History about the war Essay

It is very true that the United States overthrew Guatemala, Chile and Iran. There are some motivations behind the overthrows. One of the motivations behind the overthrows is nationalism. This is because United Nations just like all other nations opposes nationalism. Other main motivations behind the United States overthrow to these countries include the urge to impose its ideology, gaining control of some of the valuable resources and the increase of its power. The United States also carries out coups, invasions and revolutions so that it can topple it feared or mistrusted. It also uses a variety of methods in persuading g other countries into assisting them with the coups revolutions and invasions. The methods used include the offering of booties to states that support its interests, time-honored strategies of diplomacy and retaliation threats to those countries that refuse to support them. In Chile United States launched its coup with the aim of propagating the spirit of good humanitarian ground. This is because Pinochet was highly involved in human rights violations because his security forces were perceived to be accountable for more than 3,197 murders of the Chilean citizens. 1,100 of the murdered citizens â€Å"disappeared† for they were abused to their death, thrown by the military from the helicopters into Pacific Ocean or buried into secret graves. The other reason as to why united states carried out the coup was to ensure that it prevented its consolidation and also limited the governments ability to implement some of the policies which were contrary to itself (U.  S) and also hemispheric interests. U. S also committed some coups with the aim of fostering its accessibility to some of the economically rich regions. For instance in 1953 Dulles ordered a coup on Iran which was intended to make Middle East very safe for American oil companies. United sates committed a coup in Guatemala because it disliked the communist policies which were set by Arbenz. He was perceived to be a communist because h e sought to give the landless some land or in other words he advocated for equal land distribution by giving peasants the idle lands which belonged to the upper class. Dulles had ordered the coup in Guatemala because he had disliked the way the nationalist government had confronted the power of the United Fruit Company which was represented by his old law firm (Npr. org, 01). United States of America was involved in what was called â€Å"people’s war† against fascism. All the American were in agreement with capitalists, democrats, republicans, communists, rich, poor and the middle class and this is why the war was referred to as the people’s war. This war was the trendiest in United States that the country had ever fought. This is because around 18 million people participated in the war. And over 25 million workers contributed financially to the war. The power of the nation, church, press and also chief radical organizations called for all-out war. The war was in opposition to an enemy of appalling evil. for instance Hitler’s Germany was widening totalitarianism, , militarism and overt aggressive, and racism warfare outside what an already contemptuous world had gone through yet, the governments(the United States, England, the Soviet Union) accomplishing this represented something considerably different, so that their success would be a bluster to imperialism, totalitarianism, racism, militarism, in the world. America stepped up as the defender of vulnerable countries matching its image in American history textbooks for high school. For instance it opposed Haitian revolution for independence from France at the beginning of 19C. America just pursued its imperialist interests in the name of assisting the helpless countries for it instigated conflicts with Mexico taking half of the country. It also pretended to rescue Cuba from Spain at the same time it stagnated there with military base, rights of interventions and investments. It also grabbed Hawaii Guam and Puerto Rico it also took the con troll of panama by revolutionizing against Columbia. The main reason as to why US entered the WW II was to defend the principle referred to as the non-intervention of other country’s or states affairs but many questions arose about its credibility. United States was one of the victors in WW II thus coming into a position to dominate many areas in the world and also creating conditions for efficient and effective control at home. The war brought about higher prices for all farmers, enough prosperity, higher wages, higher prosperity unlike thirties which was accompanied by a lot of unemployment and economic distress. The war was pressing people at home because the budget was mainly to the advantage of military operations abroad without considering the needs of people at home. For example people were affected by the test of the nuclear weapons but the leaders argued that it was not harmful (libcom. org/history 1). The presence of the country in permanent war kind of economy proved to be very big pockets for poverty. The distribution of health also remained unequal with the highest family getting 45 % of all the income and the lowest family getting 5% there was unequal distribution of wealth, tax advantages and income. Many American citizens were afraid of communism and this was oppressing those who believed in it. Many people were against the war. This is because they felt that the war was only seeking to dominate other countries. They said that it was commercial, ruthless and imperialistic. Socialist parties opposed the war arguing that it was a crime against the people of United States many opponent claim that the war was a human violence because it was a murderous kind of business. Again the opponents argued that a lot of nation’s money is not well utilized when it is used in wars for there are many ways of cheap mediations which do not involve conflicts. Opponents felt that the war is inhuman to both countries because some of the devices used are harmful to innocent citizens (Zinn 355). Bernay’s ideas on social control can be used to think about Friedman’s book secret histories because they both assume that propaganda can be a very effective tool for manipulating and shaping public opinion in the current society. Friedman has quoted how America used propaganda into fostering war against other countries. For example it lied that it was going to assist helpless countries only for the American to star dominating investing in those countries. Edwards’s propaganda disagrees with skeptics who argue about low levels of illiteracy. He says that printed word played a very crucial role during the early reformation. This is because it enabled Luther in broadcasting his attack towards the traditional authorities with greater rapidity and also made it possible to co-ordinate some of the activities of scattered followers. The printed medium embodied the subversive messages it conveyed. Numerous duplicates of cheap agitatory pamphlets reinforced the message of lay involvement much to the disadvantage and distress of catholic publicist. Edward uses the character of early Lutheran teachings to stress the difference between the limited vernacular literatures to lay readers before 1512 and what is currently known to the historian familiar with lathers works. Luther’s views were highly publicized by catholic rebuttals. In the hidden sides of Vietnam War Friedman is trying to identify some of the truth. Friedman argues that during the Vietnam War the United States was only seeking to undermine Hanoi’s subversion of the Saigon regime by sending Vietnamese operatives behind the enemy’s line. The secret to most of the Americans was that this covert operation was far from secret in Hanoi because all the commandos were either killed or captured and thereafter turned into communists to report false information. Using Bernay’s propaganda we can say that the U. S propaganda did its job incorrectly. This is because the educated section of the population accepted the government Vietnam War propaganda without questions. The United States was the one attacking southern Vietnam but it claimed that it was not the one because most of the American population was against those attacks. Book Review. The book â€Å"voices of a people’s history of united states† by Howard Zinn talks about gives the history of the fight for human dignity. He highlights some of the most significance political acts which were perceived to be the sound of the real human voice. This book assist me in understanding the modern American history for it highlights the idea that the minimization of resistance can only be achieved through the propagation of the idea that power remains with people who have guns, who posses wealth, own newspapers and also those who own television stations. The book assists me in understanding the reason as to why there are movements to fight the lack of voice brought about by lack of power.

