Untitled document Essays - Creative Works, Films, American Culture

"Remember it is a sin to kill a mockingbird." This is a quote straight from Harper Lee's character Atticus, in her her novel To Kill A Mockingbird , and arguably the most important one. This quote has me thinking, "is it really a sin to kill a mockingbird?" Some would agree with Atticus's belief and others would disagree with his thoughts; however, it is in fact a sin to kill a mockingbird. Three reasons to support this claim would be mockingbirds are innocent, the Bible is against it, and it is illegal. It is a sin to kill a mockingbird because they are innocent creatures. In response to the quote by Atticus, Miss Maudie says, "Your father's right, Mockingbirds don't do one thing but make music for us to enjoy . . . but sing their hearts out for us. That's why it's a sin to kill a mockingbird." She is right. These beautiful birds don't take anything but give us the gift of music. One we should all cherish. It is a sin to kill a mockingbird because the Bible says not to. As I just explained, Mockingbirds are innocent, but there is an even deeper meaning to the innocence we feel from Harper Lee's words. In the novel, Tom is a mockingbird. This is a metaphor that should not be ignored. This deeper meaning is taking the characters personalities and comparing them to the lovely mockingbird. Because mockingbirds are innocent we must see that this means Tom is innocent too as he is the perfect resemblance. The Bible provides many examples for why it is wrong to kill an innocent man. For example, Leviticus 24:21 states, "Whoever kills an animal shall make it good, and whoever kills a person shall be put to death." Another example is, Exodus 20:13 which also exclaims,"You shall not murder." It is a sin to kill a mockingbird because it is illegal. Atticus was not just keeping our hearts from doing and thinking wrong, he was also saving us from possible fines and prosecutions. The Washington Post states, " It is illegal to transport, trap or kill native non-game adult birds like Blue Jays or Mockingbirds without a permit, even if they are harassing birds at nest boxes or feeders." Those who disagree and say, "it is not a sin to kill a mockingbird", might bring up the point that mockingbirds get into our gardens and eat all of our tomatoes. This is invalid because like us, they are surviving. We should not put a mother bird to death for having the sense to feed her babies. In conclusion, it is a sin to kill a mockingbird because they are innocent, the Bible says not to, and it is illegal. I hope now we can all agree Killing a mockingbird is wrong. Now this does not mean we should kill as many seagulls as we like. The metaphor still stands and we should absorb the lesson we have learned through this story.

China Today laws, government and business environment for the investor essays

China Today laws, government and business environment for the investor essays Currently, the China of today has attempted to wrest itself from its Maoist communist path and embark upon a program of sustained economic reform. Legally, "after expressly declaring to adopt a socialist market economy in 1992," the 8th and 9th National People's Congress of China passed "a series of market-oriented laws" so that "consequently a preliminary legal system accommodating to the market economy came into being." (Building China's Market-Oriented Legal System, 2003) In recent history, China has indeed practically and legally attempted to bolster market reforms and enter the capitalist world economy. However, it is important to note that the National's People's Congress that passed the aforementioned resolution was not democratically elected by the Chinese people. China continues to have a government of control and command, politically if not economically speaking. It has attempted to create a nation where political reform is not commensurate with social reform. Perhaps the most powerful symbolic statement of this is that in a resolution was passed that allowed that "the private sector is a complement to the socialist public economy," demonstrators in Tieneman Square were massacred only a year afterward. ("Building China's Market-Oriented Legal Legally, the party administers control China's vast geographic reaches capital, in the form of a single-party system. The party allows free enterprise and private ownership to exist, provided it does not interfere with party activities through democratic initiatives. Legally, private ownership exists, and is protected, but the government remains involved in the economy to protect the communist party's own, uni-party interests. This dual program of economic liberalization and political repression began often known as China's 'one country, two systems' plan in that a Western economy exists next to a communist pol...

