French speaking canadians Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

French speaking canadians - Research Paper Example Demographic Facts: French-speaking Canadians have different cultures, religious beliefs and cultures. These differences existed since the occupation of Canada by the French. Concerning first language, 59% of all Canadians confirm English as the preferred, with 23% reporting French, 2.9%, Chinese, 1.6% Italian, 1.5% German and 18% Other. This figure demonstrates a survey based on Canada's 2001 national census. Among ethnic minorities in Quebec, 6% of Quebecans are South Asian, 3% Black, 1.5% Aboriginal Indian. Quebec contains ten Native Indian tribes: Atikamekw, Crees, Hurons-Wendat, Maliseet, Micmacs, Mohawks, Innus, Inuits and Naskapis (Indian and Northern Affairs). They are counted as visible minorities. Based on the 2001 census, about one million Canadians and Canadian residents are Native Indians with approximately 100,000 dwelling in Quebec. Regarding religion, Quebec has a religious composition of 85% who profess Catholicism, 6% other Christian denomination, 1% Jewish, 1% Musli m and 6% no religion or Atheist (Stats and Facts).   Language Figures:   80% of Canadians agree that Canadian residents and citizens should have service available in the language of their choosing. The Centre for Research and Information on Canada (CRIC) reveals that a greater portion of the French-speaking minority are more open to learning English or another language than the English-speakers. 24.1% of Canada is French-speaking, while 74.5% are English-speaking. Among French speakers, 43.4% also know English well. On the other hand, only 9% of English-speaking Canadians have a command of French (Office of the Commissioner).   Political Situation The government system of Quebec is a pattern from the French, having a Parliament or Assemblee Nationale (National Assembly). Quebec established its own provincial government which makes laws, organizes, sets up institutions and manages several ministerial departments. The French Canadian government of Quebec elects its own Prime Min ister and assembles a Cabinet or Conseil Executif (Government of Canada Policy Research). Cabinet ministers are appointed to perform duties. Jean Charest is the current Prime Minister or Premier. Although granted powers of autonomy, the Quebec government is subject to the British North America Act signed in 1867 and updated to the Canada Act of 1982. The Bloc Quebecois (Quebec block) is the political party connected to Quebec and represents Quebec's interests before the Canadian Parliament General Assembly (Quebec Portal). This party is a minority, however it is an important voice for French-speaking Canadians to be recognized in a predominantly English country. Also, the Quebec block also has a vision to make Quebec an independent nation since it always sends a separate delegation to international political conferences ("Bloc Quebecois"). This independence voice which continues to lobby for Quebec sovereignty proves that English and French ties within Canada are tenuous and fragile .   Linguistic Overview Quebec put into effect the Charter of the French Language or La charte de la langue francaise which made French the official language and empowered French-speaking Canadians through this law with the right to speak their native tongue in business and social affairs. The conflict between French-speaking Canadians and English-speaking

Abortion Essay Example for Free

Abortion Essay There’s a lot of speculation going on right now about whether or not abortion is ethical. Many people believe that there should be laws against it, that it should be banned entirely. Thousands spend time protesting abortion, stating that it is a sin, and that it is the same as murdering a child. However, the majority of those who claim these things don’t have their facts quite right. When an abortion is performed, the fetus is in a very early stage of development. Most brain cells are not yet developed, and this means that the fetus cannot feel pain. The â€Å"silent screams† that those who oppose abortion often mention are nonexistent. Fetuses cannot scream, move, or feel at this point in the pregnancy. Additionally, aborting a fetus is certainly not the same as murdering a fully-developed, self-sufficient child. At this stage in a fetus’ development, it is entirely unable to survive outside of the woman’s womb. It is incapable of breathing as well as conscious thought. It is not yet a child, but merely a developing organism with the capability of becoming one. Abortion should be kept legal. While I do not think it should be used as a standard form of birth control, it definitely needs to remain an option. What if you found yourself pregnant after being a victim of rape? Just imagine trying to provide a quality life for a baby while you’re so young yourself, especially seeing as you aren’t pregnant as a result of your own decision, but because of some cruel person’s actions. Why should that child have to grow up to have a life in either a struggling one-parent household or an orphanage? If we get some of the facts out there, I believe that people might begin to see that abortion is really not such a sin. Maybe when others start to realize this, some of the laws in certain countries that do not allow abortion will be lifted. After all, is it not a terrible thing to have tons of children living their entire lives in poverty? Think about this for a second: what’s better, terminating an undeveloped, non-autonomous fetus, or watching a child slowly die due its young parent’s lack of income?

The Effect Of Increasing Mass On Acceleration Environmental Sciences Essay

The Effect Of Increasing Mass On Acceleration Environmental Sciences Essay Mass is a property of matter equal to the measure of an objects resistance to changes in either the speed or direction of its motion. The mass of an object is not dependent on gravity and therefore is different from but proportional to its weight. Speed is the time rate of change of position of a body without regard to direction. Linear speed is commonly measured in such units as meters per second, miles per hour, or feet per second. Velocity represents speed but according to the bodies direction. We can calculate from a distance time graph with dy/dx.    Acceleration describes the time rate the velocity is changing at. The relationship between acceleration and velocity is similar to the relationship between velocity and displacement. Acceleration is a vector quantity, so a = 0 for uniform velocity. The entity is thought to be uniformly accelerated if the constant of a is a non-zero. The average acceleration of an entity is defined as: Average acceleration = change in velocity / time taken In my investigation, I will aim to find the effect of increasing mass on acceleration. Method I will do this be setting up an apparatus which will measure the rate of acceleration. First, I will set up a height of 15cm and length of 227cm ramp. At this height, I do not have to apply a force to the trolley to accelerate the trolley because it will be able to slide down due to the force of gravity. This way, the force of gravity can be kept constant. Then, I will use a ticker machine and ticker tape to measure the rate of acceleration. I will stick the ticker tape into a trolley of 850g and let it fall. Each 10 mark on the ticker tape represents 0.2 seconds so I will cut the ticker tape in strips of 10 marks. By plotting the strips onto a graph, it would tell us the speed in which the trolley travelled. From this, we can calculate the acceleration of the trolley: Acceleration = final velocity initial velocity =   Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚  Ã‚ Ã¢â‚¬Å¾ v   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚     Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Time  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚     Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚     Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚     t I used a ticker machine to calculate the rate of acceleration because it would show the rate in which acceleration changes. If we just timed how long it takes for the trolley to reach the end of the trolley, it would only give us the average acceleration. It would not be possible to measure the change in acceleration. I chose 15cm height ramp because from our preliminary results we found the marks on the ticker tape appeared most clearly at this height. Previously, the height of the ramp was 43cm and it was too high of the marks to appear clearly and because of this, my results werent as accurate. The average angle of the ramp was 3.87  ÃƒÅ'Ã…  . I chose this angle because I found from preliminary results that if the angle is too high, the marks on the ticker tape would not print accurately. Before, the average angle was 10.7  ÃƒÅ'Ã…   and we found it difficult to read the ticker tape. I clamped the ramp in place because this way, the height of the ramp is less prone to change so its acceleration will only be affected by the mass of the trolley. This will make our results more accurate. I added 400g of mass each time because from preliminary tests, I found that the ranges of the results were too close to each other to see a correlation when we added 100g each time. So to make the results more clear to see if mass affects acceleration, I decided to add more weights. This way, there would be a greater difference in the results and it would be clearer to distinguish a correlation. I chose a trolley of 850g because the trolley was light weight and the wheels were fairly smooth. Because it was light weight it would be easier to add mass on and be less affected by friction. Because the wheels were smooth, the frictional force would be less. This will make our results more accurate. To keep my investigation fair, I will only change one factor- the trolleys mass. I will keep everything else the same such as the height of the ramp and the ramp itself because these factors would affect the results if theyre are not kept the same. Prediction I predict that the mass of the trolley will not affect the rate of acceleration. This is because according to Galileos laws of motion, all bodies accelerate at the same rate regardless of their size or mass. For example, the fact that a feather falls slower than a steel ball is due to amount of air resistance that a feather experiences (a lot) versus a steel ball (very little). Also according to Newtons second law, the acceleration and gravitational force of a body is directly proportional to each other. He adds to Galileos law of motion by saying everything falls at the rate of 9.8m/s. He calculates this by: (F=force, m=mass of Earth (), a=acceleration, r=radius of Earth, G=gravitational constant (6.7-10†¾Ãƒ ¡Ã‚ ¶Ã‚ ¥Ãƒ ¡Ã‚ ¶Ã‚ ¥ Nm ²/kg ²), g=gravitational force) If F=ma and F=gm ma=gm So you can cancel m to get a=g Factors which affects the rate of acceleration: Friction would affect the rate of acceleration because it increases the reluctant force by griping on the wheels and increasing the time it takes for the wheels to turn. Sometimes this can be good because it makes cars easier to manoeuvre. To show that friction affects the acceleration, we could carry out the same experiment, but instead of changing the mass, we would add different materials to the ramp. This would show us how surface area affects acceleration. The gradient in which the body is travelling would also affect the acceleration because some of the force would go into the other direction instead of going down so it experiences more drag. This would increase the time it takes for the body to fall. We can show this in our experiment by increasing the angle of the ramp instead of mass. The shape of the body will also affect its acceleration because the more wide it is the more air resistance/ drag it will have. Air resistance slows down an object because it opposes a force in the opposite direct to gravity, so the force of gravity is less. We can show this by changing the size of the surface area of the trolley but keeping mass the same. Results Average Acceleration From the graph, we can see that generally, as the mass increases, so does the acceleration. Theres a steep linear gradient from 850g-1650g, and acceleration increased by 4.82ms†¾Ã‚ ². Even though the actual results shows a decrease in acceleration between 1650g-2100 by 0.53 ms†¾Ã‚ ², the line of best fit tells us it is actually increasing. Overall, acceleration increased by 0.2m/s†¾Ã‚ ² every 100g that was added. Average Speed The average speed shows as the mass increased, so does its speed. There is a linear gradient between 850g-1250, and the speed increased by 1.7cm/s. From 250g-2050g, the speed decreases by 0.75cm/s. However, from 2050g-2450g, the speed increases again by 0.66cm/s. Overall, although it decreases, the line of best fit shows that it increases greatly from 850g-1250, then the line starts levelling out from 1250g-1450g. Accuracy Rating To measure the accuracy rating, we drew a gradient line from our initial speed to our final speed in each set of data. If our results were accurate, the line should correspond with our results since the speed of the trolley should have been fairly constant. To calculate this, we counted the squares the tape was above the drawn line or below it. This would give us an estimation of how precise our results were. The accuracy rating generally shows that as the mass increases, the level of accuracy also increases. This graph shows the higher the number of accuracy, the lower the level of accuracy. There is a huge fall in the number of accuracy rating between 850g-2050. It went from 38.67 to 29, a difference of 9.67. From 850g-2050g, the number of accuracy kept decreasing and overall, it decreased by 14.3. However, from 2050g-2450g, it increased by 2. This may be because as mass increases, the bigger the friction is on the wheels. The larger the friction the better the wheels can grip on the surface so travels more accurately and is less likely to skid. This tells us, the results of acceleration and speed for 850g is very likely to be an outlier because the level of accuracy is very low. Comparison: When we compare the results of the average acceleration to its speed, we can see its directly proportional because as the acceleration increased, so did the speed. This is because acceleration shows how speed changes. When we compare the level of accuracy to the acceleration and speed, it tells us the results for 850g is very likely to be anomalie and possibly 1250g as well. If that were true, the graphs would show that there is no connection an objects mass to its acceleration. This would prove Galileos law of motion and Newtons second law that the rate of acceleration is constant and is not affected by size or mass. However, our experiment does prove their theories are correct because our experiment shows that the less resultant forces oppose to gravity (more friction in this case), the faster the body accelerates and does not depend on its mass. Evaluation I believe my experiment went fairly well because I felt I could justify the reasons why I obtained these results and although I have some anomalies, most of the results were fairly accurate. However, there were some flaws in my experiment such as: I found it hard to set off the trolley at the same position on the ramp each time because it was not marked clearly. I did not wipe/grease the ramp after each experiment, doing this would have make the friction of the ramp more consistent When I plotted the strips of ticker tape on the graph, I did not line them accurately on the squares. This made some of my results inaccurate. Improvements To improve my experiment, I would have made the height of the ramp lower because it would experience more friction for the wheels to grip on. I would have also used trolleys with different masses but the same density. This way, drag/air resistance be more likely to be the same so there would only be one factor affecting the results. This would make out results more accurate. To obtained accurate results, we can perform this experiment in a vacuum. This is because in a vacuum, you would not experience any resultant force as you do in Earth so you could accurately calculate acceleration. However, we can only experience a vacuum in space. In earth, to decrease resultant forces, we can carry out this experiment in: Under water High altitude Air tight conditions

