Good Country People Essay -- essays papers

Great Country People â€Å"Woman, Do You Ever Look Inside?† There are numerous topics inside Flannery O’Connor’s short story â€Å"Good Country People†. Religion is unquestionably one of the more noticeable subjects that the story holds. Like a large portion of O’Connor’s works, it has a major influence in the activities or qualities of the primary characters. This is all on a superficial level in any case. The more significant and less highlighted topic is simply the different veneers the characters make for themselves. These veneers keep them from confronting their actual â€Å"grotesque† selves. These veneers additionally conceal their shortcomings that they have no desire to confront ort just can’t comprehend. Individuals must be alright with each part of themselves, on the grounds that specific individuals, who in this story are spoken to by Manley Pointer’s character, can without much of a stretch adventure their shortcomings. He’s â€Å"good nation people† and  "the salt of the earth† as Mrs. Hopewell alludes to Manley Pointer who truly is an evil spirit that they should confront. An evil presence to help them to remember their shortcomings. Starting with Mrs. Hopewell, the title of the story originates from what she gets a kick out of the chance to consider the less fortunate and less blessed individuals that live off the land and work their entire lives just to hold tight to some piece of a real existence. This is the means by which she sees these individuals. She accepts that they are acceptable nation individuals not a terrible seed among them, that they are for the most part anxious to assist and bow in lowliness to the high society. The naïve idea of Mrs. Hopewell sells out her actual vision of a circumstance. She is one of those individuals who are all prude to individuals who they see as less lucky. She’s an individual that recognizes or represents the individuals she thinks nothing about. By and large this is her actual shortcoming that is exploited by Manley Pointer. One of ... ...of a minor character in the story yet she is alluded to as having two feelings, â€Å"forward and reverse†. This is significant in light of the fact that when an individual is compelled to go backward they should confront something or pick up something they don’t need to think about themselves. This is by all accounts what occurs over the span of the story for Joy-Hulga. Albeit all the characters in the story are stuck backward, the main character that is compelled to understand her shortcoming, which pulverizes the faã §ade that she made is Joy-Hulga. It appears that in this story as in life the most grandiose endures the best fall. Satisfaction Hulga was simply the person who saw to be the arrogant of the characters. This mentality is shown with huge numbers of her remark to Mrs. Hopewell. Maybe when Joy-Hulga comments to Mrs. Hopewell, â€Å"Woman, do you ever look inside?† she should’ve accepted her own recommendation.

5 Funny Figures of Speech

5 Funny Figures of Speech 5 Funny Figures of Speech 5 Funny Figures of Speech By Mark Nichol Pleasantry is a rich field for concentrate in English. In spite of the fact that the accompanying types of silliness ought to be utilized sparingly if by any means, essayists ought to be acquainted with them and their potential outcomes. 1. Malapropism A malapropism, the replacement of a word with a comparable sounding however unintelligible word, might be articulated coincidentally or, for amusing impact, might be purposeful. The name gets from that of Mrs. Malaprop, a character in an eighteenth-century play who frequently expressed such misquotes; one of her remarks, for instance, is â€Å"she’s as unshakable as an allegory,† when she intended to state â€Å"alligator.† (The word at last gets from the French expression mal propos, which means â€Å"poorly placed.†) Numerous characters are alloted this interesting trait; the Shakespearean character Dogberry’s name roused a substitute mark. 2. Spoonerism Spoonerisms are like malapropisms; the qualification is that a spoonerism is an instance of metathesis, where parts of two words are traded, instead of single word fill in for another. This interesting expression was named after a nineteenth-century Oxford academician who seems to have been credited with different errors he didn't make; one of the numerous spurious models is â€Å"a very much bubbled icicle† (in lieu of â€Å"a all around oiled bicycle†). 3. Paraprosdokian The word for this kind of wit, from Greek (which means â€Å"against expectation†) yet begat just a couple of decades back, alludes to a sentence with a cleverly sudden move in goal, for example, â€Å"I don’t have a place with a composed ideological group I’m a Democrat,† from twentieth-century American humorist Will Rogers, or Winston’s Churchill’s summation of an associate, â€Å"A unobtrusive man, who has a lot to be unassuming about.† 4. Tom Swifty This name for a verb modifier, utilized in an attribution for discourse, that punningly applies to the words represented (model, â€Å"‘We simply struck oil!’ Tom gushed†) was motivated by the composing style in a progression of children’s books including the character Tom Swift, composed consistently since the mid twentieth century. Albeit no such plays on words show up in these accounts, such models are reminiscent of the weary verb modifiers that are an unmistakable component. (Initially, such a joke was known as a Tom Swiftly.) 5. Wellerism A Wellerism, named after a Dickensian character, is an explanation that remembers a funny inconsistency or an eccentric slip by for rationale, for example, â€Å"‘So I see,’ said the visually impaired craftsman as he got his sledge and saw,† or a mundane comparative development whose silliness gets from a joke, as in â€Å"‘We’ll need to practice that,’ said the funeral director as the final resting place dropped out of the car† (which plays on the prefix re-in relationship with the thing funeral car). Need to improve your English quickly a day? Get a membership and begin accepting our composing tips and activities day by day! Continue learning! Peruse the Writing Basics class, check our well known posts, or pick a related post below:Using an and a Before WordsWhen to Form a Plural with an ApostropheAdverbs and Hyphens

