How Vampirism Is Depicted in Dracula by Stoker and I Am a Legend by Richard Matheson Essay

Vampires are creatures that are believed to feed on flesh blood of living things and especially human beings. From the novels, vampires evolved from dead human beings and came back to life with more powers than them making them super humans. To understand vampires’ evolution, different myths were developed across the world. Ancient Persia recorded their first history as most Greek and Roman myths tried to expound further on their evolution. In the history recordings, vampires were depicted as huge creatures who struggled with human beings to feed on their blood. They further differed with human being in that; they could not age or contract diseases. Their immunity to diseases prevented them infections from human beings when they fed on their flesh and blood. Although many history recordings argued on traditional history, there existed some modern vampires that first appeared in Europe. In contrast, myths also recorded a different category of vampires whose origin was not from dead human beings but with temporal incarnation between humans and vampire. This category included blood thirsty goddesses, who were classified as Stinges, Lamiae and Empusae that fed on blood occasionally. Vampirism                  Vampirism can be defined as the act of feeding on flesh and blood of living things other than vampires. When feeding the blood of human beings, vampires bite the victims’ neck sucking out large volumes of blood. Through neck biting, they are able to injure the carotid artery, which is the major artery that transports blood to the brain hence paralyzing the victim and sucking the whole blood. Vampirism is regarded as a belief of one gaining supernatural powers and feeding on human beings blood in the folklore and popular culture. Stoker tried to expound on vampires by using them as characters in his book Dracula. In this book, Dracula, who is a vampire, is the main character. The author explained how the vampire had lived for many years, which was atypical for a normal human being. Similarly, Richard Matheson book was dominated by vampires who were created by infusion of viruses. Although people could be infected with vampirism virus, Matheson brings out the nature of immunity where one of his characters Robert Neville never contracted vampirism despite being infected. He was immune to the virus though he had unique human characteristics such as blond hair and blue eyes. Matheson described Neville as an educated medical researcher who concentrated on the research on vampirism only to find out that his blood was infected though immune to the virus. Vampires in the Text                  Stoker used different vampire characters to construct his book story. Dracula, the most dominant vampire in the story was described as the king by other characters such as Van Heslin. He was very powerful and he could control nature as well as living creatures such as wild animals. In addition, Dracula has the ability to incarnate to a bat, werewolf and change his victims into vampires through infections. His ability to hypnotize his victims gave him control over them and avoided being hurt by others. Despite his powerful nature, Dracula had a number of weaknesses as described herein. His powers were limited by reflecting him on reflective objects such as mirrors. This was evidenced when Jonathan tried to reflect his image on a shaving mirror. He lost his powers and became weak to the extent of being controlled by another person. Stoker emphasized in his book, despite the weakness, it was hard to fully destroy Dracula. More weaknesses emerged as holy symb ols and garlic repelled him and his sleep was on the fate of ancestors and the native land. He did not have ability to cross river, which water was following unless supported my men or the luck of the water. This showed how he could be controlled or destroyed in cases he became so dangerous. Matheson classified vampires in two categories, which included the dead and the living ones. Similarly, as Stokers described, he depicts vampires as being repulsive to garlic and holy symbols. For example, Christian vampires feared the cross as it was a sign of holiness. Matheson explained how Neville destroyed vampires by exposing them to sunlight, inflicting large wounds and staking them with wooden spike. Comparison between the Two Works                  Both authors acknowledged garlic and religious symbols as repellant to vampires. For example, Ruth recoiled violently when Neville handed garlic over her in Matheson book and Dracula when dining with Jonathan avoided feeding on garlic. In both texts, vampires relied on flesh and blood as their main food that strengthened them. For example, Dracula in the first paragraph almost attacks Jonathan when he cuts himself. Vampires are depicted feeding on blood by Matheson and he uses the phrase blood thirst to emphasize on their need of blood. Superstition is also another theme that was described in both books. Stocker explained how Van Helsing and Seward followed the garlic superstitions from the old country where they were believed to ward off spirits by protecting themselves by them. Religious symbols such as bread and cross represented Christ and his Body (stoker 123). Despite Neville’s ability to destroy vampires, he still used garlic to protect himself strengthening the theme of superstitions in the text. Both authors described vampirism as contagious from vampires to normal people. People who survived attack by vampires were infected through bites and insects. For example, Neville was infected by vampirism and his immune ability prevented him from transformation to vampire. In both books, vampires appeared to be enemies of the normal people. In I Am a Legend, the human race was insignificant as most of them were destroyed and killed by vampires. Moreover, Neville struggles with vampires and kill most of his encounters at nights. Stoker explained how Helsing had lived wanting to conquer and destroy the Dracula and how people continuously warned him and Jonathan against close association with the monster Dracula. The conspiracy, fights, and killings between vampires and the normal human beings is an evidence of enmity between the two races. In both books, vampires’ body circulations were totally different from those of normal human beings. For example, when Neville killed a woman vampire for research in Matheson’s book, he found that her body contained rows of salt and pepper mixed the same ratios (Matheson 60). Similarly, Stoker explained how vampirism victims could not be transfused with blood from normal people and their fate was solely on supernatural powers to heal them. On the other hand both books described contrasting characters on vampire and discussed below. Vampires described by Stoker were difficult to destroy and kill and were only destabilized by refection. On contrary, vampires described by Matheson were easily killed by exposure of sunlight and infliction of wound that were staked. According to stoker, vampires were as a result of the work with supernatural evil spirits that were connected to dead. In contrast, Matheson wrote that vampires were created by infusion of microorganisms such as bacteria and viruses. Matheson described the evolution and development of vampires as progressive. That is, they grew from young to strong creatures that mutated at some points and they could spend some times in the sun. Stoker described vampires’ development as retrogressive, growing from old weak creature to young strong creature through feeding of blood. Stoker work was based on religious beliefs and his main aim was to strengthen and restore r eligious faith in the society. He did this by creating a scenario where vampires who were believed to be evil became afraid of holy symbols and supreme powers. It was learnt from the text that, vampires feared holy waters and for that reasons people could protect themselves from them. Dracula represented devil and this was expressed more by name of his home in London, Piccadilly. The word appears to be close to the word peccadillo â€Å"a slight offence† or sin (Merriam-Webster 530). Matheson work in contrary was not based on spirituality. His entire book denounces the interrelationship between God and humanity as evidenced by Neville when he did not depend on invisible beings when trying to destroy and kill vampires. He was more dependent on his vampire research, which was facilitated by his medical research career. According to science, the reliance on invisible being appears absurd and science does not validate it. In both books, the concepts of vampirism indicate the wickedness of humankind as it is concerned with termination of life and shedding of blood. This is against the societies norms and values and the books were written to address the evils. Matheson brought out vampires in his book as unique and modified enabling them to be more alluring to the intended target audience. This was contradictory to those in Stoker’s book where they were depicted as monsters of devil’s associates thus attracting believers as the main audience. This would help the believers appreciate the mighty power of God that made devil afraid as evidence by Dracula avoiding religious symbols. On the other hand, the target audiences for Matheson work are mainly non-believers as most of the characters such as Neville were never afraid of super beings or supernatural powers. He uses the assumption that the doctoring of individuals affects what they fear and what they do not (Matheson123). Neville discovered the reflective character of vampires in Matheson book, which was opposed to those described by Stoker (Matheson 16). In the book, I Am a Legend, Neville searches a scientific cure for vampirism from his blood due to its immunity unique character on vampirism. Although his initial trials to heal vampires had aborted, he continued to search for a solution ceaselessly. Fortunately, he found the cure, which could depress the vampires thirst for blood thus reducing their threats on human beings. This was the not the case in the text of Dracula. Vampires in both books appear as creatures, societies uphold their beliefs and norms without permitting vampires to despise them. Despite the vampires being hostile to people, they struggled to push the out of the society and denounced their evil deed across the society through eliminating them. Society struggled to push Dracula out of the society but his unnatural power defended him and the society attempts were in vain. Their fear of evil spirits prevented them from his attack and instead hoped for a savior who will come for their help. The society saw Helsing as their savior and their belief in God. He was a well-learned doctor who had an open mind and thus was probable the person to save them (Stoker 109). The two books targeted the evils in the society by addressing them and trying to bring people closer to a supreme being, God. Perhaps, the society was full of evils at the time of writing and so it was necessary to address the issues through text. It can also be assumed that, people used texts or books to learn most of the things in the societies and thus there was need to use the medium to communicate exclusively to the people. From the fact that Christianity (Church) was evident in the texts, the authors revolved their writings around it acknowledging God as the protector of human race from all sources of evils such as vampires in the book society. The individuals were protected by religious artifacts that was evidenced by possession of religious symbols by Helsing had religious items such as holy waters, which helped to protect the society from evils. Matheson described Neville as having tattoo of a cross which served as vampire repellant thus to some extent having religious belie fs. Not much was explained in the about Christianity and the church. Some of the people in the society were enlightened and had both scientific knowledge and religious beliefs to deal with the evils associated with the vampires. The authors of the books were skilled and considered perception of the people when writing so that they could be able reach and impact on the people’s ways of life. For a typical author, he or she must be able to understand his or her audience in order to deliver a relevant message and in an appropriate way without provoking them. Matheson and Stoker used this aspect and combined it with the knowledge of vampires and their attitude in the society. The use of vampires in both books was fundamental as they depicted the evils in the modern that are caused by various abnormalities as Matheson explained one of the cause to be the second world war. Therefore, by use of reality and fiction, the authors were able to prove their worthiness in literature and society. Conclusion                  Both books used vampires to deliver their messages to the respective societies. They depicted societies that were full of hostilities and blood spilling between vampires and normal human race. Although the vampires in both books had common characteristics such as feeding on human blood, they exhibited slight differences on their evolution and development. The books attracted varied audiences with Dracula attracting audience of vampires who knew Dracula as the best vampire in history. The books addressed the political views of the time with Stocker in being more concerned on Europe where the church was prominent in the political scene with believers as rulers such kings and queens. In the Matheson book, the issue of the world war was described as politically influenced and depicted how mankind would be swept off on earth by stronger weapons than nuclear if wars were to recur. References Dunnigan, James F. How to Make War. New York: HarperCollins Publishers Inc., 2003. Print Matheson, Richard. I am Legend. New York: Tom Doherty Associates, LLC, 1954. Print Stoker, Bram, and Leonard Wolf, ed. The Annotated Dracula. New York: Clarkson N. Potter, Inc. Publisher, 1975. Print Source document

