When to Walk Away

When to Walk Away A few years ago I saw an announcement for the Tony Hillerman contest. Named after the great mystery novelist, the contest has very specific rules, including where the novel must take place. The winner receives a publishing contract with St. Martins and a nice advance. With the deadline three months away, I dove in and wrote Wink of an Eye like a madwoman. But forty-thousand words into the manuscript, I realized there was no way I could complete it, have it edited, and polish it for submission in such a short time. I was not going to submit a very rough first draft. So I chucked the contest but kept the manuscript, kept working with it, hoping to submit somewhere, someday. My critique group edited the story, but I wound up shelving the book for a while as I moved on to other projects. Then two years ago at a conference, I had the opportunity to pitch to an agent. The agent loved Wink of an Eye, saying the voice had tremendous potential. But her next words made me blink. â€Å"I know I can sell this to a small press.† At the risk of sounding arrogant, I knew I could sell it to a small press. But when the agent told me to send the entire manuscript, excitement urged me to oblige. A week or so later, I received an email from the agency intern saying, yes, she loved it too! But we had a few problems. Good voice, but too much dialogue. Excessive description because it was too visual; per the intern, having readers say they can â€Å"see it as a movie† isnt a good thing. Oh, and the beginning had to change. But they loved it and knew it would sell to any number of small presses. I scratched my head at what was supposed to be my big break. A real agent wanted to represent my work. So why wasnt I doing back flips? I went to work on the suggested revisions and soon had several documents named Wink rewrite, Wink rewrite2, Wink rewrite3, and so on . . . until I said enough. Some of the changes I agreed with- like changing a passive verb- but the dialogue and descriptive imagery stayed. This story was my ba So what happened to Wink of an Eye? I submitted it to the St. Martins Press/Minotaur Books Best 1st Private Eye Novel Competition and the darn thing won. With all its dialogue and descriptive imagery and even the occasional passive voice. It will be released November 18, 2014. I knew I had something good, and I stood

The Many Cognates of Cede

The Many Cognates of Cede The Many Cognates of Cede The Many Cognates of Cede By Mark Nichol The word cede and words with the syllable -cede share an origin with other similarly spelled words that in some sense refer to withdrawal. This post lists and defines those terms. Cede, meaning â€Å"assign,† â€Å"grant,† or transfer, is just one of multiple words descended from the Latin verb cedere, meaning â€Å"go† or â€Å"yield.† The term cession, which refers to an act of ceding, or yielding is rare. Concession is more common in that sense; the verb form is concede, and concessional and concessionary are the uncommon adjectival forms. (â€Å"Concession stand† and the plural form of the noun describe business operations in which one party grants another party the right to sell goods on the first party’s property.) Accede (â€Å"go to†) means â€Å"agree,† â€Å"approve,† or â€Å"consent,† with the sense of doing so reluctantly, or â€Å"take an office or position,† and the noun form is accession. To intercede (â€Å"go between†) is to intervene or mediate; the act of doing so is called intercession. Precede (â€Å"go before†) can refer to being ahead of or in front of, earlier, or more important. The noun form precedence applies to the quality of priority; another noun form, precession, is rare but is seen in â€Å"precession of the equinoxes,† a reference to an astronomical phenomenon. To recede (â€Å"go back†) is to move away or slant backward, or to decrease (it can also mean â€Å"give something back to the former owner†); most references to the noun form recession pertain to a general decline in economic prosperity. Recedence is a rare term for the act of going back. To secede (â€Å"go apart†) is to separate, as part of a nation from the whole; the noun form is secession. Several other words share the root -cede, but with altered spelling, such as proceed (â€Å"go before†), which means â€Å"advance,† â€Å"come forth,† or â€Å"continue.† The noun procedure describes a set of steps, or a way, to accomplish something, and proceeding can be both a form of the verb or, in plural form, a noun describing a sequence of events. The noun proceeds refers to money brought in, and procedural serves both as an adjective and as a noun describing a work of written or recorded fiction that focuses on a sequence of procedures such as the steps taken in solving a crime. Two other nouns derived from proceed are process, a synonym, as a verb, of proceed and, as a noun, of procedure (in addition, the noun process refers to a prominent part of an organism), and procession refers to a forward movement, especially an orderly, often ceremonial parade of people. (It can also be a verb referring to such a movement.) Processable and processability, meanwhile, refer to the capability or suitability of something to be processed. Succeed (â€Å"go after†) means to do well (and the act of succeeding is called success), but it also pertains to inheriting from or following another person in order; this action is known as succession, and one who follows is a successor. To exceed (â€Å"go from†) is to go beyond or extend outside of or to be greater than; excess refers to the act of going beyond but has a negative connotation. Words that don’t seem at all related but are include abscess (â€Å"go away†), which refers to pus collecting in a cavity within inflamed tissue, and ancestor (â€Å"one who goes before†), which means â€Å"one from whom one is descended†- the adjectival form is ancestral, and the noun ancestry refers to one’s forebears- and antecedent (â€Å"go before†), which means â€Å"something that precedes.† To cease (â€Å"hold back†) is to stop (and cessation refers to the act of stopping), and decease (â€Å"go from†) means â€Å"death,† though it is much more often used as a verb to mean â€Å"die.† (One who dies is a decedent.) Predecessor (â€Å"one who goes before†) refers to someone who has preceded another person in a position; it is an antonym of successor. Necessary (â€Å"not go†), too, derives ultimately from cedere; it means â€Å"inescapable† or â€Å"required.† Want to improve your English in five minutes a day? Get a subscription and start receiving our writing tips and exercises daily! Keep learning! Browse the Vocabulary category, check our popular posts, or choose a related post below:Grammar Test 1The Letter "Z" Will Be Removed from the English AlphabetOne "L" or Two?