The Inciting Incident How to Write One Correctly to Hook Readers

The Inciting Incident How to Write One Correctly to Hook Readers The Inciting Incident: How to Write One Correctly to Hook Readers Your inciting incident has the power to influence readers to 1) buy your book and 2) pull them in for the remainder of it.In order to get readers to keep reading, your book needs something to trigger that.Sometimeseven starting your story out strongly isnt enoughAnd that means you need a powerful and inticing inciting incident.Heres how to write an inciting incident:Know why the inciting incident mattersLearn what an inciting incident isEnsure it changes the characters life foreverMake sure it draws a line between old life and newIt must kick off the main plotLearn from inciting incident examplesNOTE: We cover everything in this blog post and much more about the writing, marketing, and publishing process in our VIP Fiction Self-Publishing Program, in addition to your 1-on-1 coaching with a bestelling fiction author. Learn more about it hereWhy Inciting Incidents MatterBy the time you get to Death Wish 5, Charles Bronson has run out of reasons to seek vengeance on the world. You can o nly have everyone (and everything, if you count the house and the dog) you love destroyed by violence so many times before it stops being much of a motivation.In action films (and thriller-type novels), the setup for revenge often comes down to quickly killing a loved one. But the 80s are over and motivations need to resonate with an audience that rightly finds some quick woman-in-a-refrigerator to be as irredeemable as it is lazy.When writing a book, you need to incite your hero to action by giving them a reason.Your reader needs to be on board with that reason. Barring that, your reader needs to understand the reason. Failing that, your reader shouldn’t hate your reason.The difference between an antihero and a villain often comes down to a mixture of how they handle an Inciting Incident and the scope of the incident.A villain will want to burn the world because they lost face to the protagonist. An antihero might decide to shoot every criminal they see because children murd er, for example.Before we get lost in the weeds, let’s break it down and ask the big question.What is an inciting incident?An inciting incident is a specific event at the beginning of a story that kicks off the main plot by forcing your main character into it. The inciting incident changes your characters life forever.A good Inciting Incident contains the following four qualities:Creates a Story Question that the Climax must answerIs Sufficient and Kickass: The stakes matter, the presentation WOWs!Sets a ToneTruly Motivates a Character (internally, not superficially)Essentially, an Inciting Incident gives the hero a reason. This reason must be sufficient to the character in question and also sufficient to the story in question. In the Matrix, the Inciting Incident for Neo comes from learning that he is in a simulation. He is offered a choice between learning about that world or going blissful ignorance.In Romeo and Juliet, the star-crossed lovers meet and fall in love at a party, setting them on a course that leads to tragedy.Katniss, an independent girl with skills and a drive to protect others, sees her sister drawn to be Tribute in the Hunger Games.Mild-mannered office worker Richard Mayhew has a job, a fiancà ©, and no real problems in his life until he can’t help but rescue a wounded girl he sees on the street in Neverwhere.All these examples show inciting incidents that start their respective stories.Each of these inciting incident examples reveals something about the protagonist and the world they live in. They don’t just set the story in motion; they give us a reason to want to see our heroes succeed.How do they accomplish this? They do so by deftly ticking off all four boxes without ticking off the reader.How to Write an Inciting Incident do it WellAs stated above, if youre writing a novel, you need an inciting incident. The key here is to do it well by including the necessary elements to do just that.Heres what an inciting incident needs to do:Alter a hero’s life in an irreversible wayDraw a Line between mundane life and the QuestKick Off the story’s MAIN plotlineLet’s walk through what each of these means as well as examples to bring them to life.#1 Alter a heros life foreverTheres really one main objective of an inciting incident and if you fail this part, the rest of the book will be hard to construct.Your inciting incident must, above all else, alter your characters life forever.Without this very element, its very hard to convince your readers to buy into the story.If your readers can sit back and say, or they could just not do it. to whatever the inciting incident is and their life would be u nchanged, youve created a lot more work for yourself when it comes to the plot.The idea behind this is that if your characters life is changed forever, they dont have a choice but to move forward with what has happened.And that forward momentum is what you need to keep readers engaged.#2 Draw a line between normal life and the new normalThere needs to be a stark contrast between what your characters life looks like now versus what its about to look like after the inciting incident.Why?Because readers want to know that your character cant just go back to how things were. Otherwise, whats the point of them continuing on this journey?With the inciting incident (and really the setup of your story), you are making a promise to the reader about what will happen in your story. If you dont draw a line between the old and whats to come, they wont be interested in finding out whats to come because it wont feel like a mystery.#3 Kick off the storys MAIN plotlineYour inciting incident has to be related to the main plot of your story. If the inciting incident is unrelated to what the main plot points are, youve done something wrong.A common mistake authors make with this is using a big, tense moment as the inciting incident in order to draw intrigue, but then in the next chapter, introducing the real main plot elements.If your story can work separately from the inciting incident, its not done correctly. Go back and tie it into the main plot.An example of this would be Katniss Everdeen in The Hunger Games.The main plot is her journey to survive the Hunger Games. The inciting incident is when she volunteers as tribute to replace her sister in the games.Had the inciting incident not happened (volunteering), the main plot would not exist (Katniss surviving the games).An example of how this could not go well is if the author decided to use a raid or a brawl of some sort as the inciting incident, and then making Katniss be chosen for the games. These elements would not be tied in this instance and it wouldnt be as intriguing or as good of a story.Inciting Incident ExamplesOne of the best ways to get the hang of what an inciting incident really is, is to read and learn from some examples.Here are 4 inciting incident examples to help you learn how to do this well.Inciting Incident Example #1 The MatrixFor Neo, the choice represents an important internal motivation for his character. He doesn’t choose red vs blue pill because he wants to find out what’s going on, he NEEDS to know.The events leading up to this choice have already illustrated his deep #2 Romeo and JulietThe titular characters met and fall in love. As has been said, you can redo this story with anything, like 2005s pirates and ninjas, and by the end, the audience will demand to know why pirates and ninjas can’t be in love. Or vampires and werewolves, if Underworld is more your thing.The Inciting Incident creates a story question about love and its consequences which the Climax delivers on. It reveals the character of both Romeo and Juliet as they feel truly, without the pretense of the society they live in. The costumes and masks of the party keep their prejudices out, revealing an inner truth.Whether you enjoy a stage production, an older movie, or the Baz Luhrmann version, the party sets a tone for the rest of the events. The presentation leading up to the moment of love discovered feels earned even after a thousand iterations. We root for the characters because we are practically programmed to do so.Finally, the line is drawn between each character’s former life and their new reality of being in love. Nothing about their old prejudices continues forward. The consequences of the main plotline stems from this moment.Inciting Incident Example #3 The Hunger GamesKatniss offers herself up literally as ‘tribute’ to save her sister. It’s character motivated, it sets a tone, and it stuns the crowd. This Inciting Incident creates an echo that follows the character as the story question becomes about the purpose and meaning of sacrifice.The separation between the world of the District and the world of the Games themselves is inexorable and clear cut. The film uses a diluted and diffused palette for the earlier scenes, giving way to a brighter almost saturated pallet for the games. In the book, the prose shifts, becoming more playful and les terse. In both cases, the audience knows which world they are witnessing.The story happens because of this decision.All of this is sufficient, but Collin’s pulls it off in three words. Well, almost, the setup makes the specific Inciting Incident possible.The main plotline occurs, in almost a cheat, at the titular Hunger Games.Finally, the stakes matter to Katniss personally. She saved her sister. The further ramifications that change the society also stem from this incident, but they don’t have to.If the book ended with her sacrifice it would still be sufficient.Inciting Incident Example #4 NeverwinterGaiman uses the Inciting Incident figuratively for the reader and literally for the character of Richard Mayhew. The moment that Richard notices Door, he crosses over from the real world to the realm of London Below.The distinction between the two worlds is irrevocable but not obvious to the intractable Richard, at least not at first.Meeting Door is both an Inciting Incident personally for Richard, who must help because you help people when you see they need it, and a deeply revealing part of his character development. The naiveite that comes with it almost gets him killed quite a few times, but the character line is there.The WOW! of the moment comes from the way Richard entirely focuses on the wounded girl, Door, and totally ignores his blathering fiancà © who demands Richard make a decision, on the spot, between helping the wounded waif and staying engaged.Much like in the Matrix, this is no kind of choice at all. Richard can’t not help.The stakes don’t seem high to Richard, but the reader soon learns that without aid, the men who wounded Door would have caught up to her.Finally, the Incident creates a story question about both Richard and Door, how they interact with the world(s) they interact with and who they are. All of which has a pay off in the Climax.How the Inciting Incident Shapes Your StoryAs you see, the Inciting Incident does a lot with very little. The best of them seem to be almost happenstance, a nearly throwaway event that makes an impact on the characters and the world(s) around them.Even something simple can be used as an iceberg tip, drawing the reader down a rabbit hole (for a fifth example of this EXACT thing) into the world of your story.Be cautioned! These examples represent everything going right and fulfilling the Musts to be sufficient. Losing one of the Musts alone can cause a story to stumble out of the gate.It is possible to recover, but never ideal. Consider the Inciting Incident of The Phantom Menace (picking on a poorly executed story is low fruit, but that’s the point). Anakin is discovered because they need a part to fix a ship to get back on the ‘real’ adventure of protecting Padme. The Incident has prophetic potency but its lack of both a clear separation between the mundane and the quest and its failure to set the stakes leave the audience baffled and relying on external information to care.The Inciting Incident can be thought of as the first major hurdle you need to jump to make a story kickass. If you stumble, even a little, on that first hurdle getting to the finish line and medalling in the event isn’t impossible, but it sure as hell isn’t going to be easy.Start Working Toward a Powerful Story TODAYSometimes getting started is the hardest part. When you have a coach, someone you can work with 1 on 1 to take your story idea to the next level, your progress (and future publishing goals) are better for it.Check out this free training to learn how you can get started.

