Emily Dickinson Essay

Emily Dickinson’s place in history has affected many aspects of social order. Dickinson’s writing touched on many issues that were very important to the life and development of Dickinson’s persona; such as religion, war, psychosis, and love. Dickinson’s insight into these issues has been the source of the majority of the interest in her work. Emily Dickenson, throughout her life, sought a personal understanding of God and his place within her life. Her place within the Calvinist Puritan Amherst, however, would not allow for her inquiry into the understanding of the nature of God other than within their specific doctrine. In her childhood Emily Dickenson was shy and already different from the others. Like all the Dickinson children, male or female, Emily was sent for formal education to Amherst Academy. Dickenson began to develop into a free willed person. Many of her friends had converted to Christianity, and her family was also exerting enormous amount of pressure on her to convert. Her father, along with the rest of the family, had become Christians and she alone decided to rebel against that and reject the Church. She had rejected the traditional views in life and adopted the new transcendental outlook. Dickenson’s questioning about God began at an early age. â€Å"Once (to Higginson) she recorded another bit of mystification at adult behavior†. (Sewell 326) As Sewell recounts, Dickinson’s reservations about the nature of God began as early as her genius. As a child, we are told Dickenson felt a disturbance in the speech of a clergyman during as funeral. â€Å"[She was] disturbed by the clergyman’s question, ‘Is the Arm of the Lord shortened that it cannot save? ’†(Sewell 326) Dickinson’s poetry is a window into her quest for this understanding. In poem number 1241, Dickinson concentrates on nature and its relativity to science. Dickinson looks upon a lilac in the late light of a setting sun. Set on a hill, it receives the last light of day, and subsequently, is the last thing that God sees of that day. The sun is given the action of intending the lilac to be meant for â€Å"Contemplation – not to Touch†. I think this is an allusion to the Calvinist ideal of seeking God through action. Dickinson felt that the actions of the church that surrounded her were hollow and led one no closer to understanding the true nature of God than she had attained in her poetic questionings. The flower is given, above humanity, the focus of God’s eye. â€Å"The scientist of Faith† that Dickinson speaks of in this poem is denied any furthering of his understanding when she says: â€Å"His research has but just begun – / Above his synthesis / The Flora unimpeachable / To Time’s Analysis’’. Here, Dickinson is saying that it is not through active searching that one will find the true nature of God, but in the witnessing of His actions—such as the creation of lilacs. She ends the poem with the line â€Å"Eye hath not seen† may possibly / Be current with the blind / But let not Revelation / By theses be detained†. This tells the reader that Dickinson felt that the active search for God, (with the eye) will fail. However, the â€Å"blind† will not have their revelations detained. In the poem #564 Dickinson centers on the physical building of churches as a problem with her understanding of God. Within this poem Dickinson tells the reader that the deification of the man made houses of worship also distract from one’s understanding of God. The line â€Å"God grows above—so those who pray / Horizons—must ascend† illustrates Dickinson’s idea that limiting one’s view, as in focusing on a building rather than God himself, would hinder one’s ability to see God. Dickinson goes on to clarify, succinctly, her feelings on the worshiping of God through churches: â€Å"His house was not—no sign had He / By Chimney—nor by Door / Could I infer his Residence— / Vast Prairies of Air† Dickinson tells the reader that nothing tangible or built by the hand of man has been seen by God as His house. Dickenson contends that there is a separation between â€Å"praying and â€Å"worshipping†. The churches used by the people around Dickinson are used to â€Å"worship† and show the action of belief. Whereas praying is the only way to â€Å"reach† God and prove one’s heart as a believer. In the poem numbered 1499, Dickinson again questions the physical place worship by calling insecure the â€Å"Physiognomy† of the Calvinist theology. Dickinson begins this poem by acknowledging the temporality of the human visage: â€Å"How firm Eternity must look / To Crumbling men†. Dickinson obviously feels that the â€Å"face value† of religion is passing and worthless. She felt that the eternality of action and the long lasting effects of true faith were far more important and worth while. The questions raised by Emily Dickenson within her poetry, echoes the problems that people have had with religion for ages—where does the truth about God reside? Dickenson wanted to find a peace that accompanied the acceptance of God; however her exposure to the Calvinist Puritans stifled that. Her distain and mistrust from the sect resounded throughout her life and her poetry. Though not all of her poetry maintained such as hard line rejection of Puritan ideals, the ones selected here illustrate her desire to find something else, outside of the Calvinist dogma that better explained to her the nature of God. It has been â€Å"suggested that [the] contradictions in Emily Dickinson [‘s poetry] were due to her dual nature, which made her at once a pagan and a â€Å"sincerely religious woman. † (Voigt 193) This constant pull within her life, caused Dickinson to struggle throughout her lifetime with her desire to loved by God, and her inability to accept the blind faith that accompanies devotion to religion. The several poems that I am looking at are examples of how Emily Dickinson’s lack of center and acceptance manifested itself into poetry. In poem numbered 315, for example, the fumbling of the unnamed â€Å"he† at the soul of the narrator is immediately seen as the ultimate of personal invasions. The hap-hazard bumbling of this â€Å"he† is made worse by the â€Å"stun[ning]† that is caused by this invasion. The different degrees of this stunned soul hints at the multiple levels of invasion that is taking place—emotional, physical and, presumably, spiritual. The objectifying human â€Å"Nature† as brittle is an obvious tool to illustrate the suffering that humanity is plagued with throughout their lives. It also brings in the idea of death and mortality to the concept of human existence. The â€Å"he† deals the final blow the brittle human narrator with â€Å"One – Imperial – Thunderbolt† (315. 11) This assumed death, however, does not promise an escape from the constant suffering of life, but instead we learn that â€Å"The Universe – is still –â€Å" (315. 12) The final dash after â€Å"still† tells the reader that the universe is still moving, turning, and continuing the pain that the narrator wishes to be freed from. The Civil War was another issue that was addressed by Dickinson. With the poem, â€Å"The name – of it – is ‘Autumn’†, Dickinson uses natural imagery to describe the horrors of war. David Cody wrote, in his article on the poem, that Dickinson’s poem continues both to beckon and to baffle its readers, and the present essay is devoted not so much to an attempt to â€Å"guess† its meaning as to the more modest task of recalling or reviving, palingenetically as it were, some faint ghost or echo at least of the rich, complex and increasingly remote cultural moment in which it came into being. Precisely because it seems to embody. (Cody 24) Ed Folsom wrote that her poem, numbered 754 â€Å"My Life has stood – a loaded gun†; â€Å"explicitly with the Master/slave relationship†. (Folsom) The poem identifies with the slave’s reality of being worthless until pressed into service by the master. The work that Dickinson did during her lifetime was as diversely inspired as it was cryptic. However, the subjects that were covered by her work still hold enough interest and importance to warrant a continued study. The questions that Dickinson raised about religion, echoed the questions of many people who were slowly becoming disenfranchised with the Calvinist movement. Her own issues with psychosis were also subject to her eye. The poems she wrote about her lack of understanding of the world, and the fear that kept her secluded from society offer a deep insight into her mind. WORK CITED The Complete Poems of Emily Dickenson. Johnson, Thomas H. Ed. Little Brown and Co. New York. 1961. The Inner Life of Emily Dickinson. Voigt, Gilbert P. College English. Vol. 3. No. 2. (Nov. 1941). 192-196. The Life of Emily Dickinson. Sewell, Richard Benson. Harvard University Press. Cambridge, MA. 1994. Emily Dickinson: Selected Letters, ed. by Thomas H. Johnson and Theodora Ward. Cambridge MA. Harvard University Press. 1958. Cody, David â€Å"Blood in the Basin: The Civil War in Emily Dickinson â€Å"The name of it is Autumn â€Å"† The Emily Dickinson Journal. The Johns Hopkins University Press. Volume 12, Number 1, Spring 2003, pp. 25-52 Folsom, Ed. â€Å"Walt Whitman, Emily Dickinson, and the Civil War†. University of Iowa. 2003. Date of Access: July 26, 2006. URL: http://www. classroomelectric. org/volume2/folsom/

In What Sense Does Technology Change Society

There is no doubt that technology is increasingly important in our modern society. It is amazing how fast technology has developed. In the last century major advancements have been invented. Modern society has had a great deal of change throughout the years. With the help of electronics people can also attain information in their home using the Internet. Technology has brought people from across the world together, but at the same time made communication less personal such as with texting and email. It was technology that helped man reach the moon and now we are planning to advance our technology to explore more into space. Technology can be viewed as having changed our culture. Technology is used for peaceful purposes and violence as well. Weapons were made to hunt for food and eventually used on each other since humans learned how to make them. Products such as Teflon and non-stick surfaces, which were created for the space program, make everyday life easier for millions of people. Computers allow us to analyze significant amounts of data and eliminate the need for paper. The Global Positioning System allows us to know where we are located while driving in our cars or using a cell phone. There are so many ways that technology has changed society, it is hard to even count them all. These are just a few ways that technology has influenced society and made our lives easier. With new technology, difficult tasks are made simple and easy to perform. Technology has brought about many changes in how we conduct day to day activities. It is always evolving and with it society changes as well. Aside from doing good technology can be used to cause harm to any society. In American society, teenagers who are our future are using texting in that it was not intended. Texting has become the new thing to do with young adults. Up until 6 years ago this word was not heard of, but now has brought about many legal issues people send exposing messages to each other. What should be examined is not whether technology is good or bad but rather how we decide to use it.

