Lottery By Shirley Jackson Essays (744 words) - Dystopian Literature

Lottery By Shirley Jackson In many stories, settings are constructed to help build the mood and to foreshadow of things to come. "The Lottery" by Shirley Jackson is a story in which the setting sets up the reader to think of positive outcomes. However, this description of the setting foreshadows exactly the opposite of what is to come. In addition, the theme that we learn of at the end leads us to think of where the sanity of some human beings lies. The story begins with the establishment of the setting. To begin, Shirley Jackson tells the reader what time of day and what time of year the story takes place. This is important to get the reader to focus on what a typical day it is in this small town. The time of day is set in the morning and the time of year is early summer. She also describes that school has just recently let out for summer break, letting the reader infer that the time of year is early summer. Shirley Jackson also seems to stress on the beauty of the day and the brilliance of nature. This provides the positive outlook and lets the reader relax into what seems to be a comfortable setting for the story. In addition, the description of people and their actions are very typical and not anomalous. Children play happily, women gossip, and men casually talk about farming. Everyone is coming together for what seems to be enjoyable, festive, even celebratory occasion. However, the pleasant description of the setting creates a faade within the story. The setting covers the very ritualistic and brutally violent traditions such as the stoning of Mrs. Hutchinson, who dared to defy tradition. It is very apparent that tradition is very coveted in this small, simple town. This can be proven by the ancient, black box used for the lottery and the significance of farming for the community. Farming is also the only known way of life because of tradition. The men in "The Lottery" are "speaking of planting and rain, tractors and taxes". This is because the ritual performed in the story is supposed to have an effect on the harvest. "Lottery in June, corn be heavy soon" used to be a saying heard in that town. The abundance of their harvest supposedly depended upon their performing the ritual of the lottery. Although it is implied that the abundance of their harvest depends wholly on cruel act of stoning a human being to death, there is evidence that not all in the community agree with the ritual. Children are an important focus in "The Lottery". Jackson makes it easy for us to imagine their "boisterous play" and the children are described in depth. I think these children symbolize perceived states of happiness in the story. I also believe they are vital necessities in the story because they are taught and expected to carry the traditions. For instance, "someone gave little Davy Hutchinson a few pebbles" so that he will then be able to participate in the stoning of his own mother. In the story, many parts of the ritual had been changed or even long forgotten by most of the people. This fact in itself, along with a few other clues, tells me that not everyone agrees with it. One character says, "seems like there's no time at all between lotteries anymore". This means that the lottery is much too frequent or should not even be done at all. I believe that many disagree with the practice of the ritual, I also think that the individual feels helpless in putting a stop to it. Mrs. Adams mentions to Old Man Warner, "that over in the north village they're talking of giving up the lottery" and that "Some places have already quit the lotteries". He replies "Pack of crazy fools" and says, "There's always been a lottery". Although she does not say it in so many words, I find it obvious that she feels that the ritual should be put to an end. This in combination with the fact that many of the townspeople do not even remember the reasons behind the ritual has led me to the conclusion that they only continue the process for "tradition's sake". It just goes to show that humans are creatures of habit and that sometimes we continue to participate in (or tolerate) harmful practices. This is simply because as individuals we feel powerless and unable to stand up against behaviors that have always been accepted. The setting

Englands 2018 World Cups Host Bid

Englands 2018 World Cups Host Bid Introduction Different scholars from different fields and background give varying definitions of the concept project. However, they are all in agreement with regard to some of the defining features of a project. A distillation of these definitions views a project as a temporary set of activities with defined time frame and conditions.Advertising We will write a custom essay sample on England’s 2018 World Cup’s Host Bid specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More The activities have a clear starting point and an ending point, and several parties or stakeholders are involved in execution of the various tasks (Reiss 2005). A project has several characteristics that set it apart from other activities that are undertaken in an organisation or by a group of people. One of them is a budget, given the fact that a project operates with a clearly set budget. There is also a set of clearly defined responsibilities, meaning that each party in the project is tasked with the performance of given duties aimed at meeting the objectives. A projective also has objectives, which are the aims or goals that the project intends to achieve within a defined timeframe. Several factors lead to the success or failure of a project. Frese and Sauter (2003) bemoan the fact that not all projects that are initiated can be deemed as success. They cite the case of projects that are initiated in the information and technology (herein referred to as IT) sector, where almost 70 percent of all the projects that are initiated ends up as project failures (Frese and Sauter 2003). This is despite the amount of resources, financial and otherwise, that has gone into these projects. A project is defined or conceptualised as a success if it meets the objectives that were set out in the planning phase. It can also be deemed as a success if it is completed within the defined time frame, and using the budget that was allocated in the planning phase. This me ans that not all projects that are completed are deemed as success stories (Bartholomew 2007). For example, a project may have been completed within the set deadline but failed to meet the objectives of the target clients.Advertising Looking for essay on business economics? