Project Management as the Application of Knowledge Essay - 2

Project Management as the Application of Knowledge - Essay Example The construction industry in the Gulf has witnessed a colossal leap in the past decade. This is rather paradoxical in the context of the global economic slowdown, which negatively influenced the real estate sector in most parts of the world. In particular, the construction industry in the United Arab Emirates has bounced back on to the fast – track, rapidly taking on massive projects towards development of tourism, housing, industrial and commercial facilities, education and healthcare amenities, transportation as well as expansion of ports and airports. The construction sector has been a key source in driving growth for the nation’s economy and is expected to grow at a compound annual growth rate of around 9.5 per cent during 2012 - 2016. What you write here is the good context for the study – place this in your part 1,m this area is for the lit review itself This trend has been possible largely due to the affluence of the local Arab community, wealthy expatriat es as well as favorable Government policies. The United Arab Emirates is witnessing huge investments from both, public and private enterprises in the construction sector, focussing on the development of infrastructure for hospitality, retail, real estate and the healthcare industry.   Interestingly, Dubai is recognized to hold the ‘highest per square kilometre’ of construction activity in the world (Faridi& El-Sayegh, 2006)! Yet, it is observed that there are recurring problems of time and cost overruns in the UAE’s construction industry. This is a major cause for concern, prompting a thorough understanding of the current scenario and the proposal of solutions to mitigate these issues in the construction industry. ‘Project Management’ is defined as the application of knowledge, skills, tools and techniques to the project activities, in order to meet project requirements in an effective and timely manner. Project management typically includes identi fication of requirements, establishment of clear and achievable objectives, balancing the demands of quality, scope, time, cost and importantly, adapting specifications to meet the expectations of the various stakeholders. The application of ‘Project Management’ to the construction industry as a ‘scientific approach’ to mitigate time and cost overruns has been detailed by various researchers. There is a popular belief that â€Å"time is money† and any delay is sure to have a significant impact on the costs incurred. The interplay of contractors, consultants, supervisors and owners must be managed diligently by an effective manager, utilising project management techniques. The following will serve as a research proposal for a project that is concentric upon the role of ‘project management’ in mitigating the cost and time overruns and construction projects in the United Arab Emirates.  

I.R Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words - 2

I.R - Essay Example Feminism, on the other hand, is a very complicated political theory, a branch of Critical Social Theory, As per the neorealist theory, the chances of conflict give directions to actions while the post classical realism sponsors assessment of chances of confrontation on security issues among states. The three primary hypotheses of neorealist theory are: 1) recurrent equilibrium behavior, 2) states not coming forward for cooperative relations, and 3) states compete to remain on equal footing (Brooks 1997). Assuming worst-case chances of confrontations on the basis of neorealist theory provides benefits in approximating global decision taking. Actually, states are projected productively such way. So the assumptions on the behavior of states become useful in throwing light on swapping of various aspects of human nature, aggression and fear. States get focused to achieve their short-term goal of making their defense line strong. Disadvantage occurs in long term negative impacts on states’ other preferences. Long term goals become secondary to short term defense needs in a conflict (Brooks 1997). Neorealist theorists don’t give credence to the factors the liberal theorists perceive as impacting the probability of conflict. The postclassical realism is more akin to liberal theory in the sense that productive discussion can take place with liberal theorists. The main difference remains between the material and non-material factors (Brooks 1997). Liberal feminism is an ideology of egalitarianism. Since Plato so much has been written on the topic that it seems the relation of gender to politics is very complex. Feminism is against Rousseau’s masculine savage, unable to grasp abstract ideas. Both Rousseau and Freud have different opinions; Freud perceives women as â€Å"opposition to civilization† and all â€Å"civilization† is the work of

Family Engagement in Early Childhood Education

Family Engagement in Early Childhood Education Linda Harrison Imagine for a minute your most valuable possession. Think about a stranger coming up to you and saying, â€Å"I’ll take care of your valuable possession for you every day. I’ll take good care of it, but I might change it a little because I’d like to have my own relationship with it. You can pick it up from me at the end of each day, but you’ll need to bring it back to me again every morning. (Keyser 139) Janis Keyser is a published author that cares about parent-teacher partnerships and her works have been adopted by the National Association for the Education of Young children (NAEYC). Her writings are about the success of the whole family in their homes and child care when the family is actively involved in their child’s education. Her quote is meaningful when you replace the words â€Å"valuable possession† with â€Å"child.† Would her words make you want to get to know that person first? Would you think it was important to spend time in conversation with the person caring for your child? Of course you would. Parents want to know the person responsible for their child in their absence. Communication becomes paramount in this situation. Parents and teachers need to develop a good relationship with open lines of communication. Teachers want you as a partner in your child’s education. When you don’t talk about school or to the teacher your child hear s a message. That message says school isn’t important. The child may reason he or she isn’t important either. Families know about their children and teachers know about education. This knowledge needs to be shared to promote your child’s success. Any connection between family and school is good. Family involvement is a term used to describe the family’s participation in their child’s school. Participation includes spending time at the school or a function, being active, and doing it with a smile. The school’s self-interests and ideas are supported through involvement. If the teacher would ask for someone to bring in sea shells for beach week, the parent is only in control of whether or not they will be able to complete the task. Family engagement is better as it is the family as co-contributor rather than merely a client. The family’s ideas and self-interests interconnect with the school’s interests when they are actively engaged. Eric’s family went camping and his mother and teacher were talking about how much Eric enjoyed it. Eric’s m other offered to bring in tents and other camping items if the teacher chose to do a study on camping. The idea and interest came from the family. Eric’s mother came and participated in telling stories to the children about camping. Children learn that school matters by seeing their family actively engaged. When everyone’s interests in the child’s education are supported and encouraged the teacher is better equipped to individualize the child’s learning, the family is comfortable to approach the teacher, and the child gains confidence. The family and child are also able to build trust within this new relationship. Engaged families allows for flexibility through the sharing of ideas and information to achieve beneficial outcomes. Children learn that school matters by seeing their family actively engaged. It is crucial that families and teachers develop trust and reciprocal relationships to enhance the partnership. That relationship is as important as the t eacher-child relationship. Teachers must have relationships with children that include trust and attachment. Education theorist, Erik Erikson said the first human emotional milestone is the infant’s trust and attachment to a caregiver. His theory states â€Å"this stage sets the life-long expectation that the world is a good place to live† (qtd. in Santrock 25). This allows them to take chances and risks in learning. Without trust they experience doubt and won’t take initiative and may feel anxious. The children need to make connections in order to develop independence. When they have a strong trusting relationship with adults it promotes cognitive, literacy, social and emotional developments. You are your child’s first teacher and first experience in trust. When your child observes you and their teacher having a conversation it sends messages to your child. This message is that their family is valued and appreciated. Another message may be that your child is important to both parties. That happens when your child realizes the conversations are about more than problems your child may be having. Children enjoy feeling pride in their families and that has an influence on their self-esteem. When the family and the child are feeling confident it improves morale, energy and positive thinking among all involved. That will promote an enhanced learning environment for the child whether it is in a classroom or home environment. The Family Involvement Network of Educators (FINE), a Harvard Family Research Project reported that children spend, â€Å"20 percent of their waking time annually in formal classroom education, leaving 80 percent of their time to explore and enhance their learning interests in non-school settings. (Lopez) Since the family is the child’s first teacher, the home is the child’s first learning environment. The family’s success is not about the clothes they wear, where they live or where they work. It is how they care for and nurture each other. Family interactions at home are learning opportunities. When conversations take place children learn new vocabulary and literacy development is supported through reading together. Children’s social and emotional development is promoted watching family members in social settings. They see how people deal with happy, sad, and angry moments. They watch problem solving when something isn’t going as planned. Their li teracy development gains through familiar labeling in the home and regularly visited places. In a grocery store they see familiar brands on items. Children enjoy games about naming the color of the item, finding the letters in the name of the item, and counting how many items Mother needs to buy. At home while putting the groceries away the child learns responsibility while helping. Your child enjoys having conversations with you. Asking what happens if the ice cream isn’t put in the correct place supports your child’s critical thinking while they may be having fun talking about melted ice cream. There are many learning opportunities in the home environment that you do every day without being aware you are teaching. I always talk to my daughter. When we go on a walk or to the store or on the bus, we are continually talking. We talk about what we see, we ask questions, and we tell stories. When her teacher saw us one day having a conversation in the garden at school, she told me that I was helping my daughter learn a wonderful vocabulary, which would help her learn to read. I felt so proud that I was helping my child learn. I thought only teachers did that. (Keyser 7) These interactions are paramount to the child’s development. â€Å"Almost any activity – reading or play – does more to develop their minds, imagination, physical coordination, confidence and character than sitting in front of the tube.† (Griggs 1) At home activities help promote school readiness. Children are learning more at earlier ages than in previous years. It may be due to both parents working and there are multiple early childhood programs in every city. Children entering kindergarten are expected to know their letters, how to use a pencil, count with an awareness of its meaning, and how to take turns. They need to know colors, write their name, and recognize some words. Children from homes where families actively engaged in literacy activities like daily reading together were above average in being ready for kindergarten. (Bower 1) There are families that expect early childhood programs to be responsible for the child learning these skills without the family doing anything at home to support the skill development. Today’s working parents feel overwhelmed with the time restraints. It’s not about the time it’s about â€Å"singing songs, reading books, and telling stories are important parent– child activities that support learning when children are young† (Lopez). These activities can be done anywhere and anytime the family is together. The National Institute for Early Education Research reported it is important to note that progress can be seen where a partnership between school and home will reinforce the learning and further the child’s development. The National Institute for Early Education Research also reported that discussing changes in a child’s readiness skills can open a dialogue about the child’s strengths and concerns of the teacher or family. (Snow 1) The National Association for the Education of Young Children (NAEYC) published this article by Snow on the research findings and is a dedicated group that supports teachers and anyone interested through communication of information in early childhood development and education. It is a great source of information and knowledge and can be found at www.naeyc.com. Communication is the usual one-way means of delivering information. Conversation, on the other hand, is a two-way exchange of information and much more apt to lead to a successful relationship between the family and the teacher. Is your child’s caregiver the previously mentioned stranger or your partner in your child’s education development? Teachers are well aware that many families have time restraints and must hurry off to deal with their daily responsibilities. Families feel â€Å"no news is good news† as the saying goes about teachers informing them about the child’s day. The families feel that the teacher would certainly approach them if something important needed to be communicated. (Drugli 7) Sammie’s family didn’t think it was important to tell the teacher during drop off about the death of Sammie’s fish. That would have been important knowledge for the teacher when Sammie suddenly broke down in tears because â€Å"My mommy f lushed â€Å"Goldie† in the toilet at home.† That was a lost opportunity of a conversation between partners. It also would have prepared the teacher for the emotions and following conversation with Sammie. To adults this would seem inconsequential but a very important impact on Sammie’s emotional development. What message did she get from the family not taking time to discuss the incident? Sammie had to depend on her teacher for warmth and comfort. Children need to feel safety and security in every environment. It is important for teachers to understand the family structure of each child. Each family is different and cultures need to be respected. The dynamics of each family make it important how the teacher addresses family members. There may not be a father or mother. There are new practices in creating families. There are extended and blended families. There are multiple homes that a child may be living in. Urie Bronfenbrenner, childhood theorist, says children’s development is affected by all the different systems they are part of and how those systems interact with each other. (Keyser 1) Children observe the adults interactions and learn from them. During drop off when the adults greet each other the child learns who is welcome at the school. The child sees mutual respect shown and that is comforting to a child. It is important for them to observe conversations and see the body language connected with it. This is a way they learn social interactions. Children are learning all the time everywhere they are. Children are very perceptive and need help learning about social interactions. Parent-teacher relationships and partnerships are important but need to be developed with the children in mind. If one child’s parents aren’t able to come into the classroom to participate in activities the child may feel left out or unimportant. We should always approach ideas and activities considering the child’s perspective and feelings. Parents’ feelings are important too. Recently a parent confided in me that she is overwhelmed with work, home, and raising two children as a single parent. Her children are well cared for, clean, and always smiling. The children are a little behind in some of the areas of development. Teachers are educated about the domains or areas of development and are able to help support the child’s successful development. Teachers are caregivers that include education and developmental support. While talking with this parent I learned she felt inadequate and not good enough to engage in conversation with teachers or other parents. I assured her that all parents have doubts but they have children in common and they may find even more support and friendships along the way. Parents are as important to teachers as they are to their children. I invite you to share an example of what you think family engagement in anywhere, anytime learning looks like. Let’s start a list of no or low cost activities families can do together. One idea may lead to another! Reflection Works Cited Bower, Carolyn. Early Childhood Education Increases Participation and Attention, Teachers Say Study of Kindergartners Shows That Parental Involvement is Vital To Readiness for SchoolSt. Louis Post-Dispatch[St. Louis, MO] 04 Nov. 1999: B,1:2. Print. Drugli, May Britt Undheim, AnneMari. Partnership between Parents and Caregivers of Young Children in Full-time Daycare.Child Care in Practice18.1 (2012): 51-65. Web. 7 Dec. 2011. Grigg, France. â€Å"Teachers Ask Parents to Be Partners in Learning.† Cincinnati Post 9 September 1996, 8A. Web. 28 July 2014. Keyser, Janis. From Parents to Partners: Building a Family-Centered Early Childhood Program. St. Paul: Redleaf Press, 2006. Print. Lopez, M. Elena, Caspe, Margaret. â€Å"Family Engagement in Anywhere, Anytime Learning.†Family Involvement Network of Educators (FINE) Newsletter, 6(3). 2014. Web. 3 August 2014. Santrock, John. Children. New York: McGraw-Hill, 2010. 5-49. Print. Snow, Kyle Ph.D. Research News You Can Use: Family Engagement and Early Childhood Education.NAEYC. Web. 22 July, 2014