By referring closely to J B Priestley’s account of Bradford, explain :: English Literature

By referring closely to J B Priestley’s account of Bradford, explain what he considers gave the city its particular character at the time he was writing. J.B. Priestley, in his writing about Bradford, believes its character comes from, what might seem like, conflicting ideas. These ideas contribute to what Priestley calls Bradford’s odd quality. The character of Bradford, in 1933, when Priestley was writing, was made up of two extremes, provincialism and that of a cosmopolitan city. Provincialism remained in Bradford, firstly because the railway went to Leeds and not to Bradford and therefore the city didn’t get much new trade, such as any other manufacturing and/or greater educational opportunities. As this was not the case and the railway went to Leeds instead of Bradford, the main job type in Bradford was the woollen industry, as it had already been for generations. All over Bradford there would have been spinning mills where people were employed to work very long and unsociable hours for very little pay. Another reason why provincialism remained in Bradford was because the woollen profession was what the people were used to. For generations in Bradford the woollen trade is what the local residents have been accustomed to and they enjoyed it. In 1930s when I am talking about, the peasants in the outskirts of Bradford would commute into Bradford on the trams. This kind of Bradford (the woollen industry etc.) is all they know and understand about life. This style of living is all that comes naturally to them. I feel that the people who lived and worked here in Bradford became very insular; they did not look beyond their experience. This is what kept provincialism a reality in Bradford. There is a lot more about Bradford that I haven’t already explained, aside from provincialism! A contradicting view of Bradford, to the above, is that the city was very based around cosmopolitan ideas and mindsets. Some people never ventured further than twenty or thirty miles out of Bradford whereas, others would have travelled to, what would seem to regular Bradfordians, the end of the universe, selling and buying woollen produce. Although they had travelled the world, gained more understanding and become more intelligent, when they returned to Market Street, Bradfordians would never have changed as, say Londoners would have. They still remained their same selves. When you met someone from Bradford you would think they had only travelled as far as York or Morecambe, but in actual fact they might have been to By referring closely to J B Priestley’s account of Bradford, explain :: English Literature By referring closely to J B Priestley’s account of Bradford, explain what he considers gave the city its particular character at the time he was writing. J.B. Priestley, in his writing about Bradford, believes its character comes from, what might seem like, conflicting ideas. These ideas contribute to what Priestley calls Bradford’s odd quality. The character of Bradford, in 1933, when Priestley was writing, was made up of two extremes, provincialism and that of a cosmopolitan city. Provincialism remained in Bradford, firstly because the railway went to Leeds and not to Bradford and therefore the city didn’t get much new trade, such as any other manufacturing and/or greater educational opportunities. As this was not the case and the railway went to Leeds instead of Bradford, the main job type in Bradford was the woollen industry, as it had already been for generations. All over Bradford there would have been spinning mills where people were employed to work very long and unsociable hours for very little pay. Another reason why provincialism remained in Bradford was because the woollen profession was what the people were used to. For generations in Bradford the woollen trade is what the local residents have been accustomed to and they enjoyed it. In 1930s when I am talking about, the peasants in the outskirts of Bradford would commute into Bradford on the trams. This kind of Bradford (the woollen industry etc.) is all they know and understand about life. This style of living is all that comes naturally to them. I feel that the people who lived and worked here in Bradford became very insular; they did not look beyond their experience. This is what kept provincialism a reality in Bradford. There is a lot more about Bradford that I haven’t already explained, aside from provincialism! A contradicting view of Bradford, to the above, is that the city was very based around cosmopolitan ideas and mindsets. Some people never ventured further than twenty or thirty miles out of Bradford whereas, others would have travelled to, what would seem to regular Bradfordians, the end of the universe, selling and buying woollen produce. Although they had travelled the world, gained more understanding and become more intelligent, when they returned to Market Street, Bradfordians would never have changed as, say Londoners would have. They still remained their same selves. When you met someone from Bradford you would think they had only travelled as far as York or Morecambe, but in actual fact they might have been to

Challenges in Managing Innovation Across Supply Chains â€Evaluation and Implementation

