How did the economic development of the Gilded age affect American Essay

How did the economic development of the Gilded age affect American Freedom - Essay Example It entailed a notion that such approach to spontaneous progress determines allocation of power and social security. In this regard, reformists of the period were led to conceive that potential peril exists with the significant concern that as a response to it, people of the lower class may act in tumultuous aggression in exercising their democratic right over to suppress individual economic growth thinking that liberty of acquisition of rights to property (Foner), particularly with those who could afford, would only emphasize inequality among social divisions and thus create on appropriating amount of common interests. Progression of economic development enabled Americans to adapt to the concept and application of ‘Social Darwinism’ in their everyday living since the competition to acquire relative or higher advantage in upgrading social and economic status in American society had apparently become essential. With the rapidly growing rate of capital formation, GDP, and wages (Gilded), this condition concretized the effect of social freedom and transformation across vast critical regions of societies in U.S. in which most citizens began expressing individual or collective views by putting up labor unions that served to oppose severely improper conditions, shift schedules, loads, and unjust wages at work. Democracy was put in wide and intense practice of articulating protest with the desire to take part in the evolving process of industrial growth. In this endeavor, they sought to be assured as well of experiencing freedom from any form of injustice or oppression of employers who were p redictably consumed by the principle of capitalism or profit-orientation for use in business that required irrational gravity of labor at the expense of either skilled or unskilled workers (Gilded). Since Social Darwinism in human society advocates natural selection without interference from the government, the ensuing crisis with inequality due to the fast rate

Natural sciences Essay Example for Free

Natural sciences Essay Knowledge involves acquaintance with truth, principles or facts as with a certain subject or a branch of learning. People have various perceptive of knowledge. There are those who belief that knowledge is found in many forms which must be proven with evidence. It is possible to doubt everything that exist because it is a misconception or it may be seen as an illusion. Doubt is important in knowledge because learning through from the senses or through the senses can be deceptive. For example, senses can deceive because one may smell something sweet and senses deceive that it is going to have sweet taste. However, this is wrong because not everything that smells sweet taste sweet. Dreams are also deceptive as they are just false delusions because occasionally when one is asleep one is deceived by the illusions in dreams. These are just ways that knowledge through the senses can deceive. Therefore, it becomes necessary to doubt everything so that one can get the true knowledge. So as the proverb hold doubt is key to knowledge. Knowledge creates doubt and doubt pave way for gaining more knowledge. If its is not for doubt then there would be no knowledge or the knowledge that would be available would be one that is not complete knowledge (Urdahl, pg 27-29). In natural sciences, scientists have a lot of experience with doubt and uncertainty. This is experience that is very necessary in gaining knowledge in natural sciences. When one does not know the answer to a problem then this can be termed as ignorance. Then one has a hunch as to what the results are, for example, of an experiment, then it means that one has uncertainty. When one is darned sure of what the result would be then it means that one has some doubt. Therefore, it is paramount important that in order to have progress it is important to recognize the ignorance we have in natural sciences and leave room for doubt. This is because scientific knowledge is a body of statements, which have varying degrees of certainty. The degrees vary from being unsure, nearly sure and none absolutely certain. Doubt is a good thing in natural science because if one knows the answer or thinks that one knows the answer then it becomes easy to fail to seek more knowledge about that particular subject. Doubt helps to come out of that emotional attachment that people have in certain beliefs or from the theory of determinism. Example of areas where doubt has assisted in gaining and verifying knowledge is in the assumptions in relativity that inertial mass and gravitational mass are equal. In order to show that they are not the model has to be revised. Scientists have engaged in refining their ability to measure the two. It is the doubt that has developed in this area that has made the scientist revise this model until they have realized that inertial mass and gravitational mass are different at finer degrees. Therefore, they doubt has made it known that the two are not equivalent as has been held in the past. In this case, it is not that the same experiment is repeated but the real key to this is to look at the statements and test if they have been examined to the extent that they should. Doubt allow the use of new tools in scientific experiments which allow new discoveries which do away with the old ideas or theories. Science in this case becomes a process of doubt. Natural scientists are always nor sure and this is the reason as to why they repeat the steps in experiments in order to make sure that it is right. Another area where doubt has necessitated growth of knowledge is in the evolution theory. At the beginning people had strong belief that creation theory was the one that provided call the knowledge about the evolution of human being. However, as knowledge grew people started to doubt some aspects of the evolution theory and developed other theories such as the Darwinian theory of evolution. This is a theory which resulted out f the doubts about some of the aspects of the former theory. This is not the end theory because doubts in some aspects of the evolutions theory have also led to development of some other theories (Axtell pg 87-88). Doubt has also contributed to increased knowledge in other areas, for example, in social science and history. There are two areas that information collected or knowledge gained depends on research or theories which were constructed in the past by various scholars. However it becomes tricky to use such kind of theories to their full because history and social sciences are dynamic. For example, the society change as time moves. Therefore, this is also in the same way that the theories are supposed to change. For example, if theories that were constructed in the fourteenth century are used in the twenty first century then there is no doubt that the theory would contain a lot of faults because of the changes that have occurred in the society. People have developed in their way of reasoning as in these days there are more sources of information than in the past. Reason is one part of gaining knowledge that enhances the development of doubt. This is because it is after deductive reasoning that a person is able to develop hypothesis that proves some knowledge as relevant or irrelevant (Gotschl, pg179-180). Historians do their research and base most of their research on the researches that were conducted in the past. The information in the research where they base their research would be biased or exaggerated. This is what cause doubt and enhance new research to be conducted regarding some issues. Despite the fact that some people are emotionally attached to some believes doubt has made them to relent some of their believes. For example, different ethnic groups have their own myths about where they originated or who is their god or where their god lived. In traditional society people had strong emotional attachment to these beliefs (Chang pg 581). However, as time has passed people have developed doubt about these believes to develop other believes. This is because most of the beliefs in the traditions are not well reasoned and are also biased to particular ethnic people. People have developed other believes that are more inclusive of other ethnic groups all over the world. This has risen out of the doubt that people have some of the things that happened in the past (Lamm Norman pg 11-12). Despite that knowledge plays a key role in knowledge I think that knowledge or truth is a fixed situation because truth is not questionable. So if true knowledge is out there to be discovered or to be learned then it means that when we know or acquire knowledge then there should be no room for doubt. I also think that knowledge depends mostly on human perception. Natural sciences have more upper hands in investigating the truth. However these sciences are still subjected tout human brains. Curiosity is also key to knowledge rather than doubt. Human beings are always curious to know more about their nature. The curiosity allows them to make discoveries and also strive to find the truth. Looking critically at the discoveries that have been made in the past it is out of curiosity that this has happened. This curiosity leads to knowledge, which then leads to wisdom. Doubts make us to know hat our knowledge is correct instead on believing in something blindly. However I do not feel that doubt makes us to make any discovery or learn anything that is new to us. It is curiosity that allows us to acquire new knowledge more quickly. Work cited Axtell Guy. Knowledge, belief, and character: readings in virtue epistemology, 1st edition, Rowman Littlefield, 2000. Chang Larry. Wisdom for the Soul: Five Millennia of Prescriptions for Spiritual Healing, Gnosophia Publishers, 2006. Gotschl Johann. Erwin Schrodingers world view: the dynamics of knowledge and reality Vol 16, New York, Springer, 1992. Lamm Norman. Faith and doubt: studies in traditional Jewish thought, 3rd edition, KTAV Publishing House, Inc. , 2007. Urdahl Halvor. Key of Knowledge, New York, Kessinger Publishing, 1998.

