Biology Pearson Textbook Homework Questions Essay

a.There are several differences between RNA and DNA is that are key. DNA has deoxyribose sugar while RNA has ribose sugar. Secondly b.RNA is generally single stranded and not double stranded. Lastly RNA contains uracil in place of thymine. c.The three types of RNA are messenger RNA, transfer RNA, and ribosomal RNA. Messenger RNA is the â€Å"mirror image† of the DNA that encodes the amino acid sequence for the protein specified by the gene. The Transfer RNA transfers the amino acids to the ribosomes from coded messages. Ribosomal RNA helps build the proteins on the ribosome. d.The reason that so many RNA molecules are produced more than DNA molecules because you only have two copies of DNA in one cell. If only two proteins could be produced at a time it would take the cell a much longer time to do the functions that it needs to perform. 2. a.During transcription segments of DNA serve as templates to produce complementary RNA molecules. b.I think that the mRNA would not code properly for the correct protein so none of the functions could occur properly. No proteins could be made without the mRNA. 3.RNA George a.I am unspecialized and am very willing and capable to do any job. I can be used in the messenger, transfer, and building proteins areas of work. As a messenger I can encode the protein sequence that is given to me from the genes. As a â€Å"transferist† I can transfer the amino acids to the ribosomes. Finally as an rRNA I can assemble proteins. Please consider my application.

Personal and Professional Development Essay

I. Introduction Self-managed learning is an individual person or to find different ways of learning, which may be in the society they live or work in an environment that is diverse. Self-managed learning is also about setting goals for learning by assessing the learning goals and how to achieve that goal. People learn new things such different cultures of people, behavior, personality, cognitive, etc. Individuals can learn things not only in the classroom but also through friends, newspapers etc. Self-managed learning opportunity for people to come up with their own strategies for learning, although sometimes it takes a short time to learn something that might be possible for them to have can pass the exam, or completing a project, it is important for people to acquire knowledge as long as the current environment facing the challenges posed by technological development who need knowledge they can use them in your personal life and your career. Lifelong learning is all about continuous learning individuals can contribute to the professional context. Individuals may have personal assessment as a means of lifelong learning by assessing strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats to their (SWOT analysis). (James, 2014) Both 2 Long life and self- managed learning are important to each individual. Self-study, access is really the foundation for acquiring knowledge. Choose a suitable learning can maximize capacity and gather knowledge faster. Access to and understanding of knowledge is a huge advantage for personal growth, personal excellence productivity will lead to broad career. Appropriate plans put in place by making a plan of action, monitoring it, set the date, review it regularly will help students achieve their goals. Although, they need help from colleagues by accepting the opinions and judgments that will help them to learn, individuals need to understand the stages of the career development plan for the purpose of having a clear goal of what they want to achieve from learning self-management. It is a self- managed development can enhance long life. Today, when the world is integration, how to understand and choose a best way to learning to maximize the learning capacity is very important in the competition to get better positions to benefit themselves and their organizations, even is a national interest. Here I’ll write down clearly about my learning abilities, strengths and weaknesses of my learning ability to apply to your organization. II. Task 1: Evaluate approaches to self-managed learning: 1. Kolb’s Experiential Learning Cycle Figure 1. Kolb’ ELC Model Having developed the model over many years prior, David Kolb published his model about learning styles model in 1984. This led to the related terms such as experiential learning theory of Kolb (ELT), and learning styles of Kolb inventory (LSI). In his publications – especially his 1984 book â€Å"learning experience: Experience as the source of Learning and Development ‘Kolb acknowledges the early learning experiences of others in the 1900s, including Rogers, Jung, and Piaget. In turn, the learning style model Kolb and experiential learning theory is now recognized by scholars, teachers, managers and trainers works as really profound concepts fundamental to our understanding and explaining the behavior of human learning, and towards helping others to learn. (businessballs, 2014) Kolb’s learning theory laid out four different learning styles (or preferences), which is based on a learning cycle of four stages. Kolb includes this â€Å"cycle of learning† as a central theoretical principles of their learning experience, usually calculated according to the four-stage cycle of learning, which â€Å"experienced immediate or concrete† offer a basis for â€Å"observations and reflections†. These’ observations and reflections are assimilation and distilled into â€Å"abstract concepts† producing new implications for action which can be â€Å"actively testing† times in turn creating new experiences. Here we are going to learn specifically about Kolb’s ELC model: Concrete Experience: Concrete experience is the first stage in 4 stages of Kolb’s ELC. It’s about when we done any activities, after that we have experiences. Experience will create based on done-activities. In this stage, individual or organization will be implemented or do activities. Base on activities and implementation, the experiences will be created. For example, Organizations open many actual work experiences or work rotation will help their employees be more realistic experiences. Also, for those who are in this stage, they are not primarily interested in theory; instead they want to treat each case as unique and learn best from specific examples. Reflexive Observation: â€Å"When the learner consciously reflects back on that  experience† (Many, 2014, p. 15). That means when the experience from stage 1 came, we have to review again, summarize all the task of activity and make sure it’s true. The ‘reflective observation’ factors deri ved from the analysis and judgment of events and discussions about learning and teaching that you take with your mentors and colleagues. People naturally think about their experiences in teaching, especially when they are new to it and less confident in their abilities or when an already painful experience. All of us went out to tell his lesson â€Å"went well or severe, in a visual sense. This could be called† common sense reflection ‘. But how do we know it is good or bad and what is good or bad about it? We need to speak our thoughts in a systematic way for us to remember what we think and build on the experience for the next time. This example may be through the self-reflection or evaluation of your next event by keeping a log or journal. It can also include feedback from students, peer observation of teaching (e.g., advice or opinions of your peers), moderation of assessment, examiners commented on the outside. All of these can be aggregated to give an overall reflection of your practice. Reflected in itself, though, is not enough to promote the learning and career development. Twenty years of experience may include twenty years of teaching the same content in the same way! Unless we act according to our reflections about themselves and about the opinions of others, there is no development took place. Abstract Conceptualization: â€Å"Is where the learner attempts to conceptualize a theory or model of what is observed† (Many, 2014, p. 15). In this stage, the definition start to forming, the place that all the concepts have to be specification. To plan what we would do different next time, we need to do? – In addition to our reflection on our experience – to be informed of educational theory for example, through the reading of relevant literature on teaching and learning or by attending staff development members or other activities. Therefore reflect a middle ground, aggregate and analyze the theory of action in the past. It allows us to conclude about our practice. Active Experimentation: â€Å"Is the learner trying to plan how to test a model or theory or plan for a forthcoming experience† (Many, 2014, p. 16). When all the concepts, definitions are formed and specific, the learning activity will be active. The conclusions we form from the stage ‘summary overview our’ then form the basis by which we can change the plan – ‘Operation experiments. ‘Experiment  Activity’ then starts the cycle again when we make changes in the actual teaching us to create a specific experience is then followed by reflection and sees review to draw conclusions about the effectiveness of the changes†¦ After activities are active, we have experience again and go back to the stage 1 of Kolb’s ELC, continue and expand the cycle. That’s how Kolb’s ELC work. For example, A singer vocal training, when done the first song, he looked back and do not feel good because it is not appreciated when the song be uploaded online in the internet. Singer began thinking about the theory learned vocal and start over, with the stylized rhythms. Finally, the singer then develops a plan and has successfully recorded a next song. In addition, Kolb believes that we can not do both variations on a single axis at a time (such as thinking and feeling). Learning styles of our products is a choice of two decisions. It is often easier to see the construction of Kolb learning styles in a two-by-two matrix. Each learning style represents a combination of two favorite styles. The chart also highlights Kolb term for the four learning styles; diverging, assimilating, and converging, containing: Doing ( Active Experimentation) Watching (Reflexive Observation) Feeling (Concrete Experience) Accommodating Diverging Thinking (Abstract Conceptualization) Converging Assimilating Accommodating: The Accommodating learning style is ‘hands-on’, and relies on intuition rather than logic that mean: people who use other person’s analysis and want to participate in an approach of practical experience. They are attracted to the challenges and new experiences, and plan implementation. They often act on instinct rather than rational analysis.  