[pic] Business Major-Minor Supply Chain Management Course Assignment Challenges in Managing Innovation across Supply Chains —Evaluation and Implementation Student: Ying Deng Student ID:1205690 Course Number: 07 14511 Teacher: Professor Dr Victoria Hanna Date: 10/01/2013 Acknowledgement This research paper is written for the subject: â€Å"Global Marketing† in the University of Birmingham. Firstly, we would like to thanks Almighty Lord to give us knowledge and keep us healthy during the whole period of our research work.Secondly, we are greatly indebted to our lecturer and advisor-Professor David Walker for his valued opinions and expert advice in the preparation of this thesis. Thirdly, we would like to express our appreciation to the convenient internet that greatly helped us to find whatever information that we needed. Finally, we want to express our gratitude to the Fujifilm Corporation for its kind assistance and support throughout the writing progress of this thesi s.We have also managed to collect some important information from the relative journals and books. All group members of the assignment University of Birmingham, April 2012 Table of contents Acknowledgement Abstract Importance of supply chain innovation Innovation and its source and types Challenge of innovation management—evaluation of innovation Effect of buyer-supplier power relations Example cases of success and failureChallenge of innovation management—implementation of innovation Implementation’s detailed challenges in different types of industry—service and physical goods Implementation’s detailed challenges in different types of industry—emerging and mature industries More challenges in innovation management REFERENCES Abstract Title of course: Supply Chain Management Program: Various. Authors: Ying Deng Supervisor: Dr Victoria Hanna Date: Sep 2012 to Dec 2012 Background: The complexity and scale of any firm’s supply chain has made the management of supply chain innovation difficult and full of uncertainty.However the fast developing market requires the supply chain to innovate as fast and efficient as possible. There are amounts of successful and failed cases of innovations across supply chain from the last centuries, yet it is a big challenge to successfully manage the innovations. Purpose: The purpose of the thesis is to investigate what Fujifilm did and is doing to develop in the global circumstance and with all the internal and external factors’ impacts, also what it probably will or should do in the future to maintain its current status and to improve.Conclusion: After evaluating Fujifilm’s history and current situation along with its recent marketing feedback data, also referring to abundant marketing theories and books, we will suggest Fujifilm to take various acts and strategies to remain competitive and maintain & increase its market share. Keywords: Supple chain, Innovation, Manag ement, Evaluation, Risk, Implementation, Buyer-supplier power, Product life cycle, Pre- and Post-contractual, service and physical goods, emerging and mature industriesThe â€Å"18 months law† (Gorden E, Moore, 1965) had suggested and been proved that the electronic market doubles its product’s function while halves its prices. The other industries, while maybe slower than the electronics but similarly fast changing, suggests, that the businesses innovate in every possible aspects within and related to themselves, to fit into the fast pace of today’s dynamic world with the information explosion, to catch up with the increasing globalization, savage price competition, increased customer demand for enhanced quality and reliability.Studies and experiences show that R&D spending is strongly positively associated with the probability of introducing a new product, and most of the businesses are willing to invest in the R&D activities to create the internal innovations (BRDIS data, NSF 11-300). However, apart from the internal R&D, the innovation can also be gained both from the supply chain itself such as by re-organizing resources or enhancing distribution systems, and the other ends across the supply chain, such as improvement from end-users’ feedback. One of the well-known examples is P&G's Continuous Replenishment Planning (CRP).The company Proctor & Gamble changed the entire value chain by driving orders based on DC withdrawal and sales data that successfully improved its service and reduced costs across the supply channel (Roger C. Vergin, & Kevin Barr, 1999). The direct customer input derives innovation, such as the overall product concept, and the timing of the launch to packaging and delivery (Kevin O'Marah, 2005). Other typical examples including innovations caused by improved assembly line such as the Ford Company in the early 1910s, and advanced technologies and processes such as the enhanced Ocean shipping container by Malcom Mclean in the 1956, etc.According to Porter’s five forces theory, the business is affected by its suppliers, customers, new enchants and new substitutes (Micheal E, Porter, 1979). Supply chain as it stands for, is usually regarded as the flow of resources and products from the supplier, through the firm, to the customers. Supply chain links the supplier, the business and the end-users (customers), as one of its key natures. The other features include its complexity caused by the fact that businesses’ product manufacturing or service providing usually involves more than one supplier and customer.These facts lead to the high possibility of innovations from the supply chain. Not only has the physical goods’ flow in the supply provided opportunities of innovation, but also the information flow from the opposite direction of the physical goods. The sources of innovation are mainly concluded as â€Å"push† and â€Å"pull† (Clegg, Juliana & Pilkington, 2 011). The â€Å"push† stands for technological opportunities that breed the innovation. The â€Å"pull† stands for market needs that urge for innovation. Also, there are more than the two sources, such as regulation change, users’ feedback, staff, etc.Innovation across supply chain can be from both to the â€Å"pull† and â€Å"push† fact just as the examples of Ford and P&G respectively. As stated above, the vast source of innovation of supply chain and from the supply chain provides a great pool of ideas and potential. However, accordingly, the variety also raises the problem of whether a specific innovation actually suits the business and the industry, and whether it can actually fulfill the aim of innovation—to make the profit rise, to satisfy stakeholder’s interests better by changes such as reduced cost or added value.The scale of supply chain raises the uncertainty of an innovation. This brings us to the discussion of challenges in managing innovation. How to evaluate the suitability of a supply chain innovation to an firm? Will there be any potential constraints to the innovation in the supply chain? How to deal with the timing issue of the evaluation? Will this innovation be risky in any part of the supply chain, from the supplier to the customer? Innovation can mainly be sorted into four types: Product, Process, Position, and Paradigm (4P’s).Whichever it is sorted into, innovation can be defined as a new idea, or the recombination of old ideas, or a scheme than challenges present order, or a formula, or a unique approach (Van de Ven, 1986:591). Most examples of the simple innovation are R&D departments’ new product design. This type of innovation are usually based on careful market research, built after detailed study of profitability and potential risk, released into the market after thorough limited-scoop test and trial. model) During all this process, the staff of the firm can gain full understanding of the design, and the design can be changed at any stage of the process to fit into the firm’s expectations and the market’s current trends. Also, as this type of innovation origins within the firm, the main timing issue of it will lay on the dynamic need and technology of the external market environment, while the consideration of competitors’ imitation/substitute can be comparatively lower as all the details could be kept in house or by patenting.On the other hand, innovations from the supply chain could be different. As the innovation can lay in any part of the supply chain, such as a enhanced information exchange system, or the distribution system’s transformation, the innovation will need thorough evaluation process to decide its suitability, such as the Farbey et al. (1993) and  Farbey & Finkelstein (2000) IS implementation’s evaluation framework. The effect of the innovation might not fit into the firm’s market envir onment and its current situation’s strategy.One of the most important aspects of the supply chain management is to study the buyer-supplier power relation, to reduce cost and increase value of the supply chain. Innovations across the supply chain, whether it is an information update or system reform or use of new technology, they can influence the power relation of the supply chain, desirably or undesirably. Positive changes to the power relation can help the firm gain a favorable position in or after the process of purchase/signing of contract.Taking the consideration of buyer-supplier power shift before an innovation is adopted is vital to the success of its implementation. The power relations, affected by information, scarcity and utility, can actually decide the profitability of the production and risk distribution between the firm itself and its suppliers & buyers. If the innovation to the supply chain lowers the liability to specific supply of materials, for example, th en the firm’s buyer power towards its supplier increases, with a possibility to bargain for lower prices on the materials.If, however, the liability is increased by the innovation, the supplier’s power increases, giving them the power to increase the selling price. The innovations, bringing changes to the current buyer-supplier relations, have the risk of lowering the buyer/supplier power of the firm, hence putting the firm in a unfavorable position in the supply chain, with the consequence of new or increased cost paid to suppliers, or reduced price to the buyers. It may also cause a decline in quality or efficiency as a series consequence.The wrong evaluation of the changes an innovation can bring to the supply chain and its buyer-supplier relations can be disastrous. Let us have a look at the Aris Isotoner’s 1994 sourcing calamity case. Trying to lower the cost, the executive of the company replaced the in-house production with outsourcing from suppliers in o ther Asian locales. However, this approach did not reduce the cost but raised it around 10-20%. Also, the responding speed was found slower, and the quality of the product was plummeted.As a series result, the company’s sales halved, causing more than $100 million loss and long lasting effects that required more investing to maintain the company. The Aris case is a clear example of how important it is to accurately evaluate the suitability and risk level of an innovation. The idea of outsourcing needs to be considered together with the current difference between in-house production and buying from suppliers. Not only the cost need to be considered, but also the quality of the product, and the speed of product supply.Taking it a little further, the communication process with the supplier can incur unexpected costs, for example, the lawyer fee. The matter of unemployment to the old plant’s employees could possibly cause HR problems that need time and effort to solve. The financial situation of the company may go through cash flow issues since the purchase of product can be much more expensive than raw materials. If the case is the other way around, that a company wants to bring the components’ production in-house, there can be multiple considerations, too.Apart from the problem of cost, location and quality, there can be human resource (suitable staff for the new plant, for example) and technology problems. As the production technology is comparatively new to the firm’s staff, it could be difficult to build up efficiency with the same cost at the beginning. Before an innovation to the supply chain is brought into practice, it is crucial to consider every possible impact that this innovation can have. Based on the scale of even the tiniest company, this could be difficult not to miss any aspect.In fact, supply chain innovation is more than difficult to go over restricted-scale test as there are actually no samples of supply chain. Eith er put the innovation into practice to observe the result after a while, or â€Å"simulate† it in imaginary models that cannot be perfectly detailed and has considerable mistake rates. Even if the suitability and risk level of an innovation can be accessed, can the response of the whole supply chain be quick enough and accurate enough? Will the integration of changed resources, information, the staff’s thinking and supplier updating be in time?Will there be â€Å"distortions† within the communication between the ends of supply chain? Is there any demand or idea conflict in the different fraction of the supply chain? These can all be the challenges that an innovation in the supply chain can meet. Also because of the innovation across the supply chain can hardly be kept in house, the firm’s competitors can get access to the ideas and the two firms may enter the situation that whichever introduces the new idea into the market first gains more advantage.Thus the innovation from the supply chain might end up as low or even no profit after evaluation, adoption, development and testing. This brings us to the challenge of proper implementation method and speed of the innovation. Based on different types of the supply chain, natures of different industries and the different environment of the market, the concerns and priorities of the implementation can actually be completely different. We will look into the difference between service and physical goods supply chain, and the difference between mature and emerging industries’ supply chain in the following paragraphs.All the challenges mentioned above can be seen in both service supply chains and physical good’s supply chains. These two types of supply chains share many same challenges, such as cost management, resource allocation, etc. They both need to be more dispersed, digitized and dynamic to catch up with the market trends. Unless the physical goods industry can successfull y digest the brought-innovation to gain its own patents, the two types of industries will both face the challenge of competitors’ imitation and timing.They will have differences of challenges, such as () but the major ones are usually the same as mentioned above. However, their priorities could be totally different. Though the service and physical goods supply chains face the same challenges mentioned above, there are some major differences between these two types of supply chain innovation. The difference is not shown by challenge’s types, but by the importance or significance of the same challenge.For example, service supply chain face the challenge of updating their staff’s knowledge of the new innovation as human resource is vital to the business and they actually face more intangible innovation than tangible ones, while physical goods supply chains might need to focus more on updating the plants and materials to follow up the new innovation’s require ments. Service, as an intangible product, focus its value more on technologies, techniques and human resource that accomplishes the service, and customer interaction level is generally higher.This implements that the service industry will focus more on intangible equities than tangible ones. When an innovation is in operation, for example, a new set of service, the service supply chain may suffer huge losses if its human resource and technology cannot follow the change, which may even lead to complete failure on the innovation. Also, the tight relation between service and customer participation requires the supply chain to be highly agile (Narasimhan, et al, 2006) to deal with changing demands.On the other hand, the physical goods supply chains are less strained to keep their staff on the trend. After evaluation of innovation, they are more affected by the problems related to physical production, such as material’s moving, location, distribution, etc. In emerging markets and mature ones, there can be difference of priorities to manage challenges, too. See it from the product life cycle theory (PLC), the mature markets’ products have stabilized consumer base, and the strategy of the firm is set and focused.The mature industries tend to have more incremental innovations either on process or on the product, thus they might need more time to evaluate the innovation based on existing products, and the consideration of cost and stuff/culture conversion. The strategies such as cost leadership, focus strategy, or differentiation give specific demand of innovation—lower the cost, or quicker delivery, or advanced function, etc. The human resource is well equipped with needed knowledge and technique, whereas the thinking of staff is harder to change.The priority of innovation management could be stabilizing, maintaining, improving, thus call for incremental innovation. The challenges are featured as trying not to affect existing value creation activi ties. Opposite to it, the emerging industries are going through fast growth, and demands radical innovation that has the potential to largely increase revenue or significantly reduce cost. The emerging industries have more possibility to encounter major breakthroughs and the radical innovations. There may be tense competition for market share. The market is unstable and the corporate strategies could change every day to follow market trends.Based on the emerging market, the supply chain’s innovations need to be fast responding and competency-building. The difference of innovation’s requirements can result in different evaluation standards and different methods to carry out the innovations. What’s more, we can see from the buy-supplier relation perspective. The emerging industries’ supply chain may hold more possibilities of communicating with new suppliers for new resources, so there need to be thorough consideration of the pre-contractual power relations . Wrong estimation of power relations may cause unnecessary costs.This requires more work on cost management and balancing benefits between different parties. In some of the cases, emerging industries face less competition, so the challenge of timing could be minor, but a few other cases mainly on service industries show that the emerging business could face even more severe competition and their profitability can vary significantly according to the introduction time. The suitability of innovation could be even harder to decide, because they will need to evaluate by speculation instead of looking for existing experience.They can consider less on the culture/staff conversion, though, as the thinking mode has not been set up yet. While for mature industries the existing pre-contractual relations are relatively stable because the information and resource of the buyer and supplier, no matter whether they are new entrants or existing firms, will actually be more stable. They will need to consider post-contractual power relations carefully, though, when the supply chain innovations are related to the replacement of suppliers. The transaction cost economy (TCE) shows that any changes to existing contracts can raise uncertainty hence raise risk to the supply chain.Based on individual industries’ difference, the challenges of managing innovation across the supply chain can be different in importance, significance and difficulty to settle. The nature of the industry, for example, whether it is national or international business, determines the priorities of challenge management. This is more specific to the individual differences, and requires experience and thorough research and careful design to successfully manage the innovations. The above mentioned challenges of evaluation and implementation are just two aspects of the challenges that innovation across the supply chain might encounter.There are also other challenges, such as managing conflicting requirements between the innovation’s development and the existing system, managing long term human resource and culture in relation to the innovation, developing the proper strategy to achieve win-win situation with the new innovation, etc. The last two mentioned above link to the features of the supply chain—more than one party is involved. The difference of staff and culture between the source party of innovation and the receiver party of it leads to the need of change in minds for the new innovation.The fact of involvement of the multiple parties leads to the possibility of win-win situation. However, this possibility could be a challenge because this could be a scenario of the game theory. Innovations can be the source of huge breakthrough and greater success to a firm’s supply chain. It can also be the source to risk and failure of the firm. Managing the challenges of supply chain innovation, though it is complex and require great efforts, can reduce the risks of the innovation. References: Watson, G. and Lonsdale, C. (eds. ) (2003) Managing the Supply Base within Business Networks, chapter 4Allwright, A. and Oliver, R. (1993) Buying Goods and Services, chapters 12-14 R Verma and K K Boyer, (2010) Operations and Supply Chain Management: World Class Theory and Practice, South-Western Dong Won Cho, Young Hae Lee, Sung Hwa Ahn, Min Kyu Hwang, (2012)A framework for measuring the performance of service supply chain management, Soft Computing for Management Systems, 62(3), Pages 801–818 A. J. van Weele, (2010) â€Å"Purchasing & supply chain management: analysis, strategy, planning and practice† 5th edition, Andover: Cengage Learning,Evangelista Pietro, Alan McKinnon, Edward Sweeney and Emilio Esposito, (2013)†Supply Chain Innovation for Competing in Highly Dynamic Markets: Challenges and Solutions. † IGI Global, 2012, 1-350. Web: 3-32 Alessandro Brun, Maria Caridi, Assessing Improvement Opportunities and Risks of Supply Chai n Transformation Projects (ed. ), (2008) â€Å"Supply Chain†[online], available from: INTECH, http://www. intechopen. com/books/supply_chain/assessing_improvement_opportunities_and_risks_of_supply_chain_transformation_projects (02/01/2013) Debra Hofman, Stan Aronow, 21 May 2012, The Gartner Supply Chain Top 25 for 2012 [online], http://www. artner. com/id=2021615#t-N70737 (05/01/2013) Jan 2006, The 11 greatest supply chain disasters [online], available from: Supply Chain Digest, http://www2. isye. gatech. edu/~jjb/wh/tidbits/top-sc-disasters. pdf (29/12/2012) Jackson, R. , (1995) An Empirical investigation of the differences in goods and services as perceived by organizational buyers, Industrial Marketing Management, 24 (2), pp. 99-108 Andrew Cox, Paul Ireland, Chris Lonsdale, Joe Sanderson and Glyn Watson, (2004) â€Å"Supply Chains, Markets and Power—Mapping buyer and supplier power regimes† [online], Taylor & Francis e-Library, available from: Google books, h ttp://books. oogle. co. uk/books? hl=zh-CN&lr=&id=HYBP9GsLpw8C&oi=fnd&pg=PP1&dq=buyer+supplier+power&ots=MmcU_1fXwW&sig=VwMwnViasijZHb5CNSVb53Rrlw4&redir_esc=y#v=onepage&q=buyer%20supplier%20power&f=false (23/12/2012) Marjolein C. J. Caniels, Cees J. Gelderman,(2007) â€Å"Power and interdependence in buyer supplier relationships: A purchasing portfolio approach†, Industrial Marketing Management, Volume 36, Issue 2, Pages 219-229, ISSN 0019-8501, 10. 1016/j. indmarman. 2005. 08. 012. http://www. sciencedirect. com/science/article/pii/S001985010500132X) (28/12/2012) J M Tuazon, (2011)†The top three reasons supply chain transformations fail† [online], available from: enterprise innovation, http://enterpriseinnovation. net/whitepaper/top-three-reasons-supply-chain-transformations-fail (31/12/2012) â€Å"Procter & Gamble: Finding the Right Business Model† [Online], available from: https://dspace. ist. utl. pt/bitstream/2295/141516/1/AOSI-2007-CASOH. pdf (26/12/ 2012)