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More On the other hand, there are several attributes that defines a project as a failure. This is for example a project that failed to beat the deadline, meaning that it stretched way beyond the set end point (Bartholomew 2007). Another is a project that used more resources than initially allocated or planned for, in other words, a project that could not be completed within the set budgetary allocation. A project may also be considered as a failure if it is not completed for various reasons. This is for example the withdrawal of the sponsors, or if the implementers found out that the objectives of the project will not b e met. Most importantly, a project that fails to meet the objectives that were set out in the planning phase is also regarded as a failure. This is regardless of whether the project was completed or not. There are several factors that may result into project failure. This is for example inadequate resources, lack of commitment on the part of the personnel or stakeholders that are involved in the project, lack of clearly identified goals and objectives, as well as lack of adequate project planning among others. This means that project management is very crucial, and it has to be undertaken before the implementation of the project in order to identify potential risks and ways to deal with those risks should they arise. Various projects have received considerable media publicity as a result of them having been regarded as failures. This is especially so if the projects were implemented on a grand scale and a lot of resources went into them. A case in point is the unsuccessful Englands bid to host 2018 world cup, a bid that was lost to Russia (Nakrani 2010). This bid drew a lot of attention for various reasons. First, England is regarded as the â€Å"mother of football† (Nakrani 2010), considering the fact that the game is said to have originated in this country. Second, a lot of resources went into this bid, considering the fact that the campaign cost the tax payer approximately 15 million pounds. Third, despite this large scale spending, the country lost the bid. This paper is going to look at project failures, the reasons why projects fail and recommendations on how these failures can be averted or mitigated using project management techniques. The paper will take Englands 2018 world cup host bid that failed as the case study. The bid will be regarded as a failed project for the purpose of this study.Advertising We will write a custom essay sample on England’s 2018 World Cup’s Host Bid specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More The researcher will explain why they have selected this bid as a failed project, recognising the various aspects of the project that identify it as so. Second, the project will be critically analysed with the aim of detailing the probable underlying reasons on why the project failed. Finally, recommendations will be provided on how effective project management could have helped in averting the failure. England’s World Cup’s 2018 Host Bid: An Overview It is important at this juncture to take a look at the bid and the various aspects that surrounded it. This will provide a context for the rest of the discourse that will follow throughout the paper. This overview will also highlight on some of the aspects of this bid that qualified it as a project worth noting. The bidding process has a long time frame, having been set in motion in the year 2007. On October 31 this year, Englands Football Association (herein referred to as FA) announced that th e country will be placing a bid to host the 2018 world cup finals (Fitzgerald 2010). This set the start date for the bid, giving it an appearance of a project. The following year mostly involved the compilation of the team that will head the bid. On October 12 2008, Lord Triesman, who was the Football Association chairman at the time, was appointed and confirmed as the chairman of the team that will be pushing the bid (Seamark, Shipman and Martin 2010). Board members and other technical support staff are named and confirmed this year. This culminated in the appointment of Andy Anson as the chief executive of the bid team (Seamark et al 2010). On January 27, the official bid is submitted to FIFA (Fitzgerald 2010), and this was followed shortly by the official launch of the bid on May 18 (Nakrani 2010). The latter took place in Wembley stadium, a star studded event that brought together David Beckham, Wayne Rooney and Gordon Brown, creating a nexus between sports and politics in the b id (Nakrani 2010). The bid process faced a lot of challenges, ranging from media criticism to resignation of board members. For example, the board team was criticised for leaving out members of the England premier league, and this led to a hasty inclusion of Sir Richards into the team (Nakrani 2010). The team is also criticised for the slow progress it was making, with the public fearing that the deadline for the submission of the bid will not be met. Later on in the year, sir Richards resigned from the board, creating another round of negative publicity for the bid team.Advertising Looking for essay on business economics? