Interactive Televsion Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3000 words

Interactive Televsion - Essay Example This new platform enables me to connect with friends with similar interests as me in terms of sporting events, programs and movies. The main idea behind Sora iTV is Fun, Choice, Convenience, Empowerment and Control. Functionalities of Sora iTV Sora iTV will have my personalized TV guide of all upcoming events and episodes for all the shows and sporting events I like. It will also list what my friends or schoolmates are watching. Another feature of Sora iTV will be discussion board, whereby I can talk to friends about our favorite programs and events. New ideas on interesting shows will be floated around and I will later include them in the list of my shows and episodes. Users of Sora iTV will take part only in discussions that have comments from their friends about the specific shows and relevant news articles about those programs and their actors. The posts will be streamed using a Twitter-like interface and filtered by show. This will be possible because the system will look for ke ywords related to specific programs. Designing the user interface of Sora iTV The design of Sora iTV aims create a large display or work area. With this in mind the controls will be pushed to the edge of the screen. Another important factor in screen design for Sora iTV is the distance between me (the viewer) and the television set. Usually in the case of a computer, I sit with two feet of the monitor. But in the case of the TV the distance is usually four to six feet from the set. What this means for the design is that text and controls must be oversized so that they are legible from a distance. The CD-I Design Handbook Philips Interactive Media Systems emphasizes the following when choosing font and color to use for interactive television user interface design: Use simply constructed sans-serif fonts. Don’t use a font size smaller than 22 points. Don’t use red as the text color. Use anti-aliasing to increase readability. Use soft, low contrast outlining or drop shado ws on text to increase the edge definition of the letters. Navigation within the interface is another consideration to make. Historically, viewing of television has been a passive action. Interactivity was limited to browsing through the channels, varying the volume and turning off the set occasionally. One thing to keep in mind when designing the user interface for iTV applications is that there won’t be a keyboard or a direct pointing device like a mouse. Most of my iTV applications will use remote control device, with four arrow keys and a select button. When the navigation is this limited, you must take care in the arrangement of navigable objects on the screen (Shneiderman 1992). For example, functional buttons should be grouped into one column while navigational buttons should be in another group. Moving from one group to the other is one click left or right. Minimize the number of button presses that the user must make to use your screens (Luther 1989). Having done tha t here is how Sora iTV user interface design will look like. Interactivity with Sora iTV Interactivity is what sets Sora iTV apart from the other available iTVs. This interactivity will be enhanced by simplicity in controls and navigation. One of the ways of interacting with Sora iTV is the ability to communicate with my friends through discussion threads. This will be enabled through a Twitter-like interface. Friends

Journal Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words - 82

Journal - Essay Example promised to withdraw all troops from Afghanistan, and those who were to remain were only to be involved in training the Afghanistan soldiers, and not actively helping them in combat missions as the new deal states. Therefore, this makes the story even more controversial, and the writers are seeking audience with Americans to give their opinion on the issue. Moreover, the authors seem to condemn the move, which makes the story bias. Since the involvement of US troops in Afghanistan is an issue that has been debated for years, I would expect the authors to give a little background into the matter. However, the article falls short of any background information regarding the issue. Nevertheless, the authors use quotes from a senior US administrative official, which makes what they report credible. They also refer to an article on Times talking about the same story, and since Times is a reputable newspaper, it gives the story further credibility. Overall, the story is well presented, organized, and easy to