People with a learning style will tend to rely on others to contain more information than carry out their analysis. This learning style is common in the general population. Diverging: These people can look at things from different perspectives. They are very sensitive. They prefer to watch rather than do, tending to gather information and use imagination to solve problems. They are best viewed in the specific situation of different perspectives. Kolb called this style â€Å"divergence† because people perform better in situations requiring idea generation, for example, brainstorming. Those with a diverging learning style have broad cultural interests and like to collect information. They are interested in people, tend to be imaginative and emotional, and tend to be strong in the arts. Those with divergent styles like teamwork, listening with an open mind and get a personal response. Converging: Those with a converging learning style can solve problems and will use their learning to find solutions to practical problems. They prefer technical tasks, and less concerned with others and personal aspects. Those with a converging learning style are best to use the actual search for ideas and theories. They can solve problems and make decisions by finding solutions to questions and problems. Those with a converging learning style attracted many technical tasks and problems rather than social issues or individuals. A converging learning style allows the expertise and technology. Those with a style convergence want to experiment with new ideas, to simulate, and to work with practical applications. Assimilating: The assimilating learning preferences is a reasonable approach brief. The idea and concept is more important than people. These people require good clear explanation rather than practical opportunity. Predominates in-depth understanding of information and organize it in a clear logical format. People with learning style assimilation is less focused on people and more interested in ideas and abstract concepts. People with this style are more attracted to the more theoretically sound approaches based on practical value. This learning style is important for efficient information and science careers. In formal learning situations, people with this style prefer to read, lectures, exploring analytical models, and have time to think things through. 2. 7 Approaches to Learning There’re 7 ways to approach knowledge below: Learning through Research: Is a person who is able to use internet to read any things available that relevant with their demand. In addition, learning through research also is a person that likely to read books or documents to approach to knowledge. The advantages of this kind of learning is not waste time to learn how because everything already available on the internet and books. Their disadvantages are some time they will get too much information and waste time to classify. Learning from others: Coaches and mentors both work one-on-one. Person who’s tend to learn from precursor’s experience but in better way. With this style of learning, they will get the low rate of risk and comfortable to work. Besides, the disadvantages of learning from other are: They are always depending on mentor’s ideas, their creativity is not been developed. Some mentors come from the other environmental with different lever of knowledge and people who are learning from other won†™t understand, and apply the wrong way. Secondments: Is a person who approaches knowledge from traveling, changes in the work environment, work rotation†¦ Because of the continuity change of environment, their advantages are received more experiences, knowledge and adaptment. However, the disadvantages are lack of team work because they couldn’t belong with a group or a team or maybe they get sick because not suitable with the environment. Interview: It’s conducted in order to achieve a specific purpose for at least one of the practices involved, such as information gathering, problem solving or behavior change. Interview provides a vision about ourselves to know who we are. What our position? Interview helps them to know clearly about them self, know clearly about self-awareness. Obliviously, Not only advantages but also the disadvantages, the disadvantages is the information from interview can be inaccurate. Seminars and Conferences: Is the form that learning with teacher or professor. It usually held for groups of 10-50 individuals (a kind of meeting). Seminars and conferences help them to improve their working in group skill, communication skill, presentation skill because many home work for their team. The disadvantages are conflict of knowledge between teacher/professor and students, sometime is waste of time. Internet, Intranet, Extranet: Distance learning, learning through networking. Students can study online courses to obtain more knowledge outside of school. Because of the internet, extranet, intranet so the works/ knowledge are very convenient and cheaper  than learning in class with direct teacher but much if unverified information, out dated, irrelevant information are the disadvantages of this way to approach knowledge. New groups and forum: Is the kind of learning that we open a thread then discuss online a problem or situation with direct post and direct reply of members in group. When people talking, the brain start to storming and many ideas have given out, we can choose one of them. Sometime the ideas getting conflict and bias†¦ There are 7 approaches to learning and knowledge mentioned above, depends on each person, task, resource, and environmental organizations. Each environment, different jobs have different ways of learning to adapt to the situation. In Vietnam with amore harsh environmental conditions more than the other country. The existence of inferior technology and very difficult to identify the sources of open knowledge. In the US and some European countries, students are funded 100% of tuition, even health insurance from birth to 18 year-old. Also, they are equipped with a lot of open source knowledge and especially completely free. They also promote the academic life of students by offering an innovative fund, all creativity and invention will be using public money of government. However in Vietnam, many knowledge donors but not really common, most students are still very difficult to study and develop themselves. Excelled students tend to learn in a better environment to develop them; their dedication to foreigners led to Vietnam has been severely brain drain. Source: (See survey table in appendix). To against the brain drain and improve our own self-study, the following is suggested models that may help students develop Vietnam’s own self-study: With the popularity of social networking, the groups and the forums, you should use them as a learning tool instead of gaming. Figure 3. Self-Constructed study model 2 In Vietnam, mostly self-taught students through the internet so this model will maximize the learning ability and can reach to the most students in Vietnam; Based on hcmuaf.edu site, the percentage of students use the internet in Viet Nam up to 99% (Tran Minh Tri, Do Minh Hoang, 2013). We will share key, close documents (the documents must pay to be read) on a group or forum. On piracy, the State of Vietnam doesn’t have enough ability to find a  hidden group or a hidden topic to share information, discuss and exchange. You make a great ideas, questions, and people will talk, share relevant documents and receive the request. But it will take time to select a member’s idea, but the idea of the document will be firmer. You buy one document but can get back 10 documents related to the work you want to learn, study. Creating a community with the persons that have the same passion for learning and personal development will help you learn effectively in the environment of Vietnam. Source: (See survey table in appendix). III. Task 2: Propose ways in which lifelong learning in personal and professional contexts should be encouraged. 1. Continue Professional Development (CPD) What’s CPD Means? CPD stands for Continuing Professional Development. It refers to the process of tracking and recording the skills, knowledge and experience you can be both formal and informal as you work, beyond any initial training. It is a record of what you experience, learn and apply. This term is often used to mean a physical directory development portfolio of your document as a professional. Some organizations use it to mean a plan for training and development, which I would argue is not exactly true. This article is about the CPD is a process of recording and reflecting on learning and development. (Allen, 2014) What its functions? CPD process is to help you manage your own development on an ongoing basis. Its function is to help you record, review and reflect on what you learned. It is not a tick box document recording the training you have completed. It is wider than that. What are the difference between training and developing? These terms are often used interchangeably, although there are differences. As a rule of thumb, the training is formal and linear. It’s to do with learning how to do something specific, related to skills and competence. Training can be as simple as using a computer application and as complex as learning how to become a pilot. Developers often do not have a formal and widely applicable, giving you the tools to perform a variety of things and  is related to the ability and capacity. It is related to the evolution from basic tips to understanding how higher, adult or complex. Also it can be expanded your range of transferable skills such as leadership, project management or organizational information. 2. Honey and Mumford learning style Learning styles include a variety of theories for the differences in modeling natural systems or personal habits of collecting and processing information in the learning situation. A core concept is that individuals differ in the way we learn. The idea of ​​individual learning style originated in the 1970s, and has great influence education. Proponents of the use of learning styles in education recommend that teachers assess learning styles of students and adapt their classroom methods to suit the learning styles of each best student. Although there is ample evidence that individuals express preferences for how they want to receive information, some studies have found value in the use of learning styles in education. Critics say there is no evidence that the identified learning styles of each student. To understand the learning styles, we have four learning styles based on Honey and Mumford theory as follows: (Mobbs, 2013) Activist: Definition: Activist involving themselves fully and without bias in new experiences. They enjoy the here and now, and I’m happy to be dominated by immediate experiences. They are open-minded, not skeptical, and this tends to make them enthusiastic about anything new. Their philosophy is: â€Å"I’ll try anything once†. The activists are learning by doing. Activists need to get their hands dirty, to jump in with both feet first. There is an open-minded approach to learning, involving them fully and without bias in new experiences. Career: Because of their characteristics is preferred adventurous, not afraid of risk and dare to accept the challenge to succeed, they work with the high-risk nature, requires brainstorming and experience, based on the characteristic of openness in big 5 traits model3 , for example as Strategy  Director. Why is Strategy Director? Strategy Director is a job that requires creativity and pioneering. Strategy Director huge impact to the reputation of a company or a corporation. Similar with openness in big 5 traits, openness very excited to be experienced with whatever news; they want to be a pioneer. When creating a new strategy, the risk of failure is big, but if successful, it will bring the not-small benefits when our company/ group is a pioneer company/group, a leader company/group in a particular field. Way to enhance: From above, to manage risks and develop good career, Activist should use the interview-learning to know their exact location and their own ability clearly, from that then personal development and minimize risk.

