Saturday, August 31, 2019

Artemis Fowl Book Report

He had devised a plan that would restore his family's fortune, a plan that could people civilizations and plunge the planet into a cross species war. Was at Ho Chi Mini City waiting for our contact Guan Unguent accompanied by Butler. As we waited Guan walked up to us dressed as a waiter. Obvious. Handmade loafers, a silk shirt, three gold signet rings. Pathetic really. Only to check for weapons. Who does he think I am? I told him that I was unarmed but for fun I told him about Butler. How he had tons of weapons and how he could kill him even without them. It was hilarious.He looked as if he were going to cry. Finally he told us to look at a picture he had. It was a wrinkly green hand. Guan then told us that she is a healer that works in exchange for rice wine. She was always drunk. He led us to a fire escape in Tu Do Street. I asked Butler for the night vision goggles. Inside I saw the green old hag. She asked for wine. Butler gave her the Irish whiskey. It was the same wrinkly green hand. I told Butler to give Guan the money. Finally things were going according to plan. She asked me if had anything that needed healing. I told her only wanted her book.She threatened to kill me. I told her that I would save her if she gave me the book. She gave me a questioning look. Perhaps the affects of the holy water hadn't darted yet. Told her about it and she said I murdered her. Then she started listening to what I had to say. Told her that we had two vials: #1 a vial of spring water from the fairy well sixty meters below Tara, Ireland the most magical place on the Earth, it would counteract the holy water and #2 a booster with a virus that feeds on alcohol which will flush every drop of rice wine out of her body.She asked me how could I trust you. That was a good question. Sometimes I can't even trust myself. I had to say something so I told her that I would give her the first vial on faith and the second one after am even the book for at least 30 minutes. Butler gave he r the first shot with the syringe gun then she gave me the book. I took my camera and took a picture of every page of the characters then gave it back and Butler injected the second vial, we left immediately. A century's worth of alcohol leaving the body isn't a pretty sight. When we got home I checked on mum.Sleeping like a baby. If she had recovered I would have to cancel everything and go to school. I went to my room uploading the files into my computer. It was a mixture of symbols and characters they were all around the page in no regular order. I printed all the ages and tacked them to the wall. First I needed a central point language so I started with English, Chinese, Arabic, Greek, Cyrillic, and even Gingham texts. There was still nothing. Was frustrated; none of the characters had a match. I thought hard and remembered the only base language didn't try: Egyptian. Finally a hit.The computer didn't show anything so I would have to get every Gnomish figure and compare it with the hieroglyphics. At midnight when I was done I fed my findings into the Macintosh. I pressed decode. Papers of meaningless gibberish came flowing out. Now all I had to do was find out the order it was written in. The Arabic right to left, no, the Chinese columns, no. Nothing worked. Then I noticed a tiny dot in the middle Of each page with arrows around it Then I knew that it was read in spirals. I typed spiral on the read menu and the letters came out in lines, finally. This was it.The Book of the People. Being Instructions to our Magic's And Life Rules. Carry me always, carry me well. Am thy teacher of herb and spell am thy link to power arcane. Forget me and thy magic will wane. Ten times ten commandments there be. They will answer every mystery. Cures, curses, alchemy. These secrets shall be thin, through me. But fairy remember this above all. Am not for those in mud that crawl. And forever doomed shall be the one, who betrays my secrets one by one†¦ Finally the book was translated and read. Now it was time for the thing I do best; plot dastardly acts.After a few hours I called Butler and Juliet(Butler's sister) into the room. I told them that according to the book, all we have to do is stakeout at an ancient tree at a full moon at a river bend. Juliet questioned me about fairies and how they weren't real, that got me thinking that all this work could be for nothing, but again the book proved quite promising. I told Juliet to get a cage into the cellar. We had over 100 places to try, it wouldn't be as easy as I thought. Four months of searching, not a hit. After 1 hour of waiting the proximity alarms flashed red someone was here. Hacked the scope and saw a figure bending down beside a tree. It was a possible fairy picking up a seat. In the bushes I saw Butler hold the dart pistol with the red dot pointed at her neck. Butler pulled the trigger, but out of a million odds she ducked again. Now she noticed she was under fire, we would have to do this ma nually. Butler was already ahead of the game and started to taunt the fairy. New that it was my turn so I started to scare the fairy. Butler stood behind her preparing a second tranquilizer dart while stalled her. Finally Butler shot her in the back and took her helmet.I couldn't believe how human the fairy looked. When We got TO Fowl Manor I examined the helmet and found a small tracking device. Of course they be following us now. Or they be following the tracker at least. I told Butler to get the car. It's time for road trip number 2. When we got too the dock I told Butler we needed a diversion. Butler nodded then I went to the nearest whaler and dumped the tracker inside. I put a mob there also to whoever was tracking it down. When got back to the car Butler was still fighting some men. Felt sorry for them. Even I don't want to pick a fight with him.After he finished he came to the car and we drove back to Fowl Manor. Went to our prisoner in a cage in the basement. It was time to taunt her once again. Told her, her name: Holly Short, rank: Captain and the rules in the house. Finally she asked how knew these things. I was surprised. It seemed like she didn't know she had a name tag on her. Told her I was aiming for gold. She again asked how do we know everything. Knew that couldn't tell err had the book so I told her we gave her a truth serum and she told us everything. She went to a corner thinking how had she had betrayed her people. Aft and went to Butler who was monitoring the cameras. Nothing yet. I told Butler to try the avenue and freeze the picture. He did and five black figures appeared on the screen. I handed him a bigger helmet that had several filters that allowed him to see shielded fairies. Butler went outside to take care of them. Before he left I told him to get the head to talk with better scared than dead. After a few minutes Butler came back with a handful of technology and left or preparation for my special visitor. They'd put a time stop on Fowl Manor.Seconds later the clock stopped and an unshielded figure stepped onto the lawn. The game was just beginning. Came to the front door and allowed him to come in. Told him that in return for the captain that I wanted a ton often-carat gold. He told me that he was going to kill us all with a bomb that I already knew of. I told him I could escape it. He was bewildered. He told me that nobody could escape the bio bomb, and then he left. After he left I went straight to the surveillance room and I noticed that Butler wasn't going around doing his rounds. Diode butler and asked him what was he doing.

