. * Cultivate and nurture an effective network of community support. * Implement grass-roots and governmental strategies. * Assist with the prepara tion of public presentations. CRISIS COMMUNICATION Crisis management begins with an audit of potential problems caused by internal or external forces. From the audit, we would identify loopholes, develop necessary internal communications procedures and train your management through simulated crisis. The main activities pertain to: Development of emergency response and communications plans. * Advance planning. * Creation of media and community contact directories. * Media training prior to an actual crisis situation. * Crisis management plans that deal with the media. * Consultation and real-time strategic planning during a crisis. * Day-by-day analysis of media coverage. EVENT MANAGEMENT Today the work of PR is not only restricted to the realm of getting coverages only. It has further advanced to create, manage and publicize events for clients, from international launch to national seminars, from social events to cultural evenings. Whether its a large-scale public event or an industry conference, a splashy product launch or a celebrity night, the PR firms handles events with flair. Original ideas and flawless execution are the only accepted standards. From venue recommendations to the invitation list, the final result is that the events produce impressive and measurable results. The main activities pertain to: * Conceptualize and deliver events of any magnitude * Co-ordinate all third party negotiations and vendor arrangements * Design of all invitations * Dispatch and follow-ups of all invitations Arrangement for special guests of honor, celebrities, politicians, etc. COMMUNICATION WORKSHOPS It is highly imperative for the corporate spokesperson, who would be the face of the company he represents to speak out something awkward or unwanted in any corporate interview with the media. The PR objective becomes prominent in designating corporate spokesperson getting to interact with a senior media personality in ord er to brush up their skills in handling various media queries with poise an d elan. The main activities pertain to: * Briefings on how to communicate with the media. * Insight into what to expect from the media. Tips on how to prepare for an interview. * Mock interviews so you can practice techniques needed to succeed. * Talking points that turn your ideas into concise, quotable statements. ADVERTISEMENT MANAGEMENT An important element of public relations can be an advertising program that supports other communications strategies, such as media relations. But, one needs to strategize the media plan so that it can complement the editorial support effectively. The main activities pertain to: * Research advertising potential and recommend outlets. * Create a comprehensive advertising program. * Write copy for print advertising. Produce print advertising. PUBLIC OPINION AND MARKETING RESEARCH Public opinion research and marketing research provide essential information for strategic deci sion making. The in-house expertise and necessary capabilities to provide clients with the best and most useful strategic data possible is the main idea. A effective Pr would recommends a ‘Comprehensive Reputation Audit Assessment Systems’ (CRAAS) which helps us understand the market perception of the client’s strengths, weaknesses, challenges and its positioning in the market, in order to formulate a proper media strategy. The main activities pertain to: * Identify perception parameters * Map your company perception vis-a-vis your competitors. * Strategies media communication based on the positive perception results. IMAGE AND BRAND MANAGEMENT In the emerging marketplace, the corporate brand and image is being dramatically redefined. While the corporate brand is now understood to be a valuable asset, many companies are struggling to realize its full potential. The corporate branding practice is dedicated to developing the corporate brand as a potent and sustainable competitive advantage, and maximizing its utility to our clients. The main activities pertain to: * Brand Development, (research, segmentation, analysis, identity development, strategic planning) * Brand Expression (targeting, messaging, program execution) * Measurement / Program refinement. EMPLOYEE RELATIONS CONSUMER RELATIONS In the battle for share of mind and market, your internal audiences are the front lines. No corporation or organization can hope to communicate persuasively and productively with outside audiences unless and until it has gotten the message to its own employees, distributors and other business partners. The main activities pertain to: Advising clients on internal communication best practices * To providing editorial and graphic design for magazines, newsletters and marketing materials * Bolstering morale through poster and exhibit design. * Newsletters * Consumer Surveys * Consumer oriented Events * Tie ups and Associations INVESTOR RELATIONS SERVICES The investor relations services are designed to increase your market valu e and broaden your shareholder base. The effective PR strategies would make the respective company standout among the thousands of investment opportunities battling for each investors rupees. After extensive market research, developing and communicating a compelling investment thesis for owning the companys Stocks and Securities following the guidelines and rules of SEBI. The main activities pertain to: 1. Financial Messaging 2. General Investor Relations 3. Pre-IPO Communications 4. Mergers and Acquisitions The PR spend The Rieses still see a role for advertising, but primarily as a defense mechanism for established brands and products, not as a builder of new ones. Public relations specifically publicity and the resulting word of mouth are what really build new brands, they maintain. Most industry executives might dismiss that as a gross generalization but all agree that PR is an important and growing tool being increasingly used by marketers. However, both suffered for year. PR spending has long paled compared to ad spending, given the lack of media expense and relative lack of production expense involved. A 2001 survey by Thomas L. Harris/Impulse Research found consumer-products companies, for example, spend about 0. 05% of revenue on PR. Thats a tiny fraction of the 2% to 10% of revenues such companies ordinarily spend on overall marketing expense. The survey also found that marketers cut PR budgets as a percent of sales from 0. 09% to 0. 07% last year, a 29% drop. The percentage of client PR budgets earmarked for product publicity, however, actually went up five points to 23%, even though total spending on product publicity actually went down 10% to $518 million. In India the Public Relations industry reached a major milestone last year in December with the launch and formation of Public Relations Consultants Association of India (PRCAI), an umbrella body representing all the professional consultancies in India. The PRCAI, mooted by a group of seven leading public relations firms, is a pioneering body that will represent the over Rs. 1 billion industry, which employs more than 8,000 professionals today. Union Budget 2006-07: Public Relations firms ready for service tax The public relations fraternity has welcomed Finance Minister P Chidambarams proposal in the Union Budget 2006-07, presented in Parliament on February 28, to formally bring PR services under the service tax net. The Finance Minister also proposed to raise the service tax rate from 10 per cent to 12 per cent and widen the indirect tax net to double the collections to Rs. 4,500 crore in 2006-07. During 2005-06, the government is likely to collect Rs 23,000 crore as against the budget estimate of Rs 17,500 crore. Speaking about the repercussions of service tax on the PR industry, Perfect Relations Cherian said, I believe the move will lead to consolidation among the small and non-organised PR firms because they may find it diffic ult to cope with the service tax burden. These small firms will ultimately be acquired by bigger firms. Chapter 3 Customer Relationship Management in context to Public Relation Customer relationship management (CRM)  is a broadly recognized, widely-implemented strategy for managing and nurturing a company’s interactions with customers, clients and sales prospects. It involves using technology to organize, automate, and synchronize business processes- principally  sales activities, but also those for  marketing,  customer service, and  technical support. The overall goals are to find, attract, and win new clients, nurture and retain those the company already has, entice former clients back into the fold, and reduce the costs of marketing and client service. Customer relationship management denotes a company-wide business strategy embracing all client-facing departments and even beyond. When an implementation is effective, people, processes, and technology work in synergy to increase profitability, and reduce operational costs. Chapter 4 The Research A research was conducted for making this thesis a more value addition and to provide a basis to the industry to choose the right mix of communication tool for laying down a more successful business. Based on the questionnaire given below, the research was conducted Research Methodology and Data Sources: The research was started with an Exploratory Research, it included interviews. Exploratory Research seeks to investigate preferences and the impact towards the current business scenario. On the bases of this research various hypothesis was framed and tested on the basis of information collected through a survey. The survey was done on the basis of a questionnaire. The following are the factors have been taken into consideration while seeking out the information for the assessment: Methodology used The data collection tools used was: * Questionnaire Personal Interview The personal interview are based on the question â€Å" Which one do you think is more impactful communication tool and how does it create an impact in the present business scenario? The questionnaire comprising of 12 questions covered all the relevant aspects that were required for the survey among 60 respondents. Demographic Profile| Age group 18 years and aboveGender Male and Fe male| Psychographics profile| All the people who were existing customers of the bank and can give their views on the same to let us know their preference level. Geographic location| Chandni Chowk (Old Delhi) branch of Development Credit Bank| Questionnaire CUSTOMER SERVICE RATING APPEAL TO THE CUSTOMERS Dear Respondent, The objective of this survey is to know the point of views of the costumer about the bank and what do they think and level of satisfaction derived from the bank; this would help us in improving our future services. I would be very grateful to you for filling the questionnaire and being a part of this research PART A QUALITATIVE ASPECTS Sl. No. | Services| Ratings| 1. | Cleanliness, Layout, Access to the entrance,Visibility of Signboards| V. Good| Good| Average| Poor| 2. | Space available for sitting / waiting / writing| V. Good| Good| Average| Poor| 3. | Easy availability of loose pay-in-slips,withdrawal slips, DDs / TTs forms ; challans etc. | V. Good| Good| Average| Poor| 4. | Availability of services of staff members for any enquiry, problems or Guidelines for various deposit schemes, theirAdvantages| V. Good| Good| Average| Poor| 5. | General behaviour of the members of staff| V. Good| Good| Average| Poor| 6. | Availability of services at ComputerisedCounters eg. Knowing the balance, Debit /Credit of instruments etc. and delivery of printed Pass Books / Statements| V. Good| Good| Average| Poor| 7. | Expert services available in handling ofimport / export business| V. Good| Good| Average| Poor| 8. | Compliance of standing instructions| V. Good| Good| Average| Poor| 9. | Availability of Complaint Register on demand| Easily availableon Demand| Not available| 10. | Any complaint lodged by you is still to beredressed. If so please put the date of complaintlodged with the branch| None| Not attended (putdate of lodgementof complaint)| B. Quantitative Aspect Sl. No. Staff initiative to minimise waiting hours of the customers at the Counter| | | | 1. | Payment of Cash, Cheques, Demand Drafts| within 15mts. | 15-30mts. | More than30 mts. | 2. | Receipt of Cash in the accounts / purchase ofDDs and in other accounts| within 15mts. | 15-30mts. | More than30 mts. | 3. | Delivery of Demand Drafts / Pay Orders / BankOrders| within 20mts. | 20-30mts. | More than30 mts. | 4. | Delivery of Fixed Deposit Receipts| within 20mts. | 20-30mts. | More than30 mts. | 5. | Updating of Savings / RD Pass Books (Whereentries are not more)| Within15 mts. | 15-30mts. Morethan 30mts. | Morethan 1day| 6. | Issue of Cheque Books in Current / SB a/cs| Within15 mts. | 15-30mts. | Morethan 30mts. | Morethan 1day| 7. | Issue of Statement of Accounts (Manual)| Within 7days| 7-15 days| More than15 days| 8. | Issue of Statements of Acc ounts / Pass Books(on Computers)| Instantly| More than30 mts. | More than1 hour| Findings and Analysis PART A QUALITATIVE ASPECTS Question 1: Cleanliness, Layout, and Access to the entrance, Visibility of Signboards? 