Wednesday, December 25, 2019

The Beginning Of The River Valley Civilizations - 1999 Words

â€Å"Around 5000 BCE, things slowly began to change. For the first time, humans started to settle down in one place.† As people began to switch from hunter-gathering and moving from one place to the next in search of food, to farming and depending on agriculture in order to survive, early ancient river valley civilizations began to emerge. With the emergence of these civilizations came political, environmental, religious, social, economic, technological and architecture developments that resulted in the significance in each. These early river valley civilizations are what set the stage for not only modern day but helped with the development of another. Among the several early civilizations stood, Mesopotamia, established between the Tigris†¦show more content†¦As the government evolved, kings were granted absolute power with a throne that was hereditary. When society began to become more military based, things like heavy taxes were imposed and mass deportation of con quered people occurred. This hold on society called for a caste system to exist. This system was composed of nobility (people like kings and priest), free citizens (a combination of a modern middle and lower class; including people like merchants, craftsmen, those in trade, and hunters), and slaves (prisoners of war). People of Mesopotamia, otherwise known as Sumerians, thought very highly of their religious figures, including priests. Following their polytheistic religion, they worshipped several gods and felt as though pyramid temples connected the Heaven and Earth. In addition, people believed in divine order, meaning everything that occurred was preplanned. Those other than these priest, nobility and kings depended on agriculture in order to make a living; this is because the economy was based upon a bartering system, which is where people exchange goods and services in return for other goods or services. Sumerians were known for their trading of goods such as copper, tin and ti mber for things like fish, woolen textiles, metal goods, as well as crops. The Sumerians achieved many technological advances, one in

Tuesday, December 17, 2019

Should College Tuition Be Based on Major - 917 Words

Professor Johnson EC 111H 26 October 2012 The Problem with College Tuition Every year, students wishing to attend college are faced with the steep price that comes with their prospective education. For many, the belief that it will play dividends in the long run is enough reason to pay the high price. However, college majors have a wide variance of starting median salaries, which leads to the question of whether or not tuition should be based on your field of study. Students knowing they will be making less than another student after graduating should not be required to pay the same tuition. College tuition is too high. Since the demand for an education and the supply of schools are both high, cost should be low. What we see,†¦show more content†¦This is attractive to many students, who desire to be making high salaries. With the high salary comes hard work, and the hard work put in is worth more. Engineers, for example, require labs and experiments that cost large amounts of money. Doctors have to study in hospitals and take hand on classes that also consumes university budgets. On the other hand, English majors are focused more on their books, which are individually expensive, but don’t cost universities much money. Universities should be obliged to allocate funds into the degrees that benefit them the most. They should not have to put as much money into a degree that does not make them money, as colleges are a business. There is no clear-cut choice on which way this system will work most effectively. It is obvious that both systems have their pros and cons. While one system favors government interest, the other favors university interests. Either way, people will be affective both positively and negatively. The way the state of Florida is approaching this looks stronger. If students who are going to help out the economy are rewarded by lower tuition, they will be more inclined to do so. And the degrees will start to vary, because once the need for doctors is filled, a state could now realize there is a need for economists. Also, if students are aware of what degrees business are most looking for, than there will be a better chance of them being hiredShow MoreRelatedThe Effects Of Rising Tuition On Students Choice Of Future Career Field1308 Words   |  6 PagesRising Tuition Costs on Ferrum Students’ choice of future career field Christin C Hyslop Ferrum College Fall 2014 The Effects of Rising Tuition Costs on Ferrum Students’ choice of future career field Introduction Do rising tuition costs affect Ferrum College students’ choice of major? Descriptive research will be done to determine if there is a relationship between rising tuition costs and Ferrum College students’ choice in major. A sample set of students attending Ferrum College will beRead MoreCommunity College Education Should Not Be Tuition Free998 Words   |  4 PagesCommunity College Education Should Not Be Tuition Free Every year, millions of students graduate from high school and consider studying in community college. The main reason for them to choose community colleges over four-year universities is the affordable tuition, or they have undecided majors for their careers. Unfortunately, an academic article published in 2014 â€Å"How to Help College Students Graduate,† Kirp demonstrated, â€Å"American students are enrolling college in record numbers, but they areRead MoreAmerican University Should Seriously Consider Lowering Tuition Costs892 Words   |  4 Pagescost quite as much as NYU, tuition is still very high, even for in-state public schools. If tuition continues to rise, the amount of students that cannot afford to go to college will increase, and these students will not be able to achieve their full potential. Because of this, colleges and universities in America, particularly public colleges, need to reconsider the cost of tuition. One of the wonderful aspects about college is that students are able to choose what college they want to go to, as opposedRead MoreIncreasing Tuition Rates Cause Students1131 Words   |  5 PagesIncreasing tuition rates cause students to borrow more money which will impact their financial future should they have difficulty obtain a job in their chosen career field. Tutition costs began their rise in 1970s but it wasn’t until the 1980s that government funding began to decline and the tuition rates began their steady climb regularly outstripping the median family income. (Ehrenberg) The average cost of tuition at a four year pubic institution increased from to $2,387 per year in 1975-1976Read MoreThe Education Of The Human Society990 Words   |  4 Pagesmankind, especially for youth, should have 100 percent equality of education. In fact, however, not everyone is trusted equally based on my research. First of all, some educational policies still have a series limitations, which cause the inequality. Beautiful though policies like K-12 do earn students their proper opportunities getting into schools or, in the other word, education; however, the majority of the focuses are on relatively lower education comparing to college level. In despite the heftyRead MoreAthletes Should Not Be Paid1494 Words   |  6 PagesThrough the dedication and performance of these athletes, speculations have aroused that athletes should begin to receive pay. Some people believe that collegiate athletes should be paid due to their performance as professional sport athletes do. The idea may sound fruitful, but it also poses many problems. I believe that collegiate athletes should not be paid due to the scholarships available, the yearly college budget, and the decreases in interest in grades. Student athletes have the ability to receiveRead MoreIs College Tuition Too High?1056 Words   |  5 PagesTia Williams Mr. Carpenter 1101 composition 1 July 13, 2015 Is College Tuition To High? Jeffery J. Selingo stated in The Washington Post, â€Å"How long can we go with tuition until it is to much?† This statement is what many people think, who are struggling to pay off there tuition. The cost of tuition is extremely too high. Earlier in the 1900’s the cost of tuition was merely 200 dollars a year, but now tuition can be from 15,00 to 50,00 dollars a year. (UNIVERSITY HISTORY. Educational Costs (1900-1909)Read MoreCollege Education Is A Major Crisis1080 Words   |  5 Pagestoday’s society, American youth are facing a major crisis. The government’s statistics show that a large percentage of young men and women are joining the ranks of the unemployed. The most startling fact is that many of these individuals are recent college graduates. Many studies stress the importance of a college education, calling it an â€Å"economic investment† and the â€Å"most important choice made in a person’s lifetime†. Indeed, the decision to pursue college education is important, but many people doRead MoreWill Free Colleges Solve The Student Debt Crisis?1479 Words   |  6 PagesWill Free Colleges solve the Student Debt Crisis? Every American student has a dream to go to college and to be debt-free. Due to the upcoming presidential elections, candidate Senator Bernie Sanders wants to introduce a bill that would cover the tuition costs for students who attend two and four-year institution. This question makes many Americans wonder, will free public colleges solve the student debt crisis. Although free tuition would help stop the fast-paced growth of the Student Debt CrisisRead MoreMy General Thoughts On The Film926 Words   |  4 Pagesnuisance and complexities of rising tuitions and ballooning student debt. I found this film to be both enlightening and disheartening at the same time. As Andrew Rossi pulls back the veil and exposes the deterioration, destruction, and dismantlement of higher education, the outlook and sustainability seems dismal. I too share some of the growing concerns and criticisms expressed by the students in the documentary. By and large the American consumer trusts colleges. Higher ed ucation is a public service

