Political Bias Based on Demographic Region

â€Å"The biases the media has are bigger than conservative or liberal. They’re about getting ratings, about making money, about doing stories that are easy to cover. † This may seem like a trite saying but it holds an enormous amount of truth. As Americans, we trust what reporters write in the newspaper and say on television and radio stations. We expect them to report the truth. However, current media outlets distort stories and certain news reports are getting too much attention.The most important stories are never seen on television, or read in the newspaper, or heard on the radio stations, while minor and trivial stories get the most news coverage. Hence celebrity engagements, divorce, entrance in rehabilitation centers and DUI cases are sold to the media. American people are then left without valuable information contrary to what story is getting 24-hour news coverage.Media bias is a â€Å"term used to describe prejudice in news and media reports, in which it is perceived as an imbalance or unfair presentation of facts or selective reporting of which events or facts are reported. † The main point here is when biases in media distorts certain stories, and other stories are spoken about entirely too much, it hurts democracy in America. The media, in that case, fails to focus on real issues that underlie the American culture, it has one-sided opinions, favoring a liberal’s point of view, and it caters to the majority, favoring the wealthy.Media biases causes the America people to become misinformed or too well informed, often due to the tendency of the media covering unimportant stories about celebrities, while overlooking issues like war, poverty, disease, violence, and education. The media content and news coverage rarely display the underlying issues that the American people face. Rather, it only acknowledges news that may appeal to the audience â€Å"because of its dramatic or entertainment value. Senator Barack Obama recogni zes the failure of the American media in updating America with real issues at Southern New Hampshire University Commencement: â€Å"We see it in a media culture that sensationalizes the trivial and trivializes the profound – in a 24-hour news network bonanza that never fails to keep us posted on how many days Paris Hilton will spend in jail but often fails to update us on the continuing genocide in Darfur or the recovery effort in New Orleans or the poverty that lagues too many American streets† The media bonanza on Paris Hilton’s 14 day jail sentence was among one of most overplayed (unimportant) stories recently because TV news ran hundreds of hours of news coverage, while only showing 60-second sound bites of yet another death of an American soldier in combat in Iraq. Paris Hilton, a hotel heiress and the star in the media spotlight, was sentenced to a 14 day jail sentence at Century Regional Detention Centre in Lynwood, California on a traffic violation. The news media made the story seem so valuable and significant to report for so many hours.Some reporters believed that she deserved to be placed in jail because too many celebrities don’t receive the justifiable punishment they deserve like ordinary citizen because they are wealthy. Others believed that her jail sentence was too cruel just for a DUI charge, it was unfair and that she became the victim because of her prestige and as a famous figure in America. While Fox News, MSNBC, CNN, and ABC were breaking in the entertainment news, debating whether her punishment was too cruel or justifiable, they failed to inform the American people about.When Hurricane Katrina unfolded in New Orleans, the media placed a lot of dramatic biases on the issue and missed the underlying point, misinforming the public. On August 23, 2005, Hurricane Katrina struck down in New Orleans becoming one of the most devastating natural disasters to hit the United States. The media unfolded the events that those most effected in the black community, remained in New Orleans looting stores in search of food and water that weren’t available by any other means. On the other hand of the issue, white Americans were â€Å"wading through chest-deep waters finding soda and bread floating in the water from a grocery store†.But while Paris Hilton was hogging the headlines the media failed to report that during that week the Washington Post reported â€Å"that about $854 million offered by allied countries worldwide after Hurricane Katrina. To date, the Post reports, only $40 million in foreign aid has been funneled to the Gulf Coast. The story goes this way: Apparently the Bush administration was stymied on what to do when offered this aid, since the U. S. is not usually in a position to need or accept such assistance. How, and from whom the $40 million was accepted is unclear, but what is eminently clear is that $800 million could have put the rebuilding of the Gulf Coast into f ast forward mode). † This goes to show that the media is filled with close-mindedness in which entertainment news surpasses â€Å"hard news every time. †5 Instead of bringing American people together to work in effort to make children lives better, the economy better, the living welfare of families better, the media devours our interest to support a difference by resembling soap operas and commercial television shows. Dateline is the same as ER or Friends.They all have to compete for prime time audiences. CBS and 48 Hours is the same as Everybody Loves Raymond. Notice how importance never enters into the equation. Notice how there isn't even a pretense to public interest. TV †news† has become celebrity trials and runaway brides, and sex — while foreign bureaus are closing and news budgets are shrinking and we become a people ever more thoroughly entertained than informed, even as we live through the most dangerous and portentous days in recent history . The media also has the tendency to uphold one-sided opinions, favoring liberals, whereas the mainstream media holds liberal biases.Liberals in a political sense relate to ideas and theories of government in which they advocate individual liberty, for example, race, abortion, affirmative action, homelessness, and gay rights. They use liberal principles and ideas that influence their news coverage and or selection of stories. Liberal biases undermine the American value. In the controversial book, â€Å"Bias: A CBS Insider Exposes How the Media Distorts the News,† Bernard Goldberg said â€Å"journalist doesn’t see their views as liberal but merely reasonable and civilized. † In contrast, the media, for the most part, is helpful in feeding the mass with stories that reflect America.In fact, America has never been provided with a broad arrangement and providers of news. However, government cannot solve the problems of media bias because part of the media bias is in part of political [government] decadence. The government embraces liberal views! The media only identifies problems for the government to solve, such as poverty, disease, and violence. To solve the problem of media bias, educational groups are needed to educate people about wanting to understand the truth and demand a balance in media coverage through advocacy and petitioning.

Foreigners Essay Essay

Is Paia a better choice for Luba than Lachance? Luba Dominescu, the only girl of the Dominescu family, plays an important role in the novel â€Å"Foreigners†. After going through a hard time with her family in Canada, the country they have just immigrated to, Luba becomes more mature and her feminine charm gradually shows up. Paia Manescu and Lachance are two boys who fall in love with this young lady and they compete with each other to win her heart. Although the blue-eyed boy, Lachance, seems to be more attractive to Luba, Paia’s love for Luba has lasted for a long time and their families fully support their marriage. They also have more things in common to promote their relationship, such as language and culture. Furthermore, Paia can be both a nice husband and a wonderful son to help the Dominescu family out of difficulties. Therefore, Paia is a better choice for Luba than Lachance. First of all, Paia makes a better mate for Luba because Luba’s parents, Stefan Dominescu and Sofie Dominescu, have been really good friends with Paia’s parents since they were in their old country Romania. In these two families, â€Å"It had always seemed clear to everyone that Luba would marry Paia† (155). As soon as the second time Lachance visits the Domincescu to court Luba, Stefan along with Luba purposely visits Paia’s family to tell them that it is necessary now for Paia to propose to Luba if he wants to marry her. This example shows that Luba’s parents wish their daughter to choose Paia instead of Lachance and there is no doubt that a life of marriage with parents’ blessing and full support will be happier. In addition, for Luba herself, she has known Paia since they were little children and â€Å"he had cared her for such a long time† (158). However, Paia is just a boy she knows from school only a few months ago. Compared with Lachance’s unfamiliar and sudden affection, Paia’s love is obviously more reliable and sincere. Another advantage Paia has is that he comes from the same country as Luba, in other words, â€Å"he was one of her people, spoke the same language, played the same music† (158). As a mew immigrant, Luba apparently can not speak English exactly the correct way so that if she marries an English boy like Lachance, she may have difficulties communicating with her husband and it greatly increases the possibility of misunderstanding and arguments between the couple. Besides language, things such as traditions, eating habits, belief and music are also important factors that can influence a relationship. For instance, when Lachance plays music at Luba’s home, â€Å"the tunes sounded strangely to the Romanians’ ears† (155). However, since Paia grows up in the same culture as Luba, there are no cultural differences and communication barrier between he and Luba and it is a lot easier to maintain and improve their relationship. Not only can Paia be a better husband, but he also becomes a more helpful son of the Dominescu family. After Luba marries Paia, they will live in the same house with Sofie and Stefan and stay with Luba’s family rather than follow Lachance to join his father and have â€Å"a more unsettled life† (158). In this way, Luba is able to continue to take care of her little brother and â€Å"Paia would work with tata, helping with everything† (158), which means Paia can share the heavy burden of supporting the whole family that has placed on Stefan’s shoulder since they moved to Canada. These two aspects shows that Paia both brings more family happiness to Luba and helps the Dominescu family gradually get out of difficult circumstance. In conclusion, marrying Paia is obvious a better choice for Luba. He cares for Luba for a longer time than Lachance, has more support from their parents and he shares the same culture and speaks the same language as Luba. Also, he can take care of Luba, as well as her family. Although Luba has difficulties choosing her husband between two gentlemen who are both charming and attractive, it is still lucky for her to have the freedom to decide her own marriage.