69%+25% of people believe on clean layout of the bank Question 2: Space available for sitting / waiting / writing 5%+45% of people believe in space availability of the bank Question 3: Easy availability of loose pay-in-slips, withdrawal slips, DDs / TTs forms ; challans 80% of customer can easily find the required documentations Question 4: Availability of services of staff members for any enquiry, problems or Guidelines for various deposit schemes, their Advantages Question 5: General behavior of the members of staff In both the questions the respondents likes the way they are treated Question 6: Availability of services at Computerized Counters eg. Knowing the balance, Debit /Credit of instruments etc. and delivery of printed Pass Books / Statements The evidences ar e easy to submerge Question 7: Expert services available in handling of import / export business As per requirement customers availing import export services have responded well Question 8: Compliance of standing instructions If possible all complaints are taken on vain Question 9: Availability of Complaint Register on demand Every complain is registered Question 10: Any complaint lodged by you is still to be redressed. If so please put the date of complaint lodged with the branch Every registered complain is solved PART B QUANTITATIVE ASPECTS Question 1: Payment of Cash, Cheques, Demand Drafts Only 2% of bills are not served well Question 2: Receipt of Cash in the accounts / purchase of DDs and in other accounts To maintain the regular cash equity balance Question 3: Delivery of Demand Drafts / Pay Orders / Bank Orders Safe delivery leads safe deposits Question 4: Delivery of Fixed Deposit Receipts With 7. 75% of interest rate on f. ds Question 5: Updating of Savings / RD Pass Books (Where entries are not more) Machines lead to mass and efficient production and services Question 6: Issue of Cheque Books in Current / SB a/cs Question 7: Issue of Cheque Books in Current / SB a/cs Question 8: Issue of Statements of Accounts / Pass Books (on Computers) Desperate times need desperate measures Interviews The personal interview is based on the question â€Å"Which one do you think is more impactful communication tool and how does it create an impact in the present business scenario? † Out of all the interviews, few of the worth mentioning COMMENTS are given as follows. ‘I think D. C. B is more effective since it concentrates on their present customer so well that they can reach a wider mass through word of mouth. If a company want to make itself and its product and services prominent in the market vis a vis its competitors, it should be able to communicate it to the target audience. If you consider this fact that India, is widely a rural country and a huge part of the population is illiterate, you can reach them through attractive and pictorial cum sound based advertisement. Thus, I think the company has a potential to grow and be more effective. ’ Mrs. Gurdeep Kaur Housewife ‘I think today Development Credit bank can do more than just what they are doing. An Advertising can deliver the message to the target audience in a more prominent way that PR. A Company should be in the position to adopt the best communication tool for itself . Although I have seen a couple of advertisements of the bank in the local newspapers but it would be better that the company take a step ahead and work on a better mass media. The present business scenario is very complex, yet interesting. So to keep pace with it as well as the competitiveness, the companies needs to make the right choice’ Ravi Perti Client Servicing, Adcon Services. Comments besides the questionnaire and the inteview Mr. Ashis Nigam: finds the bank to be very good as has recently shifted from H. D. F. C Mr. Bhandari, Medi Slabs: has the best experience in the online banking Mr. Manu Jain: finds staff to be less White Paper On Daily Rituals of the World A recent study by ad agency BBDO Human beings are creatures of habit- the morning coffee with two sugars, the post-lunch brush and floss, the bedtime yoga routine with lights dimmed. Advertisers, on the other hand, often try to break those habits by wedging new products and services into various parts of the day. Now comes ad giant BBDO Worldwide with its latest weapon to help clients get an edge: An extensive global study of daily rituals. Unlike habits or routines, which may be ingrained but carry no emotional meaning, a ritual is described in the study as a defined series of actions that helps us transform from one emotional state to another. Many of those actions involve favorite things, naturally, and BBDOs hope is that the data will help clients insert their products into those rituals. We didnt have categories or brands in mind, says Tracy Lovatt, director of behavioral planning at BBDO North America. We wanted to study the power of rituals in our lives. The study comes at a time when ad agencies are struggling to find new ways to reach customers, and emphasize the value of their work to clients. This is another example of how the richest source of insight comes from observing behavior, says BBDO President and Chief Executive Andrew Robertson. Making Meaning But rituals are something many associate with rites of passage- marriage, death, even the transition to a new season. BBDO, in contrast, came up with five t hat occur every day in every part of the world: * preparing for battle (the morning ritual), * feasting (reconnecting with your tribe over food), * sexing up (primping), returning to camp (leaving the work place), and * Protecting yourself for the future (the ritual before bed). As part of the study, researchers asked more than 5,000 people in 21 countries how they behave during these five transitional periods of the day. While people in every culture report engaging in rituals for similar reasons, they approach them quite differently. About 41% of Chinese respondents said they schedule sex, for example, while only 3% of Russians do- and 7% of Americans. Nightly Lockdown Fully 44% of Brazilians read in the bathroom, according to the study; in Saudi Arabia, 10% of respondents do. More than half of all Indian respondents surf the Web before leaving the house, while less than one-third of Americans or Canadians do. About 80% of Saudi Arabians pray or meditate before work; in Germany, 3% of respondents do. The rituals that are easiest to understand occur in the morning and evening. Marketers have long appreciated the value of getting a foothold in the tightly scheduled morning ritual, when people tend to stick with a routine and a particular set of products. BBDO participants reported doing an average of seven activities in under an hour, from brushing their teeth and drinking coffee to checking -mail (participants between the ages of 60 and 70 reported the highest rate of e-mail use). BBDO dubbed the period before bed protecting yourself for the future. Thats because the survey found people in self-preservation mode, as they went about locking windows and doors, applying wrinkle cream, and selecting clothes or armor for the next day. Its a brief period, but al so the perfect time to find customers at their most vulnerable. As BBDOs Robertson, a former insurance salesman, puts it: If there was some way to be in the home as people are going through lockdown, you could probably sell a lot of insurance. Broad Categories When it comes to rituals in the middle of the day, the surveys results are less conclusive. That might have to do with the categories BBDO settled on. Feasting, for example, is described as pleasurable and indulgent†¦the ritual that reunites us with our tribes. But the frequency with which people feast vs. simply eating something to stave off hunger isnt clear, and anyone who has organized a midweek meal with busy kids knows that indulgent may not be the best way to characterize the mood. Everyone, too, understands the elaborate preparations that go into sexing up. But the category is a catch-all for everything from teenage girls e-mailing each other to find out what theyre going to wear. Returning to camp, meanwhile, ca n mean anything from sharing martinis with friends to staring zombie-like at the TV with a bag of chips in hand. Watching TV also creeps into both the morning and evening rituals, as do other habits- this perhaps means the same activity serves different purposes at different hours of the day. Even so, marketers may find BBDOs results help them tailor their approach to consumers. For instance, cultures in which a high proportion of people eat on their way to work, such as China, could be more open to portable breakfast food than those that dont, such as Spain. While everybody showers or bathes, a shower gel aimed at Polish consumers might emphasize relaxing qualities, as 84% of them shower at night. A more invigorating message might work better with the 92% of Mexicans who shower or bathe in the morning. Knowing that women in Colombia, Brazil, and Japan apply makeup in their car at twice the global rate could prompt a new approach to the design and marketing of cosmetics. Breaking the Code The challenge is that most consumers are loyal to particular products and patterns, making it tough for marketers to become part of a ritual if another brand is already there. Americans, in particular, said they use the same products every morning, though theyre more flexible about what they use at night. Russians are less predictable- only half of them use the same products as part of their morning ritual, and 19% of them use the same products before going to bed. If theres one constant around the world, its this: Almost everyone gets irritated when their rituals are disrupted. How will clients see the work? BBDO has presented the findings to several so far, and some were willing to share a few comments with Business Week. YUM! Brands Chairman and CEO David Novak, who calls his company maniacal about insight-driven marketing, says the study will provide a fresh, new lens to uncover those insights that lead to positive and lasting changes in consumer behavior. Pepsi-Cola North America Chief Marketing Officer Cie Nicholson called the study intriguing, because we can learn how to build our brands share of life, not just share of market. For Scott Aakre, a vice-president at Hormel Foods (HRL), the Holy Grail is to find a way to break the code and fit into one of these five universal routines sowe might be able to build lifelong relationships between our brands and consumers. Thats a tough challenge. HERE AT DEVELOPMENT CREDIT BANK WE BELIEVE.