Gender Bias In The Workplace And Pay Inequalities Essay

In 1972, the government attempting to correct discrimination in the workplace passed the Equal Employment Opportunity Act. This act protects individual rights and promotes employment opportunities and fairness for everyone within the workplace (Klingner & Nalbandian, 1998, p. 158). This act should have eliminated gender bias and pay inequities, but has it accomplished its goal? Are employment opportunities and promotion opportunities fair and equal to everyone? Does gender bias and pay inequities still exist in 2000, 28 years after the passage of the act? In researching this topic, I do find that gender bias and pay inequities are still prevalent in today’s work world. Because there are so many women and minorities in the workforce today, I will attempt to explore some of the reasons why gender bias and pay inequities still exist. Background Organizational Culture First, does the organizational culture attribute to gender bias and pay inequalities? In researching this topic, I find the answer to be yes. Many times, the organizational culture and climate foster workplace inequalities and these inequalities are maintained by group pressure (Hale, 1999, p. 13). Informal networks within the agency help to maintain inequality because women and minorities are traditional employed in lower status jobs and not allowed into the networks. These jobs limit their access to powerful employees (McGuire, 2000, p. 1). These informal networks tend to be personal, voluntary and have their own boundaries. You don’t join the network because you want too, you join because you are allowed too (McGuire, 2000, p. 1). Organizations have always been geared to the white male and these habits are hard to break. To accomplish goals of the agency, all employees must work together. Managers must build rapport with their employees and this is most easily accomplished by interacting with those who share the same background and who are most like them (Maume, 1999, p. 4). White men working and networking with white men. Many times the organization does not even realize that they are inequalities in their agency because they have always done it that way. People tend to get set in their ways and operate on auto-pilot and never see their weaknesses. Organizational climates are hard to change and it takes dedication from management to make it happen. Many times the management thinks, â€Å"If it’s not bro ken then why fix it?† What they do not realize is that the organization would be so much stronger if they diversified their workforce and let all employees excel to their greatest potential. Literature also suggest that gender bias is a result of institutional and attitudinal processes. White males simply do not want women or minorities to be in an equal position with equal pay. Not only do they not want it, often times they take steps to protect specific jobs from women (Maume, 1999, p. 9). The â€Å"good ole boy† network is hard to break. All organizations state that they are an Equal Employment Opportunity company, but many agencies are only promoting that image and not actually following it. Yes, they hire minorities and yes they hire females, but these individuals do not have the same advantages as men. Often times they hire just for quotes and this causes hard feelings within the entire organization. Rather than the company hiring the best qualified, sometimes they hire a minority just to meet requirements. When this happens, the Equal Employment Opportunities policy can adversely effect other employees through reverse discrimination which in turn causes problems for the entire organization through decreased morale (Hale, 1999, p. 13). Also, if the black or female fails or performs poorly, then all white males will assume that all blacks and fem ales will fail. â€Å"In sum, it is the relationship between social roles, interests, intergroup relationships and organizational culture norms and values that set the conditions that perpetuate unequal employment opportunities and outcomes (Hale, 1999, p.13).† Society and Personal Influences What we are taught as children in regards to roles of females and males overflow into the workplace (Hale, 1999, p. 14). â€Å"Gender is a culture unto itself, raised with basic rules of conduct â€Å"instinctively† known to all adult members of that gender (Heim, 1995, p. 3). The managers of today grew up in families where their mothers stayed at home and kept house and took care of children. They have been taught at home that men should be the bread winner and women should take care of the house. They are also taught that men are stronger and should be the leader of the household and therefore these behaviors flow into the work setting. Even the Bible states that a women should not be over a man. These beliefs are taught generation after generation. â€Å"Internalization and Identity encompass the learning and socialization processes by which individuals incorporate assumptions, perceptions, stereotypes, and misperceptions and make judgments about themselves based on the way they perceive others judge them (Hale, 1999, p. 3). Women feel their are invisible, isolated and irrelevant within an organization while men see them as emotional (Hale, 1999, p.4). Men and women are different and view situations differently. Literature suggests that men do not want to give up their power and are uncomfortable working with women (Hale, 1999, p. 1). Women feel excluded from power and feel socially isolated within the workforce. Description of a Specific Situation Job Segregation Another proof of gender bias is job segregation. Often times women and minorities are segregated or placed into certain agencies only because they are women or minorities. Social closure issues hold that society has defined what jobs are appropriate for males and what jobs are appropriate for females (Maume, 1999, p. 3). Many studies conclude that men and women are allocated and segregated into positions because they are either male or female. And this segregation affects pay and promotion opportunities (Maume, 1999, p.2). â€Å"Segregation accounts for approximately one-half of the gender gap in wages (Maume, 1999, p. 9)†. A National Study of Gender-Based Occupational Segregation in Municipal Bureaucracies indicates that women can be more successful in redistributive agencies (Miller et al., 1999, p. 2). Agencies such as welfare, social justice a nd health are more likely to support affirmative action. Society has taught us that women should be caring and nurturing and because of these traits, they fit into redistributive agencies. Many women will hold administrative and professional positions in these agencies and so there appears to be a gender balance in public welfare, sanitariums, and hospitals (Miller et al., 1999, p. 8). In a study in Los Angeles, it was determined that economic restructuring had a negative impact on African Americans. The unemployment rate among black males has increased more than twice the rate of white males (James, 2000, p. 4). At a first glance, it appears black females have faired better than white females, but that is not the case. Black females are more likely to be employed in public sector work or pink-collar occupations where segregation of females is high. Many black females have entered the arena because they have obtained higher levels of education (James, 2000, p. 6). However, very few of them have management positions, but are employed as school teachers, educational counselors and social workers. While all of these professions require at least a bachelors degree, they are still relatively low paying jobs (James, 2000, p. 8). It is also noted in the study, that jobs held traditionally by black females such as housekeepers are now held by Latinos. The Latinos are not g aining employment because of non-gender bias but because these individuals are uneducated and speak limited English (James, 2000, p. 7). Once again, minorities and females are being segregated into certain jobs. If government agencies are required to follow Equal Employment Opportunity rules and affirmative action laws, then why are females not getting a fair deal? One reason is because primary stakeholders in government tend to be male and therefore they support the hiring and promoting of men. Policy making, implementation, and management of infrastructure are usually dominated by men, following the orders of men. On the contrary, in social agencies there appears to be less male influence. This is believed to be caused by the fact that most businesses are not the beneficiary, but citizens. Politicians perceive businesses as more important than citizens because of the economic impact of tax revenues. Therefore, men feel they need men in areas of real power positions. This shows a direct relationship between agency-clientele on gender-based employment patterns (Miller et al., 1999, p. 7). Once again, the municipal study finds that females are underrepresented in the best paying or most power ful positions within city government (Miller et al., 1999, p. 7). Jobs are ranked by employers and employees differently. Employers rank them according to skills and commitment and employees rank them according to desirability and rewards (Maume, 1999, p. 3). One would think this process would be fair to everyone but, in many organizations there appears to be double standards to judge men and women. Women most often have to measure up to higher standards than men do to obtain the position (Hale, 1999, p. 8). Are employment opportunities and promotional opportunities equal to both men and women? No. Reskin and Roos conclude that women can move into â€Å"male† jobs â€Å"either because market conditions force employers to reach down into the labor queue to hire women, or because men reevaluate and vacate jobs, thereby creating openings for women (Maume, 1999, p. 3).† Women are traditionally segregated into specific jobs; thereby leaving men in their on world to compete with each other for higher paid jobs (Maume, 1999, p. 3). Men traditional have higher status contacts than women which also help them to maintain their positions (McGuire, 2000, p. 2). Glass Ceilings, Glass Walls and Glass Escalators â€Å"The glass wall metaphor describes occupational segregation attributed to employment barriers that restrict the access of women to certain types of jobs (or agencies) or that trap them within certain types of jobs (or agencies). Glass walls are likely to persist when: (1) organizational cultures create impediments to change; and/or (2) skills necessary to perform jobs in a given agency are not highly valued elsewhere† (Miller et al., 1999, p. 2). The glass ceiling is an expression used to describe the inequalities of men and women within the workforce. It seems that women can become employed in an agency but then run into an invisible barrier when they try to move up the ladder of hierarchy within the organization (Baxter & Wright, 2000, p. 1). â€Å"Although women held half of all federal government jobs in 1992 and made up 86 percent of the government’s clerical workers, only a quarter of them were supervisors and only a tenth senior executives (Baxter & Wright, 2000, p. 2).† Several studies in the employment of women conclude that women continue to face glass walls and glass ceilings in government positions (Miller et al., 1999, p. 2). In addition, women continue to find it hard to obt ain employment in male-dominated fields (Miller et al., 1999, p. 1-2). This further proves that women are segregated into certain types of jobs. The findings of the Panel Study of Income Dynamics suggest that white men have a glass escalator and a glass ceiling continues to exist for women and minorities. White men tend to ascend to managerial levels with little or no effort especially in segregated workplaces (Maume, 1999, p. 3). Initially one would think that females would have the advantage in a predominate female workplace, but that is not the case. Women are continually excluded from supervisory positions and are generally paid lower salaries even in those agencies (Maume, 1999, p. 1-2). Promotions, Job Devaluation, and Pay Inequities Segregation places different sexes into unequal jobs thereby locating women and men into different opportunity structures and affects promotion opportunities (Cassirer & Reskin, 2000, p. 3). Most female jobs then to have a shorter promotion ladder (Cassirer & Reskin, 2000, p. 3). The municipal study finds that females are underrepresented in the best paying or most powerful positions within city government (Miller et al., 1999, p. 2). These positions are traditional administrative and professional occupations. They convey status, authority, and usually influence policy makers (Miller et al., 1999, p. 2). The study concluded that specialists were more likely to be promoted to these positions rather than generalists. The subject specialists are generally from professions mostly dominated by men, for example, engineers or biologist (Miller et al., 1999, p. 4). The municipal study also uncovered two patterns within city government. First, female administrators and professionals were hired in lower paying agencies. Second, agencies with higher level salaries were agencies with more gender imbalance (Miller et al., 1999, p. 10). Again, women were more concentrated in health, welfare, hospitals, and sanitariums. It appears that the jobs with better pay were held for men. Literature suggest that men are more often promoted than women. Because of this, men attach more importance to promotion than women. In addition, men are more likely located in a position where promotions are possible. The organi zational culture encourages male promotions (Cassirer & Reskin, 2000, p. 1). This culture causes women to not value promotions because they know that they will not receive one because the company just doesn’t promote females or the promotion will be blocked (Cassirer & Reskin, 2000, p. 2). Another surprising finding within female dominated organizations is the fact that males still have the advantage in management. One would suspect that in a predominate female organization, the female would have the advantage, but studies show this not to be the case. Males seem to bullet up the glass escalator. Many times the promotion occurs because the male employee will bond with the male manager who will in turn mentor him and prepare him for advancement (Maume, 1999, p.5). Often times the male is promoted in the predominant female agency to boost morale and to decrease tensions (Maume, 1999, p. 5). The tensions develop because females think that the males can not do the job because they do not match the stereotype of nurturing and caring (Maume, 1999, p. 11). â€Å"Kanter concludes that sex-differentiated work behavior results from sex-differentiated opportunity structures rather than from gender assumes a casual process in which workers’ positions, not their gender, aff ect their work attitudes and behaviors (Cassirer & Reskin, 2000, p. 2).† Another interesting facet of gender bias is that when women move into jobs predominately held by men, the jobs are devalued. The autonomy, prestige and high pay are removed (James, 2000, p. 9). It is noted that as agencies become more and more female dominated, they are viewed as the dumping ground for females resulting in lower pay scales and limited job training (Maume, 1999, p. 5). Reskin and Roos conducted a study on labor and job queues to inform readers of the changing ethnic/gender composition of occupations and how it related to African American women’s changing occupational profile. They also found that because occupations were transformed to include women, the jobs status decreased and the pay also decreased (James, 2000, p. 6). The status composition perspective holds that organizations with large numbers of female employees are devalued in the eyes of an organization. The jobs held by mostly females are considered unimportant and lower skilled as compared to male jobs. Job evaluations prove that women receive lower points than men which means lower salaries for the females (Maume, 1999, p. 3). â€Å"Inequality in the distribution of earnings and income i s generally positively related to inequality in education and training (James, 2000, p. 9). I feel that this statement is not true. A male and female can be equally as qualified, but the male will still get a better salary. Literature suggests that even when females hold masters degrees, they still make less than their male counterparts (Maume, 1999, p. 2). Although women have made some progress in obtaining management positions, gender bias is still highly integrated. Ironically, gender bias is greater at the lower level of management than at the highest level of the organizational hierarchy (Baxter & Wright, 2000, p. 9). In all the research that I conducted, the same theme was prevalent in all articles. There is not equal pay for equal work nor is there equal opportunities for advancement. Conclusions and Recommendations In order to fully gain equal employment and fairness, traditionally male positions must be opened up to females. This is the only way to shatter the glass walls and ceilings that currently exist (Miller et al., 1999, p.10). Individuals concerned about equalities for everyone should press for the continuation and strengthening of local government programs designed to increase female re presentation and more equitable gender distributions of better paying and better government jobs (Miller et al., 1999, p. 10). This support must come from white males and not only females and minorities. In addition, organizational cultures must be changed in both the private and public arena. This process will be time consuming and will inevitably run into opposition from white males. Change is hard and many times people try to block it. In order for employees to embrace change, they must understand the changes and why they are necessary. If employees are not supportive, tensions will increase and morale will worsen (Miller, 1963, pp. 236-237). Managers at all levels will need to fully embrace workforce diversification for the value that it will bring to the organizations. Literature also suggests that educational institutions must get involved in teaching equality because they are preparing the leaders of the future. â€Å"Public administration graduate programs should more actively strive to strengthen equal-opportunity learning environments by exposing students to the way gender affects their work-lives and by better preparing students to face and overcome gender-based inequalities in organizations (Hale, 1999, p. 16).† The goal of educators should be to continu ally improve society. Many times schools have failed to recognize this purpose (Miller, 1965, p. 7). Valuing differences in employees creates synergy and the key to valuing these differences is to realize that all people see the world as they see themselves (Covey, 1989, p. 277). This makes the job of equality and pay equity so difficult. Men believe that it is easier to work with men and that men do a better job and therefore deserve more money. Their pride and egos tell them that women cannot do the job as well as they can. These personal beliefs must be changed. Pairing men and women together on teams will expand the male mindset and hopefully help them realize that females and minorities are as equally qualified. Valuing the differences of all employees can make the entire agency stronger because we all have strengths to bring to the agency. Intense staff development must be held to teach men and women how to communicate with each other. Men need to learn all they can about females and females need to know all they can about males. Society requires that men and women work together and this is not going to change. What has to change is the way we work together. Communication is the key. If we do not communicate effectively, then the best intentions of both genders will fail (Heim, 1995, p. 3). In looking at my agency, I can agree that gender bias and pay inequalities exist. Our agency has more white females than white males and only a few minorities. We have an established pay scale but the scale is not always followed.There is evidence that men are given more pay than women with the same degree. Also, men with lesser degrees have received a higher salary because of who they know and not because of their education or experience. Traditionally when promotion opportunities became available, the administration would automatically appoint a white male. The new President of the college recognized the gender bias in management. He put a policy in place that all jobs must be posted and that everyone would have an opportunity to apply for them. When he was hired we had one female administrator, now we have three. BIBLIOGRAPHY Baxter, Janeen and Erik Olin Wright, 2000, â€Å"The Glass Ceiling Hypothesis†, Gender and Society, Vol. 14, Issue 2, p. 275. Cassirer, Naomi and Barbara Reskin, 2000, â€Å"High Hopes†, Work & Occupations, Vol. 27, Issue 4, p. 438, 26p. Covey, Stephen R., 1989, The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People, New York: Fireside of Simon & Schuster. Hale, Mary, 1999. â€Å"He Says, She Says: Gender and Worklife,† Public Administration Review, Vol. 59, Issue 5, p. 410. Heim, Pat, 1995. The Power Dean-Even Rule and other gender differences in the workplace, San Jose, California: Cor Vision Media. James, Angela, 2000. â€Å"Moving up, But How Far? African American Women and Economic Restructuring in Los Angeles, 1970-1990†, Sociological Perspectives, Vol. 43, Issue 3, p. 399. Klingner, Donald E. and John, Nalbandian, 1998. Public Personnel Management: Contexts and Strategies (4th ed.). Upper Saddle River, NJ: Prentice Hall. Maume, Jr., David J. 1999. â€Å"Glass Cei lings and Glass Escalators,† Work & Occupations, Vol. 26, Issue 4, p. 483. McGuire, Gail M., 2000. â€Å"Gender, Race, Ethnicity, and Networks,† Work & Occupations, Vol. 27, Issue 4, p. 500, 24p. Miller, Van, 1963. The Public Administration of American School Systems. New York: The Macmillan Company. Miller, Will; Kerr, Brinck; Reid, Margaret (1999). â€Å"A National Study of Gender-Based Occupational Segregation in Municipal Bureaucracies: Persistence of Glass Walls,† Public Administration Review, Vol. 59, Issue 3, p. 218,