ECON 337 3 Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

ECON 337 3 - Assignment Example It emerges that the new reforms in the 80’s led to the reduction of poverty and inequality due to the foreign trade and investment strategies. However, the rural areas were also recovering from the poverty cycle as influenced by the spurt in agricultural growth. The political economy played an instrumental part through the land redistributions that ensured every family had an agricultural venture. As a result, the internal aspects enabled the country to improve on its economic objectives rather than the presumed global integration. Similarly, the domestic public investment policies, especially in education, infrastructure and agricultural research propelled the growth and rural poverty reduction. The state of poverty and well being in India were spurred by the social indicators in employment opportunities, gender inequality and maternal health had registered improvements (Bardhan 26). The country was ensuring that the citizens would be productive by taking advantage of the soc ial developments in the important sectors. The resultant impacts were that the Indians introduced strategies that empowered everyone to venture into economical businesses in the region. Although poverty and social well-being remains to be a priority of the government, the economic growth tends to alleviate the imbalance. This implies that reforms encouraging domestic investments are making the local citizens to come up with business ideas that the government can help to finance for prosperity. The reasoning behind Bardhan arguments is that global integration only facilitated increase in spending. The improvements in social indicators and social well-being were factors that promoted global integration because the country was now ready to consider various opportunities (Bardhan 30). This implies that, without the domestic reforms and investments, global integration could not be achieved. However, the slow pace in some sectors

Management of Human and Organisation Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3500 words

Management of Human and Organisation - Essay Example It is further stated to be a key success factor for corporate in the modern day scenario. As stated by the experts, organisational culture of a specific company differs from one market area to another, influencing the structure of the organisation to a large extent. Thus, it tends to consider almost every factor embraced within the organisational structure which defines the concept to be complex and theoretical at times (Black, 2003).Considering the various aspects of organisational culture, the main objective of the paper will be to comprehend an appropriate definition of the concept with references to the studies conducted by various experts. Due to the fact that organisational culture influences every facet of the entire organisational structure, it is quite certain that differing cultures will also have diverse impacts on the performances of the employees (Black, 2003). This will require different motivating schemes for every particular business unit which will be analysed in the further discussion of the paper. The facts obtained from the research will be related to a global business organisation, i.e. Nokia Corporation so as to provide a pragmatic portrayal of the research findings. To be mentioned, the research will be conducted through a qualitative approach based on the secondary data and descriptive analysis intending to answer the identified research problem.2.0 Literature Review 2.1 Definition of Organisational Culture The introduction of the concept, ‘Organisational Culture’ can be identified in the late 1980s. Thus, it has been in frequent use in managerial theories for decades. However, the concept evidently lacks in a synchronised definition. Studies reveal that the sole meaning of the concept differs for particular individual and organisation. Where few experts state the meaning of organisational culture to be the operating psychology of an organisation, few others depict it as the determined values of an organisation (Reiman & Oed ewald, 2002). Since the introduction of the concept, authors have deliberately intended to define it. But there were few major flaws witnessed in the definitions provided by authors in 1990s. For instance, most of the definitions lacked providing an unambiguous description regarding the components of organisational culture, aim of the concept, and the probable strategies to achieve the aims. It is in this context that the modern day studies have revealed various aspects which provide an in-depth description about the motive and the major attributes of the concept considering economic along with social perspectives of culture (Willcoxson & Millett, 2003). In the modern day phenomenon, with the growing importance of the concept various authors have intended to provide a well-defined meaning of ‘Organisational Culture’. According to Serrat (2009), culture in an organisation signifies the mode of interaction exercised within the organisation among the employees and also wit h the external parties. As defined by the author, â€Å"Organizational culture comprises the attitudes, experiences, beliefs, and values of the organization, acquired through social

Comparitive Politics Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Comparitive Politics - Assignment Example In Comparative Politics, there are two core approaches; the area studies and the cross-national approach. The cross-national approach in Comparative Politics deals with the study of many nation-states with the purpose of addressing certain theoretical questions that apply broadly. In this approach, the tools used in most cases involve empirical data subjected to quantitative analysis. The area studies method places more emphasis on in-depth analysis within a specific region or the borders of a particular country. With this approach, the necessary tools, in most cases, involves the researcher immersing himself into the culture and language of the region under study. It is important to study states because their power faces considerable threats from growing interconnections and interdependencies and international agreements and arrangements. These threats limit the ability of states to control their individual affairs. These threats include multinational corporations, non-governmental organizations and bodies operating on a global scale. This is evident from the rise of terrorism and other vices, which are not restricted to countries any more. However, states retain the power and responsibility to protect their citizens and undertake other national duties by virtue of having supreme power within their jurisdictions. States are still important, therefore forming the point of departure and focus for comparative approach to government and politics. Comparative Politics has six main approaches: Institutionalism, Systems theory, Governance, Marxism, Structural functionalism, Institutionalism and Corporatism. Institutional analysis forms the basis of Comparative Politics (Caramani, 2). Comparative Politics is a science because it is guided by various theories (Caramani, 25). Alasdair MacIntyre first raised the question of the possibility of Comparative Politics being a science. The deduction he provided in his analysis was that there was

How strongly has colonialism shaped the trajectories of post-colonial Essay

How strongly has colonialism shaped the trajectories of post-colonial African countries Discuss using one or several examples - Essay Example Would they have been richer or poorer today? This question has elicited debate for more than five decades, and also instigating exciting research by economic historians in colonial archives, an aspect, which has put the debate on a sound empirical footing. Some study findings have shown evidence of improved economic development outcomes within the period of colonialism. For instance, in the British West Africa, there was an increase of real wages (Frankema and Van Waaijenburg 2005, 34). Additionally, the status of military recruits in British East Africa and Ghana indicated that the height was increased during the colonial period, a pointer of increasing prosperity. Other arguments are that colonial rule was predatory. Should we consider this as evidence that colonialism was good for development in African countries? It should be considered that assessing the impact of colonialism does not only involve just looking at raw numbers, but also taking into consideration the counterfactual . We need to think on what the trajectories of African societies would have been at present if colonialism did not take place. Reid, (2002) observe that most African countries saw a steady rise on incomes during the colonial period. Africans reaped the benefits in development of infrastructure such as roads and railways as well as the mining technology. Colonization also led to deep integration of these African states into the World Trade Center and the world economy (115). However, it is still unclear n the extent by which such developments were contributed by colonialism and whether the development would have happened anyway due to the wake of global trade expansions or any other reason. The fact that there was a rise in the standard of living does not imply that all people’s living standards improved. Just taking an example from South Africa, the immiserising impact of land expropriation and establishment of â€Å"dual economies† on

The Perspective on Teaching Biology Research Paper

The Perspective on Teaching Biology - Research Paper Example The first one is a book with the title Influencer: The Power to Change Anything1. The second one is a report on Healthcare Community Discussions, which has been issued by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. The paper has an introduction. Next, there is a discussion on leadership in health care followed by a section on leadership characteristics that are important for a Biology teacher. Finally, there is the conclusion part. Leadership in Healthcare In general, a leader is essentially somebody who can provide guidance. And importantly, he/she should be innovative as well. By utilizing experiential insight and specialist skills to help the subordinates achieve their pursuit, a leader can change and/or decide the very way of working of an organization or system (Sashkin and Sashkin, 2003). In this way, the leader should be a capable influencer too. And in complicated work environments, the leaders have to be â€Å"master influencers† (Patterson et al, 2008, p.67). I n the healthcare sector, leaders must be gifted with an ability to influence people. Contextually, Patterson et al (2008) have given the example of Dr. Don Berwick. Dr. Berwick wants to minimize the number of the patients who die or suffer seriously due to the mistakes of the healthcare professionals who attend them. ...   Something similar is happening in the American Association for Respiratory Care (AARC) as well. This nonprofit professional organization is trying to obtain ample and effective leadership development patterns to facilitate the respiratory therapists. Most of the leaders in contemporary respiratory care are expected to â€Å"jump in headfast†, which leads to a â€Å"sink or swim time† for them (Bunch, 2010). Consequently, AARC has developed a Leadership Institute that caters to the needs of the caregivers who have to lead their departments, peers, and communities. In sum, leadership in healthcare is already a field of extensive academic and empirical activities with substantial implications. Leadership Characteristics of a Biology Teacher In the making of a healthcare professional, concepts related to the Life Sciences are very important. While learning the school level lessons of Biology, the learners develop a basic understanding of healthcare. For example, topics like Anatomy, Physiology, Communicable Diseases, Health and Hygiene, etc. form the basic foundation of healthcare. A Biology teacher must help his/her students to learn the subject in such a way that he/she can prepare for the key career options in the field. Of course, all students who study Biology in the school do not necessarily become healthcare professionals. But every healthcare professional should have studied Biology at the school level. In other words, knowledge of Biology is an essential requirement for the healthcare professionals.

Knowledge Management Coursework Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2750 words

Knowledge Management - Coursework Example AUTHORITY 9 4.4. ACCESSIBILITY 10 5. CONCLUSION AND SUMMARY 10 5.1. COMPARISON AND CONTRAST 10 5.2. RELATION TO THE MODULE 14 6.0. REFERENCE LIST 16 1. INTRODUCTION Organisations formulate strategies and processes for identifying intellectual assets which enhance the overall performance of the organisation. The objectives of the organisations are easily accomplished and overall performance, competitive advantage and continuous improvement of the organisation are enhanced through this practice (Zheng, Yang, & McLean, 2010). In this report an evaluation of three different articles related to knowledge management will be presented. A comparative analysis will be presented which will show the relative significance of knowledge management in an organisation. The three articles which will be subject of discussion in this report are 1. Developing a corporate knowledge management strategy - Paul Oluikpe (2012) 2. Local Social Knowledge Management: A case study of social learning and knowledg e sharing across organizational boundaries - Johanna Lahtinen (2013) 3. The interactive relationship of corporate culture and knowledge management: a review – Julia Mueller (2011) Understanding the relative significance and importance of knowledge management in an organisation is very important in this age where workforce is treated as an essential asset by the managers. A combined overview and major emphasis of discussions presented in the articles will conclude this report. 2. LOCAL SOCIAL KNOWLEDGE MANAGEMENT: LAHTINEN(2013) 2.1. KEY POINTS Lahtinen has discussed a range of important aspects of social knowledge management. The main points of this article by Lahtinen are related to How communicating and interacting socially helps in improving knowledge. The importance of inter-organizational networks is important in improving the knowledge. The learning process which enables the individuals to interact socially and enhance their knowledge is referred to as social knowledge management. The emphasis has been built on signifying the importance of communication in the organisation. Social learning plays a significant role with regional networking of the employees working for the same organisation (p.13). This research paper discusses about the role of social learning in knowledge management. This is important for managing inter organisational networks is significantly important. As employees interact within the organization, it helps the employees in better understanding the knowledge practices adopted in the organisation, mixture of differing applicability practices and general confusions which are part of the knowledge practices (p. 4). The three forms of networking which take place within the organisation are elaborated. These include the operational, personal and strategic roles which take place in the organisation. For this assessment data from several different organisations were collected to develop a conclusion about the relative importance of Soc ial knowledge management. Social knowledge management enhances the individual learning capability as an individual learns by sharing information within the organization (Lahtinen, 2013). 2.2. VALUE TO KNOWLEDGE MANAGEMENT PRACTITIONERS This topic is of great value to the practitioners of knowledge management. This is because it signifies which strategies the managers can use for initiating social learning and transferring knowledge within the organisation through interaction of the employees. Understanding the issue