Christmas Day Essay

Speak about one of the holidays celebrated in Great Britain/Moldova Every country and every nation has own traditions and customs. It’s very important to know traditions and customs of other countries. It helps to know more about the history and line of different nations. English are proud of their traditions and carefully keep them up. As I know all English people celebrate Christmas on the 25th of December. It’s the season of good will. It’s the most beautiful time of the year – the time of love, joy and hopes. Is remarkable that children of Great Britain still believe in Father Christmas and write letters to him. Christmas Day is a family holiday. All the people look forward to it, expecting something special. The Christmas trees is the mark of British people. The trees are decorated with candies, cookies and bulbs and are taken down only twelve days after Christmas. After preparation of the Christmas fir-tree British start preparing a festive table. The table seems extremely tempting and is gorgeously decorated with fruits and candles. It is necessary that the Christmas pudding contained thirteen ingredients, of which, one is for Jesus and the rest for the twelve disciples. A silver coin is dropped in the pudding mix which is meant to bring prosperity and good luck to the family. Turkey, served with cranberry sauce, and potatoes are the centre of attraction of the entire feast. After a heavy meal, all members of the family watch the customary Christmas special speech by the British Monarch. In the evening, people pay visits to their relatives around Britain. Certain churches have services in which every child is given a candle wrapped in a red ribbon. These candles represent Jesus Christ and the red ribbons symbolize the blood of Jesus and the God’s love for the entire world.

Simultaneous and Simultaneously

Simultaneous and Simultaneously Simultaneous and Simultaneously Simultaneous and Simultaneously By Maeve Maddox The following sentence on a professional writing site caught my attention: Simultaneous people (e.g. the editor and writer) can work on the same document at the same time, ensuring changes aren’t lost in old, misplaced drafts. I have seen nonprofessional writers use the phrase â€Å"simultaneous people† in the context of computer use, as in this exchange between a customer and a service provider: Question: How many simultaneous people can be logged in on my account? Answer: Only one person can be logged in on a computer per account.   If you log in on a computer and are already logged in elsewhere, you will be logged out of your older session. For other devices such as Roku, iPad and iPhone, 3 people can be logged in simultaneously.   Note the use of the adverb simultaneously in the answer to describe a situation that includes multiple users. The principal definition of the adjective simultaneous is â€Å"existing, happening, occurring, operating, etc., at the same time.† I suppose that in one sense we are all â€Å"simultaneous people† because we are all living our lives on the planet at the same time. In most contexts, however, simultaneous usually applies to things or events, whereas people do things simultaneously. Here are some conventional uses of the adjective: In 1964, roughly nine of ten Japanese watched the final match and felt a collective joy in the moment of victory. This simultaneous emotion created a strong feeling of community among them. In 10 years there was a fall in the marriage-rate and a  simultaneous  fall in the value of exported British produce. Id say the scratch  was simultaneous  with the punch.   Before the Rebels threw a monkey wrench into the Empires plans, how many simultaneous Death Stars were envisioned by the Empire? An event at which a chess master plays games with multiple players at the same time is called a â€Å"simultaneous exhibition† or â€Å"simultaneous display.† A â€Å"simultaneous equation† is â€Å"an equation involving two or more unknowns that are to have the same values in each equation.† In the context of oral translation, simultaneous is used to describe human beings who translate from one language into another as a speaker utters it. One of the key skills of the  simultaneous interpreter  is decisiveness. Simultaneous interpreters must have not only complete mastery of the languages, but also of their cultures. A Google search suggests that even in this profession, it’s more common to refer to the act of translation rather than to the translator as being simultaneous: simultaneous interpretation: 434,000 results simultaneous interpreting: 361,000 results simultaneous interpreters: 161,000 Note: The phrase â€Å"simultaneous people tracking† racks up about 19,000,000 results when searched without quotation marks. A phrase associated with robotics, it doesn’t refer to â€Å"spontaneous people,† but to â€Å"spontaneous people-tracking.† The phrase has to do with the fact that a robot must be programmed to avoid human obstacles as it moves about. Here is a suggested revision of the sentence that prompted this post: Editors and writers can work on the same document simultaneously, ensuring that changes aren’t lost in old, misplaced drafts. Want to improve your English in five minutes a day? Get a subscription and start receiving our writing tips and exercises daily! Keep learning! Browse the Misused Words category, check our popular posts, or choose a related post below:7 Examples of Passive Voice (And How To Fix Them)"Have" vs "Having" in Certain Expressions10 Tips About How to Write a Caption

Free Essays on Tip ONeill

Tip O’Neill and the Democratic Century By: John A. Farrell â€Å"Tip O’Neill: And the Democratic Century,† is more then the definitive biography of a flawed but startlingly successful old-fashioned political leader. It’s also a guided tour through American governmental history from the beginning of the New Deal through the Reagan years, featuring the struggle between two larger-than-life political champions and their ideologies- Ronald Reagan and the Old Conservatism against Tip O’Neill and the New Deal liberalism. It was a battle over the nation’s political soul. Tip O’Neill came from a neighborhood of Irish immigrants in North Cambridge, Massachusetts. His father was a leader in the local Democratic Party machine and instructed his son in the ways of precinct captains, organization politics, and patronage jobs. In 1948 Tip became the first Irish American, the first Roman Catholic, and the first Democratic Speaker of the Massachusetts House of Representatives. He served in Congress from 1953 through 1989 and saw some of the greatest moments of post-World War II American politics and the ride and decline of Democratic politics. By 1952 he had arrived in Washington, in the beginning of his civil rights struggles. O’Neill has a complex relationship with the Kennedy’s and split with Lyndon Johnson over the Vietnam War. It was Tip who bridged the Gulf between the old and the new wings of the Democratic Party during the Vietnam era, Watergate, and the post-Watergate reforms. He was elected Speaker of the House in 1977 but watched his party crumble during the Jimmy Carter years and Reagan Revolution.... Free Essays on Tip O'Neill Free Essays on Tip O'Neill Tip O’Neill and the Democratic Century By: John A. Farrell â€Å"Tip O’Neill: And the Democratic Century,† is more then the definitive biography of a flawed but startlingly successful old-fashioned political leader. It’s also a guided tour through American governmental history from the beginning of the New Deal through the Reagan years, featuring the struggle between two larger-than-life political champions and their ideologies- Ronald Reagan and the Old Conservatism against Tip O’Neill and the New Deal liberalism. It was a battle over the nation’s political soul. Tip O’Neill came from a neighborhood of Irish immigrants in North Cambridge, Massachusetts. His father was a leader in the local Democratic Party machine and instructed his son in the ways of precinct captains, organization politics, and patronage jobs. In 1948 Tip became the first Irish American, the first Roman Catholic, and the first Democratic Speaker of the Massachusetts House of Representatives. He served in Congress from 1953 through 1989 and saw some of the greatest moments of post-World War II American politics and the ride and decline of Democratic politics. By 1952 he had arrived in Washington, in the beginning of his civil rights struggles. O’Neill has a complex relationship with the Kennedy’s and split with Lyndon Johnson over the Vietnam War. It was Tip who bridged the Gulf between the old and the new wings of the Democratic Party during the Vietnam era, Watergate, and the post-Watergate reforms. He was elected Speaker of the House in 1977 but watched his party crumble during the Jimmy Carter years and Reagan Revolution....

Edge cities Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Edge cities - Essay Example The developer is able to make considerations on what they would want for the city and using this, they are able to choose a strategic location for the city. They developer can choose a location that will be close to the resources needed by the city or even a location that is close to the developer’s target market. A location can reduce the costs of raw materials, transportation costs and costs of delivering products to the market place. The edge city can also be located to close to social service points. Edge city developers are also able to provide proper and efficient social services and supplies such as water, electricity and medical services. In historic cities, the quality of social services is determined by the other factors such as finances, population size and geographical size. Edge cities enjoy the benefit of better planning over historic cities. This is because the developers plan for the expected population size in the edge city. When the population is determined the city planners are able to optimally determine the infrastructure needed and the layout of the various structures in the edge city. Historic cities chronically suffer from social-fiscal problems such as poverty and crime and capacity problems such as congestion. Another advantage of edge cities over historic cities is that they have flexibility in terms of redevelopment and restructuring. Since the developer has control over the layout and operations in the city, they can change the layout of the city so that it meets the desired objective. This would only need enough finances and it is done. Historic cities are quite inflexible as redeveloping them would require a lot huge amounts of funds for compensating owners of different structures as well as lots of documentation on policy and legislation. When edge city developers are choosing the location and capacity for their mega-projects, they have to make several