Leadership Styles And Their Role As A Strategic Manager Business Essay

Leadership Styles And Their Role As A Strategic Manager Business Essay INTRODUCTION:- This study is based on leadership styles and their role as a strategic manager and impact of these leadership styles on the overall performance of the organization. Through this study, we will also come to know that how different kinds of leadership style are adopted by strategic managers to attain their organizational goals and prospective. LINK BETWEEN STRATEGIC MANAGEMENT AND LEADERSHIP:- Leaders are the persons who actually made strategies for the company. They set objective, goals and future prospectus of the company. They are dealing as a strategic manager and leader at the same time. In other words they are the major stakeholders due to heavy investment in business. After making strategies, leaders forward their decision to their subordinate team members and they make strategies how to achieve those goals. LITERATURE REVIEW:- a leader is someone who exercises influence over other people. (Huczynski and Buchanan,1933) Leadership is a lifting of people vision to a higher sight, the raising of their performance toa higher standard, the building of their personality beyond its normal limitations (P.F.Drucker,2001) the leader must have infective optimism. The final test of a leader is the feeling you have when you leave presence after a conference. Have you a feeling of uplift and confidence? (Field Marshal Bernard Montgomery, 1956) In 1986 Peters and Austin highlighted the characteristics of leaders and also compared it with managers (Non-Leaders). LEADERS MANAGERS Provide necessities to people Provide consultancy/solutions to everyone. Flexible to adjust among people Dont put their selves into formalities Provide solution at doorstep Work more than others Keep in contact with everyone Listen everyone Easily access by common people Fair dealing with all Make good decisions Dont make any discrimination Happy to deal with tough problems of people Persistent to outcome Provide simplify directions Tolerance in attitude Make close relations with people Strong faith He trusts people Ambassador of people for critical issues Dont waste time on unproductive works Dont like to praise himself by others Takes blame for any mistake Happy to give credit/reward to others Provide effective feedback to improve efficiency Good command on business and getting work by employees Dont get into formal discussion Happy to work under pressure One face person Open minded Try to reduce paperwork environment Encourage own staff to be promoted Make promises and honour these Dont have luxury office Priority is companys success Dont shy to learn from mistakes Supervise more people Give instructions to employees about work Dont happy to live among people Put himself into formalities Staff cannot access him easily Work less than others Dont like to get involve with inferior groups Good communication skills Biased among employees Seek support by groups Overconfident Good command to dodge people Hesitate to take decisions Mostly confused Having less patience Does not create close relations with people More flexible for seniors Create paper environment Holds decisions and information Waste time on un-related works and sources Prominent Keen to find culprits Always find ways to take credit Always search information Biased while assigning work Hatred to all staff members Evaluate business for his/her benefit only Try to find out new ways to handle employees Write lengthy formal letters equivocates hold tactics to handle situation have mysterious life style involve more paperwork find better alternatives in other organizations lack of making promising seeking for luxury office give priority to him/her self scare to find and learn from mistakes Leadership and management are key players of an organization. Both play a tremendous role in the progression of the company. The below are some key features of leadership and management working together to achieve strategic objectives. Vision Strategy:- Leaders define vision and make strategy for future goals and prospective. But on the hand, it is the responsibility of manager to make strategy to attain vision set by leaders. He has to look after all the operational activities of the organization and make staff more productive and efficient. Change and stability:- Whenever leaders feel, they bring changes in organizations and managers arrange stability in changing environment of organization and make tasks more smooth and optimistic. Energizing and monitoring:- Leadership boost up employees to improve their performance and the manager keep an eye on employees performance and utilize human resources in best possible way. To be a successful company, it involves managers and leaders at the same time. But manager should be leader and leaders dont have to inevitably be manager. National council for education in Management leadership published a research project under the title of leadership development: best practice guide for organizations (2001). in this publication, they highlighted nine principles of best practices under three heading. STRATEGIC IMPERATIVES:- Leadership development, to be effective, must be driven from the top with specialist support. It should be designed to support and drive the business, cultural differences and different approaches to development. STRATEGIC CHOICES:- An articulated framework for career development. Variable amounts of formal and informal development. Grow your own senior people or hire them in. The value of competency frameworks and performance management. Retention and reward strategies. EVALUATION:- An explicit and shared evaluation process:- Now a days, organization we find different people withholding different kind of powers. They perform their duties but they act of behalf of leaders of the company. They use power to be more productive and result oriented. There are five kind of powers we find in most of the organisation. Legitimate power:- The person who holds this kind of power is because of his/her position in organization. Coercive power:- This type of power mostly production managers hold because they use it to control people and produce result according to set schedule. Reward power:- Leader has the ability to give benefits and rewards to result oriented employees. Expert power:- These people enjoy power because of their skills, expertise and knowledge. They also treated in organization as benchmark. Referent power:- There are some people who have desirable resources and qualities. ANALYSE THE IMPACT OF MANAGEMENT AND LEADERSHIP STYLES ON STRATEGIC DECISIONS SABRI GROUP OF COMPANIES Sabri group of companies was established in 1960 and now it has largest distribution networks in signage media all over Pakistan. It is one of the most diversified businesses in Pakistan. This is also the first company in Pakistan who fixed manufacturing flex substrate plant. Organizational chart http://sabrigroup.pk/ LEADERSHIP AND MANAGERIAL STYLE IN SGC:- It is very settled organizational structure. Although it is a family business and the most eldest person is assumed to be the main decision maker of the organization especially when heavy amount of funds are required. If we analyse the structure of Sabri Group of Companies (SGC), then we realized that it fits in one of the structural form of Henry Mintzberg which is Simple Structure. Small companies operate like this structure and SGC is one of them. Owner his self makes most of the main decisions but he also gets consent of his team managers. By having this simple structure, management can respond quickly to any problem. Although it is not very big organization but it has established its decision making structure. Their decision making structure is involved the following principles; Extent of control Centralization Dissect ion of labour Departmentalization By having extent of control, the total number of people will be determined according to the size of the work so they can be effectively managed. All subordinates have been assigned their tasks and they perform their daily tasks according to given format. This activity leads to little interaction between employees and supervisor and supervisor can supervise more employees in same time. All the staff members have been assigned their tasks and jobs very clearly and they perform their work more effectively and well organized way. As management needed, it assigned some departmentalization tasks and people having same kind of skills in one department work together. They also share their experiences and learn from others. TASK 2 A VISION OF LEADERSHIP TEAM WORK AUTOCRATIC LEADERSHIP:- Management observed that market is going to very diversified and versatile then it decided to go for diversification. It took very bold decision and decided to launch new brands and it also rebranded all its existing products. By analysing future growth, company took this step and company put pressure to team members to product positive results. THE PERSUASIVE:- As company has taken the decision at its own; now it felt that it has to motivate its team members to produce good results. It put a lot of efforts to share its vision and future prospective with employees. Without having a clear picture of companys objectives, team members cannot produce as per desired level. THE CONSULTATIVE:- Although leader has to authority to take final decision. But it seems to be looking better to get consent from other team members. By this exercise, the morale of the whole team gets high and everyone feels proud to be a part of new strategic decision. These activities also result in to develop nurturing self-esteem, developing mutual trust, inviting participating. DEMOCRATIC LEADERSHIP:- This organizations leadership strategies are very much close to democratic leadership. While launching new or revise existing policies or deciding to go for diversification, it discusses with its group/ team members and get their consent. All the team members play a very vital role to attain the future prospective of the company because all know the importance and worth of these prospective. Through this company cant only come out with effective decision and policies but also it know the implementation of the decision? All members have already taken precautions and threats to attain this target. All the group members become very much enthusiastic and perform in positive ways. Everyone feels that his act is very important to company thats why his sense of responsibility increases and perform for the betterment of the company. SITUATIONAL LEADERSHIP:- According to situation and importance of the task, leaders appointed other persons as a leader for a specific task. By doing this, not only they handle situation with very positive way but also they set examples for other that they can also lead other people if they have the ability to do so. MIAN MUHAMMAD MANSHA YAHA FROM PAKISTAN He has established 40 companies. He owns the Muslim Commercial Bank is also setting up a $ 17m paper mill. He is one of the richest Pakistanis around. NISHAT GROUP It is a group which established and developed by Mian Mansha. Nishat group is a leading organization which is serving in Textiles, Cement and Financial Services. It has assets of over Rs.300 billion (US$ 5 billion), it is also one of the top five leading companies of Pakistan. It has the privilege to be largest and trend setter player in each sector stated above. Common goal:- Nishat group has established group of people who work for them. They clearly shared their vision and goals with team members. They prepared them so well to accomplish task collectively. Broad knowledge and prospective:- All team members of this company are very skilled persons. They use their skills to make task easier and also share ideas for future tasks. All persons are very supportive to each other. Improved return on change investment:- They are very innovative persons and in true sense they are the key players for implementing strategies. They always in search of finding ways and means to make positive change in organization. They also seek ways to reduce companys investment and use current resources in better ways. Better use of facts and data:- Team members effectively use available facts and data in very efficient manners and make realistic policies. They try to reduce hypothecation environment. They use data as reference and make future strategies accordingly. Faster response to challenge and opportunities:- They are very flexible to modify themselves according to situation. They are happier to face new challenges and enjoy opportunities. In their opinion it is a way to enhance and utilize our interpersonal skills. Not only they work for productivity of company but also at the same time they grow themselves. Bring solution:- They are the actual representatives of leaders. They always bring solutions rather than contacting leaders and seeking for solution. It is their duty to handle situation without wastage of time. The progress of company is very much dependant on their turns. Behavioural approach:- The leadership of this company is very much close to behavioural approach because most of the decisions are based on real time situations and leaders are keen to solve problems by interacting others. Leadership is also interested to understand other people behaviour and convert it for productive purpose. It may be related to interpersonal skills by directing and providing them proper training. Leaders proof themselves as roll model and motivate employees to be like them. Management grid:- Task orientation:- Management is very much concerned about its tasks completion and productivity. They have zero tolerance in this regard. People orientation:- This organization knows the importance of teams members and it tries to establish very good relation with its co-workers / managers. Sometimes it get involved with its staff members by creating emotional environment and giving them thought that they are the main key players for the organization and people work as its their own company. This organization is the mix of different kind of leadership styles. Top management changes its leadership style according to the need of the company. KEY TASKS OF CORPORATE LEADERS:- Sharing vision and objectives:- Mian Mansha has developed a team who works according to his vision and action plan. Although his prospective is very broad but he shared and explained it with his team members to make it more effective and realistic. Determining and overseeing the courses of action:- He does no let people free to do all the tasks at their own. He also evaluate all the tasks and give opinion on them. He also help subordinates to make their action plan more effective and efficient. Leading a continuous organization process:- Being the leader of the organization, he gets involve themselves in all the processes of the organization. He is a keen researcher to dig out methods to improve procedures. Promote and Manage valuable knowledge:- He is very much concern about managing employees. He encourages and promotes efficient employees. He has made retention policies for productive employees. Achieving a quality of life in the organisation:- He tries to develop quality culture in his organization. He believes that quality culture leads to produce quality employees. Although it is not easy to establish quality environment within organization but he still treat it at priority. Partridge observed (1989, p205) that Managerial work across all levelsà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦ is characterised by pace, brevity, variety, and fragmentationà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦it is hectic and fragmented, requiring the ability to shift continuously from relationship to relationship, from topic to topic, from problem to problem. THE FUNCTIONS OF MANAGEMENT:- Every management has 5 main functions to establish. If he/she successfully develop these areas then they are on right track towards their goals. Planning Organising Commanding Co-ordinating Controlling MANAGEMENT BY OBJECTIVES (MBO):- This idea developed by Peter Drucker (1940s and 1950s) and he stated this in his book the practice of management (1955). Setting objective for the organisation Organizing the work Motivating the employee Job measurement Developing people Set out their clean objectives Make plans to enable objectives Implement those plans Monitor and evaluate WHY DO LEADERS ADOPT DIFFERENT STYLES? In 1976, F.Fielder argued that it is easier to change someones role or power, or to modify the job he has to do, than to change his leadership style. P. Hersey and K.H. Blanchard argued that A leaders strategy should not only take account of the situation, but also thee maturity of those who are led. The leaders have TASK BEHAVIOUR OR RELATIIONSHIP BEHAVIOUR. On the following grounds, leaders decided that which leadership sytle they have to use. Delegating Participating Selling Telling Wright and Taylor in 1984, developed a checklist to help leaders to improve employee performance. What is the problem? It is the responsibility of leaders to take necessary action to find out the problem. It should be considered the know the background of problems then get some solution. Is it serious enough to spend time on? Management evaluate problems then take actions accordingly. If management find out to solve this problem is useful for company and it is not wastage of time then they treat it as most important task and solve it as early as possible. Because employee performance is directly related to production. What reasons may there be for the problem? How can it be solved? They also highlighted some alternatives for the problems solving and implement one best to fit it. Evaluating of the leaders performance:- There is also a need to evaluate leaders performance. Because they also have to assess their selves with the passage of time. They develop strategies to grow and establish themselves. They are the persons who create directions for whole organization. Emotional intelligence:- Companies conduct 360 degree of employees before sending him/her on any training. As companies know their employees better ways then they motivate their values, and goals. Their goals should be settled in encouraging environment and there should be supportive policies to attain personal goals and objectives. There is also a need to provide models to employees to enhance their interpersonal skills and increase morale. According to Daniel Goleman, emotional intelligence is The capacity or recognising our own feelings and those of others, for motivating ourselves, for managing emotions well in ourselves and in our relationships. The ability to perceive, to integrate, to understand and reflectively manage ones own and other peoples feelings. (John D.Mayer, quoted in people Management (28 october 1999):49) BOOKS REFERENCE Business studies as level, third edition, by Dave Hall, Rob Jones, Carlo Raffo, edited by Lan Chambers and Dave Gray 2004,2005 Build your own rainbow, by Barrie Hopson and Mike Scally,3rd edition, 1984 Business studies now for GCSE, second edition, by Karen Borrington and Peter Stimpson, 2002 Cultivate a cool career, by Ken Langdon, 2004 Business the ultimate resource, A Bloomsbury reference book, created from the Bloomsbury business database, 2002 Business studies, by Peter Stimpson, 2002 Introduction to management by Tony Dawson, 1998 Learning and development, by Rosemary Harrison, fourth edition, 2005 Leadership coaching by Graham lee, 2003 Managing for results, 2nd edition by Gillian Watson and Kevin Gallagher, 2005 Managing your time by Julie-Ann Amos, 1998 Management skills by Patricia Buhler, 2001 Management by Stephen P. Robbins Mary Coulter, 7th edition, 2001 Management and organisational behaviour by Laurie J Mullins, sixth edition, 2002 Management development strategies and action by Alan Mumford and Jeff Gold, 4th edition, 2004 Modern business administration by Robert C Appleby, 6th edition, 1994 Managing activities by Tina Stephens and Richard Pettinger, 2005 Operations and quality management by hodder and Stoughton, 1999 Putting the one minute manager to work by Kenneth Blanchard Robert Lorber, 1994 Personal effectiveness, by Diana Winstanley, 2005 Time management by Polly Bird, 2008 Time management and personal development by John Adair and Melanie Allen, 1999 The six sigma leader, by Peter S.Pande, 2007 ONLINE REFERENCES http://www.nishatpak.com/history-and-development.html (24-03-2011,16:41) http://www.buzzvines.com/pakistans-super-rich-people (24-03-2011,16:39) http://sabrigroup.pk/(24-03-2011:15:47) http://worldwork.biz/legacy/www/downloads/Personal_Development_Plan.pdf (08-03-2011:13:01) https://online.businesslink.gov.uk/Horizontal_Services_files/PDPSample.pdf (08-03-2011, 13:00) http://www.diycommitteeguide.org/article/monitoring-and-evaluation (26-03-2011; 11:48) http://www.umanitoba.ca/student/u1/lac/media/Learning-Styles-06.pdf (26-03-2011; 13:26)

