The Politics Of The Global Essay - 998 Words

INTRODUCTION â€Å"The Politics of the Global† gives us a narration of how development of international political economy happens and an understanding of globalization. Globalization is frequently analyzed independently and the author shows how globalization plays out in two multi-cultural democracies; India and USA. It portrays different political possibilities like colonial coercion, post-colonial ambivalence and post-colonial co-option that are opened by global relays of meanings, identities and power from historically different locations. Globalization also explores a variety of spaces and strategies for resisting the colonization of the global. The author identifies bureaucratic delays and red tape that happens in government of India as the same of a business man who uses technology to improve productivity and is professional in his approach. It focuses on reconstructing the state’s economy and its government using the SMART – simple, moral, accountable, responsive and t ransparent governance- argument. He characterizes globalization into three narratives; the rationalist, historical materialist and the constructivist approaches. Each narrative consists of many theories some of them disagreeing with each other but at the end of the day, each narrative is united through shared models of understanding and explanation that seeks to go beyond the international to access the global (Muppidi, 2004, p.3). CENTRAL THESIS In his book, the author brings out globalization and looks atShow MoreRelatedThe Issue Of Global Politics1523 Words   |  7 PagesWhat do you believe to be the most pressing issue in global politics today? â€Å"Climate change is a large-scale, long-term shift in the planet s weather patterns or average temperatures† . In 2006, Al Gore highlighted a problem hinted at for years, climate change, in his documentary The Inconvenient Truth, and this essay will explain why this problem is still the most important issue in global politics, despite receiving less coverage in world press. With major problems such as rising sea levels andRead MoreThe Internet and Global Politics832 Words   |  3 PagesAccorodng to Badie Royal (2000), they showed that the internet has affected the global politics through increasing political participation. The innovation of internet brought with itself the ability to allow people to participate in political events differently. Internet allows people to influence the government decisions via comments posted on websites and send e-mails of political contents (Ferdinand, 2000). Nowadays, many governments are launching political websites and media to seek p ublicRead MoreGlobal Politics Essay6696 Words   |  27 PagesGlobal Politics The study of international or rather global politics, seeks to provide an account of politics in the broadest domain. The domain of international politics in the twenty-first century is characterised by the increasing number of actors pursuing common and personal interests. It is largely due to the globalised, interdependent nature of the current international political environment that the concepts of sovereignty and power deserve further evaluationRead MoreTerrorism And Its Impact On Global Politics1734 Words   |  7 Pagesvery significant impact in global politics. The impact on global politics is now more significant than ever before, due to the rise of terrorist organisations such as the Islamic State and al-Qaeda. Terrorists use attacks to create chaos and fear in society, forcing global political reactions to control the threat. Fear created through the media is believed to exaggerate the global threat posed by terrorism. Terrorism is able to dramatically change the scope of global politics forcing states to reconsiderRead MoreThe Global Challenges of Comparative Politics1393 Words   |  6 PagesIntroduction The Global Challenges of Comparative Politics Introduction to Comparative Politics-Studies how different countries both shape and are shaped by the world. 1989,2001, and 2008 define the current era of world politics-describes a particular important moment; critical juncture. A frequently cited date is 1989, when the Berlin wall was dismantled. 1989 ushered in three important changes. Marked the end of a bipolar world-marked the emergence of a unipolar world. Marked the triumphRead MoreInternational Relations And Global Politics2443 Words   |  10 PagesKegley and Raymond stated: â€Å"The shape of the world’s future will be determined not only by changes in the objective conditions of world politics, but also by the meanings people ascribe to these conditions.† Terrorism is presently a major factor in international relations and has impacted the world to change in many significant ways. Terrorism is a political ideology that has been problematic in defining definitely because of its various interpretations around the world, as well as the fact thatRead MoreConceptualizing Global Environmental Politics Essay1746 Words   |  7 Pagesfacing global environmental politics insofar as the resolution of such problems as global warming, the hole in the ozone layer, the loss of biodiversity, and many other transnational environmental issues rests upon some sort of consensus among extremely diverse groups. These are considered gl obal problems not only because of their apocalyptic potential but they are also unique in that the â€Å"terrain where they occur [is] property that could be claimed by everyone or by no one. They [are] global alsoRead MoreThree Major Problems of Global Politics1131 Words   |  5 PagesFinal Exam Paper Decision-making is a complex process that is influenced by many different factors. Three major factors that affect global politics today include free-ridership, groupthink, and shadow of the past. These are problems that are central to scholars of I.R., and serve as obstacles to achieving cooperation among countries. To better understand the impact of these issues, it will be necessary to assess why each is important, and the theories that offer the best explanations of their presenceRead More Ozone and Global Environmental Politics Essay5822 Words   |  24 PagesOzone and Global Environmental Politics A thin layer of gas called atmosphere surrounds the Earth. The atmosphere serves two important purposes: it is a filter for the suns dangerous ultraviolet radiation rays and keeps the heat, necessary to maintain life on earth, within the stratosphere (Vorlat 361). Ultraviolet light is incredibly dangerous to all the organisms within the Earths ecosystem because it causes skin cancer, effects the immune system, and harms plant and animal lifeRead MoreA Brief Note On Film And Global Politics2330 Words   |  10 PagesAndrea LoPiccolo Film and Global Politics Due: April 29, 2015 Final Paper Income Inequality in Latin America: Cause and Effect When a young Che Guevara embarked on his motorcycle trip across Latin America, he meant to discover himself and explore the world. Instead, he discovered much more than he ever expected to and it completely changed his views on the economic and social status of Latin America. He discovered the truth of working conditions, the poverty in certain areas and the effect that

Dual Relationship and Boundaries Paper - 1740 Words

Dual Relationships and Boundaries Paper Donna Lee, Rachelle Jones, and Jamie Owens Psych 545 March 14, 2011 Dr. Marc Miller Dual Relationships and Boundaries Paper Most major professional codes of ethics have a policy or rule against dual relationships (Gottlieb, 1993). Dual relationships exist when a professional acts at the same time or sequentially in two roles (Gottlieb, 1993). Through the course of this paper, the concept of dual relationships will be examined. Ethical issues with dual relationships will be explained as well as the clarification and analyzation of a specific dual relationship. Not to mention the explanation of challenges presented by boundary issues in professional psychology. Define the Concept of Dual†¦show more content†¦The guidelines also assert to maintain boundaries, beware my own values, be prepared to lose a friendship, remain mindful of confidentiality, and to recognize when treatment should be terminated (Gottlieb, 1993). However, concerning the dual relationship at hand, these guidelines give me ideas to ponder on when dealing with a close acquaintance. If I were to consult with my close friend’s daughter, the friend would want me to talk to her about the information that was discussed in the sessions. Because of the confidentiality agreement, I would not be able to discuss these things with her. This may cause the close friend to have hard feelings towards me because I would not be able to relay the information. This would be because she would be viewing me as a friend and not as a professional doing my job. While these guidelines are simple and easy to grasp, it is impossible to completely avoid dual relationships on a daily basis (Gottlieb, 1993). Therefore, I would not take a chance on conducting business with my close friend. I would much rather prefer to refer her to someone else who is also very proficient in adolescent counseling. Ethical Issues Presented by Dual Relationships and the Most Ethical Solution In this scenario, as a psychologist I face several ethical issues. According to the American Psychological Association, Ethical Principles of Psychologist and Code of Conduct there are at least six standards I have toShow MoreRelatedLiterature Review On Dual Relations838 Words   |  4 PagesLiterature Review about Rural Non-Sexual Dual Relations This paper will examine the problems of dual relationships. The issues of dual relationships have gained a significant amount of attention. It is understood that dual relations are one of the most noted violations of the ethical principles of social workers (Halverson Brownlee, 2010, p. 249). Dilemma Definition In the field of social work, you will deal with clients ranging with various issues that you will be helping them with. When dealingRead MoreDual Relationships and Boundaries1497 Words   |  6 PagesDual Relationships and Boundaries University of Phoenix Professor Rawls PSYCH 545 September 2012 Abstract The purpose of this paper is to examine dual relationships and boundaries. Scenarios are presented in class, these scenarios deal with different types of dual relationships. The objective for this assignment was selecting one for examination. After a scenario is selected the concept of the dual relationship is evaluated. In this evaluation the concept of dual relationshipsRead MoreThe Professional Relationship Essay1658 Words   |  7 Pagesprofessional ethics get stirred up when dual relationships or professional and client boundaries are violated. The American Psychological Association (APA) Ethics committee revealed 40 to 50% of complaints filed originate from concerns with dual relationships (Meyer, 2005). License held by psychological professionals are revoked when the professional disregards the rights of the clients. The leading cause of professional termination is because of dual relationships between the professional and theirRead MoreEssay on Dual Relationships Between Counselors and Clients1578 Words   |  7 PagesDual Relationships in Counseling This paper will explore the concept of dual relationships between counselors and clients and the ethical implications of such relationships. In addition to presenting several examples of dual relationships, this paper will also explore how ethical decisions must be made to avoid potentially harmful or exploitive relationships in therapy as well understanding how different interactions between counselor and clients can be understood from an ethical standpoint, asRead MoreProfessional Counselors : Ethics, And Maryland s Board Regulations1401 Words   |  6 Pages Ethical Vignette Paper 2 Kristen L. Pruitt Liberty University Abstract Professional counselors deal with many legal and ethical issues in the course of treating clients. Some of the issues they may come across include dual relationships, boundaries, bartering, sexual relationships, gift giving, touching a client, and how to begin or end treatment. Some of these issues may seem straightforward in theory, but they can become complicated in practice. In these cases, if possibleRead MoreHow to Become an Optimal Supervisor1638 Words   |  7 Pagesliterature and examples from your peer supervision. (30% of your paper). (3 pages) My idea of optimal supervision is supervision that is individualized for the supervisee based on their developmental needs .Essential qualities of â€Å"optimal supervision† would include utilizing a developmental approach to meet the supervisee where they are in their development as a therapist, making use of common factors, a good working relationship, collaboration, appropriate self-disclosure, feedback, evaluationRead MoreEthical Decision Making For Professional Counselors1526 Words   |  7 Pagesprovides a frame work that centers on the counselor’s conduct in their work, accountability, and professionalism. The codes are written in broad terms to serve as starting point for making decisions in the professional field. Keywords: Dual Relationship’s, Boundaries, Standards of Care, and Termination. Ethical Decision Making for Professional Counselors Professional counselors face many issues that are procedural, technical, legal, and cultural. The procedural issues on whether the professionalRead MoreA Case Manager At An Outpatient Clinic1578 Words   |  7 Pageswith the Regulatory agency in her state about the relationships. Throughout this paper this case will be analyzed including the harmful effects of the relationship on all parties involved in the helping relationship, the social and emotional impacts of the relationship, the effect on the treatment relationship, the likely outcome of Ms. R’s complaint if filed in New York State, and the strategies to minimize the likelihood of such a relationship arising. There are a few things within this caseRead MoreEthical: Ethics and American Counseling Association Essay1287 Words   |  6 Pagesï » ¿ Dual Relationship Boundaries, Standards of Care and Termination Liberty University Abstract A paper discussing the ethical issues from a video that discuss cases that are regarding barter, boundaries crossing and violation, touching, receiving and giving gifts, and termination of care. The ACA code of Ethics and Michigan States Rules and Regulation for Professional Counselors on the ethical issues of barter, boundaries crossing and violation, touching, receiving andRead MoreSocial Workers : A Rural Setting Face Each And Every Day Essay1372 Words   |  6 Pages This paper discusses the issues that social workers who practice in a rural setting face each and every day. But, what does a town need to be considered rural? According to the United States Census, any area that has less than 2500 people is considered to be a rural area (Branch 2016). Areas with small populations such as these face many issues each day. These issues can include dual relationships, limited availability of resources, confidentiality issues, transportation issues, and having to take