Monday, December 9, 2019

Event Management Of Winter Olympics Sochi â€Myassignmenthelp.Com

Question: Discuss About The Event Management Of Winter Olympics At Sochi? Answer: Introduction The Olympic Game is a famous international event of sports that features sports competitions where a large number of athletes from all around the world take part. It is considered to be the foremost sports competition in which more than 200 nations take part in. The Winter Olympics that was held at Sochi was the first one to be held at Russia after break up of the Soviet Union. 98 events were held in the arena of 15 winter sport events (Persson and Petersson 2014). The winter Olympics were organized on a large scale and the event Project management and administration is worthy to be reckoned with that can inspire other sporting events. Formation Stage of Sochis Winter Olympics The foremost task while organizing a Olympic game will be the bringing together of renowned event specialists who have made a distinct name for themselves in the arena of organization and who will be able to work together with other professionals, technical crew and performers (Halchin et al. 2014). Many event planning committees came together in order to arrange the gala event of the 2014 Winter Olympics. A lot of effort was taken to arrange for media coverage that will play a crucial role for the worldwide broadcast of the event. 5 million schoolchildren in Russia was enlightened about the values associated with Olympics. Special courses were designed for university students highlighting technical aspects related to games. More than 25,000 volunteers made interaction with Olympians and spectators. The volunteers took care of 17 arenas of activity that included that of transport, anti-doping as well as medical services (Kiktev et al. 2017). Growth Stage of Sochis Winter Olympics Many buildings were built during this period that followed the norms of the Green Standards. The lighting system was energy efficient and the system of heat recovery was in tandem with maintaining the green standards. The Sochi Organising Committee played a great part for the popularity of the game and they invested a large sum of RUB 16.2 billion for supporting development projects that were sustainable. Co-ordination was made with the United Nations Development Programme along with that of United Nations Environmental Programme in order to ensure that the games are sustainable (Hutchings et al. 2015). The Organising Committee Sochi worked along with British firms in order to ensure that the venues were in accordance with the UK BREEAM standard. Improvements have been made within the framework of the society which was winess to upgraded infrastructure and saw the creation of new jobs. The quality of life improved in exchange of years that was spent on disruption along with that of c onstruction. Sochi can now boast of bypass roads that help in avoiding heavy traffic in its primary thoroughfare. It also facilitated a quick road connection that ran from coast alongside to the mountains. New power stations that were built enabled energy supply that could be relied upon. Urban planning was the main agenda and facilities for those who were mobility-impaired like wheelchair users were looked after. Staging of Winter Olympics at Sochi The format of the games were made extremely compact setting the stage for a having a unique experience for the athletes along with fans at Sochi. The Olympic Park that was referred to by the name of Coastal Clutter was home to a gamut of venues in relation to ice competition and each were very close to each other. The finale saw the bringing together of highlights from last four years. A large number of artists who hailed from 70 regional areas of Russia performed at a large number of venues. Game time performance was inclusive of a ballet gala event and the special draw was throat singing from Chukchi region and playing of Kuban traditional Cossack tune (Chu 2015).Lezginka dancing that originated from Dagestan would also be another event that would draw the attention of the audience. An entertainment programme would also be held that would include an exhibition that will focus on cultural diversity and craft belonging to different ethnic groups. The opening ceremony screened a video that showed Liza Temnikova who is 11 year old portraying a character by the name of Lyubov who was reading out Russian alphabet where each individual letter was related to a renowned Russian person. Opening ceremony of the games laid stress on classical music and on productions that were large in scale. (Petersson 2014). In the finale, Maria Sharapova brought in the Olympic torch and it was handed over to Yelena Isinbayeva who is a pole vaulter and it was again handed over to Aleksandr Karelin who is a wrestler. Future Development of the Olympics The Olympic Games is a cultural phenomenon in the international arena that is growing thoroughly at a steady pace and its influence is increasing in the modern age. A huge number of cities in the developing world wants to host Olympics. The Olympic games can act as a valuable tool that will strengthen economic structure of the modern cities. Hosting Olympic games is held to be urban developmental strategy that will provide a large number of benefits in the area of infrastructure development (Van Rheenen 2014). The Olympic games will help the local economies to adjust themselves to the global markets and it would help in increasing the competitiveness. The producer services were given more importance that led to the formation of new urban hierarchy. Increasing complexity in relation to financial system worldwide has paved the path for the formation of global cities that was a dominant factor in relation to international economy (Lenskyj 2016). Recommendations Efforts should be made to train and coach the sportsmen that will lead to improving their performance. Training schedules should be conducted on annual basis that would ensure continuity in the arena of training. Experienced sports doctors should be employed who would look after their dietary requirements. Physiologists and physiotherapist should be always at the disposal of the sportsmen and yoga instructors will play a crucial role in calming the nerves of the players and decreasing their mental stress. Doping should be kept in check and the athletes should be checked on regular basis (Alekseyeva 2014). Monitoring system that would be web-based should be developed that would keep a track of performance levels of the athletes. There should be monitoring parameters in relation to different discipline. Conclusion: An Olympic game brings together renowned event specialists and they will be working along with other professionals, technical crew and performers. Green Standards were maintained during the hosting of the Winter Olympics that was held at Sochi in 2014. The lighting system was energy efficient and the system of heat recovery was in line with green standards (Kirilenko, and Stepchenkova 2017). Media coverage will play a pivotal role for broadcasting the event on worldwide basis. Opening ceremony of the games laid stress on classical music and productions of large scale was the highlight of the event. Yoga instructors and psychologists would play a crucial role in decreasing the mental stress of the players. It is highly recommended that doping should be kept in check because the athletes often take recourse to this for satisfying their mental agony. Monitoring system that is web-based would be able keep a record in relation to the performance of the players. References: Alekseyeva, A., 2014. Sochi 2014 and the rhetoric of a new Russia: Image construction through mega-events.East European Politics,30(2), pp.158-174. Chu, M.P., 2015. Xi Jinping at Sochi: leveraging the 2014 Winter operations for the China Dream.Asia Pacific Journal of Sport and Social Science,4(2), pp.124-133. Halchin, E., Rollins, J.W., Tiersky, A. and Woehrel, S., 2014. The 2014 Sochi Winter Olympics: Security and Human Rights Issues. Hutchings, S., Gillespie, M., Yablokov, I., Lvov, I. and Voss, A., 2015. Staging the Sochi winter Olympics 2014 on Russia Today and BBC World News: From soft power to geopolitical crisis.Participations: Journal of Audience Reception Studies. Kiktev, D., Joe, P., Isaac, G.A., Montani, A., Frogner, I.L., Nurmi, P., Bica, B., Milbrandt, J., Tsyrulnikov, M., Astakhova, E. and Bundel, A., 2017. FROST-2014: The Sochi Winter Olympics International Project.Bulletin of the American management Society, (2017). Kirilenko, A.P. and Stepchenkova, S.O., 2017. Sochi Olympics on Twitter: Topics, Geographical Landscape, and Temporal Dynamics. InAnalytics in Smart Tourism Design(pp. 215-234). Springer International Publishing. Lenskyj, H.J., 2016. Sochi 2014 Olympics: Accommodation and Resistance. InSport, Protest and Globalisation(pp. 311-334). Palgrave Macmillan UK. Persson, E. and Petersson, B., 2014. Political marketing and the 2014 Winter Olympics in Sochi: Olympism and the Russian great power myth.East European Politics,30(2), pp.192-209. Petersson, B., 2014. Still Embodying the Myth? Russia's Recognition as a Great Power and the Sochi Winter Games.Problems of Post-Communism,61(1), pp.30-40. Van Rheenen, D., 2014. A skunk at the garden party: the Sochi Olympics, state-sponsored homophobia and prospects for human rights through mega sporting events.Journal of Sport Tourism,19(2), pp.127-144.

Sunday, December 1, 2019

The Beatles To This Day Are One Of The Most Famous And Essay Example For Students

The Beatles To This Day Are One Of The Most Famous And Essay popular rock n roll groups in the world. The Beatlesinclude George Harrison, John Lennon(1940-1980), PaulMcCartney, and Richard Starkey(Ringo Starr). All of theBeatles where born and raised in Liverpool, England. JohnLennon was considered the leader of the band. GeorgeHarrison was the lead guitarist. John Lennon was a songwriter, one of the two lead singers, and rhythm guitarist. Paul McCartney was a song writer, one of the two leadsingers, and a bassist. Ringo Starr played the drums. John Lennons first band was called the Quarrymen (namedafter his High School). None of the three Beatles were inthis band. Paul joined the group in 1957 and Harrisonjoined in 1958. They played with bass guitarist SutSutcliffe, and Pete Best, a drummer. Sutcliffe left in 1961and Ringo Starr joined the band. Pete Best was asked toleave the band on April 16, 1962. He was considered theBeatles undisputed sex symbol. The Beatles were discoveredon November 9, 1961 by Brian Epstein, a manager of a recordstore in Liverpool as well as an x British Army soldier. We will write a custom essay on The Beatles To This Day Are One Of The Most Famous And specifically for you for only $16.38 $13.9/page Order now The Beatles first two song were Love Me Do andPlease, Please Me. The Beatles starred in two movies, AHard Days Night, and Help. They also had their own fulllength cartoon called Yellow Submarine. The movie A HardDays Night earned 1.3 million dollars in its first week. The Beatles early music was influenced by singers ChuckBerry and Elvis Presley. In November of 1963 the Beatles performed in front ofthe Queen of England. This was an incredible honor. By theend of 1963 the Beatles were the biggest music group inEngland. The Beatles came to New York City for the firsttime in 1964. They were an instant success. A couple ofweeks later after their New York appearance, the five bestselling records were by the Beatles. They became worldfamous by the end of 1964. Also in 1964 the song I Want ToHold Your Hand marked the beginning of BEATLEMANIA.The Beatles were unusual because most rock was strongbeat with no melody. The Beatles added melody to rock. TheBeatles also added strong and meaningful lyrics. John Lennonwrote a book called In His Own Write. The Beatles starteda new era of music. They wore their hair long and shaggy. This haircut was known as the Beatles haircut. All acrossthe world people started wearing their hair like theBeatles. John Lennon described the Beatles like this When yousaid it, it was crawly things, when you read it, it was beatmusic. The Beatles made their last stage appearancetogether in 1966. In 1967 the Beatles put together a masterpiece. The master piece was Sergeant Peppers Lonely HeartClub Band. The Beatles never had a chance to performSergeant Peppers Lonely Heart Club Band. Also in 1967 BrianEpstein, the manager of the Beatles, died. Also in 1967 theBeatles directed a movie, Magical Mystery Tour. The moviewas about themselves in which they toured the Englishcountryside in search of wonder, fun, and magic. In 1970 the world famous and world loved Beatlesseparated. Everybody was hoping to see the Beatles comeback together. That hope ended when the peace loving JohnLennon was killed outside his New York City apartment by 25year old Mark David Chapman.

