Is Walmart Good for America?

Wal-Mart: An Epic Idea â€Å"Save Money, Live Better. † A greeter welcomes you into the phenomenal discount store we Americans call Wal-Mart. A one stop shop for just about anything and everything you need, Wal-Mart is a major investment to America: 1) Wal-Mart is one of Americas most leading discount stores 2) Wal-Mart employs many people 3) Wal-Mart sells its products for a lower price, making it more favorable to consumers. In 1962, the first Wal-Mart was founded in Rogers, Arkansas. Its growth and succession has lead to its spread around the world. One man, one vision; Sam Walton’s mission was to save people money to help them live a better quality lifestyle. With its earnings and its improvements, Wal-Mart has played a major role in America’s economy. The first Wal-Mart was found in 1962. The year the birth of discount retailing began. The chain of variety stores that Sam Walton owned during the 1950’s faced stiff competition from the many regional discount stores. Before the opening of Wal-Mart, Mr. Walton traveled the country studying just about everything about discount retailing. He noticed that American consumers wanted a fresh new type of store. Acting on instinct, Sam and his wife Helen invested about 95 percent of their income into their first Wal-Mart store in Rogers, Arkansas. In 1972, many other discounters expanded, yet Wal-Mart only opened 15 stores. Later, Wal-Mart stock was offered to the New York Stock Exchange. With the infusion of capital, the company then grew to 216 stores in 11 states by the end of the decade. By the year of 1981, there were 1402 Wal-Mart stores. Employment had increased tenfold; sales had grown from 1 billion in 1980, to 26 billion. Today, 8416 stores and club locations have been opened. Wal-Mart employs more than 2. 1 million associates, serving more than 176 million customers a year. Wal-Mart is a perfect example of how to manage growth without losing sight of your values. America’s most popular discount store, Wally’s World beats all saving stores that promise you some sort of discount. Sam Walton quotes â€Å"If we work together, we’ll lower the cost of living for everyone†¦we’ll give the world an opportunity to see what it’s like to save and have a better life. † In the past 40 years, Wal-Mart has opened 16 markets worldwide. Wal-Mart works with their suppliers to introduce more energy efficient products that can save money for customers’ money for years to come. Wal-Mart saves us as consumers’ money, to improve our way of living. Wal-Mart has teamed up with Mercy Corps and USAID to help small farmers in Guatemala, that’s why you see the Fair Trade Coffee on shelves at Sam’s Club. By collaborating with their communities and suppliers, Wal-Mart helps improve the lives of others. Wal-Mart has a major impact on America’s economy. A leader in sustainability, corporate philanthropy, and employment opportunity, Wal-Mart has ranked number one among retailers in Fortune Magazine’s 2009 Most Admired Companies. Since 2005, Wal-Mart stores have averaged a net sale of 342. 14 billion dollars. Wal-Mart Stores cash flow gas increased 5943 million dollars from Jan, 31 2008- Jan, 31 2009. For the past five years, Wal-Mart has been excelling in their business. Now, more than ever, Wal-Mart is there for their customers. There has been a strong growth; net sales have increased 6. 8 percent to 255. 7 billion. Segment operating income has also increased 7. 1 percent to 18. 8 billion. Wal-Mart has introduced the Project Impact store remodeling plan, under this plan, Wal-Mart expects to update 700 new and existing stores this year, with over 3600 stores in the United States. Walmarts main goal is to save consumers money to improve the quality of their lives. I can definitely say that Wal-Mart is a positive for America. A discount store opened up in Arkansas, now only 40 years later, a major corporation. Wal-Mart helps people, its philanthropic ways have encouraged the store to help others outside the circle of consumers. Economically, Wal-Mart has increased and improved. Who knew one man with a vision could encourage so much growth. Wal-Mart is indeed, good for America. Is Walmart Good for America? Wal-Mart: An Epic Idea â€Å"Save Money, Live Better. † A greeter welcomes you into the phenomenal discount store we Americans call Wal-Mart. A one stop shop for just about anything and everything you need, Wal-Mart is a major investment to America: 1) Wal-Mart is one of Americas most leading discount stores 2) Wal-Mart employs many people 3) Wal-Mart sells its products for a lower price, making it more favorable to consumers. In 1962, the first Wal-Mart was founded in Rogers, Arkansas. Its growth and succession has lead to its spread around the world. One man, one vision; Sam Walton’s mission was to save people money to help them live a better quality lifestyle. With its earnings and its improvements, Wal-Mart has played a major role in America’s economy. The first Wal-Mart was found in 1962. The year the birth of discount retailing began. The chain of variety stores that Sam Walton owned during the 1950’s faced stiff competition from the many regional discount stores. Before the opening of Wal-Mart, Mr. Walton traveled the country studying just about everything about discount retailing. He noticed that American consumers wanted a fresh new type of store. Acting on instinct, Sam and his wife Helen invested about 95 percent of their income into their first Wal-Mart store in Rogers, Arkansas. In 1972, many other discounters expanded, yet Wal-Mart only opened 15 stores. Later, Wal-Mart stock was offered to the New York Stock Exchange. With the infusion of capital, the company then grew to 216 stores in 11 states by the end of the decade. By the year of 1981, there were 1402 Wal-Mart stores. Employment had increased tenfold; sales had grown from 1 billion in 1980, to 26 billion. Today, 8416 stores and club locations have been opened. Wal-Mart employs more than 2. 1 million associates, serving more than 176 million customers a year. Wal-Mart is a perfect example of how to manage growth without losing sight of your values. America’s most popular discount store, Wally’s World beats all saving stores that promise you some sort of discount. Sam Walton quotes â€Å"If we work together, we’ll lower the cost of living for everyone†¦we’ll give the world an opportunity to see what it’s like to save and have a better life. † In the past 40 years, Wal-Mart has opened 16 markets worldwide. Wal-Mart works with their suppliers to introduce more energy efficient products that can save money for customers’ money for years to come. Wal-Mart saves us as consumers’ money, to improve our way of living. Wal-Mart has teamed up with Mercy Corps and USAID to help small farmers in Guatemala, that’s why you see the Fair Trade Coffee on shelves at Sam’s Club. By collaborating with their communities and suppliers, Wal-Mart helps improve the lives of others. Wal-Mart has a major impact on America’s economy. A leader in sustainability, corporate philanthropy, and employment opportunity, Wal-Mart has ranked number one among retailers in Fortune Magazine’s 2009 Most Admired Companies. Since 2005, Wal-Mart stores have averaged a net sale of 342. 14 billion dollars. Wal-Mart Stores cash flow gas increased 5943 million dollars from Jan, 31 2008- Jan, 31 2009. For the past five years, Wal-Mart has been excelling in their business. Now, more than ever, Wal-Mart is there for their customers. There has been a strong growth; net sales have increased 6. 8 percent to 255. 7 billion. Segment operating income has also increased 7. 1 percent to 18. 8 billion. Wal-Mart has introduced the Project Impact store remodeling plan, under this plan, Wal-Mart expects to update 700 new and existing stores this year, with over 3600 stores in the United States. Walmarts main goal is to save consumers money to improve the quality of their lives. I can definitely say that Wal-Mart is a positive for America. A discount store opened up in Arkansas, now only 40 years later, a major corporation. Wal-Mart helps people, its philanthropic ways have encouraged the store to help others outside the circle of consumers. Economically, Wal-Mart has increased and improved. Who knew one man with a vision could encourage so much growth. Wal-Mart is indeed, good for America.