Inditex Stategic Managment Free Essays

string(98) " will be impossible without the IT software, specifically designed for Zara’s diverse business\." At the 26th IAF World Apparel Convention (2010) in Hong Kong, one of the main themes was about the phenomenal† growth of â€Å"fast fashion. Indisputable, the Spanish clothing retailer Zara, owned by Inditex Group, is one of the pioneers in the fast fashion concept . Launched in 1975, with 1608 stores in 77 countries, Zara, designing, manufacturing and selling apparel, footwear and accessories for women, men and children, booked revenues up 29% (2008-2009), even during the recession. We will write a custom essay sample on Inditex Stategic Managment or any similar topic only for you Order Now Zara’s unique strategy to use its distinctive capabilities, supported by information systems, abilities in design and supply chain management, ensures it the competitive advantage to be sustainable. The aim of this report is to analyze the strategic management of Zara, which led it to its success. â€Å"Strategy is the direction and scope of an organization over the long term, which achieves advantage in a changing environment through its configuration of resources and competences with the aim of fulfilling stakeholder expectations. We are going to examine the environment factors influencing strategic choices of Zara’s management; company’s strategic capabilities and more specified the unique resources and core competencies tend to the success of the company; and how these respond to stakeholder expectations and organizational purposes, examining the corporate governance structure, business ethics and social responsibility. I. Environmental AnalysisThe aim of Ma cro-environment analysis is to examine the factors which influence the changing in demand, the way of manufacturing and distribute the goods, the prices and availability of resources and the method of competition in the industry. The tool which we are going to use for this purpose is PEST analysis. (Appendix 1) Porter’s five forces framework: The industry environment analysis provides a framework of factors which affect more directly the strategic competitiveness and growth of returns. In order to assess the attractiveness of apparel industry we are going to use Porter’s five forces framework. , , , , Industry and CompetitorsFashion industry is characterized with short product life cycle, high variety, high volatility, unpredictability and high level of impulsive buying, because of which this industry hide a risk of shortage or surplus. The fast fashion competitors in high streets are becoming fierce, trying to meet the constantly changing demand of customers. Zara, as the most renown representative of fast fashion strategy, is faced to compete on home and global industry level with fast fashion brands like: Mango, Topshop, New Look, Hennes Mauritz and with non-fast fashion industry like Gap, United Colors of Benetton, Uniqlo, and Espri.In contrast to the tradit ional retailers, Zara do not target its customers by segmenting them on the bases of age, sex or race, as its target is for women, men, and youth, from infants to age 45. The success of its international strategy is led by Zara’s conviction that, despite the differences of cultures and generations, â€Å"national frontiers are no impediment to sharing a single fashion culture. † Zara, offering mid-market chic at down market prices target customers that have a specific respect for fashion, sensitive of latest trends and searching for affordable prices. II.Resource and Capabilities The resource-based view of strategy examines the organization’s capabilities which provide the competitive advantage and superior performance of the company. Michael Porter’ proposed a generic strategy frame work, which suggests that Zara, as company which offers fashionable goods at relatively low prices, using integrated cost leadership/ differentiation strategy. According to Bowman’s Strategic Clock the integrated cost leadership/ differentiation strategy is called Hybrid Strategy. We are going to examine how Zara’s capabilities fit to it ?Internal ProductionApparel industry is characterized as labor-intensive one, as a consequence of which most of retailers outsource their production to low-cost developing countries, most often Asian ones. In contrast, the major capability of Zara is the in-house production. 2/3 of Zara’s manufacturing is sourced in Europe and North Africa and just 1/3 is sourced in Asia. Despite the significantly more expensive cost production, Zara gain a competitive advantage over its competitors, allowing the rapid product turnover. The new designs are in store shelves as little as two weeks and always up to date fashion trends.Zara also has adopted the Just-in-time system, which is impossible for its competitors, entirely dependent on outsiders. The implementation of this system provide an competitive advantage as Zara lower its carrying cost of inventory and improving productivity and quality by reducing labor and equipment time. Zara reduces its inventory by about 50% compare to competitors as Benetton and Gap. The scarcity of the products on display also encourages the customers to buy now. â€Å"If you see something and don’t buy it, you can forget about coming back for it because it will be gone,† says Elisabeth Garcia Cueto, a 23-year-old student in Barcelona .The new piece of clothing will be in stores in just 15 days and in this way Zara sell to full retail price 85% of its products, putting on sales only 15% of items, achieving less than 1% inefficiency in its process. The average ratio of its competitors is closer to 60:40. ?Vertical integration Zara’s business model, characterized with high degree of vertical integration, owns entire supply chain from design, production, logistic to sales in the company’s own stores. The company is capital-intensive, as oppose to its competitors, as just 624 out of 4607 stores are franchised.These allow maintaining a strong merchandize strategy, through which, Zara sustaining competitive advantage as cutting the manufacturing and delivery terms, reducing the stock volume and at the same time capabili ty to introduce 85% of the new products through the season is kept. ?Logistic The centralize distribution facilities are attached to Inditex’s headquarters distribution center in Arteixo and the factories in Coruna (Spain), contrasting to its rivals most often based in developing countries. This provides a huge advantage, reducing the time of receiving an order at the distribution centre and the delivery of goods in the stores.The average time for European stores is 24 hours and maximum 48 hours for American or Asioan stores. ?IT system Beside the production and distribution, the highly customer-valued Zara’s capability â€Å"Quick Response† will be impossible without the IT software, specifically designed for Zara’s diverse business. You read "Inditex Stategic Managment" in category "Papers" While its competitors spend average 2% of total revenue on IT expenditures, Zara spends less than 0. 5% of total revenue on IT. This cost advantage is because of the hybrid information and communication system, which incorporates human intelligence and IT, applications.Zara’s store managers monitor daily selling, fashion and sales trends, customers’ desires, on the base of which send their orders to 200 Zara’s designers. This perfectly synchronized process improve the view of entire operation, faster time to roll out new stores , develop the control of inventory management and sales data analysis, ensure the unique flexibility of answering to unpredictable fashion changes. ?Low advertising budget Zara’s parent company Inditex spend 0. 3% of revenue on advertising, while its competitors, like H%M, Gap, spend on average 3. 5%.The First Deputy Chairman and CEO Mr. Pablo Isla said: Our advertising is our stores, the money we save is spent on top locations. † Zara is on some of the world’s priciest streets: Fifth Avenue, Tokyo’s Ginza, Rome’s Via Condotti, and the Champs-Elysees in Paris, distinguished by special design of windows and interior. This strategy is more† Gucci than Target†, positioning Zara among the prestigious brands, competing with affordable prices. III. Purpose/culture/ stakeholder analysis Since May 23rd 2001, Inditex has been quoted on Spanish Stock Markets after undertaking a public sale of shares.The company has generated a strong cash growth at the end of 2009 with sales of â‚ ¬11. 1 Bn, This reflects in shareholders’ payouts, increasing them with up to 14% more than the previous year. The Board of Directors is the highest decision making body, responsible for the control of direction, administration, management and representation of the company and acting as a link with shareholders. (Appendix 2) the model of governance applied in Inditex is shareholder one, due to the strategic purpose of Zara, determined in response to all its principle stakeholders: shareholders, employees, customers, suppliers and civilsociety in general. According to the Managing Director, Pablo Isla: â€Å"Inditex’s leadership can only be understood in terms of the concept of the human team as the principal asset of the company. † . The provision of â€Å"internal promotions† favors the competences of employees and their effort to improve the efficiency of the company. Corporate culture is characterized by horizontal structure, allowing the constant and flexible communication between all teams, both in the central headquarters of the Group and in the different offi ces of the Company’s international subsidiaries.This management style gives it a competitive advantage for flexible, effective and quick communication, keeping permanently in touch nearly 90000 people. Zara shows that its all innovation efforts are moved to customers’ needs, putting them as the most important stakeholders. Zara is trying to meet all customers’ needs, concerning the whole shopping experience, including the location and design of the stores, the frequency of new collections, and the up-to- date fashion trends at affordable prices. Inditex is highly ethical committed company. But two years ago Zara was blamed for the â€Å"appalling conditions in a Dhaka factory†, where were made Zara’s goods. Although Manager of Corporate Social Responsibility at Inditex renounced to know that clothes for Zara were made in this factory, he entered into changing the working conditions in this factory, as the staff now is enjoying to safety and clean environment in new premises. In order to manage with such challenges Inditex is build up an Internal Code of Conduct, (Appendix 3)IV. Recommendations for future In order to make recommendations and options about Zara’s future management, we are going to analyze the competitive situation of the company, matching the external threats and opportunities for Zara, with its internal weakness and strengths. For this purpose we are going to use the TOWS matrix. (Appendix 4) Opportunities In order to continue its sustainable growth, Zara should take advantage of the oppo rtunities for expansion in new markets in a profitable way. The age of globalization, in which more and more people have access to fashion, standardizing the international trends, give up an opportunities for specialty retailers like Zara. A strong Zara’s potential is to increase the European presence, especially in Italy, France, emerging economies of Eastern Europe and Russia. This market is mainly favorable because it’s the domestic market, where all of the competitive advantages can be used most effectively: the quick response of fashion trends distribution time up to 24 hours; recognition of cultural preferences and most important- lower unit cost.The strong European currency is reason for increasing prices in countries not in European Union. The Italian market is extremely attractive as the Italians generally follow the latest fashion trends, color and styles, enjoying the whole shopping experience. After the beginning of economic crisis in 2008, consumers all over the world restrict their spending. The ones fashion-orient ed like Italians, removed their preferences from more expensive brands, to retailers like Zara, offering â€Å"cheap and chic† clothes. The BRIC countries are currently going through attractive changes and Zara should put its capabilities into deepen its presence among the middle-class of these countries. The Global Retail Development Index, rank their attractiveness as follow: China- 64, India- 61. 