Coca-Cola Essay

If we told you that Coca-Cola had operating units in 50 countries around the world, you probably would not be surprised. If we told you that Coca-Cola had been in business for almost 125 years, you probably would not be surprised. So, you tell us †¦ how many different beverages does Coca-Cola produce? 100? 500? 2, 000? Are you surprised yet? Worldwide, Coca-Cola produces an amazing 2, 800 different beverages. When an organization is that big, has that sort of worldwide presence, and boasts what is perhaps the most well-known brand ever, you can bet that a multitude of IT systems are constantly churning in the background, not only keeping the organization running, but also keeping it running ahead of the competition. To support internal collaboration efforts, Coke created something it calls its Common Innovation Framework, a Web-based system that combines project management capabilities with business intelligence. Using the Innovation Framework, anyone from any of the operating units worldwide can search for, find, and apply concepts, strategies, development successes, and marketing approaches that have been used elsewhere in the organization. For example, when introducing Georgia teas in Australia, the Coke people Down Under can research what marketing strategies worked well in related countries such as New Zealand. As Jean-Michel Ares, Coke CIO, explains if, â€Å"Once you have aggregated the pipeline of innovation, the object is to assess and prioritize the best allocation of resources in the organization. Beyond internal employees, Coke is reaching out with new and innovative IT steps. Recently, it rolled out a new line of software services based on hundreds of business processes to its extended family of bottlers. These software services each perform a specific common business function and run within SAP’s ERP software and are delivered by Coke’s IBM hosted date centers. The goal is to create a standardized business and technology platform across all Coke bottlers, most of which are independent franchises. (There are some partly owned by Coke) If Coke and its bottlers are speaking the same language, so to speak, and using the same technology, then supply chain management applications will be the more efficiently streamlined. Standardized in their case equates to saving money by reducing expenses associated with supply chain activities. And even beyond its extended family to bottlers, Coke is using technology to create loyalty and engage more with its customers. Its award winning Web site, My Coke Rewards at www.mycokerewards.com, is the second most popular consumer packaged-goods site, behind only www.kraftfoods.com. My Coke Rewards attracts some 300,000 visitors per day. Offering everything from magazine subscriptions to electronics as prizes (just look under your bottle cap). My Coke Rewards has reconnected Coke with its loyal drinkers. The site has teamed with pop culture crazes such as American Idol, soccer, and auto racing to bring even more consumers into the fold. You can even find Coke-labeled songs through iTunes. Questions: 1.Describe the various IT-enabled initiatives discussed in this case study and categorize them as either above-the-line, below-the-line, or some combination of the two. 2.Why is standardization so important in supply chain management? Coke is developing its own set of software services for bottlers to use. Do you think Coke charges the bottlers for these software services? Why or why not? 3.Describe two different forms of e-collaboration in this case study. For each, articulate the benefits to Coke. 4.How is My Coke Rewards an example of a switching cost? How can a switching cost not have a monetary penalty associated with it. 5.Referring to the diagram below, what do you believe to be Coke’s overall organizational structure? Why? How does Coke’s use of technology support your decision? 6.What sort of business intelligence could Coke gather from its My Coke Rewards Web-site? How could it use this information for customer relationship management activities?

Legal And Ethical Issues Of The Audit Of Industries Essay

Legal And Ethical Issues Of The Audit Of Industries - Essay Example There will be danger of committing biases when providing the services and will eventually lead to unethical acts within the company. The second issue that can be considered ethical is when the company withheld, covered up and overlooked discrepancies in the company’s record (citation). The company was found to cover up and did not disclose accounting discrepancies of companies in which they provided their services. Evidences were obtained that suggest such acts were committed by Andersen. The third ethical issue that is present in the Andersen case is the company’s act of destroying evidences that can be used against them (citation). Ten days just before the U.S. Securities Exchange Commission formally started the investigation again Arthur Andersen, the management instructed their employees to destroy all potential evidences that may prove their illegal actions. This act can be said to be legally wrong too. This is a form of obstruction of justice because the company d id not disclose evidences that will help the investigation become successful. Question # 2 What role did Arthur Andersen’s culture play in their business? Arthur Andersen was one of the top accounting firms and considered to be one of the â€Å"Big Five† in the United States (citation). ... Question # 3 How would have the Sarbanes-Oxley Act will help minimize the likelihood of other accounting practices happening? Sarbanes-Oxley Act is the act passed by the Congress to â€Å"establish a system of federal oversight of corporate accounting practices† (citation). Because of this act, the accounting firms will be evaluated and monitored according to the established standards and rules of accounting firms. This act created the Public Company Accounting Oversight Board which is tasked to monitor the accounting firms (citation). Because of this law, the accounting firms will not provide both the auditing and consulting services to the same company as what Andersen did. This act will eliminate the conflict of interest. Thus, because of the passage of the act, unethical auditing methods will be eliminated and shareholders will gain confidence back and will soon invest to more efficient and effective accounting firms. Question #4 As an ethics consultant, what recommendations would you have made to the partner’s at Arthur Andersen? As an ethical consultant, I would have recommended to the partners of Arthur Andersen to eliminate and avoid any unethical methods and practices from the very beginning. They should have made an action to prohibit such acts in the very first place. If they knew about the said commission of unethical, if not illegal, methods, they should have come to the proper authority and reported about the issue. The proper authority will surely advice them about the proper procedure of what to do next. If only they have done what is right, they would have not lost multi-million investments. Laws were made to be followed based on fairness and justice. If they committed a violation of the law, they will face consequences.

Why Is Job Analysis Important Personal Statement

Why Is Job Analysis Important - Personal Statement Example There has to be an identified need in the organization that will have to be fulfilled through the recruitment efforts. (Williams, 2002, p. 40) A job analysis is the most important tool that is used by an organization in order to identify this gap that it has to fulfill. A job analysis is, therefore, the process in which the HR department identifies a vacancy to be filled and all the important components of that vacancy. It identifies the vacancy, the needed skills to work effectively in that vacancy, the work components and tools needed the factor to consider when appraising the performance of that job, and many other components. A job analysis is, therefore, a full description of the job that acts as the guide in the recruitment and selection proceeds. It lays about all the important aspects of the job that can be used to benchmark the suitability of the candidates for the job. A job analysis is not only important in the recruitment and selection process but it is also important in the future. All these important components that are needed in the performance of certain job can all be obtained from the job analysis. A job analysis is will be able to capture the important components in a job which enables the selection process to identify the needed skills from a suitable candidate to fill a job vacancy. A job analysis is will, therefore, be an important tool in the recruitment and selection exercise. It will provide an organization with insight into the qualities that are needed in a candidate to fill that particular job vacancy.

O2 environment Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

O2 environment - Essay Example This means that Telefà ³nica has to major in various aspects that will see it grow (Matsumoto, Umeda, Masui and Fukushige 2012:57). O2 understands the impact that customer needs have on the growth and success of the company. Over the past five years, the company has been looking for different ways of building resilience in the provision of critical national infrastructure in accordance with the ISO 22301 guidelines (Kelion 2013). The important aspect, as noted by the company is to work on safeguarding the interests of the customers by establishing strong staff welfare policies. This assures them that the employees are satisfied and can serve the clients with confidence. They have established mechanisms to assist in the faster recovery of any critical disruptions that affect clients wherever they are. This allows the company to maintain a good rapport with the employees and clients as much as possible. Further, it increases customer confidence and reassures them of its zeal towards the realisation of successful operations (Matsumoto, Umeda, Masui and Fukushige 2012:57). The company is also working hard to ensure that shareholders recognise the business’s resiliency in the highly competitive market. The industry is quite competitive and they wanted to have as many investors in their corner. They have changed their strategies to accommodate the different shareholder attributes that will in turn increase the profits the company needs most (Kelion 2013). To deal with the competitors, the company has made good use of its strategic position within the UK to serve its more than 23 million customers. The 3G network is one of its unique selling points in the UK that has added 84% of the UK population to its list of customers. It has been able to work on different technology versions that have made it easy to supply the customers with faster 3G speeds (O2 2015). This

Organisational Behaviour Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Organisational Behaviour - Essay Example Alice’s leadership styles were very different from those of Isobella and the employees weren’t happy under the leadership of Alice. She changed the focus of the company from creating fashionable garments to making common clothes wore by the Australian women. Delia an old employee and the Chief designer at Fashion Inc decided to resign after Alice took over in charge. This case study shows us that the leadership styles plays an important role on the organizational cultures how and what a leader does, dedicates the success or failure of the company. Organizational Culture is the set of shared values and beliefs that underlie a company’s identity. It is basically the set of shared, taken-for-granted implicit assumptions that a group holds and that determines how it perceives, thinks about, and reacts to its various environments. The organizational culture being followed at any organization is a picture of how and what their leaders are doing. The leadership style determines the type of organizational culture. Under different leadership styles we have got different organizational cultures. Fashion Inc fostered an open culture and by large it succeeded in doing so. All employees were well integrated into the system and each individual and his/her thoughts were considered important. It promoted a rational approach to work where there are proper guidelines and procedures. Any problem with the employee be it work related or personal was listened to and the boss tried their best to give solution to the problem. Top management encouraged a supportive culture to provide a satisfying work environment for employees so they can deliver their best. Employees were delegated through their work and the boss worked with the employees side by side. Organizational heads sometimes do not realize that how important role the organizational climate plays on the financial performance of the company. It accounts for