The Function of Blogs :: Internet

The Function of Blogs There are so many things one could do with the relatively new medium of blogs. They can be almost anything a person wants: a journal, a compilement of links, a scrapbook of information, or even a discussion board. The only definition I've seen that can encompass it is that they are postings in reverse chronological order. Blogs are the newest Internet craze, but do they serve a purpose? Early on, experienced web users, who knew web-programming language, kept blogs to keep track of their mind’s wanderings. They were like a "Captains log on the quest of discovery" (Brown). For the average Internet surfer, they weeded out sites worth viewing from the rest. Now, sites like blogger.com have taken the work with web languages out of blogging, opening it up to the general public. New age blogs are seen as "vain self publishing" by experienced bloggers (Fitcher). I can see their point, as many inexperienced bloggers seem to ramble on about themselves as if they are to be praised. They only seem to want attention. This has made me wonder, what is the point of personal blogs? All blogs must have some entertainment value; otherwise no one would keep or read them. Entertainment isn’t a very commendable purpose, but it has more value than watching television. It is better to be learning about news events and stating your opinion on it than just hearing it. At least then you’re developing your ideas, and the reading and writing will help develop communication skills. Bloggers learn to put more thought into what they say, or just the act of writing daily can help thoughts flow into words. A blogger’s thoughts may stem from a news article they recently read. In this case they usually link you to the article and state their opinions, or point out different aspects of it. Their comments are kind of a one-way discussion leading you down their train of thoughts. You can usually reply to what the author says, but the time delay in responses may result in the author’s lack of interest to questions posed. Walt Crawford threw an interesting concept my way in his article, Announcing Cubed: Media about Media about Media. Blogs are just another form of media coverage. Our media affects how we think to a great extent. It is always rating other forms of media, and many blogs are no exception (Crawford).

Recrutiment Process at Infosys Essay

Infosys Technologies has got the most structured recruitment process among all IT companies in India. First of all, they do not have any distinction between any branches of Engg. Whatever be the branch, you can sit up for the selection process if you qualify their other eligibility criteria like marks and time gap. i. e Once you had appeared for any test at Infosys, you will have to wait for 9 months until you appear for any of their recruitment process. For Off-campus, send in your resumes to the mail-Id mentioned and you are sure to get a call letter if you meet their academic criteria. Hence once you send the resume, start preparing for the exam, because you are sure to get a call. You may get call through e-mail invitation and further the admit card will be send to your postal address through courier/post. Latest selection process. ( As on March 2006) The duration of the selection process is 2. hrs which includes filling in an application form, an Aptitude Test (Analytical Thinking and Arithmetic Reasoning) and a test of Communicative English Language. The duration of the tests alone will be 90 minutes. The Aptitude Test will be generally of Puzzles type and the no. of questions will vary between 9 -15. The best way to practice for the tests is to go through the previous question papers at Freshersworld. com or refer books like Sakuntala Devi or George Summers. Go through the Maximum No. of previous question papers and prepare well for the puzzles.