Friday, August 30, 2019

An Inspector Calls

Though the girl subject to this as they find out ay not have actually died, this changes some Of the group's views which results in a family backlash. However, if Eva Smith, Daisy Rent and the girl who came to the Brimley women's council were all the same girl, and she subsequently died because of their actions, which character was the least responsible for her death? The first person to experience the effortless wrath of the inspector is Mr. Bribing, who is easily recognizable as the most stubborn of the lot.Instantly he tries to intimidate the inspector by rather cockily stating his past and present positions such as his time as Lord Mayor as well as his continued place on the Bench. Unlike many people Mr. Geol. stays calm and even emerges as the most dominate figure in the room almost immediately with ease. After Bribing notices this he begins to show a bit more intolerance or ‘impatience' as it says in the stage directions. Mr. Burbling part in the death is effectively star ting off a chain reaction.Eva was a worker in his factory at a time when the lower class were beginning to speak out about the cruelties of their lives and their work. The suffragettes were a growing voice since 1903 when they were formed. Trade unions were growing increasingly large with strikes happening thick and fast, with two years before being ebbed as ‘the great unrest'. Thus when the girl came asking for a couple shillings more a week she was instantly rejected along. After ‘a week or two' on strike all the workers on strike were allowed to return apart from a few ringleaders, of course one of these was Miss Smith.I believe this makes him one of the least responsible as he followed the general course of action that almost every other factory owner would have at that time. Although many people would still highlight and abhor his complete lack of remorse he consistently shows throughout the play, showing no consideration to anyone rower down the ladder of class. Th is is proven almost every time he opens his mouth; statements such as ‘a man has to look after himself' and ‘I still can't accept any responsibility, with the latter coming just after he found out his part in it all. Even though it used to be him near the bottom.The next victim of the inspector is the sweet Sheila Bribing. As she only entered the room as Geol. was moving away from Brisling's time in the spotlight she only learned little of the detail that had actually been disclosed. But still she showed great sorrow towards the tragedy. This builds up an image of Sheila that allows the audience to be much more forgiving when her role comes to light. When Mr. Geol. carries on his story telling we find out that Eva very fortunately takes advantage of the spreading influenza to grab a job at a high up the market clothes shop, Milliards.With secrecy he shows Sheila the photo of her and instantly its effect is evident, causing her to give ‘a half stifled sob' and scatt er out of the room. Her father while he may feel her actions are immature, takes this opportunity to have a much wanted dig at the informant. Once again attempting to make him feel uncomfortable and under pressure, this like before is unsuccessful. When Sheila re-enters the room it is explained that how she caused the girl to lose her job in a very UN-necessary manner. Wink very few people would see this as terrible and unforgiving, whereas most, like myself, would view this as provoked bad luck. Meaning we understand her errors but also believe the timing overlooks that. This is because as she puts it she was already in a ‘furious temper beforehand and adding to this it's never pleasing to be proven wrong (especially by your mother). So Eva unluckily faced the brunt of Sheila's own immaturity and momentary selfishness by eyeing fired, leading her to go in search of a new life.Thirdly is Gerald. Though his part is much different to the rest as he didn't affect her life for the worst. The inspector tells us how becoming Daisy Rent is Eve's fresh start, but when hearing this name Gerald is clearly shocked. So much so that his fiancee begins quizzing him on her before he's even admitted to anything. With only a visual answer she finds out how last summer when Mr. Croft was apparently too busy (with work) to spend much time with her, was actually a cover-up.Consequently turning Gerald from charming fiance to the audience's villain. That nickname, however, does not last long. His actions towards her prove he has a lot more respect for the opposite sex then many people of his grade. More evidence is he tells us how it wasn't intentional for her to end up his mistress nonetheless he did gracefully accept that it was inevitable. Most likely because she was young, ‘pretty' and ‘warm-hearted'. Soon his friend was returning home and it had to end, but this time she left in a better place.Even though he was having an affair which enforces that he can't r espect women to a huge extent, it is still clear he did only have good intentions in his heart. Taking this into consideration I still think this makes him the least responsible as he did actually re-instate happiness into her increasingly torrid life. Next in the play but last in the real time events IS Mrs. Bribing. Ever since her introduction to the conversation (and often argument) she has been closed-mined like her husband but this completely opposite to their children.This is much in line with the common perception of the older ages and the younger ages. The older one being how they are Often stubborn, especially if they have been caught out or proven wrong, causing them to effuse themselves the ability to learn from they're mistakes. Whereas Sheila and Eric accept and even exaggerate their responsibility which makes them the subject of patronizing from their parents, such as being told numerous times to ‘keep quiet' and referring Sheila's behavior as ‘like an hyst erical child'.Mrs. Burbling faults were perhaps the most influential as she turned the UN-named girl away at by far the most important time. Eva pretending her name was Mrs. Bribing almost confirmed her fate. As older women of the time's tendency to hold grudges was Omni-present here. The real Mrs. Bribing scribed this as ‘a piece of gross impertinence', impertinence being possibly Sibyl's favorite word to describe people she believes to be beneath her (which is almost everyone).This altogether gives no opportunity for anyone to speak positively about her in any manner. Sybil constantly adds to her already very pessimistic persona by egocentric comments throughout the play. After being proven guilty she comes out with ‘l accept no blame at all', deliberately evading the truth like she continues to do for the rest of the play. She tries to make herself seem more innocent than everyone else – but in fact everything he says is based on her desire to avoid anything wh ich is ‘offensive' to her social sensibility.Her twisted morals and her missing compunction which led to an innocent girl's death makes me believe she is more responsible for Eve's death. Lastly Eric who is not all the man his parents believe him to be. As for 2 years he has been ‘steadily drinking' unbeknown to his parents. Throughout the play he is shown as a weak, foolish, and thoughtless youth with his part in the loss of life coming down to character-flaws. Though at least it is clear he genuinely grief-stricken with the death as when he finds out his mother laded a huge role in the death he almost breaks down.Partly because it was the death of her own grandchild and partly because he is mortified by the fact she could have made a difference but chose not to. With Eric you can so nearly synthesis but his lack of responsibility ruins that. For example when he admits to stealing money to support Eva you can acknowledge the attempted act of kindness but then you have t o condemn the cowardly way in which it was carried out. Regardless of this Rise penitence is to be respected, also his errors were not out of wickedness, but from his own attributes. An Inspector Calls Though the girl subject to this as they find out ay not have actually died, this changes some Of the group's views which results in a family backlash. However, if Eva Smith, Daisy Rent and the girl who came to the Brimley women's council were all the same girl, and she subsequently died because of their actions, which character was the least responsible for her death? The first person to experience the effortless wrath of the inspector is Mr. Bribing, who is easily recognizable as the most stubborn of the lot.Instantly he tries to intimidate the inspector by rather cockily stating his past and present positions such as his time as Lord Mayor as well as his continued place on the Bench. Unlike many people Mr. Geol. stays calm and even emerges as the most dominate figure in the room almost immediately with ease. After Bribing notices this he begins to show a bit more intolerance or ‘impatience' as it says in the stage directions. Mr. Burbling part in the death is effectively star ting off a chain reaction.Eva was a worker in his factory at a time when the lower class were beginning to speak out about the cruelties of their lives and their work. The suffragettes were a growing voice since 1903 when they were formed. Trade unions were growing increasingly large with strikes happening thick and fast, with two years before being ebbed as ‘the great unrest'. Thus when the girl came asking for a couple shillings more a week she was instantly rejected along. After ‘a week or two' on strike all the workers on strike were allowed to return apart from a few ringleaders, of course one of these was Miss Smith.I believe this makes him one of the least responsible as he followed the general course of action that almost every other factory owner would have at that time. Although many people would still highlight and abhor his complete lack of remorse he consistently shows throughout the play, showing no consideration to anyone rower down the ladder of class. Th is is proven almost every time he opens his mouth; statements such as ‘a man has to look after himself' and ‘I still can't accept any responsibility, with the latter coming just after he found out his part in it all. Even though it used to be him near the bottom.The next victim of the inspector is the sweet Sheila Bribing. As she only entered the room as Geol. was moving away from Brisling's time in the spotlight she only learned little of the detail that had actually been disclosed. But still she showed great sorrow towards the tragedy. This builds up an image of Sheila that allows the audience to be much more forgiving when her role comes to light. When Mr. Geol. carries on his story telling we find out that Eva very fortunately takes advantage of the spreading influenza to grab a job at a high up the market clothes shop, Milliards.With secrecy he shows Sheila the photo of her and instantly its effect is evident, causing her to give ‘a half stifled sob' and scatt er out of the room. Her father while he may feel her actions are immature, takes this opportunity to have a much wanted dig at the informant. Once again attempting to make him feel uncomfortable and under pressure, this like before is unsuccessful. When Sheila re-enters the room it is explained that how she caused the girl to lose her job in a very UN-necessary manner. Wink very few people would see this as terrible and unforgiving, whereas most, like myself, would view this as provoked bad luck. Meaning we understand her errors but also believe the timing overlooks that. This is because as she puts it she was already in a ‘furious temper beforehand and adding to this it's never pleasing to be proven wrong (especially by your mother). So Eva unluckily faced the brunt of Sheila's own immaturity and momentary selfishness by eyeing fired, leading her to go in search of a new life.Thirdly is Gerald. Though his part is much different to the rest as he didn't affect her life for the worst. The inspector tells us how becoming Daisy Rent is Eve's fresh start, but when hearing this name Gerald is clearly shocked. So much so that his fiancee begins quizzing him on her before he's even admitted to anything. With only a visual answer she finds out how last summer when Mr. Croft was apparently too busy (with work) to spend much time with her, was actually a cover-up.Consequently turning Gerald from charming fiance to the audience's villain. That nickname, however, does not last long. His actions towards her prove he has a lot more respect for the opposite sex then many people of his grade. More evidence is he tells us how it wasn't intentional for her to end up his mistress nonetheless he did gracefully accept that it was inevitable. Most likely because she was young, ‘pretty' and ‘warm-hearted'. Soon his friend was returning home and it had to end, but this time she left in a better place.Even though he was having an affair which enforces that he can't r espect women to a huge extent, it is still clear he did only have good intentions in his heart. Taking this into consideration I still think this makes him the least responsible as he did actually re-instate happiness into her increasingly torrid life. Next in the play but last in the real time events IS Mrs. Bribing. Ever since her introduction to the conversation (and often argument) she has been closed-mined like her husband but this completely opposite to their children.This is much in line with the common perception of the older ages and the younger ages. The older one being how they are Often stubborn, especially if they have been caught out or proven wrong, causing them to effuse themselves the ability to learn from they're mistakes. Whereas Sheila and Eric accept and even exaggerate their responsibility which makes them the subject of patronizing from their parents, such as being told numerous times to ‘keep quiet' and referring Sheila's behavior as ‘like an hyst erical child'.Mrs. Burbling faults were perhaps the most influential as she turned the UN-named girl away at by far the most important time. Eva pretending her name was Mrs. Bribing almost confirmed her fate. As older women of the time's tendency to hold grudges was Omni-present here. The real Mrs. Bribing scribed this as ‘a piece of gross impertinence', impertinence being possibly Sibyl's favorite word to describe people she believes to be beneath her (which is almost everyone).This altogether gives no opportunity for anyone to speak positively about her in any manner. Sybil constantly adds to her already very pessimistic persona by egocentric comments throughout the play. After being proven guilty she comes out with ‘l accept no blame at all', deliberately evading the truth like she continues to do for the rest of the play. She tries to make herself seem more innocent than everyone else – but in fact everything he says is based on her desire to avoid anything wh ich is ‘offensive' to her social sensibility.Her twisted morals and her missing compunction which led to an innocent girl's death makes me believe she is more responsible for Eve's death. Lastly Eric who is not all the man his parents believe him to be. As for 2 years he has been ‘steadily drinking' unbeknown to his parents. Throughout the play he is shown as a weak, foolish, and thoughtless youth with his part in the loss of life coming down to character-flaws. Though at least it is clear he genuinely grief-stricken with the death as when he finds out his mother laded a huge role in the death he almost breaks down.Partly because it was the death of her own grandchild and partly because he is mortified by the fact she could have made a difference but chose not to. With Eric you can so nearly synthesis but his lack of responsibility ruins that. For example when he admits to stealing money to support Eva you can acknowledge the attempted act of kindness but then you have t o condemn the cowardly way in which it was carried out. Regardless of this Rise penitence is to be respected, also his errors were not out of wickedness, but from his own attributes.

