Americas unfinished revolution Term Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Americas unfinished revolution - Term Paper Example There was little or no change after the civil war. The efforts to restructure the south failed since the process did not complete. This left many factors that caused the civil war unresolved hence are likely to occur. Different parts of the south still practice the vices, which they were meant to leave or eradicate. The black Americans slaves were still denied opportunities to participate in most of the activities. Therefore, the bitterness they had could still result to another revolution. Secondly, there was an unfinished revolution because of the emergence of new complex race and class structure.2 The status quo in the south remained unchanged as they re-united after the north left. This made them continue with their slavery, therefore endangering the black slaves. Similarly, the whites in the south started to discriminate the blacks as they were considered slaves and were not entitled to equal opportunities and rights. The class relation was not good as both were hostile at each other. The postwar relation was not good and was perceived to be incubating another revolution. Therefore, Foner was right and justified when he said that there is an unfinished revolution. The division that took place in the American society where there were low and higher class is a symbol of disunity in the society. This can easily break into war since they do not relate. More so, the passage of thirteen, fourteen and fifteenth amendment, which gave the blacks some forms of rights was not welcomed by the whites.

Project management of a company Essay Example for Free

Project management of a company Essay With the current rapid development of various business. Market competition becomes more and more fierce. Hence, a specific business plan is crucial to help a business successfully achieve goals and become competitive. The aim of this report is to prepare a business plan for a business. Some parts will be analysed in detail below which include a description of the business, sales and marketing strategy and risk management plan. A famous interior designer, Mark, owns Master Furniture (MF) which is located countryside in Melbourne. The major function of MF is providing customized furniture. There are three options provided to customers by MF: buying the existing furniture without any changes, changing the design of existing furniture displayed in showrooms, and providing design plans by customers themselves. In the next five years, MF plans to develop its own ERP system and expand his business to open linkage shops around Victoria. The main marketing principle is that the entire efforts of a company should be directed towards customers needs. MF is positioned as a high quality retailer that offers a unique selling proposition. MF sets its business apart from others due to its unique feature of providing customized goods to its customers. Advertising and Promotion also necessary through a variety of channels in order to attract customers. These approaches include the Internet, newspaper, radio, television and tradeshows. Besides sales and marketing strategy, risk management plan is also a significant factor that cannot be neglected. Specific and deliberate risk management plan should be established in order to minimize the negative influences on the business development and better achieve business goal and objective. The risk management plan contains the following parts, identifying and recording the potential risks, classifying the identified risks and assessing impacts of risks and developing the risk mitigation strategy for each risk. Those identified risks are categorized into six groups, including customer risks, supplier risks, staff risks, competitor risks, product risks and financial risks. 2.Description of the product/service Master Furniture (MF) is a business planned to provide furniture design and sale services for both individual and companies who have special or unique furniture requirements. Goals of enterprise are to provide high-quality customized service that is reliable and convenient. Mark, the owner of Master Furniture, also is a famous interior designer and won many relevant international prizes. Mark praised free spirit as his operation concept, which also directly affects his design. Purposes of establishing this entity are expressing and disseminating his artistic concepts, as well as exchanging ideas with professors and hobbyists. Customers are on top and middle class of society, who have special requirements and enthusiasm for furniture designing are targeted customers. The primary market focuses on special groups, such as the blind, the elder and people who are passionately fond of designing personal furniture. The physical shop locates in the city of Melbourne. Therefore, the target market areas are the suburbs around Melbourne. The shop includes three showrooms, which divided into bedroom, living room and kitchen. Mark designs all furniture displayed in the shop. There also have one meeting room and one stock room, which store the art works and goods customers ordered. Initially, the major function of MF is providing customized furniture. There are three options provided to customers by MF: buying the existing furniture without any changes, changing the design of existing furniture displayed in showrooms, and providing design plans by customers themselves. For the first situation that customers buy furniture directly from the shop and without any change, MF provides discount in delivery service if customers do not want to pick up by themselves. For the second situation that customers want to change the size, color or materials of furniture based on the design of Mark, MF charges extra service fee. The extra service fees are based on the change of furniture. For example, MF charge extra 20% of the furniture price for changing color and extra 30% of price for changing size. In this case, MF provides the design drawing directly to customers in the shop or sent to customers by email. After customer confirm the design, especially in size and color then it will be sent to factory. For the last situation that designs are provided by customers, Mark may provide professional suggestions based on design, such as budget, drawbacks, and safety risks. After the negotiation between Mark and customers, the design drawing will send to the factory. MF owns a truck, which is able to provide delivery service to customers. For loyal customers who had transaction records in MF database, can enjoy discount delivery service as well as customers buy furniture directly from shop and do not have any change. On the other hand, customers also can pick up by themselves. All advertisements include leaflets, which displayed the new designed furniture and price, a phone number that potential and current customers can call to query the service. For the customers who want to change the design or designed by themselves, MF calls customers once their goods arrived in the shop. The background factory of MF is outsourced to Rojos furniture factory, which is located in the countryside of Melbourne. Once Mark confirms the design drawings and send to factory by email or fax, factory sends an invoice which includes due time of production, price, and quantity back to MF. In this period, MF will confirm the price with customers and then response factory. Factory will start to work after receiving the confirmation from MF. After factory completes the invoice and sends goods back to MF, MF will inform customers to decide whether they want to pick up by himself or herself or delivery furniture to home. MF has two full-time receptionists and one part-time driver. When customers step into the MF, the front desk receptionists, who understand Mark’s design concept completely and have excellent communication skills, will communicate with them and introduce products in the showroom to clients. If clients want to design furniture by themselves no matter completely self-design or partly design, they could make appointments with Mark to discuss. When customers decide to purchase, they need to pay whole amounts for existing products or deposit for new design products. Then receptionists will create account for clients in the MF customer information database, which can help customers get discounts for delivery service in next purchase. On the other hand, receptionists also need to confirm delivery information with customers, such as delivery address, time and payment method. Once clients confirm the delivery, it is the responsibility of receptionists to inform delivery information to the driver. The major responsibilities of driver are delivering and unloading products as well as receipts to customers. After customers signing for confirmation, the last mission of driver is bringing back confirmation of customers to MF. MF offers after-sale services to customers, such as maintenance, consultancy. In the next five years, MF will develop its own Enterprise Resources Planning (ERP) system, which includes a website for advertisement Customer Relationship Management System. Moreover, Mark is planning to expand his business, which focusing on open Linkage shops around Victoria. In order to attract more clients, membership will be applied in MF system. Based on the expanding business, more staff is required for different purpose. There are several kinds of positions will available in MF: designers, receptionists, salesman, full time delivery drivers, and back officers. Moreover, as a famous designer, Mark will provide videos in shops to show his award-winning art works, and by this way to disseminate his design concept and let more people know about furniture art. 3.Sales and marketing strategy 3.1 SWOT Based on the goals of MF: build company image, gain competitive market share and refine logistic, productions and operational systems, SWOT analysis applied to in this subsection to analyze strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats. The evaluation of the strategic process has to be done in order to conduct the SWOT analysis. Strength †¢In these recent years there is an increase in demand of furniture products that is modern and unique. These classifications make the house of the MF customers to be different from others. And the minimal design is used to express a maximum effect of the art used in the furniture; the arts used in minimal design mostly will be in the form of visual art and music. †¢The MF has the highly educated workers in the organization. The human resources used in both the outlet shop and the factory are skilled, capable of producing the design requested by the customer. †¢Diversity and ideas is the most important strength of the organization. This innovative idea makes us differ from our competitors. Integrating different ideas into a furniture product, that forms the critical success factors. †¢The furniture market has a big democratic market, where there is always a way to establish our organization and product information through the media. This also forms the strength of our organization. Weakness †¢The major part of the weakness lies in the stock control, which is inefficient. There are many cases where the stocks may be outdated. In some cases there may be insufficient stocks. And at sometimes the stocks would not be available on the time needed, sometime available more than what is needed. †¢Trust, forms the core of the business process. The materials that are supplied by the external organizations at sometimes create a lack of trust in them. As the furniture company is mainly dependent on external organization for the raw materials, lose their trust when the raw material is not good and when it is not supplied the time needed. †¢Master Furniture is known especially for its uniqueness in the product. When there is some situation where the organization has to share the knowledge with the other employees and external organization, the knowledge shared can be misused. These