Legalization of Marijuana Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Legalization of Marijuana - Research Paper Example The same way, if people were able to look past the intoxicating nature of marijuana that leads to its abuse, they would be able to find several positive characteristics of this substance, which can be used to the advantage of several causes. These characteristics are plentiful, and thus reinforce the idea that marijuana should be legalized. One very well known medical use of marijuana is in the treatment and control of glaucoma (ProCon.org, 2011). This disease affects several people every year. The main symptom is intraocular pressure in the eye, which is an elevated pressure, which causes nerve damage and impairs the vision of the patient, sometimes to the extent of blindness. While marijuana is not always helpful in curing this disease, it has an active ingredient THC, which helps reduce the intraocular pressure in the eye. This does not cure the patient’s glaucoma completely. However, it does prevent some of the irreparable nerve damage that glaucoma causes, and decelerates the rate of blindness onset for the patient (Jacob, pp. 75-120). Experts (Jacob, pp. 75-120) often criticize this use of marijuana as a glaucoma treatment due to two reasons. First, they object to employing a psychoactive substance for medicinal purposes, because it has several disadvantages and side effects such as addictiveness and intoxication. However, it is important to note that the alleviation of the symptom of such a disease make the side effects seem small in comparison to the greater benefit that it provides the patients. The second reason why the use of marijuana is criticized is that it does not actually cure the patient’s glaucoma, but only delays the onset of the severe symptoms (Jacob, pp. 75-120). That is, there is no real cure attached with this treatment; it only controls them enough to cause a delay in the patient becoming blind or incurring nerve damage. Again, it is important to note to view the situation from the patient’s perspective, who would welcome any delay in the onset of such impairing symptoms. Thus, this should provide some grounds for the consideration of the legalization of marijuana. Apart from this, an even greater medicinal use for marijuana is as a painkiller. The University of California conducted several studies (California Secretary of State, 2010), which concluded that marijuana could be a very effective painkiller for patients suffering diseases like cancer, HIV, and multiple sclerosis (Doheny, pp. 1-3). Cancer patients in the final stages of cancer experience high levels of pain to which ordinary painkillers are highly ineffective, leading to a high level of suffering for these dying patients. Marijuana, besides its infamous reputation as a highly abused psychoactive substance, is also a very effective painkiller, which can greatly help decrease the pain of such patients (Messerli, pp. 1). However, it does not receive the due importance in this area due to its controversial nature. Furthermore, studies have confirmed its effectiveness as a painkiller for people suffering from spinal cord injuries and multiple sclerosis. All these conditions cause extreme pain to the patient, and hardly any of the painkillers administered to them are effective enough to alleviate the pain. Therefore, the government should consider the use of

Comparison of the Economic Ideas of GDP Growth Essay

Comparison of the Economic Ideas of GDP Growth - Essay Example 27). The human development idea of the UNDP emphasises some factors like education, life expectancy, gross national income and other issues that are standardised in the three main factors as a measure of people’s capability. The idea is that those who have a long life, have attained high education in a country that has high gross national income are likely to be very productive. This is because these people will be able to choose different economic activities that can bring income for their own as well as contribute to the economy of their country. On the other hand, it implies that if a person lives a short life, have low education attainment in a country that has low gross national income he or she is likely to be very unproductive. This is because they will contribute to very little benefit to the country in which they live since they have very few choices to make in the pool of economic activities available to all people. The human development idea of the UNDP emphasises t he importance of both resources and capability to exploit them so that they can increase the income or benefit to the people and consequently impact the national economy. According this idea, availability of resources without capability to exploit them has no advantage to the people who have them (United Nations Development Programme, 2000, p. 12). The neoclassical view of utility is an idea that presents a different perspective into the explanation of development or the economic growth of individuals and consequently that of the country. The idea of the neoclassical view of utility explains that people’s preferences are important in determining the things they can do in the economy to increase their individual income and consequently that of the country. This means that a...This essay presents one of the best examples of theoretical comparison of three most common ideas of economic scholars on the growth and development of economy. For the UNDP’s human development, ca pability is important to enhance economic growth, to the neoclassical view of utility, what people choose to do is important and according to the macroeconomic idea of constant growth, the economic performance of the wider economy is key in determining growth in an individual or institution. The UNDP idea of human development as a determinant for growth of economy explains that management of abilities of the people is important because it influences their involvement in economic activities. Economic growth happens in situations where people have wide areas for making choices. The neoclassical view of utility is an idea that presents a different perspective into the explanation of development or the economic growth of individuals and consequently that of the country. The idea of the neoclassical view of utility explains that people’s preferences are important in determining the things they can do in the economy to increase their individual income and consequently that of the country. The macroeconomic idea of constant growth of GDP is an important way of explaining the development of a country or an individual. This idea focuses on the performance of the larger economy as a factor in determining the growth of individuals. The economic growth therefore is not dependent on the opportunities’ availability or an utilities.

Advantage and Disadvantage of Electrical Pre-fabricated cable Dissertation

Advantage and Disadvantage of Electrical Pre-fabricated cable - Dissertation Example Regardless of mixed reactions, it has been known for long periods of time that the preassembled electrical components have several benefits and problems. This research paper has, therefore, identified both the advantages and disadvantages of employing pre-fabricated electrical cables and other electrical components in electrical installation. The research paper has also explored the impacts of prefabrication technology on electrical installation and construction industry at large. In addition to identifying the advantages and disadvantages of employing pre-fabricated electrical cables, research paper has investigated the current trends in the use of prefabrication technology. The paper has also discussed how the prefabricated electrical cables are applied or used in the construction and electrical installation industry. In order to achieve its objectives, the research involved both secondary and primary data. With the regard to primary data, qualitative research was carried to gather the perceptions of public (particularly those who have some on knowledge on prefabricated and on-site fabricated electrical cables) and contractors regarding the advantages and disadvantages prefabricated electrical cables. In this case, a number of electricians and contractors were interviewed in the quantitative research part of the dissertation. In the case of the secondary data, qualitative research was carried out on the organizations that produce (manufacture) these prefabricated electrical cables. ... ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS I take this opportunity to acknowledge with great thanks the contributions that have been made towards the completion of this research by my Supervisor. I further take this precious time to acknowledge the contribution made by friends, classmates and family members towards the contribution made towards the completion of this project (dissertation). TABLE OF CONTENTS 1.INTRODUCTION 8 1.2 Research Aims and Objectives 9 1.3 Research problem statement 9 2.LITERATURE REVIEW 10 2.1 Description of Terms and Expressions 10 2.1.1 Prefabrication 11 2.1.2 Modularization 11 2.1.3 Preassembly 12 2.1.4 Industrialization 12 2.1.5 Prework methods of manufacturing 13 2.1.4 Advantages of prework methods of manufacturing 13 2.1.4 Disadvantages of pre-work methods of manufacturing 15 2.2 Trends and historical development of Prefabrication of electrical cables 16 2.2.1 Challenges that have faced prefabrication of electrical components 17 2.2.2 Trends and evolution of prefabrication 19 2. 3 Prefabricated Components in general 19 2.3.1 Advantages of Prefabricated components in general 20 2.3.2 Disadvantages of the prefabricated components in general 21 2.4 Prefabricated electrical cables. 22 2.4.1 Advantages and disadvantages of using prefabricated electrical cables and components 23 2.5 Application of Prefabricated electrical cables 26 2.5.1 Prefabricated electrical wiring systems 26 2.5.2 Merits of Prefabricated electrical wiring systems 27 2.5.3 Demerits of Prefabricated electrical wiring systems 30 2.5.4 The Basics of Prefabricated (Modular) electrical wiring systems 31 2.5.5 Perceptions associated with the adoption of Prefabricated wiring systems 33

Poverty alienation through increased private sector or state controlin Essay

Poverty alienation through increased private sector or state controlin Nigeria...what is the way forward - Essay Example Despite providing 95 per cent of foreign exchange earnings and about 60 per cent of government revenues, the oil sector’s contribution to GDP is less than 25 per cent. The agriculture sector is largely subsidized and has made a 26.8 per cent contribution to GDP in 2005. Industry and services contributed by 48.8 and 24.4 per cent respectively. Although, Nigeria had once been a large net exporter of food, it is now importing some of its food products. Nigeria’s economic progression has been disturbed by corruption, political instability and poor macroeconomic management for years. Following the restoration of democratic rule in 1999, Nigeria is now undergoing substantial economic reform (Anthony Maduagwu, 09/09/00). During the period 2003 to 2007, Nigeria put into effect National Economic Empowerment Development Strategy (NEEDS) which aimed towards raising the standard of living of the people by establishing macroeconomic stability through deregulation of the economic environment privatization of government ventures, economic liberalization and accountability. This initiative also addressed the basic deficiencies such as unreliable power supplies, poor infrastructure and lack of fresh water for household and irrigation. It was also aimed towards creating 7 million employments, boosting non-energy exports, increasing industrial capacity utilization, improving agricultural productivity and diversifying the economy. Similar initiative called State Economic Empowerment Development Strategy was also implemented at the state level. The UN sponsored the National Development Goals program for Nigeria, as a long-term economic development program, covering the period 2000-2015. Under this program Nigeria is committed to achieve number of set targets in the areas of poverty reduction, gender equality, health, education, environment and international development cooperation. Despite these efforts and with the presence of enormous

Discuss the portrait of al-Hajjaj Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Discuss the portrait of al-Hajjaj - Essay Example Although al-Hajjaj is commonly considered a villain notorious for his relentless brutality, the portrait we obtain from the primary texts is not that simple and transparent, instead, the texts create a complicated image of the province governor illustrated in various situations. Thereby, ambiguities in portrayal can be explained by certain bias in attitude of the texts’ authors towards the governor. Many scholars assert that the commander was an extremely brutal and cruel governor, who caused numerous deaths and imprisonments in the course of his life. This assumption finds its confirmation in the texts, where we see that the commander is believed to be liable for a â€Å"hundred and twenty thousand† executions (Schroeder, p. 229). Many other situations described in the text provide evidence of al-Hajjaj’s bad temper and brutality: after defeating Ibn Zubayr in Mecca, al-Hajjaj is told to have killed and gibbeted him in the street. In a similar way, while coming to Kufa, he immediately executed the old man, who sprang on the corpse of Othman. Furthermore, we see numerous mentions of Hajjaj’s nasty character in the narratives, for instance, that of Ubayd son of Abu Mukhariq, who calls the commander â€Å"a fearsome master† (Schroeder, p.220). However, despite nasty character and brutality, which became his most famous feature, the commander seems to p ossess reason and a pinch of mercy in his nature, as it can be traced in the sources. For instance, as Hajjaj is in need of wise advise concerning the inheritance, he eventually rules according to the fairest of options: he is told to have given â€Å"each heir an equal third† of the inheritance. This fragment was told by al-Sha’bi, whose figure is rather controversial in terms of his relation to the Umayyads. Sha’bi probably supported the rebellion in Kufa, then fled to Khurasan and later returned to the Umayyad court willing to serve in the administration. Here,

Advantage and Disadvantage of Electrical Pre-fabricated cable Dissertation

Advantage and Disadvantage of Electrical Pre-fabricated cable - Dissertation Example Regardless of mixed reactions, it has been known for long periods of time that the preassembled electrical components have several benefits and problems. This research paper has, therefore, identified both the advantages and disadvantages of employing pre-fabricated electrical cables and other electrical components in electrical installation. The research paper has also explored the impacts of prefabrication technology on electrical installation and construction industry at large. In addition to identifying the advantages and disadvantages of employing pre-fabricated electrical cables, research paper has investigated the current trends in the use of prefabrication technology. The paper has also discussed how the prefabricated electrical cables are applied or used in the construction and electrical installation industry. In order to achieve its objectives, the research involved both secondary and primary data. With the regard to primary data, qualitative research was carried to gather the perceptions of public (particularly those who have some on knowledge on prefabricated and on-site fabricated electrical cables) and contractors regarding the advantages and disadvantages prefabricated electrical cables. In this case, a number of electricians and contractors were interviewed in the quantitative research part of the dissertation. In the case of the secondary data, qualitative research was carried out on the organizations that produce (manufacture) these prefabricated electrical cables. ... ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS I take this opportunity to acknowledge with great thanks the contributions that have been made towards the completion of this research by my Supervisor. I further take this precious time to acknowledge the contribution made by friends, classmates and family members towards the contribution made towards the completion of this project (dissertation). TABLE OF CONTENTS 1.INTRODUCTION 8 1.2 Research Aims and Objectives 9 1.3 Research problem statement 9 2.LITERATURE REVIEW 10 2.1 Description of Terms and Expressions 10 2.1.1 Prefabrication 11 2.1.2 Modularization 11 2.1.3 Preassembly 12 2.1.4 Industrialization 12 2.1.5 Prework methods of manufacturing 13 2.1.4 Advantages of prework methods of manufacturing 13 2.1.4 Disadvantages of pre-work methods of manufacturing 15 2.2 Trends and historical development of Prefabrication of electrical cables 16 2.2.1 Challenges that have faced prefabrication of electrical components 17 2.2.2 Trends and evolution of prefabrication 19 2. 3 Prefabricated Components in general 19 2.3.1 Advantages of Prefabricated components in general 20 2.3.2 Disadvantages of the prefabricated components in general 21 2.4 Prefabricated electrical cables. 22 2.4.1 Advantages and disadvantages of using prefabricated electrical cables and components 23 2.5 Application of Prefabricated electrical cables 26 2.5.1 Prefabricated electrical wiring systems 26 2.5.2 Merits of Prefabricated electrical wiring systems 27 2.5.3 Demerits of Prefabricated electrical wiring systems 30 2.5.4 The Basics of Prefabricated (Modular) electrical wiring systems 31 2.5.5 Perceptions associated with the adoption of Prefabricated wiring systems 33