Thursday, August 29, 2019

Advertising Writing

In advertising writing, mark reliability was characterized as how much buyers create enthusiastic connection to a brand through their sense of duty regarding rehash buys of organization's items without aiming to change to others. Peng et al. (2016) additionally characterized mark devotion as the readiness of clients to keep their associations with a specific brand on the long haul. The other measurement which is mark picture was portrayed in the writing as the general impression that is slanted in customers' recollections about a brand (Hanaysha and Hilman, 2015). That is, mark picture can be communicated in light of the perspectives and assessments of customers about a brand's items or administrations (Laasch and Conaway, 2014). Additionally, mark inclination alludes to purchaser's choice to pick or buy a specific brand within the sight of other contending ones, and it can be shaped in view of past encounters or the suggestions of others. At last, mark administration was characterized in past writing as the upper hand that a brand has over its rivals (Zarantonello and Pauwels-Delassu, 2015). It mirrors the view of clients about the particular capacities of a brand in accomplishing greatness and giving novel offerings which are difficult for contenders to duplicate or emulate.  Word of MouthWith the expanding interest of clients and high rivalry among different ventures, associations began to search for better approaches to serve clients to enhance and maintain their upper hands. A key differential preferred standpoint that a firm or brand can have is the positive verbal proposal by its fulfilled clients. The importance of verbal exchange is settled as the most powerful specialized apparatus to drive purcha sers' responses toward a brand. Past writing announced that positive verbal exchange is more viable than publicizing procedure (Day, 1971). Hawkins et al. (2004) saw verbal exchange as a key factor that clients have a tendency to depend on before settling on buy choices, and is reflected through the and encounters shared by others toward specific items, administrations, and brands. Word of mouth was additionally characterized by Arndt (1967) as â€Å"oral individual to individual correspondence between a beneficiary and a communicator whom the collector sees as non-business, with respect to a brand, an item or an administration†. The key thought of Word of mouth is coordinated towards sharing and imparting buyers' learning and suppositions about the items or administrations of a specific brand sandwich others. As a rule, verbal exchange includes any mutual data about a brand which can be transmitted starting with one shopper then onto the next through individual discussions or by means of different devices of correspondence (Brown et al., 2005). In past writing, Word of mouth was broadly acknowledged as a key customary and exceedingly compelling component of promoting correspondence which is portrayed by taken a toll viability (Godes et al., 2005; Hogan et al., 2004). Likewise, Kotler et al. (2014) considered verbal exchange as the fundamental showcasing instrument that can be immediately exchanged among clients at exceptionally negligible cost. These days, verbal exchange has gotten higher significance from clients as a dependable specialized device on account of their less enthusiasm for publicizing and other customary media. Lang and Hyde (2013) showed that verbal exchange can be fortified through showcasing specialized devices, for example, publicizing, VIP support, and advancements. As per Taghizadeh et al. (2013), Word of mouth is a capable promoting factor that got noteworthy accentuation from different specialist organizations, especially, those whose organizations center around impalpable offerings. In such administrations, clients depend for the most part on the given counsel and suggestions by others, companions or relatives who had past involvement in utilizing that administration. Additionally, shoppers generally have a tendency to create trust toward companions and relatives more than the interchanges started by the brand itself, and this affirms the importance of Word of mouth as a promoting device (Ng et al., 2011). In past investigations, certain researchers inferred that Word of mouth affected brand value (Murtiasih et al., 2013; Rezvani et al., 2012). Herr et al. (1991) likewise showed that positive verbal exchange among clients can strengthen mark affiliation quality, as the data exhibited through eye to eye way is probably going to be more dependable than those conveyed in a less striking way. Virvilaite et al. (2015) demonstrated that customers esteem verbal data, since it conveys different messages to them about a brand, and such data can influence mark value and its benefits; image faithfulness and brand affiliation. Also, Hoyer and MacInnis (2001) found that positive Word of mouth was the most critical factor to influence mark notoriety, and their outcomes are in accordance with Cornelissen (2000) who embraced the commitment of verbal exchange to corporate notoriety. Y?ld?z (2015) additionally revealed that verbal exchange has a huge association with mark value measurements; mark picture, mark affiliation, mark mindfulness, and brand faithfulness. Thus, Torlak et al. (2014) reasoned that verbal exchange has a critical and positive relationship with purchaser's buy aims and brand picture. In light of the above discourse, the speculations of this investigation are exhibited as takes after:H1: Word of mouth has a critical association with mark picture.H2: Word of mouth has a critical association with mark unwaveringness.H3: Word of mouth has a huge association with mark inclination.H4: Word of mouth has a critical association with mark administration.H5: Word of mouth has a huge association with general brand value.MethodologyThis investigation is intended to look at the connection between Word of mouth and brand value in the fast food industry. The information was gathered from the clients of global fast food eateries in east drift Malaysia utilizing study strategy. In particular, 384 polls were actually conveyed on the focused on respondents in the wake of preparation them about the motivation behind this investigation. Amid information gathering, the respondents were screened first before giving them the poll so as to affirm their acknowledgment to take an interest in this examination. To guarantee that the base required example size could be gotten, the information was gathered utilizing comfort inspecting method. In addition, a few researchers (Hameed, 2013; Severi et al., 2014; Y?ld?z, 2015) depended on accommodation inspecting technique in gathering their information. In outlining the overview, each build was estimated in light of an arrangement of things with reference to past investigations. For example, four things were utilized to quantify verbal exchange in light of the investigation of Goyette et al. (2010). The needy variable; mark value as expressed in the before segments comprises of four components; mark picture, mark dependability, mark inclination, and brand authority. Brand picture was estimated by five things which were proposed by Jin et al. (2012) and Park (2009). So also, a four-things scale was utilized to quantify and operationalize mark faithfulness. The things were created in light of the investigations of Gil et al. (2007) and Hameed (2013). Furthermore, a four items scale was used to gauge mark inclination, and it was taken from Sirgy et al. (1997). Thus, five things were utilized for estimating brand administration in light of the examination of Hanaysha and Hilman (2015). A five-point Liker scale that extents from 1 (firmly deviate) to 5 (unequivocally concur) was utilized as a part of estimating the chose things.Data AnalysisAs expressed before, 384 overview polls were appropriated on the respondents; be that as it may, just 293(76.3%) were eager to participate in noting the survey. The investigations of statistic information uncovered that roughly 33.1% are male, while 66.9% are spoken to by female. Right around 19.4% of those respondents fall under the age classification of 16to 25 years, however 53.2% fall under the age assemble t hat extended from 26 to 35 years. Be that as it may, the individuals who spoke to the age gathering of 36 to 45 years represented 20.5% of general reaction, while 6.9% were 46 years of age or above. The instructive profile likewise uncovered that 79 (26.9%) of the respondents had the most astounding capability of school declaration, 111 (37.9%) got undergrad testament, 34 (11.6%) get postgraduate confirmation, while 69 (23.6 %) had recognition authentication. The vast majority of the members (55.7%) get RM3000 as month to month wage, 16.3% get month to month salary of under RM500. Those whose month to month wage ran amongst RM500 and RM1000 are spoken to by 6.8%, whereas21.2% get a month to month salary amongst RM1000 and RM3000. To quantify the builds' dependability, this examination depended on Cronbach's alpha. The discoveries demonstrated that the greater part of the develops surpassed the base fair estimation of 0.7 as indicated by the recommendations of Pallant (2007); informal (0.849), mark picture (0.826), mark initiative (0.780), mark devotion (0.852), and mark inclination (0.891). In the wake of testing the dependability of develops, the estimation display was then surveyed utilizing AMOS 18. Also, corroborative factor examination was directed on AMOS 18, and the outcomes demonstrated that the rest of the things as appeared in Appendix An accomplished satisfactory factor stacking estimations of more than 0.50. Consequently, concurrent legitimacy is affirmed. The investigation additionally demonstrated that there are no Multi collinearity issues in the screened information as the relationship esteems between any match of develops were under 0.90 as suggested by Tabachnick and Fidell (2007).

Wednesday, August 28, 2019

Recreational Drug Use Negatively Affects Society Research Paper

Recreational Drug Use Negatively Affects Society - Research Paper Example From the report it is clear that recreational drugs include many kinds of drugs which can be legal or illegal. The use of recreational drugs in a society can cause several economic effects as people commonly start spending about one-fourth of their income in drugs, and utilize their savings, thus lowering their standards of living. In recent years, the overall economy of the American society has tremendously lowered as there is an increase in the usage of recreational drugs. The drugs industry is making high profits and it surely benefits their market as some drugs are highly expensive and once people are addicted to them, they buy them excessively to fulfill their needs. The more profits the drugs industry makes, the more risks of drugs smuggling, illegal selling and possession of drugs, and access use of controlled drugs will increase causing social, economic, and psychological problems. This paper highlights that people often start taking recreational drugs to divert their minds from their life problems or to gain some pleasure. Drugs are often successful in providing peace to the disturbed person and allowing him to forget all his worries for a while. This attracts people to use them more often, hence creating an addiction. Most people first get addicted to this feeling, then physically addicted, as it becomes a need for the body to calm down and feel good. Drug addicts are fifty percent more likely to commit crimes such as robbery and stealing, only for the purpose of buying more drugs.