A Comparative Analysis of H.G. Wells’ Island Essay

H. G. Wells’ The Island of Doctor Moreau and Elie Wiesel’s Night are strikingly similar accounts of modern savagery and inhumanness that affect seemingly civilized societies. What is revealing however is that Wells’ novel is an entirely fictional work which proposes to analyze the effects of the advancement of science and technology in the absence of solid ethical principles, while Wiesel’s work is an autobiographical account of the author’s experiences in several concentration camps, during the Holocaust. The similarity between the experiences of the two narrators points to the inherent savageness of man. A comparative analysis of the two works exposes human civilization as a myth rather than a reality. Wiesel’s grim, nightmarish experience in the concentration camp almost surpasses the horror of Well’s fantastical island. Man is debunked as a savage, beast-like creature whose acts prove to be even more frightening and unimaginable than those of animals. The horrors produced by Doctor Moreau and by Hitler are equally unbelievable. While animal behavior is characterized only by instinctual cruelty urged by the necessity of survival, human cruelty exemplified by the experiments of Moreau and by Hitler’s massacre of six million Jews, is at once more perilous and more disturbing. In man, the animal instincts are paired with reason and imagination, just as in the symbolic hybrids created by Moreau, and thus the potency of evil increases tremendously. The two works start off from similar premises. The cruel and unprincipled experiments concocted by Doctor Moreau take place on a secluded island with a symbolic name: Noble’s Isle. In order to improve human genetics, Moreau performs vivisections and other horrifying experiments on various animals, attempting to create a new, superior race of hybrids. His experiments are symbolic because they draw attention to man’s double nature, as an animal and as a creature endowed with reason. The island’s seclusion allows the scientist to establish an empire of horrors. In Wiesel’s Night, the nightmare is also compressed into the unitary and enclosed space of the concentration camp. The barbed wire that surrounds the camps from all sides and that bears the ironic warning sign of danger, marks the boundaries of a limited and entrapping world where only the horrors are infinite: â€Å"We were caught in a trap, right up to our necks. The doors were nailed up; the way back was finally cut off. The world was a cattle wagon hermetically sealed† (Wiesel 30). Moreover, time itself is condensed into a single and prolonged night, an unending nightmare that knows no respite. Moreover, the similarity between Moreau’s design of perfecting the human race and Hitler’s project for exterminating the Jews and purifying the Aryan race, reveals the fact that man is prone to atrocities and inhuman acts that are much more terrifying than those of beasts. The hybrid race created by Moreau is a symbol of manhood in general and its proximity to savageness despite technological advancements and scientific progress, while also being similar to the new breed beast –like men created by the Holocaust. The extreme terror and dehumanizing physical suffering of the prisoners of the concentration camp, change them into savage beings that are limited to a few basic instincts. The horrors that they have to endure are almost unbearable. The Jews are therefore rapidly transformed into beasts who try to cling to the miserable and terrible lives they have. Hungered, beaten, separated from families and friends, the men and women lose their individuality and their human feelings. Gradually, as the horrors progress, they become so inured in the beastly life they lead that they no longer communicate or try to express themselves. Any trace of human feeling or dignity disappears from the men that are brought even lower than the animal condition: â€Å"Within a few seconds, we had ceased to be men† (Wiesel 45). The sheer nightmare of permanent terror and sufferance, without the light of hope or comfort is increased by the Jews’ awareness that they were being persecuted by fellow beings. As the narrative progresses, the horrors also increase. The thousands of Jews that live and work in crammed-up places become walking skeletons. With scarcely enough food to sustain life and insufficient clothing to shield them from the weather and with no treatment for their illnesses the remaining Jews survive only by a miracle. They are surrounded by death: its threat blazes in the furnace of the crematories where the ‘selected’ ones are taken, it piles up in the corpses that are ubiquitous in the camps, it takes the loved ones away and threatens their own emaciated bodies at any moment. The cruelties that these people suffer are beyond description and their endurance impressive. The author himself was only fifteen years old at the time that he had to bear witness and to be a part of these horrors. His deep religious feeling and his faith are shaken forever by the black memory of the holocaust: â€Å"Never shall I forget those moments, which murdered my God and my soul and turned my dreams to dust. Never shall I forget these things, even if I am condemned to live as long as God Himself. Never† (Wiesel 43). While the Jews are reduced to less than beastly conditions, their force of endurance is overwhelming. According to Wiesel, the suffering people gathered there were greater than God himself because of their spiritual strength that makes them pray even in these dire conditions. The image of the Jews sufferance is easily comparable to that of the beast-like creations of Doctor Moreau: â€Å"And the dwindling shreds of the humanity still startled me every now and then,—a momentary recrudescence of speech perhaps, an unexpected dexterity of the fore-feet, a pitiful attempt to walk erect† (Wells 159). Significantly, the Jews as well as other people had regarded Hitler’s promise of exterminating an entire race of people as an impossible farce. The civilized man deems himself safe from extreme pain inflicted by another human being. The narrator himself believes at the beginning that nothing like what was rumored about the camps could be true in the middle of the twentieth century. The same disbelief surrounds Prendick’s account of the scientific experiments on the island. The ultimate feeling that seizes both Prendick and Wiesel in front of these atrocities is the fact that they do not have the desire to return to mankind, despite their sufferance: â€Å"It is strange, but I felt no desire to return to mankind. I was only glad to be quit of the foulness of the Beast People† (Wells 166). This emphasizes the fact that real cruelty is much more often witnessed in man than in animals. The two works describe the nightmarish experiences of the narrators. Entrapped alongside the direst human savagery, the Jews have no choice but to bow to it and expect their own end. Their endurance is obviously superhuman. As in The Island of Doctor Moreau, the liberation of the last Jews is brought by their revolt. This liberation however will never shake the curtain of the horrors that remain inscribed in history as a testimony to human savageness and its persistence in the modern world. ? Works Cited: Wells, H. G. The Island of Doctor Moreau. New York: Signet Classics, 1996. Wiesel, Elie. Night. New York: Holt McDougal, 1999.

The future of a business and why it depends on sustainable approaches Essay

The future of a business and why it depends on sustainable approaches that it adopts - Essay Example Survival of a company largely, depends on strategies that it develops. Sustainable business approach does not only address how the firm will increase its profit margin, but also addresses planet and people. The only viable future for business is to become a sustainable business in a sustainable society. The future of a business depends on sustainable approaches that it adopts. This concept is quite broad thereby necessitating critical structures that would handle the business towards achieving its goals. This paper will address the following core concepts. The first section will address economic viability of a business that focuses on modalities of creating profit. Ethical viability will focus on the business and its influence in the environment. Social viability will address manageability, system viability, and sustainability. The second section of the paper will address the concept of business sustainability. Sustainability has broad concept that include resource consumption, socia l mandate, political support, environmental impact, and image. Analysts contend that the definition of viability with respect to business is the ability to survive (Sarkis, et.al. 2010:104). Many entrepreneurs peg viability to profit margin. The projection within the working environment should indicate that the organization would be able to make some profit. Entrepreneur’s expectation is that their businesses will be able to pick up and justify their investment by generating profit. When the business projects its viability into the future the situation would create sustainability. Sustainability means the ability of the business to remain viable into the future. Sustainable activities of the business would not only look at economic viability, but also the environment. Economic viability A business that intends to be viable in the future has to operate within ethical and socially acceptable manner. The idea behind such operations looks at the interest of the consumer with resp ect to company products. Consumer behaviors influence the profit margin of a firm. It means that the business must produce products that address needs of the consumers without harm or exploitation. When a form engages in a business that depletes the resources with the environment, the survival of the business would be at stake because it would not be able to generate products in the market (Richards, 2009:175). A firm that does not demonstrate sustainable methods of operation does not respect the ethical measures within the society. For instance, business operation has to create a room for the consumers to buy similar product in the future. What would be the condition of the market condition in an event of product depletion? The outcome of the market condition would be economically dead. Thus, economic viability of the business addresses the issues of continuity. Business, which gets huge profit margin for a short term, would not be economically viable because it does not have the c apacity to survive in the future. Entrepreneurs evaluate conditions of market or the environment where they intend to create their enterprises. Economic viability as a consideration would address the following factors accessibility of raw materials, costs associated with business operation, government policies, effects to the environment and future development among other factors (Richards, 2009:174). Practices, which influence the

Material and the Representational Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Material and the Representational - Essay Example Social and cultural geography have, over time, experienced a lot of change as a result of developments in schools of thought. Modernization processes of various countries have expressed the extent of the relationship between modernity and geography. There is literature that has indicated that modernization is a project of geography. With modernization and its key concepts such as globalization of affairs social and cultural geography have moved closer. In (Barnes et al. 2004), it is indicated that the reconstruction of geographical conditions is as a result of the production process which incorporates nature and society. In this reconstruction, there is the production of a restless hybrid quasi-object that welds together representational, symbolic and material practices of the production process, often characterized with competition. The coming together of social and cultural theory has revitalized human geography. Smith (2000) underlines that the recombination of social geography wi th cultural is a welcome idea. In this recombination, the role of material culture perspective is referred cited as being central. According to Jackson (2000), there are good reasons for contemporary social and cultural geography to incorporate material culture. In the same article, materialism role is demonstrated using food and textile. The flows of these goods and their related activities have social implications dictating the kind of relationships amongst people. While linking culture and the social process Smith (2000), demonstrates how both are related by work. In this taxonomy, culture is delineated as work which is a social process. Their symbiotic relational point-work- is deeply entrenched to political economy (Smith 2000). The materialism of the social geography is also one of the chief ways of representing how a society makes and sustains connections with the ‘social’. In his arguments Gregson (2003), indicates that reclaiming the ‘social’ has a direct relationship to social life materiality. This is so with specificity to key components of the society such as production processes, reproduction and organization. With regard to this reclamation, Gregson further indicate to the need to less contemporary questions on materiality and inequalities in the society. The issue of inequalities, both regional and urban transcends societies. Essentially, it has close relations with representation and the social materialism as regarding the role of organization and the production process. According to a World Bank report, inequalities present analysts with complexity of historical and geographical factors. In these inequalities there are factors such as weak resources endowment and distribution as well as market inaccessibility affecting development (World Bank 2005). As such, there have been long standing disparities. Further, the report alludes that regional inequalities are reflected when groups- social, racial and ethnical- are con centrated in common places. The concern for representation is manifested by the extent of effectiveness of decentralization of resources relative to power concentration. With imbalances in representation and, public policy carries biases and can therefore not adequately address spatial inequalities. This has effect on social mobility, risk

Limitations in Effective Use of Knowledge Management Systems The Case Essay

Limitations in Effective Use of Knowledge Management Systems The Case of Price Waterhouse Coopers - Essay Example The intention of this study is Price Waterhouse Coopers (PwC), the world’s largest consultancy firm that provides audit assurance, tax and advisory services to large industries internationally. In Thailand, major PwC clients are large Thai and international companies as well as Government Institutions. At present, the company has over 1,300 employees working for its Bangkok-based office. Undoubtedly, a consultant’s main job is to find solutions based on technical knowledge possessed by the employees. For this, knowledge workers form the key resources of the company. Therefore, PwC began to adopt the concept of knowledge management in an effort to enhance employees’ knowledge and, thereby, gain a competitive advantage over its rivals. However, since the author have an experience working in PwC (Thailand), the author has realized that even though PwC seems to have many good knowledge management systems deploying within the organization such as IFRS NoE, knowledge c urve and Assurance support and discussion but employees fail to utilise these knowledge management systems to their full potential. The authors also reckon many factors prohibit people to use KMS; therefore, it is an inspiration for the author to study what are the barriers that inhibit the employees from using knowledge management systems in PwC (Thailand). The author has gathered both qualitative and quantitative data. Through interviewing IT department in PwC, the author has gained an understanding on KMS using in the organization.