Tuesday, November 26, 2019

How to use capital letters - Emphasis

How to use capital letters How to use capital letters Were often being asked about when to use capital letters. Why is it so confusing? The answer lies somewhere between what were used to seeing (beginning, as ever, with our school habits) and the seeming inconsistencies of best practice. As a general rule, capitals are for specific and formal; lower-case for unspecific and informal. Capital offence Avoid using all capital letters. Its very heavy on the eye; and the lack of differentiation in height and shape (compared with lower-case lettering) actually makes it more difficult to read. Also, the consensus particularly in the virtual world is that it appears as shouting, so youll come across as aggressive and alienate your reader. Initial capitals You might think the rules get murkier here. Certainly, it may come down to an issue of style within your workplace, but always bear in mind that its very easy to overdo these. Typically, use initial capitals for: proper nouns places, peoples names, company names Mr Jones, formerly of Emphasis Training Ltd, went to Swansea. official job titles Mr Jones new position was Chief Executive of Capital Placement. trade names or brands I like to have a cup of Ovaltine and read the Write Away e-bulletin on my Mac. But, generally, dont use them for: every first letter in a heading or sub-heading (check your company style on this one): its An exploration of capital letters, not An Exploration of Capital Letters compass points, unless they are part of a definable region/area/country Should we head north or north-east now? Im either moving to South Korea or the Middle East. Subsequent words (beyond the first) in a sign-off Yours sincerely Best regards Lots of love Clarifying apparent contradictions Sporadically sprinkling this or that word with a capital can lend undeserved import to certain concepts, which, in turn, implies a kind of inferiority in others. While we may be used to seeing Mum and Dad capitalised (or Doctor if we are one, President if we are Barack Obama and so on), that doesnt mean those words should always be capitalised. Where a noun stands in for a proper noun (like a name), it is capitalised; if not, it isnt. Hello Mother, hello Father. Is that my mother with your father? What are you doing, Mum? Job titles and ranks used in conjunction with the holders name are capitalised; if the title is used alone, they arent. Have you met Mr Jones, Chief Executive of Capital Placement? Yes, but Ive met many chief executives. Who is the president? Do you live under a rock? You must recognise President Obama. For governments, use lowercase unless youre referring to a particular administration. The Government announced the abolition of the 10p tax band. Representatives from governments across Europe were united in their disgust. Institutions and organisations will be capitalised when their name is used in full; on subsequent references to it, when the name is shortened, use lowercase. Ill have to refer you to the Central Committee of Capital Measures. What was the name of that committee? The exception to this rule is when the shortened reference word might be mistaken for a regular noun. The National Trust is fantastic. Yes, its the best kind of Trust. Have you heard of the African National Congress? Im well aware of that Congress. So, just remember with capitals: less is more. Exceptions that may seem inconsistent and confusing are only for clarity. If you have any more queries about capital letters or anything else leave a comment and well get back to you.

Saturday, November 23, 2019

Michael Collins, Astronaut of Apollo 11 Mission

Michael Collins, Astronaut of Apollo 11 Mission Astronaut Michael Collins has often been called the forgotten astronaut. He flew to the Moon aboard Apollo 11 in July 1969, but never set foot there. During the mission, Collins orbited the Moon, doing photography and keeping the command module ready to receive moonwalkers Neil Armstrong  and Buzz Aldrin when they finished their surface mission. Fast Facts: Michael Collins Born: October 31, 1930, in Rome, ItalyParents: James Lawton Collins, Virginia Stewart CollinsSpouse: Patricia Mary FinneganChildren: Michael, Ann, and Kathleen Collins  Education: United States  Military Academy at West Point, Harvard UniversityMilitary Career: U.S. Air Force, Experimental Flight School, Edwards Air Force BaseNASA Accomplishments: Gemini astronaut, pilot of the Apollo 11 Command Module, flew to the Moon with Neil Armstrong and Buzz Armstrong.  Interesting Fact: Collins is a watercolor painter of Everglades scenes and aircraft.   Early Life Michael Collins was born on October 31, 1930, to James Lawton Collins and his wife Virginia Stewart Collins. His father was stationed in Rome, Italy, where Collins was born. The elder Collins was a career Army man, and the family moved quite often. Eventually, they settled in Washington, D.C., and Michael Collins attended St. Albans school before leaving to attend college at the United States Military Academy at West Point.   Collins graduated West Point on June 3, 1952, and immediately entered the United States Air Force to become a pilot. He took flight training in Texas. In 1960, he joined the USAF Experimental Test Pilot School at Edwards Air Force Base. Two years later, he applied to become an astronaut and was accepted into the program in 1963.   Collinss NASA Career Astronaut Michael Collins in his official NASA portrait. NASA   Michael Collins entered NASA in the third group of astronauts ever selected. By the time he joined the program, he had studied spaceflight basics as a graduate student, along with other future astronauts Joe Engle and Edward Givens. Astronaut Charlie Bassett (who died in a crash before he could fly in space) was also a classmate. During training, Collins specialized in extravehicular activity (EVA) planning for the Gemini program, as well as spacesuits for use during spacewalks.  He was assigned to the Gemini mission as the backup and flew aboard the Gemini 10 mission on July 18, 1966. It required Collins and his crewmate astronaut John Young to rendezvous with the Agena vehicles. They also performed other tests, and Collins did two spacewalks during their time on orbit.   Going to the Moon Upon his return to Earth, Collins began training for an Apollo mission. Eventually, he was assigned to Apollo 8. Due to some medical issues, Collins did not fly that mission but was instead assigned as the Capsule Communicator (known as Capcom) for that mission. His job was to handle all communications with Frank Borman, James Lovell, and William Anders on the flight. Following that mission, NASA announced the first team to go to the Moon: Neil Armstrong and Edwin Buzz Aldrin to land and explore, and Michael Collins to be Command Module pilot orbiting the Moon. Astronaut Michael Collins, command module pilot of the Apollo 11 lunar landing mission, studies flight plan during simulation training at the Kennedy Space Center in preparation for the mission. Bettmann Archive / Getty Images The three men lifted off from the Kennedy Space Center on the Apollo 11 mission on July 16, 1969.  Four days later, the Eagle lander separated from the command module, with Armstrong and Aldrin headed to the Moon. Collins job was to maintain the orbiter, follow the mission on the surface of the Moon, and photograph the Moon. Then, when the other two were ready, dock with their Eagle lander and bring the other two men back to safety. Collins performed his duties and in later years, admitted that he was very worried about Armstrong and Aldrin landing safely and getting back. The mission was a success, and upon their return, the three astronauts were heralded around the world as heroes.   Apollo 11 astronauts (L-R) Aldrin, Collins, Armstrong peering out window of quarantine room aboard recovery ship Hornet following splashdown fr. historic moon mission. The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images / Getty Images A New Career Path After the successful Apollo 11 flight, Michael Collins was tapped to join government service, where he was made the Assistant Secretary of State for Public Affairs late in 1969, serving under President Richard Nixon. He held that position until 1971, when he took over as Director of the National Air and Space Museum. Collins held that job until 1978 and then was appointed the undersecretary of the Smithsonian Institution (the parent body over the Air and Space Museum).   Since leaving the Smithsonian, Michael Collins has studied at Harvard Business School and served as vice president of LTV Aerospace. Hes also written several books, including his autobiography titled Carrying the Fire. He is also well-known as a watercolor painter, focusing on scenes in Florida and also on spacecraft and aircraft subjects.   Awards and Legacy Michael Collins is a retired USAF general  and belongs to a number of organizations, such as the Society of Experimental Test Pilots and the American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics. He was also inducted into the Astronaut Hall of Fame. Over the years, Collins has been given many awards and honors, including the Presidential Medal of Freedom, the NASA Exceptional Service Medal, Air Force Distinguished Service Medal, and NASAs Distinguished Service Medal. A lunar crater is named for him, as well as an asteroid. In a rare and unique honor, due to his involvement in several movies and TV, Collins and his fellow astronauts Armstrong and Aldrin have a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame dedicated to the Apollo 11 astronauts. He also appeared in a documentary about his flight to the Moon.   Collins was married to Patricia Mary Finnegan until her death in 2014. He remains an active and sought-after public speaker and continues painting and writing. Sources Chandler, David L., and MIT News Office. â€Å"Michael Collins: ‘I Could Have Been the Last Person to Walk on the Moon.’† MIT News, 2 Apr. 2015, news.mit.edu/2015/michael-collins-speaks-about-first-moon-landing-0402.Dunbar, Brian. â€Å"NASA Honors Apollo Astronaut Michael Collins.† NASA, NASA, www.nasa.gov/home/hqnews/2006/jan/HQ_M06012_Collins.html.NASA, NASA, er.jsc.nasa.gov/seh/collinsm.htm.Nasa. â€Å"Michael Collins: The Lucky, Grumpy Astronaut - The Boston Globe.† BostonGlobe.com, 22 Oct. 2018, www.bostonglobe.com/opinion/2018/10/21/michael-collins-the-lucky-grumpy-astronaut/1U9cyEr7aRPidVuNbDDkfO/story.html.

