The Fall of the House of Usher free essay sample

The Fall of the House of Usher† is, quite literally, a story about the fall of the House of Usher. The â€Å"House of Usher† can be interpreted to mean either the literal, the House the Usher’s lives in, or it can refer to the bloodline, the House of the Usher’s (insert joke about personally belonging to the House of Godric Gryffindor here). Not only that, but to take it even more literally, when Roderick is attacked at the end of the story, he falls to the ground, which is yet another tie into the title of the story. The House of Usher does fall to the earth after the twins die, however, and that is where the true â€Å"fall† happens, as the entire Usher house – the structure and the bloodline – cease to exist. As the narrator approaches the house, his first glance of the structure is not straight at it, but instead at a puddle which reflects the house upside down. We will write a custom essay sample on The Fall of the House of Usher or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page The symbolism of the reflection is reflected in the way that Roderick and Madeline are twins, but are boy vs. girl, mentally ill vs. physically ill, and dead vs. alive. Upon further inspection of the house, the narrator notes, â€Å"there appeared to be a wild inconsistency between its still perfect adaption of parts and the crumbling condition of the individual stones† (89). The House of Usher has only existed through incest, so this description could be in reference to the fact that from a distance, or as a whole, the Usher family was in fine condition, until you looked closely at the individual members and see the ailments that are crumbling the individual family members. Another feature of the physical House of Usher is it’s claustrophobic feel. This is a representation of the claustrophobia between the twins to be their own person. They are confined to the house, and confined to each other (since they must reproduce in order to continue the blood line). She is confined by her body, through its illness that forces her to lose control of her limbs, and then she is forced into the space of the coffin, which is then stored in an underground tomb. Roderick is confined to the space of his own mind, which is too small in that he can’t escape from his thoughts or the sounds that he thinks he hears. Lastly, the fissure down the center of the house is a representation of the fissure between the brother and sister. The house’s foundation is unstable, as are the brother and sister, and ultimately this separation is what ends the House of Usher, both the family and the house itself. The House is not merely the setting where this story took place, but it played games with us and gave us clues as to who these people are. Each rotting stone was a person and it’s fissure down the middle was a relationship. The enclosed space of the house was the enclosed setting that led to the deaths of the House of Usher. The Fall of the House of Usher free essay sample Madeline of the House of Usher Role-playing games are a great past time for literature enthusiasts. A player sits down, creates a character with quirks and a personality, usually special abilities, and meets with other people who have done the same. They sit at tables, in couches, on porches all around the world. They sit down to hear and participate in a story, a story told by the storyteller. The storyteller creates a scenario, a background, extra characters (NPCs), and certain rules. Once the story begins, control is a relative term. The storyteller knows the story, but the characters are free to move about and unknowingly change the story as they go. In Edgar Allan Poe’s short story, â€Å"The Fall of the House of Usher,† the storyteller and characters interact in a very strange way. The storyteller tries to maintain control and the characters try to free themselves. It is a struggle against two aspects, the oppressor and the oppressed, masculine and feminine. We will write a custom essay sample on The Fall of the House of Usher or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page Madeline Usher, the sole female character in the story, is kept in the background, but holds her own by being the main drive for much of the plot. Roderick Usher, the male descendant of the Usher household, has qualities of the feminine, but introduces a powerfully masculine identity into the house. The line of triumph of the oppressed feminine over the oppressive masculine is blurry and leaves much to be desired. The first key to the house as a story and backdrop is the connection often attributed to Roderick and the house. The idea that the house deteriorates with the last wielder of the Usher name has been argued before. Roderick’s slow descent into madness is marked by cracks in the foundation of the house. This theory holds good merit from textual evidence. The story itself follows that line; Roderick describes the house as having â€Å"an effect which the physique of the gray walls and turrets, and of the dim tarn into which they all looked down, had, at length, brought about upon the morale of his existence† (119). But this is just one influence the characters have over the plot and vice versa. This view of the house and the connection to the family is shaded by a masculine identity. Surely the last male heir of the Usher house must be the cause for the decay, regardless of the feminine Usher remaining. It is easy to label Madeline Usher as a weak character. Not only is her lack of presence in the story noted, but her physical descriptions are that of a weak girl. Roderick explains to the narrator that she suffers from an unknown disease, â€Å"[a] settled apathy, a gradual wasting away of the person, and frequent although transient affections of a partially cataleptical character†¦Ã¢â‚¬ (119). Madeline suffers from an unknown illness and is kept indoors in case she becomes the victim of her own frailty. The narrator sees her only briefly before her burial later in the story, and soon after her appearance, she is confined to her bed. The character of Madeline Usher is subjugated. She is kept in the background. Her family line is given to Roderick, her twin brother, as was the custom at the time. Within the story, she could be representative of other women in the nineteenth century: left in the home with no rights. Madeline can also represent one of the more important aspects of the feminine as a whole, the idea of death and rebirth in her premature burial and subsequent escape from her tomb. Beverly Voloshin makes note of another point of Madeline’s femininity through color association. â€Å"Madeline matches her brother’s pallor, but her special mark is red†¦blood red being the token of both life and death† (14). Not only is she often introduced with the color red, a generally accepted color for the feminine, but her actions in the story speak directly to the idea brought about by that color. Madeline is, essentially, the feminine half of the Usher family. Roderick Usher, Madeline’s twin and the masculine half of the Usher family, is the initial, obvious oppressor. As Leila May explains as historical background in her essay, â€Å"’Sympathies of a Scarcely Intelligible Nature: The Brother-Sister Bond in Poes Fall of the House of Usher’,† the social and political authority over the household was given to the men (389). As far as the outside world is concerned, Roderick is the head of the household, putting him in a legal and social position over his sister. Diane Hoevler makes some very sound arguments for the idea of Roderick as an oppressor in her essay â€Å"The Hidden God and the Abjected Woman in ‘The Fall of the House of Usher’. She points out Poe’s own frustration with women and the idea that Roderick strives for a world, a â€Å"purely masculine universe, a fortress where males engage in discourse without the intrusion of the female in any form –living or dead: ‘Us’ versus ‘her’: ‘Us/her’† (388). Legally, Roderick is the superior half of the la st vestiges of the Usher family. It was Roderick, after all, who invited the male narrator to the house. The narrator explains that the two had been friends before and Roderick had recently sent a letter insisting that he come to the house (Poe 114). It is Roderick’s decision in the story to entomb his deceased sister in the vaults underneath the house before her burial. This burial can be viewed as an attempt by the masculine identity to rid itself of the female identity, Roderick making a final struggle against his sister. However, as Cynthia Jordan argues, â€Å"he is but a character in the story himself, and his actions are at least in part the product of his narrator’s construction† (6). The idea of plot control being in the narrator’s hands puts the narrator in the sole position of masculine oppressor and not just over Madeline Usher. The narrator in â€Å"The Fall of the House of Usher† views, or at least tries to explain, everything from a distanced point-of-view. His logical take on what happens at the house paints a picture with traditionally masculine tones. He also is focused on the masculine half of the Usher twins. His focus is so centered on Roderick that he would as soon dismiss Madeline from his story entirely. Jordan notes this striving towards sole masculinity influence in her essay â€Å"Poe’s Re-Vision†¦Ã¢â‚¬ : â€Å"The narrator’s first encounter with Madeline confirms the conflict between the male storyteller and the lady of the house† (7). His first encounter with Madeline is almost half way through the story. He describes her briefly, almost as a wraith, when Roderick mentions her. â€Å"I regarded her with an utter astonishment not unmingled with dread; and yet I found it impossible to account for such feelings† (Poe 119). His reaction to the feminine aspect of the Usher household is obviously negative, describing his emotions of shock and fear in the face of Roderick’s sister. After this brief mention, he leaves her out of the story once again, citing that she succumbed to her bed after his almost encounter and that he would not see her again alive (120). Jordan notes that this absence of Madeline is an attempt on the narrator’s part to keep Madeline out of the story: â€Å"the narrator uses language covertly to relegate Madeline to a passive position in relation to himself† (7). Roderick, in this case is not the masculine oppressor; the narrator is. The irony of the situation, though, is that in trying to suppress Madeline, the female twin and the object that the narrator prescribes to femininity, he lets that feminine essence flourish. By the end of the story, the narrator is forced to face that he cannot create a solely masculine story. As Raymond Benoit, a voice in Explicator’s long series of essays on â€Å"Usher,† points out, the narrator is forced to face the feminine through the reading of â€Å"Mad Trist† at the end of the story: â€Å"a mad story that parallels what is occurring in the house and reflects and even enables the awakening of the feminine side thought to have been laid to rest in the philosophy and literature of the Enlightenment and by Roderick/narrator† (80). The narrator cannot ignore the strong feminine influence in the house, much as he tries. Perhaps this is because the source of the feminine influence is sitting beside him. Throughout the story, Roderick appears as a romantic and an artist. He reads romance and gothic novels and is emotional to the point of hysteria at times. Beverly Voloshin enters her theory in the series shared with Benoit and others on â€Å"The Fall of the House of Usher† in Explicator. Her theory follows the lines of Roderick being the feminine half of the Usher twins. â€Å"Roderick is associated with the abstract, atemporal, and ideal† (14). These attributes are generally feminine in nature, gentle and imaginative. In a usually feminine role, Roderick’s actions are often reactions to other characters, showing subordination. His madness is spurred by the supposed death of Madeline, an irrational and emotional reaction to an action of another character. Roderick’s death, often attributed with the ultimate fall of the house itself, is a reaction to the return and death of Madeline. His death is a reaction to the death of a feminine character, which gives power to the feminine over the masculine. Poe is known to have sickly seraph types in his stories, but these seemingly weak female characters speak to his fondness for women. Poe’s life was filled with women who were taken away by illness, making them physically weak: his mother, his cousin and wife. But the women in Poe’s life were often the source of his strength, making them spiritually and often mentally strong. The experience of physically weak, spiritually strong women in his life greatly influenced his portrayal of women in his stories and poetry; Anabelle Lee comes to mind. Similarly, Madeline follows the guidelines for Poe’s memory of women. In a strange way, Poe often put these women on pedestals. Madeline’s presence is very rarely in the foreground of Poe’s short story, but the times when she does appear, it is her appearance that changes the mood of the scene. Madeline owns every scene in which she appears. Her actions are catalysts. The character is weak, but Poe puts her in a position of power beyond character; Poe gives Madeline a position of power over the plot. While the ultimate portrayal of Madeline might be a slap in the face against feminists, her role in the