Analysis of Brand Loyalty in China’s Cosmetic Market

Analysis of Brand Loyalty in Chinas Cosmetic Market 1.0 What is cosmetic market? ‘Cosmetic’ are not strange to everyone, even though some people don’t use them. They definitely hear about them. Cosmetics were invented in thousands years ago. When cosmetics were introduced, they were considered as exclusive things used by female. In those times, only few kinds of cosmetics existed. Some people believe cosmetics are limited by some sorts such as perfume, makeup. Actually, cosmetics come in many forms. Except for perfume and makeup, they comprise of shampoo, soap, lotion and others. Cosmetics are used to care for and clean people’ body, maintain people in a well condition and enhance people’ beauty (Kumar et al., 2006). For instance, the goal of sun protection is to keep out UV and reduce the risk of getting skin cancer. In the past, men used cosmetics to dress up would be treated effeminate. Certainly, people didn’t hear about men’s cosmetic advertising. Nowadays, the reality has graduall y changed. The cosmetics have not been the patent of women. Men and kids join in group of using cosmetics. The number is increasingly growing up. Està ©e Lauder as the first women’s cosmetic companies tried to enter the male cosmetic market in 1964. After 1year trial, it came out with Aramis and an entire line for men’s skin. (Alpern) In cosmetic market, thousands of cosmetics for men and kid are available. In past ten year, cosmetic companies launched some products that were suitable for both men and women. As men customers increase, companies start to launch new product line for men. Exclusive perfume and cleansing foam were designed for men. In order to target these emerging potential customers, many cosmetic companies invest a lot on advertising through TV, beauty magazine and others. The aim of the advertisement is to convey the idea that cosmetics are not girly products. Some big cosmetic companies employ famous actors or sportsmen to promote products through po sitive imagery. It lets men believe that using cosmetics is very normal. (Souiden and Diagne, 2009) The cosmetic industry is one of the most competitive industries all over the world because more than 300 cosmetic brands exist in the market. Most of these companies utilize great number of resource in Research and development to launch new products every year in order to meet ever-changing customers’ need and demand. Innovation is fundamental to survival and success of cosmetic companies. (Kumar et al., 2006) To stay vantage point during fierce competition, cosmetic companies should create value to customers. The World’ top ten cosmetic companies are Maybellline accounting for 7.4% market share, Avon (5.4%), L’Orà ©al Paris (5.3%), Lancà ´me (4%), Clinique ( 3.6%), Revlon (3.3%), Està ©e Lauder (2.9%), Max Factor ( 2.8%), Cover Girl (2.7%) and Shiseido (2.2%) (Ejiofor, 2006). All of them seize about 40% of the market share. 1.1 Overview of cosmetic market in C hina China is the countries with the largest population in the world it makes up one-fifth of the world’s population. The population growth rate of China is 0.629% in 2008 with a current average life expectancy of 73.18. Men possess 51.8% of the total population whereas women possess 48.2%. (Nancy E, 2008) Chinese paying more attention to beauty can date back to ancientry. It has already deeply rooted in Chinese culture. In Chinese poetry and art, beauty has always been extol (Newham, 2006)

4 way crossove and ADR Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

4 way crossove and ADR - Essay Example The rates paid to the lawyer are also usually high but in a civil case, payment may be made on a contingent fee basis where Bob will pay the lawyer a certain agreed upon percentage of the damages. He has the options of seeking state-provided lawyers who work on a pro-bono basis but this may take a long time for his case to be heard. The decision of the plant shop owners will be determined by Bob’s decision. If Bob decides to press charges and go to court, then the shop owners will have no alternative but to seek the services of a lawyer as well, but if Bob wants an out of court settlement, then the plant shop owners and Bob can chose and Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR) which may involve a lawyer (s) or not. This is a pre-trial process where one party obtains evidence of what the other party has concerning a case. It can be done using several ways like depositions or interrogations and in the presence of lawyers. This can lead to avoid necessary court processes and the case can be resolved by the parties after the discovery. There can be production of documents or things like cameras (if any) showing evidence of the fall, the witnesses can be subpoenaed with requests to admit or deny the fall happening and Bob getting injured and also depositions where Bob can under oath affirm the plant shop incident. The different forms of discovery mentioned above are significant if evidence of the fall and the injury is to be found and be strong enough to warrant payment to Bob. Production of documents provides physical evidence, subpoenas also provides eye-witness evidence which is necessary to back Bob’s claims or refute them and finally depositions just like court testimony will ensure Bob is not lying when he tells the account of what happened and how much he used in hospital or the emotional pain he has undergone as a result of the fall. Yes. As mentioned above, the witnesses can be subpoenaed (which is a writ

Todays workforce Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Todays workforce - Essay Example In Lyusin, 2006: 55). It was interpreted as a complex construct consisting of three types of abilities; (1) the identification and expression of emotion as; (2) the regulation of emotions; and (3) the application of emotional information to thinking and action (Lyusin, 2006 pg. 55). Emotional intelligence is the skill of understanding the self and how he or she relates to people which is an important insight in motivating people. The second skill required to motivate people is social skill. Social skill on the other hand is the competency to adapt with the changing situation and environment that makes one effective in dealing the contexts of people (Shanley, 1971). The ability to adjust to different kind of people is necessary to effectively motivate people because not all employees came from the same cultural mold. Understanding their cultural background and able to adjust accordingly would spell a difference between success and failure of an effective manager and leader in a culturally diverse

Master's level APA-style paper as prescribed herein Essay

Master's level APA-style paper as prescribed herein - Essay Example There is evidence, that in the interest of profit, the company has participated actively in compromising the conditions the workers must endure to produce product. While Nike has promoted its company and its brand as a representation of health, environmental awareness, and social conscious, there is a significant amount of evidence that suggests that the company has compromised this representation. Nike has a corporate website that is rich in content, supplying information regarding codes of operation and ethics to create an image of corporate and social responsibility. According to the website, the following is a statement of the code of ethics to which employees should adhere. There is also information about the way in which conflicts and violations of that code can be reported. Our code of ethics for employees is called Inside the Lines; it defines the standards of conduct we expect of all our employees. Every year, employees are required to verify that they have read and understand Inside the Lines. We operate a global toll-free Alertline for employees to report in confidence any suspected violations of the law or our code of ethics. Any reported concerns around accounting, auditing or internal control are communicated to the Audit Committee of the Board. We expect our suppliers to share our standards and to operate in a legal and ethical manner. While Inside the Lines covers the behavior of Nike employees, our Nike Code of Conduct covers contractors who manufacture Nike-branded products. It directs them to respect the rights of their employees, and to provide them with a safe and healthy work environment.(Nike Responsibility, 2009). In an examination of these statements, the truth of how the company has conducted its business and its relationships with workers will reveal an accurate picture of how these policies are

Cold Mountain Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Cold Mountain - Essay Example It is worth noting that this two individuals only knew each other for a brief moment but Inman deserted the war troops in a bid to see Ada again. In summation the whole book is filled with flashbacks which give a detailed account of the history of this two separated souls. However, in the subsequent sections of this narrative we are going to discuss three important quotes and there relevance in the novel. First and foremost, â€Å"what have you achieved today? Was always nothing†. On the same point, the author uses this particular phrase to signify that Inman had nothing else going on apart from the fact that he wanted to be reunited with Ada. This is evident from the fact that he embarks on a fatal journey in his bid to reunite with Ada despite his war injuries that have not yet healed properly. Secondly, â€Å"But I had no idea on how to prepare a meal†. Apparently, the author uses this phrase to signify that Ada was helpless before her encounter with Ruby, a young woman who taught her survival techniques before the reunion with her husband Inman while she was hunting wild turkey. Lastly, â€Å"Then red her letter† â€Å"she could speak French and Latin†. It is worth noting that Ada was the ministers daughter thus she was well educated. In actual fact, the author uses this particular statement to support this argument since individuals who spoke both French and Latin at the time were mostly the literate individuals in the society. To this end, the cold mountain is an interesting fictional story thus can be read for leisure