Assighment Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Assighment - Essay Example Discussion Definition of Diversity Diversity is described as the characteristics and talents of an individual that distinguishes him from other human beings. Moreover, an individual might also be distinguished from others on the basis of education, religions, caste, creed, race, culture, age, behavior, nationality, status and living style. Although diversity is present everywhere, still we all believe to live within a single big umbrella, called UNITY. Keeping this concept in mind, now a day’s the effects of diversity is fading slowing and gradually from the workplaces of the entire globe. Effects of Diversity, while discussion over ‘Female Identity’ in the organization At the time of discussion in a debate session over the topic of female identification within the organization, varied types of ideas and views came into focus. Numerous senior as well as junior members of the organization presented varied types of negative statements or opinions regarding the progr ess or development of the female community. According to them, progress of female segment is just waste of time and money as ultimately they need to devote their time for the development of the family members. ... so they need to be present within the interiors of the residence and the females might also be looked after by a male member of the family so that they remain free from any type of troubles. Therefore, female progress or identification is just a nightmare that might never become successful. After hearing such types of negative and pessimistic statements, it seemed extremely disturbing and distressing to me along with many other group members and so we all presented the positive sides of female progress. In this age, males and females are uniform in all sense, i.e. in terms of education, experience, knowledge and outlook. Moreover, an organization might surely present the opportunity for the female members of the society to get recruited so as to enhance their identity in a male-dominated nation or state. Only then the females might present their talents, knowledge, ideas, information and facts in front of numerous male members. This might act as a weapon to reduce the impacts of dome stic as well as corporate violence over the females thereby amplifying reputation and image in the market among others. Along with this, it might also amplify the status and popularity of the females within a society among the male members and within a corporate business world. Thus, such type of multicultural organization might prove effective in tackling varied type of situational challenges (Thyer, 345-378). Therefore, after completion of the ideas and statements of our group members, all other pessimistic individual changed their opinion, regarding this topic. All of them stated that female progress or identification is extremely essential in this age of extensive crimes and violence. Hence, the concluding statement filled our hearts with extreme contentment and happiness. Conclusion

Tuesday, August 27, 2019

The Transcendentalism Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

The Transcendentalism - Essay Example There was a resurgence of the Idealist Movement at the turn of the 19th century that took the name Transcendentalist Movement. During the first half of the 1800s, the Transcendentalist Movement unveiled its new name and has persisted, in some form, as one of the most important spiritual movements in the history of the United States. Transcendentalism has been found using the name of theological liberal, idealist, or social progressive, and evolved over the decades to profoundly affect the issues of slavery, women's rights, and education. Its adherents have included Ralph Waldo Emerson, educator John Dewey, and Henry David Thoreau, who challenged religion to accept man and nature as finite and explainable entities. Emerson critiqued religion for dwelling "with noxious exaggeration about the person of Jesus", and treating God as if he were dead in the long ago written revelations of the bible" (Grodzins 114). Transcendentalists were men and women of science and philosophy, who had raised the bar in their demand for a religion that made sense, without the superstition of gender, the myth of race, and without the rigid conjecture of Calvinism. "Reason presents herself before nature, holding in one hand the principles which alone have power to bring into order and harmony the phenomena of nature; in the other hand g rasping the results of experiment conducted according to those principles" (Frothington 8). Theodore Parker, a colleague of Emerson, was a Unitarian preacher who has been credited with giving "shape and meaning to the Transcendental Movement" (Gates 22). These men would bemoan the impoverished educational standards in the US, as well as the lack of a body of literature that we could call distinctly American. The Transcendentalist movement was a rebirth and resurgence of the ancient thinking of the Roman and Greek beliefs in humanism, intuition, and Transcendental Knowledge "which is concerned, not with objects, but with our mode of knowing objects so far as this is possible a prioi (that is, independent of experience)" (Kant qtd. in Wilson). To a large extent this was an extension of the philosophy set down in Immanuel Kant's Critique of Pure Reason (Frothington 3-4). Theodore Parker would argue that "Religion was a simple thing -, a natural thing; a reasonable thing; that the only thing that God required was doing good and being good" (Grodzins 377). While its supporters attempted to simplify and streamline religion, they were often rebuffed because their doctrines varied so widely from the common belief (Grodzins 377). For example, Parker hesitated for more than a year before delivering the sermon Contradictions in Scripture, which illustrated the incongruities between the bible and th e facts of the known universe, and argued that "a man never need try to believe a statement in the Bible which was at variance with his reason and conscience" (Littell and Littell 405). Transcendentalism was fuelling the fires of debate in regards to reason, science, intuition, and things that lay just beyond our experience. Transcendentalism fell under considerable criticism during the 19th century for being what was generally known as Atheistic Idealism. David Nevens Lord, 19th century biblical scholar and author, criticized the philosophy of Samuel Taylor Coleridge1 and noted its similarity to Kant "from whom he drew it, its atheistic character, and its incompatibility with a belief in the great

Monday, August 26, 2019

Hospitality Group Developing your Managerial Skills Essay

Hospitality Group Developing your Managerial Skills - Essay Example 10 Relate Management Skill 10 Compare and Contrast 10 Conclusion 11 References 12 Bibliography 15 Introduction This reflective essay aims to present a brief of my professional development with respect to international and cultural employability skills along with my team development and planning and organising skills which I believe to be quite helpful in deriving better career prospects in hospitality industry. The essay will cover a theoretical explanation of the employability skills I could develop from my previous academic experiences and draw towards a critical review of my learning in these particular areas. In the current phenomenon, diversity is often regarded as one of the vital aspects within the hospitality industry which creates a direct influence on the tastes and preferences of the customers along with the level of commitment and expectations of the employees. The presence of cultural diversity both the internal and the external market of hospitality industry is quite ap parent as compared to the other industry structures. Today, it has widely been argued that managing diversity within the workforce is important as well as a difficult task for managers in the hospitality industry by which organizations can generate greater cultural awareness while operating within international marketplaces. Contextually, the significance of generating cultural awareness and other intertwined employability skills such as team development and planning and organising have often been argued as a crucial facet of hospitality industry. Review of 3 Employability Skills Employability Skill 1: International & Cultural Awareness Literature Review According to Quappe & Cantatore (2005), cultural awareness imposes a direct impact on the communication system of an organisation which comprises the capability of creating consciousness towards the cultural values, beliefs and perceptions in different contexts. In this regard, it has been observed that different cultural groups eva luate and interpret situational components applying different perspectives, which further essentialists the obtainment of cultural awareness among modern day professionals (Quappe & Cantatore, 2005). As explained by Whitelaw & et. al. (2009) cultural diversity is quite apparent in the modern day hospitality sector in the both the dimensions of internal organisational culture (employees/workforce) and external organisational environment (customers/marketplaces). It is in this context that professionals need to continuously enhance and develop their efficiencies in this particular dimension so as to satisfy the contemporary needs of the hospitality industry (Whitelaw & et. al., 2009). According to Hall (2003), cultural awareness is often professed as an attitude which can be obtained from his/her learning experiences by an individual when interacting with various cultural groups. It has further been implied in this context that culture can be distinguished as the big ‘C’ of material culture and smaller ‘c’ of shared culture within an organisation (Hall, 2003). Based on a similar context, Moss (2002) revealed that when students and other academic professionals are engaged with the learning of cultural aspects, they will able to comprehend the

Sunday, August 25, 2019

Theories of Internationalization Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3000 words

Theories of Internationalization - Essay Example This paper takes a comprehensive look at three of these theories: The Uppsala Model, The Eclectic Theory of International Production and Michael Porter Diamond Model. The definitions, assumptions, strengths and weaknesses relating to the above mentioned theories are discussed in this paper. The Uppsala Model The Uppsala Model was developed by Johanson and Vahlne in 1977 from their studies which focused on manufacturing firms of Sweden (Buckley & Ghauri, 1998 p.63). The empirical observations from their studies made them formulate the Uppsala Model. This model is based on the behavioural theory which uses behavioural actions to explain the nature of firms. Internationalization has been described as a process of experiential learning and incremental commitments which leads to an evolutionary development in a foreign market. The model has focused more on acquisition of knowledge and learning. In this regard, the lack of knowledge is seen as a barrier to the development of foreign operat ions. Four core concepts can be extracted from the Uppsala Model. These are market knowledge, market commitment, current activities and commitment decisions (Buckley & Ghauri, 1998 p.66). ... Both kinds of knowledge are required for international initiatives. The objective or general knowledge is easily learnt through teaching and marketing researches while the experiential or market -specific knowledge is only learnt through personal experience and is not transferrable of separable from the source. The model places much emphasis on experiential knowledge because it generates business opportunities and lays the foundation upon which internationalization process takes place. Market commitment concept is built from two factors. They are the amount of resources and the degree of commitment. The amount of resources refers to the size or the scale of investment in terms of marketing, personnel, research and others. The degree of commitment varies depending on the level of integration between the resources and other parts of the firm. The degree is higher if the level of integration is higher. Current activities constitute the main source of experience for a firm. Experience is important because it generates opportunities that lead to market commitments. Other sources of experience would include hiring people with experience, getting advice from other firms and taking over other firms with experience. These options have their limitations. First, the experienced force to be hired may not be available and second, the firms to take over or get advice from may not also be available. The best available option of gaining experience is through current activities which is a slow process (Michael, 2011 p. 39). The current business activities have to be continuous over time in order to realize desired consequences. Therefore, if the lag between the current activities and desired

Saturday, August 24, 2019

THE IMPACT OF TRADE ON LABOUR Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2250 words