Economics of Industry Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Economics of Industry - Essay Example buy problem. Therefore, firms and companies can anatomize their Human Resource Management system in order to develop the necessary skills in-house or they can constitute their Human Resource Management to attract the workmen with the obligatory skills on the extrinsic market. For developing consistent as well as competitive manufacturing strategies, the need is somewhat established. This fundamental subject in the development of a manufacturing strategy is the grit of what the company makes and what it buys (Platts et. al, 2000). Chronologically, such decisions have always been made primarily on the grounds of cost, however, in recent years there has been a successive cognizance on the strategic implications of these decisions and the requirement of pondering over a wide range of other factors as well. This paper determines and analyzes the problems related to agency relationships, asymmetric information, and undesirable assortment which are faced by firms who face such decisions. Moreover, it critically evaluates the possible remedies which can address the three problems discussed, which are associated with agency costs. The analysis of effects of the private agents being less than fully rational in their expectations can lead to depletion of the values and position of the firm. In the context of monetary policy, where the Central Bank may possess come uncertain preferences, the innovative characteristic could be the allowance of public to react in two different ways. One of them could be the formation of rational expectations, and another could be the internalization of uncertainty about the Bank's reference in complete. The cost of internalization appears to be the most appropriate guess regarding those preferences. In the progression of framing anticipations or expectations, the assumption of rational expectations enables all the agents involved in sharing the information from the same set. Nonetheless, with the breaking down of the assumption of common information, may be due to infeasibility, or because of the high-cost of acquirement of all the information others have, the agents have to resort to second-guessing the reactions of their counterparts. Agents can seem to be wide off the mark while making educated guesses about the characteristics of others and the consequences to the ideal case of full information and rational expectations could be hazardous. From the point of view of the private sector, a monetary policy can be applied where, for example, the Central Bank has tentative preferences. This could be a matter of choice, since, the bank itself does not unleash certain aspects of what it is cognizant of, or because the Central Bank does not possess firm information itself and, as a result, is unable to commit to one specific set of parameters for all the circumstances (Demertzis & Hallet, 2008). Authors like Geraats and Walsh have analyzed the first case

Holiday inn report Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Holiday inn report - Essay Example There after Holiday Inn was found to cater to those needs. It offered the service standards such as air conditioning and ice makers at affordable room rates. These features made the hotels popular they started gaining recognition (Luckerson, 2012). His idea was to create a standardized hotel chain and offer it to other business persons for franchisee. The idea took off because of the evolution of highways and the increasing amount of travelers who were looking for a reliable brand with decent quality at an affordable price. Thus Holiday Inn follows the business the three legged Stool Business Model. Where the three aspects namely, people, process and tools are all important for the business to survive and each of the aspects are given equal importance. There are mainly two types of guests or customers in this scenario. The first are the corporate customers who travel frequently because of their business trips and the second type are the leisure customers who are mainly looking to spend some relaxing time away from work and home. Corporate clients are representatives that utilize the inn for gathering, business meetings and staying overnight. The holiday inn have had 50 years of gathering and meeting knowledge, they have an advantageous reputation for giving elevated expectations of service, whilst offering incredible worth for cash. The holiday inn gives space to any business occasion, if it being instructional classes, a significant meeting or may be a product launch. The clients expect a no fuss service as their principle goal is to work together. In the holiday inn 95% of the clients are corporate clients, they are there throughout the week meeting other individuals to examine business. Corporate clients may hold their Christmas and Easter parties in the lodging, so they need accessible rooms at those times. The holiday inn meets these necessities by verifying it gives the above. They likewise

Health and Behavioral Consequences of Binge Drinking in College Essay Example for Free

Health and Behavioral Consequences of Binge Drinking in College Essay Objective — To examine the extent of binge drinking by college students and the ensuing health and behavioral problems that binge drinkers create for themselves and others on their campus. Design — Self-administered survey mailed to a national representative sample of US 4-year college students. Setting — One hundred forty US 4-year colleges in 1993. Participants — A total of 17,592 college students. Main Outcome Measures — Self-reports of drinking behaviour, alcohol-related health problems, and other problems. Results — Almost half (44%) of college students responding to the survey were binge drinkers, including almost one fifth (19%) of the studenst who were frequent binge drinkers. Frequent binge drinkers are more likely to experience seious health and other consequences of their drinking behaviour than other students. Almost half (47%) of the frequent binge drinkers experienced five or more different drinking related problems, including injuries and engaging in unplanned sex, since the beginning of the school year. Most binge drinkers do not consider themselves to be problem drinkers and have not sought treatment for an alcohol problem. Binge drinkers create problems for classmates who are not binge drinkers. Students who are not binge drinkers at schools with higher binge rates were more liekly than students at schools with lower binge rates to experience problems such as being pushed, hit, or assualted or experiencing an unwanted sexual advance. Conclusions — Binge drinking is widespread on college campuses. Programs aimed at reducing this problem should focus on frequent binge drinkers, refer them to treatment or educational programs, and emphasize the harm they cause for students who are not binge drinkers