It has been written below in the assignment criteria Essay

It has been written below in the assignment criteria - Essay Example under Part II of the Supply of Goods and Services Act 1982 (the Act1) and Section 13 the service will be carried out with reasonable care and skill where it is done in the course of business as in the current scenario. Therefore failure to do so entitles Adam to make a claim for breach of contract and damages or alternatively under the law of negligence2which is what Burt Co is purporting to exclude and limit under its terms of business. The factual scenario indicates that both Adam Co and Burt Co had a regular course of dealings in respect of the Burt Co’s provision of car valet services, which were ostensibly contracted into on Burt Co’s standard terms of business. The issue in contention is whether the contract was for the Deluxe Service and if not, whether the exemption clause was incorporated into the contract. Whilst there is nothing to indicate that Adam Co expressly accepted and signed Burt Co’s standard terms and conditions, it is evident that the process of handing Adam Co Burt Co’s standard terms of business happened approximately eight to nine times within a twelve month period, which will render it difficult for Adam Co to argue that the terms and conditions do not cover the terms and conditions due to the regular course of dealings between the parties3. This in turn is crucial to the enforceability of the exclusion clause4. With regard to the current scenario, the most applicable scenario will be incorporation of terms based on previous dealings between the parties. For example, in the case of J Spurling Limited v Bradshaw,6 in circumstances analogous to the current scenario, Bradshaw had received the document with the exemption clause on previous dealings with the defendant on numerous occasions and the Court of Appeal concluded that â€Å"by the course of business and conduct of the parties the clause was part of the contract†7. In the Bradshaw case the clause had been incorporated notwithstanding the late arrival of the document

What is the Enlightenment project and how did it impact upon Christian Essay

What is the Enlightenment project and how did it impact upon Christian Theology - Essay Example Creative and critical thinking is an essential tool in analysis of theology, since all its aspects are related to the basic human understanding the origin of all creation and nature given the universal belief of a superior being. It is in this perspective that the philosophy of the holy trinity resulted in a deep examination of the biblical information and the church in general. Two different factions of Christians have come up, one group believes in the trinity that has God the father, the Son and the Holy Spirit. This group is referred to as the Trinitarian group (Leupp 2008). The other group which believed that God is one distinct being has come to be referred to as the Non Trinitarian group. A heated debate has always ensued when the existence of the two groups is discussed or debated. The Trinitarian group can never visualize God as a single distinct person. Olson argues that a non-Trinitarian creator God would need a world as his counterpart because personhood is a mystery of r elationship.The statement further says that man is equal with God and his Godhead and with humankind in his manhood. The existence of the two groups is actually the origin of Christian theology. As Christians realized that different groups had different beliefs, the early scholars dug deeper into the Bible history and in particular the different propositions it had. This started out as reflections on the implications and what the Christianity faith means. This insight started out as early as in during the era that the New Testament was written. Different episodes that Jesus taught on the Christian living guided the early church on the way they could live their lives in a way that their faith and convictions supported. Similar any other area of study, Christian theology has evolved from early introduction to Christian theology over the years, patristic theology, medieval Christian theology, western theology and ultimately into the modern Christian theology. It is in the context of mo dern theology, that the enlightenment project first emerged. The enlightenment project has dominated philosophy in the recent three hundred years promising a conception of rationality independent of historical and social context and independent of any specific understanding of man’s nature or purpose (Costa 2005).The enlightenment indicated tremendous changes which were known as the Copernican Shifts. These changes signified complete shifts in how the Christians viewed the world. These changes brought sharp differences between various scholars and Christian theology experts. People abandoned their earlier ways in the wake of the new beliefs. An aspect of the Christian living that changed is the revolution in thinking. This revolution brought about some significant shifts: A shift in authority. Before the enlightenment, two traditional sources of authority existed; the classics and the bibl

The Leader's New Work Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

The Leader's New Work - Assignment Example Hence, the theories serve as guideline for the organizations and their managerial and marketing staff for their survival and growth in an era of perfect competition. Contemporary business culture has witnessed a tremendous alteration in its nature and scope. Fast increase in business activities at global scale, and emergence of world as a global entity has eliminated the concept of staying isolated from the outer world. People now embark upon business venture and produce goods and services keeping in view the features of the global market. It has also multiplied the responsibilities of corporate tycoons and leaders of multinational organizations, which have to render extra services in order to make their ventures a success. Argyris (2000) has elucidated salient features and responsibilities of the corporate sector during 21st century onward, where he lays stress upon fast and perfect flow of communication in order to obtain complete information of the market scenario (77). He is of the opinion that in olden days, only the owners/directors and managers used to be responsible for the growth and progress of their organization; however, time has tak en drastic turn, because of the new era challenges, and employees and workers maintain equal responsibility for the financial uplift of their work place. Business leaders apply communication tools in order to bring change in strategic schemes. Applying of focus groups, organizational surveys and other communication tools turn out to be helpful in making assessment of the work efficiency of employees, though they do not present an in-depth analysis of the problems they undergo while performing their professional obligations (78-9). He suggests the tools including effective learning, broader empowerment and employees’ surveys as effective methods of assessing the efficiency and performance of the

AFTER THE FACT ASSIGNMENT Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

AFTER THE FACT - Assignment Example The prologue of the account, however, narrated Deane’s close connection with his personal aide, Edward Bancroft and Deane’s partnership with Bancroft in their sort of gambling escapades when he was exiled. Deane was alleged to have known of Bancroft being a double spy to both Britain and the U.S., and so, when Deane decided to come back to his country, he died aboard a ship. Though a conjecture, some evidences gathered by historians can link Bancroft’s fear of being revealed as a traitor and his thorough knowledge in poisons. With this account, truth is defined as a product of careful analysis of evidences, and the apparent connections of them in order to make a logical and coherent conclusion. Top rail bias means that writing history is mired by prejudices and bias of affluent history authors who are the producers of most history books. Bottom rail means citing, for instance, a slave as a source of a historical research. It is difficult to be used as a reliable source of information knowing the biases present in every slave’s dependence to their lords (Davidson and Lytle 206). Good sources are diverse, meaning they come from two different people, and must be first-hand. Moreover, any freedman’s point-of-view should not be taken by face-value. Sack’s method of investigation could have worked better because it did not employ any form of deceit, and it is an accuracy-driven method. An outside factor, such as race and inherent prejudices, plays a crucial role in a historical researching. Sack’s approach that entails thorough research and comparison of accounts works best. Meanwhile, the case of the colorblind painter depicted a historical approach in finding a solution to blindness problem. This is equally true with historical research. Treating every reader as blind from history and the historian as well could make a history research free from biases and prejudices and will be even more