Examination of minimalist architecture and it's influence on our way Essay

Examination of minimalist architecture and it's influence on our way of living - Essay Example Despite this, minimalist architecture, regardless of where it is, who designed it, when it was created or what the end use is intended to be, tends to share a number of similarities. A study of two exemplar structures will reveal how some of the common characteristics of this approach are expressed which can then be used to examine how modern lifestyles might have been influenced by the movement. It is concluded that minimalist design has caused today’s society to be more conscious of the space they occupy, leading to a greater push for ‘green’ design and an effort to protect the environment we live in. Architecture works in many ways to help shape and define a culture. Rather than simply erecting a specific building, the work of the architect can contribute to the advancement of a society through its artistic achievement, engineering or technical advancement, political statement or through a variety of other means. Like art, what a building communicates about the customs and culture of the time in which it is built depends somewhat upon how it is viewed and used by the people around it. Similarly, what it is able to achieve in terms of political or other statements is dependent upon the reactions of these same individuals. Within this context, modernity is often described as a collection of studies into the social processes that order the world we live in while remaining in a constant state of flux. If one is speaking with Marshall Berman, modernity is described as â€Å"a mode of vital experience—experience of space and time, of the self and others, of life’s possi bilities and perils—that is shared by men and women all over the world today. I will call this body of experience ‘modernity’.†1 It encompasses the social changes that are constantly taking shape, the way in which these changes are experienced and the reflection of these experiences in various circles. It is a world of definition and ambiguity, a world of

Communication technology and Westernization Essay

Communication technology and Westernization - Essay Example Although the democratic value of the internet has been cherished, on the contrary, the cyber culture is breaking the boundaries of ethical parameters in many aspects. Initially, it affects the moral perception of the new generation as they are exposed to uncensored websites. They are likely to be influenced by various misanthropic ideologies and racism (Clichà © & Bonilla, 2004, pp.32-33). Education is another notable area that has been affected by internet. In fact, the positive effects of communication technology have opened new opportunities in the field of education and employment. On the other hand, the technology has been widely used for academic misconduct which will have adverse effects on our education system as a whole. Another argument against the technology is that it has a westernizing effect on other cultures. As stated in Forbes & Mahan, (Eds.) (2005, p.135), since the primary language of the internet is English, it would transmit the elements of Western values including emphasis on material goods, entertainment, sex and romance. The other side of the argument is that though internet has a cultural and social influence, it does not necessarily eliminate the values of indigenous cultures. As Nakamura L (2007) states, internet has the potential for challenging western influence; and moreover, it can turn to be an effective device for non-western users. The author points out the example of New Media Center Sarai New Delhi which has developed software for indigenous non-literates. However, the so called potentiality of the technology needs to be further utilized. Obviously, a cyber society that has deep root in Western culture has emerged globally. People participate in the cyberspace social networks and interact with others who have similar interests and tastes. They express their feelings and ideas (whether right or wrong) without the fear of legal restrictions. The effect is that the more

Annotated bibliography Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Annotated bibliography - Assignment Example The dancers therefore wore appropriate costumes and practiced sophisticated dance moves. The French noble created the minuet, which became popular at the time. The dance involved systematic movement of the legs and hands among other body parts. The dancers maintained harmony as they moved the various parts systematically and in tandem with the rhythm of the music. Hilton Wendy and Susan Bindig trace the life of Hilton Wendy, a renowned choreographer, dancer, teacher and dance scholar. In doing this, the two discover the relationship between the various classical dance styles thereby showing that the classical baroque dance metamorphosed into numerous other successive dance styles possibly having influence in some of the contemporary dance styles. They explain that baroque dance just as any other dance style was a cultural product associated with the baroque music. Dancers at the time wore systematic costumes that enhance their body movements as they danced to the sophisticated baroque music. Harmony was an overriding thematic issue in the various dance styles in the baroque era. The two scholars investigation Hilton’s evidence of the relationship in various dance styles beginning with ballerina to ballet among many others before ending with the French Noble style which was a major genre of the baroque dance between 1690 and 1725. Such a systematic relationship between the various dance-styles that became popular in various eras proves their thesis that as a cultural concept, dance has transmuted sequentially through time. Sparti, Barbara. Breaking down barriers in the study of Renaissance and baroque dame. Dance Chronicles Volume 19, Issue 3. 255-276, 1996. Internet resource. http://www.tandfonline.com/doi/ref/10.1080/01472529608569249#tabModule Sparti Barbara sets to clarify the difference between renaissance and the baroque dance, which appear confusing to most people. She begins by explaining that the

Retail Industry in the UK for the Last Quarter of 2011 Essay

Retail Industry in the UK for the Last Quarter of 2011 - Essay Example The UK retail sector contributes 8% towards the country’s GDP which includes the UK retailers going overseas and expansion of e-commerce beyond the borders of the United Kingdom (Farfan, 2011). However, retailers in the UK face a huge challenge as they struggle to cope with the sudden deterioration in consumer demand and willingness to purchase. This report presents an in-depth analysis of the key factors that influence the development of the retail sector while evaluating which sectors offer the most potential. 2. Overview of the retail sector 2.1 Top retailers - UK The top four retailers in the UK include Tesco, Asda, Morrisons and Sainsbury and together they account for about 80% of the retail food sales in the UK (Farfan, 2011). Even though recession impacted the individual retail chains, there were not many substantial changes in the largest retail UK chains. The largest retail chains held their ranking order because there were no changes observed. Two major changes that occurred in 2011 in the UK retailing industry were that the apparel retailer Arcadia group and department store Debenhams lost their spots in the World’s largest retailing list completely. ... 2.2 Causes of decline in consumer shopping The retail sector witnessed a healthy start to 2011 as figures showed that sales on high street were up 9% year-on-year which provided a new boost to the British mid-market retailers (Sillitoe, 2011). Fashion sales, non-fashion trading and homeware sales had all witnessed growth in sales. However, the economic and survey data suggest a slowdown in activity, which poses a challenge for the UK retail sector. Following the recession the economic growth has been slow which reflects the weak consumer sector and the rising unemployment. The economy is expected to grow by 2.0% in 2012 but the retail sector continues to be grim (Retail Economics, 2011). Consumer spending had fallen for four consecutive quarters before September 2011. Consumer spending in the second quarter of 2011 declined by 1.7% compared with the same period last year. Real disposable incomes have been affected due to high levels of inflation and low earnings growth. Besides, taxe s have been imposed and benefits cut, which further affects the household disposable income. Fears about job security and personal finances have contributed to low consumer spending. The consumer spending is expected to slow down further as consumer debt rises, assisted by rising interest rates and inflation (Prospects, 2012) and stagnant wage growth and rising unemployment (Leach, 2011). House prices and job security also affect how people shop. Consumer confidence has waned because people will shop only if they feel optimistic about the situation. When they lack confidence in their own financial security, naturally the spending will be reduced. There has been a slow growth in the retail sector as the operating costs and the cost of credit have risen. The

Chapter one Essay Example for Free

Chapter one Essay The balanced scorecard was developed by Kaplan and Norton in the 1990s, according to published reports approximately 50% of fortune 1000 corporations have implemented the BSC system of business management. This discourse will examine the balance scorecard (BSC) business module and its potential fit on Pepsi Saudi Arabia. It will critically analyze the core elements of BSC, and why it could serve as the primary operating business engine for Pepsi corp of Saudi Arabia. This paper will reference data from other companies that  have adopted the BSC to evaluate the potential financial and operational advantage that Pepsi Saudi would stand to gain by using BSC. Even though there are inherent shortcomings in the BSC system of management, the paper will seek confirmation by using empirical findings and reports from other organizations that have already embraced BSC, Pepsi Saudi ought to benefit immensely from the system when it is fully implemented. INTRODUCTION: The Balanced Scorecard (BSC) was developed by Kaplan and Norton in the 1990s, it  is a management system designed to measure the entire performance of a company by measuring all relevant angles of the company’s operations. BSC requires the company to retain its core financial measurement, but it goes further and expands the measurement to other important business areas. The BSC looks at the entire business from four perspectives, the customer perspective, financial perspective, the internal business process and the learning and growth perspective. It collects and analyzes data relevant to the company. And it helps managers to get clearer more meaningful picture of their company, which in turn enables them to plan, improve and execute operational goals. The objective of this paper is to advocate the adaptation of BSC by Pepsi Saudi. The strength and economic advantages of BSC and why it would be beneficial to Pepsi Saudi will be extensively discussed in this presentation. PEPSI SAUDI ARABIA: The Pepsi company of Saudi Arabia is comprised of two key divisions based on the western region of the country, one the Saudi International Project Company (SIPCO)  and the other is Saudi Fruit Juice and Beverage Industry (SFJBI). This paper will look at this merger and how it could use the BSC methodology to elevate its entire operation and increase its profit margin. BALANCE SCORECARD (BSC). Developed in the 1990s by Kaplan and Norton, balanced scorecard is a business management system that uses measurement to verify strategic plans. It tries to align business operations to the strategies of the business, by measuring the performance of the business in relations to its goals, usually for a given time period. It relies largely  on the premise that a business principle or a business function that could be measured could also be improved upon. â€Å"What gets measured gets done†. If a company can establish a measurement system to analyze its performance, then that company can find a way to improve on its performance based on the result of the measurement. Experts generally agree that the companies that take the time to measure their own performance usually does better than the companies who do no possess the tools of measurement. Based on the outcome of a business measurement BSC encourages  managers to prioritize their efforts. The BSC does not focus on financial measurements alone, because financial measurement alone can not reveal all the important data needed for long term performance. The balanced scorecard incorporates such business elements based on the customers needs, employees, technology, and other critical elements that could help the company emerge stronger in the future. Essentially BSC takes stock of the whole business. It uses the â€Å"feedback loop† to pinpoint all problematic areas and then it develops solutions  for them. Managers and employees can then learn from those points that had been identified by the loop. It looks at the company’s current position then initiates the necessary strategies for correction. It uses learning, technical innovations and appropriate behavioral shifts and cultural identities to accommodate essential actions for the benefit of the company. BSC also sets aside time to study the applications that have been implemented, and then analyzes the results for effectiveness of those mechanisms or lack of effectiveness.