cases the organization has to take the risks. †¢The demand for the traditional structure of the furniture’s is decreasing rapidly. On the other hand new innovation and change in this industry has slow absorption. †¢Till a product is completed the quality of the product cannot be judged. Once the quality of the product fails a new product has to be created and the raw materials used cannot also be reused. As known for producing single furniture a large quantity of raw material has to be invested. Opportunities †¢Big potential is developing in the market sector for designing. As the main part of this business is designing as per requested by the customer, the minimal designs are creating new opportunities for these kind of design patterns in the market. †¢The labor cost can be reduced by outsourcing it to the other countries such as China. †¢There is a large scope in the research and development as the customers are looking forward for the uniqueness in the product they buy. So, research and development capability is high. †¢Hybrid solutions can be achieved by blending and balancing. This can be done using the effective production methods. †¢There is only a very little competition in the designing of the modern furniture’s. Threats †¢The major threat to be considered is that the cost of the raw materials, which is always showing upward trend in the rise of the prices. This causes the regular price fluctuation of the products produced. †¢The new ideas or methods that are used in the manufacturing of the product sometimes lead to uncertainties. The innovation in the product cannot be always successful. †¢The MF Company also has to hope with the fast changes and new inventions in the industry. When a new production method is introduced then there will be a change in the stock control. This will lead to a large fluctuation in stock control. 3.2 Marketing Strategy Customers are considered as core in any business. The companies manufacture goods according to the needs of its customers. They would like to increase their market share by beating their competitors through sales. One should have a proper business plan to achieve this. The company should know the likes and dislikes of its customers. Based on these factors it can build a business strategy that allows you to satisfy your customers. The two main marketing principles are: †¢The entire efforts of a company should be directed towards customers needs. †¢Profitable sales volume is more important than maximum sales volume. Positioning: Master furniture is positioned as high quality, moderate price retailer that offers unique customizes goods. As Master furniture provides special services to their customers their goods are positioned at high quality which lean towards higher prices. Their market positioning goals are accomplished through the following: †¢Appointing outstanding sales persons in Master furniture retail store who understand the customer needs. †¢Explaining their manufacturing capabilities and uniqueness through demonstrations. †¢To highlight their ability to customize and quality they should provide invitational sales. Unique Selling Proposition: A unique selling proposition is what your business stands for. It sets your business apart from others. Instead of attempting to be known for everything, businesses with a unique selling proposition stand for something specific, and it becomes what you’re known for. Master furniture sets its business apart from others due to its unique feature of providing customized goods to its customers. Price vs. Quality Design: Master furniture maintains high quality provides appealing customized design according to the customer needs at affordable prices. Advertising and Promotion: Master furniture will use different sources to communicate with their targeted market. Newspaper, local cable, billboards, pamphlets are different sources to attract customers. They use the electronic media to attract customers and explain their concept of customization. Their customers being the middle and high class in the society Master furniture uses radio and television to advertise. Posturing and vehicle writing methods can also be implemented to advertise. Master furniture uses media to advertise. These include: †¢Internet †¢Newspaper †¢Radio †¢Television †¢Tradeshows Internet: Advertising through the Internet is the best way to advertise these days. Social networking websites like Facebook are used for advertising. This would be the most effective advertising plot for Master furniture. Newspaper: Most people in Australia read newspaper. So for that reason Master furniture can use the most popular newspaper to advertise. Radio: Radio is also considered as a popular media item. Many people use it for audio entertainment. So Master furniture can also use radio as to advertise. Television: Television is the most popular media item. Every person in the country uses television for entertainment. Therefore Master furniture can use television to advertise. Tradeshows: The trades how is an excellent mechanism to stay connected with the market and network potential customers. Aside from sales promotion the trade shows offer you the ability to see your competition. Master furniture will attend the trade shows held every year and try to attain potential customers. 4.Risk management plan 4.1Purpose and Objectives Risk management plan is to identify and record the potential risks which may threaten the company and also assess identified risks and establishing risk mitigation strategies to mitigate negative impacts on achieving goals and objectives of the business. The purpose of the risk management plan is to describe all aspects of risk management, including: 1)Identifying and recording the potential risks; 2)Classifying the identified risks and assessing impacts of risks; 3)Developing the risk mitigation strategy for each risk; 4)Allocating responsibility; 4.2 Target Audience The target audience of the risk management plan includes: all employees of MF company and its customers and the supplier. 4.3 Risk strategy In order to minimize the negative influences on the business development, the risk management procedure is developed by considering both internal and external factors. The necessary steps are risk Identification, risk assessment and risk Mitigation. All identified risks are categorized into six groups, including Customer Risks, Supplier Risks, Staff Risks, Competitor Risks, Product Risks and Financial Risks. Identified risks are measured in terms of likelihood of occurrence and impacts. By combing the likelihood and impacts, the risk rating is identified to provide the priority of the risks, which would present a better perspective for risk management. The detail information is shown in Table 1below. Table 1 †¢L=Likelihood: 1=Unlikely; 2=Possible; 3= Very Likely †¢C=Impact: 1=Minor; 2=Moderate; 3= Major †¢R=Risk Rating: L=Low; M=Medium; E=Extreme #Risk NameRisk DescriptionConsequence RRisk MitigationResponsibility ACustomer Risks A.1The company highly relies on a small number of major customers Once the larger customers turn to other companies’ product, then the company’s profit will be affected in the short time.The company’s profit and cash flow will be affected in a period of time until finding the new customers to yield revenue.22M†¢Improving the customer satisfaction and keeping long-term relationship with valuable customer groups by regularly contacting them and continually providing the superior products and services. †¢Locking the existing customers and make them become larger customers. †¢Expanding the target customer groups and seeking new and profitable customers.†¢General Manager †¢Department Managers †¢Salesmen BSupplier Risks B.1Highly depends on one supplierOnce the existing supplier is not able to provide the products and services or produce the products to the company, then the company’s normal operations will be affected.The company’s normal operations will be affected because of the shortage of supply.33E†¢Seeking alternative suppliers who are able to provide the similar products and services to the company. †¢Locking the existing supplier by the long-term contracts and maintaining the relationship with the supplier regularly.†¢General Manager †¢Department Managers B.2Product delivery delay riskThe suppliers cannot produce the product and deliver products on time.The company will not deliver products for its customers on time and loss reputation and credibility.11L†¢Seeking alternative suppliers who are able to provide the similar products and services to the company. †¢Monitoring supply contract regularly and urging products delivery.†¢Department Managers †¢Salesman †¢Customer Service Manager CStaff Risks C.1The staff turnover riskSome employees are critical to the business success, such as they deal with the key supplier and larger customers. The company will be affected by staff turnover.Resulting in disruption of the business operation and hard to find the appropriate new staff. The company has to spend both time and money to train the new staff.22M†¢Implementing a strict personnel selection mechanism to find the right employees for the company. †¢Allocating more employees to key position and training employees for backup. †¢HR Manager †¢Department Managers C.2Employee face occupational health and safety(OHS) risksBecause of the nature of the work, the employees, such as vehicle drivers and porters, would injure in the particular event.The company will be under the risk of fines or paying for injury or death of an employee.11L†¢Establishing appropriate OHS policies. †¢Regularly maintain vehicles and advocating safe driving.†¢Employees DCompetitor Risks D.1Competitor riskCompetitors will pose a current or potential threat to the business, such as competitors may open the new business nearby or launch similar products with lower price in the market.The sales and revenue of the company will be affected.12L†¢Improving the relationships with large clients. †¢Investing money in developing new products and services. †¢Protecting intellectual property assets confidential and proprietary information, such as designs and copyright. †¢Continually monitoring competitors.†¢General Manager †¢Designer EProduct Risks E.1Large-scale product recall riskDue to product defect, the company has to recall all sold products.The company will huge losses in expense of reworking and the sales and reputation of the company will be affected in long term.13M†¢Monitoring the quality of the products and avoid the situation which would damage the company’s reputation. †¢Training employees.†¢General Manager †¢Salesman †¢Customer Service Manager E.2Copyright riskThe company’s copyright is violated.The sales and revenue of the company will be affected.13M†¢Establishing a copyright policy. †¢Protecting intellectual property assets confidential and proprietary information. †¢Signing a confidential agreement when contracting work out to third parties. †¢Getting copyright consultancy services.†¢General Manager †¢Designers †¢Department Managers FFinancial Risks F.1Liquidity riskThe company doesn’t have enough money to pay its debts.The company’s operation will be affected.22M†¢Managing and monitoring cash flow. †¢Carefully making financial decisions.†¢General Manager †¢Finance employees F.2Credit riskDue to the products and services sold on credit, the customers may be unable to pay the money back.Resulting in financial loss.12L†¢Checking customers’ credit status and signing terms an conditions of trade with customers.†¢Finance employees †¢Salesman 5.Conclusion From what mentioned above wo can get the conclusion that a business plan which includes several parts, a statement of the business, marketing strategy and risk management plan. Establishing a detailed business plan plays a significant role in operating the business and achieving their goals successfully. When setting a plan, the organization should particularly pay attention to risk management plan which can help the business reduce loss the risks result and operate in a smooth way.