Love should grow up like a wild iris Essay

Since the beginning of human existence love has earned a meaning of pure bliss and wild passion between two people that cannot be broken. Through out time the meaning of love has had its slight shifts but for the most part, maintains a positive value. In the poem â€Å"Love Should Grow Up Like a Wild Iris in the Fields,† the author, Susan Griffin expresses that this long lost concept of love is often concealed by the madness of everyday life and reality. In the poem, Griffin uses many literary elements to help convey the importance of true love. The usage of imagery, symbolism, and other literary techniques really help communicate Griffins’ meaning that love is not joyous and blissful as its ‘s commonly portrayed but often broken by the problems in our everyday lives. Through out the whole entire poem, Griffin uses a metaphor comparing a wild iris to love. Just like a wild iris, love can grow into something so beautiful and flourish so quickly with no limits on stopping. In the start of the poem Griffin says, â€Å"†Love should grow up like a wild iris in the fields, unexpected, after a terrible storm, opening a purple mouth to the rain, with not a thought to the future, ignorant of the grass and the graveyard of leaves around, forgetting its own beginning†, meaning that love should grow with no domestication and no boundaries just like a wild iris after a terrible storm (1-5). By using this metaphor the reader can really understand the value that love should flourish beautifully with no worries about its surroundings just as a wild iris does in an open field. This really gives the reader a mental image to help really grasp the emotional significance of how spontaneous and wild love should be. In the second stanza Griffin introduces the reality of love. She uses symbolism and imagery to really portray how love is often neglected by the realities of everyday life. She starts the stanza with, â€Å"Love more often is  to be found in kitchens at the dinner hour, tired out and hungry,† which gives the reader a completely different feeling in comparison to the metaphor with the iris growing in the wild fields (8-9). Dinnertime is often portrayed as â€Å"time with family†, but Griffin follows that line with, â€Å"tired out and hungry† giving the reader gets a negative connotation (9). Griffin is suggesting that love is â€Å"more often† to be portrayed to be this feeling of bliss but is really over powered by the problems of everyday life such as exhaustion and hunger to name the simplest. Love is not just represented by a marriage; you must fall in love with one another and continue that feeling but often times that is forgotten due to the common roadblocks in life. In the second stanza, Griffin portrays love as â€Å"houses where the walls record movements†, while in comparison to the wild iris whose love blossoms uncontrollably which cannot even be kept in a place with confined space without overgrowing (9-10). This could symbolize that love cannot be suffocated or have boundaries and like an iris you must let love takes its course. The author continues to compare love to a house â€Å"while the cook is probably angry, and the ingredients of the meal are budgeted, while a child cries feed me now and her mother not quite hysterical says over and over, wait just a bit†, which really gives of a sense of turmoil after reading through it (11-13). Every situation the author talks about above is everyday stressor that couples in love commonly fight about whether it’s from budget to infants. For example, normally a happy wife enjoys cooking for the family and feeding the kids. Happy and joyous feelings are usually associated with this event. Griffin explains the cook as â€Å"angry†¦while the child cries feed me now†, giving off a very undesirable tone which can relate to how the burn for your partners love is often overpowered by the pandemonium of peoples everyday lives. In the first stanza Griffin really uses nature to explain love, where as in stanza 2 she uses the house and all the events that happen during â€Å"dinner hour† which really expresses the negative mood and tone while reading. It was a very abrupt change in the flow because it goes from a more free-flowing and positive tone to a fast-paced tone and sense of chaos towards the end of the second stanza. The author uses the line â€Å"Love should grow up like a wild iris in the fields† on four separate occasions from start to finish in the poem. Each time used, Griffin changes the word play following the line,  which each gives its own tone to it. The first time he used the line was in the first sentence that was quickly followed with the stanza that gave of a sense of beauty while comparing love to nature. The second time Griffin uses the line she follows it with â€Å"but does not† and then compares love to dinner hour, which portrays a tone of turmoil and sadness (7). The third and fourth time Griffin uses the line they are followed by â€Å"but never does† and â€Å"but doesn’t†, both giving off a very negative tone in comparison to the first time Griffin used the phrase in the first line (15 & 30). The author goes from explaining the ideal value of love and how it’s perceived in the first stanza and as each stanza passes she begins to reveal how love really is perceived. This literary technique definitely helps portray the reader grasp the meaning of the illusion of the ideal love versus reality. In the final stanza, Griffins symbol of the wild iris takes on a whole new meaning as the â€Å"iris† of an eye. In relationship to the function of an eye, the iris of an eye can be a symbolic meaning that love is going to be perceived differently through every ones own view. A couple must be able to adjust with everyday misfortune that arises just as an iris of an eye does when it becomes too bright and needs to adjust to the sunlight. An effective technique Griffin used to contribute to the meaning of the poem is when she left the words â€Å"love should† on its own line near the end of the poem so it really catches the reader’s eye (29). In doing so, it gives the reader a visual almost as if the sentence is incomplete and the one reading should fill in what they think love should be. This directly relates back to the symbolism for the iris, which represents how all humans will perceive love differently through their point of view. The society has always shaped the meaning of love as something so perfect and flawless that all must go through in there lifetime. Is there one universal definition for â€Å"true love†? Susan Griffins writing style plays a large factor in portraying the ideal meaning of love versus the truth behind love. Her use of metaphors to describe love is really effective, giving the reader a vivid image whether it was love flourishing wildly in the open or just confined in the walls of a house hidden by all the stress and everyday burdens of life. Love is in the eyes of the beholder. What do you think love should be?

Dickinson’s writing Essays

Dickinson’s writing Essays Dickinson’s writing Essay Dickinson’s writing Essay Dickinson’s writing touched on many issues that were very important to the life and development of Dickinson’s persona; such as religion, war, psychosis, and love. Dickinson’s insight into these issues has been the source of the majority of the interest in her work. Emily Dickenson, throughout her life, sought a personal understanding of God and his place within her life. Her place within the Calvinist Puritan Amherst, however, would not allow for her inquiry into the understanding of the nature of God other than within their specific doctrine. In the poem Success is Counted Sweetest refers to comparison.   Dickinson writes that those who are granted their desires are more appreciative if they have never before received, or reached their desires.   It seems that Dickinson is referring to a lack of accomplishment from certain people, which could mean herself, and the accolades which success brings to the person who has seen little success, as she writes, â€Å"Success is counted sweetest By those who ne’er succeed† (Dickinson lines 1-2).   In these two short lines, Dickinson can also be referring to certain religious images as the poem continues to state, â€Å"To comprehend a nectar Requires sorest need† (Dickinson line 3-4).   In these lines Dickinson is making a contrast to a person who is in great need of success to a person who has had success in multitudes.   It is through experience, that is, negative experience in hoping and hope failing that Dickinson is referencing in these lines.   A person who has been pushed against the guillotine and never seeing a miracle, or having any part of success occur to them is more appreciative when a miracle occurs, than a person who has had constant exposure to their wants being fulfilled. Dickinson’s poem further emphasizes her point by stating, â€Å"Not one of all the purple Host Who took the flag today can tell the definition so clear of Victory† (Dickinson lines 5-6).   Purple is in reference to royalty, in this case â€Å"purple Host† (line 5) makes reference to a divine person, perhaps Christ, which is not uncommon to find religious symbolism in a Dickinson poem.   Here, Dickinson states that everyone on earth will not have exposure to success, or in this line, victory, because sometimes it is reserved for the deserving.   Emily Dickinson takes the poem further in symbolism by not merely writing about success in a corporeal sense but success as a victory for the soul entering heaven.   Thus, not everyone will have a chance to be accepted into heaven to have a divine success. Dickinson goes on to state, â€Å".- As he defeated-dying- On whose forbidden ear the distant strains of triumph Burst agonized an clear!† (Dickinson lines 7-9).   Here, the completion of the analogy in the poem to death is clear.   In the wording Dickinson uses, the reader may read that Victory in this case is victory over damnation, and the burst of triumph is heard to that of succeeding in life, in eternity with God, presumable, even though the religious icon is never mentioned in the poem it is clear that Dickinson is referencing the bible with word choices such as a trumpet ‘burst’, ‘purple’, and ‘Host’ which is in reference to the Holy Ghost.

Here We Come Group Energizer Theatre Game

Here We Come Group Energizer Theatre Game Sometimes teachers and other group leaders need new ways to get students energized and loosened up for classes or rehearsals.  The activity below has been around awhile. It is called â€Å"Here We Come!† How You Play 1. Divide students into two groups. Groups may be as large as 10 to 12 students. 2. Teach students the following lines of dialogue: Group 1: â€Å"Here we come.†Group 2: â€Å"Where ya from?†Group 1: â€Å"New York.†Group 2: â€Å"What’s your trade?†Group 1: â€Å"Lemonade.† 3. Explain that Group 1 must discuss and agree upon a â€Å"trade†- a profession, job, or activity that they will all mime after they have responded with â€Å"Lemonade.† (Group 2 should not be within earshot of their discussion.) 4. Once Group 1 has chosen its â€Å"trade,† the members of Group 1 line up shoulder-to shoulder on one side of the playing area facing Group 2, also lined up shoulder-to-shoulder on the opposite side of the playing area. 5. Explain that Group 1 will begin the game by delivering the first line in unison (â€Å"Here we come†) and taking one step towards Group 2.  Group 2 delivers the second line (â€Å"Where ya from?†) in unison. 6. Group 1 then delivers the third line in unison (â€Å"New York†) and takes one more step towards Group 2. 7. Group 2 asks, â€Å"What’s your trade?† 8. Group 1 responds with â€Å"Lemonade† and then they begin miming their agreed-upon â€Å"trade.† 9. Group 2 observes and calls out guesses about the group’s â€Å"trade.† Group 1 continues miming until someone guesses correctly. When that happens, Group 1 must run back to their side of the playing area and Group 2 must chase them, trying to tag a member of Group 1. 10. Repeat with Group 2 deciding on a â€Å"trade† to mime and beginning the game with â€Å"Here we come.† 11. You can keep score of how many tags a group makes, but the game works without the element of competition. It’s just fun and it gets students moving and revved. Some Examples of â€Å"Trades† PhotographersFashion ModelsTalk Show HostsPoliticiansManicuristsBallet DancersPre-school TeachersStep DancersCheerleadersWeight LiftersHairdressersWeather Forecasters What Constitutes Success in This Theatre Game? Students must offer and accept ideas quickly. They must work together as an ensemble when they mime their â€Å"trade.† For example, if the group chooses Pre-school teachers, some group members may play the children that the teachers teach. The more precise the mime that the students perform, the more quickly the game will keep moving. Guideline and Tips Remind the members of Group 1 that their goal is to engage in mime – which requires silence. No dialogue, no sound effects, no reactions to the guesses that Group 2 makes until they hear a guess that is correct.Remind the members of Group 2 that when they go to tag a member of Group 1, they need to aim for a shoulder and tag lightly. The tag is not a slap or a slug.If noise level is a concern, you may want to establish a rule of no screaming or shouting during the chase.Requiring the chase to be performed in slow motion is another way to curb noise and lessen the chances of trips, falls, and overly rambunctious activity.