How to Write the University of Notre Dame Essays 2018-2019

The University of Notre Dame, located in South Bend, Indiana, is a private Catholic research University ranked #18 on the U.S. News and World Report’s Best National Universities List . Boasting a football team with 11 national championships, the nation’s top Italian program, world-renowned business and architecture schools, rich alumni connections, Notre Dame offers all the benefits of a small tight-knit college community in the context of a larger top-notch research institution. Over 80% of the university’s undergraduate students live on campus in one of the 31 single-sex residence halls, each with its own traditions, legacies, events, and sports teams. There is no greek life on campus, but the majority of students live in the same residence hall for all four years. The university is affiliated with the Congregation of Holy Cross, with over 47 chapels on campus, however, religious affiliation is not a criterion for admission. The university boasts over 120,000 alumni, including noteworthy graduates like Condoleezza Rice, Nicholas Sparks, and Joe Montana. Notre Dame’s acceptance rate for the class of 2022 was roughly 17.6% with applications up 4% over the previous year. With three 150 word short responses, Notre Dame’s writing supplement allows you to set yourself apart from the 20,000+ applications that vie for the coveted spots. To apply to Notre Dame, candidates may submit either the Common Application, or the Coalition Application. The college does not prefer one or the other. Candidates may apply through the Restrictive Early Action process (due November 1st), or the Regular Decision process (due January 1st). In addition to the required essay in the Common Application or Coalition Application, Notre Dame requires three supplemental essays: applicants are all required to complete the first prompt, but may choose from 4 different options for the second and third prompts. Read on to find out how to tackle them! Like other schools, Notre Dame has a â€Å"Why X School?† prompt to understand why the applicant is passionate about applying to Notre Dame. While this type of essay will rarely be the reason why an applicant is accepted to a certain school, it can demonstrate commitment and understanding of that school. Simply put, Notre Dame wants to understand why you want to attend their institution over all the other schools you are applying to — what makes them unique in your list. There are a few qualities that will make your essay stand out . Be as specific as possible — specificity is the key to writing a good, eye-catching essay. Try to include specific details about Notre Dame. Is it the non-existence of greek life, the religious dedication of the school, or the research-based curriculum that intrigues you? Is there a specific program that Notre Dame offers that other schools don’t or is it the rich alumni connections that provide you stronger internships and job prospects that you really care about? These are the type of details that Notre Dame wants to hear from you — how do the programs, opportunities, and curriculum that they offer fit into what you are looking for in your college experience? Generic statements like â€Å"Religion is important to me†, or â€Å"I enjoy the study abroad options available† are too broad and non-unique , they are cookie-cutter and can be used for many universities across the US (many colleges have a religious affiliation and most colleges offer opportunities to study abroad). Rather, turn this around to demonstrate how going to a strong Catholic institution will strengthen your spiritual roots or how a service trip that Notre Dame offers to Nicaragua can give you the chance to work with underserved communities and utilize your Spanish skills. The more specific, the better your essay will be and the more you will stand out. Don’t be afraid to refer to specific professors, labs, internships, study abroad opportunities, and even classes that you are excited to take. This shows that you have done the research for Notre Dame and aren’t simply using another school’s essay and replacing the school name to Notre Dame. A quick note about choosing prompts. Before immediately setting your mind on two prompts, try brainstorming ideas for each of the four options provided. Start to draft mini paragraphs and sense which prompts you may be more passionate about. There is no right of wrong prompt, but some prompts will allow you to unleash more of your personality or tell more of your story — which will frame your application in a more positive light. Here are a few questions to ask yourself before you choose your prompts, especially for Notre Dame: Estimating your chance of getting into a college is not easy in today’s competitive environment. Thankfully, with our state-of-the-art software and data, we can analyze your academic and extracurricular profile and estimate your chances. Our profile analysis tool can also help you identify the improvement you need to make to enter your dream school. Essentially, this prompt is asking, â€Å"How have you supported others?† The stronger essays will be more personal about a time you helped out a family member, friend, neighbor, or community in need. You want to show how you specifically had an impact on someone else and were there to support them through a rough time. Avoid talking about raising money for an organization or 5Ks (or 10Ks) that you did for a certain cause. While those activities may mean a lot to you, they don’t show the direct impact your actions had to support someone. Rather, something more powerful to write about would be the time your friend was really confused in math class and you sat down and helped him/her through the homework problems even though you had to skip tennis practice to do that. This shows your more humane, compassionate side — which is what Notre Dame wants to see. Really try to focus on the small gestures that had an impact on someone else. For example, you could write about the time you acted as a mentor to underclassmen, showing them around school on the first day when they were lost. While this may seem like a nonessential action that you took, it demonstrates how you supported freshmen and made them feel welcome in their new high school environment. The essay really wants you to show how you welcomed, supported, and helped a person (or group of people). Another thing to note is that your action doesn’t need to have an earth-shattering impact on someone else. However, the more reflective you are, the stronger the essay will be. Talk about how you felt helping someone else(were you worried? Confident? Nervous?) — add a more humanizing element to the essay to show that you are more than your GPA and test scores. Focus on a time you supported someone, be specific, provide details, and include how your actions impacted that person. This essay is straightforward, and with only 150 words, make sure to be concise, yet include specific details and reflections to make the essay stand out. This prompt is very open-ended , and allows you to be creative. You could write about anything from a pet, a lucky pencil, or even a stuffed animal that you will bring to college with you. The college admissions officers are not going to judge you for what you necessarily say as the one item (make sure to keep it appropriate of course), but what they care about is your explanation of why that certain item means a lot to you. For example, if you are bringing your favorite stuffed animal that is a pig, they want to know why this stuffed animal is so important to you. Have you had this stuffed animal since you were a small child or was this the stuffed animal that you always went to when you were down and made soaking wet with your tears? This type of detail and personal touch will make your essay stand out from the more generic ones. Adding specific elements that are personal and showcase the reasons why that object is important to you will help the college admissions officers understand you as an applicant better. You may also want to consider bringing something that is not tangible. Bringing certain emotions, memories, or ideas can be a spin on this essay. For example, bringing an inspiring phrase your grandmother always told you or your dedication to saving the environment, can take this essay in an interesting direction. Whatever one thing you choose, make sure to include personal details explaining why it means a lot to you. While this question may seem straightforward, it is definitely one of the harder of the 4 essay options. Rather than starting with how to answer this prompt, let’s start with how not to answer this question . Do not talk about the time that your parents didn’t say â€Å"good job† for your stellar grades, or how your teacher didn’t notice that you were the one that put together the entire presentation by yourself (even though it was a group presentation). Also, do not compare yourself with a sibling and comment how your sibling always gets praised and you don’t. These are all situations that come off as whiny, immature, and accusatory . Instead, the way to go about this essay is talking about the personal accomplishments you made over the past four years. Talk about your own personal goal to run a mile everyday for a year or your new resolution to eat dessert only once a week. These may all seem like trivial aspects of your life — but they give insight into who you really are. Running a mile everyday for a year shows college admissions officers that you have the drive and hard-work necessary to continue something for an entire year while eating dessert only once a week demonstrates your self-control and discipline. You may not have received recognition for these actions (as many may not even know that you are doing them), but they mean something to you . Another way to approach this essay is to talk about a personal challenge you had to overcome. Maybe it was a social problem you had to face in high school forcing you to stand up for a close friend, or a friend that passed away. These type of situations may not come off directly as proud accomplishments, but can be turned around to demonstrate how proud you are afterwards for sticking up for that friend or for being able to move on and be level-headed after that funeral. These type of situations show college admissions officers that you are able to turn lemons into lemonade. Your proudest accomplishment doesn’t have to be about the good times, it can also be about the bad— but if your choose this route, make sure to clearly explain why you it was a proud moment. This option allows you to be completely creative and take a bold risk . You could write about a community service project you are part of, why you think McDonalds is better than the West Coast In-N-Out, or your passion for figure skating (even though you always fall). The best essays will be ones where you unleash your inner personality and give insight into who you really are. You can take this in two ways. If you are funny, take a jab and write a humorous piece about the life of a high school AP Chemistry student. If you are very serious, maybe take time to reflect on how being serious your entire life has helped, or even hurt, you. Notre Dame wants you to take that risk with this essay and really express who you are (keep in mind you only have 150 words to do this though). If you have taken a creative writing class, or done some personal writing that is on the more creative side, this is the prompt for you. Explore with different forms of writing — poetry, satire, comedy, or even an extremely short 150 word story. This will be sure to stand out from the other applicants. If you feel uncomfortable with creative writing, you can go the more traditional route and talk freely about something you are passionate about. This more traditional essay pairs well if you have dedicated your past four years towards something you are really passionate about whether that be a certain political movement, club that you started, an organization you are on the board for, or research that you have done every summer. If you have something like that, this essay gives you the opportunity to expand on why those personal projects mean so much to you.    This essay could go incredibly well, or easily come off the wrong way to someone who doesn’t know you. So be sure to have other people read your essay (especially someone who might not know you well!). Taking this option, while it may have a high risk, also has high rewards. Want help on your Notre Dame application or essays? Learn about our College Apps Program . Want us to quickly edit your college essay? Submit it to our Rapid Review program , and we’ll get it back to you quickly with comments from our expert team. We'll send you information to help you throughout the college admissions process. Joyce Ivy Foundation Scholars-A Summer Opportunity for Women from the Midwest If you’ve ever received emails or correspondence from various organizations that claim you can be a part of an elite group of individuals, you are probably not alone. Many times, the opportunities offered sound too good to be true, and when you delve a little deeper, you learn that you can be this scholar or that scholar for an exorbitant fee. If you receive an email from the Joyce Ivy Foundation   making similar claims, don’t toss out the mail or delete the email. The Joyce Ivy Foundation is an organization that offers young women from across the Midwest the opportunity to become a Joyce Ivy Foundation Scholar, a position which includes myriad benefits, but without any hidden fees! If you are a woman from the Midwest and have aspirations of attending a highly selective university, read on to learn about how the Joyce Ivy Foundation can help you achieve your dreams. The Joyce Ivy Foundation was started in 2006 after a group of Midwest natives who had attended colleges such as Princeton, Harvard, Dartmouth, and Brown, came together with the goal of providing other young women from the Midwest the same educational opportunities they had. The founders realized that students from the Midwest were under-represented on the campuses of these highly selective universities due to lack of awareness about the opportunities and scholarships that were available to them. They also recognized that many students in the Midwest were unable to recognize their own talent or felt that they couldn’t compete with students from other parts of the country, and the foundation wanted to encourage young women to pursue various opportunities outside of their comfort zone. The Joyce Ivy Foundation created the Summer Scholars Program , which gives young women from the Midwest the opportunity to venture away from home during the summer to attend some of the most highly selective universities in the country. The foundation provides critical information about admissions, the financial aid process, the interview process, and connects scholars with peers and mentors to boost their confidence. Each year, the Joyce Ivy Foundation (JIF), names young women from Michigan, Ohio, Nebraska, Missouri, South Dakota, and North Dakota Joyce Ivy Foundation Scholars. In 2016, 78 Scholars were named from 70 different schools. Once selected as a JIF Scholar, students are offered the opportunity to attend summer programs at schools such as Yale, Harvard, MIT, Johns Hopkins, and more. The programs at these institutions vary in length, but most range from two to seven weeks. In some cases, students may be eligible to receive college credit for the coursework. Once on the campus of your selected university, you will be immersed in college classes, studying alongside university students. You will be taught by university professors, live in the college dorms, and experience life in a city. This experience allows you to have a college experience during your summer vacation that may prove to be life-changing. There are many highly qualified individuals that apply, and the selection process is very competitive. Selection criteria are based on academic record, intellectual qualities, involvement in extracurricular activities, and leadership in school and your community. You are more likely to be named a Joyce Ivy Scholar as a rising junior or senior, although there have been instances when an exceptional rising sophomore is selected. If you choose to apply as a rising sophomore, please understand that you will be competing against some of the top students in your state. The application is available in December for female students in their sophomore or junior year of high school.   On occasion, exceptional students may be chosen as rising sophomores. The application is very similar to the Common Application .   You  will be required to fill out similar forms and write essays from past and present Common Application prompts, which allows you to get a better understanding of the college application process. If you are applying for need-based financial aid, you will need to submit your parent’s tax documents to verify financial need. Our Early Advising Program helps students in 9th and 10th grade discover their passions and build strong academic and extracurricular profiles to succeed in high school. The Joyce Ivy Foundation has three levels of funding available for summer study. Funding levels are $6,000, $3,000 and $1,000. The funding is based on demonstrated financial need and is calculated estimating the full cost of attendance which includes tuition, room, board, travel, and spending money. The $1,000 award is merit-based, and although the application is the same, you will not be required to submit tax documents for this level of funding. Students will typically receive a partner scholarship from the university, and scholarship amounts will be determined by the cost of the specific summer program the student chooses to attend. In order to receive funding from the University and the Joyce Ivy Foundation, you must complete separate applications for the summer program as well as the Scholar program, and you must identify yourself as a Joyce Ivy applicant.   The Foundation encourages students to complete both applications early as funding is limited. Being named a JIF Scholar is not a prerequisite to attend a summer program. All programs that partner with JIF are open to any student, but being named a JIF Scholar confers additional financial and networking advantages. Once you are named a JIF Scholar, you will attain access to peer mentoring and support from the foundation regardless of whether or not you can attend a summer program. However, the funding you may receive can only be used for a summer program prior to graduating from high school and cannot be used for undergraduate study. The foundation has created geo-circles where students from across the Midwest are connected to each other and mentors from the organization to share information, concerns, questions, victories and defeats. The Scholars often find themselves connected for years to come and many form life-long friendships. â€Å"Receiving the opportunity to attend a summer program at Brown University stretched my comfort zone, and it provided me a first-hand experience of connecting with peers in a college environment. It opened my perspective and perception of others as I ventured outside of North Dakota, which I learned to thrive independently in a vibrant metropolitan city. Engaging in a high level academic environment allowed me to see how passionate other students were in their fields of study. The Joyce Ivy foundation served as my foundation to pursue my passion for education, as it fulfilled my desire for knowledge and learning to allow me to get into my dream school.† – Lynna, North Dakota JIF Scholar 2016 â€Å"My summer program at WashU was a life-changing experience. I came back home feeling more independent and confident than ever. Before that, I didn’t know if I had what it took to make it in to a prestigious university, but now I know that I can do anything I set my mind to. Without the generosity of the Joyce Ivy Foundation, I never would have had the amazing opportunity to travel, study, and meet people from all over the world!† – Megan, Michigan JIF Scholar 2016 Fun Facts about the 2016 JIF Scholars: The Joyce Ivy Foundation serves as a resource for young women throughout the Midwest. They believe in the transformative power of educational experiences that challenge students and raise aspirations. Each year, JIF also hosts a College Admission Symposium , where young women and their families are given the opportunity to connect with admission counselors from selective universities to learn more about the application process, financial aid and interviewing techniques. The symposium is held in May and pre-registration is required. The symposium is open to young women and their families regardless of if they are named a JIF Scholar. Each year, the foundation also hosts a gala for Joyce Ivy Scholars where they are recognized for their accomplishments. Scholars have the opportunity to visit with their peers throughout the evening, which provides an opportunity to make life-long connections with other young women that have similar dreams and aspirations. At , we work with students to help them develop a compelling admissions profile. This includes advising on summer opportunities. Learn more about our Mentorship program and how we can help you establish a competitive profile.