Ideology Affects The Way Literature Is Read English Literature Essay

Literature in Marxism is perceived as something which is profoundly influenced by the civilization and society in which the writer is populating in. Therefore literature is seen as a merchandise from civilization which means that the writer is affected by the environment and the external elements environing him. In the same manner one reader differs from the other because he or she is besides affected by the societal milieus. Furthermore, Marxists, and subsequently on Structuralists, believe that because literature is experienced harmonizing to 1s attitude and rules of society, literature is ‘ideologically impregnated by its societal placement ‘ .[ 1 ]Lois Althusser has played an of import function in the shaping of political orientation in literature with of import essays such as his 1970 essay entitled Reading â€Å" Capital † and another more of import essay in the field of political orientation entitled Ideology and Ideological State Apparatuses ( 1970 ) . Othe rs like Roland Barthes besides helped specifying the function of political orientation when reading literature particularly with the outstanding essay entitled The Death of the Author, published in 1967. Early Marxists believed in the thought that literature is non simply merely a creative activity but it is a production. The difference between the two is that by ‘creating ‘ one is explicating something out of nil whilst on the other manus, by ‘production ‘ , the creative person is bring forthing something out of other stuffs which is where the societal and political context comes in. In Marxism there is an on-going dualism between the impression of the base and the impression of the superstructure. This dualism is understood in multiple ways by different critics such as Althusser. The superstructure, harmonizing to Marxism, is made up of those institutes which surround us as one of base and therefore of pure contemplation. On the contrary the base which is that which determines society is one of economic dealingss. Harmonizing to Marxists it is the superstructure which in itself includes art and therefore literature which enforces the ways of production. In c ontrast to this, another sort of dualism is a contrast between imminency and the thought of committed literature. The thought that art is written for art ‘s interest suggests that what is literary is in world internal for the text and therefore it reinforces the thought that what is of import is what happens inside the text and non what can be instantly seen on first glimpse. Therefore the literary is found behind the written words, what is left unwritten by the writer and this must be found out by the reader himself. The theory so moves on from one of superstructures to that of an political orientation. Subsequently on Marxism developed into Structuralism, in which the construction is favoured over the topic itself which has been developed by theoreticians such as Louis Althusser and Pierre Macherey to reason against the experiential philosophical ways of theoreticians like Georg Lukas and Jean-Paul Sartre.[ 2 ]With Structuralism, the issues of the function of the authors com es into inquiry and the aesthetic creative activity is so seen as one which promises a better hereafter and therefore literature and art become something which underline the endowments of the creative person instead than something which divides people and turns them against one another. It becomes a promise for a better hereafter.[ 3 ]Structuralists move off from the Hegelian problematic and on the other manus they move towards grouping literature with other diverse activities which are productive. They refuse to split the existent off from representation in literature. Literature is now seen as on the one manus, a produced object and on the other manus as a consequence of the societal production and the definition of the existent becomes dependent on the environment in which it was produced and this is where the impression of political orientation comes in. Ideology has become a cardinal construct in Marxists ‘ theoreticians ‘ plants and unfavorable judgment about art and literature. Marxists see ideology more than merely the survey of thoughts but they see it as an mentality of life. The Bourgeois political orientation is regarded by Marxists as constructing and infusing establishments in society and in civilizations which besides include literature and different signifiers of art. Ideology, peculiarly to Structuralists, becomes an imperative issue, particularly to the manner in how one can speak about political orientation in a non-ideological manner. At first Marxists see the word political orientation in a negative visible radiation due to the fact that they associate the word with ‘false consciousness ‘ .[ 4 ]Marxists see political orientation as a method employed by the dominant categories to forestall subsidiaries from gaining the true nature of things and alter them to their ain benefits. Therefore as a a gency of concealing the truth and maintaining the governing power over the inferior categories from obtaining their rightful civil autonomies. But so in the 1960 ‘s, Althusser changed the construct of political orientation being a sort of false consciousness with his essay Ideology and Ideological State Apparatuses ( 1970 ) . In this essay Althusser argues that society must foremost be divided into different â€Å" ideological province setups † instead than be viewed as a whole. He argues that instead than false consciousness, the political orientations vary harmonizing to each province setup. Althusser sees literature as being one of these province setups since literature does non show merely one sort of political orientation but it varies harmonizing to the text. He states that interpellation takes topographic point instead than societal consciousness and this means that the human being is made up of the established constructions in society such as the mass media and literature in which the representations seen in it consist of the looks of mundane worlds. Therefore, political orientation, harmonizing to Althusser, is made up of both the existent and the fanciful since it is existent because it shows how people truly live their mundane life in conformity with society and its spheres but fanciful because it does non offer a full apprehension of the ways of how people are constituted in these societal worlds.[ 5 ]At the same clip when people read a realist text they can associate to it and when characters are portrayed as being free, the text will interpellate the readers to believe that they are free as good. Thus, realist novels work in the same manner as political orientation does ; by turn toing the readers and as a consequence doing them believe the ideological vision that they are portraying. Althusser discusses the interpellation of the topic in relation to political orientation. Harmonizing to Althusser, both the author and the reader are topics and therefore they both become ideological topics because both of them live ‘spontaneously ‘ .[ 6 ]The linguistic communication so has its ain function in the interpellation as to show the human being as unified, independent, subjectiveness.[ 7 ]Althusser uses the illustration of the authoritative pragmatism since it is a extremely popular genre in different countries of humanistic disciplines, in peculiar, in literature. Althusser uses this genre because in itself it is a topic which shows non merely the political orientation of the true representation of world in add-on the apprehension of the state of affairs of topic.[ 8 ]In the nineteenth century, the impression of the writer fostering off from the text he has written was going even more dominant, particularly in realistic fiction. In the authoritative realist n ovels the truth is shown, but non told since the reader has the undertaking of happening it out for him or her ego. This can be seen in diverse novels in the genre such as those written by Defoe and Hardy. In these novels the reader is interpellated as the topic since he has the undertaking of make up one's minding and happening out the truth, which in itself, is an ideological pattern. Thus significances change consequently to a individual ‘s political orientation. Belsey argues that classical pragmatism follows the same cyclical form in most novels. This includes a sort of upset which is encapsulated in a narrative of for illustration love or slaying. But at the terminal the narrative ever reaches an stoping which the reader in some manner or the other expects and hence order is restored. This can be found in novels such as Jane Eyre, where order is restored as Jane and Mr Rochester ‘s look of love makes its full circle. This, harmonizing to Belsey, is non found in his tory since it is narrated in an impersonal mode and there is no defined talker, whilst in narrative the talker is defined as a topic and the reader relates to this voice. The narrative in fact unfolds through this interpellation between the reader and the writer and through this communicating ; the topics portion the significances of the work through political orientation. Belsey besides argues that in classical pragmatism, the reader is in a manner delighting his ain self-importance by placing and positioning himself in the function of the supporter. Belsey states that this interpellation between the reader and the writer is non merely done in the 3rd all-knowing narration but besides in the first storyteller since the reader besides gets the opportunity to associate to the supporter in inquiry. But the 3rd narrative allows the reader to explicate the stoping of the narrative before it is written. Therefore the reader as a topic himself is in a place of subjectiveness and therefore in an ideological place. But at the same clip, to decline this place, is in itself an ideological pick.[ 9 ] Althusser negotiations about how a individual can non hold a complete indifferent read since it is really hard to avoid doing givens and ideas which may prejudice the reading in many ways. For that ground the reading is different from one individual to another and it is ne'er impersonal because it is affected by the societal milieus. Althusser besides argues that behind the text that one can see in a book or in any literary signifier which he calls ‘explicit discourse ‘ there is ever the underlying, unobserved, ‘silent discourse ‘ , which the writer is non cognizant of and so it is the undertaking of the reader to happen it out.[ 10 ]This ‘silent discourse ‘ is hence the elements which affected the writer unconsciously in clip of composing the text. Hence Althusser proposes that when reading, one must abandon what the writer had intended for him or her to read and understand and alternatively acknowledge the implicit in ‘silence ‘ which it conceals in itself. This system is called the ‘symptomatic reading ‘ , in which by governing out the construction of the statement, one uncovers the ideological constructions of the text. Althusser argues that the writer ‘s sentiment is non the lone one which can be given to the text because each reader has a different background with different signifiers of political orientations and each one of these may impact the manner the novel is read. For illustration people may come from different civilizations with different traditions from those of the writer and as a effect the readings of the fresh alteration. Consequently, Althusser is against the thought of empiricist philosophy, which is to understand the novel or text by direct scrutiny. Empiricists besides believe that intending comes from experience instead than congenital traditions and thoughts which affect the manner the novel is read. Althusser argues that the political orientation within every human bein g affects his manner of comprehending a novel or a work of art. Catherine Belsey, agrees with Althusser and provinces that political orientation is something indispensable which can non be discarded with a individual idea since it is steadfastly positioned inside every individual individual. She besides argues that political orientation is what makes ‘concrete persons as topics ‘[ 11 ]and therefore it affects us continuously. Althusser argues that significance is created by the reader instead than discovered and this is done through the apprehension of the unconscious of the writer at the clip of composing the novel and by the pattern which takes topographic point when reading the text[ 12 ]which ‘sets to work, in a specific construction ‘[ 13 ]. Althusser references four types of pattern which are the economic, political, ideological and theoretical. The ideological pattern takes up a novel or a text and gives it a whole new significance and this is done through the societal agencies which give it a new point of view and position. In Althusser, the ideological pattern refers to the diverse and composite ways in which a piece of art and literature ‘s significance is modified harmonizing to the day-to-day actions of a peculiar individual. Therefore when one states that something is ‘ideological ‘ , it involves in the inactive imitation of the misguided beliefs about the nature of societal world. Sometimes person takes a place which may look as incoherent and conflicting, but one must understand that it might hold non been seen in this manner when the place was taken because political orientation is rich in contradictions but which at the same clip, they underpin it and give it intending.[ 14 ] In the same manner Roland Barthes argues that Bourgeoisie composing can non be guiltless since one can non compose without zero prejudice in head. Barthes argues that all the written texts are in some manner or another ideologically charged. He states that in authorship, the writer is in some manner or another, ideologically tinged since when one is composing, he or she already has an political orientation which is soundless and which naturalises the attitudes of the dominant category. Barthes agrees with Althusser by stating that the soundless political orientation is a soundless mode of pass oning to the reader. He developed the thought that literature is non guiltless since it contains political orientation and hegemony because in the writer there is ever an ideological angle which affects what he writes or what he should n't compose. Barthes besides argues that the political orientation is linked with political relations and faith and the author makes usage of literature as a age ncy of bring forthing another thought. Literature after the Second World War had to be committed and one could non compose literature in a vacuity any longer. This is seen in George Orwell ‘s Animal Farm ( 1945 ) which is non merely a fable but a manner of conveying to the populace an consciousness of the category war between the in-between categories and the dominant categories. In reacting to a text by reading it, the reader is naturalizing something which may non be natural and the power of the opinion category is exerted in a manner such as it naturalises itself. Literature is hence a series of codifications which have to be understood since literature is portion if a codification and the reader encodes literature in order to do it a societal event. This theory goes manus in manus and has been developed from Saussure ‘s theory of the signified and the form which Barthes besides takes on to explicate how literature is made up. Roland Barthes ‘s most influential essay in the field of literature is entitled Death of the Author ( 1968 ) whom he explained as the figure shaped by critical discourse in order to restrict the readings in the manner of reading a literary text.[ 15 ]This essay is perceived as revolutionist in the spirit of revolution of the clip and it becomes a cardinal text which marks the alteration from Structuralism to Post-Structuralism. Barthes negotiations about and disagrees with the thought of the writer as a God since he creates the work out of nil, merely like God. He says that one can non let the writer to presume the function of God in literature but besides in art in general. Barthes is hence taking the function of the writer who imposes thoughts and beliefs on the reader and hence a bound to how the text is read. He believes in destabilizing the impression of the writer as the beginning of the text since the text exists independently off the writer and hence Barthes allows infi nite for the reader. He argues that one time the writer is removed from the text the reader becomes the critic and hence the decease of the writer resuscitates the reader and his thoughts. By making this Barthes is interrupting down the hegemony of the middle class author and hence the changeless political orientation which is traveling on must be realised. In the same manner as Althusser, he argues that political orientation is ever present and one must non acquire off from it but allow it assist him or her create his ain readings. By canceling the writer the reader or the translator now, merely like the writer, has all the traditional properties of inaugural removed and is transformed in the impersonal pattern of reading. What he or she is reading can non no longer be called ‘work ‘ but it becomes a ‘text ‘ since the word ‘work ‘ may bespeak the engagement of another individual in making it whilst the word ‘text ‘ does non give a sen se of individualism.[ 16 ]Althusser agrees with the thought of the decease of the writer by believing that the significance of a text is to be produced through a diagnostic analysis. The writer becomes a map of political orientation by interpellating the persons as topics.[ 17 ]Therefore one has to wholly dehumanize the text and turn it into something which involves no human attempt in making it, therefore ‘unseen problematics ‘ .[ 18 ] Therefore theoreticians like Althusser and Barthes show how ideology affects the manner of how a text is read by the reader. Both theoreticians agree that political orientation can non be eliminated when reading a text since it is necessarily found in each person and for that ground it affects the manner literature is read otherwise by diverse individuals with different political orientations.