Fast Food Rulers in China Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Fast Food Rulers in China - Research Paper Example KFC offered food items common in most Chinese restaurants ( Lroche, Kalamas &Huang, 2005). This strategic approach depicts KFC as part of the Chinese community rather than a fast food joint selling low priced westernized food. The company capitalized on small Chinese cities and the establishment of a national business with food joints spread across the country. As a result, the company cut down some of it cost due to economies of scale and distribution of risk. KFC engaged the services of Chinese hotel managers to provide advice on the food tastes. It also established partnership with local food chains and employed more Chinese to operate its emerging branches. So far, the company commands 40% stake in Chinese fast food market with 3300 food outlets in the 650 cities in China. In 1999, KFC developed a distribution chain by building warehouses and managing a fleet of distribution trucks. The trucks were fitted with refrigerators that ensured the foodstuff remain fresh while transporting them from the farm to the restaurants. Though it was an expensive affair, it was vital for the company’s rapid expansion to other cities (Schroder & McEacher, 2005) On the other hand, McDonalds a key rival of KFC holds a 16% stake in the Chinese fast food market. Its approach was far different from it competitor. It chose to stick to its core strategy adopted in the US market. MacDonald menu had no additional dishes that matched the local taste. The layouts of MacDonald’s food outlet depicted a westernized culture. Its target market was the stylish wealthy status-conscious Chinese that sought to imitate the American lifestyle. The McDonald now boasts of 2000 outlets spread across the Chinese cities. It emerged as a global leader in the fast food industry, based on sales, market capitalization, number of employees and revenues (Shen & Xiao, 2014). Its success is attributable to the quality standards the company has maintained globally

Project Management Individual Coursework Assignment Essay

Project Management Individual Coursework Assignment - Essay Example In addition, the field also provides comprehensive guideline to project managers to complete project with successfully meeting challenges (Larson and Gray, 2011). Underlying report is the critical assessment of the factor the surrounding the project management of the new Super Prison Project as announced by Ministry of Justice in England. The report assesses various aspects of the project in detail. BACKGROUND Ministry of Justice in England has announced to close down seven jails in full along with two partial closures for greater valued use of tax-payers money. The plan aims to close the old uneconomic capacity of prison for approximate saving of ?63m per year in running costs. Further, the cost of keeping the prison in new project will be half to the cost being currently incurred. The proposed Super Prison project plan is aimed to provide 2000 places in contrast to the closure of 26000 places in the prisons to be closed. It would affect the 1776 prison staff with certain percentage to be re-deployed while also appreciating voluntary elimination of redundancies. The proposed project, being 25% bigger than the UK’s currently largest prison is facing concerns. ... Howard League for Penal Reform discredited the ideas as no prospects of new building’s contribution to control crime was evident and hence considers it a mere waste of tax payers money. Mr. Grayling has also proposed the planned four new mini-prisons naming house blocks. In addition, to the proposed project that is to be followed by closure of certain jails has not achieved the favorable consensus and many others have given discrediting remarks to the idea. KEY STAGES OF THE PROJECT The project undergoes various phases from initiation to completion. The project lifecycle consists of following phases as conceptual phase, planning phase, defining and designing phase; implementation phase and conversion phase (Cleland and Gareis, 2006). MoJ has just conceptualized the plan. Time and cost factor increases as the project reaches to defining and designing. Implementation phase requires maximum time and cost as the project moves on. Therefore, while establishing Super Prison building the project will requires maximum time and efforts. This phase also increases challenges such as in case the relative of prisoners may raise voice against the shifting etc. Therefore, while implementing plan, the project along side has to undergo the phase of meeting challenges. On completion, the project is evaluated. The evaluation of the Super Prison Project will be based on the cost saving from shifting the prison in new building. In addition, it will also be evaluated if being completed within planned resources. WORK BREAK DOWN STRUCTURE The work breakdown chart outlines the plan for the project stepwise from initiation to completion. WBS benefits project to identify every detail that needs attention and hence ensures that project does not skip

Asos, a Company History Essay Example for Free

Asos, a Company History Essay ASOS was created in June of 2000 by UK natives Nick Robertson and Quentin Griffiths. ASOS, an acronym for As Seen On Screen, was a small online business based out of the UK that duplicated celebrity inspired products. Today they have over 1000 employees and over 50,000 items of fashion. From emulating celebrity fashions, they now are setting the trends. In 2001, the company was admitted to the London Stock Exchange, and the company quickly grew from there. In 2004, ASOS developed their own label for Women and in 2005, launched a beauty line. In 2007 they launched their own mens line as well as the extremely popular publication ASOS magazine. In the ten years after the business was first created, the company became extremely successful becoming the number one independent retailer in the United Kingdom. In 2010, started to branch out of the UK . ASOS launched websites in France, Spain, Italy, Australia, Germany and the USA, which made them an international well-known brand. Just in this past year they also launched their site in Russia. Today their website brings over 17. 5 million visitors month and as of 2012, they have 4. 4 million active customers from 160 countries. ASOS offers products under its own label as well as third party brands. These brands offer products in womenswear, menswear, footwear, accessories, jewelry as well as beauty. ASOS appears to be in a perpetual state of growth as their company seems to expand by the minute offering over thousands of new products a month.