Overview of Humanistic Psychology

Overview of Humanistic Psychology History and Biographies Print Overview of Humanistic Psychology By Kendra Cherry facebook twitter Kendra Cherry, MS, is an author, educational consultant, and speaker focused on helping students learn about psychology. Learn about our editorial policy Kendra Cherry Updated on June 25, 2019 serts / Getty Images More in Psychology History and Biographies Psychotherapy Basics Student Resources Theories Phobias Emotions Sleep and Dreaming In This Article Table of Contents Expand Key Focus Brief History Impact Strengths and Criticisms View All Back To Top Humanistic psychology is a perspective that emphasizes looking at the whole individual and stresses concepts such as free will, self-efficacy, and self-actualization.    Rather than concentrating on dysfunction, humanistic psychology strives to help people fulfill their potential and maximize their well-being. Humanistic psychology, also often referred to as humanism emerged during the 1950s as a reaction to the psychoanalysis and behaviorism that dominated psychology at the time.  Psychoanalysis was focused on understanding the unconscious motivations that drive behavior while behaviorism studied the conditioning processes that produce behavior. Humanist thinkers felt that both psychoanalysis and behaviorism were too pessimistic, either focusing on the most tragic of emotions or failing to take into account the role of personal choice. However, it is not necessary to think of these three  schools of thought  as competing elements. Each  branch of psychology  has contributed to our understanding of the human mind and behavior. Humanistic psychology added yet another dimension that takes a more holistic view of the individual. Key Focus As it developed, humanistic psychology focused on each individuals potential and stressed the importance of growth and self-actualization. The fundamental belief of humanistic psychology is that people are innately good and that mental and social problems result from deviations from this natural tendency. Humanism also suggests that people possess personal agency and that they are motivated to use this free will to pursue things that will help them achieve their full potential as human beings. This need for fulfillment and personal growth is a key motivator of all behavior. People are continually looking for new ways to grow, to become better, to learn new things, and to experience psychological growth and self-actualization. Brief History The early development of humanistic psychology was heavily influenced by the works of a few key theorists, especially Abraham  Maslow and Carl Rogers. Other prominent humanist thinkers included Rollo May and Erich Fromm. In 1943, Maslow described his hierarchy of needs in A Theory of Human Motivation published in  Psychological Review. Later during the late 1950s, Abraham Maslow, and other psychologists held meetings to discuss developing a professional organization devoted to a more humanist approach to psychology. They agreed that topics such as self-actualization, creativity, individuality, and related topics were the central themes of this new approach. In 1951, Carl Rogers published  Client-Centered Therapy, which described his humanistic, client-directed approach to therapy. In 1961,  Journal of Humanistic Psychology  was established. It was in 1962 that the  American Association for Humanistic Psychology  was formed and by 1971, humanistic psychology  become  an APA division. In 1962, Maslow published Toward a Psychology of Being, in which he described humanistic psychology as the third force in psychology. The first and second forces were behaviorism and psychoanalysis respectively. Impact The humanist movement had an enormous influence on the course of psychology and contributed new ways of thinking about mental health. It offered a new approach to understanding human behaviors and motivations and led to developing new techniques and approaches to psychotherapy. Some of the major ideas and concepts that emerged as a result of the humanist movement include an emphasis on things such as: Self-conceptHierarchy of needsUnconditional positive regardFree willClient-centered therapySelf-actualizationFully functioning personPeak experiences Strengths and Criticisms One of the major strengths of humanistic psychology is that it emphasizes the role of the individual. This school of psychology gives people more credit in controlling and determining their state of mental health. It also takes environmental influences into account. Rather than focusing solely on our internal thoughts and desires, humanistic psychology also credits the environments influence on our experiences. Humanistic psychology helped remove some of the stigma attached to therapy and made it more acceptable for normal, healthy individuals to explore their abilities and potential through therapy. While humanistic psychology  continues to influence therapy, education, healthcare, and other areas, it has not been without some criticism. Humanistic psychology is often seen as too subjective; the importance of individual experience makes it difficult to objectively study and measure humanistic phenomena. How can we objectively tell if someone is self-actualized? The answer, of course, is that we cannot. We can only rely upon the individuals own assessment of their experience. Another major criticism is that observations are unverifiable; there is no accurate way to measure or quantify these qualities. A Word From Verywell Today, the concepts central to humanistic psychology can be seen in many disciplines including other branches of psychology, education, therapy, political movements, and other areas. For example, transpersonal psychology and positive psychology both draw heavily on humanist influences. The goals of humanistic psychology remain as relevant today as they were in the 1940s and 1950s. Humanistic psychology strives to empower individuals, enhance well-being, push people toward fulfilling their potential and improve communities all over the world.