Could Have and Would Have

Could Have and Would Have Could Have and Would Have Could Have and Would Have By Maeve Maddox Rita Levin asks: Can you please explain the difference between could had/could have and would had/would have. To begin with, the combinations could had and would had are impossibilities in standard English. It was with great dismay that I found the following utterances (and many more like them) on the web: If I had been killed she would had to carry a dark burden of remorse If Greece and Greeks would had been converted to islam would Greece had the problems of debt currently? Encore could had been a masterpiece If you could had $100 GC at Amazon, which cans for Rock music would you get? The combination could have is always followed by a past participle. NOTE: This discussion is limited to the use of have and had with could and would. Here are some uses of could have and would have. Someone was capable of doing something, but out of choice or necessity, was unable to do so: I could have been a contender. If I could have seen the stage, I would have told you who was playing. Something unfortunate was a possible outcome of some act: You could have killed us all, driving like that. The speaker is being critical: You could have opened the door when you saw what I was carrying. The speaker is speculating: Why isnt he here yet? He could have been caught in traffic. How did she find out? James could have told her. Note: could can be used to express speculation without the use of have: He could be stuck in traffic. Those strange neighbors could be space aliens. The phrase would have is also followed by the past participle form of the verb. It is used in the main clause of a sentence that contains an if clause: If I had known you were coming, I would have baked a cake. If they had been thinking straight, they would not have gone to the party. I would have reached my destination earlier if I hadnt lost my way. Here are the incorrect examples rewritten: If I had been killed, she would have had to carry a dark burden of remorse If Greece and the Greeks had been converted to Islamwould Greece have the current problems of debt? Encore could have been a masterpiece If you could have $100 GC at Amazon Want to improve your English in five minutes a day? Get a subscription and start receiving our writing tips and exercises daily! Keep learning! Browse the Grammar category, check our popular posts, or choose a related post below:How to Structure A Story: The Eight-Point Arc7 Patterns of Sentence Structure8 Great Podcasts for Writers and Book Authors

Tourism impacts and sustainability Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words

Tourism impacts and sustainability - Essay Example According to the journal Tourism by Tourism Alliance, the impacts of tourism activities are innumerable. The effects of tourism comprises of the social, cultural, political, and economic. The United Kingdom has put prudent strategies to address the possible adverse impacts of tourism. This is in the light that tourism can disrupt environment, culture, and economy in the regions of its occurrence. The principal aim of sustainable tourism is to maximise the positive development and experience of the people where it takes place. To achieve tourism sustainability, this calls for managers and all the stakeholders to cooperate. The result is to streamline the tourism industry for maximum benefit of tourism industry (Tourism Alliance, 2010:3). This paper will endeavour to examine the impact of tourism and its sustainability. The paper will achieve this objective through looking at a number of studies in academic journals. According to ADAS report, tourism contributes to the growth of econom y of the United Kingdom. The department for environment, Food, and Rural Affairs in conjunction with Tourism Company and ADAS did a research on the trends of tourism in the year 2007. The research was seeking to find evidence, trends, and performance in the tourism industry. ... Moreover, the report portrays that the United Kingdom spends many funds on global tourism (Defra, 2007:5). The ADAS research further reveals that the ever-growing air transport has facilitated the growth of tourism. The findings allude that in the United Kingdom is one of the biggest earners from the international tourism. The report shows that in the year 2005, the United Kingdom ranked fifth in the rank of the largest nation with highest incomes from tourism. On the aspect of adverse effects of tourism on environment, the ADAS research does not find any connection to link tourism with ecological degradation. This is an allusion that tourists’ activities do not have any adverse effects on the environment (Defra 2007:8). Haley, Snaith, and Miller’s research presented in their journal asserts that a smooth interaction of tourists and local communities is important for sustainable tourism. This is from their case study at Bath in the United Kingdom in 2004. The main inten tion of the study was determine the perception of the people of Bath towards tourism. Using a sample of people and longitudinal and comparative data collection, the report indicates that people support tourism development in Bath. The findings of this research demonstrate that tourism does not have any adverse effects to the social settings in the United Kingdom. There research highlights that the residents of Bath embrace tourists’ activities and development. According to the research, some of the factors that accounts for the support of Bath for tourists destination include low incomes. The people of Bath encourage tourists’ activities as a source of income. This is because of the benefits they obtain from tourists activities. Much of the findings in this study indicate that

Ayurvedic Medicine Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Ayurvedic Medicine - Essay Example One of the most common physical sequelae of pregnancy is nausea and vomiting. While exact figures vary, most research indicates that anywhere from 70 to 85 percent of pregnant women have nausea and/or vomiting during pregnancy (Flake et al., 2004; Wilkinson, 1999). Quinlan and Hill (2003) indicate that generally nausea and vomiting begin between the fourth and seventh week after a woman's last menstrual period, and resolves by the 20th gestational week for 90% of women; Wilkinson (1999) notes simply that "morning sickness usually starts early in the pregnancy with symptoms peaking at 8-9 weeks and then disappearing by about the 14th week." Meltzer (2000) wisely notes "Studies of nausea and vomiting in pregnancy are often made more challenging because of the subjective nature of the symptom of nausea versus the objective sign of vomiting." One indisputable danger from uncontrolled nausea and vomiting is development of hyperemesis gravidarum. Hyperemesis gravidarum, defined as, "persistent vomiting that is serious enough to cause fluid and electrolyte disturbance" (Jewell, 2003a) often necessitates hospitalization to rehydrate the woman and ameliorate electrolyte imbalances. Though the prevalence of hyperemesis gravidarum is estimated at only .3% (Fisher-Rasmussen, 1990) to 3% (Hollyer et al., 2002), its consequences can be tragic if untreated. Nausea and vomiting during pregnancy (NVP) impacts more than only the pregnant woman. Hollyer et al. (2002) report study findings where almost 50% of employed women reported reduced work efficiency due to pregnancy-related nausea and vomiting, 25-66% reported having to take time off from work, with almost 50% reporting that the nausea and vomiting negatively affected their relationship with their partner including having an adverse effect on the partner's [italics added] day-to-day life. Clearly, finding a treatment to lessen NVP is long overdue, but fraught with risks. Since the 1960's thalidomide tragedy, research on medications used for pregnant women has been limited. Ethical concerns preclude "experimentation" of medications or treatments for a pregnant woman, thus much research relies on that which is known to date or is discovered spuriously. Treatments for NVP span both "traditional" (Western) and "complementary" (Eastern) medicine. A lengthy discussion of these treatment alternatives is beyond the scope of this paper, though Jewell (2003b) provides a concise summary in Clinical Evidence. This paper focuses on one particular treatment for NVP, the use of Zingiber officinale (ginger). As will be noted, ginger can be found in varying forms (syrup, tea, capsules, food products) and this variation may confound the inter-study correlations. Zingiber officinale (ginger), as noted in the Alternative Medicine Review (2003), has a long history of medicinal use, primarily in India and China, dating back 2,500 years. Though the reasons for its anti-emetic effect are not well defined, it is thought, "the aromatic, spasmolytic, carminative, and absorbent properties of ginger suggest it has direct effects on the gastrointestinal tract (Alternative Medical Review, 2003). Combining the known benefits of ginger in Ayurvedic and "Eastern"

OUTLINE THE METHODS USED IN LANGUAGE LEARNING AND COMMENT ON THE Essay

OUTLINE THE METHODS USED IN LANGUAGE LEARNING AND COMMENT ON THE SUCCESS OF EACH - Essay Example This article speaks of various language learning methods and their success on implementation. This is one of the oldest methods known to have got developed by British applied linguistics in the late 1930s and 1960s. It does not have prominence in present day language learning methodology. The theory behind the language says that structural view of the language is the basis. It stresses more on the process and behaviorism. The basic principles are: In this way the language is learnt at a very slow pace. Learning the language on the basis of structure alone will almost take an academic year to master. But, once the language is learnt through patience learners are expected to get expertise in the written knowledge as well. This is one of the most popular methods of learning a language in 1950s and 1960s. It is still preferred by various Educational Institutes and language teaching centers. The theory for its foundation is again the structural view of the language. Getting expertise in the building blocks of the language and then laying emphasis on rules to join them to make a meaningful statement. The key points that elaborate on the theory are similar to those of situational language learning. In this method of learning, the language is learnt in its true accent. The procedures when properly implemented make the learners speak the language in its true jargon and apply the words at apt situations. This method of learning came into existence in 1960s as a replacement to the above two methods which have their theory based on the structural view of the language. The theory on which it is formatted is the functional view of the language. Principles that govern this method are: Learning is enjoyable and delivers good results once it is done through real communication. Learning is based on activities that clearly put in front the real essence of the language i.e. if a particular

Science Fiction Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words - 1

Science Fiction - Essay Example Currently, alien is stereotyped into â€Å"Martians† who exclusively steps down from Mars. However, it is a misconception of humans that aliens could arrive only from â€Å"Mars â€Å"as they can be any foreign body attempting to adapt on earth. Swanwick has given equal importance to human and aliens in â€Å"Slow Life† as both are the main participants in the story. The story initiates by explaining the travel of the new found life through the methane cloud, until it falls on the highlands into the hands of Lizzie: â€Å"It was however, falling towards the equatorial highlands, where mountains of ice rose a towering five hundred meters into the atmosphere† (p.162). On its travel towards the highland it is captured by Lizzie in a carry bag thinking it as a habitat of potential alien life form. In this story, a group of astronauts set out to explore the chances of finding life on Saturn’s moon called Titan. The story â€Å"Slow Life† is a 2002 science fiction which describes the experience of Lizzie O’Brian on Saturn’s Moon called Titan. She is one of the team members who visit Titan for the first time. She believes she is collecting a raindrop in a carry bag which has alien properties. When she lands on Titan as a part of NAFTAS space expedition, she attempts to study the orange atmosphere of the Titan and its icy landscape .Soon she realizes she can discover a habitat in the Titan for her rain droplet with alien properties which will be a breakthrough in the scientific world. The thrilling part of the story is the relaying of Lizzie’s voice on to the team members with the assistance of Voice Web. Lizzie is trying to find some material from Titan which can be combined with the raindrop to form an alien life form. She is stating about the nature of the alien as: â€Å"It will have to be slow life, Lizzie said thoughtfully, something vegetative, vaster than empires and more slow. It would