Religion and the media

Religion and the media Introduction: â€Å"These days politics, religion, media seem to get all mixed up. Television became the new religion a long time back and the media has taken over.† ~ Van Morrison (Inspires Today, 2007) With time, the media has attained great power, as they play a significant role in our everyday lives. The above quote by Irish singer-songwriter and musician, Van Morrison, would aptly describe how the media can be seen as the new religion for some people. People have begun to obliviously believe in what is presented to them and failed to criticize the world around us. Language, in fact, has gained a great influence on our lives. World renowned and long-serving British Linguist, Roger Fowler argued that â€Å"language influences thought, in the sense that its structure channels our mental experience of the world.† Language has become influential in our everyday lives, and media, especially television and the World Wide Web are the ones that have mastered this medium and greatly influence our perception of reality. This is because the way we think about the world around us is influenced by numerous factors, such as the society we live in, mass media, and the language itself. This in turn has influenced the manner in which we live, the politics that we preach and the way in which we practice the religions we follow. As we develop as a society and move further into the 21st, we can clearly see the trends that will govern our ideas of religious practices and society. These ‘challenges’ as I would like to call them, are the rebirth of religion as a national and global force. In contradiction with the past predictions that it would fade because of modern life and society, religion has instead gained a new identity and prominence throughout the world because it has been influencedby virtual religion and mass media. What is digital media? Digital media as defined by Microsoft Windows is â€Å"Digital media refers to audio, video, and photo content that has been encoded (digitally compressed) which can be easily manipulated, distributed, and rendered (played) by computers, and is easily transmitted over computer networks.† (Microsoft 2010). In layman terms it is any sort of storage device that can store digital data namely computers, smart phones, iPad’s etc. What is virtual religion? Virtual religion as opposed to digital media is difficult to define. Essentially it is religion in its electronic expression. Many religious leaders can argue at the point that it is simply a ‘copy and paste’ form of ‘old’ religion into a newer virtual world. Virtual religion goes beyond the physical boundaries of religious practices and brings religions into the immaterial territory of the web and Cyberspace. It aims to help explore the virtual realities made possible by new technologies. Popular Culture and Religion Popular culture as defined by urban dictionary, â€Å"simply denotes a group of practices or customs accepted by masses.† It is the form of culture where it is widespread and based on the ideas and tastes of ordinary people. Due to the rise of the realm of popular culture and media, technology has become convenient in this fast placed lifestyle. Media provides a platform for rich symbolism and visual pop culture, allowing space for ever changing identities. This fits the evolving patterns of the developing society we live in. The above, all dictate what is modern and what we accept culturally and socially. This is where the battle begins between religion, which is seen as ‘time-honoured’ and ‘authentic’ as compared to media which is ‘modern’ and ‘superficial’, as stated by Stewart M. Hoover in his thesis on media and religion. The question of ‘is new always better?’ is posed. The convergence of these two facets h as always been a topic for much debate but the eventual collaboration of these would lead to a mutualistic relationship as one would develop the other. It is said that through media, religion is slowly losing its authenticity and merely becoming a merely making scheme. It has slowly become a farce but on the other side of the coin, media has become far too etched in religion and religion in media. Online religion and religion-online Firstly, I would like to state a difference in diction between that of online/virtual religion and religion online. As stated above online/virtual religion is an electronic expression of religion, basically scriptures online or being able to practice rituals online while religion online as defined by Christopher Helland merely â€Å"presents information about religion.† (Helland 2000).Helland states that because of the difference between these two concepts there are different perceptions of how the Internet should be used for religious purposes. Religion online can be seen, in sporting terminology, as a golfer. He is solitary in is game and does not depend on his competitors and he lacks teammates. This is a rather solitary, one-to-many ideal. There lacks contribution between the members participating as they are unable to give feedback and share their views and beliefs. This notion is quite evident when visiting www.vatican.va, the official site of the Vatican. This one sided concept presents prayer and scriptures but lacks the sense of freedom of speech and belief, therefore restricting an external view. Many religious groups use professionally designed religious sites as a medium to merely convey information to their readers via religion online. This regulated space allows them to maintain institutional structure and control. They present the ‘chapter and verse’ of the religion. By keeping it as a one-to-many structure, they see this as a ‘tool’, as described by Helland, of not ‘losing control’ of their followers. In my opinion, this is a form of indoctrination as the readers only see what these religious groups want them to see. Is this any different from what Hitler and the Nazi’s were doing? They insist on such a manner because with the advancement of technology and the thinking of man, religious institutions have lost their prominence and their clerical authority has become less important in determining what people believe and the way in which they live their lives (Hoover 2008). This is a way of being subtle dictators trying to keep domination over their followers. Online religion can be viewed as if it is a team sport, a ‘many-to-many’ fashion, where you interactive and depend on one another. It allows the reader to interact and voice their opinion. This is permitted through opinions like hyperlinks, allowing activities like prayers online, meditation and chat rooms on sites like virtualreligion.net. The unofficial religious sites used for online religion are seen as far more accessible and user friendly. It caters to the needs of the reader rather than forcing religious material onto them. People now take responsibility for their own faith, spiritualities and religious identities. This non-domineering environment allows the expression of views and religious experiences. Online religion, unlike religion online, is not seen as a tool but rather a ‘place’ where you can find purely information but rather spiritual and religious enlightenment and liberation. This increased supply of mediated religion means that religion and spirituality are increasingly available outside the boundaries of ‘formal’ religions; such has world-charging implications for those institutions. (Hoover, 2008). An example would the 9/11Twin Tower bombing where online prayers and virtual candles were ignited in memory of the lives lost. Knowledge about Islam was also available to reader s and they were allowed to communicate those who follow the Islamic faith and in turn learn more about the religion and their beliefs. This prevented Islam form having stereotypical tags attached to them, as Osama Bin Laden gave the world the idea that it was a terrorist religion that killed for God. With this we can knowingly state that the internet itself cannot be seen as a medium that confines or liberates as the choice is ours to make. It also depends on religious leaders and webpage designers and whether they seen as a chance to enforce power and see it as a ‘tool’ or as a form of liberty and see it as a ‘place’. Therefore, it is fair to say that the internet can be described in a single quote by Frederick Langbridge: â€Å"Two men look through the same bars, one sees mud, the other sees stars.† Is Virtual Religion the answer to all our prayers After downloading an application on Google play called â€Å"Virtual Hindu Temple Worship†, I was rather surprised at the feeling of enlightenment experienced after participating in this online version of worship. I was able to turn a wicked lamp and ring a bell as if I were worshipping in a temple. A mantra, a Sanskrit word meaning sacred utterance, played in the background giving off this aura of calm and oneness with God. I was also able to choose a deity that I would like to pray to. This showed the convenience and ease of my access to this application. My initial opinion of this form of religion was one that was negative but with actually experiencing it first hand, the excitement of something unknown and different was what that captured my attention. I visited a blog by Dariush Nothaft on Yale Daily news; I was astonished to see the levels to which virtual religion had climbed. Here he spoke about stumbling uponsaranam.com, a virtual portal for ordering prayers at Hindu temples in India, for a fee, I might add. The founder ofsaranam.com, Mahesh Mohanan, had this eureka moment after the realization that post nuptial pilgrimages were becoming an arduous experience. These pilgrimages were customary as there had to be performed to further bless marriages and prevent the marriage from having ‘bad eyes’ or bad luck put upon the couple. The guru or ‘franchisees’ as they were called now perform this ritual; in your stead (Nothaft 2007). A ritual as defined by the Oxford dictionary is â€Å"A religious or solemn ceremony consisting of a series of actions performed according to a prescribed order†. The online version of these rituals was obviously shorter and avoided the inconvenience of attending a crowded temple. After participating on a similar ritual online, it was evident that I was done quicker and I could choose when and where I could do this prayer as well as fitting it into my schedule, rather than having to make time and then ending up complaining about something I should want to invest my time and effort in. As a person who is committed to the Hindu faith, I was astounded by this. My conscience would never allow me to participate in such practices. Even though it solved many problems and become an easier, more accessible route to those who lived fair away or were too busy, my thought would be that the sacrifice behind it all be it of your time or money was part of the ritual. The fact that you had made time for God was the important part. The question lies, ‘Are you really invested in this ritual?’ You are unaware of what is happening and this would result in it being conducted without reverence or much thought. In contention, we cannot blame Mohanan’s ingenuity as the demands of work, family and life make fulfilling all our religious obligations difficult. Nothaft concluded by stating that to participate in virtual religious activities one must be of ‘open, outward-looking mind’ and that he rather people invest in the religious processes in some respect than in no respect at all. An article posted on TechNews Daily (Fox 2010) recently stated that â€Å"Technology changes how people relate to each other, and that is what religion is concerned with†. With the introduction of applications such as Bible quotes and verse and Torah chanting practices on devices such as iPhones, it allows worshippers to mould a personal religious environment in this blasphemous society. Religious leaders argue that smart phones and their ‘attention-diverting’ nature result in worshippers being unable to engage in real time practices. They detected a vast change in the way worshippers process religion as a whole. They become disengaged from the communal society. The nervous, excitement now given off by them is quiteopposite to the usual calm and soothing nature that suppose to be surrounding a place of worship. Leaders fear that new followers will now see the ‘old’ religious ceremonies as strange and boring this will lead to their loss of prominence in our daily lives. Virtual religion and technological advances will lead to the end of familiar worship and begin a form that is unpredictable and uncontrollable.â€Å"The future is very bright, but we have yet to get our mind around a world were some people get their whole religious experience through a device.† said Dudley Rose, a Dean at Harvard University. Conclusion In the essay above, my focus was based on the practice of virtual/online religion with reference to media and religion. Firstly, the realm of popular culture was discussed showing how media and technology have become more culturally accepted in the 21st century. Secondly the differences between online religion and religion online were discussed in depth, concluding that religious leaders prefer the ‘religion-online’ format as they have far more structural control over their worshippers, while the worshippers themselves took a liking to online religion as it allowed them to express religious views and opinions and giving them the freedom of interaction. The positives of virtual religion were shown through its influence during the 9/11 attacks. Lastly, a blog and an online article were reference, highlighting views of real men and woman of how media, technology and virtual religion’s effect on ‘old’ religion and it is not merely a theory but a large part of reality. I would like to conclude by quoting Thomas Merton who once exclaimed: â€Å"Technology is not in itself opposed to spiritualityand to religion. But it presents a great temptation.† References: Inspires Today, 2007.Available from: http://www.inspirestoday.com/quote/41015.html [16 April 2014] Fowler, Roger. Language in the News : Discourse and Ideology in the British Press. New York: Routledge, 1991. Microsoft Windows 2010. What is Digital Media?Available from: [16 April 2014] Helland, Christopher 2000, â€Å"Surfing for Salvation†, Religion,Vol. 32, (4), 293-302. Available from: Google scholar citations[16 April 2014] Hoover, SM 2008, Media and Religion, University of Colorado at Boulder, USA, A White Paper from The Center for Media, Religion, and Culture. Nothaft, D 2007, ‘Virtual’ religion raises interesting questions. 9 February 2007. Yale Daily News. Available from [17 April 2014] Fox, S 2010, Technology changing the way we practice religion, smart phones allow religious practice in new times, spaces and ways, NBCNEWS.com, 7 July 2010. Available from: [17 April 2014]

