Childhood Obesity Analysis

Parents & Child Caretakers Obesity in America is literally a growing problem, affecting every age group. Children are the most venerable group because they have no control over where they have dinner or how often they have fast food. Parents and guardians make decisions about food and are responsible for the health of children. Childhood obesity has more than doubled in the last twenty years. This is concerning because Type Two diabetes is a horrible, crippling disease that is affecting children and teens dramatically whereas the disease was primarily seen in adults. Children are said to have a shorter life span than their parents for the first time ever. In the United States sixty-six percent of adults are overweight and one in three adults are overweight. Children that are overweight usually become overweight teens and possible obese adults. With an increase in processed food and fast food chains springing up everywhere everyone must be very cautious of what they eat and how often the eat fast food. Parents must be especially careful with deciding upon what their children will eat for dinner and other meals away from school. Fast food restaurants are convenient and an obvious choice when parents are short on time getting children from one place to the other. While time may sometimes be short compromising children’s health for the sake of a few minutes is not worth it. It is critical that healthy meals are provided for children to ensure their future health. Social Service Organizations Social Service Organizations such as the Center for Disease Control and Department of Health and Human Services agree that childhood obesity is a growing epidemic. According to Dr. William Dietz of the CDC, the number of children between the ages of 6-11 who are obese has more than doubled over the past 20 years. The main interests of these organizations are children and their health. In today’s society, children are simply not as physically active as they were in the past. Other factors such as growing fast food industries, time and money constraints, and increasing numbers of single parents have contributed to obesity within our children. In order to help children achieve a healthy lifestyle many organizations have created programs that provide school children with healthy snacks, while others sponsor programs designed to promote physical activity. In order for these programs to be successful, it is important that children are aware of the health risks associated with obesity and the benefits of leading a healthy lifestyle. These organizations try to educate children using pamphlets and instruction within the school systems. Many have created their own cartoon characters to promote eating fruits & vegetables, and engaging in physical activities. These characters were developed to compete with current advertisements that use characters such as Scooby Doo or Spongebob Squarepants. Children, like many adults, can be swayed when advertisements use attractive sources. Although neither of these organizations claim that advertisements are one of the contributing factors to childhood obesity, they do believe that advertisements can help them to battle the epidemic. These organizations have also yet to hold the fast food industries to blame, they contribute the escalating numbers to be a factor of the environment these children are being raised in. The environment could include anything from the neighborhood the child grows up in and the neighborhood grocery store’s selection of fresh fruits & vegetables to more recently adapted things such as the fast food restaurants on every corner & video game systems in most homes. As stated earlier, the main interests of these organizations are the children and their health. Based on these interest, Social Service Organizations across the United States are actively promoting â€Å"healthy lifestyles† and will continue to battle this growing epidemic. Public Policy Makers Public Policy Makers are pushing efforts on all levels, to include federal, state, local, and community organizations, to combat the growing disease known as childhood obesity. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, childhood obesity effects more than 9 million children and teenagers between the ages of 6-19 in the United States with another 8 million considered â€Å"at risk† of becoming obese. These staggering figures have cause groups to form all across the country and organize their efforts to prevent this disease. One such organization is the Leadership for Healthy Communities, which is a national program of the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation (RWJF). The RWJF holds summits nationwide events calling on policy leaders nationwide to advance healthy eating and  active living options in their communities. According to the RWJF, a special emphasis has een placed on collaborative state and community policy approaches that address childhood obesity among vulnerable populations disproportionately affected by the epidemic. The RWJF also has a panel, which consists of its chairmen, doctors, lawyers, but more importantly politicians on the state and federal level who are taking childhood obesity head-on and working with organizations like the RWJF to promote healthy, cost effective change in communities nationwide. Arkansas, as well as many other states, has adopted legislation preventing the sale of â€Å"fatty foods† within its public schools. Arkansas Act 1220 was adopted and immediately implemented in 2003, creating the state’s first Child Health Advisory Committee, which coordinates Statewide Efforts to Combat Childhood Obesity and related Illnesses and works to improve the Health of the Next Generation of Arkansans, and banned the sale of â€Å"fatty foods and soft drinks† within public schools of all levels. The amount of legislation passed and adopted grew dramatically from 2003 to 2005. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention performed a nationwide scan of legislation from all 50 states to determine how much, if any, legislation had been or is in the process of being passed by state governments to combat childhood obesity. From this study, the CDC identified 717 bills and 134 resolutions that focus on childhood obesity. The results pulled from this study are as follows: 17% of bills and 53% of resolutions were adopted on the state level. The CDC statistically grouped all legislation and resolutions passed into topic areas with most legislation focusing on school nutrition standards and vending machines, physical education and activity, and studies, councils, or task forces created for the prevention of childhood obesity on the community level. Community related topic areas adopted through bills were walking and biking paths, which accounted for 37% of bills passed, farmers’ markets, which accounted for 36% of bills passed, and statewide initiatives which focus primarily on model school policies and safe routes to school. Overall, the government, all both the federal and state level, has actively engaged and combated childhood obesity and will continue to do so until the disease is under control and decreased. Insurance Companies Growing obesity rates equals growing healthcare costs. Health insurance rates have been rising, with double-digit increases in the past 3 years. Obesity is known to considerably increase your chances of stroke, heart disease, diabetes, and other serious health problems. According to the Surgeon General’s office, obesity cost the economy more than $100 billion a year. Insurance companies are aware of these costs associated with obesity, therefore, if you are an overweight individual trying to obtain health insurance, you may either be denied or will be forced to pay more for coverage, up to twice as much. We can’t blame all of the rising costs of health care on the obese population but if the majority of our nation is obese and it is substantially more expensive to insure an overweight individual, one can begin to see the impact it plays on our costs as a whole. According to the Department of Health and Human Services, a new revised Medicare obesity coverage policy has been put into effect. Medicare will now be able to review scientific evidence in order to determine whether the specific treatments related to obesity would be covered by Medicare. Lawyers Lawyers along with others are suing companies that are making what is on America’s plates. Fault is being thrown around the court room as to who’s really to blame for the obesity epidemic in America today. Lawsuits for unhealthy foods being marketed to young children are turning up everywhere. Many believe that cartoon characters used to market these foods are to blame in this mess of lawsuits. Lawyers are also saying that it may not be the lack of will but the addictive nature of the food causing obesity. On the other hand lawyers representing food companies say that this conclusion is junk science and the behaviors of those who overeat are not similar to those with addictions. With all of these lawsuits turning up there are many food companies changing their marketing strategy along with their image and actual product to be healthy choices.

Men and Women Will Never Be Equal Essay

Men and women will never be equal just like an apple and an orange, both are fruits, but have different taste. In general, men and women are physically, mentally, and emotionally different but does that really mean men and women will never be equal? The word â€Å"equal† means â€Å"the same as†. So, is a woman the same as a man? Study shows that an average women earns a year is lower than what men would earn, men and women both play different roles in the society, both important, but are not equal, for example, women are said to have taken more days off in a year than men; due to maternity leave, but as a mother, they would need to take care of their children as well. Men on the other hand, are known to be stronger; which brings to the idea that they work more than women do. According to research, it is more likely that men are committing more crimes such as thief, murder, rape; more men are being imprisoned than women. Women are sometimes defined as the â€Å"primary victims of war† as they lose their husbands, fathers, and brothers during war. Men and women are convinced they will never be equal, probably as early as human’s earliest days. In further logic, there are more differences between men and women than similarities. In coeducational schools, males and females tend to choose specific options that the other gender does not do, for example, fashion and engineering. Which in general, mainly only have one gender in the class. In general, men are stronger than women; that has convinced the society with the help of each gender’s actions, men would usually appear as bold, strong, and brace while the females are usually shy, polite, and feminine. People are also persuaded that men can carry two bricks at once, while women can carry only one it is not necessarily true, but it is an instant impression that it is true. Men and women will never be equal is a fact that will not really ever change; that doesn’t mean they aren’t the same just not equal. It is a good thing that in this society, although men and women will never be equal, we still get along. Read more:  Men and Women Should Have Equal Rights Essay

Leader-Management-Exchange (LMX) Coursework Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Leader-Management-Exchange (LMX) - Coursework Example   However, since these leaders do not have much time and power on their hands, they seek to narrow down their radar to focus their attention on those members who seem to capitalize on the leadership outcome that is the extent of the relationship. The theories prior to the leader-member-exchange theory either focused too much on the leader or on the members. The LMX, on the other hand, has a different approach, whereby it considers the relationship between the leaders and the members as an important element that contributes to leader effectiveness. Also unlike other theories that considered the entire group of members as a whole, the LMX judges each individual separately. According to the dealings and agreements between the members and the leaders, the theory identifies two different types of relationships. The two distinct relationships that are found after application of the LMX include the in-group and the out-group. There is a set of people within the members' group that tend to go further than and achieve more than what their expected roles would limit them to, this set of people also take up a more productive and comprehensive approach to the tasks they need to complete. This set of people makes up the in-group that is shown as the high quality of the LMX with positive results. Characteristics of the in-group consist of negotiations by the members to develop and increase their role ahead of their job prescriptions, mutual trust, respect and concern between the leaders and the members.... The out-group is formed by the set of members who work hard enough, only to complete the contractual requirements of their job prescriptions, nothing more. There is a low degree of enthusiasm compared to the in-group and they do not receive any form of special attention from the leaders, nor any additional perks or promotions. Even though the leader tries to better the degree of interaction, the out-group member does not show much interest and remains self-concerned. Therefore, the out-group is a low quality LMX and provides average level outcomes. It is argued that the existence of these two unique groups is somewhat discriminating and de-motivating, however they will continue to exist and the leader must constantly make an effort to expand the in-group of the organization. The quality of outcomes that the LMX is able to provide is under effect of several factors that may enhance it if controlled properly, however, if these factors are left casually undecided, they may very well res ult in average or possible less than average LMX outcome. Communication plays an important element in deciding the quality of the LMX. Individual interaction and communication with the leaders and the coworkers allows for a sense of belonging for the subordinates to build, making them feel like a significant part of the organization that matters. This results in a high quality LMX. When the leader of a group has authority that reaches higher on the ladder of an organization enabling him/her to have a good say in managerial decisions, task assignment and performance review, the members tend to be more motivated and confident, eventually leading to a good LMX. Sometimes