Analyze the role of a manager within the functional areas of business Essay

Analyze the role of a manager within the functional areas of business - Essay Example The essay critically analyzes the role of a manager within the functional area of business with regards to the University of Phoenix MBA Overview Module. Managers use the marketing role to identify the type of products and services they can offer their clients. The marketing role also allows managers to advertise their supplies to customers and ensure they meet the needs of their customers(Phoenix, n.d). Through marketing, managers learn how to create a good image for their business. Businesses that have consensus right from upper management to the other managerial positions have high chances of benefiting from the marketing role of a manager. But, managers should also have adequate knowledge about the various tools to use to get an edge over their competitors. Use of the best marketing tools such as SWOT analysis and marketing mix enables the manager convince the customers to purchase the products offered. Managers can use the SWOT analysis to identify the strengths, weaknesses, external opportunities and threats likely to affect the business(Phoenix, n.d). Also, successful managers take advantage of existing market inefficiencies to develop a unique selling point. For managers to be successful in their marketing role, they have to understand the different factors that can affect the success of their marketing campaign. The management role of managers involves coordinating and overseeing the work done by employees. Managers regularly check on the activities done in different departments to ensure they are in line with the goals of the organization. Managers must also have the unique capabilities to use employees effectively in order to achieve business success. They need to take time to interpret basic organizational values to the employees and create an effective work environment(Phoenix, n.d). Also, they must provide the necessary resources and

Harford Bicycle Planning Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3000 words

Harford Bicycle Planning - Assignment Example Hull consists of a population of 262,000 individuals with a near 50/50 gender ratio. No particular cycling habits were identified through studies pertaining to very regionalized cultural habits in Hull. It is an understanding that certain geographical features and inherent landscape motivations will determine some consumer behaviour, however without this data this marketing function seeks for mass market appeal via a systematic IMC campaign. In this city, the infrastructure for this activity is present, the motivations and incentives are a missing component. Using valid concepts of human behaviour, target markets were identified as subsections: Since no identifiable model of consumer target characteristics could be identified, this segmentation approach represents a modified acknowledgement of the FCB Planning Model and the Elaboration Likelihood Model of consumer decision-making. Taking into assessment the history and structure of Hull, these markets coincide with the geographical proximity of Halford’s product distributors and can be targeted through mass-focused communications over a systematic time period. The concept is not about making comparable difference claims about Halford’s internal brand reliance and partnerships, positioning Halford’s is identifying its strengths and weaknesses that are most likely to be present in the local environment. Halford’s currently refers to itself as much like a distributor when referring to its product selection, thus making it competitive through its product. Halford’s requires a repositioning during this summer period that gives the business a personified image. It is choice of quality positioning as a lifestyle leader for key markets with a supplementary identity as a premier sales organization. Quality. It speaks a different language depending on the target