Ethics issues Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Ethics issues - Essay Example The development of financing interests for the project began in the 1920s by governments and businesses. The first design for the project was developed by Joseph Strauss and David Steinman who presented a suspended bridge. Due to suspicions that Steinman was not capable of raising sufficient money for the project, the chamber of commerce in Tacoma resorted to terminating its contract in the year 1931. Fresh interests however developed in 1937 with the creation of the Washington State Toll Bridge Authority by Washington State. Using the revenue from the tolls of the bridge, the authority conducted a practicability study. In the end it became clear that the design and construction of the bridge was not possible through the toll revenue finances alone. Another interested body in the building of the bridge was the United States military. The military required a route to directly link the Bremerton’s Puget Sound Naval Shipyard to Army’s McChord Field and Fort Lewis on the si de of Tacoma. The Puget Sound Naval Shipyard was on the Pierce County of the Narrows (Board of Engineers Appointed to Report on the Failure of the Tacoma Narrows Bridge, Othmar Hermann Ammann 143). It was also in the interest of the federal agencies to create more job opportunities amidst the Great Depression. This set up the political and economic forces that later on contributed to the collapse of the Tacoma Narrows Bridge. ... Deep truss girders that were 25 feet supported the roadway to stiffen it. Therefore, the Eldridge design was submitted to the Federal Public Works Administration (PWA) by the Authority. The requested fee was $ 11 million. This prompted Leon Moisseiff, a renowned New York to submit a proposal to the Reconstruction Finance Corporation (RFC) and PWA for the design of $8 million Bridge. As compared to other initial projects, this implied a huge and significant savings. The costs saved came as a result of the 25-feet deep roadway through the replacement done by Moisseiff. These supported the truss girders with that had a depth of 8-feet. This design was not only slender and elegant but also reduced the bridge’s stiffness (Cronn-mills 11). The bridge’s cost savings and the reputation of Moisseff together slender and beauty of the design led to awarding of the contract to Moisseff and the engineering firm that was associated with him. The engineering firm was called the Moran & Proctor. Apparently, this engineering firm was favored instead of Washington Department of Highways and Eldridge. By the month of June 1938, PWA had permitted $6 million for the project. The remaining cost was paid with proceeds from the toll revenue. By the end of the project, a total of $6.4 million had been spent on it. It took 19 months to complete the project that began in September 1938. Characterized by the major span of 2800 feet, this became the third highest bridge on suspension. In July 1940, the bridge was opened. However, it collapsed in November of the same year (Scott 273). Sequence of Events The Moiseiff design began with the theoretical underpinning that was published in a 1933 paper with the help of Fred Liehard. The Moisseiff

CRIMINOLOGICAL THEORY Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

CRIMINOLOGICAL THEORY - Assignment Example For development of self-control, one has to have parental attachment and is affected by the parenting strategies and supervision employed to bring an individual. Attachment that helps in self-control is with the family. One has to form beliefs in law and family attachment, commitment with social norms and institutions and involvement in social activities (Bouffard & Rice, 2011). According to Social control theory/social bonding theory, with the help of crime, we can satisfy our wants quicker as compared to conventional behaviour. For controlling delinquent behaviour, we must have social bond that is created by â€Å"emotional attachment to parents, peers and conventional institutions, such as the school; commitment to long-term educational, occupational, or other conventional goals; involvement in conventional activities, such as work, homework and hobbies, and belief in the moral validity of law† (Costello & Vowell, 1999, p. 817) Social learning theory can be defined as a theory according to which, an individual learns through observation or direct training. When an individual learns more positive definitions of criminal behaviour and less negative definitions of crime, he will depict criminal behaviour. Because according to his cognition and understanding, crime is positive. Those having delinquent peers themselves show delinquency (Costello & Vowell, 1999). Young people tend to appear delinquent based on imitation, learning positive or negative definitions of law violating behavior and the knowledge about rewards and punishments attached to breaking of law (Neff & Waite, 2007). Agnew’s general strain theory states that any kind of strain can result in depressing emotions that can lead to consequences involving crime. Strains are there because of inability to attain valued objectives such as economic success, educational

For all the Tea in China by Sarah Rose Essay Example for Free

For all the Tea in China by Sarah Rose Essay â€Å"For all the Tea in China -How England Stole the Worlds Favorite Drink and Changed History † as the subtitle foreshadows the story already. Before I had even read the book I assumed it would be a journey of betrayal, action and only closed off to the events that occur res as Robert Fortune underhandedly takes chinas precious tea right from underneath theyre own noses. But little did I know that it Sarah Rose has incorporated all the events essential to the to cultivation of tea in the mid Nineteenth-century. In Audition to this Historical non-fiction story that may be boring to others, or as one of my fellow classmates would put it â€Å"Ive been spacing out throughout the book† I Believe that Sarah Rose Has painted a Vivid image of the nineteenth century, with out a single page, paragraph, or sentence wasted with unnecessary knowledge to the readers view from how the Royal Horticultural Society of England and the East India Company affected Englands economy, traditions were also created based off of tea shipment such as the Annual Tea race. And how World Changed Englands East India Company to officially close down. Robert Fortune, a Scottish gardener, botanist, and worlds best plant hunter, famously known for his The British tea Heist which Sarah Rose writes passionately and was inspired by Scott Anderson in this book, and in audition famous for bringing back and documenting new oriental plants from China to England. Such as lovely tree peonies, and the uniquely streaked ornamental plant Hosta Fortunei. which was named after Robert fortune himself along with some other oriental plants found under his own travels not during the multiple expeditions he was sent to do by the East India Company. Fortune while undergoing the process in sending India seeds that are healthy and germinated.. but how?Fortune had realized that transporting the seeds in side packages while shipped doesnt stop the life cycle so the seeds that were in anything but soil were unsuccessful because the environment was unsuitable for the next step of its life which was the sapling. Buy having the tea seeds in the layers of soil and in the warden cases protected from sea spray forced the seeds to germinate with little watering because, of the warden cases the water that evaporated would just collect and drop back to the tea plant because of the morning due. Which has never been done before and changed the way of transporting seeds across seas for decades to come, and also solved the problem of transporting larger plants such as towering red woods and,England were now able to transport a whole species in there easy to tend to seed forms. The reason why Fortune had to take on this task of stealing Chinas tea secret was because. In the early nineteenth century China and Britain had a shaky relationship of trading Englands opium that China was so addicted to for theyre finest tea which grew high among the finger like mountain karsts of Wuyi in the Fujian provenances. But it was China who Threaten to grow and sell there own opium, and Britain couldnt let that happen because England relied on that finance to fund there tea budget And so if China wanted to play that way so will the British, therefore they sent Fortune. Poorer Qualities of tea already existed trying to compete with chinas finest tea in the Experimental grounds a part of the Himalayas in India run by the British. But could not duplicate the process of making tea itself or how its grown with out the precious knowledge china was keeping from them world. When Fortune succeeded it had Put Britain at the center of trade because there companies would produce safer qualities of tea because the Chinese where slowly killing people with dyes and pigments used in paints to color green tea, which sealed Britains choice with the already popular black tea. And also the hold of opium production as well as tea production, and civilization helped. Fortunes First 12 month period trip was spent travelin g to the Zhejiang and Anhui provenances for Green Tea. He had to disguise himself as a well paid merchant which wasnt enough to get noticed but held enough respect he usually was given. He needed to do deceive the local Chinese and Tea producers in order to get the information but there was no detail in how he did it, which I thought it would be a lot more exhilarating to know the master plan of how he was able to deceive so easily and to be trusted with that much valuable information, and most importantly needed the information of how to process and grow tea or it would be useless to get the thousands of seeds and saplings necessary to start a growing tea profitably with out having a clue of doing so and let them die. Also During Fortunes Expedition it would be impossible to travel the multiple provenances of China with out a Guide or Help to carry his Warden cases by him self hence he had to hire servants a collie whom preferred to be called that and Wang a business negotiator which served well but was easily influenced into trouble to a common trait that most Chinese did at the time it was called the â€Å"Squeeze† which was extracting money illegally from someone trying to earn a few bucks. And handful of trouble came from Fortunes servants betrayal because Fortune would treat them as any regular employee as they made mistakes or bad decisions that would jeopardize his goal he would punish them fairly but backfired. Another tradition the Chinese have Is called Face which is the equivalent of dignity or prestige, but the actual way it works is still really foggy due to lack of detail about this subject. So when Fortunes two servant were hired to serve him and he relied on them a lot which gave them a large amount of face, but because of a situation when his collie pulled a â€Å"Squeeze.† It Jeopardized his masters safety but it was fortune who settled the feud by having him return the money and apologize which humiliated Collie that caused him to lose face. During Fortunes second expedition to retrieve black tea from the Steep mountain of Wuyi, since both teas were so different and should be treated as two different plants there for Fortune was ordered to take two separate trips. Fortune had hired another servant named Sing Hoo he wasnt was a collie but he was strong and he was intelligent but not a businessmen man, the new loyal servant of Fortunes â€Å"had once been in the service of a high-ranking mandarin affiliated with the imperial family at Peking.† and also bore arms of his former office of the imperial court signified as a flag and serves as a passport throughout the country, it was a gift from the a former master. And during this second trip Fortune disguised himself as a high ranking mandarin from beyond the Great Wall of China which I thought would be hasty compared to lying low on the first trip. Also I thought it was amusingly clever that he chose the people from beyond the Great wall because, they were known for being abnormally taller height than the rest of the population in china which gave an explanation for Fortunes height while infiltrating China. If not for Fortunes treacherous task and constant awareness no matter what might of happened to make Fortune hate the country, he could probably hate every single thing in china but I doubt he would never be able to hate Chinas beauty from there great dense bamboo Forests off theyre proud mountains to the peaceful city of serenity named Zhejiang. Fortune was also a naturalist who was touched, and changed, by China and its treasures largely unseen by western eyes, in which found even more beautiful than the landscape of his own country. Green Tea was a failure because they had withered even before it had reached India of the improper shipping technique. Even though it had failed Black tea was a success which Changed history Forever in Britains favor Trade wise. I had also thought even though its not a picture book I would recommend a diagram of important people of the East India Company and The Royal Horticultural Society of England. And definitely a Map of Fortunes Travels Both trips to India and Maybe that trip to Japan.