Freedom of Expression Case Study Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2750 words

Freedom of Expression - Case Study Example It becomes more difficult when the right to free speech competes with another right as will be elucidated on more fully later, the right to privacy. All that should be done is look through jurisprudence until one finds the applicable case with similar facts. In â€Å"hard† cases with novel facts, the role of the judge becomes infinitely more difficult. This is evident, for example, in a case wherein a judge determined that the right to privacy is trumped by the fact that there were legitimate aims to be pursued, as in the case of A v. The United Kingdom, where a Member of Parliament, after identifying the applicant and giving her exact address, proceeded to describe her as a neighbor from hell. In recent times, particularly given the public’s voracious appetite for information on the private lives of celebrities and the entertainment media’s eagerness to satisfy such an appetite, the tension between the right to free speech and the right to privacy grows sharper. Article 8 of the Human Rights Act states that â€Å"Everyone has the right to respect for his private and family life, his home and his correspondence.† It must be underscored that â€Å"although the object of Article 8 is essentially that of protecting the individual against arbitrary interference by the public authorities, it does not merely compel the State to abstain from such interference: in addition to this primarily negative undertaking, there may be positive obligations inherent in an effective respect for private or family life. These obligations may involve the adoption of measures designed to secure respect for private life even in the sphere of the relations of individuals between themselves." It is cause for reflection that three of the recent famous cases involving privacy and free speech were decided in favor of privacy. This paper will discuss first the case of Princess Caroline of Monaco, which was resolved with finality in the European Court of Human Rights. After which, the case of Michael Douglas, Catherine Zeta-Jones and Ok! Magazine against Hello! Magazine will be discussed. Last would be the case of Naomi Campbell. In the first case, Von Hannover v. Germany5, Princess Caroline invokes her right to privacy against several entertainment magazines that published pictures of her in her private moments. A few of these photos showed her with actor Vincent Lindon, and such photos were captioned "these photos are evidence of

Korean American culture experience Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Korean American culture experience - Essay Example Indded, they cited that studies point to the vitality of religion, evident in the more than 3,000 Korean American Protestant churches nationwide. (p. 2) Most Koreans who migrated to the US barely know the English language. As such, they have difficulty in communicating with local and federal authorities. The Korean churches played an important part in this aspect because they serve as a mediator or facilitator when problem or misunderstanding between immigrant and authorities arise. According to Michael Foley and Dean Hoge (2007): The Korean churches were the only social service organizations that were able to take care of the problems of the Korean immigrants. Church is the core the community since the beginning of Korean immigration to the US. (p. 124) Karen Leonard (2006) found in her study that there is also a relationship between participation in ethnic congregation and the preservation of ethnicity. According to her, churches help to increase the Korean co-ethnic fellowship and in maintaining Korean cultural tradition. (p. 99) It is also important to note that Christianity in Korea or the Korean interest in the faith did not originate from missionary work. Instead Koreans sought it and adopted it, particularly incorporating traditional values such those pertaining to education, social services, political activities, among others. While the church serve the Korean community well – with all the previously cited factors – it could at times turn into a liability. The nature of fellowship in Korean church prevents them from learning to assimilate more. One should remember that the church and its devotees appear to be a slice of home and so Korean flock to it for security and other problems. However, this may hinder the assimilation process and Koreans may end up keeping to themselves and less and less interactive in the wider American society. On April 29, 1992 a riot broke the

Missouri Plan Law Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Missouri Plan Law - Research Paper Example Introduction: In the United States of America, judges are selected through employing one of the three available categories which are: elections, democratic appointment and the Missouri Plan. However, a few of the fifty American States employ hybrid methods of selection for the appointment of Supreme Court judges. The selection methods have different popularities among the different states. For instance, the democratic appointment method of selection is followed by the US constitution and therefore, the nominations for federal judges are put forward by the President and are confirmed by the US Senate. The Missouri Plan for the selection of judges was adopted by Missouri in 1940 and is also known as the merit plan or Missouri Nonpartisan Court Plan. (Peltason, J. W.1945). History and Spread of the Plan: The State of Missouri adopted the commission based on a unique role for the Bar in 1940 and since Missouri was the first State to adopt the commission method, it became known as the Mis souri Plan. The origin of Missouri Plan can be traced back to one of the founders of the American Judicature Society, Mr. Albert M. Kales and therefore is also known as Kales plan. In simple terms, the Missouri Plan is based on a nonpartisan commission employed for the investigation and selection of judicial judges from a list of nominees and then provides the general public with the opportunity of removing the judges from the bench. Several other States use different variations of the Missouri Plan for the selection of Supreme Court judges. Moreover, a majority of the States employ hybrids of merit plan and Democratic appointment such as the combination of unique role for the Bar and federal judge nominees being confirmed by the US Senate. Today, the most common method of selection is the elections and the second most popular method is the merit plan. (Watson, R. A., & Downing, R. G.1969). The Plan: The judiciary has a number of Progressive Era reforms, one of which is the Merit Pl an which is more commonly known as the Missouri Plan. The major aim of Missouri Plan is to free the political process from the government decision making and to let the experts perform the process of judicial selection. The experts are the lawyers who are entrusted with the job of selecting judges and bar association act as primary advocates. Therefore, the Plan attempts to shift power of selection to the Bar. (Kansas.1956). The Missouri Plan is based on two features which are as follows: i. The nominating commission submits a list of nominees from which the judges are appointed to the bench by the governor. ii. Once the judges have been appointed, at some point it becomes mandatory for them to come forward and face the public, which can then decide to remove the judges from their post through voting in an uncontested referendum. Therefore, it provides an opportunity to the general public to implement their opinion regarding the removal of appointed judges by saying yes or no. Thus, it limits the dependence of the Plan on the State and provides the general public an opportunity to implement their desires and provides them with a greater degree of independence from the government. (Watson, R. A., & Downing, R. G.1969). Advantages: i. The foremost advantage is that the selection and confirmation process is performed by experts i.e. the lawyers and the commission. The commission is well adapted for the process of assessing the qualifications of the judges as they know the law and are well informed with the preferences of the general public. I strongly believe that the method of Missouri Plan selects more qualified judges than the democratic appointment as the Plan eliminates political cronyism. Therefore, the nominating comm