Predictiveness and the Level of Processing Research Paper

Predictiveness and the Level of Processing - Research Paper Example Once when the results are arrived at, there will be a clear difference in regard to response towards the predictive words of the people who participate in the experiment. Since this paper is all about Predictiveness, it is very important to know what the word predictive exactly means, according to the dictionary the word means foretelling or foreboding, to simply the same it is the ability to know something which has not happened, to be very precise it means to be able to know and forecast about something which has not happened previously. Our memory plays a key role in this process because human beings carry out many processes depending on their memory. According to Craik, "the longevity of the memory and its qualitative nature is purely dependent on the depth of processing." Memory does many processes and one of the most important processes is of remembering and it has some vital subdivisions such as attention, encoding, rehearsal and retrieval. It is believed that the durability of the memory depends on the functions of the depth of processing. Going by this statement it is believed that the deeper the functions of various processes which go on in human mind, sharper the memory. According to Koriat, Ben-Zur, &Sheffer, "older adults suffer from many problems related to their memory, some of the common problems are that they tend to forget names very easily because of the unfamiliar words which make up the names of the people, another problem is supposed to be that they fail to link information or in other words connect a sequence of events because of their memory." This paper will conduct research to prove that when people come across predictive words it becomes easier for them to anticipate and get the predictive words right, the performance of the memory in relation to the predictive words will be highlighted in the paper. The relation between Predictiveness and the level of processing will be arrived at the end of the paper. Method The whole concept can be better understood by conducting an experiment; the experiment involves 132 students of which 82 are females with a mean age of 19.8. The experiment conducted required the students to watch a power point presentation, which consisted of 40 sentences of which 20 sentences were predictive and the rest 20 were non-predictive. The series of the sentences was in random order to have better results from the experiment. The experiment showed the students the 40 sentences and the arrangement was such that the final word of the sentences was not shown to the students and they were asked to think about the final word. After sometime the sentences were shown with the final word and each sentence stayed on the screen for 2 seconds, which is a very short duration. Some examples of predictive sentences shown to the students are, she put the new picture into a frame, when the music started he asked her to dance and some of the examples of non- predictive sentences shown to t he students are, she went down town to see the new frame, she developed a severe headache at the dance. To get the results right, the predictive and t

Cause and effect Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words - 1

Cause and effect - Essay Example There is something dark about the human psyche which even science cannot fully explain. It is a well-known fact that every person has a different level of endurance, and if pushed further than that the inner animal emerges and even the gentlest of human beings can commit the most heinous of sins, for instance, murder. Classical authors of time past have also tried to capture this facet of human personality in their writings. The concept of ‘The Other’ in The Picture of Dorian Grey and the foiling of Bertha and Jane in Jane Eyre are startling. These show very clearly that there is a part in our psyche which has not evolved over time; it has the instincts of a monster. It is that part which is taboo and which we hide from the polite society in fear of being rejected. Now the question is how masterfully you control that part of yourself. We cannot give it free reign, we cannot ignore it, so what do we do? As a result, a new genre of literature and movies has emerged: Gothic or Horror. Gothic or horror movies help us exercise our inner self without being obvious or hurting others. There is something about horror movies which makes one feel awed. I remember the first horror movie I saw was ‘Resident Evil’ when I was eleven years old. ... This made me really think about the real psyche of humans, later. When I read ‘The Lord of The Flies’, this feeling came back. In extreme circumstances, the luxury of our so called sophisticated exterior is shattered and we begin to think like animals. Horror movies make us relish the emotions of horror and terror. It is as if we are taking our shot of this other-worldly reality. The pleasure mixed with horror we feel does not mean that we enjoy doing this to others; it simply means that the boring and monotonous life is left behind and we feel as if we are with the protagonist racing through zombies, clashing swords with vampires and killing our enemies. Humans are emotional beings, who want an outlet to all the natural emotions which have to be felt to live a normal life, but are unable to because nothing extraordinary is happening in their lives and in this normal world. We try to escape from it all and feed our inner demons by watching horror movies or playing gory v ideo games. All the pounding, the blood and the struggle uses up our adrenaline and makes us more composed and controlled in our very day life. I have asked myself after growing up what it was about ‘Twilight’ that made me, for a short span of time, almost worship the idea of a vampire and werewolf? In real life a blood drinking fanged person, or a half-man, half-wolf would be far from sexy but would be downright ugly, disgusting and scary. Then I understood that it was my idea of an adventure, experiencing something powerful and terrifying which I would have been unable to achieve in real life, and it filled that part of my psyche which is called ‘The Other’. Hence, humans crave horror movies for various reasons, the most prominent being satiating the hidden beast

The role of International Human Resource Management Essay

The role of International Human Resource Management - Essay Example But for most enterprises including hotel nd hospitlity industry interntionliztion equtes with n incresingly importnt role for IHRM nd necessity to dpt HR prctices to locl needs. Current pper is n nlysis of Seychelles' HRM in comprison with UK. The study is bsed on the cse of Molten Hotel tht is opening on n islnd Seychelles nd requires recommendtion on HR prctices in order to effectively mnge the locl stff nd rech the profitbility on new mrket. Molten Hotels is leding UK bsed hospitlity compny, which owns nd mnges hotels round the world, with one of the UK's best know brnd nmes. The compny hs hotels in thirty eight countries nd dependent territories round the world, with its hed office bsed on the Strnd in London, UK. It employs round 50,000 people worldwide, nd is regulrly recognised s n employer of choice. The compny hd totl revenues of just over three billion dollrs worldwide during the 2007 finncil yer, with operting profit of round five hundred million. This put the hotel just below such globl brnd nmes s Hilton nd Mrriott in terms of globl rech, brnd recognition nd finncil performnce. The first Molten Hotel ws founded in 1758 by John Molten in Mnchester, where it ws known s Molten's Guest nd Coch House. The hotel ws fmily owned nd run for the first hundred nd twenty yers until in the end of the 19th century, when brhm Molten took dvntge of the rilwys tht hd sprung up cross the country to build two new hotels in Liverpool nd Blckpool. These new hotels proved to be mssive success, s incresing numbers of people begn holidying in costl resorts to escpe the industrilised cities. By 1960, the compny hd set up further 21 hotels round the country, with 18 of these in costl towns including Brighton, Skegness nd Torquy. The compny then decided to expnd to other countries in Europe, gin focusing on the costl regions where tourism ws beginning to grow rpidly. Following perceived sturting of the Europen mrket, the compny expnded its opertions brod, building hotels in Brbdos nd Jmic in the Crribben, Rio de Jneiro nd Slvdor in Brzil, Tunisi, Morocco nd Egypt in fric, nd severl costl cities in ustrli. The compny hs proven trck record of building hotels by the se with excellent use of rchitecture to provide lmost ll rooms with se views nd ensure tht guests hve ll their needs ttended to, in order to gin the mximum plesure from their stys. The compny's prices re mong the highest in the industry for hotel rooms, lthough they sit below the prices of most dedicted resorts, vills nd sps. The compny's most recent project, in Dubi, ws nother four str hotel, pitched to ppel to the upper hlf of the hotel mrket. Prt 1: 1. PEST nlysis Politicl UK hs business friendly environment where the competition mong tourism compnies is encourged in order to sustin competitive dvntge. The compnies therefore recruiter the best employees on the mrket since the competition for good employees is very intense. The HR policies re influenced by with the government pressures to recruit ntionls in comprison to foreigners. However, if foreign employee is hired, the security is provided in return for

Organization of the Olympic Games in London Essay

Organization of the Olympic Games in London - Essay Example Operations are the processes by which an organization puts in effort regarding the inputs i.e. the strategies to generate the required output namely, the services, with increased quality. Management is the process that unites and renovates various resources implemented in the operations to derive value-added services in a controlled manner based on the policies of the organization. Furthermore, the interrelated managerial activities, those are required for service management, is also referred as the operations manager. The Operations Management literature states that the activities related to the organizational operations must focus on the strategies that are consistent with the organizational aims and with other functionalities related to marketing and human resource. Olympics have been one of the largest events in the sports segment that involves almost all the countries of the world. Since its commencement, the event is being organized every 4 years in different countries inviting players from various nationalities and categories. During the Olympics, it has often been observed that citizens from various parts of the world attempt to visit the hosting country for experiencing the greatest sport of events. Furthermore, it has been noticed that there is a wide range of facilities required to be developed before the sporting event is being commenced. Certainly, the development of these facilities requires huge capital funds which eventually will boost up the success of the upcoming event.... Management is the process that unites and renovates various resources implemented in the operations to derive value added services in a controlled manner based on the policies of the organisation. Furthermore, the interrelated managerial activities, those are required for service management, is also referred as the operations management. The Operations Management literature states that the activities related to the organisational operations must focus on the strategies that are consistent with the organisational aims and with other functionalities related to marketing and human resource (Kumar & Suresh, 2009). Olympics have been one of the largest events in the sports segment that involves almost all the countries of the world. Since its commencement, the event is being organised every 4 years in different countries inviting players from various nationalities and categories. For instance, in the current year, i.e. 2012, the Olympics are planned to be held in London. During the Olympi cs, it has often been observed that citizens from various parts of the world attempt to visit the hosting country for experiencing the greatest sport of events. Furthermore, it has been noticed that there are a wide range of facilities required to be developed before the sporting event is being commenced. Certainly, the development of these facilities requires huge capital funds which eventually will boost up the success of the upcoming event. The objective of the paper is to evaluate the strategic processes involved in the execution of operations when conducting Olympics 2012. Furthermore, the problems that could arise in operating the event will also be identified along with the evaluation of reasons