Social Effects Of The Cruise Industry Tourism Essay

Social Effects Of The Cruise Industry Tourism Essay The social impact of the cruise industry on the cruises particular destination has a few positive effects. When cruise tourists arrive at ports of destination, interactions between local residents and cruise tourists can benefit both parties. The cruise tourists have the opportunity to gain knowledge regarding the lifestyle and culture of the local people, and vice-versa; residents can learn about the lifestyles of their guests from various places around the world. However, a high interaction level between residents and cruise tourists can have drawbacks. Tourists can limit the personal space of residents, due to the high population of cruise tourists. Eventually, high levels of interaction between cruise tourists and local inhabitants could change the local inhabitants unique lifestyles. This brings to light the point of social damage, as social and cultural damage is one of the main arguments against tourism. In the context of tourism, cruise tourists are typically wealthier than l ocals of popular cruise destinations. This evidently creates social problems; for example, hierarchies are created that can cause tension between cruise tourists and locals. Furthermore, new and unusual ideas brought in by cruise tourists can make locals envious and want to copy the tourists who can seem more wealthy and stylish. Social damage caused by the cruise industry can also be supported by the idea of competition of space. This is triggered when large amounts of cruise tourists, usually two or three cruise ships, arrive at small ports. When large amounts of cruise ships arrive, the number of cruise tourists ratio to locals is large. According to Espinal, 2005, Bahamas has 11 cruise guests to 1 local; Aruba has 8 cruise guests to 1 local; Antigua and Barbuda, 7 to 1; and Dominica, 5 to 1 (When was this? Was this the case for the entire year of 2005? Was it an average?). However, this ratio is only true to small parts. Large cities such as Miami, Barcelona, and European countries differ. In fact, highly populated cities have the opposite effect, because cruise tourist numbers are rather small compared to on-land tourists or residents. The competition of space enhances through the fight for cruise ships by neighbouring ports to attract cruise ships for economic benefits. The fight continues between the c ruise ship industry and the cargo shipping industry to gain port space. Another dilemma of space continues between on land tourists and cruise tourists. When cruise tourists arrive at destinations, on land tourists are forced to wait in line for attractions such as monuments and museums, and wonder why it is overcrowded at the beach. Finally, the idea of competition of space limits the transportation benefits. What hurts transportation the most is when large amounts of cruise tourists arrive at destinations which causes volatility in the demand for transportation (e.g. taxis). Environmental Impact of the Cruise Industry The cruise industry is the fastest growing industry in the travel industry. With enormous growth in the number of passengers, the number of cruise ships at sea, and the increased variety of destinations, followed by bigger and more luxurious cruise ships to keep up with the increase of demand; the substantial growth in the industry follows with increasing impact on the environment. Like many hospitality and travel industries, the negative impacts on the environment outweigh the positive impacts. Even though the cruise industry is relatively small compared to the airline industry, cruise ships and their passengers generate more volume of waste and pollutant emissions while travelling and docked in port. According to the United States Environmental Protection Agency, a one week voyage generates more than 50 tonnes of garbage. During that same week 3.785 million litres of waste water is produced. That is water that is harmful to the ocean life and cannot be dumped back into the ocean wi thout it being treated. Furthermore, 794,850 litres of sewage, 95,000 litres of oil contaminated water, and 568 litres of hazardous waste is produced. These numbers are multiplied by more than 200 cruise ships sailing the world 365 days a year. In comparison to other travel industries, a cruise ship such as Queen Mary 2 emits 0.43 kg of Carbon dioxide per passenger mile, compared to 0.257 kg for a long-haul flight (Climate Care). In comparison to on-land tourists, cruise ship passengers generate 3.5 kg of garbage while 0.8 kg of garbage is generated by on-land tourists. (http://www.uneptie.org/pc/tourism/sust-tourism/env-3main.htm). In addition to pollution, coral reefs are taking significant damages. According to Ocean Planet, there are 109 countries with coral reefs. In 90 of them, reefs are being damaged by cruise ship anchors and sewage. It is said 70% of cruise destinations are in these biodiversity hot spots. However, it is not the amount of pollution and damages generated by cruise ships that most are concerning, but rather, the way cruise ships dispose their waste. Cruise ship waste disposal is highly unregulated, where waste can be dumped a few short miles off shore, which is later brought back to shore due to ocean currents. In the past, discharge from cruise ships exceeds the water quality standards set by National Authorities in relations to bacteria level, metals, and hydrocarbons and plastic. In most cases, there was no monitoring, no enforcements and no deprivation from local authorities if cruise ships violated the pollution standards. While the cruise industry continues to promote itself as environmentally friendly, the truth is, there are many instances of cruise ships breaking the law. A single cruise company can accumulate hundreds of pollution violations, which have resulted in payments of millions of dollars in environmental fines. However, in some cases, environmental inc idents have been accidental, due to simple human and mechanical error, such as fuel discharge from cruise ship loading fuel at ports. Since the increased harmful effects on the environment have come to light, the cruise industry has done its part by improving their efforts in processing waste onboard. As technology increases, their ability to become more eco-friendly becomes a priority. Holland American Line has invested $1.5 million into a program called Seawater Scrubber Pilot. This program looks for opportunities to reduce engine emission on its ships. The Sea Water Scrubber system uses the natural chemistry of seawater to remove all sulphur oxide. The seawater is then treated to remove harmful components before dumping it overboard (world cruise industry review). Even though recycling and using green materials is only a small step, it makes a big difference. Take Crystal Cruises for example. They are introducing 100% recyclable coat hangers, which prevents 9 billion wire and plastic hangers from being sent to landfills each year. They are also using washable and reusable garment bags instead of plastic laundry bags (world cruise industry review). On the major scale, most cruise ship companies are taking steps to map out global routes where waste discharge will cause the least damage to delicate ecosystems. Another major effort that some cruise ship companies are implementing is scheduling their arrival and departure time so cruise ships use less fuel while docking. Princess Cruises has invested $4.5 million to implement a cold-ironing program in Alaska. This is when ships plug into a ports electricity supply while docked in order to get hydroelectric power on board. This is the same concept as a hybrid car. The cost of equipping each ship is $500,000 where the benefits outweigh the costs. In California, 70% of cancer risk is due to the toxic air contaminants created by diesel. The biggest contribution to these toxins is cargo-handling equipment and the ships use of diesel engines while at port. With the use of the cold-ironing program, ships will not create this harmful pollutant that cau ses many environmental problems. Companies are taking the next step to keep their ships as cool as possible to eliminate excessive stress on air conditioners in addition to maintaining speeds at fuel efficient speeds. Crystal cruises has begun auditing its ships lighting and energy consumption. They are saving more than 960,000 kW/h per year, which is equivalent to nearly 200 tonnes of fuel a year. Economic Impacts of the Cruise Industry Cruise tourism is the fastest growing tourism industry in the last twenty years. Since 1990, the cruise industry has an average annual passenger growth rate of 7.4 percent per year, and in 1980, more than 163 million passengers have taken cruises longer than 2 days. Of the 163 million passengers, 56 percent of the passengers were generated within the last 10 years (CLIA, 2008). The industry has high potential in providing economic benefits to port states. Conversely, accommodating large cruise ships into ports need a lot of initial investments to build infrastructure and to maintain those infrastructures. With cruise ships growing in size more investments is needed to withstand larger ships. With scenarios of high infrastructure cost, rapid growth in tourism may result in stagflation or even a decline in GDP (Chase, 2001). For small cities, significant foreign investment is needed for these infrastructures, and it is questionable for many whether construction of the ports is cost-efficient. The majority of the state ports generate economic benefits from cruise ship tourism by generating revenue through passenger spending, person head taxes, dockage fees, and port entry. Passenger spending is the greatest benefit in supporting cruise tourism due to great deal of new money coming into the economy and creation of new jobs. According to an annual study by the International Council of Cruise Lines (ICCL), United States is the primary beneficiary of the Global economic impact of more than 75 percent of the cruise expenditures made with United States based business. U.S. ports account for 75 percent of 10.85 million passengers embankments worldwide. Since, United States is the majority of the Cruise Line industry, we will analyse the economic impact on the United States. Economic Impact of the Cruise Industry on the United States The impact of the cruise industry on the United States has both negative and positive results. Reasons for the negative result are due to the increase presence in the European market, and the increase in the Caribbean ports used for cruise embarkment. As a result, United States experienced a decline in its share of the global cruise industry and experiences a decline in the number of passengers embarking for the U.S. ports (CLIA, 2008). Table 1-1 shows that in 2008 United States, passenger embarkment totalled 8.96 million, a 2.4 percent decline from the previous year, with the majority of the global passenger of 69 percent. Table 1-1 In 2008, decline in its market power is due to hurricanes disrupting destinations to the Caribbean. Hurricanes such as Ike severely damaged retail facilities at ports in Turks and Caicos for nearly a month. In addition, Hurricane Ike consequently shut down cruise terminal ports in Galveston, Texas, for nearly two months due to landfall. The biggest factor in decline of the United States embarkment was the transfer of Pride of Hawaii and the Pride of Aloha by Norwegian Cruise Lines. This resulted in a decline of more than 200,000 passengers, which accounts for 75 percent of net decline of passenger embarking from the U.S. ports (CLIA, 2008). The growth of the industry spending including passenger and crew has slowed to 2 percent to $19.07 billion in 2008. This was the weakest growth in domestic spending since BEA began compiling these statistics (CLIA, 2008). The expenditures by the cruise lines including wages and taxes totalled to $15.67 billion which accounted for 82 percent of spe nding. This was the weakest growth in the cruise line expenditure since 2001.

Renaissance Man and Renaissance Women Essay -- essays research papers

Between the 1300s and 1500s, Europe experienced a period of cultural rebirth known as the Renaissance, marking the transition from medieval times to modern times. The Renaissance brought new importance to individual expression, self-consciousness and worldly experience. The Renaissance man and woman characterized the Renaissance ideals. A renaissance man was a well- educated gentleman who had cultural grace, courage and who understood the arts and sciences. On the other hand, a Renaissance woman was supposed to marry well, be loyal to her husband and give birth to boys. The most famous Renaissance man was Leonardo Da Vinci who was born on April 15th 1452 in Florence, Italy. Da Vinci was truly recognized by many to be a Renaissance child and later a Renaissance man because of his many talents. He revealed his artistic talents at the age of 17 when he was hired as a studio boy to Andrea Del Verrocchio, the leading Florentine painter and sculptor of his day. In Verrocchio workshop, Da Vinci was introduced to main techniques, from the painting of altarpieces and panel pictures to the creation of large sculptural projects in marble and bronze. His ‘’Last Supper’’ and ‘’Mona Lisa’’are among the most widely popular and influential paintings of the Renaissance. At the same time his scientific interests deepened: his concern with anatomy led him to perform dissections. After a period of time, Da Vinci’s scientific research began to dominate his other activities so much that his artis...