Ethnics in the media Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Ethnics in the media - Essay Example Moreover, these internal conflicts had become very severe over a period of seventeen years (National Union of Somali Journalists (NUSOJ)). The Somali journalists were subjected to violent attacks constantly, and the perpetrators of such violence were granted immunity. In fact, none of the perpetrators of crime against journalists had been prosecuted in Somaliland. There were several persons who had perpetrated attacks against journalists and media persons. They included officials of the Transitional Federal Government, rebel leaders, the opposition and gangsters. All these entities invented novel methods of violence to suppress the media and to prevent news coverage by journalists. They had cautioned the press and asked it to refrain from publishing or broadcasting information and policies (National Union of Somali Journalists (NUSOJ)). Journalists had to work in a very dangerous and hostile environment. They were abused in several ways, and directed to abstain from exposing the facts to the public. The Transitional Federal Government had imposed various restrictions on the freedom of press and the electronic media in the capital city. The Somaliland government had closed down five private radio stations that were based in the capital city. Furthermore, the Regional Administration of Banadir had enacted restrictive laws, which aimed at curbing the freedom of press and media (National Union of Somali Journalists (NUSOJ)). There were several incidents, wherein the police had conducted illegal raids on the offices of newspapers in Somaliland. In one particular incident, the police and officials from the Criminal Investigation Department raided the offices of the Haatuf Daily Newspaper, based in Hargeisa. After this raid, they took Yusuf Abdi Gabobe, Director of Haatuf Media Network into custody, along with several other journalists. The police and CID officials also arrested Ali Abdi Dini, Editor-in-Chief of Haatuf Daily Newspaper and its treasurer,

Criminal law Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words - 3

Criminal law - Essay Example First, stop and search is an important tool for policing in the modern age, particularly with concerns about gang violence, illicit drug use and trafficking and terrorism. Secondly, the use of police stop and search have generated significant public mistrust in the legitimacy of police practices and this is important since police legitimacy depends largely on public trust and support.4 This paper, is an exploratory study and examines and analyses police stop and search powers and the safeguards implicit in the powers from the perspective of police and the community. This paper is divided into two parts. The first part of this paper describes the law related to police stop and search powers. The second part of the paper analyses stop and search powers from the perspective of police and the public. Police Powers of Stop and Search Police powers of stop and search under ordinary criminal law are contained in three statutes: PACE, the Misuse of Drug Act 1971 and the Criminal Justice and Public Order Act 1994.5 Therefore, police stop and search powers are subject to legislative oversight. ... Moreover, stop and search powers may not be exercised on the basis of ethnic or racial profiling. This is arguably the most sensitive issue to which the reasonable suspicion test applies. As Lord Devlin stated, reasonable suspicion would arise where there are indications of guilt although there was insufficient proof.7 Thus, a person’s race, gender and so on, should not constitute grounds for stop and search as these factors do not constitute indications of guilt It can be argued however that the counterterrorism legislation, may leave open the possibility of racial and/or ethnic profiling. This legislation confers upon senior police officers much broader powers of stop and search. In particular, reasonable grounds to suspect are unnecessary.8 Constables however, may stop and search anyone that they reasonably suspect to be a terrorist.9 Again this would involve the same limitations on stop and search powers as seen with ordinary powers of stop and search. Section 44 of the Te rrorism Act 2000 permits a constable to stop and search vehicles and drivers and pedestrians in specifically authorized places under authorization by senior officers in the prevention of acts of terrorism.10 This is particularly controversial since it can be argued that under Section 44 police may stop and search individuals on the basis of a hunch and there is nothing preventing police exercising this broad power on the basis of racial and ethnic profiling. Section 44 was the subject of debate in Gillan and Quinton v UK. The European Court of Human Rights (ECHRt)ruled that the authorization powers contained in Sections 44-45 of the Terrorism Act 2000 did not contain sufficient safeguards against the protection of privacy guaranteed by Article 8 of the European

Buyer Behavior Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Buyer Behavior - Essay Example Real world marketing strategies must account for this principle in a bid to lure consumers into buying, and actually draw them to certain products and not others. The personal factor in influencing buyer behavior is diverse and dynamic. Individual buyers exhibit different buying behaviors based on their tastes and preferences, and the actual product or service properties they look. Price and quality sensitivity also plays a fundamental role in driving individuals into buying. There are those that buy due to price favorability, while others will pay the given price provided the product or service meets the desired quality (Lunn, 2011). On the same note, there are persons who buy products or services because they are expensive; purchase of ostentatious commodities. Marketing in this line can also influence personal buying behaviors relative to meeting personal demands and properties in products and services (Lunn, 2011). Personal factor in the buying behavior of consumers cannot be ignored relative to the purchase process and buyer

Deer Valley Lodge Project Essay Example for Free

Deer Valley Lodge Project Essay The purpose of this unit 5 individual project is to take into consideration the revamping project associated with Deer Valley Lodge. The ski resort has made plans to add to the already sprawling location and wish to determine whether based on tax and cost information, if the new improvements are of an advantage or a disadvantage to the company as a whole. ? Deer Valley Lodge Deer Valley Lodge is a ski resort that has plans to add five new chairlifts to their site. The costs/interest to the company per chairlift is as follows: †¢Lift Costs $2 Million †¢Preparation of slope and installation costs $1. 3 Million †¢300 additional skiers if built †¢ONLY 40 days a year when the extra room for skiers will be needed. †¢New lifts will cost $500. 00 per day for 200 days †¢Tickets cost $55. 00 per day †¢New lift has an economic life of 20 years The above figures are very important when taking into prospective the planning and implementation of the planning for future extensions. Based on this knowledge, this exercise will call for explanation of the following information in this paper: 1. Assume that the before-tax required rate of return for Deer Valley is 14%. Compute the before-tax NPV of the new lift and advise the managers of Deer Valley about whether adding the lift will be a profitable investment. Show calculations to support your answer. 2. Assume that the after-tax required rate of return for Deer Valley is 8%, the income tax rate is 40%, and the MACRS recovery period is 10 years. Compute the after-tax NPV of the new lift and advise the managers of Deer Valley about whether adding the lift will be a profitable investment. Show calculations to support your answer. 3. What subjective factors would affect the investment decision? Computing Revenue and Cost Based on the previously listed figures it is safe to assume that the below figures will show the appropriate yield given the costs associated with the building of the new lift. Figuring the Incremental revenue and cost is of importance to complete this exercise. Incremental Revenue: $55. 00 per day (X) multiplied by the extra intended tickets which is 300 (X) then multiplied by the intended 40 day usage brings the total revenue cost to 660,000. 00, while Incremental cost is the lift costs of $500/per day multiplied by the total amount of days in service which is 200, which will bring the cost to 100,000. Then you take into prospective the Profit which is the difference of the Incremental revenue and the Incremental costs which in turn is 560,000. If this is the case then it is understood that the before-tax cash flow is as follows: 1. Initial year: 3,300,000 2. Every year after: 560,000 These figures are important when determining the factors that will suggest that the building of the new lift is of the utmost importance. Computing the before-tax NPV of the new lift: Will it be profitable Due to the NPV being a positive number listed in the above calculations it is my belief and will be the advantage of the company in question to go ahead with the project and expect a great return for their efforts.