story is large enough to create a strong female influence. Poe follows his own guidelines in the character of Madeline Usher. She fits his ideal for true beauty. John H. Timmerman helps lead the way towards viewing Madeline in this light by explaining Poe’s reasoning. He explains Poe’s drive towards creating beauty in his writing, a beauty that he believed could only be achieved through sadness (232). Because of this connection and his past with women, Poe comes to the conclusion that â€Å"the most sad thing, and therefore the most beautiful, is the death of a beautiful woman† (232). Madeline, though pale and sickly, is one of these beautiful women. Her death, then, is a thing of beauty in Poe’s eyes. The concept is not a very enthusiastic one, nor is it useful in citing Poe as an advocate for women, but that he put emphasis on women is a step in the right direction. From his idea that a beautiful woman’s death is indeed the most beautiful occurrence in nature, he spurned the male characters in his stories to help reclaim the feminine within his stories. The male counterparts to these tragic women are the main argument for Cythia Jordan. In her essay Poes Re-Vision: The Recovery of the Second Story,† Jordan argues that Roderick Usher and C. Auguste Dupin are male characters who attempt to bring to light the feminine or â€Å"second† story. While the narrator has ultimate control over the plot of â€Å"The Fall of the House of Usher,† Jordan points out times when Roderick tries to wrestle that control from him and reassert Madeline as a prominent figure in the story. The final scene of â€Å"Usher† is where Roderick gets that victory, â€Å"Madman! I tell you that she now stands without the door! † (130). Jordan explains that this marks a moment in which Roderick takes control of the narrative long enough to call the narrator out on his oppression and to bring Madeline out into the spotlight (11). Roderick proves again that he is not the male oppressor but is instead a supporter if not aspect of the feminine. The question becomes, then, why would Roderick want to bring Madeline to the forefront? The sole reason being that she is his twin is likely not enough. The idea of them being two aspects of the same being, or two sides of the same face is more concrete. But consider that Roderick is an artist, not only placing him in a feminine role, which would be cause enough to help the feminine thrive, but as an artist he must meet that ultimate goal that Poe put forth for himself: to create beauty. If Poe’s characters follow his own guidelines, then, Roderick’s only way to express that which is most beautiful in the world is to bring his beautiful sister’s death to the forefront of the story. Thus, in Roderick’s moment of control over the plot, in revealing the â€Å"second story† of Madeline, he follows those rules of an artist so avidly produced by his own author. The end result is not just Poe’s ideal of beauty, it also gives voice to the silenced feminine within the story –both Madeline’s and possibly Roderick’s own. The connection between Madeline and Roderick as twins is an interesting part of their mixed and almost non-existent gender roles. It has been suggested that their relationship is an incestuous affair, bringing together that mixed-gendered ambiguity into an even more scrambled position. Voloshin and others regard the twin connection, Voloshin looking specifically at the dichotomies apparent within that connection. †¦[T]he Usher twins also represent the duality of culture and nature, or more precisely, that they correspond to many cultural constructions of masculine and feminine, which divide the genders along the axis of culture and nature† (14). The fact that Poe decided to use twins pushes the idea that such dichotomies exist. Roderick, similar to Madeline, is afflicted with an ailment, on e that is â€Å"a constitutional and a family evil, and one for which he despaired to find a remedy –a mere nervous affection† (118). This nervous condition is displayed throughout the story in his outbursts and personality shifts. It is suggested that the ailment, being a family curse, is close to if not the same as Madeline’s. Madeline, however, shows strength in that she did not succumb to the illness before the narrator arrives. Madeline is given credit for being the stronger of the two, a masculine trait. The dichotomy does not fit what society would expect from gender roles. The male is the feminine and the female is the masculine. It has been suggested that Roderick and Madeline are the same person, or aspects of the same person. Hoeveler plays with this idea in her essay on the â€Å"Abjected Woman. She discusses the idea that Madeline is in fact the feminine half of Roderick that has escaped to become an alter-ego (391). Not only would physical evidence within the text dispute that idea –the fact that the narrator sees Madeline during a conversation with Roderick –but why, then, would Roderick assume so many feminine traits of his own? And why would Madeline seem to uphold those t raits generally accepted as masculine? The rest of the essay is another key: the idea of dualities in religion, the goddess and the god. The duality returns to the twin idea, and the twin concept requires a semblance of balance. If Roderick is the feminine role, Madeline must step in to play the role of the masculine. Traditionally, in feminist readings, the masculine identity can be discovered by its subjugation and subordination of the feminine identity. Madeline is buried in the vault, making her symbolically subordinated, but in the end, it is she who buries Roderick: â€Å"†¦with a low moaning cry, fell heavily upon the person of her brother, and in her violent and now final death-agonies, bore him to the floor a corpse, and a victim to the terrors he had anticipated† (Poe 131). The first item of note is the fact that Roderick’s name is not mentioned once in his death scene. Roderick is placed in the passive part of the sentence, â€Å"upon the person of her brother,† rather than given an active death. His name is not mentioned, instead he is listed as the brother of Madeline. He is also noted as being a victim, a position often associated with the feminine. Here, Roderick is not only stripped of identity of his own, but is made the passive victim of a violent force against him. The idea of Madeline as a violent or at least controlling force over Roderick is used in the somewhat popular vampire theory. Lyle Kendall discusses this theory and cites examples from the text to help prove it. He suggests that Roderick asks the narrator to come to the house to aid him in the destruction of his oppressor, the vampire, Madeline (451). J. O. Bailey goes into more depth, citing the history and mythology behind the vampire theory. He, however, notes that both of the twins seem to exhibit traits of one who has been attacked by a vampire, but that Madeline was the one whose body is inhabited by a vampiric entity (Bailey 458). Vampires in stories have been male and female –there is no prescription for the sex of these mythological creatures. The idea of the vampire, though, of one who comes and sucks the life out of others fits the mold for a control aspect. The masculine identity is the controlling identity, and if Madeline is indeed a vampire, then she becomes that controlling identity; Madeline becomes the oppressor and Roderick the oppressed. Another supposedly masculine trait is the sense of structure and order. Robinson brings the dichotomy of order/disorder into play in his formalist reading of the short story in his essay â€Å"Order and Sentience in ‘The Fall of the House of Usher’. † Robinson writes, â€Å"[t]he progress of the story sees Usher, his house, and his sister Madeline changing from an organized to a disorganized state, until finally all sink together† (69). Robinson also brings to light the notion that Madeline’s physical senses dim through the story while Usher’s heighten (75). Roderick becomes more sensitive where his sister becomes less so. Their traits become intermingled, masculine and feminine twisting their positions to the opposite sex until finally it all comes back together into a union. The final union between the masculine and the feminine is the destruction of the house, according to Robinson, when the house and the story fall into a state of disorganization. The final scene in â€Å"The Fall of the House of Usher† seems to be a culmination of all that is feminine within the work. Roderick sits and listens to his favorite romantic story, â€Å"Mad Trist,† which brings the feminine back into the plot. During this reading, Roderick comes into a position to speak against the narrator, for the narrator, when he calls him a â€Å"madman,† and reveals Madeline standing outside the door. When Madeline appears for her final scene, her coup de grace, she is in her burial shroud with blood on her, a symbol of rebirth. The walking symbol of the feminine falls upon Usher, who without a fight, falls to the ground, and the two die. The narrator flees the fall of the house of Usher, and watches as the house behind him is mysteriously destroyed. The story comes together, finally, with a seeming grand finale of femininity. Symbols, romanticism, disorganization, all of those ideals that have been attributed to feminism culminate. But looking back once again on Roderick’s death, there is the passivity. Madeline, in the midst of this fantastic moment of feminine symbolism, takes on the role of a masculine identity, pressing Roderick beneath her and putting him into a passive state. Are the symbols enough for this story to triumph over masculine influence? Or has the narrator put his foot down on the final scene to ensure that some semblance of masculine oppressiveness remained in the story? Regardless of masculine or feminine traits, at the end of the story, as the world of the narrator collapses into romantic idealism, it is the woman, the female half of the Usher family, that finally oppresses the man. Madeline triumphs, but only when put into a masculine gender role. Leo Spitzer, author of â€Å"A Reinterpretation of ‘The Fall of the House of Usher’,† also notes the near necessity for the two to die as one. He first shines light on the importance of Madeline, citing her as a deuteragonist and pointing out the eerie timing of her appearances, and he goes on to say that â€Å"Roderick and Madeline, twins chained to each other by incestuous love, suffering separately but dying together, represent the male and the female principle in that decaying family whose members, by the law of sterility and destruction which rules them, must exterminate each other† (352). They do destroy one another at the end, leaving the narrator to escape. And, as Jordan points out, the narrator gets the last word, â€Å"for his final act of ‘sentencing’ is to dispatch Madeline and her too-familiar twin into the ‘silent tarn,’ out of mind and out of language one last time† (12). Despite this triumphant climax for Madeline and Roderick, the narrator clings tightly to his story. The narrator, or storyteller, in â€Å"The Fall of the House of Usher† fights for control over the characters within the story, both female and feminine. He takes on, ultimately, the role of masculinity. Whether, within the house, Madeline was oppressed or Roderick was matters very little –their aspects were in sync with on another and bound to come together eventually. But their ultimate victory and freedom from the masculine narrator is achieved only in their deaths, and the storyteller condemns the last vestiges of the feminine. In this story at least, the victory of femininity is short-lived and ultimately futile. Works Cited Bailey, J. O. What Happens in the Fall of the House of Usher? American Literature: A Journal of Literary History, Criticism, and Bibliography 35. (1964): 445-66. Benoit, Raymond. Poes the Fall of the House of Usher. Explicator 58. 2 (2000): 79-81. Hoeveler, Diane Long. The Hidden God and the Abjected Woman in the Fall of the House of Usher. Studies in Short Fiction 29. 3 (1992): 385-95. Jordan, Cynthia S. Poes Re-Vision: The Recovery of the Second Story. American Literature: A Journal of Literary History, Criticism, and Bibliography 59. 1 (1987): 1-19. Kendall, Lyle H. ,Jr. The Vampire Motif in the Fall of the House of Usher. College English 24. 6 (1963): 450-3. May, Leila S. Sympathies of a Scarcely Intelligible Nature: The Brother-Sister Bond in Poes Fall of the House of Usher. Studies in Short Fiction 30. 3 (1993): 387-96. Robinson, E. Arthur. Order and Sentience in the Fall of the House of Usher. PMLA 76. 1 (1961): 68-81. . Spitzer, Leo. A Reinterpretation of the Fall of the House of Usher. Comparative Literature 4. 4 (1952): 351-63. . Timmerman, John H. House of Mirrors: Edgar Allan Poes the Fall of the House of Usher. Papers on Language and Literature: A Journal for Scholars and Critics of Language and Literature 39. (2003): 227-44. Voloshin, Beverly R. Poes the Fall of the House of Usher. Explicator 46. 3 (1988): 13-5. Works Referenced Obuchowski, Peter. Unity of Effect in Poes the Fall of the House of Usher. Studies in Short Fiction 12 (1975): 407-12. . Peeples, Scott. Poes Constructiveness and the Fall of the House of Usher. The Cambridge Companion to Edgar Allan Poe. Ed. Kevin J. Hayes. Cambridge, England: Cambridge UP, 2002. 178-190. Stein, William Bysshe. The Twin Motif in the Fall of the House of Usher. Modern Language Notes 75. 2 (1960): 109-11. .