Choosing to Be Happy Essay example -- Sociology

â€Å"Choose to be happy.† This is what mom has always said, since a very young age and still to this day she tells everyone. For so long, it was just â€Å"mom talk†, those things your mother says that is supposed to make you stop and think. Yet, being too young, dumb and full of it, to really understand what she means. Curiosity emerges and suddenly there is a need to understand what it really means to be happy, what constitutes Happiness? So follow up with some research, entering the bookstore, gliding in and out of the rows and rows in the self-help sections are others, asking the same question. What is happiness? Where does it come from, are we born with it or do we make it happen? Happiness is but a belief, an idea, a theory; but theories, beliefs, and ideas have the possibility of being wrong. Can someone learn and choose to be happy? In this paradox it is hopeful to find some close truths about happiness and what is the need for this emotion. With our individ ual characteristics, patterns of thinking, feeling, and acting are we already born to be either happy or sad? What are the basic perspectives of the psychoanalytic and Humanistic nature for the people who make up this world who are always happy? Since the time of Aristotle his â€Å"telos†, or the end goal, was the same for all people, happiness. In Aristotle’s world, there are strongly knit groups where no strong distinction exists between public and private life. Everyone shares the same goals and values, so the pursuit of happiness is a cooperative initiative. That may have been the case back then, but in this day and time, not so much. Finding happiness and even defining happiness varies from person to person, between cultures and generations. Why not start with one of the gr... ...s can be figuratively compared with jargon, the light at the end of the tunnel and the â€Å"silver lining behind the dark cloud†. These are expressions of the optimistic outlook of happiness, they represent hope of a better and brighter future even in the midst of what could be termed as a bad day or the worst day of their life. Works Cited Engler, B. (2009). Personality Theories, An Introduction. Belmont: Wadsworth Cengage Learning. Geoffrey Nunberg, P. (1993). The American Heritage Dictionary. New York: Houghton Mifflin. Merriam-Webster. (2003). Merriam-Webster's Collegiate Dictionary. Boston: Merriam-Webster. Ostwald, M. (1999). Aristotle Nicomachean Ethics. Upper Saddle River: Prentice Hall. Soukhanov, A. (2012, April 28). Encarta Dictionary. Retrieved April 23, 2011, from Encarta Dictionary:English(North America): http://www.encarta.com/dictionary

Food and Beverage Essay

Food and Beverage Service is the service of Food made in the Kitchen and Drinks prepared in the Bar to the Customers (Guest) at the Food & Beverage premises, which can be: Restaurants, Bars, Hotels, Airlines, Cruise Ships, Trains, Companies, Schools, Colleges, Hospitals, Prisons, Takeaway etc Food & Beverage Outlets are divided in to the following categories: Restaurants: Restaurants are places where Food & Drink is served. There are various types of Restaurants: All Day Dining Restaurants: They are sometimes called as Coffee Shops or Cafe in Hotels. They are usually big in size with many Covers (seats), compared to other Restaurants in the same Hotel. The main reason why they are called All Day Dining Restaurant is because of their hours of operation, as they are open for Breakfast in the Morning to Lunch in the afternoon to Dinner in the Evening. Fine Dining Restaurants: Fine Dining Restaurants are characterized by their elaborate and exclusive menu with special emphasis on the very high quality food they serve. The emphasis being on fresh ingredients and natural flavors or on the type of Cuisine served, or both. Usually the operation of this restaurant revolves around the Head Chef or Chef De Cuisine of this Outlet. Specialty Restaurants: These are Restaurants which usually have a type of National or Regional Character or Cuisine attached to them, for example: Italian Specialty Restaurant, Chinese Specialty Restaurant etc. In some Hotels they do also sometimes have Multi Cuisine Specialty Restaurant, which literally means that Restaurant serves cuisine from more than one country, or the dishes on the Menu at that Restaurant has Food Specialties from many different countries. 2. Lounge: Lounges can be found in different hotels. Their main purpose is to offer Food & Drinks in relaxed surroundings with comfortable and cozy seating in relaxed surroundings. There are many kinds of Lounges ranging from a Lounge in a Lobby, Cocktail Lounge and Cigar Lounge to Executive and Club Lounge in special Floors. 3. Bar: Bar is a place where drinks are served. There is usually a small Snacks Menu too. The service is fast and quick. There are various kinds of Bars ranging from Formal bars to Club Bars, Pubs, Pool Bars, Wine Bars, Cocktail Bars, Beach Bar to Juice Bars and many more. 4. Discotheque/Nightclub: They are outlets where Music and Entertainment takes priority with the Food & Drink. The operation is very fast and the guest numbers are large. Security is an important aspect in these operations. Music and entertainment can range from DJ to live bands playing. 5. Room Service/In Room Dining: Room Service, also known as In Room Dining . It is the service of Food & Drink in Guest Rooms in a Hotel or a Resort. Depending on the size and type of Hotel or Resort its functions vary. 6. Meeting and Conference Rooms: Meeting and Conference rooms together with Ball Rooms come under the Banquets & Conference section. They are a great source of Revenue in Food & Beverage Department usually in Corporate and City Hotels. MICE (Meetings, Incentives, and Conferences & Exhibitions) can alone bring much revenue in some hotels in comparison to other outlets in Hotel. 7. Ball Rooms: These are large Function Rooms which are primarily used for Functions and Weddings. The Staffing ration of Full Time Staff in this section is very less as the Function and Wedding Business can sometimes be seasonal and extra staff is usually filled in by the use of Casual Staff. This Section is the most Dynamic section in Food & Beverage with the Conference Section, which is more physically demanding and creatively oriented. 8. Delicatessen: Delicatessen or Deli traditionally had been a place where fresh meat and other produce were available. Hotels nowadays use this concept of having a Deli on their premises, where guests can buy fresh produce ranging from Freshly Baked Bread, Cold Meat, Fresh Salads, Cakes, Home Made Ice creams and light and healthy drinks. 9. Others: There are many other Food & Beverage outlets ranging from Fast Food Outlets to Food Courts to Snack Bars which are usually stand alone or in a shopping centre. This is just a brief introduction to Food and Beverage. Detailed information on Food and Beverage can be found at Food and Beverage Bible E Book By Santosh Koripella at: www. foodnbeveragebible. com.