THE IMPACT OF TRADE ON LABOUR - Essay Example Then it has collected some data of international trade volume and unemployment rate of a developing and a developed nation to find out whether any strong relationship does exist between the two variables. On the basis of its research, the study has come to the conclusion that trade does not significantly affect labor market in real world. Introduction: According to the Economic theory, we know that there are gains from trade. But these gains are reflected as net gains. Despite there been a secular increase in both exports and imports and has been regarded as a percentage of Gross National Product which is considered to be beneficial for the economy and also though the increased exports have generated additional employment opportunities, but still these changes have been accompanied by reduced employment opportunities and adjustment burdens for workers in import-competing industries. The workers had to adapt themselves to the new working environment of changing demand conditions in th e import competing industries which involve extended periods of job research, restraining and relocation which demands to be a bit costly venture. As per the analysis, women and the minorities, the less educated and the lower paid groups, as compared to men, had to take more burdens on themselves and they were not in a position to afford the cost even. Since the last two decades, quite a number of developing countries have undergone liberalization of their trade regimes. The proponents of such liberalization have argued that one of the chief beneficiaries of greater openness to trade is the workers in these countries. Basically, trade liberalization with abundant supply of labor has encouraged producers to reallocate output towards labor intensive goods. Hence the resulting increase in the demand for labor, given the labor market conditions, has translated into some condition of an increase in employment and wages. The logic behind this argument has been totally justified and compel ling and has been supported by the proponents of early liberalization as the Newly Industrialized Economies of East Asia like Hong Kong, Korea, Singapore and Taiwan. According to Robbins in the year 1996, and Wood in 1997, recent episodes of trade liberalization have appeared not to have been associated with large improvements in prospects for the typical worker. The apparent divergence between the expectations of liberalization advocates and the recent evidence has been explained by various factors. For example, the liberalization in trade has lead to an inflow of new technologies from abroad. But in this case, the growing evidence suggests that the new technologies are increasingly skill biased and therefore according to the recent episodes of trade liberalization that may lead to an increased demand for workers but that will comprised of less number of workers who are highly skilled, as per Wood in 1997. ( Wood, 1997) On the other way, the available evidence may be incomplete in some important ways. As for example, it has been highly observed that the short run effects of liberalization are likely to be adverse for aggregate labor, even among the proponents of trade liberalization. It takes a lot of time for resources to get reallocated in new firms and industries and it is also possible that the available time series is not enough to capture the effects of trade fully. In a similar way, the number of countries that have been taken into observation may not be the most appropriate ones.

Friday, August 23, 2019

Cultural Challenges within a Health Care System Essay

Cultural Challenges within a Health Care System - Essay Example It is in this regard that this essay aims to present what the concept of culture is. Further, this paper would delve into the challenges this concept has to perceptions of health and illness in the health care profession. Finally, concrete examples of the challenges in Arabic culture would be provided for clarity and confirmation. Delaune and Ladner (2006) in their book on Fundamentals of Nursing defined culture as â€Å"knowledge, beliefs, behaviors, ideas, attitudes, values, habits, customs, languages, symbols, rituals, ceremonies, and practices that are unique to a particular group of people†. (p.388) Simple folks ordinarily know culture as a way of life. To enable a health practitioner to incorporate the concept of culture and be able to address the challenges associated in the effective delivery of healthcare, one should be aware of the concept of cultural competence. According to Campinha-Bacote (1996) cultural competence is "a process, not an end point, in which the nurse continuously strives to achieve the ability to effectively work within the cultural context of an individual, family or community from a diverse cultural/ethnic background†. (p.6) The attainment of cultural competence is viewed as a process that links cultural awareness, cultural knowledge, cultural skill, cultural encounter and cultural desire. There are six organizational factors which were identified in two separate studies. When combined, these factors provide a guideline for nursing implications relative to a particular cultural group. The organizational factors presented by Spector (2004) and Stanhope and Lancaster (2004) distinguishes outstanding cultural aspects grouped accordingly, and would assist nurses in providing the appropriate patient care. These factors are: (1) communication; (2) space; (3) time orientation; (4) social organization; (5) environmental control; and (6) biological evaluations. â€Å"Arabic is the key to understanding the Arabs, their culture, and

Thursday, August 22, 2019

Leadership Styles Essay Example for Free

Leadership Styles Essay The leadership styles of the United States Presidents can make them effective or it can limit their effectiveness. The effectiveness of the President has direct effect on the American people. Presidents Dwight Eisenhower and John Kennedy were two leaders that had major influences in the mid-20th century. Both men played a key role in the United States involvement in Vietnam. The experiences, styles of leading, and characteristics of both President’s Dwight Eisenhower and John F. Kennedy intensified the level of involvement the United States had in the Vietnam experience. Even though the leadership styles may have differed, the two leaders refused to let communism spread (Moss, 2010). Presidents Eisenhower and Kennedy’s leadership style although different had similar qualities. President Eisenhower and Kennedy could be considered to have the leadership styles of both the â€Å"Director† and â€Å"Navigator†. Thomas Preston has explained a Director style is a leader with â€Å"both extensive policy experience and a high need for power† (Preston, 2001). Directors have direct involvement in policy process by setting guidelines and advocating for their own personal views. The Navigator also has extensive expertise in policy but they also search for the opinions and viewpoints of other advisors. Navigators will gather the information and from the multiple different perspectives have a more deliberate decision making style. Without having a Navigator sense of style, the effectiveness of any leader can be limited because of a lack of information gathered and reviewed for decision. President Eisenhower proved his leadership style by the way he was involved in the political unrest in Vietnam. According to Preston, President Eisenhower â€Å"preferred formal, hierarchically organized advisory structure where information and advice could be centralized into a small inner circle of advisers† (Preston, 2001). However because of the President’s expertise in foreign policy he had a very active personal role in the policy process and delegated very little to other expert advisors. Eisenhower’s own preferences in policy lead to the policy decisions. President Eisenhower gave the command to intervene in southern Vietnam and replace the French (Moss, 2010). This was to maintain a non-Communist state thereby halting the potential spread of Communism. President Kennedy was interested in multiple perspectives on policy; he listened to different sources on conflicting views and planned for debates prior to decision making (Preston, 2001). Kennedy wanted political rest and peace in Vietnam but knew that without US involvement, the fighting and attacks on Vietnam would increase. Because of this, the United States became more heavily involved which meant more military forces and money being spent. Kennedy had made decisions to violate the provisions of the Geneva agreements of 1954, thereby increasing the U.S. military significantly in Vietnam. â€Å"Kennedy was not trying to win in Vietnam: he was doing only enough not to lose† (Moss, 2010). This sense of leadership by Kennedy was devised to protect the U.S. by only having a limited partnership with the Vietnam government. For President Kennedy, as a Director, he kept active involvemen t in policy process and needed assurance that his own thoughts and ideas would dominate the end result. However, as the Navigator, he trusted his advisory team and kept an open advisory system â€Å"characterized by a mixed formal-informal advice network† (Preston, 2001). With the dual leadership style the President called for the heavy military involvement in Vietnam in 1965 (Moss, 2010). By having expertise in foreign affairs and taking the advice of his advisors, President Kennedy made the important decision to become more involved in the war efforts. For the United States, the President’s leadership is very important. The President is the countries representation. It is both very prestigious and powerful to be voted in as President of the United States. The President has the ability to keep the United States from war, or send us to war. The President is in charge of the military, deciding where troops should be stationed and how weapons should be used. That is great power, and without the backing of the American people the President and his cabinet wouldn’t be as powerful as they are. The American people need to know that the President has their best interest in mind. In conclusion, regardless of who the President is, the need for leadership is of great importance. By having both the Director and Navigator style leadership, the role of the President can be effective. The expertise, the desire to have a powerful role but also having the willingness to view other opinions for decision making is essential to making a great leader. The role the President has to be one that is inspiring to the American people but also the American people need to trust their leader, without trust there would be weakness.

Wednesday, August 21, 2019

Types of Online Presence Essay Example for Free

Types of Online Presence Essay Amazon= Amazon is a brick and click business this means that it can only be connected through the internet and it has got a wide range of consumers who are mainly over 18 (you will not be able to purchase goods from the internet)  Name of Online Business: Amazon  Target market: Amazon target customers of any age who have an interest in just about anything from books to furniture to toys to clothes. They used to be an online bookstore and so thats where their sales were based on. Who are their competitors?  Although they are online their competitors are companies such as Argos, Whsmiths, and Waterstones.  What is the online businesss offer?  They sell products such as books, computer games, and electronics and home furnishings.  Do I think that the website is effective and why?  I think that Amazons website is effective because it is easy to use, the look and feel of it warms to me as I believe it feels like it is ideal for me to browse on. The structure of the website is well supported because it shows me in straight points what each product has to offer and how much they are Name of Online Business: Misco  Target Market:  Their marketplace is aimed at people who have an interest in electrical goods and wish to purchase goods such as office supplies, computers, cables, CDs and security products.  Who are their competitors?  An example of two competitors for Misco is PC World and Maplin  What is the online businesss offer? : Misco is a leading online provider of IT services and products to the public and private sector. They offer great deals for home, business and public sector establishments. Do I think that the website is effective and why?  I think that Miscos website is effective because it is easy to use, the look and feel of it warms to me it feels like it is ideal for me to browse on. The structure of the website is well supported because it shows me in straight points what each product has to offer.  Name of Online Business: HMV generates sales revenue through the sale of good in store like CDs, books and DVDs. This is the main front runner in sales, creating large profits in the millions especially when new CDs and DVDs are released. Target market: Their target market is aimed at people who want to purchase DVDs, posters  Who are their competitors?  WhSmiths, supermarkets such as Tesco and Sainsburys, Amazon, Play.com and other mass merchant retailers.  What is the online businesss offer? : They offer products such as CDs, DVDs, and books.  Task 2 (P2 M1) Describe the planning and implementation issues a business would need to consider to go online  The planning and implementation issues that a business needs to consider when going online are things such as: Human resources  Human resources is when an organisation describes the application of skills, knowledge and experience. The most skilful person who has the experience needs to be hired and the employer needs to think about whether this employee is right to leave the website creating tasks to as it could be a mistake to use a wrong person who may not be experienced. Delivery to warehouses  Delivery is when something is delivered to someone and they pay for the item either online or in person. You need to plan where you are going to have the warehouse and whether it is a suitable and well reliable place to store stock. The reason being is because when someone orders something online you will need to let the courier know where the warehouse is and you should have the address on the website so that you can keep the customers informed of where their items are going to be distributed from. Customers  Customers are people who buy your product and help fund your wages or help the business run successfully. You will need to start attracting your customers before you can start to show your business online because there will be no point in having the business if the potential customers know nothing about the newly formed business. There needs to be a lot of advertisements distributed so that the customers can find out what the business is all about and if there is a website something to look at for extra information. Security  Security is protection against danger, loss and criminal acts. Security is important for both parties- the user and the person who is buying items off the website. The reason being is because the customer needs to be careful about distributing their personal details about themselves online because anyone could steal the details and someone could steal their identity and pretend to be the owner of the card. Also the website may be insecure. Everyone knows about the credit crunch and the recession and they may not want to purchase things online using a credit or debit card. Legal Issues  There are some laws that the owner of the website will need to abide by. They are the Trade Description Act, Sales of Goods Act and the Consumer Protection Act. If the website owner is having images or worded information distributed on the website they have to be complied with the copyright act. The reason being is because whatever they have put on their website they have to make sure that it isnt a part of someone elses work, otherwise the actual owner could press charges and want to sue the owner for copyright infringement and may have to come up with a hell of a lot of money for payment.