Differences Between Après vs. Derrière and Avant vs. Devant

Differences Between Aprà ¨s vs. Derrià ¨re and Avant vs. Devant Aprà ¨s and Avant convey a notion of time or space. Aprà ¨s refers to doing something after while Avant refers to doing something before. Je le retrouve aprà ¨s/avant le dà ©jeunerIll meet up with him after/before lunch Aprà ¨s/avant le bois, il y a un cheminAfter/before the wood, there is a path Derriere and Devant convey a notion of precise space. Derrier refers to being behind something, or someone and Devant refers to being in front of something or someone. La petite fille est cachà ©e derrià ¨re larbreThe young girl is hidden behind the tree Pour la photo, comme tu es plus petite, va devant Camille.For the picture, since you are smaller, go in front of Camille.   Derrià ¨re le bois, il y a un cheminBehind the wood, there is a path Aprà ¨s and Derrià ¨re Are Not Interchangeable So, what is the difference between the two sentences aprà ¨s le bois, il y a un chemin and derrià ¨re le bois, il y a un chemin? They both give a piece of space-related information, but one is more precise, just like in English. Same exact logic applies to avant versus devant. Aprà ¨s Que Indicative / Avant Que Subjunctive A common mistake is Aprà ¨s que plus a subjunctive. Its a very common mistake, even among French people, because honestly, the indicative sounds terrible there. Avant que is followed by the subjunctive  because we dont yet know if the action is going to become a reality. With Aprà ¨s que, the action has taken place already: there is no doubt left, hence no need for the subjunctive. Aprà ¨s que subjunctive sounds so bad to a French ear that we will do our best to use a noun instead of a verb after. You can use the same trick with avant que et avoid using a subjunctive. Je dois commencer aprà ¨s quil part. (or aprà ¨s son dà ©part)I must start after he leaves (or after his departure). Je dois commencer avant quil parte (or avant son dà ©part).I must start before he leaves (or before his departure) By the way, even if we use le derrià ¨re in French (although this is extremely polite, just like saying the behind in English), French people use the preposition derrià ¨re without thinking about it at all. Just like in English you use behind without thinking about that part of the anatomy.

Aral Sea Essays

Aral Sea Essays Aral Sea Essay Aral Sea Essay Struggle and conflicts for water among people are unavoidable. Situation is no different in developed and developing countries. Developed countries like Belgium, Great Britain, Poland, Singapore, and North America are already feeling water stress. It becomes difficult for rivers and groundwater resources in UK to satisfy the augmented water demands of summer heat. Similarly in USA, agricultural requirements are fighting for their share with urban needs of water. Different states in India are fighting for their share of water bodies. Chinese farmers are sacrificing their water needs to feed urban demands of cities. Less water for irrigation means less food grains production and eventually a global food crisis. Shared water resources among countries will add to this fight. For instance Africa, where the conditions are already worse, will see different countries fighting for the Nile, Zambezi, Niger, and Volta river basins to meet their water needs. Similarly Aral Sea Basin for Central Asia and rivers like Amu Darya and Syr Darya will be a subject of conflict among Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan, Kazakstan, Kyrgyzstan, and Tajikistan. The US and Mexico also share cold space over the Colorado River (Hinrichsen, Robey and Upadhyay â€Å"Solutions for a Water-Short World†; Ch. 3. 3 ). Pollution has been the biggest enemy of rivers, lakes and other freshwater resources. Many rivers and lakes today are nothing more than garbage dumps. Industries discard their toxic chemical wastes in the water resources. Use of toxic chemicals like fertilizers and pesticides in agriculture is polluting ground water resources. People will use 70% of surface freshwater available in rivers and lakes by 2025 which at present is 54%. This will disturb the whole balance of nature and other aquatic ecosystems and their inhabitants. Ecosystems like wetlands are of enormous importance. They help human beings in different ways serving as flood regulators, waste filtration systems and natural flora and fauna habitats. Mismanagement of water resources has led to the extinction of numerous species of invaluable freshwater fish. Damage done is irreversible. Trees are vital for water conservation as they replenish groundwater, protect soil erosion and balance the hydrological cycle. Growing population and industrialization is eating away forests at an alarming rate adding to the problems (Hinrichsen, Robey and Upadhyay â€Å"Solutions for a Water-Short World†; ch. 4). Millions of people are dying around the world due to the unavailability of clean and safe water for their daily requirements. Situation is more disappointing in developing countries where major diseases and deaths occur because of water related diseases. Water borne diseases are caused from contaminated water. Unclean water for drinking and not enough water for sanitation give rise to water borne diseases like cholera, typhoid, shigella, polio, meningitis, and hepatitis A and E claiming millions of lives every year. Disposal of human and animal wastes in freshwater resources infects the water and hence leads to the spread of diseases. Industrial and agricultural chemical wastes in water can lead to diseases like cancer. Authorities should take steps to provide clean water for drinking, cooking and personal hygiene. Provision of proper sanitation facilities is also very important for appropriate waste disposal. Another set of diseases is called water based diseases spread by flukes, tapeworms, roundworms and tissue nematodes that live in contaminated water. Diseases like guinea worm (dracunculiasis), paragonimiasis, clonorchiasis, and schistosomiasis (bilharzia) fall under this category. These diseases are more common in areas near Dams. Keeping a distance from unhygienic water and food can help prevent thee diseases from spreading. Water-related vector diseases are spread by mosquitoes, tsetse flies and other insects that carry infections. These carriers live in foul and unclean water and cause diseases like malaria, yellow fever, dengue fever, sleeping sickness, and filariasis. Using pesticides to kill these insects and wiping out their breeding grounds like dirty and stagnant water helps preventing these diseases. Trachoma, leprosy, tuberculosis, whooping cough, tetanus, and diphtheria are the diseases that spread due to insufficient water for maintaining personal hygiene. These can be prevented by providing enough water for sanitation (Hinrichsen, Robey and Upadhyay â€Å"Solutions for a Water-Short World†; ch. 5). Water conservation and proper use is very important for ensuring adequate availability of water to everyone on this earth including flora and fauna. Every area needs improvement and water management. Water used for irrigation in agriculture needs foremost attention. A lot of water is wasted while reaching crops through irrigation systems. Some of it gets recovered as groundwater but majority of it gets contaminated by chemicals. On one side inadequate water for irrigation limits land use and crop yield while on the other side excess of water in the fields can lead to water logging and salinization and hence destruction of land and crops. Irrigation techniques like drip irrigation and low-energy precision application (LEPA) can improve irrigation efficiency considerably. Drip irrigation lowers the wastage of water and is getting widely adopted. LEPA is an efficient form of sprinkler system leading to water conservation and increased food production. Water harvesting by collecting water in rainy season and using in dry season is also an attractive option for poor countries. Treated urban wastewater can also be used for irrigation. Israel is famous for its urban wastewater reuse for agriculture purpose. Stopping deforestation and planting more and more trees also helps in water conservation (Hinrichsen, Robey and Upadhyay â€Å"Solutions for a Water-Short World†; ch. 6). Water in industries must be recycled and used again and again to save precious natural resource. Many industries employ these techniques to conserve water. Chemicals, iron and steel, and pulp and paper are some of the industries that must pay attention to their water usage and adopt water conservation techniques. In household, people must save water and use it sensibly. We will have to pay the price of wasting water uselessly when in excess sooner or later. Only needed quantity of water must be used. Municipal corporations must ensure that their water transit systems are efficient enough not to waste water and maximum share must reach consumers. Leakage from pipes and illegal tapping must be checked. Laws to prevent stealing and wastage of water must be formulated by the authorities (Hinrichsen, Robey and Upadhyay â€Å"Solutions for a Water-Short World†; ch. 6. 2). Population growth is the biggest challenge to be dealt with for saving water. Growing population at unregulated rates is a major problem especially in developing countries that already face water scarcity. It is very important for people to adopt family planning measures to keep a check on the rising population. Authorities must also educate people and spread awareness about the harms of unregulated births. They must inform people about the family planning measures and offer every kind of medical and financial help to achieve this objective (Hinrichsen, Robey and Upadhyay â€Å"Solutions for a Water-Short World†; ch. 6. 5). Techniques like pressurization of seawater, filtration via carbon nanotubes, and reverse osmosis can be used for desalinization of water to add to fresh water. Presently these treatments are very expensive. Promotion of vegetarian eating habits and saltwater agriculture on coastlines is needed (â€Å"Water†). Efforts are required on international, national and regional levels for water conservation. Countries must formulate policies and must support each other’s initiatives to create a better living place. Money and resources are essential and developed countries must support developing countries (Hinrichsen, Robey and Upadhyay â€Å"Solutions for a Water-Short World†; ch. 7). Save water! Its precious! Hinrichsen, D. , Robey, B. , and Upadhyay, U. D. â€Å"Solutions for a Water-Short World†. Population Reports, Series M, No. 14. Baltimore, Johns Hopkins School of Public Health, Population Information Program, December 1997. November 23, 2008 infoforhealth. org/pr/m14/m14chap1. shtml#top â€Å"Water†. millennium-project. org. World Federation of UN Associations. November 23, 2008 millennium-project. org/millennium/Global_Challenges/chall-02. html