Barbie Essays - 1716 Words

Barbie Since the beginning of time, toys have often been an indicator of the way a society behaves, and how they interact with their children. For example, in ancient Greece, artifacts recovered there testify that children were simply not given toys to play with as in the modern world. The cruel ritual of leaving a sick child on a hillside for dead, seems to indicate a lack of attention to the young (Lord 16). The same is true of today’s society. As you can see with the number of toy stores in our society, we find toys of great value to our lives and enjoy giving them to children as gifts. Ask just about any young girl what she wants for Christmas and you’ll undoubtedly get the same answer: â€Å"A Barbie.† But what exactly has caused†¦show more content†¦In fact, the Barbie doll was so popular that three years after her release in 1959 Mattel was still filling orders from her first year (Long 17). It wasn’t until the late 1960’s that critics began â€Å"comparing Barbie to a Playboy Bunny and calling her a corrupter of youth† (†Bad Girl† 3). One woman commented, â€Å"She’s an absurd representation of what a woman should be† (â€Å"Bad Girl† 3)-–and that’s exactly what many others thought she was, too. With such impossible real-life measurements of 5’9† tall, 36†-18†-33† bust, waist, and hip (Benstock and Ferriss 35), it’s easy to see why mothers across the country banned the doll from their homes and refused to let their impressionable young daughters be influenced by a piece of painted plastic (Bestock and Ferriss 35). Since dolls have often been responsible for teaching children what society deems important or beautiful, many concerned parents wondered why Mattel did not design a doll that taught more valuable lessons than dressing pretty and being dangerously skinny (Edut 19)? Who said a runway model was best suited for teaching a child what is beautiful anyway? â€Å"According to a Mattel spokesperson, a Kate Moss figure is better suited for today’s fashions† (Edut 19), and that is one reason why Barbie must be so disproportional. Actually, another reason for Barbie’s anorexic figure can be traced back long before Kate Moss and the fashion runway. Barbie wasShow MoreRelatedBarbie And The Barbie Doll1006 Words   |  5 Pageslays, Barbie. You might be wondering who this Barbie person is. I am not talking about a real person. I am talking about Barbie, the doll. B. Girls all around the world grew up playing with a Barbie doll. When first released she was a plastic, white skinned, thin, long legged teenage girl. She wore a tiny black and white stripped bathing suit with a pair of sunglasses sitting upon her head on top of her blonde colored hair. C. The whole philosophy of Barbie was that through the Barbie doll littleRead MoreHippie Barbie1064 Words   |  5 PagesHippie Barbie, written by Denise Duhamel uses the symbols of the contemporary life of the fairy-tale lifestyle into reality. The words and ideas used in this narrative poem give fantasy a different perspective. It is inferred that the speaker is a female Barbie specialist, who reflects her knowledge by using the popular Barbie doll as the main character. Throughout the poem, she gives key points that have female perspective; for instance, kissing Ken, thinking about having mixed-race children, andRead MoreIn a Barbie World1972 Words   |  8 PagesIn A Barbie World! A culture that is saturated by consumerism can be referred to as a consumer culture. Barbie can be used as a tool for consumer culture because she is perceived to be the perfect woman, an unattainable achievement. Barbie has the perfect man, Ken; she has her dream house, and car, and even a dream closet. There are life size Barbies bouncing around in T.V. and print media ads that personify this image. Barbie produces a systematic reproduction of consistency; she doesnt evolveRead MoreTo Be or Not to Be Barbie Essay1730 Words   |  7 PagesEvery woman grows up knowing that they one day want to be beautiful. In Marge Piercy’s â€Å"Barbie Doll† she gives an in-depth look at what negative effects the concept of beauty can have on an individual. From infancy to a full-grown adult woman, beauty has been a way of thinking and lifestyle. As a little girl you are given petite shaped, blonde, blue-eyed dolls. While boys are given brawny soldiers and mechanical toys. What do little girls do with these dolls? They put on fresh makeup, change theirRead MoreBarbie Case2561 Words   |  11 Pagestoy. Yes, it can hardly be any other toy but Barbie. Nowadays, girls can be seen wearing Barbie clothing, using Barbie perfume, carrying Barbie backpacks, and sleeping in Barbie pajamas, not to mention cosmetics, sneakers etc. (Morgenson 1991, 66). Mattel, Inc., the mother company of Barbie, should feel proud of her. Because on average, an American girl has ten Barbie dolls, a British or Italian girl may own seven, while five is the number of Barbie that a German or French girl has. It was Mattel’sRead MoreIts a Barbie World1114 Words   |  5 PagesIt’s a Barbie World Abstract Barbie dolls have been around for many years and many young girls have gotten a Barbie as a gift at some time in their lives. Barbie is made out of plastic and has unrealistic features to her. Her body proportions are not possible and her look only relates to less than half of the human population. Barbie has the perfect, dream world where she has her dream car, house, an impeccable wardrobe, and of course the man of her dreams. Many girls grow up and admire BarbieRead MoreBarbie. history Essay1679 Words   |  7 PagesBarbie Purpose statement: The purpose of this speech is to inform the audience about Barbie. INTRODUCTION: I. Did you know in every second of everyday, two Barbie dolls are sold somewhere in the world? A. Barbie was invented in 1959 by Ruth Handler. B. She was introduced to the world at the American Toy Fair in New York City. II. Barbie has been an important part of the toy fashion doll market for fifty years. A. She has been the subject of numerous controversies and lawsuitsRead MoreIs Barbie Ever Be The Enemy?1255 Words   |  6 Pagesmay ask themselves, how can Barbie ever be the enemy. She is the top selling doll in the world, her franchise is worth over a billion dollars, and 99% of girls from the ages three to eleven has owned a Barbie doll according to (Barbie Media). Also, recent studies have shown that the average American girl between the ages of three to eleven owns ten Barbie dolls, according to â€Å"Barbie† by Sara Pendergast. So, what has led to so much controversy towards the beloved Barbie. Well, the major obsession regardingRead MoreThe Barbie Phenomenon Essay1049 Words   |  5 PagesThe Barbie Phenomenon The Barbie phenomenon took the world by storm. The creation of the eleven and one–half-inch tall â€Å"glam gal† didn’t begin at a large corporation’s drawing board, as some might think. She actually came straight from the hands of her loving â€Å"parents†, Ruth and Elliot Handler. The Mattel Corporation, founded by Ruth and Elliot Handler, has successfully marketed the Barbie doll for over four decades and still continues to sell the doll throughout the world. It is amazingRead MoreBarbie vs. Bratz Essay794 Words   |  4 PagesBADM 372: Advertising Case 2: Barbie vs. Bratz 1. Provide an analysis of the Mattel Barbie brand. What factors shape perceptions of the brand in the eyes of parents and young girls? Barbie was billed as â€Å"a shapely teenage fashion model,† and made her first appearance at the American Toy Fair in New York City and soon became a hit. (http://www.brandchannel.com/features_profile.asp?pr_id=160) Barbie was then and still is a popular doll for young girls. In the beginning she was popular because