The effect of Facebook on student performace

The effect of Facebook on student performace Facebook is a social networking site and website launched in February 2004 and was founded by Mark Zuckerberg. The popularity of online social network is growing at a rapid rate, such as Facebook. By end of 2008, Facebook became the most popular social network with 140 million active users Rayport, (2009). Today students use Facebook, because it is the other way to communicate with friends and family all over the world other than Twitter, my space and other social networks. Facebook offers many different options for social networking and entertainment, whereas it is free and the cheapest way to communicate with others. As far as communication goes, Facebook offers a chat option in which students can send messages instantly to one another regarding their work. They can also talk to numerous people at the same time. It is another way of communicating is using a private message option to write messages to another person. Facebook also offers the option to write on another persons profile where other people may view the message. However, these are not the only things can be found in Facebook. There are many applications and games can also be found on this site. There are ways to post items in other peoples profiles. A person can play interactive games that involve playing with other people on the site. Whereas, there are many choices of games and applications that people can choose. Examples of the games are Farmville, Pet Society, Poker, Sims and many more. These games can be interacted with friends and family. Games that this website provides continue to grow and in turn it continues to keep people intrigued and keeps them coming back. Facebook has become common among college students, Facebook games and applications and are one of the reason students are on Facebook. They spend many hours on games and applications till late at night, rather than studying or revising. This could affect the students marks and concentration during class. This is mainly because Facebook entertains them with variety of games and applications. Another reason could be because students too stress while studying, they need break, one of the option they log on to Facebook, on their phones, tabs, personal computer or laptops. When it is time to get back to their books, they spent more time on Facebook, and time just passes away without them knowing. This shows students can spend more time on Facebook rather than studying. The applications that most students spent their time on Facebook, that are uploading photos, posting links on their wall and also sending links on their wall friends wall. Whereas famous games on Facebook such as Pet Society, Texas Holdem Poker, The Sims Social and Farmville. Pet Society allows users to raise their pet in a self-decorated pet house. Users are able to play games, bring their pet to play with neighbours, as well as having the responsibility to feed their pets on time and clean them every day. Whereas, Texas Hold ´em Poker is a casino game that allows users to play poker as in real casinos, but with in-game currency. The game is nearly identical to other real cash poker games, fold, having a standard interface of check, and raise, and can sit down at any seat at the table. The game Sims Social is a unique computer game that allows players to create and control their own virtual household of people, known as Sims. Players control everything from their Sims career choic es to their eating habits, dreams, relationships, Thaddeus (2006). Farmville is an aspect of farm management such as growing and harvesting crops, planting, ploughing land, and harvesting trees and bushes, and generally run a basic farm. Some exploratory studies by Canales et al, (2009); Karpinski Duberstein, (2009) shown that the extended presence of students on Facebook has harmful effect on their task performance. While Facebook games are often said to be developed for people to spend their leisure time, it is proven that the games are addictive, causing people to spend a lot of time visiting the games. These two studies demonstrated that long hours spent on Facebook seem to decrease students academic performance and thus, their achievement grades. Students spend an average of 30 to 35 minutes a day surfing Facebook from The Learning Network blog, Schulten (2009). Many college students note that they actually spend only 3 to 4 minutes during each visit to check updates, making several visit a day; other spend up to 8 hours a day on the website. Students also acknowledge that they find the website totally distracting and the time consuming, but they also noted that they cannot quit visiting the website because they like it and can use it to keep in contact with all their family and friends, whether they meet them every day or not (Facebook, 2010). Some students are likely to spend more time than others on Facebook; they would be more immersed in related tasked as they spend long hours surfing on the websites thereby promoting their distraction from any tasks as they spend long hours surfing the website, thus promoting their distraction from any tasks performed in parallel. For example, users become interested in sharing information with friends and participating in discussion as well as uploading or watching videos and pictures. Students and other active user engage in long discussions about daily issues, checking their Facebook profiles from homes and from their cell phones. Students also check updates while preparing their assignments, which interferes with their assignments preparation. They are distracted from main occupation and their working memory load allocated to these tasks makes it difficult for them to focused and prepare their homework effectively. This would lead to instable results and likely decreased in their global achievement due to participation with Facebook. There have been many studies about using Facebook as a learning tool. One study showed that most students joined Facebook because Facebook was associated with university-level education by Madge et. al., (2009). This same study also found that Facebook is mainly used to keep up with social aspects of college life and it is a part of most students daily routine by Madge, et. al., (2009). However, students also did not seem to agree that Facebook helped their academic life cited by Madge et. al., (2009). Other studies have found that when students are asked why they did not put more effort into schoolwork that Facebook distraction was a regular explanation. Therefore, it is obvious that Facebook has become a very important feature of college life. There were no differences in Facebook use between different members of racial and ethnic groups that were part of the study, or between women and men. Younger and full-time students were more likely to be Facebook users. This study is to find out, does the time spent on games and application on Facebook affect the academic performance of students in SEGi University, Kota Damansara. Therefore the purpose of this study is to know whether Facebook games and application affects the grade point average (GPA) of students and the amount of time spent on Facebook games and application affects their studies. Grade point average (GPA) is a commonly used indicator of academic performance. Thus, the relationship among time spent on Facebook games and application and academic performance will be surveyed. In present study, Mass Communication students have been selected to conduct this study in SEGi University, Kota Damansara. The Facebook games that will be focusing on are Farmville, Pet Society, The Sims Social and Poker. While, Facebook application are pictures and videos that students spent time posting. 1.1.2 Statement of the research problem The main problem which is being addressed in this research is, how far does the time spent on games and applications on Facebook affect the academic performance of college students? The fact that excessive gaming will lead to a fall in academic performance is being illustrated on a report by Vivek Anand, (2007). It mentions that time management is the cause of the negative correlation of time spent on gaming and students academic performance. This also applies on Facebook gaming as they have the same nature and interrupts students time management in the same way. Many students in University already have laptops, smartphones; that supports the gaming in Facebook and tabs will bring it to the University. Therefore when they get notifications on their electronic devices, they will concentrate more on Facebook rather than the lecturer. Due to the lack of concentration towards the subject, students will tend to play games, chat with friends, post pictures and many more activities that capture their attention. This is not the fault of the lecturer, when students do not do well in their exams, is because they did not want to focus during the lecture. Karpinski focused on the relationship between time spent on Facebook and the academic performance of students San Miguel, (2009). He added the overall finding indicated more time on Facebook equals slightly lower grades. In Karpinskis study the regular Facebook user had a GPA of 3.0 to 3.5, while the rare Facebook user had a GPA of 3.5-4.0. Also, the regular Facebook user studied for 1-5 hours per week, while the rare Facebook user would student 11-15 hours per week. Many researchers are aware that Facebook is not the only thing that could possibly be taking away study time. However, 55 percent of those surveyed access their pages several times a day or at least once a day for a long period of time stated by San Miguel, (2009). 1.1.3 Research questions To find out does time spent on Facebook games affect academic performance? To find out does time spent on Facebook application affect academic performance? 1.1.4 Research objectives To determine the relationship between games and applications on Facebook and time spent. To find out the relationship between time spent and academic performance. 1.1.5 Significance of the study The effect of this study is to know whether Facebook games and applications affect students academic performance. This study is to find out does time spent on Facebook games and applications affect students grades. In this present study to find out does Facebook games and applications affect students academic performance, then hours students spent on Facebook games and applications affect their grades. In this study student agrees that the more time spent on Facebook games affect their academic performance, they spent hours on games rather than studying. Whereas Facebook application consume time and it does not affect their academic performance. This study will be beneficial to SEGi University students who want to know the factor, does the time spent on Facebook games and applications lower their academic performance, and does it affect their GPA. Therefore, the study is significant in this regard. It attempts to combine Facebook games and applications and the time consume does it affect the grades and academic performance. It will provide valuable information about Facebook games, applications, time spent, and academic performance. In this study will be shown the results of students when Facebook excessively. It also will serve as resource materials for others who want to carry out research in related field. 1.1.6 Scope/Limitation of the study A limitation of this project that is the participants are sampled from only one University, focusing at SEGi University on Mass Communication students, Kota Damansara. Therefore, the findings cannot be generalized to all colleges and universities. The researcher chooses the institution because of size, familiarity, cost-effectiveness, and diversity of students. Another limitation this study is that, the researcher cannot control whether the participants fill out the survey correctly and accurately. Nor can the researcher make the participants be truthful with their responses. Students may also underestimate or overestimate the time they spent on the activities listed on the survey. Students might also have trouble of distinguishing between being logged on and actively using their Facebook site. In addition, students may also under-report or over-report their GPA score. It attempts to combine Facebook application and games and the time consume does it affect the grades. The major limitation of this study is that it is cross-sectional and correlational in nature, and therefore it is impossible to determine the causal mechanisms between Facebook academic performance and time spent. While the data show that engagement and Facebook use are related, the direction of the effect is dif ¬Ã‚ cult to determine. For instance, students who spend more time on Facebook games and application also score higher on the engagement scale and also the grades are higher however it could be that students who are more engaged to begin with spend more time on Facebook games and application. It will provide valuable information about Facebook, does it affect the students grades and to manage their time. It also will serve as resource materials for others who want to carry out research in related field. CHAPTER II LITERATURE REVIEW 2.1 Background of the literature The present study conducted a comprehensive examination of the pertinent literature to understand better on the time spent on games and application on Facebook and how it affects academic performance. This chapter is organized into two main categories of research literature that shape the problem. The first section focuses on the definition and historical context games and applications on Facebook. The second section focuses on the time spent on academic performance and the students GPA on University students. The literature review revealed significant information about Facebook, games and application on Facebook, the time spent on the games and application, academic performance, and students grades. 2.2 Facebook Games and Application Facebook games are originated from the development of Facebook Platform, which allow 3rd party developers to develop applications that can be deeply integrated into Facebook, and have mass distribution through the social graph. Facebook Platform has proven to be extremely popular immediately after its launch. According to Facebook Platform Statistics, (2010). More than 70% of Facebook users engage with Platform applications, and there are 550,000 active applications currently on Facebook Platform. Considering there are more than 500 million active Facebook users worldwide, the number of people engaged in the platform is huge. The applications on Facebook Platform often incorporate Flash technologies to enhance interaction with users, which quickly develop into the form of games. Facebook is one of the social network, students spend most of the time because of the application that have many choices for them to check, view and post. As mention by Block, (2010). Games are often said to be developed for people to spend their leisure time, it is proven that games are fairly addictive, causing people to spend a lot of time visiting the games. Games such as Pet Society are developed by Playfish in the year 2007. Pet Society is a pet raising game that allows users to raise their pet in a self-decorated pet house. Users are able to play games, bring their pet to play with neighbours, as well as having the responsibility to feed their pets on time and clean them every day, Block (2010). It functions are to design their pets by choosing genders, names, colours, and physical appearance features. There are a variety of activities with which the user can interact with the pet, including washing, brushing, petting and feeding the pet. There are also activities whereby pets can interact with the pets of those in the friends network. A pet can visit the pets of their friends and perform the same activities to these pets, such as washing, grooming, feeding and many more. A pet can visit other pets as many times per day as it is inclined. Pets will receive coins on the first visit to each friend of the day and Paw Points on this and each subsequent visit. Ways to earn coins in Pet Society include the Daily Lottery, visiting friends, and winning awards, cleaning or playing with pets, winning hurdle races or betting on the outcome of hurdle races. By earning a certain number of paw points makes the pet level up. Students will spend most of their time visiting their friends pets and also to make sure they play till the next level. This causes them to spend a lot of time visiting the g ame. Next game would be, Farmville. This is an application where you can create and manage your own virtual farm. Buying animals and regularly growing and tending to crops is daily routine for those addicted to Farmville and once you have gathered enough money, you can spend it on farm extensions and other big items that allow you to make your farm that extra little bit more personal. After few hours you have to come back to harvest the crop, if not your crop will die and for this time are wasted. Students spend more of their time waiting for their crops to harvest and because of that they will be thinking of the game rather than focusing on the book. Another game that students would be addicted is The Sims Social is a Facebook videogames developed by Playfish. It lets the user to create their own customizable character. In this version, the player uses their character to interact with those of their Facebook friends. The character can develop like or dislike for other Sims, creating relationship that can publicized on the users Facebook page. In this game Sims are able to develop skills, such as art, cooking, music, writing, athletic, driving, and various project skill items which are tied with specific themed collections. The Sims Social is also able to select their careers and traits. It also has needs such as social, fun, hunger, hygiene, bladder, and sleep. The Sims cannot die, therefore all mood meters cycle from deep green (good) to lighter green, yellow, orange, red, and finally gray. The Sims Social uses the socializing features of Facebook to allow players to send and receive gifts in order to finish certain quests or ob jects. For example, when a Sims levels up to a skill, they must have certain items to unlock the next level. Most of these items are obtained by sending requests to other friends or by interacting with friends Sims. Lastly is Texas Holdem Poker. It is developed by Zynga in the year of 2007, Block (2010). According to Texas Holdem is a poker variation of seven card stud poker where poker players share common cards called the board. Due to the fact that the starting two card poker hand is comprised entirely of face-down poker cards, the obligation to open the betting is rotated clockwise after each poker hand. This is accomplished with the use of a dealer button and blinds. A dealer button is a round disk with the word dealer written on it. Blinds are mandatory bets made by the first two players clockwise from the dealer button. The blinds posted in all limit games are in the amounts of 1/2 of the lower limit for the first player (small blind) and the lower limit for the second player (big blind). The blinds in a $10-$20 game would, therefore, be $5 and $10. Poker is a type of card game in which poker players bet on the value of the poker card combination (hand) in their possession, by placing a b et into a central poker game pot. The poker winner is the one who holds the poker hand with the highest value according to an established poker rankings hierarchy, or otherwise the poker player who remains in the poker hand after all others have folded. Students are addicted to this game because they want to raise the amount of money, called chips. They can play and bet with their friends. If one of them loses the game, they will play even more and this consumes time. Students are able to compete and interact with your their friends that they really know who they are in the Facebook Platform. Every time one log onto the game, they can see the progress of their friends in the game fairly easily. People can keep in touch with friends with minimal time and financial costs, which is an important factor of game addiction. Their friends that are playing the game are automatically added to the player list of them, bringing much convenience. This will encourage people to keep on playing the games, and invite more people to join the community. This we can see that, students will spend more time playing games, because they have to pass to the new level and beat their friends. 2.3 Facebook and Academic Performance Over the past few years, the use of social software tools like Friendster, MySpace, and Facebook has been increasing. Facebook, in particular, has become hugely popular among college and university students since its inception in 2004. While participation in sites like Facebook raises some concerns about privacy, there are potential benefits from participation, such as meeting new people through the site, or learning more about people in ones offline community. A lot of students prefer to use Facebook, because it offers multiple functions. For example they are able to post link with picture, therefore people spend most time on Facebook just by reading those links, going through the pictures and also chatting with friends and commenting on it. According to Hargittai,( 2008); Jones Fox,( 2009); Matney Borland, (2009). Facebook has become, the most popular social media website for college, and research shows that anywhere between 85 and 99 percent of college students use Facebook. Whereas, there are few researcher, Cooper Weaver, (2003); DiMaggio, Hargittai, Celeste, Shafer, (2004); Hargittai, (2008); Junco, Merson, Salter, (2010); Kaiser Family Foundation, (2004) agreed that Facebook has become the use of social media in the world. There are persistent differences along gender, socioeconomic, and racial lines in technology adoption and the usage, often referred to as the digital divide. Further, Subrahmanyam, Smahel, Greenfield, (2006); Valkenburg Peter, (2007); Wolak, Mitchell, Finkelhor, (2003) shows that adolescents consider the Internet a highly important medium in their everyday social life and use it to form and maintain social relationships. In this survey we can say that students use Facebook to interact with their family and friends, to keep in touch and to maintain their friendship and relationship between each other. A researcher in the education department at Ohio State University, Aryn Karpinski (2009), stated that students who spending much time on Facebook regularly surf Facebook does not do well in their academic performance. The American research found that Facebook rituals, including adding many friends, adding applications, poking other users and joining groups, can swallow up hours of study time. Some students were spending as little as an hour a week on academic work as they were too busy surfing Facebook. This study shows people who spend more time on Facebook spend less time studying. Kubey, Lavin, and Barrows (2001) found that students who spent five times more hours online reported schoolwork problems. Ten to fifteen per cent of the student participants felt their Internet visits were out of control. Although this study did not mention Facebook specifically, the researchers did mention that the captive social opportunities of the Internet appeared to be the culprit of the schoolwork problems (Kubey et. al, 2001). In addition, Vanden Boogart (2006) discovered that excessive 35 Facebook use was found among students with lower GPAs. Conversely, Pasek, More, Hargittai (2009) and Kolek and Saunders (2008) found no correlation between Facebook use and GPA in their studies. Bauerlein (2008) claimed that social networking sites (i.e. Facebook) raise vocabulary problems, which can lead to weaker reading and writing skills. Students who write and read messages on social network sites often use new lingo (i.e. short-hand versions of words), incomplete sentences, misspelled words, and incorrect grammar. Online social network etiquette allows for students to write poorly because it is a very lax environment for writing and sending messages. Unfortunately, when students consistently practice poor writing skills when participating in online activities, they start to develop bad writing habits that could also hinder their academic performance. Some exploratory studies by Canales et al, (2009); Karpinski Duberstein, (2009) have shown that the extended presence of students on Facebook has harmful effect on their task performance. These two studies revealed that long hours spent on Facebook seem to decrease students academic performance and thus, their achievement grades. Students spend an average of 30 to 35 minutes a day surfing Facebook from The Learning Network blog, Schulten (2009). Many students noted that they actually spend only 3 to 4 minutes during each visit to check updates, making several visit a day; other spend up to 8 hours a day on the website. From this study we will know that students prefer using Facebook rather than studying and they prefer spending time on Facebook. Students who are logged on to Facebook while studying get significantly lower grades than those who did not use Facebook, according to psychologists. A study has found that the exam results of those who used the social networking site while homework, were 20 percent lower than rare users. According to researchers, the findings put a dent in the theory that young peoples brains are better at multitasking on digital gadgets. The problem is that most people have Facebook or other social networking sites, their emails and maybe instant messaging constantly running in the background while they are carrying out other tasks, the Daily Mail quoted study author Professor Paul Kirschner as saying. Our study, and other previous work, suggests that while people may think constant task-switching allows them to get more done in less time, the reality is it extends the amount of time needed to carry out tasks and leads to more mistakes, (pg 1237-1245) His team studied 219 students aged between 19 and 54 at an American university. It was observed that the Facebook users had a typical grade point average score from zero up to four of 3.06. Non-users had an average GPA of 3.82. Those who did not use the site also said they devoted more time to studying, spending an average of 88 per cent longer working outside class. Three fourth of the Facebook users claimed they didnt believe spending time on the site affected their academic performance. The study by Open University in the Netherlands will be published in the journal Computers in Human Behavior. According to Professor Paul Kirschner: The problem is that most people have Facebook or other social networking sites, their emails and maybe instant messaging constantly running in the background while they are carrying out other tasks. The Facebook users among them had a typical grade point average a score from zero up to four of 3.06. Non-users had an average GPA of 3.82 (pg 1237-1245) According to the researcher, students are always with their laptops, hand phone, and tabs. Therefore they will get the notifications while studying, students will tend to concentrate more on Facebook rather than their subject. Therefore, whenever the lecturer explains in the class, their concentration will be on Facebook. When comes to exam the students who did not use Facebook while concentrating in class will score more in exams rather than the students, that are more on Facebook. Yamamichi, (2011). Stated that the Facebook Statistics also mentions, that there are more than 250 million active users accessing Facebook through their mobile devices and people that use Facebook on their mobile devices are twice as active on Facebook than rare mobile users. This shows many of students not only use laptops and tabs, but they use Facebook on their mobile device to connect to Facebook. Canales, Wilbanks, and Yeoman (2007). Conducted their survey on sixty-one college students, they found that students who use Facebook more often generally have lower GPAs and tend more towards extraversion and neurosis (associated with anxiety, anger, depression, and impulsivity) than those students who use Facebook less. Referring to Choney, ( 2010) statement Users of Facebook have an average GPA of 3.06, while non-users have an average GPA of 3.82. It shows Facebook does affect their academic performance, to be included that students not using Facebook getting higher GPA then users in their exam. Another statement by Fodeman and Monroe, (2009). Students have an irresistible need to connect with their peers because of the development of these 24/7 accessible technologies. Therefore, the usage of Facebook can become a habit that may affect the academic performance of students as well as their quality of life. 2.4 Theory The theory of this study is the Uses and Gratification (UG). Uses and gratifications is a psychological communication perspective that examines how individuals use mass media. An audience based theoretical framework, it is grounded on the assumption that individuals select media and content to fulfill felt needs or wants. These needs are expressed as motives for adopting particular medium use and are connected to social and physical makeup of individual. Based on perceived needs, social and psychological characteristics, and media attributes, individuals use media and experience related gratifications. The perspective can be used to understand a variety of media uses and consequences. It assumes a relatively active audience, which consciously selects content and media to satisfy specific needs or desires. For example students do come to Facebook to fulfill their needs for self-expression. Some may post on statues to express their needs and also chat or message their friends. In this study, have to understanding the thoughts and behaviours of the students in using Facebook games and applications. The media uses and gratifications theory looks at understanding what people do with media outlets. This approach focuses on why people use particular media rather than on content. In contrast to the concern of the media effects tradition with what media do to people. Uses and Gratification can be seen as part of a broader trend amongst media researchers which is more concerned with what people do with media, allowing for a variety of responses and interpretations. Katz, Blumler, and Gurevitch (1974) describe the concept as one that is concerned with the social and psychological origins of needs, which generate expectations of the mass media or other sources, which lead to differential patterns of media exposure. This means many people use media to satisfy their needs, for example students use media such as Facebook to past their time, for a learning tool, play games and many more. Uses and Gratifications Approach offers another way of explaining why people expose themselves to some communications. Katz, Blumler, and Gurevitchs Uses and Gratification Theory suggest that media users play an active role in choosing and using media. Users take an active part in the communication process and are goal-oriented in their media usage. Theorists say that media users seek out source that best fulfills their needs. Uses and Gratifications Theory assumes that users have alternate choices to satisfy their needs (Griffin, 2000). Focus of this theory is that viewers attend, perceive and remember information that is pleasurable or that will in some way help satisfy their needs