Aspects of Materiality: A Continuing Education Report Essay -- Account

Introduction The concept of materiality provides a topic for continuing educational discussion that many firms across the country find essential to the development of their audit staff. Measuring and using materiality to obtain desired results during an audit becomes the responsibility of the staff member of a CPA firm. Partners and managers of a firm typically allow the staff member to use his/her judgment when applying this concept during the fieldwork of an audit. The overall success of an audit relies at least in part on the materiality concept; therefore, staff members’ continuing education on the concept becomes important and necessary. This report will define the term materiality, determine how to measure materiality, and explain the importance of the concept to the field of auditing. Defining Materiality The utilization of the concept of materiality in auditing dates many years. Varying definitions of materiality during the preliminary stages of utilization prove that auditors recognized a need for this concept but did not have a standard for defining the term. The recognition by the Financial Accounting Standards Board (FASB) of the need for this concept prompted a decision to determine a universally recognized definition of materiality. In the book, Auditing Concepts for a Changing Environment, the FASB defines materiality as, â€Å"the magnitude of an omission or misstatement of accounting information that, in light of surrounding circumstances, makes it probable that the judgment of a reasonable person relying on the information would have been changed or influenced by the omission or misstatement† (Rittenberg and Schwieger 2001, 92). In essence, the concept helps auditors determine the financial information that... ...ff must understand the definition of the concept, determine the process for measuring materiality, and have a concrete understand of the importance of the concept when auditing a company’s financial statements. Works Cited Rittenberg, Larry E., and Bradley J. Schwieger. Auditing Concepts for a Changing Environment, 3rd ed. Harcourt College Publishers, 2001. Sauer, Richard C., â€Å"The Erosion of the Materiality Standard in the Enforcement of the Federal Securities Laws.† Business Lawyer 62, no. 2 (February 2007): 317-357. Gordeeva, Mayya, â€Å"Materiality in Accounting.† Economics and Management 16, 2011: 41-47. Messier, William F., Jr., Nonna Martinov-Bennie and Aasmund Eilifsen. â€Å"A Review and Integration of Empirical Research on Materiality: Two Decades Later.† Auditing: A Journal of Practice and Theory 24, no. 2 (November 2005): 153-187.