A Model of Image Creation and Image Transfer

Today, although still representing a small percentage of the overall promotional budget, the outlay of rumination dollars for sponsorship castles Is growing rapidly (Parker, 1991; Candler and Shank, 1989; Scott and Chard, 1992). Not only are today's sponsorships more sophisticated (I. E. , more than simply the donation of cash for event production but most firms are expecting a reasonable return on their sponsorship dollar in the form of increased sales (Octahedron and Van Kirk, 1992).While firms enter into sponsorship arrangements with a variety of goals, two of the most important are: to increase brand awareness; and to establish, strengthen, or change brand image Crowley, 1991; Marshall and Cook, 1992; Meghan, 1991; Memorable teal . , 1991). Recently, these goals have been theorized to be important in the development of customer-based brand equity, defined as the differential effect of brand knowledge on the consumer's purchase decision (Keller, 1993).In Seller's conceptualization , brand knowledge (which drives customer-based brand equity) Is a function of both the consumer's awareness of the brand and the Image(s) associated with that awareness. â€Å"In particular, the variability, strength, and uniqueness of the brand associations play a critical role in determining the differential response† (Keller, 1993, p. 8). Brand awareness is achieved by exposing the brand to as many potential consumers as possible (Asker, 1 991 ).Sponsorship activities present multiple opportunities for achieving awareness objectives, and much of the research to Image creation model 145 International Marketing Review, Volvo. 14 No. 3, 1997, up. 145-158. MAC university press, 0265-1335 International Marketing Review date in the sponsorship literature has focused on awareness issues such as sponsor recall (e. G. McDaniel and Kinney, 1996). Regrettably, less attention has been given to event and brand image issues.A number of questions exist regarding the effect of sponsorship promotional activities on brand and event image. For example: ; What factors contribute to an event's image? ; Do consumers associate an event's image with sponsoring brands? ; If there is an image association between event and sponsor, is there a theoretical explanation that can be used to understand this linkage? ; If there is an image association between event and sponsor, what factors moderate (strengthen or weaken) this relationship? How does event image influence attitude towards the brand? Although attempts at measuring the return on the sponsorship investment have been made (e. G. , total event attendance, exit polls, sales following the event, and number of media mentions), an understanding of how sponsorship â€Å"works† has yet to be developed (Octahedron and Van Kirk, 1992; Cavalry et al. , 1994; Memorable teal . , 1991; Parker, 1991). The purpose of this article is to present a model explaining the mechanisms by which brand image may be impacted through sponsors hip activities.Specifically, drawing on the theory of meaning rareness from the celebrity endorsement literature, a model is presented which suggests the factors involved in creating an event's image and the subsequent transfer of that image to the sponsoring brand. Furthermore, several factors are identified that may moderate the relationship between event image and brand image. While the focus of this article is on the conceptual development of image transfer in sponsorship, a variety of research propositions are offered to guide future empirical inquiry.A framework for the transfer of event image Model conceptualization and overview Brand image has been defined as â€Å"perceptions about brand as reflected by the brand associations held in memory' (Keller, 1993, p. 3). Keller suggests that the variability, uniqueness, and strength of the associations are critical to a brand's success. Brand associations are developed from a variety of sources including product use, informational sources (e. G. , advertising, packaging, word-of-mouth), and association with other entities.The â€Å"association with other entities† source is of particular relevance to sponsorship activity. Keller has suggested that when a brand becomes associated with an event, some of the associations linked with the event (e. . , youthful, relaxing, enjoyable, disappointing, sophisticated, elite, etc. ) may become linked in memory with the brand. This transfer of associations is consistent with research in the celebrity endorsement process. Initial research regarding celebrity endorsement focused on the credibility and attractiveness of the message source (I. E. Celebrity) to explain the persuasive nature of endorsers. That is, more credible and attractive endorsers were viewed as more persuasive. However, McCracken (1989), pointing to conflicting research results, suggested that endorsement effectiveness is better explained by the â€Å"meanings† consumers associate with the celebrity endorser and subsequently transfer to the brand. McCracken uses the term â€Å"meaning† to describe consumers' overall assessments of what a celebrity â€Å"represents† based on counterblasts sun as social class, gender, age, personality Ana Testily. In individual characteristics (e. . , regal, trashy, maleness, strong, caring, sexual, irreverent, wise) are integrated to define the meaning of the celebrity. Meaning which has been accumulated through their roles in â€Å"television, movies, military, athletics, ND other careers† is thought to reside in celebrities (McCracken, 1989, p. 315). According to McCracken, the meaning attributed to celebrities moves from the celebrity endorser to the product when the two are paired in an advertisement. That is, meanings associated with the celebrity become associated with the product in the mind of the consumer.To complete the meaning transfer process, consumers acquire the meaning in the product through consump tion. This process is illustrated in Figure 1. 147 Figure 1 . Meaning movement in the endorsement process McCracken (1989) â€Å"meaning† in celebrities is analogous to Seller's (1993) event associations. Following the convention set forward by Keller with reference to brand image, this article uses the term event â€Å"image† to represent the cumulative interpretation of meanings or associations attributed to events by consumers.A comparison can be drawn between celebrity endorsers and events. Just as consumers associate celebrities with certain meanings, so too are events associated with particular attributes and attitudes. It is suggested here that these associations are derived from the event's type, event characteristics, and several individual consumer factors. This is not unlike the meaning attributed to a celebrity being formed by the various roles he or she occupies.For example, event associations attributed to the annual Chicago Blues Festival (a food and mus ical extravaganza drawing over 500,000 people) might include tradition, celebration and civic pride. Extending this concept of meaning transfer from the celebrity endorser literature, it is suggested that events act in a manner analogous to endorsers in the transfer of image to sponsoring brands. The framework presented in Figure 2 theorizes from McCracken celebrity endorsement model to suggest that International Marketing Review 14,3 148 Figure 2.A model of image creation and image transfer in event sponsorship event image is formed from a number of external and internal factors. Through sponsorship, an event's image, which may be relatively distinct for different consumer groups, may be transferred through association to the sponsoring product. As indicated in the figure, several factors may moderate the strength of this image transfer. This discussion leads to the offering of the first research proposition: Pl : Through sponsorship, an event's image will become associated with th e sponsoringDragon ‘s Image. Determinants of event image An event's image is represented by a particular market segment's overall subjective perceptions of the activity. The proposed framework suggests three factors that may impact one's perception of a particular event: event type, event characteristics, and individual factors. Event type . In accordance with the earlier definition, event type can be categorized into at least five areas: sports related, music related, festival/fair related, fine arts related (e. G. Ballet, art exhibit, theatre, etc. ), and professional meeting/trade show related. The type of event impacts event image in a variety of ways. First, it conjures up image associations in the mind of the consumer. That is, most individuals, through past patronage or other forms of exposure (word-of-mouth, television, etc. ) will develop some attitudes (I. E. , positive or negative predispositions towards an event) regarding particular events. These attitudes will se rve to frame the image of the particular event type.Note however, that one's attitude towards an event is only one part of an event's image. One's attitude towards an event represents a summary of experiences resulting in some mineral predisposition to respond to an event in a consistently favorable or unfavorable manner. Thus, event attitude is an enduring evaluation (Cohen, 1990). While an event's image will be strongly influenced by one's attitude towards the event, event image will also be impacted by non-evaluative perceptions of an event that are formed through associations held in the consumer's memory (Keller, 1993).In this sense, event image reflects the meaning of the event for an individual, and can be characterized using descriptive labels that represent a summation of one's perceptions. These labels, termed image associations, would include: youthful, mature, carefree, adventurous, educational, social, traditional, exclusive, common, liberal, conservative, high class, f amily oriented, children oriented, cerebral, athletic, artistic, pride, political, etc. Thus, event image can be thought of as a collection of image associations.In addition to past experiences and other indirect exposures, it is likely that new experiences will shape one's perception of event image. In fact, image perceptions formed from the most recent event experiences will likely be the most influential in shaping one's overall event image receptions (Baggage and Warsaw, 1990). New experiences can be divided into two types: the specific activities engaged in or observed; and all interactions with other event attendees/participants and event staff.It is through these two experiences that past event images may be changed or modified and new image associations can be added. The specific activities engaged in or observed may be the same for all participants[l] (e. G. , attendees at a soccer match) or quite varied (e. G. , the individual rides and attractions selected at a local fest ival), depending on the type of event. Regardless of the similarity of experiences, the essential issue is that a given consumer's specific event experiences or observations will shape their perceptions of event image.It is also argued here that the number and type of other participants will have an impact on one's evaluation of the event's image. For example, the number of spectators may impact one's assessment of the success of the event. Perhaps events may be viewed as more successful when they draw more attendees. In Alton, ten under AT participants may Impact perceptions AT crowding, event availability, and wait times. Type of participant† represents the demographic and cryptographic characteristics of others attending the event.The attendees at some events represent relatively homogeneous market segments in terms of social class, family life cycle, age, gender, political affiliation, etc. For example, spectators of professional golf tournaments may be middle aged, white males, with above median incomes. In other cases, events draw heterogeneous types of participants. Just as other customers can have a substantial impact on consumer's perceptions of service firms, so too can other participants have an impact on one's event experiences and bequest assessment of event image (Bitter et al. , 1994).These factors, perceptions based on past experiences, event activities, and the number and type of spectator/participant, constitute one aspect that will serve to shape consumers' overall subjective perceptions of a given event. Based on the above discussion, several research propositions are suggested: 149 International Marketing Review 14,3 150 App: Direct experience and/or indirect information (word-of-mouth, advertising, etc. ) with an event type will influence event image. Pub: The specific activities experienced or observed during an event will influence event image.PC: The number and type of other spectators/participants will influence event image. Eve nt characteristics. Within a given event type (e. G. , music concert series, trade show, etc. ), a number of characteristics will vary from event to event. The â€Å"level† of the following five event characteristics will likely influence consumers' perceptions of an event's overall image: event size, professional status of participants (professional or amateur), tradition/history associated with the event, event venue, and promotional appearance.Event size can be considered along a number of dimensions, including Engel of event, level of media exposure (local, regional, national, international), number of performers (if applicable), and amount of physical space occupied. The same type of event, for example electronic industry trade shows, can vary along all of these dimensions, creating different images for the same event type. Likewise, other event characteristics such as the professional status of performers (professional versus amateur) or the venue in which the event is staged (e. . , temperature, convenience, physical condition, etc. ) will impact one's overall assessment of the event's image. One could theorize that, in most cases, perceptions of quality, legitimacy, and attendance desirability will be higher with long running, large, elaborately staged events, featuring professionals in attractive and convenient venues. The perceived promotional appearance of a brand's sponsorship activities may appear anywhere along a spectrum from advertiser to benefactor.A perception towards the benefactor end of the spectrum may lead to increased feelings of goodwill towards the brand because it is perceived as donating funds to make the event possible (McDonald, 1 ) conversely, tanner may De a negative reaction to ten Americanization of events that have not been sponsored in the past. These events may be perceived as â€Å"selling out† to the corporate world. This has become especially true in the Arts, where some individuals feel that sponsorship (c orporate or governmental) of the Arts leads to censorship Jacobson, 1993; Wood, 1996) .However, due to increasing costs, it has become even more critical for events to obtain outside sponsors in order to continue to exist. To take full advantage of the goodwill aspects, the sponsoring brand may need to educate attendees regarding the beneficial role sponsorship plays in event production. Due to its association with the event, a sponsoring brand's promotional claims can be legitimated, which serves to increase the believability of the promotional message (McDonald, 1991). Additionally, a sponsoring firm may be perceived as making an event possible for the consumer (Chew, 1992; McDonald, 1991).The perception