Easter Acrostic Poem Lesson Plan

Easter Acrostic Poem Lesson Plan Are you in need of a quick Easter activity for your students? Try having your students create an Easter acrostic poem. They are so easy to write and they can be about any subject. Grade Level: Primary and Upper GradesSubject: Language Arts Objectives/Learning Goals Practice brainstorming Easter-related wordsUse descriptive phrases and sentences to describe Easter or words related to EasterWrite an Easter acrostic poem Required Materials Pencil and paper for each student to write their poem onScrap paper for brainstorming Anticipatory Set Ask the class what they know about Easter. Write a list on the board while they are calling out answers, and offer ideas and comments as you write down the list.Brainstorm 10-15 Easter-related words and write them on the front board or overhead projector. Have the students copy these words on a scrap piece of paper or create a graphic organizer. Overview of Lesson Plan Each student is asked to write a short acrostic poem using an Easter-related word. They must create phrases and/or sentences that relate to the subject in order to complete the task. Direct Instruction Choose an Easter-related word and work together to create an acrostic poem. Choose words such as: Easter, eggs, Happy Easter, basket, bunny or Spring.Model the format of an acrostic poem on the front board. The easiest way to display this is to put the letters of the subject down the left-hand side of the page. Once this is done you can now begin to think of a sentence that describes your subject.Brainstorm sentences that would relate to the subject of the poem. Leave these ideas on the front board so the students can use them as a reference when creating a poem on their own. Guided Practice For younger students, provide a graphic organizer for brainstorming and an acrostic poem worksheet where they can fill in the blanks.For older students, you can also provide a graphic organizer for brainstorming, but then have them write their own sentences from scratch. Closure Once they have completed their poems allow time for them to illustrate a picture and then share their poems aloud with their classmates. Independent Practice For homework, have students create an acrostic poem using another Easter-related word. For extra credit or practice, they can create a poem using the letters of their name. Assessment The final piece of writing and homework assignment will be assessed by a rubric that the teacher has created. Sample Easter Acrostic Poems HAPPY EASTER H - ope is in the Spring airA - s we all come togetherP - ractice your manners for Easter dinnerP - raise your parents and the ones you loveY - es, together we love toE - at on Easter dayA -nd when you wake up onS - unday morning you can search for your Easter basket.T - o me its the best part of Easter,E - ating all of the chocolate bunnies and collecting the eggs.R - emember to get some rest for the special day! EASTER E - aster is a great time of yearA - nd every child loves to eat chocolateS - o make sure you don’t eat too muchT - ogether we can hideE - aster eggs and find themR - emember not to eat too much candy or youll get a belly ache! EGGS E - atG - ather eggsG - o to churchS - pring has sprung SPRING S -ring is a wonderful time of yearP -icture the flowers bloomingR -abbits are hoppingI -t is soN -ice and warm outsideG -rowing flowers at Easter time.

