Radioactive Isotopes

Radioactive Isotopes An isotope is one of two or more atoms with the same number of protons, and position in the periodic table, but different number of neutrons and physical properties. Isotopes have an unstable nucleus that decay suddenly by a release of nuclear electrons and radiation. This essay will be discussing one of the applications and uses of the radioactive isotopes, and it will also state one problem that radioactive isotopes can address. The radiation characteristically meet four kinds: alpha radiation, beta radiation, gamma radiation and x radiation.Alpha radiation is weighty, that includes a very-short variety element and is in fact a homeless helium nucleus. Some examples of alpha radiation are radium, radon, uranium, and thorium. Beta radiation is weightless, has short-range particles and is in fact a cast out electron; some examples of beta radiation are strontium -90, carbon-14, tritium, and sulphur-35. Gamma and x radiation are extremely incisive electromagnetic rays. One of the problems I’ll be discussing and is actually solved by radioactive isotopes is a cancer cell.Radiation therapy draws on high-energy radiation to damage on cancer cells by damaging their DNA, unfortunately it can also damage normal cells, so as a result the treatment must be circumspectly designed to reduce side effects. X rays offers huge advantages, counting the previous discovery of cancer and the opportunity of premature action, their use is linked with minute improves in cancer danger. In attendance the agreement vision is the profit of showing women over 50 years old, ignorantly prevail over the associated risks due to radiation experience.Typical effective doses from diagnostic medical exposures in the 1990s Diagnostic procedure | Typical effective does in millisieverts | Equivalent number of chest x-rays| Approximate equivalent period of natural background radiation (1)| X ray examination: -| Limbs and joints (except hip)|

Dell Case Study

Running head: DELL COMPUTER CORPORATION Improving the Dell Computer Corporation Heather Mueller Corporate Communications Section One Improving the Dell Computer Corporation The key issues presented in the â€Å"Dell Computer Corporation† case study is that Dell needs to align its’ identity with its’ image, and stop relying heavily on technology (Dell Case Study P. 58). Increased dependence on technology, along with a gap between image and identity, can cause complications for a company if they are not attended to. AnalysisCorporate communication must be â€Å"closely linked to a company’s overall vision and strategy,† (Argenti, 2007, p. 12) and if not, it can cause constituencies to view the company negatively. The Chief Operating Officer of Sony â€Å"criticized Dell’s lack of spending on research and development,† therefore, Sony’s image of Dell does not align with Dell’s identity. A company’s image is the  "corporation as seen through the eyes of its constituencies, [and] an organization can have different images with different constituencies† (Argenti, 2007, p. 58).This differs from an identity, because an identity â€Å"consists of a company’s defining attributes,† and should not very from one constituency to another (Argenti, 2007, p. 58). Many of Dell’s constituencies view Dell in a very positive light, and see Dell as an excellent example of how a company should function and communicate with its constituencies. Dell has a well-founded identity called â€Å"The Soul of Dell† which is its’ corporate philosophy that â€Å"defines the kind of company it is and aspires to become† and shows Dell’s commitment to direct accountability (Argenti, 2007, p. 9). However, â€Å"identity building and maintenance requires the ability to conduct research,† and if Dell does not clearly communicate that ability with it’s constitue ncies, Sony will continue to be discontented with Dell’s identity (Argenti, 2007, p. 50). The founder of Dell Computers, Michael Dell, created an â€Å"e-mail based culture† at the company as the primary work environment (Argenti, 2007, p. 62). E-mail can be effective because it allows subordinates to easily communicate with senior management and is an efficient mean of communication across time zones (Argenti, 2007, p. 2). This is important because subordinates can â€Å"get the company’s strategy directly from those at the top of the organization† (Argenti, 2007, p. 12). E-mail also helps to create a productive climate in which â€Å"managers and employees communicate effectively and support each other† (O'Hair et al. , 2008, p. 181). However, Dell’s â€Å"increasing dependence on technology-mediated communication creates an environment that may discourage relational development† (O'Hair et al. , 2008, p. 179).Nearly all communicati on takes place digitally because â€Å"face-to-face communication has given way to a strictly electronic communication network. † (O'Hair et al. , 2008, p. 189). Without face-to-face communication, personal relationships within the company may begin to fail, which decreases productivity, and increases isolation and emotional detachment from the company’s identity as well as other employees. If the upper management at Dell does not improve the ways it communicates internally and externally, the company will not continue to grow, thrive or flourish in the changing corporate environment.If Dell can modify and adapt its’ behavior in a positive way, its constituencies will become aware of Dell’s excellent communications, and this well-built structure will transcend through the company so employees will learn to communicate efficiently as well. Solutions The upper management at Dell needs to make personal and public communication more important within their str ategy for maintaining their core identity as â€Å"The Soul of Dell. Dell already has a strong relations with constituencies because employees and management â€Å"allow for unique working relationships that transcend the ‘us and them’,† so the constituencies feel valued (Argenti, 2007, p. 62). However, a company can always improve its communication with constituencies because communication is an ongoing â€Å"process by which information is exchanged between individuals through a common system of symbols, signs, or behavior† (Communication, 2009, par. ). In order to improve its communications, the upper management at Dell can work more closely with the marketing communications department and create a stronger corporate mission. With today’s quick changing environment, â€Å"a clear-cut corporate mission can not only keep employees aligned with what the company is striving to be, but also can act as a source of stability for consumers weary of the constant change surrounding them. (Argenti, 2007, p. 12). The marketing communications department â€Å"coordinates and manages publicity relations to products and deals with activities relating to customers,† and could compose ways to strengthen the corporate mission (Argenti, 2007, p. 53). If more focus was put on marketing communications and a stronger corporate mission was created, then employees can better understand the fundamental reasons for the company’s existence.The employees would be able to clearly demonstrate and publicize each way they illustrate the company’s identity and pursue the continuing purpose of achieving the corporate mission. When a company gets more involved in â€Å"quasi-political activities with constituencies [that] claim to represent a firm’s customers,† the company would then be able to control how its constituencies view them, and how the company evaluates its’ identity compared to the constituencies perce ived image.The American Decency Association (ADA) successfully maintained and illustrated its identity involving the need to prevent images of violence and adult content from being promoted by family orientated companies and businesses (ADA, 2008, par. 1). They successfully â€Å"lobbied for companies including Kellogg’s, Lowe’s, Tyson Foods, and S. C. Johnson to stop buying additional advertising space on U. S. television shows† with unnecessary violence and adult content such as ABC’s Desperate Housewives and FX Nip/Tuck (Argenti, 2007, p. 53).The marketing communication team of the ADA ensured that family orientated products and brand promotions were sending the right messages to children. The company stayed true to its corporate mission and never strayed from its foundation of values and beliefs, so that its constituencies would not be anxious of the constantly changing environment that surrounded the media. E-mail constantly causes information overlo ad for employees in a company if it is the main source of communication, and this informal communication process often isolates employees and does not allow them to interact. Spending over 5 hours a day staring at a computer screen increases the risk of depression, insomnia and other mental health problems† as well (O'Hair et al. , 2008, p. 189). This can be solved with increased face-to-face communications through meetings, team building activities, and company outings. If the upper management put more of a emphasis on internal communications, then â€Å"the employees would be more engaged, productive, loyal,† and happy, and the strength of company relationships will increase (Argenti, 2007, p. 54). ConclusionThe course of actions that Dell should pursue is working closer with the marketing communications department to create a stronger corporate mission, and to increase face-to-face communications within the company. With increased and improved personal and public com munication, Dell will be able to align its image with its identity, and will be able to strengthen relationships to prove themselves as a successful company with a consistent strategy, in the endlessly changing work environment. References ADA. (2008, September 28). ABC/Disney's desperate housewives.In American decency association. Retrieved February 9, 2009, from http://www. americandecency. org/main. php? f=updates_new/2008/September/09. 28a. 08 Argenti, P. A. (2007). Corporate communication (4th ed. ). New York, NY: McGraw-Hill. Communication. (2009). In Merriam-Webster. Retrieved February 10, 2009, from http://www. merriam-webster. com/dictionary/communication O'Hair, D. , Friedrich, G. W. , & Dixon, L. D. (2008). Work relationships. In Strategic communication in businesses and the professions (6th ed. , pp. 178-205). Boston: Pearson education.