Donald J. Trump Essay

Donald John Trump is a real-estate developer who shot to international fame after his hit television series â€Å"The Apprentice†. The best-known facet of his life also happens to be the most motivating one – How he bounced back from bankruptcy to being a billionaire again, through a very innovative idea. Donald Trump was born on 14th June 1946 in New York (Allen 2007). The son of billionaire real-estate businessman Fred Trump, Donald Trump or â€Å"The Donald† as he is popularly known, was born with the proverbial silver-spoon in his mouth. After finishing his schooling from the military academy he entered the Fordham University. He went on to study Economics at the Wharton School of Finance, at the University of Pennsylvania. After finishing the college education in 1968, Donald Trump started his career at the Trump Organizations, owned by this father and started assisting him in his business (A&E Television Networks). He worked with his father for five years. During this time he made several successful business deals but was disillusioned by the low-profit margins. He shifted his base to the more affluent Manhattan in 1971, to make higher profits and also gain public recognition. He hobnobbed with many rich and influential people and built a niche market around them, by making properties having unique architectural designs. He focused on exclusivity instead of cost-saving schemes, which was the mantra for the builders at that time. His name is associated with the most influential and posh addresses like the Fifth Avenue skyscraper, Trump Tower; the luxury residential buildings, Trump Parc, Trump Palace; Trump Plaza, 610 Park Avenue, The Trump World Tower and Trump Park Avenue. He was also the owner of many hotels like Plaza Hotel, the St. Moritz Hotel, Trump International Hotel and Tower etc. (http://www. nbc. com/nbc/The_Apprentice/bios/Donald_J. _Trump. html) However, the recession times in the 1990s saw a sharp fall in the real estate market. His net worth fell from $1. 7 billion to $500 million. When he was unable to pay a $2 billion bank loan, creditors seized his assets. This left him with about $900 million in personal debt and approximately $3. 5 billion in business debt (Allen 2007). This made him declare bankruptcy. He could bail himself out only when his father died in 1999; and real-estate business was sold. He bounced back both financially and publicity-wise via the reality telly-show â€Å"The Apprentice†. Currently his financial worth is estimated as close to 2. 5 billion dollars, and his catch phrase â€Å"You are fired† is embedded firmly in the minds of the public (http://www. atouchofbusiness. com/business-topics/success-stories/business-leader-trump-0006. html) The huge popularity of the TV show and the financial success it brought enabled Trump to venture into other fields like clothing – Trump Men’s Collection, magazine – Trump Magazine, liquor – Trump Vodka, tours – online portal named GOTrump. com, and even education when he opened Trump University in 2005 which offers a degree in business . Personality Traits Donald trump sets himself apart from other people in his leagues purely due to the sheer force of his personality. While his flamboyant nature and his many associations with women have gained him a lot of notoriety, no one can deny that he possesses ‘something’ which sets him apart from other rich people. This has made him make a brand name which sells many businesses including the very successful television series and the many books he has written on his life experiences and means to gain success. One of the most obvious traits he has is intelligence. This does not merely mean possessive a superior technical or business mind, it also points to the amount of calculated risks he has taken over the years and succeeded. While seeming to always go against the flow, his decisions in retrospect always seem to be the most logical way to succeed. As Columbus once said when to his detractors â€Å"Any one would have found newer lands, I thought of it first! † Another obvious trait he possesses is confidence, which shines through all the situations he has faced. For instance, his shifting to Manhattan would have been pointless is he could not get into the inner circles of the rich and famous people in New York. Though he was almost broke when he went to Manhattan, it took him no time to charm the committee people in many exclusive clubs to give him contracts (Biography Channel 2007) Still another trait that has helped him to get past difficult situations is his immense determination to succeed. The adverse situations have merely spurred him to think of unique, away from the stream, way to bounce back. In addition to his many businesses, he also a philanthropist who believes in uplifting the society where one lives. He is associated with many charities and donates generously to social causes. He also has a very charming personality which is probably the main reason for the huge success of his television show. Skills and Strengths Donald Trump in addition to having distinctive personality traits also possesses certain skills that have helped him succeeding in his various ventures. Even in the very early days of his career Trump was known for his consummate skill in making business deals. In fact his father often said that, â€Å"some of my best deals were made by my son, Donald†¦ everything he seems to touch turns to gold. † (NetGlimse 2007) He made his first successful deal at the age of 25, when he bought property off a transportation firm which was having financial troubles and sold it to the government. His negotiating skills often allowed his firm to secure loans with little collateral (Allen 2007) He is also an opportunist and is known for spotting successful business opportunities. As an example, while the real-estate business of his father was doing fairly well Donald chose to move his focus from their traditional business of middle-class rental housing to commercial real estate development (Allen 2007). In addition, he also decided to shift the business from Brooklyn to New York which the rich and famous lived. He is known to be a very successful self-promoter, which has led him