The past in a streetcar named desire Essay Example for Free

The past in a streetcar named desire Essay The Role of the Past in a Streetcar Named Desire French writer Andri Maurois once said: A man cannot free himself from the past more easily than he can from his own body. This quote exemplifies one of the central themes in Tennessee Williams A Streetcar Named Desire. The past is something that characters are locked within chaining them to secret misdeeds and shameful actions ultimately leading them to the question of reality versus illusion, revealing their weaknessess and leading some of them towards their downfall. Williams presents to the audience the first issues of dealing with the past by one of the protagonists, Blanche. Born and raised in the Southern aristocracy, she cannot free herself from her rich past. She first arrives at the Kowalskys aparment daintily dressed in white in a white suit with a fluffy bodice, necklaces and ear-rings of pearl, white gloves and hat (pg 117) conveying the idea of a summer classic, completely contrasting with the jungle-like atmosphere of decay prevalent in the French Quarter. The author focuses on Blanches introduction as a dramatic technique in order to emphasize the idea of someone who is drawn to the past, by simply describing her wardrobe. Her white clothing portray her similar to a moth, drawn by the light, instead of repelled by it as the audience will soon notice. Her pearls symbolize the sadness she suffers from loss of love and failure. Despite all this, she maintains her rich-girl posture to remain linked to her past in Belle Reve. The plantation in which she and Stella grew up in was lost as their fathers, uncles, and brothers spent all their money drinking, gambling and womanizing. She is haunted by the deaths of her ancestors, which she attributes to their epic fornications. The sins of the fathers are visited upon their children is a good example of Blanches hysterical outburst in page 126, where she says, in an emotionally loaded phrase, I fought and bled. Tennessee Williams makes it clear that one cannot escape genetic inheritance because at the end, it all comes back. Another aspect of Blanche is also introduced to the audience in Scene 1, adding to her characterization: alcoholism. Blanche suffers from delirium tremens as she is drinking from Stanleys whisky bottle in page 120. She effortless tries to convince herself that ones her limit but instead just goes on drinking. Alcohol offers her a temporary amnesia, and a feeling of reassurance but instead, her actions become quite convulsive as she is talking to Stella and shaking all over and panting for breath as she tries to laugh. A state of drunken stupor enables her to take a flight of imagination, such as concocting a getaway with Shep Huntleigh. Her actions, however, do not go unnoticed by Stellas husband, Stanley, as he remarks liquor goes fast in this hot weather (pg 129). Equally, bathing has the same effect on Blanche, as the action is a motif for cleansing, as in baptism, where one is introduced to a new path, a new light. In light of her efforts to forget and shed her illicit past in the new community of New Orleans, these baths represent her efforts to cleanse herself of her odious history. Stanley also turns to water to undo a misdeed when he showers after beating Stella. The shower serves to soothe his violent temper; afterward, he leaves the bathroom feeling remorseful and calls out longingly for his wife (pg 153). Blanches long baths can be seen in almost all Scenes followed by her comments of being freshly bathed and scented, and feeling like a brand-new human being! (Pg 135). However, as Blanche finds herself in constant struggle against her past, Stella has no trouble forgetting it and marrying Stanley. Although she does feel sympathy for the loss of Belle Reve and weeps as Blanche accuses her of indifference (pg 127), she has thoroughly moved on and found confort in Stanleys arms and has chosen to be a part of his life, even adapting to his likes, such as that of reading a book of coloured comics. She no longer has a desire to live the aristocratic life as the plantation is an illusion of the past. By contrast, this scenery has been destroyed, giving space to a urbanized, modernized New Orleans setting. Stella can be seen as a catalyst to Stanley and Blanche as she is driven towards comercialism and has ignored to role of a fallen woman. She has married to Stanley Kowalsky, who has an intense, brutish masculinity, and takes pride in his sexual appetite. Stanley, in a way, denies his roots by responding to Blanche as she calls him a Polack, But what I am is a one hundred per cent American, born and raised in the greatest country on earth and proud as hell of it, so dont ever call me a Polack. (Pg 197) Following Stanley, Mitch is introduced. He acts as a foil to Stanley, as he is clumsy, slow thinking, shy, and insecure. The jokes present at the beginning of scene 33 (pg 144) are a parallel to Mitch, implying that he has spent so much time taking care of his ill mother that he has completely lost his sexual appetite. He has lived with his mother for his entire life, and cannot get away from the comfort zone. The only way to get away is by getting married to Blanche, which at first seems like a good idea for she does everything to look as feminine as possible, trying to conceal her past. For herself, Blanche sees marriage to Mitch as her means of escaping destitution. Mens exploitation of Blanches sexuality has left her with a poor reputation. This reputation makes Blanche an unattractive marriage prospect, but, because she is destitute, marriage is her only possibility for survival. Her will to impress Mitch is addressed by Williams through the interaction between them, where he speaks ungrammatically short and contemptuous lines, while Blanche evidently speaks with an enormous and overused vocabulary, which is artificially calculated and constructed by her in order for her achieve her aims. This is especially true in this scene, since Blanche resorts once more to the educated speech of a schoolteacher in order to take control of an aggressive situation (pg 150-51). The question of which characters represents light and dark is debatable, but it seems that both have an aspect of softness and harshness, whichever the audience decides to sympathize with. Even though Mitch and Blanches characters are complete opposites, there is one correlation between them. Blanches love letters from her husband as well as Mitchs cigarette case with love inscriptions with Blanches favorite sonnet by Mrs Browning (pg 149) show both of them holding onto their past. The silver metal case symbolizes Mitchs closed nature, inflexibility, as well as how he is not open for new ideas. Blanches love letters, on the other hand, symbolizes her young husband, who committed suicide as a result from her disapproval of his homosexuality. The love letters are taken as sacred objects, having a more than a sentimental value. In Scene 2, when Stanley is looking for Belle Reves papers, Blanche cannot contain herself from making a scandal after he touches the love letters instead, Your [Stanley] hands insult them, Ill burn them now! (Pg 139) The antagonistic relationship between Blanche and Stanley is a struggle between appearances and reality propelling the plays plot and creating an overarching tension. The author also conveys the idea of hiding from the past with the motif of light. Blanche tries to maintain the illusion of youth because she is afraid that she will become less attractive as she ages. She hides from all light, and when Mitch finally realises this (I dont think I ever seen you in the light pg 203), he shines a light on her, representing the death of her illusions, the possibility of getting married again. In general, light also symbolizes the reality of Blanches past. In Scene 6, she says the young boy turned a blinding light on something that had always been half in shadow. Bright light, therefore, represents Blanches youthful sexual innocence, while poor light represents her sexual maturity and disillusionment. She is haunted by the ghosts of what she has lost-her first love, her purpose in life, her dignity, and the genteel society of her ancestors. Blanche covers the exposed lightbulb in the Kowalski apartment with a Chinese paper lantern, and she refuses to go on dates with Mitch during the daytime or to well-lit locations. He points out her avoidance of light in Scene Nine, when he confronts her with the stories Stanley has told him of her past. Mitch then forces Blanche to stand under the direct light as she responds by saying that she doesnt want realism. I want Magic! Yes, yes, magic! I dont tell the truth. I tell what ought to be truth! This passage in page 204, clearly describes her inability to accept her present status both socially and relationship wise. Blanches inability to tolerate light means that her grasp on reality is also nearing its end. Other dramatic devices used to portray the interference of the past in the characters lives are the sound effects. The Varsouviana, a song originally from Polands Warsaw, is used to dramatise the influence of the past on the present. It plays whenever Blanche remembers her past in Belle Reve and especially her husband Alan, who she always refers to as a boy, emphasising her feeling that they were too young to be married. When the music first appears, in scene one, it is because Stanley asks Blanche if she was married. This immediately shows the audience that the Varsouviana is related to Blanches past and will be a recurring motif throught the text. The polka and the moment it evokes represent Blanches loss of innocence. The suicide of the young husband Blanche loved dearly was the event that triggered her mental decline. Since then, Blanche hears the Varsouviana followed by a revolver shot whenever she panics and loses her grip on reality. The music plays in Blanches brain continuously as a recording that only the audience is likely to hear. In conclusion, the past is therefore recurring as all the characters have something hid, incapacibilitating them from performing some actions. It is unveilled as the play progresses proving once more, than one cannot free itself from it, but instead have to confront it, eventually leading some of them (Blanche) to their human desingtegration. Tennesse Williams A Streetcar Named Desire conveys the idea of the importance of ancestry and adds to the question of does your background affect what kind of actions you will persue in the future? Show preview only