Event Planning

Vietnam National University The University of Social Sciences and Humanities The Faculty of Oriental Studies BUSINESS ENGLISH: PLANNING EVENT SUCCESSFULLY Teacher: Tr? n Cao B? i Ng? c, M. A Student: Nguy? n Th? Thien Thanh Student code: 0665339 Class: Australian Studies 06 Ho Chi Minh City November 27th, 2009 CONTENT I. Pre-planning5 1. Forming a team and assigning tasks5 2. Brainstorming6 3. Defining your event7 4. 4. Setting program goals and objectives8 II. Planning stage8 1. Summary8 2. Planning9 1. Draft budget9 2. Event activity list/Create a plan of action12 3. After the event24 3. Create event timeline24 III. Evaluation of event27 INTRODUCTION Chances are, at some point in your life you have organized or helped organize an event. Remember your birthday parties growing up? There must have been some planning involved, such as guest lists and food. Accordingly, most planned events, especially in the business world, require prior arrangements and preparations. Planning conferences and meetings has ecome a skilled profession these days. Conference and meeting planners, also known as event planners organize, coordinate and run conventions and meetings and make sure they function smoothly without any glitches. These events range from first-birthday parties to political fundraisers, anniversaries, fashion shows, product launches, conferences, graduations, and reunions, to name just a few! According to a recent report, it takes about 15 0 hours for a planner, working with her staff, to produce a major event from start to finish. You do the math. Millions of events multiplied by hundreds of hours spent planning equals many, many opportunities for those entering this field. Events help our organizations educate the public about environmental issues, give the public a chance to get involved in campaigns, raise money, and publicize our organizations and their campaigns and activities. Events do not just magically come together. For every conference, concert, dinner, or lecture, a dedicate group of people worked together to plan and execute the event. Planning an event means more than just deciding to have one and trying to pull it together by the seat of your pants. Planning involves taking necessary steps to accomplish a goal. When events are planned, hang-ups, which often destroy an event, can be dealt with much more easily or sometimes are avoided all together. For example, events are often ruined when weather turns foul or a speaker drops out. However, if the event was planned, an alternative location can be booked, and backup activities planned in the absence of a speaker. These following steps to successful event planning will provide you the event planner with all the various important tasks involved in event planning. The keys to successful event planning will make your event a successful one, no matter how big or small the event, the purpose of the event or whether it is personal, business, entertainment or otherwise. I. Pre-planning: Pre-event planning, as outlined in this section, will be among the most important steps you will take on your path to a successful event. You may have heard the phrase, ‘‘If you don’t know where you are going, any path will take you there. ’’ It’s true. Without knowing where you are going and why, you might as well set out on your journey and be content wherever you happen to arrive. You would not start a family vacation with this attitude, would you? Thus, key factor to a successful event is that it is well planned with plenty of time to make sure things are done as required and within time frames set down. Depending upon the type of event, look to plan the event at least 6-9 months before the actual date happens to allow for success. This also allows for any potential problems to be resolved in plenty of time. Once you cycle through your first year, pre-event planning for the following year begins the day after your event. In other words, what is best and most successful is to never go out of business— to have one event’s conclusion lead directly into the next event’s preplanning. This is the best way for organizations to continue to improve, reduce burnout of staff, and break the cycle of reinventing the wheel. In fact, the more you follow planning as a continuum from one event to the next, the easier it gets to achieve success. 1. Forming a team and assigning Tasks First, running an event alone can be very difficult, so it’s important to recruit others to help. Be sure the members of the organization are invested in sponsoring the event. They will be more likely to follow through and participate in all the planning details if they feel a sense of ownership for the event. Designate a chair person for the event to coordinate and supervise the entire process. Be sure that all of your team to fill out all the proper forms and obtain signatures. †¢ List the interests, abilities, and talents of the people in the group. For instances, who like to plan, who are skilled at handling logistics (such as organizing parking, purchasing supplies, and coordinating volunteers), and who can come up with original ideas for event- and cause-related publicity. Provide opportunities for everyone to brainstorm ideas for the group’s work †¢ Trim down the list you develop and set some priorities. Factor in how well the ideas match the interests, abilities, and talents from the initial list. †¢ Put it all on a calendar, and then take into account other commitments, like exams, holidays, or other â€Å"busy times†. †¢ Assign coordination roles, tasks, and do a â€Å"reality check† on timetables and workload. Many groups create an overly ambitious plan the first time. †¢ Check in regularly on the progress of your plans. 2. Brainstorming You would be surprised on how many great ideas your group can get from a ten-minute brainstorm! Here’s how to do it: It is really important to create a basic planning framework at the start. It is surprising how often people get carried away by a big idea and rush into planning it, without thinking through who the message is aimed at, what kind of effect it will have on its audience or even what the objectives for it are. If you do not agree objectives early on, you will not be able to judge whether you are going to get the results you hope for. So, think through the answers to the following questions: The ‘5 Ws’ – why? who? what? where? when? – may seem blindingly obvious, but the answers will help keep your planning on course: WHY Why do we want to hold the event/action? What’s the nature of the opportunity? WHO Who will do it? Who are our potential allies? Who are our partners? Who is our target? Who do we want to influence? Who is our audience? Who will participate? Who is going to do all the work? WHAT What kind of event do we want to run? Outdoor? Indoor? Site-based? Is it business related, purely social, or somewhere in between: (Celebrations (fairs, parades, weddings, reunions, birthdays, anniversaries, first communions) (Education (conferences, conventions, meetings, graduations) (Promotions (product launches, political rallies, fashion shows, conventions) (Commemorations (memorials, civic events) WHERE Where do we want to do it? Venue? Site? Is the place available? Consider seating, parking, accessibility for people with disabilities, transportation, and any permit that may be required. WHEN When do we want to do it? Is it time critical? Is there an external agenda driving this? Is it weather-dependent? Will any other events conflict with your date? Finally there is one other vital question, and that is HOW How much is the event going to cost and where will the money come from? How long will your event last? Once you have concrete answers to the questions listed above, you are ready to move on to develop the program’s goals and objectives. 4. Setting program goals and objectives: One of the importance to pre-planning is setting objectives or goals. In order to do this, keep in mind these things. 1. Summary When planning an event need to consider a checklist of primary factors. They are: (Datewhen the event will be held. ? Locationwhat city or town it will be held in. ? Venuewhere will the project/event be held e. g. hotel, motel, conference centre. ? Budgetdraft budget – including expected income and expenditure. ? Speakerswho is going to speak/run the event. ? Inviteeswho are you targeting to attend the event. ? Sponsorscan you obtain sponsors for the event and who are they. ? Timelineproject plan timeline for the event including responsibilities for each item. Materialswhat information is required to give to attendees. ? Collationcollation of all material required for the event. ? Advertisinghow going to advert the event? And in what forms e. g. radio, newspaper, or email. ? Mediainvite media to attend event (if appropriate) or advertising of the event. 2. Planning At the initial meeting, need to set up a number of objectives and form a timeline for the project or even t. Important to plan the event with plenty of time to allow for all aspects of the event to happen without too many problems. Keep everyone in the loop so as all aware of what is happening and what every person is dealing with – means no double ups and some accountability to make sure everything is done correctly and within the time frame set. The â€Å"dates† on the timeline do not have to be set in concrete, but need to be flexible enough to make sure everything is covered. You should hold a meeting every two weeks with the committee/organizing group, just to check that everything is happening as it should be and everyone understands at what stage of the timeline the event is at. Be sure that: †¢ Assign tasks and roles appropriately †¢ Determine who will actually be executing the event †¢ Instruct clear expectations as to who will be responsible for each role and how exactly will they fill the role †¢ Involve as many people as you can because people enjoy supporting something that they played a part in planning/organizing 2. 1. Draft budget: Budgeting for an event reflects on a number of costs and needs to be as detailed as possible; otherwise, you can end up spending more than you anticipated. Therefore, identify the sources and amounts of potential revenue and expenses, and revise for realistic and necessary true cost and revenue updates. If you are not able to have exact figures for some of this, estimate – you can always correct this once you have confirmed figures and can change this for the final budget. (Speakers In initial contact with these people, check availability for the dates you have decided on. Establish with them if there are any costs to payment fee, airfares, and accommodation. Are there any additional costs like incidentals e. . taxi’s, meals? Is anyone accompanying them? Do they need transport? A key point to also ask is what are their requirements for the event e. g. are they presenting the topics on Power Point, can they supply with copy, how much material do they need for the handout material or folders? Note that your section would usually buy the speaker a gift of thanks so this cost needs to be put into the budget. All of this inform ation needs to be established at the start to give you an indication of what sort of costs will be required. (Venue Most places can send you pricing by email – this is helpful in preliminary draft budget planning. Pricing will reflect cost of room’s available (for the event), style of seating, pricing for food and beverages, electronic/AV requirements e. g. data projector. They may offer discounts on room hire or accommodation. Check when you need to confirm. (Sponsorship Need to look at whether we can get sponsorship for the event? And if so, in what form will it be e. g. money (donation towards costs), full cost or half cost of the event, may wish to pay for speakers only etc. What requirements do they have for handout material, if any? Can they supply pens, pads etc. Need to discuss this right at the beginning of planning the event and make sure decision is clear and in writing to all parties. Need to address and find out what they want out of the event and this in turn will affect the budgeting of both expenditure and income. (Event Materials Need to determine what is going to be given to the attendees. Need to follow your organization standard folder presentation. Need to design cover for each event and need to allow enough time for printing of covers and contents etc. Need sponsors logos (electronically). An agenda, contents page, list of attendees (if relevant) to event, evaluation form all need to be decided upon, the format designed and then allow time for printing plus collation of the material once printed. Need to allow time for couriering of information to venue (if necessary). All costs for this need to be examined and put into budget (Advertising and Media Here need to address who targeting to attend the event, how they will be invited e. g. invitation in mail, electronically. Some form of registration system to be put in place – ideally with one person only (so as not to duplicate any work and to have control over invoicing registrants etc). How much do we charge for registration fee Need to look at all costs (estimates) to ensure we have a successful registration fee. Do we need to involve the Media? – if so do they come to the event, can they assist in promoting the event before? Need to ask these kinds of questions and again look at relevant costs. (Note: a) Finance the event before it happens. Know where the money will be coming from. Never plan to finance an event from registration fees, ticket sales or gate receipts. b) A good way to finance an event is to create a fundraising arm of the production. *Note that the event itself and the fundraising effort should not be mixed. A good way to avoid any overlapping of the two is to assign a different planning team to the fundraising. These are two different responsibilities and they should b e planned separately. c) There are three types of fundraising effort to cover the cost. The first is a strategic alliance. Co-branding events not only provides more name recognition for your events, but it is also a way to help cover the expenses of the event. The second option to consider is sponsorship. This option allows you to generate money, but not share as much of the spotlight. The third option is charging for attendance. Depending on the type of event you hold this can be a positive or negative thing. EVENT BUDGET TEMPLATE Event: _____________________________ Date: ______________________________ |Expense |Estimated Cost |Actual Cost | |Facility Fee | | |Rentals (tables, dishes) | | | |Presenter/Entertainer Fee | | | |Audio/Visual Equipment | | | |Advertising/Promotion | | | |Printing | | | |Postage | | | |Food/Catering | | | |Decorations | | | |Transportation | | | |Security and Technicians | | | |Other ____________ | | | |Other ____________ | | | | | | | |Total Expenses: |_______________ |_______________ | Revenue |Estimated Revenue |Actual Revenue | |Ticket Sales | | | |Food Sales | | | |Vendo r Fees | | | |Event Sponsorship | | | |Donations | | |Other ____________ | | | |Other ____________ | | | | | | | |Total Revenue: |_______________ |_______________ | 2. 