Assistant Manager

Education 2 72% University or above Geographic HECK Island , Central, TTS Commercial Areas Source The Hong Kong Audit Bureau of Circulations Ltd & Nielsen Media Index HECK Year-End Report 2012 Demographic According to the source from HACK Ltd and Nielsen Media Index HECK Year-End Report in 2012, 70% of readers fall into the age range between 30-49 years old. It means that the readers are used to read SCAMP English newspaper. They are loyal to SCAMP for personal reading interest or business insight.For education background, 72% of readers has university graduate or above so that they are well-educated, repressions and in senior position. The readers are willing to pay the higher price to get quality news instead of free newspaper. The readers under 29 years or below is only 19% of the total market. Geographic: SCAMP circulates the print via channels like newspaper stores and convenient stores. Most of the circulation gain from HECK Island, Central, TTS & other commercial areas.As ethn icity was 57% of Non-Chinese and 43% of Chinese, it reflects most of the readers are foreigners. Demographic & Geographic are presenting the similar data which means the result would be more truthfully and specifically. Most SCAMP readers are of premium social status such as Managers, Executives and Professionals for self-use etc. For corporate customers, company size with over 50 staff or global firms, the subscription of SCAMP is a corporate image. They are frequent and loyal users regardless of the higher subscription price.Also schools, universities, Government, financial & banking clients are the major consumers. Behavioral: SCAMP bases on different consumers' desires to provide the following marketing plan. 0 Monday – Friday, corporate and stable readers, regularly Sunday – leisure day, less demand, no corporate Saturday is more popular for Job seekers for The Classified Post Company: At least one copy of SCAMP daily 2. 2 Targeting The target customers are divide d into B to C (Business to Consumer) and B to B (Business to Business) models.B to C (Business to Consumer) For consumer market, readers are decision makers, Government officers, Coos, senior executives, scholars, professionals, university students, and Westerners. Their average income belongs to high income group (40% Monthly Household Income HECK $70,000 or above). They have high spending power. Job seekers who look for quality arrears 'employers and better salary offers will search the Jobs from Classified Post. The employers / recruitment agents who look for quality staff will place advertising on Classified Post to recruit their staff.Besides, the consumers look for news with highest creditability and they are very loyal to SCAMP. B to B (Business to Business) For corporate customers like multi-national companies, they are very loyal to SCAMP and purchase at least one print in the office on a daily basis for company image or quote SCAMP news as educational reference and or use published statistics in their business reports. For primary, secondary and university students, Education Bureau encourage students to subscribe SCAMP newspaper to pick up their reading hobby. Undeniably, SCAMP is the leader of HECK English newspaper. . 3 Positioning SCAMP mission is ‘As we move forward in these rapidly changing times, can be summed up in three words: Aspiration, Connection and Trust. Aspiration: We deliver value and quality to our customers by enhancing knowledge. Connection: We bridge Hong Kong, China and the rest of the world, and we actively engage in these communities. Trust: We will grow with the region as the trusted littoral on China. Being market leader in English newspaper, SCAMP won 11 awards in 2013, the Top Prize of Society of Publishers in Asia Editorial Award 2013.SCAMP gained the 1st ranking of Highest Credibility in Hong Kong newspaper market according to the survey conducted by Center for Communication Research of Chinese University (2011). S CAMP is consistently striving to seek ways to retain its market leader position in English newspaper market since 1903 and keeping the high standard in newspaper contents with highest credibility so that its readers are very loyal to SCAMP. 3. Marketing Mix The marketing mix is a business tool used to execute the market strategy into practical business activity.Our team is study focus on newspaper business – South China Morning Post (SCAMP) – an English Newspaper, retail selling price is HECK$9 from Monday to Saturday; HECK$II for Sunday Morning Post. The most important value of the newspaper is Fair, Fact, Credibility, and Integrity; it is why SCAMP can be the market leader and long lasting Product is â€Å"the tangible or intangible goods or services and how it can satisfy consumer's needs and wants†. Products have different life cycle, it will grow, mature and eventually decline and phrase out.Therefore, SCAMP has carried various product mix in order to exten d the product line to secure the income and maintain the growth of the business. Apart from printed copy, it has added digital subscription from 2010 as Internet and Smartened become more common and popular. They have changed the reading habit of the whole world. Besides, mobile APS application has been added in 2012. Subscribers are Job seekers who expect to find quality Jobs from the newspapers. On the other hand, it attracts employers or recruitment/hiring agents to post the recruitment advertisement on the newspaper.It is an important platform for Job seekers, employers and recruitment agents. Pricing is â€Å"the process of setting a price for a product or discount. The price needs not be monetary; it can simply be what is exchanged for the product or services. SCAMP is carrying premium pricing strategy. From circulation information, its target customers are well-educated and belong to the group of middle to high income. They are less sensitive (inelastic of demand) to commodi ty items like food and newspapers. Buying a newspaper at $9/$10 is not a concern to them.On contrast, Chinese newspaper segment is large and very sensitive to penny change on pricing, hush free newspaper is popular in the market Premium pricing also represents the reader's prestigious status and quality. High credibility is the most important thing to them. Apart from newspaper revenue, advertisement is one of the major income streams in SCAMP. It also charges the customers higher advertising price for posting recruitment advertisement if comparing to Recruit, Jobs. It tells the customers that its readers possess good quality when they are looking for their companies.If the customers want to recruit people with high quality and capability, SCAMP is the only choice. Place (or distribution): â€Å"It is how to deliver the goods or service to the customer. † For printed newspaper, Scamps retailing channels will be news stand or convenient store e. G. 7-11 . In HECK, TTS, Central and HECK Island, due to business and commercial centers are gathered with numerous westerners coming from different countries. Hence, the circulation of printed copy in these districts is the most. For digital subscription, it is via internet or mobile app.Promotion: â€Å"It includes various methods of promoting the product, brand, or company including advertising, sales promotion, publicity, PR, direct marketing, digital arresting, sponsorship, personal selling. † Despite SCAMP is a media, it also needs to promote its business. Apart from putting advertisement on its own newspaper and website, SCAMP needs to promote its product via different channels. Loyalty discount to customer: Offer discount to loyalty readers, employers and recruitment agents who has subscribed its newspaper for a long period of time. SCAMP wins numerous Good Word-of-Mouth in this industry.It wins 11 awards gets the highest ranking in credibility in the HECK newspaper. E. G. Edward Snowmen fair select ed SCAMP; it has shown its newspaper has high integrity to the public. It also Joins Job Exhibition Fair, Trade Fair, and Seminar to broaden its exposure to the public. 4. Customer Relationship Management Firstly, as mobile is the single fastest growing source of digital traffic, SCAMP continue to its existing digital offerings with new products such as SCAMP News Pulse, new phone app to enhance the relations with the customers, especially among younger generation.Secondly, if the customers have subscribed to the members of Classified Post, they can search their Jobs according to their requirements. The Classified Post (â€Å"CUP') will keep customer's C.V. and personal information in a highly secured way. Then, CUP provides Job Alert e-newsletter and course/self-enhancement information to subscribers' emails based on subscribers, particular information. This would create a strong bonding relationship between SCAMP and its readers. 5. Market Analysis 5. Circulation Source The Hong Kong Audit Bureau of Circulations Ltd Cover price for SCAMP increased by $1 to $9 since January this year. The online subscription fee for scamp. Com has also increased in late June 2013. 2013-2015 According to the source from the Hong Kong Audit Bureau of Circulations Ltd, the daily circulation of SCAMP is around 100,860 to 107,629 from 2009 to the first half of 013. The daily circulation is very stable within this period. But the circulation mix was changed once digital version was launched in the first half of 2010. In 2009, the daily circulation was solely print version.Once digital version was launched, it commenced to grow from 3363 in the 1st half of 2010 to 18,149 in the 1st half of 2013. The growth rate of circulation in digital version is 6 times in 3 years. There was a slight drop from 100,860 to 88,776 for print version from 2010 to 2013. This implies the fast growing popularity of phone affect the habit of readers and there is growing rend in digital version in the futu re. Michael Porter's 5 forces 1. Bargaining Power of Paper Suppliers – Due to the cost of paper material increases, the paper suppliers will transfer the incremental cost to SCAMP.It is under great pressure to increase the price of the newspaper print. 2. Bargaining Power of Customers – Customers have little switching cost to read other newspapers. Besides, free digital version is offered by HECK Standard. 3. Threat of New Entrants – There are many English newspapers emerging in HECK market like China Daily and Wall Street Institute which provide free newspapers at some selected estates. . Threat of Substitute Products – Due to growing popularity of phone, the customers have been changing their habits of reading newspapers.Digital version or mobile APS to access the updated newspapers create tremendous treat to the traditional newspaper industry. 5. Competitive Rivalry Within An Industry – The major competitors, HECK Standard is aggressively offeri ng 200,000 free tabloid newspapers distributed in different districts on a daily basis as well as providing free digital version to their readers. Competitor Analysis The Standard is doing the same as SCAMP to provide English newspaper print, digital erosion and Job searching function.The Standard has changed to a free newspaper since September 2007. On the other hand, it provides different levels of subscription discounts, which include digital subscription only and print plus digital version subscription. It also offers corporate digital subscription which allows multi-reader access to the digital version. The subscriptions allow readers to access their online and tablet content unlimitedly. We have made a comparison table between SCAMP and The Standard so that we can have more understanding of the keen competition in the newspaper industry.Comparison of SCAMP and The Standard SCAMP The standard price $9 Free (1st free newspaper since 2007) Digital Version Yes Yes Daily circulatio n Format Black & white, standard size Full-color, Tabloid Functions Archive news up to 10 years Archive news up to 1 year *HACK Audit July-DCE 2012 ** â€Å"The Standard† official website Strength Diversified information SCAMP has published diversified information. It includes the information of current issues, information of sports, property, finance, lifestyle. Also, it encloses Classified Post for Job seekers; Young Post and Education Post for student subscribers. Market leaderThere are not much English newspapers being published in Hong Kong. The major competitor is The Standard. The competition is not keen. Thus, SCAMP is the market leader among English newspapers. Sustained demand SCAMP targets high-educated customers. Usually, they earn more, they can afford more. Also, those NC corporations, universities and foreign residents all have regular subscriptions. There is sustainable demand. Weakness Increased staff & production cost Source: SCAMP Group 2013 Interim report – Extract of Income statement Staff and production costs have increased for about HECK$48. Million and HECK$3. Lion respectively. It is mainly due to the increase in headcount and SCAMP Group has included the production of ELL on 2013. It decreases the net profit. Less popular in HECK It costs HECK$9, which is the most expensive newspaper in Hong Kong. Also, it's bulky in size. It's inconvenient for readers to carry it around. Moreover, it cannot satisfy those non-English readers. It cannot become a popular newspaper in Hong Kong. Subscription for unlimited digital access If readers want to have unlimited access on digital access, they are obliged to subscribe by money. However, other Hong Kong newspapers, including TheStandard, are free of charge on digital version. It may hinder the increase of digital readers as they may prefer choosing free information. Shares have been suspended trading Its shares have been suspended trading in HECK stock market since 26 February 2013. S CAMP is a listed company in Hong Kong, however, its percentage of public float confidence on the investment and the public image of SCAMP has been affected. Opportunity Increases on demand Source: HECK Census and Statistics Department (â€Å"HACKS†) website – Population statistics Source: HECK Census and Statistics Department (â€Å"HACKS†) website – Foreign companiesThe above statistics has shown that HECK population has kept rising since mid of 2010 to 7,KICK in the mid of 2013. It has also shown that the number of foreign companies setting up local offices in HECK has increased. There is an opportunity for SCAMP to acquire more readers from the growth of population and foreign corporations. Hong Kong Government has promoted post-secondary education since the past decade. The below 2 tables have shown that there has been an increasing trend for people had Post-secondary education nowadays: The demand of English-language newspaper has been increasing wit h the rising umber of high educated people.Expand new market It can expand new market by the advancement of technology on digital version, for example â€Å"Southern China† as there has been an economic growth in China in the recent years. Threats Keener advertisement added competition The Government has increased 2 new free licensed TV. The advertisement companies have 2 more advertising channels, so there would be keener competition. Decreasing newspaper revenue Source: SCAMP Group 2013 Interim report Revenue from newspaper has been decreased for near HECK$5 million for the 2 interim periods. It indicates less people are willing to buy newspaper.