Antibacterial and biomedical applications of gold nanoparticles and Essay

Antibacterial and biomedical applications of gold nanoparticles and graphene composite - Essay Example Graphene has oxygen-containing groups embedded in its honeycomb-like six-atom carbon rings. Graphene oxide (GO) is used to in imaging and delivery of drugs (p.365). Georgakilas et al. says that the existences of carbon nano-structures in graphene enables it to form organic polimers which are very important in the formation of polimer composites which are important in biomedical application (p.4). also supports Yang et al. on the issue (n.d, p.1-59) T Yang et al. (2013), continue to say that the properties of graphene is also useful making of biological, pathogenic and pharmacological processes that make it necessary delivering therapeutic drugs since its used for the detection of specific proteins through the â€Å"sand witch † immunoassay which is useful in the binding of proteins and secondary antibody. This is why the graphene is used in the creation of cancer-detection biomarker. This occurs when the layers of graphene are used to increase the surface area for capturing large amounts of Ab1 and when it is further amplified; it achieves multi-enzyme-Ab2 which is functionalized carbon nanospheres (Yang et al. 2013, p.367). Graphene is also used in quenching the fluorescence of other fluorescent dyes which is used in fabricating fluorescence resonance energy transfer (FRET). FRET sensors are used for monitoring ssDNA (Yang et al. 2013, p.367). According to Polte et al. (2010), Gold can be used in various fields of medicine, biotechnology, and catalysis. This makes it one of the most important subjects in the study of nanoscale materials. Gold nanoparticles are prepared using various processing routes like chemical, sonochemical and photochemical paths. However it is mainly made through the precipitation of the GNP in aqueous solution from dissolved gold precursors like HAuCL4 using reducing agents like sodium citrate, ascorbic acid, sodium boron hydride or block copolymers which

Polishing a Written Agreement Thesis Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 10750 words

Polishing a Written Agreement - Thesis Example . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3 Table of Contents . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4 Chapter One Description of the Problem . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5 Chapter Two Literature Review . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12 Chapter Three The Proposed Intervention . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20 Chapter Four The Intervention Objectives . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22 Chapter Five Data Collection Plan . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 28 Chapter Six Summary of Results . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 29 References . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 47 Chapter One Description of the Problem Statement of the Purpose In presenting the purpose of the project, it is important to lay down the premises at the outset. As stated in the abstract, the thesis is about the Keyholder Agreement. It is a bilateral written covenant although there are actually three parties, GE Security, Inc., the key-holder and the Organization to where the key-holder belongs. Owing to concerns about the perception that the Keyholder Agreement has become lengthy or complicated or both after a considerable period of time, it is advisable to review this written contract. Apparently, the purpose of this project is to therefore see if there is a need to either (a) simplify and make clearer the Keyholder Agreement especially to the key-holders, (b) or shorten the Keyholder Agreement,...(Daly, David T. Five Ways to Make a Contract More Understandable: A Lesson from the Mackinac Bridge. Plain Language.[internet]). It is thus pragmatic to use the language and content structure which are best understood by the executing parties without sacrificing the substance of the instrument. In the present case, the subject is the so-called Keyholder Agreement which has to be studied and analyzed in order to arrive at the suggestion of whether or not to revise, modify or amend it. In presenting the purpose of the project, it is important to lay down the premises at the outset. As stated in the abstract, the thesis is about the Keyholder Agreement. It is a bilateral written covenant although there are actually three parties, GE Security, Inc., the key-holder and the Organization to where the key-holder belongs. Owing to concerns about the perception that the Keyholder Agreement has become lengthy or complicated or both after a considerable period of time, it is advisable to review this written contract. Apparently, the purpose of this project is to therefore see if there is a need to either (a) simplify and make clearer the Keyholder Agreement especially to the key-holders, (b) or shorten the Keyholder Agreement, (c) or simplify the Keyholder Agreement, make it clearer and shorten it. At this point, it is pertinent to stress that the subject contract, coming from GE Security, Inc., is on

Article Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words - 2

Article Example Thomas discusses the impact of cross cultural interactions in different disciplines. The two domains in which cultural influence mechanisms fall are cognitive and motivational. The cognitive dimension is about the cultural different perceptions and signal interpretations while motivational dimension is about self concepts that are culturally different and can impact what we consider to be desirable. Hence, this can impact out comes and behavior. This implies that knowledge knows what culture is and how it impacts behavior. Mindfulness on the other hand is described as a specific mega cognitive process in which multiple perspectives are sought for and new mental categories are created. People who are high on CQ quotient need to act instead of being just informed about what their culture is like. They must perform and act. The behavioral component of CQ is described as the ability to adjust and adapt behavior in different situation based on one’s expectation of others. In today’s diverse world and society, it is very important to understand the concept of cultural intelligence. The reader is able to relate to other cultures and self concepts by his ability to tolerate them and by understanding their predicaments. This will help establish harmony, understanding and stage the foundation of healthy interactions between people. The article is important for it digs down on the characteristics of cultural intelligence which can be applied by people in their

David Christopher, Orthopedic Surgeon Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