2. Event activity list/ Create a plan of action: The Events Activity List is good tool to use when organsing a function – as each point is raised and completed, it can be ticked off. This means nothing is forgotten and it is also a double check from the timeline document. Also if you are away for any reason, someone else can easily see at what stage you are up to with the event organization. ( Date: Set a date and check to make sure it doesn’t conflict with your target audiences industry dates, convention dates, holidays. Need to consider at least two dates so when planning the venue, you can work around any clashes that may occur. Have some dates in mind and contract the venues to see if they are available on those dates. ( Location When booking a venue, make sure it aligns with your objectives and goals. Look at your rough agenda and find out what the ideal space would be to accomplish the event's goals. ompany will incur for the event. Once you have outlined space needs for the event, brainstorm some perspective places for the event and make visits. Before you head over to visit a site, sketch a list of criteria and questions for the facility and its st aff. Visit several so you can make an effective comparison based on the event's needs and budget. Check list for facilities †¢ Is the venue centrally located? †¢ Does the venue provide plenty of parking? †¢ Is the venue located near public transportation? †¢ Will the venue support our food needs? †¢ Does the venue provide for adequate space? †¢ Will the venue support our technology needs ( Speakers and performances Before recruiting any speakers, decide what roles the speakers will play as well as how many speakers you will need in each role. Next, brainstorm a list of the people you would like to fill the roles you've defined. Next, start recruiting the speakers and performers. Start by making a packet with information about the event, your group, and a letter explaining why you want them to speak or perform at your event. Include a reply card and self-addressed, stamped envelope for your speaker prospects to return to you with their availability, contact information, title of their talk, audiovisual needs, how the speaker should be listed on the agenda, and housing, food, and travel needs. Send packets to all of the potential speakers on your brainstorm list. Once the packets have been out for about a week, make follow up calls. Follow up calls show your commitment to the event and make speakers feel more welcomed to the event. While on the phone, try to get a commitment and provide the speaker with all of the information they need to make a decision about attending the event. They need to supply you with their requirements for the event. What AV requirements do they have, are they bringing their presentation on disk or laptop? Do they need a data projector etc? What papers/material do they have for the folder(s)? Make them aware that we need this information at least a month and a half before the event, not the week before – not acceptable. If possible, make arrangements to accommodate the speaker's schedule and travel needs. In addition to your initial recruitment of speakers, you should also devise a backup plan for speakers. It's inevitable that one or more of your speakers will cancel closer to the event. If you are ready for cancellations, it will have little to no affect on the quality of your event. Go back to the list of speakers you brainstormed early in the planning. Make sure you have all necessary contact information and can reach each of them if you should need to. The back up plan will help your group plan ahead for possible pitfalls, making for smooth sailing no matter what curve ball is thrown your way. Contact speakers one week before the event and confirm their attendance, how they wish to be listed, and when and where they are speaking. Once a speaker arrives at the event, give her a name tag, remind her of when and where she is speaking, and make sure her needs have been met. Have a volunteer take the speakers to the space they will be using and make sure there is always someone available to introduce your speakers and performers to the audience. Finally, offer tokens of thanks and appreciation to the speakers and performers. Also we usually purchase a gift for overseas speakers – something based e. g. wood, stone etc ( Catering Depending on the facilities, you have several options for serving food. Initially you will need to consider what kind of food you will serve. Get quotes from different venues – look at cost and what they are offering. Is the food what you want? Can you change any menu supplied? Need to look at these sorts of things. No matter how you choose to feed the crowd, keep in mind dietary restrictions such as diabetics and restrictions on salt. Once decided on venue, look through menus and decide what you want to use for the event. Before you move on have an idea of the number of meals or snacks being served at the event and how many people you will need to feed. Closely estimate food amounts through a careful head count to minimize waste. Same with beverages as well. ( Equipment needs For every event you'll need to plan for equipment needs, which can include everything from tables and chairs to audio visual equipment to written materials. Take a look at your rough agenda and the list of requests from speakers and performers. Then, make a list of all of the equipment you will need for the event. Also, sketch out the layout for the event. Now, use the checklist below to prepare the equipment for the event. Make sure you leave room in your timeline and budget for acquiring the equipment you need. Some venues allow you to bring in your own equipment or equipment that you have hired specifically for the event as well. Checklist of Possible Equipment Needs: ? overhead projector ? VCR/TV ? microphones flip charts with markers ? dry erase/chalk boards with markers or chalk ? cups and fresh water ? podium ? megaphone Have to decide who you are targeting for the event. Then decide what kind of invitation you want i. e. printed invitation, electronic email flyer, booklet etc . All of these will have different costs associated and all costs need to be budgeted for. Also a time frame for getting anything printed – allow 2-3 weeks 2 months before, so will be able to send out the printed invitations 4-5 weeks ahead of the event and arrange to have follow up calls i. e. someone to ring every single person who has not replied about their attendance to the event. It is time consuming but done properly usually can increase numbers significantly as not everyone replies to invites, often they just arrive. This doesn’t help your section with catering, handout materials or seating for the event or budgeting so it’s important to follow up. Suggest once you have an invitation list (either printed or electronic) supply list to Administrator so they can confirm attendance/non attendance of invitees. ( Publicity This is promotions or basically letting people know about the event. *Remember part of a successful event is to actually have patrons. Without satisfactory support your event cannot be counted a success. This area requires much attention and effort. It may also be a long- term process. Remember that the advertising should be geared towards the participants you want to target. This is things you will need to take to the event such as handouts, paper, markers and white board, name tag etc. (Name badges (usually Administrator) need t o be made 1-1/2 weeks before the event. Be sure to consist of persons name and organization (do not put titles etc). Include badges for speakers as well. paper, stapler, scissors, paper clips, drawing pins and anything else that people may ask for or that you can use so as not having to ask the venue as sometimes they don’t have them. Gifts for speakers/guests especially overseas guests are necessary. Decide on awards items and identify sources to purchase them. Add cost into the budget for this. Needs to be gift wrapped and have a thank you card attached. ( Photographer If you need one for the event, book them well ahead of the event, as they are hard to get, would suggest 3-4 months before and again ring 2-3 people and get quotes. Once booked put all contact details on sheet for ease of access by anyone else who may have to contact them. Make sure they understand what your company wants from the photos. ( Logistics & Contingency Plans Good logistics planning ensures your event will run smoothly. Prior to the event you need to send out communications to event staff. Staffing to schedule: Receptionist – Make sure they are prepped with a cheat sheet if people call. Technical Staff – Make sure they are standing by and know you need the servers to be free of any large processing. Runners – Get a few people to help as needed. Train Runner and Receptionist and create information cards. Q&A Managers – Have someone assigned to handle the Q&A and chat. Plants or audience seeds – Have someone dialed in and armed with a few questions to get the Q&A rolling if necessary. Reserve the following: Technology – Phone lines and Web technology for all calls (test yourself before sending out. and make arrangements for the archive recording. Rooms – Made available for presenters and support team for all calls. Equipment – Laptops, servers, phones, back-up equipment, etc. for all calls. Contingency Plans: Backup Equipment – Modem and remote. Communication Line – Have a direct line with the operator at all times. Send your team and speakers an e-mail with everyone’s contact information in case there is a problem. ( Emergency Services (such as ambulance service, secured money transfers and handling through a reputable security company). These need to be on the scene or on call during the event *Very important The little things make a big difference: Always do â€Å"one more check† to validate the logins and phone numbers. Have water near each speaker. Have notepads and paper available. Print hard copies of all the presentations – One copy for you and one for each speaker. Test backup equipment. Create and post â€Å"quiet signs. † REMEMBER – Over-communicating is better than under-communicating! Constantly send reminder notes during the event process and planning stages. ( Running Sheet This is a breakdown of the event on the day, broken into 10-15 minute intervals (see example). All staff and speakers/guests will get one of these so as they know exactly what is happening on the day and who is speaking and for how long. There is protocol to follow when scheduling speakers as well. Here’s a sample checklist for an event that will help you work out what needs to be done and make everyone’s jobs easy to follow. Date (function date) | | |Start time | | |Finish time | | |Location address | | |Location phone number | | VIP’s | |Name |Position |Organization |Phone number | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | Special Men tions | |Name |Position |Organization |Phone number | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | Key Contacts | |Name |Position |Organization |Phone number | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | RUNNING SHEET | |Item |Action |Responsibility |Budget |Deadline |Completed | | |Required | | | | | |SIGNAGE | | | | | | |Production | | | | | | |Quantity | | | | | | |Delivery | | | | | | |Placement | | | | | | |Removal | | | | | | |Storage | | | | | | |Other | | | | | | | | | | | | |SECURITY | | | | | | |Venue | | | | | | |Hospitality | | | | | | |Cash | | | | | | |Other | | | | | | | | | | | | | |TICKETING | | | | | | |Branding | | | | | | |Quantity | | | | | | |Staff | | | | | | |Outlets | | | | | | |Other | | | | | | 2. 3. After the Event The final stage of the event entails cleaning up and thanking everyone who helped make the event happen. Organize a clean-up crew to make sure the facility is as clean. Do not forget to send thank you notes to speakers, performers, organizations, and volunteers who made the event a success. After all is said and done, get together with the members of your group and evaluate the event. Discuss what worked well and what should be changed for next year. Do not forget to look at whether or not the event accomplished its goals. Finally, celebrate your accomplishment and reflect on a job well done. 2. Create event timeline: (One year: Set date and site for your event Develop goals and objectives for the event Develop the theme for event Draft version of revenue & expense budget. If this is a fundraising event, contact the Office of College Development, Marketing & PR. (Six Months: Negotiate facilities, services, and contracts Prepare Event time table Construct a realistic budget for event. Building revenue sources is very important. Set event pricing. Leadership structure of event identified Specify staff responsibilities Create a plan for use of volunteers: how many needed & outline of duties Establish publicity plan in conjunction with Office of College Development, Marketing & PR Prepare press releases Design draft of invitation package & related materials Prepare guest lists Draft program and script Negotiate for special speakers Get lists of A-V equipment needed by all participants Negotiate with site and catering managers Solicit or purchase giveaways and/or souvenirs (Three Months: Clarify details and instructions for menus, receptions Arrange site layout, sound & decorating Complete in-kind solicitations Prepare checklist for items & people you need at event Arrange for a photographer Arrange for recording/taping Finalize design for invitation, program & materials (Two Months: Event invitations mailed Monitor invitation response Fine tune event schedule Fine tune event program timeline (One Month: Make or order final visuals Order necessary signage Alert press if coverage is desired Make detailed arrangement charts Arrange for last minute reproduction of papers, handouts, if needed Confirm all agreements in writing with speakers, suppliers, etc. (Two Weeks: Assemble checklist & materials for event Prepare releases for invited media Arrange for any VIP transportation, such as out-of-town invited speaker pickup at airport Reconfirm all arrangements with suppliers (food, shipping, audio-visual, etc) Set seating charts if needed Schedule any rehearsals needed (One Week: Prepare name badges Order any VIP amenities (Two days: Go over your checklist Review plans with Leadership Check on arrival of all shipped materials and equipment Secure storage of materials and equipment Check handout materials Reconfirm photographer (One Day: Check weather report for possible effect on event Review plans with electrician and other facilities staff Arrange to meet speakers and special guests Distribute duplicate event setup plans to staff Final briefings to staff on responsibilities Finalize meal guarantee if necessary with caterer Dress rehearsal (Two hours: Check room/venue setup Check micros and PA equipment Check A/V equipment Arrange handout materials for use Check for necessary personnel Check for signage in place (One Hour: Introduce invited speakers to other participants Check on place cards, if appropriate Check on recording/taping operator Check lectern light and stage props Give program participants any last minute instructions (After the event: Pay all invoices Write thank you notes and send gifts Complete your expenditures and match to budget After the event, it is crucial for the group to evaluate your efforts. The evaluation process should consist of the following: (Audience feedback Make sure that you conduct an honest evaluation of the event for a greater chance of future success. Brainstorm a list of the things that worked and made the conference a success and a list of the things you would change the next time the group organizes a conference. Ask questions such as: (Did you feel the event’s goals and objectives were accomplished? (What area(s) did you think went well? (What area(s) did you think could have used improvements? (Which vendors should be used again? (Which vendors should not be used again? (What items/services were missing? (Was the event well attended? (Was informal and formal feedback about the event positive? You can distribute the evaluation by mail, email or having it available on your organization’s website/event website. Keep evaluations on file for future reference and record in a place where future members of the group will be able to learn from your efforts. It is important to remember to celebrate your success and to thank everyone who contributed to the success of the event! CONCLUSION In many ways, event planning is linked to advertising and marketing. The planner needs to imagine the event is a product or brand, and then develop and promote it in a creative way. Ultimately, what’s important is that the attendees (the consumers) have a positive experience that leaves them feeling good about the organizers. The same applies whether the organizer is a business, charity or family. You need to be a well organized worker who is skilled in co-ordination, particularly with regard to logistics. Your presentation and communication skills should be excellent, and you should be able to motivate other people. Knowledge of marketing and press relations is invaluable, along with a creative approach to solving problems and ‘making things happen’. Above all, you must be a hard worker, who is prepared to put in extra hours to ensure that the job gets done within budget and on time. This work requires perfection, so you must be willing to pay attention to every detail. Not every event will fit perfectly into the following schedule and you’ll have to use your best judgement on handling last minute mishaps that may happen despite superb co-ordination and arrangements. â€Å"Event Planning† has become more of a necessity nowadays. It has become a fundamental part of the society, to help us to run smoothly the events, with everything professionally organized. No doubt, time is money nowadays and managing events at such short notices becomes even more impossible. Especially when behind every function success is to be certain. That’s why, we Event Planners are here for. Making every occasion more unique, outstanding, lively and of course memorable that every attendees admire. As long as you have the desire, your rewarding is your clients’ satisfactory. REFERENCES Vietnamese 1. Nguy? n Van K? t, CD-Rom Tai li? u mon Nghi? p v? thu ky van phong 2. PGS. TS. D? ng Th? Thanh Phuong, ThS. Nguy? n Th? Ng? c An, Nghi? p v? thu ky giam d? c th? i d? i m? i, NXB Th? ng Ke. Websites 1. http://www. tuvannhansu. om/cong-nghe-cham-soc-khach-hang/cong-viec-thuong-ngay-cua-dich-vu-khach-hang/102 2. http://www. tuvannhansu. com/cong-nghe-cham-soc-khach-hang/cong-viec-thuong-ngay-cua-dich-vu-khach-hang/97 3. http://www. snc. edu/planning/program. html 4. http://docs. google. com/viewer? a=v&q=cache:5KR8QIMiwbQJ:www. feministcampus. org/fmla/pro gram-materials/pdf/6 EventPlanning%2520thru%2520Public%2520Speaking. pdf+planning+event+successfully&hl=vi&gl=vn&pid=bl&srcid=ADGEESgeL87csTsCUPENPIDFJaZDY8wSPoKRETYYrbx3EehSnzVVWY419IrG PCtBXBdHIF_24Da9BhjQHoH99ZN4gM_BGpwlPXIuRynGW0PFrXAxW7-oF7A95hm0BHL120w0CliGmvEj&sig=AHIEtbT9Fp8dgvD44PJCZqPLmt4Zz0Mncg 5. http://www. girlmeetsbusiness. com/plan-event