7, Brazil- 58. 7, Russia- 53. 7, accordingly to 1st, 3rd, 5th and 10th position. These markets give up to Zara attractive opportunities for growth, putting the priority to the Asian market, based on the positive reaction of the public- the sales in this region represents 12% of Inditex sales.The â€Å"untapped consumer buying power† is a great prospect for Zara, applying its business model, based on maintains customers through its flexibility, recognition of cultural fashion trends and acceptable prices, as opposed to the short term and expensive promotional tactics. The success of Zara store in Palladium mall (Indian, Mumbai) shows great long-term growth potential in Indian market, which Zara should develop. Arjun Sharma, Delhi’s Select Citywalk mall, said: â€Å"Any mall owner will want Zara now for free because it has an ability to bring more people of a certain kind into the mall. † RecommendationsThe growth opportunities in apparel market are definitely the best for Zara’s future. Going through the TOWS matrix, the scale up of its distribution system is the main recommendation in order to minimize the external threats. Integrating a multiple vertical production chains in new regions will reduces a lot of the risks, the operational cost and helping to the fast response in the potential new markets. The best option for locating the new center is USA. With distribution center in USA, Zara will decrease logistic order time and costs, and will be helpful for better recognition of Americans peculiarities in fashion trends. In this way the saved fund will be used for commercial activities, which is an indispensable feature for penetration the American market. (Craig, Jones ; Nieto, 2004). This will resolve also the problem with the climbing of Zara’s prices due to the strong European currency. To maximize the capacity of the new distribution center, Zara should emphasize also the internet retailing in USA. Americans are get used to do their shopping from their home, even the apparel ones, so using the effective customer reception will ensure Zara a definitely growth and brand loyalty .Also Zara should keep abreast of growing popularity of applications for I phone and social networks, and to invest it these kinds of commercial activities. V. Conclusion Zara is company which exploiting the uniqueness of its business model to develop competitive advantage in the fast fashion industry, corresponding to the fast changing of customer preferences, the short life cycle of the goods and last fashion trends. It faces the challenges of the apparel industry using a vertical integrated strategy with internal production, as oppose to all its competitors.Inditex has a lot of opportunities for sustainable growth, but they should continue to innovate themselves in order to keep the advantages over the competitors. â€Å"Best of all for Zara, the model is complex enough that only a few others have been able to imitate it successfully, thereby putting in place Zara’s foundation for sustainable competitive advantage for more than 2 decades. † Appendix 1 Political Trade Regulations; trade barriers Obtain retail space in the city center Political governance Employee Rights- Employee retirement and Social Security Health and Sa fety Regulations EconomicDisposable income of consumers Business conditions Interest rates Credit opportunities Tax rates Global crises and inflation Social Demographics: age, sex, income, ethnicity, religion Cultural differences Differences in consumer behavior and patterns of work Technological Investment in communication and information infrastructure Innovations in terms of production process, bar coding, online selling and security check Appendix 2 Board of Directors A. R. Inditex, (2009) p. Appendix 3 The Inditex Internal Code of Conduct Suppliers†¢Code of Conduct for Manufacturers and External Workshops. Methodology to monitor the process of implementing the Code of †¢Conduct for External Manufacturers and Workshops: Tested to Wear †¢Compliance Programmes †¢Clusters Institutions†¢Dialogue Platforms †¢FTSE4Good and Dow Jones Sustainability Indexes †¢Social Council †¢Ethics committee Institutions†¢Product health protocol:Clear to Wear †¢Product safety protocol:Safe to Wear Society†¢Community Development †¢Programmes †¢Escort Programmes †¢Emergency Programmes †¢Project for;from †¢Sponsorship and Patronage †¢Programmes A. R. Inditex ,(2009) Internal Factors External FactorsInternal Strengths (S) 1. Worldwide distribution expertise . Broad Segmentation 3. Vertical integration; maintaining a strong merchandize strategy, introducing 85% of the new products through the season is kept 4. Flexibility 5. Capital-intensive 6. Quick Response Time and effective Supply Chain 7. New collection in two weeks 8. Affordable prices 9. Up-to- date fashion trends 10. Internal Production rapid product turnover; saving money and time from shipping; 11. Highly integrated IT system-ERP system 12. Minimized inventory Stock/ Just-in-Time System 13. European based distribution centers- reduce the distribution time from 24 to 48 hours 4. Low Advertising Budget 15. Prime locations all over the world 16. Special design of stores: exterior and interior 17. High Corporate Social Responsibility 18. synergy between strategic and operation managementInternal Weaknesses (W) 1. Vertical Integration Limitation: inability to reach economies of scale 2. European based distribution centers- 3. Weaknesses about the supply chain in America 4. Exceptive dependence of Inditex to Zara- 63. 8% of whole sales 5. Cost weaknesses: High costs for IT/ERP system, acquiring higher training cost for employees High rents for prime locationsHigh cost invested in Research and Development 6. Disadvantages of high Capital-intensive model: High risk, high volatility, less monthly earning for shareholders, less attractive for investors. 7. The advertisement policy, in-store- model, might not be successful in the future. External Opportunities (O) 1. Potential new markets: developing economies 2. Big opportunities of fascination the USA and Australian apparel market 3. Expansion of the E commerce retailing 4. Developing the IT system, as the technology is constantly change 5. New distributioncenters . Outsourcing from lower cost countries (if the economic conditions force it) 7. More actively advertising SO use strengths to maximize opportunities 1. Enter new market: America, Australia; developing countries: emerging economies forwarded by Inditex’s international experience. 2. Establishing new distribution center, outside Spain 3. Maintaining the Quick Response due to IT system. 4. With the quick response of up-to date-trends, Zara might become the leading retail chain in USA, as it main competitor- GAP-is not so fashion oriented. 5.The ability to respond to customers’ needs flexibly and fast, the E-commerce is a great opportunity for future growth, due to the constant technology development. WO minimizes weaknesses by taking advantage of opportunities 1. The opportunities for growth in new market, will lead to greater production and the economies of scale will be reached. 2. The excellent position of Zara to growth, gave it an opportunity to minimize the risks related to the European based distribution centers, as opening new center in USA. 3. this will be also a solution about the weak supply chain in USA 4.The more active advertising will reduce the need for key locations, and reduce the costs related to it. 5. The growth of market share and the most effective economies of scales will turn the disadvantages of capital investments to advantages. This will help to decrease unit cost, increase the prices, increase the shareholder’s returns and monthly earnings and lower the risk. 6. In the advertising age, Zara’s in-store model may not be enough to attract and maintain new customers groups, so it should take advantage of the opportunities for future marketing and advertisement strategies.External Threats (T) 1. Economic conditions and especially the Spanish one, which is suffering badly now (about 40% of sales are in Spain) 2. the expected increases in cotton prices will raise the prices of retail clothes. 3. Currency fluctuation -Euro has strengthened relative to the dollar 4. Cultural differences in the potential markets 5. A natural calamity or terrorist attacks in Spain (due the whole distribution process is based in Spain) 6. Direct competition 7. Consumer lifestyle changes 8. Need for outlets, due to the recession consequences: preference for sales 9.Kyoto Protocol’s regulations 10. The threat of cannibalism . ST use strengths to minimize threats 1. Competitors will meet serious challenge in order to compete with the unique business model, enough complex to imitate it. 2. With the highly developed IT system, human resource team and the fast communication between the company, company could easily meet the different preferences in culture. 3. The sustainable growth of company, allow the opening of new distribution center, outside Spain and minimize the risk of failure in case of natural calamity or terrorist attacks in Spain. 4.With its broad segmentation of customers, Zara will fill up the gap of American market, represented by customers highly oriented to fashion trends. 5. Its direct competitor Gap-less trendy oriented. WT minimize weaknesses and avoid threats 1. With the movement of part of the production outside the Europe, the risk related to Currency fluctuation will be minimized. 2. The avoidance of this Zara’s weakness will also result in lowering the affect of Spanish economic in company’s returns. 3. Using franchisers will avoid some of the fixed cost, and at the same time reduce the risk of inability to meet cultural differences in some countries. How to cite Inditex Stategic Managment, Papers