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More On May 14 2010, the bid book is officially presented to FIFA president Sepp Blatter in the federation’s headquarters in Zà ¼rich, Switzerland (Seamark et al 2010). A crisis was to follow two days after the submission of the bid book, as the chairman resigned following a scandal in which he was taped making negative comments about the conduct of some countries in 2010 FIFA World Cup in South Africa. His place is taken by Geoff Thomson, a few months into the announcement of the successful bid by FIFA. On December 2, 2010, the announcement is made after 22 FIFA officials have cast their votes. England is eliminated in the first round of the voting, having attained only two votes. Russia emerges victorious in the second round of voting, winning the bid to host 2018 world cup finals (Nakrani 2010). There are several reasons that are cited as having led to the failure of the bid, given the fact that Englands bid was regarded as one of the best technically. The chief executive of t he bid team was of the view that last minute switch of sides by members of the voting team may have led to the loss. There are also aspersions that a media exposure by BBC into the alleged corruption of FIFA top officials may have played against the country’s bid. Prince William, Prime Minister David Cameron and the bid team chief executive Andy Anson had spent the last hours leading to the voting lobbying the FIFA officials that were going to vote, but this did little to create a win for the nation (Seamark et al 2010). The bid had several characteristics that defined it as a project. For example, it had a budget, which was set at 15 million pounds, a characteristic of a budget. The activities of the bid were temporary, and had a clear commencement and end date. There were also individuals or members of staff that were involved in actualising the activities of the bid. Given the fact that the objectives of the bid were not achieved, it can be regarded as a failed project. En glands 2018 World Cup Host Bid: A Failed Project There are several characteristics that are distinct to a failed or a failing project. An analysis of a project that has already failed reveals that there are features that separate it from a project that was considered as a success. Similarly, a project that is on its way to failure can be distinguished from a project that is destined for success (Bernard 2007). Englands world cup 2018 host bid was identified earlier in this paper as a form of a project. It was later regarded as a failed project, given the fact that it shares some distinct characteristics with a typical failed project. These characteristics are as discussed below: Lack of Planning One major characteristic of a failed project is the fact that it lacks planning. Meredith (2008) is of the view that project planning is one of the most important stages in the project cycle. This is given the fact that it is at this stage potential risks and obstacles that could hinder the implementation of the project are identified. However, if the project is implemented without sufficient planning, it is likely that some issues will emerge during project implementation and they will endanger the success of the project. A critical analysis of Englands bid will reveal that there was little planning that went into the project, if any. It is a fact beyond doubt that a feasibility study was carried out before the initiation of the bid (Nakrani 2010). However, apart from the feasibility study, there was no other discernible form of planning that went into the implementation of the bid. For example, there was no collection of data regarding the attitude of FIFA towards the bid. The bid team relied on comments that were made to media by Sepp Blatter and other officials of FIFA regarding the likelihood of Englands success in the bidding process (Seamark et al 2010). There was no scientific collection of data before the implementation or initiation of the bid. Unmet Objectiv es Another major characteristic of a failed project is the fact that it fails to meet the objectives specified in the mission and vision of the project (Kerzner 2001). When every project is initiated, the intention of the implementers is to meet certain objectives or goals. The inputs in the project are organised in such a way that specified outputs are met. However, there are cases where, for a number of reasons, the outputs desired or envisaged are not attained. The bid placed by England was no exception to this end. The inputs, which included the money used, the activities of the bid members among others were meant to attain specified outputs. The aim was to successfully lobby the FIFA officials to make them vote for England to host the world cup finals. However, this was not attained, and as such, the project can be regarded as having failed. The bid team was unable to convince the FIFA officials to vote for England, meaning that all the inputs that were used in the project did not give rise to the desired outputs. Lack of Stakeholders’ Representation It is noted that most of the projects that are regarded as failures have failed to include all the stakeholders in the planning and implementation of the project. There are several stakeholders in a project, and the number and type of stakeholders depend on the type of project that is being implemented (Pinto 2007). They may include the end users, the project financiers, and the implementers among others. All of them need to be included in every step of the project cycle. A critical analysis of Englands bid, an analysis done through the lens of project management, will reveal that some stakeholders were left out of the process. This means that the perspectives of those stakeholders that were left out were not taken into consideration during the implementation of the project. For example, the premier league is a critical stakeholder in Englands football. This being the case, it was a foregone conclusion that this team would be included in the bid team. However, this was not the case. It was only on March 2009, two years after the bid process was initiated, that the premier league was included in the bid (Seamark et al 2010). This was after criticisms were levelled at the technical team in the bid committee, and the representative of the premier league, Dave Richards, was only in the team for a period of eight months. He resigned on November 24 the same year, meaning that the premier league was not represented in a larger part of the bid process. Low Staff Morale According to Hides, Irani, Polychronakis and Sharp (2000), there is need throughout the life of the project to maintain the morale of the members of staff that are involved in the implementation of the project. This ensures that all the members of the team act in unison, pulling in the same direction. However, if there is no staff morale, the members of the team are likely to act individually, and coherence of action will be lacking. Low staff morale manifests itself in high rate of staff turnover, infighting within the team, lack of co-operation among others. These characteristics