The curriculum NZ Early Years Curriculumhas a role in shaping future Essay

The curriculum NZ Early Years Curriculumhas a role in shaping future identities. (Ross, 2000, p.149) - Essay Example Infants, toddlers and pre-schoolers derive much benefit from a play-based curriculum, and under the supervision of knowledgeable and caring adults, it is a powerful method in facilitating the development of children’s identities. This paper will explore one of the definitions of identity as cited in Webber (n.d.) Identity is a socially constructed phenomenon related to the societal context in which individuals live. It is also very much a personal process. Erikson(1980) â€Å"understood that one’s identity is something that is both self-created and bestowed upon the individual by the culture†(p 13) (as cited in Webber, n.d., p. 14) Pedagogical models with strong sociocultural features such as Te Whariki do not leave play to chance but sustains it through complex reciprocal and responsive relationships as well as provision of activities which are socially constructed and mediated (Wood, 2004). Not only do activities promote self-awareness but also incorporate cult ural awareness which strengthens children’s cultural identities. ... Play is a child’s world. It is an avenue where one can be free to be oneself without anyone imposing rules or restrictions to conform to society’s standards. Play offers many benefits that foster children’s learning. It engages the mind to actively imagine various scenarios for fun or for problem-solving. Te Whariki’s strand of Mana Aoturoa (Exploration) encourages children’s active exploration of the environment because in doing so, they learn many strategies for active exploration, thinking and reasoning as well as developing theories in understanding their world (MOE, 1996). Babies and toddlers play in order to get to know how things work, how people react, etc. They get to explore and discover things that otherwise they will not learn about if they do not actively engage in play. This free exploration is considered Heuristic play by Holland (2003) and encourages it without adult intervention. Adults provide simple materials and allow the childâ €™s imagination to take off. â€Å"The child learns from observing directly what these objects will ‘do’ or ‘not do’, in sharp contrast to much of the ‘educational’ equipment which has a result predetermined by the design which has been devised by the adult maker (Holland, 2003, p. 142). Not only will heuristic play stimulate a child’s thinking, but it also develops his creativity as he will see in his mind endless possibilities in imaginatively transforming ordinary objects into various things with various functions. Young children learn better in play- like settings because they retain concepts better when learned in the spirit of fun. Macintyre (2003) discusses the value of play in all the developmental areas of children. Children love games that stimulate thinking. Such cognitive benefits