Allegory or Reflective Metamorphic Essay on What Ways I am a Prisoner

Waking up in the morning is may be the easiest part of my day. Going through the whole day, every day of my life is the hardest. This is the life of a prisoner, but I am not the typical behind-the-bars crook; I am a prisoner of my own life, with just a peephole as my only chance of escape. It’s not that I hate my life or people around me, it’s just that, I think I could be more than what I am today, that continuing this kid of life that I have is like wasting precious sands of the hour glass.This is not some wild imagination, not just some long shot hope, for I am now creating away out of this prison, making the peephole wider, so that my body could go through. I am currently employed full time, living a life with my family of three kids, one is 8 years old, another 2 years old, and the youngest is just 10 months old. I can say that I can go by everyday with what I do for a living, but still, there are some things missing in my life. I can feel it – even though I can’t see it, I know that it does exist.That’s the point where I realized that I am living my life in prison. Something is hindering me from freedom, from fully discovering myself and my potentials. Even though I have a happy family, it is like its being overshadowed by that desire to break free from prison. A life in prison for me is a typical day doing the same things over and over again. I wake up; spend a little time with my beloved family, and eventually spending the biggest chunk of my day at the work place. Sometimes, I ask myself, does everyone feel like this.Am I supposed to be doing the same things over and over again, spending my time alone, away from my family in order to make some money? I kept asking this question for so many times, but still, the answer just won’t pop in my head. What do I need to do? I feel like I am behind the cold steel bars, locked up away from the real world, forced to live a life under a routine, doing the same things over and over again for so many days. Not a day was different, with no means of escape, no way to fight for my way out.I was living a life of a free man struggling to be freed from an unknown prison which only he knows about it. By the end of the day, I am exhausted, drained to the bones. I can’t spend more time with my family because I have to sleep in order to wake up early for tomorrow’s work. I wanted to spend more time with them, but I can’t; I think this is a consequence of being a prisoner (Anonymous). You can’t decide on the things you really want to do. You have to go by the routine, or else you’ll suffer. For me, suffering is hard because it will not be felt by me alone.It will also affect my family, my loved ones, because they depend on me for sustenance so that they could grow into healthy, normal, free people. I think about them so much, and then I realize that I can’t stop now. I shouldn’t be selfish; if I only think about my self, then my family will suffer. I think a lot, maybe this is what prisoners do with their spare time. Unfortunately, thinking a lot also has its consequences. It keeps me from falling asleep, which is very bad in my case. You see, sleeping has been the only luxury that a prisoner can enjoy.He can be at peace with himself and with his surroundings. He is at ease, blissfully resting the night through, wishing that it would be longer so that his tired body will regain its energy to the fullest. It also gives the prisoner something that he could hold on to for a while, something that he could really treasure. Being in prison you learn to value sleeping because it is where his dreams are made. Dreams for me come in different forms. It could be about the things that make me happy, or be about my family’s happy moments.Sometimes, it could bring about nightmares, but I’ve learned that if you live a life of a prisoner, you learn not to fear these nightmares. Sleeping is only about dreams, and these dreams not only bring about happiness, it can also give you a little bit of hope, and maybe a glimpse of what lies ahead in the future. There was one time when I dreamt about my life, about being a prisoner (Brians). It gave me a clear view of what my real problem was, the reason I became a prisoner in my own life. It was because of my lack of education which has brought me behind bars.It gave me a clear mental picture of what it’s like if had finished schooling. I could be someone else, be someone better. I could have a chance in landing a better job, and possibly a better life. I can make the most of what I do, and I can make my family happier. It wasn’t just a dream because it showed me the way. It is reality – I can make everything real. Everything is possible, as long as I believe that I can. Armed with the dream of finishing school, I packed up everything I need. It would require all of my wits, my confidence and my willingness to p ursue this dream. Luckily, I have everything I need with me.That’s why I took the step which I know would take me out of this prison. Through the small peephole of my dream, I will make a larger hole, in which I can pass through and be free from this prison. It was the lack of education that has kept me well behind bars. It’s now my time to escape. Works Cited: Anonymous. â€Å"Prison Vs. Work†. 2007. September 15 2007. . Brians, Paul. â€Å"Plato: The Allegory of the Cave, from the Republic†. 1998. September 15 2007. .

Introduction Apple, Inc Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Introduction Apple, Inc - Research Paper Example was incorporated on January 3, 1977,  in  Cupertino, California (About-apple.com, 2015). In December 1980, Apple went public by launching an Initial Public Offering (IPO). The IPO was a smashing hit and raised more money than any other IPO since Ford Motor Company’s IPO in 1956. Many of Apple’s employees became instant millionaires by virtue of their stock options (Deffree, 2014). In January, 1984, Steve Jobs unveiled the Macintosh, a computer equipped with graphical user interface. A strained relationship with John Sculley, the then CEO, led to Steve Job’s resignation from Apple Computer, Inc. in 1985 (Siegel, 2011). Apple Computer, Inc. did not fare well after Jobs departure and the company nearly collapsed. It reported one of its worst financial performances in the last quarter of 1996 and the initial phase of 1997. The top management decided to bring back Steve Jobs (Hemert, 2010). Thereafter, there has been no looking back for the company. Apple Computers launched a series of immensely successful products including the iPod in 2001, iPhone in 2007 and iPad in 2010. Since the company expanded its product portfolio, Apple Computer, Inc. was renamed Apple, Inc. in January 2007 (Honan, 2007). As of today, Apple, Inc. is a well-renowned name in the world of consumer electronics, personal computers and software (Apple, 2015). Deffree, S. (2014). Apple IPO makes instant millionaires, December 12, 1980.  EDN Network. Retrieved from http://www.edn.com/electronics-blogs/edn-moments/4403276/Apple- IPO-makes-instant-millionaires--December-12--1980 Hemert, K. (2010).  25 Years Ago Today, Steve Jobs Left Apple.  Gizmodo. Retrieved 20 February 2015, from

Successional Planning Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Successional Planning - Research Paper Example The organization provides services to the customer within the town of Quispamsis. The organization has more than 100 employees and has been in service for many years. It is managed by professionals who ensure continuity and expansion. Exploitation is evidences in the organization with some of the professional providing service being underpaid. Sometimes salary delay and over taxation are noticed. For improvement, the employee compensation policies should be reviewed. Individual should be compensated with respect to their education level and experience. Pension scheme should also be introduced in order to compensate people after retirement. Employees should be given medical and health insurance cover to compensate them in case of injury. Training should be held in order to make sure that the employees are conversant with the organization’s operations and strategies. The current state is good and the existing operational strategies should be maintained or improved. In future there should be skilled and motivated employees in order to increase the performance and gain more income. Human resource manager should consider hiring skilled employees and also motivate the existing employee in order to improve

Human Civilization in Greco-Roman Ancient Times and Medieval Europe Essay

Human Civilization in Greco-Roman Ancient Times and Medieval Europe - Essay Example The architecture of medieval Europe should be associated with genius. Matter of factly, people of medieval Europe and the Romans were exceptional builders. Their architecture was both tremendous and restrained. The Romans and the people of medieval Europe constructed superior and better buildings than any civilization in the classical era could rival. Tourist by the suck load today still give special and pure regard to the ruins in Rome. The buildings that were constructed at ancient and medieval times have lasted and passed the test of time. It ought to be noted that these buildings still possess the intricate talent of the builders’ skill to date. In Medieval Europe around 1000-1300 A.D., however, the architectures and builders adapted the ancient Roman art and architecture, which they used in building historical landmarks (Barlett 15-18). During the time of Constantinian basilicas saw a frenzy of construction of fortified residence and monasteries. The relative political stability led to the development of a type of architecture slackly inspired by the Roman forms. Consequently, the classical Roman brick and stone houses were reused for their materials. This style expanded throughout Europe in an amazingly homogenous form. The exceptional relics of the medieval period are the castles that are scattered all over Western Europe. The idea behind the building of castles is informed in the Geo-Roman era, where castles were mainly built for the nobles and the elite. Ideally, the castles were also built with a view to heightening security of the monarchy. On the same, the technology of building castles was always developing from the ancient Roman times to the medieval era (Canter 270-288). Medieval theatre can be seen as the main contributor in helping maintain certain characteristics of the Geo- Roman theatre. The church, however, was responsible for restoring the ancient aspects of classical drama. For instance, the dramatization of the passion of Christ shows how ancient  drama and medieval plays are closely inter-linked (Hill 1).