Incident By Countee Cullen Essay -- Poetry Racism

Literary Appreciation #1- â€Å"Incident† by Countee Cullen   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚     Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã¢â‚¬Å"Incident†, is a poem that was written to make us as readers think, not only about racism but also about how one occasion can allow us to judge a race, or a place. Racism is an issue that plagues not only African-Americans but also other creeds, genders, and races. In this essay I will discuss the poem and the role that racism took within it, by using personal knowledge, the text, and obtained research.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The poem in its self takes on a rhyme scheme that allows you the reader to feel the narrator, so that you can not only imagine that you were there, but you can also almost gather the same feelings as the narrator. In the begin he talks about how he first rode through Baltimore happy, and filled with glee. Unti...

Hando :: Interview Dialogue Essays

Hando "Is it on?" "Yes, Mr....ah..." "Hando, you can just call me that." "Of course, Hando. Well, just start whenever you’re ready." "I hate being recorded, but we might as well get it over with. I am getting a check for this, right?" "Yes sir. Your story will be a great contribution to the civilization of Zyemlya and a wonderful edition to our magazine. It really is quite remarkable after all." "Yeah, well, whatever. As long as I get my check. Social Security just doesn’t cut it these days. Seems if my story was so remarkable, this ungrateful generation wouldn’t have stuck me in this home, after all I’ve done." "Most have forgotten. Maybe you’ll get the respect you deserve after your story is published." "Maybe. Just maybe." "What exactly is it you did?" "Well, I’ll get to it. You want something to eat? Nothing but hospital food, but what can you do?" "No thank you." "Suit yourself. Let’s see, where to begin. We obviously won the Conflict, since we’re here talking to each other right now. After that victory, there were lots of questions about what to do now. There were only about 4 or 5 hundred of us left. Thousands had died off, most of the population of Zyemlya. They resisted the change. Most of them still couldn’t believe what was going on, even after all that happened. They didn’t actually die; it was more that they faded out with the Being. We all lost loved ones; I lost a sister and a groundhog, but we knew it was necessary to destroy the Being. "We had never had our own world before, our own will, our own lives. The Being had made sure of that. We never really knew exactly what it was, or where it came from, or if it even was an "it." We just knew it was there, and what it was doing. "I’ll take credit for that one though. That was a long time ago, and me with my slipshod memory, I don’t know how well I can recount it all. Now you young whippersnappers come in here and want to scoop out my brains to put in your magazine. The way things work around here, this will probably turn into a half page section in some fifth grader’s textbook. "I guess I’ll start with the dreams. I hadn’t always had them; they started when I was about 16. Hando :: Interview Dialogue Essays Hando "Is it on?" "Yes, Mr....ah..." "Hando, you can just call me that." "Of course, Hando. Well, just start whenever you’re ready." "I hate being recorded, but we might as well get it over with. I am getting a check for this, right?" "Yes sir. Your story will be a great contribution to the civilization of Zyemlya and a wonderful edition to our magazine. It really is quite remarkable after all." "Yeah, well, whatever. As long as I get my check. Social Security just doesn’t cut it these days. Seems if my story was so remarkable, this ungrateful generation wouldn’t have stuck me in this home, after all I’ve done." "Most have forgotten. Maybe you’ll get the respect you deserve after your story is published." "Maybe. Just maybe." "What exactly is it you did?" "Well, I’ll get to it. You want something to eat? Nothing but hospital food, but what can you do?" "No thank you." "Suit yourself. Let’s see, where to begin. We obviously won the Conflict, since we’re here talking to each other right now. After that victory, there were lots of questions about what to do now. There were only about 4 or 5 hundred of us left. Thousands had died off, most of the population of Zyemlya. They resisted the change. Most of them still couldn’t believe what was going on, even after all that happened. They didn’t actually die; it was more that they faded out with the Being. We all lost loved ones; I lost a sister and a groundhog, but we knew it was necessary to destroy the Being. "We had never had our own world before, our own will, our own lives. The Being had made sure of that. We never really knew exactly what it was, or where it came from, or if it even was an "it." We just knew it was there, and what it was doing. "I’ll take credit for that one though. That was a long time ago, and me with my slipshod memory, I don’t know how well I can recount it all. Now you young whippersnappers come in here and want to scoop out my brains to put in your magazine. The way things work around here, this will probably turn into a half page section in some fifth grader’s textbook. "I guess I’ll start with the dreams. I hadn’t always had them; they started when I was about 16.