Heres What Happens If You Drop Francium in Water

Francium is element No. 87 on the periodic table. The element can be prepared by bombarding thorium with protons. An extremely small amount occurs naturally in uranium minerals, but it is so rare and radioactive that there has never been enough of it to actually see what would happen if a piece was dropped into water. However, scientists know for sure that the reaction would be energetic, possibly even explosive. ​ The piece of francium would blow apart, while  the  reaction with water would produce hydrogen gas, francium hydroxide, and a lot of heat. The entire area would be contaminated with radioactive material. Why Francium Reacts so Strongly The reason for the strong exothermic reaction  is because francium is an alkali metal. As you move down the first column of the periodic table, the reaction between the alkali metals and water becomes increasingly violent, as follows: A small amount of lithium will float on water and burn.Sodium burns more readily.Potassium breaks apart, burning with a violet flame.Rubidium ignites with a red flame.Cesium releases enough energy that even a small piece blows up in water.Francium is below cesium on the table and would react more readily and violently. This occurs because each of the alkali metals is characterized by having a single valence electron. This electron easily reacts with other atoms, such as those in water. As you move down the periodic table, the atoms become larger and the lone valence electron is easier to remove, making the element more reactive. In addition, francium is so radioactive that it is expected to release heat. Many chemical reactions are accelerated or enhanced by temperature. Francium would input the energy of its radioactive decay, which is expected to magnify the reaction with water.