may be especially strong for small events which often have difficulty securing financial support. In this sense, the consumer does not view the sponsorship as a form of promotion, but rather the sponsoring brand is seen as providing a service to the attendee and a level of dowdily is generated by the firm. Again, the skepticism that can be associated with traditional advertising may be circumvented. Brands that are viewed as â€Å"benefactors† will be seen in a more favorable light. The consumer may even feel the need or desire to reciprocate by purchasing the brand.Following from the above discussion, the following research propositions are suggested: App: Event size will influence event image. Pub: Professional status of participants will influence event image. PC: Tradition/history associated with the event will influence event image. Pad: Event venue will influence event image. Pee: Promotional appearance will influence event image. Individual factors. Because of the large number of factors influencing event image and the unique manner in which participants may interpret those factors, an event may have different images for different individuals. Qualitative research has revealed each sport to have its own individual image, and sponsors will tend to benefit from image transfer accordingly' (Parker, 1991, p. 26). Three individual factors are suggested here that may impact event image: the number of images an individual associates with an vent; the strength of the particular image; and the past history one has with a specific event. This last factor differs from the â€Å"past experience† factor discussed under event type. Past history refers to the unique experiences associated with a specific event, whereas past experiences refers to encounters with a general event type.Events that consumers perceive as having multiple images will be more difficult to associate with a single identity. This will be compounded when the meanings are of a conflicting nature. Thus, an individual with many event associations may have a hafting image of the event, depending on which association is currently most salient. Related to this is that images can be very strong or relatively weak. It is likely that a single strong image will dominat e over several weaker ones. This will cause an event Image to De consistent over time, out Limits ten realness Tanat multiple Image associations would confer.Finally, an individual's personal history with a particular event may have an impact on one's perception of an event's image. A long history will typically lead to a more ingrained and consistent image. An individual that has attended or has been associated with an event for a substantial time period may also have nostalgic feelings that become associated with the event's image. Events that have multiple or vague images pose problems for a firm's sponsorship selection decision because it becomes more difficult to predict the image that may become associated with the event, and ultimately â€Å"transferred† to the product.The above discussion leads to the following research propositions: App: Individuals associating an event with a large number of images will have difficulty identifying a consistent event image. 151 Inter national Marketing Review 14,3 152 Pub: Individuals with a single, strong image association will have consistent event images over time. PC: Individuals with a single, strong image association will have less rich event images. Pad: Individuals with long-term participation in an event will hold a consistent event image for that event.This section has identified three broad areas (event type, event characteristics, and individual factors) that influence the creation of an event's image, although there may be some event image determinants not explicitly discussed in the previous section. It is likely that any unrepresented actors could be accommodated within the proposed areas. The next section discusses constructs that may moderate the relationship between event image and brand image. Moderating variables in the model Potential moderating variables presented in the model are discussed in two sections.In the first section variables potentially impacting the strength of the image transf er from event to brand are discussed. As such, variables pertaining to the formation of strong memory associations (degree of similarity) and exposure to the sponsor's message (level of sponsorship and event frequency) are discussed. The second section on moderating rabbles examines how one's involvement with a product may moderate the impact of the event's image on brand attitude. Attitude towards the event and attitude towards the brand are conceptualized and discussed as being components of event image and brand image, respectively.Although not illustrated in Figure 2, these attitude components should be considered as a part of each of the respective â€Å"image† boxes in the figure. Moderators between event image and brand image This section will discuss three moderating variables impacting the strength of the â€Å"transfer† between an event's image and the image of a sponsoring brand. As indicated above, the basis of the relationship is the meaning transfer betwe en these constructs and it is this process that the moderating variables are proposed to influence.The first moderating factor to be discussed in the image transfer process is the degree of similarity between the event Ana ten sponsor. A product can nave letter Atonally or Image related similarity with an event. Functional similarity occurs when a sponsoring product is actually used by participants during the event. An example of this type of similarity is Valentine's sponsorship of automobile racing. The link is established because, apart room being a sponsor, Valentine's motor oil products are actually used by many of the participants during the event.The second type of similarity is termed image related, and occurs when the image of the event is related to the image of the brand. An example of this type of linkage is Pepsin's sponsorship of the 1993 Michael Jackson World Concert Tour. Here the similarity comes from the youth and excitement orientation of both the music and the pr oduct. Interestingly, some sponsors do not appear to be linked to the events they sponsor. For example, the USAF&G Sugar Bowl combined a large insurance firm with a collegiate football game.It is suggested here that either functional or image based similarities forge stronger ties and help the consumer to link the event image with the brand. Thus, sponsor- event similarity (functional or image based) will enhance image transfer by more firmly anchoring the relationship in the consumer's mind. This assertion is consistent with some celebrity endorsement literature which suggests that â€Å"MIS-matches† between endorser and brand decrease the effectiveness of the endorsement (Katie, 1987). A second factor that may moderate the image transfer from event to sponsoring brand is the level of sponsorship.Sponsorship arrangements can run the gamut from a single sponsor to hundreds of sponsors at many different levels. Multiple sponsors for a given event lessens the probability that a particular brand will be associated with the event, due to the additional stimuli each consumer must attend to and recall (Hutchinson and Alba, 1991). Often, events allowing multiple sponsors will offer different â€Å"levels† of sponsorship. By contributing different dollar amounts to the event, the sponsor can buy enhanced packages. These enhancements include better sign/banner location, more frequent media mentions, and premium kicked and hospitality packages.Exclusive sponsorship, or at least a dominant position, will increase the likelihood of meaning transfer from the event to the sponsoring brand by more firmly establishing the link between event and brand. The frequency of the event will also have an impact on the image transfer process. Events may be on either a one-time or recurring basis. Although a onetime event does not allow recurring event-sponsor associations to be developed over time, some events may be of such a unique nature that they attract a great deal of media attention (e. G. , Hands-Across-America). However, an ongoing event (annual, semi-annual, monthly, etc. Should have the benefit of more firmly establishing a link between the event and the brand due to repeated exposures (Manacling et al. , 1991). The above discussion leads to the following research propositions: App: The higher the degree of similarity (image or functional based) between event and sponsoring brand, the more effective the image transfer between event and brand. Pub: The more exclusive the level of sponsorship, the more effective the image transfer between event and brand. PC: The more frequent the event, the more effective the image transfer between event ND brand.Image creation m Ode I 153 Moderators between event image and attitude towards the brand As discussed previously, one's attitude towards the event will help to shape one's image of the event. Thus, event attitude is a component of event image. Likewise, attitude towards the brand is considered und er this framework as a International Marketing Review 14,3 154 component of brand image. Indeed, recent conceptualizations of brand image include an attitude component (Keller, 1993). As such, the model presented in Figure 2 suggests that event image will have an impact on attitude towards the brand.However, might there be situations in which this relationship is moderated by another factor? Advertising research with endorsers has demonstrated that product involvement level (defined as the level of personal relevance a product has to a consumer, resulting from the perceived level of risk associated with the product's consumption or non-consumption) can impact the attitude formation process (Petty et al. , 1983). â€Å"Specifically, we have shown that when an advertisement concerned a product of low involvement, the celebrity status of the product endorsers was a very potent determinant of attitudes about the product.When the advertisement concerned a product of high involvement, ho wever, the celebrity status of the product endorsers had no effect on attitudes, but the cogency of the information about the product contained in the ad was a powerful determinant of product evaluations† (Petty et al. , 1983, p. 143). Following from this research, level of product involvement should moderate the relationship between event image and attitude towards the brand, such that event image will have a larger impact on brand attitude for a low involvement product.The influence of event image on brand attitude can be understood further by considering the type of persuasion process likely to occur. Petty and Capacious (1986) elaboration likelihood model (ELM) suggests that persuasion can occur along two routes. The central route to persuasion occurs when an individual bases product evaluation on â€Å"diligent consideration of information that a person feels is central to the true merits of an issue or product† (Petty et al. , 1983, p. 144).The second route to att itude change, peripheral, suggests that change may also occur through the association of the object with positive or negative cues (e. G. , expert source, pleasant surroundings, forceful presentation, etc. ). This conceptualization of the peripheral persuasion route is consistent with Seller's (1993) position of links in memory being established between an event and the sponsor. One characteristic of sponsorship that distinguishes it from some other promotional methods is its indirect nature (McDonald, 1991).That is, the sponsorship is, at best, a secondary concern (behind the actual event) for the participant. Furthermore, other than the brand's name and/or logo, seldom is any type of commercial message associated with the firm's products. Thus, sponsorship would appear to operate along Petty and Capacious peripheral persuasion route due to this indirect nature, and lack AT available cognizant International. Emplace tests AT ten ELM model suggest Tanat ten central route to persuasi on is more effective for high involvement goods, while the peripheral route has a higher impact on low involvement goods (Petty et al. , 1983).Theorizing from the ELM, one could conclude that when the sponsoring brand is a low involvement product, event image will be a potent force in determining brand attitude. Conversely, the promotional benefit, in terms of attitude change, for high involvement products appears to be small. Product involvement is only likely to be applicable when the sponsorship is focused at the brand level, as opposed to the sponsorship focus being at the firm level. The discussion in this section gives rise to the following research propositions: App: Brand attitudes of low involvement goods will be strongly influenced by event image.Pub: Brand attitudes of high involvement goods will be weakly influenced by event image. PC: Persuasion processes from event sponsorship take place on the peripheral route. Implications for practice and research Implications for p ractice Several implications for marketing practice can be drawn from the proposed model. First, firms should consider more than simply the number of potential customers their sponsorship signage and other identifiers will reach. It is important to consider the image of the event, as this image may become associated with the brand.An event's image can be assessed through a variety of methods. However, given its potentially ambiguous and transitory nature, qualitative methods in the form of depth interviews, focus groups, and projective techniques, are likely to provide the best view of how consumers perceive a given event. Event organizers might take it on themselves to conduct such studies and use the results to recruit potential sponsors. In the course of such research, event organizers may find that the image of their event is not what they thought.Furthermore, it would be wise for event image studies to take place on a regular basis to assess changes in event image over time. Th is would allow event organizers to take corrective action in a timely manner. The proposed model suggests a variety of event image determinants that could be manipulated to position a given event in a different light. In terms of the sponsoring rand, the model suggests several aspects of sponsorship that should be considered when deciding on potential event affiliations.One aspect that should be considered, in light of image transfer benefits, is the degree of similarity between the event and the brand. Brand awareness benefits are likely to accrue regardless of similarity levels, but it has been argued here that image associations will be more likely when some link exists, either image or functional, in the consumer's mind. Firms looking to add sponsorship activities to their promotional mix should also consider the level of pensioners and frequency of the event.Although most firms will look at these aspects with an eye towards the total dollar commitment, it may also be wise to co nsider the meaning transfer implications. As discussed previously, exclusive sponsorships in events occurring on a frequent basis will likely maximize the image transfer potential of the sponsorship purchase. Finally, firms should consider whether image transfer benefits will actually have any influence on consumers' attitudes towards their brand and ultimately their purchase intention. The model suggests that, in terms of impacting a