The Short Second Life of Bree Tanner Chapters 16

â€Å"She has surrendered,† the redhead explained. â€Å"Surrendered?† Jane snapped. I peeked up to see the dark-cloaks exchanging glances. The redhead had said that he'd never seen anyone surrender before. Maybe the dark-cloaks hadn't, either. â€Å"Carlisle gave her the option,† the redhead said. He seemed to be the spokesperson for the yel ow-eyes, though I thought Carlisle might be the leader. â€Å"There are no options for those who break the rules,† Jane said, her voice dead again. My bones felt like ice, but I didn't feel panicked anymore. It al seemed so inevitable now. Carlisle answered Jane in a soft voice. â€Å"That's in your hands. As long as she was wil ing to halt her attack on us, I saw no need to destroy her. She was never taught.† Though his words were neutral, I almost thought he was pleading for me. But, as he had said, my fate was not up to him. â€Å"That is irrelevant,† Jane confirmed. â€Å"As you wish.† Jane was staring at Carlisle with an expression that was half confusion and half frustration. She shook her head, and her face was unreadable again. â€Å"Aro hoped that we would get far enough west to see you, Carlisle,† she said. â€Å"He sends his regards.† â€Å"I would appreciate it if you would convey mine to him,† he answered. Jane smiled. â€Å"Of course.† Then she looked at me again, with the corners of her mouth stil slightly holding the smile. â€Å"It appears that you've done our work for us today†¦ for the most part. Just out of professional curiosity, how many were there? They left quite a wake of destruction in Seattle.† She spoke of jobs and professionals. I was right, then, that it was her profession to punish. And if there were punishers, then there must be rules. Carlisle had said before, We follow their rules, and also, There is no law against creating vampires if you control them. Riley and my creator had been afraid but not exactly surprised by the arrival of the dark-cloaks, these Volturi. They knew about the laws, and they knew they were breaking them. Why hadn't they told us? And there were more Volturi than just these four. Someone named Aro and probably many more. There must have been a lot for everyone to fear them so much. Carlisle answered Jane's question. â€Å"Eighteen, including this one.† There was a barely audible murmur among the four darkcloaks. â€Å"Eighteen?† Jane repeated, a note of surprise in her voice. Our creator had never told Jane how many of us she'd created. Was Jane real y surprised, or just faking it? â€Å"Al brand-new,† Carlisle said. â€Å"They were unskil ed.† Unskil ed and uninformed, thanks to Riley. I was beginning to get a sense of how these older vampires viewed us. Newborn, Jasper had cal ed me. Like a baby. â€Å"Al ?† Jane snapped. â€Å"Then who was their creator?† As if they hadn't already been introduced. This Jane was a bigger liar than Riley, and she was so much better at it than he was. â€Å"Her name was Victoria,† the redhead answered. How did he know that when even I didn't? I remembered that Riley had said there was a mind reader in this group. Was that how they knew everything? Or was that another of Riley's lies? â€Å"Was?† Jane asked. The redhead jerked his head toward the east like he was pointing. I looked up and saw a cloud of thick lilac smoke bil owing from the side of the mountain. Was. I felt a similar kind of pleasure to what I'd felt imagining the big vampire shredding Raoul. Only much, much greater. â€Å"This Victoria,† Jane asked slowly. â€Å"She was in addition to the eighteen here?† â€Å"Yes,† the redhead confirmed. â€Å"She had only one other with her. He was not as young as this one here, but no older than a year.† Riley. My fierce pleasure intensified. If – okay, when – I died today, at least I didn't leave that loose thread. Diego had been avenged. I almost smiled. â€Å"Twenty,† Jane breathed. Either this was more than she had expected, or she was a kil er actress. â€Å"Who dealt with the creator?† â€Å"I did,† the redhead said coldly. Whoever this vampire was, whether he kept a pet human or no, he was a friend of mine. Even if he were the one to kil me in the end, I would stil owe him. Jane turned to stare at me with narrowed eyes. â€Å"You there,† she snarled. â€Å"Your name.† I was dead anyway, according to her. So why give this lying vampire anything she wanted? I just glared at her. Jane smiled at me, the bright, happy smile of an innocent child, and suddenly I was on fire. It was like I'd gone back in time to the worst night of my life. Fire was in every vein of my body, covering every inch of my skin, gnawing through the marrow of every bone. It felt like I was buried in the middle of my coven's funeral bonfire, with the flames on every side. There wasn't a single cel in my body that wasn't blazing with the worst agony imaginable. I could barely hear myself scream over the pain in my ears. â€Å"Your name,† Jane said again, and as she spoke the fire disappeared. Gone like that, as if I'd only been imagining it. â€Å"Bree,† I said as fast as I could, stil gasping though the pain wasn't there anymore. Jane smiled again and the fire was everywhere. How much pain would it take before I would die of it? The screams didn't even feel like they were coming from me anymore. Why wouldn't someone rip my head off? Carlisle was kind enough for that, wasn't he? Or whoever their mind reader was. Couldn't he or she understand and make this stop? â€Å"She'l tel you anything you want to know,† the redhead growled. â€Å"You don't have to do that.† The pain vanished again, like Jane had turned off a light switch. I found myself facedown on the ground, panting as if I needed air. â€Å"Oh, I know,† I heard Jane say cheerful y. â€Å"Bree?† I shuddered when she cal ed my name, but the pain didn't start again. â€Å"Is his story true?† she asked me. â€Å"Were there twenty of you?† The words flew out of my mouth. â€Å"Nineteen or twenty, maybe more, I don't know! Sara and the one whose name I don't know got in a fight on the way†¦.† I waited for the pain to punish me for not having a better answer, but instead Jane spoke again. â€Å"And this Victoria – did she create you?† â€Å"I don't know,† I admitted fearful y. â€Å"Riley never said her name. I didn't see that night†¦ it was so dark, and it hurt!† I flinched. â€Å"He didn't want us to be able to think of her. He said that our thoughts weren't safe.† Jane shot a glance at the redhead, then looked at me again. â€Å"Tel me about Riley,† Jane said. â€Å"Why did he bring you here?† I recited Riley's lies as quickly as I could. â€Å"Riley told us that we had to destroy the strange yel ow-eyes here. He said it would be easy. He said that the city was theirs, and they were coming to get us. He said once they were gone, al the blood would be ours. He gave us her scent.† I pointed in the human's direction. â€Å"He said we would know that we had the right coven, because she would be with them. He said whoever got to her first could have her.† â€Å"It looks like Riley was wrong about the easy part,† Jane said, a hint of teasing in her tone. It seemed like Jane was pleased with my story. In a flash of insight, I understood that she was relieved Riley hadn't told me or the others about her little visit to our creator. Victoria. This was the story she wanted the yel ow-eyes to know – the story that didn't implicate Jane or the dark-cloaked Volturi. Wel, I could play along. Hopeful y the mind reader was already in the know. I couldn't physical y take revenge on this monster, but I could tel the yel ow-eyes everything with my thoughts. I hoped. I nodded, agreeing with Jane's little joke, and sat up because I wanted the mind reader's attention, whoever that was. I continued with the version of the story that any other member of my coven would have been able to give. I pretended I was Kevin. Dumb as a bag of rocks and total y ignorant. â€Å"I don't know what happened.† That part was true. The mess on the battlefield was stil a mystery. I'd never seen any of Kristie's group. Did the secret howler vampires get them? I would keep that secret for the yel ow-eyes. â€Å"We split up, but the others never came. And Riley left us, and he didn't come to help like he promised. And then it was so confusing, and everybody was in pieces.† I flinched at the memory of the torso I'd hurdled. â€Å"I was afraid. I wanted to run away.† I nodded at Carlisle. â€Å"That one said they wouldn't hurt me if I stopped fighting.† This wasn't betraying Carlisle in any way. He'd already told Jane as much. â€Å"Ah, but that wasn't his gift to offer, young one,† Jane said. She sounded like she was enjoying herself. â€Å"Broken rules demand a consequence.† Stil pretending I was Kevin, I just stared at her as if I were too stupid to understand. Jane looked at Carlisle. â€Å"Are you sure you got al of them? The other half that split off?† Carlisle nodded. â€Å"We split up, too.† So it was the howlers that got Kristie. I hoped that, whatever else they were, the howlers were real y, real y terrifying. Kristie deserved that. â€Å"I can't deny that I'm impressed,† Jane said, sounding sincere, and I thought that this was probably the truth. Jane had been hopeful that Victoria's army would do some damage here, and we'd clearly failed. â€Å"Yes,† the three vampires behind Jane al agreed quietly. â€Å"I've never seen a coven escape this magnitude of offensive intact,† Jane continued. â€Å"Do you know what was behind it? It seems like extreme behavior, considering the way you live here. And why was the girl the key?† Her eyes flicked to the human for just a moment. â€Å"Victoria held a grudge against Bel a,† the redhead told her. So the strategy final y made sense. Riley just wanted the girl dead and didn't care how many of us died to get it done. Jane laughed happily. â€Å"This one† – and she smiled at the human the way she'd smiled at me – â€Å"seems to bring out bizarrely strong reactions in our kind.† Nothing happened to the girl. Maybe Jane didn't want to hurt her. Or maybe her horrible talent only worked on vampires. â€Å"Would you please not do that?† the redhead asked in a control ed but furious voice. Jane laughed again. â€Å"Just checking. No harm done, apparently.† I tried to keep my expression Kevin-ish and not betray my interest. So Jane couldn't hurt this girl the way she'd hurt me, and this was not a normal thing for Jane. Though Jane was laughing about it, I could tel it was driving her crazy. Was this why the human girl was tolerated by the yel ow-eyes? But if she was special in some way, why didn't they just change her into a vampire? â€Å"Wel, it appears that there's not much left for us to do,† Jane said, her voice a dead monotone again. â€Å"Odd. We're not used to being rendered unnecessary. It's too bad we missed the fight. It sounds like it would have been entertaining to watch.† â€Å"Yes,† the redhead retorted. â€Å"And you were so close. It's a shame you didn't arrive just a half hour earlier. Perhaps then you could have fulfil ed your purpose here.† I fought a smile. So the redhead was the mind reader, and he'd heard everything I'd wanted him to hear. Jane wasn't getting away with anything. Jane stared back at the mind reader with a blank expression. â€Å"Yes. Quite a pity how things turned out, isn't it?† The mind reader nodded, and I wondered what he was hearing in Jane's head. Jane turned her blank face to me now. There was nothing in her eyes, but I could feel that my time had run out. She'd gotten what she needed from me. She didn't know that I'd also given the mind reader everything I could. And protected his coven's secrets, too. I owed him that. He'd punished Riley and Victoria for me. I glanced at him from the corner of my eye and thought, Thanks. â€Å"Felix?† Jane said lazily. â€Å"Wait,† the mind reader said loudly. He turned to Carlisle and spoke quickly. â€Å"We could explain the rules to the young one. She doesn't seem unwil ing to learn. She didn't know what she was doing.† â€Å"Of course,† Carlisle said eagerly, looking at Jane. â€Å"We would certainly be prepared to take responsibility for Bree.† Jane's face looked like she wasn't sure if they were joking, but if they were joking, they were funnier than she'd given them credit for. Me, I was touched to the core. These vampires were strangers, but they'd gone out on this dangerous limb for me. I already knew it wasn't going to work, but stil . â€Å"We don't make exceptions,† Jane told them, amused. â€Å"And we don't give second chances. It's bad for our reputation.† It was like she was discussing someone else. I didn't care that she was talking about kil ing me. I knew the yel ow-eyes couldn't stop her. She was the vampire police. But even though the vampire cops were dirty – real y dirty – at least the yel ow-eyes knew it now. â€Å"Which reminds me†¦,† Jane went on, her eyes locking on the human girl again and her smile widening. â€Å"Caius wil be so interested to hear that you're stil human, Bel a. Perhaps he'l decide to visit.† Still human. So they were going to change the girl. I wondered what they were waiting for. â€Å"The date is set,† said the little vampire with the short black hair and the clear voice. â€Å"Perhaps we'l come to visit you in a few months.† Jane's smile disappeared like someone had wiped it off. She shrugged without looking at the black-haired vampire, and I got the feeling that as much as she might have hated the human girl, she hated this smal vampire ten times as much. Jane turned back to Carlisle with the same vacant expression as before. â€Å"It was nice to meet you, Carlisle – I'd thought Aro was exaggerating. Wel, until we meet again†¦Ã¢â‚¬  This would be it, then. I stil didn't feel afraid. My only regret was that I couldn't tel Fred more about al of this. He was going almost total y blind into this world ful of dangerous politics and dirty cops and secret covens. But Fred was smart and careful and talented. What could they do to him if they couldn't even see him? Maybe the yel ow-eyes would meet Fred someday. Be nice to him, please, I thought at the mind reader. â€Å"Take care of that, Felix,† Jane said indifferently, nodding at me. â€Å"I want to go home.† â€Å"Don't watch,† the redheaded mind reader whispered. I closed my eyes.

Free Essays on The History Of Surf Board Design

Spanning over 100 years of surfing history, this scale model collection (above) showcases some of the significant changes in surfboard design from the centuries-old hardwood boards of the Hawaiian Islands to the innovative balsa and foam shapes of the mid-20th Century. One of Duke Kahanamoku's original hardwood surfboards (above) hangs in the International Surfing Museum. In this assignment I shall investigate the evolution of the surfboard, and the impact that modern developments have on the industry. The definition "to surf " has held meaning for people all over the world for many years. For some it is a competitive sport, for others a hobby, and for others a release; an enlightenment reached only by becoming one with their surfboard and the sloping plane of water gliding beneath them. There is an art to finding the perfect wave, your own perfect break, determined selectively by the certain style of board you enjoy riding and the type of wave you like to surf. The fundamentals to surfing entail no more than a plank to perch on, and a plane of water that breaks from one side to the other. It is from these elements that the legends of surfing have derived. During the early 1950's, the image of the surfer riding a longboard became established through films as an easygoing popular lifestyle. Over the next few decades the longboard that had forced its popularity at the top of the social scale evaporated. Since then it has slowly been regaining ground. Meanwhile the introduction of the shortboard led surfers to experiment with new techniques and skills that they never new existed within the sport. The introduction of new materials, new designs and fin experimentation added even greater ground to the vast expanding pastime of surfing. The original shortboard design is still visible in today's advanced technology, though each individual surfboard shaper tends to add individual creative twists to the design process tha... Free Essays on The History Of Surf Board Design Free Essays on The History Of Surf Board Design Spanning over 100 years of surfing history, this scale model collection (above) showcases some of the significant changes in surfboard design from the centuries-old hardwood boards of the Hawaiian Islands to the innovative balsa and foam shapes of the mid-20th Century. One of Duke Kahanamoku's original hardwood surfboards (above) hangs in the International Surfing Museum. In this assignment I shall investigate the evolution of the surfboard, and the impact that modern developments have on the industry. The definition "to surf " has held meaning for people all over the world for many years. For some it is a competitive sport, for others a hobby, and for others a release; an enlightenment reached only by becoming one with their surfboard and the sloping plane of water gliding beneath them. There is an art to finding the perfect wave, your own perfect break, determined selectively by the certain style of board you enjoy riding and the type of wave you like to surf. The fundamentals to surfing entail no more than a plank to perch on, and a plane of water that breaks from one side to the other. It is from these elements that the legends of surfing have derived. During the early 1950's, the image of the surfer riding a longboard became established through films as an easygoing popular lifestyle. Over the next few decades the longboard that had forced its popularity at the top of the social scale evaporated. Since then it has slowly been regaining ground. Meanwhile the introduction of the shortboard led surfers to experiment with new techniques and skills that they never new existed within the sport. The introduction of new materials, new designs and fin experimentation added even greater ground to the vast expanding pastime of surfing. The original shortboard design is still visible in today's advanced technology, though each individual surfboard shaper tends to add individual creative twists to the design process tha...