Nazi Germany Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Nazi Germany - Essay Example European history exhibits myriad number of totalitarian practices before, during, and after the first half of the 20th century. In this respect, Nazi Germany became part of the totalitarian history in Europe. This followed the appointment of Adolf Hitler as the Chancellor of Germany on the 30th of January, 1933 (Paxton and Julie 317). Hitler and his party consolidated political power in Germany and controlled every aspect of people’s lives. As a result, Nazi Germany was not necessarily an anomaly of history, since there had been other totalitarian rulers before Hitler. For instance, Tsars government in Russia had centralized political power and authority even before Hitler was appointed as Germany’s chancellor. While totalitarian practices were not new in the history of Europe, Hitler had taken his rule to another step. Hitler’s form of leadership took totalitarian rules and practices to an extreme high end. He not only controlled the lives of the people in Germany, but also destroyed political institutions and eliminated all aspects of opposition in his leadership. The cultural, social, economic, religious, and political face of Germany critically changed over the years of Hitler’s rule (Paxton and Julie 342). Consequently, the impact of Germany’s history on that of Europe remains alive to date. The cultural and social aspects of Germany were not spared by Hitler’s rule, and the Nazi Germany critically reshaped these aspects. For instance, homosexual rights groups were restricted in the year 1933, Jehovah witnesses were massively arrested from the year 1936, habitual criminals were arrested and punished from 1937 onwards, employment of Jews was banned in the year 1938, and Jewish businesses were sold to Aryans (Paxton and Julie 359). These among other activities characterized the kind of life that people lived in Germany, following the

Business Research Methods Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2250 words

Business Research Methods - Essay Example The results obtained showed that both held very different views. One of the limitations of the study was poor response from the General Managers in the hotels. More research on the views of general managers should be conducted. The main of the industry and educators is to tackle and minimize the gap between managers and students. Introduction Among the fastest growing New Zealand industries is the hospitality industry. Between 2008 and 2015, the ministry of tourism expects the number of visitors to increase by 18.6% in spite of the general drop in the economy of the whole world. This in turn will lead to increased expenditure in the tourist sector that is expected to rise by 4% within the same period. In 2008, the total expenditure $14 billion, is expected to increase up to $18 billion by 2015. Based on the above data, the New Zealand tourist industry is doing well. More qualified and knowledgeable hospitality employees are needed to serve the large numbers of visitors in the country (Brien 2004, p. 10). O’Mahony and Sillitoe (2001, p. 264) argues that the hospitality industry does not put much emphasis on the qualifications in the sector when recruiting new employees. The industry values experienced employees who lack educational qualifications than educated people who have degrees in the industry. Graduates are disadvantaged when it comes to job competition with experienced people. James and Holden (2000, p. 265), assert that the hospitality industry is against the general expectation that pursuing a degree in a specific field is an added advantage to graduates because it is easy for them to secure themselves good places. Employing people based on qualification is a disadvantage to graduates most of who lack experience (Li & Leung 2001, p.190). Research Question When recruiting employees, the industry should not base on an individual's qualifications because this alone may not offer good results. Other factors like job experience, gender and age also affect career prospects. The aim of this paper is to determine how degrees affect the ability of graduates to secure good positions in employment that can earn them good salaries as well as the qualities that hospitality employees should have. Data collected from students and hotel managers on issues related advantages of degrees is used to analyze and evaluate the value of management degree in hospitality. Auckland University of Technology (AUT) students’ holding a degree in the Bachelor of International Hospitality Management and managers from six different hotels in New Zealand were used to carry out the study. Literature Review The author of this article reviewed a good number of resources to get information related to the topic. Brien (2004, p. 15) and Harkison (2004a, p. 22), argue that graduates expectation of getting to senior management positions immediately after graduating is not met. Students expect to replace hotel managers who are usually at their thirties and fortes and therefore abou t to retire. New Zealand’s hospitality industry is mainly composed of young people such that those who go on after the age of twenty are likely to attain higher positions than their young counterparts are. In the study conducted in Auckland, out of five hundred and thirty four employees, most of the managers were between the ages of 30 and 39 whereas supervisors and staff aged between 20 and 24. Most of the seniors were above the age of 25 years with an experience of more than five years and had educational qualification (Poulston 2006, p.25). Studies conducted to determine the qualifications that a manager should have vary greatly. People have

Effects of Drugs on Neurotransmission Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Effects of Drugs on Neurotransmission - Essay Example This means that alteration of the conditions that are favorable for cells to be alive leads to the death of the organelles. The various systems, therefore, have to ensure that the internal conditions of the body are favorable for cells to live; this state is known as homeostasis (Cooper, 2011). The favorable conditions are achieved when the systems ensure that the internal environment remains constant. The process of maintaining the constant conditions is known as the regulation of homeostasis. The process of regulating homeostasis involves three parts that include the effectors, control centers, and the receptors (Cooper, 2011). These parts standardize the internal conditions whenever external circumstances fluctuate. The receptor is in charge of collecting information from the external environment; for example, when the weather changes from hot to cold, these elements record this change. The receptor then transfers the information to the control center. The center is in charge of p rocessing the information received from the receptor. The center then determines the change that should occur in the internal environment to ensure that it does not fluctuate like the surrounding. The center commands the effectors to execute the change (Cooper, 2011). This process is repeated whenever the surrounding conditions fluctuate, and this maintains homeostasis in the body. The change that the center would produce in case of cold weather would be increasing the body temperature. The effectors increase the temperature after receiving the command from the center. The nervous system is in charge of controlling other arrangements in the body because it consists of the brain, which is the main body regulator. The systems consist of the brain, neurons, and neurotransmitters. The neurons produce various types of transmitters such as serotonin and dopamine. The neurotransmitters transfer signals to the effectors and receptors in chemical form (Sherman, 2007); therefore, any interference with this process may damage the brain or hinder its efficient functioning. Methods by which Various Drugs Alter Neurotransmission Drug abuse is one of the processes that damage the brain and hinder the efficient functioning of the neurotransmitters. Drugs such as heroine stimulate the production of excess receptors in the brain. The increase in opioids in the brain also increases the production of dopamine. Cocaine, on the other hand, enters the neuromembrane by clinging on dopamine transmitters (Sherman, 2007). This blocks dopamine from entering into the transmit ters, and it leads to the increase of these organelles in the synapse. The increase in the dopamine in the synapse leads to the desire for more cocaine, which consequently leads to addiction. Alcohol is another drug that affects neurotransmission by altering the shape and structure of the neuromembrane, enzymes, ions, and receptors. The use of alcohol also blocks the receptors that take place in the synaptic process, which is responsible for helping an individual to learn and remember things (Sherman, 2007). Caffeine, which is contained in drinks such as coffee affects the process of transmitting neurons by preventing adenosine from connecting to its receptor. Adenosine is responsible for inducing sleep in a person. This means that individuals lack sleep when adenosine fails to perform its function efficiently. These disruptions of the neurotransm

The European Renaissance Essay Example for Free

The European Renaissance Essay The European Renaissance was one of the most important periods of time in all of Western Civilization’s history as many of the cultural, social and philosophical movements that derived from this movement not only greatly effected the people who lived during the time period of the Renaissance, but much of what occurred during this time period still resonates and influences cultures, ideologies and philosophical beliefs to this very day. As such, it becomes critical to examine the European Renaissance so as to understand what it achieved and how it still resonates to the modern era. A significant reason for this is that most arts and sciences build upon one each another in a logical progression. The attitudes of freedom in art, for example, slowly evolved into the more mature themes in art and film that were previously held back due to religious and government censorship. Current advances in science such as stem cell research are not much different than the arguments for and against spontaneous generation in prior centuries. As such, there is still much that exists today that is a logical extension of what was started many years ago. There were several areas of social change that derived from the Renaissance and the most important of these areas included art (painting, sculpture, architecture all evolved into phases that were far removed from what had been considered â€Å"classical† art), humanism (a theory of instilling knowledge that was a radical departure from traditional modes of education), religion (it was during this era that the concept of secularism as a response to classical religion began to take shape) and the philosophical notion of self awareness (this essentially refers to those living during the time period acknowledging the changes that were occurring). These changes were not mere changes within the realm of the elites, however. The changes that occurred in all these phases greatly affect the infrastructure of the western world as a whole and it did so by changing the fabric of the society and this would resonate with the population as a whole with the end result of civilization as a whole radically changing from a classical society that had become stagnant and overly reliant on tradition for its very existence. To a great degree, the scientific community was strongly affected but the knowledge that was derived from the renaissance period. While primitive compared to today’s standards, the concepts and ideas regarding astronomy have greatly impacted the way the modern world operates. For example, the common telescope was invented during the period of the Renaissance and from the telescope the study of the stars and the planets derived. This, of course, has manifested into what is now the modern space age of satellites and explorations to the moon. While this may seem like a â€Å"jump† if one does not look at the complete timeline or progression of such achievements, however, if one were to look at the advent of a number of modern achievements, the achievments can be traced back to the era of the renaissance. Of course no mention of the development of astronomy during the period of the Renaissance without mentioning the great advancements provided by Galileo; of course, Galileo was the inventor of the telescope as well as the man who developed the theory that the sun was the center of the universe and this, of course, forever sent science on the path of accuracy that is of paramount importance to subscribe to for scientific theories to remain accurate and relevant in the modern era. In terms of the modern era, it would be doubtful that the great expansion of the space age would exist without the foundations that were devised by Galileo. Considering the fact that the primary principles founded by Galileo have not been discarded or altered, it would be safe to say that their accuracy is irrefutable and, as such, still permeate in the sciences today. The American and European political institutions of the modern are also heavily reliant upon theories and ideologies of political thought that derive from the Renaissance period. In particular, the module of â€Å"classical liberalism† still manages to affect political thought in the modern western world today. (Please note: there are significant differences between classical liberalism and the modern version, although there are certain similarities between the two) For example, consider the classic renaissance thinker Voltaire and his famous statement â€Å"I may disapprove of what you say, but I will defend to the death your right to say it. This is clearly a contributing influence on the notion of freedom of speech to this day. In fact, in can be seen in the Constitution of the United States, a document which often used the common wisdom of the Renaissance and the Enlightenment as a guiding principle in the modern political theory of the United States. There are a number of examples of how events from the Renaissance shape modern cultural, social and political life and this can be seen in the following four examples: Skepticism: the notion of self awareness led greatly to the concept of questioning traditional norms and beliefs. From this, a number of examples can be put forth but one of the most prevalent in the news these days is the modern atheism movement, much of which derives its origins from the thought process of the Renaissance period. (Skepticism can be seen today in much of the modern political discourse that forces both parties to the center) Secularism: some confuse the notion of secularism with atheism and this is an inaccurate assessment. In reality, secularism simply means that religious law does not provide the basis for the supreme law of the land. In a secular society such as Europe and to varying extents, the United States, the law derives from secular origins and not from religious rule. Modern Art: While some would say that the Pop Art as devised by Andy Warhol is far removed from the Renaissance, the reality is that it, along with many different forms of modern art, derives from the changing concepts of art that originated in the Renaissance period. During the Renaissance, there was a significant shift away from art that centered on traditional images of â€Å"gods and kings† and this deviation from the classical module still exists to this day. Psychology: The field of psychology is also based in the concept of self-awareness that originated during the Renaissance period. Much of what exists in modern psychology centers on understanding oneself, the world and one’s surroundings and this was a notion that was born of the renaissance that still exists to this very day. The notion of looking inward, for example, as opposed to gods and mystics for enlightenment is the hallmark of modern psychology and looking inward as opposed to external structures is what is commonplace today in modern American pop culture and psychology and its origins are found in the Renaissance. To that extent, much of what exists in the United States today and well as the Western World in general is an extension of the success of the models of thought of the Renaissance. The perpetual extension of these modules of thought speak volumes for their accuracy.