Teaching Personal Space to Children With Disabilities

Teaching Personal Space to Children With Disabilities   Children with disabilities, especially children with Autism Spectrum Disorders, have difficulty understanding and appropriately using personal space.  Its importance is significant since many of these young people when they reach adolescence, become particularly vulnerable to assault or predation because they are unaware of the social and emotional boundaries that are important in the general public.   Deep Pressure Some Children with ASD are what we call deep pressure, and they seek as much sensory input as they can get.  They will throw their arms around not only significant adults in their lives but sometimes to complete strangers.  I worked 5 years ago as a volunteer at a camp at Torino Ranch, maintained by the Torino Foundation.  Ã‚  When my camper came off the bus he threw his arms around me (we had never met,) and I ticked off deep pressure kid, which led to four days of success.  I used that sensory need to keep him calm and appropriate.  Still, these students need to learn appropriate interaction.   The Science of Personal Space Proximics, or the science of personal space, explores how we as humans and as social and ethnic groups use the space around us.  Research has found that in a typical person the amygdala responds negatively to the invasion of personal space.  Research has not been definitive on the effect of population density on the size of personal space, as reported by anthropologists, but this writer has experienced it.  In Paris, in 1985, I attended a concert at the Place de Concord.  There were somewhere in the range of 50 to 60 thousand people there.  Someone started to push at the outside (Word was out that they were thugs [clouchards].)  Amazingly, after several minutes of chanting Assis! Assis! (sit down) we sat down.  Probably a couple of thousand people.  I looked at an American Friend and said: In America, we would have had a fist fight. This, of course, is why its important for special education students to understand personal space.  Students with autism may resist everyone entering their personal space, but all too often their amygdala is not firing when someone comes into their space, and we know they cant understand another persons desire for personal space.   There are three things needed to help them learn this: A metaphor that can help them understand personal space.Modeling to show how we use personal space andExplicit instruction in the use of personal space.   The Metaphor: The Magic Bubble Typical children and typical human beings are able to write their own meta-narrative, the story of their life.  Face it, when a woman gets married she often has a lifetime of plans dancing in her head about the perfect wedding (or her mothers dream.)  Children with disabilities, especially children with autism spectrum disorders, are unable to write those meta-narratives.  That is why Social Stories (TM) or Social Narratives (my name) are so powerful.  They use visual images, a story and often the childs own name.  I will be changing the name in the original document for the children I will use it with. I created the social narrative, Jeffies Magic Bubble, to support students with autism spectrum disorders.  It uses the metaphor a magic bubble to define the invisible space around each of us that is also called personal space.  Children with disabilities love to play with bubbles, so using it as a metaphor will provide a visible understanding of what that space is like.   Modeling Once the model is established by reading the book, make a game of magic bubbles.  Have children spin and identify the edge of their bubbles (arms length is a good compromise between intimate and familiar personal space.) Practice welcoming others into their magic bubbles by putting hands out and greeting others with a handshake. Hi, Im Jeffie.  Nice to meet you.   Make a game of Magical Bubbles by giving students clickers and having others come as close as they can without stepping inside another childs personal bubble.  The student in their Magic Bubble will click when they think the other student or students enter their bubble. Explicit Instruction Read the book Jeffies Magic Bubble aloud as a group.  If students need individual instruction (so they are better at paying attention to personal space) you will want to read it to those students over and over again.   After reading each page, have students practice:  when you get to crossing arms and hands on hips, have them practice.  When you read about Jeffie saying NO!  practice saying NO!  Practice asking friends for a hug.   Be sure that you recognize students who respect each others personal space.  You might want each child to have a magic bubble chart.  Hand out stickers or stars for each time you catch them asking to enter another childs space, or asking another student politely to move outside of their personal space.

Burke's Distinction and Public Representation Article

Burke's Distinction and Public Representation - Article Example Although public opinion is downplayed in this relationship, it certainly has its place in terms of public representation simply because the electorate must feel placated. The primary role of a public representative is, however, to understand the difference between opinion and interest, and to legislate with the best interests of the people in mind. Public representatives must work to find a balance between the focus of opinion and interest. Edmund Burke described the mentality of human society as being based on two basic principles: the people's interests and the people's opinions. These have been the foundation of Burke's Distinction, a theoretical framework of behaviour that has been used to study economics and politics as they pertain to public will and necessity. Burke's Distinction refers to the distinct forces of both interest and opinion, and describes how these forces relate to one another in terms of human character and motivation (Gargarella, 2001, 13). Burke's reference to people's interests is his idea that political or economic change will come as a result of successful government that understands the basic difference between whim and necessity. ... existence and unrestricted by conscious efforts, public interest has always been and will always remain fundamentally the same in that it must be addressed for survival purposes (Stanlis, 1958, 179). Public interest, in Burke's view, is therefore distinguished from public opinion because of its almost autonomous status (Hoffman et al, 1956, 177). Whether Burke's Distinction is called upon to analyse politics or economics, the force of public interest is always the scientific factor involved in the analysis. This is important because proper scientific breakdown can show how public interest is different from public opinion quickly and easily; although often the motivations behind the two are the same, Burke's Distinction shows which issues demand the attention of a governing body and which may simply be trendy at the time. Public opinion subsequently can be used to represent not only the popular opinion of a community but often the result of mass misinformation. According to Burke, popular opinion is very often cultivated from small truths which are stretched and skewed to an unrecognisable state upon which people then begin to make judgements (Somerset and Burke, 1957, 89). This can relate to international affairs, internal issues, economy, political systems themselves and virtually any facet of public or private life. Burke doesn't necessarily suggest that group mentality is fundamentally different than individual mentality; he simply points out that what can in one person's mind be an issue worth gathering more information about becomes an escalated, un-researched issue in the hands of an entire society at once. While public representatives need to always keep an eye on public opinion (after all, public opinion equates to the outcome of an election)

The realists vs. formalists approach to filming Essay

The realists vs. formalists approach to filming - Essay Example Supporters of the realist film theory such as Kracauer, S have been very detrimental to the thrilling form of entertainment utterly diluting its aesthetic qualities as far as its artistic composition is concerned. Those supporting the earlier film theories over the contemporary ones argue that the early theorists were very much concerned with proving cinemas artistic potentialities while the later theorists, who are less defensive and less elitist, take film status for granted. This paper will present a comparison between the modern and the ancient films with a favour on the modern films over the earlier ones. Kracauer argues that the contemporary films do not have the same taste as the former ones. To him this has been brought about by the conditions in which the contemporary films are shot, that is, the use of the cameras in shooting films and the variations in the film stock that have actually affected the way films look . In turn, these animations associated with new films eventu ally affect the film viewers’ ability to come into proper terms with the reality displayed in the film â€Å"edifying pieces of art should insist on the value of illusion as a more or less necessary pathway to truth. The Romantics sought to overcome the dichotomy between appearance and reality with a symbol whose appearance takes on a mysterious depth, a schoner Schein or ‘beautiful semblance’† (Kracauer 97). The reality that is supposed to form the major display in films therefore is being eroded over time due to the introduction of the modern changes that to him are a deviation from the original intention of the film industry. Kracauer further blames all this on the use of the digital technology when he argues that â€Å"technological applications such as computer enhancement, imaging, and editing that has actually diminished the reality in the real film plays† (Kracauer 103). On the other hand, other emerging scholars have argued in support of th e contemporary filming for instance, it is true when Andrew insists that early films are not uniform as ideological variations and national characterization formed the major themes in these films with the attention being focused on the spectator. In support for the modern times films, it is very important to note the two salient features that are common in the modern films and which were lacking in the earlier ones. These are the sound system and the technological advances that have enabled performers to camouflage easily into reality. The first movies that were made by the Edison Company actually had no sounds as well as very poor quality pictures. For this, most of the early films focused on the basic things such as crowds making noise, babies crying among others. It is very true that the sound accompaniment in a movie helps in keeping the viewer glued in the actions being performed in the movie. Thus, the sound combination associated with modern filming in a way gives the movie a third dimension such that the viewer is able to relate easily the events taking place in the film with the wordings. Sometimes, the music played in the movie helps in revealing the occurrences in the following scene hence keeping the viewer informed in prior. This always motivates the viewer by capturing his or her attention and therefore enhancing their concentration. Films are meant to function in such a way that they keep the audience completely engrossed in the performance that is certainly achieved by the modern films. Besides the above song enhancements, songs played in a film acts as a parallel form of entertainment for the viewer. At some point, the viewers are swallowed up in the film that they find themselves