David Christopher, Orthopedic Surgeon - Essay Example e second to most in demand whereas surgeon B takes as long as 60 minutes for the most required and the second to most required surgery that he executes. In addition, surgeon B is more skilled as he does surgeries of a greater variety as compared to the surgeon A. Keeping these facts into consideration, one way for Dr. Christopher to increase the patient throughput and accordingly the revenues without compromising upon the quality of care is to add a surgeon who is skilled in the surgeries of ACL ligament repair, Achilles tendon repair, and knee replacement since these are the surgeries with a lot of demand. The second approach can be to use the surgeons A and B only for the surgeries that are more in demand and stop doing surgeries in areas that have no demand. The record shows that no patient has been scheduled for the surgeries of big toe replacement and fractured hip, so the changeover time of 45 minutes consumed by surgeon A and B in these surgeries can be utilized more efficiently by doing more surgeries of ACL ligament repair that, though Dr. Christopher needs to train surgeon A to perform this surgery. Dr. Christopher can also increase the revenues without compromising upon the quality of service by better management of time. Presently, the surgeries are done only from 7:00 am to 12:00 noon whereas in the time thereafter, patients are seen either in the hospital or the clinic. After noon till break-off, there is plenty of time that can be availed in actually performing surgeries rather than just checking patients. At least, this time can be used to perform the surgeries that take equal to or less than 1 hour to perform and are high in demand like the ACL ligament repair surgery, the Achilles tendon repair surgery or the rotator cuff repair surgery. Yet another way is to keep the number of surgeons the same but divide the surgeries between before noon and after noon time depending upon the time they take. For example, Dr. Christopher should make the

T-cells are MHC-Restricted Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

T-cells are MHC-Restricted - Essay Example T-helper cells are so named because they produce and secrete protein molecules called cytokines that perform various functions within the immune system that direct and 'help' the immune response. Within the Helper T-cell group are two further subsets known as Th1 (or type 1) and Th2 (or type 2). Cytotoxic T-cells play a central role in the destruction of tumour cells and virally-infected cells, and are also thought to have an important role in transplant rejection. Differentiation of T-cells into CD4+ and CD8+ cells begins in the thymus during T-cell development. However, cells only become fully differentiated mature cells in the peripheral lymphoid system, during an active immune response. All T-cells originate in the marrow of long bones (such as the femur), and are derived from hematopoetic stem cells. Hematopoetic progenitors that derive from these stem cells travel to the thymus via the lymphatic system. Upon reaching the thymus they divide to generate T-cell precursors known as immature thymocytes (Schwarz B A, Bhandoola A. 2006). Approximately 98% of these precursor cells die in the thymus without becoming fully-differentiated T-cells, due to selection processes called positive and negative selection. The 2% of cells that survive selection eventually leave the thymus to become mature T-cells. At the beginning of the selection process, all thy... Thymocytes that bind the MHC-antigen complex with sufficient affinity (binding strength) are allowed to survive and move to the next stage of development. Thymocytes which do not bind with adequate affinity receive a chemical signal which causes them to undergo apoptosis, a process also known as programmed cell death, in which cells die in a way that cannot cause harm to the host. This first round of selection is called positive selection, because cells which bind with affinity are allowed to survive. During this process another type of selection occurs: cells which bind with MHC class II molecules develop into CD4+ cells, and cells which bind with MHC class I molecules develop into CD8+ cells. Those cells that survive the first round of selection migrate to the boundary between the cortex and medulla of the thymus. In the medulla, they are presented again with MHC molecules that present self-antigens. This time, the complex is presented by dendritic cells and macrophages, two types of antigen-presenting cells. In this situation, cells which bind with very strong affinity receive a death-inducing signal, and undergo apoptosis, while cells that do not bind with strong affinity are allowed to survive and continue development. It is at this stage, called negative selection, that the majority of developing T-cells die. Negative selection is a particularly important part of the development process, as it prevents the development of T-cells which react to self-antigens, and thus prevents the development of auto-immune disease (Baldwin TA, 2004). The cells that survive both positive and negative selection are mature nave T-cells, which then leave the thymus and begin to circulate in the lymphatic

Watch a relational development film and write about it Assignment

Watch a relational development film and write about it - Assignment Example p between the two provides a study piece for the Mark Knapp’s relational development model that bases on a number of perspectives reliant on a ten-step process that is majorly consisting two phases. The details of the study below explain the relationships in the film based on the Mark Knapp’s model. For the effective development of communication, all the steps involved in the theory need doing. The steps will have each done at a time to provide for a strong and effective relationship. Despite the nature of the relationship, Mark Knapp believes that at one time it dissolves as detailed in the last phase that deals with coming apart. The film provides a true picture of these as will be reveled further in the essay. The first phase of the model is the coming together part that details the five major steps that involve the initiation, the experimentation, intensifying aspects, integration and bonding of the people. The initiation stage provides for the first impression made that involves meeting for the first time and creating an impression on each other. In the film, Jack first sights Rose from a distant and the friends discourage him considering the social class differences between the two. Despite these, an opportune time presents itself as Rose attempts to jump off the ship from which Jack pulls her over making the first impression on each other. The stage of their first meeting details initiation stage as per Mark Knapp. This stage forms the basis of every relationship. The second stage provides for experimentation through which the two parties start learning each other and get more comfortable. This stage leads to the third stage on intensifying in which experimentation continues. The stage provides for the clarity of any mutual coordination in the development of the relationship and will have a consideration of an emotional affection developing with attachment between the parties. The mutual connection between Rose and Jack works to provide for their

T-cells are MHC-Restricted Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

T-cells are MHC-Restricted - Essay Example T-helper cells are so named because they produce and secrete protein molecules called cytokines that perform various functions within the immune system that direct and 'help' the immune response. Within the Helper T-cell group are two further subsets known as Th1 (or type 1) and Th2 (or type 2). Cytotoxic T-cells play a central role in the destruction of tumour cells and virally-infected cells, and are also thought to have an important role in transplant rejection. Differentiation of T-cells into CD4+ and CD8+ cells begins in the thymus during T-cell development. However, cells only become fully differentiated mature cells in the peripheral lymphoid system, during an active immune response. All T-cells originate in the marrow of long bones (such as the femur), and are derived from hematopoetic stem cells. Hematopoetic progenitors that derive from these stem cells travel to the thymus via the lymphatic system. Upon reaching the thymus they divide to generate T-cell precursors known as immature thymocytes (Schwarz B A, Bhandoola A. 2006). Approximately 98% of these precursor cells die in the thymus without becoming fully-differentiated T-cells, due to selection processes called positive and negative selection. The 2% of cells that survive selection eventually leave the thymus to become mature T-cells. At the beginning of the selection process, all thy... Thymocytes that bind the MHC-antigen complex with sufficient affinity (binding strength) are allowed to survive and move to the next stage of development. Thymocytes which do not bind with adequate affinity receive a chemical signal which causes them to undergo apoptosis, a process also known as programmed cell death, in which cells die in a way that cannot cause harm to the host. This first round of selection is called positive selection, because cells which bind with affinity are allowed to survive. During this process another type of selection occurs: cells which bind with MHC class II molecules develop into CD4+ cells, and cells which bind with MHC class I molecules develop into CD8+ cells. Those cells that survive the first round of selection migrate to the boundary between the cortex and medulla of the thymus. In the medulla, they are presented again with MHC molecules that present self-antigens. This time, the complex is presented by dendritic cells and macrophages, two types of antigen-presenting cells. In this situation, cells which bind with very strong affinity receive a death-inducing signal, and undergo apoptosis, while cells that do not bind with strong affinity are allowed to survive and continue development. It is at this stage, called negative selection, that the majority of developing T-cells die. Negative selection is a particularly important part of the development process, as it prevents the development of T-cells which react to self-antigens, and thus prevents the development of auto-immune disease (Baldwin TA, 2004). The cells that survive both positive and negative selection are mature nave T-cells, which then leave the thymus and begin to circulate in the lymphatic