Answering questions Free Essays

2-A. Recently, a comedian on a television show remarked that he thought it was funny that people turn the car radio off when they are looking for a house number in a strange neighborhood. What theory of attention is this comedian adhering to? The comedian based his remarks on the theory of divided attention. We will write a custom essay sample on Answering questions or any similar topic only for you Order Now This theory states that attention can be divided into two separate states, wherein one can attend to two things or stimuli at the same time, without sacrificing the quality of attention given to either of the two stimuli (Reisberg, 2001). Thus to the comedian, one can continue listening to the radio and at the same time look for the house number, and it perfectly makes sense to him that a person can do both of it since it does not really require an intense concentration. However, a case in point is that looking for a house number in a long row of houses may be quite a challenging task, one that requires concentration and selective attention. Yes, it can be said that keeping the radio on would not make any difference but to those who prefer to look closely and to be able to do so safely would naturally turn their radios off. Just imagine yourself driving slowly in a street you are unfamiliar with and keeping the radio on would mask the noise of incoming traffic or even pedestrians. Besides, when a person is involved in one task, like looking for a house, then one instinctively attends to it and disregards the other sounds, sights and disturbances in the immediate environment. Divided attention is very real, we engage it once in a while especially if we multi-task but we could do so in a limited period, for example think of how you can possibly manage to entertain questions from an officemate at your table and at the same time talk to someone on the phone, you could do both for a maximum of 2 minutes, but eventually one stimuli takes greater attention and we must give our full attention to it. On the other hand, with training, anybody can make use of divided attention, but its contributions and benefits in engaging in it remains to be seen since much research has to be done in this area. 2-B. Based on what you have learned about perception and attention, do you think it’s safe for people to talk on cellular phones while they are driving? Learning about how we perceive the world around us gives us a better way of understanding how intricate the human mind is and how even a faculty that we often take for granted can have a profound impact in our daily lives. Perception refers to a complex process of how we receive a stimuli, how our brain process the stimuli, and how our mind tells us what to do and how to react to the stimuli (Reisberg, 2001). It can be said that a disruption of any of the lines of our perception may have adverse consequences; sometimes it can be bizarre, like when a person cannot recognize the face of love one but instead are able to say that they look like a family member. Taking our study of perception into our daily activities, a debated issue like â€Å"is it safe to talk on the cell phone while driving† is better explained. I still believe that it is not safe to talk on the cellular phones while driving. Driving already entails a number of processes and is quite demanding of our attention, like when you are in the freeway, one has to be conscious of incoming traffic, cars at you back, the speed limit of the highway, and even looking out for possible mishaps in the road, on top of which, the driver must be conscious of the cars fuel level, brake fluid and tire conditions. So how could anybody be able to talk on the phone while driving? Talking on the phone also demands attention; we have to perceive and process what the other person is saying, and to even think of the appropriate response to what they are saying. Theories on perception have stated that our mind works overtime just to process and be able to respond to external stimuli, and that each part of the brain is involve in different ways just to come up with the correct processing of information (Reisberg, 2001), like being able to recognize faces of family members. Perceptual illusions demonstrate that what we see may not be true or real, hence while driving we may not be able to accurately tell how far we are from the car ahead of us or how near we are to the railings without our full concentration. Reports have shown that many people die on the road or in car accidents than any disease. Perceptual overload occurs when we drive and talk on the phone, based on previous researches (Reisberg, 2001), perceptual overload makes us incorrectly perceive our surroundings and hence we may see what is not there, or we may not see what is really there. When we overload our senses it would mean that one part of the brain or our faculties might be sacrificed to compensate for the attention we give to another stimulus. And in an activity like driving which in itself is a high-risk behavior, we need complete control of our faculties, thus talking on the cell phone is not advisable. 