Increasingly multicultural Essay Example for Free

Increasingly multicultural Essay Montreal is a vibrant cosmopolitan city that is becoming increasingly multicultural. although this is the case Quebecs language laws have made it all but impossible to post outdoor signs in languages other than French. Other disadvantageous do not point just to those who do not speak French. Since Bill 101 was passed in 1977 many were skeptical over the change in the school system when it urged Quebec to change a law that requires most immigrant children to get their schooling in French. The law that now keeps most immigrant children out of English schools, Bill 101, was enacted 22 years ago under the authority of our good old friend Rene Levesque in response to nationalist fears that a pronounced tendency among Quebec allophones to choose an English education for their children together with a low francophone birth rate posed a long-term threat to the future of the French language, especially here in Montreal. Why couldnt the city be left the way it was, the needless threat of all of Quebecs language laws have posed a menace to society. The more laws that have been passed the more the French Majority have become involved resulting in a greater vigor to stay free from English. There have been in the past many riots and angered separatists willing to give their lives for the right to keep the French language intact. If the Government hadnt been so enthusiastic over efforts to change the face of the province maybe the majority of the population would have left the issue of language alone and accepted the English for what they are. Many have grown through the upbringing of their parents to treat everybody the same, and also by the old saying. Dont judge a book by its cover. It is a complete outrage for the Government to witness crimes of hate and to ignored them by making the problem worse by going ahead with their proposed we hate the English lets get them out of here law. That has definitely been the way that allophones have felt and they were never given a fair share of anything, not even a vote. After the referendum this had become the talk of the nation when rumors suggested that die-hard separatists had tampered with the votes after the 1994 referendum when Quebec narrowly escaped separation from Canada by just a hairs breadth. But the havoc hadnt only just begun, there were incidents in the past when Prime Minister Trudeau was in charge that literally tested the lives of allophones, closer to home over here in Westmount. Alleged obstinate separatists preformed acts of hate on Montreals well-known English community. Bombs were neatly placed in to mailboxes that were, appallingly, set to detonate once opened. This spelled danger to Montreals allophone community who flocked elsewhere to get away from the unbearable tensions that were built amongst them by these alleged terrorists. That is exactly why I disagree with Mordecai Richlers opinion over Montreals status. He once said. We Havent Lost our heads only our apostrophes. Montreal however diminished is still to my mind the most agreeable city in Canada. And this is because the two cultures not only confront eachother but also continue to enrich eachother. How could such a knowledgeable man ignore all the violence and the lack of equality. It has to be said that there has never been a time when it was liberated to say that we have grown to enrich each other because it quite simply isnt true. Problems between the two vibrant cultures have not caused astronomical damage, but enough damage to believe that allophones are not wanted. Tensions for a while remained calm, but more recently the bombings that plagued some second Cup coffee shops, in a furious scuffle just to change the name to Deuxieme Tasse. Similar incidents include Jacques Villneuves opening of his bar called new town the translation of his last name. The successful Formula 1 hero was the target of many unpleased individuals over the name of his bar. Villneuve was later asked to reply and give his opinion to the miserable reaction over the name and quite simply stated that people in this city must become more open minded. Cant really disagree there. It comes to show that times havent changed and that tensions are still sky high. That is exactly why I disagree with Mordecai Richlers opinion over the Montreals status. He once said. We Havent Lost our heads only our apostrophes. Montreal however diminished is still to my mind the most agreeable city in Canada. And this is because the two cultures not only confront eachother but also continue to enrich eachother.

Cloning :: essays research papers

The History of CloningThe theory of being able to make a genetic copy (a clone) of another animal has been around for quite a while. In this section as the title reads I will show the history of cloning.400 million years B. C.- Plants have been cloning themselves since not to long (as far as the Earth is concerned) after their introduction to our planet. They send out runners that create an identical copy of the parent plant. 1938- Hans Spermann, of Germany, envisions what he calls the "fantastical experiment". He suggests taking the nucleus from a cell in the late-stage embryo and transplanting that nucleus into an egg.1952- Scientists Robert Briggs and T.J. King use a pipette to suck the nucleus from the cell of an advanced frog embryo, they then add it to a frog egg. The egg didn't develop.1970- John Gurdon tries the same experiment with the same procedure. The eggs developed into tadpoles but died after they were ready to begin feeding. He later showed that transplanted nuclei revert to an embryonic state.1973- Ian Wilmut just finishes his doctorate at Cambridge University when he produces the first calf born from a frozen embryo. Cows only give birth to five to ten calves in a lifetime. By taking frozen embryos produced by cows that provide the best meat or milk then transferring that to surrogate mother it allows cattle farmers increase the quality of their herd.Mid to late 1970's- Scientists cut down small forests publishing research papers arguing the ethics of cloning and if it can be done. While they do this other researches around the world are actually investigating if it can be done. 1981- Karl Illmensee and Peter Hoppe report that they clone normal mice and embryo cells. It is later found to be a fraud.1982- James McGrath and Davor Solter report that they can not repeat the mouse cloning experiment. They conclude that once mouse embryos reach the two cell stage they cannot be used for cloning. Others confirm their results.1993- Embryologists at George Washington University cloned human embryos: they took cell groups from 17 human embryos (defective ones that an infertility clinic was going to discard), all two to eight cells in size. They teased apart cells , grew each one in a lab dish and a few got to 32 cells- a size when they can be planted into a surrogate mother, although they weren't.