were visible in the bid project, indicating low staff morale and in extension, a failed project. For example, there was a lot of infighting within the bid team. For example, on November 16th, 2009, Kris Dent, who was the communications director of the team, withdraws from the bid team (Nakrani 2010). He is followed shortly by premier league chairman, Dave Richards, who withdraws on November 24th, the same year. The latter cites infighting in the bid team as the major reason why he withdrew. These are all indications of the fact that things were not good within the bid team. There was low morale, which might have led to the failure of the project. Englands 2018 World Cup Host Bid: Why Did the Project Fail? There are several reasons why the Englands bid to host the 2018 world cup finals was a failure. Several factors led to this failure, and these factors will be analysed in this section. Every project, as earlier indicated, has inputs and outputs. The inputs are integrated during the activities of the project, and they give rise to the outputs. The figure below depicts the relationship between inputs (resource), activities (function) and the outputs (performance) of a project: Figure 1: Project Inputs and Outputs Source: Frese and Sauter 2003 Going back to the Englands bid, it is obvious that the inputs did not give rise to the desired outputs. Something might have gone wrong either during the input stage, or during the activities or functions of the project. A detailed analysis of possible underlying reasons for failure follows: Poor Risk Management Every project is likely to face unexpected events in the course of implementation, events that may put at risk of becoming a failure. These are what Maylor (2002) refers to as risks. These unexpected happenstances may lead to delays or budget overruns, m aking the project a failure. This is for example when the project runs out of resources in the course of implementation due to unforeseen increase in the price of inputs. Another factor that may lead to this is when members of staff start leaving, leading to deficiency of technical expertise in the project. Other unforeseen events may be external to the project, such as change in environment and such others. One unforeseen event may lead to a domino effect, where other events come on its wake, further jeopardising the project. This being the case, there is a need to take formal risk management during the planning stage of the project cycle. This is where contingency plans are put in place to cushion the project against unforeseen events. This is for example setting aside some extra funds to cater for budget overruns. The bid by England appeared to be mired by a lot of risks in the course of implementation, risks that the project manager, in this case Andy Anson, appeared ill prepare d for. One of them is the investigative piece that was done by BBC on the corrupt dealings of the FIFA officials. Andy Anson appeared unable to respond to this risk, and this is one of the reasons why the FIFA officials failed to vote for England. There were also other cases of negative media publicity. This is for example when Lord Triesman was secretly recorded by the media making negative comments regarding the 2010 FIFA world cup finals in South Africa. Over Optimism This happens when the project manager underestimates the requirements of the project. For example, the project manager may assume that the project will take a short time to be fully implemented, failing to take into account unforeseen events that may hinder it. The project manager may have lacked enough information or knowledge regarding the full extent of the project (Burke 2006). The England bid team appeared to be over-confident, assuming that the country will win the bid and the bidding process was just a formal ity. Their spirits were falsely buoyed by comments that were made to media by some of the FIFA officials. For example, on July 5th, 2009, FIFA official Franz Beckenbauer said that England was ready to host the finals â€Å"tomorrow† (Seamark et al 2010). The bid team appeared to be arrogant in the process of making the bid, as they assumed that the country will win the hosting bid. They failed to plan for unforeseen events such as the switching sides of some of the delegates a few days before the voting process. Lack of Project Management Pinto (2007) is of the view that some project managers fail to plan for their project for several reasons. For example, the deadline may be tight, meaning that they lack to take a detailed project planning before the onset of the project. This means that when the project gets out of control in the process of implementation, it is hard to recover it due to lack of contingency plans. As earlier indicated, there was no adequate planning in the bidding process. There were a lot of assumptions made by the bid team members, for example the fact that they stood a better chance to win the bid. As such, the bidding process, or the project, was just a formality. Recommendations: How Effective Project Management Could Have Helped Avert the Project Failure How to Handle Poor Risk Management To avert the failure that comes with poor risk management, there are several strategies that the project manager can adopt. One of them is listing all the activities that need to be carried out in the course of the project. During this listing, potential risks will be identified. It is also important for the project management to try and figure out what can possibly go wrong in the course of project implementation (Reiss 2005). To this end, project managers are advised to avoid looking at only the major risks that may occur; they should look at the small risks also, as these may get out of control and endanger the project. Each of the risks ide ntified needs to be prioritised, meaning that they need to be listed as high, medium or low (McManus and Trevor 2011: Hinchcliffe 2009). The prioritised should be in terms of the likelihood of the risk to occur, and the impact that the risk is likely to have on the project (Meredith 2008: Bernard 2007). Plans should then be made on how to deal with the risks, depending on their likelihood to occur and the impact on the project. Andy Anson and the bid team should have planned for these risks before the implementation of the project. In this