Tuesday, August 20, 2019

Impact of Globalisation on Construction Industry

Impact of Globalisation on Construction Industry In his book The Lexus and the Olive tree Thomas Friedman (2000) described the world as becoming an increasingly interwoven place, and whether you are a company or a country, your threats and opportunities increasingly derive from who you are connected to. Furthermore, it defined globalisation as .a web-like structure .. An inexorable integration of markets, nation-states and technologies to a degree never witnessed before- in a way that is enabling individuals, corporations and nation-states to reach around the world farther, faster, deeper and cheaper than ever before. Globalisation aided by an increased availability of cheap accessible information and technology has broken down to a far greater extent the walls of protectionism and trade barriers making it easier for someone in a remote city of Brazzaville (Congo) to carryout business transactions like buying and selling of shares in the world stock market, engage in joint venture enterprise, carryout international procurement, import and export goods and services from all over the world without leaving the sitting room. This integration of markets and economies with the aid of information and technology described in many writings as globalisation or free market economy has created a huge opportunity for business and investments worldwide. These investments on the other hand creates interdependency on individuals, companies and nation-states performance and high economic risks which has had disastrous effects all over the world like the Latin American debt crisis in the late 1980s, the Southeast Asian recession of the late 90s and the recent world economic recession. This presentation will explain what globalisation means for everybody from the ordinary man in the street to the CEO of a local company and up to a countrys economic and political stability. Section 2 will define globalisation, its features and what it means to everyone, it will also explore the standing of the construction industry in the worlds economy. Section 3 will discuss the impact and challenges of globalisation on the construction and engineering industry aided by a brief imaginary scenario. Aim To discuss the impact of globalisation on construction companies and their products, services and projects. Section 2 Understanding globalisation Discussions of globalisation are currently dominating the intellectual and public discourse. It could mean different things to different people hence the multiple definitions attached to it. While some view it as an evil trend towards dehumanization and economic domination others view it as a multifaceted phenomenon that pauses challenges and offers opportunities (Mahgoub, 2004). The French and other continental europeans for example see globalisation as a new form of imperialism (from the US) or as a new stage of capitalism in the age of electronics (Intriligator, 2004). Intriligator (2004) described it as major increases in worldwide trade and exchanges in an increasingly open, integrated, and borderless international economy, not only in traditional international trade in goods and services, but also in exchanges of currencies; in capital movements; in technology transfer; in people moving through international travel and migration; and in international flow of information and ideas. Finally, Yeung (2009) considers globalisation as necessarily an integrating set of tendencies that operate on the global scale and intensify connections and flows across territorial borders and regions citing what it calls the ruthless penetration of global cultures epitomized by McDonalds, Hollywood movies, MTV, and internet as an example. Govindarajan and Gupta (2000) defined what globalisation could mean to three different level of aggregation: To the entire world, globalisation refers to the aggregate level of economic interdependence among the various countries examplified by the fact that the total asset size of cross-border mergers and acquisitions grew by 15.5 per cent in 1996, 45.2 per cent in 1997 and 73.9 per cent in 1998 (UNCTAD, 1999) To a specific country, globalisation refers to the extent of the interlinkages between that particular countrys economy and the rest of the world measured through exports and imports as a ratio of GDP, inward and outward flow of both foreign direct investment and portfolio investment, and inward and outward flows of royalty payments associated with technology transfer. To a specific industry, globalisation refers to the degree to which, within that industry, a companys competitive position within one country is interdependent with its competitive position in another country measured by the extent of cross-border trade within the industry as a ratio of total worlwide production, extent of cross-border investment as a ratio of total capital invested in that industry, and proportion of industry revenue accounted for by players competing in all major regions of the world. Pre-history But of all the different definitions and interpretations surrounding globalisation, one thing is sure; globalisation is not a new thing. Some economists and historians has suggested that present day globalisation is little more than a return to the world economy of the late 19th and early 20th century, of the century from the congress of Vienna in 1815, the period 1870 to 1913 and from the outbreak of world war 1 in 1914 to the fall of the Berlin wall in 1989 (Intriligator, 2004, Friedman, 2000, Hutton, 2008). At that time borders were relatively open and there were substantial international capital flows and migrations of people, when the major nations of Europe depended critically on international trade as part of the colonial system (Friedman, 2000, Intriligator, 2004). What differentiates this era from the past era of globalisation is the sheer number of people and countries involved and the intensity driven by several unprecedented developments like: Technological advances Technological advances has lowered significantly the cost of everything from transportation, communication, data processing, information storage and retrieval and human resources development. Tools like internet and mobile phones has enhanced the way countries and industries relate to each other bringing everybody closer. It has also contributed to rural developments by empowering emerging nations to shop around in the international arena for partners, investors and best financial deals for their respective projects thereby reducing the level of under-developments and poverty and at the same time providing substantial potential opportunities for MNCs and investors from the developed nations. Many companies locate different parts of their production, research and marketing units in different countries but still bring them together through videoconferencing, internet and emails Trade liberalization: the 1946 General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT) adopted by many nations has been the key to a series of reductions in the tariffs levied on manufactured goods thereby opening different markets and fostering trade around the world. The agreement which later evolved into the World Trade Organisation (WTO) has been accredited to the rapid developement of the BRIC nations(Brazil, Russia, India and China) whose manufactured products like heavy machineries, technology transfers and consumer goods are being sold worlwide bringing-in lots of foreign reserves and an increase in their Gross Domestic Production (GDP) and an advantageous trade surplus to some countries like China. Also successive rounds of multilateral trade negotiations, together with regional arrangements such as the European Union,the North American Free Trade Agreement, and the Australia-New Zealand Closer Economic Relations agreement, have been major forces for international liberalization (Hufbauer and Warren, 1999) Economic liberalization The gradual elimination of restrictions on Foreign Direct Investments put in place after WWII liberalised international capital movements. Foreign Direct Investments (FDI) means the amount of investment a company from country A can make in country B. These investments could be in the form of acquisitions, joint ventures, management and consultancy, technological transfer or simply building a production unit in a foreign country. The most profound effect has been seen in developing countries, where yearly foreign direct investment flows have increased from an average of less than $10 billion in the 1970s to a yearly average of less than $20 billion in the 1980s, exploding from $26.7billion in 1990 to $179 billion in 1998 and $208 billion in 1999. FDI into developed countries in 2004 rose to $636 billion, from $481 billion in 1998 (source: UNCTAD cited by Jeffery P. Graham, 2005). It has been made possible by the elimination of restrictions by the receiving countries, cheaper and easie r access to information technology and low global communication costs. Others Other factors like: immigration which has witnessed lesser restriction due to lower travelling costs economic shifts in balance and governments policies industrial revolution better construction material and equipment convergence of ideology experienced at the end of the cold war with the survival of capitalism over socialism social welfare reforms contributed a lot in differentiating the era of globalisation we live in now to the era before WW 1 II and have seen the construction and engineering sector experience a radical growth as never seen before. Construction and engineering The construction industry today is a global industry which according to Krisen Moodley et al, (2008) means the operation of contractors and consultants across international markets, in a globalized context with supply chains, specialists, plant and equipment sourced across the world. This section will identify the place of the construction industry in a global environment. Global construction industry. The global construction industry consists of the procurement of new projects, increasing commitment for the provision of services, equipment, components, materials, maintenance, finance, operations and research development (Krisen Moodley, 2008). Private sector participation is actively sought in the whole gamut of project phases-financing, construction, operation, etc. especially in major capital-intensive infrastructure projects. The design and consultancy services traded are knowledge-based and high value-added, with the materials most frequently traded as either resource-specific or technology-dependent (Drewer, 1990). Globalisation pressures have created more opportunities for contractors to enter international construction market which are valued at approximately $3.4 trillion out of which, only 3.4% of its potential volume ($116 billion) is actually open to a fully international competitive market and being done by multinational foreign firms (Seung H. Han et al, 2005). As examples, in Dubai, the consultants, contractors, labour, technology, materials and equipment are sourced from across the world, while the iconic Wembley stadium in London had an Australian contractor, multinational designers, Dutch steel contractors, American security specialists and a range of international materials suppliers (Krisen Moodley, 2008). Major projects like the Suez Canal in 1959-1969, the Panama Canal in 1900-1914, the New Hong Kong Airport, the Channel Tunnel and the Three Gorges Dam in China were carried out by contractors and consultants from different countries. Migration of the construction industrys major players was prompted by international trade and the quest by countries with sufficient non construction resources to satisfy their construction requirements. The oil rich countries of the Middle East were major promoters of this trend during the 1970s and 1980s although it actually started centuries ago during the era of industrialisation. One form of industrialisation then was prefabrication, which is based on the industrial manufacture of building components off-site or near the site. As long as the late 19th century, the British were sending prefabricated housing to Australia and Africa, and in 1830s, the manning portable Colonial Cottage for Emigrants was being produced and shipped to sites around the world (A.B.Ngowi, 2005). Globalisation and construction Earlier success in trade liberalization sparked an expansion of trade and FDI, increasing the demand for cross-border capital flows. This has increased the pressure for liberalization of capital markets, forcing more and more countries to open their capital accounts which in turn led to liberalization of Foreign Direct Investments and privatization tournaments (Dieter Ernst, 2002) providing Global corporations with a greater range of choices for market entry and better access to external resources and capabilities. Today with the aid of globalised economy, technological advancements, free market and cultural harmonization, more construction firms are shifting their strategies towards achieving global market shares through joint ventures, acquisitions and FDI bringing in exchange, technological advances associated with formidable construction technology, enhanced management systems for scheduling, material tracking, subcontractors organisation, and financial capability which enable them to obtain good and low interest finance from major financiers, added Raftery et al, (1998). Institutional, legal and economic reforms that aided the globalisation of the construction and engineering industry include: unified levy system as well as business tax, consumption tax and VAT, economic liberalization, relaxation in foreign equity (allowed up to 100%) in many countries, end to the non-discrimantion for domestic and foreign companies in bidding for public works, deregulation and liberalization measures in housing market especially the abolition of price controls and land use intensity controls, privatization programmes and employment of foreign labour and 100% equity in Build Operate and Transfer concessions (Raftery et al, 1998) amongst others. Section 3 Discussion If cash, commodity and creativity are the key ingredients needed for a country to succeed in the changing global economy, as described by Lyons (2010), what does the construction and Engineering need to succed in this leaderless globalisation system?. The global finance maret from where the industry obtains financing for its activities is so interdependent that it poses a huge threat and opportunity to the industry. A brief ilustration could be helpful in explaining this interdependence and its effects. Case scenario The Salisbury sports club, home of Zimbabwean cricket team in Harare, constructed by the British colonial masters in the days of Rhodesia, once had a capacity of 26,000 people in 1956. 54 years later it can only take 10,000 so the government decides that the stadium capacity needs to be increased to 35,000 to reflect the current passion of cricket in the country. Zimbabwe with an inflation rate of over 900%, can neither afford to finance the project by itself or borrow from the international market and as such, its options are quite limited. It posted an open tender process invitation for the project on their website with preferred procurement method being FDBOT (Finance, Design, Operate and transfer) for a period between 25-30 years. One major obstacle apart from the economy, pointed out by contractors interested in the project is that there still exists restrictions on the ownership of land and public infrastructures in the country so the parliament in Harare had to remove these re strictions to attract foreign investors to their project. Being a major project of over  £300m, the winning consortia led by Arup Engineering was made up of Barclays bank investment banking (supported by Chinese investment fund, pension fund from canada and mutual fund from the US), Masuita electrical company from Japan and Usiminas Steel company from Brazil. With the restriction lifted and the contract signed, the project started with the major contractor Arup bringing in technological prowess, management know-how and the money. Local construction industries were used for their understanding of the area and provision of cheap labour while plants and equipments were supplied by a company from neighbouring South Africa. 