Safety And hazards of pyrotechnics Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Safety And hazards of pyrotechnics - Essay Example A pyrotechnic technician should be aware of the various measures of creating a convincing explosion while ensuring that they maintain control of the process. Safety refers to the situation of acquiring protection form physical, damage, harm, accidents, errors and other events that are undesirable. It is also the control of various recognized hazards to acquire an acceptable level of risk. Safety is extremely vital in daily life and human should be cautious under all circumstances especially when dealing with pyrotechnics (Agrawal 9). A hazard refers to a situation that poses a certain level of threat to property, health, environment, or life. Majority of the risks are potential or dormant and have a characteristic of theoretical risk of harm. A hazard does not exist if it does not happen. When a hazardous situation comes to pass, people call it an incident. Pyrotechnics is a dormant hazard since they have the potential to be hazardous but do not affect the people or the environment. The key factor that leads to identification of a hazard in pyrotechnics is the energy stored that can cause damage upon release. Pyrotechnics store energy in various forms, which includes chemical, thermal, mechanical, and radioactive forms. Pyrotechnics are tremendously valuable in the entertainment industry and regularly used to mark various critical events. The producers or manufacturers of such pyrotechnics have a responsibility to ensure that the individuals who use them are not liable to adverse effects. They should achieve this through ensuring that they decrease the level of toxic materials in the pyrotechnics. They should ensure that it has minimal side effect to intended users. The employee who uses these pyrotechnics should also be protected since they work with them on a daily basis. Education concerning various measures of minimizing the chances of people being affected is particularly beneficial. Employees and

Slave Ship Essay Example for Free

Slave Ship Essay Rediker’s concern for the individual lived experiences of the participants in the trade is aided immensely by his command of the history of what life at sea is like. While scholars have been using the narrative of Olaudah Equiano to illuminate the experiences of enslavement for decades (Burnside and Robotham 1997), chapter 8 of The Slave Ship titled â€Å"The Sailor’s Vast Machine† contains a learned and astute description of work and suffering at sea. What sticks out is violence, and the shocking degree to which physical and emotional terror was used as a tool for control and psychosexual masochism. Rediker rightly points out that both captives and crew were being exploited by the captain, officers, and sponsors of slave ship voyages, without going so far as to suggest that the sailors somehow had it worse than the slaves. Far from it; Rediker makes clear the degree to which the nascent concept of â€Å"race† was lived out onboard, and relates truly debauched tales of rape, torture, concubinage, and murder of essentially helpless children. Anthropologically inclined readers will find much of interest in chapter 9 of Rediker’s book, titled â€Å"From Captives to Shipmates. The argument is of course not new; Mintz and Price raised it in the 1970’s as have others. In this chapter Rediker discusses favored anthropology themes such as resistance, revolt, music, dance, and other dimensions of the ethnogenesis of African-American culture. On page 305 he observes Slowly, in ways surviving documents do not allow us to see in detail, the idiom of kinship broadened, from immediate family to messes, to workmates, to friends, to countrymen and –women, to the whole of the lower deck. And in so observing, Rediker has given underwater archaeologists of the slave trade and the slave ship a research agenda. It’s an agenda with which I happen to agree and that I have discussed in greater detail elsewhere (McGhee 2007). Rediker ends his book with a discussion of the fight to end the slave trade and with the moving testimony of cast-off and dying sailors being cared for by enslaved people in Caribbean ports. He writes, â€Å"Theirs was the most generous and inclusive conception of humanity I discovered in the course of my research for this book. † I wonder what conceptions of humanity continue to motivate certain anti-treasure hunting nautical archaeologists. The Henrietta Marie and Fredensborg remain the two most representative archaeological examples of slave ships in existence. The former, first located in the water by Moe Molinar a Panamanian of African descent in the employ of treasure hunter Mel Fisher, is particularly important. Yet it took an African-American recreational SCUBA diving club, the National Association of Black SCUBA Divers, to denote and demonstrate that shipwreck’s importance and to bring its significance to wide attention. Properly trained nautical archaeologists still won’t publicly touch that wreck with a ten-foot pole.

Hydrocarbons Transport Systems: Testing Safety Valves

Hydrocarbons Transport Systems: Testing Safety Valves

Emotional Break-down in Susan Glaspells Trifles :: Trifles Essays

Emotional Break-down in Trifles Trifles is an interesting story about the emotional break-down of a country woman. It is obvious by certain descriptions within the text that she did have an emotional trauma. However, it is never made clear if she killed her husband or did he commit suicide. The emotional trauma can be scene in the beginning of the story by her attitude towards Mr. Hale. Ms. Wright is in a state of shock her constant rocking; pleating of her skirt; her "queer" look and her dead pan response to how Mr. Wright died "He died of a rope around his neck"; all indicate a high level of emotional stress in a situation. She is not responding to anything. Also, Mrs. Hale and Mrs. Peters examine her quilting. The sewing is very nice and even and then suddenly it becomes a wild disaray of stiches. These actions and inactions truly indicate an unbalanced state of mental being, however, is it enough to charge a woman with murder. What further indicates the difficulty in deciding if Mrs. Wright killed Mr. Wright is the canary. Mrs. Wright shows that she loves the canary by trying to bury it in the pretty sewing box. This is not the action of someone who killed the canary. Mrs. Wright is also described as being like a bird. The reader can envision her as someone petite or slight. She is described as being sweet, pretty, timid and fluttery. It would take a lot for someone of this description to commit murder. On the other hand, Mr. Wright is described as someone who is difficult to live with. He is described by Mrs. Hale as having killed the bird like qualities in his wife. He appears to be an overbearing, unhappy person. I propose that it is Mr. Wright who kills the canary. He is taking something away from his wife trying to keep control over her. Also the cage is severely damaged. Mrs. Wright is not described as someone with a lot of strength. Following that vein of thought I also propose that Mr. Wright went crazy. He killed the bird and hung himself. It would take a lot of strength to hang a large man and Mr. Wright was envisoned to be. Also the sheriff and county attorney are baffled by the way the rope was strung up, it was rigged up strangely.