Do You Suffer from Computer Stress Syndrome Youre Not Alone

Do You Suffer from Computer Stress Syndrome Youre Not Alone If I had to choose ONE thing that stresses me out me out more than anything else in my work life, it would be computer problems. It might not surprise you that I’m writing this blog because, on this very day, I am ready to tear my hair out due to multiple technical aggravators.There are thousands of articles and probably hundreds of books that talk about how to handle stress. But †¦ do any of them talk specifically about how to handle the stress of heart-stopping technical issues? I couldn’t find any in my admittedly basic-level internet search. I did however find a report entitled Combatting Computer Stress Syndrome that surveyed 1,000+ computer users, finding that two-thirds of them had experienced this phenomenon. Despite being self-proclaimed â€Å"savvy† users, people facing technical snafus had increased stress levels, in tandem with interrupted work or play time, loss of valuable data, dropped network or e-mail connections, and the inability to complete online purchases (that last one somehow did not garner my sympathies). My particular technical snafus today included the inability to access my QuickBooks file, some disappearing and/or inaccessible emails, and problems getting my MacMail to retrieve my business email. At the same time, I am deciding whether or not to begin implementing a CRM system – a project that sends me into overwhelm after just about 2 minutes of thinking about it. Even as I write, my heart is racing and my head pounding. If only there were a yoga class I could escape to at 8pm on a Sunday night! The article about Computer Stress Syndrome offered no solace, as it was focused on the quality of technical support – not on what to do when you are a business owner or other responsible professional facing time-sucking, aggravating and unexpected issues, or issues that you just have a hard time getting your mind around. Of course, decent tech support is essential to keeping stress levels from going through the roof. But needing to be on the phone with tech support at all is often the problem for me. I tend to postpone the inevitable for as long as possible. And what about business-related projects like the CRM that I need to deal with and that I respond to just like I would a technical problem? I would love to hire someone to take care of it for me, but it seems that no matter whom I enroll, I need to make decisions and figure things out so they know how to proceed. In many areas, I have no problem directing people and being involved in decision-making processes. But when it comes to technology I sink. The only thing I can figure out to lower my computer-induced stress levels is to take the time to solve the darned problem. In fact, I could not even complete the writing of this article until I spent an hour with Apple’s tech support team to make at least ONE of my technical issues go away. I think I have some limit, like I can handle it if there are 1-2 technical issues, but 3 or more and I’m toast. I have no further wisdom to share on this topic and am writing to ask for yours. Does anyone out there have a coping mechanism to deal with the insidious Computer Stress Syndrome? If so, please do share. You might change a lot of people’s lives for the better. 😉 I feel your pain. We writers are in a tough situation. We depend upon technology for our livelihoods, but as creatives, we need to escape it to nourish our souls and minds to keep the creative juices flowing. How to strike that balance is tough. Youre on the right track with solving one issue at a time, enlisting help, and escaping when necessary. Thats why I got into belly dancing. Gets me away from the monitor and out of the house, like your yoga. We need that! Just dont go crazy with a baseball bat like in the movie Office Space. But, you can always call me up, if you need someone to vent to. Log in to Reply The Essay Expert says: March 18, 2014 at 2:05 pm Thank you Kristin! I feel so understood!! Log in to Reply Michelle Robin says: March 18, 2014 at 11:27 pm Besides echoing Kristens advice of dealing with one thing at a time, I know a fantastic Mac technical help guy that specializes in creative professionals. Doing regular maintenance on your computer helps prevent problems. Log in to Reply Terri says: September 17, 2015 at 6:34 pm As someone who has worked in software engineering and studies computer science, technical issues are inevitable no matter how tech savvy you are. I use Windows and Ive probably re-installed the Windows operating system at least 10 times. The good news is that most technical issues can be fixed eventually as long as you are vigilant about backing up your data. If you have a good backup system, you can always recover from technical issues. You can always re-install the software, re-install the operating system, buy new computer parts, etc. So my answer is make sure you have a strong backup system. As long as you still have your data, you can recover. As bad as technical issues can be, losing your data is much much worse. For some advice about backups, see https://www.taobackup.com/ Log in to Reply

John Fitzgerald Kennedy essays

John Fitzgerald Kennedy essays Its June of 1961 and a wall has just started to be constructed to separate a nation. The United States needs to send a man to spread good will and build unity among Americas allies. Who is this man? Who could be such a diplomat? America sent their 35th President, John Fitzgerald Kennedy. Kennedy was a democrat, the first Roman Catholic to hold office, and the youngest President to date. He was educated at Harvard University and The London School of Economics. After graduation he decided to join the navy. As a veteran of World War II, Kennedy received the Purple Heart and the Navy and Marine Corps Medal. JFK began his political career in 1946 when he was elected into the House of Representatives. In 1956 he furthered his career by becoming the Senator of Massachusetts, defeating one of Eisenhowers close supporters. Only three years before had he gotten married to his socialite wife, Jacqueline Bouvier. Although his religion and age were considered major barriers to his presidency, Kennedy won seven primaries; making him the Democratic candidate. He was a supporter of the civil-rights legislation and a prominent internationalist. World War II had ended about twenty years prior and a defeated nation was rebuilding. Germanys growing dissatisfaction with their economic and political conditions pushed them to the breaking point. East Germany is under Soviet control and West Germany is becoming a democratic nation. To separate the poverty stricken West from the rebuilding East, the USSR decided to build a huge wall to keep them divided. Early in the morning of Sunday, August 13, 1961, under the leadership of Erich Honecker, East and West were separated by barbed wire and antitank obstacles. Streets were torn up and barricades of paving stones were erected. Tanks gathered at strategica ...

The Necessity of Web Pages essays

The Necessity of Web Pages essays In todays modern world, in order to reach the most amount of people, using the least amount of time and money, one must have a web page. A web page is your universal, non-misplacable, chockfull of information, business card. It can display everything that the consumer needs to know, everything from prices to products, from times to locations. In order to succeed, you need a web page. Now, in order to display all this great content that one has brewing in their brain, one MUST get a domain. A domain is the physical local where the information for the web page is stored. Some domains offer vast amounts of space but slow download speeds; whereas others offer phenomenal download speed, but no for graphics, movies or other things to spruce up a page. When choosing a domain one must consider the name that the customer must type in to get to the web page. If one registers a web page with geocities, their url, or Universal Resource Locator, which indicates the page internet location would be something like, geocities.com/joeshmoe/index.html; not exactly easy to remember is it? But if one were to have, or register, their own url then the address could be, joeshmoe.com; which is much more personal and professional. To make the site surfer-friendly one should plan out the content of the web page and make sure that it is easy to navigate. When trying to make the web page look professional and user friendly frames versus flash is always a big controversy. Some people believe that because of the higher quality of images and interaction and motion that flash provides that it is the best when considering how to improve a page. I happen to believe, however, that because frames offers the same style of navigation, but also has a much smaller download time that it is the superior option. If one now knows what format they want, one should now plan out what the content should be. ...