Discuss the portrait of al-Hajjaj Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Discuss the portrait of al-Hajjaj - Essay Example Although al-Hajjaj is commonly considered a villain notorious for his relentless brutality, the portrait we obtain from the primary texts is not that simple and transparent, instead, the texts create a complicated image of the province governor illustrated in various situations. Thereby, ambiguities in portrayal can be explained by certain bias in attitude of the texts’ authors towards the governor. Many scholars assert that the commander was an extremely brutal and cruel governor, who caused numerous deaths and imprisonments in the course of his life. This assumption finds its confirmation in the texts, where we see that the commander is believed to be liable for a â€Å"hundred and twenty thousand† executions (Schroeder, p. 229). Many other situations described in the text provide evidence of al-Hajjaj’s bad temper and brutality: after defeating Ibn Zubayr in Mecca, al-Hajjaj is told to have killed and gibbeted him in the street. In a similar way, while coming to Kufa, he immediately executed the old man, who sprang on the corpse of Othman. Furthermore, we see numerous mentions of Hajjaj’s nasty character in the narratives, for instance, that of Ubayd son of Abu Mukhariq, who calls the commander â€Å"a fearsome master† (Schroeder, p.220). However, despite nasty character and brutality, which became his most famous feature, the commander seems to p ossess reason and a pinch of mercy in his nature, as it can be traced in the sources. For instance, as Hajjaj is in need of wise advise concerning the inheritance, he eventually rules according to the fairest of options: he is told to have given â€Å"each heir an equal third† of the inheritance. This fragment was told by al-Sha’bi, whose figure is rather controversial in terms of his relation to the Umayyads. Sha’bi probably supported the rebellion in Kufa, then fled to Khurasan and later returned to the Umayyad court willing to serve in the administration. Here,