Western Humanities Essay -- essays research papers

Western Humanities   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The Western Humanities covers a broad scope within the world as me know it today. Many of the influences and inspirations that many claim to motivate them to make continuous advancements are from a basis of our past. Whether it is art, literature or social movements we as a civilization must always look at our past as a blueprint. Our history is our blueprint for life. I think the purpose of studying the Western Humanities is to take a look at our past. No matter what race color or religion a majority of our countries’ people are a descendent of the Western world. Its almost like looking as a very large family tree and learning about it. There are many reasons that can be put together to define the actual meaning of humanities. Western Humanities, to me, can be found within the fine arts, geographical distribution, and religious influences. Overall, these factors have come together to give everyone across the world their history, known as humanities.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  First of all, the fine arts have impacted our world with so much inspiration. These influences can be seen everywhere from the streets of France to the art galleries of New York City. You may have even read a poem written in a particular form. The fine arts have been a form of expression since the beginning of our civilization. One of the first known civilizations was an area known as Mesopotamia. Through this area an expression of art may be found in moldings and sculptures. As the west evolved so did these forms of expressions. Everything from the tools and thoughts to the materials used and the meanings behind them. A lot of meanings may have been in response to worshipping gods and warriors. As I look at today’s world not much has changed with our expressions. The materials used may be different yet the emotional desire behind the expression may well be the same. Today we use things such as computer generations, pop music and controversial literary work s. The main focus of all of these examples is to express ones art. Art has been said to be within the eye of the beholder and that art was vandalism. Well, I admire the vandals. There are many great sculptures and poets from the Greek world to the Renaissance periods that it is no wonder that the influence carried throughout the rest of the western world. It seemed that with each... ...arting to inspire one another with its structure. The buildings were not the only effects of religion but so were wars, laws and many political scandals. It is almost unbelievable to learn that faith was such a solid reason for many misunderstandings. Even the misunderstandings within faiths, especially Catholicism. I was amused and almost possessed a sense of comfort when a faith was simply based on the gods of thunder or goddess of love. I feel that I understand the many different religions now that I have seen them unfold to what they have become today.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  In summary, the Western Humanities influenced many of today’s thoughts and expressions. The study of humanities has greatly impressed me. I have always been intrigued with political, geographical and art factors. The culmination of these teachings has explained why we are who we are today. The values and ideas of each of these factors continuously improved our world. Improvement is not necessarily defined as doing everything better but advancing. Although the western world experienced many trials and tribulations there are still many that have yet to be undergone for our civilizations â€Å"family tree†.