Gesture-based Interface

Gesture-based Interface 1.1 Definition Gesture recognition is a mix on language technology and computer science which helps in achieving interpretation of human gestures with the use of mathematical algorithms. Any kind of movement made by human body is a gesture and according to current researches, gesture technology is now focusing more on emotion gestures, hand and face gesture. This technology is playing a very important role in many fields such as Smartphones, Tablets and other devices Automobiles Transit sector Electronics sector Gaming sector Gesture based interface technology have turned out to be one of the basic innovations that can decide the future of video games /computer games. In current time, video games offer interaction with players without the need of using remote controls and allows players to perform actions and exchanges with game characters and game objects displayed in the virtual world in front of their screen. But for these advancements to achieve, new algorithm and calculations have been incorporated which makes use of sensors, cameras, accelerometer sensors and visual pattern recognition devices. Trend shows that games that adapts true life experience interface have a very good chance of making a good successful name in the gaming industry. So, almost every big game producing companies are spending resources in their gaming development team and looking for more advanced technology to implement so that they can beat their competitors and can provide entertaining and more exciting experiences to their c onsumers (Rocetti, Marfia, Semeraro, 2012) Gaming industry is a multi-billion industry, so many new technological ideas and trends are emerging in this field. Video games designer of big gaming companies are gradually moving their consideration of playing games at homes, expanding their interests to games which can be played in open areas such as museums and gaming exhibitions. However, till date, only a few number of researches have been done to consider the number of problems which occurs when making a video game. This paper will help us in understanding the concept of gesture interface and how its implemented with games and other multimedia devices. Many research has been done on how to better the experience by favoring big screens for a better and more immersive experience. While touchscreen devices have significantly enriched our experience with tablets PCs for example iPad, tablets etc., technology used in large displays being used in group meetings, presentations or lectures still remain unchanged. we all know that its quite difficult to apply touchscreen technology to such huge displays. In this research paper, the author displayed a new game design Laser shoot for FPS games. Earlier, users used to play shooter games on computer using a keyboard and a mouse or a joystick controller. Currently, we use CRT display technology for real like gun interface because CRT technology can detect beam direction and able to detect shooting position. However, CRT technology does not support big screen displays because of its manufacturing limitations. In order to encourage a community oriented and experience for gaming users, the author designed a new input interface technology which includes a laser gun and a large screen which has laser enabled spot detection capability. This interface successfully creates a real like environment for gamers and according to the results, the laser-based interface makes a characteristic UI conditions which helps learners to appreciate playing a FPS quickly, and furthermore gives experienced players another gaming knowledge. Current research development The author has developed a laser shoot technology that recognizes laser movements displayed on a smart display using a computer. With this technology, users can use ordinary laser points in a way that they experience laser pointers as extended fingers on a display. So, therefore, with the use of this technology, users can now draw pictures, diagrams, bar graphs and anything using their normal pointers on large display from a normal distance with users at the same or different locations. example: during meetings, presentations etc.) This laser shoot technology has been a ground-breaking revolution when it comes to online learning and helps interacting learners, teachers, trainers from all over the globe to connect and share knowledge. It also helps people with different expertise and skills to engage is different kind of learning activities. The idea of this technology not only helps people interacting but can also be used in terms of gaming aspect and specially first person shooter games FPS so the researcher applied this technology with FPS gaming environments. The gaming interface between the player and the virtual world was improved by using a new control using laser shoot technology laser guns and a display to recognize the laser shoot signal. Their system created a reality based gaming world for players and according to the results, it allowed players to experience a better gaming experience (Shim Kim, 2016) Related works and comparing different technologies First person shooter FPS is a genre of video games where the game is rendered in the virtual world from the players point of view involves aiming guns and other weapons. FPS features elements like running and shooting. As you can see from the picture (1), modern shooter games are played on a computer machine using a keyboard and mouse and using the layout (WASD) and arrow keys to control the game. Mouse controls the free look of the game and keyboard adds to other actions like running, shooting and other variations. We can also experience shooter games using CRT display as can be seen in the picture below. A real gun interface is used with CRT monitors for aiming and CRT monitors because of their good picture render capabilities, As can be seen from the picture below, PlayStation also uses a different kind of technology which makes uses of sensors called PlayStation move which communicates with their detectable motion controller to allow users to aim and shoot and also includes some buttons which helps in walking, running, strafing etc. For this technology to work, PlayStation uses a camera which detects light signals from the controllers sensors and interprets the action on the screen. Another example of gesture based interface is pistol mouse as shown in the picture below which makes use of hand gestures to allow shooting and recognizes movements of player using webcam images Another device called chairlO was developed by Hamburg university which is similar to a joystick but make use of users body motion and is based on a stool. In this device, they created a gun which had a motion detecting product called inertiacube2 and used virtual reality Laser shoot technology has an interface which makes use of a gun with laser shooting and a display which can recognize laser. Laser shoot includes a laser gun, an active screen and last a laser beam recognizable signal processing module. The above picture shows the overall process of designing laser shoot technology In this research, the author covered many related issues going from hardware to programming design that help fabricating and new devices for a FPS game and develop a new gaming interface design for FPS gamers. In order for this research to be possible, a large screen was very important but as we know, previous technology and user interface does not support real like interface and a large display. Shooter games on PC supports large display but the use of WASD layout on keyboard is traditional and old now. Even playing FPS games on CRT makes use of a realistic gesture based gun but due to CRTs manufacturing limitation, it cannot support large screen display. So, in order to encourage an environment among users/players, they designed a new gesture based interface called laser shoot technology which makes use of a large laser recognized display and a laser gun. Their research work contributed to gaming world by using laser inputs, which can help the world in developing more immersive gam ing experience for human computer interaction. Future research works incorporate higher acknowledgment rate for three letters including 0, v and y, which are quite difficult for humans to implement. Laser Shoot makes a characteristic UI conditions which helps novices to appreciate playing a FPS quickly, and furthermore gives experienced players another gaming background. References Hyun, K., Chang, L. W., Keechul, J. (2004). Recognition-based gesture spotting in video games. Pattern Recognition Letters, 25(15), 1701-1714. Rocetti, M., Marfia, G., Semeraro, A. (2012, April). Playing into the wild: A gesture-based interface for gaming in public spaces. Journal of Visual Communication and Image Representation, 23(3), 426-440. Talbot, T. B. (2016). Making Lifelike Medical Games in the Age of Virtual Reality: An Update on Playing Games. Transforming Gaming and Computer Simulation Technologies across Industries, 103. Aker, Ç., RÄ ±zvanoÄÅ ¸lu, K., Ä °nal, Y., YÄ ±lmaz, A. S. (2016, July). Analyzing Playability in Multi-platform Games: A Case Study of the Fruit Ninja Game. In International Conference of Design, User Experience, and Usability (pp. 229-239). Springer International Publishing. Balachandra, N. (2016). Gesture recognition using proximity sensors with Mojo (Doctoral dissertation, San Diego State University). Foottit, J., Brown, D., Marks, S., Connor, A. M. (2016). A wearable haptic game controller. arXiv preprint arXiv:1604.05479. Renzi, M., Vassos, S., Catarci, T., Kimani, S. (2015, January). Touching notes: a gesture-based game for teaching music to children. In Proceedings of the Ninth International Conference on Tangible, Embedded, and Embodied Interaction (pp. 603-606). ACM. Simor, F. W., Brum, M. R., Schmidt, J. D. E., Rieder, R., De Marchi, A. C. B. (2016). Usability Evaluation Methods for Gesture-Based Games: A Systematic Review. JMIR serious games, 4(2). Beckhaus S, Blom KJ, Haringer M (2005) A new gaming device and interaction method for a first-personshooter,in computer science and magic 2005. GC Developer Science Track, Laipzig Dardas NH, Silva JM, El Saddik A (2012) Target-shooting exergame with a hand gesture control. MultimedTools Appl 70:2211-2233. doi:10.1007/s11042-012-1236-4 Shim, J. Y., Kim, S. W. (2016). LaserShoot: a natural shooting interface for FPS gaming using laser recognizable display. Multimedia Tools and Applications, 75(6), 3409-3423. Olivas, A., Molina, J. P., Martà ­nez, J., Gonzà ¡lez, P., Jimà ©nez, A. S., Martà ­nez, D. (2012, October). Proposal and evaluation of models with and without position for immersive FPS games. In Proceedings of the 13th International Conference on Interaccià ³n Persona-Ordenador (p. 52). ACM. Opara, F. K., Aririguzo, M. I., Agbaraji, E. C. (2012). Comparative Analysis And Performance Features Of Plasma, Lcd And Crt Screens: Operating Features, Merit And Recommendations. Academic Research International, 2(2), 140. Di Natale, M., Zeng, H., Giusto, P., Ghosal, A. (2012). Understanding and using the controller area network communication protocol: theory and practice. Springer Science Business Media.