Answer question no more than two Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Answer question no more than two - Essay Example I would be pleasantly surprised the next day to revisit the project and find that I had solved the problem using my subconscious. I have learnt to allow my mind to work for me. The reason I find this interesting is that, during the process of rewriting the paper, I went over my word limit despite having trouble tackling the project the previous day. I found out that I did not have to overhaul the entire paper but only to revise it and build on earlier ideas. However, because there was only a short time, probably days, between the tasks and the deadline to hand them, I found that two thorough re-workings of the paper was the best I could do. Writing two drafts allowed me to expand on and improve my ideas from the first draft, as well as to rectify my mistakes and make a final copy that adheres to the project task’s word limit. While this approach is time consuming, using it on writing enhances my time management skills (Speck 22), while it also ensured that my work appeared well researched. Working together in a team has always been an exciting prospect for me until it is time to write my part of the paper. I have always been anxious of writing the first sentence in a collaborative project, especially because it has to flow with the rest of the project. The most challenging part, therefore, has been writing the introduction for a project. I have had to learn how to write the â€Å"final† introduction after finishing the initial draft and reading through the others’ drafts. In this case, the real introduction had to be written after completion of the initial draft (Speck 56), which was a challenge for me. In addition, even the initial draft required some form of introduction, meaning that I could not escape that uncertain moment. It took me more than five minutes to think about the introduction to the initial draft, especially because it would be the most durable part of the paper even after the rewriting. While my thinking when doing my part

Depression Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words - 1

Depression - Essay Example Therefore, there are some differences in symptoms of depression depending on stage of development, gender, and culture. Depression is not a weakness, however, a severe ailment with genetic, mental, as well as social features to its causes, signs, and treatment; an individual cannot ignore it because if left unattended to, it may get worse, and if it is undertreated, it will reoccur again. There are selected collective signs and indications of depression, although it differs from individual to individual. It is significant that an individual remembers that these indications can be part of natural life`s regular low point. However, the more indications a person has, the resilient they are, and the lengthier they have persisted, the more possible it is that a person is handling the depression. Examples of signs includes loss of interests in day-to-day practices, changes in sleeping, alteration in appetite, energy loss, as well as loss of self-esteem. In most cases, depression is the key aspect for suicide (Glen, 2007). The profound desolation and desperateness that goes together with depression can create perversity appear like the single manner to do away with agony. Therefore, this shows that the feelings of passing away are a severe indication of depression. According to research, dejected men are less prospective than women to recognize thoughts of self-disgust and desperation (Nolen, 2001). Rather, they always grumble about fatigue, irritability, and loss of concentration in their daily activities. Despite the fact that the amounts of depression in females are high than those in men, it is noted that men are at a higher danger of committing suicide, and in particular grown-up

Discuss and compare two legal transplants, with reference to AT LEAST Essay

Discuss and compare two legal transplants, with reference to AT LEAST ONE African or Asian legal system - Essay Example The main purpose of comparative law in this case is to provide a deeper knowledge on legal systems (Ritaine 11). From the general study of law, there is great awareness of the transfer of legal concepts, practices and organizations. Atleast in every nation, there has been the use of legal transplant during the development of the legal system; laws have been borrowed from one country to another. There is a lot of evidence that show cases the migration of legal systems from one country to another. It was evident during the adoption of Roman law by many countries; for example, there was a case of legal transfer from America after the World War II to other countries that had been defeated and the migration of legal system from western countries to the countries of the Eastern part of Europe. At the moment, due to globalization, there have been re-dimensions of the legal systems. This has led to the realization of concerns by the European Union, which wants harmonization of legal systems so as to curb the rising of international crime and terrorism (Negura 812). Despite this stand, legal transplant has stood to be one of China’s major legal systems that have seen it develop its legal system, while playing the major role in the transition of social systems. It has served as the best means for legal construction. The process in China began in about 1980. The government sat and agreed to setup a new legal system for the purpose of foreign investment, and it began by informing its major foreign embassies to collect joint venture laws from their respective countries of operation. Most government officials also attended major foreign courses dealing with foreign investment and taught by foreign lawyers and professors (Chenguang, â€Å"The Function†). This is the model of legal transplant relating to economy whereby individuals and groups gain a lot of benefit due to their investment through investments, learning

Martha McCakey Case Study Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Martha McCakey - Case Study Example Moreover one of her old classmates working for the same company also encouraged her to join that company and finally she decided to join Praxis Associates. (Kyurinyan, 2006) Martha McCaskey was a hard working young woman who believed in good ethical standards at the work place. She never believed in short cuts to achieve targets. She has completed many successful projects at a fast pace and soon became a valuable member of the company. As a business tactics, Praxis Associates often hired ex employees of their competitors to obtain valuable information regarding the functioning of the competitors. They have divided the division into two sub groups; old guards and new guards. Old The attitude of the top management of Praxis associates was motivated only by the profit. They were ready to engage in any sort of activities to capture business and also they never believed in business ethics. For them, Business is a competitive world where only the smarter ones will succeed and the others will fail. In order to achieve targets anything can be done as per their moral standards. Moreover they forced the employees to go up to the maximum extent to achieve the targets. They never bothered about retaining the employees. It is under this circumstances Martha McCaskey asked to complete a project. It was a crucial time period of her career. The successful completion of that project will ensure her higher bonuses and promotion. But she found no way to complete the project without compromising her ethical standards. She was forced to decide whether she wanted to maintain her integrity and high standards or to compromise with all such things. Morality and ethical standards are vanishing gradually from the modern world. Globalization and liberalization policies made the competition immense in the business world. It is extremely hard to survive in a highly competitive business world by keeping all the ethical standards. Business is a smart game where most of the moves

Comparative study of security in Windows and Linux Research Paper

Comparative study of security in Windows and Linux - Research Paper Example It is also important to ensure that the user functions do not interfere with the work of the operating system. Since the operating system is large and complex in code, it is suggested to create it in pieces. Each of these pieces should be well defined with respect to their work, inputs, outputs and various internal functions. The look and feel of the Linux operating system is same as that of the UNIX operating system. Linux is much younger than UNIX system. While OpenBSD is also generated over the UNIX framework, it is mostly developed using the security issues into account. In recent times, internal threats implied to the threats that were caused due to the misuse of internal data of an organisation by an internal employee. Nowadays it is not only limited to a dissatisfied employee who misuses confidential data for his/her own profit, but today it is more important to find out the ways by which the person is getting an access to those valuable data. In the same way internal threats to operating system generally occurs due to some internal bugs that were generated during the creation of the Operating system, such as some back door, or some logical errors, that are still not fixed and are open to vulnerabilities. The team that developed this operating system claims that the system had been developed, keeping various security threats in mind. OpenBSD is developed in UNIX. At present it is considered to be number one with regards to the security measures among various other available options, since this system was developed through proactive security measures and implementation of cryptography. OpenBSD uses a pseudo random number generator for its cryptographic encryption purpose. Keeping in mind that security can be breached if the number that is used for encryption gets hacked, resulting in the entire system being open to external attack, the OpenBSD system generates