Understanding Public Relations Digital and Social Media

Question: Describe about the Understanding Public Relations for Digital and Social Media. Answer: Part A: Essay (Draft) Introduction Digital and social media is a new computer mediated tool for social interaction. Through this tool two or more person can interact with each other at the same time. Social media can form virtual community and configure network for people of similar mentality and area of interest. This media can help in marketing and corporate communication too. Company can have its own social media account through that it can communicate B to B, B to C and also B to P level. B to P indicates business to people. Public Relation or PR is the way of communication for the organization with people (Mangold, and Faulds, 2009). The major intention of PR is to develop a positive public image for the organization. In contemporary time digital social media is also getting accepted as effective tool for public relation. Social media can cajole grater audience to take part in an interactive communication process. Corporate houses are trying to exploit that attribute to gain a strategic leverage through communica tion. This essay will make an attempt to trace the influence of social media in contemporary PR practice. Main Body Media relation is the process of responding to press and media. Company offers its responses through the press releases. Fundraising is the process of raising fund to address any demanding social need. Sponsorship is the process to gain financial back up for a specific activity. Advertising is the process of dispersing the massages to the grater audience. Marketing is the process of creating communication and delivering the offer to the interested customer. The new media called Digital and social media offers an interactive mode of communication and patronized individuals involvement to facilitate decision making. Social media sites have been considered as the most frequently visited sites in the world. The potential of these sites has already been realized by the PR professionals and digital social media has become the most effective toll for contemporary Public Relation (Rice and Atkin, 2012).The term digital and social media indicates the interaction among the people through digital platform and social media are certain websites that facilitate these interactions. Site such as Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Foursquare, YouTube and Vimeo accounts are falling under this category. Blogs also can be treated as part of it. This digital tool has become important part of contemporary PR practice. For an example it can be said that noted sports channel ESPN broadcasts live sports events at the same time they offer exclusive feed to digital so cial media site such as Twitter. Co creation value is one of the major influences of PR received from digital social media (Edwards et al 2013). Digital social media is offering the accessibility with the present customer and potential customer for the future. Company can gain leverage of value creation from the contribution of these people through social media. One of the major contributions of the social media is transformation of the PR communication process done by the social media. Through this the PR communication has become two way communications. It helps the marketing process by developing between consumers and manufacturer or seller. The product promulgation by the manufacturer can invite the feedback from the existing or potential customer will help that to get involved in co creation process of the product that can enhance the credibility of the value proposition of the manufacturer and can address real life demand of the customer. This practice will lead the firm to go towards enduring relationship with customers for future sustainability. Customer interaction through digital social media can help to improve the post purchase service of the company that can enhance the effectiveness of the PR communication for the purpose of marketing (Mangold and Faulds 2009). Apart from the B to C communication social media has also been generated influence over B to B communication. The propensity to developing connectivity with social media sites are getting enhanced day by day among the FTSE 100 companies. Companies are making their corporate website connected with social media sites. Three years ago only 35% companies were offering this facility but today it has become 72%, this statistics can indicate that the process of the corporate communication is gradually stared to realize the effectiveness of the social media. Social media tactics such as media optimization, branded page creation, user determination, frequent posting, photo sharing, has become part of the corporate communication now days. Digital social media is getting i nvolved effectively with crisis communication. Crisis communication is a type of communication needed at the time of crisis such as any accident or mishap of an aircraft. In contemporary crisis communication social media channels have become integral part of the whole communication process (Starbird and Palen, 2011). According to diffusion theory of Public Relation in order to adopt an idea people follow five discreet steps (Guth and Marsh, 2011). These are awareness, interest, evolution, trial, and adaptation. Social media can help the corporate to initiate first two processes because people are frequent visitors of digital social media sites. Regular visitation enhances the possibility of the engagement. Uploading new information on the daily basis will enhance the possibility of active engagement and that can lead towards involvement or farther relationship. Acceptability of any corporate brand emerged from brand evaluation made by the people. Perspective towards certain company is always getting underpinned by its corporate image, some time it worked as a representative symbol for the company. Brand community is user groups of consumer admiring a specific brand these people share some homogeneous value and sense of responsibility also act behind. These user groups of any particular brand beco me accessible through social media. This community manifests as a credible source to the individual (Kaplan and Haenlein, 2010). The perspective development for the corporate communication process has been done through this way. Social learning theory of Public Relation is relevant to describe the situation in this regard. According to this theory mass media can become very important for the acquisition of the new behavior to the mass. The adaptation of the new consumer behavior or new brand preference can get possible through ever alive and ever active social media (Wright and Hinson, 2008). Conclusion The aim of this essay (draft) is offering an idea regarding the influence of social media over the contemporary PR policies of the corporate. The essay has describe the relevance of the digital social media is increasing not only for the B to C communication but also for B to B communication and the brand building procedure of the corporate houses. Worlds most frequent visited sites digital social media has manifested as a future tool for Public Relation. Reference Edwards, A., Housley, W., Williams, M., Sloan, L. and Williams, M., 2013. Digital social research, social media and the sociological imagination: Surrogacy, augmentation and re-orientation. International Journal of Social Research Methodology, 16(3), pp.245-260. Guth, D.W. and Marsh, C., 2011. Public relations: A values-driven approach. Pearson Higher Ed. Kaplan, A.M. and Haenlein, M., (2010). Users of the world, unite! The challenges and opportunities of social media. Business Horizons, 53, (1), 59-68. Mangold, W.G. and Faulds, D.J., 2009. Social media: The new hybrid element of the promotion mix. Business horizons, 52(4), pp.357-365. Mangold, W.G. and Faulds, D.J., 2009. Social media: The new hybrid element of the promotion mix. Business horizons, 52(4), pp.357-365. Rice, R.E. and Atkin, C.K., 2012. Public communication campaigns. Sage. Starbird, K. and Palen, L., 2011, May. Voluntweeters: Self-organizing by digital volunteers in times of crisis. In Proceedings of the SIGCHI Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems (pp. 1071-1080). ACM. Wright, D.K. and Hinson, M.D., 2008. How blogs and social media are changing public relations and the way it is practiced. Public relations journal, 2(2), pp.1-21.

Observation #1On Family Life Essays - Animation, Angry Kid

Observation #1:On Family Life It was just like Vancouver, everything is so unstable! For five days straight there were golden mornings and glowing afternoons. Then when Saturday crept up on the celestial planner, the sky's face lifted to gray and drizzling. If this weather change could be viewed with thought maybe it would seem almost shocking. It was not really cold, but it looked like it. Mom occupied herself in the kitchen, doing what really was not necessary. Oddly enough, she was always standing there doing all the "somethings", but the place managed to still look like a mess. No one in this house wanted to cook anymore either, so we just scrounged around, digging whatever there was to fill our stomach. It does not matter anyway, everything, even good things, tastes like cardboard these days. My father blamed my mother for her poor cooking, I just blamed the weather. I sat, dull-eyed, at the "dining" table, staring at some dried carnation that hung so peculiarly from that wall lamp that vainly attempted to impersonate an old fashioned streetlight (too bad streetlights were not that synthetic, bleached white). I shrugged it off as I knew Mom had a strange preference for decoration. I mean, the powder pink that stained nearly every wall of this house was her idea. Sometimes, it came to a point where I just want to scratch relentlessly at those colors, or take a permanent marker and scribble curse words all over it, or draw grotesque bleeding figures on it. Not this morning, I sat there idly...Food brought to my mouth like a robotic twitch. In fact, I hardly knew what it was that I ate. Dad came through the door from his errands, and also took a seat beside me without a word. He started to scoop food into his mouth, eyes glazed over and troubled with wrinkles of worry. I could scarcely feel his presence if not for his physical form sitting next to me, reflecting my own action of shoveling feed into a muzzle. I continued to daze disapprovingly into that hideous, died carnation, and he continued to glaze over into his troubles. At length, Mom came in, settled down a bowl of some sort of leftovers from last night. It struck me that food did not look like food anymore, of course not, it was Mom's cooking! That thought did not linger. Mom stuffed a spoonful in her mouth and glanced at Dad. She asked him about his errands casually, almost callously. Dad did not look at her, but he answered her in monosyllabic words. She seemed annoyed and proceeded to yell at him, something that we were all accustomed to by now. Dad merely blinked, didn't even bother to retaliate this time around, and let the silence respond to her. He finished eating, and pushed his bowl aside nonchalantly. I could see him looking at me, then at my book. "What's that trash you are reading?" "It's just a book Dad." I replied, an imitation of boredom. "What, you can't even tell me that much now? How many times do you actually speak to your family in a week? You've changed you know?" (Gee Dad, you mean people change?). I rolled my eyes like I always do when he went off like that; a mad ejaculation of rhetorical questions. Whatever I say really is just going to be used against me in the near future, or in my mother's case, the distant too. It's like a freaking courthouse, and he blames me for not talking to him. Whoever invented the term "catch twenty-two" must know what I am thinking right now. "There had better be educational value in that." He grunted at last, bulging his blood-shot eyes at an invisible spot across the room. "Okay then..." I remarked ever so snidely, and took note to never read anything of "value" again. So this is what the world's nuclear families are supposed to be like? Or is that just mine that feels like a slow devolution? Every cursed day, the pink gets to me a little more, the carnations a little dryer. I usually lock myself up in my room and hope no one will come in, or try to make conversation outside the shut piece of rotted bark. Like I always said, all I need in here is a toilet and maybe a little hole through which food maybe passed through in a versatile plastic package (and later a knife inside the