Regression [Use R program] Statistics Project Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Regression [Use R program] - Statistics Project Example There have been numerous studies that attempted to quantify the value people have placed on the quality of schools by analyzing the features and prices of houses that are around these schools in various districts. This paper is meant to study the factors that contribute to the sales prices of single family houses which are located within the school district in Goleta, Southern Santa Barbara in California. This research is applied, descriptive and it is developed from a quantitative point of view. The population of the study is formed by thirty six (36) home sales transactions recorded from the last three years. It represents a sample of possible sales and transactions that could be appearing in areas within the Goleta city. This data consists of six variables which are the price of a house in thousand dollars, number of bedrooms, number of bathrooms, the size of the house, size of the lot and the year in which the house was built. Thus, the sales price is the dependent variable which is determined by the other variables in the data. The number of bedrooms, number of bathrooms, the size of the house, size of the lot and the year in which the house was built are the independent variables. In this research, regression analysis is used to accomplish the intended task. Various models are developed to determine the one which is the most appropriate in determining the sale price of houses within Goleta. The following models are considered: In this model, the number of bathrooms is dropped. It considers the number of bedrooms, size of the house, lot size and the year built. The codes used to obtain the summary of this model are as follows: This model considers the number of bathrooms, size of the house, the lot size and the year built as the only predictor variables. Thus, the number of bedrooms is dropped. The codes used to create this model are shown below: To identify the appropriate model, the analysis uses extra

Ethics Should hospitality and tourism companies always demonstrate Essay

Ethics Should hospitality and tourism companies always demonstrate corporate social responsibility Discuss the costs and benefits of such an approach - Essay Example The area of social responsibility extends not to the society in general but it is now focused on the workers, the investors, customers, and suppliers. Corporate social responsibility or CSR is an industry in itself. Over the past decade, this has grown exponentially. The employee volunteering has now emerged as the CSR. Companies like Accenture and Whitbread term this as Corporate Citizenship (Carrington, 2005) where they take up working with the sick children and the local schools. Most of the staff gets involved in some voluntary service or donation. The tourism and hospitality companies bring about a transformation in the area they operate but all of the changes may not be desirable. They need to maintain ethics and discharge social responsibility but the question remains whether they should always demonstrate corporate social responsibility. Today ethics determine the success of an organization. Demands of the shareholders, stakeholders and investors are forcing industries to maintain a high morality in how companies conduct business. Any deviation can adversely affect the brand image, customer retention, and overall business. A certain group of investors in Europe have decided to invest only in companies who are conscious of their social responsibility. Post (2000) contends that an organization’s global corporate citizenship is shaped by internal and external factors. How a company deals with past public issues, stakeholder issues and community concerns determines the employees’ perception of the importance of citizenship matters. Many are of the opinion that since the goal of the public corporation is to maximize shareholder wealth, management should take any action necessary to achieve this goal so long as no law is violated. The rationale for ethics in business stems from the fact that when corporations collapse the society in general loses – the shareholders lose, the customers, the employees, the community, the creditors, the family

Regression [Use R program] Statistics Project Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Regression [Use R program] - Statistics Project Example There have been numerous studies that attempted to quantify the value people have placed on the quality of schools by analyzing the features and prices of houses that are around these schools in various districts. This paper is meant to study the factors that contribute to the sales prices of single family houses which are located within the school district in Goleta, Southern Santa Barbara in California. This research is applied, descriptive and it is developed from a quantitative point of view. The population of the study is formed by thirty six (36) home sales transactions recorded from the last three years. It represents a sample of possible sales and transactions that could be appearing in areas within the Goleta city. This data consists of six variables which are the price of a house in thousand dollars, number of bedrooms, number of bathrooms, the size of the house, size of the lot and the year in which the house was built. Thus, the sales price is the dependent variable which is determined by the other variables in the data. The number of bedrooms, number of bathrooms, the size of the house, size of the lot and the year in which the house was built are the independent variables. In this research, regression analysis is used to accomplish the intended task. Various models are developed to determine the one which is the most appropriate in determining the sale price of houses within Goleta. The following models are considered: In this model, the number of bathrooms is dropped. It considers the number of bedrooms, size of the house, lot size and the year built. The codes used to obtain the summary of this model are as follows: This model considers the number of bathrooms, size of the house, the lot size and the year built as the only predictor variables. Thus, the number of bedrooms is dropped. The codes used to create this model are shown below: To identify the appropriate model, the analysis uses extra

How I Learn to Driver Essay Example for Free

How I Learn to Driver Essay Learning something new can be a scary experience. One of the hardest things I’ve ever had to do was learn how to drive a car. I was always afraid driving a car especially on the freeway with a lot of fast running vehicles. However, I figured that driving was an important skill that I needed to learn. I also thought it would be very helpful. In additional, learning to drive a car also boosts my confidence. New situation always make me nervous, my first driving lesson was no exception. My husband was my driving instructor. He taught me from the very beginning, how to start an engine. Slowly stepped on the accelerator and as the car started to moved, I kept reminding myself I can do it. I was very nervous trying to control the car. While on the road, I had my full attention to the instructions my husband was telling me that I forgot I needed to focus on the road also. This is when I realized I needed to multi task in order to drive, which is something I’m not very good at. Not only do I have to fully understand what my husband was telling me, I needed to also watch the road and control both the accelerator and maneuver. Learning how to drive was not easy for me at all, especially having my husband as my instructor, whom is very impatient. On the first few days he was teaching me, he was not able to control his anger. He would yell at me on every small mistake I had. Which made me even more nervous, also could not fully focus on my driving. But as more days passed, he learned how to be patient on me. He became very understanding, accepted that I am still in the learning process on how to drive. It made things easier for me because I did not have to deal with him yelling at me, he told me the instructions politely instead. This help me understand his instructions better, focused on the road more and less nervous. After a few weeks of driving around with my husband, I got used to driving. I learned most of the things I needed to learn on driving a car. It boosts my confidence to know what I was doing and was doing well on it. I realized that I was a lot more confident than to the day I first started. It made me feel really good inside to know this. My husband then taught me the hardest parts of driving, like how to park between two cars. It was a struggle because it was completely different to driving on the road. This time I have to deal with two parked cars that do not have drivers in it to prevent me from hitting their cars. Thus, it was all on me, I had all the control. It was up to me whether I end up hitting their car or not. It was a lot of pressure but after a long process being very careful, I made it in, without any scratches on any of the cars. I felt so accomplished. As I learned almost everything on driving, from learning how to drive and park and also the traffic laws, I began to feel very right with no nervousness at all. That’s when it hit me; I know how to drive already. I can be in the road by myself and know that nothing bad will happen. It was a wonderful feeling, the feelings of triumph and success. Learning to drive was not easy for me, but in the end my persistence paid off. Not only I did learn how to drive and to conquer my fear driving in the freeway but also I learned to comprehend and obey its rules. Now when I am faced something new situation I feel less nervous. I may feel uncomfortable to begin with it, but I know that as I practice being in the situation, my skills will get better. I know that as long as I practice on it, I will feel more and more comfortable with it. Now I am not afraid to try something new, something I never thought I would get from learning how to drive. Learning how to drive is a wonderful feeling, free feeling when you achieve a goal you have set for yourself.