The Role of Women in Buddhism :: essays research papers

In examining the Buddhism religion, particurally the role of women in Buddhism, it was quite clear that the religion of Buddhism is practiced very different from country to country. Buddhism is a philosophy of life expounded by Gautama Buddha ("Buddha" means "enlightened one"), who lived and taught in northern Inda in the 6th Century B.C. The Buddha was not a god and the philosophy of Buddhism does not entail any theistic world-view. The teachings of the Buddha are aimed solely to liberate sentient beings from suffering. Women have been a part of Buddhism since the Buddha first made his enlightenment known in Northeast India in the 6th century BC. Looking back to the earliest roots, several nuns and laywomen were among the Buddha’s ablest and wisest Diceples. The everyday role of women in many countries is quite different from that defined in Buddhist scriptures. Pure Buddhist ideology The Buddah originally banned women from monastic practice (nuns) but later reversed his decision, allowing them to practice in seperate quarters. The Buddist scriptures say very little about women, treating them as equals. In one scripture, the Visuddhi Magga, a monk asked, â€Å"Reverend Sir, have you seen a woman pass this way?† And the elder said: Was it a woman or a man that passed this way? I cannot tell. But this I know, a set of bones is travelling upon this road. Although this verse attempts to show the equality of women on the spiratual path, there was, and still is... sexual stereotypes present in the culture of Buddhist communities. By contrast to such bigoted practices that hinder spiritual development, Buddhism can be claimed to be the least discriminatory in attitudes towards women. There is no doubt at all that the Buddha was the first religious teacher who gave women equal and unfettered opportunities in the field of spiritual development. Although He had on several occasions pointed out the natural tendencies and weaknesses of women in general, He also gave due credit to their abilities and capabilities. He truly paved the way for women to lead a full religious life. This implied that they were equally able to develop and purify their minds and realize the bliss of Nibbana as well as men. This fact is amply proven by the testimonies of the Theris (Nuns) during the Buddha's time. The teachings of the Buddha did a great deal to wipe off numerous superstitious beliefs and meaningless rites and rituals - which also included sacrifices - from the minds of many people.

Macbeths Demise in Shakespeares Macbeth :: essays research papers

â€Å"Macbeth† is an age-old tragedy by, William Shakespeare, that tells the story of the disastrous down fall of Scotland and it’s Kings. The protagonist, Macbeth, starts out as a thriving Thane in Scotland, but ends up destroying his own prosperity as well as Scotland’s. Certain witches who tell people their fate convince Macbeth that he will be King and that his dear friend Banquo’s children will be kings. In an effort to be sure his prophecy is true and with some encouragement from his rash wife, he kills King Duncan, the current king of Scotland. To continue on this path of destruction Macbeth, acts on impulse and has his friend Banquo killed, because he is afraid that he killed Duncan for someone else’s fortune. Throughout the play Macbeth’s degeneration continues until the tragic ending when the country turns against him and seizes his castle. Macbeth’s demise can be attributed to his abandoning his belief in fate for a ne ed to prove his masculinity. Macbeth’s doubt in fate is not realized until later in the play. When he first meets the â€Å"weird sisters† they make prophecies that he finds impossible to be true. â€Å"But how of Cawdor? The thane of Cawdor lives, A prosperous gentleman, and to be king Stands not within the prospect of belief, No more than to be Cawdor.†(1.3.73-75). Macbeth doesn’t believe this because he knows that the Thane of Cawdor is still alive and that King Duncan’s sons are the heirs to the throne. His need to be masculine has not yet effected his belief in fate. Once Macbeth becomes Thane of Cawdor he is completely convinced that the predictions of the fate sisters are true â€Å"I chance will have be King, why chance may crown me. Without My Stir†¦Come what may, time and the hour runs through the roughest day†(1.3.145-150). This is the most trust in faith he will ever have. Shortly after Macbeth puts all his trust in fate, Lady Macbeth challenges his masculinity. â€Å" What beast wasn’t, then, that made you break this enterprise to me? When you durst do it, then you were a man,† (1.7.49-51). This is Lady Macbeth’s response when Macbeth tries to back out of killing King Duncan. Almost immediately Macbeth’s personality changes, he decides to go ahead with the crime as if that will make him a man. Macbeth's Demise in Shakespeare's Macbeth :: essays research papers â€Å"Macbeth† is an age-old tragedy by, William Shakespeare, that tells the story of the disastrous down fall of Scotland and it’s Kings. The protagonist, Macbeth, starts out as a thriving Thane in Scotland, but ends up destroying his own prosperity as well as Scotland’s. Certain witches who tell people their fate convince Macbeth that he will be King and that his dear friend Banquo’s children will be kings. In an effort to be sure his prophecy is true and with some encouragement from his rash wife, he kills King Duncan, the current king of Scotland. To continue on this path of destruction Macbeth, acts on impulse and has his friend Banquo killed, because he is afraid that he killed Duncan for someone else’s fortune. Throughout the play Macbeth’s degeneration continues until the tragic ending when the country turns against him and seizes his castle. Macbeth’s demise can be attributed to his abandoning his belief in fate for a ne ed to prove his masculinity. Macbeth’s doubt in fate is not realized until later in the play. When he first meets the â€Å"weird sisters† they make prophecies that he finds impossible to be true. â€Å"But how of Cawdor? The thane of Cawdor lives, A prosperous gentleman, and to be king Stands not within the prospect of belief, No more than to be Cawdor.†(1.3.73-75). Macbeth doesn’t believe this because he knows that the Thane of Cawdor is still alive and that King Duncan’s sons are the heirs to the throne. His need to be masculine has not yet effected his belief in fate. Once Macbeth becomes Thane of Cawdor he is completely convinced that the predictions of the fate sisters are true â€Å"I chance will have be King, why chance may crown me. Without My Stir†¦Come what may, time and the hour runs through the roughest day†(1.3.145-150). This is the most trust in faith he will ever have. Shortly after Macbeth puts all his trust in fate, Lady Macbeth challenges his masculinity. â€Å" What beast wasn’t, then, that made you break this enterprise to me? When you durst do it, then you were a man,† (1.7.49-51). This is Lady Macbeth’s response when Macbeth tries to back out of killing King Duncan. Almost immediately Macbeth’s personality changes, he decides to go ahead with the crime as if that will make him a man.

Planning and Enabling Learning Essay

This rationale focuses on the four areas of ‘Negotiating with Learners’, ‘Inclusive Learning’, ‘Integrating Functional Skills’ and ‘Communication’. During my research I will draw upon a range of sources which include the internet, books, organisation media (leaflets) and lessons learned. Teaching processes should be cooperative between the student and tutor. To this end tutors should plan strategies like initial assessments, agreeing on learning goals and possible actions to be taken by in order to empower learners to achieve these goals. Petty, G (2009, p530) states: â€Å"Each learner is unique and has individual needs. If the needs of our learners are discovered, the chances of success are greatly increased.† thus as a starting point initial assessments should be carried out prior to commencing a programme of education. Different learners have different learning needs and tutors must know their learners well to judge these requirements. This could be undertaken via a range of questions during the enrolment process, forms or/and questionnaires. Information obtained should be kept confidential so learners feel free to disclose as much information about themselves and their learning needs as possible. Agreeing goals and actions should be accomplished between learners and tutors. The effect being the learner will also feel that his/her views and opinions are being heard and taken into consideration. The advantages to the tutor being that the learner understands their responsibility to advance their own education and tasks/objectives/deadlines required to do so. The tutor should monitor the process to make sure learners reach their learning targets along the way and amend goals by agreement setting new actions when objectives are not reached.