Effect of globalisation on fast food industry

Effect of globalisation on fast food industry As mentioned earlier in part 1.3, I will be using Porters Five Forces to analyse the external environment to obtain a comprehensive understanding of a given industry. My focus here will be the fast food industry. BK is my chosen company to evaluate the effect of globalisation has upon fast food industry. The analysis will be done in four areas as below and there may be some overlapping of points as they can be interrelated. Section 3.1 Threat of new entrants Section 3.2 Threat of substitutes Bargaining power of customers Section 3.3 Bargaining power of supplier Section 3.4 Rivalry among existing competitors To aid understanding in this analysis, charts and diagrams drawn using Microsoft Excel is provided. 3.1 Threat of new entrants There are six major sources identified as barriers to a market entry which include economies of scale, product differentiation, capital requirement, switching cost, access to channels of distribution and government policy (Porter, 1980). All these have had impact on BK especially as from the point of view of globalisation. 3.1.1 Capital Requirement In my observation, it is very possible to open one or two outlets but to globally have a chain of outlets with the same branding requires tremendous capital requirements. Thus globalisation has directly impacted BK in the way it structured its business model through franchising. BK could afford to do so as with agreements such as US- Canada Free Trade Agreement and North American Free Trade Agreement (Reference for Business, 2010). BK took advantage of the relative free flow of resources under globalisation to expand globally. Franchising is a relative low cost and low risk business model. Most of the US franchisors often use this method to enter a new market with diverse economical, cultural and political environment (Alon, 2006). For instance, 88% of BKs restaurants worldwide are franchised in fiscal 2009, contributing to $412.5 millions of total revenue globally (Burger King Holdings Inc., 2009). Franchising enables the business to develop in an unfamiliar market relatively quickly on a larger scale, allows the use of local partners who are familiar with local environment and also to create a standardised, global brand image, generating marketing economies of scale (McDonald et al., 2002). Charts below will provide further information on BKs franchise restaurants. Chart 1: Percentage of BKs Franchise Restaurants and Company Restaurants Worldwide ( Burger King Holdings Inc.,2009; SEC Info, 2007) Chart 2: Revenue Breakdown From BKs Total Revenue Worldwide (Burger King Holdings Inc., 2009) However with globalisation, competition is globalised and relentless. McDonalds is actually BKs largest competitor as it provides better menu variety with more valuable and affordable prices (CNN.com, 2009), biting into BKs revenue by securing a larger market share. McDonalds is also more a pioneer compared to BK because it opened its first restaurant in 1940 (Spiritus-temporis.com, 2005) compared to BK with its first restaurant in 1954 (WikiAnswers, 2010). Being a pioneer, McDonalds has many advantages which includes entrenchment of position in consumers minds, creating higher thresholds for later entrants in terms of quality, advertising and distribution support, enjoys long-term market share advantages and reputation benefits (Gass et al.,2003). It is the effect of globalisation where McDonalds has built around 32,000 outlets in more than 117 countries (McDonalds Corporation, 2010). With its expansion into international markets, the company is famous throughout the world and is the leader in this industry followed by BK only at second place. The difference in number of outlets worldwide which also translates into sales volume differences between these two fast food chain can be seen clearly in the diagrams below. Chart 3: The total number of restaurants worldwide for BK and McDonalds. ( Burger King Holdings Inc.,2009; McDonalds Corporation, 2009) Chart 4: Comparison of Sales Revenues Between BK and McDonalds (Burger King Holdings Inc., 2009, McDonalds Corporation 2007; 2009, SEC Info, 2007) Based on the charts, McDonalds is approximately 3 times larger than BK in terms of outlet and 10 times larger in terms of sales revenues. Substantial capital is also needed in terms of advertising to build up BKs brand. The advertising cost of McDonalds is approximately 8 times higher than BK thus creating a higher barrier entry when BKs brand name is lacking compared to McDonalds. To compete with McDonalds, BK needs more capital to increase its advertising as it is very much needed in globalisation to introduce BK in new markets and building up its image that they may otherwise not known about (Coulter, 2001). To ease comparison of the advertising cost, it is illustrated in chart below. Chart 5: Advertising cost of BK compared to McDonalds (Burger King Holdings Inc., 2009; SEC Info, 2007; McDonalds Corporation, 2007;2009) With these type of cost outlays, for other competitors to come into the same scale as these two companies is extremely daunting indeed, thus the threat of entrants is low, though for smaller players is possible to find niches that are under or not exploited as yet. Luckily the advertising costs have resulted in branding, which builds a better image globally and flows ultimately into higher sales and profitabililty. Table below provides Best Global Brand Ranking 2009 highlighting few of BKs major competitors and where BK succeeded in positioning its brand among top 100 in year 2009. 2009 rank 2008 rank brand country of origin sector 2009 brand value ($m) 6 8 united states restaurant 32275 61 64 united states restaurant 5722 79 81 united states restaurant 3876 90 85 united states restaurant 3263 93 new united states restaurant 3233 Table 1: Best Global Brand Ranking 2009 (Interbrand, 2009) It is clear that BK lags behind McDonalds though in many ways this is to be expected given its much lower advertising cost outlays, which besides outlet costs, form a significant barrier of entry as mentioned earlier. 3.1.2 Product Differentiation With globalisation, BK differentiates itself from other fast food giants by acknowledging culture and country specific needs. For instances, Pork-based Bulgogi Burgers are offered in korea and the ultra-spicy Rendang Double in Singapore (Wikipedia, 2010). Picture 1: Pork based Bulgogi Burger Picture 2: Rendang Double (flickr.com, 2008 ) (therealnurulle.blogspot.com, 2010) BK also keeps its promise of Have it your way with customers having 221184 possible ways of ordering a Whopper meal (Swabey, 2007). This will help to ease its penetration into new market with different local conditions. BKs response to globalisation is obviously to cater to local tastes, as the pictures above testify. Another response to globalisation has been the move towards becoming more healthy by offering healthier menu with less salt and also with its product innovation to provide food with higher nutrition contents. At all times, BK is trying to differentiate itself to meet customers demands. Further details regarding food offerings will be mentioned in later part. 3.2 Threat of Substitutes and Bargaining Power of Customers Various global fast food chains have successfully make inroads in diverse market settings around the world (Watson, 2006). These restaurants stand the most conspicuous symbol of globalisation and modernity in countries worldwide (Wilk, 2006). Hence, they are often viewed as the cutting edge of emerging global consumer culture which have caused societies worldwide to become increasingly homogeneous and deterritorialised (Friedman, 2000). Although the expansion of Western quick-service eateries outside America and Europe has done much to transform established notions of service, taste and lifestyle (Schlosser et al., 2001), their spread has also given rise to rival domestic chains whose extensive knowledge of local preferences offers real advantages in attracting and retaining customers (Matejowsky, 2008). It is the strong bargaining power of customers which intensify the competition among various food chains with more substitutes available. To deal with these forces on a global basis, BK resorted to differentiate itself through innovative marketing and menu items. 3.2.1 Innovative Marketing BK has adopted a strategy which helps to differentiate them from their competitors. The company appointed TMP Worldwide Advertising Communications to create an exclusive company-wide employer branding campaign based on the concept Fun with a Future which concentrates on brand recognition, employee engagement and delivering on brand promise. BK decided to differentiate itself through its product and people with its employee as brand ambassador where all employees at all levels are linked to the company brand featuring in BKs advertisements and posters (Business and Finance Week, 2008). This is in line with the concept of globalisation where people of different races, culture and family background will have a common global identification as BKs brand ambassador. Pictures below feature BK employees who are of different races and cultures. Picture 3: Employees of BK in Tokyo Picture 4: Employees of BK in U.S. (associatedcontent.com, 2010) (farsons.com, 2010) BK also uses a creative marketing strategy by building an edgy, hip image with young men, who are targeted consumers (Jargon, 2006). For instance, in November 2006, BK began offering BK Xbox and Xbox 360 games with their value meals. After one month, 20 million of BK Xbox games had been sold. The games could only be bought with a value meal which means that BK attracted a lot of customers with this promotion, earning a nice profit from it. Comparing with BK, McDonalds on the other hand only places Nintendo mascot toys in their Happy Meals (Mattie, 2007). A picture of both BK Xbox and McDonalds Nintendo toys can be seen below. Picture 5: Burger King Xbox Picture 6: McDonalds Nintendo Toy ( blogs.ft.com, 2006) (toadcastle.net, 2006) The successfulness of BKs innovative marketing was already proven in 1999 in a TV campaign where Whopper was proclaimed as Americas Favourite Burger. That claim was based on the result of a research where 700 consumers were asked to name their favourite burger. 33% of them picked Whopper and only 12% chose McDonalds Big Mac (Cebrzynski, 1999). Having innovative marketing is a response to the threat of substitutes and bargaining power of customers as BK tries to embed itself on consumer consciousness globally. 3.2.2 Menu Options and Changes BK tries to reach out more customers through its menu to reduce threat of substitutes, which of course with globalisation is a full time and relentless force. As mentioned in part 3.1, health consciousness was rising among people with the obesity crisis hitting globally. It was found that United States tops the hierarchy for obesity with 30.6%, followed by Mexico and United Kingdom with 24.2% and 23% (NationMaster.com, 2010). Even though BK tries to blunt customers bargaining power and the threat of substitutes through aggressive marketing as seen above, in truth they are obviously much stronger with no switching cost. New Products Thus a response from BK is to try to be almost all things to customers. For instance, provide healthier food options. The company in its social responsibility statement promises to work with its trained chefs and nutritionist to develop new menu options that meet customers nutritional needs globally (Burger King Holdings Inc., 2010a). BKs efforts could be seen when it unveiled a healthy eating adaptation of its Have It Your Way strategy where posters in restaurants tell customers how to order a low carbohydrate, low fat and low calorie meal (Walker, 2004). The famous Whopper can also be served without the bun, mayonnaise and ketchup (MacArthur, 2004). BK also launched a new salad line offering shrimp and sirloin steak with grilled peppers and onions on it (Walker, 2004). Besides, health drive was initiated by BK by reducing salt and fat content in burgers and fries. Even children are targeted where childrens menu also comes with a choice of apples or grapes, milk or fruit juice (Forte, 2006). In 2008, BKs kids meal underwent makeover with the introduction of apple fries as part of the meal (Burger King Holdings Inc., 2010b). A list of BKs healthier options with their calorie contents are provided in Appendix 3. Pictures below show two healthy options from BK. Picture 7: Kids meal with Apple Fries Picture 8: Bunless Whopper (fastfood.ocregister.com, 2009) (hungry-girl.com, 2010) In addition, BK also later launched its Joe Coffee. This made-to-order coffee processed from 100% Arabica coffee beans (The Franchise Mall, 2005). This is actually a response to global economic crisis where it was found that consumers were trading down from more expensive coffee such as starbucks into lower ranking choices, providing a perfect option for BK. Thus even though globally the economic situation was dire, for instance it was found that 2009s world economic growth rate was only half percent (International Monetary Fund, 2009). BK found a new market segment to exploit to further reduce the threat of substitutes and bargaining power of customers. Latest initiatives include where in February year 2010, BK decided to replace its own coffee brand BK Joe with Seattles Best Coffee, a brand owned by Starbucks to increase falling sales by improving its product offerings (Tice, 2010). Pictures below show BKs Joe Coffee and its replacement, Seattles Best Coffee. Picture 9: BK Joe Coffee (ebay.com, 2010) Picture 10: Seattles Best Coffee (myalohavibe.com, 2010) BK also imitated a McDonalds breakfast item. BKs Breakfast Muffin Sandwich was promoted through an advertisement where a cleverly disguised BK breaks into McDonalds Headquarters to steal the Top Secret Blueprints for the Sausage McMuffin With Egg (Dave, 2010). Picture below shows the contrast between the two breakfast offering from McDonalds and BK. Picture 11: McDonalds Sausage McMuffin with Egg Vs BKs breakfast Muffin (davescupboard.blogspot.com, 2010) New Pricing It is not just menu changes were offered but also menu pricing as well. To meet the changing economic conditions as an impact of global recession, BK also announced that it will offer $1 double cheeseburger in order to gain market share back from McDonalds (Johnson, 2007). This has cause BKs franchisees to file a law suit challenging BKs right to dictate maximum prices as the products costs is at least $1.10 per sandwich (Glover, 2009). Thus even though BK tries to satisfy customers other stakeholders may not be happy, showing the complexities in managing relationships in the era of globalisation. Further in many ways, as seen in breakfast, and even in pricing, since the RM $1 cheeseburger, BK is imitating McDonalds. 3.3 Bargaining power of suppliers With globalisation, BK is required to maintain the quality of services in its restaurants worldwide. As a measure of quality control, BK will evaluate before approving the existing or potential manufacturers and distributors of food, packaging and equipment products used in the restaurants. Evaluation is done based on their delivery, timeliness and financial conditions. To ensure consistency, franchises are required to purchase their products from approved suppliers. (Burger King Holdings Inc., 2009). 3.3.1 Purchasing Power of BK Restaurant Services Inc. (RSI), a not-for-profit independent purchasing cooperative leverages purchasing power of the BK system in United States by negotiating the purchase terms for most equipments, food, beverages, toys and paper products used in the restaurants (Burger King Holdings Inc., 2009). RSI currently involves in the negotiation of purchase with BK for more than $3 billion a year in goods and services, managing supply agreements with over 300 suppliers and 27 distributors (Sterlingcommerce, 2009). For company restaurants and franchise restaurants in Canada, a subsidiary of RSI is responsible to purchase the products. However, there is currently no appointed purchasing agent that represents franchisees in other international regions. BK will work closely with their franchisees to implement programs that leverage their global purchasing power and to obtain lower product costs outside the United States and Canada. (Burger King Holdings Inc., 2009). Globalisation has increased the purchasing power of BK and therefore reducing bargaining power of suppliers with the ease of selection of suppliers who meet the company criteria 3.3.2 Suppliers of BK Food As a global fast food chain, it is important for BK to maintain its brand name worldwide. The image of the global brand could be destroyed in a day due to globalisation where news travels billion times faster than it used to be in the past. BK was labelled Murder King by animal activists forcing the company to implement new policies that are more closely monitor its suppliers. Thus by 2001, there were guidelines that require the egg suppliers battery cages to contain two water bottles, allowing the birds to stand upright and be at least 75 square inches (Detweiler, 2001). BK further discourages its suppliers from trimming chickens beak and breaking their wings to save packing space when transporting (Detweiler, 2001). Reports in media of one or more cases of food-borne diseases in one of BKs restaurant also negatively affect its sales worldwide when being highly publicised (Burger King Holdings Inc., 2009). During an earlier case in year 1997, BK cut off its ties with one of its biggest beef supplier, Hudson Foods Inc. as its beef supplies were contaminated with E.coli..Hudson voluntarily recalled the beef after the severity of E.coli contamination was discovered at its plant in Columbus, leaving some BK restaurants without sufficient beef supply for 24 hours to 48 hours (Papernik et al., 1997). Soft Drinks In fiscal 2000, BK decided to enter into a long term contracts with The Coca-Cola Company and Dr Pepper/Seven-Up Inc to supply all restaurants of BK in United States with their product (Burger King Holdings Inc., 2009). BK prolonged its long term liaison with The Coca-Cola Company as an approved soft drink supplier for its international region covering Greater Europe, Latin America and Asia-Pacific (PRNewswire, 2003). With the effect of globalisation, consumers in around 200 countries enjoy Coca-Cola products of more than 1 billions servings per day (The Coca-Cola Company, 2010). BK International President believes that with this renewed alliances, Coca-Cola Company, recognised as the worlds best known brand (The Coca-Cola Company, 2010) will help to grow the BK brand rapidly by providing the best burger experience to their consumers in all restaurants globally (PRNewswire, 2003). Getting into alliances with suppliers is a good way to also set up higher barriers of entry. From my analysis, bargaining power of food suppliers are strong but over soft drinks especially in terms of dealing with companies with strong brand name is weaker. Obviously, the extent to which the other party uses branding and distribution network as leverage globally as well. Employees Other than external suppliers, internal supplier is also an important piece of puzzle which without, BKs supplier network would not be complete. Hence, the bargaining power of its employees should not be shoved aside. BK had approximately 41320 employees in its company restaurants, field management offices and global headquarters as at 30th June 2009 (Burger King Holdings Inc., 2009). As mentioned in part 3.2.1, there are diversity of employees with different backgrounds, race, religion and cultures. It is clear that like globalisation, the factors in Porters Five Forces are interlinked and do not stand alone. The success of BK is highly dependent on its ability to attract general managers with necessary competences to be part of the management team to motivate the employees to sustain high service levels and maintain sales growth. The competition for the right employee candidates causes higher payment of wages featuring the high bargaining power of employees (Burger King Holdings Inc., 2009). However, where boundaries between countries became narrower and communication made easier with globalisation, the search for the right employee is more efficient and effective through online application, which could perhaps reduce their bargaining power. The selection of employees is important as a wrong choice would lead to negative publicity. In one of the cases, a BK employee in Jacksonville had tried to poison a customer as he was pissed due to his suspension for misconduct (Morbid, 2010). In another case, a Washington State Deputy, Edward Bylsma after discovering a spit on his Whopper ordered fr om a BK employee decided to sue BK seeking $75,000 of compensation (Ryan, 2010). No doubt with globalisation, these news would definitely spread fast and adversely impact the companys brand. Further, since a large portion of outlets are franchised as a result of BKs decision on this bus model to move globally, employees become even more important as front link assets to keep sales and profits up. With payroll expenses on the increase as seen in the chart below, it is clear that for employees, their bargaining power is, in my opinion, rated medium to high. Chart 6: Payroll and Employee Benefits for BK ( Burger King Holdings Inc., 2009) 3.4 Rivalry among Existing Competitors Globalisation has increased the competition among the fast food chain. With various quick service restaurants mushrooming worldwide, other than competing on a national or regional basis, they are competing with each other globally. As an effect of globalisation causing increases in degree of awareness among consumers, there has been intense competition among the competitors globally to gain market share. Increasing prices of raw material, agitation by social organisations, slow down of U.S economy and also increasing fuel prices has prompt many fast food chain to divert their attention to eastern part of the world especially China ( Naim, 2008). Although globalisation has ease the expansion of fast food chain worldwide with the ease of information transfer and seeking global suppliers, entry into China and other Asian countries still pose logistical and political challenges. As quoted from Martin (1994) in Nation Restaurants news Among the most frustrating obstacles are the scarcity and inordinately high cost of prime locations in most markets as well as the steep tariffs and patchwork of inconsistent regulations that impede imports of commodities and equipment. 3.4.1 New Geographical Regions and New Ventures Taking a closer look, even though globalisation has blurred boundaries, there are still differences in cultural issues between United States and other countries resulting in different eating habits of consumers ( Glazer, 2007). From consumer point of view, globalisation has resulted from development of sophisticated media contributing to the creation of a borderless market but it does not mean it is without internal differences or local tastes (Ziedman, 2003). When a company goes global, they are bound to satisfy the demands of local customers. For example in India, cows are sacred and worshipped by the Indians, beef could not be served and the muslims, they could not consume pork (Kulkarni et al., 2009). Hence, it is a must to substitute the beef and pork in the product offerings. To further compete globally, BK invested in Whopper Bars. BK opened their first Whopper Bar in Orlando during spring 2009, and the first in Asia in Singapore during September 2009 (International Wire, 2009). It offers a specialised burger menu with more than 20 toppings (Ruggles, 2010). On 8th February 2010, BK further announced that beer sales will be added at a new unit opening in South Miami. ( Ruggles, 2010). BK changes may not be rapid enough to obtain further market share from McDonalds but the company has been spending more effort in improving its sales in this global competition ( Anderlini et al., 2010). Competing on a global scale gives rise to global income streams. This would help BK to sustain the worldwide competition where the profit from a restaurant would balance the loss in another. The pie charts below show the distribution of revenue from different geographical region. Chart 6: BKs Geographical Sales from Year 2007-Year 2009 (Burger King Holdings Inc., 2009) In a way, the company is more dependent on its home market, as showed in the pie chart above where most portion of global stream income is generated. In a recent case in 2009, BKs advertisement for Texican Whopper burger in Europe had angered the Mexicans where a small wrestler featured in the advertisement was dressed in a cape resembling a Mexican flag. Mexicans have high respect for their flag and therefore could not tolerate such an insult from BK ( The Assiociated Press, 2009). This adverse publicity could have adversely impact its profits. Still, the company had not done unduly badly as seen in the charts below. Chart 7: Revenue, Gross Profit and Net Profit of BK from Year 2005 2009 (Burger King Holdings Inc., 2009, SEC Info, 2007) It is clear that BK has done well as seen in increasing absolute figures of all sales, gross profit and net profit. A look at gross profit and net profit margin also shows that on a relative basis the company is handling itself well in the world of globalisation. Chart 8: Gross Profit Margin and Net Profit Margin of BK from Year 2005- 2009 (Burger King Holdings Inc., 2009, SEC Info, 2007) Even though Gross Profit Margin has been decreasing slightly, its net profit margin has been increasing with a drastic improvement from year 2006 to 2007. This is definitely a good sign. 3.5 Conclusion and Recommendation Globalisation can be a threat to the company and also it may help its expansion. Being a global brand, BK has a lot benefits which include cost-efficiencies, sharing of resources and ability to attract partners, employees and customers on entering new market. It all depends how the company took opportunities and work towards their goals. Management of globalisation is the key to success and most importantly, BK need to balance between global and local control (Samli, 2008). The company has retreated back to the US market, which is why the share prices have been sliding back down in recent times as seen below. Chart 9 : BKs Share Price Ups and Downs from 2001 till 2010 ( Yahoo Finance, 2010) Recommendations made to companys performance are as follows: Moving In Developing countries, Especially India and China Aggressively: India and China both has a steady high economic growth rates of 8.8% and 10% in 2010 (India Brand Equity Foundation, 2010) and will probably be the major players in the world economy. It is definitely a wise option to expand BKs growth in these two countries by using local partners, local employees and local ingredients. Furthermore, BK could also offer limited promotions during festive seasons or special events, for instance during Chinese New Year or Deepavali as this will help to attract more customers during that period. Broader Menu Selection: As mentioned earlier in the project, BK should continuously provide more choices of menu which allow customers to pick from wider choices. This step should be taken to also reduce threat of substitutes from new entries and existing competitors. Its product offerings must also be ensured to meet the local taste. As mentioned by the officials of market research firm of the NPD Group, quick service operators who are expanding their brands outside the United States must customise each unit to meet the specific needs of consumers in the country and region they seek to enter (Glazer, 2007). Promotions and Advertising: As observed so far, BKs advertising has been giving positive impact on its sales. Hence, BK should continuously invest in its promotions and advertisement to gain market share. BK could perhaps invite its employees to give their opinion as they are also the brand ambassadors. This would allow a fresher and a more creative in flow of idea and to boost the motivation of the employees as they are invited to participate in the companys program. However, BK should avoid price wars with its competitors ie. McDonalds as this would pull down the profits of all burger chains. BK should choose to differentiate from its competitors. There is only one winner in cost strategy but there may be more than one winner in differentiation strategy. Relationships with Franchisees: There has been cases where the franchisees are not happy with the decisions of BK Inc..The most obvious example is the sale of doublecheese burger at $1. BK should strengthen its ties with the franchisees by encouraging them to provide ideas and feedbacks on how to improve sales. When there is a disagreement between them, BK should understand the reason behind and to solve it on a win-win situation. If this could be practised, law suit against BK Inc. could be avoided. In conclusion, Porters Five Forces Analysis that was used to analyse BKs stand in the industry gives a birds eye view of the company and industry globally. Globalisation plays a major role in pushing and shaping the company. The survival of BK is dependent on its ability to adapt to constant changes in business environment due to globalisation. With BKs effort in improving its performance, it will definitely survive in this field and could perhaps be the number one fast food chain worldwide in the future.