It was a bitter winters night Essay Example for Free

It was a bitter winters night Essay It was a bitter winters night and George was sitting in his big white house. Georges lapdog, Tony, was lying at his owners feet. His big pointy ears were jiggling and his huge forehead was creasing up as he breathed in and out. George was watching television. Although he was not really mentally capable of understanding some of the intellectual humour he was watching, he happily sat there giggling away at the Tweenies with Tony. George and Tony deserved to relax after the hard day they had had at school. George was head boy at his school, the United School of Akronica, and he was having a spot of trouble with one of the other boys. Sammy Whosayne was bullying other children in his class and George thought that he should do something about it. George also believed that Sammy had some stink-bombs of mass poignancy but he could not prove anything. Although George was head boy, it did not mean he could do what he wanted; he had to speak to one of the teachers first. The teacher that he had to speak to on this occasion was called Mrs. U.Benn. She was in charge of the committee against bullying, Necessitarians Against The Oppressors. Usually, U. Benn and NATO sorted out problems between different groups within the school but this time she said no because George could not prove that Sammy had stink-bombs of mass poignancy. George was furious; he couldnt believe that they had said no to him. He soon got over it though when he saw something shiny on the floor. George realised that if he want to do anything about Sammy Whosayne, he was going to have to do it himself. He realised that he could not do it by himself. He asked help from his friend Pierre Le-Grenouille. Unfortunately for George, Pierre was a bit of a wimp and said that he did not want to go to fight anyone. What a coward. Anyway, although slightly disheartened, George continued to plan his fight against Sammy after hed finished his warm milk and colouring in. George had gathered up his friends and they looked quite impressive, his dog Tony and he made quite a team. The two of them burst into Sammy Whosaynes classroom. They were much more heavily armed than him. George was equipped with the latest advances in paper aeroplanes. The planes flew into the class room taking out everything in their path (providing it was also made out of paper). This was lucky because Sammy had built his defences entirely out of paper. George attack completely wiped out the bullys fortresses. He fled with his friends for fear of getting a paper cut. George was so happy that he couldnt stop himself from giggling like a little girl. After Georges crushing victory, he embarked on a search of the classroom for the stink-bombs of mass poignancy. He started this colossal task by checking in Whosaynes locker. Obviously not realising that the locker was open, George set about trying to push the door open. He pushed as hard as he could for a good forty-nine minutes. Eventually Tony the dog, who had watched the whole pathetic affair, decided he couldnt take it anymore and decided to show George that the door was unlocked and all he had to do was pull it. Tired out after pushing a solid piece of metal for forty-nine minutes, George languidly routed through the deviants locker for any signs of the stink bombs of mass-poignancy. The locker was covered in dust, much like a certain middle-eastern country whose name escapes me. He searched every nook and cranny of the cupboard. He went bravely into the cracks and caverns without knowing what he would find. After what seemed like months of searching (it was actually about twenty minutes), George was fruitless. As NATO had guessed, Sammy did not have any stink bombs of mass poignancy. George did not even catch Sammy. He was very embarrassed. He was also quite worried as there was an election coming up for head boy. He realised that he had to find Sammy and then possibly his reputation would be saved although, if were being perfectly honest, his reputation wasnt really one worth saving. He searched the playground for the rest of break and just as things were looking bad, he saw someone hidden in the climbing frame that looked very much like the fugitive bully. He went up to him but he realised that hed gotten the wrong person because the person hed found had a beard. He apologised and walked off. As he was walking off, Tony kicked him which provoked thought. He thought that a boy having a beard was rather unusual at a school. He went back and the boy looked a little worried at the sight of a jolly giggling little man rushing towards him. George went up to him with a stern look of concentration on his face. He opened his mouth and, to the horror of Tony, he asked the bearded boy what life was like in the sixth form. As we all will have guessed by now, the bearded boy was actually Sammy Whosayne in what was frankly a pretty pathetic disguise (although it did fool George). Sammy opened his mouth and thats when George finally realised who it was. He grabbed him and took him out to show the rest of the play ground. Ive caught him he shouted. Not realising that nobody cared and that they werent listening he carried on his speech. I have capturidafied this hooligan and hopefully he will not continue to tormentify us any more. Thank me very much for giving me your attention. It was a good job that no one was listening because he would have made a complete ass out of himself. Not only had his speech included words that didnt exist but where he believed he was holding a master criminal, he was actually clutching a piece of tarpaulin with some loose bits of hair stuck to it. By this point Tony the dog had given up trying to help him. This is the end of my tale about a stupid man with power and his pet. As of yet, we do not know if George will be elected as head of the United School of Akronica but lets hope, for all our sakes, that someone with more common sense gets the job.

Drug Culture and the Impressionable Youth

Drug Culture and the Impressionable Youth Drug Culture and the Impressionable Youth Rock and roll music and rap are the two most listened to genres by teens of the ages nine to twenty- five. Both genres are linked to the drug culture quite often through older music and music today. Rock and rap music communicate drug culture ideals to the impressionable youth through; Lyrics that speak about a drug experience, a trance-like rhythm that makes an experience either better or worse, and by the artists image in the media. All of these play a role on how the youth are influenced in society. Rock and roll has been linked to the drug culture for many years. Whether a song was written about a certain drug or whether the song was written on drugs has had society worried for its children. Children are always singing, whether with the music or just to themselves, but do parents listen to what they are singing? A popular rock band, named Green Day, have a few songs that reference illicit drug content. The song ‘Green Day contains lyrics that reference an experience after smoking marijuana. Here are some lyrics from the song: â€Å"A small cloud has fallen, The white mist hit the ground, My lungs comfort me with joy, Vegging on one detail, The rest just crowds around, My eyes itch of burning red, Picture sounds of moving insects so surreal, Lay around looks like I found something new, Laying in my bed, I think Im in left field, I picture someone, I think its you, Your standing so damn close, My body begins to swell, Why does 1+1 make 2?† Even though this song was written in 1990, it is still played on a few radio stations today. The album ‘1,039 Smoothed Out Slappy Hours, sold over five hundred thousand copies. And since then Green Day has become more popular with the youth. Green is only an example of todays music, but The Beatles and The Rolling Stones were huge role models as the drug culture started. The Beatles lyrics are descriptive of encounters with intoxicants and rely on the images and the insider knowledge associated with the meanings put forward by The Beatles (Blackman86). The Beatles had the world at their fingertips; they held the record for the most people to go deaf at a concert, not because the music was loud but because of the thousands of girls screaming at the top of their lungs (Blackman86). After the American tours, The Beatles songs moved onto new subjects with closer links to recreational drug use. On the song, ‘Tomorrow Never Knows, Lennon offers drug advice about the feeling bro ught on by drug consumption (Blackman85). In an interview by Queen and Life magazine in 1967, Sir Paul McCartney states that LSD ‘opened my eyes. It made me a better, more honest, and a more tolerant member of society (Uncut). Rock and roll lyrics speak more about an experience on an illicit drug while the next genre, rap, speak more about selling drugs to make money. Rap has not always been linked to the drug culture till about the 1990s. When children listen to the lyrics of certain rap songs, they hear how selling drugs or taking drugs to make life easier. According to Dr. Herd, an associate professor in the division of Community Health and Human Development at the University of California, illegal drug use became increasingly linked during the late 1990s to wealth, glamour, and social standing, when in comparison to earlier years, when rap music was more likely to have depicted the dangers and negative consequences of drug use (Yang). â€Å"Rap music is especially appealing to young people, many of whom look up to rappers as role models. As a public health researcher, and as a parent of a seven year old, I am concerned about the impact that long-term exposure to this music has on its listeners,† says Dr. Herd (Yang). Ludacris, who is popular with an age range from twelve to twenty-five, published a song called ‘Blueberry Yum Yum. Throughout the song, Ludacris raps about how excellent blueberry yum yum marijuana is. Here a few lines from this song: â€Å"Got a little bit of blueberry yum, yum And I never woulda thought that it could taste this good Thank God for the man who put it in my hood Its got me singin melodies I never thought I would Im feeling sorry for the homies who be smokin wood Chop chop, break it down for a player like ye Im ‘bout to find me a woman and skeet† This song was on the album, ‘The Red Light District and sold over twenty million copies worldwide (Blackman85). Ludacris is not the only rapper that sings about enjoyment of smoking marijuana other names are Snoop Dogg, Dr. Dre, and Eminem are a few examples of big name rappers that have followers of young ages listening to their lyrics and singing along. Adolescents are exposed to approximately two hundred and fifty-one references to explicit substance use per day (Parker-Pope). Adolescents are exposed to music more than any other type of media. An example is music compared to film. Adolescents listen to an average of sixteen hours each week of music compared to an average of six hours each week for films (Parker-Pope). Music is a powerful social force that taps into an individuals personal identity, memories, and mood. Lyrics are strong ways to communicate to the impressionable youth about the drug culture but there are more ways to communicate also like a trance-like rhythm. Rock and roll music and rap have many different types of sounds and beats. Shiela Whiteley, Building on Middleton and Muncies analysis, says there are stages of how rock and rap music influence drug use through a song. Whiteley says, â€Å"The first stage is manipulation of timbres, blurred, bright, tingly overlapping associated with the intensification of tripping; second stage, the upward movement in pitch which compares with the experience of being high; third, the characteristic use of harmonies lurching and oscillating which change focus; fourth, the sudden use of regular or irregular rhythms suggesting both the rush of a drug but also the trance-like condition of sounds capes and which acts to disorientate conventional musical structure, offering new enhancements from new technology employed in music and also through the process of hallucination† (Blackman100). Teens pick music to go with their drug experience. Rod Stanley, editor of ‘Dazed and Confused magazine, says in an interview if there was a new drug that came out in todays society, there would a new genre of music spring up over night, he continues to say young people work out the best music to experience a drug (Sampson). The image of the artist has always been a problem in the media and how parents can limit a child from listening to the artist music. Image is the most important part of todays world. How you look, talk, act, and present yourself is how the world will judge you. In contrast to the 1970s where artists like Jimi Hendrix, Jim Morrison, or Elvis Presely were judge on their music. Jim Morrison died in 1971 of an apparent heart attack of an overdose, but is remembered dark and psychedelic lyrics and for occasionally taking off his clothes on stage. Drug deaths are highly romanticized in the world of popular music by the media, fans, musicians, and the industry (Blackman94). Drug induced deaths of pop stars establish new ‘consumer shrines that feed on and promote person and artistic mystery, followed by endless repackaging of existing material, remixes or releases of unsanctioned songs (Blackman94). Kurt Cobain, former lead singer of Nirvana, overdosed numerous times and was told to go to rehab but disappeared and committed suicide. Rap has a bad rap for its image because of how the artist presents themselves in th e media. Snoop Dogg has been arrested five times with the possession of marijuana (Whillans). Snoop Dogg is not the only one with a bad reputation on getting caught with marijuana. Such artists as Juvenile, Lil Wayne, Sir Paul McCartney, Keith Richards, and John McClure are just a few examples of popular