Lesson Learned †a short story

Lesson Learned – a short story Free Online Research Papers It was the Friday before winter break. Tommy was counting the eraser shavings on the edge of his beat up wooden desk. Suddenly he remembered that he needed to make up his English final after school, but he had planned on going to smoke with his friends before the long vacation. The clock was pounding loudly in his head as he was contemplating what his final decision was going to be. Almost instantly an angel popped up on his left shoulder and a devil on his right. Was he hallucinating? â€Å"Tommy relax we are your conscience, but listen in life there are no makeup exams so you need to choose carefully,† the angel reasoned with Tommy. Without any time for him to respond the devil says â€Å"Come on kid it’s going to be the last time smoking for two weeks.† Tommy and his low self esteem couldn’t argue with the fact that he could get high and just tell his teacher he had a family emergency and he had left the country right after school. There he had it all set, he was going to be able to do everything he wanted to do and get away with it. Little did he know his mother was on the phone with his teacher within five minutes after school ended. â€Å"No, Tommy never showed,† Mrs. Jackson said. As Tommy’s mom was overwhelmed with Christmas shopping and cooking she totally forgot the whole conversation with Mrs. Jackson. Tommy was home by five thirty. He waltzed into his house high as a kite and went straight up to his room no ques tions asked. He set sail for a relaxing, drug free, two week vacation. With Christmas coming up everyone had forgot that Tommy still needed to take his English final. Until December 24, 2007 at 11:32 pm when Mrs. Turner received Mrs. Jacksons email saying â€Å"did you ever find out what happened with Tommy a couple Fridays ago?† Suddenly the joyful expressions on Mrs. Turners face turned into a scowl, and all that was heard through the house was â€Å"Tommy! Andrew! Turner! You get your little spoiled but down here right this instant.† â€Å"Yes, Mom,† Tommy replied with a smile â€Å"You wipe that smile off your face. Where were you the Friday you were supposed to make up your English final?† â€Å"Umm†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦I was in Mrs. Reynolds room tutoring for NHS.† â€Å"Ok, well you need to speak with Mrs. Jackson about making it up so you don’t get a zero.† â€Å"Sure, no problem mom I’ll talk with her first thing when I get back to school.† The night went on and Christmas day came and went. It was the day before school started again and Tommy was talking with his buddies online. After a couple of messages Tommy said â€Å"What am I supposed to tell Mrs. Jackson? If I tell her what I told my mom she is going to check with Mrs. Reynolds and then I’m screwed.† His best friend Robert replied â€Å"You should have taken the final instead of coming with us.† â€Å"Thanks your no help,† Tommy responded then signed off and went straight to be hoping he would come up with something tomorrow. Beep! Beep! Beep! Whack! Tommy smacks the alarm mumbling â€Å"Monday already.† Dreading going to school Tommy is dreading even more Mrs. Jacksons class. The clock hits 2:25 pm and Mrs. Jackson’s class has officially started. She doesn’t mention anything until five minutes before class is over when she softly whispers to Tommy â€Å"I need to see you after class.† Tommy’s palms start sweating and his heart starts beating at warp speed. The angel reappears on his shoulder whispering in his ear â€Å"See its all fun and games until you have to face the music; who’s here to help you through it? Where is the guy in red that was all for missing the exam? No were to be found.† Ring! Ring! Ring! The day is over just as Tommy wanted it to be until he found out he had to stay after class. Considering that everyone in the class has left he makes his way over to Mrs. Jackson’s desk. â€Å"You wanted to see me,† he says to her â€Å"Yes, Tommy I think you and I both know why yo u’re here.† â€Å"Umm†¦no I have don’t have an idea as to what you’re talking about,† Tommy replied softly â€Å"Why weren’t you here to take you exam the Friday before school got out?† â€Å"Well you see Mrs. Jackson; I had to leave the country because my uncle had a heart attack and I flew to see him in Argentina.† â€Å"Really, that’s not what your mother told me she said you stayed home all break.† â€Å"Ok, Mrs. Jackson you really want to know what happened?†Tommy said with a sinister voice. â€Å"Tell me Tommy,† she replied intrigued â€Å"Well I was at the NHS tutoring session in Mrs. Reynolds room.† â€Å"Oh†¦Ok†¦that makes perfect sense. That is why Mrs. Reynolds called me that Friday asking where you were because you didn’t show up to tutoring.† â€Å"Uhh,† Tommy stuttered â€Å"Listen Tommy you just blew your last chance; I’m calling your m om so we can get to the bottom of this.† Research Papers on Lesson Learned - a short storyStandardized TestingHarry Potter and the Deathly Hallows EssayTrailblazing by Eric AndersonThe Masque of the Red Death Room meaningsThe Fifth HorsemanThe Hockey GamePersonal Experience with Teen PregnancyBook Review on The Autobiography of Malcolm XThe Spring and Autumn19 Century Society: A Deeply Divided Era

The Spread of Islamic Civilization DBQ essays

The Spread of Islamic Civilization DBQ essays Although not the first monotheistic (believe in one god) religion, the Muslims were still able to have a very large impact on world history. All though they were unsuccessful in conquering originally, the Muslims eventually succeeded in spreading the religion of Islam throughout lower Europe and upper Africa. The Islam religion is still present in modern day society. Many Muslims, at least once in their lifetime, make a journey called the Hajj to the holy city of Mecca. This is the city where the founder of Islam (Mohammed) was born. Over hundreds of centuries, Islam became one of the most influential civilizations in the world, by gaining hundreds upon thousands of worshipers and by conquering religions and civilizations that didn't cooperate immediately. During the lifetime of Mohammed, he gained many followers, which help spread the newly born Islam religion. To the people who followed him the ways of the Islamic god, Allah, Mohammed said that, He shall bring him into the gardens of [Paradise],(Doc. 2). Also, Mohamed said that Allah would punish all those who didn't follow this offered way of life (Doc. 2). Mohammed was an Arab prophet of Islam. At the age of 40 he began to preach as God's prophet of the true religion. Mohammed created a very religious way of life. Then after 622, he began to convert Arabia to Islam. This way of getting people to convert to Islam was unfortunately not the only way. Although peace was shown through Islam, the Muslim people also used war as a way to convert people. They conquered and killed many, probably to show that they were a strong, united religion. Many nations feared the Muslims (Doc. 4). Other civilizations called them, raging tigers, (Doc. 4) which most easily can be identified as fierce wo rriers. Over the centuries, Islam was spread so well by war, most parts of the world have a large amount of Islamic people, mostly because of this form of conquest. Even though ...

Breaking the Silence

Breaking the Silence: The Power of Articulation We feel safer with a madman who talks than with one who cannot open his mouth, stated the French philosopher E.M. Cioran. Though seemingly counterintuitive, this statement is undoubtedly true, begging us to question what it is about silence that is so powerful. Silence is, by definition, simply the absence of sound. How can an absence be so commanding? The answer lies in its ability to stifle, to overwhelm, and to control. Because it is undefined, silence invites the imagination to run its course, thereby making it profoundly intimidating and controlling. This fact has often been utilized as a means for control. This theory is clearly seen in both Toni Morrisons Beloved and Maxine Hong Kingstons The Woman Warrior, in which different cultures and individuals use silence as a means for power, control, and manipulation. However, though it is the less imposing of the two, language is by no means less powerful than silence. In response to the threat of silence, an urgent need for language and expression arises. As seen in both Beloved and The Woman Warrior, the power of language always prevails; whether through writing, telling stories, or simply allowing memories to present themselves, language always finds a way to break through the silence. In Beloved, silence is used by whites as a tool to suppress blacks both directly and indirectly. Morrison introduces this concept immediately with her dedication to the 60 million and more blacks that were killed in slavery. This is Morrisons way of honoring those people that were faced with the ultimate silence death and are consequently unable to tell their own story. Yet even the blacks who survived struggled against silence. They were denied the opportunity to learn how to write, and were given no say in their fates or the fates of their families. They were also stifled in a more symbolic way, through the brutal and senseless treatment they were made to endure. They were completely deprived of their humanity, made to believe they were worthless, and treated as less than animals. Not only did this dehumanization result in the loss of a personal voice, but it also did lasting damage to the slaves internal ability to find expression for their pain. In order for them to continue l iving as functional human beings even after slavery, they needed to silence their own memories and hide them from others and often from themselves. Sethe, for example, constantly struggles to silence her memories of the pain of slavery, often by working or distracting herself. When the occasional memory resurfaces, she finds herself unable to deal with the emotions that accompany it. In one such instance, she had to do something with her hands because she was remembering something she had forgotten she knew. Something privately shamefulhad seeped into a slit in her mind (Morrison 73). Not only does this display the paralyzing effects of their ill treatment, but it also shows the shame that supplements these horrible memories. To fight these emotions, Sethe forces them back into the recesses of her mind, often by distracting herself. Her motto is, nothing better than that to start the days serious work of beating back the past (ibid 86). In Paul Ds case, he keeps his memories in that tobacco tin buried in his chest where a red heart used to be. Its lid rusted shut (ibid, 86). Even Denver, affected by the problems of slavery only through inheritance, experiences this suppression, this silencing of painful memories or thoughts. When she hears something about her familys past that she could not bear to hear (ibid, 122), she could not hearanything at all thereafter. For two years she walked in a silence too solid for penetration (ibid, 121). This is quite an extreme case, manifesting as it does in physical symptoms, but silence in any form throughout the novel is indicative of the horrible damage caused by slavery. Whether self-inflicted or not, this silence is not a solution; it only prolongs the pain. This suppression cannot last long, for confronting this silence is the only way the former slaves can move on with their lives. While ultimately beneficial, this is not an easy process. As Amy says, Its gonna hurt, nowanything dead coming back to life hurts (ibid, 42). The first problem, the dehumanization (the direct result of slaverys destruction), is a difficult, yet more approachable problem than the suppressed memories. Baby Suggs makes it her goal to tackle this first problem by holding gatherings that promote the expression of humanity, individualization, and love of oneself. She tells them, [the whites] aint in love with your mouthwhat you say out of it they will not heed. What you scream from it they do not hearYou got to love it (ibid, 104). In response, a huge emotional outburst ensues, with laughing children, dancing men, crying women and then it got mixed up (ibid, 103). The release of such pent-up hurt is powerful indeed. For Sethe, Paul D, and Denver, their release is catalyzed by the presence of Beloved, the human embodiment of suppressed memories that are now not only resurfacing, but assuming a physical presence in their lives. Her presence forces them to confront the past, each in a different way. For example, when Paul D is having sex with Beloved, he finds that the flakes of rustfell away from the seams of his tobacco tin. So when the lid gave he didnt know it (ibid, 137). For Denver, Beloved is a reason for her to tell stories. They sit together and Denver spoke, Beloved listened, and the two did the best they could to create what really happened (ibid, 92). This is therapeutic for Denver, who has had to grow up in a house of silence and repression, given only scraps of stories to which she desperately clings. For Sethe, Beloveds mere presence is enough to initiate the catharsis. For everyone, she is a reminder that memories cannot and should not be smothered forever. The silence in Woman Warrior is far less damaging, but is still a very difficult subject for those who are bound by its restrictions. Though with less malicious intentions as those seen in Beloved, this silence similarly tries to control the culture and traditions of a specific society. Efforts are aimed at children, women, and those who transgress all those who are threatening to the continuation of the traditional culture. By controlling what people say (or dont say), the Chinese are able to make sure that people continue to think, act, and feel the way that tradition dictates they should. Especially during a time when their culture is in danger of disintegrating (when faced with immigration to the United States), being selective about what is said allows only select messages to be passed on. This is exemplified in the story of the no name woman, an aunt who is rejected from the family and who later takes her own life (and the life of her newborn baby). The first thing Maxine is told about this woman is you must not tell anyonewe say that your father has all brothers because it is as if she had never been born (Kingston, 3). By not allowing anyone to speak her name or admit her presence, they suppress the parts of their memories that do not agree with the commons goal of the culture an exercise in selective memory carried way too far. Silence is especially valued in girls and children, as seen when Brave Orchid goes to the market to buy a slave girl as a nurse, and readers see that only the quiet girls are valued. Also, when Moon Orchid comes to live with Brave Orchid and family, she is astonished by how impolite [untraditional in Chinese] her children were (ibid, 121). The children do not know to speak only when spoken to, and to talk only at the correct volume, and so Moon Orchid considers them abominable. The children cannot learn these things, however, because no one vocalizes the rules or traditions; they are just expected to know them. The fact that the adults withhold this kind of communication from the children only worsens the anxiety the children have about not being able to fit in. They do not know how to fit into American culture, for no one tells them how. They do not know how to fit into Chinese culture, for no one tells them how. And they certainly cannot figure out how to be Chinese-American, for no one even knows how. The children are even lost when it comes to tradition. Maxine observes, even the good things are unspeakablewe kids had to infer the holidaysthe adults get mad, evasive, and shut you up if you ask (ibid, 185). Maxine even insists that her mother cut her tongue when she was a child to keep her silent. Though not for that reason, this did in fact happen she remained completely silent for three years. She did not really understand her silence or the reasons for it, but she could understand that the other Chinese girls did not talk either, so [she] knew the silence had to do with being a Chinese girl (ibid , 166). The childrens difficulty with language is one of many unfortunate by-products of their cultures control over what is said and what is not said. As Maxine observes, you cant entrust your voice to the Chinese, either; they want to capture your voice for their own use. They want to fix up your tongue to speak for them (ibid, 169). Though it is most clearly expressed in the children, both children and adults struggle to find a way to maintain their own voices in a culture that wants to capture them. As has been demonstrated, the suppression of memories is never complete, never permanent, and never a solution; language and expression always show themselves, either aggressively or subtly. In The Woman Warrior, readers find that the methods for this vary from story-telling (referred to as talk-stories) to projection onto others and consequent bullying. Brave Orchid, Moon Orchid, and eventually Maxine all take the first path by using these talk-stories as selective messages chosen to reflect specific things that they cannot explicitly say. White Tigers is a story of female strength, of finding a balance between a womans filial, societal duties and her personal goals. These things can never be outwardly conveyed from mother to daughter in Chinese society, but through elaborate stories Brave Orchid is able to pass this wisdom on to Maxine. Similarly, the story of Brave Orchids past as a well-respected doctor serves to subtly inspire hope in Maxine, all the while teaching her that whi le she has goals, she also has duties to fulfill (as seen in Brave Orchids choice to leave this life for a more unstable one in America, with her family). This is the womens disguised way of breaking the silence, of ensuring the psychological and emotional strength of the future female generations. Maxine does not observe this immediately, although she seems to have always been attracted to stories and storytelling. Instead, Maxines initial reaction to the oppressive silence is rather immature: she targets one girl in her class who never speaks at all (who is, consequently, the embodiment of this tradition of silence). She pinches her and screams, Why wont you talk?If you dont talk, you cant have a personalityyouve got to let people know you have a personality and a brain (ibid, 180). Maxine is clearly taking out her anger on this girl. She cant understand why the girl wont talk, just as Maxine cant understand the Chinese traditions, what is expected of her, and the silence that is seemingly forced upon her. Maxines second reaction is a healthier one: she decides to tell her mother all the things she had been afraid to say out loud. She thinks, maybe because I was the one with the tongue cut loose, I had grown inside me a list of over two hundred things that I had to tell my mother so that she would know the true things about me and to stop the pain in my throat (ibid, 197). This is a very proactive way of ending the silence that Maxine can no longer bear. Yet this effort is too bold, too incongruous with the culture, so she is rejected by her mother, who refuses to listen. She ignores the fact that her mother will not listen, and yells everything at her all at once all her fears, regrets, aspirations, and frustrations. Maxines final solution is the most effective she writes everything down in a book. Through writing, she can break the silence that has confused and stifled her for so long, and she can fill in the blanks with contextual (if often invented) re alities to explain everything that she has never been told. True, her disclosures might upset her family, but Maxine is breaking the silence of all those who were oppressed, using only a single tool: language. While language may hurt at times, it ultimately proves to be the only true end to the cycle of repression and manipulation that silence does its best to inflict. Through silence, the need for language only grows stronger and stronger. Therefore, language and expression are the necessary antidotes to silence, for a life of silence is confusing and repressive. It is only through language and expression that we can find our release, our freedom, and our individuality.