Thursday, November 21, 2019

Business management Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Business management - Essay Example The book gives clear reflections encouraging the application of personal experience and critical thinking on these aspects of management. This paper is a report on some key aspects on this book. Very fundamental to this report are the aspects of individual differences and diversity and control and power within an organization. The book covers these aspects very comprehensively and in a clear way. 1.1. Aims and Objectives The aim of this report is to appreciate the presentation of individual differences and diversity in an organization and appreciate the aspects of control and power while ensuring that they are used effectively towards the realization of an organization’s goals. 2. Individual differences and Diversity This report appreciates the individual differences that exist in organizations. The differences exhibited by Different people in organization explain the differences of people’s behaviour in any organizational set up. This diversity is very critical to the understanding of employees in an organization. The fact that an organization is composed of different stakeholders of different cultural backgrounds, ethnicity, and religious affiliations should be understood from the onset so that they can be understood. This should be besides the personality differences. These differences best explain why different people respond to different circumstances differently. Mullins explains these fundamental differences comprehensively thereby assisting the managers and other stakeholders in an organization understand their employees including the government (2011). The understanding of the individual differences is the first step to ensuring peaceful coexistence and harmonious social relations among people of all walks of life brought together. People in an organization need to have a healthy and friendly environment that favours both work and social interaction. This cannot be realized in an environment where the individual divergences and diversity are not understood let alone appreciated. This understanding also minimises the conflicts that are likely to arise due to the diversity of cultures and other personality related differences. It should be understood very clearly that everyone in an organization has attributes unique to only him/her. It is these attributes that influence the behaviours of different people in the organization. The book provides a deep insight in to these differences and is a great tool not only for learning, but also the application by many organizations in order to develop the skills, talents and capacities of employees (Mullins, 2010). The diversity and differences between the different members of an organization also lends credence to the fact that every can best specialize in a given field. It is, therefore, important, upon this understanding that each individual be allowed to pursue his talents, abilities and skills to enhance his individual potential while at the same time contributing to the dev elopment of the organization. It is important to note that the employees are very important assets in any organization. As a system, they form a significant part of the organization without which the organization cannot perform. Therefore, understanding them and their differences lead to the appreciation of who they are and what they can add to the realization of the aims of the organization. An organization that does not understand its employees is one

Tuesday, November 19, 2019

Education Coursework Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Education - Coursework Example They are mainly used to inspire young people to wake up to reality. In the past I have engaged in different writing such as journals, novel, essays and play (Chandler, 2011). I began by wring essays on issues surrounding education and family affairs then moved to plays and novels on love and romantic. Dwelling much on current social issues are my journal articles produces annually. I have written essays letters and poems frequently in the past and continue with them in the present. Of late I have focused most of my attention to poem and essays. Poems are dedicated to the students in the elementary college and the essays tackles issues surrounding education in the contemporary society. This has motivated to specialize in writing books and journal on education. Record keeping has been my concern right from the beginning. Since I began to write the essays I have all the record and the dates, in which they were published, the record has enabled to explore different areas that are not yet exploited (Rudgley, 2000). I do not like writing under deadlines but I set for myself the time frame to write and produce an article. Working under pressures leads to substandard articles which reflect poor approach. I enjoy most creativity in writing. I can create a fictions story to be a true story. Another issue interesting me writing is that writing is self initiative, no one compels but it is out of willing interest (Chandler, 2011). On the other hand what discourages me about writing is that it is time consuming and other scholar can use your document without permission. This behavior among scholar is rampant and destroys the good work that has been

Sunday, November 17, 2019

Toyota and Hilton Hotels Essay Example for Free

Toyota and Hilton Hotels Essay Preliminary Links Toyota and Hilton Hotels are the two companies chosen to answer the questions given for this assignment. The product service divide is more of a continuum in these two companies, with Toyota using large doses of intangibles to enhance its products, and all Hilton hotels offering strong product elements in their superlative service. The Internet sites of the 2 companies, including their web pages for investors have been used for this assignment, with a standard text on Services Marketing, which also covers product elements of the Marketing Mix. The web site of the New York Stock Exchange, where both companies are listed, has also been used. Marketing Comparisons   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Both companies have brands for multiple segments (Payne, 2002). Toyota has automobiles for various purposes, while Hilton has different kinds of hotels for each category of guests. However, individual product brands are subordinate to corporate brands in both cases (About Toyota, 2006 and About Hilton Hotels, 2006). Hilton remains within the premium segment space in its service category, and does not operate any budget hotels, while Toyota offers economy models and commercial vehicles apart from its luxury range. Toyota therefore has a broader product range than Hilton. Distribution channels for automobiles and hotels are distinct. Recruitment and training of front-line staff matter more for Hilton, while Toyota relies on agency and franchise personnel for most of its marketing: the People element of the Marketing Mix is therefore critical for Hilton, but incidental for Toyota.   The Process element of the Marketing Mix (Payne, 2002) also matters for a hotel business, while there is less variability in customer interaction for Toyota. Process is more important for internal efficiencies in Toyota, whereas they impact directly on service levels in the business of Hilton. Promotion is more developed in Hilton with international guest room reservations available in real time on the web site, whereas Toyota prefers to make isolated compartments of its marketing activities in various countries. This difference may be related to greater global uniformity in the decision process for reserving hotel rooms than that for investing in automobile purchases. Overall, each company has to focus on different elements on the Marketing Mix, as relevant for their respective strategies.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Toyota faces a more intense competition than Hilton, as the latter has locations as advantages for many of its properties, and has significant capacity utilization guaranteed by airlines, travel agents, and similar industry associates. The numbers of brands that can challenge Hilton are fewer than the equally reputed manufacturers with which Toyota must contend. However, Hilton must contend with more brand switching opportunities, while Toyota customers are tied in for much longer periods. Toyota’s financing business ties in customers, which is a resource that Hilton lacks (Listed Company Directory, 2007). Word-of-mouth promotion matter equally for both companies, but Toyota has to make a greater effort for after-sales service. Toyota must provide customer finance amenities through arrangements with financial institutions, something which does not concern Hilton. However, the latter must provide lines of credit for major clients, whereas Toyota enjoys an immediate realization of sale proceeds convention (considering the automobile business in isolation and as distinct from the financing arm).   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Physical Evidence and Preferential Customer elements (Payne, 2002) are vital ingredients of the Hilton Marketing Mix, whereas Toyota can rely more on its distribution chain to provide these values to customers. Maintenance of public areas and exteriors, even during lean season, is an additional cost burden to be borne by Hilton, but this would be significant in the pricing structure of Toyota’s products: Toyota manufacturing plants are not generally in customer views!   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Both companies are free to price their products without regulation, but Hilton must contend with the deep discount norm for its industry, while Toyota is not as dependant on promotions and deals, except for occasionally unsuccessful models.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Both companies have composite and effective marketing functions as evidenced by the strengths of their brands, though they have to deploy different strategies to suit their respective business lines. Comparison of Operations   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Both companies believe in strong centralization and group control. Both Toyota and Hilton have sound and extensive headquarter organizations (About Toyota, 2006 and About Hilton Hotels, 2006), and exercise invasive degrees of standardization on their operations in various countries. However, Toyota has to contend with more ethnicity, and is more present in the third world, whereas Hilton basically caters to rather uniform business and vacation classes, with a strong focus on the developed world.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Though Toyota does have manufacturing plants around the world, construction of new properties and maintenance of existing ones presents larger engineering and project management challenges for Hilton. Storage and transport of finished goods, on the other hand, must concern Toyota, whereas they would not figure in agendas at Hilton. Purchasing is more complex for Toyota, with more sophistication involved in sourcing semi-precious metals, steel, and other strategic materials. Toyota has also to implement more transparency in its operations, since it is registered under the ISOI 14001 series (About Toyota, 2006).   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Toyota also has to maintain more tracks of its customers and product locations because of the possibility of recalls, whereas Hilton does not have to contend with such possibilities. Toyota also has more regulations with which to contend, while Hilton has more freedom to set its quality standards.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Toyota is strongly influenced by technology, with new models, standards, and materials causing regular discontinuities in routine operations, whereas Hilton enjoys a more stable environment in this respect. There have been some improvements in telecommunications and entertainment, which have occasioned guest room upgrades at Hilton, but these are simple and minimal compared to emission standards, engine performance, and design changes with which Toyota must deal all the time.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   It would appear that Hilton is in a less complex type of enterprise, while Toyota has to deal with more inter-relationships and different business atmospheres. Comparison of Human Resources Management   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   The relative natures of business make people more important for Hilton than for Toyota: this is reflected in the competencies promoted in the respective web sites (About Toyota, 2006 and About Hilton Hotels, 2006). Technology and systems weigh so heavily in Toyota’s success that it can rely on smaller numbers of subject-matter specialists, whereas even one customer upset at the behavior of low-level staff, can dilute the Hilton brand. The Human Resources challenge for Hilton is to inculcate the core brand values in every employee at all its properties. The People and Preferential Customer elements of the Marketing Mix matter more for Hilton than for Toyota.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Recruitment is highly centralized in Japan for Toyota, while Hilton must retain local expertise for this purpose in all major countries and regions. Searching for quality talent is a more exhaustive task for human resources professionals in Hilton, since the process has to reach in to lower levels of the organization. Production-line jobs at Toyota are easier to specify and for induction training purposes, and the numbers and importance are on the wane in any case, because of the spread of robotics. Artificial intelligence cannot replace the human element at Hilton. Both companies are equally vulnerable to industrial relations in certain countries, which tolerate militant postures by Unions-the U.K. would be a prime example of this common concern. Toyota and Hilton are in similar situations when it comes to negotiating with external leaders for their blue-collar workers.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Career planning, appraisal, and remuneration matters are probably more international at Hilton, and relatively ethnic in a Japanese sense at Toyota. Senior Executives at Hilton are more eclectic than at Toyota, so their mobility options are also greater. Diversity issue matter more at Hilton, because Toyota conforms to a more conservative and closed pattern as a clearly Japanese entity.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Human Resources Management at Toyota has an additional function compared to their peers in Hilton, with respect to training of franchisee and distribution chain employees. Hilton follows the business model of strongly branding all the properties which it operates, apart from the ones which it owns, while Toyota is clear-cut in leaving customer service to associates in its distribution chain. However, disgruntled customers at show-rooms will hurt the Toyota brand, so the company has to be able to influence people who are not their own employees. Comparisons of Accounting and Finance   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Both companies are publicly listed on U.S Exchanges (About Toyota, 2006 and About Hilton Hotels, 2006). However, Toyota offers only Advance Depository Receipts, retaining equity ownership exclusively in Japan. We may therefore expect that both companies have to follow similar treasury standards. The accounting, disclosure, and governance standards of the United States, which are amongst the best in the world, would apply to both companies. Both companies have adequate investor information on the web sites, and must follow accounting practices of comparable if not the very same standards.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   There are however, major differences in corporate finance strategies. Toyota invests capital in entities which it does not own fully, whereas Hilton develops revenue lines from properties which it does own. Both companies are in capital intensive lines of business, and both are vulnerable to seasonal fluctuations in cash inflows.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Neither company is backward integrated in to ownership of key suppliers. Public statements about future business prospects indicate that both companies have exhaustive planning and budgetary control systems in place, though information on their internal processes is not available.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Both companies have ambitious capital expenditure plans, and exhibit high credit-worthiness and potential for leverage. The lines of business and investor environments are too different for relevant comparison, but Toyota has greater return and value appreciation potentials.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Toyota has a finance business apart from its core activity of automobiles (Listed Company Directory, 2007). This tangent is to help customers and sellers pay for the company’s products. Hilton does not require any such service for its clients and associates. One may conclude that the Toyota needs more complex accounting procedures because of the need to keep track of dues from customers. Both companies have adequate representation of the finance function in their top management groupings, and neither is known to have been cited for financial irregularities, or for audit and disclosure lapses. It is possible to conclude that the accounting and finance companies of both companies meet the best international standards. Toyota has been recognized by the New York Stock Exchange for excellence in investor relations, which is an additional and significant feather in the cap of its finance function: Hilton cannot claim any such public recognition of excellence in its finance function as yet. Comparison of Information Management   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   The online reservation amenity and the reward program for loyal customers show, from the respective websites, that Information Management is more fully used by Hilton. The Toyota website lacks multi-media Information Technology use, which could have enhanced browser experiences. It may be that the company uses Information Technology more fully for secret internal processes, but such technology application is lacking in the public space for the company. Hilton also has concrete evidence of using Information Technology to enhance customer value through its express check-out facility, whereas Toyota makes no mention of such conveniences at its show rooms, or for after-sales-service alerts. Toyota has not used opportunities of newsletters and clubs for its customers, which Information Technology offers. The customer response facility on the web site is better and easier to use in the case of Hilton (About Toyota, 2006 and About Hilton Hotels, 2006). Hilton does not allow customers to feel any difference in properties which it operates without owning, whereas Toyota has no perceptible use of Information Technology to standardize customer experiences at all the show rooms and outlets where its products are retailed. Hilton does a better job of enhancing its brand through useful information on related matters, such as places of interest near its properties, whereas Toyota seems to be pre-occupied with hard product features of its models alone. However, both companies use Information Technology to build images of being attractive employers, and devote spaces on their websites for corporate and recruiting issues.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Overall, Toyota needs a superior accounting and finance function, and encounters more complex operations, while marketing is of equal importance to both companies, and while Hilton excels in Human Resources Management, and Information Technology. Comparison of and Recommendations for Productivity   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   The productivity comparisons for these two companies and my recommendations in this regard, relate primarily to business definition, and to levels of integration and disengagement. Hilton suffers chronic underutilization of its competencies. Enhanced airport services, airline operation, and conducted tours, are the sorts of horizontal integration it should consider to generate more revenue from its base of fixed costs. It may be justified in staying away from actual travel work such as airline operation because it would call for large influxes of fresh commitments, but by improving retail services at airports, and by conducting packaged events for premium customers groups, it can certainly capture significant new values and high margins, without adding to the present infrastructure.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Hilton should also move faster out of North America in to emerging markets and popular adventure and eco-tourism destinations, because this would leverage its expertise in constructing and operating hotels, more fully. The company must have accumulated know-how which is used only marginally in the mature markets in which it is focused now.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Finally, Hilton should copy other chains and build its culinary expertise and resources in to processed food brands, brands of alcoholic beverages, especially wines, and specialty outlets for fine dining.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Overall, Hilton’s productivity is hampered by a narrow business definition. It has acquired assets and built capabilities to support the corporate brand that have large and profitable applications outside the field of hotels.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Toyota has gone to the opposite extreme of Hilton, and spreads its resources too thinly for optimal returns. The fixed costs of design, dealer support, and after-sales-service imply that it should exit from economy-priced product and customer segments. The expansion of premium-priced segments in major markets justifies exclusive focus on them, in productivity terms. It is significant that Toyota has experienced losses through recalls of one of its cheaper models in the recent past (Listed Company Directory, 2007). Developing pressures on the environmental conservation front demand that it concentrate more on new technologies for its engines, at the cost of resources presently tied up in low value segments, even if they contribute high volumes. The company is still in the process of creating new manufacturing capacities (Listed Company Directory, 2007), so this is an opportune time for it to consider restricting its involvement in segments with relatively low returns.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Rising customer expectations and the spread of some of its hitherto proprietary technologies to competitors, also point to the need to try and serve fewer customer groups, albeit to do this with greater effectiveness for the segments in which it decides to remain. Such an approach may require that it move away from shared dealerships to owned-showrooms in star markets, while withdrawing support activities for other markets that do not yield top returns. Business contraction will improve productivity for Toyota: the company is better off than Hilton in this parameter, but needs to review some of its operations in order to sustain the edge. Comparison of and Recommendations for Quality   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Toyota is a step ahead of Hilton in terms of quality, primarily because of its ISO 14001 registrations (About Toyota, 2006). It is one of the first companies in the automotive sector to seek ISO registration. The company has reduced the amount of land it needs for manufacturing, and the quantity of paint it consumes, because of ISO procedures. The registrations have also resulted in important productivity gains in areas such as recycling and waste management. The ISO system leads to continuing improvement, so by maintaining its ISO status, Toyota can look forward to continuing quality gains. Though the company continues to suffer from occasions for model recalls (Listed Company Directory, 2007), the probabilities of such events are low.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   The decentralization of Toyota’s operations is also responsible for its strong ratings in terms of quality. The company brands similar models very differently in each country, and is sensitive to ethnic needs and perceptions. The company is able to meet top quality standards by considering the views and needs of local customer groups with care. Though the ownership and top management of Toyota is centralized in Japan, the company is sensitive to the peculiarities of all customers and geographical groups which it tries to serve. It is a mark of Toyota’s excellence in quality that it has been able to garner market shares from established manufacturers of luxury automobiles, and has brands with top ranks in premium segments.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Though Hilton is a quality brand in general terms, it does not follow the ISO system, and suffers set-backs as a consequence. One of its hotels has recently been forced to suspend operations because of a virus outbreak (Listed Company Directory, 2007). The company also faces litigation from the family of a person killed inside a room-sized air-conditioning unit in one of its properties (Listed Company Directory, 2007). These are recent examples, and the company is vulnerable to more incidents of this nature at any time.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Overall, company is not a matter to be left to chance, or something which can be limited to certain compartments of the business alone. Hilton will need to adopt a system which makes quality more assured in all aspects of its operations. The recent incidents reported indicate that while the company may be well versed in such quality aspects as house-keeping of its rooms, it lacks appropriate standards in other technical areas related to security and public hygiene. Every enterprise will have limits and gaps in its areas of expertise, and only a system such as ISO can raise quality standards uniformly. However, the recent incidents are exceptions and Hilton is generally associated with high quality standards. The popularity of its reward system for regular guests, and the premium rates it charges are indicators in this respect. Overall, Toyota has a more reliable quality system in place, compared to Hilton, and the latter can catch up through a systematic and concerted effort. References About Toyota, 2006, Company Website accessed January 2007 from:   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   http://www.toyota.com/about/shareholder/ About Hilton Hotels, 2006, Company Website accessed January 2007 from http://www.hilton.com/en/hi/brand/about.jhtml Listed Company Directory, 2007, New York Stock Exchange Web Site, accessed January 2007 from http://www.nyse.com/about/listed/listed.html    Payne, A. 2002 The Essence of Services Marketing, Prentice-Hall