phase of planning, possible risks such as the negative publicity from the media, the switching of sides of the delegates and such others would have been identified. Prioritising of the risks would have enabled the bid team to come up with contingency plans to deal with the risks. Project Management and Over Optimism One of the strategies to deal with this problem is to take enough time before the implementation of the project to comprehend the wor k that will be carried out during the implementation (Bernard 2007: Frese and Sauter 2003). If the project manager feels that the project is not possible, or it is hard to attain the objectives of the project using the resources set aside for the project, they should communicate the same to the stakeholders such as the financiers. The manager should ensure that they agree to the project only if they are sure that the project can be implemented (Meredith 2008). This will help in averting failures or challenges that may be insurmountable as the project is underway (Meredith 2008). These are the strategies that the bid team should have adopted to avoid the pitfalls of over optimism. Instead of blindly agreeing to the task, Anson Andy and his colleagues should have taken the time to fully understand all the dynamics that might have come into play during the implementation. For example, they should have taken into consideration the fact that they were dealing with humans, who are very un predictable. Anson and colleagues should have taken into consideration the fact that there are many things that would have gone wrong in the implementation of the project. For example, even if the country stood a good chance of winning the bid, they should have been aware of the fact that England being the mother of football is not enough to win the bid. Lack of Project Management Project managers should be aware of the fact that project planning is very important, and it is like creating a road map for the whole project cycle (Reiss 2005). This is the roadmap that will be followed during the implementation of the project, with alterations as necessary. Adjustments should be made to the project plan as needed, given the fact that there are unseen events that may arise during the implementation of the project. A project that is not planned is likely to fail, given the fact that the environment within which the project is carried out is very unpredictable. Things can change without no tice, and if the project manager was not prepared for these changes, the project is likely to fail. Anson Andy and the rest of the bid team needed to carry out project management to attain the objectives of the project. Apart from the feasibility study that was carried out, there was not any other form of planning that was evident in the whole of the bidding process. This means that the bidding team was ill prepared for the changes that they encountered during the implementation of the bid. For example, they had not planned on the action to take should the delegates they were relying on switched sides. This lack of preparation was evident in the reactions of the bid team when the country lost the bid to Russia. Anson was quoted as saying that â€Å"it really (hurts) when people you were counting on let you down† (Nakrani 2010: 3). This means that they had not planned for such an event. Conclusion Not all projects that are initiated ends up as successes, despite the fact that a huge amount of resources may have been used on the project. There are several reasons that make a project be regarded as a failure. This is for example when the project fails to achieve the objectives envisaged, or when the budget overruns the budget or deadline set aside. This failure if brought about by several factors. This is for example the lack of planning on the part of the project management team, over optimism and lack of project management. This is in addition to poor risk management, meaning that there were not contingency plans that were in place. This paper looked at Englands bid to host 2018 world cup finals, a project that was deemed as a failure. The project was a failure because it failed to achieve the objectives set and it had no discernible plan among other factors. The project also lacked risk management, was mired my over optimism and lacked project management. Recommendations on how project management may have averted this failure were identified. References Bartholomew, D 2007. 4 steps to prevent project failure. Web. Available from: baselinemag.com/c/a/Projects-Management/4-Steps-to-Prevent-Project-Failure/ . Bernard, A 2007. 10 warning signs of project failure. Web. Available from: cioupdate.com/budgets/article.php/11051_3686106_1/10-Warning-Signs-of-Project-Failure.htm . Burke, R 2006. Project management, planning and control techniques. London: John Wiley Sons. Fitzgerald, G 2010. ‘Liars’: FIFA accused over world cup vote. Sky News, December 3, 2010. Frese, R., and Sauter, V 2003. Project success and failure: What is success, what is failure, and how can you improve your odds for success? Web. Available from: umsl.edu/~sauterv/analysis/6840_f03_papers/frese/ . Hides, M T., Irani, Z., Polychronakis, I., and Sharp, J M 2000. Facilitating total quality through effective project management. International Journal of Quality Reliability Management, 17(4/5), 407-422. Hinchcliffe, D 2009. 14 reasons why enterprise 2.0 proje cts fail. Web. Available from: zdnet.com/blog/hinchcliffe/14-reasons-why-enterprise-20-projects-fail/718 . Kerzner, H 2001. Project management: A systems approach to planning, scheduling, and controlling. London: Wiley Sons. Maylor, H 2002. Project management. London: Prentice Hall. McManus, J., and Trevor, W 2011. A study in project failure. The Chartered Institute for IT, January 2, 2011. Meredith, J 2008. Project management. London: McGraw-Hill. Nakrani, S 2010. World cup 2018: How Englands bid faltered. The Guardian, December 2, 2010. Pinto, J K 2007. Project management: Achieving competitive advantage. New Jersey: Prentice Hall. Reiss, G 2005. Project management demystified: Today’s tools and techniques. 3rd ed. London: Spon. Seamark, M., Shipman, T., and Martin, D 2010. We’ll never bid again to host the world cup, says team England boss (as Putin turns up to gloat over ‘mafia state’ Russias win). Mail, December 3, 2010.