Management, Leadership and Public Health Planning

Management, Leadership and Public Health Planning Student Name: Aphrodis Ndayisaba 0. Introduction The complexity and dynamism of healthcare systems around the world make them require strong, knowledgeable and skilful managers and leaders. The need for effective health managers and leaders is of paramount importance in allowing organisations and professionals to achieve their goals. Part of the knowledge and skills that healthcare services managers and leaders should have include planning and change management. In this essay, we will discuss, using a health project and examples, the steps undertaken in planning process and later on we will be discussing on various ways that healthcare services managers and leaders would partake to effect organisational change. 1. The steps in a health planning process According to Ardal et al (2006), a plan is defined as â€Å"a map, as a preparation, as an arrangement†. Planning defines the direction where the organisation or a person is heading and how to reach there. Various activities are undertaken in health planning process. It is stated that health planning process follows as the same basic steps as any planning process and these steps form a cycle which is normally repeated in the planning process for programs, populations, systems or health goals. The necessity of repeated cycle is due to the prevailing conditions which some or all may push to the change of the existing plan. For example, new evidences to create, restore or support health are released unceasingly, thus to incorporate these evidences into plans, the planning process should be cyclical (Ardal al, 2006). According to Ardal et al (2006), most planning cycles comprise seven steps which are: Surveying the environment Setting directions Identify problems and challenges Identify ranges of solutions to the problem and challenges Identify the preferred solutions Implementation Evaluation According to the same source, some people might argue that planners are only involved in the first five steps yet planners are also instrumental in understanding and supporting to shape the implementation plan and evaluation. They may be invited to provide support in these latter activities. To discuss on these steps, we use an example of a community health project on fighting against malaria in a local district. 1.1. Surveying the environment This step is concerned with the information collection to determine the current situation regarding the issue under consideration. The assessment of the current situation is done from various perspectives. For example, in the planning process for the project to fight against malaria, those involved in the planning process can review the previous plans about the project. According to Chatora and Tumusiime (2004), the review of the previous plans is essential in the planning process as it helps find out whether the government policy changed over a period of time and what its impact on the plan. Additionally, the planners can review the previous plans to see any change on certain key information in the planning like demographic information on the number of the target population, social, economic and cultural factors, community engagement in the process and health delivery. Similarly, the review of the previous plans provides information on the change about resources like human, financia l and material resources and about the performance of the previous plans. 1.2. Setting directions This step involves goals and objectives setting and the establishment of the standards against which the existing health/ illness status or existing organisational or system performance will be compared with. Simply put, at this stage, health planners seek to answer the key question â€Å"where do we want to go?† or â€Å"what do we want to achieve†. In other words, the health planners identify the desirable future state or outcome for the issue in question. For example, during the planning process of the project intended to fight against malaria in the district, those involved may set the target of having zero death due to malaria in the district during a certain period. 1.3. Identification of problems and challenges This step is concerned with the identification and quantification of the shortfalls between the existing situation and the desirable situation. To identify problems and challenges, the available data should be taken into consideration; data from health information management system, community surveys, census, reports, and anecdotes alike. Problems can be either primary or secondary. On one hand, Primary problems include illnesses identified in the community like malaria, tuberculosis HIV infection, leprosy or other related to socioeconomic factors like inequity, unfairness or patient dissatisfaction. On the other hand, secondary problems or contributory problems are those problems related to poor health systems like shortage of health resources, poor health delivery services and poor management skills which contribute to the primary problems (Chatora Tumusiime, 2004). For example, during the process of planning the project to fight against malaria, planners have to make use of various data sources to determine the causes of the deficit between the current situation and the desired situation about malaria in their district 1.4. Identification of range of solutions to problems and challenges At this stage, a range of solutions to each identified problem and challenge is identified. Also, at this stage, an assessment of each possible solution, using criteria like feasibility with the available resources, cost-effectiveness, is done so that each solution can be compared with each other to ease the process of prioritisation. For example, in planning process about community health project to fight against malaria, each identified problem and challenge that impede the initiatives to fight malaria a solution should be sought to it. However, given the complexity of this step in identifying solutions to the problems and challenges, creativity is of paramount importance as some problems and challenges may not have readily available solutions (Ardal al, 2006). 1.5. Identification of preferred solutions This step is concerned with the selection of a solution or a range of solutions to deal with the identified problems and challenges in the above step. The selection of the solutions may require to take into consideration fiscal and political context and other limiting factors (Ardal al, 2006). For example, in choosing solutions to the problems and challenges to the fight against malaria, government policies and guidelines and the available resources and other limiting factors should be not be ignored. 1.6. Implementation This step deals with the implementation of the selected solutions and it is preceded by the development of implementation plan. 1.7. Evaluation It stated that this step may start with the development of an evaluation plan well prior to the actual evaluation. This step is concerned with the evaluation of the outcomes of the implemented solutions to determine if the latter resulted in achieving the goals set in the planning process. It is also concerned with the evaluation of the environment in which the plan was carried out to determine if any change occurred hence helping depict whether the implemented solutions were less effective, more effective or irrelevant. Additionally, it involves developing ongoing tracking system methods to be used to continuously make identification and assessment of the planned or unplanned outcomes of the implemented actions (Ardal al, 2006). 2. Various ways to effect organisational change Healthcare organisations, like any other organisations, either public or private constantly undergo changes. The need for change or reform in these organisations is reported to be fundamental to the management process. Managers of these organisations need to adapt how they work when faced with contextual changes such as the emerging new technologies, changes in environmental pressures, demographics, political ideologies, socioeconomic context and rising demand and cost (Goodwin et al, 2006). So, organisations have to change as their internal and external environment constantly change. Numerous models and theories of change management have been proposed in the literature. These models include the 7-S model, PESTELI, soft systems methodology, Kurt Lewin’s classic three-phase model of change-unfreeze, move or change and unfreeze, John Kotter’s popular 8 step change model, etc. (Goodwin et al,2006; The State of Queensland, 2014). It is stated that each model has its own advantages and disadvantages and no one approach is best in all circumstances. â€Å"Indeed it is not so much the actual model or theory that is important, but more that the approach that is taken is relevant to the circumstances† (The state of Queensland, 2014). In essence, the best change model appear to make use of and adjust aspects of various models to meet the culture of the organisation in question and the context of change needed. Basically, it is reported that the goal of all change management is to secure the involvement of each and every one to the change and align indiv idual and team behaviour and skills with the change (The state of Queensland, 2014): For the case of the director of the Directorate of Public Health who needs to replenish the image of the organisation after observing that it was getting negative, below are the proposed ways that can be partaken to effect the health organisational change. They are the analytical tools that they can be used to develop a coherent strategic response to the situation like the one mentioned above. The 7S model PESTELI Soft systems methodology Process modelling SWOT analysis 2.1. The 7S model The 7S model is one of the diagnostic tools that healthcare organisation managers can use to conduct situational analysis to assess the gap between what is and what ought to be and it is often a tool that can be used for the justification for change management programmes. This model suggests that there are seven criteria which require the harmonisation of each other. These criteria are the following: Strategy: this criteria is concerned with the plan or course of action that leads to the allocation of organisation’s resources to achieve its goals. Structure: This involves the outstanding characteristics of the organisational chart. This is related to the organisational leadership structure and how its parts are interconnected inside the organisation. Systems: This criterion is concerned with the processes and procedures and the information flow around the organisation. Staff: This criterion is concerned with the categories of human resources within the organisation. Style: This is related to leadership style that the managers use to reach the organisation’s goals. Shared values: This is concerned with the guiding principles that the organisation instil to its members. Skills: This is related to the staff capacity of the organisation. Goodwin et al (2006) state that the 7S model can be used in two ways: in identifying strengths and weaknesses by taking into consideration the linkage between each criteria and how change made in one criterion will impact on all of the others. Despite its attractiveness of its dual emphasis on soft and hard organisational components, it is criticised of providing one-sided organisational culture with the only sole focus on the similarities that stick to the organisation and ignore other important aspects like conflict and disagreement (Goodwin et al, 2006). 2.2. PESTELI PESTELI is described as checklist used to analyse the environment in which the organisation operates. It stands for: P: Political factors: political impetus and influences that have an effect on organisational performance or other options open to the organisation. E: Economic influences: competitive nature that the organisation faces and the financial resources available within the economy. S: Social trends: change in demographics, trends in the behaviour and attitude of people regarding how they live, work and think. T: Technological innovations: new ways of doing new and old things and mitigating new or old problems; be it equipment or new ways thinking or organising. E: Ecological factors: this involves defining wider ecological system to which the organisation belongs and the manner the latter interacts with. L: Legislative requirement: these extend from the employment law to environmental regulations. I: Industry analysis: this is concerned with reviewing of the rousing quality of the industry to which the organisation belongs. As the 7S model, PESTELI can be used to conduct an analysis of the favouring factors in the environment in which the organisation operates and those that hinder the progress (Goodwin et al, 2006). 2.3. Soft systems methodology It is a tool which helps in articulating complex social processes. This is done by bringing together concerned people so that they can express their points of view, challenge them and test them. The following steps are undertaken when using this tool: Identify a problem and its causes from the stakeholders, cultural and political perspectives, without any attempt to impose a preconceived structure or to over-simplify the processes in place. Articulate root definitions of relevant systems: purpose, dynamics, inputs and outputs. Discuss on the situation with the stakeholders by describing the needed activities to achieve the root definitions using for instance process mapping tool or cause-and-effect diagram. Compare models with reality by observing, discussing and defining what to alter on the structure, process and attitude. Take action to implement the proposed solutions. Despite the importance of this tool in making change happening, it was criticised of being time consuming and costly. Also, there are concerns of whether organisational members are enough motivated to undertake the task to its end (Iles and Sutherland, 2001 cited in Goodwin et al, 2006). 2.4. Process modelling Process modelling is used as an approach to capture and clarify different views and expectations of a process. It helps increase the understanding of the situation at hand and how the proposed new one will make a difference. Simply put, the aim of this tool is to capture the dynamics of a situation so that those involved can brainstorm and come up with the best practices to change the current process. 2.5. SWOT analysis SWOT analysis is another important tool used to examine an organization’s internal strengths and weaknesses, its opportunities for growth and improvement, and the threats the external environment presents to its survival (Harrison, 2010). It is a systematic way of examining why an organization needs to change. SWOT stands for: Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities, and Threats. This tool can be used in combination with other tool. For example, it is used together with the 7S model to identify organisational internal factors and PESTELI to identify external factors that hinder the growth or the normal functioning of the organisation. REFERENCES ARDAL, S. ET AL, 2006. The Health Planner’s Toolkit. http://www.health.gov.on.ca/transformation/providers/information/resources/health_planner/module_1.pdf [6-11-14]. CHATORA, R., TMUSIIME,P., 2004. District Health Management Team Training Modules. Module 4: Planning and Implementation of District Health Services. https://www.k4health.org/sites/default/files/Module%204.pdf [5-11-14]. GOODWIN, N. ET AL., 2006. Managing Health Services. London: Open University Press. HARRISON,J., 2010. Essentials of Strategic Planning in Healthcare. Washington: AUPHA Press. THE STATE OF QUEENSLAND, 2014. Change Management Best Practices Guide: Five (5) key factors common to success in managing organisational. changehttp://www.psc.qld.gov.au/publications/subject-specific-publications/assets/change-management-best-practice-guide.pdf [6-11-14]. 1