Thursday, November 14, 2019

Somatic Gene Therapy Essay -- Genetics Science Ethics Essays

Somatic Gene Therapy To a parent, the thought of their child having a severe, yet rare genetic disease brings guilt, sadness, and responsibility to an aching heart. Parents who see their child pass through life with the weight of a terminal illness often wish in their hearts that the curse had been placed upon them rather than their child. To some, the thought of the old clichà © "no parent ought to see their child die" seems to swim endlessly in their mind. The hope for a cure fills the hearts of many waiting on the edge of their seats in hopes for a better quality of life for themselves, loved ones, and human kind. The news of success with a novel technology in putting to rest these diseases brings a purpose in life. Such is the case with Ashanti DeSilva, a four-year-old girl diagnosed with severe combined immune deficiency (Human Gene Therapy). Ashanti hardly lived what would be call a normal life, confined to her sterile home where she battled common childhood diseases, like the cold, with massive amounts of antibiotics. She lived a life of separation, avoiding contact with the public and even those she loved. With a compromised immune system due to a missing gene in her genome, she was vulnerable to every passing germ. On September 14, 1990, Ashanti received a life changing treatment as the first approved gene therapy. In the procedure the researchers removed white blood cells from Ashanti, which were then grown in a lab. These cells were then spliced with the missing gene and infused back into Ashanti. Although this is a treatment and not a cure, Ashanti can now live a life she and her parents dreamed of. She can now attend school and play with friends and family without fear of contact, thereby living a more... ...lt;http://www.wiley.co.uk/genmed/clinical/> Human Gene Therapy (2000). National Reference Center for Bioethics Literature. (Online) 20Nov04. <http://www.georgetown.edu/research/nrcbl/scopenotes/sn24htm>. Questions and Answers About Gene Therapy (1993). National Cancer Institute. (Online) 20Nov04. <http://www.cancernet.nci.nih.gov/clinpdq/therapy/Questions_and_Answers_About_Gene_Therapy.htm>. Rubanyi, G. (2001). The Future of Human Gene Therapy. Molecular Aspects of Medicine. 22,3, pp. 113-142. Walters, LeRoy, and Julie Gage Palmer. Ethics of Human Gene Therapy. Oxford University Press, New York. 1997. Williams, D. (2003). Gene Therapy-New Challenges Ahead. Science. 302, 5644, pp. 400. Wilson, J. (1997) What Is Gene Therapy? The Institute for Human Gene Therapy. (Online) 20Nov04. <http://www.med.upenn.edu/ihgt/info/whatisgt.html>.