EBays Growth Strategies: An Analysis

EBays Growth Strategies: An Analysis To gain market in India, eBay has to change the way it operates. eBay.in has to develop and implement new strategies for the change management. Using the following table the best theory to use is Lippitts Phases of Change Theory. This theory consists of 7 steps and it mainly focuses on change agents roles and responsibilities compared to evolution of change in the organization. Implementing Lippitts phases of change theory on eBay.in The problem: eBay failed to make its impression in India, one main reason is the countrys internet and technology is still developing unlike in USA, where internet and technology growth reached its maturity level. People in India consider eBay as a virtual market, and so they dont believe in it, when compared to retail and wholesale markets. eBay is unable to adapt the different languages and cultures in the country so it is unknown to most of the people. Motivation and capacity for change: eBay has enough capacity for the change, and to localize itself in various states/cultures it needs to appoint local business people/change agents, who are familiar with local markets and the technology. Increase in fuel price, inflation, and recession are forcing people to choose other methods to purchase products they need, so eBay is the choice people have, and the change agent if able to inspire them the organization will grow strong in the market within few months. Change Agent and Resources: Recruiting those individuals who know the local market as well as have good knowledge about the internet and technology can be helpful. To check the motivation and commitment of the agent, he/she will be assessed through few interviews and other psychological tests. As the organization depends mainly on internet and technology, the required resources are available in India, like manpower, transportation, etc. Progressive change objects: Developing action plans and strategies with respect to different cultures and languages needs those language and culture experts, organization should employee those people before they build their strategies. The main goal here is to gain the customers belief and get close to them so they know the organization. Aims of this process are to decrease complexity and achieve operational excellence. Role of Change Agent: organization should define what they are expecting from the change agent, and change should be clear about what his/her duties are and should make it clear for the organization and other employees, and customers, by which no one gets confused in the process of change. Maintaining the Change: developing new strategies for marketing, like campaigns, advertisements about the organization and how the organization operates is very important for the organization. Taking feedbacks and review helps organization to understand how people are reacting and what are the other changes the organization needs to make, to increase belief on the organization? Change Agent: once organization reached a stage where people are believing in the organization and are able to communicate properly without any problem, the role of change agent should be lessened and the change process should be terminated slowly. What would you do differently if undertaking a project of this nature in the future? Following above steps can increase the belief of the people on the organization, but I would like to concentrate on one specific point i.e. existence of the organization in the virtual environment. The main reason, why people dont believe the eBay.in is because of its virtual existence, and I would like to change that in to physical existence. Both buyers and sellers are customers of the organization and they can do it online, but I would like to provide a small place/ business centre where people can come and meet directly and exchange goods or products. By this process people will be more attracted towards the organization and customers belief towards the organization increases. However, this contradicts with the idea of online marketing but, this process should be and will be followed only for few days, until and up to the organization gains the belief of its customers. And we use this business centre only for those customers who are willing to come and for complex situations to reduce complexity. Factors which can influence the change management process Power: many organizations follow hierarchical power i.e. managers take decisions, sometimes with the support of employees and sometimes without the support of employees, about the process and strategies that organization is going to follow. Here management of eBay considers buyers and sellers are equally powerful to make their own decisions. Culture: eBay is a massive community with unique culture. In the site individuals can find articles offering wider information than just auction listing or price lists or web site tools. eBay creates opportunities for people, it cares its customers, and making a difference in the world. It explains us the unique psychology, attitudes, and beliefs and values of the management and founders of eBay. Communication: organizational communication and interpersonal communication plays a vital role in effective change management. Organization communication is leader communicating with the employees through meeting, conferences, or electronic mails. This information in general is for everyone in the organization to explain new strategies or action plans to its employees. Interpersonal communication is communication between management and employees, in general to provide information on what they are expecting from the employees and what organization aims at. It is also useful in taking feedbacks as not all the employees work and learns at same-pace. Interpersonal communication increases relationship between employees and management which is very important for an organization to sustaining change. Conclusion: eBay was able to make a strong impact on the market in USA, UK, etc. because the growth of technology in these countries was too high. eBay inc primarily depend on the internet for its existence and without internet and technology it cannot exists. In countries like India, where internet and technology is still growing and didnt reach its maturity level, it is hard for the organization to grow and make an impact on the market. Education level of the customers also plays an important role in online business, developing new software to make selling and buying process simple also plays a role in the development of the organization. Technology is a macro environmental factor, meaning organizations like eBay cannot control or increase the growth of technology in markets like India. So, developing new strategies like building physical existence rather than virtual existence can make a difference, it is not necessary to start a retail market but proving a business centre, where people can come in case of necessary and delivery issues can increase belief of customers on the organization. Providing local language call centres and customers support centres also helps organization to grow in the developing markets. Change is necessary in the present world, increase in globalization and internationalization is forcing organization to change and develop new strategies to gain the markets and customers. Because of increase in competition organizations are changing their products and markets to gain competitive advantage. In one way or another change is coming into the organizations, and managing change is very important as improper manage of change can destroy organization. An American Born Chinese by Gene Luen Yang | Analysis An American Born Chinese by Gene Luen Yang | Analysis According to Chun, who has studied the typical Asian American stereotypes and the myth of their success, Asian American descendants have been pressured into assimilating within an inflexible mold of Americanization to avoid the anti-Oriental stereotypes and prejudices of American society (The Myth). Chuns observation indicates that minority youth in the United States are constantly hard pressed by the biased and unequal educational system that is majorly dominated by those who enjoy white privileges. Shim argues in his article, which introduces the history of yellow stereotypes in America since 1800s, that the entertainment industry plays a critical role to enforce and expand racist practices through the false presentation of Asian stereotypes (From Yellow). Based on the strong influence of the media to young generations, stereotypes are extensively imitated and exercised at schools. In American Born Chinese, a graphic novel written by an Asian American immigrant Gene Luen Yang, the author successfully communicates to the audience of unjustified stereotypes faced by Asian American youth that equally share his cultural background at schools (American). Themes Yangs primary message of the novel is to persuade students to overcome racial adversities and accept their true identities. He effectively utilizes pathos in the scenes where everyone dislikes Chin-Kees abnormal behavior and where Jin constantly has to fight against Asian stereotypes to highlight the hardships of acculturation of young generation in America. On the other hand, the implicit message of the novel is to allow educators to notice and seek for solutions on racial discrimination against non-white groups students that discourage their academic motivation and cultural preservation. In light of Yangs primary and secondary messages, the audience can learn that culture is not static or inherent for anyone. Instead, it is reproduced and learned by young generation as an account of evolving and complex progress through educational experience. Yang appeals to the greatest level of audience with three different genres and demonstrate to them the idea that minority youth culture is s haped and distorted in academic environment through the use of stereotyped behaviors, provocative language and ironic caricatures of Chin-Kee in the novel. Yang adopts three genres to targets audience from the general category of those who endeavor to identify their cultural heritage to the non-white minority groups in the American society. He expresses in an interview that, My Chinese heritage informs the way that I am an American (Youtube). These words indicate that Yang wants to draw the attention of Asian American immigrant specifically through the novel because of his academic experience. Nonetheless, the books increasing popularity successfully brought the attention of educators and critics of American power structures. He is able to reach different levels of audience for the reason that multi-culture education reflects the interaction of each individual pupil with the institutional system as well as the more complex economic-political society. Furthermore, Yang uses the comic book as the main genre, for that he regards comics as an individualistic pursuit that is intimate and reflective (Youtube). He also adopts sub-genres of sup erhero fiction and coming-of-age story in the novel to incorporate two different styles of stories that interrelate to each other. Three characters are portrayed by Yang in each story. All of them similarly feel the age to become Americanized with the expense of their original identity. The central characters include the Monkey King, who represents a superhero from the famous Chinese tale and Jin, who transforms himself into a typical white guy Danny to assimilate into American society. Yangs technique to adapt the old tale of Monkey King with some Catholic Elements proves that he successfully attracts not only Chinese American immigrants but also the audience from the dominant white culture. In addition, his own experience is reflected through the coming-of-age story, which persuades the wide range of audience of the novels credibility under the backdrop. In light of these methods, he inspires audience from various minority groups to discover and respect their cultural heritage. Stereotyped behaviors of Chin-Kee and Jin are depicted in the novel to present the distorted minority youth culture. Such students constantly face the hardships to accommodate and acculturate into American society. In anthropological terms, incommensurability refers to the fact that there are certain aspects of one culture that are hard for people from another culture to comprehend. According to American Born Chinese, Yang exaggerates scenes where Chin-Kee and Jin are constantly teased or excluded for the stereotyped behaviors by their white counterparts at school in order to reflect the incommensurable groups from the dominant culture. For instance, all the white students around Chin-Kee widely discuss about the fact that he eats crispy fried cat gizzards with noodle. Furthermore, the little white boy looks down upon Jin, who is introduced by the teacher on the first day of class. His expression very serious and disdainful, the boy insists that, My momma says Chinese people eat dogs . Yang goes on further to make the teacher respond that she thinks Jins family probably abandoned their old habit because they are eager to become like Americans (American Born Chinese).This two scenes indicates that the white students are unconsciously distinguishing between what we eat and what he eats. They fail to understand that this type of food, which they critically comment on, should not contribute to the reason why they regard their culture as more superior. As I have observed, Germans are frenzied about roasted pork feet. Also, Americans eat spam, a type of canned pork regularly. However, people from Islamic culture developed their eating habits that regard pork as dirty and inedible. Thus, the selection of food by people from different cultural backgrounds is idiosyncratic, and it should not be disrespected by anyone, for that otherwise the person automatically denies a part of his or her own culture. In the second scene, Yang intends to emphasize that educators should c ircumvent inequality and stereotypes while using their cultural power to teach students knowledge and the political structure. He arouses the audiences sympathy by presenting the critical stereotypes that the little boy Jin, who barely started his first day at an elementary school, has to experience. Jin not only encountered biased opinions from the teacher, but also the fellow classmates who spread rumors about his unusual relationship with a Japanese girl, Suzy Nakamura. At this point, the fact that white students concluded that Jin would marry Suzy once again implicates the students inability to notice that there are remarkable distinction between Chinese and Japanese culture although they both share the same Asian root. To a larger extent, the dominant groups falsely regard themselves as the mainstream culture and marked off a line between white society and the rest of others. This belief results in a subtraction process of minority youth culture that causes them to question the value of their original culture. Yang depicts the stereotyped opinions of Jins teachers and classmates to infer how academic environment influences Asian American immigrants like Jin to build their cultural identity. They need to constantly struggle between their original Asian blood and new Asian American citizenship. Also, through creating stereotypes from different angles of students and teachers toward Jin and Chin-Kee, Yang is able to persuade the audience that culture is a process that maintains the larger stratified system in American society. For instance, Jin assumes that he is not accepted by the dominant culture because of his racial identity. As a result of the cultural tension, he goes so far in the story as to transform himself into a white guy, Danny. Ironically, he ends up at a Chinese cafà © drinking Boba tea with Wei-Chen, the monkey, in a similar vein, who symbolically transforms into a human being. Jin abandons the American identity that he dreamed about. In this circumstance, the academic envir onment forced Jin to fight against his Chinese background to assimilate into the American society where white people rule the dominant culture. Yang deliberately set up the ending in which Jin ultimately recognizes that he should learn to appreciate his part of Chinese origin. This allows the minority immigrants under the similar context to understand that each culture encompasses unique practices and knowledge. The incommensurability is the product of students engagement in school activates. As a result, Yang shows