Critical thinking

Critical thinking The concept of utility takes an important place in the economic theory. In context of marketing, the theory of utility is used in practice in order to facilitate the sales of the company and to adjust the business plan with the market demand and customers preferences. The concept of utility plays a vital role in the small firms functioning as well.Advertising We will write a custom essay sample on Critical thinking specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More â€Å"Utility is the use or satisfaction a person gets from a product† (What is marketing?, n.d., p.14). Taking into account that the search and satisfaction of customers needs are the fundaments in the profitability and overall effectiveness of the business, the efforts should be made by the firm to find the market segment in which it can provide utility to the customers. In this respect, it would be logical to quote John Mackey, co-founder and CEO of Whole Foods Market, who says â⠂¬Å"For us, our most important stakeholder is not our stockholders, it is our customers. We’re in the business to serve the needs and desires of our core customer base† (Boone, 2012, p. 39). The theory usually defines the four types of utility: form, time, place, and possession. However, the task utility is sometimes marked out by marketers. It assumes providing some service to the customer. In order to define which types of utility are relevant to the small firms, we need to consider the market structure in which they mostly operate. Boone (2012) states that the â€Å"traditional economic analysis views competition as a battle among companies in the same industry (direct competition) or among substitutable goods (indirect competition)† (p.65-66). The majority of small businesses function under the conditions of monopolistic competition defined as the market structure with the numerous competitors selling differentiated products (Monopolistic competition, n.d.). In order to survive, the firms must differentiate their product to make it stands out on the market by emphasizing the benefits it can provide to customers. There are four types of utility relevant to small businesses: form, time, possession, and task. The place utility may also add value to the small firms’ products but its role is substantially lesser in comparison with the other four and it rarely contributes to the good or service differentiation of the small businesses.Advertising Looking for essay on business economics? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More Form Utility assumes that â€Å"a product must be processed into a form that the customer wants or needs† (What is marketing?, n.d., p.14). For example, bakeries, delicatessens, or cafes benefit consumers by selling them products ready for use; they turn the separate ingredients into the integral product. The customization of good is one of the feat ures of the form utility (Winsor et al., 2004). That is why the form utility prevails in the monopolistic competition. Possession utility establishes legal ownership of a product which is supported by the receipt (What is marketing?, n.d., p.15). For instance, a lot of small businesses operating in e-commerce provide the customers with the opportunity to use the debit electronic payment systems such as PayPal. The use of the system simplifies the process of payment, thus creating benefit to the customer. â€Å"Time Utility could be described as being in the right place at the right time when a customer is ready to purchase a product† (What is marketing?, n.d., p.16). Undoubtedly, the debit electronic payment systems also represent the bright examples of the method of saving time while making a transaction. Besides, a lot of small businesses place their retail outlets nearby the potential customers’ residence. In such a way, they save the free time of customers who do n ot have to spend hours to get to the bakery, for instance. Finally, the task utility adds value by providing customers with special services. For example, the customers go to hairdressing or the beauty salon because they do not possess certain skills. In summary, the understanding of the customers needs plays an important role in the survival of the small firms. It is the factor that motivates them to add value to their products by using form, possession, task, and time utilities. References Boone, L. E. (2012). Contemporary marketing, 16th edition. Stamford, USA: Cengage Learning. Monopolistic competition. (n.d.). Retrieved from economicsonline.co.uk/Business_economics/Monopolistic_competition.htmlAdvertising We will write a custom essay sample on Critical thinking specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More Winsor, R. D., Sheth, J. N. Manolis, Ch. (2004). Differentiating goods and services retailing using form and possession utilities. Journ al of Business Research, 57, 249-255. What is marketing? (n.d.). Web.