Satisfaction level of retailers and the visual merchandising

Satisfaction level of retailers and the visual merchandising This chapter is a review of the central theoretical literature of satisfaction level of retailers and the visual merchandising and its impact on consumers buying behaviour which ultimately leads to increase in the margin of the retailers. The first part of this chapter deals with the most popular brand of PepsiCo and the satisfaction level of retailers with respect to per product margin. The second chapter examine the planogram norms of the company and it tries to find out whether or not the retailers follow it properly. The third and last part of the chapter examines the effectiveness of Visual Merchandising and its effectiveness on consumers buying behaviour. All these objectives/problems have been examined in the light of academic literature and some of the facts have been supported by the data taken form the company i.e., Pepsico. To find out the most popular brand of PepsiCo the satisfaction level of its retailers Most of the manufacturers of consumer goods including PepsiCofrequently use intermediaries to sell their products to the final consumer. Intermediaries such as big and small retailers have substantialstimulus over the marketing of these goods and hence over the ultimate consumer choice (Laland Narasimhan, 1996). Even PepsiCo is one of the largest networks of retailers in India (PepsiCo, 2010). The consumer goods retail market is characterized by intensivecompetitionamong retailers competing for a share of the consumers money (Albion and Farris, 1982). Retailers, generally, carry so many products, and on any given purchase occasion a typical consumer buys a subset of the vast number of items a retailer has on its shelf. Generally consumers are ignorant or uninformed about the prices of all the products they want to buy and subsequently select a retailer to shop at based on the advertised prices of a subset of the products they desire to buy. Given this, retailers tend to compete more aggressively based on the prices of a selected set of items by advertising these prices to consumers (Agustin Singh, 2005). It means that these retailers will sell more products of only those company which tries to make them happy through more or heavy margin.The items that the retailers select to compete on are those that most consumers de-sire and value highly. Since the profit from any cust omer is the sum of profits from advertised and un-advertised items, the intensity of retail competition, as evident from the prices of these items, increases with the amount the consumer will expend on the unadvertised items once at the store. This aggressiveness therefore translates into lower retail mar-gins on these selected items since the retailers expect that consumers, once inside a store, will buy non-advertised products as well on which the retailers make money. Thus manufacturers, who are more adept at using pull strategies to enhance the popularity of their product, obtain a significant competitive advantage vis-a-vis others. The positioning of the product and the image conveyed through advertising act as drivers in creating this advantage which results in higher wholesale prices that these manufacturers can charge the retailers (Lal and Narasimhan, 1996). The cost of acquiring new customers usually far exceeds the cost of retaining an existing customer. As a result, customer retention has become a managerial strategy that has spurred interest in understanding and implementing store-loyalty programs (Agustin Singh, 2005; Carter, 2008; Pan Zinkhan, 2006; Reichheld, 1996; Reichheld Sasser, 1990; Sheth Parvatiyar, 1995). That is why retailers are the most important link between the company and the customers.Manufacturer advertising also affects prices and margins at both the retail and wholesale levels. The relationship between prices as well as margins at the retail and wholesale levels can be found in the economics literature (see, e.g., Ferguson 1982 or Pindyck and Rubinfeld 1989), where it has been argued, based on the theory of derived demand, that the movements of prices and margins at the retail and wholesale level are necessarily perfectly correlated. In other words, if advertising leads to increased market power through produ ct differentiation, both wholesale and retail prices in-crease, leaving both manufacturers and retailers with higher margins; or if advertising leads to increased price sensitivity through reduced perceived product differentiation, both wholesale and retail prices decrease, leaving both manufacturers and retailers with lower margins. In contrast, Steiner (1973, 1978, 1984) has argued that it is possible that a manufacturers advertising can have opposite effects on wholesale price elasticity and retail price elasticity, implying that margins can move in opposite directions. However, he does not offer a formal model of manufacturers and retailers to support his arguments. Source: (Lal and Narshimhan, 1996) There is scant empirical literature on the effects of advertising on margins. In Table 1, Lal and Narasimhan (1996) summarised the evidence presented in the literature on the negative association between manufacturer advertising and retail margins. Reekie (1979) shows that manufacturers advertising and retail margins are inversely related in a cross-sectional study of many categories. Farris and Albion (1987) find that in many nondurable consumer good categories, higher brand advertising is associated with lower retail margins, though there were a few categories where the opposite is true. They also find that the negative relationship between manufacturer advertising and retail margins is strongest in categories with high penetration, non-food, and large category advertising budgets. Steiner (1973) uses data from the toy industry to conclude that the more popular toys (i.e., the more heavily advertised) yield lower retail margins. Finally, using data at the four-digit SIC level, Nels on (1978) finds that there is a negative association between manufacturer advertising and retail margins. The reader is also referred to Steiner (1993) for some anecdotal evidence from different industries on the inverse association between manufacturers advertising and re-tail margins. Support for positive association between manufacturer advertising and wholesale margins is provided in Quelch et al. (1984) and Narasimhan (1989a). Note that all these studies are cross-sectional and all these studies have focused on either the whole-sale margin or the retail margin. The one exception is Steiner (1991), who documents, using data from the toy industry, that higher levels of manufacturer advertising are associated with higher wholesale margins while leading to lower retail margins. Taken as a whole, these studies demonstrate that in general, higher manufacturer advertising leads to higher wholesale margins and lower retail margins, though the effect at the retail level is less systemat ic. Thus we see that in contrast to the standard economic arguments, there is empirical evidence to suggest the possibility of an inverse relation-ship between wholesale and retail margins. The objective in this chapter is to revisit thisproblem and offer a formal model to explain how the margins at the retail and wholesale level can be negatively related. It shows that if a manufacturer can affect the intensity of retail competition, it can increase its wholesale price while at the same time exert downward pressure on retail margins. Furthermore, It demonstrates that if manufacturer advertising can enhance the attractive-ness of the brand as shown in Boulding et al. (1994) (resulting in a higher willingness to pay or increasing aggregate demand for its product), manufacturers brand advertising can increase the intensity of competition at the retail level. Finally, it is shown that even if there is competition at the wholesale level, a manufacturer with a more popular or well-positi oned brand can use advertising to increase profits. The intuition behind our result is the following. First, it should be noted that retailers selling a large assortment of goods cannot advertise the prices of all goods. Moreover, retailers need to advertise the prices of some goods in order to make it worthwhile for consumers to shop at the store. Hence consumers make store choice on the basis of advertised prices and expected prices for goods bought on a shopping trip. Given the fact that retailers charge and consumers expect to pay a higher price for the unadvertised goods, and consumers prefer one-stop shopping due to transportation costs, any effort by the manufacturer that affects the proportion of consumers who decide to shop at a retail store for any given difference in the retail price of the advertised good would lead to an increase in the intensity of retail competition. Such actions by the manufacturer would lead to lower retail margins. At the same time such actions can also increase the wholesale price and manufacturers margins since these actions allow the manufacturers to recover some of the rents derived by the retailer on the unadvertised good. In other words, since the retailers make a higher margin on the unadvertised good, any action by the manufacturer that affects the size of these profits to the retailers allows the manufacturer to wield more power and set higher wholesale prices. We show that if manufacturer advertising leads to lower price sensitivity or increase in aggregate demand, an increase in such advertising would result in lower margins for the retailers and higher margins for the manufacturers. It should also be noted that while our work is silent on the exact role of manufacturer advertising, Kaul and Wittink (1995) report that one empirical generalization from past studies is that an in-crease in non-price advertising leads to lower price sensitivity among consumers. Finally, it is important to recognize that our result is shown to exist in a context where retail advertising has no impact on the demand of the advertised brand, and that our result would not exist in the absence of the composite good. Moreover, the inverse relationship be-tween wholesale and retail margins can exist only for goods/brands where the retailer reveals price via advertising(Lal and Narasimhan, 1996). Previous research in the area of store loyalty focuses on customer satisfaction as a major predictor of loyalty (Bloemer Kasper, 1995; Brown, 2004; Cronin Taylor, 1992; Garbarino Johnson, 1999; Reichheld, 1996; Sawmong Omar, 2004; Taylor Baker, 1994). However, many companies rated high on customer satisfaction indexes showed poor financial performance (Buttle, 1999; Passikoff, 1997). There is evidence supporting high rates of defection among satisfied customers across many industries (Buttle, 1999; Jones Sasser, 1995). Thus, the ability of customer satisfaction reliably and accurately to predict loyalty has not been unambiguously established (Higgins, 1997). Clearly, the development and implementation of successful store-loyalty programs would benefit from a better understanding of loyalty, its antecedents and its consequences (Ray and Chiagouris, 2009). It is evident from the above discussion that satisfied and happy retailers would ultimately lead to increased sales. Higher m argin per product or total income of retailers from a particular product would to happy retailers. From the above discussion it is clearly evident that If the company spends heavily on advertisement of on its product, it will increase total sales, which means it will ultimately more margin on total sales and in this way the company can make happy its retailers.The PepsiCo spends heavily in India for its Pepsi Soft Drink, much more than its nearest rival Coca-Cola (PepsiCo, Annual Report,2010).These heavy advertisements have a significant positive impact on the total sale of its soft drink over last year. It is a clear sign of happy retailers who are gaining low margin per bottle of Pepsi but in total higher revenue from its total sales. To check the planogram (POG) norms, whether the retailers followed it properly or not There are many factors which are generally used to stimulate consumers purchases, including advertisement, product variety, layout of stores, merchandise appraising, services offered, and other marketing programs (Levy and Weitz, 1992) but space planning and store layout are one of the prime consideration (Yang, 2001). The layout of stores and proper space planning highlight the importance of improvement of the visual effect on the customers for shopping and the space productivity of retail stores (Yang, 2001). Planograms, typically,are used to display exactly where and how many items are physically placed onto which store shelves. Because of limited shelf space, planograms plays a vital role for the improvement of financial performance of the company in general and for retailer in particular (Yang, 2001; Yang and Chen, 1999). There are two ways for retailers to increase margin (Profit). They will have either increase sales or by reducing costs. Cost reduction is basically operational in nature. It heavily depends on technology, management of personnel and efficient inventory management. Generally increase in sales is market driven and can be categorised in to two different segments i.e., (i) in-store -tactics and; (ii) out-of-store tactics. Out of store tactics is used to attract more and more customers into the store while in-store tactics used to compel customers psychologically to buy as much as they can, when they enter into the stores (Dreze, Hoch and Purk, 1994). Previous Space Management Research In the field of Space Management, the impact on sales of space management is very limited because of high implementation cost. The existing work methods can be categorised into three different models- (i) Commercial Applications, (ii) Experimental Tests, and (iii) Optimization Model. In business literature, applications oriented approaches are preferred because of its simplicity and the easy operation. For example, PROGALY Model ((Dreze, Hoch and Purk, 1994). ) is generally preferred. In this model, space is allotted to a product in proportion of total sales. Cifrino (1963) and McKinsey (1963) argued for space with respect to Direct Product Profit (DPP). Rest of the models have concentrated on lowering the operating cost and minimising inventory and handling costs (Cifrino, 1963). Planogram Integrity: A serious Issue There are many retailers who have recognised the importance of proficiently exploit their customer services in times of intense competition. Confronted by the amplified pressure of fee discounters and the rise of a price war between supermarkets organisation on the one hand and the companies on the other hand since 2003, Indian Retailers want quality in their operations to endure large collection at reduced profit margins (PepsiCo 2009). Thus, balancing inventory and renewal costs, given a collection of wide range of products and the corresponding shelf space at the retail stores is rally an important task. Retailers aim at exploiting availability of the products in the collection at a marginal cost of operations. These objectives have to be attained on the shelves, where a particular product meets its customers. The amount of shelf space allocated to a product is thus primarily a consequence of marketing decisions: i.e., the merchandising category to which the product is assigned an d the allocated number of facings, which are the number of slots on the front of the retail shelf. This planogram on its turn govern the available shelf space for the operations. From both an operations as a marketing point of view, it is thought-provoking to scrutinise whether local managers are contrary from the planogram, to determine the grounds and to analyse the consequences (Woensel et al, 2008). Planogram integrity is the degree to which the planograms and its norms are followed in practice(Woensel et al, 2008). High planogram integrity stands for small/very