Conjunto com bancos de dados relacionais

Conjunto com bancos de dados relacionais Resumo. A programaà §Ãƒ £o orientada a objetos à © utilizada hà ¡ muito tempo em conjunto com bancos de dados relacionais, que à © considerado o padrà £o adotado pelo mercado hà ¡ anos. Entretanto, a passagem de dados de um objeto para uma tabela de um banco de dados relacional, do ponto de vista conceitual, costuma ser incompatà ­vel devido as adaptaà §Ãƒ µes realizadas no modelo relacional para implementar integridades referenciais, facilitar consultas, etc. Por isso, outras tecnologias foram desenvolvidas para tornar a persistà ªncia de objetos em bancos de dados relacional mais natural. Neste trabalho, sà £o apresentadas duas tecnologias com este objetivo: DB4O, que utiliza um banco de dados orientado a objetos, armazenando diretamente a instà ¢ncia da classe no banco de dados e o framework JPA, que mapeia os objetos e seus atributos para suas respectivas tabelas no banco de dados relacional. A ferramenta Eclipse e o banco de dados MySQL foram utilizados para a impleme ntaà §Ãƒ £o das aplicaà §Ãƒ µes neste trabalho. Palavras-chave: JPA, DB4O, Banco de Dados nà £o convencional, Mapeamento Objeto-Relacional, Banco de Dados Orientado a Objeto, MySQL. 1 Introduà §Ãƒ £o 1.1 Motivaà §Ãƒ £o O crescente avanà §o do paradigma de programaà §Ãƒ £o orientado a objetos tornou necessà ¡rio o estudo acerca de novas formas de persistir os dados de um sistema, pois o modelo relacional nà £o à © diretamente compatà ­vel com o paradigma, visto que nà £o foi feito pensando para orientaà §Ãƒ £o a objetos. Existem duas abordagens que sà £o o objeto de estudo deste trabalho para tratar persistà ªncia de dados: bancos de dados orientados a objetos e mapeamento objeto-relacional. Bancos de dados orientados a objetos suportam o armazenamento de objetos complexos, mantendo sua estrutura, ao contrà ¡rio dos bancos relacionais que desconhecem o conceito de objeto. Objetos sà £o abstraà §Ãƒ µes do mundo real e a manipulaà §Ãƒ £o destes à © mais simples de entender quando comparado à  s abstraà §Ãƒ µes de um banco de dados relacional. Embora nà £o seja muito utilizado comercialmente, bancos de dados orientados a objeto và ªm evoluindo bastante, permitindo aplicaà §Ãƒ µes cada vez mais robustas e atuando principalmente nas à ¡reas de manipulaà §Ãƒ £o de objetos complexos como espaciais, som e và ­deo. O mapeamento objeto-relacional justamente serve para mapear os objetos em tabelas de um banco de dados relacional, utilizando todas as vantagens desse banco de dados e sendo transparente para o usuà ¡rio. Isto facilita o trabalho do desenvolvedor e permite uma melhor visualizaà §Ãƒ £o da relaà §Ãƒ £o entre os objetos e as relaà §Ãƒ µes do banco reacional. Este trabalho à © resultado da primeira parte da disciplina ministrada pelo professor Sean W. M. Siqueira no primeiro semestre de 2009. A disciplina trata de bancos de dados nà £o convencionais, e faz parte do currà ­culo de Bacharelado em Sistemas de Informaà §Ãƒ £o da Unirio (Universidade Federal do Estado do Rio de Janeiro) como disciplina optativa da linha de Banco de Dados. 1.2 Objetivo O objetivo deste trabalho à © apresentar duas tecnologias voltadas para o desenvolvimento orientado a objeto (DB4O e JPA) e como realizar suas respectivas implementaà §Ãƒ µes que testam a persistà ªncia em um banco de dados orientado a objeto, mais especificamente o DB4O, e a persistà ªncia utilizando o mapeamento objeto-relacional, atravà ©s do framework JPA. Apà ³s a demonstraà §Ãƒ £o destas duas implementaà §Ãƒ µes, foi realizada uma comparaà §Ãƒ £o entre as duas abordagens, incluindo a abordagem de desenvolvimento tradicional. 1.3 Modelo de classes Para a aplicaà §Ãƒ £o, desenvolvemos o seguinte modelo de classes: 1.4 Estrutura do Relatà ³rio O relatà ³rio està ¡ estruturado em elementos prà ©-textuais, 5 (cinco) capà ­tulos, e elementos pà ³s-textuais. Na primeira parte hà ¡ itens como sumà ¡rio e à ­ndices. Em seguida, està £o os capà ­tulos que està £o brevemente descritos a seguir, e, por fim, os elementos pà ³s-textuais. capà ­tulo 1 explica a motivaà §Ãƒ £o e o objetivo para este trabalho. capà ­tulo 2 apresenta o passo-a-passo para a implementaà §Ãƒ £o de uma aplicaà §Ãƒ £o utilizando a tecnologia DB4O. capà ­tulo 4 apresenta o passo-a-passo para desenvolvimento de uma aplicaà §Ãƒ £o utilizando o framework JPA. capà ­tulo 4 apresenta as conclusà µes do presente trabalho, comparando as tecnologias envolvidas. capà ­tulo 5 apresenta as referà ªncias bibliogrà ¡ficas. 2 Etapas do desenvolvimento de aplicaà §Ãƒ £o utilizando DB4O Este capà ­tulo apresenta o passo-a-passo para desenvolvimento de aplicaà §Ãƒ £o utilizando o DB4O. 2.1 Softwares utilizados Os seguintes softwares foram utilizados para a implementaà §Ãƒ £o dos servià §os. Eclipse JDK 6 2.2 Introduà §Ãƒ £o ao DB4O banco de dados orientado a objetos DB4o à © um software open source de fà ¡cil instalaà §Ãƒ £o e baixa necessidade de recurso, uma vez que ele nà £o à © um SGBD e por isso nà £o possui interface grà ¡fica e outras funcionalidades de gerenciamento. DB4o foi feito para poder ser utilizado em plataformas desktop, celulares, servidores, contanto que o ambiente seja orientado a objetos. Alà ©m disso, ele nà £o exige a necessidade de nenhuma programaà §Ãƒ £o ou ferramenta para mapear a orientaà §Ãƒ £o a objetos para o modelo relacional, pois ele faz uso da orientaà §Ãƒ £o a objetos a seu favor, permitindo que o modelo seja uma representaà §Ãƒ £o fiel do banco de dados. DB4o nà £o possui instalaà §Ãƒ £o. No desenvolvimento realizado, utilizando o Eclipse, a à ºnica aà §Ãƒ £o necessà ¡ria para instalar o DB4o foi importar o arquivo .jar como uma biblioteca para o eclipse. Apà ³s isso, os pacotes com os objetos necessà ¡rios para persistir os dados no DB4o està £o prontos para serem utilizados. Como o DB4o nà £o necessita de mapeamento, tambà ©m nà £o necessita de modelo là ³gico e fà ­sico, visto que ele à © totalmente baseado na orientaà §Ãƒ £o a objetos, logo, o banco segue o modelo de classes. 2.3 Metodologia de desenvolvimento Para realizar o desenvolvimento da aplicaà §Ãƒ £o, primeiro define-se as classes POJO (Plain Java Object). Os objetos que serà £o armazenados no DB4O sà £o pertencentes a essas classes de objetos implementadas no inà ­cio do desenvolvimento. Depois, desenvolve-se uma classe que permite inserà §Ãƒ £o, consulta, alteraà §Ãƒ £o e exclusà £o de objetos do banco. Para isso, à © necessà ¡rio importar diversas bibliotecas externas pertinentes ao desenvolvimento para DB4O e tambà ©m abrir o arquivo onde os objetos serà £o armazenados, instanciando um objeto da classe ObjectContainer, que representarà ¡ o banco de dados. Para inserà §Ãƒ £o de objetos no DB4O, utilizamos o mà ©todo set da classe ObjectContainer, que armazena um objeto passado como parà ¢metro no DB4O. Para consulta de objetos no DB4O utilizamos o mà ©todo QueryByExample, que utiliza um objeto passado como parà ¢metro como exemplo e busca o objeto semelhante no DB4O. O resultado à © armazenado em uma varià ¡vel do tipo ObjectSet. Para alteraà §Ãƒ £o de objetos no DB4O à © necessà ¡rio consultar o objeto que se deseja alterar e armazenà ¡-lo em um objeto da classe desejada. Depois, alterar os dados atravà ©s do mà ©todo set definido na classe POJO e colocar no DB4O atravà ©s do mà ©todo store, definido na classe ObjectContainer. Para a deleà §Ãƒ £o de objetos no DB4O à © necessà ¡rio consultar o objeto que se deseja remover e utilizar o mà ©todo delete, definido na classe ObjectContainer. 2.4 Passo a passo para implementaà §Ãƒ £o de uma aplicaà §Ãƒ £o utilizando o DB4O O DB4O consiste em um arquivo .jar apenas, entà £o o primeiro passo (apà ³s realizar o download do DB4O) à © verificar qual .jar utilizar. Nesse caso, utilizamos o DB4o-7.4-java5.jar, pois à © o indicado para que utiliza o JDK 5 ou 6. 3 Etapas do desenvolvimento de aplicaà §Ãƒ £o utilizando JPA Este capà ­tulo apresenta o passo-a-passo para desenvolvimento de aplicaà §Ãƒ £o utilizando o framework JPA. 3.1 Softwares utilizados Os seguintes softwares foram utilizados para a implementaà §Ãƒ £o dos servià §os. Eclipse Ganymede versà £o 3.4.0 (possui OpenJPA nativo) JDK 1.5 Hibernate MySQL 3.2 Introduà §Ãƒ £o ao JPA O Java Persistence API (JPA) à © um produto implementado pela SUN, especificado para oferecer uma persistà ªncia transparente de objetos Java. O OpenJPA à © uma implementaà §Ãƒ £o disponibilizada como software livre, desenvolvida pela Apache Software Foundation baseada no JPA produzido pela SUN. O JPA define um padrà £o de mapeamento dos objetos do modelo orientado a objetos para o modelo relacional, trazendo as vantagens dos dois mundos: a programaà §Ãƒ £o orientada a objetos, paradigma consagrado de desenvolvimento e os bancos de dados relacionais, igualmente consagrados em termos de utilizaà §Ãƒ £o e desempenho. Alà ©m disso, a tecnologia possui amplo suporte pela maioria dos das grandes empresas do mercado: Apache, Oracle, BEA, JBoss. As camadas que compà µe o framework para o mapeamento objeto-relacional utilizando JPA podem ser visualizadas na Figura 14: O JPA provà ª uma API simples e padronizada de persistà ªncia para Java SE e Java EE. Essa padronizaà §Ãƒ £o permite a modularizaà §Ãƒ £o do provedor JPA que à © oferecido em diversas versà µes por và ¡rios desenvolvedores, dando a opà §Ãƒ £o de escolha o usuà ¡rio final. A padronizaà §Ãƒ £o da tecnologia permite o aumento da produtividade e o uso de anotaà §Ãƒ µes (Annotations) simplifica a configuraà §Ãƒ £o das entidades. Seus objetos sà £o baseados em classes POJO (Plain Old Java Objects) e sua implementaà §Ãƒ £o oferece suporte a heranà §a e polimorfismo. O JPA à © compatà ­vel com a linguagem de consulta Java Persistence Query Language (JP-QL) que utiliza uma sintaxe prà ³xima a SQL, porà ©m à © voltada para consulta de entidades e suas propriedades, criando independà ªncia em relaà §Ãƒ £o à   modelagem fà ­sica do banco de dados. A JPQL à © capaz de realizar consultas està ¡ticas (named queries) e consultas dinà ¢micas e permite a construà §Ãƒ £o de consultas complexas. Portanto, o JPA à © uma soluà §Ãƒ £o completa para mapeamento e persistà ªncia de objetos, sendo composto pelo modo declarativo de descrever mapeamento O/R, linguagem de consulta e recursos para manipulaà §Ãƒ £o de entidades. 3.3 Metodologia de desenvolvimento Apà ³s a definià §Ãƒ £o do modelo relacional, desenvolvem-se as classes POJO referentes as tabelas no banco de dados. Entà £o se insere as anotaà §Ãƒ µes (annotations) que declaram que a classe possui uma respectiva tabela no banco de dados. Entretanto, ainda à © necessà ¡rio registrar essas classes no arquivo persistence.xml, que serà ¡ utilizado para definir o subconjunto de classes que poderà £o ser gerenciadas. Ao escrever o cà ³digo, deverà ¡ ser instanciada um objeto do tipo EntityManagerFactory passando o arquivo persistence.xml como parà ¢metro. A partir deste objeto, à © criado outro do tipo EntityManager, responsà ¡vel por gerenciar o ciclo de vida das entidades que està £o registradas. Ao iniciar a manipulaà §Ãƒ £o dos objetos, à © necessà ¡rio iniciar uma transaà §Ãƒ £o e entà £o registrar os comandos CRUD para serem executados. Entà £o, ao final, realiza-se o commit ou rollback destas operaà §Ãƒ µes. A Figura 15 resume o fluxo de mapeamento objeto-relacional seguido pelo JPA. 3.4 Passo a passo para implementaà §Ãƒ £o de uma aplicaà §Ãƒ £o utilizando JPA O primeiro passo para iniciar a implementaà §Ãƒ £o de uma aplicaà §Ãƒ £o utilizando o framework JPA à © baixar os arquivos JAR necessà ¡rios para realizar as importaà §Ãƒ µes das classes que serà £o utilizadas no programa. Como serà ¡ utilizado como provedor JPA (Figura 2) o framework de persistà ªncia Hibernate, os seguintes pacotes serà £o necessà ¡rios: Hibernate Core, Hibernate Annotations e Hibernate Entity Manager, que està £o disponà ­veis em http://sourceforge.net/projects/hibernate/files/. No desenvolvimento da aplicaà §Ãƒ £o foram utilizadas as versà µes 3.2.0.GA do Hibernate Core, 3.3.0 GA do Hibernate Annotations e 3.3.1.GA do Hibernate Entity Manager. Cabe salientar que pacotes de outras versà µes do Hibernate podem resultar em falhas e erros inesperados em relaà §Ãƒ £o aos procedimentos realizados neste relatà ³rio. O driver JDBC para o MySQL tambà ©m à © necessà ¡rio e pode ser baixado no site oficial do MySQL, em http://dev.mysql.com/downloads/connector/j/5.1.html. Para o desenvolvimento da aplicaà §Ãƒ £o foi utilizado a versà £o 5.1.7 do driver JDBC para o MySQL. Em posse dos arquivos necessà ¡rios, iniciam-se os passos para o desenvolvimento da aplicaà §Ãƒ £o no Eclipse. 4 Conclusà £o Conforme apresentado, o desenvolvimento utilizando bancos de dados orientado a objetos apresenta diversas facilidades em relaà §Ãƒ £o à   proposta tradicional de desenvolvimento e à   proposta de mapeamento objeto-relacional. Essas vantagens sà £o as seguintes: Modelagem mais real: permite que o seu modelo de classes seja o seu modelo de armazenamento de dados, pois armazena exatamente os objetos como eles foram criados para serem armazenados, sem necessidade de nenhum tipo de transformaà §Ãƒ £o Representaà §Ãƒ £o de dados com formatos varià ¡veis: no relacional, as tuplas precisam ser homogà ªneas e os atributos atà ´micos, enquanto que no OO isso nà £o à © necessà ¡rio. à © possà ­vel ter dados em formatos varià ¡veis. Facilidade de instalaà §Ãƒ £o e utilizaà §Ãƒ £o: à © mais fà ¡cil e rà ¡pido instalar o DB4o do que algum banco de dados relacional, pois nà £o à © necessà ¡rio configurar e criar um banco de dados previamente, nem à © necessà ¡rio realizar um modelo relacional, fà ­sico e là ³gico, pois o prà ³prio modelo de classes à © a representaà §Ãƒ £o dos dados no banco Mas, existem alguns problemas nessa tecnologia. Alguns jà ¡ foram citados anteriormente: Stored procedures: Nà £o existem stored procedures ou triggers, sendo necessà ¡rio programar na aplicaà §Ãƒ £o essas funà §Ãƒ µes, o que pode fazer cair o desempenho do sistema O modelo relacional jà ¡ està ¡ consolidado no mercado, acumulando anos de estudo e aprimoramento, oferecendo bom desempenho, mecanismos de otimizaà §Ãƒ £o, tratamento de concorrà ªncia. 5 Referà ªncias Vasiliev, Yuli, 2008, Querying JPA Entities with JPQL and Native SQL Disponà ­vel em http://www.oracle.com/technology/pub/articles/vasiliev-jpql.html. Apache Software Fundation, Apache JPA Users Guide Disponà ­vel em http://JPA.apache.org/builds/latest/docs/manual/manual.pdf. OLIVEIRA, H.E.M, 2008, JPA Passo a Passo, TDC The Developers Conference 2008 Disponà ­vel em http://www.thedevelopersconference.com.br/arquivos/TDC2008Floripa-jpa-henrique.pdf DB4Objects, DB4O Tutorial Disponà ­vel em: http://developer.db4o.com/files/folders/db4o_74/entry49672.aspx ENGIEL, P., 2008, Comparaà §Ãƒ £o entre as formas de persistir a programaà §Ãƒ £o orientada a objetos