COMMUNICATION PLAN for Nestle Company Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3750 words

COMMUNICATION PLAN for Nestle Company - Essay Example For perishable products such as milk and vegetables, Nestlà © has direct procurement process with specific requirement so that the excess is not wasted. Nestlà © invest sufficiently in sustainable agriculture in collaboration with its direct suppliers so that high quality food products are delivered. Multinationals such as Nestlà © focus on long term partnership with suppliers so that resources are available at a reasonable cost and whenever required. These long term contracts minimizes various risks on the part of the company as well as for the suppliers. For instance, such kind of supply chain system acts as a hedge against fluctuations in the agricultural market (Handfield& Nichols, 1999; Nestlà ©, 2009; 2014b). Nestle company has been going through some publicity issues in the past. There were a lot of cases where children died as a result of taking products from the nestle company. This led to massive protests by the people against their products. Nestle was accused of aggressively marketing their breast milk substitutes and dressing their sales ladies as nurses. The deaths reported were as a result of the increasing deaths of infants. For the infant formula milk, the powder has to mixed with water which in most poor countries is usually contaminated and unhygienic and therefore leading to the death of the children. Another issue was that even when the parents knew the hygienic standards that they had to have, they do not have the means to sterilise the equipment that they used and therefore having no choice but to use the contaminated water. The women in the poor countries sometimes could not afford the formula and thus would end up using less than the required amount of formula and mix it with more water so that a can would last for longer. This means that the infants got less nutrients than they required. Basically, children who are fed on breast milk are more protected than children who are fed on formula and thus have better health compared to the

What is a small power Is international development a different issue Essay

What is a small power Is international development a different issue for small powers - Essay Example China's economy, culture, science and technology and navigation had reached a peak that was unequaled anywhere else in the world. Its skilled navigators and the "Silk Road" linking western China with western Asia had introduced advanced Chinese technology and civilization to Japan, Korea, Southeast Asia, the Middle West Asia, the Middle East and Europe. Years of war and long periods of centralized ruling and a closing down of borders have slowed down China's development. China re-emerged recently as the fastest growing economy in the world. The development goals of China are not without its challenges and this paper seeks to explore different challenges facing China with regard to challenges. Cultural Revolution began in the mid-1960s in China. With the start of this revolution many people started having radical leftist thinking. Initially, intellectual achievement and foreign ideas, and the professions, including management, were not considered important. Formal management education was hard to find in China and those having a yearning for managerial education were discouraged. Social, political, and economic changes have brought about new development in the republic of China. Initially problems like poverty, illiteracy, and premature mortality haunted China because of the feudal structure of the society. Progress and development were not the key features of this society. Land reforms started in the 1950s and 1960s brought some changes in the society with the help of modernization. Class and gender inequalities that existed before started diminishing with the passage of time. Though China opened up itself to many Western concepts but the way different concepts have been adopted and used in China differ a lot from the West. The change was initiated but it could not be sustained at the level it was initiated. The Chinese Communist Party has not been able to shun the values and influence of feudal background. Population & Development In any discussion of the world population problem, China is usually first country mentioned, along, perhaps, with India. As the first nation with more than 1 billion people, China's impact on its own as well as global economy and environment promises to become larger with each passing year. Population explosion has been the biggest concern of China with respect to its development. As the population increased the demands on the infrastructure and the environment also increased. It has been estimated that China's population will increase to 1.5 billion by 2030 causing extra strains on the capacity of the environment and natural resources. "China's population will continue to grow in the next 40 years as a result of its huge base of fertile population. It is well known that the dynamics are determined not only by the current levels of fertility, mortality and migration, but also by previous levels of these components of change, which effect the current age-gender structure" (Shen, 1998). Problems of living space for families, access to potable water resources, health, education and many other issues come up as a result of unbridled population explosion. Pace of modernization has been greatly affected by population pressure. The immense employment pressure also results because of increase in the working population. Unemployment thus becomes another challenge. Despite growing population efforts have been made to curtail the problems that crop

Management of Information Systems Change Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Management of Information Systems Change - Essay Example As a key component of the business changes, Information Systems also plays a predominant role in the development of the business. Right from the information flow at internal end, to end-user levels, a lot of attention is required all through. Over a period of time a lot of dramatic and dynamic changes were envisaged in the way the information systems of many businesses transformed. In the earlier decades, Information Systems and usage of advanced technologies use to be a sophisticated development for the companies and were used by only well -established companies. But in the recent past, due to the growing competition and the advancement of technologies added to increased customer expectations of better and speedy services demanded almost all the companies of the globe to work towards reengineering the process of management and the business acumen. In business, Information Systems not only facilitates the basic processes or operations but also supports the decision making process of the Management. Bottom line management or the value maximization which is an ultimate objective of any business management precludes the effectiveness of the Information Systems used by the business. ... Observation of key aspects A detailed approach to any issue or the topic can help in gaining deeper insights. However to work on the dissertation of industry issues, a lot of ground work on the contemporary issues is needed. However when working on the key aspects, much attention has to be paid not only to the fundamental factors involved but also to the issues which are to be correlated to the same. The rest of the paper is organized as follows. The key aspect of any academic study is to deeply acknowledge the objectives of the study. The objective of this paper is to understand the role of Information systems and the new technologies in creating new ways of doing business and the strategic issues related to the same. In order to meet this objective, the role of Information Systems in today's business process is studied along with acknowledging the introduction/implementation of advanced technologies into the business processes. The technical approach to the managerial functions and the managerial approach to the technical aspects of the business process play a crucial role in understanding the scope for developing the business process and its life cycle. As a part of the study, many industrial verticals like telecom, Logistics, Supply Chain Management, Travel & Tourism, Manufacturing and Service sectors were also substantially researched and the key developments in these sectors are observed. Also the role of Information Systems and the impact driven by them on the way the business prevailed along with the current scenario were also discussed. Management information Systems - A Review Management Information