Intermountain Healthcare Essay

Continuous improvement in quality and productivity processes is essential for any business that wants to be profitable but more so for Health care organizations due to the constant changing nature of their practice. The philosophy of continuous improvement is captured in the plan-do-check-act (PDCA) cycle proposed by W. Edwards Deming (Fitzsimmons et. Al. , 2013). The three principles that form the foundation for Deming’s teaching are Customer satisfaction, Management by Facts, and Respect for people. Health care delivery must focus on satisfying patients’ needs and this principle must be incorporated into the mind of every employee of a healthcare organization. Scientific thinking (collecting and statistically analyzing data) must also be merged with administrative analysis before decisions are made by the quality improvement teams. For quality improvement to be established in an organization, there must be mutual respect amongst employees where everybody’s ideas on improving processes are solicited. By implementing these principles, the idea of â€Å"higher quality could lead to lower cost,† can be manifested. How well is Intermountain Health Care performing? From the case study, intermountain Health care is performing very well. As of 2001, the intermountain healthcare (IHC) Health plan was the largest in Utah which covered about 460,000 individuals and a market share of 40%. The closest competitor being Blue Cross and Blue Shield, covered 425,000 individuals. IHC started with fifteen hospitals in 1975 and after 27 years grew it to 22 hospitals, 25 health centers and over 70 outpatient’s clinics all across Utah and Southeastern Idaho. IHC is a vertically integrated Health care organization that has won many top awards in the industry. In 2000, 2002, 2003, 2004 and 2005, Intermountain Healthcare was ranked No. 1 (among nearly 600 evaluated) integrated healthcare systems in the U. S. by Modern Healthcare magazine and the Verispan research firm. The rankings measured efficiency, communication cost and quality of care. As of 2013, Intermountain Healthcare is internationally recognized, has a nonprofit system of 22 hospitals, a Medical Group with more than 185 physician clinics, and an affiliated health insurance company, SelectHealth. It currently has 33,000 employees serving patients and plan members in Utah and Southeastern Idaho. Below is a list of other awards that IHC has received as a system: Hospitals & Health Networks recognized Intermountain Healthcare as one of â€Å"Health Care’s Most Wired 2013† in the nation. This was the fourteenth year Intermountain has been listed. Forbes magazine named Intermountain Healthcare to its list of â€Å"21 Most Admired Companies Making IT a Competitive Advantage† in 2013. American College of Medical Quality gave the â€Å"Institutional Quality Leadership Award† to Intermountain Healthcare, the sole recipient of this award in 2013, for Intermountain longstanding commitment to clinical quality programs and innovations in healthcare delivery. The Gallup Organization again presented Intermountain Healthcare with its Great Workplace Award for 2013 Intermountain Healthcare ranked No. 3 overall in the U. S. and No. 1 in the western U. S. on the 2012 list of the nation’s Top 100 Integrated Health Systems compiled by IMS Health and Modern Healthcare magazine. National Research Corporation presented a 2012/2013 Consumer Choice Award to Intermountain Healthcare for its hospitals, clinics, and business units’ having been selected by locally served consumers as having the best quality and image. What is Intermountain’s approach to the management of health care delivery? Intermountain uses Clinical integration as its approach to healthcare delivery. This involves both an organizational restructuring as well as the use of different set of tools (mainly technological tools). With this approach of healthcare delivery, both the administrative and medical staff (physicians, nurses and pharmacist) collaborate to implement the perfect system of gathering, storing, and making accessible medical data on each patient. Analyzing this data gathered enables the medical team to create protocols or use decision support tools that focus on improving medical intervention for each patient as well as removing inefficiencies from their service process. Its core aim was to establish quality and extend full management accountability to IHC’s Clinical Function. IHC health services was divided into four areas: Clinical conditions, clinical support services, service quality and administrative support processes. IHC also uses Deming’s PDCA Cycle and Lean Service to ensure continuous quality improvement. Why does Intermountain do it this way? Intermountain tries to continually improve its Quality improvement process by adopting the PDCA cycle. They plan by selecting â€Å"clinical problems† for Hospital based procedures. These processes are documented and data collected. By the top managers brainstorming, they are able to reach the root causes of the problems. The â€Å"Do† in the PDCA cycle is used to implement solutions or processes to solve the Clinical problems on a Trail basis. (The implementation process is monitored and documented). The Check in the PDCA cycle is used to review and evaluate the outcomes of implementing the solution. The Act in the PDCA cycle helps the company to reflect and act on the learning experience. The changes in the processes that were successful are standardized and communicated to the employees. IHC also uses a Biannual advanced Training program in Health care Delivery Improvement (ATP) to come out with best practice protocols. Here, they use the lean dimension ‘empowering those who do the work in continuous improvement’ or ‘human development’ which is a very important part of the lean process. Since the ideas are generated by the employees themselves, there is a lot of motivation to implement it. Why don’t all heath care delivery organizations do this? The implementation of information technology systems like Health evaluation through Logical processing system (HELP) and Electronic medical (EMR) are very expensive. The cost of training the staff and maintenance of these systems can be very expensive. Some health care delivery organizations also see the clinical integration system as a loss of traditional physician autonomy, prestige, power and income. Some health care organizations also enjoy having inefficiencies in their systems so that they can exploit unsuspecting patients. We go to the hospital now and are requested to do all kinds of unnecessary lab tests, just to increase our medical bills. Conclusion Intermountain has adopted the strategy of improving continuously by adopting the PDCA cycle and it seems to be working for them since they are the largest Healthcare providers in Utah and Southeastern Idaho. Its clinical integration approach to delivering care has resulted in the company winning numerous awards. The incorporation of information technology plays a crucial role in the quality improvement of their services. The incorporation of Deming’s idea that â€Å"Higher quality could lead to lower cost,† has given the IHC Health plan a competitive edge over other insurers in Utah. References Fitzsimmons, J. A. , Fitzsimmons, M. J. , & Bordoloi, S. K. (2014). Service Management Operations, Strategy, Information Technology. New York, NY: McGraw-Hill/Irwin. http://en. wikipedia. org/wiki/Intermountain_Healthcare http://intermountainhealthcare. org/about/overview/awards/Pages/home. aspx http://www. beckershospitalreview. com/strategic-planning/back-to-basics-understanding-the-5-performance-dimensions-of-lean-in-healthcare. html Bohmer, R. M. J. , Edmondson, A. C. , & Feldman, L. R. (2013). Intermountain Health Care. Boston, MA: Harvard Business School Publication Roger, R. (2008). Commentary: Intermountain Healthcare. High Performing Healthcare Systems: Delivering Quality by Design. 179-184. Retrieved from http://www. longwoods. com/content/20147