Transformational leadership Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Transformational leadership - Essay Example The group exists to achieve a common purpose or task, and the leader's actions in one area affect both the others; thus successful achievement of the task is essential if the group is to be held together and its members motivated to give their best effort to the job. So, the four key elements of performance should be taken into account. These are: measurement - assessing results against agreed targets and standards; feedback - giving people information on how they are doing; positive reinforcement - emphasizing what has been done well so that it will be done even better in the future; only making constructive criticisms, i.e. those that point the way to improvement; exchange of views - ensuring that the discussion involves a full, free and frank exchange of views about what has been achieved, what needs to be done to achieve more and what individuals think about their work, the way they are guided and managed and their aspirations. Performance and development reviews provide those in volved with the opportunity to reflect on past performance as a basis for making development and improvement plans. Obtaining historical perspective through analysis is a necessary part of the review but reaching agreement about what should be done in the future is what it is all about. The performance review should take the form of a dialogue, not a top-down interview or 'appraisal' (Boehnke, Bontis, 2003). The old routines of central planning and negotiating inputs from might have gone, but there remained the assumption that some other agency would solve the problems: an assumption the CEO himself appeared to share. All of this was taking place within a structure which remained hierarchical, with little involvement of junior management or the workforce, who believed that their product could only sell locally and clung to the assumption that they could sell everything they could produce (Whipp, 1991). This systems view therefore suggests that organisations can and do change by mutually reinforcing and amplifying stimuli within their systems. It is change on the basis of the current ways of doing things: in this sense, it is an explanation of incremental change. The change agent seeking to manage change incrementally would, therefore, search for ways in which changes could be made within current systems, which would have the effect of amplifying change. Education and communication might be appropriate if there is a problem in managing change which is based on misinformation or lack of information. It requires an atmosphere of mutual trust and respect between managers and employees, and might well be time consuming if large numbers are involved in the change since it is unlikely that mass briefings of people will be sufficient to communicate effectively. Many organisations realise that such situations are likely to require small group briefings and debate if the communication is to be effective. However, often the direction or process of strategic change lacks clarity, so relying on processes of communication alone is problematic. The ability to motivate and inspire employees is now a core competence for the best managers. In order to achieve optimal goals three basics would be taken into account: motivation, reward and commitment. Motivating other people is about getting them to move in the direction you want them to go in

The Freedom Riders ..Civil Right Movement Research Paper

The Freedom Riders ..Civil Right Movement - Research Paper Example In addition, the history of America affects the direction and roles of the government. The Freedom Riders movement is a specific point in history that changed the course of the government. Because of the movement, the government enacted legislation to allow equal rights. In May of 1961, a small group of African-Americans as well as white supporters took a journey on a bus (Arsenault 1). This journey became symbolic of the struggle for equal rights. Thirteen riders got on buses that were supposed to be for white people only, and refused to get off. Their goal was to reach Alabama from Washington. One bus was set on fire when it reached Alabama, and most of its riders were brutally beaten. This original group of Freedom Riders placed themselves in harms way in order to support a movement greater than themselves. After the African-Americans reached Alabama, people across the United States were more aware of the struggle for civil rights. They inspired more than sixty more freedom rides across the country and sparked a movement (et al). President Kennedy first attempted to stop the Freedom Riders (Bullard 20). When he realized he could not stop the protests, he chose to help them out. He told the southern states that their segregation laws would still be in effect if they agreed not to harm the Freedom Riders. Even though the Freedom Riders were not brutally beaten after President Kennedy made this agreement with the southern states, they were still arrested once they finished their ride. Elected officials grew frustrated with the Freedom Riders. In an effort to stop the movement, Attorney General Robert Kennedy â€Å"took the unusual step of asking the Interstate Commerce Commission to issue regulations against segregated terminals† (et al 21). Surprisingly, the Interstate Commerce Commission agreed. Essentially, the Freedom Riders won. They had set out to end segregation of public travel, and that is exactly what the United States

Anselm's Proslogion, Chapter II--The Ontological Proof of God Essay

Anselm's Proslogion, Chapter II--The Ontological Proof of God - Essay Example However, to maintain the position, the atheist would have to add another attribute, that of â€Å"existing in reality,† to supposedly make it the â€Å"greatest possible being†. It is just as if someone had claimed 7 to be the â€Å"largest possible number†; you could always add a number to make it greater. And when an atheist does add the attribute of existence, then he is no longer an atheist. This is a brief summary of the ontological argument. The immediate response this argument received was from Gaunilo of Marmoutiers, a Benedictine monk, who predictably flipped the tables and applied the same set of arguments to prove the existence of the Lost Island, in order to demonstrate how the argument is fundamentally flawed. However, the argument was critiqued on the grounds that the very concept of â€Å"the greatest conceivable being† does not apply to Islands, or any objects as such, and that it applies to God alone. One of the popular criticisms of St. Anselm’s argument is theological, proposed by St. Thomas Aquinas in Summa Theologica, who questioned the soundness of the initial premise of Anselm’s argument, stating one cannot possibly know the essence of God; ergo it is beyond humanly possible to adequately consider that premise. He also strikes a major blow to the first premise, pointing out that not everyone necessarily conceives God to be the ‘greatest possible being’, seeing that some have believed God to be a body. The criticism leveled by St. Thomas Aquinas was so strong, that it was said to have laid the argument dormant for centuries. David Hume also leveled a criticism against cosmological argument in his work Dialogues Concerning Natural Religion, which broadly applies to the Ontological Argument as well. Hume stated that existence of something cannott be established based on a priori reasoning. And whatever we

International Management 9 Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

International Management 9 - Essay Example Determination is the driving force and he advocates for survival even through hardships and setbacks (Daft 2002). The CEO of Virgin Group is a team builder; Branson has realized his capabilities as a leader and due to these he has endeavored to build a working team to complement those areas he perceives to be weak in (Mintzberg 2004 & Peterson 2003). He has a sense of respect for ethical and moral issues for the workers and gives them fair recognition and appreciation, he is loyal to those he works with however he has tough negotiation and interpersonal skills and very ruthless (Mayer 2004 & Parker 2007). Charismatic is another description of Branson, whether learnt behavior of an element of personality is not important, but he has managed to stay charming to his partners and business associates and clients (Judge et al 2002), and this makes him able to become what he wants especially when he appears in public. He is a team builder playing role in team building activities like games and stunts. One of the critical point of his team building activity is the appointment of the management team. Studies indicate that the team has profound influence on the strategy implemented by the organization especially the top leaders (Daft 2002). He provides incentives and creative processes that are autonomous to an extent that they are given shareholding allowance. Global marketing calls for diversity. One such diversified business is the virgin Atlantic company, operating in planes, trains and space shuttle, and Sir Richard Branson in the chairman of the business. He has adopted the global management strategy that is founded on creativity, sound decision making and visionary approach. Sir Richard Branson leadership strategy is very effective and it is bound to work even in future, this is because he is a visionary leader who does not restrict the development of his business

Networking technologies Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Networking technologies - Essay Example Today, computer networks have become an important aspect in present day communication. A lot of activities and processes are controlled by computer networks. Advancement made in computer network has highly improved the level of communication. However, for effective operations, computers have to be connected to each other and other peripheral devices (Bhunia, 2006, 99). This research paper is about standard office software, file sharing and printing capabilities in a computer network for all employees working in an organization. The paper will examine a bespoke client server application accessing a locally stored database with sensitive data accessible by only 20 employees. It will as well outline a proposal to upgrade an intranet accessible to each employee of the organization and an extranet accessible by trusted clients and an internet site for carrying out clients’ orders. Using ADSL for internet connectivity posses a security problem that brought about by its use, those using this kind of internet lack security since it is are very easy for hackers to hack the data on transit since there is no software to block hackers from reaching sensitive information (Shashi, 2007, 141). The use of Ethernet in LAN cause insecurity to data they transmit because it is a broadcast system. This implies that while transmitting information in this system, there are different segments that transferred data must move through towards the receiving computer. The hackers can use some sniffing programs to out data as it moves from the host towards the receiver (Simmonds and Ekert 2004, 320). Further, adoption of peer-to-peer technology to reduce the expense of coaxial cables in Ethernet LAN, at the same gives an unsecured networking because it bases its operation on sharing of information. Other computers in the group can access sensitive information that they share on the network. The network infrastructures like hubs and

Discussion 1 Week 9 Impact of Government Regulation Assignment

Discussion 1 Week 9 Impact of Government Regulation - Assignment Example For Katrina’s Candies, facts revealed that the decision makers are reflecting on the possibility of expansion, either through capital investment or through merger. As such, it was commendable that different sites and links were provided to assist in the review and evaluation of various options open for Katrina’s Candies in their decision for potential merger in another country. At the onset, the site on export.gov provided crucial information for U.S. companies which are reflecting on exporting in other countries (Country Commercial Guide, n.d.). Since Katrina’s Candies signified intentions to expand in the international market, the site could provide them with needed assistance in determining the most appropriate country in the European Union area that would give the most viable opportunity to contribute to the shareholders’ wealth and profitability in the long run. The assistance could be provided in terms of research assistance on the markets to enter, as well as in determining regulatory requirements for the venture option that has been decided on. The site on â€Å"Doing Business in the European Union: 2011 Country Commercial Guide for U.S. Companies† is replete with information which includes trade regulations and standards in chapter 5 that would help organizations, like Katrina’s Candies, to determine and comply with the needed regulations that would facilitate establishment of a business venture in the European market (Doing Business in the European Union: 2011 Country Commercial Guide for U.S. Companies , n.d.). Another relevant site that was mentioned about government regulations is the official website of the Federal Trade Commission (Federal Trade Commission, n.d.). The information on the site focuses on the premerger notification and reviewing the merger process. As such, for Katrina’s Candies growth prospects of venturing into a