International Education Research Proposal Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

International Education - Research Proposal Example Countries which have the English speaking base, such as UK, USA and Australia are the most preferred destinations to get exposed to western education. When international students are accepted into the educational institution, the environment in the institution should be conducive to effective teaching learning process. There is a lot of impact on the domestic students and the learning environment caused by the international students and vice versa The policy makers, educational administrators, teachers, students and the community at large should know the impact of the international students in the learning environment. When international students are accepted in schools and universities the management of the institution should be prepared to provide the most congenial learning environment. The management should commit physical resources to provide the infrastructure which will benefit the learning process. But in many cases, the facilities and state of art infrastructure alone do not make help in facilitating the teaching learning process when international students become part of the classroom environment. The management should be flexible enough to adapt its policies to make both the international and domestic students work together. In this current research, an attempt is made to explore the impact of the international students on the learning environment and the study tries to highlight the role of leadership of the institution on the international students. ... SCOPE OF THE STUDY There are a number of studies which show the advantages of accepting international students. The main advantage is the opportunity to understand different cultures and different perspectives. For domestic students, the opportunity to share their educational experience with international students enriches their learning experience and broadens their outlook on life. Indeed, it has been found that domestic students recognize the personal and career benefits of having a network of colleagues from different countries (Pittaway, et al, 1998). Indeed, as Anyanwu (2004) succinctly opine, "The presence of international students on university campuses provides a unique social forum for enhancing all students' understanding and appreciation of the richness of other cultures". But on the other hand there are also some factors that have to be taken into account before international students are admitted into an educational institution. Paul Barron (2004), in his study it found that there was a feeling of unfairness amongst domestic students and that somehow, international students were perceived as more valuable. This unfair perception is perhaps the most potentially dangerous and universities need address this issue through effective communication with domestic students, a more clear admissions process and a more focused emphasis on the importance of domestic students to the institution. This researcher considers that a more effective and blatant drive to determine domestic students' thoughts and feelings on this issue might be an effective first step in eradicating this perception. The study mentioned here is only highlights only one of the many factors that determine the achievement of the learning objectives when

Real Estate Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Real Estate - Essay Example In this case, the client claims to have using the neighbors land for the last 15 years. According to the client, for the last 15 years he has heavily invested in farming on the land that belongs to the neighbor. Additionally, he claims that out of that farming activity he has managed to harvest various crops throughout the 15 years period. In order to establish whether the client can claim ownership of the piece of land, it is good to assess whether he meets the requirements provided for in the law in order to claim ownership. According to the state of Alabama adverse possession laws, a trespasser needs to meet the following requirements: the trespasser must have occupied the property for at least 15 years, he/she must occupy the property with or without the knowledge of the owner, he/she must be physically present on the land, he/she must be open in trespassing, and must be exclusive and continuous possession. Having considered the above requirements, the client is under legally entitled to own the land that belongs to his

Management of Information Systems Change Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Management of Information Systems Change - Essay Example As a key component of the business changes, Information Systems also plays a predominant role in the development of the business. Right from the information flow at internal end, to end-user levels, a lot of attention is required all through. Over a period of time a lot of dramatic and dynamic changes were envisaged in the way the information systems of many businesses transformed. In the earlier decades, Information Systems and usage of advanced technologies use to be a sophisticated development for the companies and were used by only well -established companies. But in the recent past, due to the growing competition and the advancement of technologies added to increased customer expectations of better and speedy services demanded almost all the companies of the globe to work towards reengineering the process of management and the business acumen. In business, Information Systems not only facilitates the basic processes or operations but also supports the decision making process of the Management. Bottom line management or the value maximization which is an ultimate objective of any business management precludes the effectiveness of the Information Systems used by the business. ... Observation of key aspects A detailed approach to any issue or the topic can help in gaining deeper insights. However to work on the dissertation of industry issues, a lot of ground work on the contemporary issues is needed. However when working on the key aspects, much attention has to be paid not only to the fundamental factors involved but also to the issues which are to be correlated to the same. The rest of the paper is organized as follows. The key aspect of any academic study is to deeply acknowledge the objectives of the study. The objective of this paper is to understand the role of Information systems and the new technologies in creating new ways of doing business and the strategic issues related to the same. In order to meet this objective, the role of Information Systems in today's business process is studied along with acknowledging the introduction/implementation of advanced technologies into the business processes. The technical approach to the managerial functions and the managerial approach to the technical aspects of the business process play a crucial role in understanding the scope for developing the business process and its life cycle. As a part of the study, many industrial verticals like telecom, Logistics, Supply Chain Management, Travel & Tourism, Manufacturing and Service sectors were also substantially researched and the key developments in these sectors are observed. Also the role of Information Systems and the impact driven by them on the way the business prevailed along with the current scenario were also discussed. Management information Systems - A Review Management Information

Real Estate Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Real Estate - Essay Example In this case, the client claims to have using the neighbors land for the last 15 years. According to the client, for the last 15 years he has heavily invested in farming on the land that belongs to the neighbor. Additionally, he claims that out of that farming activity he has managed to harvest various crops throughout the 15 years period. In order to establish whether the client can claim ownership of the piece of land, it is good to assess whether he meets the requirements provided for in the law in order to claim ownership. According to the state of Alabama adverse possession laws, a trespasser needs to meet the following requirements: the trespasser must have occupied the property for at least 15 years, he/she must occupy the property with or without the knowledge of the owner, he/she must be physically present on the land, he/she must be open in trespassing, and must be exclusive and continuous possession. Having considered the above requirements, the client is under legally entitled to own the land that belongs to his

Text Linguistics Essay Example for Free

Text Linguistics Essay Module I. Classificationally meaningful characteristics of the text as an integral and independent object of investigation. Lecture 6. Conceptual variability of linguistic interpretations of the text essence and status and their reflections in the models of the text descriptions. Problem for discussion Evolution of the text description approaches. Models of the text descriptions. Grounds for the chosen models and schemes of the text descriptions as a scientific object. It has already been mentioned that despite the fact that there are many publications devoted to problems of text linguistics. There does not exist an adequate definition of the text that would find satisfaction with all researchers. The difficulties that arise when trying to work out an universally acceptable definition of the text can be explained by the fact that scholars study the text in its various aspects : grammatical, stylistic, semantic, functional and so on. The text can be studied as a product ( text grammar) or as a process (theory of text). The text-as-a-product approach is focused on the text on the text cohesion, coherence, topical organization, illocutionary structure and communicative functions; the text-as-a-process perspective studies the text production, reception and interpretation. Text can be understood as an instance of (spoken or written) language use ( an act of parole) , a relatively self-contained unit of communication. As a â€Å"communicative occurrence† it meets seven criteria of textuality (the constitutive principles of textual communication): cohesion, coherence, intentioanality, acceptability, informativity, situationality, and intertextuality and three regulative principles of textual communication: efficiency, effectiveness and approapriateness.(cf. de Beaugrande and Dressler 1981, Maljaer 1991) 1. Regular Principles of Textual Communiction. The principle of efficiency requires that a text should be used with a minimum effort hence the use of plain ( stereotyped and unimaginative)  language. Which, however booring and unimpressive, is easy to produce and comprehend. In contrast, effectiveness presumes leaving a strong impression and the creation of favourable conditions for attaining a communicative goal; this presupposes the use of creative ( original, imaginative) language which, however effective, may lead to communicative breakdown. The principle of appropriateness attempts to balance off the two above mentioned principles by seeking an accord between the text setting and standards of textuality. Common text features. Some common text features found in books are Table of Contents, Glossary, Index, Bold Words, Headings and Titles, Maps, Diagrams, Illustrations and Charts. Why is Understanding Text Features an important reading strategy? Text Features help us to identify the big ideas and topics that the author is focusing on. Visual text features such as maps and charts help to support the information the author presents in the text. How do we use text features to help us understand what we are reading? Before reading, preview the kinds of text features throughout the book. Think about what the big ideas the author wants you to remember. Make sure to read captions Functional Classification  The functional classification identifies illocutionary text types according to the type of the dominating illocutionary act (see 10.2): representative or assertive type (e.g. research reports, public notices, administrative texts, weather forecasts, diaries, CVs, lectures), directive type (e.g. commands, orders, invitations, instructions, directions, giving advice), expressive type (e.g. apologies, thank-you notes, greeting, condolences, compliments, toasts, congratulations), commissive type ( e.g. promises , pledges, swears, offers, vows, contracts, bets), declarative or performative type (e.g. , nominations, appointments, dismissals, accussations: I find you guilty as charged, marriage ceremonies, testaments, certificates). Texts viewed from this perspective satisfy diverse communicative needs of the society members. Situational Classification  The situational classification sorts out texts according to the sphere of activity (e.g., private, official or public, such as a private letter, a  letter addressed to an institution) and form of communication (dialogical and monological, spoken and written texts). Strategic Classification  The strategic classification deals primarily with the topic and the ways of its expansion 9 the term slohove postupy is used in Slovak stylistics to denote macrocompositional principles, cf. Mistrik 1997): narrative, descriptive, and argumentative.