2-C. Write a 200 word summary and critical analysis on Rayner’s article. Discuss what the article is basically about, its strong and weak points, how convincing (or unconvincing) you find its arguments, and how it might be followed up (e.g., if you think the article suggests any promising, new ideas for future research, describe what they are and how they might best be pursued.) The article â€Å"Eye Movements in Reading: Recent Developments† by Keith Rayner (1993) presents the latest development in the study of eye movement in the reading process. The strength of the article is that it gives a background of what has been discovered so far in the field of study, the article argues that studying eye movement is important for it help build theory and also used to infer perceptual and cognitive processes during reading thus the objective of the article. It also presents a number of theories that have used new methods in studying eye movement. What was weak about the article was that it was not able to connect how the new methods of studying would contrite to a better understanding of the cognitive processes that occur during reading. The article basically was not convincing when the author says that much remains to be seen when researchers realize how interesting a research data eye movement can be. The article does not arouse this interest and simply goes on to say that eye movement is a natural consequence of reading, which contradicts his claims earlier in the introduction part. The article was also too technical for the average reader even if the reader is interested in eye movement. References Rayner, K. (1993). Eye movements in reading: Recent developments. Current Directions in Psychological Science, 2 (3): 81-85 Reisberg, D. (2001). Cognition: Exploring the science of the Mind, 2nd ed. New York: W.W. Norton Company, Inc.                   How to cite Answering questions, Essay examples

Quiche, Tornadoes, And The Print Media free essay sample

I consider myself lucky, because I hold the solution to a problem that most kids my age still struggle with. Many of my friends are still unsure what they want to do with their lives. Fortunately for me, Ive had my mind made up for a long time. I want to be a writer, a writer for a newspaper or magazine. It wasnt always this cut and dry. When I was six, I thought I had my mind made up too. I wanted to be a television chef with my own cooking show. One of my personal favorites was Yan Can Cook. The flashing knife blades and words like saut fascinated me like a crowd at the fireworks. That was my future, Id be the next Frugal Gourmet! After a few years, I came to the realization that I had no culinary abilities at all (if I remember correctly, flaming cookies were somehow involved). We will write a custom essay sample on Quiche, Tornadoes, And The Print Media or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page I was watching TV again, and the weather was on. Why not meteorology? After a chance meeting with the television weatherman, that became my next dream job. I went all out this time. The junior weather set, maps, thermometers all found their way under my Christmas tree. My room became its own little analysis area, but I used to call it the forecast center. For a while, I kept up my studies. I can remember when Hurricane Bob flew through New England, and there I stood with the Weather Channel on (until we lost power) charting the storms progress. I was sure that this was the one, my life would unfold on the six oclock news. Until the seventh grade, I held onto my visions of stormy days and the foretelling of them. This was when everything changed. I had to write a paper for English class the schooltime classic How I Spent my Summer Vacation. I did it, and nothing seemed out of the ordinary. However when I handed it in, it got quite a response (and not because golfing a lot was the most interesting topic in the world). The teacher told me it was the best writing he had seen in a long time. I couldnt believe it, was this my hidden talent? I began to read more newspapers and magazines, and noticed a trend. Comments on things I would have written the piece differently had I been the writer began to surface. This kept happening, and I thought maybe it was time I threw my hat in the journalism ring. The rest, I suppose, is history. Now I write for the school newspaper, and I love every minute. The exposure, the expression, and the fun of semicolons are just a part. The way my dry wit could influence those around me leaves me both proud and in awe at the same time. Who knows, maybe one day Ill end up writing about cooking, in bad weather no less.