to become a very successful brand name. From the buildings he has built which bear the Trump name to constantly telling potential ‘apprentices’ that the way to succeed is to be like him, he is carved out a public image in the minds of the people as a cocky, arrogant but immensely successful personality. He has cashed on this celebrity status to sell many books which also bear his name like â€Å"Trump: The Art of the Deal†, â€Å"Trump: The Art of Survival†, â€Å"Trump: Surviving at the top†, many of which have been best sellers. (http://www. nbc. com/nbc/The_Apprentice/bios/Donald_J. _Trump. html ) Leadership in situations As Donald Trump’s television show preaches – leadership is the name of the game. The word leadership means different things in different situations. Trump’s unique leadership qualities make him a cut different than others. For instance the very essence of leadership is having the conviction and guts to take on risks and few have taken risks which Trump has taken. As mentioned earlier in the report Trump was almost broke when he decided to venture into the real estate business for the rich and famous. It was a bold decision to take on especially considering the fact that the immensely rich people do not really allow any outsider to enter their circles, let alone a person who is not of their social standing. That his business was worth billion in a few years span shows how right he was in taking the risk (Chandy 2007) Another important leadership quality is the ability to capture the attention of people positively. Needless to say the huge popularity of his show, demonstrates that he does have this quality which makes people sit-up and take notice. Successful leaders also take responsibility of their actions and have absolute control over decisions. Again as mentioned earlier in the report each of the ventures of Donald Trump unmistakably have the imprint of his persona, not to mention his name. He does not believe in passing around the blame to others when decisions do not gain expected results. Leadership Outcomes The phenomenal success of the â€Å"The Apprentice† is due to the person who has conceptualized the show i. e. Donald Trump. The way the show is run clearly points his personality. The contestants are judged on a weekly basis and there are no appeals to the finals decision. In his words – â€Å"I mean, there’s no arguing. There is no anything. There is no beating around the bush. â€Å"You’re fired† is a very strong term. † Even the contestants are usually asked to stand up for themselves, which in itself means being leaders (NetGlimse 2007) Leadership also means facing challenges head on. This is evident in Trump’s decision to sell of his family business to bounce back from bankruptcy. There are times when an unsavory decision might be the best decision to overcome a situation. Trump would have to fend off creditors indefinitely if he had not decided to sell off the business. Another leadership trait which Trump possesses is the conviction in his decisions. He has succeeded in making many complex business deals due to this trait. For instance, when Trump moved to Manhattan, he decided to try his hand into building luxury hotels. With this view, in 1974 Trump focused his attention The Commodore. This hotel was unprofitable, but was very centrally located. He managed to convince Hyatt Hotel Corporation to enter into a business deal concentrating on the fact that Hyatt did not have any manor downtown hotels. He also managed to successfully arrange financing for this venture and proceeded to completely renovate the hotel. The hotel was renamed The Grand Hyatt in 1980, and became very popular, making Trump the city’s best known and most controversial developer (A&E Television Networks). Conclusion Donald Trump is many times seen as a self-promoter whose proclamations are not credible. In fact people even question his present worth of 2. 7 billion dollars (Allen 2007). However, no one can question the success he has gained through his unique qualities as a pioneer in many types of business. His business decisions have been maverick and controversial but have been hugely successful. He believes in leading by example, which is the chief draw factor of his reality television show. Although his self-promotion comments can be termed as immodest, people modeling themselves after him would immensely profit from his no-nonsense attitude and self confidence. These are the two major qualities leaders need when they are dealing with others if they do not wish to be pushed around by other people. There are many books what preach about the qualities of the leader in a very idealistic way; however people can rarely succeed following only idealistic principles of anything. Another thing which can be learnt from Trump is his â€Å"Never say die† spirit. Every time he come up with an adversity, he just sees it as a means to demonstrate his skills to find a unique solution to the problem. In conclusion, the personality traits of Donald Trump which are mentioned here are the true reasons for his success. While these traits may not make everyone a billionaire, they will surely make people a much confident and self-assured person. References Allen S, â€Å"Donald Trump – Billionaire Real Estate Tycoon and Host of The Apprentice†, 2007, New York Times Company http://entrepreneurs. about. com/od/famousentrepreneurs/p/donaldtrump. htm A&E Television Networks, â€Å"Donald (John) Trump Biography (1946-)† 2007, http://www. biography. com/search/article. do? id=9511238&page=1 Biography Channel â€Å"Donald Trump†, 2007, http://www. thebiographychannel. co. uk/biography_story/1123:1290/1/Donald_Trump. htm Chandy A, â€Å"Donald Trump Biography†, 2007, http://www. buzzle. com/editorials/4-28-2005-69193. asp â€Å"Donald J. Trump as Executive Producer/Host†, 2007, http://www. nbc. com/nbc/The_Apprentice/bios/Donald_J. _Trump. html A Touch of Business, â€Å"Donald J. Trump – The Business Leader Who Thrives on the ‘Art of the Deal’†, 2007 http://www. atouchofbusiness. com/business-topics/success-stories/business-leader-trump-0006. html NetGlimse, â€Å"Donald Trump-Biography†, 2004, http://www. netglimse. com/celebs/pages/donald_trump/index. shtml