Strategic Analysis of SingTel Telecom

Strategic Analysis of SingTel Telecom Introduction Singapore Telecom (Singapore Telecommunications Limited, referred to as SingTel, AFP) was established in 1879, is a wholly-owned by Singapore government-owned company, it is Singapores largest telecommunications companies. Singapore Telecom to increase strongly in markets outside of Singapore, and a partial stake in the operator, including the Australian carriers Optuss 100% stake in 2000, the British Cable and Wireless Optus, and other shareholders of the shares. Singapore Telecom a majority stake is controlled by Temasek Holdings, the Chairman is Lee Hsien Yang (the second son of former Prime Minister Lee Kuan Yew and current Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong, his younger brother). Products and Services SingTel is Asias leading telecommunications company, with across wireless and Internet platforms for voice, data services, service-oriented business, as well as home two areas. Singapore Telecom has long been committed to providing customers with the Asia-Pacific regions most high-quality service. Now the focus is on the Internet service providers, mobile phones and fixed telephone communications services above. Company History Over the past decade, Singapore Telecom has successfully completed their high efficiency to the worlds leading operator changes. The company offers a wide range, the price is quite competitive telecommunications services, and global 5000 companies from different countries to provide telecommunications services. Singapore Telecom has already built a large scale in Singapores domestic telecommunications network, and the annual investment of 1 billion new coins update the network. In order to enhance competitiveness at home and abroad, the company offers intelligent fixed telecommunications services. At present, the company has been in the world, 15 countries, 23 cities and regions set up operational organs, including China, the United States, Britain, Japan, Korea, Malaysia, Indonesia, Vietnam and Hong Kong and Taiwan. It has a glorious history of 120 years. SingTel aims to be a new era of pan-Pacific region bears the brunt of the true sense of the telecom operators. To this end, Singa pore Telecom will continue to expand with other Asian countries in telecom peers, and the scope of cooperation. SingTels Group CEO is Chua Sock Koong and CEO is Allen Lew. Business strategy Singapore Telecommunications Ltd. owns 7800 million as the users SingTel is Asia Pacific region, excluding China, the largest mobile Internet operators. 1992 companies from the former government monopoly privatized, SingTel in 2003, when the postal service from its opening, the focus is now on the Internet service providers, mobile phones and fixed telephone communications services above. Hopes through a comprehensive and sophisticated international leading-edge technology, and gradually get rid of the public color, sharply turned into a full private sector. Goal is to build a world-class institutions, not only to win the international community for its recognition of science and technology and technical expertise, and quality service and products provided by domestic users have also been positive. Logo New corporate logo by a simple, symbolic of the ellipse, with the two squares. Designed to highlight the companys innovative technology, international affairs and services-oriented. Elliptical lines out of Singapore Telecoms global vision, the two squares on behalf of the emerging digital technologies, while the red and black of a stable and reliable dissemination of messages. The new visual corporate identity and enhance Singapores telecommunications as a global industry leaders pivotal position. From the above mentioned, we understand that SingTel Group is a leading company in the telecommunication industry in the region, due to successful business strategies. Thus, it is important that all organizations understand their strengths and weaknesses before implementing strategies. They should first analyze their goals and operations to see if the current practices are working towards the mission and vision. A companys vision and mission is crucial to an organization, as it paves the way for where the company is headed and what it assumes to provide for its stakeholders. At the beginning of strategic management process, the organization needs to develop its vision statement and mission statement. A vision statement is what the organization wants to become and describe how the future will look if the organization achieves its mission. A mission statement explains what the organization does, for whom and what the benefit is. The vision, mission statements and core values of SingTel are shown in table 1 as follow: Prior to the development of strategy and marketing plans, they should evaluate both the external and internal factors. Hence, the corporate world usually utilizes various strategic tools like the SWOT Analysis that may influence the implementation of plans. Below is the SWOT Analysis of SingTel: SingTel SWOT Analysis SWOT analysis is the overall evaluation of a companys Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities, and Threats. The external analysis looks at opportunities and threats created by the environment while the internal analysis looks at the strengths and weaknesses of the company. In strategic planning, the company matches its capabilities with available opportunities and takes action to minimize threats. (Kotler, Bowen and Makens, 2006) SingTel Group is the leading integrated communications service providers in the Asia Pacific region and their core business operations are located in Singapore and Australia. The company has business in a number of sectors of the telecommunications market in the Asia Pacific region (http://home.singtel.com/investor_relations/default.asp , 2009). Internal Environmental Analysis (Strengths Weakness) Strengths are resources and capabilities that allow the firm to complete important tasks. Resources can be the tangible and intangible assets held by the firm, and capabilities result when the firm integrates several different resources to complete a task or a series of related tasks. (Hoskisson/ Hitt/ Ireland, 2009) Weaknesses are those actions a company is not doing well or resources a company are lacking. Most importantly each business needs to evaluate its strengths and weaknesses periodically. Strengths and Weaknesses of SingTel are as follow: Strong cash flow Singapores Top Ten Brands 2009 ranked number 6 Exclusive contract with Apple 2008 Right to broadcast the next three seasons of the English Premier League (EPL) Lack of feasibility of a universal set-top box Lack of contents for local pay TV market Strengths Most of SingTels strategic, operational and financial dynamics are currently improving. This is an indication that the companys current business strategies are proving to be successful. SingTel has a diverse spread of geographical operations. The companys main business activities are focused in Singapore and Australia and partners located in India, Belgium, Hong Kong, Thailand, the Philippines, Taiwan and Indonesia. The spread of geographical operations will benefit the company, as it will become less depend on the local market to generate revenues. Most of their businesses are experiencing double-digit revenue growth over the past year (http://home.singtel.com/investor_relations/default.asp , 2009). SingTel captured the exclusive contract with Apple last year, and has since brought in more than 100,000 iPhones, thus increasing the companys revenue, the average spending per customer for mobile data (http://home.singtel.com/investor_relations/default.asp , 2009). Taking sixth position for the Superbrands Survey, which identified over 500 of Singapores consumers favorite brands across 93 categories of consumer products and services demonstrated the consumers choice and trust in SingTels products and services (www.marketing-interactive.com/news/11875). SingTel outbid StarHub to score the coveted rights to broadcast the next three seasons of the English Premier League (EPL) from 2010 to 2012. With the rights to broadcast the EPL, there will be a great potential that sports incline customers from StarHub will switch to SingTel (The Straits Time dated 11 November 2009). Weaknesses As a leading telecommunication company in Asia, the customer service in SingTel has rooms for improvement. Under the current extreme competitive environment, all the companies not only need to provide unique products but also good customer service. Thus, employee training program could be provided in order to handle customers problems effectively. With acquire of the Pay TV license in the domestic market in Singapore, Singapore needs to look at the feasibility of a universal set-top box that will best benefits consumers and align with the government strategic direction. SingTels cable television subscribers complaining about the hassle of having two set-top boxes may be a challenge that SingTel need to overcome (The Business Times dated 4 November 2009). External Environmental Analysis (Opportunities Threats) Opportunities are conditions in the firms external environment that may help the firm reach its vision (Hoskisson and Hitt, 2009). A marketing opportunity is an area of need in which a company can perform profitably. Opportunities can be listed and classified according to their attractiveness and the success profitability. (Kotler, Bowen and Makens, 2006) Threats are conditions in the firms external environment that may prevent the firm from reaching its vision (Hoskisson and Hitt, 2009). An environmental threat is a challenge posed by unfavourable trend or developments that would lead, in the absence of defensive marketing action, to sales or profit deterioration. Threats can be classified according to their seriousness and probability of occurrence. (Kotler, Bowen and Makens, 2006) Opportunities and Treats of SingTel are as follow: Global opportunities in mobile communication Rights to broadcast the World Cup 2010 Potential merger of StarHub and MobileOne (M1) Australian market strong competition Opportunities Africa and Vietnam are markets in the emerging mobile space, which is definitely worth our interest, and SingTel is actively taking the lead to explore the untapped emerging telecom market. (Harry Suhartono, Nov 11,2009) Singapore and Australia accounted for 54 percent of the groups EBITDA , earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization and more opportunities for further growth. With SingTel outbid StarHub to score the coveted rights to broadcast the next three seasons of the English Premier League (EPL), there will be great opportunities to expand the customer-base for PayTV customers (http://home.singtel.com/investor_relations/default.asp , 2009). Moreover, with the exclusive right to broadcast the next three seasons of EPL, F1, the next opportunity for SingTel is Word Cup 2010. With clinch of the World Cup 2010, SingTel will dominate the Sports channels in the region. Treats With StarHub and MobileOne obtain licenses to sell Apples popular iPhone and their launched on 9 December 2009, SingTel lost the 15th months monopoly. Thus, will likely to face tougher competition in the local market. Potential merger of StarHub and MobileOne will be a big treats to SingTels Number One position in Singapore for mobile market in Singapore. SingTels subsidiary Optus is facing strong competition with their competitors in the Australia and maybe affects their leading position and revenges. With the competitive market, SingTel will have to fight against StarHub and MobileOne through price, promotions, and advertising since all three companies main business are in the provision of mobile plans and the sale of mobile phones. Perhaps, SingTel may need to improve the customer service further to create a superior customer service that tag to their brand With the winning of the broadcast rights for the English Premier League, it is expected that loyal football fans will switch from StarHub over to SingTel, especially with the low rate offered by SingTel. Hence, competition is intense and SingTel would need to take on actions to further enhance its Strength whilst working on its Weaknesses. After evaluating the external and internal factors, SingTel started to develop strategies such as launching of Mio TV, which is able to capture more market share and ultimately enhancing SingTels market position. Mio TV is a new technological product in the current market, thus, it is necessary for the company to assess the product life cycle (PLC). Product Life Cycle According to Kotler, every product has its life. The product life cycle concept allows marketer to plan their marketing strategies to manage their product or service through various phases of their product life cycle. The purpose of this concept to establish which phase of its life cycle is and select the best fitting marketing strategies for the product in that phase. Base on Kotler (2000) the product life cycle can be divided into four distinct phases those are introduction, growth, maturity and decline phases. Furthermore, Kotler also provided the following marketing characteristic, marketing objective and marketing strategies within its of the product life cycle phases. Characteristic: according to Kotler, there are existing different characteristic sales, cost, profit, competitors and customer for its stages in the product life cycle. Those can be described as follow Sale characteristics: sales are low in the introduction stages, rapidly increase in the growth stages, peaking in the maturity stages and decreasing in the decline stages. Cost characteristics: the cost per customer will be high in the introductory stage, average cost per customer in the growth stage, and low cost per customer in the maturity and decline stage. Profit characteristic: profits can be none or negative in the introductory stage, increase in the growth stage, and high in the maturity stage and reducing in the decline phase. Competitors characteristic: there is existing only few competitors in the introductory stage, increasing in the growth stage, stable in the maturity and decreasing in the decline stage. Customer characteristic: in the introductory stage has only few customers who call innovators are testing the product, early adopter trying the growth stage, a middle majority testing product in the maturity and the laggard trying the product in the decline stage. Marketing objectives: Kotler also provides differences kinds of companys marketing objectives which linked to four stages of product as below Introductory stage: to make awareness and trial by using an intensive advertising and promotion campaign. Growth stage: to maximize the market share Maturity stage: maintaining market share while profits can be still maximize Decline stage: reducing marketing expenditure of the product during this stage while the aim will be to milk the product. Marketing strategies: the alternative marketing strategies was given by Kotler are related to various stage of the product life cycle as below: Product strategy: a basic product will be offered in the introductory stage, product extensions and warranties will be offered during growth stage, brand and individual product item will be diversified in the maturity stage and the weak model will be phased out during decline stage. Price strategy: the cost plus price will be changed during introductory phase, price will be set to penetrate the market during the growth phase, the price will be set to meet competitive price during the maturity