My aim is to produce a line follower robot with a bump sensor Essay

My aim is to produce a line follower robot with a bump sensor which can reverse if it goes off course. Research: Line follower robots are most commonly produced to take part in competitions. The purpose of the line follower robot is to follow a line. The robot will only follow a line that is black against a white background or a white line against a black background. This is so that the sensors can distinguish a clear difference in light and so the robot can trace and follow the line. From my research I have decided to use infrared LED emitters (phototransistors). They are fairly cheap but work relatively well. To research into the project I was going to make I looked on the internet to find other examples of the line follower robots. I found many different variations and concentrated on the components used. I looked into books and gathered information on how to assemble the circuit on the breadboard and researched on how the components work. I have researched on the type of amplifiers I could use for the line follower. I will use an amplifier to increase the current as I am using low voltage. I looked on the Maplins website (www.maplins.co.uk) and decided to use the LM386 because it is suitable for low voltage applications and it is relatively cheap. Specification: * The robot has to be able to follow straight lines, curves and turn around corners * It has to follow a black line that is against a white background * It must work using one 9V battery * The robot must be able to reverse from any obstacle it hits * It should be able to function on its own (No help needed to guide it) * It should be small and light, easy to move and pick up if veered off course. * Should indicate what direction it will turn Generation of possible solutions: I could use 2 light dependant resistors to detect the difference in light reflected from the line. It would react quite slowly I could use two phototransistors which emit infrared beams onto the line. When less light is detected on the phototransistors there is less resistance thus allowing the motors to move. Sub-system development: My circuit had two designs combined. First is the line follower, which detects light and moves according to the line, and the other part is a bump sensor which when it stumbles across an obstacle it reverses, this is ... ...llowed the light. I also used an ammeter to check the current passing through the circuit. This confirmed that my circuit was working correctly. When I covered the phototransistors the there was around 0.4 A passing through. However, when I applied light onto the phototransistors (using an ordinary LED) I noticed that the reading on the ammeter was 8.6 A. this proves my theory that covering the phototransistors, it increases the resistance. Evaluation: My circuit works well and follows my specification. The motors move forward when light is placed and it and slow down when no light is present on the phototransistors. * Robot has the ability to move in s straight line, around curves and turn corners. * With the photo transistors it can follow a black line against a white background. * It works using a 9V battery * It has a relay which reverses the direction of the motors turning so it can move away from obstacles * It doesn’t require anyone to move it or guide it using a remote control. * It is light and easy to move so when it goes of course I am able to put it back on the line * Has two LEDs which indicate what direction it is turning