“Khalil Gibran poem ‘a lover’s call”

Khalil Gibran a major pioneer of modern Arabic literature, as the best selling American poet of the twentieth century, and as a Middle Eastern modernist whose intellectual life is documented in meticulous detail. He was an Arab who wrote for the most part in Arabic. It was not until his thirties that he ventured to write for publication in English, and even then he seems often to have written first in Arabic and then translated his story or poem into English.Gibran poem ‘A Lover’s Call’, narrates the plight of a lover separated from his beloved. According to him, his lady love posses’ ethereal qualities of an angel. The poet mentions that they have been separated from each other on this earth for earthly reasons. They have parted a long time ago but the lover remembers her as if it was yesterday. He is worn out with his unrequited love for his dear lady. He remembers their time together and craves for her love, affection and companionship.The tone of the po em is sad and serious and above all passionate. The words of the lover in the poem are the cry from his very soul. His words also show the depth of his love for his dear lady. The language is simple, colloquial language and avoided the complex language and metres of traditional Arabic poetry. Gibran is primarily a painter and writes like he is painting. His images have visual qualities and touch the heart at a pre-rational level. He used the flamboyant rhetoric acceptable to Arabic canons of taste, not the cool, detached style of modern American poetry.Many critics think that Gibran’s poetic genius predominantly lies in the use of metaphor. Gibran indeed creates beautiful images that are charged with emotions and that expand the reader’s vision and imagination. There are many vivid images in the poem. The poet uses the image of ‘a mother’, god’s spirit, ‘companion of his soul’, ‘other self’ to compare his belovedHe is also a poet prophet. An emotional strobe designed by him, light momentarily illuminates an aspect of our experience, leaving us with a picture burned onto our emotional retinas. Thereafter, we see that aspect of our experience with different eyes. What we do get from his writings is the extraordinary force of Gibran's moral seriousness turned on various aspects of life.The poem ‘A Lover’s Call’, gives us a glimpse of the love which is above the social bonding. Gibran is an advocate of romantic love against the oppression of society. The lady love of the lover in the poem is separated from him due to earthly barriers and he knows that they may not unite on this earth. But there love is greater than any earthly bonding. Their love is the joining of two souls and after death, together they will reach God.In the poem, ‘A Lover’s Call’, a lover calls his beloved and conveys his love and sorrow through the breeze in the air, through the spirits in the ai r and through the angels. The poem starts with the question: ‘Where are you, my beloved?’This line suggests that the lover is separated from his lover. As the poem proceeds we realize that they have been parted from each other for an indefinite period of time.Next the man wonders where she can be at that hour. In the first eight lines he says, she can be in the garden watering the plants, which look upon her as a mother because by watering the plant and taking care of it she is performing the role of a mother. She can also be in her chamber, her private room. She is the embodiment of virtue but in attaining this position she has sacrificed the lover’s heart and soul. Or she is reading books to gain human knowledge when she is replete with divine wisdom.In the next eight lines he compares her to the companion of his soul. Their love is spiritual love, which is characterized by the union of two souls. He wonders if she is in the temple praying to the gods or she is in the field calling nature which is a refuge of her dreams. May be she is with the poor people in their hut consoling with encouraging words. She has a good heart so she may also give them money so that they can meet their needs. He compares his lady love to God’s spirit. She has the essence of God and so she is everywhere. She is stronger than the ages as she is God’s spirit. She will remain for ever.In the proceeding lines, the lover retrospects the memorable moments in his past. He remembers the day he met his dear lady and the time which he has spend with her. He addresses her and asks if she remembers the day they met for the first time. It is noteworthy that his lady is not physically present in from of him. It can be inferred that the conversation is taking place between their spirits. He remembers that the radiance of her spirit surrounded them. He farther says that the angels of love moved around them and praised the activities of their souls. As if the God wanted them to fall in love.He recollects their sitting in the shade of the branches which hid them from the glances of passer- by.   The branches sheltered them from humanity ‘as the ribs in the body protect the secret of the heart from injury‘. He also remembers the long stretch of time they have spend together walking along side each other in the forest. They walked hand in hand on the trails of the forest and they heads leaning towards each other. Probably their head was leaning against each other as they were engrossed in conversation or they were totally involved in looking at each other. They were totally lost in each other and were unaware of the world around them.The lover in the consecutive lines of the poem tells not only of spiritual love but also of physical love. He wants his beloved to remember the hour he said goodbye to her and the maritime kiss she placed on his lips. By ‘maritime kiss’, he may mean that probably he was taking a voyage to sea for a certain period of time and his beloved kissed him goodbye. Her kiss taught him that union of the lips is also a manifestation of love. Her kiss showed him a glimpse of heaven and all the wonders in it.The act of kissing revealed to him the heavenly secrets which tongue cannot express. He farther says that the kiss perpetuated a great sigh of relief and fulfillment. He journeyed to the spiritual world because his soul was glorified with her love which she has showered on him. He felt heavenly bliss. Their love was not only physical union but also union of the soul. He adds that her kiss made him continue feeling this heavenly love until they meet again. In other words he remained in the state of heavenly joy till the time he see his dear love again.In the proceeding lines, he recollects their parting and also accepts the same. He remembers the day when she kissed him again and again while tears rolled down her cheeks.   He could see that she was very sad as she was parti ng from him for ever. They had to separate for earthly reasons. She explained to him that many human beings have to part for earthly reasons, they part because the world wants it.   The lover consoles him that though they are physically separated from each other, they are spiritually together.No worldly force could separate their souls. And after death, the joined soul will reach God. The lover accepts his love’s departure. He says that love has chooses his beloved as her delegate. She will spread the message of universal love and they will remain united in love even in separation. He says to his dear love that her love shall always remain with as his comforting groom, in his memory and also as an eternal wedding. It is noteworthy that the lovers are married for ever even if their love has not been accepted by this world.In the following lines, he again laments the loss of his love. He asks: â€Å"Where are you, my beloved?