phase while price will be cut during the decline phase. Distribution strategy: distribution will be built selectively during introductory phase, it will be intensive during growth phase, distribution will be further developed during the maturity phase and it will be more selective during decline phase. Advertising strategy: building awareness of product among early adopter and dealers in the introductory phase, building awareness and interest in the mass market during the growth phase, stressing brand differences and benefits during the maturity phase and reduce the advertising level needed to retain hard core-loyal customers in the decline phase. Sale promotion strategy: using heavy promotion to entice trial during the introductory phase, reduced promotion to take advantage of heavy customers demand during the growth phase, increase promotion to encourage brand switching in the maturity phase and reducing promotion to minimum in the decline phase. Limitations of the Product Life Cycle Concept The term life cycle implies a well-defined life cycle as observed in living organisms, but products do not have such a predictable life and the specific life cycle curves followed by different products vary substantially. Consequently, the life cycle concept is not well-suited for the forecasting of product sales. Furthermore, critics have argued that the product life cycle may become self-fulfilling. For example, if sales peak and then decline, managers may conclude that the product is in the decline phase and therefore cut the advertising budget, thus precipitating a further decline. Each customer is more or less free to adopt products for their own needs; this is sometimes called the shopping caddy approach to product adoption. However, in order to attract customer, not only should SingTel understand the PLC, it is also necessary for SingTel to analyze the competition and to be proactive to beat competitors in the current highly competitive market. Porters five forces is a framework for the industry analysis and business strategy development developed by Michael E. Porter of Harvard Business School in 1979. It uses concepts developing Industrial Organization (IO) economics to derive five forces that determine the competitive intensity and therefore attractiveness of a market. (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Porter_five_forces_analysis) SingTels Competitive Rivalry Singapore Telecommunications Limited is considered as the biggest telecommunication company in Singapore. Singtels services provide for customers with ISP (SingNet), IPTV (Mio TV), fixed line telephony and mobile phone. The second largest in mobile operator and cable television is StarHub, its also the biggest competitor of SingTel in Singapore. The recently moves of these two companies in cable television services have made the impacts on them. This also pointed out the effective strategy that SingTel approached over its competitors StarHub. StarHub used to be right holder of English Premium League, Champion League and it had to pay around US $150 million for the current 2007 to 2009. StarHub has provided attractive packages of television cable that includes so many sport and entertainment channels. Its really an advantage competitive of StarHub to increase its market shares over SingTel. StarHub actually has surpassed SingTel in this area and been really a big challenge of SingTel. However, a fantastic move of strategy from SingTel recently has changed things differently. StarHub has been beaten on bid and SingTel has won the right to be the holder of English Premium League and Champion League for its Mio TV. The ESPN Star Sports channel of StarHub cable networks will belong to SingTel in the middle of 2010 as well. The rights of ESPN Star Sport include English FA Cup, Formula One motor racing, Wimbledon tennis, US Open, Australian Open and US Open golf. These channels are going to Singtel, and this factor will definitely make increasing number of Singtels subscribers. The failure of StarHub in bidding racing is not the end of its Television cable services. StarHubs platform still can present the English football with delayed telecasts matches on Goal TV 1 and Goal TV2 channels for its subscribers at present and future seasons. For Singtel, with the advantages in being the new holder of those channels, Singtel will have a contract of three years period. The contract will start in August 2010 and include mobile and internet rights as well as Television cable services. One thing is considered as promotion of Singtel, it will guarantee to keep the current payment of StarHubs subscribers and will not change anything. It will be Singtel, the company will deliver the English Barclay Premium League matches to Singapore. The ways of viewing live football matches on Television, on mobile phones and internet will be improved by Singtel. It will bring the best services to its football fans. On the other hand, SingTels competitor, StarHub still tries to maintain the best quality sport content to its customer. It now focuses more on shareholders expectations in terms of profits. StarHubs bid for Barclay Premium League was really aggressive. So now they look forward to the time when they can get back to right of being the holder. And StarHub is always a big challenge of SingTel. It could approach the opportunities anytime and get over SingTel in the future. Implication Analysis Impacts on viewers Most of viewers from StarHub will not be happy when they have to change to SingTels Mio TV service for sports channels. The situation will be worst for the customers, who have signed the contract of two years with StarHub for sport package. The English Premium League and other sports content will now not be able to be viewed by them. The subscribers of StarHub need to sign up with SingTel as an addition if they would like to view sports content. When the viewers sign up for Mio TV service of SingTel, they also need to install a SingTel fixed line in advance. SingTel has promised with the consumers to keep the pricing of sport content as the current StarHub rates and will not increase anything. It can be seen that, SingTel is giving a special promotion with special package for sports fans. The customers could subscribe to English Premium League and sports packages only of SingTel if they would like. Impact on Singapores Pay TV landscape SingTel has taken a new step in TV cable service. Now its holding the right of English Premium League and other sports channels, and this will be a very important factor in competing more strongly with other TV providers, especially StarHub. Its really dominance of StarHub when it owns 85 % of market share of Singapore. However, SingTel now will be the only one that brings English Premium League and other sports content to Singapores football fans. Therefore, SingTel is expected to be the number one in providing TV cable services in the future. Impact on Starhub Since the IPTV of SingTel appeared in 2007, it has been a big challenge of StarHub. The development of SingTels IPTV has made StarHubs growth rate decrease to 4% year on year. StarHub had 530 thousand TV subscribers in the first half of 2009 and 250 thousand of them belong to the sports package. So being the winner of the right holder of English Premium League, SingTel will affect StarHubs subscribers so much. Specially, SingTel will attract the attention of football fans directly. However, it is not complete ending for the StarHubs TV cable. StarHub still has other premium content like: Star World, HBO, AXN and so on. The customers also need to sign up with StarHub if they wish to view this content. Among 250 thousand of sports package, 36% of them are expected to switch from StarHub to SingTels service. The rest subscribers are expected to sign up for SingTels sports package and still keep their StarHub service for premium content. Impact on SingTel Twenty three months since 2007, SingTels Mio TV service had grown so quickly, 100 thousand subscribers is the number of SingTel has reached in June 2009. SingTel has captured over 15% Singapore TV cable market. From April 2008 to March 2009, it has expanded its subscribers over its rival StarHub by 79%. Together with the competitive advantage of being the winner of English Premium League and other sports channels, a number of 348 thousand new subscribers will be set for SingTel as an objective to achieve at the end of 2010. This objective will help SingTel to increase up to 42% share of Singapore Pay TV market. However, with the expensive bid like that, its also a long-term plan for SingTel to make IPTV business profitable. SingTel now is holding English football sports and US content pack, but its still not complete. SingTel need to keep its speed of growth and try to take over the premium content of StarHub. It could be the core factor, which can build the SingTels Mio TV cable ser vices perfectly. In the competitive market place, having a competitive advantage means that the firm is using its resources, capabilities, and core competencies in ways that create more value for customers compared to the value competitors products create for those customers. (Hoskisson/ Hitt/ Ireland, 2007) By launching the Mio TV, SingTel is able to gain a competitive edge, the reasons are as follow: Competitive Advantages One of telecommunication suppler SingTel provides national fixed-line services, mobile services, broadband, IP and internet access, and international telephone services more than 20 countries. SingTel still continue invest in strategic regional markets, including India, Indonesia, The Philippines, Thailand and Bangladesh for long term growth. According to the Singapore Telecommunications Report that pay-TV subscriber base around 45,000 mioTV customers in June 2008. Over the quarter, there were some 2,000 net additions. The operator has continually expanded its range, they had further agreements with three Hollywood studios includes Disney-ABC International Television, News Corp units Twentieth Century Fox and Time Warners Warner Bros International Television to raise mioTV channel offering from 20 to 50. It is important for a company to develop their own distinctive competitive advantages. It must be unique, hard to imitate by competitors in the same industry and its create value to customers and benefit to the company. The Singapore-base telecommunication company Singtel has introduced pay-TV services called MIO TV. It has 33-channel mio TV and customers can select and pay what channel they want to watch. Features like the TV program list channel guide let viewers glance program in advance for 30 days. The mio TVs picture-in-Picture feature that viewer wont miss out other channel showing and remain current channel as well. The viewer can preview any video before watching from library of HD movies and video and make pause, rewind and fast-forward all depend on customers. The viewer can enjoy high HD quality playback and control your favorite shows to watch and record just click of a button, you can record your favorite shows even when you away with Remote Digital Video Recording. The viewer can easy to search the favorite program by input keyword through remote control or via the virtual keyboard on the Television, the intuitive search engine offer intelligent results. The viewers can watch Channel NewsAsia, Mom-on-Demand and KBS world and some other available channels on the new mobile service, including the ads on Mio TV, as well as on mobile phone that SingTel selected Nokia phones to offer this service. The competitive advantage should be benefit to company increase shares of market and revenue returns and create value to shareholders, owners and customers. However, the competitive advantage may be imitate by competitors or create different advantages to more value to customers. One of the competitors of Singapore-base telecommunication company Starhub, they provide cable TV as well. But the exclusively offer by SingTel had been rewarded to broadcast UEFA Champions League and UEFA Europa League from 2009 to 2012. Subscribers can watch live matches broadcasting in Dual Sound both in English and Mandarin. Furthermore, SingTel had picked up a right to broadcast Barclays English Premier League matches and ESPN STAR Sports on Mio TV. According to director of Mio TV Low Ka Hoe said Sport content is an important part of our offering, and this move signifies our ongoing efforts to expand and improve our selection of quality content for our viewers, The world wide service of SingTel is a opportunity for the firm continually invest and expansion in core overseas market of Indonesia, India and new market such as Vietnam and Pakistan and beyond Asia Pacific. Overseas investments are an essential part of SingTel strategy especially in saturated domestic market of Singapore. According to Singapore Telecommunications Report SingTel in June 2008 and its foreign associates shared a total of 197.714 mn, representing an increase of 45% over the year and 8.2% during the quarter. Evaluate strategy base on competitive advantage The firm should create non-replace and valuable competitive advantage through create strong core competencies. Base on competitive advantage, Cliff Bowman and Richard DAveni use Strategy Clock to further explain Michael Porter s generic strategy. The strategy clock represents different positions in a market where customers have different requirements in terms of value for money. The organization may have unique resources that others cannot imitate or obtain, for example, long-term established brand; be a cost leadership by apply price-based strategy or lower-priced strategy. However, in small domestic saturated market like Singapore, managers may take Differentiation strategy or hybrid strategy that provides unique or slightly different products and services from others to customer by pricing slightly higher. The strong and well-established competitive advantages can strength companys capability and strategy decision making. Therefore, Conclusion In account of analyzing the strategy of Singtel, it surly gave the reason that why the Singapore Telecom is Singapores largest telecommunications company. This company has nearly 130 years of operating experience in the successful completion of this period to the worlds leading high- performance carrier changes. In business, SingTel seek a breakthrough innovation, development of local public sentiment for the internationalization of the business to treat the inability to adapt. Of course, these innovations are also based on SingTels own existing resources, it is an international network. More than that, Singtel not only in China for the global 5300 companies in different countries offer a wide price quite competitive telecommunications services, but also SingTel has built its domestic large-scale telecommunications networks, and the annual investment of 1 billion new coins to be updated in order to enhance domestic and international competitiveness. SingTels overseas investment is a long-term strategy. Currently, SingTel has expanded to 20 countries and regions, their overseas operations include not only the traditional fixed, mobile phone networks and the Internet, voice data, but also related to satellite communications, submarine cable systems. In the past 10 years, strong adaptability and technical advantages SingTels international strategy is to promote time and time again to be successful. Opportunities always favor those who prepared. SingTels long-term development plan formulated by it can, and be good at the right time, choosing the right investments. The use of a merger or investment to enter unfamili