Answer three essay questions from the text Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Answer three questions from the text - Essay Example of labor, and systems of distribution; in order to prove these theses, let us cite specific examples to illustrate the most relevant points of the paper. Thus, technology in the Euro-American world is a crucial concept, because it signifies a set of instruments for classifying things. Furthermore, division of labor could be applied properly in terms of technology, as a main factor of its developing, according to Marx (Lenkeit, p. 96). Moreover, systems of distribution differ from West to East, because in the West market goods are widely produced and distributed, whereas in the East only some religious and moral ideas and principle are reproduced predominantly. Unlikely, subsistence is the ground for both division of labor and systems of distribution in the scientific philosophy and cultural anthropology. Illustrating the most relevant points of the sub-chapter, it can be said that technology, subsistence, division of labor, and systems of distribution are extremely vital regarding compare and contrast foragers in two different parts of the world. In this sub-chapter we will critically discuss the problems associated with using Euro-American constructs about sexual orientation to describe the behaviors and attitudes of the other cultures; accordingly, we will point out areas where problems could arise, offering solutions towards understanding. Thus, there are some Euro-American constructs about sexual orientation, especially in psychoanalysis: drive; passion, and compensation (Lenkeit, p. 95). Initially, Freudian theory of sexual drives is extremely important in terms of sexual orientation, because it is relevant for describing why sexes are so significant for each other. Then, passion is a way of how drives realize each other. Moreover, compensation or sublimation is a most vital scientific method in psychoanalysis which suggests why sexual orientation occurred and why sometimes it is converted into creative activities (Lenkeit, p. 38). In this sub-chapter we

The Case against Money and Happiness Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

The Case against Money and Happiness - Essay Example The Easterlin Paradox was first published by Richard Easterlin way back in 1974. The paradox was mainly used to support the argument that a general increase in economical growth by a country, would not necessarily result in increased satisfaction levels by its citizenry (Leonhardt 2008). The argument supported by this paradox, was further supported by research that happened to prove that during the resultant aftermath that followed soon after World War II ended, the economy of Japan underwent a rather significant boom with the general economy’s output growing by an average of about sevenfold between the years ranging between 1950 an 1970. This staggering economical growth caused Japan to eventually become one of the world’s richest nations (Leonhardt 2008). Despite the massive economic growth witnessed in the country, polls conducted in Japan showed that the country’s citizenry appeared to become increasingly dissatisfied with their own lives. According to the re sults of one poll, the overall percentage of persons who happened to provide the most positive of the given possible answers pertaining to the level of satisfaction they were experiencing in their lives actually fell from the averages obtained during the late 1950s through to the early 1970s. It was evidently clear that although the people were richer, they were deemed to apparently not be happier. (Lee & Dwight 2006). The results of this Japanese anomaly are inherently somewhat flawed and money can result in happiness. The truth of this statement was verified by efforts of research conducted by two economists from Brookings Institution in Washington, Mr. Wolfers and Ms. Stevenson who discovered that the original research questions had changed and the most positive answer option that was given by the pollsters was one suggesting that although the respondents weren’t completely happy they were satisfied with their life as it were at the moment. Mr. Easterlin is quoted as writi ng that â€Å"it can generally be observed that persons residing in poor countries displayed a tendency towards becoming generally happier once their economic conditions became more favorable and they were subsequently able to afford their basic necessities. Any further gains on their part did not necessarily increase their income but simply just seemed to actually be resetting the bar†. Easterlin argued that one’s relative income which is basically a reflection of how much an individual happens to earn in comparison to how much other persons around the individual happened to be earning – mattered far way more than a person’s absolute income (Leonhardt 2008). The Easterlin Paradox was quickly adopted by the society and grew to become one of the major social sciences classics that were frequently cited in various academic journals as well as in the popular media (Leonhardt 2008). The Case in Support of Money Causing an Increase in Happiness It can be argue d that an increase in a person’s purchasing power can have the effect of causing a resultant increase in the happiness levels of the person. One of the most common arguments in support of this is that such happiness is generally a resultant feeling of one having more as compared to other persons in the same reference group.

Future&Innovation Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3750 words

Future&Innovation - Essay Example Packaged travel market by tour operators and online travel agency packages, 2000-2008 (US$B) 3 Figure 2: U.S. and U.K. total travel market and package travel share 2008 (US$B) 4 Figure 3: Forces affecting on Paradise Travels 7 Figure 4: The four P innovation space 9 Figure 5: Forces acting on Paradise Travels and the strategy to be adopted by the company to counter these forces 10 Figure 6: The process of innovation process for Paradise Travels 11 Figure 7: Framework for critical evaluation 14 Figure 8: Paradise Travels – location of high street shops 19 Figure 9: Adopting Shibata's problem solving model adapted to help solve Paradise Travels’ problems 21 Photo credit Cover page Image URL: http://www.wanderwoman.com/images/hiking_samaria_gorge.jpg Section 1: Industry Overview 1.1 Macroeconomic and environmental factors The impact of the global financial meltdown was also visible on the travel industry, and particularly on air travel and tour business. A large numbers of small players vanished from the tour operators’ radar during these years; more than 75 air travel and tour operators closed their shop within the past three years (Air Travel Insolvency Protection Advisory Committee, 2010, p.13). The industry is currently cruising through one of the most difficult times due to a number of macroeconomic and environmental factors. These are discussed as follows: 1.1.1 Environmental impact Eruption of the Eyjafjallajolkull volcano closed the UK airspace for six days and a considerable portion of EU airspace, causing flight delays and cancellations throughout the world (Air Travel Insolvency Protection Advisory Committee, 2010, p.6). This incident affected adversely on the consumer confidence as it was observed that immediately following the eruption, bookings dropped sharply (Air Travel Insolvency Protection Advisory Committee, 2010). 1.2 Issues faced by the industry Air Travel Insolvency Protection Advisory Committee (2010) listed some of the issues currently faced by the industry. These are discussed below: 1.2.1 Weak demand An offshoot of weak consumer confidence was seen directly on the weak demand it currently exerted on the industry. To regain consumer confidence is perhaps the most important issue the industry faced currently. 1.2.2 Weak sterling Once in their holiday destinations, weakness of Sterling had eroded the holiday makers spending powers; a trend noticed mostly in Eurozone holiday destinations. This affected adversely consumer perception as consumer expectations did not match the consumer experience. 1.2.3 Shifting away of holiday bookings Another alarming trend was shifting of bookings to traditional holiday destinati

UK Investment in China Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 4250 words

UK Investment in China - Assignment Example The fÐ °ll in foreign direct investment (FDI) since 1999, Ð °nd ChinÐ °Ã¢â‚¬â„¢s growing shÐ °re, worry most developing countries. But Ð °n in-depth look reveÐ °ls new Ð °nd promising trends. The decline is lÐ °rgely Ð ° one-time Ð °djustment following the privÐ °tizÐ °tion boom of the 1990s. FDI is coming from more countries—Ð °nd going to more sectors. The conditions for Ð °ttrÐ °cting FDI vÐ °ry by sector: in lÐ °bor-intensive mÐ °nufÐ °cturing, for exÐ °mple, efficient customs Ð °nd flexible lÐ °bor mÐ °rkets Ð °re key, while in retÐ °il Ð °ccess to lÐ °nd Ð °nd equÐ °l enforcement of tÐ °x rules mÐ °tter most. Sorting out the microeconomic issues by sector will be good not only for FDI but Ð °lso for domestic investors. While ChinÐ ° Ð °ccounts for 39 percent of the FDI to developing countries, it Ð °lso Ð °ccounts for Ð °lmost 30 percent of the developing world’s populÐ °tion. In fÐ °ct, relÐ °tive to GDP, ChinÐ °Ã¢â‚¬â„¢s performÐ °nce in Ð °ttrÐ °cting FDI is good but not extrÐ °ordinÐ °ry, with FDI Ð °t 3.8 percent of GDP in 1999–2002. Nineteen developing countries did better over the sÐ °me period. ChinÐ °Ã¢â‚¬â„¢s performÐ °nce looks even less extrÐ °ordinÐ °ry if Ð °djusted for the round-tripping of FDI through Hong Kong (ChinÐ °), which some estimÐ °tes suggest mÐ °y Ð °ccount for Ð °s much Ð °s 30 percent of totÐ °l FDI to ChinÐ °. ChinÐ ° retÐ °il investments continuously grow (12 % in 2005) Ð °nd remÐ °in very Ð °ttrÐ °ctive. However, becÐ °use internÐ °tionÐ °l retÐ °ilers Ð °re fueling this growth, mÐ °rket sÐ °turÐ °tion is Ð °lso on the rise. More thÐ °n 40 foreign retÐ °ilers hÐ °ve entered the mÐ °rket to dÐ °te. From the generÐ °l review of the FDI in ChinÐ ° it cÐ °n be concluded thÐ °t Tesco hÐ °s potentiÐ °l to enter Chinese mÐ °rket Ð °nd to stÐ °y successful on it. This is due to the FDI trend Ð °nd its success in recent decÐ °des. ... The compny is plnning to open 16 new stores in Chin, three of which will be in Donggung. nnul retil sles in this region incresed more thn 17% in 2005, mking it one of the most promising res in Chin. Tesco lso opertes 41 hypermrkets in the country through joint venture with Ting Hsin. With Wl-Mrt nd Crrefour firmly entrenched nd Tesco gining ground, the retil mrket is poised for some interesting developments in the next few months. However, sturtion levels, especilly in Chin's more ttrctive tier-one centers, re incresing. Tesco interntionl strtegy should be bsed on the six elements shped in compny's report over ten yers go: Be flexible - ech mrket is unique nd requires different pproch ct locl - locl customers, locl cultures, locl supply chins nd locl regultions require tilored offer delivered by locl stff - less thn 100 of Tesco's Interntionl tem re ex-pts Keep focus - to be the leding locl brnd is long term effort nd tkes decdes, not just few yers Be multi-formt - no single formt cn rech the whole of the mrket. whole spectrum from convenience to hypermrkets is essentil nd you need to tke discounter pproch throughout Develop cpbility - developing skill in people, processes nd systems nd being ble to shre this skill between mrkets will improve the chnces of success in chllenging Mrkets Build brnds - brnds enble the building of importnt lsting reltionships with customers. In order to make a profound environmentl udit for Tesco, SWOT analysis is conducted. This analysis is a way of looking at the Tesco as a business, where the strengths and weaknesses of the organisation can be contrasted with the threats and opportunities of the outside business environment. Table 1 Tesco - SWOT