Animal Experimentation Essay examples -- Animal Rights

It is unethical to use the cruel methods of animal experimentation for our own benefit alone. The animals used in research range from birds, dogs, cats, and pigs to name a few. So many innocent creatures put up with the immense pain so that science experiments can be made and new products can be put on the shelves. Many of the animals used in the testing and experiments are blind, severely burned, poisoned, or mutilated (â€Å"Animals in Product Testing.†). Even when a product is labeled â€Å"cruelty free† or â€Å"not tested on animals† the individual ingredients that make up the product are likely to have been tested on animals at some point (Macfarlane et al., 191). Also, anesthesia is not required by law to give to small lab animals such as rats and mice, it is the lab's choice if the animals will receive pain medication or sedatives ("Health Sciences Center Animal Research Facility - Conducting Research with Animals."). The animals are either killed as a re sult of the experiments, or they are injured so severely that they must be euthanized. According to the National Anti-Vivisection Society, animals have had their eyes pried open, their skin burned, and bones broken. The experiments would sometimes result in spinal cord or brain injury (Anderagg et al., 2006). There are two main types of test involved in animal experimentation; the Draize test and the LD-50 test. The Draize test meas... ... middle of paper ... ...98. Web. 19 Nov. 2011. "Health Sciences Center Animal Research Facility - Conducting Research with Animals."UNM Health Sciences Center at the University of New Mexico. 2011. Web. 19 Nov. 2011. "Lab Animal Alternatives - The Three Rs." MSPCA Homepage. 2009. Web. 19 Nov. 2011. MacFarlane, Martin, Penny Jones, Carstin Goebel, Eric Dufour, Joanna Rowland, Daisuke Araki, Margit Costabel-Farkas, Nicola Hewitt, Julila Habatallah, Annette Kirst, Pauline McNamee, Florian Shallauf, and Julia Scheel. "A Tiered Approach to the Use of Alternatives to Animal Testing for the Safety Assessment of Cosmetics: Skin Irritation." Regulatory Toxicology Pharmacology: RTP 54.2 (2009): 188-96.Academic Search Premier. Web. 19 Nov. 2011. U.S. Department of Agriculture, Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service, â€Å"Annual Report Animal Usage by Fiscal Year," 6 Jul. 2010. Web. 19 Nov. 2011.