Tuesday, November 12, 2019

Shareholders Activism

What is shareholder activism? In the last decade, and especially after the global financial crisis, shareholders of publicly listed companies have started to be more active and advance their views to the board of directors. It should be noted right from the beginning that the intensity of the shareholders activism is not correlated with the state of economy.Therefore, the management of a publicly traded company should not assume that in times of relatively strong economy shareholders will turn a blind eye to issues affecting them (Taylor Wessing LLP, 2012, p. 1). To better understand the concept of shareholder activism, a tentative definition is required. According to the European Corporate Governance Institute (ECGI), â€Å"shareholder activism is the way in which shareholders can assert their power as owners of the company to influence its behaviour† (ECGI, n.d. , para. 1).Shareholder activism has both proponents and opponents. Those sympathising the emancipation of the shar eholders argue that â€Å"when companies perform poorly, shareholders activists are said to play the role of fire brigades that bring about change and more quickly than would have been the case had the fire brigade been on strike† (ECGI, n. d, para. 3). On the other hand, opponents think of shareholder activism as â€Å"a euphemism for disruptive, uninformed, populist ranting† (ECGI, n.d. , para. 4).The rise of shareholder activism in Canada and abroad In the world of business the concept of shareholder activism has lost its novelty a long time ago. However, the last few years saw an increase in the level of this kind of activity. â€Å"Investors appear to be feeling increasingly empowered to intervene in the management of public companies† (Taylor Wessing LLP, 2012, p. 2). The reasons are multiple.Mediatized international scandals involving some of the biggest companies in the United States of America, such as Enron and Worldcom, have led to changes in the legi slation regarding the corporate governance and the directors’ independence. Moreover, the public access to information on unjustified executive compensation and bonuses, and the recent financial crisis have put the shareholders’ patience to test. Closer to home, some changes in the Canadian corporate law have encouraged shareholders to take action whenever they felt their interests were not properly considered by the management.In an interview for Calgary Herald, Noralee Bradley, a partner with Osler, Hoskin & Harcourt, points out some of the changes in the Canadian legislation: A request by five per cent of shareholders can now compel a company to call a shareholder meeting; proxies can now be solicited by an unhappy shareholder through informal public statements such as press releases, without issuing a formal dissident proxy circular; and, a dissident can now privately solicit proxies from up to 15 shareholders before going public with a proxy circular.  (as cited in Burton, 2012, para.7) Another reason for the rise of the shareholder activism in Canada identified by Bradley is the increase in size of pension funds and hedge funds. The size enables these funds to take a stand whenever the companies are underperforming, or they do not meet their targets (as cited in Burton, 2012, para. 8). In the United States of America the situation is almost similar.Some of the most important characteristics are: (1) â€Å"greater financial firepower [†¦] permitting them [the activists] to make larger and more investments† (Noked, 2013, para. 3); (2) the emergence of new activist funds started by individuals who worked for other similar funds; (3) the degree of sophistication has increased, meaning that activists are hiring financial and legal advisors, and they run more professional campaigns.Also, many of the activists have switched their platforms to seek long-term involvement with their target companies; (4) increased attention from the med ia, which is usually sympathetic with the activists and it is always a low cost way to pressure companies (Noked, 2013, para. 4 – 7). Forms of shareholder activism According to Admati and Pfleiderer (2006), shareholder activism can take any of several forms: proxy fights or battles, takeovers, strategic voting, or shareholders’ proposals (p. 1).Other forms of shareholder activism include private discussions or public communication with the board of directors and management (or negations), publicity or press campaigns, blogging or other electronic ways of outing the underperforming managers, talking with other shareholders, calling shareholder meetings, shareholder resolutions, litigations and settlements, whistle blowing, and in extreme cases â€Å"voting with ones feet† and â€Å"seeking to replace individual directors or the entire board† (ECGI, n. d. , para. 1).Many of the tactics employed by the activists do not need any further explanations, but some of them require special attention not only because they are more complicated and not so easy to understand by an untrained observer, but also because they are the best course of action. Proxy fights. â€Å"A proxy is a person to whom a principal with voting authority delegates his voting rights† (MIPR, n. d. , para. 1). A proxy fight usually involves a battle for other shareholder proxies and it is typically in opposition to management (MIRP, n. d., para. 3). According to Burton (2012) a proxy fight has the goal to â€Å"force change on an unwilling company† (para. 4). Shareholder resolutions. â€Å"Shareholders exercise most of their influence over how the corporation is run by passing resolutions at shareholders’ meetings. Decisions are made by ordinary, special or unanimous resolutions† (Industry Canada, 2011, para. 8). In Canada, ordinary resolutions may involve the election of directors or the appointment of auditors, and only a simple majority is r equired (Industry Canada, 2011, para.9). On the other hand, special resolutions must be approved by two thirds of the votes and usually involve fundamental changes, like selling all of the corporation’s assets, or amending the corporation’s name (Industry Canada, 2011, para. 10). Usually management will oppose many of the shareholder resolutions leading to a rather lengthy process in which the sponsoring shareholder and the management summarize their opinion and try to get to a common view (MIPR, n. d. , para. 5). Say-on-pay vote. In the UnitedStates of America, â€Å"the say-on-pay vote asks investors to vote on the compensation of the top executives of the company – the CEO, the Chief Financial Officer, and at least three other most highly compensated executives† (SEC, 2011, p. 1). â€Å"In Canada, say-on-pay began as an investor-led campaign that started in 2007, when the big five banks were asked if they would offer shareholders an annual advisory vo te on executive compensation† (Alberta Venture, 2012, para. 9). It is important to note that say-on-pay give investors a non-binding vote, which makes this vote simply an expression of support, or disapproval (McFarland, 2012, para.12). Voting with their feet. Another tactic employed by activists is to vote with their feet. This is an extreme situation in which the investor sells all the shares of the company and exists the corporation. Historically, this was the most common form of shareholder activism, until proxy battles became more common (Taylor Wessing, 2012, p. 2). Canada is ready for shareholder activism Shareholder activism is not something new in Canada, in fact it is slowly becoming business as usual.Agrium Inc. , Canadian Pacific Railway Ltd., SNC-Lavalin Group Inc. , Telus, and Rona have all been involved in cases of shareholder activism during 2012 and 2013 (Dmitrieva & Pasternak, 2013, para. 2). â€Å"There were 42 cases of shareholder activism among Canadian f irms last year, almost double the 22 a year earlier† (Dmitrieva & Pasternak, 2013, para. 4). Shareholder activism can take many forms, but proxy battles and say-on-pay could prove the most effective in the Canadian corporate world. The legislation has changed and has become more shareholder friendly.Proxy battles are more frequent in Canada and according to Jeffrey Gandz, a professor of strategic leadership at the Richard Ivey School of Business in London, Ontario, â€Å"If it’s happening more, it’s probably because it pays† (as cited in Dmitrieva & Pasternak, 2013, para. 7). Gandz’s statement is backed by facts that indicate an increase in the value of the shares issued by the companies involved in proxy battles. The same view is shared by Robert Staley, a partner at the Bennett Jones law firm in Toronto. â€Å"We’re going to see more shareholder-driven activism in Canada this year; this is a growing trend.This should increase the share pri ces of companies targeted† (as cited in Dmitrieva & Pasternak, 2013, para. 18). Indeed, each company that was targeted by activists recorded and increase in the share prices, from CP Railways Ltd. to Rona and Agrium Inc. These results should motivate shareholders to be more active and to consider proxy battles as a method of voicing their interests. However, proxy fights usually involve strong public attacks on both sides, and some shareholders may wish to keep a low profile. For this reason settlements might seem like a better alternative (Melnitzer, 2013, para. 13).Say-on-pay is another tactic that activists can engage and it is already being accepted by many publicly traded companies. Some of them are Potash Corp. , Manulife, Power Corp, and Bombardier. According to Cornell Wright of Torys LLP’s Toronto office, say-on-pay and majority voting â€Å"allow investors to express themselves to management on frequent basis. The prospect that investors might express their v iew by withholding votes from board members or voting against a company proposal on say-on-pay is in a sense a more nuanced, less costly and lower-risk threat than a proxy fight† (as cited in Melnitzer, 2013, para.20). Say-on-pay votes may not seem like a reliable weapon for Canadian activists, but it will slowly be accepted as a confidence vote for the directors’ compensation and decisions. In Canada, say-on-pay has the potential of increasing the directors’ accountability to the owners of the company. Also, this kind of vote can lead to a better cooperation between the boards and shareholders in order to design a compensation package that will motivate the executives to work harder and maximize the company’s value in the long-run.It is not a surprise to see an increase of say-on-pay votes in Canadian companies because investors are slowly becoming more vocal. It is also not surprising to see an increase in negative votes considering the financial uncerta inty in the business world. Shareholder Association for Research & Education (SHARE) concluded that in 2012 â€Å"4. 5 per cent of Canadian companies had scored less than 75-per-cent support for their pay votes this year, while no companies scored below that level in 2011† (McFarland, 2012, para.6). In the past few years say-on-pay votes in Canada have managed to change the composition of CEOs’ compensation packages to include more share units and stock options. Even though the real benefit is hard to understand very quickly, there is a reason why this tactic should have a big impact in Canada: â€Å"those equity elements more often include additional performance features, requiring a company to meet financial targets before they pay out† (McFarland, 2012, para. 16). ConclusionShareholder activism has become a hot topic in the business world especially after the financial crisis that affected the profits of many publicly traded companies. It is an activity that has both opponents and proponents. Shareholder activism is on one hand just another populist method of influencing the public, but on the other hand is probably the only way to save a company from an underperforming management. Activism has a lot of facets, from proxy battles to takeovers, strategic voting, or shareholder resolutions, from press campaigns and blogging to litigations and settlements, and â€Å"voting with ones feet†.Canada is not immune to these kinds of shareholder activism, but the ones that will really have an impact in the near future are the proxy battles and the say-on-pay votes. Both methods have yielded an increase in the value of the shares of the targeted company. According to Paul Gryglewicz, managing partner at Global Governance Advisors, â€Å"say on pay and shareholder activism are very real and very alive in Canada† (as cited in McFarland, 2012, para. 15).