Indra Nooyi: Keeping Cool in Hot Water

Indra Nooyi joined PepsiCo in 1994 and was named president and CFO in 2000. Nooyi has directed the company's global strategy for more than a decade and led PepsiCo's restructuring, including the 1997 divestiture of its restaurants into Tricon, now known as Yums! Brand. Because of her desire to win, Nooyi fought hard for PepsiCo’s successful $3. 3 billion acquisition of Tropicana in 1998, eyeing the transaction as a vehicle to increase PepsiCo’s earnings and enhance its image as a premium brand for convient foods and drinks.The crowning glory in her career was serving as lead negotiator of PepsiCo's $13. 8 billion acquisition of the Quaker Oats Company in 2001, which led to her being named one of the top five officers at her company, which also brought Gatorade to PepsiCo. As the highest-ranked Indian American woman in corporate America, Nooyi led some of PepsiCo's most significant strategic moves. In 2007 she became the fifth CEO in PepsiCo's 44-year history.According t o Business Week, since she started as CFO in 2000, the company's annual revenues have risen 72%, while net profit more than doubled, to $5. 6 billion in 2006. Nooyi was named on Wall Street Journal’s list of 50 women to watch in 2007 and 2008, and was listed among Time’s 100 Most Influential People in The World in 2007 and 2008. Forbes named her the #3 most powerful woman in 2008. Fortune ranked her the #1 most powerful woman in business in 2009 and 2010. On the 7th of October 2010 Forbes magazine ranked her the 6th most powerful woman in the world.The information in this articles is just a more in depth description than our text book had given of the impact that Indra Nooyi has had on the PepsiCo. I found all of these article worth while. I enjoyed learning about Indra Nooyi and the great strides she has made for herself and for the PepsiCo. I think it is great to hear of the changes and advancements that Pepsi is undergoing with Indra Nooyi in the lead. She has prove n herself to be a wonderful role model and example for others to follow. I'm interested to see how Pepsi continues to grow with her as CEO.