The 5 Best AP Statistics Review Books to Prep for the Exam

The 5 Best AP Statistics Review Books to Prep for the Exam SAT / ACT Prep Online Guides and Tips If you’re preparing for the AP Statistics exam, a prep book can be your best tool to help you reach the score you’re aiming for. However, not all prep books are created equal. In this guide, we go over the top five AP Statistics review books out there and give advice on whom each of them is best for. We also explain what you should look for in an AP Statistics book and how to make the most of your prep book during your studying. What to Look for in an AP Statistics Book Before we dive into the prep book reviews, let’s first look at what makes a particular AP Statistics prep book better than the rest. In general, there are four qualities that all the best prep books share. #1: Tips and Strategies for the Exam A good AP Statistics review book will give explanations and advice for how to attack each question type you’ll see on the AP Stats test.These can make studying more productive and faster than it would be without a prep book because you’ll learn the best way to answer questions without having to do trial-and-error on your own. #2: High-Quality Practice Problems Practice problems are a key part of AP Stats prep because they give you a chance to see how well you can apply your stats knowledge to actual questions.Even if you’re acing your school stats tests, AP questions are often worded in different ways and cover different topics than questions you see in class. High-quality prep books will contain dozens of practice questions covering each section and question type of the exam. They’ll help you get used to the types of questions you’ll see on the AP Stats exam. #3: Complete Practice Tests In addition to practice problems, the best AP Stats prep books contain full-length practice tests to help you become more familiar with the exam and track your progress.By taking practice tests, you’ll get an idea of how well you’ll score on the AP Statistics exam and be prepared to the format and length of the test. #4: In-Depth Answer Explanations Even if a book has top-quality practice questions, you won’t get as much out of them as you could if they don’t also have good answer explanations.A top AP Statistics review book will explain why a particular answer is correct for all or most of its practice problems.This way, you can learn from your mistakes and understand why the correct answer is what it is. The Best AP Statistics Review Books In this section are the five best AP Statistics prep books to help you study for the exam. For each book we include the price, a brief summary, pros, cons, and who the book will be most useful for. Barron’s AP Statistics Price: About $13 Summary Barron’s prep books are well known for being slightly more difficult than the actual tests they prepare you for, and their AP statistics review book is no exception. It goes over challenging stats concepts and prepares you for the most difficult questions you'll see on the exam. Additionally, this book contains a diagnostic test for you to figure out how well you’re scoring, five practice tests with answer explanations, and access to an online test. The bulk of Barron’s book is devoted to explaining how to answer different types of stats questions. This part of the book is divided into 15 chapters based on different stats topics, such as confidence intervals and sampling distributions. The end of each chapter includes a mini quiz on the topic. Pros Good value for money if you’re looking for lots of practice tests (you get seven total with the book). Book is well organized which makes it easy to study a specific topic. Practice problems are high-quality and similar to official AP Statistics questions. Covers tough questions and topics many review books skip over. Cons Assumes you already have a solid basic knowledge of statistics. Doesn’t give much advice on how to develop a study plan. Who It’s Best For Barron’s book is best for students who already feel pretty solid with their statistics skills and are aiming for a high score on the AP exam. It skips over a lot of basic stats knowledge to focus more on tougher concepts. It also has challenging practice questions to ensure you’re well prepared for the AP exam. Barron’s practice tests are slightly more difficult than the actual AP exam, so if you can score well on these practice tests, you’re in great shape for test day. Cracking the AP Statistics Exam (Princeton Review) Price: About $14 Summary Princeton Review’s bookincludes two complete practice tests, but the bulk of the book is devoted to reviewing the content you’ll be tested on during the AP Statistics test. Princeton Review aims to write prep books that are easy to understand and more interesting than a standard textbook, and many people like the encouraging and down to earth style of their books. The content review for this book is organized into four main chapters, and each chapter ends with a mini quiz. The book also includes tips on how to approach different types of questions you’ll see on the exam, how to create a study plan, and how to best use your calculator. Pros Written in an easy-to-understand, engaging style. The content review chapters are organized into very specific topics that makes it easy to find exactly what info you want to review. Breaks down statistics problems step-by-step to make them easier to understand. Cons Only has two practice tests, which is less than most other prep books. Their practice questions tend to be somewhat easier than actual AP Stats questions. Who It’s Best For Princeton Review’s books are known for their engaging and accessible style which can appeal to students who are bored or intimidated by traditional prep books. This book also spends a lot of time breaking down and explaining key stats concepts that you may have been struggling with. Therefore, it’s best for students who have just started their prep and/or those who want to build up their stats knowledge more. Because the book’s practice problems tend to be somewhat easier than actual AP problems, it’s not ideal for people who are looking for a top AP score. If you do want a top score, plan on supplementing it with another prep book like Barron’s. 5 Steps to a 5: AP Statistics 2018 Price: About $13 Summary The 5 Steps to a 5 book is organized to walk you through your AP Statistics plan from start to finish. It begins by explaining how to set up your study plan, then gives tips for succeeding on the test, reviews the content you’ll need to know, and finishes with practice tests. The book includes three paper practice tests and three online tests, as well as additional online resources like online lessons, practice problems, and ways to track your progress. Pros Has extensive online resources with which you can develop a personalized study plan, study online flashcards, and answer practice problems. These are also accessible on your phone. Gives in-depth info on how to develop a study plan and attack different types of stats questions. Has a well-organized and in-depth content review section. Cons Writing style is often dry and wordy. Three of the six practice tests are online, so they don’t give you as realistic practice as the paper tests do. Who It’s Best For The 5 Steps to a 5 prep book is a good middle-of-the-road choice for people who feel they are past the level of the Princeton Review book but perhaps aren’t quite ready for Barron’s AP Stats book.A standout feature of this book is its online prep resources. With your access code, you can create your own complete study plan and track your progress in different skill areas. If you want more guidance in your AP studying and planning, these resources can be a big help for you. Ultimate AP Statistics Practice Book Price: About $15 Summary This AP Statistics review book is somewhat different than the others. Rather than giving a comprehensive review of AP Stats content and including full-length practice tests, the Ultimate AP Statistics Practice Book contains 100 practice questions that are explained in the book. Additionally, your book comes with a code you can scan that gives you access to YouTube videos that give in-depth explanations of each of the 100 questions. Pros The 100 questions give a solid overview of the different topics and types of questions you’ll see on the exam. Answer explanations are very thorough and include both written and video explanations. Practice questions are similar to official practice tests. Cons The book has a very specific focus100 practice questions and explanationsand doesn’t include other features most other prep books include like full practice tests or a comprehensive content review. Who It’s Best For If you’re struggling to understand how to solve stats problems and standard book explanations aren’t helping, this book may be exactly what you need. Since it includes video explanations for the problems, it can be very helpful for people who want practice problems explained in more detail or people who learn better with videos rather than written explanations. However, since this book doesn’t contain any full-length practice tests, it shouldn’t be your only prep book. Be sure to supplement it with another AP Statistics book that contains practice tests, like the Barron’s or 5 Steps to a 5. Introduction to Statistics and Data Analysis Price: About $90 new, $40 used Summary This is an AP Statistics textbook, not a prep book, but if you are self-studying for the AP Stats exam, feel the textbook your class is using isn’t helpful, or need an in-depth review of statistics content, this is one of the best stats textbooks out there.It’s approved by the College Board and is often used in college statistics classes. Reviewers have given it high marks for its high-quality practice problems and clear explanations of difficult concepts. The book (all 944 pages of it) includes 16 chapters, each of which dives into a different stats topic to give you a thorough understanding of the course.This textbook is also cheaper than most other stats textbooks, many of which are close to $200. Pros In-depth explanation of all the topics you need to know for AP Statistics. Includes a lot of practice problems with step-by-step explanations. Cons Somewhat dense and dry writing style. Some readers found the organization of the book confusing. Who It’s Best For Most people preparing for the AP Statistics exam won’t need to look for their own textbook since the one that they use in class will likely be enough. However, if you don’t like the textbook your class uses, feel like you really need to review certain stats topics, or you’re self-studying for the exam, this AP Statistics textbook can really help you out. How to Use Books in Your AP Stats Prep Now you have all the information you need to choose the best book for you, but how do you get the most out of your book? Check out the three tips below to learn the best way to use prep books in your AP Statistics studying. Create a Study Plan to Organize Your Studying No matter how long you have to study and how much you want to improve, a study plan will help you maximize your efficiency and get closer to your goal score. We have an in-depth guide to the five steps to making an AP study plan that you should definitely check out, but the quick version is to schedule regular times to study (like Tuesdays from 6-8pm and Saturdays from 12-4pm) and set yourself regular goals (like learning a new topic or increasing your raw score by 5 points). Remember to schedule time to take practice tests as well. Creating a schedule helps you hold yourself accountable, makes it more likely you’ll get your studying done, and helps you track your progress. Supplement Your AP Statistics Prep Book With Official Practice Tests Official practice tests are the best to use because you can be sure they follow the same format and content as the actual AP exam.Unfortunately, the College Board doesn’t make many official practice resources available for AP Statistics. There are two complete official AP Stats practice tests available, from 1997 and 2012. Definitely make use of these during your studying even if your prep book has a lot of practice tests. We recommend taking the 1997 official practice test at the beginning of your studying so you can see what official questions look like and make sure your prep book’s questions are similar, and take the 2012 official test towards the end of your studying to get an accurate idea of how well you’ll score on the actual AP exam. Attack Your Weaknesses Prep books aren’t novels, and you don’t need to read every word of your prep book in order for it to be useful.Focus on the content you’re struggling with, especially if your AP exam is coming up soon and you don’t have time to read through every chapter of your prep book. This is why taking a diagnostic test early on in your studying can be very useful. Take the diagnostic test, see which areas you struggled in, then go back and read those chapters and answer practice problems until you feel solid with that content. Take another practice test, see where you still need to improve, and repeat as needed. Conclusion: The Best AP Statistics Review Book Having an AP Statistics book can be extremely useful for helping you strengthen your statistics knowledge and become more familiar with the exam.AP Statistics books can vary based on their purpose, but, in general, the best prep books include tips and strategies for doing well on the test, lots of practice questions, complete practice tests, and in-depth answer explanations. Whether you’re looking for lots of practice tests, content review, a better way to understand and attack questions, or an AP Statistics textbook, there’s a book out there to meet your needs. Do a bit of research before buying to ensure you get the best AP Statistics review book for you. When using your AP Statistics book, to get the most out of it you should create a study plan, supplement your book with official practice tests, and use the book to focus specifically on your content weaknesses. What's Next? Want more info on what to expect from the AP Statistics exam?Check out our complete guide to the AP Stats exam and learn exactly what type of questions you'll see and how your exam will be graded. If you want a high score on the AP Stats test,you'll need to take practice tests.We've compiled a list of every AP Statistics exam available, both free and official. How difficult is AP Stats compared to other AP classes?Get the answer by reading our guide to the hardest AP exams and classes. Want to improve your SAT score by 160 points or your ACT score by 4 points?We've written a guide for each test about the top 5 strategies you must be using to have a shot at improving your score. Download it for free now:

My majer is Safety mangmant Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words

My majer is Safety mangmant - Research Paper Example This paper explores the practice of I/O psychology aimed at understanding how it can improve human welfare in workplaces. The paper offers goes from outlining a brief history of I/O psychology to exploring how it has been applied in improving HRM and effect it has on workers welfare and hence organization productivity. To this end, the paper offers an account of the existing literature and links the literature to improving human welfare at workplaces. Introduction The history of Industrial Organizational psychology is rooted in a confluence of precursors from philosophy, science and psychology (Koppes&Pickren, 2007). It is a branch involving the practice of theories and practices of psychology to industrial and organizational environments. Levy (2013) says that the I/O psychology serves to access, measure, and offer workforce motivation as well as enhance leadership, employee-employer relations, and job attitudes. Rogeelberg (2007) similarly notes that the goal of I/O psychology is t o better understand and ensure the effectiveness, well being, and health of both the workers and organizations. Industrial-organization psychology may be defined as the psychology of scientific study of human behavior at workplace or simply the study of behavior at work (Vuulen, 2010). Industrial-Organizational psychology has been a focus of study for many since it emerged in the 1900s. The real essence of the emergence of the I/O psychology was an attempt to improve job productivity and the quality of lives at workplaces. The new branch of Psychology aimed at solving practical problems at workplaces (Vuulen, 2010). Industrial- Organizational psychology is a double faceted principle aimed at enhancing organizational performance by addressing effective workers performance at contributing to human welfare at workplaces. Relevance of Industrial-Organizational Psychology at work place Most employed people spend a substantial amount of his time at workplaces and therefore the work enviro nment should consider the welfare of the workers, which greatly affects their quality of life. The realization of this fact has led to a rapid of I/O specialty in North America as well as throughout the industrialized world at large (Spector, 2003). Organizations are seeking the services of specialists who can comprehend and assess the human resource behavior to improve the job satisfaction of their workers and thus productivity. Since its inception the Industrial and Organizational psychology has continued to transform the way organization are run and the values that are important in a work environment. The I/O psychology itself has undergone some metamorphism to what it is today under the influence of scientific management, ergonomics and human relations. Human relations is a management approach that has evolved more recently which stresses on the workers and managers’ psychological characteristics underlining the importance of factors such as humane treatment of workers, m orale, attitude and values (Cameron 2007, quoted in Cengage Learning, n.d.). Traditionally work was viewed primarily as a means to cover one’s economic needs, a perception that has changed with the human relation management approach that demands workplaces to be run as a social system. Positive interpersonal

FIN Unit 4 DB SA FWP Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

FIN Unit 4 DB SA FWP - Essay Example Not only do the institution helps you to borrow capital, but also working with you to plan for the future as well as assure potential customers of the businesss steadiness and trustworthiness (Deshpande, 2004). Some banks offer incentives to keep a certain amount deposited besides others offer services to make the most of your profits, it might be wise to think through a bank that can offer those services (Deshpande, 2004). Certain institutions can even assist you collect financial information in your industry internationally. Or else, you would be wise to enlist a liberated financial advisor to identify your needs before choosing a global bank. Majority of those categories of banks provides the best tax rates which is less than the standard United States banks. Additionally, the interest rate charged on (for instance the Euro dollar deposits) depends on the bank’s lending rate, because the interest a bank earns on loans regulates its willingness as well as ability to pay interest on deposits, and finally on rates of return accessible on United States money market instruments (Massey, 2004). There is a wide range of investments policies capitalize on rewards not offered outside of an Investor’s home country. More frequently than not, there are no scarcities of money-markets as well as bond funds provided by banks out of the United States (Massey, 2004). The rewards of banking outside the U.S. also encourage a better investment atmosphere that appeals clients. An extra contribution to banking that way is the confidentiality that your money is safe (Stewart, 2011). However, the structured rules allow disclosures to prevent occurrence of money laundering and other unlawful activities. The Governments tend to be less harsh when regulating securities denominated in foreign currencies, since the bonds’ purchasers are generally more and most