The Xbox Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

The Xbox - Essay Example As everyone knows by now, Nintendo was the company that pioneered the cutting edge gaming consoles that we know of today. With its trendsetting Nintendo Family console systems, they redefined the way that we play video games via its motion sensor game system, the Wii. However, the Wii has recently fallen to the roadside as stiffer competition from the Sony Playstation and Microsoft Xbox began to offer better graphics, game play, and game titles. The Wii is perfect for entry level gamers but could prove to be a bore to the more serious game players. That is why game console experts do not recommend the Wii (Bakalar â€Å"Which Game Console Should You Buy?†) to: Those who are looking for a game console that doubles as an all-purpose entertainment hub, want state-of-the-art HD graphics, enjoy a robust online community, and/or those who prefer a wide selection of adult-targeted titles. In other words, you can get your feet wet in the Wii but dont expect to take a serious swim in it. Specially since the Wii has already been retired by Nintendo in favor of the newer but Wii U which has yet to catch on with the gaming market. The second serious motion gaming contender is the Playstation Move. Although its motion wand is nothing that should leave the Wii shaking in its wake, it does offer better graphics capabilities and game play than the pioneering console. Cnet Australia ranked this particular console as one of those destined to gather dust bunnies on your entertainment shelf due the limited motion gaming titles and problematic motion sensing system that results in a more complicated gaming system because: .. it also requires a camera to be installed near the TV, which wont actually be used for most PS3 games. It requires a few feet of distance to use, but most games only register the controllers motion, not yours... (Stein &Ackerman â€Å"Xbox 360 Kinect vs. PlayStation Move vs. Nintendo Wii Remote

Revenue Recognition Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Revenue Recognition - Assignment Example International Financial Reporting Standards don’t have many requirements on revenue recognition. IAS 18 and IAS 11 are international accounting standards that focus on revenue and construction contracts respectively. The standards are difficult to understand and application in a situation. They provide minimal guidance concerning revenue recognition used for multiple arrangements. FASB and IASB has set new accounting rules designed to assist converge global standards. The current and proposed standards will change how companies in the United States recognize their revenue on their financial and statements (http://www.fasb.org/intl/convergence_iasb.shtml). The proposed standards will have some different effects on various companies. The effects may include changes in the amount of deliverables of the contract. The standards will affect the manner in which revenue is allocated to different deliverables. These changes affect key financial measures for companies in the United States (http://www.ifrs.org/News/Press-Releases/Pages/leases-exposure-draft-August-2010.asp). Companies in the software’s industry have specific guidance that enables them to run efficiently. Proposed standards provide software’s companies with an opportunity to develop their company with regard to the management and control of their financial statements. Companies will find it hard to market their products in a sensible manner to the company and get a positive reflection in the financial statements (http://proleasesoftware.com/fasb-lease-accounting). Financial Accounting Standards Board in conjunction with IASB is going to develop new accounting standards on the recognition of revenue from contracts. They are attempting to converge financial standards to create a single standard that will apply across various industries. The action will improve revenue recognition rules and replace industry specific practices that are difficult to sustain. The main aim of

IAS 36 and the Framework for the preperation and presentation of Essay

IAS 36 and the Framework for the preperation and presentation of financial statements - Essay Example The carrying amount can be defined as the amount at which an asset is recognized in the balance sheet less accumulated depreciation and accumulated impairment losses. The recovery amount can be defined as the higher of an assets fair value less costs to sell (usually called net sales) and its value in use (homepage)2. The International Accounting Standards Board has prescribed the identification and conditions for assets to be impaired. Every reporting date at the end of an accounting period every organisation applying the rules of the IFRS should test if any asset is impaired. If any such asset shows that it is impaired then the organisation shall estimate the recovery amount of such asset. Other conditions attach to this test includes the test of for ``an intangible asset with an indefinite useful life or an intangible asset not yet available for use for impairment annually by comparing its carrying amount with its recoverable amount. This impairment test may be performed at any ti me during an annual period, provided it is performed at the same time every year. Different intangible assets may be tested for impairment at different times. However, if such an intangible asset was initially recognized during the current annual period, that intangible asset shall be tested for impairment before the end of the current annual period, test goodwill acquired in a business combination for impairment annually in accordance with paragraphs 80-99 ´Ã‚ ´3 (though the guidance on how to measure goodwill impairment should be included in Section 27, rather than referring to paragraphs 80-99 of IAS 36 Impairment of Assets)4. The IASB also add to the above rule that if an asset may be impaired by its recoverable amount should be estimated for the individual asset otherwise an organisation should determine the recoverable amount of the cash generating unit to the group where the asset belongs (the asset’s cash-generating unit)5. The measurement of the asset’s recovery amount

Animal rights Essay Example for Free

Animal rights Essay Utilitarianism is concerned with happiness, and utilitarians accept the idea that value is universal so utilitarians believe that the intrinsic value of happiness it is unaffected by the identity of the being in which it is felt. Thus each counts for one, and none for more than one and my own interests cannot count for more, simply because they are my own, than the interests of others. Utilitarians support equality by the equal consideration of interests they reject any arbitrary distinctions as to who is worthy of concern and who isnt. This means that we reject egoism, racism, sexism, speciesism, and other forms of unfair discrimination. It does not mean that we deny that there are differences between individuals or between groups of individuals (some individuals are cleverer, taller, stronger, more emotional etc than others), just that there is no logically compelling reason for assuming that a difference in ability justifies any difference in the consideration we give to their interests. Utilitarians believe that while happiness, pleasure, joy, satisfaction, ecstasy and so-on are not synonyms, they do all represent positively intrinsically valuable feelings; and that the value they represent is of a similar kind, and so is convertible or equivalent (in some proportion). Pain, suffering, unhappiness, agony etc are all regarded similarly that the disvalue they represent is convertible, not only with that of the other negative feelings, but with the positive feelings too. This means, for example, that a utilitarian might believe that it is worthwhile to endure a certain amount of suffering now, if it ensures a greater amount of happiness later. In classical utilitarianism, happiness is regarded as positively valuable, and unhappiness (pain, suffering etc) is regarded is negatively valuable. Negative utilitarianism denies the positive aspect it denies that happiness is intrinsically valuable. By negative utilitarianism, the only goal (the only thing which is seen as good) is the reduction of suffering. Regular utilitarians and negative utilitarians agree on some issues, and disagree on others. A standard disagreement is illustrated by the fact that a negative utilitarian would believe that, if it were possible to exterminate all life in the universe instantly and painlessly and permanently, it would be correct and ethically required that we do so (in order to prevent any future suffering). A classical utilitarian might decide either way, depending on their estimation of the relative amounts of future suffering and happiness.