Public Health of the Developing Country of South Africa Essay Example for Free

Public Health of the Developing Country of South Africa Essay Abstract Studies and statistics have put the cost of one year requirement of standard essential medicines needed for the treatment of AIDS at $ 4000 to $ 6000 in developing countries like South Africa. This cost puts the medicines out of the reach of most of the people infected by HIV in the developing countries. In order to make the medicines available to all the needy people the cost should have been at least 95 percent less. The exorbitant price is because of the cost of the patents. The drugs protected by the intellectual property rights were required to treat diseases like Tuberculosis, in addition to the treatments of HIV/AIDS. Such drugs also included Hepatitis-B Vaccine. There has been a continuous criticism by the social activists and other public health associations, of the action by the World Trade Organization in making the developing countries implement the Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights (TRIPS) Agreement which deals with the protection of Intellectual Property rights relating to the essential drugs. They have also been condemning the attitude of the multinational companies in indulging in excessive lobbying to insist on the implementation of the IP rights protection which will have the effect of enhancing their earnings by charging exorbitant prices for the drugs and for putting the essential drugs and health care beyond the affordability of scores of people in the developing nations including South Africa. However under such circumstances the relationship between the government of South Africa and the international pharmaceutical companies had not been a conducive one – thanks to the implementation of the provisions of TRIPS Agreement. On the decision of the South African Government to pass the Medicines and Related Substances Amendment Act in the year 1997, 39 drug companies joined to initiate legal action against the government. The plea of the drug companies is that the Act gave too much freedom of action to the Health Minister and he acted beyond the legitimate interpretation of TRIPS. It was the endeavour of South Africa to make life saving drugs available at affordable prices. The country wanted to effectively utilize the compulsory licensing opportunities opened by TRIPS so that the prices of the drugs could be put under check. But since the action of the government posed a threat to the earning capacity of the international pharmaceutical companies they went to the extent of entering into litigation with the government of South Africa. Introduction TRIPS (Trade Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights) under the authority of the WTO were founded to protect worldwide intellectual property rights. The agreements, governing not only more general intellectual property rights but also those of the pharmaceutical industry, are fairly stringent causing many problems for developing countries especially South Africa which is being ravaged by epidemics which includes AIDS. According to a statistical survey by United Nations[1] 20 percent of the adult population in South Africa tests positive for HIV. The impact of the disease is such that the more than half a million children have been declared orphans. It is also reported that HIV/AIDS related diseases expect to reduce the average life expectancy in South Africa by 20 years in the year 2010. Therefore it can be inferred that the provision of treatment of HIV/AIDS in South Africa is a high priority issue[2]. It has been necessary for South Africa to circumvent part of the TRIPS agreements in an effort to protect its population.   AIDS is taking great toll of the country leaving families without parents and health care hospitals totally unable to cope. The United States currently insists on the TRIPS agreement being strictly adhered to and seems unable, or unwilling, to find a way to help the developing nations with this problem. There have been some efforts made to help them in this respect, for example compulsory licensing and parallel pricing and these methods will be examined in a later section. The negotiation of the TRIPS Agreement has been construed as one that was forcibly introduced by the developing countries against the objection of many of the developing nations. The industrial lobbies (multinational and transnational corporations) have convinced the governments of the developed countries to link the international trade with Intellectual Property Rights (IPR) so that the industrial advancement of the developing countries would be curtailed. This would automatically prevent imitation of technologies and increase the returns on research and development for the developed countries. Monopoly rights granted under IPR were mainly intended to deter the developing countries from advancing on the industrialization. Thus TRIPS Agreement and the protection of IPR have been used to ensure the comparative advantage of the developed countries in terms of the technological development. Under TRIPS countries like India, Brazil which manufactures generic medicines would not have the right to export such medicines with effect from 01 January 2005. This is so despite the fact that the importing countries do have the respective patents covering the drugs. Specifically the least developing countries have put a strong resistance to the requirements of TRIPS especially in the matter of granting the protection rights for the products and processes. While developing countries were required to implement the provisions within one year of reaching the Agreement, the developing countries were given time until the end of the year 2004. In the matter of protection of rights of pharmaceutical products the lease developing countries have been allowed to delay the implementation of TRIPS Agreement provisions till the year 2016. The peculiarity with the provisions of TRIPS is that it allows any country to override the patent right under certain specific circumstances by using the compulsory licensing procedure. For instance when there is a shortage of drugs or the prices of the drugs are too high to make them unaffordable the country can override the patent if the prescribed procedures are followed. This provision of TRIPS presupposes that all the countries do possess the required manufacturing facilities which enable them to use the provisions to produce generic medicines under extraordinary circumstances. But unfortunately many of the developing and least developing countries do not posses such facilities, and hence they would be left with shortage of such drugs. In addition they are also not allowed to import the generics from those countries that possess them. In any case these countries do not have enough power and administrative capabilities to invoke the TRIPS Agreement either due to the reason that they do not possess the know-how required to reengineer the drugs or they fear sanctions from the US and the West[3]. TRIPS Agreement under WTO The TRIPS Agreement is often thought of as one of the three â€Å"pillars† of the WTO (World Trade Organization), trade in goods and services being the other two.[4] TRIPS, initially part of GATT. But becoming part of the WTO brief, was founded to ensure that protection of intellectual property rights was not, of itself, an obstruction to trade and to increase cooperation between members. Under the TRIPS agreement each member state has an obligation to treat all other member states equally. The WTO negotiates between members and helps them to understand and carry out the rules and regulations they have signed up to. It also aids cooperation between members and acts as a watchdog to ensure that the agreement is adhered to. Marketing rights of a patent, when first applied for, are given for a period of 5 years or until the patent is finally approved (whichever is the shorter period) but even during this period members must comply with the rules and regulations as set out in Articles 3 and 4. Because of the nature of the agreement especially as regards pharmaceuticals, it was decided that minimum standards could be used, the USA prefers the higher standards but accepts the minimum as the developing world does not have the capacity to work to the higher standards at the present time. Public awareness of the serious issue of AIDS and other diseases has led to the belief   (by the WTO) that health must, in the final analysis, come before agreements since the spread of AIDS cannot be the sole responsibility of one country. In trying to bridge the gap between the pharmaceutical companies and the developing nations, TRIPS has endeavoured to bring the two sides together by allowing extensions to drugs’ patents but has also allowed some compulsory licensing. Article 3(a) under the TRIPS Agreement states that treatment of all members must be equal,   but Article 3(b) is a get-out clause and Article 4(b) states that all members are equal, unless an †¦agreement was entered into before the WTO agreement.   However, the Council for TRIPS must be informed of any non-observance of Article 3(a) under Article 3(b). The TRIPS Agreement ensures that members discharge their commitments to the World Intellectual Property Organisation (WIPO). Part of the United Nations WIPO was set up in 1974 specifically to direct international treaties and agreements. The Paris Convention on Industrial Property and the Berne Convention on Copyright, two of the major treaties have been brought under the TRIPS umbrella.   The former states that â€Å"members must comply with the obligations they have towards each other† and â€Å"nothing must stand in the way of such obligations†.  Ã‚   However, as noted, there is a get-out clause in cases of emergency which has to be acknowledged by members to the agreements. There is also an agreement that member countries monitor each other for infringements.   Most important in terms of worldwide health problems is Article 67 of TRIPS which states   that developed countries must assist developing countries with the development of their intellectual property rights, it states: â€Å"In order to facilitate the implementation of this Agreement developed country Members shall provide, on request and mutually agreed terms and conditions, technical and financial cooperation in favour of developing and least-developed country members† â€Å"Such cooperation shall include assistance in the preparation of laws and regulations on the protection and enforcement of intellectual property rights as well as on the prevention of their abuse, and shall include support regarding the establishment or reinforcement of domestic offices and agencies relevant to these matters, including the training of personnel.†Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚     Programmes to assist the developing nations have already been promoted and are being assisted by the WTO secretariat and WIPO. TRIPS Agreement in Relation to Medicines   Since most pharmaceutical research and development is carried out in developed countries the organisations involved feel that they should be better protected.   Most drugs cost millions and take years to test and develop before being allowed onto the market, the industry naturally want returns by way of profits on sales. AIDS medication has been a particularly important breakthrough since: ‘HIV infects an estimated 45 million persons worldwide†Ã‚   but there are also â€Å"†¦1.86 billion cases of infection with mycobacterium tuberculosis†[5] therefore, it is imperative that something be done to help alleviate this type of suffering which, with the ever growing number of tourists, should be the concern of not only those countries in which these epidemics are raging but every nation whose borders are open to travel from other countries. The TRIPS agreement, currently, seems to err on the side of the drugs’ companies, probably because they have such powerful lobbies and are part of the new world-wide elite of corporations which, according to Janet Dine, are increasingly importing their own ethics into the developing countries and virtually taking over, creating in the process an impoverished and unhealthy nation, they, the indigenous population have to take what is offered often at less than subsistence wages and become more dependant on the corporations who have moved into their countries in search of ever increasing profits. The money the corporations make from taking over in developing countries returns, not to the people of that region, but to their own countries.  Ã‚   With tax incentives and a population who take any work they can get to survive at the lowest rates offered, these Corporations appear to be fuelling a crisis in health for some of the poorest nations in the world.[6] Although The TRIPS agreement does allow for compulsory licensing in an emergency, each country must first negotiate with rights’ holders and must use those drugs obtained under such a license only for the emergency period and not for any commercial gain. Specific areas, such as South Africa, are going through a health crisis which needs the drugs already available to ameliorate it, however, in spite of clause 3(b), they are getting no further forward in their fight to help their citizens to overcome unprecedented death rates that the epidemics are producing. In spite of Articles 30/31, which allow for compulsory licensing, the poorest and least developed nations are fighting against the cost of the use of patents and the epidemics themselves. Compulsory licensing does not adequately cover the needs of such nations in   â€Å"sub-Saharan Africa since they do not have facilities to manufacture their own drugs.†[7] Protection of intellectual property is not part of the culture of many countries, nevertheless, the TRIPS Agreement was signed on 15th April 1994 by 117 nations. The agreement allows intellectual property rights to be â€Å"enforced by trade sanctions†[8] and, although some countries were not in complete agreement, international trade is vital to their economic growth so, however reluctantly, they signed.   Inhibitors, which have done much to control AIDS in the west, cost as much as $10.000 per head annually but international trade is the life blood of developing nations therefore they had little choice but to do so.[9] 4. TRIPS and Developing Countries It has been observed that implementing TRIPS Agreement and recognizing IPR on pharmaceutical products and processes would result in the following problems to the developing countries[10]: The minimum 20 years protection to the IPR would grant a virtual monopoly for a pharmaceutical company over its patented drug and the company would be able to charge exorbitant prices on the drugs without competition which in turn would keep the drug prices very high during the period of protection. It is also not possible to bring any generic equivalent into the market due to the TRIPS Agreement. This would deny the patients cheaper alternative drugs. The product and process patents provide for the protection of the product as well as the technology. Under the TRIPS Agreement the countries are given the right to make application for the protection of patent rights on drugs for a period extending up to twenty years. After the expiation of this period the countries can get the protection extended for further periods to the processes being employed in the manufacture of the drugs. This no doubt creates a monopoly situation on the drugs. Such protection also throw the domestic pharmaceutical producers in the developing countries out of market as they have to compete with large multinational pharmaceutical manufacturers which is not possible for small producers in the developing nations who use cheaper generic alternatives. Moreover such production may not be carried out by them during the 20 year protection period. Under TRIPS Agreement patent rights need to be granted irrespective of the fact that the products are imported or domestically manufactured[11]. This implies that the transnational corporations can supply global markets under the monopoly of patent rights even without producing any medicines in the developing countries by simply importing them into the developing countries. There will be no flow of technology or foreign direct investments into the developing countries as envisaged by the WTO However under Article 66 of the TRIPS the least developed countries were allowed to postpone the application of the provisions relating to the patents for a period of 10 years on specific application.[12] 5. Exceptions to the Patent Protection of Pharmaceuticals    Parallel importing – implying that the developing counties are allowed to import the drugs from the cheaper markets for resale in their respective countries and thereby lower the prices of drugs. Compulsory licensing – under compulsory licensing scheme, the government acting through the courts of law is empowered to provide a license in favor of a third party. Such license may be granted by the government even without the prior consent of the license holder. However the compulsory licensing can be resorted to in cases of national emergencies. The license may also be compulsorily transferred to a third party in case of an extremely emergent situation or where there are circumstances implying any anti-competitive movements by the manufacturers. The compulsory licensing is resorted to by the governments to make the drugs easily available to the poor and needy people at affordable costs. It also ensures that the patent holder is provided adequate compensation for use of the patent. 6. Public Health in South Africa and the Impact of TRIPS Agreement The need for cheaper drugs in South Africa can not be undermined. The impact of AIDS in the country poses the situation of an extreme emergency forcing the implementation TRIPS. The economy of South Africa is likely to get affected by a reduction of 1 percent every year because of the work force getting disintegrated. It is estimated that the life expectancy would be lowered to 50 years in 2010 from 70 years currently. These threats to the economy and population growth would as well be a threat to ‘peace and order’ situations in the country of South Africa[13]. In this context all the problems enumerated above for the developing nations have been faced by South Africa also. In addition when the government wanted to implement the Medicines and Related Substances Control Bill, the US Government vehemently objected to the passing of the law which allowed for parallel importing and compulsory licensing. However amidst lot of pressure on the government and the Parliament the South African government enacted the law in the year 1997.The pharmaceutical lobby backed by the transnational companies in the South Africa not only filed a suit against the promulgation of the law but also indulged in negotiations and threats   to the government to change its stand. The pressure was intense after the year 1997 when the South African government tried to implement a number of policy measures to lower the prices of drugs used in public health. â€Å"The SA policies have focused on such issues as mandatory generic drug substitution, restrictions on inappropriate marketing efforts, registration of generic versions of the cancer drug Paclitaxel (sold as Taxol by Bristol-Myers Squibb), parallel-imports, and compulsory licensing†[14]. It may be noted that despite Article 31 of the TRIPS Agreement that provides for the parallel importing and compulsory licensing the transnational pharmaceutical companies have vehemently opposed the attempts by developing countries like South Africa taking measures for implementing parallel importing and compulsory licensing as these practices would allow these countries to have their requirements of the medicines at cheaper prices which in turn would affect the profits of these transnational companies[15]. It was after the intervention of the AIDS activists and health activists that US came to an understanding in the issue. The government of South Africa insisted that it retains all the original provisions defending its position be retained. The government also wanted to make the fullest use of compulsory licensing and parallel importing which were considered as detrimental to the interests of the American Transnational Companies[16]. How American Corporations Control the Business World A- Business lobbies: Large and small businesses in the United States have been organised into various associations, for example Business Round Tables are national Associations which include membership of the Chief Executive Officers (CEOs) of all the most important trans-national companies and the National Chamber of Commerce includes all sizes of firms.