Qatar's CO2 Emissions Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Qatar's CO2 Emissions - Research Paper Example Considering the global drive to reduce carbon emissions and protect the environment, Qatar has begun taking initiatives to keep its share of the global carbon emissions and greenhouse gases in check. The urgency to introduce measures to reduce its carbon footprint came to global notice after the UNDP Human Development Report of 2007 identified it as being the highest contributor to global carbon emissions with per capita CO2 emissions being 79.3 tones/capita (â€Å"Combating Qatars CO2 emissions, Carbon World 2009 addresses reduction†). Carbon dioxide and other GHGs such as sulphur dioxide, methane and nitrogen oxides liberated upon burning fossil fuels have massive negative effects on the environment. These gases upon accumulation over the earth cause climatic changes due to global warming, which in turn affect other ecological features of the planet. CO2 and GHGs allow the sun’s heat to reach the earth’s surface; however, they do not allow the infrared light or heat emitted by the earth’s surface from leaving (Williams 6). This process results in the accumulation of heat on earth, much like what happens in a greenhouse. The trapping of heat results in global warming which in turn causes massive alterations in global climates. These climatic changes affect forests, vegetation, agriculture, and rainfall, apart from causing a rise in sea level by melting the polar ice sheets (ReVelle and ReVelle 376). Such changes adversely affect all life forms on earth. However, as Williams points out, the process that is actually occurring is more complex than greenhouse effect and global warming (6). He reasons that the earth is not a perfect sphere and has irregular features on its surface such as mountain ranges, forests, oceans, polar ice caps, etc. Not two regions display the same response to excess CO2  ­and GHGs in the environment. Therefore, as Williams argues, â€Å"future climate change is regional, not

Snapshot of Uniqlo Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 4250 words

Snapshot of Uniqlo - Essay Example The company has four major brands – Theory, Comptoir Des Cotonniers and Princesse Tam.Tam and g.u. Theory, which is the mainstay brand, has been experiencing growth in the United States and Japan, and is opening markets in China and Hong Kong. As for August 2011, it was operating 371 brands throughout the world. Comptoir Des Cotonniers is a French label for women, and operates 386 stores across Europe, Japan and the United States. Princesse Tam.Tam is a brand which focuses upon lingerie, home wear and swimwear. This brand operates out of well-known department stores and boutiques, and there are 159 outlets in the United States, led by France, and is available in 40 countries in Europe. g.u. is a brand that specializes in low priced jeans, and has net sales of 30 billion yen annually, and the brand operates 148 stores in total as of August, 2011, with two new flagship stores in Osaka and Tokyo. Uniqlo is looking to expand its Asian market, as they opened their first store in Ta iwan in October of 2010, which generated high sales. Next, they want to focus on other Asian stores, with a focus on China, South Korea and Taiwan, and opening a flagship store in Seoul, Korea, in the fall of 2011, as well as two new stores in New York: one on Fifth Avenue and a megastore on 34th Street. They presently operate stores in the United States, China, France, Hong Kong, Japan, Korea, Malaysia, Russia, Singapore, Taiwan, Thailand and the UK. The history of Uniqlo is that they opened their first store in 1984 in Japan, and demand for their products surged with their fleece apparel campaign in 1998. Uniqlo, after experiencing an ebb and flow in their sales from 1998, reworked the strategy to focus on an expansion of women’s wear. Their expansion into international markets began in 1991, starting with the UK. After a successful launch in the UK, they ventured into the markets of China, Hong Kong, South Korea, the United States and France, Singapore and Russia. The bulk of their stores are still in Japan, with 843 in that country, and 181 overseas markets. In 2005, they expanded their domain by purchasing a range of companies worldwide, and these companies are the Comptoir Des Cotonniers, Princesse Tam.Tam and Link Theory Holdings Co., Ltd, who developed the Theory brand. These brands are explained above. At present, their worldwide industry ranking in the apparel specialty stores is exceptional, as they rank fourth overall, in terms of sales, in the world, just behind The Gap. They have more sales then the Limited, NEXT, Polo Ralph Lauren, Esprit, Abercrombie & Fitch and Liz Claiborne. As noted above, they are currently the leading Japanese Domestic Clothing Retail chain. The Uniqlo business model is that they have established a SPA, which is a Specialty Store retailer of Private label apparel, and this business model encompasses all stages of the business, from design and production to final sales. This model has helped them make adjustment to p roduction that reflect the latest sales environment and minimizes store-operation costs, such as personnel costs and rent. It is through this SPA that Uniqlo is able to provide high quality clothing at low prices. They have an Research and Development team which looks at the latest fashions

Street Car Named Desire Essay Example for Free