little difference between planogram and the authentic situation in a store (Woensel et al, 2008). A planogram encompasses significant information for the accomplishment of operations. Generally, when creating planograms the retailers decides the collection composition, the location of products in the store and the amount of space apportioned to each product (Levy and Weitz, 1992). Figure of Planogram Woensel et al, (2008) have completed empirical research on the planogram and data collected for ten stores in India. During this collection period, the stores were not allowed to change their mode/style operations. Moreover, the days were carefully selected such that the period of measurement did not include any periods of expected demand peaks/drops (e.g. no holidays). The data were gathered for Pepsi soft drink only. Woensel et al, (2008) observed that collection in the stores seems to be reasonably different from the one identified in the planograms. The main driver for this was identified to be the possibility to locally add or drop items from the collection. Also, categories with a larger collection seem to be more prone for abnormalities than one with smaller collections. This designates the drawbacks of managing these huge collections with composite swap relationships. On the locational level, it seemed that the abnormality is small (for the common collection in both actual situations versus planogram). The common of abnormalities could be linked back to facing differences. The foremost cause is due to the different shelving in practice than the one used in the planogram. Finally, also considerable differences between the stores exist; some store managers follow the norms provided by the company for the planograms very closely; other store managers do not take it seriously. The Root causes for erroneousness were typically associated to the local store management. Another vital issue is the acceptance time required for updating the shelves following the changes in the planograms(Woensel et al, 2008). Over and above these is no proper processes for controlling these messages was available to all stores, leading thus to a serious issue with planogram integrity. Furthermore high levels of inaccuracy in the real realizations are also ascribed to the lack of incentives from the headquarters for enforcing the planograms. Generally, it is witnessed that the inaccuracy of the planograms is correlated to the regularity, the timing and/or the type of changes in the planograms. Of course, one should not overlook the strain in the following the planogram closely. Because of repeated introductions or de-listing of products and changes in style and pack size or the turnover of a product, frequent changes in the planograms are needed(Woensel et al, 2008). Without a detailed plan to implement the changes in the planograms, they might be postponed, not implemented in full or the local management already anticipated the changes before the company conversed with them(Woensel et al, 2008). It can be concluded that planogram integrity is a vital issue that requires a retailers management consideration. Woensel et al, (2008) shown clearly that common of differences relate back to facing differences. The second important issue is collection and display of products and third issue locational differences. From the above discussion, one can find four main drives for these differences, (i) Local Store Management, (ii) a substantial acceptance time for changes, (iii) diverse local situations that presumed in the planogram and (iv) lack of incentive from the company. The foremost consequence of a lack of planogram integrity proved to be a significant loss of effectiveness both in marketing strategy as in the operational executions, as such indicating that planogram integrity is a serious issue The Impact of Visual Merchandising on the Consumer Decision Process Introduction McGolddrick (1990, 2002) argued that Visual Stimulation and communication are very important facets of retailing. This interest in the visual has combined to form the exercise of visual merchandising. This is demarcated as the à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦ activity which coordinates effective merchandise selection with effective merchandise display (Walters and White, 1987, p. 238). Consequently, Visual merchandising is apprehensive with both how the product and/or brand is visually communicated to the customer and also whether this message is decoded appropriately in this context affecting a positive psychological or behavioural outcome, ultimately leading to purchase (Kerfoot, Davies and Ward, 2003). The significance of accomplishing such a consequence has meant that within the retail environment, various procedures have been used to exhibit, merchandise and communicate products. This diversity in visual merchandising procedures has conceivably also stemmed from the vast collection of goods and services that are sold by retailers. The progress of merchandising procedures and the proliferation of these methodologies among retailers have been well-established history. Baum (1987) accepted the significance of window display long back in 1897. Baum who was the founding editor of  The Show Window  ,where he offered strategies for effective window displays where he provided an early mechanism for the dissemination of visual merchandising best practice. This early publication evolved to examine display across the store and continued to offer advice for some considerable time (Law and Yip, 2004). The potential of display and visual merchandising is so strong that a publication solely addicted for visual merchandising and display stated in 1922 with the title Visual Merchandise and Store Display.   Nevertheless, the prominence of visual merchandising has been not acknowledgedmuch consideration in the academic world and in literature (Lea-Greenwood, 1998). The most notable exception has been within the US fashion-based literature, where a number of texts have been devoted to the subject. These though are primarily practitioner-based, highlighting again a deficiency of attention from retail academics. This study represents a small step towards addressing this lack. It investigates the influence of visual merchandising stimuli within the retail store environment on customer perceptions and responses. In doing this, the research is focused on the potential psychological and behaviour outcomes that result from customer interaction with visual merchandising, rather than directly trying to establish what constitutes best practice  per se  or manipulating visual merchandising techniques themselves. This soft drink and FMCG retail sector has been chosen as it has recently elevated visual merchandising to an issue of board level concern (Lea-Greenwood, 1998). The sector offers an ideal background in which examination of the impact of product display and visual merchandising can be conducted on customers, as the degree of retailer complexity in this area is likely to be higher than that demonstrated by companies in other sectors. Sproles (1979) has focused on the procedure, such as the effects of communication channels in current society, the characteristics and the functional purpose of soft drinks. However, Hart and Dewsnap (2001) also established a decision-making model to explain the behaviour of consumers through visual merchandising and store display. It was revealed form their study that there were interweaved a complicated set of interlinked aspects to affect decision making on intimate soft drink, and amount the factors, brand loyalty tended to be the repeatedly adopted factor to curtail the decision-making process and the degree of apparent risk while shopping intimate soft drink. Speaking from the View-points of marketing and consumer behaviour, the two models are adequate to explain the corresponding phenomenon (Kerfoot, Davies and Ward, 2003). However, viewing from the retailing aspect, the environment of stores can increase consumers response (it may be positive of may be negative) to a brand of the product being sold in the store. To achieve a positive store environment, visual merchandising has been widely adopted by retailers (Kerfoot, Davies and Ward, 2003). Likewise, intimate soft drink has been going through a series of Soft drink treatments in recent years. Examples can be found in contemporary intimate soft drink brands, such as Coca Cola and Pepsi, Sprite and so on. Instead of targeting different customer segments by adding advanced functions to products, intimate soft drink brands try to establish a distinctive image in consumers mind. In this study, focus is put on the influence of visual merchandising on store atmosphere and its corresponding impact on consumer decision making process for intimate soft drink (Law and Yip, 2002). Dimensions of visual merchandising and display Omar (1999) advocates that there are three types of interior display- (i) architectural display (ii) merchandise display and (iii) point-of-sale display. This study efforts on merchandise display; the choice of a singular store to deliver the stimulus photographs minimises the architectural elements; additionally, point-of-sale areas were omitted from the photographs to guarantee only merchandise display was considered(Kerfoot, Davies and Ward, 2003). The most important aspects within merchandise display have been acknowledged within the academic literature as: packaging (Bruce and Cooper, 1997; Da Costa, 1995), layout, (Levy and Weitz, 1996; Berman and Evans, 1995), colour (e.g. Koelemeijer and Oppewal, 1999), fixturing (Levy and Weitz, 1996; Donnellan, 1996), merchandise (Davies and Ward, 2002), presentation techniques (Buchanan  et al., 1999), and so on. These areas have received varying degrees of attention as separate elements. Nevertheless, in fact, there is tiny work has been done that makes these aspects composed as merchandise display(Kerfoot, Davies and Ward, 2003). The examination of Influences, that such display creates on consumers, especially in term of brand communication and purchase intention, are lacking in terms of literature. Though, several of the elements of merchandise display have been scrutinised from an environmental psychology approach, as well as from a service environment perspective. These two relat ed literatures provide potential starting points as each considers the physicality of the in-store environment and its influence on customers (Kerfoot, Davies and Ward, 2003).. Literature Review Visual Merchandising is one of the most significant constituents in atmospheric management(Kerfoot, Davies and Ward, 2003). It embraces the interior of stores as well as the exterior of stores.The exterior of store comprises retail premises, window display, and facade while the interior of store embraces fixtures and fittings, store layout, and store highlights as well as wall display(Kerfoot, Davies and Ward, 2003).There are many constituents who governtogether store exterior and interior and it embraceslighting design, colour co-ordination, selection of mannequin and the application of design principles(Park et.al., 1986). A good assortment of visual merchandising with comprehensive consideration of proper cooperative expressions is very important, if retailers really want to project the best side of their company/store (Kerfoot, Davies and Ward, 2003). Consequently, customers could receive the envisioned message of stores or retailers through several different types of themes sty les designed especially from suitable visual merchandising strategy and for influencing buying decisions and behaviours in a positive sense. Conclusively, visual merchandising helps to establish the complete image of a retail store in the mind of consumers(Park et.al., 1986). Kerfoot, Davies and Ward (2003) acknowledged that visual merchandising has many objectives, (i) Retail Identity Building in the mind of customers, (ii) influencing customers final decision to buy as many products as he/she can afford inside a store (iii) last but not the least, to increase overall sales. Visual merchandising pays its attention on numerous facets of customers, which include affective pleasure, sensory pleasure and cognitive pleasure (Fiore, Yah and Yoh, 2000). Sensory part contains personal feeling of customers, such as response to temperature and noise, feeling crowded in a store (Ko Rhee, 1994; Hornik, 1992 and Grossbart et. al 1990). Store-related and product associated information can also be assimilated from storeenvironment (Baker et. al 1994), for example, searching a product that enhances ones self-concept (Kleine III et al., 1993). Also, window display plays a critical role in affecting store entry decisions as it is a very important information cue for consumers (Bettman et. al, 1998) There are many schools of thoughts regarding consumer decision process. The process of diffusion can affect consumptions response to different product attributes (Mitchell and Creatorex, 1990). The selection of promotional channels and the format of transition are the best examples. Similarly, there were other thoughts regarding general consumers decision making process. For Rogers model (1962), decision making was not longitudinal but rather cross-sectional. Following Rogers thought, Robertson (1971) developed a conceptual model with eight procedures (awareness, comprehension,problem perception, attitude, trail, adoption, legitimation, and dissonance). Nevertheless, Sproles (1979) established a specific framework for visual merchandising with ten procedures. The key focus of Sproles model was the relationship between the influences of communication channels in current society and the functional purpose of soft drink objects. Hart and Dewsnap (2001) conducted a specific study on deci sion process of purchasing intimate soft drink. His findings revealed that consumers had to go through a set of interlinked factors or relied on brand loyalty. In the light of the criteria, self-concept, perceived risk and consumer involvement were also critical in shaping the final decision (Law and Yip, 2004). While reviewing the current trend of intimate soft drink brands, being functional is the fundamental requirement of consumers, adding extra value to products is regarding as the selling point. In terms of functional aspect, mint flavour or Diet Pepsi using consumer care can be found in triumph brand. In times of readymade food and soft drink, almost every brand is using the same stuff. For example Pepsi introduced the Diet Pepsi, in the same year Coca cola introduced the diet version (PepsiCo, 2010). They introduced in the name of consumer health and family sentiments. Though, there is very few research about the inter- relationship between the importance of store aesthetics and consumer decision process, as a result, the purpose of this study is to look into this precise affiliation (Law and Yip, 2004). The study is beneficial to retailers who are newly established or re-position in the intimate soft drink market. As mentioned, for consumers who have a high degree of brand loyalty, external factors such as store atmosphere, may not has a great impact on decision process. But, if consumers rely on peer influence, advertising or have no idea about a brand, visiting the store is the first contact with the brand. Having attractive human-like mannequins of film starts or popular sportsman/woman and matching with style and appeal can break the decision process (Law Yip, 2004). Customers attention can be provoked at the stage of responsiveness but in a negative way due to the social and cultural constraint. Therefore, it is difficult to continue the decision process from awareness to interest. Hart and Dewsnaps (2001) study on consumer decision process for visual merchandising delivers a critical direction for pre-purchase evaluation. Paying a close attention to the interaction of cultural or societal difference and visual merchandising elements causes a great impact on final purchase decision. To find out the influence made by Pr