Cultural Tourism Development Essay Example for Free

Cultural Tourism Development Essay With its modern sky line and quality infrastructure, it is difficult to believe that Dubai in the United Arab Emirates was once a small town of Bedouin traders. Exotic animals used to inhabit the grounds occupied by the present-day Nad al Sheba racetrack Contemporary Dubai has been built beyond reasonable expectations, more so from the stigma which befell a post-Gulf War Arabia. High-technology and high-fashion shops are now as commonplace as the gold souks. Modern Dubai is an eclectic mix of old and new, ancient and modern. Tourism, cultural tourism particularly, is considered one of the fastest-growing industries globally; with fierce competition being its natural corollary. Dubai is viewed as one of the prime tourist destinations, giving the country a distinct vantage in the arena. Dubai’s relative advantages pertinent to tourism are manifold. First, tourism is a rapidly-growing, huge industry; it is, therefore, a crucial sector that Dubai can take advantage of. Dubai is aptly capable in meeting global standards, being in itself, a set of visions. Dubai’s global position, as predicted, will be that of an â€Å"internationally-recognized hub and destination of choice for cultural tourism†. Dubai’s 2010 vision reiterates this notion, stating a threefold agenda for its long-term goal of becoming an international tourist hub: (1) creating a quality environment conducive to immigration and investment inflows, necessary for enticing a technologically-knowledgeable/skilled human capital base, (2) launching a policy of arts and culture developments, with the creation of an arts center in Dubai, (3) initiating an annual program of cultural activities (e. g. expositions, concerts, visiting artist performances) to mark its reputation as a modern society. Second, tourism is a highly-unpredictable industry, with trends and factors influential of tourist influx. Factors that positively affect tourism are disposable income increase, transportation cost decrease, tourism package cost decrease, and political stability presence. Travel distance has become an irrelevant tourism factor. Third, competition has spurred creative marketing strategies on the part of tourism providers. They have started providing leisure and business packages in greater variety, higher quality, and more competitive pricing scheme- thereby boosting the market demand for tourism. With the current trends in tourism at work, the demand being on the favorable side, it is projected that the $ 3. 3 trillion global tourism industry will grow at a 6. 8 % annual rate for the next 10 years. Fourth, the tourism industry is challenged by a body of better-informed and discriminating clientele. Tourism providers, therefore, need to package destinations in a detail-specific and compelling manner, categorized on the basis of market segmentation, in order to lure prospective tourists. The package destinations can also aim at a wider range of tourists for particular destinations in order to satisfy the market demand. In view of these trends, Dubai must adhere to the aforementioned steps to be able to take advantage of the tourism sector to its fullest. Dubai must maintain research-based equilibrium values per tourist segment, from where tourism providers can base tourist package offers from. The move is expected to optimize Dubai’s gain from possible tourism-generated revenues. It must also continue upgrading its support services in order to be able to service the increasing flock of tourists, broaden the basis of their motivation for tourism, and eventually, draw more tourists into visiting. A study of tourism’s framework is a requisite for understanding it. According to the Singaporean Board of Tourism website, the tourism landscape is composed of two sections: motivating attraction and supporting services. Motivating attractions include business tourism, cruise events, honeymoons, and especially, cultural tourism. Supporting services, however, include IT Communication systems, travel agencies, hotels, entertainment management companies, and computer reservation systems. Cultural activities, in addition, are part of a broader tourism framework; by building on both Motivating Attractions and Supporting Services, Dubai will be able to attract tourists and encourage repeat visits. Cultural Tourism Cultural tourism is the type of tourism intent on an exploration of and education on the culture of a particular state. The motivating attraction components of cultural tourism are cultural/historical heritage, performing arts (theatre), visual arts and music. The CulturalHistorical Heritage component includes parks sightseeing, tours, cultural events, festivals and fairs. Performing Arts (Theatre) includes musicals, operas, ballet and dance exhibitions, and dramatic and classical performances. The Visual Arts component includes museums, painting galleries, craft exhibits, and film and photography showcases. Music, however, includes symphonies, orchestras and concerts. Supporting Services for cultural tourism comprise of marketing organizations to promote the Arts and Dubai’s position as a ‘center for the arts’ in the region, operational organizations to collaborate with performing arts talents and IT specialists for marketing, state-of-the-art venues like auditoriums, screening rooms, seminar rooms and staging arenas, and the technology that allows for world-class performances and shows. This US-based data on cultural tourism illustrates some key characteristics of the tourism demography (regular/cultural tourists), with important implications on the possible benefits from cultural tourism. Research suggests that promoting cultural tourism in Dubai will attract an extremely valuable clientele that will be willing to spend more ($ 174 average difference) and lengthen the duration of their visit (4% difference). Cultural tourism promotion, research also suggests, increases the likelihood of drawing clients with more advanced ages (48 vs. 46 average, 3% difference in retired tourists demography) and educational backgrounds (3% difference in graduate degree-holding status). Hosting such a demography is a boost for promoting Dubai as the ‘image leader’ in the region, an immense contribution to the knowledge economy. The National Assembly of State Arts agencies website asserts that some economic and cultural trends has had a huge impact on cultural tourism statistics. First, there has been a general rise in affluence and education level trends. Second, the United Arab Emirates has bore witness to cultural diversity; with expatriates now accounting for more than 75% of the UAE population. Third, an increase in the economic role and education of women had women typically setting up vacation plans. Fourth, a lesser time for leisure which is a mark of modern society increased the demand for and placed emphasis on shorter and value-added trips. Lastly, there has been an intensified influence of technology in every domain; an increased awareness of cultural issues therefore effected in tourists demanding a greater variety of cultural activities. These trends imply favorable growth prospects for cultural tourism in Dubai. Analyzing Dubai’s situation, it is evident that the current cultural tourism landscape is insufficient. Cultural Tourism Activities in Dubai are on a small-scale, fragmented, and uncoordinated way, and bereft of independent quality check and strategic guidance. The Dubai Explorer 2002 has it that the only activities/establishments which garnered a medium rating on the concentration graph were Dubais six (6) parks (Creekside Park, Mushrif Park, Rashidiya Park, Safa Park, Al Mamzar Beach and Jumeira Beach Park). The Performing Arts Division (comprising of nine (9) groups and clubs), the Visual Arts Sector (composed of four (4) galleries) and Falconry Division’s three (3) centers were noted as having the lowest concentrations. Dubai, however, is not deficient in Venues for Musical and Theatrical Performances which include: seven (7) venues for Classical Concerts (e. g. Crowne Plaza Hotel), six (6) venues for Theatrical Performances (e. g. a 500-seat Community Theater built in 2002 near Nad Al Sheba) and fifteen (15) venues for Dance/Pop Concert Events. These numbers are suggestive of the budding need for appropriate staging facilities and equipment; the demand for performance venues having been predicted. Comparing the aforementioned figures to a cultural tourism-investing country’s infrastructure statistics will reveal some startling differences. The data has it that Dubai has 80% the GDP/capita of Hong Kong but pales in comparison with regard to cultural infrastructure- with only 15% the number of museums and 0% the number of theaters and arenas. Based on these ratios, Dubai should have at least 10 museums and 5 theaters in order to parallel Hongkong’s status as a tourism spot. The Cultural Tourism Industry Group and the National Assembly of State Arts Agencies websites specify the apparent quality and tourism potential of museums, art galleries, concert halls, historic sites, and national and state parks as main considerations influencing cultural tourists. The organization of cultural events, festivals and fairs is a consideration too. With an understandably hectic itinerary, the logistics scheme and accompanying amenities also count. Some of these features have already been instituted/organized in Dubai such as national and state parks, cultural events, festivals and fairs. These institutions/affairs are considered highly-competitive and very manageable. On the other hand, theaters, concert halls and archeological sites are basically non-existent. The construction of theaters and concert halls are reasonable, achievable objectives as exemplified by the construction of a 500-seat Community Theater (built in 2002 near Nad Al Sheba). The contrary holds for establishing archeological sites, a challenging feat. The creation of and investment in organizational networks in Dubai that promote cultural activities will beget ample dedication which will enable cultural organizations to fund, foster and implement innovative ideas crucial to the development of cultural activities. In addition, the implementation of high-impact activities will command the highest visibility and draw a significant number of tourists. Those projects are intent on Cultural Tourism which is currently unavailable in Dubai. Cultural Tourism necessitates the creation of a dedicated oversight committee within the DTCM structure to: (1) coordinate with the private sector regarding the development of projects, (2) fund and foster the development of different project concepts, and (3) assist in projects implementation to foster the development of cultural activities. Possible High-Impact Projects Cultural Tourism necessitates an identification of viable high-impact activities for implementation. Possible projects include: (1) the construction of a culture complex (Barbican or Lincoln Center model-based), (2) the construction of an opera house (London’s Royal Albert Hall-modeled), (3) erection of a major performing arts venue (in joint effort with the private sector’s Community Theater project currently underway), (4) the erection of a concert hall (in partnership with Moscow for purposes of production and guidance), (5) the initiation of a desert arena, (6) hosting cultural events and activities, and (7) erection of art cinema houses for Indie Films (NYC’s Angelica Theater-based). Moreover, there is an apparent need for an amendment in Dubai’s existing laws on private ownership to further the development of cultural tourism in this region. In a 1999 DTCM survey, as posted in the HK Leisure and Cultural Services Department website, a majority of the respondents specified the scarcity of peculiar activities and sightings in Dubai. The respondents criticized the offered cultural activities as being small-scale, fragmented and uncoordinated. These survey results support the need for improvements in cultural tourism infrastructure, developments in ongoing cultural activities, and initiation of high-impact projects. The DTCM, with its current organizational setup, is ill-equipped for a full development of cultural services. A labor force comparison between the DTCM and the HK LC Services Department yielded startling results; the HK LC Services Department has 26 times more employees. There is an immense need to foster a dedicated organization, in charge of coordinating the development of cultural activities in the region. The organizational setup will be based on the Hong Kong model where its primary role would be to act as the central node of cultural activities in the region. Other organizational responsibilities include: (1) promotion of cultural performances, (2) provision of support to festival organizers and private companies, and (3) offer of audience-aimed educational programs, and (4) overall logistical operations (e. g. venues and ticketing). Conclusion It is evident that the dearth of cultural facilities and cultural activities has brought Dubai to a tourism disadvantage. Cultural facilities/activities have been described, aptly or otherwise, as being small-scale, quality control-bereft, and seemingly uncoordinated with other cultural tourism authorities. Established institutions, however, such as the Dubai Museum, Sheikh Mohammed Center for Cultural Understanding, and the Dubai Natural History Group have potentially important roles in boosting Dubai’s cultural tourism prospects. Currently, there is an insufficient government emphasis in Cultural Tourism, although an AED 10M Dubai Community Theatre project which is currently underway is definitely a step in the right direction. An expedient cultural tourism infrastructure will facilitate Dubai’s agenda of drawing a desirable demographic, generating ample revenues from increased expenses and lengthened travel duration on tourists’ part, and according Dubai the status of an ‘image leader’ in the world. Furthermore, it is expected to heighten students’ thespic awareness and enthusiasm, sufficient encouragements for the scholarly and professional pursuit of the Arts. An overall improvement in the quality of life is expected with the creation of an inculturated tourism experience; creative arts specialists and cultural promotion companies will then be drawn to Dubai. Implications The magnitude of Dubai’s long-term agenda has various implications for the government and support systems, and marketing and production logistics. For one, a high degree of government support is entailed, more so that the need to institute a governmental agency for cultural promotion purposes presents itself. Secondly, creating partnerships with relevant local and overseas organizations is required for the promotion and improvement of Dubai’s Art and Culture. Third, the creation of specialized umbrella organizations, like a National Heritage Board or an Arts Council, is a significant assistance to the government for a more focused management. Fourth, the government has to support, subsidize and grant incentives to private sector initiatives in support of Dubai’s cultural tourism agenda (e. g. museum foundation, arts organizations). Lastly, there is a need for the government to set guidelines and policies directed on an effective management of cultural facilities, heritage conservation and tourist education. Support services have their own share of responsibilities. First, the management of major facilities, such as stadiums and performance venues, will ensure organizers a constant facility access and facility maintenance. Second, there is a need for the implementation of an accessible and automated ticketing system, possibly with the use of the Internet, to ensure a widespread distribution and expediency. Third, the endowment of financial support to festivals, events organizers, museums’ administration and arts organizations can be a tourism marketing tool. Lastly, the Internet is an effective marketing instrument with a global domain; therefore, creating websites and publishing electronic newsletters on cultural tourism is an information dissemination option. Dubai’s cultural tourism agenda has peculiar implications for marketing and production logistics. First, ticket pricing has to be reasonable and demand-based; with discount offerings for senior citizens, students and children, and price markdowns on special occasions and for promotional means. Second, an effective marketing strategy is key to succeeding in this arena; to participate and organize sales missions, trade and tourism fairs, consumer fairs and other promotional events is therefore necessary. Third, cultural organizers have to be responsible for audience-briefing on cultural themes in order to help the audience appreciate different cultural performances. Lastly, an educated domain is a boost to cultural tourism; therefore, the provision of educational programs addressed to students (lectures, workshops, seminars and symposia) and the encouragement of learning institutions to participate in cultural activities will significantly bolster Dubai’s tourism agenda. Dubai’s vision has crucial implications for production logistics too. First, affairs organizers have a wide array of production options ranging from traditional repertoires to avant-garde creative performances. Organizers have a corollary responsibility of heeding consumer demand and garnering independent ideas; providing a means for the submission of independent project proposals is therefore requisite. Second, it is the organizers’ privilege and responsibility to provide performance opportunities to both established and upcoming local artists and groups. Third, there is an organizer responsibility for a performance venue planning and management, with a corollary need for the constant enhancement and upgrading of performance facilities. Lastly, production organizers have to establish and be of support to local professional artists groups like philharmonic societies, dance companies and orchestras. With a competent strategy and ample guidance, Dubai’s 2010 Vision of Cultural Tourism need not be an impossibility!