Strategic Marketing Plan Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3750 words

Strategic Marketing Plan - Essay Example The valley of Swat is known for its amazing natural beauty and therefore there is a huge attraction for domestic and international tourists. In order to resume tourism in the valley after the removal of terrorists hold, this report presents a three year long marketing strategy which is categorized into three phases. The first phase will focus on attracting domestic tourists; the second will focus on domestic and international tourists, while the third phase will concentrate only on attracting international tourists towards Swat valley. The marketing plan presents an overview of the financial aspects of the strategy. Strategic Marketing Plan Resuming Tourism in Swat Valley (Pakistan) Introduction This report covers a strategic marketing plan for resuming tourism in the Swat valley located in the South Asian state, Pakistan. The valley of Swat had been under the control of terrorists and extremists before a successful military operation conducted by the Pakistan Armed Forces in 2009 (K han 2010). The structure of the report is based on the marketing plan structure presented by McDonald (2008). The marketing plan is based on the following structure: Part 1: Goal Setting This part presents the goal set to be achieved from the marketing plan presented in this report. ... Moreover, the monitoring of the outcomes of the marketing plan after its implementation are also being discussed in this part. 1. Goal Setting The aim of this market plan is to resume tourism activities in Swat Valley in Pakistan by taking into consideration the competitive advantages of the place as against the tourist destinations in the region of South Asia. 1.1. Marketing Objectives In order to present a direction for the goal of this marketing plan based on SMART objectives (Doran 1981), following are the strategic marketing objectives which are planned to be attained: To resume tourism activities in Swat valley; To promote the soft image of Swat valley and its people by conducting various events and projecting them to the outside world; To resume tourism activities in Swat by following a step wise strategy which focuses on domestic tourists first and then international tourists; To generate positive cash flows from tourist activities in the second year of the implementation of the marketing plan; To increase cash inflows from domestic tourists visits by 60 percent as compared to the first year in comparison with the first year; To increase cash inflows from international tourists’ visits by 33.33 percent in the third year in comparison with the second year. 2. Situation Analysis Following is an analysis of the situation relating to tourism in Swat valley, which considers different aspects relevant in devising a tourism marketing strategy for Swat. 2.1. Swat Valley Swat is a famous tourist destination in the northern regions of Pakistan, administered under the government of â€Å"Khyber Pakhtunkhwa† Province of Pakistan. The valley of Swat lies in the upper parts

Gymnastic Techniques Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Gymnastic Techniques - Essay Example Many components work together to make a gymnastic composition successful. An element is the shortest gymnastic exercise that is complete ((Jastrjembskaia, Titov 1999 pg 4). Each element consists of different movements of some of the various body parts (movements may be with or without apparatus). A movement is change in the orientation or position of the whole body or one of its parts. In a competition, judges judge each element according to some characteristics. These characteristics include originality, degree of difficulty, virtuosity of performance and mastery Each element technique has its own basis which includes the movements of the exercise and which distinguish an element from other elements (Jastrjembskaia, Titov 1999 pg 4). The basis of an element technique develops from independent preparatory, main and finishing phases. In the preparatory phase, all the body movements of the technique are involved in preparing a way for the main phase. For instance, a gymnast needs a preparatory phase to attain good speed or rotary motion to throw an apparatus. The main phase of the element includes all the movements performed according to the objective of the element (Jastrjembskaia, Titov 1999 pg 6). For instance if a gymnast is about to perform jump or leap the main objective is the gymnast's flight. If a gymnast is about to throw an apparatus then the main objective is the apparatus's flight. In finishing phase, a gymnast completes the objective he started in the main phase. The gymnast also changes his direction or speed of motion in this ph ase. For instance, in order to land from a leap, a gymnast in finishing phase stops his momentum and speed that he needed to make the leap. Spondylolisthesis among GymnastsYoung female gymnasts engaged in training and practice all year round place excessive demand on their back all year round. In a study, on one hundred female gymnasts, incidence of pars intercularis defect was four times higher than the incidence of 2.3% reported in general female Caucasian population (Jackson, Wiltse and Cirincione, 1976, pg 68). In another study young female Caucasian volunteers participated that represented their different teams in gymnastic competition from national to international levels (Jackson, Wiltse and Cirincione, 1976, pg 68). In the study, a questionnaire answered by each girl listed her height, weight, hours of practice per week and years in competition. In this study, eleven of one hundred females evaluated had bilateral L5 intercularis defects (Jackson, Wiltse and Cirincione, 1976, pg 68) Six of these had first-degree spondylolisthesis of L5 on S1. Eighty-nine had no pars intercularis defect. Of these eighty-nine girls, nineteen had an episode of back pain signinificant enough to interfere with their training. In the group of girls with spondylolisthesis, six of the eleven had prior back pain (Jackson, Wiltse and Cirincione, 1976, pg 68) . The girls with pars defects described their pain as dull aching and cramping. It was persistent and usually not related to specific injury but was aggravated markedly by activities like hyperextension (Jackson, Wilt

Anthropological Perspective on Education Reform in Chicago Research Paper

Anthropological Perspective on Education Reform in Chicago - Research Paper Example The Chicago School Reform Act of 1988 has been a clear example of the efforts of legislators in USA to identify educational systems that can be feasible, in terms of the resources available, and that ensure equality and quality in education. The above Reform Act has introduced a unique scheme, the Local School Councils (LSCs). This scheme aimed to ensure that student learning is kept at high levels in all public schools in Chicago. In practice, it has been proved that the achievement of the above target is related to many challenges. One of the key weaknesses of LSCs has been its failure to secure the participation of parents in critical educational decisions. Of course, it has been proved that not all parents are ready or willingness to support such initiatives. Still, it seems that the high majority of parents would be ready to participate in innovative schemes, such as the parental networks, for improving their cooperation with their children in regard to the learning process. The review of the literature published in this field has proved that the involvement of parents in parental networks would highly improve the performance of LSCs. At the same time, parental networks would help parents to participate more actively in the learning process, a fact that would make this process more attractive to children. As a result, the parental networks could support the increase of responsiveness of children to learning, either in the short or the long term. 1. Introduction Education in Chicago is provided under the control of the Chicago Board of Education (CBE). The above organization, which was first established in 1840 (CBE 2012), has ‘the responsibility for the governance, organizational and financial oversight of public education in Chicago’ (CBE 2012). Education in Chicago has passed a strong crisis. In 1987, the region’s public schools were considered ‘as the worst across the nation’ (CBE 2012). Today, the public schools of Chic ago are considered as a model of innovation, a fact related to the Chicago School Reform Act of 1988/89 (CBE 2012). For many years, education in Chicago public schools had been problematic. The Chicago School Reform Act of 1988 has introduced in order to help towards the decentralization of Chicago’s school, a strategy that was expected to support the improvement of Chicago’s educational system (Soltero 2009, p.58). The increase of participation of parents in the local educational system and the enhancement of the power of the major to participate in the decisions related to Chicago’s public schools were two important features of the Reform Act (Soltero 2009, p.58). The provision of equal rights to children of different racial and economic background has been one of the priorities of the Chicago School Reform. The Reform has been based on the rules of ‘1988 Chicago School Reform Act’ (Koval et al. 2006, p.249). The Reform has been initiated so that two key issues are addressed: a) ‘equality and quality in education are secured’ (Koval et al. 2006, p.249), b) the current market needs for appropriately educated professionals are fully covered (Koval et al. 2006, p.249). The establishment of the Local School Councils (LSCs) was considered as a strategy that could educators to achieve the above goals. Through these Councils ‘

Gymnastic Techniques Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Gymnastic Techniques - Essay Example Many components work together to make a gymnastic composition successful. An element is the shortest gymnastic exercise that is complete ((Jastrjembskaia, Titov 1999 pg 4). Each element consists of different movements of some of the various body parts (movements may be with or without apparatus). A movement is change in the orientation or position of the whole body or one of its parts. In a competition, judges judge each element according to some characteristics. These characteristics include originality, degree of difficulty, virtuosity of performance and mastery Each element technique has its own basis which includes the movements of the exercise and which distinguish an element from other elements (Jastrjembskaia, Titov 1999 pg 4). The basis of an element technique develops from independent preparatory, main and finishing phases. In the preparatory phase, all the body movements of the technique are involved in preparing a way for the main phase. For instance, a gymnast needs a preparatory phase to attain good speed or rotary motion to throw an apparatus. The main phase of the element includes all the movements performed according to the objective of the element (Jastrjembskaia, Titov 1999 pg 6). For instance if a gymnast is about to perform jump or leap the main objective is the gymnast's flight. If a gymnast is about to throw an apparatus then the main objective is the apparatus's flight. In finishing phase, a gymnast completes the objective he started in the main phase. The gymnast also changes his direction or speed of motion in this ph ase. For instance, in order to land from a leap, a gymnast in finishing phase stops his momentum and speed that he needed to make the leap. Spondylolisthesis among GymnastsYoung female gymnasts engaged in training and practice all year round place excessive demand on their back all year round. In a study, on one hundred female gymnasts, incidence of pars intercularis defect was four times higher than the incidence of 2.3% reported in general female Caucasian population (Jackson, Wiltse and Cirincione, 1976, pg 68). In another study young female Caucasian volunteers participated that represented their different teams in gymnastic competition from national to international levels (Jackson, Wiltse and Cirincione, 1976, pg 68). In the study, a questionnaire answered by each girl listed her height, weight, hours of practice per week and years in competition. In this study, eleven of one hundred females evaluated had bilateral L5 intercularis defects (Jackson, Wiltse and Cirincione, 1976, pg 68) Six of these had first-degree spondylolisthesis of L5 on S1. Eighty-nine had no pars intercularis defect. Of these eighty-nine girls, nineteen had an episode of back pain signinificant enough to interfere with their training. In the group of girls with spondylolisthesis, six of the eleven had prior back pain (Jackson, Wiltse and Cirincione, 1976, pg 68) . The girls with pars defects described their pain as dull aching and cramping. It was persistent and usually not related to specific injury but was aggravated markedly by activities like hyperextension (Jackson, Wilt