Indian and European Nations

Nearly all European invaders as well as their descendants tried to submerge by suppressing their times of yore and by physical repression. The Indian nations relied on spoken means for the spread of history from one memorial cohort to the next, destined that the conclusion of their social constitution would obliterate their history, and thus complete the removal of their survival. Think of what ought to have come prior to the arrival of Europeans, which in several cases was even lost to Indians and the mass of distinctions with the tribes as they dealt with Europeans invaders.In the early 16th century, Indian nations were crisscrossed by the Spanish expeditions, turning over new traits, new influence, and the early amalgamation of priests and soldiers that commenced the progression of racial combination as well as Christianization a century prior to the English and French’s arrival in the New World. The colonization of Indian nations by the Europeans had overwhelming consequen ces for the indigenous people.Flanked by the diseases that were new to them brought by the assailants – Europe itself had simply gotten over an era of plagues as well as epidemics that killed no less than two thirds of its people, and the massacres and enslavement by the hands of the Spaniards. Spain explored and put down claim to the majority of the continent. Indian nations spoke their own languages; communication between Indians and Europeans suffered from differences, not just on a sole landfall, but throughout 500 years and even today.One understandable, yet concealed, source of resistance was the failure or repudiation of the Europeans, predominantly in the British Isles, to learn the Indian tongue. Indian words along with usages, in addition to many other languages such as Spanish, Greek, Italian, Hebrew, and German, came to supplement the English language and particularly the American tongue (Axtell, 2001, p30). The position of men and women among Indian grassroots sh owed a discrepancy more than among European nations.The distinctive characteristic of Indian civilization was the diversity of its population. In European standards, Indian nations at that time were astonishingly diverse regionally. This astounding diversity was in large part a creation of the technique that colonial Europe was initially settled. The reason possibly lay, throughout the 1400s and 1500s, with the regularity of relationships involving sexes that the Roman Catholic Church brought for centuries among the citizens of Central and Western Europe.The division of labor showed a discrepancy noticeably from a tribe, above among Europeans, however it was found that it lacked class system as well as social estates of Europe, there was greater parity and uniformity of role among lower and higher orders of women and men. The establishment of Indian nations is in fact the longest and exhaustive structure of any independent lands in the world.India, in particular, has a quasi-federal type of regime and a bicameral congress functioning under a Westminster-style parliamentary scheme (Iverson, 1992, p34). Since its sovereignty in 1947, these Indian nations maintained amiable and cordial connections with most countries. The history of Indian nations experienced colonial dependencies within the western hemisphere created by the European countries causing diversity in population, problems in geography and establishments of institutions.European nations increased colonies in Indian nations for several reasons, but mostly to create income. They made use of colonies to give raw materials for trade serving as markets for polished and refined products. These systems encouraged religious toleration, diplomat government, economic development as well as cultural diversity. However, the historical policies of Europeans that carry on bureaucracies in and out of Indian nations suppress tribal management and prop up reliance.Indian peoples will stay in a dependent affiliation an d the poverty will provide confirmation of the historic abandonment of the nations’ original people so long as regime (Salisbury, 2000, p18): holds back the economic and political growth of the Indian peoples, deprives them to quality education, disregard cultural needs of Indians, and raises bureaucratic barriers to the recognition of Indian tribes as humans and Indian peoples as part of history.