The Virgin Group An insight into the organizational structure and culture

The Virgin Group An insight into the organizational structure and culture Introduction The Virgin Group of companies is one of the largest business organizations in the world. Founded by Richard Branson, the Virgin Group has established itself into many diverse facets of the business industry. This paper analyzes the organizational structure and culture of the Virgin Group and how it has helped this organization attain such success in many diverse industries. Much of the culture of the Virgin Group is influenced by the personal beliefs and philosophies of its founder, Richard Branson, and is one of the reasons for the organizations success. Branson highly values all of his employees and takes personal responsibility to ensure that his beliefs are instilled among all of them. Branson has created a decentralized structure in the organization by giving his employees the authority to take decisions thereby reducing bureaucracy. Employees are encouraged to not always follow rational procedures and instead think on their own. This paper will first briefly give an overview of the Virgin Group of companies and its history and development. The organizational structure and culture of the Virgin Group will help the reader understand the organizations processes and business practices and how the values and belief system of its founder has shaped its structure and culture. In addition, the reader will learn how the Virgin Group has established itself as a successful organization based on its structure and culture. The paper will apply some of the theories and concepts from the course textbook to the Virgin Group which will help to understand the working of this organization better. In conclusion, this paper hopes to emphasize the Virgin Groups overall journey through the years and the role that its structure and culture has played in its success. About the Virgin Group The Virgin Group is one of the most successful business empires today. This organization has established itself in diverse industries including mobile telephony, retail, music, financial services, travel, and many more. Virgin has ruled the British market and has expanded worldwide into other regions like North America, Asia, Africa and Australia. Starting out as a simple mail-order record retailer in 1970, Virgin has grown into one of the most successful business empires in the world. The Virgin Group has established more than 300 companies, employing around 50000 people in 30 countries. Its global revenues in 2009 exceeded US$18 billion. (Virgin, n.d.) The majority of the Virgin Groups success has been credited to the founder and CEO of Virgin, Richard Branson. Bransons beliefs and philosophies are deeply rooted in the corporate culture of the Virgin Group. This has helped the Virgin Group to flourish in todays competitive business world. History and Development Richard Branson is the founder of the Virgin Group of companies. When he was a student at Stowe, he published a magazine called Student. The magazine was a success and it encouraged Branson to leave school and try his hand at new business ventures. His first target was mail-order records. He found that by putting a single advertisement in an issue of Student magazine, he was able to establish a thriving business with almost no up-front investment and no working capital. The name Virgin was suggested by one of his associates who saw the name as proclaiming their commercial innocence, while possessing some novelty and modest shock-value. In 1971 Branson opened his first retail store on Londons Oxford Street. Virgin then expanded into the recording industry and the result was the Virgin record label. By 1983, the Virgin Group was earning profits of 2 million pounds on total revenues of just under 50 million pounds. (Grant, 2008) Gradually Branson expanded into other ventures. The Organizational Structure Many assume the Virgin Group to be a multinational, but such is not the case. Each of the 300 odd companies of the Virgin Group operates separately and Branson serves as shareholder, chairman, and public relations supremo. Most of them are operating companies that own assets, employ people, and offer goods and services. These operating companies are owned and controlled by about 20 holding companies. The Virgin Group has a very complex structure. It has been termed both as a brand franchising operation as well as a keiretsu. (Grant, 2008) However, based on its structure, the Virgin Group can be safely termed as an organization with a keiretsu structure. A keiretsu is a group of organizations, each of which owns shares in the other organizations in the group, and all of which work together to further the groups interests. (Jones, Mills, Weatherbee, Mills, 2006) Furthermore, such a large organization with a complex structure needs to be organic in order to be able to adapt to changes in its environment. An organic structure promotes flexibility, so people initiate change and can adapt quickly to changing conditions. ( Jones et al., 2006) Considering each of the individual companies as a department providing a unique product or service, it is evident that they exhibit product departmentalization. Product departmentalization is the division of the departments of an organization based on the type of product or service offered. (Jones et al., 2006) For example, Virgin Mobile offers cellular services while Virgin Records is a music label. However, the structure of the Virgin Group is so complex that it is necessary for it to not just have one type of departmentalization. For instance, Virgin Mobile has operations in many different countries like the UK, India and Australia. As such, the type of service varies in each of these countries. This shows that Virgin Mobile also exhibits geographic departmentalization. Geographic departmentalization is the division of an organization based on the geographic location. (Jones et al., 2006) In addition, type of service and products also varies depending on the customer base hence ex hibiting customer departmentalization. Customer departmentalization is the division of an organization based on the kind of customers it serves. (Jones et al., 2006) Since the Virgin Group of companies exhibit so many types of departmentalisations, the organization as a whole is said to have a hybrid structure, which is a mixture of two or more kinds of departmentalisations. This multi-divisional approach helps the Virgin Group to easily adapt to the cultural, technological and other forces in the region it expands to. The division of labour and the hierarchy is also an important aspect of an organizations structure. The number of levels of authority, the control, and the amount of communication are key factors in the proper working of an organization. As mentioned, the Virgin Groups companies operate as separate organizations. The companies are part of a family rather than a hierarchy. They are empowered to run their own affairs, yet the companies help one another, and solutions to problems often come from within the Group somewhere. In a sense, Virgin is a commonwealth, with shared ideas, values, interests and goals. (Virgin, n.d.) In fact, Branson himself has provided all his employees with the authority to make unsupervised decisions based on their intuition rather than following a chain of command. This leads to the employees having more confidence in them and in the management. Since interaction among all the levels of the hierarchy is promoted, it increases effective communication. This is e vident from the fact that Branson personally interacts with employees on a regular basis discussing ideas and receiving feedback. The Virgin Group expresses self-sufficiency and effective communication. Virgin has a flat hierarchical structure and this enables quick and efficient decision making. The flat structure is one of the reasons that the Virgin Group has been able to expand into new ventures. In addition, a flat structure allows a wider span of control, and decentralization. Span of control is the number of subordinates a manager manages directly. (Jones et al., 2006) The decentralized structure of the Virgin Group gives more power in the hands of its employees when it comes to decision making. Decentralization is the delegation of authority to all levels of the hierarchy. (Jones et al.,2006) Branson believes that the employees are the backbone of the company and hence it is important that they have enough involvement and authority in decision making. Since the Virgin Group comprises of so many companies, along with a decentralized structure, it should show some signs of organizational bureaucracy. However, Branson has ensured since the beginning to minimize bureaucracy as much as possible since he strives to flatten the hierarchy. Bureaucracy is a structure in which people are held accountable for their actions because they are required to act in accordance with rules and standard operating procedures. (Jones et al., 2006) The efficiency of the employees is enhanced under Bransons leadership who emphasises a wide span of control and self management. Bransons scepticism of organizational hierarchy and a formal structure has contributed to organizational cohesiveness to a great extent. His adoption of this unorthodox strategy rather than traditional business practices and non-traditional structuring of the organization may be the reason for the Groups success. The Organizational Culture Much of the Virgin Groups culture is influenced by its founder Richard Bransons personal philosophies. Just as his employees are important to him, so are the customers the Virgin Group serves. The ability of the Virgin Group to operate effectively with almost a non-formal structure is because of its unique organizational culture. The culture of the Virgin Group reflects Bransons casual nature, his disrespect for hierarchy and formal authority, commitment to employees and consumers and his belief in hard work and responsibility. (Grant, 2008) This influences all of the companies in the Virgin Group and its organizational culture. This in turn, enables the Virgin Group to provide an environment in which talented, ambitious people are motivated to do their best and strive for a higher level of performance. However, even in an informal environment, a high level of commitment, acceptance of personal responsibility and long hours of work when needed is expected. Performance incentives at V irgin for most employees are diffident but Virgin provides benefits like social activities, company sponsored weekend getaways and impromptu parties. (Grant, 2008) Such an environment promotes better relations among the employer and the employees. Virgins unique culture has gradually progressed to where it is today. Virgin describes itself as a family emphasizing its informal but strong belief system and values. Possessing such a culture enables the Virgin Group to have effective coordination among its various departments. Working as a community rather than a corporation, instils the ability to communicate effectively among the many companies in the Group. The Group as a whole works together based on these shared set of values which are continuously strengthened. This is important considering the vast size and complexity of the organization. Following in the footsteps of its founder, Virgin has always maintained the belief that the employees are the biggest force of the organization and as such, should be treated with respect. (Virgin, n.d.) The management cares for the welfare of the employees and allows them to work in a free environment. Because of these primary beliefs and values, Virgin has been able to compete, thrive, a nd challenge new business opportunities. As mentioned before, Richard Branson has influenced the culture of the organization the most. He has managed to instil his belief system into all of his employees and this has motivated them to strive to perform better. One of the many strong points in Virgins favour is the fact that it is non-traditional; revolutionary even; in the manner it does business. Virgin believes in grasping opportunities. Contrary to what many people may think, Virgins constantly expanding and eclectic empire is neither random nor reckless. Each successive venture demonstrates their devotion to picking the right market and the right opportunity. This has proved beneficial to the organization and is one of the many reasons for its success. (Virgin, n.d.) Conclusion Based on the analysis of the corporate culture and structure of the Virgin Group, it is evident that it is a highly successful organization most of whichs credit goes to the founder and his values and beliefs. Even though the industry considers much of his methods to be unorthodox, these methods have proved highly beneficial to him and the Virgin Group and have been deemed to be effective. Not many today can dream of venturing into so many diverse industries starting from scratch. If Virgin continues to strengthen its culture and structure, it has the potential to become one of the most successful companies ever.

Science has Revolutionized the World :: essays research papers

Science may be described as the key to the prevailing mode of life in a so-called developed community. We revel on the idea that we are living in a modernized world which has been given a new look and shape due to science. Science has in fact transformed the world into one of wonders and blessings as well as one of deceit and curse! The wonder of science which is dominating the work-place today and which is powered by another boom of science, electricity is none other than the machine. Today more and more work are being performed by machines. Machines are the key to success in various fields. As a result, this is increasing the production rate which in turn is enabling many business to flourish. With the advent of machines, people are getting more time to pursue their hobbies, among which watching television occupies an important place. Television serves as a means of entertainment. Switching off from daily routinization, the husband can watch live matches available through the satellite while the wife can enjoy watching her favorite soap-operas, resting assured that her household chores are being done by the washing machine or dishwasher. Actually, machines have freed people from performing dull drudgeries and have make life less arduous. In the past, the lady was more healthy as she was not assisted by any electric appliance, she used to cook on the hearth. She had to bring bundle of woods from the neighbouring. In that way she used to entertain the beauty of nature. While chopping the wood at her place, she was doing some physical exercise. But it is a pity to note that a modern lady depends on gaseous stove and rice cooker. The electric washing machine washes her clothes. The electric grinder powders the spices and the electric juicer mixes juices. Owing to absolute reliance on those household appliances, she tends to become bulky, inactive and even look diseased. She hardly entertains a long and happy life. Radio plays a significant role in the context of entertainment.

The Pearl :: essays research papers

The Pearl by John Steinbeck   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  In The Pearl by John Steinbeck, Kino, the main character, did not succeed in his dreams of a luxurious life. There where many reasons why Kino did not succeed. One may believe that it was a combination of fate, the pearl buyers, and his own greed.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Fate was a major aspect to why Kino did not succeed in his dreams of having a luxurious life. When Kino discovered the Pearl he thought that it would take him out of poverty and into a life of happiness. â€Å"But the pearls were accidents, and the finding of one was luck, a little pat on the back by God or the gods both†(Chapter 2). This quotation occurs when Kino is about to go pearl diving for the Pearl of the World. This quotation also shows that certain things happen that we have no control over, therefore one can feel that Kino’s downfall is not entirely his own fault. The Pearl ended up bringing ultimate unhappiness to Kino and Juana.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The pearl buyers were also major reasons to why Kino did not succeed. If the pearl buyers had given Kino a fair price for the Pearl, then Kino would have sold the Pearl. If Kino sold the Pearl then Coyotitio would have never been shot. This would give Kino a chance to succeed in his dream of a luxurious life. This did not happen. The pearl buyers did not give Kino a fair price, they said that the pearl was fools gold and worth nothing. This caused Kino to decide not to sell the pearl to them . This leads to Coyotitio eventually being shot by the gunfire between the trackers and Kino. This ultimately destroys Kino’s dreams.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Kino not succeeding was also partly his own fault. Kino’s desire for the Pearl was a major conflict in the parable. If Kino wasn’t greedy and gave up the Pearl when he found out his family was in danger, his son wouldn’t have been