[17] Round Tables have been in existence since 1972, the first was formed by forty-two of the (then) biggest and most important U.S. companies including banks, retailers, Insurance, transport and most of the utilities’ companies. They were designed to enable business to proceed without the destructive competitive basis of the business world. They were described as: â€Å"An association of chief executive officers who examine public issues that affect the economy and develop positions which seek to reflect sound economic and social principles. †¦ the Roundtable was founded in the belief that business executives should take an increased role in the continuing debates about public policy.†[18] The raison d’etre for these firms was the idea that ‘what ever is good for business is good for the American people’. They argued that, employees, purchasers, suppliers etc all have an interest in a business. These associations, they say, represent a cross section of the American public.[19] The idea that ‘what is good for business is good for America’ is patently nonsense since most people are in fact excluded from any rights in this elite world.  Ã‚   Employees have little or no say in the running of their firms and consumers must pay the prices asked, they do have the right ‘not to buy’ which is a somewhat negative view of the process of inclusiveness. David C Korten says that most of the memberships of the Round Tables are confined to white males over the age of 50 whose salaries are enormous. They do not, as claimed, consider that what is good for business is good for America but rather endeavour to maximise their own profits and those of their shareholders by seeking to globalise in areas where they can have an almost free hand to carry out their business practices almost unhindered by the laws of any country they move into. [20] Free Trade has long been an ideal of the American Corporate world which is why the Round Tables campaigned vigorously for the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA and created USA-NAFTA to front their interests, the American public, nervous at so much control in so few hands, have been given country-wide blanket assurances through the media.   In spite of the fact that NAFTA was supposed to be a really broad church of interests it is really part of the elite Round Table Associations and has many representatives on advisory committees. The country might have been even more nervous if they had realised that at the time of the creation of these Round Tables the major companies were in fact laying aside their competitive differences to â€Å"reach a consensus on issues of social and economic policy for America†.[21] B- Influence of U.S. Democracy Janet Dine claims â€Å"no single idea is more deeply embedded in modern culture than the belief that economic growth is the key to meeting most important human needs, including alleviating poverty and protecting the environment† [22] which accounts for the greatest growth area in Washington being public relations firms. These firms work hard to protect the images of their corporate clients against a rising tide of discontent which is now manifesting itself throughout the world. It could be thought that they are fighting a losing battle but â€Å"the top fifty public relations firms billed over $1.7 billion dollars in 1991†[23] which gives rise to the question, why are these PR firms so necessary? There is probably no single answer to this question but very little news is given directly to the public without some corporate employee looking at the effect it will have, news and advertising, according to Korten, are almost synonymous.[24] The political system of America has greatly changed in the post war period of more general affluence. The Democratic party has lost its basic identity   the party of the people – as opposed to the Republicans who have always represented business and the wealthier side of the electorate – this being so the Democrats are far more dependant on the need to raise funds for their electioneering and have turned to the corporations who inevitably want quid pro quo for their donations. The mass media are heavily behind the elitist values of corporate America and the amount they are able to pay to PR firms to put across an extremely one-sided policy and both the leading parties needing the financial backing of corporate America, this, says David C Korten, â€Å"This is the sorry state of American democracy†.[25]   He says that voters tend to be seen as a passive homogeneous mass of potential customers who can be told not only what to buy but also what to think and feel.   What is worse, this idea of corporations is spreading, many trans-national companies rely heavily on the corporate idealism of what is good for them is good for the people they sell to.   Mexico and Japan both use those same American firms to tell their populations what they should think and feel and ultimately what they should buy. C- American Democracy   for Sale: â€Å"The Mexican government spent upwards of $25 million and hired many of the leading Washington lobbyists to support its campaign for NAFTA. †¦ Japanese corporations were spending an estimated $100 million a year on political lobbying in the United States and another $300 million building a nationwide grassroots political network to influence public opinion†. [26] Canada, Britain and the Netherlands’ governments employ public relations’ firms in America to help them lobby and draft laws that will be favourable to the business elites in their own countries. These companies try to sell the idea of ‘corporate libertarianism’ [27]which is supposed to allay the fears of those who have an idea that all is not well in the corporate world of business, it is possible to claim that these corporations are in fact in the act of ‘taking over the world’ and with the resources piling up behind them it could well happen in the not too distant future. The United States and Higher Levels of Protection. To add to this theme of a world take-over by corporate America, the signatories to TRIPS have begun to rethink intellectual property protection.[28] This is bad news for those under-developed countries which rely on drugs from the western world to protect their citizens from ravaging epidemics. Rosalyn S Park says: â€Å"Poor, developing nations have been most affected by the patent protection laws and resulting high drug prices, yet these nations also harbor the highest number of HIV-positive people. Consequently, the vast majority of people in need of HIV/AIDS medicines simply cannot afford them†. [29] In 2006 new protection laws will come into force which all members must adhere to. This will have a devastating effect on the millions of people in countries too poor to have their own drugs’ businesses, they will become more reliant upon those better protected, developed countries making vast profits from the countries least able to pay. Neither the USA nor the European Union appear greatly interested in aiding those countries with the greatest needs and the least ability to pay.   Admittedly concessions have been made as regards agricultural and textile concessions but this has been at the cost of allowing higher property rights which is a swings-and-round-a-bouts situation.   It would be much more useful to South Africa specifically and to the developing world in general, if the costs of patented drugs could be either brought down or, as a common sense gesture of good will, eliminated completely until such time as the AIDS epidemic was at least brought down to manageable proportions. In spite of â€Å"several different types of drugs on the market which help combat AIDS and AIDS related illnesses†[30] not enough are getting through to the developing countries as the multinationals are still insisting on not just the status quo as regards intellectual property rights but even higher levels.[31] They appear to be driven only by the profit motive and the perceived necessity for free trade paying little attention to the suffering caused in the developing world. Nor are they taking a long term view, highly contagious diseases are rife in the developing world, therefore, with the modern freedom of travel, no country can ever be safe from the same epidemics.   Even with modern drugs to combat them, new strains will develop, new drugs will have to be found and costs will escalate. Drugs now exist which allow people with AIDS to live a reasonably normal life including returning to work, it would in fact be in the interests of the drugs’ companies to allow South Africa to use them, dead people have no use for drugs nor anything else that the multi-nationals may wish to sell them. Conclusion The TRIPS Agreement was a milestone in patent protection of intellectual property rights and was considered to be a financial safeguard for research investment, however, it also had the effect of pricing some pharmaceuticals out of the reach of many nations most in need of the most recently patented medicines.   Before the TRIPS agreement, governments had been able to make compulsory licence orders to produce drugs at lower prices in their own countries, after the agreement, although still possible, it is much more difficult and thus more difficult to protect their citizens from the epidemics which are wreaking havoc in their countries. It is important to protect intellectual property rights but it is far more important to protect people’s lives but the balance currentlppears to be largely towards the greater protection of pharmaceutical industries. TRIPS allows compulsory licensing and parallel pricing but underdeveloped countries such as South Africa are being prevented from using them because of the threat of trade sanctions and trade is vital to their economies. It is necessary to protect peoples’ work and investment and research must be encouraged especially into life-threatening diseases. Corporations who invest time and money into producing drugs to cope with these scourges should reap the rewards of their labour.   However, many drugs’ companies are seeing such enormous returns on their investments that concessions should be made to underdeveloped countries which so desperately need the medications produced by these huge giants of industry. In spite of concessions in the TRIPS agreement, corporations do appear to be protected at the expense of people’s lives. Public health should be and is a priority in the west where governments can afford to buy the health of their citizens. Unfortunately, this is not the case in the poorer, less developed countries where governments are struggling to find ways to access drugs and yet to maintain a healthy trading relationship with the countries which hold the patents to these drugs. Good health is the basic right of every citizen of every country wherever possible. More goodwill is necessary on the part of the western world and America in particular to allow compulsory licensing and parallel pricing to be used without the threat of trade sanctions.  Ã‚   Epidemics do not respect borders, they can be carried by people to all corners the world, what was a third world problem yesterday is our problem today, world health is an issue that no country can ignore therefore although corporations must be allowed fair returns on their investments it must not be at the expense of world health. It is quite apparent that TRIPS Agreement has not taken into account the public health needs of the developing nations while formulating the clauses relating to the protection of IPR in respect of pharmaceutical needs. The Agreement has not specified any particular obligations towards those governments granting the IPR for pharmaceutical products. The Agreement has also not considered the need for public health in the developing countries and grossly ignored the interests of the patients of these countries. There are a number of factors that the developing countries have to take into account including the implication of the TRIPS Agreement and the patent protection under the Agreement in the provision of medical facilities and adequate public health to the people of the respective developing countries. â€Å"At the end of the day it must be recognized that the poorer residents of the world’s least affluent nations cannot pay even the marginal cost of drugs that might save their lives or permit them to become productive workers†[32]. Bibliography    Conceicao Soares (2007)‘The HIV/AIDS crisis and corporate moral responsibility in the light of the Levinasian notions of proximity and the Third’ Business Ethics: A European Review Vol. 16 No 3 p 280 David C Korten, When Corporations Rule the World, Earthscan Publication Ltd. London, p.144 Duane Nash, â€Å"†¦VI, Foreign International Law South Africa’s Medicines and Related Substances Control Amendment Act of 1997† 15 Berkeley Tech. L J. 485(lexis) Fact Sheet ‘Developing Countries’ Transition Periods’ http://www.wto.org/english/tratop_e/trips_e/factsheet_pharm04_e.htm#pharmsandags p1 F.M. Scherer and Jayashree Watal ‘Post-Trips Options for Access to Patented Medicines in Developing Nations’ Journal of International Economic Law (2002) p 939 Janet Dine, The Governance of Corporate Groups, Cambridge University Press, 2000.p.157 J H Reichman, The TRIPS Agreement Comes of Age: Conflict or Cooperation with the Developing Countries? P.6 John A. Harrelson, â€Å" IV. Note: Trips, Pharmaceutical Patents, and the HIV/AIDS Crisis: Finding the Proper Balance Between Intellectual Property Rights and Compassion† 7 Wid. L. Symp. J . 175(lexis) Kara M. Bombach ‘The South African Medicines and Related Substances Control Amendment Bill and TRIPS’ http://academic.udayton.edu/health/06world/africa01.htm p1 Lisa Foreman (2007)‘Trade Rules, Intellectual Property and the Right to Health’ Comparative Program in Health and Society Munk Centre for International Studies University of Toronto Ethics International Affairs Vol. 21 No3 p 342 Louise Sylvan ‘TRIPS: Protecting Intellectual Property or Putting Profits Before People’ Online Opinion http://www.onlineopinion.com.au/view.asp?article=1968   p1 Medecins sans Frontieres (1999) Access to HIV/AIDS medicines in Thailand, Medecins sans Frontieres Report to the National AIDS Committee of Thailand, August 1999, MSF website, www.accessmed-msf.org/msf/accessmed/accessmed.nsf/html/4DTS2? Open Document.p1 N.B. Zaveri (1999) Success often comes to those who dare and act, paper presented at Brainstorming Workshop on WTO Agreements and Peoples Concerns, New Delhi, Oct/Nov 1999 p1 Patric Bond ‘US Policy toward South Africa and Access to Pharmaceutical Drugs’ Alternative Information and Development Centre http://www.aidc.org.za/?q=book/view/156 p1 Ross Brennan and Paul Baines (2005) ‘Is there a morally right price for anti-retroviral drugs in the developing world’ Business Ethics: A European Review Vol. 15 No 1 p32 Rosalyn S Park, The International Drug Industry: What the Future Holds for South Africa’s HIV/AIDS Patients, Minnesota Journal of Global Trade, p.3 Z. Mirza (1999) WTO/TRIPS, pharmaceuticals and health: impacts and strategies, The Networks Drug Bulletin, Sept-Dec 1999, Vol. 8, No. 5/6, Association for Rational Use of Medication in Pakistan p 27       [1] United Nations (2004) Report on the Global AIDS Epidemic. Geneva: United Nations [2] Ross Brennan and Paul Baines (2005) ‘Is there a morally right price for anti-retroviral drugs in the developing world’ Business Ethics: A European Review Vol. 15 No 1 p 32 [3] Conceicao Soares (2007)‘The HIV/AIDS crisis and corporate moral responsibility in the light of the Levinasian notions of proximity and the Third’ Business Ethics: A European Review Vol. 16 No 3 p 280 [4] www.wto.org (Frequently asked questions about TRIPS in the WTO). [5] Duane Nash, â€Å"†¦VI, Foreigh International Law South Africa’s Medicines and Related Substances Control Amendment Act of 1997† 15 Berkeley Tech. L J. 485(lexis) [6] Janet Dine, The Governance of Corporate Groups, Cambridge University Press, 2000.p.157 [7] John A. Harrelson, â€Å" IV. Note: Trips, Pharmaceutical Patents, and the HIV/AIDS Crisis: Finding the Proper Balance Between Intellectual Property Rights and Compassion† 7 Wid. L. Symp. J . 175(lexis) [8] Ibid [9] Ibid [10] Z. Mirza (1999) WTO/TRIPS, pharmaceuticals and health: impacts and strategies, The Networks Drug Bulletin, Sept-Dec 1999, Vol. 8, No. 5/6, Association for Rational Use of Medication in Pakistan p 27 [11] Medecins sans Frontieres (1999) Access to HIV/AIDS medicines in Thailand, Medecins sans Frontieres Report to the National AIDS Committee of Thailand, August 1999, MSF website, www.accessmed-msf.org/msf/accessmed/accessmed.nsf/html/4DTS2? Open Document. p1 [12] Fact Sheet ‘Developing Countries’ Transition Periods’ http://www.wto.org/english/tratop_e/trips_e/factsheet_pharm04_e.htm#pharmsandags p1 [13] Kara M. Bombach ‘The South African Medicines and Related Substances Control Amendment Bill and TRIPS’ http://academic.udayton.edu/health/06world/africa01.htm p1 [14] Patric Bond ‘US Policy toward South Africa and Access to Pharmaceutical Drugs’   Alternative Information and Development Centre  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   http://www.aidc.org.za/?q=book/view/156   p1 [15] Louise Sylvan ‘TRIPS: Protecting Intellectual Property or Putting Profits Before People’ Online Opinion http://www.onlineopinion.com.au/view.asp?article=1968 p1 [16] N.B. Zaveri (1999) Success often comes to those who dare and act, paper presented at Brainstorming Workshop on WTO Agreements and Peoples Concerns, New Delhi, Oct/Nov 1999 p1 [17] David C Korten, When Corporations Rule the World, Earthscan Publication Ltd. London, p.144 [18] Ibid [19] Ibid [20] David C Korten, When Corporations Rule the World, Earthscan Publication Ltd. London, p.144 [21] Ibid [22] Janet Dine, The Governance of Corporate Groups, Cambridge University Press, 2000.p.156 [23] David C Korten, When Corporations Rule the World, Earthscan Publication Ltd. London, p.146 [24] Ibid [25] David C Korten, When Corporations Rule the World, Earthscan Publication Ltd. London, p.147 [26] Ibid [27] David C Korten, When Corporations Rule the World, Earthscan Publication Ltd. London,pp.147-148 [28] Rosalyn S Park, The International Drugs Industry: What the Future Holds for South Africa’s HIV/AIDS   Patients, Minnesota Journal of Global Trade, 2002.p.1 [29] Ibid [30] Rosalyn S Park, Minnesota Journal of Global Trade, 2000, p.2 [31] J H Reichman, The TRIPS Agreement Comes of Age: Conflict or Cooperation with the Developing Countries? P.6 [32] F.M. Scherer and Jayashree Watal ‘Post-Trips Options for Access to Patented Medicines in Developing Nations’ Journal of International Economic Law (2002)   p 939