Escalating Professional Athlete Salaries Essay -- Papers Sports Money

Escalating Professional Athlete Salaries Works Cited Not Included In recent years, with the growing popularity of sports, athletes salaries have escalated like that of a superb stock equity. Athletes are taking full advantage of their position, causing the average man to wonder how high will they go. Some feel that athletes are greedy people who have lost care for the true meaning of their salary, the love of the game. Others feel that if a person is able to earn that kind of money, why shouldn't they? Increases in athlete salaries will bring up the question on whether athletes are worth the money by researching the NBA?s new collective bargaining agreement (before and after the approval), by observing the current salaries of top athletes in their respective sports, and by concocting possible solutions. Shaquille O?Neal, formerly of the Orlando Magic, signed almost two years ago with the Los Angeles Lakers for an enormous $120 million over seven seasons.... Alonzo Mourning signed with the Miami Heat for a seven year deal worth about $112 million.... These fat contracts have brought out the question: Are pro athletes worth the millions they are paid? Basketball Hall of Famer David Thompson states, "Players have such a short time to make their money. If you look at others in the entertainment business, you?d think so. Look at Mike Tyson. He made $30 million for the six minutes and 50 seconds i t took for him to knockout Frank Bruno" (Rhodes and Reibstein 44). Zachary M. Jones, an attorney at Howard University in Washington D.C., utters, "Superstar athletes are few in number, so the demand is high, which raises the price for their services significantly" (Saporito 61). Furthermore, Mark Rosen, who has been a spor... ...s worth far more." Certainly a 22 year old kid can live on $126 million quite alright. Before doing an in-depth analysis of pro sports salaries, one ignorant person would conclude that these salaries are way too high. However, sports salaries are "okay" to be enormous. This is because high salaries show that the economy and basketball revenue are up, because that is where the owners get the money to pay the athletes. After Glen Taylor signed upcoming superstar Kevin Garnett, season ticket sales went soaring. Finally, if a player is allowed to make the money, why is it such a bad thing? More power to them. Yet athletes should be satisfied with their current salary status. As you can very well see, salaries have risen to unbearable heights, yet it is inevitable. With the economy as it is who knows when it will begin to level off. All we can do is sit back and watch.

Creons Tragic Insecurity in Sophocles Antigone :: Antigone essays

Creon's Tragic Insecurity in Antigone In ancient Greek tragedies at least one character has the misfortune of having a tragic flaw. The flaw usually effects the protagonist and leads to his down fall. Normally, the characters close to the protagonist are all affected by his flaw. In Antigone, by Sophocles, Creon's tragic flaw is that he is insecure. Creon's insecurity leads to the death of many people and to his own downfall. At many times, Creon feels that people are directing everything toward him, when of course they are not. Consequently, he takes action to make sure people take him seriously. He hopes his actions will teach people not to walk all over him and his empire. However these actions are not always the right ones. Since Creon is so insecure he feels that people are conniving against him. When Polyneices was found buried after Creon clearly announced no one was to bury him, Creon completely dismissed the idea that it could have been the gods or a mere woman who buried Polyneices. He said, "There have been those who have whispered together. Stiff-necked anarchists, putting their heads together, scheming against me in alleys."(9) The mention of the word "those" shows that Creon feels many people are out to disobey his laws and make him look bad. Contrary to Creon's belief it was a woman, Antigone, who had gone to bury her brother Polyneices because she felt he deserved a proper burial. Creon's insecurity made him feel that a large group of people were against him when in reality it was only one woman who disobeyed his law. Creon's insecurity blinds his ability to direct order in his country properly. After Antigone buried Polyneices Creon felt he needed to take a strong stand or people would think he would always be lenient toward criminals. However, to achieve this Creon felt he needed to take drastic action against Antigone. He once even said to his son, Haimon, who was about to marry Antigone, "The woman dies. I suppose she'll plead family ties. Well, let her. If I permit my own family to rebel, how shall I earn the world's obedience?" (19) This quote shows that Creon feels that to prove himself to the country he needs to earn the "world's obedience".

Lovely Hula Hands Essay

Trask’s object of study is the historical and contemporary American popular conception of Hawaii, Native Hawaiians, and Native Hawaiian issues, such as rights, sovereignty, tourism, and institutional racism. Trask primarily interrogates the issues of colonialism, neocolonialism, and sovereignty in Hawai‘i and how these debates are framed in disparate contexts/around different foci; Hawaiian nationalist, cultural, international human rights, Oceania, tourist, and academic (ie. Historian, anthropologist, American studies). Trask’s key research questions are answered with powerful, persuasive, and cogent expertise made both accessible sans intellectual jargon and intimate by her personal herstory of colonialism and sovereignty struggles in Hawai‘i. To her credit, Trask pulls no punches in telling of struggles for hegemony and the legacies of violence preserved in everything from images of bombed aina, to institutional racism and sexism in our own American Studies department(! ), to the â€Å"lovely hula hands† of dusky, dancing Hawaiian maidens that are drooled over in international imaginations. Doing so, Trask participates in many important practical and theoretical debates, and writes purposefully and passionately against the continued violence against her land and people beyond mere consciousness-raising and, reasonably, on the offense. What is interesting about Trask’s writing is her clarity. She tells tourists not to visit, Hawaiians not to practice their indigenous culture peripherally, historians to be more self-reflexive, and haole’s to unpack their knapsacks of white privilege and colonial histories. It is also clear what is at stake in her interrogations and resolutions; the survival of Native Hawaiian people, rights, culture, and lands. Trask’s text, in presentation, appears more like a collection of journalistic articles and essays than a singular sustained argument around a specific cultural â€Å"text†. For this reason, it is somewhat unclear in what ways we should answer her call for change first and most importantly. An advantage of this organization, however, is the ability of her text to speak â€Å"from a native daughter† perspective to a multitude of audiences, interdisciplinarily, across many different aforementioned debates. Trask’s text in its entirety is very appropriate for this week’s discussion on identity politics and there are many strands of Trask’s text that piqued my interest. Her coverage of Hawaiian history and historiography helped enrich my sensitivity of how Hawai‘i is conceived in my own studies. When I am to write my histories, what audiences will I be writing for? Will it be through an inherently Western lens for the consumption of Western eyes/consumption? How does one avoid this? Did Trask succeed in avoiding this? I appreciated Trask’s writing on the New World Order and her resistance to cultural uniformity. Trask’s reading of hegemonies in Hawaii is a good contrast to other overly-economically-deterministic readings of Pacific-Rim discourse (see Arif Dirlik’s â€Å"The Asia-Pacific Idea: Reality and Representations in the Invention of a Regional Structure†). I enjoyed Trask’s discussion of local leaders, politicians, and academics in regards to mana and Hawaiian culture because it re-situated my perception of the continuing complicitous and counterhegemonic efforts of contemporary individuals. I was introduced to the context of international human rights versus civil rights approaches to Hawaiian sovereignty and American domestic policy at large. Trask’s dismantling of the arguments against Hawaiian sovereignty seem like good models, or at the very least inspiration, for further works counterarguing in theory and application existing conditions that preserve inequality and colonial legacy (i. e. gay and lesbian liberation movement, etc. ) I found Trask’s discussion on academic institutional racism, sexism, and the white hegemony on campus to be critical for my personal academic and professional journeys. Although she includes her definition on racism, I would have liked to know how Trask conceives of â€Å"race† and â€Å"racial ideology† in Hawai‘i as it has changed throughout pre-haole until present times. It seems, how Native Hawaiians, missionaries, businessmen, and various government officials usage of race or similar concepts would be an important approach to understanding its legacy relative to dominant/marginal ideologies/hegemonies (i. e. colonial, gender, sexual, cultural, and such. ). Moreover, how do we, as students and educators, continue to facilitate/obstruct the further unpacking of white privilege on UH campus? It might seem audacious to ask, but out of curiosity, how have racism and sexism changed/persisted on campus/in our department, since Trask’s hiring events? It seems like there was an individual and collective element to the discrimination Trask experienced, how does this help us be more self-reflexive of our complicity in maintaining hegemonies? How have institutional policies/practices been changed (or not) protecting from such events re-occurring? Relevant to more recent events in our department, is it comparable to question heterosexual privilege? To analogize Trask’s rhetoric, how can beneficiaries of heterosexual privilege come to see that homophobia is not only a matter of sexuality but of history and power? It seems this leads to more questions our class will have to discuss. Is the preferable approach one of common interest to enable coalition building across identities or one of episodic gains within different particular sites of struggle?

Are Youths Self Centered?