Money Laundering--the Process :: essays research papers

MONEY LAUNDERING—THE PROCESS AND IT’S AFFECTS   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Money laundering is a process that many people do not understand. In fact, when I chose money laundering for my report, I thought that I chose counterfeiting. Money laundering and counterfeiting is not the same. Money laundering is the process by which large amounts of illegally obtained money (from drug trafficking, terrorist activity or other serious crime) is given the appearance of having originated from a legitimate source. Money laundering is a complex operation that affects everyone. The purpose of this paper is to explain the money laundering process and how it affects society.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Money laundering is not a single act but is more a complex operation that is completed in three basic steps. The first step is placement, the second step is layering, and the third step is integration.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The first step, placement, is to take the moneys and place them into the financial system, the retail economy, or smuggle them out of the country. The aims of the launderer are to remove the cash from the location of acquisition so as to avoid detection from the authorities and to then transform it into other asset forms; for example: travelers checks, postal orders, etc.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The second step, layering, is the first attempt to conceal or disguise the source of the ownership of the funds by creating complex layers of financial transactions designed to disguise the audit trail and provide anonymity. The purpose of layering is to disassociate the illegal moneys from the source of the crime by purposely creating a complex web of financial transactions aimed at concealing any audit trail as well as the source and ownership of the funds.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The third step, integration, is the stage at which the money is integrated into the legitimate economic and financial system and is assimilated with all other assets is the system.