Intel Company Analysis

Today, Intel is used in many personal computers and lab-tops. The company has made a brand for itself and has been able to sustain ranks among many notable competitors. Today, Intel holds greater than 80 percent of the microprocessors market because of the success of its Pentium chip (Semiconductor 1). This report contains information pertaining to the Intel Company from the beginning and up to 2001. As many computer chip companies Intel had battles being at the top of the competitor’s lists, as well as producing products worth individual attention. This report will give a background of the company, an industry analysis that will explain Intel’s top competitors in detail, a SWOT analysis, a financial analysis and will conclude with suggestions that can help the company grow further. The Intel Corporation began in 1968. Two men are named the founder’s of this company; Robert Noyce, Gordon Moore. Originally, Noyce and Moore wanted to name the company â€Å"Moore Noyce† after their names but realized it sounded like â€Å"more noise† and was not a suitable name for a computer chip company. The company was then named Intel for â€Å"integrated technology. The early focus of the company was on integrated circuit memory devices. One of the first tasks encountered by Intel was producing a DRAM (dynamic random access memory) with a lower price. In 1970, the 1103 was produced. The 1103 was the world’s first 1-kilobyte DRAM. This undercut prices and had increased performance while being smaller. By 1972 the 1103 was the bestselling semiconductor memory chip in the world and the first commercial computer available was the HP 9800 series. Intel was able to gain market share at this time and this allowed them to continue researching and developing new products. However, by 1978 Intel was a full generation behind the Japanese when it came to the 16K DRAM and by 1984 Intel’s total share in DRAMs was barely 1%. The EPROM was produced and it allowed easy programming and gave users the capability to erase memory with ultraviolet light. It was not until Intel decided to raise the prices of the EPROM technology that it made money and in 1984 the EPROM was Intel’s â€Å"money maker. † The microprocessor was invented in 1971 and at that time Intel did not see the potential to use it for personal computers. The 4004 microprocessor was primarily used in calculators but in 1974 the 8080 microprocessor became the standard and Intel became the Industry leader in 8- bit market (Intel 1). Then in 1980, Intel’s 8088 microprocessor was teamed with IBM’s first Personal Computer. This gave Intel a large competitive advantage. Grove stated: â€Å"The presence of IBM in the early ‘80s was crucial. By winning that contract, we won the whole industry design. † This led to the development of the 80386, the first 32-bit processor in 1985. The 386 was an instant success and at that time Intel also decided to sole-produce and stop sourcing to AMD. This led to an eight year legal battle that was eventually negotiated in 1995. To continue gaining competitive advantage Intel moved into other markets. In 1998 Intel begins moving into digital photography, video, networking equipment and Internet commerce markets by manufacturing special chips (Intel 1). However, by 2001 Intel announced it was going remain focused on microchips. At that time Intel had a clear competitive advantage over the microchip market. The SIC code for Intel is 3674 for semiconductors and related devices. The NAICS code is 334413 for semiconductor and related device manufacturing. The semiconductor industry is very cyclical. For instance, in the year 1995 sales grew 40% and were up to $150 billion but in 2001sales fell sharply to $139 billion (Semiconductor 1). In order for Intel to gain and maintain market share they needed to have unique success factors. There are many key success factors for Intel. Intel started with innovators. Noyce and Moore were able to take chances and risks that caused a very successful company. These two were also good managers. They made few mistakes and really took advantage of all their employees. They placed their employees as a top priority and stressed openness, innovativeness and responsibility (Carmichael 1). Intel Corporations top competitors are Texas Instruments, AMD, and Motorola. Texas Instrument started in 1930 by Dr. Clarence Karcher and Eugene McDermott. It started as a Geophysical service that had a unique way of using seismology to explore oil. In order to keep their equipment out of sight from competitors they hired J. Erik Johnson. The company made headway by teaming with the military and in 1961 TI invents the first computer with a silicon integrated base for the Airforce. Then, in 1967 TI invented the first hand-held calculator. Texas instruments have a variety of products from clocks to digital signal processors. Texas Instrument’s main competitive advantage over Intel is calculators. While Intel’s focus was personal computers, Texas Instruments was dominating calculators and the education campaign. AMD Corporation is a company similar to Intel. During the early years AMD and Intel worked together to produce quality products. AMD began in 1969 by founder Jerry Sanders. In 1982, IBM had AMD sign as a second source to Intel for their manufacturing (AMD 1). It was clear that these companies were competing to have the competitive advantage over each other. Another semiconductor company in the industry is Motorola. Motorola began in the 1920s by Paul Galvin. In 1993 Motorola was ranked third of the world’s semiconductor manufacturers (Semiconductor 1). During the early years Motorola had a communication focus. There first product was a battery eliminator that allowed customer’s to use radios without batteries. They began developing pagers and cell phones and their six sigma quality allowed for good competitive advantage. The five forces model helps to draw conclusions about the entire industry. For threats of new entrance the condition is low. In the semiconductor business many companies have patented products. The products produced in this industry are based on innovation. These patents will make it hard for a new entrant to join the industry. Another reason the threat of a new entrant is low in this industry is the asset specificity. This industry requires highly specialized technology and most potential entrants will be reluctant to acquire these specialized assets. For these reasons the threat of new entrants in this industry is low. For bargaining power of suppliers the condition is high. The condition is high because there is a significant cost to switch suppliers. An example of this is Intel’s relationship with PC manufacturers. Intel cannot switch manufacturers without expecting a high cost. The bargaining power of customers is associated with the impact that customer’s have on a producing industry. In the industry of Intel the power of customer’s is medium to low. In this industry the producer’s supply a critical portion of buyer’s input. Intel is the producer in this instance. They are supplying a crucial piece to the buyer and the buyer needs to be willing to pay the price for the piece of equipment. However, to have a competitive advantage in this industry there needs to be some bargaining power to the customers. Maintaining a reasonable price compared to other competitors is very important so the buyer’s keep coming back. In any industry there is going to be a threat of substitutes. In the industry of Intel the threat of substitutes is medium. Competitors in this industry are always going to try and invent the best processor that all individuals will eventually need. However, because of the number of patents and copyrights in this industry substituting other firm inventions become difficult. The last condition facing industries according to the five forces model is rivalry. In this industry the rivalry condition is high. There are many reasons it can be said that the rivalry is high in this industry. For one, the exit barriers are high. Even if the firm is unprofitable at a certain time the cost to exit the industry forces the firm to compete and stay in the industry. Second, high fixed costs in this industry intensify rivalry. The fight for market share in this industry is high because firms must fight to sell the large quantities in production. Another reason of high rivalry in this industry is the number of firms. With the large number of firms competing the rivalry increases because each firm wants to gain market share. Intel as a company can be looked at more in depth by a SWOT analysis. This analysis focuses on strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats to the company. Intel has many strengths. One strength is their strong market position and brand name. The company started out with nothing and has become one of the best microprocessor companies. Advanced technology capabilities are also strength to the Intel Company. Without these advance technologies Intel would not be a successful company. The innovative technologies are at the core of the company. Another strength of Intel is their strategic alliances and partnerships. â€Å"The company has partnerships with major players including Asustek Computer, Comstar, Cisco, Fujitsu, IBM, Microsoft, Micron Technology, Sun Microsystems, Sprint,Verizon, and Yahoo! (Datamonitor). These partnership have enabled Intel to produce very significant projects. Also, partnering limits competition in the market. Without worrying about what the other company is going to come out with next, partnering allows for both companies to work together to come up with a great product Some weaknesses of the Intel company include their lack of customer concentration. Intel is a micro processing manufacturing comp any so the number of customer’s consuming the products is low. Intel has high dependence on these customers which reduces bargaining power. Not being able to reduce prices quickly can also hurt Intel. With Intel, reducing prices for customer’s quickly could hurt other areas of production which could lead to dissatisfaction in other areas. The response to customers is seen as weakness because in order to have a competitor advantage appealing to the customer is crucial. There are many opportunities for Intel as a company. Proposing acquisitions could broaden Intel’s portfolio and help them gain competitive advantage in the market. Intel could also grow in the global and PC market. â€Å"Intel offers products including microprocessors and related chipsets designed for the notebook and netbook market segments. Moreover, the company's Atom processor for these segments is very prominent with growing demand. Growing PC market will contribute to steady revenue flows for the company in near term (Datamonitor 11). † The last part of the SWOT analysis is the threats a company has. Increasing competition is a threat to Intel. When Intel’s competitors succeed in producing something a customer wants before them, Intel could run the risk of losing market share or position. No company wants to lose market share to another competitor. In Intel’s industry there is always a threat that another company will produce something at greater speed. Another threat to Intel is litigations and the regulatory commission. In the past Intel was investigated for alleged unfair business transactions, and alleged security failure. Future occurrences of these event will harm Intel’s reputation and investor reputation. The financial ratios and graphs can be found on the attached pages. The first analysis to look at is profitability. The net margin was used in calculating these numbers. By the graph you can see that Intel’s margin was the most profitable in the time periods 1999-2001. When a company has a high profit margin it means that they are selling their products at higher premiums. The graph shows that Intel sold its products at the highest premium. The next analysis estimates liquidity. Liquidity is the ability for a company to be able to meet there near term obligations. The current ratio was used in calculating these numbers. A firm wants a current ratio greater than one. If a firm has a current ratio greater than one it means that they are able to satisfy their near term liabilities. If a firm has a current ratio less than one it means the firm could have a liquidity issue. The graph shows all the companies were able to maintain a liquidity higher than one except Motorola in 2000. The next financial analysis was looking at leverage. The debt-to-equity ratio was used to determine how leveraged Intel and the competitor companies were. The debt-to-equity compares the companies liabilities to their equity. Companies want to have a lower percentage because that means they are using lower leverage and have a stronger equity position. From the graph it is apparent that Intel has the best leverage because of the lower percentage rates. The results shows that Motorola has a very low equity position because there liabilities outweigh there equities. The other two companies, AMD and Texas Instruments seem to be decreasing there liability numbers over time and in the coming years may have a better equity position. The last financial analysis estimate efficiency. The inventory turnover ratio was used to estimate these numbers. The inventory ratio tells you how often a company moves or sells inventory. To predict if a company has a good inventory turnover it is helpful to look at competitor’s results. In the graph included in the attachments, it can be observed that in 1999 and 2000 Intel had the second highest inventory turnover. This means that it took longer for Intel to sell inventories than Texas Instruments or Motorola at that time. However, in the year 2001 it had the lowest inventory turnover. In order to obtain a long lasting company these recommendations could help the company. Some immediate recommendations that should take place in 90 days or less could be to obtain ideas from employees to improve the company or how to gain competitive advantage. Listening to individuals that work for the company may help gain new ideas. Intel prides itself on the innovativeness their employees and it is important to give them a say in how they think the company is doing or where they think it can improve. Another immediate recommendation is a new marketing campaign to seek computer users to switch to Intel processors as opposed to competitors. I think it is important for consumer’s to understand the difference between core processors (such as Intel and AMD) not just the difference in the actual computer (like Dell and Apple). The average American does not know the difference and educating these individuals will help Intel gain a competitor advantage. Short term recommendations could include a price-reducing analysis. If the company could find ways to lower the prices of manufacturing they can gain competitive advantage. Also a short-term recommendation could be to research more about the cellular and wireless industry to see if it would be worth it to the company to branch out further form micro processors. Long term recommendations expand industry further not just for computer but gain market share in cellular and wireless devices. Intel has been the leader of microprocessors for many years. If they can use their knowledge Intel could expand .