Ownership in Foreign Direct Investment Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Ownership in Foreign Direct Investment - Essay Example Some of these reasons are clearly envisioned in the case study on Genting International and includes the fact that transnational ownership give owners of companies the right and opportunity of benefiting from labor and investment laws that apply to both national companies and international companies. In the case of Genting International, because the company was based in Singapore, it had every right to participate in the bid if the bid had been opened to Singaporean companies alone. At the same time, the company was in position to undertake a foreign market entry as an international company. The reason that has made this situation possible in most cases is that the different owners who come from different countries have always registered parts of the company in their respective countries (Savior, 2009). When a bid for international companies arise therefore, it is the owner with registration in a different country who participants in the bid so as to create a foreign market entry. Ad vantages of the present Foreign Market Entry For Genting International and Las Vegas Sands who have own the two places available in the bid, there are several advantages that they are going to reap as foreign companies who have made investments in Singapore. The first of such benefits has to do with the fact that these companies are fortunate to be coming from an industry that could be described as relatively new in Singapore because of the ban on the operations of casinos that had been on the hospitality industry for a long time. Indeed, now that these companies are coming in with such a vast amount of investment, they are going to great a pioneering brand that would forever become a legacy in the casino industry in that country. If well monitored, this is going to be a major competitive advantage for future entrants into that sector of the economy. The reason for this assertion is that by the time new companies come in, these two companies might have had their names settling well with customers. They might have also created a very formidable organizational culture would be too familiar with their customer for the customers to change them. Without any doubt, tax moratorium that the two companies have ten years to benefit from because they are foreign companies is not something that can be overlooked as an important merit at all. In a recent research, it was discovered that 12% of companies that were liquidated in the United Kingdom from the year 1992 to 2002 suffered that fate because of their inability to grow beyond 2% a year (Gardener, 2007). Further investigations proofed that whereas these companies could not record 2% of growth over their total revenues, they were paying over 7% of taxes over their total revenues. In congruence, it could be said that these companies collapsed because of huge tax demands. This is certainly a situation that for the next ten years, the winning bidders are going to be exempted from. Clearly, the amounts of money that should have gone into the payment of taxes for all these ten years can be channeled to other sectors of growth, expansion and development. If for nothing at all, the companies can be investing these amounts in long term financial investment policies so that when they start paying taxes, they would not suffer any shocks in terms of decline of revenue. Challenges associated with the present Foreign Market Entry Genting International and

Jim Crow Essay Example for Free

Jim Crow Essay C. Vann Woodward’s book The Strange Career of Jim Crow is a close look at the struggles of the African American community from the time of Reconstruction to the Civil Rights Movement. The book portrays a scene where the Negroes are now free men after being slaves on the plantations and their adaptation to life as being seen as free yet inferior to the White race and their hundred year struggle of becoming equals in a community where they have always been seen as second class citizens. To really understand the motivation of C. Vann Woodward’s motives of his book, The Strange Career of Jim Crow, one must look at Mr.  Woodward’s life. Comer Vann Woodward was born and raised in Vanndale, AK in Cross County on November 13, 1908. The town was named after his mother’s aristocratic family. He attended Henderson- Brown College in Arkadelphia, AK for two years before transferring to Emory University in Atlanta, GA in 1930, where he graduated. He received his PHD in history at the University of North Carolina and after he took graduate classes at Columbia University where he was introduced and influenced by the Harlem Renaissance. Woodward taught at Johns Hopkins University from 1946-61 and at Yale University from 1961-67. He won the Pulitzer Prize in 1982 for Mary Chestnut’s Civil War and won the Bancroft Prize for Origins of the New South*. It was when he was teaching at Johns Hopkins when he wrote the book, The Strange Career of Jim Crow. It was during the court ruling of Brown vs Board of Education in 1954 that Woodward started his lectures, which lead to his book, at the University of Virginia. His audience was more or less surprised about the race relations of the old south during reconstruction; most thought that the two races have always been separated with hatred. Woodward argues that the Jim Crow laws of the 1890s were a new concept of separating the two races. Throughout slavery and during the reconstruction period, the two races were fully integrated working on economics and political problems; the separation of the two races would lead to an insufficient and ineffective plantation. â€Å"The typical dwelling of a slave-owning family was a walled compound shared by both master and slave families. Neither non-slaveholding whites nor free Negroes escaped this ntimacy, for they were ‘sprinkled through most parts of town and surrounded by people of both races’† (14). The same relations remained true during the Reconstruction era when the blacks started to urbanize in the south. Woodward goes on to say that the â€Å"blacks and whites lived side by side, sharing the same premises if not equal facilities and living constantly in each other’s presence† (14). The good relations of the south turned sour when conflicts between the whites over economic troubles heightened in the late 1870s. the determination of the Negro’s ‘place’ took shape gradually under the influence of economic and political conflicts among divided white people- conflicts that were eventually resolved in part at the expense of the Negro† (6). The Negro at the time became the scapegoat for all of America’s economic strife. Many thought it best if they separated themselves from the Negro then all would be better. Hence the Jim Crow laws started to form on the segregation of the two races and then court cases followed in suit, aka Plessy vs Ferguson in 1896 which ruled â€Å"separate but equal†. Ironically the south is known for the most racism but most cities were reluctant in to enforce legal separation of the races. In New Orleans, whites and blacks gathered freely at public events and even many had sexual relations with one another resulting in an influx of mulattos in that area (15-16). Racism did in fact take place in mostly rural areas. â€Å"An excessive squeamishness or fussiness about contact with Negroes was commonly identified as a lower class white attitude, while opposite attitude was popularly identified with ‘the quality’ (50). It was within these rural lower classes that extreme racism was formed involving white supremacy groups such as the Ku Klux Klan. As political parties started to shift in the mid 1880s, more conservative Democrats took the scene and strictly enforced the laws of segregation. The Republicans were the ones in support of more tolerant and equal society. The mentality of if one thing is separate then they all have to be took precedent during this time. With the shift of political parties, the segregation of the blacks from the whites heightened and the individual rights a Negro had were limited. Blacks were discouraged to vote and separation of the two races became almost total with separate modes of transportation to separate drinking fountains. After the Progressive era and the New Deal, integration was a thought in higher education. Colleges started to let Negro students attend white universities because the separation of the races at school was infringing on their fourteenth amendment rights (144). Even though theses students did not attend the university for all four years, it was progress that helped lead up to the 1954 case of Brown vs Board of Education. The school boards argued that â€Å"’Segregation of white and colored children in public schools has a detrimental effect on colored children’, for it ‘generates a feeling of inferiority as to their status in the community that may affect their hearts and minds in a way unlikely ever to be undone’† (147). The ruling of integration of public schools was monumental for the blacks at that time. After trying to fight racism and limitations of their individual rights, the blacks could finally be more equal then they had been in the eyes of the law. When Woodward presented his lectures at the University of Virginia, which subsequently led to his book, it was right after the ruling of Brown vs Board of Education. He insisted that his audience would be integrated as well so he spoke to not only students, faculty and dignitary of the university but he also spoke to local blacks and whites of the community. His lectures received mix reviews; some older, more conservative members of the university were shocked and appalled by Woodward’s comments of pro-integration, while others were intrigued. For them, the white Southern professor’s message was a challenge to the assumption that race relations had been immutably fixed over the course of Southern history† (224). Woodward also argued that the south was always changing and something that limited the rights of blacks in the 1890s was to turn around in the 1950s to something better. When The Strange Career of Jim Crow was released nationally, America did not agree with Woodward’s idea that it was time for a change, â€Å"segregation was ore firmly embraced than ever† (225). Whites did not approve of the ruling of the integration of schools so they protested and sometimes rioted when the government tried to integrate some of the schools. States such as Georgia put the confederate flag back on their state flag in defiance of the new laws (225). Blacks protested in comparison. After the arrest of Rosa Parks not wanting to give up her seat to a white man, the Civil Rights Movement launched its campaign of civil and equal liberties lead by Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. When this book was originally published in 1955, Rev King called it â€Å"the historical bible of the Civil Rights Movement†. I believe that the main reason behind King’s statement was that the movement was on the front page of every newspaper for over a decade that when the book did come out, Woodward looked at the struggle of the Negro in a historical sense and not putting blame on a specific race, but on certain decisions some legislators made that forced America to head in the direction of segregation. Woodward presented a historical and non threatening story which gave reason to the Civil Rights Movement. The blacks liked it because it showed the persecution they had to endure for so long and the perseverance they maintained throughout that time and the whites bought the book because it helped explain what was going on at that moment in time. No doubt that this book is an important historical document that helped a nation through one if its more difficult times in history.