Pterosaurs - The Flying Reptiles - Evolution

Pterosaurs - The Flying Reptiles - Evolution Pterosaurs (winged lizards) hold a special place in the history of life on earth: they were the first creatures, other than insects, to successfully populate the skies. The evolution of pterosaurs roughly paralleled that of their terrestrial cousins, the dinosaurs, as the small, basal species of the late Triassic period gradually gave way to bigger, more advanced forms in the Jurassic and Cretaceous. (See a complete, A to Z list of pterosaurs.) Before we proceed, though, its important to address one important misconception. Paleontologists have found indisputable proof that modern birds are descended not from pterosaurs, but from small, feathered, land-bound dinosaurs (in fact, if you could somehow compare the DNA of a pigeon, a Tyrannosaurus Rex and a Pteranodon, the first two would be more closely related to each other than either would be to the third). This is an example of what biologists call convergent evolution: nature has a way of finding the same solutions (wings, hollow bones, etc.) to the same problem (how to fly). The First Pterosaurs As is the case with dinosaurs, paleontologists dont yet have enough evidence to identify the single ancient, non-dinosaur reptile from which all pterosaurs evolved (the lack of a missing linksay, a terrestrial archosaur with half-developed flaps of skinmay be heartening to creationists, but you have to remember that fossilization is a matter of chance. Most prehistoric species arent represented in the fossil record, simply because they died in conditions that didnt allow for their preservation.) The first pterosaurs for which we have fossil evidence flourished during the middle to late Triassic period, about 230 to 200 million years ago. These flying reptiles were characterized by their small size and long tails, as well as obscure anatomical features (like the bone structures in their wings) that distinguished them from the more advanced pterosaurs that followed. These rhamphorhynchoid pterosaurs, as theyre called, include Eudimorphodon (one of the earliest pterosaurs known), Dorygnathus and Rhamphorhynchus, and they persisted into the early to middle Jurassic period. One problem with identifying the rhamphorhynchoid pterosaurs of the late Triassic and early Jurassic periods is that most specimens have been unearthed in modern-day England and Germany. This isnt because early pterosaurs liked to summer in western Europe; rather, as explained above, we can only find fossils in those areas that lent themselves to fossil formation. There may well have been vast populations of Asian or North American pterosaurs, which may (or may not) have been anatomically distinct from the ones with which were familiar. Later Pterosaurs By the late Jurassic period, rhamphorhynchoid pterosaurs had been pretty much replaced by pterodactyloid pterosaurslarger-winged, shorter-tailed flying reptiles exemplified by the well-known Pterodactylus and Pteranodon. (The earliest identified member of this group, Kryptodrakon, lived about 163 million years ago.) With their larger, more maneuverable wings of skin, these pterosaurs were able to glide farther, faster, and higher up in the sky, swooping down like eagles to pluck fish off the surface of oceans, lakes and rivers. During the Cretaceous period, pterodactyloids took after dinosaurs in one important respect: an increasing trend toward gigantism. In the middle Cretaceous, the skies of South America were ruled by huge, colorful pterosaurs like Tapejara and Tupuxuara, which had wingspans of 16 or 17 feet; still, these big fliers looked like sparrows next to the true giants of the late Cretaceous, Quetzalcoatlus and Zhejiangopterus, the wingspans of which exceeded 30 feet (far larger than the largest eagles alive today). Heres where we come to another all-important but. The enormous size of these azhdarchids (as giant pterosaurs are known) has led some paleontologists to speculate that they never actually flew. For example, a recent analysis of the giraffe-sized Quetzalcoatlus shows that it had some anatomical features (such as small feet and a stiff neck) ideal for stalking small dinosaurs on land. Since evolution tends to repeat the same patterns, this would answer the embarrassing question of why modern birds have never evolved to azhdarchid-like sizes. In any event, by the end of the Cretaceous period, the pterosaursboth large and smallwent extinct along with their cousins, the terrestrial dinosaurs and marine reptiles. Its possible that the ascendancy of true feathered birds spelled doom for slower, less versatile pterosaurs, or that in the aftermath of the K/T Extinction the prehistoric fish that these flying reptiles fed on were drastically reduced in number. Pterosaur Behavior Aside from their relative sizes, the pterosaurs of the Jurassic and Cretaceous periods differed from one another in two important ways: feeding habits and ornamentation. Generally, paleontologists can infer a pterosaurs diet from the size and shape of its jaws, and by looking at analogous behavior in modern birds (such as pelicans and seagulls). Pterosaurs with sharp, narrow beaks most likely subsisted on fish, while anomalous genera like Pterodaustro fed on plankton (this pterosaurs thousand or so tiny teeth formed a filter, like that of a blue whale) and the fanged Jeholopterus may have sucked dinosaur blood like a vampire bat (though most paleontologists dismiss this notion). Like modern birds, some pterosaurs also had rich ornamentationnot brightly colored feathers, which pterosaurs never managed to evolve, but prominent head crests. For example, Tupuxuaras rounded crest was rich in blood vessels, a clue that it may have changed color in mating displays, while Ornithocheirus had matching crests on its upper and lower jaws (though its unclear if these were used for display or feeding purposes). Most controversial, though, are the long, bony crests atop the noggins of pterosaurs like Pteranodon and Nyctosaurus. Some paleontologists believe that Pteranodons crest served as a rudder to help stabilize it in flight, while others speculate that Nyctosaurus may have sported a colorful sail of skin. Its an entertaining idea, but some aerodynamics experts doubt that these adaptations could have been truly functional. Pterosaur Physiology The key trait that distinguished pterosaurs from land-bound feathered dinosaurs that evolved into birds was the nature of their wings which consisted of wide flaps of skin connected to an extended finger on each hand. Although these flat, broad structures provided plenty of lift, they may have been better suited to passive gliding than powered, flapping flight, as evidenced by the dominance of true prehistoric birds by the end of the Cretaceous period (which may be attributed to their increased maneuverability). Although theyre only distantly related, ancient pterosaurs and modern birds may have shared one important feature in common: a warm-blooded metabolism. Theres evidence that some pterosaurs (like Sordes) sported coats of primitive hair, a feature usually associated with warm-blooded mammals, and its unclear if a cold-blooded reptile could have generated enough internal energy to sustain itself in flight. Like modern birds, pterosaurs were also distinguished by their sharp vision (a necessity for hunting from hundreds of feet in the air!), which entailed a bigger-than-average brain than that possessed by terrestrial or aquatic reptiles. Using advanced techniques, scientists have even been able to reconstruct the size and shape of the brains of some pterosaur genera, proving that they contained more advanced coordination centers than comparable reptiles. Pterosaurs (winged lizards) hold a special place in the history of life on earth: they were the first creatures, other than insects, to successfully populate the skies. The evolution of pterosaurs roughly paralleled that of their terrestrial cousins, the dinosaurs, as the small, basal species of the late Triassic period gradually gave way to bigger, more advanced forms in the Jurassic and Cretaceous. Before we proceed, though, its important to address one important misconception. Paleontologists have found indisputable proof that modern birds are descended not from pterosaurs, but from small, feathered, land-bound dinosaurs (in fact, if you could somehow compare the DNA of a pigeon, a Tyrannosaurus Rex and a Pteranodon, the first two would be more closely related to each other than either would be to the third). This is an example of what biologists call convergent evolution: nature has a way of finding the same solutions (wings, hollow bones, etc.) to the same problem (how to fly). The First Pterosaurs As is the case with dinosaurs, paleontologists dont yet have enough evidence to identify the single ancient, non-dinosaur reptile from which all pterosaurs evolved (the lack of a missing linksay, a terrestrial archosaur with half-developed flaps of skinmay be heartening to creationists, but you have to remember that fossilization is a matter of chance. Most prehistoric species arent represented in the fossil record, simply because they died in conditions that didnt allow for their preservation.) The first pterosaurs for which we have fossil evidence flourished during the middle to late Triassic period, about 230 to 200 million years ago. These flying reptiles were characterized by their small size and long tails, as well as obscure anatomical features (like the bone structures in their wings) that distinguished them from the more advanced pterosaurs that followed. These rhamphorhynchoid pterosaurs, as theyre called, include Eudimorphodon (one of the earliest pterosaurs known), Dorygnathus and Rhamphorhynchus, and they persisted into the early to middle Jurassic period. One problem with identifying the rhamphorhynchoid pterosaurs of the late Triassic and early Jurassic periods is that most specimens have been unearthed in modern-day England and Germany. This isnt because early pterosaurs liked to summer in western Europe; rather, as explained above, we can only find fossils in those areas that lent themselves to fossil formation. There may well have been vast populations of Asian or North American pterosaurs, which may (or may not) have been anatomically distinct from the ones with which were familiar. Later Pterosaurs By the late Jurassic period, rhamphorhynchoid pterosaurs had been pretty much replaced by pterodactyloid pterosaurslarger-winged, shorter-tailed flying reptiles exemplified by the well-known Pterodactylus and Pteranodon. (The earliest identified member of this group, Kryptodrakon, lived about 163 million years ago.) With their larger, more maneuverable wings of skin, these pterosaurs were able to glide farther, faster, and higher up in the sky, swooping down like eagles to pluck fish off the surface of oceans, lakes and rivers. During the Cretaceous period, pterodactyloids took after dinosaurs in one important respect: an increasing trend toward gigantism. In the middle Cretaceous, the skies of South America were ruled by huge, colorful pterosaurs like Tapejara and Tupuxuara, which had wingspans of 16 or 17 feet; still, these big fliers looked like sparrows next to the true giants of the late Cretaceous, Quetzalcoatlus and Zhejiangopterus, the wingspans of which exceeded 30 feet (far larger than the largest eagles alive today). Heres where we come to another all-important but. The enormous size of these azhdarchids (as giant pterosaurs are known) has led some paleontologists to speculate that they never actually flew. For example, a recent analysis of the giraffe-sized Quetzalcoatlus shows that it had some anatomical features (such as small feet and a stiff neck) ideal for stalking small dinosaurs on land. Since evolution tends to repeat the same patterns, this would answer the embarrassing question of why modern birds have never evolved to azhdarchid-like sizes. In any event, by the end of the Cretaceous period, the pterosaursboth large and smallwent extinct along with their cousins, the terrestrial dinosaurs and marine reptiles. Its possible that the ascendancy of true feathered birds spelled doom for slower, less versatile pterosaurs, or that in the aftermath of the K/T Extinction the prehistoric fish that these flying reptiles fed on were drastically reduced in number. Pterosaur Behavior Aside from their relative sizes, the pterosaurs of the Jurassic and Cretaceous periods differed from one another in two important ways: feeding habits and ornamentation. Generally, paleontologists can infer a pterosaurs diet from the size and shape of its jaws, and by looking at analogous behavior in modern birds (such as pelicans and seagulls). Pterosaurs with sharp, narrow beaks most likely subsisted on fish, while anomalous genera like Pterodaustro fed on plankton (this pterosaurs thousand or so tiny teeth formed a filter, like that of a blue whale) and the fanged Jeholopterus may have sucked dinosaur blood like a vampire bat (though most paleontologists dismiss this notion). Like modern birds, some pterosaurs also had rich ornamentationnot brightly colored feathers, which pterosaurs never managed to evolve, but prominent head crests. For example, Tupuxuaras rounded crest was rich in blood vessels, a clue that it may have changed color in mating displays, while Ornithocheirus had matching crests on its upper and lower jaws (though its unclear if these were used for display or feeding purposes). Most controversial, though, are the long, bony crests atop the noggins of pterosaurs like Pteranodon and Nyctosaurus. Some paleontologists believe that Pteranodons crest served as a rudder to help stabilize it in flight, while others speculate that Nyctosaurus may have sported a colorful sail of skin. Its an entertaining idea, but some aerodynamics experts doubt that these adaptations could have been truly functional. Pterosaur Physiology The key trait that distinguished pterosaurs from land-bound feathered dinosaurs that evolved into birds was the nature of their wings which consisted of wide flaps of skin connected to an extended finger on each hand. Although these flat, broad structures provided plenty of lift, they may have been better suited to passive gliding than powered, flapping flight, as evidenced by the dominance of true prehistoric birds by the end of the Cretaceous period (which may be attributed to their increased maneuverability). Although theyre only distantly related, ancient pterosaurs and modern birds may have shared one important feature in common: a warm-blooded metabolism. Theres evidence that some pterosaurs (like Sordes) sported coats of primitive hair, a feature usually associated with warm-blooded mammals, and its unclear if a cold-blooded reptile could have generated enough internal energy to sustain itself in flight. Like modern birds, pterosaurs were also distinguished by their sharp vision (a necessity for hunting from hundreds of feet in the air!), which entailed a bigger-than-average brain than that possessed by terrestrial or aquatic reptiles. Using advanced techniques, scientists have even been able to reconstruct the size and shape of the brains of some pterosaur genera, proving that they contained more advanced coordination centers than comparable reptiles.