10 months into the project, while the individual zimbabwean involved with the project was just about getting to reap the benefit of a steady job and income, the Thailandese government posted a glum economic expectation and insinuated doubt on the countries capacity to pay back loans from the world bank. This less than expected prediction sent a wave to the stock market in the asian region prompting investors to start dumping Thailandese bonds and taking their money to invest elsewhere. The question is: what has Thailand economy got to do with cricket stadium in Harare? Well, this massive sales made asian bonds as a whole lose almost 50 to 60% of their value which means that banks (including Barclays) and funds including (Pension funds from Canada) which invested in those bonds lost a considerable amount of their investment. But unconsciously, in a rush to put their money in a secured investment, the investors pushed the price of commodities up especially steel that rose from  £250/ tonne to  £435/tonne. It wasnt long before the stadium project in Harare grinded to a halt. Reasons being that Barclays is the red and are currently speaking with the Qatari Investment group for bailout which if it fails, they could end up being owned by the taxpayers, the pension fund has suffered huge losses and are restructuring their management and this new team are reviewing all investments, the doubled price of steel means that Usiminas cannot deliver at the contracted price and wishes to revise the terms of the contract, the delays meant that expected date for the inaguration of the stadium was delayed by what could be one year and brings with it a substantial loss of fund from patronisers, the government of Harare are helpless, they have no control over immediate or future event concerning the project. Analysis Although this is an imaginary scenario, it reflects what globalisation can bring to an industry like construction (expectations and pit falls) and how helpless the feeling can be when the table turns. All because of the interdependent global economy, trade and capital liberalization. Challenges Globalisation represents a major challenge and at the same time an unprecedented opportunity for the construction and engineering industry in terms of greater access to finance for concession projects etc, greater accessibility to FDI, greater specialization and division of labour on a world-wide level, greater opportunity for the local industry to acquire technological know-how and strategic positioning for the established company for a more competitive market. According to YIP et al (2006), companies with an established source of competitive advantage from its home or other existing country markets often finds it easier to increase global market share by adding new countries rather than by trying to increase share in existing countries. This gives them competitive edge in an increasingly globalised market open to stiff global competition. Competition stretched in all areas of the industry from products and services to quality of those products and services, cost, time and process innovation. Scale Although in a globalised construction market, there seems to be something for everyone, most projects are large scale construction which only the large technologically qualified contractors can carry out due to, sometimes added prequalification requirements in the bidding process, one which requires firms to demonstrate having secured certain amount of contracts with comparable magnitude and complexity which in turn, precludes medium-size operators or contractors. Growth That the industry has gone global does not mean fatter pockets. Although rationalization of production and the spread of technology including pressures for continual innovation globally will lead to increased productivity and efficiency it also drive costs down. Research has shown that profitability declines (fig.1) as companies begin to internationalise their business due to the difficulties of learning how to do so especially in different cultural setting. It gradually increases as the objective, of increasing market share, is achieved. Protectionism Concerns has risen as to the challenges globalisation poses to the construction and engineering sectors in emerging economies because of the divergence or polarisation of profits worldwide where bigger foreign industries backed by their governments and financial institutions witness a rapid growth while the locals industry play catch up. Globalisation to E C means gradual erosion of barriers that hinder foreign companies from participating in local markets hence eliminating the distinction between local, regional and national markets. It means that international firms with capability continues to penetrate local markets leaving local consultants and contractors underdeveloped and in most areas out of the business. This might lead to protectionism or trade war as we are beginning to see with the currency war going on between the US and China. Vulnerability Also critics has underlined the perceived loss of sovereignty of national governments and political leaders due to the continuous influence of the investors (including MNCs) and international financiers in state affairs in an effort to protect their respective interests. Mutual vulnerability due to the fragility and interdependence of the international economic system, and the distribution of wealth created through globalisation which has seen more nations grow faster than others. While globalisation has been spearheaded by the cross-border operations of transnational corporations, the spatial transfer of business and industrial practices is by no means unproblematic. There remain significant place-based institutional limits to the globalisation of business cultures; and economic practices. For example, while capital can be transferred almost effortless across space, labour remains highly place-bound and locally embedded (Yeung, 2009) Finance and economy Shift in economic balance brought by globalisation means different challenges for developed and emerging markets. While the developed-world are expected to cut back their fiscal deficit, emerging world are to maintain low debt-to-GDP ratios, their undervalued currencies, low-cost labour, high savings rate, exports and investment in infrastructure to sustain global uncertainties. Globalisation has favoured construction industries from developed contries, constraining the involvement of lesser developed industries as they lack access to cheap financial markets and technology, making it difficult for them to compete. They can only show advantage perhaps in the area of labour deployment. Regional instability Globalisation has increased the risk of major regional and global instabilities due to the interdependence of economies. Its negative effect is devastating for the construction and engineering sector as witnessed by the recent global economic meltdown. Many countries like Spain, Italy, Portugal and Greece that sustained a major part of their economy on the construction industry suffered heavily and have been finding it hard to restructure their respective economies ever since. The scars of the negative effect of economic interdependence could still be seen in those countries and others in the middle east like Dubai where loads of buildings remain uncompleted and the completed ones remain empty because the banks cannot lend to buyers, buyers cannot buy houses, the builder cannot sell hence cannot pay either the borrowed loans or the building contractors. Local contractors In Spain for example the recent economic meltdown forced one third of local contractors to close down while the remaining ones are with a considerably reduced portfolio because of their interface with major international contractors and consultants with global reputation and work portfolio that simply went burst when their cash flow seized. Some fortunate international contractors and consultants including David Langdon had to be absorbed by bigger and more stable companies to remain in the business. Impact on businesses Competition Globalisation forces down the price of construction services by reducing the ability of firms to obtain excess margins through competitive pressure. Also, in the face of a margin squeeze, firms seek to reduce cost through the use of best available technology these cost reductions are in turn passed on to consumers in the form of lower prices. Companies in developed markets suffering from slower economic conditions are looking even more urgently to emerging markets, where more robust economies, substantial oil revenues and major deficits in the existing infrastructure spell opportunity, thereby fostering competition . Additionally, certain mature markets also seek to recruit offshore and bring in talent to meet demand on domestic projects (Hook, 2008). Costs Globalisation allows construction and engineering firms to achieve economies of scale as they are increasingly liberated from the size constraints of their home markets. In technical terms, the demand elasticity coefficients facing individual firms increase with globalisation (Hufbauer and Warren, 1999). They will also need to lobby to lower barriers that protect their suppliers, so they can take advantage of the law of one price in input markets. If inputs remain high or suppliers are unreliable, firms will be forced to relocate to countries where purchased input prices are lower and quality higher, finalised Hufbauer and warren, (1999). Procurement Globalisation has changed the way procurement is done. Participation of foreign contractors in domestic markets in the 1970s was as a result of pressure from donor agencies as a price for accepting their aid or funding, their projects. Today, advocates for trade not aid are thanking globalisation for creating opportunities for investment exemplified by the Chinese investment in infrastructure in Africa which according to McRae (2010) is much larger than all Western aid programmes put together- real trade not aid. FDI still remains the preferred method but other means in which foreign investors may acquire an effective voice in an enterprise rather than through FDI include subcontracting, management contracts, turnkey arrangements, franchising, leasing, licensing and production sharing (UNCTAD, 2002) Commodities Globalisation also have a huge impact on the factors of production which Bryan (2010) considers as where the real integration of the worlds economy begins. Bryan identified commodities, capital and labour as crucial towards understanding structural economic issues. On commodities it means that most natural resources and manufactured commodities like steel, aluminium, bauxite, crude oil, iron ore, with a global common price attached to it are expensive to producers in countries with weaker currencies. Simply put, commodity prices are too high in emerging-market countries which mean they use fewer commodities than they would and too low in developed-world countries which means they use more commodities than they should. Furthermore the fact that commodities prices are set in truly global markets where nations have little power over prices suggests that financial tension will build earlier and with greater volatility. Growth and cooperation Globalisation has brought growth to emerging countries that has invested substantially in the built environment; building and infrastructure; and has a huge dependency on imported construction services like the Asian countries. It brought huge profits as well to the contractors involved accounting for around 33% of their international earnings in 1996 (ENR, 1997). There is far more cooperation, consumer value changes, and the blurring of business borderlines in this global environment as global construction has to create and manage new forms of relationships with suppliers, producers, clients, financiers, governments and third sector groups (Moodley et al, 2008). The more usual arrangement for large projects now being for contractors, developers and financiers to form consortia in order to seize these players respective expertise, in addition to reducing project risks. This formation of strategic alliances would be an effective way of overcoming weakness or draw-backs that a firm may be exposed to in the increasingly competitive domestic or international setting (Raftery et al, 1998). For the local industry, it provides an opportunity to work with and comply with international standards, increase their efficiency and quality of work hence preparing them to be more competitive. Domestic policies Governments in a bid to attract increased foreign private sector equity into domestic construction markets are carrying out further institutional reforms, particularly in the banking and financial sectors and adopting certain measures like: Removing or relaxing barriers in the tax repatriation of profits Adopting a transaprent tax policy by way of granting equal tax treatment to foreign and local companies Adopting double taxation relief agreements with other countries Offering preferential interest rates for joint ventures where there is equity majority by local partners Entering bilateral agreements with foreign governments to guarantee safety of foreign investments Relaxed imposed ceilings on foreign equity on construction and development firms These policies as described by raftery et al (1998) brings in advantages like the interaction of foreign and local partners complementing each other. while the domestic associates having better understanding of the local working conditions takes care of the sources of labour and materials, the foreign firms bring into the joint venture their higher expertise in finance, technology and management know-how, creating a healthier, robust environment for private sector investment. Section 4 Conclusion This paper analysed the origin of the new era of globalisation the world lives in today, defining what it means to different aggregations. Construction as an industry has contributed enormously to the worlds economic growth with its estimated value of US$4trillion but has suffered equally when the world economy went burst due to its global interface with the financiers of their worldwide activities. Globalisation brought far more cooperation, consumer value changes, and the blurring of business borderlines in this global environment as consultants, contractor, designers, financiers, governments, labour, material suppliers, technology suppliers, plant and equipment specialists all converge in a new form of relationship aimed at a better working environment towards delivering a common project. Deregulations, affordable technology, trade liberalization and economic market policies has been the main drive for globalisation and the same vehicle has been responsible for driving many construction firms, especially from developed countries, through Foreign Direct Investments (FDI), joint ventures, acquisition etc into local and domestic construction markets both in developed and emerging countries. The impact has been huge from high profits and stronger multinationals to technological trans