Pocahontas 3 Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Pocahontas 3 - Essay Example Another topic is selflessness and courage. Her encounter of saving Smith’s life was an act of love for humans despite one’s origin. In addition, trickery is portrayed in the sense that she was lured to board an English boat and later ended up as a slave so as to entice her father to cooperate with the new settlers. The central argument is how she promoted peace and mutual understanding between the Englishmen and the native Indians of Virginia. The movie is very engaging by the drama and humor it brings on board. Pocahontas is referred to as a princess, but in reality she was not entitled to inherit things a princess would inherit. The arguments are well supported by the language and actions in the documentary. The video has no bias at all and all crystal clear. I enjoyed watching the moving because it’s really engaging and the most interesting part is when Pocahontas fell in love with a person from another race, religion, custom and later decided to stay with the Brits rather than going back to her

Modify the essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Modify the - Essay Example Human life is made comfortable with the addition of things unlike in the absence of things. Lives are made more convenient by smoothing the rough edges and straightening bends that would have fronted as potential challenges. There are countless ways in which things make life comfortable. It all begins at the point of waking up. Having slept the whole night on a thing called bed, another thing called the alarm wakes us up. From the time waking up, the whole day activities are made easy by the use and association of things till darkness sets in again. Things help us to prepare supper. The convenience of things ensures that breakfast is not only prepared but taken in a stylish way. After breakfast, a preparation for work or school has to start. Dressing in appropriate clothes follows and enhancing looks using other materials like bangles and sweet smelling perfumes. Another thing called the car makes movement comfortable and fast. At places of work and school, things are countless. At school, studies are made easy by the incorporation of computers and internet. In regard to daily lives, things are very important as they make life convenient. Things enable people to engage themselves in activities which would be an impossibility without them. An earlier example of the computer and internet usage is a direct example to this. They are extensively used in studies and conducting research. In the absence of computers, tackling a term paper like this would require frequent long visits to the library. Physical presence would be a necessity on addition to thorough scouring through the library catalogue in an attempt to get the required magazines and books to tackle the term paper. Books must be borrowed from the library. In case the permission to borrow them is denied, copying texts by hand would take time, and it is tedious. The computer thing and internet thing have released all this pressure, and studying modes have become easy. Navigating

Morality of war in Afghanistan and Iraq Essay Example for Free

Morality of war in Afghanistan and Iraq Essay The war in Afghanistan and Iraq are referred by President Bush as wars against terror. They came as a result of the events that happened in the land of America in September 11th 2007. During this time America was attacked by terrorists who bombed the World Trade Center and Washington’s defense unit; the pentagon. These two attacks led to the loss of about 3000 lives. Immediately the US president declared war on Afghanistan which was said to harbor the world’s terrorist Osama bin Laden who masterminded the attacks. Later, he also attacked Iraq after Saddam Hussein said that he also happy to learn that America was attacked though he was not responsible. When both nations were attacked by USA in the name of war against terror, they retaliated. Now the question of morality comes in, who had a right to fight back, is it USA or the so called terrorists? It is this question of morality that will be my main focus on this paper. On 11th September 2001, America was hit by what seemed to be a well coordinated terrorist attack. There were about 19 terrorists who worked in groups of 4 or 5 to execute their plans. They used American jetliners as bombs to hit their two targets that is, the twin towers of the World Trade Centre and the Pentagon which is the USA’s military headquarters at Arlington, Virginia. The other plane which was also hijacked failed to hit its target after the passengers realized what was going on and fought back. It crashed somewhere in rural fields of Pennsylvania. All these acts showed every traits of terrorism. And the 19 men who were involved were Arabs who came from Saudi Arabia, Egypt and other Arab countries. They were all linked to the al-Qaeda network which is an Islamic group headed by Osama bin laden. This organization is dedicated to wage war against USA and their main targets include financial, political and military section. It has never witnessed such deaths since the civil war ended. This is why Bush found it morally right to protect and to fight for he thought it wise to stand up to their bullies. The al-Qaeda network started when Osama bin laden offered himself to support Afghanistan in 1980’s against the occupation by the Union of Soviet Socialist State (USSR). He financed the anti-soviet resistance. After he succeeded in chasing the Soviet out, Osama devoted himself to fight for Muslims in other regions in the world. He was especially angered by the stationing of USA military in Saudi Arabia and the idea of United States for supporting Israel against Palestine in the Arab- Israel war. Osama is an extremist who believed that no US citizen should step in the Muslim land and is totally opposed to the Western influences. Osama bin laden is not an Afghanistan citizen. Afghanistan as an independent nation and it had its every right to fight back USA. Any independent nation should be able to protect its citizens against any external aggression. So, this is one of these obligations that Iraq and Afghanistan were meeting (Press release. 2007 Sept 27) Again, Afghanistan had every right to fight USA back in support of Osama bin laden- the said master minder. This is because a friend in deed is a friend in need. Osama and his al-Qaeda, network saved them from external aggression by the USSR. Now it was their turn to help him. You scratch my back, I scratch yours. By not fighting back was not only a sign of cowardice but also being ungrateful. The Taliban regime depended on Osama’s wealth. He helped to organize and equip all military training camps USA should have used diplomatic strategies to arrest Osama bin laden and bring an end to the operations of the al-Qaeda. According to Martin Luther King junior, you do not pay evil with evil, it will escalate to a very terrible thing. There was no way the attacked nations could have remained quiet. Yes war is not the answer and should be the last option but cannot face your enemy who is armed with open arms. For this reason, I don’t see anything unusual or bad with Iraq and Afghanistan retaliating. Therefore, they were justified to fight back. To the affected Arab nations, the September 11th, 2001 attacks if anything, was a revenge of harms done by USA to the Arab states. USA has been against the Arabs since the Israel Palestine conflict. The US government thought that it must teach these deviant nations a lesson by attacking them. They knew that US is superior to them but they had slow down its move. They were aware that that if you give your enemy an inch, they will take a mile so by fighting back, they were only reducing further military interventions. According to the Muslims (Scott D. M. , 2005) staging a holy war is not morally wrong. Muslims do value holy war or what is called Jihad. To Muslims jihad war should be directed to a visible enemy, against devil inducements and on one’s self aspects. So, by Afghanistan and Iraq fighting back, they were only fulfilling the teachings of Koran. According to them, America fits the description of a foe and it should be shunned from entering in any of the Muslim territories. According to Saddam, it was alright to fight your foe. He was a very strong supporter of this course. In one of his speech that was read by the Information Minister Saeed Al sahaf he said, â€Å"O great warrior nation, O sons our great nation men of arms who uphold the honor of resistance, God’s peace be upon you as you face the aggressors the enemies of God and humanity the passing infidels, with chests filled with faith and love for God. † In his speech he argued people to fight against their enemy, â€Å"The aggressors will flee from what is right and be damned along with their devils. Faith and honor will brighten the faces of Mujahedden (holy fighters), men and women. † He said. Saddam Hussein justified the course he took of fighting Americans and Persians. He died cursing both of them. Before he died he argued all Muslims from all over world to unite and fight their common enemy. By fighting Americans they are only acting according to the Koran’s teachings. After the September 11 attack (Press release. 2007 Sept 27)Saddam was heard saying that the act was heroic though he was not responsible there was no indication that Iraq was responsible for the attack Saddam Hussein celebrated the attacks on USA just a few days after the attack. He said that the attacks were the fruits of the crimes they had committed against humanity. There was no evidence pointing Iraq to the attack so, there was no way they could have allowed USA to attack them. Any move to punish them was resisted by fighting back. America attacked Iraq on allegations that it was involved in the 2001 September 11 attack. What I think prompted US to act against Iraq is the Saddam’s speech after the attack. It should be known that everybody should feel free to express his ideas whenever he feels like. That is why there is freedom of expression. Therefore, Saddam was only exercising his freedom of speech. In Afghanistan, the US government crushed the Taliban government and put another government of their choice. This can be said to be interfering with other states affairs. Taliban was the ruling government before it was ousted by the American troops. Thus, they were fighting back to take their former leadership positions. On the other hand, I think America had all the rights to attack Afghanistan. This is because all the evidence was pointing on Afghanistan. For example in 2007 a videotape was discovered in Afghanistan. It provided insights in Osama’s thinking and ties to the attack. This video was discovered in November 2001 and was conversation between Osama bin laden and the Arab Sheik who had visited Afghanistan. In the tape Osama bin Laden could be heard saying how he premeditated the attacks. He even knew the number of people who would be victims of the attack. Also, because he is a construction engineer, he knew that the best floors to target were three or four because the fine caused by the caused by the gas on the plane would melt all the iron above it and make the while building to collapse. This was enough evidence that linked Osama bin laden, Taliban government and USA attack. Though this tape linked Afghanistan with September eleven attacks, it was not enough evidence to prove that they are the one who did that. May be the tape was recorded by people who wanted to make a name for al-Qaeda? Even before the tape was discovered, USA had already started to revenge on Afghanistan as on 7TH October 2001(Bergen P. , 2006)