Comparing Virginia Woolfs To the Lighthouse and Kawabatas Snow Countr

Virginia Woolf's To the Lighthouse and Kawabata's Snow Country      Ã‚  Ã‚   Virginia Woolf's claim that plot is banished in modern fiction is a misleading tenet of Modernism. The plot is not eliminated so much as mapped out onto a more local level, most obviously with the epic structural comparison in Ulysses. In To the Lighthouse, Woolf's strategy of indirect discourse borrows much from Impressionism in its exploration of the ways painting can freeze a moment and make it timeless. In Kawabata's Snow Country, the story of Yoko and her family and its relationship to the rest of the novel corresponds with an even more modern medium, film, and its superimposition of contradictory image.    Lily Briscoe's metaphor stabilize the chaotic reality around her, order them into a visible representation, and make them timeless. She shares these goals with the Impressionists, for whom moments of being (as Woolf calls them elsewhere) are also "illuminations, matches struck unexpectedly in the dark" (161). The instantaneity of this image, and its reliance on light, is crucial for To the Lighthouse; through the single match Lily, and Woolf, light forest fires. Other parts of the narrative clarify and become resonant through specific moments of consciousness; one character's thoughts feed into another's, the narrative voice filters through everyone else's, and the reader sees, as Lily does, the "X-ray photograph" (91) of everyone's desires and fears. The plot is compromised in these scenes, or in the throwaway line in "Time Passes" that parenthetically tells us that Mrs. Ramsay died last night. But just as this remark is framed by brackets, so does each moment of being f rame something else, a larger context the singular... ...raps the sounds around each other, showing that language, even at its most freeing, is still confining. But the image is enough, and through this the Milky Way creates an anti-gravity field that lifts the characters out of their bodies: "The limitless depth of the Milky Way pulled his gaze up into it" (165). It is in this non-Newtonian manner that Kawabata directs our attention to the plot outline of his novel. We may focus on one moment, but it is infinitely refracted throughout the text, and at each moment we linger on the image, the reflected image, or the idea of the image; the plot is always there, but not always the primary image.    Works Cited: Kawabata, Yasunari. Snow Country. Berkley Publishing Corporation: New York, NY 1956. Woolf, Virginia. To the Lighthouse. Introduction by D.M. Hoare, Ph.D. London: J.M. Dent and Sons Ltd., 1960

The Globe Theater :: European Europe History

The Globe Theater Among the many famous writers we have studied this year is William Shakespeare. Shakespeare's life was assuredly most intriguing. Seeking answers, we had simple questions we wanted to determine. What were his morals? His passions? His legacy? When studying Shakespeare, we found that his life revolved around the Globe Theatre. Naturally we wanted to see why Shakespeare spent so much of his life involved in the Globe. The first Globe lasted from 1599-1613. Additionally, this structure was called the "wooden o" playhouse. Before the Globe, there was another "Theatre", which many people do not realize. "The Theatre" prospered for 21 years. Refusing to renew the players' lease, the landowner Giles Allen caused an unexpected problem for the players. James Burbage had recently died and his two sons, Richard and Cuthbert became managers. Although Allen owned the land, the sons owned the Theatre, and they wanted their valuable timber. In desperation, the brothers decided to take action. They leased land across the river and they waited until Christmastime to strike, when they could be sure Allen was away on vacation. At night they began to dismantle the Theatre piece by piece and floated it across the river Thames. With the timber, the brothers and their friends reconstructed their cherished playhouse. Because of the saying "the whole world is a stage" they would call it the Globe Theatre. By the middle of 1599 the Globe opened and was a huge success. Audiences were packed in "the house with a thatched roof", sometimes even so much as three thousand people could be held at once. For sixpence the rich sat in the Lord's Rooms to get a better view, which were on the top half of the Globe. For threepence they sat on cushions in the Gentlemen's Rooms. For twopence they perched on hard wooden benches, but most were called "groundlings" who paid a penny to stand in the yard beneath the open roof. Interestingly enough, there were two trap doors, the trap door to heaven and the trap door to hell. Since the players already had to pay for the structure most of the actors actually lived in the Theatre. During a play of Henry the V, a spark from a cannon accidentally caught the thatched roof on fire and the whole Globe was burned down in less than an hour. Yet within a year a second Globe was built and completed in 1614 but the Puritans tore it down in 1644.