Final Exam Essay

INTRODUCTION 1.1 Title of the project Access Control Proposal Project 1.2 Project schedule summary The project will be a multi-year phased approach to have all sites (except JV and SA) on the same hardware and software platforms. 1.3 Project deliverables †¢ Solutions to the issues that the specifies location of IDI is facing †¢ Plans to implement corporate-wide information access methods to ensure confidentiality, integrity, and availability †¢ Assessment of strengths and weaknesses in current IDI systems †¢ Address remote user and Web site user’s secure access requirements †¢ Proposed budget for the project—Hardware only †¢ Prepare detailed network and configuration diagrams outlining the proposed change †¢ Prepare a 5 to 10 minute PowerPoint assisted presentation on important access control infrastructure, and management aspects from each location. 1.4 Project Guides Course Project Access Control Proposal Guide Juniper Networks Campus LAN Reference Architecture 1.5 Project Members Members of the Technology Staff: Phil Kurutz, IT Architect and IT Security Specialist Nathan Gleed, Chief Information Officer (CIO) 1.6 Purpose This project is done as a part of fulfillment of the course IS404 (Access Control, Authentication, and Public Key Infrastructure). It is a proposal for improving IDI’s computer network infrastructure. This project is intended to be used by IDI’s information security team to developing a plan to improve IDI’s computer network infrastructure at multiple locations. 1.7 Goals and Objectives †¢ 1st Objective To assess the aging infrastructure and then develop a multi-year phased approach to have all sites (except for JV and SA) on the same hardware and software platforms. †¢ 2nd Objective The core infrastructure (switches, routers, firewalls, servers and etc.) must capable of withstanding 10 – 15% growth every year for the next seven years with a three-to-four year phased technology refresh cycle. †¢ 3rd Objective Solutions to the issues that the specifies location of IDI is facing †¢ 4th Objective Assessment of strengths and weaknesses in current IDI systems †¢ 5th Objective Address remote user and Web site user’s secure access requirements †¢ 6th Objective Prepare detailed network and configuration diagrams outlining the proposed change †¢ 7th Objective Prepare a 5 to 10 minute PowerPoint assisted presentation on important access control infrastructure, and management aspects from each location. †¢ 8th Objective A comprehensive network design that will incorporate all submitted requirements and allow for projected growth. †¢ 9th Objective: Final testing of all installed hardware, software, and network connectivity. †¢ 10th (Final) Objective: Initialization of the entire network and any last minute configuration adjustments to have the network up and operating within all specified ranges. 2 Risks and Vulnerabilities 2.1 Overall: There is a hodgepodge of servers, switches, routers, and internal hardware firewalls. Each of the organization’s locations is operating with different information technologies and infrastructure—IT systems, applications, and databases. Various levels of IT security and access management have been implemented and embedded within their respective locations. The information technology infrastructure is aging and many locations are running on outdated hardware and software. Also, the infrastructure is woefully out-of-dated in terms of patches and upgrades which greatly increase the risk to the network in terms of confidentiality, integrity, and availability. 2.2 Billings, Montana:   Logisuite 4.2.2 has not been upgraded in almost 10 years. Also, over 350 modifications have been made to the core engine and the license agreement has expired. Progressive upgrading to the current version will be required. As a result, renewing this product will be extremely cost and time-prohibitive. RouteSim is a destination delivery program used to simulate routes, costs, and profits. It is not integrated into Logisuite or Oracle financials to take advantage of the databases for real-time currency valuation and profit or loss projections.   IDI’s office automation hardware and software has not been standardized. Managers have too much liberty to buy what they want according to personal preferences. Other software problems include early versions of MS Office 5, WordPerfect  7.0, and PC-Write that are not compatible. Telecommunications has not been since the company moved its current headquarters 15 years ago. This has left many  of the new features for telecommunic ations lacking and not integrated with the customer service database to improve call management efficiency. The generic system was acquired from a service provider who is now out of business.   Policies for personal devices are being ignored by many of the executives who have local administrators install the clients on their unsupported, non-standard personal laptop computers and workstations that interface with the internet. These devices   The original WAN was designed by in the early 2000’s and has not been upgraded. During peak periods, usually between September and March, the capacity is insufficient for the organization resulting in lost internet customers which further reduces growth and revenue.   Telecommunications works through a limited Mitel SX-2000 private automatic branch exchange (PABX) that only provides voice mail and call forwarding. 2.3 Warsaw, Poland This is the largest office based on number of employees, strategically located to assist IDI for major growth in the Middle East and Asia, and the home portal for expansion and geographical client development, yet there is insufficient computing power to stay afloat on a day-to-day basis.   The primary freight forwarding application is almost 10 years old and does not interface with the McCormack dodge accounting and finance system   There are 6 Web servers (4 are primary and 2 fail during clustered load balancing) The cafeteria sponsors a public wireless network running WPA (Wi-Fi Protected Access) with no password protection.   Telecommunications is an 8 year old Siemens Saturn series PBX, some of whose features have become faulty. The desktop phones have not been replaced or upgraded during this time. There is a lack of separation of duties between the network operations and the accounts receivable department and there is evidence of nepotism and embezzlement. 3 Proposed Budget 4 IDI Proposed Solutions 4.1 Billings, Montana Consolidate 14 Hewitt-Packard (HP) UNIX servers to 1 UNIX server Upgrade 75 Microsoft (MS) Windows servers to Windows server 2008 R2 Upgrade MS exchange e-mail to latest version Find another software vendor to replace Oracle financials for accounting  and financial systems, Logisuite 4.2.2, RouteSim Hire developers to standardize the office automation hardware and software. Convert telecommunications system to a VOIP system Design and implement a new Acceptable Use Policy (AUP) Upgrade WAN to a T1 MPLS to increase bandwidth 4.2 Warsaw, Poland Find a new proxy server to replace the IBM Infinity hardened served Hire a new in-house application developer Convert the Siemens Saturn series PBX telecommunications system with desktop phones to a VOIP system Enforce the current Acceptable Use Policy (AUP)