Hannaford Bros. Cyber Security Lessons Learned Essays

Hannaford Bros. Cyber Security Lessons Learned Essays Hannaford Bros. Cyber Security Lessons Learned Paper Hannaford Bros. Cyber Security Lessons Learned Paper Introduction Virtually every business today uses at least one form of computer information technology. Business firms use computers to automate and assist in managing everything from operations, sales, finance, and logistics. Internal databases and intranets are used for internal controls and organizations are connected via the internet to conduct sales, marketing and many other communications and transactions. Electronic business, or e-business, is dominating modern markets and the business world. This new world of technological innovation has exponentially increased efficiency and globalized the world’s economies. Unfortunately criminals still exist and continue to exploit businesses, committing acts of theft, vandalism, and terror. E-business is not immune to criminal mischief and in fact can be quite vulnerable to sophisticated cyber criminals known as hackers. In early 2008 it was reported that the North East Supermarket mogul, Hannaford Bros. Company fell victim to a computer hacking attack that compromised approximately 4. 2 million customer credit cards. This act created a financial nightmare for thousands of consumers and for the Hannaford Bros. grocery company. The incident was a black mark on Hannaford’s public image and a financial burden to their corporation. Cyber Security is a growing priority of today’s business leadership. Boon, Kurtz (2011) Hannaford Bros. Co. Hannaford Bros. is an upscale North American grocery retail chain headquartered in Scarborough, Maine. Hannaford was founded in 1883 and now runs supermarkets throughout New England and upstate New York. Hannaford is owned by the American subsidiary of the Belgian Delhaize Group, Delhaize America, the parent company of Food Lion which operates over 1,500 stores on the East Coast, mostly in the Mid-Atlantic States. : The Hannaford Bro. Website (2011), The Delhaize Group website (2011) Hannaford Bros. administers a comprehensive website for their grocery chain. The Hannaford website found at: hannaford. com/home. jsp offers customers a wide range of shopping and food related planning activities. Hannaford does not offer their grocery products for delivery on their website; rather they make all of their grocery and pharmacy products available for customers to browse and purchase for pick-up. Customers can easily navigate through categorized product lists with eye catching visual cues. Products can be places on a virtual shopping list that the customer can use in the store or purchase on-line to be picked up at their nearest local store. Coupons and sales discount promotions are also readily available and easy to find on the website. Hannaford also gives customer’s options and assistance for planning different types of parties and organizing shopping lists. The primary services provided by the website in addition to on-line browsing and ordering of groceries includes pharmacy prescription refills, ordering gift cards, special orders, and Redbox video rentals. Instead of promoting broad scale on-line shopping and delivery like other supermarkets and on-line retailers, Hannaford uses their website to draw people to their stores and make the shopping experience easier and more appealing. The Hannaford Bro. Website (2011) Hannaford Bros. displays numerous lines of communication on their website. Their contact information is found thorough a â€Å"contact us† tab on the home page. The Hannaford Corporate office address and several 1-800 customer service phone numbers are listed. There are also several online feedback forms for customers to give Hannaford feedback and ask questions about their products and services. Hannaford even offers the advice and expertise of nutritionist for customer questions and concerns. The Hannaford Bro. Website (2011) The Hannaford Bros. website is designed and maintained with meticulous detail. Hannaford Bros. online marketing strategy is simple; to give customers a warm and inviting way to make their shopping experience easier and more pleasant. Hannaford Bros. is easily accessible through simple search engine searches and is then easy to navigate for even the most novice web users. The company is targeting people who shop for groceries the most, families. The visual colors and photographs are geared towards women and create a warm and enticing mood. Hannaford creates a competitive advantage for them by offering the shopper planning services to their customers. They are not just a cold internet retailer where somebody logs in to buy products and leaves. The website creates an environment that endears people to their stores. The Hannaford Bro. Website (2011) The Security Breach and Hannaford Bros. Reaction On March 17, 2008 Hannaford Bros. Co announced that it had been the victim of a computer hacker attack against their computer network. The Hacker, Albert Gonzalez , who was eventually arrested and sentenced to 20 years in prison had accessed Hannaford’s network and stole approximately 4. 2 million credit and debit card numbers between Dec. 7 2007 and March 10 2008. The security breach affected all of Hannafords stores in New England and New York, as well as subsidiary stores under the Sweetbay name in Florida and several independently owned stores selling Hannaford products. The data breach forced banks across the East Coast to block and reissue hundreds of thousands of credit and debit cards. Jaikumar Vijayan (2008) The State of Maine Bureau of Financial Institutions website (2011) Hannaford later posted an advisory on their web site signed by President and CEO Ronald Hodge, stating that the grocer had contained the illegal intrusion after being made aware of suspicious credit card activity on Feb. 27. The advisory stated that credit and debit card numbers as well as expiration dates were taken from Hannafords network while the data was in transit for transaction processing. Ronald Hodge went on to apologize for the compromise and the inconvenience to the consumers, but also urged the consumers that Hannaford had been upholding the highest standards of cyber security. Hodges ended his statement with assuring customers that Hannaford would work with the banks in rectifying the situation and would double their efforts in increasing their security measures. Hannaford immediately shut down all links on their website after the disclosure of the security breach. Hannaford launched an investigation into the matter and worked diligently to rectify all weaknesses in their cyber security system. Jaikumar Vijayan (2008) Analysts claim that Hannaford like many other retailers did not encrypt the credit and debit card data collected from customers during financial transactions. This allowed the hacker to easily steal the data once he discovered a back door into Hannaford’s system. Hannaford was quickly served with a massive class action lawsuit claiming Hannaford was negligent in protecting consumer data. Jaikumar Vijayan (2008) Hannaford’s website now offers a highly in-depth and comprehensive privacy policy page with multiple links to detailed explanations of their privacy and security procedures. Hannaford now goes out of their way to inform the consumer and provide protection against any other possible security breach of financial information. It appears that Hannaford Bros. has been very thorough in controlling the damage to their image and maintain their brand identity and good will with their customer base. The Hannaford Bro. Website (2011), The State of Maine Bureau of Financial Institutions website (2011) Cyber Security Methods and Procedures for Protecting Customers Cyber Security is a growing responsibility for business leaders in today’s market. Not only do corporations and small businesses need to protect their own financial and proprietary information, they need to protect the data of their customers. In fact cyber security is now a strategic decision point not only in business technology but in the business planning cycle as whole. Business firms now have to continually analyze the dangers and work together to combat the growing cyber threat. Business leaders should take strategic steps towards combating the cyber threats. Michael Neumann (2008), Boon, Kurtz (2011) The first step in combating cyber threats is to maintain an accurate and comprehensive data analysis team to continually monitor and track past, current, and emerging cyber threats. The next step in the process should be the establishing and maintaining evolving industry guidelines and procedures to define and combat the cyber threats. Without a united front against cyber threats, business firm security specialists will not be properly equipped to keep up with the threats. Another key step in the process of countering cyber threats is establishing critical infrastructure benchmarks, defining and actively working against cyber threats. Ultimately, fighting cyber threats is much like fighting against global terrorists. Business leaders must protect their greatest assets, their customers against the attacks from cyber criminals. Michael Neumann (2008), Boon, Kurtz (2011) Conclusion Hannaford Bros. like many other corporations learned firsthand the damage one person with a computer could commit against their business. The hard lessons learned were not to take for granted the capabilities of cyber criminals and the negative possibilities of their actions. Cyber security is strategic priority not only for corporations but for small business owners as well. Business leaders must stay vigilant and cognizant of the impending and emerging threats to their livelihood and maintain their responsibility to the consumer. References 1)Boon, Kurtz (2011) Contemporary Business, New Jersey, John Wiley Sons Inc. 2)The Hannaford Bro. Website (2011) Retrieved from: hannaford. com/home. sp 3)The Delhaize Group website (2011) Retrieved From: delhaizegroup. com/en/PublicationsCenter/PicturesandBiographies/Stores. aspx 4)Kim Zetter (2010) Hacker Sentenced to 20 years for Breach of Credit Card Pocessor. Retrieved from: wired. com/threatlevel/2010/03/heartland-sentencing/#more-14740 5)Jaikumar Vijayan (2008) Update: New retail data breach may have affected millions of Hannaford shoppers. Retrieved from: computerworl d. com/s/article/9068999/Update_New_retail_data_breach_may_have_affected_millions_of_ Hannaford_shoppers )Jaikumar Vijayan (2008) Hannaford hit by class-action lawsuits in wake of data-breach disclosure. Retrieved from: computerworld. com/s/article/9070281/Hannaford_hit_by_class_action_lawsuits_in_wake_of_data_breac h_disclosure 7)Michael Neumann (2008) The Rand Corporation: Cybersecurity Economic Approaches and Challenges to Decision Making. Retrieved from: rand. org/pubs/research_briefs/RB9365-1/index1. html 8)The State of Maine Bureau of Financial Institutions website (2011) Retrieved from: http://maine. gov/pfr/financialinstitutions/data_breach