The Swastika in MAUS Essay -- Maus Essays

The Swastika in MAUS The image of the swastika pervades Arthur Spiegelman's graphic novel MAUS. In a work where so much of the Holocaust has been changed in some way - after all, there are no humans in this version, only cats, mice, dogs, and pigs - we must wonder why Spiegelman chooses to retain this well-known emblem. To remove it entirely or replace it with another, invented symbol would completely disorient the reader; but some might claim that this is the effect at which Spiegelman is aiming. I believe it is not. Rather, Spiegelman uses the swastika to subtly remind the reader that while the guise in which events are presented may be somewhat unfamiliar, the novel is still a narrative of the Holocaust. The swastika, it has been pointed out, has always been a powerful symbol. Before Hitler's time, it was used across the world, often with the symbolic meaning of the sun, power, life force, or other superlatives - especially as a symbol for the Buddha. The Nazis co-opted this symbol only after much deliberation, and perhaps the Nazi regime never could have come into existence without the use of ideograms such as the swastika. The Nazis perverted this symbol by rotating it into a diagonal position and making it bolder than it traditionally was, therefore giving it more aggressiveness. Given the innate power of this symbol, Spiegelman would be hard-pressed to find an "alternative" for his depiction of the Nazis that could evoke the same response. The image found on the front cover of the book is clearly a Nazi swastika - the traditional, pre-Nazi swastika uses horizontal and vertical, not diagonal lines. However, to clarify who exactly is being identified with the Nazis, we must look to the stylized, angular cat's fa... ...entation of his father's Holocaust experience, it would be dishonest and unfair to do anything else. But then why is the swastika not only seen in places where it would have historically appeared - on Nazi flags, on the sides of Nazi vehicles - but also as a background image for a particularly gruesome event in the book and as a pattern formed by roads? It seems that this is intended to remind us that this is the Holocaust we are reading about. The blurb on the inside front flap states "Its form, the cartoon... succeeds perfectly in shocking us out of any lingering sense of familiarity with the events described." But this is not entirely true - by using the swastika, we are reminded that even though the characters are animals, this is still Holocaust history. The familiarity of the swastika still lingers in our minds and colors our perception of the entire story. The Swastika in MAUS Essay -- Maus Essays The Swastika in MAUS The image of the swastika pervades Arthur Spiegelman's graphic novel MAUS. In a work where so much of the Holocaust has been changed in some way - after all, there are no humans in this version, only cats, mice, dogs, and pigs - we must wonder why Spiegelman chooses to retain this well-known emblem. To remove it entirely or replace it with another, invented symbol would completely disorient the reader; but some might claim that this is the effect at which Spiegelman is aiming. I believe it is not. Rather, Spiegelman uses the swastika to subtly remind the reader that while the guise in which events are presented may be somewhat unfamiliar, the novel is still a narrative of the Holocaust. The swastika, it has been pointed out, has always been a powerful symbol. Before Hitler's time, it was used across the world, often with the symbolic meaning of the sun, power, life force, or other superlatives - especially as a symbol for the Buddha. The Nazis co-opted this symbol only after much deliberation, and perhaps the Nazi regime never could have come into existence without the use of ideograms such as the swastika. The Nazis perverted this symbol by rotating it into a diagonal position and making it bolder than it traditionally was, therefore giving it more aggressiveness. Given the innate power of this symbol, Spiegelman would be hard-pressed to find an "alternative" for his depiction of the Nazis that could evoke the same response. The image found on the front cover of the book is clearly a Nazi swastika - the traditional, pre-Nazi swastika uses horizontal and vertical, not diagonal lines. However, to clarify who exactly is being identified with the Nazis, we must look to the stylized, angular cat's fa... ...entation of his father's Holocaust experience, it would be dishonest and unfair to do anything else. But then why is the swastika not only seen in places where it would have historically appeared - on Nazi flags, on the sides of Nazi vehicles - but also as a background image for a particularly gruesome event in the book and as a pattern formed by roads? It seems that this is intended to remind us that this is the Holocaust we are reading about. The blurb on the inside front flap states "Its form, the cartoon... succeeds perfectly in shocking us out of any lingering sense of familiarity with the events described." But this is not entirely true - by using the swastika, we are reminded that even though the characters are animals, this is still Holocaust history. The familiarity of the swastika still lingers in our minds and colors our perception of the entire story.

Virtual Reality Technology :: Internet Online Communication Essays

Virtual Reality Technology The World of Virtual Reality is getting closer and closer to Neal Stephenson’s idea of the Metaverse in Snow Crash. In Snow Crash, the Metaverse is a world very similar to the world that we know it as, but with one major difference, none of the Metaverse exists. All of the Metaverse is a simulation. The Metaverse has everything that today’s world has, with may additional features. It has all of the buildings, streets, homes, and everyone is represented in what is called an avatar. An avatar is a digital representation of oneself in the Metaverse. The nicer or fancier the avatar normally means the more time or many spent on designing it. In some ways this is happening already. On the internet there are many games where a person can compete against another person, or a person can play a type of social game in which people get to meet others from around the world. The internet has simple chat rooms and there are also social games in which users will interact with each other. In Snow Crash, Stephenson tells how Hiro, the protagonist in the story, runs into two couples on a double date. Each person is represented as their avatar, and they go out on the town in the Metaverse just and in real life. The social setting to the Metaverse exists in many online environments in which many people meet online and date online.. A MUD would be very comparable to the Metaverse in the sense that a person can be the people in which they are playing. A person can navigate their way in Multi-User Dimension to meet other people and chat with individuals. â€Å"Life in a virtual world is s mix of creative playfulness, purpose and serendipity that needs to be experienced firsthand† (Dyril 1). A closer representation of the Metaverse is what is called a virtual world. Dan Costa sums up a virtual world best by describing virtual worlds as having â€Å"smooth chat features and realistic graphic environment, and they offer subscribers the ability to create unique avatars and wander freely† (Costa 1). This is very similar to Stephenson’s Metaverse in the sense that it gives users the opportunity to socially interact with other users without being physically present.