90 Minutes of Perfection :: essays research papers

90 Minutes of Perfection Any pain to be suffered comes first. Instinctively you fight to live. The conscious mind does not believe any other reality could possibly exist beside the earth. We have been trained since birth to live. Life tells us who we are and we accept it’s telling. Your body wants to live and will fight to survive. Your body goes limp. Your heart stops. No more air flows in or out. You lose sight, feeling, and movement – although the ability to hear goes last. Identity ceases. The "you" that you once were becomes only a memory. There is no pain at the moment of death. Only peaceful silence. . . calm. . . quiet. But you still exist. It is easy not to breathe. In fact, it is easier and more comfortable not to breathe than to breathe. The biggest surprise for most people in dying is to realize that dying does not end life. Whether darkness or light comes next, or some kind of event, be it positive, negative, or somewhere in-between, expected or unexpected, the biggest su rprise of all is to realize you are still you. You can still think, you can still remember, you can still see, hear, move, reason, wonder, feel, question, and tell jokes. You are still alive, very much alive. â€Å"Actually, you're more alive after death than at any time since you were last born. Only the way of all this is different; different because you no longer wear a dense body to filter and amplify the various sensations you had once regarded as the only valid indicators of what constitutes life.†(Atwater) You had always been taught one has to wear a body to live. â€Å"The only thing dying does is help you release, slough off, and discard the "jacket" you once wore.†(Atwater) When you die you lose your body. That's all there is to it. Nothing else is lost. Don Piper is someone that died. He was in an accident where he was hit head on by an 18-wheeler on a small bridge over the Trinity River. When emergency personnel found no pulse he was covered up and was waiting on the justice of the peace to pronounce him dead. â€Å"Piper remembers nothing of the accident, but everything about heaven.† (Vara) While he was dead, Piper experiences this unimaginable trip to heaven and titled his book 90

Reaction Paper: Was Marx Wrong? -- essays research papers

Karl Marx was an influential character of history, a man of tremendous intelligence as well as a great inspiration to many philosphers and people past and present. Karl Marx was a man of action for the less fortunate class, in that sense his theories are not wrong, to a certain extent they are positve inquisitions. It is those whom have practiced Marx theories that have misinterpreted his works giving Karl Marx a negative demeanor. Specifically Lenin and Stalin are two leaders who have brought shame to the works of Karl Marx and make this philospher seem like a barbarian. " Marx is a humanitarian because he took the side of the working class."-Overstreet Marx is considered a humanitarian because he was in favor of the non exploitation of the lowest class. His main concern was for the individual in society, Karl Marx's studies yield that he wanted the individuals of civilation to live fulfilled lives. In Karl Marx's economic policies he states that " The workers labor power is a commodity." This holds truth, a workers labor is very valuable, like goods that are sold by a merchant. His labor is not to be taken advantage of because he is an individual fending for a living to survive. Marx states in his teachings that because workers are such a commodity to society that a laborer should not be undermined or exploited, such as the slaves...

Truth About God :: essays research papers

Truth About God "You are just like your fathers: You always resist the Holy Spirit! Was there ever a prophet your fathers did not persecute? They even killed those who predicted the coming of the Righteous One." - Acts 7:51-52 The Jews have always been afraid of the radicals of God. They have always dwelled in the safety and understandings of the past and fear the effects of these radicals. But when these radicals like the prophets arrive, they persecute them because they are uncertain about the truth. An example is when the Jews didn't want to believe Stephen in Acts 7:56-58, " Look,' he said, I see heaven open and the Son of Man standing at the right hand of God.' At this they covered their ears and yelling at the top of their voices, they all rushed at him, dragged him out of the city and stoned him." A lot of potshots have been taken at the Church over the years. In spite of its obvious imperfections, the Church is the means that has been chosen to carry the message of the Gospel to the world. One wonders why a better system could not have been devised. Then one realizes that any system that has people in it is going to be imperfect. Alexander Solzhenitsyn wrote in the Gulag Archipelago that it was in prison where he learned that the line separating good and evil passes not through states, not through classes, not through political parties, either, but right through every human heart and through all human hearts. When we give ourselves serious evaluation, we find things hiding in our hearts that, if we could choose, we would remove. Our hearts have been described as "a zoo of lust, a bedlam of ambitions, a nursery of fears, a harem of fondled hatreds." Yet the Church, by its very nature, must be made up of the likes of us. "Imagine yourself as a living house," wrote C. S. Lewis. "God comes in to rebuild that house. At first, perhaps, you can understand what He is doing. He is getting the drains right and stopping the leaks in the roof and so on. But presently He starts knocking the house about in a way that hurts abominably and does not seem to make any sense. What on earth is He up to?