Life Of William Shakespeare English Literature Essay

Life Of William Shakespeare English Literature Essay William Shakespeare is arguably one of the most famous writers of all time. He has written thirty eight plays, two narrative poems, several other poems and one hundred fifty four sonnets. Some of his most famous poems are Hamlet and Romeo and Juliet. Those two poems are just a few of the many poems Shakespeare wrote. I think Shakespeare is a remarkable person because he accomplished so much in just fifty two years of his life. William Shakespeare was born in Stratford-upon-Avon on April 23, 1564 to his parents Mary Arden and John Shakespeare. Shakespeare was the third child of eight. He was the oldest surviving son, because in the time Shakespeare was born there was a plague going around called the Bubonic Plague. This is also known as Black Death because it killed so many people in the middle ages. It supposedly killed about one out of every seven people. Not very much is known about Shakespeares early years in life, the only way historians found about his early life were based on church records, and court settlements. It was thought that Shakespeare got his education at a grammar school called King Edward VI School Stratford-upon-Avon. When Shakespeare was eighteen, he married a woman who was eight years older than him, her name was Anne Hathaway. Together they had three children. The first was a girl named Susanna and then two years later they had twins, one boy name Hamnet and a daughter named Judith. Hamnet died at the age of 11 of unknown causes. After the death of Shakespeares only son supposedly Shakespeare was never the same. Historians have no clue what happened in Shakespeares life between the years of 1585-1592. Historians call this time of his life the lost years. No one is really sure when Shakespeare started writing but they think it was in 1592 when some of his plays were starting to be performed on stage in London. Shakespeare has had a lot of numerous plays and almost all of them were performed in his time. Some of his first works include Richard III and parts of Henry VI. No one really knows when a lot of Shakespeares plays were written, but most historians think it was sometime in the early 1590s. Shakespeare has two really famous narrative poems that many people read today, Hamlet and Romeo and Juliet. Hamlet was first printed in 1601 and could possibly be one of Shakespeares most famous stories. This story is pretty much about Prince Hamlet planning revenge on Claudius for murdering King Hamlet. When he does kill Claudius he takes over the throne of his father. One of the most famous quotes from the book Hamlet written by Shakespeare is, To be or not to be that is the question: Whether tis nobler in the mind to suffer, the slings and arrows of outrageous fortune, Or to take arms against a sea of troubles and by opposing, end them. This is Shakespeares longest narrative poem, and maybe one of his most tragic, but the story Romeo and Juliet is right up there with Hamlet. Romeo and Juliet is a story that everyone in their life is going to read, especially in high school. If you ask people that have graduated from high school, what book they remember reading. I guarantee you that most of them will mention Romeo and Juliet. That just shows you how powerful Shakespeares writings are. The story Romeo and Juliet is about two people who become to love each other but where they come from, they are truly enemies. It is dramatic irony because since they cannot be together, but they love each other so much, they end up killing themselves together. Romeo and Juliet is to me one of his greatest pieces of work. You would think that from all of Shakespeares accomplishments and all of the writing he had done, that there would be a big influence in his life but really there is no known influence in his life. I think that the only thing he knew was writing, so he did what he did best and was really good at it. There arent many authors from that time that you read from these days but everyone knows Shakespeare and his work. Even though Shakespeare might have not had a big influence in his life, he has influenced a lot of people today in there writing. I know there are people out there that look up to Shakespeare and study his writing so that they can be writers someday. Unfortunately, Shakespeare isnt alive and we really cannot find out all of this information about him. Shakespeare ended up moving back to his home in Stratford and ended up passing away on April 23, 1616. This is ironic because he died on his birthday in the exact same place he was born. Shakespeare was buried in the Holy Trinity Church, and is still buried there today. According to Petri Liukkonen from www.kirjasto.sci.fi/shakespe.htm, these are the four lines that are written on Shakespeares tomb, Good friend, for Jesus ´ sake forbeare / To digg the dust enclosed here! / Blest be ye man that spares thes stones / And curst be he that moues my bones. It was said that his wife and two girls wanted to be buried in the same grave when they died but never did. Shakespeare is today still arguably one of the best poets/writers in our history. His writings are still being read all over the world four hundred years later, and I dont see that ending anytime soon. He lived a life of fifty two years, accomplished so much and dedicated his life to writing.

Hero in One Flew Over The Cuckoo’s Nest by Ken Kesey Essay -- One Flew

Hero in One Flew Over The Cuckoo’s Nest by Ken Kesey Randle Patrick McMurphy, the main character in â€Å"One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest†, is the perfect example of a hero. He is committed to a mental institution after faking insanity to get out of a work camp. From the beginning of his presence on the ward, things start to change. He brings in laughter, gambling, profanity and he begins to get the other patients to open up. All of this, however, clashes with the head nurse, Nurse Ratched, who is trying to press conformity and obeying authority. It is then a battle between McMurphy and the nurse, McMurphy trying to set the patients free and the nurse trying to make them â€Å"normal†. The most obvious hero type of McMurphy is an out-law hero. This is evident in his struggle against the nurse and the combine which represent society. He is an outlaw because he is his own person. He has freedom to act how he wants, think what he wants and be what he wants, and society is out to make him be like everyone else, to conform. At first, McMurphy’s rebellion against authority is just a selfish attempt to make his life on the ward more comfortable. But later on he realizes that the other patients rely on him and need him to help them be free. This is seen in the book when Cheswich drowns himself after McMurphy starts to give in to the nurse. Then, McMurphy sees that he has to be the leader and continue to resist authority. In this way McMurphy is sort of the like Christ, whom...