ATOC 1060 Essay Example

ATOC 1060 Essay Example ATOC 1060 Paper ATOC 1060 Paper The term albedo refers to the absorption of radiation False Without an atmosphere, the earths temperature would be a frigid -100 degrees Celsius False Over the past 400,000 years, CO2 abundances in Earths atmosphere have varied in correlation with Earths temperature True Molecules are called greenhouse gases if they Absorb infrared radiation, but are transparent to visible light. Global warming and anthropogenic climate change are terms that refer to the same environmental issue, specifically the alteration of Earths surface temperature and climate due to release of greenhouse gases to the atmosphere by human activities. T or F? True Greenhouse gases are important because they absorb visible radiation in the earths atmosphere False CO2 is the primary greenhouse gas in the earths atmosphere False As the temperature of a blackbody object increases, radiation from that object shifts to shorter wavelengths and becomes more intense Climate scientists believe that due to human activities earth is changing faster now than it has in the past. True The most abundant gas in the earths atmosphere is Nitrogen The ozone hole is a good example of a change in Earths atmosphere that is due mainly to natural causes. True The energy flux emitted by a blackbody object goes as The temperature raised to the fourth power Based on the inverse square law an object that is twice as far from the sun as the earth recieves______ as much solar flux that the earth. 1/4 The suns emission consists of primarily of infrared light, with some ultraviolet Latent heat refers to energy gained or lost when a substance such as water changes phases True The earths temperature has increase by about ___ over the last century .8 degrees C The region of the infrared spectrum between 8 microns and 13 microns is referred to as the window region because at these wavelengths CO2 and H2O are poor absorbers, so light can escape more readily to space There is a radiation deficit in the polar regions(that is less incoming solar radiation that outgoing thermal radiation) because ____? Heat is transfered poleward by circulations of the atmosphere and oceans The effect of clouds on earths radiation budget is easy to calculate quantitatively because all clouds reflect light to space, increasing the albedo False The increase in ice coverage at high latitudes with decreasing global temperatures is an example of positive feedback True 233k = ____ *C -40*C The magnitude of Earths greenhouse effect is about 33* Celsius Which of the following gases is not an important greenshouse gas? N2O Nitrous Oxide CC13F Freon 11 CH4 Methane Ar Argon H20 Water Vapor Ar Argon 273k = ___*C 0*C 300k =___*C 27*C 0k=___*C -273*C 373k=___*C 100*C What are the approximate minimum and maximum temperatures of Earths troposphere? Minimum 215 KMaximum 285 K 32*F=___*C 0*C 212*F=___*C 100*C 100*F=____*C 37.8*C High temperatures in the earths stratosphere at 50 km are due primarily to what? absorption of solar UV radiation by ozone 0*F=___*C -17.8*c 75*F=___*C 23.9*C Convection refers to what? the transport of heat by motions of a fluid (liquid or gas) The pressure of Earths atmosphere decreses/increases by a factor of what? decreases by a factor of 10 for every 16 km increase in altitude throughout most of the atmosphere For every 100 units of solar radiation incident on Earth, 30 units are reflected directly back to space, and 70 units are radiated to space as outgoing infrared radiation low thick clouds do what? reflect radiation back to space What is the actual value of incident radiation to the earths system? The solar constant at earth = 1370 W/m^2 mulitiplied by the projected are on the earth (R^2) High, thin clouds do what? trap infrared radiation near the surface Because water is a greenhouse gas, the increasing evaporation of water with warmer temperatures is an example of positive feedback on Earths surface temperature. True Pressure difference in the atmosphere are typically related to the distribution of surface temps? (T/F) True At norther mid-latitudes, even though the coriolis effect acts to turn a moving parcel of air to the right of the direction of motion an air parcel will always move directly from a region of high pressure to one of lower  pressure  in order to equalize the pressure. (T/F) False Surface air at the equator is warmer than surface air in the polar regions because the equator is closer to the sun than are the polar regions.   (T/F) False An abundance of _________, a greenhouse gas have been increasing in the atmosphere for many decades. Carbon dioxide C02 As ocean warms, sea ice will ____ As sea ice ____s, more _____ is absorbed in the ocean. This causes the warmer water.    Is this positive or negative feedback? melt, melts, sunlight Positive What is a blackbody object? One that can absorb and emit electromagnetic radiation at all wavelengths with equal efficiency.   Does not prefer some wavelengths over others. A blackbody radiates a total energy of? T^4 Energy balance outgoing radiation = incoming radiation absorbed by earth = outgoing infrared radiation Effective radiating temperature the temperature that an object would need to be radiating at in order to be in balance with the incoming absorbed solar radiation See Fig 3.1 Earths atmosphere today Nitrogen Oxygen Argon Water Vapor Carbon dioxide * Give % by volume Nitrogen 78%Oxygen 21%Argon .9%Water Vapor .00001%Carbon Dioxide .037% Greenhouse gases Water vaporCarbon dioxideMethaneNitrous oxideozonefreon -11freon -12 What are the most important absorbers in the atmosphere Water vapor and carbon dioxide What do low, thick clouds do with radiation? get warm radiation from the thin clouds and get trapped What do high, thin clouds do with radiation? allow radiation to go through them and warms the earth For an atmosphere that is in radiative balance (incoming = outgoing), how does temperature chance with height? Add more layers, and the surface gets even warmer because the layer above it is warmed by the layer above it etc Water vapor, a greenhouse gas, represents what kind of feedback in the Earth system? positive Other than radiation, what forms of heat transfer are important in the atmosphere? convection, latent heat, and conduction Differential heating is due to what? The curvature of the earth.  -See Fig 4.1 Where does solar energy go? (Earths budget) 45 units absorbed by surface25 units absorbed by clouds and gases 25 units reflected by clouds and gases 5 units reflected by the surface Of 133 energy units absorbed by the earths surface, how many units evaporate water and how many units produce convection? 24 units evaporate water and 5 units produce convection The earth system receives 99% of its heat in the form of _____ from the sun primarily in the visible and ______ radiation, near-IR Earths surface maintains thermal balance by convection of _____ ____ _____, air carrying heat upward, by _________ __________ and by radiating the remainder upward. warm, less denseevaporating water (latent heat) Of the 104 units of energy radiated by the suface, __ units escape to space through windows in the ________ spectrum of the atmosphere 4, infrared In the tropics there is more ______ solar radiation than _______ solar radiation. incoming, outgoing = a surplus of solar radiation In the polar regions, ___ solar radiation is received than ______ radiation is emitted. less, thermal = deficit of solar radiation The earths temperature has increased about____ over the last century .8 Degrees Celcius Based on the inverse square law, an object that is twice as far from the sun as the earth receives one-fourth as much solar flux than the earth Global warming and ______________ climate change refer to the same environmental issue. That the alteration of the earths temperature and climate is due to the release of greenhouse gases to the atmosphere by human activities. Anthropogenic An albedo of 1 means what pure reflection An albedo of 0 means what pure absorption (blackbody) Over the past 400,000 years _____ abundances in earths atmosphere have varied in correlation with the earths temperature C02 molecules are called greenhouse gases if they absorb infrared radiation, but are transparent to visible light What is the primary greenhouse gas in the earths atmoshere water vapor as the temperature of a blackbody object increases, radiation from that object shifts to shorter wavelengths and become more intense what is the most abundant gas in the earths atmosphere nitrogen The energy flux emitted by a blackbody object goes as The temperature raised to the fourth power Of the 100 units of solar radiation that are incoming at the top of earths atmosphere, ____ units are absorbed by earths surface, ______ units are absorbed by the atmosphere, ____ are reflected by the atmosphere back to space, and ____ are reflected by the surface. 45,25,25,5 Of the ____ units of thermal (infrared) energy radiated by earths surface, ___ units escape directly to space and ___ units are absorbed by the atmosphere 104, 4, 100 The ice coverage at high latitudes with decreasing global temperatures is an example of ______ feedback positive The increase of temperature of the earth will cause an increase in water vapor into the earths atmosphere, increasing the albedo, and then decreasing the temperature. This is an example of what kind of feedback negative The atmosphere is composed of what units that come from the heating of the atmosphere by gases and clouds (solar energy absorbed by atmosphere), units that come from the heating of the atmosphere by the greenhouse effect, and units that are from the heating of the atmosphere due to thermals and evaporation. What are the approximate min and max temperatures of earths troposphere min 215K max 285K What would the temperature of the earth be if there wasnt an atmosphere 255K The magnitude of earths greenhouse effect is about 33* celcius for every 100 units of solar radiation incident on the earth 30 units are reflected directly back to space, and 70 units are radiated to space as outgoing infrared radiation. Pressure differences in the earths atmosphere are typically related to the distribution of surface temperatures True The region of the infrared spectrum between 8 microns and 13 microns is referred to as the window region because at these wavelengths C02 and H20 are poor absorber, so light can escape more readily to space The suns emission consists of primarily of visible and infrared light, with some ultra violet There is less incoming solar radiation than outgoing thermal radion in the polar region, causing a radiation deficit because heat is transferred poleward by circulations of the atmosphere and oceans What is the actual value of 100 units of incident radiation The solar constant at earth multiplied by the projected area of earth high temperatures in the earths stratosphere at 50 km are due primarily to absorption of solar UV radiation by ozone True How many units of thermal energy come from the greenhouse effect 88 units (note larger than the units of solar radiation that the earth absorbs from the sun) Are there more units of latent heat or convection in earths budget? latent heat (evaporation) the pressure of earths atmosphere decreases by a factor of 10 for every 16 km increase in altitude reflection albedo absorption warms object Objects that are _____ absorb better than other objects black Why is it colder at the poles? Because at the equator, it is receiving direct sunlight whereas at the poles, it is receiving indirect sunlight What does Weins law tell us about BB wavelengths Max Wavelenth = 2898/T The maximum flux that a BB can reach at a certain wavelength Area beneath the curve = sigmaT^4 = total flux Magnetic spectrum and wavelengths ____________________________ UV Visible IR UV has small, high energy wavelengths IR was large, low energy wavelengths Greenhouse gases absorb IR radiation Anthropogenic Human induced changes in the atmosphere atmosphere thin envelope of gases that surround the earth hydrosphere composed of variousreservoirsof water including ice chlorofluorocarbon CFCs, Synthetic compounds containing chlorine, fluorine and carbon. Caused the ozone hole Stratosphere Absorbs UV rays and is warmer that the atmosphere below it because of it. (Ozone) negative feedback loop diminish the effects of disturbances Positive feedback loops; amplify the effects of disturbances wavelength the distance between two adjacent crests frequency the number of crests that pass a fixed point in a second. electromagnetic spectrum wavelength:(SMLG) UVVisibleIR Energy:(HL) UVVis.IR flux the amount of energy in an electromagnetic wave that passesperpendicularlythrough a unit surface area per unit time inverse square law the rate at which the solar flux decreases with increasing distance (1/r^2) Blackbody something that emits (or absorbs) electromagnetic radiation with 100%efficiencyat all wave lengths wiens law the flux of radiation emitted by a blackbody reaches itspeakwavelengthat delta max. or (2898/T) (Sun @visible wavelength, earth @ IR) Stefan-Boltzmann Law the energy flux emitted by a blackbody (T^4) 3 most abundant gases in the atmosphere Nitrogen, Oxygen, Argon 4 most abundant greenhouse gases water vapor, carbon dioxide, methane, are nitrous oxide convection a process in which heat energy is transported by themotionsof a fluid (boiling water) conduction the transfer of heat energy by direct contact between molecules Latent Heat the heat energyreleasedor absorbed during thetransitionfrom one phase to another Cirrus Clouds High level clouds that trap in heat Stratus clouds low level thick clouds that reflect incoming radiation back out into space Of 100 units of incoming solar radiation approx. how many are absorbed by earths surface? 45 or about half Air moves over earths surfaces because there are ___________ differences in pressure. Air also moves __________ because it is either forced to move mechanically or because there are changes in _________. horizontally, vertically, buoyancy Warmer air has a lower/higher density than cooler air lower Air tends to move from an area of ____ pressure, to an area of _____ pressure, until the two pressures are equalized. higher, lower If an air mass is heated until its density is lower than that of its surrounds, the lower-density air will rise. This phenomenon is a form of _________ Convection If an air mass is cooled until its density is higher than that of the underlying air, it will sink. This is referred to as ________ subsidence The incoming solar energy varies with _____ and with ______ whereas the outgoing terrestrial radiation depends on the temperature of the surface an atmosphere at each location. latitude, season The maximum solar absorption is found in the ____ and the available solar energy decreases rapidly as we move toward the _____ tropics, poles The tropic air near the surface rises, creating a ___-pressure region low The merging of air masses that are moving inward toward a low-pressure region is called _____. The air masses that meet at the tropics and rise make up the _________________ convergence, Intertropical convergence zone The air that rises in the ITCZ is forced to diverge _________ poleward divergence refers to the movement of air outward from a region in the atmosphere The poleward moving air subsides at about ___ N and ____ S, replacing air that is moving equatorward at the surface 30,30 At 30* N and 30* S, the air warms as it sinks, which prevents ______ and _____ from forming. condensation, clouds