office ladies Essay -- essays research papers

Ogasawara’s article takes an interesting approach in analyzing the behavior of office ladies. She starts out by saying that women are the ones that are working under the men and that they have to be subordinate. She also talks about how men have more power and room to grow in their careers while the office ladies are stuck in their positions as they are and aren’t expected to try hard and do well since there is no room to be promoted. It seems as if the article is going in the direction of talking about the hardships of office ladies at this point. However, the article takes a sharp turn and starts talking about how the office ladies actually have an advantage. Although they are at the bottom they actually have the most power over what goes on at the top. An office lady can choose to do the work for a manager if she likes him or decide that she is too busy that day and skip her assignment. This will affect the male’s performance since his work may not get done o n time. It is for this reason that the male managers pamper the office ladies and try to stay popular with them. They even have certain holidays such as Valentine’s day that test the popularity of the managers by the amount of gifts that they receive. The manager’s whole career depends on how well he manages his employees so he tends to try very hard to get as many gifts as he can from the office ladies. The manager makes sure that he is liked. The end of the article talks about how this whole system is degrading to w... office ladies Essay -- essays research papers Ogasawara’s article takes an interesting approach in analyzing the behavior of office ladies. She starts out by saying that women are the ones that are working under the men and that they have to be subordinate. She also talks about how men have more power and room to grow in their careers while the office ladies are stuck in their positions as they are and aren’t expected to try hard and do well since there is no room to be promoted. It seems as if the article is going in the direction of talking about the hardships of office ladies at this point. However, the article takes a sharp turn and starts talking about how the office ladies actually have an advantage. Although they are at the bottom they actually have the most power over what goes on at the top. An office lady can choose to do the work for a manager if she likes him or decide that she is too busy that day and skip her assignment. This will affect the male’s performance since his work may not get done o n time. It is for this reason that the male managers pamper the office ladies and try to stay popular with them. They even have certain holidays such as Valentine’s day that test the popularity of the managers by the amount of gifts that they receive. The manager’s whole career depends on how well he manages his employees so he tends to try very hard to get as many gifts as he can from the office ladies. The manager makes sure that he is liked. The end of the article talks about how this whole system is degrading to w...

Monday, August 19, 2019

Greek Goddesses Essay -- essays research papers

The Greek Goddesses In Greek mythology the gods and goddesses of Mount Olympus played a major role in everyday life. The Greeks respected them and thought of the gods as all mighty. In Ancient Greece the people honored and believe in the deities. Myths, poems, and epics tell the stories and beliefs referring to the gods and goddesses. Many literary works display the power and jobs of the goddesses. The Greek people lived to please the deities in hope of gaining a better lifestyle. The goddesses of Greece acted as an important part of Greek mythology ( Hamilton 28-35 ).   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚     Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Historians placed the goddesses into categories. The first category included the major goddesses of Olympus. The goddesses placed in this category were Hera, Athena, Aphrodite, Hestia, Demeter, and Artemis because most people knew and worshipped them. The people held these six goddesses the most high and with the most respect ( Hamilton 28 ).   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Hera, the goddess of the protection of marriage, took care of married women. The sister and also wife of Zeus, the king of the gods, Hera may be the most well known of the goddesses. The Titans of the Ocean along with the Tethys raised Hera ( Hamilton 28 ). Most people knew Ilithyia , Hera’s daughter, for her help of women through childbirth. Hera held the city of Argos sacred along with the peacock and cow. In Roman mythology, the name of Hera was changed to Juno, queen of goddesses ( Pinset 20 ).   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Artemis, or Diana in Roman mythology, had the role of Leto and Zeus’s daughter and also twin sister of god Apollo. Known as the goddess of wildlife and hunting, Artemis held all animals sacred, but the deer more then any other. Artemis also held the cypress tree sacred. Not many myths feature this goddess, but she lives on through the years in poems and other works ( Hunt 3 ).   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Many myths from the Greeks feature Athena, or Minerva as known to the Romans. Myths say that Athena had a very original birth. Some writers have said that Hephaestus took an ax and shaved her from Zeus’s forehead and therefore she has no mother ( Pinset 22 ). Zeus thought of Athena as his favorite child and she had the privilege of using his weapons. First known as the guardian of the city and ... ... they harmed the Earth in any way that Gaea would smite them. This goddess protected the planet and so played an important role in the Greek beliefs ( Hamilton 64 ).   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Hebe, the goddess of youth and wife of Hercules, maintained throughout time an image like that of a child. The Greeks thought of her as playful, sweet, kind, and trusting. Along with Ganymede, Hebe acted as a cupbearer to the Gods of Olympus ( Hunt 2 ).   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The portrayal of the goddesses in many myths was that of a beautiful and majestic creature which contained many aspects to her personality. These personalities live on today through stories in the forms of poems, myths, and epic tales. Modern movies, art, and literature help to show these creations of the Greeks in powerful along with interesting ways. The goddesses of Ancient Greece impacted Greek culture in such ways that people today know the goddesses in the same aspect the Greeks did. The Greek goddesses of Mount Olympus will forever live in the literature of Greek writers along with writers of today. The importance of the goddesses to the Greeks will remain high for years to come.