Becoming Wonderful; Leaving Wonderland

Telling stories of Alice’s greatadventures, I stand in my ninth grade english classroom, a desolate young girl whose only passion is to be a writer, yet here she stands performing someone else’s work. The desks sit in a broad semi-circle, taking much inspiration from a greek theatre and I stand at the center of it all, performing a Lewis Carroll poem. My voice shakes sending shivers down my spine as I preform. The timid, tiny thirteen year old I was wanted nothing more than to show my class that I was a writer and somehow, I thought I could convey that by reading someone else’s work. Nonetheless, when my teacher asked who wanted to compete in the school wide poetry competition, I couldn’t even raise my hand. I just let my ambition slowly cease out. That was one of the few opportunities I had to express my passion for writing and literature in my first two years of high school. However, it wasn’t the lack of opportunity that shook me, it was the fact that opportunities wouldn’t be handed to me, it was the first time I realized that if I wanted something to happen, I had to go for it. For a while, I let this tsunami of self-doubt forecast in my life, throwing me briefly off course. As I felt myself sinking further done a rabbit hole of loneliness and disparity. I slowly seemed to find myself crying an ocean of tears that I would soon drown in. I didn’t want the inevitable to be true. Thankfully, I quickly realized there are two ways out of this rabbit hole: 1. I stay, still, where I am, never expressing my writing, waiting for opportunity or 2. Express my writing, take each opportunity and run with it, get out of the rabbit hole with self-determination. With this realization, I shifted my point of view, to option two. I wrote my pain into sonnets and stories that, in tenth grade,I was finally able to preform in front of my class with no shivers just utter confidence. I took the lessons I had learned in freshman and sophomore year, and thoroughly applied them throughout my junior year. I began submitting stories to competitions, I applied for newspaper, and tried out for slam poetry. I did things that would never have happened to me in the ninth grade because I didn’t wait for them to happen — I made them happen. Now, I can say: I am a writer. I am not just a girl too scared to perform someone else’s work or a girl whose work is filled by her pain; but a girl whose pain inspired her work, whose fear only pushes her farther out of her box. Out of that box and on to a stage, I stand, the theater seats filled to it’s brim with almost 400 hundred people, I approach the stage, the bright, white lights nearly b lind me but I don’t let it deter me. Now I can’t see anyone’s face but even if I could I don’t think I would shake. Today, I can stand, in front of a microphone, in front of a much larger audience. Not performing someone else’s poem. I am preforming my own work.

Marketing Brief about Charles Sturt University's Faculty of Business Essay

Marketing Brief about Charles Sturt University's Faculty of Business - Essay Example The market brief report has discussed all the necessary materials that were required to assist Head of Business Faculty at CSU in promotional tasks. Charles Sturt University or CSU’s Faculty of Business is widely acknowledged for professional business causes. The faculty has earned an outstanding reputation with labour market for producing individuals who not only survive the predicaments of current's business world, but do extremely well in the opportunities which they generate. The promotion concentrates on Bachelor’s Business programme, majoring in Business. The promotional materials that are designed and developed for advertisement of CSU’s bachelor's business programme included a full page newspaper ad, non-traditional support media OR design a specialty media item, a billboard, a 90-second television commercial, a direct mail advertisement and a 20 second radio advert. The Faculty of business intends to promote the courses offered at the institution. The pr omotion concentrates on Bachelor’s Business programme, majoring in Business. The courses that are being currently advertised are as included (1) Bachelor of Business (Marketing) (2) Bachelor of Business (Finance) (3)Â  Bachelor of Business (Human Resource) (4) Bachelor of Business (Insurance)(5)Bachelor of Business category of management (6) Bachelor of Business Studies and (7)Diploma of Business Studies [exit point only] (Charles Sturt University, 2013).