What are four dimensions of social responsibilityWhat impact do they Essay

What are four dimensions of social responsibilityWhat impact do they have on marketing decisions - Essay Example to economic development while improving the quality of life of the work force and their family as well as the community and society at large†Ã‚  (cited in Sims, 2003). Again, Wartick and Cochran frames CSR as â€Å"a business organization’s configuration of principles of social responsibility, processes of social responsiveness, and policies, programs, and observable outcomes as they relate to the firm’s societal relationships†(Wartick and Cochran, 1985). CSR is however the most aptly defined by the World Business Council as â€Å"The continuing commitment by business to behave ethically and contribute to economic development while improving the quality of life of the workforce and their families as well as of the local community and society at large† (Holme and Watts, The World Business Council for Sustainable Development). One idea comes out very clearly from the above definitions, and that is, CSR is a duty to be performed by corporations towards all its stakeholders, and not simply the shareholders. CSR can be divided into 4 basic dimensions. These are The four afore-mentioned dimensions form the pyramid of social responsibilities, and are referred to as the Carroll’s CSR pyramid. As Carroll himself frames it â€Å"corporate social responsibility involves the conduct of a business so that it is economically profitable, law abiding, ethical and socially supportive. To be socially responsible then means that profitability and obedience to the law are foremost conditions when discussing the firm’s ethics and the extent to which it supports the society in which it exists with contributions of money, time and talent† (Carroll, 1983, p.608). At the very base is the economic dimension that forms the foundation for all the other aspects. Next, above the economic dimension, comes the legal aspect, where the mantra is to follow and play strictly by the rules of the game. The law clearly demarcates what is right and what is wrong, and the legal dimension simply

Maya Society was an example of a great civilisation. Discuss the Essay

Maya Society was an example of a great civilisation. Discuss the various aspects of this civilisation - Essay Example Despite having such powers she would never be given the title of Mah Kina (Hill, 1732). Many historians after closely studying history and different civilizations have come to conclusion that Mayans as a society were native cultured people belonging to Northern part of America. As a civilization or populations and resources, they occupied a terrain of an estimate sixty thousand square miles. This also included Southern Mexico, adjacent segment of Northern Guatemala. Mayan society: the Mayans were the most important of the cultured native peoples of North America, both in the degree of their civilization and in population and resources, formerly occupying a territory of about 60,000 square miles, including the whole of the peninsula of Guatemala and Yucatan. However it is to be noted that majority population always resided in same region outside large cities. As other tribes, Maya also had important tribes which formed strength of whole nation. Key tribes were Quiche and Cakchiquel of Guatemala. Each tribe part of Maya society held high cultural values. In North America Maya were being most advanced civilization and also most prehistoric. Despite being so prestigious, their numbers are estimated to be around two million approximately (Andrien, 814). If analyzing Maya civilization culturally, they could be segmented into three sections, i.e. south, north and central. It was the southern region where first signs of Maya civilization could be traced back. Izapa carvings reflect Gods that were antecedents of classic deities and at and at Kaminaljuyu glyphs on stelea indicates the signs of origination of Maya writing system. Olmec influence could be clearly traced in this area when historians studied it. Southern lowlands from Tabasco lying in northwest to Belize all made up the central region. While southern region constituted of Guatemalas Motagua River region. Along River and throughout the Peten Maya civilization flourished due

Business Information Systems Case Study Report Bognor Marine Essay

Business Information Systems Case Study Report Bognor Marine Watercraft - Essay Example Just because of the luxury element of the brand, some of these products are even purchased by non boat owners. Recently the brand has received significant media attention as several high profile celebrities have bought BMW boats. The owners of BMW desire to exploit this new opportunity and after holding several strategy meetings, they have recognized the potential areas for investment. Prior to creating their development plans, the investors and bank have asked a third party management industry to make a companywide evaluation, so that they can invest in the industry when it is officially deemed viable. One of the features that the bank looks for is the capacity for the organization to make quick progress in a competitive market. BMW basically comprises nine departments, which are: warehousing, manufacturing, human resource, finance, sales, marketing, design team and support departments. Warehousing departments take care of each delivery made by dealers with regard to raw materials a nd specific equipment that the industry purchases. Manufacturing departments give necessary instructions to suppliers for resources as and when required by the organization. The HR department runs full time and in order to be more effective and efficient the same jobs are assigned among two individuals. The team utilizes skills which are complicated to replace and this thus proves to be the biggest strength of the organization. In order to counter possible loss of skills BMW makes use of the apprentice method. However, the communication among the finance department of BMW and its employees is seen to be poor, this resulting in several mistakes that could be avoided if there were improved sharing of information. In the case of sales department, the manager is based in the major office and has responsibility for mainly two lines of actions. The sales personnel are field based and are dependable for the sale of BMW’s better volume manufactured ancillaries to various national dea lers. One sales individual is based at the office and he or she is responsible for the sale of the craft. Due to the price and nature of the luxury craft, customers pay great attention to details and will discuss at length the available features and choices of the craft. Marketing departments of BMW include mainly two people for exhibitions, design and additional marketing tasks containing campaign management. They work widely with third party experts who are trusted partners in the business. The distribution department consists mainly of four people. The important area of responsibility is the delivery of the better volume goods supplied to chandlers, luxury stores. Design team of the BMW includes several boat architects and contract designers. The support staffs of the company include two managers, secretaries, cleaners and drivers. BMW requires modifying and adopting information systems for a quality management. â€Å"An information system is a collection of hardware, software, data, people and procedures that are designed to generate information that supports the day-to-day, short-range, and long-range activities of users in an organization† (Types of Information Systems 2000). These are categorized into five types, namely: office information systems, management information systems, transaction processing systems, expert systems and decision support systems. Every organization requires information system