Saturday, November 9, 2019

GE Healthcare Essay

As is known to all, most successful medical equipment manufacturing companies like GE Healthcare satisfy customers’ need as possible as they can and they are still on the way to improve their supply chains to attract more customers and make themselves more competitive. From this, we can see that customer value which can be defined as â€Å"the customer’s overall assessment of the utility of a product based on perceptions of what is received and what is given† (Zeithaml, 1988, p. 14) plays a very important role in supply chain. In order to analyze the role of customer value and how this puts pressure on the supply chain, this paper will use GE Healthcare as an instance to specifically illustrate the market segment it targets, the nature of customer value, its market qualifiers and order winners and current pressures on the supply chain. GE Healthcare whose general headquarters in the United Kingdom is a $17 billion unit of General Electric Company. GE Healthcare with about 46,000 employees is committed to serving healthcare professionals and its patients in more than 100 countries and it is always looking for innovations to cut down costs, increase access and enhance quality around the world. (GE Healthcare, 2012) GE Healthcare’s market target is roughly divided into two parts, namely medical products and service. This paper will mainly focus on its product market. GE Healthcare produces a wide range of products which can be specifically set off four primary parts. These are Diagnostic & Clinical Equipment, Information Technology, Life Sciences and Medical Diagnostics. Furthermore, each primary product is divided into several different kinds of functional products. For instance, Diagnostic & Clinical includes diagnostic imaging, clinical products and home health. The diagram below shows the other three primary parts of its product market. (Dineen, 2010) As we can see from the diagram, with different kinds of medical products GE Healthcare targets on not only the high-end market but also the low-end market. Therefore, it is able to take up more market share than its competitors. GE Healthcare is a medical equipment manufacturer, so its customer is more likely to be medical retailers rather than individual consumers. Customer value is related to quality, service, cost and lead time, so medical retailers want high-quality products, good service, low cost and short lead time. GE Healthcare improves its quality by reducing medical errors, enhancing diagnostic and remote monitoring and its quality level raised 15% from 2008 to 2010. (Dineen, 2010) Its products have been widely praised by medical retailers. Besides, â€Å"According to the 2010 ServiceTrak Imaging survey for PET systems, GE Healthcare has received a No.1 ranking in overall service performance in IMV’s annual ServiceTrak survey.† (GE Healthcare, 2010) This shows that GE Healthcare provides excellent service to its customers. In addition, the base cost of GE Healthcare decreased by 7% from 2008 which is $5.7 billion to 2009 which is $5.3 billion. (Dineen, 2010) The company is able to reduce its costs while maintaining profit. Thus, medical retailers get price reduction from GE Healthcare. For the purpose of shorting lead time, GE Healthcare optimizes its manufacturing supply chain constantly and keeps efficiency at a high level. So retailers receive products from GE more shortly than before. Among many medical equipment manufacturers, GE Healthcare’s main competitors are Johnson&Johnson, Siemens Medical Solutions and Philips Medical System. After looking for their common qualifiers, I find that these companies all possess strong financial support, advanced production lines, successful manufacturing supply chains, talent pools and mature innovation teams. For example, â€Å"in May 2009, General Electric announced that over the next six years it would spend $3 billion to create at least 100 health-care innovations that would substantially lower costs, increase access, and improve quality.† (Immelt etal, 2009, p.3) So we can regard these factors as market qualifiers in the medical equipment manufacturing field. Compared to other companies, GE Healthcare has its own unique ways to win business—order winners. The GE company has an in-depth understanding of end-user requirements and can also respond them efficiently. Besides, it optimizes its production line by means of leveraging products with the different prices and feature points required by the market. The GE company enhances its supply chain by optimizing packing, delivery, manufacturing and other value-added services. (GE Healthcare, 2008) It also invests in growth geographies and innovates disruptive technologies. These beneficial ways make a great contribution for GE Healthcare to winning business. GE Healthcare manufacturing supply chain consists of several processes. First of all, the company selects high quality raw materials around world. Secondly, before being used in biomedical applications, raw materials which are altered need a synthesis process. Thirdly, many individual components of different medical equipments are produced by using raw materials. This process requires specialized skills and procedures. Fourthly, components are shipped to different functional assembly point and finished products are ready to go here. Finally, after being packaged and sterilized, medical equipments are shipped to distributions or consumers. (Gevaert, 2009, p.5) Though GE Healthcare holds a successful manufacturing supply chain, it is still facing pressures. As consumers prefer to buy high-quality medical devices with less money, GE Healthcare has to cut down costs in supply chain while producing high-quality products. When GE buys raw materials, it takes much more time to look for cheap ones with high quality and purity than before. This results in increasing lead time directly. In order to enhance quality to meet consumers’ needs, GE has to use more specialized and skilled workers or more advanced machines in manufacturing. But this conflicts with its purpose of reducing costs. Besides, in the competition with other companies, GE has to make its supply chain more efficient and faster continuously and this is very difficult to achieve. Bibliography: Dineen,J.(2010). Healthymagination Investor Update. Lecture presented as part of GE Healthcare meeting,24/06/2010. GE Healthcare.(2008). 2008 European Cardiology Information Systems Product Line Leadership of the Year Award Recipient. GE Healthcare.(2010). You can’t put a number on trust. But IMV can. GE Healthcare.(2012). About GE Healthcare[online] Available at: http://www.gehealthcare.com/eueu/msabout/msabout.html [Accessed 13/11/12] Gevaert,M.(2009). Upstate South California’s Medical Device Cluster. New California, p.5. Immelt,J,R.Govindarajan,V. and Trimble,C.(2009). Harvard Business Review. How GE Is Disrupting Itself, p.3. Zeithaml, V.A.(1988). Consumer perceptions of price, quality, and value: A means-end model and synthesis of evidence. Journal of Marketing 52, p.14.

Thursday, November 7, 2019

Free Essays on Case Study For Student Analysis

Case Study for Student Analysis Arthur Reed working as a warehouse supervisor is having problems keeping his summer replacement workers throughout the summer months. His turnover is very high due to replacement workers have to pay union dues and purchase costly steel-toed boots. The pay is low and employees are expected to be on call for when an employee calls in sick. There are several ways to alleviate these problems. This paper will discuss how Arthur could offer incentives to keep employees working throughout the summer months so there will be no need to hire summer help. With the temporary employees having little training and such a high turn over it would be beneficial for the trained employees to be working at the warehouse. In the summer employees have repeatedly called in sick due to the good weather. This leads me to believe that the employees are not really ill but would rather take a day off to enjoy themselves. This has been a huge problem for Arthur and changes need to be made to ensure quality work during the summer months. Arthur’s biggest problem is finding employees to stay working with low pay and no set work schedule. This would be hard for any employer to fix. Employees need dependability from their employer to be dependable employees. While Arthur could give the part time employees benefits, the changing work schedule cannot be changed. This work schedule is what I believe to be the greatest reason for employee turnaround. With bills to pay employees need a dependable paycheck. Paying for the employees work boots and allowing them to work without joining the union would be incentives for the part time workers. These added costs take away from the employee’s earnings and since they have no benefits this could deter workers. The cost in work boots would add costs to Arthur or the warehouse if they would pay this cost. Arthur might have trouble getting approval from the union to allow these employees to not p... Free Essays on Case Study For Student Analysis Free Essays on Case Study For Student Analysis Case Study for Student Analysis Arthur Reed working as a warehouse supervisor is having problems keeping his summer replacement workers throughout the summer months. His turnover is very high due to replacement workers have to pay union dues and purchase costly steel-toed boots. The pay is low and employees are expected to be on call for when an employee calls in sick. There are several ways to alleviate these problems. This paper will discuss how Arthur could offer incentives to keep employees working throughout the summer months so there will be no need to hire summer help. With the temporary employees having little training and such a high turn over it would be beneficial for the trained employees to be working at the warehouse. In the summer employees have repeatedly called in sick due to the good weather. This leads me to believe that the employees are not really ill but would rather take a day off to enjoy themselves. This has been a huge problem for Arthur and changes need to be made to ensure quality work during the summer months. Arthur’s biggest problem is finding employees to stay working with low pay and no set work schedule. This would be hard for any employer to fix. Employees need dependability from their employer to be dependable employees. While Arthur could give the part time employees benefits, the changing work schedule cannot be changed. This work schedule is what I believe to be the greatest reason for employee turnaround. With bills to pay employees need a dependable paycheck. Paying for the employees work boots and allowing them to work without joining the union would be incentives for the part time workers. These added costs take away from the employee’s earnings and since they have no benefits this could deter workers. The cost in work boots would add costs to Arthur or the warehouse if they would pay this cost. Arthur might have trouble getting approval from the union to allow these employees to not p...