Facts About the First Televised Presidential Debate

Facts About the First Televised Presidential Debate The first televised presidential debate took place on Sept. 26, 1960, between Vice President Richard M. Nixon and U.S. Senator John F. Kennedy. The first televised debate is considered among the most important in American history not just because of its use of a new medium but its impact on the presidential race that year. Many historians believe Nixons ​pale, sickly and sweaty appearance helped to seal his demise in the 1960 presidential election, even though he and Kennedy were considered equals in their knowledge of policy issues. On sound points of argument, The New York Times later wrote, Nixon probably took most of the honors. Kennedy went on to win the election that year. Criticism of TV Influence on Politics The introduction of television to the electoral process forced candidates to tend not only the substance of serious policy issues but such stylistic matters as their manner of dress and haircut. Some historians have bemoaned the introduction of television to the political process, particularly the presidential debates. The present formula of TV debate is designed to corrupt the public judgment and, eventually, the whole political process, historian Henry Steele Commager wrote in the Times after the Kennedy-Nixon debates of 1960. The American presidency is too great an office to be subjected to the indignity of this technique. Other critics have argued that the introduction of television to the political process forces candidates to speak in short sound bites that can be cut and rebroadcast for easy consumption through advertisements or news broadcasts. The effect has been to remove most nuanced discussion of serious issues from American discourse. Support for Televised Debates The reaction wasnt all negative to the first televised presidential debate. Some journalists and media critics said the medium allowed broader access to Americans of the often cryptic political process. Theodore H. White, writing in The Making of the President 1960, said the televised debates allowed for the simultaneous gathering of all the tribes of America to ponder their choice between two chieftains in the largest political convocation in the history of man. Another media heavyweight, Walter Lippmann, described the 1960 presidential debates as a bold innovation which is bound to be carried forward into future campaigns and could not now be abandoned. Format of the First Televised Presidential Debate An estimated 70 million Americans tuned in to the first televised debate, which was the first of four that year and the first time two presidential candidates met face-to-face during a general election campaign. The first televised debate was broadcast by CBS affiliate WBBM-TV in Chicago, which aired the forum in place of the regularly scheduled Andy Griffith Show. The moderator of the first 1960 presidential debate was CBS journalist Howard K. Smith. The forum lasted 60 minutes and focused on domestic issues. A panel of three journalists- Sander Vanocur of NBC News, Charles Warren of Mutual News, and Stuart Novins of CBS- asked questions of each candidate. Both Kennedy and Nixon were allowed to make 8-minute opening statements and 3-minute closing statements. In between, they were allowed 2 and a half minutes to respond to questions and a short amount of time for rebuttals to their opponent. Behind the First Televised Presidential Debate The producer and director of the first televised presidential debate was Don Hewitt, who later went on to create the popular television news magazine 60 Minutes on CBS. Hewitt has advanced the theory that television viewers believed Kennedy won the debate because of Nixons sickly appearance, and radio listeners who could not see either candidate thought the vice president emerged victorious. In an interview with the Archive of American Television, Hewitt described Nixons appearance as green, sallow and said the Republican was in need of a clean shave. While Nixon believed the first televised presidential debate to be just another campaign appearance, Kennedy knew the event was momentous and rested beforehand. Kennedy took it seriously, Hewitt said. About Nixons appearance, he added: Should a presidential election turn on makeup? No, but this one did. A Chicago newspaper wondered, perhaps in jest, whether Nixon had been sabotaged by his makeup artist.

Critically evaluate claims that there has been a transformation in the Essay

Critically evaluate claims that there has been a transformation in the character of biomedicine and the emergence of a new paradigm for health care at the start - Essay Example e used in order to explain the development of health and illness within a particular society or among a specific part of the population (using as criteria the gender, the ethnicity and so on). From a different point of view, it is suggested by Eisenberg (1977) that disease is a different concept from illness. In fact it is stated that disease could be better described using the following description: ‘physicians diagnose and treat ‘diseases’’ (Eisenberg, 1977, 11) whereas ‘†¦ patients suffer ‘illnesses’’ (Eisenberg, 1977, 11). On the other hand, in accordance with a study of Helman published by Ember et al. (2004, 733) ‘traditional classification of illness can be divided into four classes: natural, supernatural, personal and social’. In other words, health is closely related with the social and cultural characteristics of a specific society. The level of technology developed within the particular society could be also regarded as having a significant impact on the health conditions of the specific population. Under these terms, the development of biomedical model of disease/ health can help in order to understand all the aspects of health and disease within a particular society or in relation with a specific part for the population (gender, race and class inequalities could be observed in this case regarding the level of health provided to people within a specific state). The main characteristic of biomedical model of disease/ health is the fact that the above model regards health as the absence of disease. In this context, all theories referring to the relationship between health and disease could be equally applied in order to examine the credibility of this model in all its aspects. In accordance with the study of Turner (1987, 9, in [2]) ‘the model assumes that all human dysfunction might eventually be traced to such specific causal mechanisms within the organism and it presupposes a clear mind/body distinction where ultimately the

Another new assignment Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Another new assignment - Essay Example According to the Big Five Taxonomy of personality, Arnold fits in the categories of extroversion (being an extrovert), highly agreeable and highly conscientious. People exhibiting these personality traits are proven to have high job performance in most, if not all occupations, and endeavors (in Arnold’s case). They conform to exhibiting enhanced leadership style, as well as higher job and life satisfaction. This can be exemplified by the number of times he set his mind and heart to pursue clearly defined goals and was able to reach or attain these goals (as a bodybuilder, an actor, and now, a governor). His personality traits such as his being goal-oriented, focused, driven, hardworking, thorough, organized, persistent and achievement oriented exemplify These traits, especially, his clear vision of how he wants to improve things (goal and achievement oriented) as well as his charismatic personality (conscientious, agreeable and being an extrovert) gave him the drive, determination and inner strength to get to where he is now. Arnold is also exhibiting a proactive personality which identifies opportunities, show initiative, take action and persevere until meaningful changes occur. Actually, his childhood experience of being treated harshly by his parents provided the impetus for him to strive and leave the environment where he experienced hardships. This experience challenged Arnold to go beyond his dreams and expectations in life. As governor, Arnold is already exhibiting Machiavellian style in his desire to win his constituents and persuade others to conform to his reforms and economic plans. He employs both referent powers, which is based on his charisma. With referent power comes personal power due to his sources of potential influences. In the case, it was stipulated that due to his being an actor, he was able to form a network of powerful friends and advisors, who he constantly seeks advice