Accounting Terminology Essay Example for Free

Accounting Terminology Essay Each of the following statements may (or may not) describe one of these technical terms. For each statement, indicate the accounting term described, or answer â€Å"None† if the statement does not correctly describe any of the terms. a. The level of sales at which revenue exactly equals costs and expenses. Break-even point. b. Costs remain unchanged despite changes in sales volume. Fixed Costs. c. The span over which output is likely to vary and assumptions about cost behavior generally remain valid. Relevant Range. d. Sales revenue less variable costs and expenses. Contribution margin. e. Unit sales price minus variable cost per unit. Unit contribution margin. f. The reduction in unit cost achieved from a higher level of output. Economics of scale. g. Costs the respond to changes in sales volume by less than a proportionate amount. Semi variable costs. h. Operating income less variable costs. â€Å"None†. Exercise 20.7 – Using Cost-Volume-Profit Formulas Exercise 21.2 – Home Depot’s Financial Statements: Incremental, Sunk, and Opportunity Costs Read the footnote in Appendix A referring to Home Depot’s decision to close all of its remaining big box stores in China. Write a short paragraph identifying the incremental, sunk and opportunity costs associated with this decision. Assume that any cost savings will be invested elsewhere in more productive stores. Incremental costs relate to the difference in costs between alternative courses of action and incremental revenues. The incremental costs that would be that would occur from either remodeling or closing Home Depot an existing location would include cost of materials, overhead from the actual physical remodel, labor that includes employee pay for rearranging and moving merchandise during a remodel if it occurred, designing and planning costs. Opportunity costs are important factors when it comes to decision making because they define the costs of taking some action in terms of the value foregone or that’s given up due to a particular action taken place. Opportunity costs of remolding would include profits on lost sales if the store is closed during remodeling, loss of current sales due to decrease in customer traffic (due to excessive noise, smell, dirt and inconveniences. Stores could potentially lose profit if they are not able to stock the full line of products or keep items stocked during a remodel. Whereas a sunk cost is an outlay that has been irrevocably incurred at some time in the past; sunk costs cannot be changed no matter what course of action is taken and are irrelevant for purposes of decision making involving the future. Sunk costs related to either remodeling of the store that would need to be taken into consideration include original costs of the current store (decorations, paint, shelves, displays, carpet) and designs that will need to be replaced or removed during either remodeling or closing. Exercise 21.6 – Incremental Analysis: Make or Buy Decision The cost to Swank Company of manufacturing 15,000 units of a particular part is $135,000, of which $60,000 is fixed and $75,000 is variable. The company can buy the part from an outside supplier for $6 per unit. Fixed costs will remain the  same regardless of Swank’s decision. Should the company buy the part or continue to manufacture it? Prepare a comparative schedule in the format illustrated in Exhibit 21-6. It would be more beneficial for the company to manufacture the part rather than buy it from an outside provider. Brief Exercise 22.9 – Flows of Costs through Manufacturing Accounts The President of Cold Moo Ice Cream Company, a chain of ice cream stores in the Midwest, was unhappy with the actual six-month profit figures for the  company recently prepared by the CFO. The president asked the CFO for a profit breakdown, by store, of the actual six-month results. When the President received the report, he was extremely upset and called the CFO, into his office. The President stated, â€Å"These reports show that each store in the chain is profitable, but our company results are unprofitable! How can this be?† The CFO pointed out that each store was allowed to set prices for ice cream based on its cost structure. However, the stores’ cost structures did not include headquarters costs of the costs of advertising and delivery of products. What are the three characteristics for operating a successful responsibility accounting system? Consider whether the accounting system at Cold Moo Ice Cream Company includes the three characteristics of a successful responsibility accounting system. How could the responsibility accounting system at Cold Moo be improved? As the Textbook states, â€Å"measuring performance along the lines of management responsibility is an important function. A responsibility accounting system holds individual managers accountable for the performance of the business centers under their control and provides top management with information useful in identifying strengths and weaknesses among units throughout the organization.† The three characteristics of a successful operating accounting system will include budgets, will measure the performance, and contain timely performance reports. â€Å"Budgets serve as performance targets for each subunit in an organization. The accounting system will measure the performance of each responsibility center, and timely performance reports are prepared that compare the actual performance of each center with the amounts budgeted.† When reports are preformed frequently, it allows center managers to be able to keep their performances on target, and helps with the evaluation of the managers. It does not appear hat Cold Moo Ice Cream is following the timely reports method of the accounting system, which is essential to ensuring the financial information is accurate as possible, and to improve this aspect should be more intertwined with the actual budget and more accurately present how the performance of the store is measured. To do so the responsibility income statement should also be presented, this  contains not only the operating results of a particular part of a business but also the revenue and expenses of each profit center within that part, which could be extremely important to see how those centers within the same area measure and stack up against one another. For the responsibility income statement to be informative and useful it should essentially and efficiently be able to detail Variable Costs, Contribution Margin, Fixed Costs, Traceable Fixed Costs and Common Fixed Costs. In addition, fixed costs that are common to both product lines amount to $125,000.00. Instructions a. Prepare Chocolatiers’ responsibility income statement for the current month. Report the responsibility margin for each product line and income from operations for the company as a whole. Also include columns showing all dollar amounts as percentages of sales. b. According to the analysis performed in part a, which product line is more profitable? Should the common fixed costs be considered when determining the profitability of individual product lines? Why or why not? According the analysis in part a, the solid product line is more profitable. When determining profitability of any product line, common fixed costs should not be considered. Only the costs that are directly traceable to the product lines should be included. Common fixed costs are not directly traceable to any product, as they are arbitrarily allocated in proportion to a chosen factor, for example, machine hour or square feet of a certain space occupied. c. Chocolatiers has $15,000.00 to be used in advertising for one of the two product lines and expects that the expenditure will result in additional sales of $50,000.00. How should the company decide which product line to advertise? The effects of this campaign will typically be in both sales and variable costs, and therefore the company should select the product line based on which product will have the highest contribution margin ratio, which is the  percentage of sales, service revenues or selling price that remains after all variable costs and variable expenses have been covered. This method takes into consideration the limited time frame of the advertising campaign, where fixed costs will most likely not be affected.