William Carlos Williams :: essays research papers

William Carlos Williams was born September 17, 1883 in Rutherford, N.J. His father had emigrated from Birmingham, England, and his mother from Puerto Rico. He was admitted in 1902 to the medical school of the University of Pennsylvania, where he met two poets, Hilda Doolittle and Ezra Pound. A long term friendship ensued between Pound and himself, such that Williams said he was able to divide his life into two distinct segments: Before Pound and After Pound.1 From 1906 to 1909 Williams did his internship in New York City, writing verse in between patients. His first book was published in 1909, just before a trip to Leipzig to study pediatrics. In the following years Williams wrote not only poems, but short stories, novels, essays, and an autobiography. In 1946 he began Paterson, an attempt to write an epic poem about the city. Williams died in 1963, while working on the sixth book of Paterson. William Carlos William Carlos Williams based his life on helping the poor and all aspects of the human world that appealed to him were in their most basic form. What appealed to Williams was not the glitzy and glamourful, but the true qualitites sometimes being old and worn out. He found that pride was more important the materialistic qualities. Many of his poems explore nature and use it to explore and explain human behavior as he sees it through his own eyes. A few of these poems that use simplistic language to paint a very descriptive and clear picture of other aspects of life are Love Song, Apology, Pastoral, and Tract; all produced by William Carlos Williams. But there were few things which were very specific and stood out in his works. All these poems use nature to explore aspects of human life. A theme which exists in all of these poems and most of Williams' literature is the simplicity of the language he uses. Many believe he did that in order to separate himself from other poets of his time. Most people believe his justification for the simplicity of his language was because he wanted to stand out, be remembered, and be praised. I agree with them, but maybe it's just the kind of language that appealed to him and he thought would appeal to others as well. The first poem entitled Apology portrays that quality of looking for the true aspects of nature and humans, not the materialistic ones.

The Mediatization of Politics in Western Democracies Essay example --

This growing influence of the mass media and changes in communication has led to the subordination of the power of other influential institutions in society. â€Å"This process is referred to as â€Å"mediatisation† and as a result of mediatisation institutions in society and society as a whole is shaped by and ultimately dependent on the mass media† (Mazzoleni and Schulz 1999: 247 – 261). This ultimately means a â€Å"media logic† has formed. In relation to politics the theory of mediatisation is extremely relevant as it is argued that the media shapes political campaigns and political figures. However others argue that the theory of mediatisation and the media has no influence over politics nor does it shape politics. Also that politics remains in control of political processes and functions. In this essay I plan to delve into these arguments to then come up with a conclusion to answer the question of whether there has actually been a â€Å"mediatisatio n† of politics. The first aspect of the mediatisation of politics is the degree to which the media constitutes to be the dominant source of information and channel of political information. This raises the question on whether the media is the main source of information for politics in society. The mass media in politics plays an important role in campaign strategies, communications and opinion polling. An election campaign involves many activities such as speeches, rallies, and press conferences and so on. It is the media which covers these activities and ultimately which political party is winning. This constant coverage of political affairs in the media shows that the media is the main source of communication for politicians in order for the public to find out what is happening in relation to po... ...rketing of Politics Oxford: Blackwells (Chapter 10) Lilleker, D., 2008, Key Concepts in Political Communications. SAGE London Negrine, R. (1996) Communication in the Future of Democracy, Cambridge: University Press Neil T Gavin (2009) Addressing climate change: a media perspective Environmental Politics, 18(5), 765-780 Plasser, F. And Plasser, G. (2002) Global political campaigning: a worldwide analysis of campaigning professionals and their practices_ Praeger Scammel, M. (1995) Designer Politics Basing stoke: Macmillian. (Chapter 8) Web referencing Gordon Brown: I will continue to use YouTube: PM says he will continue using YouTube because it is 'one of the most important mediums' after Tory MP Bill Cash congratulates Brown on his 'comedy turn' accessed 21 Nov. 2012 at: http://www.guardian.co.uk/politics/2009/apr/29/gordon-brown-youtube-video

3 Ways to Save Nature

We can all make a difference when it comes to helping save the environment. Global warming and all the other environmental issues we are facing took some time to build up and to get our of these messes it is going take a lot of work, but this doesn’t mean we should get discouraged because it’s more than the big things that are going to make the difference, it’s the little things that make the biggest impact. Here are some simple changes you can make in your everyday life to help the planet recover from the wounds we have inflicted upon it: 1: Walk sometimes. You don’t need to take your car everywhere you go. If your job is in walking distance, or you’re able to ride a bike to get there, then do it. Not only are you helping to save the planet, you’re exercising and helping yourself stay fit. Most big cities that have the worst traffic jams also have bike paths and walking trails for pedestrians. You’d be surprised how much more convenient they were for you. 2: Pick it up! People litter, that’s just the way it is. You’ll see plastic bottles, cigarette packs, etc, all lying on the ground. It wouldn’t hurt or inconvenience you at all to pick them up as you walk by. If you see a plastic bag blowing by you, grab it and put it in the nearest trashcan. Most places have recycling bins set up all over. Sure, it’s not your fault that some people just don’t care. But you do! Show you care by being good to your Mother Earth. 3: Use less energy in your home. Whether you work from home or just like to lounge around and watch TV, there are all sorts of ways you can conserve energy in your home and do your part to help the world. If you’re on the computer, you don’t need any lights on. The monitor provides enough light. And if not, open the shades to let the sun in.