International Management 9 Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

International Management 9 - Essay Example Determination is the driving force and he advocates for survival even through hardships and setbacks (Daft 2002). The CEO of Virgin Group is a team builder; Branson has realized his capabilities as a leader and due to these he has endeavored to build a working team to complement those areas he perceives to be weak in (Mintzberg 2004 & Peterson 2003). He has a sense of respect for ethical and moral issues for the workers and gives them fair recognition and appreciation, he is loyal to those he works with however he has tough negotiation and interpersonal skills and very ruthless (Mayer 2004 & Parker 2007). Charismatic is another description of Branson, whether learnt behavior of an element of personality is not important, but he has managed to stay charming to his partners and business associates and clients (Judge et al 2002), and this makes him able to become what he wants especially when he appears in public. He is a team builder playing role in team building activities like games and stunts. One of the critical point of his team building activity is the appointment of the management team. Studies indicate that the team has profound influence on the strategy implemented by the organization especially the top leaders (Daft 2002). He provides incentives and creative processes that are autonomous to an extent that they are given shareholding allowance. Global marketing calls for diversity. One such diversified business is the virgin Atlantic company, operating in planes, trains and space shuttle, and Sir Richard Branson in the chairman of the business. He has adopted the global management strategy that is founded on creativity, sound decision making and visionary approach. Sir Richard Branson leadership strategy is very effective and it is bound to work even in future, this is because he is a visionary leader who does not restrict the development of his business

Discussion 1 Week 9 Impact of Government Regulation Assignment

Discussion 1 Week 9 Impact of Government Regulation - Assignment Example For Katrina’s Candies, facts revealed that the decision makers are reflecting on the possibility of expansion, either through capital investment or through merger. As such, it was commendable that different sites and links were provided to assist in the review and evaluation of various options open for Katrina’s Candies in their decision for potential merger in another country. At the onset, the site on export.gov provided crucial information for U.S. companies which are reflecting on exporting in other countries (Country Commercial Guide, n.d.). Since Katrina’s Candies signified intentions to expand in the international market, the site could provide them with needed assistance in determining the most appropriate country in the European Union area that would give the most viable opportunity to contribute to the shareholders’ wealth and profitability in the long run. The assistance could be provided in terms of research assistance on the markets to enter, as well as in determining regulatory requirements for the venture option that has been decided on. The site on â€Å"Doing Business in the European Union: 2011 Country Commercial Guide for U.S. Companies† is replete with information which includes trade regulations and standards in chapter 5 that would help organizations, like Katrina’s Candies, to determine and comply with the needed regulations that would facilitate establishment of a business venture in the European market (Doing Business in the European Union: 2011 Country Commercial Guide for U.S. Companies , n.d.). Another relevant site that was mentioned about government regulations is the official website of the Federal Trade Commission (Federal Trade Commission, n.d.). The information on the site focuses on the premerger notification and reviewing the merger process. As such, for Katrina’s Candies growth prospects of venturing into a

Andrew Jackson Essay Example for Free

Andrew Jackson Essay Andrew Jackson (1767 –1845) was the seventh President of the United States (1829–1837) and he was one of the most popular and controversial U. S. presidents in American history. Andrew Jacksons election to the presidency in 1828 created a new era with political and economic opportunities for the common man. He also became the father of the Democratic Party and achieved fame as protector of the common man. I think we couldnt deny that Jackson was still a human being; he couldn’t be perfect in every single thing. Its the reason to explain for what he did during his life, Jackson was considered as a hero, and also was he thought to be a villain in the eyes of many people. Although the fact that he raised the era of â€Å"Jacksonia Democracy† and he was appreciated as the representative of the entire generation’s ideology, he was the one who separated classes and discriminated brutally those not seen as true Americans. The relevant examples were the events in 1800s, notably Indian Removal Act. It raised a question whether Andrew Jackson was a democratic president. I think he had a good democratic ideology for the United States but his action as well as his wrong decision opposed his thought. Besides, Mr. Meacham (an author of American Lion Book) recognized â€Å"the tragedy of Jackson’s life is that a man dedicated to freedom failed to see liberty as a universal, not a particular, gift. † The role of Andrew Jackson’s presidency in affirming the new democratic politics Andrew Jackson grew up with a harsh childhood that he did not have parents and his literacy was sporadic. In his young life, he worked as a lawyer in Tennessee and a soldier when war occurred between the United States and Britain. Jackson became a famous military hero from his glorious victory in the war of 1812, especially from his win the experienced army in New Orleans in January, 1815 and â€Å"he would become Americas most influential–and polarizing–political figure during the 1820s and 1830s†. Moreover, he was different from his predecessors for being elected by popular vote. This proved that Andrew Jacksons strong influence on American politics had been pervasive prior to his time in office and it continuously spread out. A new era of American politics that followed the era of Jeffersonian democracy began with president’s role which made a bright situation and greater democracy for common man. His policy got first succeed which helps expand the right to vote for all white men and end the property qualifications for voting. Before Jacksons time, public officials used their own judgments rather than the expectation of many voters. However, under Jacksonian Democracy, their acts depended on the petition of people. During the two terms, he tried to expand the presidential power by using the veto which changed both the American politics and society. Jackson was the rare one that used his power as the chief executive in fighting against Congress. And these actions were said to be very aggressive. However, these policies were to describe himself as a president with a strong and stubborn style. For instance, having the national bank demolished was a very important milestone in Jacksons career. The reason why he ended the US bank system was that it took the role as a monopoly over foreign and domestic. Besides, he disagreed with the fact that these banks just cared about the interest of the rich, and truly to say they were held to serve the richest class in society. It could be seen that Jacksons decision to demolish these banks faced many arguments from only the richest class. And Daniel Webster through his letter also suggested Jackson about the risk to jeopardize peoples liberty when practicing his act. He stated that â€Å"it wantonly attacks whole classes of the people, for the purpose of turning against them the prejudices and the resentments of the other classes. It was suggesting that the veto could turn the classes of people to be above the other classes position. In the result, a lot of banks collapsed which pushed the national economy closer to the edge of deep depression. Although the decision to veto the Bank System faced many oppositions, â€Å"check and balance system† in American politics was exercised well to control over members of Congress. In this case, he did really a good job in the role of a president. In theory, although Jackson’s Era was the first step that created he principle in equality for people, it figured out a complex mixture of the best and the worst qualities of American society. â€Å"Age of Jacksonian Democracy† and the â€Å"Era of the Common Man† were modern standards, however, the United States was far from democratic. It was an imbalanced scale of gender and race. White men were always those who got benefit from that strong social critique. Women had no right in voting and they still had to dependon their husbands. Besides, Andrew Jackson also supported the slavery, he owned a lot of slaves, and freed none of them, even upon his death. Besides, According to an historian John Larson, he expressedâ€Å"wealth accumulation was tied to slavery Jackson practiced and defended what had been the accustomed way for white men to make money for 200 years†. There was no doubt that Democracy still remained masculine privilege and racial prejudice which offered no benefits to women, African Americans, or Native Americans. Jacksons Era wasnt democratic any longer. Indian Removal Act Andrew Jackson’s policy regarding to Native American was the most controversy in his presidency. There had been some horrible discrimination upon certain races of people, and the Indian Removal Act (1830) was the worst decision of Andrew Jackson. His act forced the Cherokees, Creek, Choctaw, Chickasaw and Seminole to give up their lands and relocated West of the Mississippi. Jackson supported this act by stating: No state could achieve proper culture, civilization, and progress, as long as Indians remained within its boundaries. He looked down on Native American as illiterate, uncivilized like savage hunters even though 90% of the Cherokee Nation could read and write. In fact, they had assimilated many European-styles and Indians adapted the customs or beliefs of the white settlers into their traditional ways of life which historians called â€Å"selective adaptation†. In the 1830s, the Native American created their own language, and they could also use English. Moreover, they could do industrialized farming, work as merchants, and choose the leaders who favor them in government. Although Andrew Jackson and Thomas Jefferson had good visions about Democracy, Thomas Jefferson was sympathy with Native People; he wanted the Native Americans and the U. S. to blend together, to intermix, and to consolidate steadily. He stated that â€Å"Surely it will be better for them to be identified with us and preserved in the occupation of their lands, than be exposed to the many casualties which may endanger them while a separate people. In fact, Jackson had strong ethnic bias and became a leading individual to support the policy which was known as Indian Removal. Before his election as president, he negotiated treaties and removal policies with Indian leaders to persuade some tribes to move to Arkansas Territory. After signing the Indian Removal Act into law in 1830, he tried to reject all Indians. Many a Southerner showed their approvals of the act just because the act helped them get access to the lands owned by the Native Americans as well as have gold that was discovered on the lands. Vowing not to fight, the Cherokee people used legal action to require federal government had granted them their land by treaty and therefore should be protected their lands. The Georgia Court gave the Cherokees no help at all, and the Cherokee lawsuit eventually reached the Unites States Supreme Court. However, it was not successful because Jackson refused to enforce it. When federal troops reached Georgia, they dismissed the tribes in such a coercive way. And in early 1831, the army came to appropriate Choctaws lands to let them migrate to Oklahoma. In 1835, after getting the great pressure from the American Government, the Native Americans chiefs have the act signed in such an in voluntary way. Therefore, it was totally unfair to the Indians. The Cherokees had to walk through more than 800 miles from the Mississippi Valley where they lived to Oklahoma. They suffered from a lot of bad things which caused 4,000 Cherokees deaths on the trip. And that miserable journey was later called the Trail of Tears. The number of sickness and death was very high especially among children and the elder people because of dirty water, poor nutrition and physical exhaustion. Remote and danger road created chances for many serious diseases such as smallpox, pneumonia, cholera and dysentery. It was a terrible obsession for many people who survived; a witness stated that â€Å"Long time we travel on way to new land. People feel bad when they leave old nation. Women cry and make sad wails. Children cry and make men cry, and all look sad like when friends die, but they say nothing and just put heads down and keep go towards West. Many days pass and people die very much. We bury close by Trail. After the â€Å"discovery† of Columbus which caused the genocide on Native America, Indian Removal Act was considered as the same crime. The Jacksonian Democracy during 1820s to the 1840s was indeed influenced President Thomas Jeffersons Democracy. Although The Declaration of Independence of Thomas Jefferson stated: that all men are created equal Native people under Jacksonian Democracy did not have that mentioned right. With the bad effect, Indian Removal Act (1830) of Andrew Jackson was not democratic because it violated legal and human rights of Native people. Firstly, Native American lived in their land for a long time so taking away the freedom and domain without the consent of Native Americans was a violation of the legal right. Secondl y, they were not treated like human beings and their dignity had been extremely devalued, and even considered subordinate to the United States by Andrew Jackson in his defense of the Removal Policy in 1830. Besides, there was a conflict in Andrew‘s policy, In Andrew Jackson’s first inaugural address in 1829, he promised, â€Å"It will be my sincere and constant desire to observe toward the Indian tribes within our limits a just and liberal policy, and to give that humane and considerate attention to their rights and their wants which is consistent with the habits of our Government and the feelings of our people. † Nevertheless, following the Indian Removal Act of 1830, soldiers were asked to detain Native Americans in stockades. These Indian people responses were to protest and to go to courts. It said no power in US government was preserved for them to have their personal vote counted. They finally failed in court although Chief Justice John Marshall supported them by declaring: that an Indian tribe or nation within the United States is not a foreign state in the sense of the constitution †Native Americans were thought as a portion of the US but they had no democracy in their hands, no ability to advocate or to show out their desires. Limitation in the rights of Indian would come out as the extent of restraint in free African Americans rights. Blacks and Indians in the South and in many parts of the North were referred to free person of color, so it was very blur for Jackson to determine how many rights those people should have. Conclusion: When looking at some events in the role of democracy during the presidency of Andrew Jackson, Democracy Party could be seen as the embodiment of the common mans will. Jackson himself could realize the future ease in voting requirements, the development of the two-party system, and the rotation in government offices. Jacksonian Era was a good precedent, however, through the way he treated Native Americans, African Americans, women, and many other minority groups, Jackson showed his defectin fulfilling one of the most pressing tasks of the president to represent the people. I feel sorry for Andrew Jackson, a democracy president who devoted all of his life to pursue the liberty, equality, however, he had still not recognized that: Skins may differ, but affection Dwells in white and black the same