† He wonders if she is awake at this hour of night when all around everything is silent. He wants the clean breeze to convey his every heart beat and his affection to his beloved. He wants the breeze to be his messenger of love for his dear lady. Next he expresses his miserable condition due to his disconnection from his love. He asks his love whether she is fondling his face in her memory.He says to his dear love that he is not the same person he was before they parted. Sorrow has dropped its veil on his happy face of the past. He is not a happy man anymore because he has lost his love. He farther says that his eyes which reflected her beauty, now has shrunken with crying and his lips has been dried which his beloved used to sweeten with kisses. Again the lover calls for his beloved. He asks her whether she can hear his weeping from beyond the ocean. The lover means to say that his dear love is far away, there is a distance of a ocean between them but still he has not forgotten her.His love for her has not decreased with pas sage of time and space. He still needs her love and affection and wants to convey this longing to her. He also wants to ask her whether she can understand the greatness of his patience. Through this .line, he means to say that he has endured lot of pain and suffering because of the loss of his love. In the next few lines it will be clear to the readers that he is complaining to his beloved about his pitiable condition. He becomes desperate as he thinks that some spirit of the air may be able to communicate to his love that his spirit is dying and that also in his youth. He speculates that there must be secret communication angels which will communicate to his love his grievance.In the last seven lines of the poem, the lover tells us what can cure his terrible plight. He calls his love again and again. He calls his beloved as beautiful star and says that obscurity of life has cast him upon its bosom. Life has become unintelligible to him; it has no meaning for him. He says that grief has dominated him i.e., he is totally grieve- stricken. He continues that if his love’s smile sails through the air to him, it will imbibe him with life. If he can breathe her fragrance in the air, it will nourish him. Lastly he addresses his dear love says how great is love and how small is he. He understands that he is much smaller in status that ‘love’ which is universal, eternal and all encompassing. He is a human being so he will die sometime but love will remain for ever.The poem is the contrast between the happy state of being of the lover when he and his lady love was together and the painful condition of the lover after he was detached from   her because of some earthly reason. The tone is of fulfillment and happiness when the lover praises her as God’s spirit. When he remembers the time they have spend together and the contentment they have felt in their company. The contentment was both physical and spiritual: â€Å"Recall you the hour I bad e you farewell, /And the Maritime kiss you placed on my lips? /That kiss taught me that joining of lips in Love/Reveals heavenly secrets which the tongue cannot utter!† (Lines 26-29).The tone is sad when he recollects the day his love departed from his life for ever with tears in her eyes. Near the end of the poem, the lover reveals his pathetic condition and here the tone is poignant: â€Å"Are you fondling my face in your memory? That image/Is no longer my own, for Sorrow has dropped his/Shadow on my happy countenance of the past./Sobs have withered my eyes which reflected your beauty/And dried my lips which you sweetened with kisses†, (Lines 49-51).The tone is desperate when he wants his beloved’s smile and fragrance to sail through air to revive him: â€Å"Where are you, my beautiful star? The obscurity of life/Has cast me upon its bosom; sorrow has conquered me. /Sail your smile into the air; it will reach and enliven me!/Breathe your fragrance into the air ; it will sustain me!†, (Lines 59-62). In the last three lines, the tone is of realization: â€Å"Where are you, me beloved? /Oh, how great is Love! /And how little am I!† (Lines 63-65).As with Gibran’s writings, the language is simple and colloquial. The poet uses day-to-day words to give a picture of the sadness of a lover in his separation from his dear love.   He uses simple words like ‘hut’, ‘Temple’, ‘poor’, ‘broken-hearted’, ‘field’, ‘night’, ‘forest’, ‘breeze’ and so on. He uses vivid images to give us a picture of the inner turmoil of the lover. We can visualize the lovers sitting in the shade of the tree, hidden from humanity. We get a glimpse of the forest and find the lovers walking hand in hand and totally engrossed in each other. We find the lover bidding goodbye to his beloved and the maritime kiss she places on his lips.We see her bidding good bye to her soul mate with tears rolling from her eyes. The lover disintegrates physically and mentally because of the loss of his love. We see his eyes shrunken with pain and suffering and his lips dry without the love of his beloved. It is a very emotional poem. We can actually feel the desperation of the lover in the following lines: â€Å"Is there any spirit in the air capable of conveying/To you the breath of this dying youth? Is there any/Secret communication between angels that will carry to/You my complaint?† (Lines 55-58).The poet has used figures of speech like similes and metaphors to heighten the state of being. In the beginning of the poem, the poet uses the metaphor of ‘little paradise’ to mean garden. The lover imagines that his beloved is in the garden watering the flowers that is looking upon her as their mother. The sentence: â€Å"†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦the flowers who look upon you/As infants look upon the breast of their mothers?†, (Lines 2-3), is a simile. Here the flowers are compared to infants and the lover’s beloved to a mother. In the lines: â€Å"Or amongst the books, seeking human knowledge, /While you are replete with heavenly wisdom?† (Lines 7-8), ‘among the books’ means library.The lover thinks that his lady love is abounding with heavenly wisdom; here there is an image of heaven because he compares her to a heavenly spirit. He also compares his beloved as a woman with goodness of soul who consoles the poor people with kind words and also with money. The poet uses the metaphor ‘bounty’, to mean money.   The lover calls his lady love as ‘God’s spirit’; it is an image of God. The poet give love the shape of a heavenly being when he: â€Å"Do you have memory of the day we met, when the halo of/You spirit surrounded us, and the Angels of Love/Floated about, singing the praise of the soul's deed?†, (lines 17-19).He compares the branches of the tree with ribs of our body. There is a simile in the following lines: â€Å"Do you recollect our sitting in the shade of the/Branches, sheltering ourselves from Humanity, as the ribs/Protect the divine secret of the heart from injury?† (Lines 20-22), where the lover says the branches protected them from humanity as the ribs protect the heart. The lover compares his beloved’s kiss to ‘maritime kiss’, which is an image of farewell kiss.There is a simile in the following lines: â€Å"That kiss was introduction to a great sigh, Like the Almighty's breath that turned earth into man†, (Lines 30-31), the lover’s sign is compared to Almighty’s breath. His lady love is love’s delegate. The love of his lady is his ’comforting groom’ and his ’Eternal wedding’. ‘Sorrow’ has been personified in the poem: â€Å"Sorrow has dropped his/Shadow on my happy countenance of the past†, (Lines 50-51).There is the image of ‘dying youth’, which express the horrible condition of the lover. Life is also personified in the following sentence: â€Å"The obscurity of life/Has cast me upon its bosom; sorrow has conquered me†, (Lines 59-60), lover says that life has lost its meaning for him without his lady love. There are many interrogative sentences in the poem which shows the inner conflict of the lover. The lover in the poem compares his dear lady ‘my beautiful star’, ‘my beloved’, ‘my other self’, ‘God’s Spirit’ and ‘companion of my soul’.Gibran often wrote about the oppressive of society in respect of the love of men and women. He was a romantic and so always favored country against city. In the poem, ‘A Lover’s Call’, the two lovers had to part from each other because of some ‘earthly purpose’. Their love for each other was true and they were soul partners but his l ady love walked away from him because human society wanted it. In the poem, we find that nature has sustained their love. They have sat under the tree away from humanity and walked in the forest hand in hand. Again, the love wants to complain to his beloved through the breeze and wants the smile and the fragrance of her lady to sail through the air to enliven him.Gibran is first a painter and he uses language to explicate his images. So his images have a visual quality. English speaking critiques do not think Gibran as particularly good or important. This critical condescension is not shared by the Arabic speaking world, where he is universally recognized as one of the key figures of modern Arabic literature. He was criticized because he was very serious in everything he wrote without any sense of humor. There is also limitation on the Arabic side of his work. He was unable to master the complex techniques of classical Arabic Literatures.He wrote almost nothing in the traditional po etic form.   Ã‚  Ã¢â‚¬ËœA Lover’s Call’, is a romantic love poem. It is a call from a lover from his soul to the soul of another lover. The simple language and the beautiful images used by the poet charm our senses. It has a universal appeal because lovers of any age will fell the same passion for their beloved. We journey with the poet and the plight of the lover touches our heart. This poem is one of the many poems written by Gibran and remains a treasure of this talented writer.Citation:Khalil Gibran on : A Lover’s Call12 April 2007 ;http://www.poetseers.org/the-great-poets/arabic-poets//gibran-poems/;Using English. Com on: Figure of Speech12 April 2007 ;https://www.usingenglish.com/glossary/figure-of-speech.html;John Walbridge on: Gibran, his Aesthetic and his Moral Universe.