Task Centred Approach in Mental Health

Task Centred Approach in Mental Health â€Å"Write a case study illustrating a social work intervention with an individual or family drawn from your current practice placement. The case study should illustrate the application of a social work method / approach (such as crisis intervention, systemic approaches, solution focused approach, CBT etc) to a practice situation and should contain a critical analysis of the chosen methodology.† Within this assignment I will discuss a case that I am managing within my placement by providing details of the case and other professional bodies that are currently involved. In relation to this case I will discuss the relevant theories and methods that I have used with this client and critically analyse my choice of method. I will also mention other methods or approaches that I feel may have been beneficial to my work with the client. In order to provide evidence of this session with my client I will also attach a process recording to illustrate my chosen method. Michael is a 47 year old male that is a service user of the Mental Health Team in Ballyfermot. Michael has been diagnosed with schizophrenia and a mild intellectual disability. He currently lives alone in the community with the support of the Mental Health Team. I am managing this case with the supervision of my practice teacher. At the moment Michael has the support of the outreach team in which they manage his medication and food shopping, whereas the social work department manage his finances in regards to his bills and give Michael a daily allowance each week. I am currently working one to one with Michael on a weekly basis in regards to the goals he has set for the following weeks. Each week Michael and I meet to discuss relevant issues that may have arisen for him during the week. Michael and I worked in partnership to complete the recovery star and made a plan to tackle some of the areas in his life that he would like to improve on. An example of this would be attending litera cy classes, learning how to text and learning how to cook at home and also finding a job. I am working in partnership with Michael to achieve these goals. For this session, I planned to discuss and start the recovery star with Michael in order to understand his lifestyle at this present time. In order to complete the recovery star I used a task centred approach. The theory that I used for this session was behaviourism. Behaviourism is based on the theories of Pavlov, Skinner and Watson (Trevthick.P, 2005). According to Trevthick.P (2005) it was seen that through observable and measureable responses that behaviours are learned and in result behaviours can also be unlearned (Trevthick.P, 2005). According to Trevthick.P (2005) it also states that there are four types of techniques which are systematic desensitization, aversion therapy, operant conditioning, and modelling. In regards to working with Michael in this session, I used one of these techniques which were operant conditioning. â€Å"Operant conditioning is a technique where ‘the environment has been specifically programmed to support certain behaviours and discourage other s’ (Sheldon, 1995) by altering the consequences that follow† (Trevthick.P,2005:P.96). While working with Michael and arranging to have our sessions in the civic centre every week it is evident through our sessions that the environment around him would have an effect on his behaviour. For example if the civic centre was busy Michael would sometimes seem a little anxious, whereas if the centre was quiet, Michael’s mood would be quite calm. Through operant conditioning it also discusses the possibility of reinforcements in regards to behaviours. Through this it is evident that through our weekly sessions, Michael would understand his reinforcement by participating within the session would be his daily allowance. This has become clear on a number of occasions as Michael has become quite engaging in regards to the sessions that would take place on a weekly basis. Whereas before if Michael received his daily allowance before his weekly sessions he would become disengag ing and would abandon the session. Through this theory I then decided to use the method of task centred work with Michael. According to Adams, R et al (2002) â€Å"Task centred casework was described as a method to help people with problems of living.† (Adams.R et al, 2002). According to Payne.M (1997) task centred work looks at problems with the client and ensuring that the client accepts and acknowledges the problems that they have. Also understanding that their problems can be resolved by their actions outside the ongoing work they may have with the social worker and that the problems can be defined clearly. While also having certain issues in the clients lives that they feel that they can change and that these problems are realised by the client and not others that are in the client’s life (Payne. M, 1997). It is also discussed that it should be assessed of the â€Å"direction and strengths of clients wants† (Payne. M, 1997), this is explained in regards that the clients want can start an action, although the clients belief system can shape the want while also providing an accept able way of accomplishing those wants. In result according to Payne. M (1997) a belief can steer an action and by completing certain cognitive therapies these beliefs can be changed. According to Payne. M (1997) this was called a point of leverage. A point of leverage is accuracy, scope and consistency. Accuracy is when a social worker would discuss how accurate a client’s belief is then discuss the scope in which they discuss the range of beliefs that client has and explored with the client when they think these beliefs are limited. And lastly consistency in which the social worker would tackle misrepresentations due to a disagreement between one belief and another in which the social worker would be able to remove these and discuss it with the client. Through this emotions can arise for the client when there is a collaboration of their belief and want. This can then follow onto an action which would be shown by a behaviour which would be carried with intent which then follo ws on to a plan (Payne. M, 1997). A plan is a portray of intentions which is formed from the interaction of the belief, want and emotion (Payne. M, 1997). Through this a plan can be set in regards to exploring alternative options that may not have been tried by doing so this can give feedback to the client and social worker to understand if the method was successful or not. Through this method it also allows the client to resolve any problems they may have while also providing them with the skills for situations that may arise in the future. In result the client would be able to tackle a future issue that may arise without the need of the social worker. As cited in Payne. M (1997), Reid (1978) discusses the various stages of task centred practice. These are as follows step one â€Å"identify potential problems† (Payne.M, 1997) identifying specific problems the client is having and allowing them to express these problems in their own words in order to gain a full understanding of the situation. Step two is â€Å"reaching tentative agreements† (Payne.M, 1997), by doing this you can explore the main problems the client may be facing. Step three is â€Å"challenge unresolvable or undesirable problems† (Payne.M, 1997) by completing this with the client the social worker can challenge these problems so the client will not be encouraged to obtain an unrealistic goal. Step four is â€Å"raising additional problems† (Payne.M, 1997), through this step the social worker can challenge and allow the client to realise other problems they may be having. Step five is â€Å"seek others involvement† (Payne.M, 1997) through this it may be beneficial to seek others that can be supportive or can contribute to finding a solution. Step six is â€Å"jointly assess the reason for referral† (Payne.M, 1997); in this step it would be useful to discuss the reason why the client was referred to the service especially if the client was forced to do so. Step seven is â€Å"get precise details† (Payne.M, 1997), it would be very important for the social worker to get accurate details into when and where the problems are occurring for the client. Step eight is to specify the problem for the client, step nine would be to identify the clear baselines and lastly step ten would be to decide on the changes the client would like to make (Payne.M, 1997).Throughout this process it is vital that the client and social worker have a similar understanding of what needs to be achieved and also provide feedback at the end of each session in order to understand if certain aspects of their work is not proving su ccessful. Adams. R et al (2002) discusses this that task centred work is a systematic model which examines what works well for the client and what doesn’t work so well in regards to achieving the desired goals that are put in place (Adams.R et al,2005). In regards to this the main reason why I used this approach with Michael was because he has a mild intellectual disability and it can be difficult to engage Michael in activities for a long period of time. So when starting the recovery star I explained to Michael that we would complete three sections and then continue the rest the following week. Throughout this session Michael became agitated and annoyed as he wanted to receive his daily allowance and leave. Although when continuing to proceed with the recovery star and using the task centred approach it became clear to myself and Michael what improvements he would like to make in the different areas of his life. With this new knowledge, Michael and I were able to set a basic map. While working in this session with Michael, I decided to use the basic map of task centred practice that is discussed by Trevthick.P (2005). The reason I used this specific map instead of the other process described by Payne.M (1997) was because the basic map overall described four basic steps that would be beneficial to the sessions I had with Michael. According to Trevthick.P (2005) a basic map of a task centred approach consists of four steps. These steps are as follows, step one would be targeting three main problems the client has. Through the recovery star there were certain areas Michael wanted to improve on, which was his living skills i.e. cooking and cleaning and also his literacy skills. Step two consisted of a contract which was setting up a plan to achieve these goals successfully and set a time frame for when these would be completed. This was competed by researching the resources that were in the community in regards to the literacy classes and possible cooking classes and looking at the time scale of when Michael would like to accomplish these goals. Step three consists of problem solving which would be solving any problems that would arise for me or Michael in regards to the sessions that take place. For example whil e working towards improving Michaels literacy skills it was evident that Michael would need one to one tutoring and this wouldn’t be possible for several months, although Michael was adamant to start in which he decided to start in a group. In result as the student social worker I know I will have to support, encourage and motivate Michael in this process as he may find it challenging to be part of a group of sixteen. Finally step four is termination in which will commence when I start to finish up in my placement and hope that Michael will continue with his goals with his own social worker. At this present time because of Michael’s background and his diagnosis this method has been successful to date. I have also been able to use a person centred approach along with the task centred approach with Michael throughout this process in order to allow Michael to open up about his feelings and be honest about what is going on for him at that time and in result has allowed Mic hael to achieve positive outcomes within our daily sessions. In regards to the task centred approach that I have undertaken with Michael, at present it has been successful as it looks at the three main problems that he would like to improve on within the short space of time that I will be working with him. By using this approach it was evident that Michael felt motivated to complete these goals as he focused on the three main issues he had in his life. According to Trevthick.P (2005) it can be very difficult to engage in the underlining issues that may be present. In my opinion and the evidence from conducting sessions with Michael this is quite accurate as it can be difficult to engage Michael in certain difficult conversations from his past from a task centred approach. Although by using a person centred approach when discussing these difficult conversations can be suitable as this approach allows him to discuss these issues calmly and reflect on the situation that he may find difficult. For example by using this approach, it allowed Michael to open up about his daughters and the relationship he has with them and how he wants it to improve. He was also able to realise that he wanted to do something about his literacy skills and how this issue could be a barrier for him when searching for a job. By conducting a task centred approach and completing the recovery star I discovered this about Michael and was able to use the person centred approach to discuss it in more depth. Although even though it is discussed that a task centred approach is chosen because it allows the goals to be achievable, it can be difficult for those who may suffer from a mental health illness. Some individuals may find it difficult to achieve the goals that have been set, although at that time it is important for the social worker and client to be able to feedback any difficulties that have arisen and be able to change in accordance with the individual. For example while working with Michael it can be difficult for him in regards to his mental heal th, so throughout our sessions I ensure that near the end of each session Michael is able to understand what was discussed and his understanding and ensure that he is still motivated in regards to the goals that he has set for himself. In conclusion, it is evident that the ongoing weekly sessions with Michael have been beneficial in regards to a task centred approach. The reason for this is that Michael can concentrate on three specific goals at a time and doesn’t feel overloaded. From working with Michael on a one to one basis, his history and mental health status, this approach is working in a positive way in regards to what Michael wants to achieve. From previous case notes it has been noted of other methods that have been tried and failed to motivate and encourage Michael. This approach does have its limits for example it doesn’t allow the client to discuss their issues in detail, although that is when the social worker can incorporate other approaches into their work with the client. Throughout my work with Michael this approach has been favourable as with this client it has achieved positive results, while I am also aware that this may not be the case with every client that I encounter. Although while managing this case I plan to continue with this method and incorporate various approaches as needed in order to work in partnership with Michael to achieve his goals while anticipating a positive outcome. References Adams. R, Dominelli, Payne.M (2002). Social Work: Themes, Issues and Critical Debates. 2nd ed. Hampshire: Palgrave. P191-199 Teater. B (2010). An Introduction to Applying Social Work Theories and Methods. Berkshire: Open University Press, McGraw Hill Education. P178-193 Nelson – Jones. R (1992). The Theory and Practice of Counselling Psychology. London: Holt, Rinehart and Winston LTD. P107-120 Payne. M (1997). Modern Social Work Theory. 2nd ed. Hampshire: Palgrave. P104-112 Trevithick. P (2005). Social Work Skills: A practice handbook. 2nd ed. Berkshire: Open University Press, McGraw Hill Education. P95-98, P275-277 Recovery Star

Casey at the Bat in depth :: essays research papers

Strike Three   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  America, and the world love sport; there are hundreds of types, but the one thing that links them all together is the emotion. For players and fans alike, the emotional involvement with the game is what draws them to it; and for Americans, there is one sport in particular that ignites their passion – baseball. Baseball has been called â€Å"America’s pastime† for a reason; the suspense, drama, and pride wrapped up in this game have captivated generations. The poem, â€Å"Casey at the Bat† effectively captures the emotion tied into the sport of baseball. â€Å"Casey at the Bat† is a poem about the last inning of a Mudville baseball game. The team is down two points, and the first two of their batters had already been sent back to the dugout. However, luck seemed to be on their side, the next two batters reached base, and the best hitter on the team was up to bat; Casey. The confident-cocky Casey let the first two balls go by; both were strikes. Then the last pitch came, the crowed held their breath as Casey took a swing; and to quote the poem, â€Å"but there is no joy in Mudville -- mighty Casey has struck out.† There are two distinct psychological personalities present in this poem; these emotional beings are the audience and Casey. The actions and words of both shed light on each others personality and mental state during that final, historical inning.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  First and foremost, nowadays attendance rates amongst professional baseball games can be in the thousands. When that many people are grouped together, the Murakami 2 emotion of the game can have an effect on the group’s mentality. The audience in â€Å"Casey at the Bat† is no different. When people are in large groups, they begin to think and act as the same as the people around them. When more and more people begin to conform, the group itself actually becomes a separate entity; an entity with its own opinions and emotions that can act as a separate character in itself. The audience in the poem begins the inning with a sense of optimism. As with any new inning, the crowd will always be hopeful; this can be inferred within the first and second stanzas. In the second stanza, it states that, â€Å"A pall-like silence fell upon the patrons of the game;† now in order for a let-down to occur, there must be some prior excitement, hence the optimism in the beginning of the inning.