Night World : The Chosen Chapter 14

The first soul Rashel met in the mansion was Ivan.It was sheer obtuse luck, the same luck that had helped keep her liveborn so far tonight. She slipped in the rump door, the room she and the girls had gvirtuoso step to the fore. Standing in the huge silent kitchen, she listened for aninstant to the medication that was cluelessness blasting from the inner house. whence she swive conduct to check the cellar-and met Ivan the Terrible running up the stairs.He had cl wee only ascertained that his twenty-four valu fitting slave girls were missing. His unobjectionable-haired hair wasflying, his eye were wide with alarm, his mouthpiece was twisted. He had the taser in nonpareil bridge player and a bunchof pliant handcuffs-the salmagundi police use on rioters-in the other(a).When Rashel every of a sudden appeared on the stairway, his eye flew open in cadence wider. His mouth opened in astonishment-and hence Rashels foot impacted withhis fore head word. The snap wince k nocked him bet onward, and he tumbled down the stairs to pertain the wooden door below.Rashel leaped after him, muddle it to the bottom only a assist after he did. precisely he was already out.What are these? Were you divinatory to contact fewwhat girls up? She kicked at the plastic handcuffs. Ivanthe Unconscious didnt answer.She glanced at her watch. Only a quarter to nine. by chance hed been taking the girls to delineate cop washed orsomething. It come a keen-sighteded as well early to drop dead the feast.Running noiselessly back up the stairs, she quietly closed the door. out right(a) she had to embody the melody.She needed to examine w here the vampires were, how they were situated, how she could scoop out get at them.She peculiarityed where Lily was.The kitchen opened into a grand dining means with an large built-in rampboard. It had undoubtedlybeen made to retain consentient suckling pigs or something, further Rashel had a dreadful vision of a girll ying on that coffin win overable mahog either shelf, hands tied behind her, maculation vampire after vampire halt by to fool a snack.She pushed the musical theme out of her intelligence and moved taciturnly across the floorboards.The dining room led to a hall, and it was from the end of the hallway that music was coming. Rashelslipped into the dimly literature hall hump a shadow,moving scalelike and closer to the doors there. The last door was the only champion that showed washy. That hotshot,she apprehension.Before she could get near it, a figure blocked the light. Instantly Rashel darted by the nearestdoorway.She held her breath, standing in the unconsolableen room, watching the hall. If only one or cardinal vampires cameout, she could pick them off. tho goose egg came out and she realise it must overhear just been someone passing in front of the light. At thesame import she realized that the music was very loud.This wasnt some other room-it was the same room . She was in one gigantic double parlor, with a hugewooden screen breaking it up into two separate spaces. The screen was solid, entirely mould into a lacypattern that permit flickering light by dint of.Rashel thrust her poke in her waistband, then crept to the screen and apply her eye.A spacious room, very masculine, embellish like the dining room in mahogany and floored in red- hardinessdparquet. Glass brick windows-opaque. to portentousy Rashels worry much or less somebody flavour out had been for cypher. A fire burned in a massive fireplace, the light bringing out the ruddy tones in the wood. The whole room take careed red and cryptic.And there they were. The vampires for the bloodfeast. Seven of the most powerful made vampires in theworld, Fayth had express. Rashel counted heads swiftly. Yes, seven. No Lily.You boys dont look that scary, she murmured.That was one thing slightly made vampires. Unlike the lamia, who could bankrupt aging-or start againwhe neerthe y extremityed, made vampires were stuck. And since the process of turning a kind-hearted body into avampire body was incredibly difficult, only a young humans could survive it. guess to turn somebody over twenty into a vampire and they would burn out. Fry. Die.The ending was that all made vampires were stuck as teenagers.What Rashel was looking at could cede been the cast for some new TV soap to the highest degree friends. Seventeenage jackasss, divergent sizes, different colors, but all Hollywood handsome, and all dressed to kill. Theycould affirm been talking and laughing approximately a fishing wind up or a school jump except for their look.That was what gave them away, Rashel belief. The eyes showed a judiciousness no high school guy couldever beget. An experience, an intelligence and a heatlessness. several(prenominal) of these teenagers were undoubtedly hundreds of years old, peradventure thousands. All of them wereabsolutely deadly.Or else they wouldnt be here. They all(prenominal) expected to kill three artless girls starting at midnight.These horizons flashed through Rashels mind in a matter of seconds. She had already stubborn on thebest way to plunge into the room and start the attack. exclusively one thing unbroken her from doing it.thither were only seven vampires. And the eighth was the one she valued. The client. The one whodhired Quinn and set up the feast.Maybe it was one of these. Maybe that tall one with the dyed skin and the look of authority. Or thesilvery blond with the strange smile.No. Nobody rightfully looks like a host. I ring its the one whos palliate missing. that maybe she couldnt afford to wait. They might hear the powerboats divergence over the steady poundingof the music. Maybe she should justSomething grabbed her from behind.This season she had no warning. And she wasnt surprise anymore. Her opinion of herself as a warriorhad plummeted.She deliberate to fight, though. She went limp to loosen the grip, then r for each oneed mingled with her own legs tograb her attackers ankle. A catch up would throw him off symme fork up.Dont do it. I dont motive to have to besot you, but I provide.Quinn.She recognised the mental enunciate, and the hand clamped across her mouth. And both the telepathy andthe skin contact were having an violence on her.It wasnt like before no lightning bolts, no explosions. But she was overwhelmed with a find of Quinn.She appeared to feel his mind-and the feeling was one of drowning in dark chaos. A storm that inspectmedjust as likely to kill Quinn as anyone else.He lifted her cleanly and okay out of the room with her, into the hall, then up a flight of stairs. Rashel didnt fight. She tried to get ahead her head and wait for an opportunity.By the while hed pulled her into an upstairs room and shut the door, she realized that there wasnt goingto be an opportunity.He was just too strong, and he could stun her telepathi listy the instant she mo ved to get away. Thetables had false. thither was nonentity to do now but hope that she could face death as calmly as he had.At least, she conception, it would put a check off to her confusion.He allow go of her and she slowly turned to look at him.What she saw displace chills between her shoulder blades. His eyes were as dark and chaotic as the cloudsshed genius in his mind. It was scarier than the cold hunger shed seen in the eyes of the seven guysdownstairs. then(prenominal) he smiled.A smile that shed rainbows. Rashel touch her back against the wall and tried to stimulate herself.Give me the knife.She plainly looked at him. He pulled it out of her waistband and tossed it on the bed.I dont like being knocked out, he verbalise. I dont notice why, but something about it very bothers me.Quinn, just get it over with.And it took me a while to get myself untied.Every time I meet you, I seem to end up hog-tied and unconscious. Its getting monotonous.Quinn youre a vampire. Im a vampire hunter. Do what you have to.Were also always threatening each other. Have you noticed that? Of racecourse, everything we keep manifestation is true. It is kill or be killed. And youve killed a lot of my people, Rashel the Cat.And youve killed a lot of mine, buttocks Quinn.He glanced away, looking into a shopping mall distance. His pupils were enormous. Less than you might calculate, actually. I dont commonly kill to feed. But, yes, Ive done enough. I said before, I know what you think ofme.Rashel said nothing. She was frightened and confused and had been under figure for quite a long time.She mat that at any moment she could snap.We conk to two different races, races that hate each other. in that locations no way to get near that. Heturned his dark eyes back on her and gave her a splendid smile. Unless, of course, we change it.What are you talking about?Im going to produce you a vampire. Something at bottom Rashel seemed to give way and fall. She felt up a s if her legs might collapse.He couldnt mean it, he couldnt be serious. But he was. She could tell. on that point was a kind of surface quietness pasted over the dark pissed off clouds in his eyes.So this was how hed solved an insoluble problem. He had snapped.Rashel whispered, You know you merchant shipt do that.I know I can do that. Its very simple, actually- all we have to do is exchange blood. And its the only way. He took hold of her arms just above the elbow. Dont you go out? As long as youre human, dark World law says you have to de discontinue if I love you.Rashel stood stricken.Quinn had stopped short, as if he were startled himself by what hed said. Then he gave an odd laughand agitate his head. If I love you, he repeated. And thats the problem, of course. I do love you.Rashel leaned against the wall for support. She couldnt think anymore. She couldnt even breatheproperly. And somewhere trench in placement her there was a tingle that wouldnt stop.Ive loved you from that first night, Rashel the Cat. I didnt want to admit it, but it was true. He was stillgripping her tightly by the arms, controversy close to her, but his eyes were distant, garbled in the past.Id never met a human like you, he said softly, as if remembering. You were strong, you werent weakand pathetic. You werent looking for your own destruction. But you were going to allow me go. Strengthand compassion. And honor. Of course I loved you. His dark eyes focused again. He looked at hersharply. Id have been crazy not to.Falling into nefariousness Rashel had a terrifying desire to simply collapse in his arms. Give in. He was sostrangely beautiful, and the power of his constitution was overwhelming.And of course she loved him, too.That was suddenly excruciatingly clear. Undeniable. From the beginning he had struck a chord in her thatno one else had ever touched. He was so oft like her-a hunter, a fighter. But he had honor, too.However he might try to deny it or get slightly i t, deep inside him there was still honor.And like her, he knew the dark side of life, the pain, the violence. They had both seen-and done-thingsthat normal people wouldnt understand.She was supposed to hate him but from the beginning shed seen herself in him. She had felt thebond, the liaison between them.Rashel move her head. No She had to stop view these things. She would not surrender to thedarkness.You cant stop me, you know, Quinn said softly. That ought to make things easier for you. You donteven have to make a decision. Its all my fault. Im very, very bad, and Im going to make you a vampire. Somehow that gave Rashel her voice back. How can you do that-to someone you love? she spat.Because I dont want you dead Because as long as youre human, youre going to get yourself killedHe put his face close to hers, their foreheads close touching. I will not let you kill yourself, he saidthrough his teeth.If you make me a vampire, I will kill myself, Rashel said.Her mind had cleared. However frequently she wanted to give in, however alluring the darkness might be, itall disappeared when she thought of how it would end. She would be a vampire. Shed be operate bybloodlust to do things that would horrify her right now. And shed undoubtedly find excuses for doingthem. She would become a monster.Quinn was looking shaken. Shed scared him, she could see it in his eyes.Youll feel differently once its done, he said.No. Listen to me, Quinn. She kept her eyes on his, looking deep, trying to let him see the truth of whatshe was saying. If you make me a vampire, the moment I wake up Ill stab myself with my own knife.Do you think Im not brave enough?Youre too brave thats your problem. He was faltering. The surface peaceableness was breaking up. Butthat wasnt really helpful, Rashel realized, because underneath it was an agony of desperate confusion.Quinn really couldnt see any other solution. Rashel couldnt see any herself-except that she didnt reallyexpect to survive ton ight.Quinns face hardened, and she could see him pushing away doubts. Youll get used to it, he saidharshly, his voice grating. Youll see. Lets start now, he added.And then he bit her.He was so fast. improbably fast. He caught her jaw and tilted her head back and to the side-notroughly but with an resistless control and precision. Then before Rashel had time to scream, she felt ahot sting. She felt teeth, vampire teeth, extended to an impossible fineness and sharpness, pierce herflesh.This is it. This is death.Panic flooded her. But it wasnt death, of course-not yet. She wouldnt even be changed into a vampireby a single exchange of blood. No, instead it would be slow hurt days of agony pain.She kept waiting for the pain.Instead she felt a strange warmth and languor. Was he actually drinking her blood? All she could starwas Quinns mouth nuzzling at her neck, his arms nigh her tightly. AndHis mind.It dieed all at once. In a sudden silent explosion, white light engulfed her. It bu rst nigh her. Shewas floating in it. Quinn was floating in it. It was shining around them and through them, and she could feel a connection with Quinn that made their last connection seem like a faulty bid line.She knew him. She could see him, his soul, whatever you wanted to call it, whatever it was that madehim John Quinn. They seemed to be floating together in some other space, in a defenceless white light thatrevealed everything and mercilessly lit up all the most secret places.And if anyone had asked her, Rashel would have said that would be horrible, and she would have runfor her life to get away from it.But it wasnt horrible. She could see dreadful dark bits in Quinns mind, and dreadful dark bits in hers.Tangled, thorny, scary eccentrics, full of anger and hate. But there were so many other parts-some of themalmost unused-that were beautiful and strong and whole. on that point was so much potential. Rainbow placesthat were aching to grow. other parts that seemed to quiv er with light, desperate to be awakened.We ask so little of ourselves, Rashel thought in wonder. If everybodys like this-we stunt ourselves sobadly. We could be so much more.I dont want you to be more. You re amazing enough the way you are.It was Quinn. not even his voice, just-Quinn. His thoughts. And Rashel knew her thoughts flowed tohim without her even making an effort.You know what I mean. Isnt this strange? Does this always happen with vampires?Nothing like this has ever happened to me in my life, Quinn said.What he felt was even more, and Rashel could gumption it directly, in a dizzying sweet wave. There was anunderstanding between them that ran deeper than any voice communication could convey.Whatever was happening to them, however they had gotten to this place, one thing was obvious. Underthe white light that revealed their inner selves, it was clear that small differences like beingvampire or human didnt matter. They were both just people. John Quinn and Rashel Jordan. l arge numberwho were stumbling through life trying to deal with the hurt.Because there was hurt. There was pain in the landscape of Quinns mind. Rashel sensed it withoutwords or even images she could feel the feelings that had scarred Quinn.Your commence did something-he killed Dove? Oh, John. Oh, John, Im so sorry. I didnt know.Rainbow lights shimmered when she called him John. It was the part of him that he had repressed themost ruthlessly. The part that she could almost feel growing in her presence.No wonder you hated humans. by and by everything youd ken through, to have your own incur want youdeadAnd no wonder you hated vampires. They killed someone dose to you-your sire? And you were soyoung. Im sorry. He wasnt as piano with words as she was, but here they didnt need words. Shecould sense his sorrow, his shame, and his fierce protectiveness. And she could sense the emotion behindhis next question. Who did it? I dont know. Ill probably never know. Rashel didnt want to keep up it. She didnt want to feed the darkside of Quinn she wanted to see more of the shimmering light. She wanted to make the light grow untilthe dark disappeared.Rashel, that may not be possible. Quinns thought wasnt bitter it was serious and gentle. Tinged withinfinite regret. I may not be able to become anything better-Of course you can. We all can. Rashel chip him off with absolute determination. She could feel thebone-deep cold that had set into him years ago, that hed allowed to set in. I wont let you be cold, shetold him, and she went for a gala affair in his mind, kissing things and blowing warmth into them, thinkingsunlight and comfort everywhere.Please stop I think youre killing me. Quinns thought was shaky-half serious and half hysterical, like the befuddled gasp of somebody being tickled to death.Rashels whole being was singing with elation. She was young-how strange that she had never really feltyoung until now-and she was in love and stronger than she had ever been bef ore. She had John Quinnthe vampire squirming and semi-hysterical. She was unstoppable. Anything was possible.Ill make everything be right, she told Quinn, and she was happy to see that shed driven his doubt andhis sadness away, at least for the moment. Do you really want me to stop?No. Quinn sounded dazed now-and bemused. Ive decided Ill enjoy dying this way. ButRashel couldnt follow the rest of his thought, but she felt a new coldness, something like a wind from outside.Outside.Shed forgotten there was an outside. In here, in the private cocoon of their minds, there was nothing buther and Quinn. It was almost as if nothing else existed.ButThere was a whole world out there. Other people. Things happening. Things Rashel had to stop.Oh, God, Quinn-the vampires.