Stereotyping Muslim Women in TV and Film

Stereotyping Muslim Women in TV and Film Countless stereotypes and misrepresentation about Arab Muslim women have been dominating the Western media. It all started with the theory of Clash of Civilization that was written by Samuel P. Huntington in 1997. In his theory, Huntington stressed that Islam has visible conflicting vision and action to the Western ideas of liberty and democracy, and that Islam is the main enemy to the West. In other words, Islam and Arabs has different ideologies than the west has. And that the ideologies the west have about democracy and liberty conflict about the Islam understanding of the democracy and liberation. This was the start of the stereotyping of Arabs in general. The problem of stereotyping of Arabs in general has been on the increase since the incident of 9/11. Arabs have been subjected to discrimination and violence since 9/11, a Muslim girl for example that works in a rental car company was simply fired because she was told that she cannot wear her veil, also a hotel employee stated that he was cursed many times and that people called him Taliban and Osama. After September 9/11 attack on the USA, the stereotyping began at its fullest load, that the Islam and Arabs are terrorists, cruel, robbers, heartless, religious fanatics, brutal murderers, and abusers of women. It resulted in the start of o the portrayal of Arab women that they are abused by men, and that they are sex object, belly dancers and gold diggers, and that they have no self esteem, and they are beaten by men and they are only do what men wishes and want without having any opinion about it. Following 9/11, the world started attack Islam and they accused Islam of being a religion of terrorism, however, among those attackers there were many who wanted to know the truth about that religion in order to know whether it is really a religion of terrorism or not. The media exaggerated in reporting the incident of 9/11 which resulted in making a lot of people believe that Arabs and Muslims are terrorists. Also Hollywood is a big part of exaggerating this issue. Cinema Producers and Film Makers keep on making movies that stereotype Arabs as terrorists and killers. They also stereotype them with the five Bs, which are Billionaires, Bombers, Belly dancers, Bedouins, and Barbarians. Jack shaheen in his movie Reel Bad Arabs showed that the western movies are obsessed with portraying of Arab women in their movies, but they portray them from their point of views. They didnt change anything during years of portrayals. Jack Shaheen said that the portray of Arab women mostly as slave girls, a woman wearing a transparent veil that shows her body, and that they are belly dancers and barbarian gold diggers that they are able to do anything in the sake of their well being, Shaheen in his this part about the portray of Arab women as gypsies and gold diggers is right and I agree with him that is mostly the case in western movies that portray Arab women. Moreover, in the Disney movie remake of around the world in 80 days, they represent that Arnold Schwarzenegger an Arab Sheikh, that have more than 100 wives slaves just for sex, which shows that the Arab men are not satisfied by one woman only and they want lot of everything even the wives, and this part also talk about El shariaa that the man has the right to marry 4 wives. Which the West refuses its concept from the first place, but they dont even understand the Law of Islam to talk about this issue or to misrepresent it in this way. But although they portrayed Arab women in different images the gold digger, the sex slave, mischievous, but after the attacks of September 11 the image of terrorists is the dominate image in the mind and the movies of the West. The TV influences the people in a tremendous way; it affects their attitudes and behavior, and affects their minds and believes. The media personnel take advantage of this point that the western people are ignorant about anything that relates to Arabs and they just know them from movies and TV shows, and they mostly are in the image of terrorist so they take of this point and represent Arabs and Arab women without studying them or understanding them and they stereotype them as the way they want the people to think of them. They succeed in this point that most of the Westerns when they come to think about Arabs or Arab women, the first thing that comes to their minds is Arabs being terrorists ,barbarians, cruel, robbers, monsters, beater of women, take women as slaves, women are just for their own pleasure. Everyone knows from western media and western image what image Arab women have in general, images that started by the orientalists about Arab Harim, Arab dancing, Arab women set as objects in the Arab world locked in doors, having no function in public affairs, Muslim women being inferior to men. These are the concepts in western media, in western films and in western cartoons, unfortunately. Most Arabs are submissive to being stereotyped by western media, but for Arab women the problem is particularly sensitive. It seems that the Western media is obsessed by the way a Muslim woman dresses; the veil in particular. Most of the Arab Muslim women are portrayed as fat, shapeless women in their loose dress and ugly veiled shape; they even do them as a caricature in some magazines and programs. In fact, the concept of veiled woman is always perceived in the west as shes having a life, shes always seen as a victim, poor, isolated creature politically, culturally and she is so isolated. According to Gwinn (1997), he said that the veiled woman is always reflected by the western to be the most popular way of representing the problem of Islam. In fact, Longtime ago pre Islam veils were customs among Greeks, Romans and Jews, but when Islam started and the Muslim women took the veils as a way to cover their hair as God said, the West started to identify the veiled women as the Muslim terrorist one. The veil that the Muslim women wear is seen as a symbol of threatening and alien status as mentioned by Posetty (2008) in his article. Images of Islamic dress are increasingly used in the Western media as a symbol of extremism. As a result, Muslims all over Europe and the West in general, are suffering from the consequences of such associations. The main problem as Ahmed (1992) pointed out in his article, has been that the act of veiling among Muslim women is associated with the lack of traditionalism and backwardness that does not fit into the modern society and among Western women. This reflects the theory of Orientalism that was stated by Said 1978, which asserts that the East and its inhabitants are considered backward, barbaric and outsiders to Western society. As mentioned by Edward Said in this Orientalist framework, the Muslim Arab women have always been thought as others; they are always considered as different from the Western women and the Western culture. The Western imaginary, Othered portrayed women as sexual objects, weak, and that they are marginalized in their own society. The Orientalism focused on Arabic, history, and philosophy, but failed to truly convey the lives and feelings of Muslims, their voices remained mute. Muslims, as portrayed in western media, illustrate two Orientalist assumptions that arouse concern and fear in Western societies. The fisrt as mentiond by Posetty (2008), Muslim women are oppressed and in need of liberation and the second is that Muslim men are a violent force that creates a threat to Western society. In an agreement with Mishra (2007), who has been studying the misrepresentation constructed by the Western media about the Muslim Arab women since the 9/11 incident. She has examined the articles published by The New York Times and other newspapers and magazines after the 9/11 incident, particularly, between September 11, 2001 and September 11, 2003. Through her study she found that issues such as rape, torture, and patriarchal oppression were all topics that related to Muslim women in non-Western countries. Additionally, the discussion of women in Islam tends to be centered around the burqu, hijab, or as it is called in the Western societies as the veil. Muslims women living abroad are facing a bigger problem than just a misunderstanding or negative image, unfortunately they are facing a huge discrimination between them and the westernized women. The Arab Muslim immigrant women are facing gender-based media representations as well. As stated by Morin (2009), the immigrant Muslim Arab women are subjected to cultural misconceptions and the recent political conflicts that have spoiled Arab-Western relations. These misconceptions that are created by the Western media make it hard for those women to live abroad without being discriminated and thought as others. In the West, clearly, negative Arab images rooted in history are providing a base for the stereotyping of Arab women in the media. In addition to the misconception about the veil, words such as the circumcision, polygamy, the sharia (Islamic) law, the harem, forced marriages, etc, are just a few issues that are associated with the Arab Muslim women, which resulted in fitting women into the absolute, homogenous oppressed Muslim woman category. News on Muslim women is dominated by the culturalist presentation and interpretation of Islam. In fact, the discrimination of these women, which attracts media attention, tends to be explained almost exclusively according to theories on Islamic culture. For example, when referring to the rights of Muslim women, the news discourse tends to focus on symbolic and religious issues such as the veil or Islam, and they tend to avoid more important issues that are related to the equality of these women, such as rights to education or public freedoms. These visions are removed from reality because they fail to take into account bond of millions of women to their Islamic identity. The Western newspaper articles mainly present Muslims women in three ways: as passive women, as victims and as veiled women. They are portrayed as observers rather than as active participants in their community. Their role as victims is reflected through the publishing of news stories describing conflicts such as the Afghan or Algerian conflicts in which women are clearly victims. Muslim-Arab women have increasingly been on the face covers of magazines and front pages of newspapers since 9/11 and all the events that followed; among the major topics covered were the war in Afghanistan, the U.S.-led Iraqi invasion, as well as the elections in both countries. For example, on the covers of National Geographic and various other magazines, veiled women demonstrate the western urge to discover what lies underneath the veil. Since the invasion of Afghanistan, the Western media began to focus on the unveiling of women as a sign of their liberation, which we totally disagree with. Images of women removing the veil serve as justification to many individuals for the war. Time Magazine published an article in December 2001 that told the story of 200 women who gathered together to remove their veils together in a post-Taliban Afghanistan. (Macdonald, 2003). As stated by Ayish (2010), news media has made it a point to document the lives of millions of women that are in need of saving from an oppressive religion. The news media, specifically The New York Times and Time Magazine, have employed divisive methods founded in Orientalist assumptions that provide justification for Western intervention in the Middle East. And as stated by Mishra (2007), the media portrayals of Muslim men and women in The New York Times reinforced the need for Western intervention in Muslim societies and communities, to whether help liberate Muslim women or to keep Muslim men under surveillance as they are considered as a threat and violence. In advertising, they are being misrepresented as well. The Western advertisement also used the Arab Muslim women in their advertisement and they didnt want to risk by changing the image that the west already have for the Arab Muslim women, so they used the stereotyped and typical image of the veiled woman harem, the mysterious veiled woman that is under the control of an oppressive man, to appeal to their customers of the west. They didnt want to risk changing the image in an advertisement and that this image is strong in the mind of the Western people, and they might lose money or even customers and they might accuse them with treason because they put the Arabs in a good image. They use the veil of the Muslim Arab women as a sex symbol to sell for sex. They think when they put a woman in a veil they will get the consumers to buy the product. And when they do, they will buy the mystery behind the veil. The Westerns are usually buying a false and imaginary image of the Others which are the Arab or Arab women. The continuous and repetitive of these images in the different types of media will make these images real in the mind of the Western people, and this will enlarge the gap between the East and the West The oppressed veiled Muslim woman in the ads may also be connected to the escalating intolerance and disputes surrounding Muslim women and the veil in the Western world. Media people should be careful with what they put in the different types of media so as not to spread false and imaginary images or believes about another culture or other people traditions, and make them in the worst image that could be, and make them by these images increase the hatred between countries and increase hate crimes and wars. Media people should see the sensitivity in the materials they publish, and consider these images will hurt or damage someone or not, they should study the Arab and study their traditions and their believes Shariaa before talking falsely about it in different ways and different types of media. Western fascination with the veiling of Muslim women as a symbol of oppression is often contradictory to reality. The west are portraying Arab women in this way because they inherited this stereotyping, and they didnt try to do research or study of Arabs and Arab women to see if they are right about what they are showing in their movies or what they are writing. They just took what they have watched in the movies and read in papers, and they started to portray or actually kept on the same way of this negative portrayal and stereotyping of Arab women, without the right knowledge about the Arab culture, religion, and mostly people. Conclusion In the West, Arab women are often portrayed through stereotypical representations and discourses in which they have no voice. The Western popular imagination, nurtured by a media which commonly lacks sensitivity to complex realities, is quick to associate Arab women with oppression and subordination. Arab women are limited to a debate between tradition and modernity in which they are alternatively perceived as model of a mythical cultural authenticity, of a drift towards extremism or of radical modernization. Therefore, they find themselves at the heart of the ambiguous relations between the Eastern and Western worlds, which was analyzed by Edward SaÃÆ'Â ¯d. They are, however, essential actors in the development of the Arab region, and it is indispensable that their position at the heart of all contemporary social, political, economic and cultural matters be recognized in both the East and West. Basically the media is the main reason of enlarging the gap between the West and the East, it keeps on pressing and pressing on the west and filling their minds with pictures, movies, and news against Muslims and Islam that arent true. Since September 11 until now Hollywood keeps on making movies about Arabs and Muslims portraying them as terrorists and killers who attack innocent people without any reason, while they dont make any movies about Israeli. The mass media not only exclude modern Islamist women but also, in general, the socially and culturally diverse communities of Muslim women living in either the Arab world or in Western world. These women are not only housewives, mothers and Muslims as portrayed by the media, but also students, researchers, entrepreneurs, domestic workers, artists, politicians, volunteers, activists, etc. In this respect, it is also not accidental that the media do not report on the evolution of pro human rights movements (including womens rights and freedoms movements) that exist in some Arab countries, such as Egypt and Morocco. Misconceptions by the media have resulted in misunderstanding Arab women. As Gwinn (1997) stated, ideas about the Muslim world have managed to deform much of our understandings toward Muslim women. Words such as the veil, the harem, female circumcision, etc. have managed to give an impression to some of the images associated with the oppressed Muslim woman. The problem now is how to convey knowledge to public opinion so that they know truly whats going on in the Middle East. Unfortunately theyre trying to build on peoples ignorance, or on peoples busy time as nobody has the time to read a lot. It is time to build on information or on knowledge that the Arabs are descendents of great civilization, Arab women have the right to live like any other woman in the world with their children and to have their childrens future away from humiliation, away from occupation. The western media is the one who damaged the image of the Muslims specially the veiled women, so they must take step and start to do campaigns, movies, or documentaries to correct the image of the Arab Muslim woman and start to treat her normally or even correct the negative images.