Street Car Named Desire Essay As we grow up it’s not only our age and experiences that make us who we are, relationships also shape our identity. All relationships will change our identity no matter who they are or what kind of relationship they have with us. Our friends shape our identity just as much as our family, if not more. This statement is very well depicted in the play â€Å"A street car named Desire by Tennessee Williams†. Throughout the play you see the different types of identities being shaped. If we are around someone enough we will start picking up traits of said person. If we are around someone who is always smiling and expressing themselves more than likely we will begin to express ourselves too. We gather the traits from those around us and our mind will tell us which are good and bad and try to get rid of the bad. With the good trait it will find our comfort zone with the person. That is why adults are always trying to get children and teenagers to understand that our friends are who shape us in a way. Our family relationships have a very big impact on our identity because we grow up with them. In the play the characteristics of each character was very much affected by their families. Blanche Dubois’ identity for example was shaped in a particular way because of her major losses in life. Her family fortune and estate we gone and she lost her young husband to suicide. This has led to her to have insecurities and making her a disrupted individual. Blanche’s fragile identity is also shaped by Stanley’s cruel actions towards her, also leaving her mentally detached from reality by the end of the play. However Stanley Kowalski’s identity in the book is very much shaped by the relationship he has with Blanche when arrives at the Kowalski household. Stanley’s intense hatred for Blanche is motivated in part by the upper-class past that Blanche used to have. He sabotages her because he does not appreciate the way she attempts to fool him and his friends into believing she is better than they are. From Blanche’s arrival Stanley has the need to feel like the man of house and does not take any orders from Blanche or Stella which is his wife. In the end, Stanley’s character is seen as harmful and cruel. The relationship between men and women is also a major identity shaper. Often in life the relationship between man and woman can be very unusual as sometimes a woman can have a lot of impact on men or the other around and sometimes they could have no impact. In the play Stanley and Stella’s marriage very much shape their identity. Shaping Stanley’s identity by making him feel like more of a man. Stella’s identity is very much shaped by the way Stanley treats her. Stella is a not very stable character because of the situation she gets into with her sister Blanche and her husband Stanley. Stella’s identity gets changed throughout the play because a lot of major events happen, such as her sister’s presence, having a baby and how Stanley beats her. Stella’s relationship with Stanley is both animal and violent but renewing as they always make up in the end. After Blanche’s arrival, Stella is torn between her sister and her husband. Eventually, she stands by Stanley, because she gives birth to his child near the end of the play. Stella’s denial of reality at the play’s end shows us that she actually more in common with Blanche than she thinks. The friend relationship between Stanley and Mitch also shape Stanley’s identity. Stanley is very loyal to his friends and would make sure that his best friend Mitch does not get hurt by Blanche. This is one of the main reasons that Stanley sabotages Blanche. Stanley would go through so much to just make Mitch believe that Blanche isn’t really who she says she is. Since Stanley is a misogynist, he sees himself as a superior to both Blanche and Stella, his need to â€Å"own† the house and be in charge is the motivator for his actions towards Blanche. Knowing that he was going to rape her from the very beginning, he tries and stops Mitch and Blanche from entering any type of relationship. â€Å"We’ve had this date from the start† In conclusion all types of relationships affect Blanche and shape her identity in a way. But in the end she lost her identity already because her husband died. In the play there are many relationships that shape the characters such as family relationships, friend relationships and â€Å"man and woman† relationships. In life relationships are a major source of shaping our identity.

Violence in the Workplace: A Growing Problem Essays -- Workplace Healt

Violence in the Workplace A Growing Problem It was six years ago this year that our radio and television stations were inundated with visions and news beyond one’s imagination. An unknown individual or group had bombed the Oklahoma City Federal Building. As we sat attentatively watching our television, we saw small children and adults being carried away by fire fighters, and others were laid out on the floor awaiting medical assistance. This was to be one of the worst terrorist attacks the century was to see. Now, six years later we are remembering the lives lost in the bombing. We now know who the responsible individual is and he is now awaiting his execution. But, what about the devastation left behind to those that were injured in the bombing? Those that managed to get away with out a scratch or those that lost a loved one? As a society we focus on such tragedies as they occur, but sooner than later they are forgotten. Unfortunately, those that survived the terrible ordeal will never forget that experience. Those individuals woke up that morning and got ready for work like any other day and went to work. All individuals do so on a daily basis such violence does not enter their minds. Fortunately, violence of this magnitude is indeed rare. Most of the time we here about ex-boyfriends going to the place of employment and killing their estranged girlfriends and then killing themselves or a disgruntled employee who was fired and came to his place of employment and killed numerous co-workers and then killing himself (Chavez, 2001). According, to the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health reported that employees murdered over 100 bosses and co-workers in 1997. Furthermore, according to the Nor... ...anada: Souvenir Press(Educational and Academic)Ltd.1993 6. Occupational Safety &Health Administration.†Workplace Violence Awareness and Prevention: Facts and Information†.Online.Available: http://www.osha-slc.gov/sltc/workplaceviolence/index.html 7. Saidel, Judith.†Most Workplace Violence on Women Hidden, Says Center Report†.Online.Available: Http://www.albany.edu/pr/updates/11-1.html 8. University of Iowa.†Workplace Violence. A report to the Nation†.Online Available: Http://www.pmeh.uiowa.edu/iprc/NATION.PDF? 9. USDA.†The USDA Handbook on Workplace Violence Prevention and Response†.Online.Available: Http://www.usda.gov/news/pubs/violence/wpv.htm 10. U.S. Office of Personnel Management.†Dealing with Workplace Violence:A guide for Agency Planners†.Online.Available: http://opm.gov/ehs/workplac.html