Analysis of Barclays Hardware Systems

Analysis of Barclays Hardware Systems Reason for choosing organisation A couple of businesses were considered for the report. Both had a suitable IT system that was an integral part of their day to day operations and was suitable to investigate. Ultimately, Barclays IS team was chosen because they were far more accessible. Data collection is a planned approach to acquire information from a source or sources to form a clear understanding of a particular area of interest (Davies, 2007). Various methods can be employed to collect data such as questionnaires, interviews, observation, and group discussion (Denscombe, 2013). The primary method of data collection was through a face to face interview. A questionnaire was developed to find out about the architecture and infrastructure of the companys computer systems. The responses were then written down as they were given (Appendix). Hardware and Operating Systems Everyone in the office has a ThinkPad t410 or a similar spec laptop. These will either run Windows 7 or Windows 10 depending on what the person needs. Its worth noting that site uses hot desks with employees plugging in their laptop at any available workstation. Several Windows servers of various specs are used. These are built to the specification required of the application/function to be hosted on them. Mainframes using z/OS (MVS Multiple Virtual Storage) VMs with RHEL5/6/7 (Red Hat Enterprise Linux) Hpnsk, by hp (tandem) Legacy servers with AIX Software The employees laptops all have Microsoft software management, Microsoft Exchange for email, Atlassian Jira, and Cisco Jabber for VoIP. Both laptops also use NAS (Network-attached storage) for most their storage. A lot of the other software depends on the OS that the laptop runs. Windows 7 laptops use Microsoft Office 2010 and have the ability to install bespoke software with local admin access (special permissions have to be given for this). By contrast, the Windows 10 laptops use Office 365, a software package accessed through Microsofts cloud service, and are only allowed to use thin clients, a client that relies on the cloud for its computational processes. Network facilities split into several domains, depending on security requirements. DMZ (Demilitarized Zone) for connecting to third parties. Mqipt, certification. Security Measures There are a wide range of security measures in place at Barclays. In terms of physical security, all access on site requires swipe cards with access only being given when necessary.   In addition to this, tailgating someone is a dismissible offence for both parties involved. For virtual security, the estate has several measures in place. They have an external and an internal firewall (the DMZ is between these two firewalls). Any admin rights need Identity and Verification checks to be allowed. Service accounts (non-login accounts with personal access controlled via PowerBroker) allows for the user to perform certain admin tasks without needing root access, essentially reducing abuse of privilege. In terms of redundancy, Barclays has a few different levels of this depending on how critical it is to the business. For the lowest tier, they use offsite backup servers to ensure that data is not lost in the event of a disaster (i.e. flood, fire, theft). For important services that need to be kept online, they can use active-active. This hosts the service in two distinct geographical locations with load balancing between them. If one of the hosts were to close for any reason, the load would pass onto the 2nd host. Not all software is capable of this active load balancing, for these instances active-passive is used. This is similar to active-active but without the load balancing; instead, if the active instance closes, the passive instance takes over. Hardware and software implementation Barclays thoroughly reviews and tests any new hardware or software before it is implemented to try and find out what effect it will have on the estate. This extends to new versions and patches of software already in use. Every new resource must be suitable for the task, and it must be compliant with the businesses regulations. The disruption is causes should be within business expectations, for example, a critical patch would be implemented regardless of how disruptive it is; by contrast, a less important patch would be scheduled to create a minimal impact. Some software (particularly open-source) have features of the program modified or removed before it is introduced into the business. After this, it is packaged and distributed according to the businesses patching schedule. Legal and Ethical requirements As a bank, Barclays handles incredibly sensitive data and must adhere to the law regarding it. According to the Data Protection Act (1998), anyone using data must follow data protection principles. They must make sure the information is: used fairly and lawfully used for limited, specifically stated purposes used in a way that is adequate, relevant and not excessive accurate kept for no longer than is absolutely necessary handled according to peoples data protection rights kept safe and secure not transferred outside the European Economic Area without adequate protection There is the legal obligation of duty of care that must be adhered to when dealing with customers data, therefore its of extreme importance that the rules and regulations are followed with absolute compliance. This is because if the business is found to be not following them, it can result in up to 5 years in prison. In addition to this, it will hurt the businesses reputation lowering trust that customers place in them. As for ethical requirements, theres no specific drawn up rules however there were specific areas within the businesses where ethics do come into play for example keeping customers information up-to-date and accurate, respecting their privacy and finally of course ensuring its protected. There are also ethics for the workers for example using the systems in a responsible way, making sure computers and software is kept to a particular standard and finally keeping system procedures etc. documented so workers can know how to use them to full potential. Finally, where software is obtained and used on a fair usage policy  this is something always kept too. Effect of emerging technologies Barclays IS team has very much embraced cloud technology and integrated it into a great deal of their systems. All the employees laptops use NAS and many use the cloud for other applications. This has the effect of reducing costs in terms of processing power and memory. It has also allowed for many employees to work from home, something which they do regularly. Open source software is software with its source code made available to the public, in most cases people can study and modify the software. The adoption of open source is something many large businesses are currently going through. The key effect of open source, from a business perspective, is that it is far cheaper than traditional proprietary software, but it does have other effects. It is much easier and quicker to obtain and implement OSS than proprietary. Some older applications are currently unable to work with open source and cloud technology. These applications will likely have to be rewritten to be used in the future. Lenovo ThinkPad T410 Specification: Screen: 14.1-inch WXGA+ (1440 x 900) LED Backlit (Matte finish) Operating System: Windows 7 Professional (64bit) Processor: Intel Core i5-540M (2.53GHz, 3MB Cache) Memory: 4GB DDR3 RAM (2GB + 2GB) Storage: 320GB Seagate 7400.4 HDD (7200rpm) Optical Drive: DVD+/-RW Wireless: Intel 6200 802.11AGN, Bluetooth, Gobi 2000 WWAN Graphics: NVIDIA NVS 3100M with 256MB DDR3 Power: 94Wh 9-cell, 90W 20V AC adapter Dimensions: 13.13 x 9.41 x 1.09-1.26? Weight: 5lbs 9.3oz