How Does Steinbeck Present Disadvantaged Characters

Explore some of the ways in which Steinbeck presents disadvantaged characters in the novel In 1937, the American author John Steinbeck published ‘Of mice and Men'. Set in the Salinas Valley of California, it conveys the story of the struggles of the American people during ‘The Great Depression'. The Great Depression was a massive devastation throughout the whole of America where people suffered and the economy was at a huge crisis. The Unemployment rose from 3% to 26% and many people had died, showing how hard the citizens coped to survive in-between this difficult period.The Americans were in a depriving financial state full of high inflation after an economic fall known as the ‘The Wall Street Crash' The nation only helped themselves by believing in their own dreams, which meant mostly to have their own lands, be rich and live a good-life- â€Å"The American Dream†. This ideology gave the public hopes of life and something to work towards. John Steinbeck do es not only explore how people struggled for their American dream, but also describes how difficult this melancholy period in history was for the â€Å"lesser† group of individuals at the time: the disadvantaged characters.Lennie, a big simple-minded character, is a highly disadvantaged individual due to poor mental health. As Lennie is one of the predominant characters in ‘Of Mice and Men’, he is perhaps the least dynamic. He experiences no change in developing or growing in mental or practical abilities; the plain figure remains as illustrated at the start of the opening pages in the novel. Although his character is displayed in this way, despite being under privileged he is based as a central protagonists in the story. Steinbeck conveys a general initiative to his readers that, Lennie’s actions make great affection.Being basic makes his choices morally incorrect- this shows his difficulties. Steinbeck uses the character of Lennie to symbolise the mental ly underprivileged people of this period. â€Å"Let's have different colour rabbits, George. †Pg 16 â€Å"Just ain’t bright†24 Steinbeck shows his readers the stage of which Lennie's mind is developed; still like a child's, even though he is a fully-grown man. From the start of the novella, the reader must know that Steinbeck creates an illustration of Lennie as sadly being doomed, and must be sympathetic towards him.This is a construction built to present to the reader at the current time of the 1920's a huge disadvantage to the mentally handicapped society. The simple-minded character of Lennie also leads him to lack in responsibility and trust. He is shown to have no knowledge of any financial or general life problems, therefore Steinbeck creates a main part for George to play in, and this is where he has to take the weight on his shoulders for Lennie. †if you jus' happen to get in trouble like you always done before, I want you to come right here an' h ide in the brush†, †Leggo his hand, Lennie†, 64 You tol' me to George,†64 The author is trying to portray an image to his readers that Lennie cannot think for his self and has to be controlled; this is another big under privilege towards the mentally handicapped people. Lennie also speaks without grammatical sense and this shows he is uneducated and not taught to talk proper English, â€Å"they was so little† pg 11 â€Å"Don't tell nobody† PG61 Lastly the biggest let down for the simple minded figure is not being able to adapt a level of understanding to the normal person , Lennie cannot tell the strength he applies or has when used.This makes him very innocent when attacking someone without knowing, He also loves to pet animals and furry material but while this process, as he is a strong figure, he kills the being. †'Don't you go yellin', he said, and shook her; and her body flopped like a fish. And then she was still, for Lennie had brok en her neck. †90 The author uses the word ‘and' repetitively showing how dramatic the moment is. Steinbeck depicts towards his audience that Lennie was only trying to quite Curley’s wife but accidentally fails as he cannot handle his abnormal great strength.This use of dramatics and panic shows where Lennie is innocent. From my view I think Lennie is also based upon the theme of an animal, there are areas where Steinbeck refers to Lennie as animal like â€Å"He’s as strong as a bull† â€Å"the way a bear drags his pours† In addition, Steinbeck uses the comparison of Candy's dog and Lennie to depict the value and status of less mentally capable individuals. Just how candy's dog is eradicated once he becomes ‘useless', the same image is created for Lennie as his fate is controlled and chosen by the ‘normal' ranch hands.Similarly, The death of Lennie, is constructed as an illustration towards the readers that his own friend kills him because it is a ‘necessity'. The author is portraying to his readers that even George, Lennie's tightest companion, shoots him out of sympathy so his friend does not go through the wrath of Curley's torturing death. This conveys to us that the people of the 1930's thought it was right to choose a death of a mentally handicapped because it was ‘obligatory',Of mice and men, shows a greater emphasised picture, where a very close friendship is ended.The dramatics used by Steinbeck when showing us George kills his best colleague Lennie, tells the reader how life was a great hardship for the discrimination against the mentally handicapped, especially when it was very unlikely to see two friends travelling together. The book demonstrates this concept by putting the ‘rights' of a dog identical to the ‘rights' of a mentally incapable person. Today, this sought of situation is taken seriously, where the rights for any being is equally judged. Steinbeck presents another character which I think is one of the most hindered upon-Crooks.Crooks is highly discriminated, especially at this time, because he is black. He is a black man that lives in America at the time of segregation from the colour of his skin. This was tragic and sad for the black community as they were marginal. Living as a black man being employed was one of the most hardest job, this caused a lot of unemployment for the ‘coloured' public . The only upper hand crooks had was a job in the ranch, it still was very risky, the boss beat him for no reason, but this was all he could do for a living. S'pose you didn't have nobody. S'pose you couldn't go to the bunk house and play rummy 'cause you was black. †72. Steinbeck often demonstrates towards his audience that Crooks is a victim of isolation and loneliness, this illustrates the high level of prejudice and separation against the black ethnic minority of the 1930s. Crooks use of the word ‘S'pose' twice in short time to s how the emphasis of his feelings. The appearance and physical disability of Crooks also makes him impoverished, he has a crooked back and thus is called by the name ‘Crooks ‘. Now and then he poured a few drops of the liniment into his pink-palmed hand and reached up under his shirt to rub again.He flexed his muscles against his back and shivered. †67. Steinbeck provides his readers with a description for the appearance of Crooks. This description shows us where ‘Crooks' is named by the ranch hands. When Steinbeck uses this method, he produces nicknames to portray to his readers how the men do not take any interest in knowing a full name; this shows the loneliness. The black community was often assaulted by the white public, this was a great hardship in the 1930's. I could get you strung up on a tree so easy it ain't even funny. †80 â€Å"Crooks had reduced himself to nothing. There was no personality, no ego- nothing to arouse either like or dislike. †80. The black minority was too downgraded and this quote is evident. When any black man spoke for his self, he was threatened and could not fight on. Steinbeck expresses to his readers how life was for the black people when abused. As he is black, Crooks is segregated from the other workers, this causes a great amount of desolation, he is trapped in solitude day and night and resorts to reading books.In the novel, when Lennie enters Crooks room, at first his reaction is to be alone and unwanted but then his lack of unsociability wins over him and allows Lennie to set in. During his conversation, Crooks reveals his sorrow of being alone, segregated and divined from others. â€Å"I seen it over an’ over a guy talkin’ to another guy and it don’t make no difference if he don’t hear or understand. † He is referring to Lennie but actually talking of himself. Steinbeck creates an image to his reader, how the life of someone already disliked, depriv es as he is lonely and separated.In the 1930's, Steinbeck shows his readers where the black people's status stood and where they were disadvantaged. The use of the word ‘n**ger' was normal for people to remark, this just portrays how downgraded the black community were. I think as Crooks was in the bracket of an ethnic minority, he was extremely unlucky and discriminated, the author shows us another disadvantaged character based at the time of the novella. From the perspective of Curley's wife, I think that John Steinbeck uses analogy to represent the place for woman and how they were the underdogs towards the men.Living in the male world, Curleys wife is mostly shown as a bad sign as she is an uncommon person in the ranch. She undergoes a difficult and antagonistic period through her life. â€Å"You wasn't no good. You ain't no good now, you lousy tart†94 â€Å"Well, ain't she a looloo? †51 â€Å"I ain't seen that much of her, PG 51 When whit describes her as t his it shows what they think of her, also the emphasis of George speaking when saying, â€Å"I ain't seen that much of her,† shows the care and intensity that he does not give when he replies. In the beginning of the novel, Steinbeck introduces Curley’s wife through Candy’s description.The critical comments leave the reader to have a negative opinion; as she seems to be a woman in a male world. ‘I’ve seen her give slim the eye†¦ an’ I’ve seen her give Carlson the eye. ’ (pg 29)    By classifying Curley’s wife as a ’flirt’, she is effectively prohibited from the men. There are certain areas where Curleys wife's image is described evil and unhappy, Steinbeck tries to portray towards his readers that when she is there the mood is struck negatively and falls immediately at her presence, â€Å"Both men glanced up, for the rectangle of sunshine in the doorway was cut off. A girl was standing there looking in.She had full, rouged lips and wide-spaced eyes, heavily made up. Her fingernails were red. Her hair hung in little rolled clusters, like sausages. She wore a cotton house dress and red mules, on the insteps of which were little bouquets of red ostrich feathers. â€Å"I'm lookin' for Curley,†she said. Her voice had a nasal, brittle quality. †PG 32 From this extract of the book, there are different ways in which the author describes Curley's wife as a cynical approach at this moment of the story. Steinbeck shows us that as soon as she comes in the sunlight is cut off- blocking the admirable scene.Even with the clothing, Curley's wife wears a lot of the colour red conveying the evil colour and the emphasis of her voice when she speaks,† Her voice had a nasal, brittle quality. † Steinbeck describes the disadvantages women had when she is first illustrated. Throughout the book, Curley's wife's character is fairly mysterious and complicated. She is continuously referred to as her husband's belonging or possession, this shows us where she is unidentified, through this misidentification we can figure out her status as a woman; she did not need to be known.Steinbeck’s use of identification against Curley’s wife is her most disadvantage. When someone has no identification, it describes to the reader where his or her reputation is, the name Curley’s wife portrays an image that her name is a tool, owned by her husband and is not much importance. Through the book she is foreshadowed in many areas, where her sly flirty actions lead to hazardous trouble, despite this matter, when reading between the lines, the reader is made to show some part of sympathy to express towards her.The author also uses other ways to describe the loneliness and emotions in the book, words like ‘solitaire' (meaning ‘ a card game played by one person), shows us how he referred to the people working at the ranch as desolate and unsocial, he also uses nick names, except for George and Lennie, such as â€Å"Slim† or â€Å"Curley†, this is another sign, of the low and sad mood. In the novel, there are a few areas where the writer presents short snappy sentences to show the effects, â€Å"The silence came into the room. And the silence lasted†. 9 Additionally, Steinbeck chooses the use of circulation in situations, just like a life cycle, In each chapter the setting in the beginning is the setting at the end, this conveys a message that the situation always ends at point one, , for example Lennie and George have a dream in the beginning which is just a plain dream that has no hope, it develops as the book stages itself at chapter 3 ,in the middle, there is sudden hope and it looks like an easy grab, but it circulates and drops back down, where Lennie kills Curley's wife, this illustrates the method of death and that there is no hope left.John Steinbeck the author reveals to his audience how, in a gene ral view, people were highly disadvantaged especially at the time of discrimination towards them. He mentions three obvious characters , Lennie, Crooks and Curley's wife. These individuals all have main deficiencies and all have different types of disadvantages. Steinbeck uses a mentally handicapped individual, a black physically disabled man and a women in a male's world, this shows us an occurring pattern from the author, trying to describe the sadness and discrimination to people at the time of ‘The Great Depression'The novel, ‘Of Mice and Men’ depicts to the readers how the daily struggles for the working class were, being greatly underprivileged and the reality of failing plans for a living, resembling ‘The American Dream’. John Steinbeck shows his audience individuals who constantly face one problem after another. Moreover, he describes people of America who struggled a torrid time through â€Å"Survival of the fittest†, especially the di scriminated.