Consider the criticism leveled at young people that their only values are self centered ones. There has been a biggest drop in empathy in recent history. â€Å"College kids today are about 40 percent lower in empathy than their counterparts of 20 or 30 years ago. † Self-centeredness is caring only about oneself and one’s own needs. Having a large proportion of self-centered young people would have a great impact on the society as the young people would be the future of the nation.That would mean a generation of self centered individuals all over the country. Not to mention the values these individuals would impart to their offspring. But is this criticism valid? I do not agree that the criticism is valid. In this essay, I will be touching on two key points. Firstly, young people are just trying to find their own paths. Secondly, young people are still transitioning from children to adulthood. Young people are still in the process of finding their own paths.Young people are taught to trust their own judgment, make their own decisions, fight for their belief, be themselves and persevere. However, in the process of that, young people are stopped and questioned of their actions. While defending for their actions that they have trusted and believed in, they get misunderstood for being self-centered and self- absorbed. Young people seem self-centered but in actual fact, they cannot find out about themselves unless they pay attention to themselves and do things for themselves.That is how they learn their preferences, dreams, goals and passions. For example, young people have faced criticisms that they are self-centered and friend-centered. However, they are closer with their friends, as they understand better their needs, preferences and dreams as they are in the same age group. They aid each other in finding out about themselves. There are many things that have changed since parent’s time of teen-hood and they may not understand the challenges po sed to young people now.Therefore, young people seem like they are acting self-centered as they are just in the process of finding their own paths. Secondly, young people are still transitioning from children to adulthood. Young adults are facing many different emotions, needs, hormones, excitement and anxiety. In order to face these new feelings, they need energy and attention. This may result in the misconception of self-centeredness when the individual is trying to sate their own feelings. The teen period is a time of transition from the security of the small child to the adult world.For example, physical changes in the body like menstruation and voice deepening is a very frightening and confusing change, and in process of dealing with these changes, physically and mentally, suddenly, what is to be understood and secure has changed. New rules have been set. All these new details start to form mountains and it leads the individual to think, â€Å"So what exactly am I suppose to d o? † As a result, they turn their attention to themselves and get misunderstood as being self-centered. Therefore, young people seem like they are acting self-centered as they are still transitioning from children to adulthood.

Jose Rizal’s Timeline

Source: http://joserizal. info/Biography/timeline. htm CHRONOLOGY 1848, June 28 — Rizal’s parents married in Kalamba, La Laguna: Francisco Rizal-Mercado y Alejandra (born in Binan, April 18, 1818) and Teodora Morales Alonso-Realonda y Quintos (born in Sta. Cruz, Manila, Nov. 14, 1827). 1861, June 19 — Rizal born, their seventh child. 1861, June 22 — Christened as Jose Protasio Rizal-Mercado y Alonso-Realonda 1870, age 9 — In school at Binan under Master Justiniano Aquin Cruz. 1871, age 10 — In Kalamba public school under Master Lucas Padua. 872, June 10, age 11 — Examined in San Juan de Letran college, Manila, which, during the Spanish time, as part of Sto. Tomas University, controlled entrance to all higher institutions. 1872, June 26 — Entered the Ateneo Municipal de Manila, then a public school, as a day scholar. 1875, June 16, age 14 — Became a boarder in the Ateneo. 1876, March 23, age 15 — Received the Bachel or of Arts (B. A. ) degree, with highest honors, from Ateneo de Manila. 1877, June. — Entered Sto. Tomas University in the Philosophy course. 877, Nov. 29 — Awarded diploma of honorable mention and merit by the Royal Economic Society of Friends of the Country, Amigos del Pais, for the prize poem. 1878, June, age 16. — Matriculated in the medical course. Won Liceo Artistico-Literario prize, in poetical competition for â€Å"Indians and Mestizos†, with the poem â€Å"To the Philippine Youth†. Wounded in the back for not saluting a Guardia Civil lieutenant whom he had not seen. The authorities ignored his complaint. 1880, April 23, age 19. – Received Licco Artistico-Literario diploma of honorable mention for the allegory, â€Å"The Council of the Gods†, in competition open to â€Å"Spaniards, mestizos and Indians†. Unjustly deprived of the first prize. 1880, Dec. 8. — Operetta â€Å"On the Banks of the Pasig† produce d. 1881, age 20. — Submitted winning wax model design for commemorative medal for the Royal Economic Society of Friends of the Country centennial. 1882, May 3, age 21. — Secretly left Manila taking a French mail steamer at Singapore for Marseilles and entering Spain at Port Bou by railroad. His brother, Paciano Mercado, furnished the money. 1882, June. – Absence noted at Sto. Tomas University, which owned the Kalamba estate. Rizal’s father was compelled to prove that he had no knowledge of his son’s plan in order to hold the land on which he was the University’s tenant. 1882, June 15. — Arrived in Barcelona. 1882, October 3. — Began studies in Madrid. 1886, –Received degree of Licentiate in Medicine with honors from Central University of Madrid on June 19 at the age of 24. Clinical assistant to Dr. L. de Wecker, a Paris oculist. Visited Universities of Heidelberg, Leipzig, and Berlin. 1887, Feb. 21, age 26. — Fini shed the novel Noli Me Tangere in Berlin.Traveled in Austria, Switzerland and Italy. 1887, July 3. — Sailed from Marseilles. 1887, Aug. 5. — Arrived in Manila. Traveled in nearby provinces with a Spanish lieutenant, detailed by the Governor-General, as escort. 1888, Feb. — Sailed for Japan via Hong Kong. 1888, Feb. 28 to April 13, age 27. — A guest at the Spanish Legation, Tokyo, and traveling in Japan. 1888, April-May. — Traveling in the United States. 1888, May 24. — In London, studying in the British Museum to edit Morga’s 1609 Philippine History. 1889, March, age 28. — In Paris, publishing Morga’s History.Published â€Å"The Philippines A Century Hence† in La Solidaridad, a Filipino fortnightly review, first of Barcelona and later of Madrid. 1890, February to July, age 29. — In Belgium finished El Filibusterismo which is the sequel to Noli Me Tangere. Published â€Å"The Indolence of the Filipino† in La Solidaridad. 1890, August 4. — Returned to Madrid to confer with his countrymen on the Philippine situation, then constantly growing worse. 1891, January 27. — Left Madrid for France. 1891, November, age 30. — Arranging for a Filipino agricultural colony in British North Borneo. Practiced medicine in Hong Kong. 892, June 26, age 31. — Returned to Manila under Governor-General Despujol’s safe conduct pass. Organized a mutual aid economic society: La Liga Filipina on July 3. 1892, July 6. — Ordered deported to Dapitan, but the decree and charges were kept secret from him. Taught school and conducted a hospital during his exile, patients coming from China coast ports for treatment. Fees thus earned were used to beautify the town. Arranged a water system and had the plaza lighted. 1896, August 1, age 35. — Left Dapitan en route to Spain as a volunteer surgeon for the Cuban yellow fever hospitals.Carried letters of recommendation f rom Governor-General Blanco. 1896, August 7 to September 3. — On Spanish cruiser Castilla in Manila Bay. Sailed for Spain on Spanish mail steamer and just after leaving Port Said was confined to his cabin as a prisoner on cabled order from Manila. (Rizal’s enemies to secure the appointment of a governor-general subservient to them, the servile Polavieja had purchased Governor-General Blanco’s promotion. ) 1896, October 6. — Placed in Montjuich Castle dungeon on his arrival in Barcelona and the same day re-embarked for Manila.Friends and countrymen in London by cable made an unsuccessful effort for a Habeas Corpus writ at Singapore. On arrival in Manila was placed in Fort Santiago dungeon. 1890, December 3. — Charged with treason, sedition and forming illegal societies, the prosecution arguing that he was responsible for the deeds of those who read his writings. During his imprisonment Rizal began to formulate in his mind his greatest poem who other s later entitle, â€Å"My Last Farewell. † (later concealed in an alcohol cooking lamp) December 12 — Rizal appears in a courtroom where the judges made no effort to check those who cry out for his death. 896, December 15. — Wrote an address to insurgent Filipinos to lay down their arms because their insurrection was at that time hopeless. Address not made public but added to the charges against him. 1896, December 27. — Formally condemned to death by a Spanish court martial. Pi y Margall, who had been president of the Spanish Republic, pleaded with the Prime Minister for Rizal’s life, but the Queen Regent could not forgive his having referred in one of his writings to the murder by, and suicide of, her relative, Crown Prince Rudolph of Austria. 896, December 29 — Completes and puts into writing â€Å"My Last Farewell. † He conceals the poem in an alcohol heating apparatus and gives it to his family. He may have also concealed another copy of the same poem in one of his shoes but, if so, it is lost in decomposition in his burial. 1896, December 30, age 35 years, 6 months, 11 days. — Roman Catholic sources allege that Rizal marries Josephine Bracken in his Fort Santiago death cell to Josephine Bracken; she is Irish, the adopted daughter of a blind American who came to Dapitan from Hong Kong for treatment.Shot on the Luneta, Manila, at 7:03 a. m. , and buried in a secret grave in Paco Cemetery. (Entry of his death was made in the Paco Church Register among suicides. ) 1897, January. — Commemorated by Spanish Free-masons who dedicated a tablet to his memory, in their Grand Lodge hall in Madrid, as a martyr to Liberty. 1898, August. — Filipinos who placed over it in Paco cemetery, a cross inscribed simply â€Å"December 30, 1896†, sought his grave, immediately after the American capture of Manila. Since his death his countrymen had never spoken his name, but all references had been to â⠂¬Å"The Dead†. 898, December 20. — President Aguinaldo, of the Philippine Revolutionary Government, proclaimed December 30th as a day of national mourning. 1898, December 30. — Filipinos held Memorial services at which time American soldiers on duty carried their arms reversed. 1911, June 19. — Birth semi-centennial observed in all public schools by an act of the Philippine Legislature. 1912, December 30. — Rizal’s ashes transferred to the Rizal Mausoleum on the Luneta with impressive public ceremonies.