Wall Mart of the Internet

From â€Å"Earth’s Biggest Bookstore† to â€Å"everything to everybody† to â€Å"Wall Mart of the Internet† to â€Å"World’s most customer-centric company†, Amazon has been tagged with these kinds of labels by its customers and followers. The reason for these many labels is because of the Amazon changing business model. Starting from Single-product and an intermediary with little inventory in 1995-1997 to Multi-product, profit-making, customer-oriented, investor, Services provider in 2000 Amazon has been changing its business model according to market conditions.One indication of a smart company is to continuously change its business model; it is an indication of smart company and ultimately the smart management team. It is also an indication that the company is learning and adopting itself to the external and internal environment. Amazon is the clear market leader for the largest US e-retailing categories of books, CDs and DVD movies. In var ious consumers’ polls, when respondents are asked for their experiences of e-shopping, Amazon â€Å"streaked ahead† of all others as the world’s favorite e-retailer.This means that Amazon is the undisputed favorite on considerations such as convenience, reliability and customer service. Amazon has achieved worldwide success and brand recognition due to paying attention to extensive offline advertising, which helped the company to become one of only three dot. com brands in the Interbrand world league table. It is an illustration of the power of branding that Amazon is the world’s top e-retailer. Before the dot. com downturn in the spring of 2000, the word â€Å"Internet† keyed into what seemed pervasive optimism for a new century.It meant youth, new possibilities and an opportunity to break with traditional business and create new rules. However, in 2000 things drastically changed as many e-commerce start-ups failed to return expected profits and w ent bankrupt. After this came valuable lessons across e-commerce, and evidence for incumbent retailers that factors such as having an established brand provide significant advantages in e-retail and play a part in customer loyalty and increased profit. Analysis of dot.com failures and comparison with traditional retailers in the same industry, for example eToys, which folded in 2000 and was subsequently bought by an established toy retailer, vs. Toys R Us, which successfully opened an e-retail channel through collaboration with Amazon, has revealed several advantages for the established retailer. Newcomers usually build their initial strategy on attracting new customers through aggressive marketing, brand-building and advertising, which logically lead to massive expenses and cash shortages.Amazon, however, has an existing customer base and can build on brand values that are already in place. Amazon’s marketing budgets allow the company to attempt new online projects or busine ss lines, unlike many start-ups. Founder of Amazon. com, J. Bezos rejected the traditional model for retailing. Having known that the usage of Internet is increasing every year with gigantic steps, – some resources report about 2000% usage increase annually, – Bezos decided that his retailing model should be intrinsically connected to Internet.While opening new physical retail outlets can expand the geographical reach of a business and add convenience for consumers, retailing online not only carries these benefits, but also offers further returns that are more specific to online trading. Bezos put books as Amazon’s core product, because they almost ideally correspond for the model of e-retailing. Low unit price, low risk cost, easy to pack and ship, and finally in a high and growing demand, books have become a perfect solution for Amazon’s model. Now books are by far the largest e-retailing category in the US.Research carried out by many companies illustr ates that about 65 per cent of the purchases made by Web shoppers in the US consisted of books. For newly created company, the Internet had global reach and provided the opportunity to trade internationally. For Bezos, Amazon’s broad benefits included the ability to trade 24 hours a day and seven days a week, and operate with lower overheads in terms of staff and space, while more particular advantages included the ability to increase the number of customer â€Å"touch points† and build more personalized customer experiences, products and relationships.However, again for J. Bezos these e-retail advantages did not imply that an online presence is a recipe in itself for success; that kind of thinking was tried and failed with the dot. com boom and bust. Instead, if there was any recipe for successful integration, Bezos found it in variants of established business practices, such as an understanding of the strengths and weaknesses of the business, for example in relation to technology awareness, which is a good indicator of e-commerce success.Amazon’s mission and strategy is quite simply â€Å"to offer Earth’s Biggest Selection and to be Earth’s most customer-centric company, where customers can find and discover anything they may want to buy online and [we] endeavor to offer our customers the lowest possible price. † The company accomplishes this by operating six global internet sites: www. amazon. com, www. amazon. ca, www. amazon. de, www. amazon. jp, www. amazon. co. fr and www. amazon. co. uk.Through their zShops, auctions, affiliate program, [email  protected] and Amazon Marketplace programs, Amazon, and their sellers and partners, offer new and used collectibles and products in categories such as apparel and accessories, DVDs, electronics, computers, books, music, videos, cell phones, tools and hardware, the list is almost endless. In order to maintain quality, the company packages and ships all of its merchandis e. They also continue to negotiate volume deals with suppliers to meet their goal of lowering prices.Additionally, Amazon has formed partnerships and alliances with publishers, other on-line retailers, technology providers, either handling their web site operations or linking them to its virtual portal. As part of their diversification strategy, Amazon recently acquired Internet Movie Database www. imdb. com (IMDb), which is an authoritative source of information on movie and entertainment (Dennis et al, 2004). This acquisition is one of many Amazon is making expand its product and service offerings.The company is also preparing to sell internet domain names and already has received the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN) approval. In order to improve customer service the company is investing in operational facilities, like its multi-lingual customer service support center in the Netherlands, to meet its rapid growth, increase selection and meet future operat ional needs while building efficiencies. This strategy helps Amazon increase its low profit margin, decrease its operational cost, increase customer response and order processing services and pass that savings on to the customer.Amazon strives to provide customers with the best possible online shopping experience by leveraging their powerful and innovative technologies. Part of the company’s competitiveness lies in their proprietary technology, which is licensed to companies like Target to run their e-commerce site. Its patented portal technology allows the customer to customize their on-line experience with personalized home page, product recommendations, email notifications on orders and new products, the ability to post reviews, 1-click ordering, search functions, up selling, and secure shopping cart functions, to name a few.Furthermore, they use technology to drive customer relationships. As an example, the company uses pop up daughter windows to quiz customers about Amaz on. These pop up windows survey the customer about Amazon related facts and in return the customer can get up to . 25 cents a day put in their account for answering questions. Building on this use of technology the company recently received patent approval and plans to add a chat function to enhance the customer experience and help consumers find products through each other.Through its Web Services development and affiliate program it encourages web site owners and developers to create applications capable of interacting with Amazon’s catalog, search engine, shopping cart and merchandising tools. In an effort to remain competitive and preempt new technology Amazon has an ongoing program to develop, update and add software and hardware including partnerships like it’s recently inked deal with Google. com. This will allow them to avoid service disruptions; slow response times, poor levels of customer service, and delays in information delivery.Amazon uses its proprietary technology to transform the online purchasing experience into the easiest and most enjoyable shopping experience online. The site communicates to the customer a visual feel of being in a one stop shop where they can find and purchase virtually anything they want. The site loads quickly, is easily navigated, allows the customer to instantly see an array of products, and provides a host of other customer driven enhancements designed to drive customer satisfaction. Amazon’s site conveys to the customers they can have it their way, all day.And by placing its image on everything it touches Amazon continually reinforces its brand, making it one of the most recognized customer-centric brands in the world. For the first time in year 2000, Amazon management has set its focus on making profit. Again, it is an indication of nothing but smart, opportunistic management that utilized its strength to grow. It is very clear that Amazon management team is very focused. In order to meets its future targets, Amazon has implemented a restructuring plan.It will allow Amazon to reduce operating costs, reduce employee staff, and strengthen some of its fulfillment and customer service operations. According to the quarterly report released by amazon. com for quarter ended September 30, 2004 â€Å"There has been a steep decline in operating costs† (Amazon, Quarterly results, 2004). This has improved the performance of the company. Since its beginning, Amazon has adopted various e-Business model to increase its customer base and recently set its focus on making profit. Given below are the strategies adopted by Amazon.Amazon has a track recording of first gaining expertise in the market and then scaling into other areas. For example, Amazon started with a web-based bookstore model and after gaining expertise in various operations expanded to other segments and geographies. Another example is, after capturing the US market; it expanded its business to Europe, namely the U. K, France and Germany and then to Japan. One advantage of this approach is that the incremental costs to expand the business, whether to multiple product line or geographically are small.This strategy of perfecting before scaling helps in long-term survival and growth of the company. Since its beginning, Amazon has always kept focus on the needs of its customer and never lost sight of it. This gives Amazon a strong foothold of the internet retail business. Playing on this customer strength, Amazon has struck deals with industry leaders retailers Toysrus. com, Borders, Drugstore. com, and Target to help them draw customers to their Web sites, thereby giving birth to its services segment. Amazon is playing on its strength here and in the process creating a place for itself as a provider of e-tail services.Under Amazon’s cooperative model, the partners do not compete with each other and try to lessen each other risks. This cooperation represents a symbiotic relationship, where t he two partners do what they do best while depending on each other to eliminate respective weaknesses. On August 10 2000, Amazon and Toyrus announced a strategic alliance. According to the press release by Amazon â€Å"The two companies have entered into a strategic alliance under which each company will assume responsibility for specific aspects of the toy and video games and baby products stores.Toysrus. com, in collaboration with its majority shareholder, Toys â€Å"R† Us, Inc. , will identify, buy and manage inventory; Amazon. com will handle site development, order fulfillment, and customer service, housing both Toysrus. com's and its own inventory in Amazon. com’s U. S. distribution centers† (Dennis et al. , 2004:118). This alliance helped Amazon in eliminating its inventory risk, as it does not have to purchase or store any toys until the customer have ordered and paid for the goods. Under Amazon’s coopetitive model the two parties act as provider and customer.Both the parties compete with each other but one party tries to lessen other risks and in return gets the share of others business. On Apr 11, 2001 Amazon and Border announced strategic alliance. According to the press release by Amazon on Apr 11, 2001, â€Å"Amazon. com will be the seller of record, providing inventory, fulfillment, site content and customer service for the co-branded site. The new site will continue to offer content unique to Borders. com, including store location information and in-store event calendars† (Prior, 20001:6).In this case Amazon will continue to sell books on its own, but will also provide services to Border. In return Amazon will get a share of every sale by Border. According to an article on Informit. com â€Å"The Click and Brick model allows an existing offline business to profit from partnering with an emerging online presence†. [5] In this regard, Amazon has struck a deal with electronic retailer Circuit city. This wil l give the customer, the advantages of picking up their purchases from hundreds of stores rather then paying for shipment charges.Amazon will receive a share of the revenues for all Circuit City electronics goods sold through Amazon. Amazon will be responsible for processing the transaction while Circuit City will be responsible for order fulfillment and product-related customer service. In all these cases, Amazon is extending its channel expertise in Web retailing to â€Å"e-nable† other retailers. With a full year’s experienced retailers under its belt, Amazon is set to scale the service model. The Borders and Circuit City deals are important steps in that direction.The coopetitive model is converting Amazon into a â€Å"product-less platform provider†, directly impacting its bottom line, with no inventory costs. The business model adopted by Amazon has given it a boost in its online business. By making strategic alliances with the industry leader and making t he life of customer has made Amazon a profit making company. According to 2004, financial results Amazons’ â€Å"Operating cash flow was $567 million for 2004, compared with $392 million for 2003. Free cash flow grew 38% to $477 million for 2004, compared with $346 million for 2003.Common shares outstanding plus shares underlying stock-based awards outstanding totaled 434 million at December 31, 2004, compared with 433 million a year ago. Net sales were $2. 54 billion in the fourth quarter, compared with $1. 95 billion in fourth quarter 2003, an increase of 31%. Net sales, excluding the $85 million benefit from changes in foreign exchange rates, grew 26% compared with fourth quarter 2003† (Amazon, 2005). Amazon business model has steadily evolved and over the years the large retailers have realized the importance of Business-to-consumer e-commerce.In contemporary context, along with other e-commerce companies Amazon experiences several problems. Financial and marketing analytics indicate that due to increased online competition, Amazon is gradually loosing its market share. Experts and investors indicate that Amazon’s technology and content costs soared 59% in the quarter, while the company keeps spending heavily on marketing campaigns, free-shipping promotions and other marketing activities to attract customers to shop regularly on its site.It is not surprising that Amazon is spending estimated 60 percent of their revenue on numerous marketing activities and building an appropriate brand image. Amazon’s brand allows company to be known, distinct, and credible in the minds of existent and potential customers, consumers, and stakeholders. Amazon’s brand facilitate the building of relationships with existing and potential customers, consumers, and stakeholders. In addition, company’s brand communicates the benefits offered to buyers and stakeholders that embody the value system of the company.Due to increased online comp etition, the brand image strategy utilized by Amazon is justified because it helps to retain existing customers and to attract new ones, gradually making them returning. For every business, particularly online e-retailing, good customers’ returning rate is an indication of a healthy business. That’s why Amazon should pursue this aggressive marketing and branding strategy to keep its customers. Many analysts discuss merger opportunities for Amazon. The merger will help Amazon. com expand the market share in E-commerce and create a new passageway.For instance, Amazon. com can merge with Wal-Mart, which has $26 billion market value and only $756 million debt. Now Wal-Mart is interested in E-commerce and online shopping. If Amazon. com merges with Wal-Mart, they will become the largest retail company in E-commerce. Amazon. com will also increase its market share. In addition, after the merger, Amazon. com can gain more marketing resources from Wal-Mart to create a new sale s passageway. For instance, customers can purchase the products from Amazon. com on the Internet and pick the items, or return them at Wal-Mart.It will provide additional choose for customers. The merger may help Amazon to create new customers and products. Bertelsmann has $14 billion market value and the company’s strategy now is focusing on music retailing and book sales. Their business is related to Amazon’s business. The CEO of Bertelsmann is also trying to open their business in American market (Brynjolfsson & Urban, 2001). If Amazon. com merges with this company, it will gain the new customers from Bertelsmann. Furthermore, integrating the products from Bertelsmann, Amazon.com can create new products on their website. Finally, a merger can improve and cover the financial loss of Amazon such as net sales loss, long-dept and cash loss. For instance, if Amazon merges with General Growth Properties, which has 136 malls in 37 states and owns $2. 8 billion market value , Amazon. com can still keep the power of operation and exercise the new marketing strategies (Brynjolfsson & Urban, 2001). Moreover, Amazon. com can gain the financial support from this company to cover its long-debt $2 billion. In addition, the merger will help Amazon.com increase the financial resources such as the amount of cash flow, and also decrease the cost and expense of the company. Another future prospect is to invent a new E-business strategy. E-commerce is one way that people can trade on the Internet. This trading system is very important, but it is not the only thing that the e-commerce enterprises should focus on. Amazon. com is a giant in E-commerce and the company uses Secure Sockets Layer (SSL) to trade, but Amazon cannot make profits even though the company has very strong technological support.Some specialists point out that communication, resources allocation, and project management guarantees success in E-commerce. Effective communication, which can improve bu siness performance, is one of the objectives that Amazon. com should fulfill. Effective communication includes two aspects: internal and external. First of all, internal communication emphasizes negotiation. Necessary and correct information must be communicated precisely between the employees or the departments. Secondly, external communication emphasizes on empowerment and good timing.For instance, Customer Services is a department that helps customers to solve problems. They have to communicate with the customers and understand what the customers want and need, and then report to the departments or the board. If the customer service department has the power to react immediately from the problems of customers and has good communication and relationship with the customers, it will create more business opportunities for Amazon. com. The second key that helps industry to succeed in E-commerce is resources allocation. There are various resources in the enterprises such as human resour ces and customer resources.First of all, concerning human resources, Amazon. com should understand employees’ particularities and arrange them in appropriate positions. If the employees are set in the right positions, the company should become more efficient. Secondly, in regard to customer resources, Amazon should collect information, such as suggestion, complaint or demand from the customers and then try to improve their products or services to provide better services to the customers. If the services satisfy the customers, Amazon will create more and more opportunities and new customers in the near future.For example, new outsourcing strategies should be used to collect focus group to survey customers’ opinions. The third key that may become helpful for Amazon is project management. A successful E-commerce enterprise should focus on project management. Project management emphasizes teamwork (Epstein, 2004). There are many teams in the company and each team has its d ifferent project and goal. Each team also has its power to make the decision. The responsibility of the team is to achieve the product. The responsibility of the enterprise is to manage the teams and make sure that the projects can be finished effectively.Distributing the limited resources to different teams and projects is the great challenge to the project management. The best way to overcome this challenge is to emphasize effective communication and negotiation Amazon. com is now considered as the world’s largest e-retailer of books, CDs and DVDs. The Amazon’s web portal is user-friendly, enabling e-Shoppers to find books quickly by title, author or subject. Users can find their title in seconds from a few keywords. Synopses and contents lists are provided, along with a list of other relevant books.Amazon keeps a record of customers’ preferences and advises when new books likely to be of interest are published. During many years, Amazon is renowned for custom er service, security and fast delivery. However, in current business context, the company is loosing market share, though is still well-recognized leader in online industry. The company keeps heavily investing in its brand through aggressive online and offline marking, building appropriate brand awareness among its current and potential clients. References Amazon, Inc. (2004). Quarterly results, Available at < http://media. corporate-ir.net/media_files/irol/97/97664/reports/91338ACL. pdf> Amazon, Inc. (2005). Press release Q4 Financial Results, Available at < http://media. corporate-ir. net/media_files/irol/97/97664/news/Release_Q4_04. pdf> Retrieved June 5, 2006 Dennis C. , Fenech T. , Merrilees B. (2004). E-Retailing, Routledge, London Brynjolfsson E. and Urban G. (2001). Strategies for E-Business Success, Jossey-Bass Epstein M. (2004). Implementing E-Commerce Strategies: A Guide to Corporate Success after the Dot. Com Bust, Praeger Prior, M. (2001). â€Å"Amazon to Operate Borde rs. com. † DSN Retailing Today, May 1, 40(9): 6.