Recreational Equipment Incorporated Essays -- Business, Employee Moti

Recreational Equipment Incorporated (REI) is a company that does far more than producing top-of-the-line gear for experiencing the outdoors. Not only does this business have a unique and almost unheard of dedication to its values and purpose, but also manages & leads its employees with great wisdom and skills both common and exclusive when compared to successful organizations. While sporting goods such as Big 5 and Dick's Sporting Goods may be more common, what happens â€Å"backstage† at REI is more than enough reason to favor it over its competitors. And that's not even the entirety of its superiority! REI began its thriving drive way back in the 1930's through the pioneering of Lloyd and Mary Anderson. After undertaking an unreasonably difficult search merely to purchase a reliable ice axe, Lloyd Anderson and his wife decided to establish a cooperatively-owned group for producing and selling outdoor gear. Six years after the establishment of REI in1938 (by the Andersons and 21 of their fellow outdoors-people), the co-op secured its first retail location: a few shelves in a Seattle gas station. Today somewhere around 10,000 employees represent REI in 128 retail locations and numerous support and production facilities, (not included in the 128). Success has followed REI throughout its existence. Progressing from gear such as traditional water-absorbing tents to the camping gear that they sell today, REI is an innovative cooperation that claims to try its best to well-equip its customers. Why has it been so successful? Perhaps the primary reason is that it has remained passionately dedicated to its purpose: â€Å"To inspire, educate and outfit for a lifetime of outdoor adventure and stewardship.† From instruction, to voluntee... ...ing employees to participate in the enjoyment of the outdoors, to reinforcing REI's core values of authenticity and integrity, it is clear that the company is successful in leadership. Employees well-led are employees who are more productive and motivated to do their job (O'Hair 157-159). As a leader that is successfully embracing its cause of loving the outdoors and equipping others to experience it, REI has also had to pour a lot into its employees to achieve its current standing. Its good organizational and communication skills, as well as its core values and standards are a key part of its triumph in meeting and expanding its goals. Along with its dynamic and energetic culture, the formal and structured aspects of working at REI are made enjoyable in an original way, giving a new perspective to a person's job, and making it a great place to work & have fun.

The Nobel Prize in Chemistry

In 2014, the Nobel Prize in Chemistry was awarded to Eric Betzig and William Moerner who, working separately, laid the foundation for SMLM. In essence, this method relies on the possibility to turn the fluorescence of individual molecules on and off. Scientists image the same area multiple times, allowing only a few interspersed molecules to glow each time. By superimposing these images, a dense super-image can be resolved at the nanolevel. With the development of this technique, Betzig and Moerner were able to overcome Abbe's diffraction limit, allowing for the production of high resolution images that, before SMLM, had not been possible. Towards the end of the nineteenth century, Ernst Abbe and Lord Rayleigh formulated what is commonly known as the â€Å"diffraction limit† for microscopy. Roughly speaking, this limit states that it is impossible to resolve two elements of a structure that are closer to each other than about half the wavelength (?) in the lateral (x, y) plane and even further apart in the longitudinal (z) plane. Another consequence of the same diffraction limit is that it is not possible to focus a laser beam to a spot of smaller dimension than about ?/2. In the case of light (optical) microscopy, an important tool for the imaging of biological structures, this means that two objects within a distance between 400/2 = 200 nm (far blue) and 700/2 = 350 nm (far red) cannot be resolved. Although this is no real limitation for electron microscopy, in which the wavelength is orders of magnitude smaller, this method is very difficult to use on living cells. For instance, the length-scale of the E. coli cell is about 1,000 nm (1 ?m) which is larger than, but of similar magnitude, as the diffraction limit. This explains why, prior to the development of SMLM, it was difficult to image details of the internal structures of living bacteria. Perhaps this may be the reason why bacteria are considered to be â€Å"primitive† organisms with little internal structure. With single-molecule localization, more precise structures of bacteria and other small-scale entities, e.g. individual viruses, can be resolved.In SMLM, the photochemical properties of fluorescent proteins are exploited to induce a weakly emissive or non-emissive â€Å"dark† state. From the dark state, very small populations of fluorophores are returned to an emissive state by shining a weak light pulse that activates only a fraction of the fluorophores present. These fluorophores are excited and detected by glowing until they are bleached, at which point the procedure is repeated on a new subgroup of fluorophores. In order to be identified, however, the emission profile must exhibit minimal overlap in each image. The centroid position of each identified molecule is statistically fitted, often to a Gaussian function, and with a level of precision scaling with the number of detected photons. By imaging and fitting single emitters to a sub-diffraction limited area over thousands of single images, enough data is generated to create a composite reconstruction of all identified emitters. Single-molecule localization is a broad category consisting of specific techniques, such as STORM, PALM, and GSDIM, that operate using the conceptually similar procedure outlined above. The main difference between these types is the exact fluorophore chemistry used to turn the fluorescence of individual molecules on and off. The real breakthrough in single-molecule localization occurred in 2006, when Betzig and colleagues coupled fluorescent proteins to the membrane enveloping the lysosome, the cell's recycling station. By activating only a fraction of the proteins at a time and superimposing the individual images, Betzig ended up with a super-resolution image of the lysosome membrane. Its resolution was far better than Abbe's diffraction limit of 0.2 ?m, a barrier that previous microscopy techniques could not bypass. Since the ground-breaking discovery, SMLM has allowed organelles and single molecules to be resolved with an order of magnitude better resolution (with a localization accuracy of about 10 nm), in multiple color channels, and in 2D as well as 3D. Single-molecule microscopy allows quantification of the number of proteins within biological assemblies and characterization of protein spatial distribution, permitting the determination of protein stoichiometry and distribution in signaling complexes. For instance, for the ?2 adrenergic receptors, SMLM was used to show that the receptors are partially organized in mini-clusters only in cardiomyocytes but not in any other cell lines, and that these oligomers are not lipid raft related but rather depend on actin cytoskeleton integrity. Most importantly, the results of this study were different from those obtained from a similar report which used near-field scanning optical microscopy (NSOM), demonstrating the better precision of SMLM over other techniques. An additional important aspect of SMLM is that it can be used with other imaging techniques to elucidate receptor complex structures. In one study by Nan et al. (2013), the powerful sensitivity of FRET imaging to detect receptor proximity was combined with the capability of SMLM to obtain direct visualization of receptor oligomers in studying RAF, a strategic protein involved in RAS signaling. By means of cluster analysis, Nan and colleagues were able to show how RAF exists between an inactive monomeric state in the cytosol and a multimeric condition at the cell membrane when activated. The results from single-molecule localization confirmed the importance of dimer and oligomer formation in RAF signaling, even though the precise biological role of these different multimeric states is yet to be determined.The better definition of biological structures in the nanometer range as a result of SMLM has had most relevance in the field of neuroscience, where the morphology of neurons composed of dendritic spines and synapses is not suitable for confocal microscopy. For example, Dani et al. (2010) used single-molecule microscopy to image presynaptic and postsynaptic scaffolding proteins in the glomeruli of the mouse olfactory bulb to show distinct punctate patterns that were not resolved by conventional fluorescence imaging. Lastly, the high resolution of SMLM has enabled a deeper understanding of chromosome organization and genome mapping. Wang et al. (2011) determined the distribution of nucleoid-associated proteins in live E. coli cells, while Baday et al. (2012) were able to label 91 out of a total of 107 reference sites on a 180 kb human BAC gene with a 100 bp resolution. DNA mapping with such resolution offers the potential to uncover genetic variance and to facilitate medical diagnosis in genetic diseases. Nonetheless, there are a few challenges that come with single-molecule microscopy, namely errors in detection efficiency and localization uncertainty. Since using fluorescent proteins as labels involves the complications associated with protein expression, errors in this step (e.g. misfolding, incomplete maturation, etc.) can lead to the production of label molecules that are not fluorescent. This can directly affect counting studies, as the number of counted molecules can be underestimated. However, it is possible to use the obtained count (after correcting for blinking artifacts) for the counting. In one study that involved identification of protein complex stoichiometry by counting photobleaching steps, Renz et al. (2012) accounted for errors in detection efficiency using a binomial model, which was found to provide accurate results. Incorporating detection efficiency into a model for the ratio between monomers and dimers can also rectify efficiency errors. In terms of localization uncertainty, each photon from the emitter molecule provides a sample of the point spread function (PSF) from the molecule. Based on these samples, single molecule localization algorithms provide an estimate for the position of the fluorescent molecule. This estimate is prone to uncertainties, especially due to limited sampling (i.e. the limited number of photons obtained from the molecule). By ensuring that the imaged molecules within a frame are spatially separated enough so that the localization algorithms can correctly identify them, however, it is possible to minimize the effect of localization uncertainty on counting measures. Despite its potential shortcomings, single-molecule localization enables high resolution imaging on the scale of nanometers, which defies Abbe's diffraction limit of 0.2 ?m. SMLM has been used to elucidate specific cell structures, as in Betzig's visualization of the lysosome membrane, and receptor complexes, as in the case of RAF. The technique has also been used to refute results of similar studies that used different imaging protocols, as shown when determining the specific location of ?2 adrenergic receptors. Overall, SMLM has ushered in a new era of high resolution imaging that not only allows for accurate insight into individual cell and protein structure, but also enables identification of abnormalities in cellular processes that ultimately manifest as genetic diseases.