Impact of Digital Technologies on Communication

Impact of Digital Technologies on Communication Abstract The present age in which we live has seen a massive proliferation of digital communication technologies and pervasive computing devices which have made an impact on all aspects of the way people live. Individual life styles have been changed and by extension, the society at large has evolved with changes being noticed in societal culture. Technology has brought about changes to the way people work, enjoy their leisure activities, get educated and interact with each other. Because the digital mediums for communications have become affordable and readily available to all, the manner in which individuals interact with others at the personal or business levels have also been transformed. Face –to- face meetings and interactions are becoming rather infrequent, with such meetings being reserved for special occasions and for special people. On the other hand, finding new people to interact with especially over the internet has never been easier. The neighbourhood has experienced chan ges with residents preferring to stay at home while keeping in touch with their community on the cyberspace. An individual can assume a different identity and experience a different reality in virtual space which can make it possible for them to take risks in relationships. The peripheral relationships of the virtual space can sometimes develop into friendships which can result in interactions in the physical space. Relationships which may have never developed or which may have disintegrated are made possible and kept alive through the use of digital technologies including the mobile phone, the internet and the fax. The community to which one belongs is not necessarily the physical neighbourhood but it may be a global virtual community. This paper attempts to take a look at the changing nature of interpersonal communications in the digital age which has transformed interpersonal relationships and the society at large. The electronic revolution and the digital age of communications started off at the end of the twentieth century with many advances taking place in the fields of telecommunications, computers, digital technology and information technology. The digital revolution resulted in the availability of devices such as the mobile phone, the personal digital assistant or the PDA, satellite communications and the digital television. Internet and the World Wide Web, with its email and conferencing capabilities, as well as the wireless local loop came to be widely used around the world. The availability and proliferation of these devices meant that individuals and the society at large were shaped by the possibilities for new forms of social interactions and social group formations through the medium of the available technologies. It was now possible to have a different sort of a community which could support rapid interactions using mobile and telephone conversation, email, SMS messages, teleconfer encing and videoconferencing, with participants either being on the move or living in geographically distant areas. Enhancements in technology meant that leisure activities were shifted to the home and it was not essential to go to the pub in order to fulfil a desire for social interaction (Wong, 2004). The availability of the handheld internet capable mobile phones has also brought further changes to society and the manner in which individuals interact because it is now possible to communicate through a number of mediums regardless of where an individual may be. Although the costs of having access to the digital communications and computing technologies had created a digital divide, the situation is getting better by the day with mass production resulting in reduced prices for hardware and a larger base of subscribers reducing charges for digital network connectivity. The availability of the digital devices of the pervasive computing age has meant that the manner in which individua ls interact has also changed because, although it is very easy to contact others, non-verbal signals are diminished as a result of the relatively higher costs associated with video communications. Also, the geographic distances between those involved in interactions may mean that there is a limited understanding of the overall picture associated with the locality or region and the communicators may not be in synchronism with each other. Usually physical proximity had been a requirement for individuals to initiate and maintain interactions and a stable dwelling place was required for the more intricate social interactions to be possible. However, the cyberspace has made it possible for an individual to have a permanent virtual address regardless of their physical whereabouts and this personal space is accessible as long as an individual has the capacity for accessing the internet (Geser, 2004, Pp 1-5). The added capabilities related to communications that have been made possible by d igital technology have meant that new commonalities can now be found relatively easily in order to drive interpersonal communications. This is, however, an evolving process and commonalities that have been developed as a result of personal interactions, culture, language, former association related to work or education as well as possibilities for mutual gain etc are still the drivers for the initiation of interpersonal communications. It is the length of interactions and the possibilities related to physical proximity as well as future interests that are the main drivers for more complex forms of interactions which can be aided by digital technology. Interpersonal bonds of solidarity and cooperation can be established with geographically distant groups and this process has been assisted by the availability of mobile devices which are an advanced evolution of the fixed line telephone as well as the internet. Whereas the fixed line telephone was more attuned to reinforcing the social integration of fixed and stable settings, the mobile phone provides greater freedom. The Theory of Communicative Action by Habermas states that society consists of participants who are attempting to reach a consensus. In the past, the participants in a society were restricted to those who lived within close geographic proximity because they were the only participants who could attempt to reach a consensus. However, the digital age has now made it possible for participants from anywhere to attempt a consensus if desired and the concept of society, friendship and acquaintances for an individual has been very much extended (Alexander, 2002, Chapter 4). Most of the communication that takes place using digital medium is not rich if the message is based on email, SMS or voice only communications. Media is ranked on its ability to carry information and hence the ability of a message to develop or change understanding within a period of time. Face-to-face communications are the richest form of communications while faxes, emails, written text and telephone conversations are considered to be less rich. Participants in interpersonal communications now have a choice related to the medium which they can utilise for their interactions and most initial or routine communications are usually conducted most effortlessly using the less rich digital mediums. With the continued evolution of digital technologies, the richer media will become more widely available and participants to interpersonal communications will be increasingly able to indulge in richer interactions effortlessly. Emotion is present in the less rich media which is prevalent today but it is embedded in text and symbols which need to be studied and deciphered. Individuals who have been used to the richer communications have to learn the intricacies of the new digital media in order to learn to express themselves better. The generation which was born in the digital age or the Cyber Kids seem to be more capable of interacting adequately on the new mediums as compared to the older generation. Richer experiences in communication are only undertaken if the participants have a desire to indulge in such interactions due to having a common past or the initial digital contacts seem to hold promise. Hence, on the surface there is an impression that the society has become more reserved with less socialising but there can be a lot of communication or activity that is not visible. Email communications encourages critical thinking on the basis of a greater level of equality because the social context cues are not present in the message. Social construction of reality and so cial structure is therefore moving towards a greater level of equality in being able to communicate and interact widely because of the availability of digital technologies at least at the initial levels of contact. There are no preferred hours for contact with the electronic text communications and it is considered to be acceptable to send in a message at any time which can be viewed and considered by the recipient. In the past, individuals thought it appropriate to meet in the most appropriate settings for an occasion that could enhance communications. Today they are likely to consider what medium they should select in order to communicate. The decision to select a medium for communication is likely to be based on how well the participants in the communication know each other and their experience with a medium. Social influence with participants in communications is likely to increase with the time that the participants have known each other. The use of email or electronic text can have subliminal messages attached to the text and may convey informality, urgency, authority as well as legitimacy, much like the body language in face-to-face communications. The ability to use web cams and add instant pictures to communications over the internet or when using a mobile phone can add to the level of richness and information that is being exchanged. Scanned documents containing handwriting or sketches attached to email text also add to the information content, but there can be doubts about their authenticity unless they can be verified. Because the existing knowledge base of an individual is employed in critically evaluating lean messages, therefore less rich messages can become meaningful if there have been previous inputs about the communicator. As a result of the massive proliferation of digital technologies, the society at large has started to use these technologies as a matter of habit, transforming the manner in which individuals interact (Alexander, 2002, Cha pter 5). Digital wireless communication technologies have been the greatest drivers for change and spatial mobility. The number of mobile phones has far exceeded the number of television sets and even the least developed African nations now have more mobile wireless phones then land lines. The capabilities associated with the modern mobile phones are being constantly enhanced and they are very likely to become mobile devices with multimedia capabilities that are able to replace mobile computers with a capability for exchanging voice, text, pictures and a lot of other content in the digital format. The feature rich prevalence of mobile phone technology is the highest in Japan which leads Europe and the United States. Those who are introduced to mobile phones gradually progress from emergency and routine