Tuesday, November 5, 2019

Does Black Seed Oil Really Work Scientific Analysis of Benefits

Does Black Seed Oil Really Work Scientific Analysis of Benefits SAT / ACT Prep Online Guides and Tips The world of natural supplements can be confusing because there are so many misleading claims about their benefits floating around the internet. Black seed oil is one of the more intriguing natural supplements on the market because of its rich history as an herbal medicine. In this article, I'll provide all the most current information on black seed oil, including what it is, black seed oil benefits, what it can't do (according to recent scientific research), and the best places to buy black seed oil. Unlike other guides, we don't want to dwell on hype and false promises- we only want to give you clear, scientifically-supported information. What Is Black Seed Oil? Black seed oil is a substance derived from the small, black crescent-shaped seeds of the Nigella sativa plant. The plant grows in southwest Asia. Black seed oil is usually taken orally, either taken straight as an oil or in a gel capsule. Black seed oil also goes by many other names, including: Nigella cretica oil Black cumin seed oil Roman coriander oil Nutmeg flower oil Fennel flower oil Ajaji oil Kalonji oil Black caraway oil Black sesame oil Onion seed oil The active ingredients found in black seed oil are the following three chemicals: thymoquinone (TQ), thymohydroquinone (THQ) and thymol. TQ has anti-oxidant and anti-inflammatory properties, and it also may help promote healthy liver functioning. Researchers are in the process of testing its viability as a cancer treatment. THQ is a natural acetylcholinesterase inhibitor, meaning it increases the level of the neurotransmitter acetylcholine in the brain. Acetylcholine can help improve memory and motor function through stimulation of the muscles, glands, and the central nervous system. Acetylcholinesterase inhibitors are used to treat Alzheimer’s, Parkinson’s, and other neurodegenerative conditions. THQ is also being investigated for potential in treating cancer. Thymol has antimicrobial properties, so it accounts for black seed oil’s potential viability as a natural antibiotic. Thymol also has anti-tumor properties that are still being investigated. The flower of the nigella sativa plant How Is Black Seed Oil Typically Used? Though many people in the western world are less familiar with black seed oil, it has been used in the Middle East and Asia for thousands of years as an herbal remedy. It is said to treat varied ailments including asthma, hypertension, diabetes, inflammation, bronchitis, headache, eczema, and the flu. In the face of these big claims, it's important to focus on what's been scientifically proven. You’ll see many people promoting black seed oil based on the fact that it’s been used in medicine since ancient times, but this doesn’t prove anything about its effectiveness in a modern context. While black seed oil has shown some promise in lowering triglycerides and blood pressure, treating allergies, improving memory in older people, and treating certain infections, it will not solve serious medical problems. As far as we can tell from the research that’s been conducted, black seed oil has very mild positive effects on a variety of different human health conditions. Black Seed Oil: Benefits and Limitations Are you thinking about buying black seed oil as a dietary supplement? First you should know what these types of supplements can really do for you and why it’s important to remain wary of the dramatic claims sellers make about their effects. Why Should You Be Skeptical of Natural Supplements? The companies and individuals that sell supplements have every incentive to exaggerate their positive effects. Doctors often get monetary incentives for pushing these types of products as well. Always, always look at the research before allowing anyone to convince you that a supplement will cure your medical problems. Ideally, the supplement should have been tested in randomized control trials and shown to have a statistically significant impact on the ailment in question. This is the gold standard for making a strong argument that a substance has a particular effect- if it hasn't been put to this test, then all you're trusting is hearsay. While it’s unlikely that most natural supplements will do harm to your health, in many cases they are a waste of money that could be spent on more effective treatments. Some people make a living by preying on the public's tendency to trust their self-proclaimed "expert" opinions. Verified Uses for Black Seed Oil There are many who claim that black seed oil has hundreds of uses and can treat almost anything under the sun. Although it may be beneficial for some conditions, its health effects aren’t as wide ranging as some people want you to think. There are quite a few scientifically supported black seed oil benefits, but most of them have been shown to produce only minor effects. Here’s a list of various uses in order of how viable they are according to scientific research: #1: Alleviating Allergy Symptoms Several studies have shown black seed oil to aid in the reduction of allergy symptoms like asthma, eczema, and overall congestion. These studies were conducted on people of both genders in varying age groups, so they show wide-ranging validity. #2: Improving Lung Function Black seed supplements have been shown to improve pulmonary function in asthmatics and people who have been exposed to agents of chemical warfare. This evidence is pretty solid because the effects of the seed were compared to a placebo and shown to be statistically significant. Asthmatics were even able to take less anti-asthmatic medication following the treatment. However, these studies had very small sample sizes, so more research still needs to be conducted. #3: Improving Memory and Cognition There is some evidence that black seed oil can mildly improve attention, memory, and cognition in older individuals. This is based on one study conducted on a small group of older male subjects, so more research still needs to be done to confirm the effects of the supplement. #4: Treating Rheumatoid Arthritis Pain from arthritis has shown to be mildly reduced through the use of black seed oil supplements in a small group of test subjects. Stiffness, swelling, and joint pain all decreased modestly with a 1000 mg daily supplement of black seed oil. #5: Treating Hepatitis C Hepatitis C is an infection caused by a virus that attacks the liver. One small study showed a 38 percent reduction in the presence of viral RNA in the livers of patients treated with 1350 mg of black seed oil a day for three months. This was without the addition of any other medications. Though this is promising, more research on a higher volume of test subjects must be conducted before any major conclusions can be drawn about black seed oil's effectiveness as a treatment for Hep C. #6: Reducing Blood Pressure, Triglycerides, and LDL Cholesterol There is some evidence that black seed oil can play a very small part in reduction of these risk factors in people who already have high blood pressure and high cholesterol. However, this is so minor that it would likely have almost no effect on overall health, so black seed oil isn’t a valid overall treatment for any of these issues. There is evidence that black seed oil can help you manage all of your most annoying allergy symptoms. Things Black Seed Oil DOESN'T Do There are some commonly-advertised black seed oil benefits that are not strongly supported by scientific evidence. As far as we know, black seed oil will NOT treat cancer in any significant way. It has shown potential for reducing tumor growth based on studies in rats, but we don’t know yet whether it can treat cancer in humans, and it may not interact favorably with other more aggressive cancer treatments. Always consult with your doctor before supplementing your treatment with herbal medicines. There have also been studies done on black seed oil as a potential treatment for diabetes. However, the effect of black seed oil on blood glucose levels has been overall negligible. Positive effects were only noticeable if people were also medicated in other ways or if no placebo group was used for comparison. This is not a viable treatment for diabetes on its own. Black seed oil also doesn’t help with weight loss. In general, you shouldn’t let anyone sell you a supplement that they advertise as a weight loss miracle drug. The only way to accomplish long term weight loss is to reduce your food intake gradually over time and try to exercise more frequently. Just taking black seed oil won't help you lose weight- you gotta put in the work in other areas. Side Effects and Interactions While black seed oil is pretty benign in terms of its side effects and interactions with other drugs, there are a couple of potential problems that you should know about using it. Skin Irritation Some people get what’s called â€Å"contact dermatitis† from black seed oil, which essentially means their skin becomes mildly irritated. You may experience itching, blistering, pain, and tenderness along with a red skin rash. Allergic Reaction As with any other herbal supplement, you may experience an allergic reaction from ingesting nigella sativa. This could cause swelling, hives, and other common allergy symptoms. (Potential) Kidney and Liver Damage Rats given high doses of nigella sativa experienced kidney and liver damage. We don’t know yet whether these findings can also be applied to humans, but to be safe you should avoid taking more than the recommended daily amount of the supplement. Interaction with Blood Pressure Medications Use of black seed oil in conjunction with medication that lowers your blood pressure could potentially lead to hypotension (excessively low blood pressure). This can be dangerous because your body is unable to get enough oxygen to your vital organs. However, since studies have shown that black seed oil only has a minor effect on lowering blood pressure, this seems like it shouldn’t be a huge concern. Discuss this with your doctor before supplementing your treatment. Risks Associated with Pregnancy You should also avoid taking these supplements if you’re pregnant just because there isn’t enough information on the effects they might have on the child’s development. If you're worried about a natural supplement interacting with medications you're taking, talk to your doctor first to find out about the potential risks. Purchasing Options Here are a few of the best options for supplements in either gel or oil form. The recommended dosage for black seed oil is 250-1000 mg daily. The oils are more expensive, but they also contain a lot more doses in each bottle. An 8 oz bottle of oil will last you at least three times as long as a bottle of softgels, so you get much for your money. It’s a matter of your personal preference - many people just find it easier to take supplements like this in pill form. Softgels Best Naturals Black Seed Oil (90 500 mg softgels for $14.99) Contains gelatin It says to take two softgels twice daily for a total of 2000 mg a day, but I would advise taking just one or two pills a day. Health Logics Black Cumin Seed Oil (100 500 mg softgels for $14.49) Contains gelatin It says to take one softgel 2-4 times a day as a dietary supplement, but as with the other softgels, 1-2 should be sufficient. Oils Amazing Herbs Black Seed Cold-Pressed Oil (8 oz for $19 or 16 oz for $29.95) Organic Non-GMO The recommended dose is 1-2 tsp (500-1000 mg) Sweet Sunnah Black Seed Oil (16 oz for $30) Vegan Non-GMO Organic Glass bottle The recommended dose is 1-2 tsp (500-1000 mg) How to Use Black Seed Oil (And How Not To) Black seed oil is a substance derived from the seeds of the nigella sativa plant, and it has been used in herbal remedies since ancient times. It is also commonly known as black cumin seed oil or kalonji oil. Medical uses for black seed oil that have shown some promise in scientific studies include: Alleviating allergy symptoms Improving lung function in asthmatics and those exposed to chemical toxins Improving memory and cognition in the elderly Treating pain from rheumatoid arthritis Treating Hepatitis C Reducing blood pressure, triglycerides, and LDL-cholesterol in those who already have elevated concentrations of each (very minor effect) Black seed oil will not cure cancer or diabetes or make you lose weight without other lifestyle changes, so be wary of dramatic claims about its extraordinary health benefits. If you do choose to take black seed oil supplements, remember that 250-1000 mg is the recommended daily dosage.