how interactions among individuals empower the meaning of culture. He intends to emphasize that educators are responsible to inform the significance of culture and clarify the power structures beyond academic competence. Yang enhances the effect of Asian American stereotypes by applying rhetorical skills such as provocative language and ironic caricatures. Readers and Yang himself consider the language in American Born Chinese as unnecessarily crass (Yang, Kartika Review). Yang utilizes this style of language to transfer the idea that biased interrelationship of different cultures is unhealthy and uncivilized in a similar token. Furthermore, the categorized power structure influences younger generation to shape their notions toward a diversity of experience at school. For instance, Timmy, the white boy from Jins elementary school refers to Jin as bucktooth without any hesitation. He does not care what harm he causes Jin. On the other hand, Timmy changes his tone when he calls the other white friend Pansy Boy to a whisper due to his serious demand. Yangs use of transitional language here reflects Timmys perception of his position in the society. He visions white culture as more powerful and privileged , so that he verbally bullying the inferior races and compromise with the kid from his superior group. Lastly, Yang draws caricatures in the novel to symbolically refer to the exaggerated stereotypes that are placed on Asian American immigrants. For instance, Chin-Kee wears outdated clothing and has a physical appearance that looks like underdeveloped human beings. Also, Chin-Kee never changes his outfit throughout the novel and has long hair that only past ancestors do in China. Thus, through combining the Asian American stereotypes throughout the book with rhetorical devices such as language and caricatures, Yang successfully delivers the message that culture is not inherited but instead a process that is learned and shaped by power structures in the society through educational means. It is also described in the article Culture as Disability, written by McDermott and Varenne, that culture reveals not broken person but identifications neatly tuned to the workings of institutions serving political and economic ends. Yang intends to persuade educators that they should start to notice that it is their responsibility to respect each cultural practice and value. Although racial discrimination is hard to extinguish in the society, it is possible to educate young generation to appreciate their cultural heritage while assimilating into the American society. Most importantly, instructors should clarify the opportunity structure under the socio-economic context and ne atly tuned to explain the process of cultural construction. In this fashion, young generation may obtain different perspectives from It is because we are minority groups to We can make a difference because we are no different than people from the dominant culture. Electrical Stimulus in a Frog Muscle: Experiment Electrical Stimulus in a Frog Muscle: Experiment Frogs are keystone species, an essential organism to aquatic ecosystems. They have both terrestrial and aquatic niches as predators and prey and serve as indicator species to assess the response of ecosystems to environmental change. To execute daily locomotion patterns, frogs use skeletal muscles. We wanted to determine the relationship between the strength of the stimulus and the response of the muscle. We also wanted to measure the amplitude of contraction produced in a muscle that is stimulated with repeated pulses delivered at progressively higher frequencies. We hypothesized that increasing stimulus voltage in the gastrocnemius muscle of a frog will result in an increase in stimulation amplitude and that an increase in stimulation frequency at a constant voltage will result in an increase in force generated by the muscle up until a point where it plateaus. We found that our hypotheses were supported and that muscle regulation was via temporal and spatial recruitment. This study is important because it serves as a model for understanding skeletal muscle mechanisms in other organisms including humans. Frogs are widely distributed terrestrial amphibians that inhabit upland and wetland regions, found on all continents of the world except Antarctica. Many frog species, in both larval and adult stages serve as important prey for larger predators including fish, raccoons, snakes and birds of prey (Chalcraft and Resetarits 2003; Auniola and Kauhala 2001). Additionally frogs serve an important role as indicators of environmental stress (King 2010). A review of complex systems in temporary ponds by Wilbur (1997) makes the argument that frogs have two distinct niches, one terrestrial and one aquatic. Wilbur states all frogs with free-living larvae change at metamorphosis from aquatic omnivorous tadpoles to amphibious carnivorous adults. The role of such connections among food webs is a fruitful area for both theoretical and empirical research because the foraging of animals across ectones may be an important biological mechanism linking elements of the mosaics of habitats that form landsca pes. One trait frogs are most known for is locomotion. Frogs typically display two type of locomotion: jumping and swimming. Though frogs are traditionally presented as jump specialists most species also swim (Navas et al. 1999). Frogs exhibit these locomotive behaviors for a variety of reasons including escaping predators, often times by a short set of quick and powerful jumps (Carvalho, Gomes and Navas 2007). Frog locomotion is dependent on muscles, particularly skeletal muscles, which are muscles connected to the skeleton (Marsh and Olson 1998). Skeletal muscles are organized beginning with units called sarcomeres. A sarcomere consists of two opposing vertical Z-line discs each with actin filaments attached. A myosin filament floats between each horizontal actin section. Sarcomeres are connected to each other by Z-lines. One mechanism of muscle contraction begins with the sliding of the actin and myosin filaments. Parts of the myosin, known as myosin heads, bind to the free end of the actin, the end not attached to the Z-line, and pull it one way toward the center of the mysosin, in an accordian-like mechanism. The muscle shortens or contracts because the sarcomeres shorten. The process by which the myosin binds to the actin is called the Cross-Bridge cycle. The binding of the myosin to actin is the trigger for the myosin head to tilt and release an ADP and a P as well as a powerstroke. ATP binds to the myosin head and the myosin releases the actin, in a softening effect. The ATP is hydrolyzed and delivers energy to moved the mysosin head back and it is ready for the next powerstroke. The sarcomeres move closer together by many of these powerstrokes occurring one after the other. In the Cross-Bridge cycle myosin is normally prevented from binding to the actin. Another protein called tropomyosin, which is wrapped around the actin, is in the way to block the actin-myosin binding site. Another protein, troponin, is attached to the tropomyosin and when triggered, moves the troponin away to allow the binding to occur. But what triggers the tropomyosin to move the troponin? The simple answer is calcium and this occurs in a process called excitation-contraction coupling. In excitation-contraction coupling an action potential or electrical stimulus, runs down a T-tubule in the muscle fiber. The stimulus reaches a ryanodyne receptor which opens ion channels in the sarcoplasmic reticulum, a storage space for calcium in the muscle fibers. Once the ion channels are opened, calcium runs out into the cell. For the muscle to relax or return to its original resting position, calcium must be moved back into the sarcoplasmic reticulum by a SERCA pump. Because calcium is being moved against a concentration gradient, this relaxation requires ATP. The SERCA pump lowers calcium levels in the cytosol or cell and when the calcium is taken up again the muscle relaxes. Since muscles are not contracting all the time muscle contraction must be regulated. Regulating the muscles allows frogs to change aspects of locomotive behavior, such as how far a frog is able to jump. Muscle contraction force can be regulated by calcium in three mechanisms: temporal recruitment, in which the firing rate at which individual motor neurons fire is changed; spatial recruitment, in which the number of active motor units is changed; and the length-tension relationship, in which the sarcomere length is changed to generate tension. This study focuses on the force of muscle contraction via temporal and spatial recruitment. In temporal recruitment, the frequency of the action potential is changed, usually increased, so that more calcium is released into the muscle cell. More calcium in the cell results in more tension generated. Another mechanism for the regulation of muscle contraction force is motor unit recruitment, also known as spatial recruitment. A motor unit is comprised of muscle fibers and a motor neuron. There are different amounts of fibers per motor unit. In spatial recruitment the number of active motor units is increased to increase the strength of muscle contraction. More motor units means that more muscle fibers can be stimulated. If only half of the muscle fibers are stimulated, only half the amount of force will be generated. If all of the muscle fibers are stimulated, the maximum amount of force will be generated. We hypothesized that if we increase voltage of an electrical stimulus in a frog muscle we will see an increase in stimulation amplitude and if we increase stimulation frequency at a constant voltage, we will see an increase in force generated by the muscle up until a point where it plateaus. Materials Methods: We used the gastrocnemius muscle of a frog in two experiments. In the first experiment we used a single stimulus, changing the voltage of the stimulus from 0 volts to 2.0 volts. The force of the muscle was recorded. In the second experiment we stimulated the muscle in series of ten using a constant voltage identified in the first experiment. The frequency of the stimuli was progressively increased starting at 0.5 and ending at 30 Hz. Results: Our results showed that as the stimulus increases the amplitude of the muscle twitches increases up until a point where it plateaus. Our results also showed that as the stimulation frequency increases the passive tension of the muscle increase up until a point where it plateaus. Figure 1 shows a normalized graph for the effects of increasing stimulus on the amplitude of muscle twitches in the gastrocnemius muscle of a frog. The x-axis is the recorded stimulus in volts and the y-axis is the amplitude of the twitches (displayed as a percentage of the maximum). The graph shows that as the stimulus increases the amplitude of the muscle twitches increases up until a point where it plateaus. Table 1 shows a set of group data from the first experiment, in which amplitude and times of muscle twitches were generated by stimulus pulses of different amplitudes. As in Figure 1, Table 1 shows that as the stimulus increases the amplitude of the muscle twitches increases up until a point where it plateaus. The contraction time and latency period remains largely unchanged with changing stimulus amplitude. Figure 2 shows a normalized graph for the effects of increasing stimulation frequency on the passive tension in the gastrocnemius muscle of a frog. The x-axis is the stimulus frequency in hertz and the y-axis is the passive tension in the muscle (displayed as a percentage of the maximum). The graph shows that as the stimulation frequency increases the passive tension of the muscle increase up until a point where it plateaus. Table 2 shows a set of group data from the second experiment, in which the strength of muscle contraction was examined during mechanical summation and tetanus. As in Figure 2, Table 2 shows that as the stimulus increases the amplitude of the muscle twitches increases up until a point where it plateaus. The amplitude of the first twitch remains largely unchanged with changing stimulus amplitude. Discussion: The data shows that the direct electrical stimulation produces contraction of the muscle via motor units. A little bit of force is generated when a few of these motor units are being used and a lot of force is generated when lots of motor units are being used. The muscle does not respond to the low stimulus voltages because the electrical stimulus is not directly touching the muscle, it is touching the surrounding connective tissue. The low stimulus voltages are not strong enough to penetrate the tissue. As noted in Figure 1 and Table 1 the amplitude of the muscle response increases with increasing stimulus voltages. This is so because more and more of the muscle mass is stimulated as the voltages increase. At high stimulus voltages, the muscle response reaches maximum amplitude. The muscle response does not continue to increase with increasing stimulus voltages because the muscle is already functioning at the best of its ability. The muscle cells have reached the point where all the troponins are activated by calcium. Releasing more calcium into the cell will not result in any more tension generated, as the system is already working at its maximum capacity. Latency is the interval between stimulus and a response to the stimulus, here meaning muscle contraction. Over this period, the action potential sweeps across the cell membrane of the muscle cell and the sarcoplasmic reticulum releases calcium ions. The muscle fiber does not produce tension during the latent period, because the contraction cycle has yet to begin. The latency period in this study was constant at 0.025 seconds.This result been found by anyone else and it seems does not vary among other species, since it is roughly the same for humans (Hamilton and Osborn 1977). Since contraction amplitude is dependent upon the increases in concentration and persistence of intracellular calcium, the question of why the contraction amplitudes of single twitches are the same is raised. This can be explained because the same amount of calcium is being put in for the same repeated event. As noted in Table 2, the amplitude of the first twitch seems to be constant (value). This can be explained because the muscle is utilizing the same amount of calcium and is thus generating the same amount of force. Tetanus is the complete contraction of a muscle. Tetanus requires high stimulus frequencies. This tells us that the calcium re-uptake by the sarcoplasmic reticulum is slower than the original release. The rate of muscle relaxation is much slower after tetanus than after a single twitch because more calcium needs to be re-taken up and it takes longer to get all the extra added calcium back into the sarcoplasmic reticulum. A study on jumping bullfrogs by Marsh and Roberts reveals two points of interest: first, frogs jump farther than they should, considering only the force their muscles are able to generate. Second, muscles are able to do the most work when they contract slowly, however frog jumping involves a very rapid movement. They explain that by separating the performance of muscular work from the application of mechanical work to the body, a catapult-like mechanism, which works by loading elastic elements into the limbs prior to initiating a jump, overcomes the constraints of skeletal muscle function (Marsh and Roberts 2003). Another study by Aerts and Nauwelaerts (2006) indicates that by taking more small jumps as opposed to fewer larger jumps, frogs can increase their flexibility in movement because they would be able to change direction during the forward movement part jumping. Theoretically this means they would spend less time in the same spot during landing and recovery of the jumping cycle, which makes them more likely to be snatched by a predator. Frogs have physiological mechanisms that have enabled their muscles to generate enough force for jumping and swimming locomotion including changing the frequency of the action potential and increasing the number of active motor units. As mentioned before, frogs are a keystone species, meaning other organisms rely on it and not always directly in a predator-prey relationship. Without frogs, food webs would collapse and lead to the demise of many other species and potentially entire ecosystems. This study is important because it serves as a model for understanding skeletal muscle mechanisms in other organisms including humans.