Brand MAGGI Instant Noodles Essay

? Executive summary This report required spending great time on analyzing tones of marketing related information from innumerable sources of Nestle’s powerful Brand MAGGI Instant Noodles. All information was critical and needed to be evaluated with full concentration and determination, the study of MAGGI Noodles that was launched first in India in the year 1983, by Nestle Limited, which became synonymous with noodles. This research tries to find awareness of MAGGI Noodles. The introduction provides the company background, operational & other important information provided by the company, which would assist in taking the decision for the right brand extension strategy for MAGGI Instant Noodles. We have concluded that MAGGI, being the product leader with 68% market share. We have also covered up a very important aspect of marketing – Marketing Mix. Every company develops their product integrating all the marketing mixes to evaluate the feasibility of that product similarl y MAGGI Noodles define that. Introduction: Maggi is a Nestle brand of instant noodles, soups stocks, bullion, sauces and seasoning.   The original company came into existence in 1872 in   Switzerland, when Julius Maggi took over his father’s mill. At that time during industrial revolution in Switzerland  created factory jobs for women, who were therefore left with very little time to prepare meals. Due to this growing problem Swiss Public Welfare Society asked Julius Maggi to create a vegetable food product that would be quick to prepare and easy to digest. It was the first to bring protein rich legume meal to the market, which was followed by readymade soup based on legume meal in 1886. In 1863, Julius Maggi developed a formula to add taste to meals, which later paved the way for Maggi and other easy to make food products. Apart from two minute noodles Maggi also offers a range of product. However in India it was launched in 1980s by Nestle group of companies. Maggie had merged with Nestle family in 1947. Today, Maggi is particularly well known in India, New Zealand, Australia, Bangladesh, Malaysia, Pakistan, Nigeria, the Philippine and Singapore for its instant Maggi noodles. Current market situation : Market description: MAGGI Noodles is a food item so it might apparently seem that it follows mass marketing since everyone can eat it and there is no specific variable associated with its consumption. But smart marketers of Nestle did indeed undergo some market segmentation for their expediency and easier way to create consumer value and satisfaction. MAGGI Noodles Marketing Situation is described here- MAGGI Noodle is segmented according to, â€Å"Demographic Segmentation and Psychographic Segmentation†. 1) Demographic Segmentation: AGE (7-12 years) MAGGI Noodles segmented into age groups (covering all age generations). MAGGI Noodles flavors such as Curry, Chicken, Masala, Tomato etc are consumed heavily by all age generation especially children. Children and young people love these flavors and their mothers’ feels relief thinking they owned the best solution for their children’s hunger. The new addition or line extensions of MAGGI Noodles are: Maggi masala,Vegetable Atta Noodles and Dal Atta Noodles. These new products innovations have become favourate for both children, their parents and even their grandparents; covering all age generations. 2) Psychographic Segmentation: LIFE STYLE: MAGGI Noodles is also considerably segmented according to â€Å"life style and eating habits† of its consumers. Since MAGGI is positioned as â€Å"2-minutes-Noodles† thus the idea works in professional sectors with the people with tight schedules. At present, the students and the people in every professional sector suffer from lack of time. â€Å"Time† to them is a luxury; they don’t have much time for cooking. Hence, shrewd marketers of Nestle have absorbed this fact and introduced a product such as MAGGI Instant Noodles that is both a scrumptious snack as well as an amazing solution for people with busy life style and simple eating habit. MAGGI Noodles is the perfect product that can adjust or fit into their life style flawlessly. MAGGI Noodles product review- In this world of improvisation, innovation and advancement product is an abstract term. It refers to a problem solving tool. And when â€Å"hunger† is the situational problem then MAGGI is the tool to solve this problem. 1. MAGGI Product: Here, MAGGI serves as a â€Å"Packet Noodles and Cup Noodles†. In this it introduced variety of product, such as- Dal Atta noodles, Chicken MAGGI, Masala MAGGI, and Vegetable MAGGI. 2. Price: Nestle Ltd. has priced MAGGI in a way that keeps the fact about price sensitiveness of Asian developing countries in mind. It has an average cost per customer as its costs are allocated among greater number of customers buying the product. It can afford to provide such great benefits at low price because it has a low cost of production. 3. Sales: Its sales are rapidly rising. Since it is the pioneer in the instant noodles industry in Bangladesh and has been able to successfully launch its products, it has a high acceptance rate resulting in sales boost. Because sales of its single packs are very high, the overall sales statistics show escalating sales. MAGGI Product level diagram– A review of competition: Initially when Nestle introduced MAGGI in the Bangladesh market, it did not have any competitors, Now, it has a few competitors in the market as others waited to see whether the mass market will adopt the product or not. Customers who previously purchased MAGGI to satisfy needs are now addressed by the new product form that FU- WANG, Meridian, and Cocola Noodles etc brought into the scenario and thus MAGGI is getting very aggressive in their marketing tactics as they sense the new product form to be a threat. Here is short description about competitors: 1) COCOLA NOODLES: COCOLA Noodles are engaged in manufacturing, marketing, and distribution of various branded food products and condiment. Within the very short period of its entrance this brand has been enjoying second leading position in the market. COCOLA Foods Ltd. is focusing on improving the food habit of Bangladeshi Consumers through providing more ready to cook products and ready to eat as well. COCOLA is also exporting its products to Australia, UAE, Kuwait, Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, Qatar and many other countries to come into the list. Per packet cocola noodle: 18tk. 2) FU-WANG: FU-WANG instant noodles were introduced in the market by FU-WANG Foods & Beverage Ltd. It holds a market share of 18%. It is a new item in the FU-WANG family, as such, is the follower of the product leader MAGGI. Currently, we assume it is in the Growth Stage. From the beginning, FU-WANG always trying to maintain the best quality standard of its products. Since the ingredients are gathered from Bangladesh itself and it emphasizes on mass production (Family Packs, Premium Packs), its cost per customer is lower than that of MAGGI. Price: 4 cakes in one packet 65 tk. 3) MR.NOODLES: Mr. Noodles is a brand of instant noodles manufactured by PRAN. The brand is popular in Bangladesh it had been popular product category in the culinary segment since the launch of Mr. Noodles in 2011. Over the years, Mr. Noodles became a popular snack food product in Bangladesh. Claimed to be â€Å"Easy instant noodles†. Its price per packet : 15tk However, MAGGI’s competitive advantage is its product differentiation. It is very cheap and it provides good quality. Also it is the Market leader in its segments and has strong  brand loyal consumer base. With wide range of distribution channel and product marketed according to the need of consumer – MAGGI is utterly a successful brand with insurmountable competitive advantage. MAGGI quality is one of its most important positioning tools. It knows that quality has a direct impact on the product performance, thus closely linked to customer value and satisfaction. MAGGI quality identify through its performance and its conformance quality. MAGGI features, another competitive tools for differentiating company’s product from competitor’s product. Some of them include: Original Flavor, Chicken, Curry (a healthier alternative is also sold in supermarkets), Kari Letup (Extremely Spicy Curry) Chicken & Corn ,Beef Oriental, Masala, Prawn, Dal Sambar ( whole wheat noodles ), Asam Laksa, Cheese, Pizza (only in Saudi Arabia, was available for a period of time in Australia.), Chatpata, Tomato, Stronger Chicken, Vegetable Atta Noodles (Whole wheat noodles) mostly in India, etc. MAGGI noodles also produces cup noodles known as â€Å"Hot Bowl†, and sells cup noodles branded â€Å"Cuppa Mania† in India. The style and design of MAGGI gives it competitive advantage over the other products in the market. The sleek packaging of MAGGI is convenient and stylish. It contributes to the product’s usefulness and look. It’s even shapes the consumer’s experience with the product. MAGGI Channels and Logistic Review: The urban areas are already saturated with MAGGI, as almost all departmental stores offer it. However there are still greater possibilities to stretch its distribution channels to the rural areas. MAGGI has a lot of distribution channels to fill. MAGGI can introduce mobile-vans by which they can access larger pool of customers and make its distribution channels stronger. Current distribution channel of MAGGI-: SWOT Analysis: SWOT is an acronym that stands for strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats to the organization. It involves the careful evaluation of the strengths and weaknesses of the organization as well as its opportunities and threats to the organization in the current market. MAGGI SWOT analysis- SWOT analysis of MAGGI brand clearly indicates the strengths of MAGGI as a Brand in Bangladesh market. The Brand was found to be a market leader in its category of Noodles, with strong customer loyalty. Intensive distribution of MAGGI as a Brand was seen in urban areas of the country. MAGGI has made several attempts to revamp itself as a ‘Healthy Product† but till date its perseverance towards the tag line is low by the consumers. The brand is in the growth stage of product life cycle with a strong inclination towards the maturity stage. MAGGI Noodles Strength analysis- MAGGI is from an extremely recognizable company Nestle. Popularity is one of its superior strengths that are virtually incomparable. MAGGI is known very well worldwide by its excellent advertising and visibility. It’s branding is obvious and easily recognized currently Bangladesh market. It is very easy to cook and exits as a healthy food with the title of â€Å"Darun shaad darun pushti† Market leader in noodles category with high brand loyalty. Excellent advertising and visibility. Good product distribution and availability. Lots of flavors and varieties available. Easy to cook-with the title of â€Å"2 minute Noodles†. MAGGI Noodles Weaknesses analysis- MAGGI do have a variety of weaknesses that need to be addressed. Word of mouth is probably a strength and weakness of every company. While many people have good things to say, there are many  individuals who are against MAGGI as many other companies to the current market as named before. Product is dependent on each other according to the new market segment. The market fails to provide to rural area. Product is dependent on each other. Not so much presence in rural market. Media generated news about health issues. Market leader Perceived as made up of Maida not good. MAGGI Noodles Opportunities analysis- Day by day its consumers are increaseing. Because Bangladesh is a small market, only few of the diversified flavors of MAGGI are sold here. Yet it believes that they should at least market the products to see if it works as a trial. Another opportunity that is the ability for MAGGI to buy out their competitors. This opportunity rarely presents itself in the world of business. Product has been acceptable in youth Strong presence of regional category competitors Availability of new segments(e.g.- old and age people) Untapped rural markets DINKS, single professionals Newer tastes Product has been acceptable in youth category. Changing preference of consumer towards Chinese food and fast food. MAAGI Noodles Threats analysis- Shift to rural market, Consumers don’t perceive it as changing preference of consumer a â€Å"Healthy Product† towards Chinese food and fast. Compare to other brands noodles its price also vary and can be a threat. Price wars with other noodle brands. Strong presence of regional competitors. Consumers don’t perceive it as a â€Å"Healthy Product†. Availability of New segments (The competitor provides higher age people) margins to its distributors and growing. Objective and issue: Objective: MAGGI Instant Noodles is the product leader in the category of instant noodles, capturing market share of 68%, penetrating 6 lace households. Nestle, the world’s largest food company, reported first-quarter sales growth that beat analysts’ estimates, helped by sales of MAGGI Noodles. MAGGI leads with their strength to the current market. Positioning initially Nestle tried to position the Noodles in the platform of convenience targeting the working women. But it found that the sales are not picking up despite heavy promotion .Research then showed that Kids were the largest consumers of the brand. Realizing this, Nestle repositioned the brand towards the kids using sales promotions and smart advertising. MAGGI has always positioned itself as â€Å"Healthy noodles† as it described before. At present- MAGGI now provides family packs and single packs. Maggi has recently come out with new advertisements in some weekly. Issue- Core aim of Nestle Business with the title â€Å"Good Food, Good Life†. Food and beverages plays a important role in people’s life- not only because of enjoyment and social pleasure of eating together, but more in more terms of personal health and nutrition. Nestle is committed to provide their customer, consistent quality, safety as well as value for money and convenience. Great taste is the fundamental of their products and consumer appreciation of good food. Giving priority on nutrition, health and wellness Nestle comes with their product MAGGI Noodles with the title- Maggi 2-Minute Noodles. MARKET STRATEGY: Targeting of MAGGI: MAGGI main target is children, then women and elderly. Today MAGGI Noodles with its attractive and variety of new flavors successfully targets kids, working women and elderly all at the same time. But Nestle at the initial stage was targeting on the house lady. Very soon it realized that its target segment is not them. It evaluated and understood that children should be its primary focus. So they changed their mission to ‘To become the no. 1 preferred snack for kids in the country’ and came up with two minutes noodles which targeted children aged 7 to 12. Nestle also targeted the house lady by introducing the health noodles. These can be consumed as the complete food which gives the calorie and meet all necessary health requirements. For these variants they introduced the new positioning â€Å"MAGGI is the best, tasty and healthy noodles (for children), which cannot be compared.† Marketing Mix: Elements of market mix: MAGGI Marketing mix describe the 4ps- 1) Product: MAGGI has come up with various product s according to the needs of consumers. Some of it gains total popularity and some becomes failure. Developing a product involves defining the benefits it will offer. These benefits are communicated and delivered by product attribute such as quality, features, and style and design as described before. MAGGI is a product which is a source of Protein, Calcium, and Fiber and has added vegetables. The inspiration for comes from the going consumer preference for a healthier lifestyle. 2) Packaging: MAGGI is packed in the yellow packets. The tip of the packet is zipped so that the contents can easily be spilled without wasting it. It has solved the problem of storage. The thickness of packet is increased so that the contents can be easily poured without much wastage. 3) Promotion: MAGGI has already created its brand awareness and now it should  increase advertising to build brand preference. However MAGGI still continues to build brand awareness by serving MAGGI Noodles to people for free (sampling). At present MAGGI occupies almost 78% of the noodles market. Thus it is surely the market leader. So it should focus now on creating brand preference. The number of television advertisements of MAGGI noodles in Bangladesh is very little compared to that of India. In Bangladesh they use more paper advertisements than television advertisements. Thus the promotional strategies of MAGGI should now be altered. 4) Places: Places refers to the location where products are available and can be sold or purchased. MAGGI Noodles is not only famous in urban areas but also rural areas. It is rightly available at number of retail shops and malls. So that consumers can easily purchases the product without any big effort. Positioning of MAGGI: MAGGI is position itself as a differentiated product. The market is very sensitive to taste and can rejects any flavor if dislike. Consumers typically choose products and services that give them the greatest value. Thus, dedicated marketers want to position their brands on the key benefits that they offer relative to competing brands. Positioning Statement of MAGGI- As we all know marketers believe that companies should aggressively promote only one benefit to the target market. MAGGI’s USP (unique selling proposition) is that it is â€Å"healthy and tasty†. MAGGI solemnly sticks to its USP which consumers also take in with heart and soul. MAGGI with the title of â€Å"2 minute Noodles† is continue its position to the current market as a fast to cook and good to eat, is the best, tasty and healthy noodles (for children) that cannot be compared. To everyone who wants the fastest and yummiest solution for their gurgling stomach, MAGGI is the all-time-favorite instant noodles that provide an easy, nutritious and tasty food for children (mainly) and other age groups.