Arthur Miller’s “The Crucible” Essay

Unjust Justice Systems;A comparison of the West Memphis Three and The CrucibleImagine sitting at home one night and having police officers show up at your hose and arrest you for a crime you had no idea was committed. Three teenage boys in West Memphis, Arkansas and over thirty-nine characters in The Crucible went through exactly that. The West memphis three is the trial of three teenage boys who were charged with killing two eight-year-old oys in the woods and leading a hate group. The trial portrayed in The Crucible are based on the real life Salem Witch Trials, the accused in the play were charged with witchcraft. Evidence in both cases was insufficient and mostly eye witnessed. Both crimes committed were abstract and referred to as the devils work. All accused in both trials were doomed from the beginning. In The Crucible to save oneself if accused one must confess to something they didnt do and then name people that did do it, basically if they wanted to live thy had to lie and accuse other innocent people. The West Memphis three had to go through the court system with corrupt people lying and no way to prove themselves innocent. Arthur Miller portrayed the evidence in The Crucible as only eye witness accounts and petty reasoning, such as the ability to fake a faint. The characters that danced in the woods were considered reliable and what they said was all that was needed to convict the people of witchcraft. In the real life accounts of the West Memphis three, the evidence used against the teenagers were black Metallica shirts, the confession that didnt match the incident, and peers that told the police that they overheard one of the teenagers say they were going to kill two boys. The peers story later changed when under oath but the judge reffered back to the first story to help convict the accused. In both cases the accusers could not counter argue the evidence because it was their word against the witnesses. Before the West Memphis trials the police had a confession from all three teenage boys. t was used against them in court. The reason for the confession, some argue, is a condition called Satanic Panic. Someone who has Satanic Panic creates false memories that place themselves at the scene of the crime they were accused of. The crime normally is devil related, for example rape, magic, and voodoo are all known as the work of the devil.  People who are diagnosed with Satanic Panic are normally also diagnosed with Multiple Personality Disorder. The witches in The Crucible were charged with harming others with magic. They had to confess themselves to keep themselves from being hanged. This is an example of how Satanic Panic is described. When Mary Warren says, Its not a trick! I-I used to faint because I-I thought I saw spirits. (miller 47) she is describing Hysteria, or Satanic Panic; she created the spirits because the other girls saw the. In The Crucible Hale, an expert in the area of witchcraft, played a large role in the courtroom. In the trial of the teenagers there was a doctor who was an expert in the area of stanic panic. Being experts in such areas are hard to prove, the doctor of satanic panic did not have a degree or any proof that he studied such a subject. He merely stated that he has worked with patients claiming to do things because the devil told them to. In the play Hale simply forces people to confess to save their lives, which is not the work of a doctor but more of a persuader. Both men later on reviewed the case, the accused, and the evidence and wanted to save the innocent people. Hale describes his change of opinion by saying, Let you not mistake your duty as I mistook my own. (miller 58) THey also were unsuccessful. Both crimes are abstract, meaning that there is no evidence attainable for a just conviction, but both crimes have serious consequences. In The Crucible the people who denied being a witch were sentenced to be hanged. Two of the teenagers were sentenced to be hanged. Two of the teenagers were sentenced to life in prison and the last was sentenced to death by injection. Is that fair? The teenagers still had a full life in front of them but because they were used as scapegoats, it was cut short. Can you call a justice system that convicts people for such crimes just?The 1994 case of the West Memphis three and the 1953 play The Crucible have similarities. Abstract convictions, false accusations, and unjust executions are all part of both trials. Neither account is something to be proud of, nor should such times be repeated. When you look at such similar occures, which are separated by four decades, you begin to wonder if humans really learn from their mistakes. Jessie Misskelley, Damien Echols, and Jason Baldwin, the West Memphis three, are sitting in jail; they have been there for 5220 days and  awaiting their death. Spreading knowledge of this hideous case and raising support could help get them and appeal and save three innocent people.

What Are the 6 Defensive Positions in Football and basketball Essay

Football vs. Basketball Introduction             Sports have always been fun and exciting for most people. It is always fun to practice and play with other people. Each and every week, millions of people tune in to watch their favorite sports, but some do not recognize the difference between one sport to another. Usually, each game has its own structure, which make it be given the name it is known for. This paper focuses on the difference between football and basketball as forms of sport.             Basketball is governed by the Federation of International Basket Ball Association (FIBA). The body was created in 1932. FIBA regulates and control all matters concerning the game in the world. In contrast, the body that governs and runs soccer activities in the world was formed in 1904, which is a Federation of International Football Association (FIFA). Moreover, it organizes international soccer matches, including World cup and also approves the facilities and equipments used world wide. It also funds soccer organization for promotion of the game and generate the rules for the management of soccer all over the world.               The field of play of football is a 120 by 100 yards where it is usually marked for positioning, such as the center circle where it is used for awarding a kick off during the start of the game.. It also has a goal line, which is the shorter boundary of the field for awarding a goal kick, corner kick and a goal. It also has a penalty area where penalty kick is awarded. Generally, the field is covered by grass. On the other hand, the basketball has a playing court, which is 28meters in length and 15 meters in width. The field is supposed to be flat, hard, surface free from obstructions. Just like a football it has a center circle, but in basketball it is used for awarding a jump ball during the start of the game.               In football, the duration of play consists of two equal periods of 45minutes whereby after the first period the players are awarded a half times of 15minutes. After the second play period, if there is a tie there are awarded an extra time of two halfs of 30minutes. But the game is usually played in 90minutes. In contrast, basketball game is played in four periods of 10minutes each where the interval of 2minutes between the first and the second period is awarded, which become the first half, and third and fourth period, which form the second half. If there is a tie an extra 5minute is awarded at the end of playing time.               Taking into account the ball that is used to play football, it is supposed to weigh not less than 410-450 grams having a circumference of not more than 70centimenters and not less than 68centimenters and a pressure equal to 0.6 to 1.1atmospheres sea level. In contrast the ball that is used to play basketball should have a circumference not less than 74.9 centimeters and not more than 78 centimeters. The ball should also weigh not less than 567-650 grams, and have enough pressure.               Though both teams has players, they are totally different. In football, a match is played by two teams whereby each team consists not more than 11 players, one of whom is the goalkeeper and three substitutes may be used, which is a maximum in an official competition. Moreover, a football match may not start if either team consists of fewer than 7 players. In basketball, a team should consist of twelve registered players, but only five are supposed to play in the field of play while the others are substitutes. A basketball cannot begin if one of the team is not on the playing court with five players ready to play. Nevertheless, in a basketball match, it is a must for all the players to tuck in their shirts while in a football match, it is not a must for the players to tuck in their shirts. Also, there is no goalkeeper in a basketball match.               In basketball the ball player is required to bounce the ball repeatedly as he/she is moving with hands, this is called â€Å"dribbling†. In football if the ball is fumbled with legs. A fumble is the loss of possession of the ball by the player. In football the ball is not supposed to be touched by hand by the players. The goalkeeper is the only person who is supposed to touch the ball with hands, and within his or her region and guided by several rules. In contrast, basketball involves hands whereby the player uses their hands to score, throw or score a goal. When a goal is scored by a player, the player is awarded either three points, one or two points depending on the position of the scorer. Also, it is considered to be a goal if the ball wholly enters through the ring and passes through the net. However, in football, a goal is considered to be a goal, regardless of the position of the scorer as long as he or she has not committed a foul or violated t he rules of the game and the ball has passed through the goal line between the two goal posts. Nevertheless, if the referee is not able to detect who committed a foul in football the players are awarded a drop ball to continue with the game while in basketball the umpire awards a jump ball.            Football and basketball have both very different play styles. Football involve full-contact sport, with tackles, blocking, and collision in every single play. In football the most common reason a player leaves the game is because of an injury. On the other hand, in basketball contact between players is prohibited. It is a non-contact sport and any contact is considered to be a foul. Football players will get many more hits in the face than basketball players. Football is more associated with brute force, strength, and speed type sport, while basketball is a skill type sport along with strength and speed. Moreover, basketball uniform consists of shirts of the same color, numbered 4-15 in the fronts and the back. In football, they wear shirts or jersey with sleeves and usually labeled on the back.             Though every team has officials who rule over the game, the officials are extremely different. In football, there is the center referee, the assistant referee and the linesmen. These are the officials who overlook the ongoing of the game, rule over and directs the entire game. In basketball, there are one or two umpires who overlook the ongoing game. These people work together with an assistant scorer, a timer, 24 seconds operator who also oversees the progress of the game in the field. It has many officials who watch the ongoing match than in football team, which can be played in the presence of three officials.               Moreover, considering the technical equipment of every team, there are different equipment used during the game. During basketball matches, there must be a foul marker, which consists of 1-5, a 24 second operating device, scoreboard and a game clock. On the other hand, a football match must have a coin used to determine the team that will start the game, which is done by tossing of a coin, a whistle, a scoring card and a pencil.             In conclusion, sports are always different from each other, considering the structure, players, the field and the officials of the game. It is for this reason that we see different games be played differently. The difference between football and basketball is totally different from the starting of the game, players, field, structures and so on. Also, sometimes the supports of the games differ since there are always taste and preference. References Alder, James. â€Å"What Are the 6 Defensive Positions in Football?† About. N.p., N.d. Web. 2012. . â€Å"Basketball Positions.† Wikipedia. Wikimedia Foundation, 28 Sept. 2014. Web. 02 Oct. 2014. . â€Å"National Football League Regular Season.† Wikipedia. Wikimedia Foundation, 09 Aug. 2014. Web. 02 Oct. 2014. . â€Å"The Coaching Staff in American Football.† – For Dummies. N.p., N.d. Web. 02 Oct. 2014. . â€Å"The Differences Between Football and Basketball.† A Sea Of Blue. N.p., N.d. Web. 09 October. 2012. . Source documents  s