The Exxon Valdez Oil Spill: News Media Fantasy versus Reality Essay

Abstract: The purpose of this research paper was to investigate the news media’s depiction of the 1989 Exxon Valdez oil spill. The coverage provided by the newspapers was compared to that of scientific journals to access their validity and insight. The reactions the coverage evoked on the public were also studied. The paper specifically addressed the media’s portrayal of the oil company versus that of environmental groups. It was found that the news media did not include the benefits the oil company had had on the people and economy of Alaska. It was also found that up until 1989, many Alaskans were opposed to environmental groups. Next, the paper followed the role the media played on the public’s emotions and subsequent government policy. In addition, the use of exaggerated statistics in the wake of the spill are examined and corrected. Finally, the debate over the recovery of the area is tackled. And while the debate remains open, the apparent discrepancies in data are discussed.       Introduction: On March 27, 1989 the supertanker Exxon Valdez ran ashore in Prince William Sound, Alaska, spilling approximately 11 million gallons of crude oil. The oil soon spread into the waters of south-central Alaska from the sound of Kodiak Island to the Kenai Peninsula (refer to Figure 1 for a map of the area). Almost immediately, news media arrived at the site reporting images of oil-stained beaches and wildlife to the masses. News coverage centered around the environmental devastation which would result from the spill. The coverage, for the most part, reinforced stereotypes of Alaska, as a pristine wilderness and Exxon as a greedy, irresponsible oil company. These images stressed the negative consequences of the spills and ignored ... ...nd, Alaska. The Condor 102 (4), 723-737. Lance, B. K., Irons, D. B., Kendall, S. J., and McDonald, L. L. (2001) An evaluation of marine bird population trends following the Exxon Valdez oil spill, Prine William Sound, Alaska. Marine Pollution Bulletin 42 (4) 298-309. Leo, Roger. â€Å"Spill is a Slipery Subject; Ten Years Later, Exxon Won’t Admit the Disaster Continues.† Worcester Telegram & Gazette [Worester, MA.] 28 March 1999: D12. Leo, Roger. â€Å"Still Paying Price for Exxon Spill; Some Species Continue to Suffer.†Worcester Telegram & Gazette [Worester, MA.] 30 April 2000: D9 Shabecoff, Philip. â€Å"U.S. Asks Exxon for $20 Million to Access Spill Damage in Alaska.†New York Times [New York] 18 January 1990: B4. Wiens, J. A. (1996) Oil, seabirds, and science: the effects of the Exxon Valdez oil spill. BioScience 46 (8) 587-598.

The spread and localization of Buddhism and Islam into Southeast Asia E

The spread of religion first began through contact with neighbouring countries which gradually expand throughout the years. Buddhism and Islam are one of the most widespread religions across Southeast Asian countries like Burma, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Thailand and Vietnam. Trade merchants and imperial support of the religion played as major factors which facilitated and localised the spread of Buddhism and Islam within various countries. However, there were limitations present which hindered the development of each religion in Southeast Asia as introduction of newer religions and changes within imperial power which would have affected their progression to become fully localised pre-1800s. After the death of Buddha around the 5th century, divisions within the religion began to grow due to differences in the interpretation of Buddha’s teaching thus resulted in Theravada and Mahayana Buddhism (Bowker 2007, 140-141). Till this day, Theravada Buddhism persists predominant in Southeast Asia. Theravada Buddhism focuses their beliefs on the personal liberation whilst Mahayana Buddhism regards itself on the teaching of compassion for every living being (Berzin 2010). The spread of Buddhism, mainly Theravada, first began around early 3rd century BCE when Buddhist emissaries were sent to Indonesia and Burma by Indian emperor Asoka (Gosling 2002, 84-85). During and after his reign, his constant advocacy had sustained the faith’s position throughout Southeast Asia, influencing his children to introduce Buddhism into Sri Lanka during the first and second century CE (Gosling 2002, 82) which spread across to Cambodia, Thailand, Laos and Vietnam (Swearer 1997, 90). This was further developed due to the mass influx of Indian merc... ...ry CE when Muslim merchants, accompanied by missionary Sufis, from India and Arabia arrived through the Indian Ocean trade route for business (Johnston 2002, 291). However, it wasn’t until the 13th century when Islam began to spread across Southeast Asia from Sumatra through to Java until reaching Borneo and Philippines in the 16th century (Houben 2003, 153). Trade was not the only purpose indicated from Muslim merchants as Sufis brought about the localization of Islamic organisations for Islamic teachings which would appeal to locals and their rulers for valuable networks (Johnston 2002, 291). This presence of Islam was recorded by Moroccan traveller Marco Polo in the late 13th century which indicated the advancement of Islam localisation where citizens of Perlak, Sumatra and the Pasai king, Sultan Al-Malikus Saleh were already converted as Muslims (Mutalib 2008).