Assessment of Ureteroscopy During Pregnancy

Assessment of Ureteroscopy During Pregnancy INTRODUCTION Urolithiasis during pregnancy is an infrequent condition, with an incidence of 0.026 to 0.531 percent in the medical literature (1). Renal colic is the most common presentation of urolithiasis, as well as the most common nonobstetric cause of hospitalization during pregnancy and a predetermining factor of premature labor especially if accompanied by urinary tract infection(2,3). In approximately 70 percent of the cases the stone is passed spontaneously with the use of analgesics and hydration. (4-7) In other cases the onset of infection, fever and refractory ureteral colic require a variety of endourologic actions such as stent placement treatment(8). The diagnosis of ureteral calculi in pregnant women is often difficult because of the serious risks presented by radiation exposure, especially during the first trimester. As such, the diagnosis is best based on clinical data, urinalysis and ultrasound examinations; however, ultrasound does not always provide a clear diagnostic picture, even though at times color flow Doppler ultrasound may be useful (9). Further diagnostic efforts are indicated when the patient has intractable pain or upper urinary tract infection, or if renal function is decreasing for which a more precise diagnosis aims at specific treatment. In this situation ureteroscopy was considered a useful option, since it combines the diagnostic procedure with definitive treatment(10). Because of the recent advances in the techniques and technology in the field of ureteroscopy, the new and thinner semirigid and flexible ureteroscopes have allowed easy access to the ureter without any need for dilation and with minimal manipulation. (11) Ureteroscopy can be performed successfully for ureteral calculi in pregnant women and stones can be removed with the stone basket or fragmented with ultrasonic ballistic or laser lithotriptors under sedation-analgesia (12-14). Ureteroscopy can be performed with greater care when the patient is under sedation-analgesia than if spinal or general anesthesia is used, since the patient can collaborate during the procedure. Therefore, sedation-analgesia may be preferred when ureteroscopy is performed in pregnant patients (15,16). For reasons mentioned above, we have started use of minureteroscopes for managing pregnant patients with complicated stone disease not responding to medical measures and herein we present our experience with 15 p atients. PATIENTS AND METHODS Between 2000 and 2005 we performed ureteroscopy and ureterolithotripsy on 15 pregnant patients 21 to 32 years old. All patients underwent extensive diagnostic evaluation including urinalysis, urine culture and antibiogram, complete blood picture, bleeding and coagulation times, renal and liver function tests as well as, complete abdomino-pelvic ultrasound, and an accurate obstetrical examination to evaluate the fetal condition. The women were placed on the operating table in an oblique position with the left side down when necessary to decrease the pressure of the pregnant uterus on the inferior vena cava. Sedation-analgesia with 2.5mg midazolam and 50 mg pethidine intravenously was used in the first 7 patients. In the following 8 cases 10 mg nalbuphine HCL was used in addition to midazolam. Prophylactic therapy with ampicillin/ sulbactum 1.5gm was administered before the procedure. Ureteroscopy was performed with ultrasound monitoring. The use of ionizing radiation was avoided before, during and after the procedures. Constant obstetrical monitoring was available throughout the procedures. All patients underwent ureteroscopy with thin rigid 7.0F ureteroscopes without dilation of the ureteral meatus. We used either the micro-six ACMI ureteroscope or Karl-Storz 6.9 F semirigid ureteroscope. Floppy tip guide wire 0.035 was inserted over a 6 F open tip ureteric catheter through the 22 F cystoscopy. The wire was advanced first to the collecting system where it has been fixed. In cases with difficult guide wire insertion through the cystoscope, direct ureteroscopy was then performed and a safety wire was inserted through the ureteroscope. Then the ureteroscope was advanced alongside the wire and visualization of the whole ureter was done. Once a stone is visualized a decision was made in regard to the best means of extraction. Factors, such as size, amount of speculation, degree of impaction, location within the ureter and condition of the distal ureter, were considered. Our method of choice was the use of the stone basket under direct vision. If the size of the stone preclu ded the use of the basket technique, we elected to disintegrate the stone using pneumatic intracorporeal lithotripsy. At the end of the procedure, a double pigtail ureteral stent or external ureteral catheter was placed in the ureter to avoid partial urinary obstruction and flank pain due to mucosal edema. If external stent was used, it is tied to a Foley catheter. The Foley and ureteral catheters were removed within 1 to 2 days. The operating time, hospital stay, perioperative and postoperative complications, outcome of the pregnancies and deliveries, and condition of the neonates postpartum were all recorded. All women underwent PUT and abdomino-pelvic ultrasound 6weeks after delivery. RESULTS The mean age of our patients was 25.3 years (range 21-32 years) and the mean gestation time was 28 weeks (range16-32 weeks). The main presenting symptoms and indication of surgical intervention were recurrent ureteric colic not responding to analgesics, fever, recurrent UTIs, and hematuria (table1). Urine culture was positive for ampicillin-sensitive strains of E-coli and proteus vulgaris in 3 patients. Macroscopic hematuria was found in 3 patients while microscopic hematuria was present in in 2 patients. Leukocytosis was found in 2 patients. Ultrasonography showed dilation of the renal pelvis in all cases and stones were identified in 8 cases. Upper ureteral stones were found in 3 patients while lower ureteric stones were diagnosed in 5 patients. The mean stone size diagnosed with ultrasound was 0.6cm (range from 0.5-1.2 cm). Ureteroscopy was done for all cases with the entire ureter examined without the need for ureteric orifice dilatation. Stones were extracted from the lower ureter by Dormia basket in 7 patients. Stone fragmentation with the pneumatic lithotriptor was used for stones above the iliac vessels in 6 cases and no stones have been found in 2 patients (table 2). A double pigtail ureteral catheter was inserted in 8 cases (6 patients with fragmented calculi and the 2 cases with no confirmed stone) and ensured to be in the proper position by watching its distal end in the bladder and monitoring of the upper end curling in the renal pelvis through ultrasound examination. In the 7 patients with extracted calculi, a 6 F ureteric catheter was inserted for one or two days postoperatively. Duration of the procedure ranged from 15-30 minutes and obstetric monitoring showed no signs of fetal distress or pre-term delivery. No complications encountered and convalescence was uneventful. Patients who had pain were improved remarkably and fever disappeared within the next 24 hours after the procedure. Patients were discharged home 72 days after the procedure and the external ureteric catheter was removed. Patients with double J stenting had their stent removed after labor in the two patients with negative ureteroscopic finding while patients underwent stone fragmentation had stent withdrawal after 3 weeks. All pregnancies progressed to full term delivery. Five patients had an elective Cesarean section as they had a history of previous section and no fetal abnormalities were detected. The follow up PUT and U/S performed 6 weeks postpartum revealed disappearance of renal pelvis dilatation and no calculi were found in all patients. DISCUSSION The first publications on ureteroscopic diagnosis and management of ureteral calculi during pregnancy appeared in 1988.12 The differential diagnosis of ureteral calculi versus physiological dilatation in pregnancy was rendered possible by this procedure with great assistance in management. Using ureteroscopy and stent placement, under ultrasound monitoring, was an important step forward in stone manipulation during pregnancy (12,13). It was supposed that anatomic distortions caused by the fetal presence would not allow the introduction of the rigid ureteroscope and this procedure could be of high risk to the pregnancy. However, it was proved that the natural ureteral dilation in pregnancy facilitates the introduction of the ureteroscope and the procedure could be performed easily by following the usual rules, except for the use of fluoroscopy (17). The diagnosis of ureteral calculi in pregnant women is often difficult because of the serious risks presented by radiation exposure, especially during the first trimester(9). Several investigators have highlighted the problems related to the exposure of the pregnant patients to x-rays in regard to the incidence of tumors in children who were irradiated during fetal life(9,18). Therefore, the use of x-ray for the diagnosis or management of stones during pregnancy remains controversial (19). Ultrasonography is the main diagnostic method in these cases, because besides its non-invasive nature, it does not use radiation, and is universally available (3,8). However, Ultrasound does not always provide a clear diagnostic picture, even though at times color flow Doppler ultrasound by using resistive indices may be useful (10). In our study, we avoided the use of x-ray for the diagnosis of stones during pregnancy and we depend mainly on clinical diagnosis and ultrasound examination. Renal pelvic dilatation alone or combined with calyceal dilatation was diagnosed by U/S in our patients and ureteral stones were found in 8 (61.5%) out of 13 ureteroscopically confirmed stones. Although U/S is safe under all circumstances of pregnancy, its utilization in diagnosing obstruction is of limited value owing to its sub-optimal view of the ureter and presence of hydroureteronephrosis as a physiologic concomitant of pregnancy. Hematuria, both macro and microscopic, is a frequent sign, but is not specific (4, 8, 20) while urinary tract infection is present in 20 to 45% of the cases of calculus during pregnancy (1,21-22). Among our patients, hematuria was present in 5 (33.3%) patients and asymptomatic bacteriuria was detected in 4 (26.7%) patients while pyelonephritis complicated 2 (13.3%) pregnant women. In the early protocols for stone management in pregnant patients, the double pigtail catheters were used to treat renal dilatation and in cases of failure, an ultrasound guided nephrostomy was preferred over the risks inherent with ureteroscopy (19). Stents and drains may have many disadvantages including accidental dislodgment, obstruction or bladder irritability and unpleasant symptoms (1). In addition, incrustation on double pigtail stents with resultant obstruction is frequent in pregnant women and it is advised that stents should be changed every few weeks during pregnancy. The repeated insertions of tubes and stents may have potential risks that may be comparable to the risk associated with ureteroscopy performed as a single procedure. (11-14). In the present series, we have used the 7F semirigid ureteroscope, without need of dilating the ureteral meatus in any of the cases. In fact, this procedure is simpler than it was supposed in the past. It was suggested that pregnant patients with ureteral calculus and fever should be treated with antibiotics and drainage by a double-J catheter. The advantage of this method is that it is an efficient and less invasive method. Ureteroscopy was not advised in these patients because ureteral manipulation and liquid injection under pressure in the excretory system may lead to bacteruria and dissemination of the infection (23). However, stent should be left until the end of pregnancy, which can be a predisposing factor to infections and may cause vesical discomfort in most patients. We have used ureteroscopy in 2 pregnant patients with pyelonephritis and obstructing ureteral calculi and stones were removed and double J stents were inserted for 3 weeks without complications. Those patients were given antibiotics according to culture and sensitivity test prior to the procedure and during ureteroscopy fluid pressure was kept at minimum and non-refluxing double J stents were used. A further advantage of ureteroscopy as a diagnostic and therapeutic option is that general anesthesia can be avoided during pregnancy. With the application of mini-ureteroscopes and small instruments, general anesthesia was replaced by sedation analgesia among our patients. This aspect has already been highlighted by others who reported on flexible ureteroscopy (12). In conclusion, ureteroscopy during pregnancy can be performed safely under sedation analgesia for diagnosis and removal of ureteral calculi in cases of failure of conservative management in experienced centers with the use of miniureteroscopes and without using fluoroscopy.