use to the more expressive use for communications. Many â€Å"grooming calls† are made every day in order to maintain relationships which would have not been possible without the technol ogy. These calls are made to confirm that a relationship exists by expressing solidarity, sympathy, concern and affection. The cell phone is used along with a variety of other media including email, SMS, snail mail and face-to-face meetings. Social contacts for otherwise well adjusted individuals are possible even during absence due to work or other causes. Hence, established relationships can be continued and new ones formed quickly if there is a basis for their formation. Switching off a mobile phone may be an expression for indicating the importance that is attached to individuals who are in the current interaction. On the other hand, cell phones also enable the user to control relationships by being able to make choices related to friends. All digital technologies permit an ability to control communications along with making interpersonal communications more effortless. Unlike email communication, the mobile phone is less likely to assist in the creation of new relationships and mostly assists in the maintenance of the existing ones. Communalistic relationships that have existed are easily perpetuated over the mobile phones which can also be used for spontaneous gossip at all times. Women tend to use the phone much more often in order to spontaneously contact their friends then men. Mobile phones can act as an umbilical cord and present an alternative to the traditional ways of passing time. Older people usually prefer voice calls while younger people tend to use the text messaging feature of their mobile to keep up with their group using special symbolic and linguistic language. The mobile phone may be used for short business conversations and long personal intimate conversations with a higher level of certainty about the identity of the communication partner then can be possible with email. Role switching is possible with an office worker acting as a mother using the mobile from her office. The ability to selectively receive calls provides a high level o f control on who is admitted to the inner circle of friends. However, having a mobile means that there is a responsibility for being available and answering to those who attempt to initiate a contact, although the owner can switch off if they so desire, causing concern amongst those who may have tried to initiate a contact. Communication is, therefore, made possible when it may not have occurred due to the efforts that may have been involved in contacting an individual. In Japan, SMS messages are used to form complex and peripheral relationships in which individuals never meet and virtual girlfriends can be introduced through a phone, replacing friends in real life. However, such peripheral friendships mean that there is a tendency towards the development of a very formal society with individuals finding it difficult to form real relationships. Cell phones also make it possible to have fluid arrangements and have meetings at short notice. In South Korea, it is common for workers to have spontaneous parties after work that are arranged through the cell. Nomadic intimacy is made possible for individuals who are constantly on the move including sailors or international business people who can contact their friends at any port of call. In studies undertaken in Japan evidence has been recorded that the Cyber Kid generation which was born after 1985 with internet phones and modern digital communications may be loosing the traditional Japanese virtue of giving due regard to context and situation when communicating. Their preferred interpersonal communication technology is the internet capable mobile phone and this requires whatever is to be said to be communicated regardless of the situation. This is in stark contrast to the pre-war generation whose preferred method of communications is to have face-to-face meetings and written letters with all the regard for the person and the complexities of a situation. Hence, there is ample evidence that the evolving digital tech nologies have changed the manner in which individuals conduct interpersonal communications around the world (Geser, 2004, Pp14 -16) and (Wong, 2004, Pp 75-81). Because of the widespread use of the text-only digital communication technologies that are the most prevalent in the present age, the personality of the communicators changes when they enter the virtual space and send email or other text messages. Along with the personality of the parties to the interpersonal communications, the reality also changes from physical reality to virtual reality. Much more freedom is available on the internet when using email communications because it is possible to hide the physical identity of the communicators. Risks can be taken with what is being said and discussed. The virtual space provides an opportunity to interact with individuals of many different cultures and social backgrounds. The symbols and the text messages are easier to understand if the participants in the communications that are taking place in Cyberspace have a common understanding of the use of language and symbols as well as the expectations that are associated with the conduct of in teractions. The electronic medium which may have been selected imposes selectivity by amplifying or reducing various phenomenon of the world, but the choice of the medium says something about the kind of personality that the communicator wants to present. If sufficient effort is invested, casual encounters over the internet can develop into intimate relationships. This is, however, more likely in a situation where there is little of interest that is available in the immediate physical world. Because there is a growing trend for the modern digital communications technologies to be widely adopted by businesses and the society at large, the chances of physical interactions becomes diminished as compared to interactions on the virtual space. Hence, the manner in which interactions and communications used to take place in a society at large is changed by technology and so also is the manner in which relationships are formed and maintained (Leaning, 2004). Digital divides exist between us ers and non-users of a technology as well as the experienced users and those who are the relatively new users of a digital communication medium. Digital divides can also exist because of culture, limited earnings and levels of education. Women have a tendency of using the phone more frequently and a lower tendency to use the internet. New immigrants in countries with a well developed digital communications infrastructure, especially women have a tendency to shy away from using the communications technologies that are widely available and tend not to have access to computers, resulting in loneliness and a lowered capacity to integrate. Internet and mobile phone users and non-users are not the same set of people and tend to have infrequent communication between each other. The society, however, has a preference for a proliferation of the internet over the mobile phone with governments attempting to promote the proliferation of internet connections rather then subsidising mobile phone connectivity. Hence, interpersonal communication has indeed been transformed by digital technologies and those without access to these technologies have difficulties assimilating and interacting with others in a society (Rice, 2003). The neighbourhood today is no longer the place that it used to be. Studies have indicated that in North America, many neighbourhood communities do not interact across racial lines. As an example, African-Americans and White Americans who live in the Nashville area do not interact across racial lines, preferring instead to develop relations with friends outside the neighbourhood (Wellman, 2001, Pp 16). The community of workers that work for the same employer do not live in the same neighbourhood and car, plane, fax, mobile as well as the internet permit relationships to be maintained outside of a neighbourhood. Hence, a change has occurred in the society as a result of technology. Cheap transportation technologies and not just digital technologies have made interactions at the local level unnecessary and individuals are constantly on the move, changing their residence every so often. Neighbourhood ties are, therefore, weak ties and stronger ties are with family and old friends from th e younger years. These ties are maintained through digital technologies and not as a result of interactions arising out of living near by. The cities are very large settlements of people who are more interested in seeing to their economic success by working at well paid jobs and living in decent neighbourhoods. It is the communication technologies which make the modern lifestyle possible unlike the olden days when it was just not possibly have the freedoms that are available today. Community has, therefore, left the neighbourhood and may even exist globally. Community interactions do not take place in public places but have moved inside the home where emailing and phone calling as well as the use of web cams keeps the interpersonal relationships alive. The trend for neighbourhood socialising is on the decline not just in the Americas, but also in Japan and the Middle East. Although informal ties can exist with thousands of people, relatively few are close ties that are actively main tained. Technology provides an enhancement of choices related to the milieus in which individuals can participate. Most ties are now maintained with individuals who have shared interests and the personal support group could be widely dispersed. The choices related to the ability to select those in close relationships were simply not available in the past without the digital communication technologies. Parents and children often provide the strongest support in a family, although they rarely live close by when the siblings have grown. Communities are in constant flux and the migration from third world countries into the developed world has meant that there is a trend towards global interpersonal communications or contacts with friends or acquaintances of the same background. The internet has become an integral part of daily life and has broadened the community. Initial contacts by email can result in phone contacts or face-to-face meetings. Internet groups do provide support to membe rs, especially those who may be somewhat isolated in a new locality and this support has been known to reduce depression. Support is still provided to people who have weak ties with online communities and stronger ties are possible especially amongst those people who have previously met. Groups of people interacting over the internet can get more personal or intimate with the passage of time. High bandwidth wireless has made it possible to assume an internet identity which can be accessed from anywhere in the world, a new city, a hotel room or a new office and old relationships are maintained even with movements over vast distances. The power of the computer mediated person-to-person contact is set to increase with a tendency to invisibly maintain and strengthen community links of choice (Wellman, 2001, Pp 30-45), (Alexander, 2002, Chapter 6) and (Sessions, 2000). 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