Death And Maiden Essays - British Films, English-language Films

Death And Maiden The Polanski film Death and the Maiden is a wonderful and intelligent interpretation of Ariel Dorfman's human rights problem play. Polanski has produced, in this film, an exceptional piece of direction, in which his own personal, emotional input is evident. The main theme of the play is an extremely personal one for both playwright (and scriptwriter) and director. Both Dorfman and Polanski have had to face and flee the horrors of dictatorship and human rights violations: Dorfman in Chile, under General Augusto Pinochet, and Polanski in Poland under the Nazis. But despite this similarity in past experience, significant differences exist between the original play and the film. Apart from the specific techniques of lighting and composition, whose possibilities are greatly widened in the medium of film, we see differences in both the different emphases and implied viewpoints on the various themes that the play touches on and, perhaps more importantly, the way the characters are portrayed. While the old concept of "whatever doesn't kill you makes you stronger" is present in both the play and the film (particularly in the characterisation of Paulina), it is much more prevalent in the movie. We can see Paulina's strength from the start. As she strides confidently around the house and violently tears off a piece of chicken, the suggestion that she is unsuited to the domestic position which she has obviously been forced into by the side effects of her traumatic experience need not be made any clearer. Although possessing remarkable strength in both texts, the movie shows a much stronger, almost completely masculine Paulina. This Paulina has been almost entirely defeminized by her ordeal, physically, symbolised by the scarred breast and her desire to "adopt" a child, which also serves as a glimpse of the vulnerable element of womanhood in her character that still remains. Throughout the bout of verbal jousting that goes on in the opening scene Paulina is able to hold her ground much more firmly than she appears to do in the play. In Polanski's version of the scene she actually manages to use her domestic role to gain power in the argument, fiercely flinging the dinner in the bin. Weaver's powerful acting conveys the unmistakable tension associated with an incredible amount of suppressed anger. It is not until the following scenes, when she is finally confronted with the cause of that anger, however, that we see its full magnitude and destructive potential. In the surreal, dim lighting of her bedroom Paulina is shaken by a strangely disturbing laugh upon recognising Roberto Miranda's voice as that of her tormentor. This moment sees the birth or manifestation of another facet of Paulina's character, the part of Paulina's mind that fantasized about doing to her torturers what they had done to her. This is the unbelievably unreasonable Paulina; she is a Fury, a mythical deity, the embodiment of vengeance, unsusceptible to male logic or opportunistic, careerist rationalisation. Polanski makes Paulina throw the car over the cliff-edge. In doing this she is not only destroying a phallic symbol, and thus undermining Roberto's sexuality and any claims he has on sexual dominance or superiority, she is destroying a perfect symbol of the male thirst for power and control, and the pragmatic logic to which her need for revenge has been sacrificed, into the infinite, chaotic abyss that defies all these principles, and unquestionably swallows it up. In doing this she breaks the railing, civilized society has created to guard itself from that chaos, allowing those forces of suppressed rage to escape. Polanski's Paulina re-enters the house, a different person. Illuminated by typically horror-movie-style lighting. Her sharply focused face ? lit by an almost electric blue with harsh shadows cast across it, highlighting her features ? contrasts strongly against the blurry background. Having bound Roberto, she is physically empowered by the gun (P: "...as soon as I drop the gun all discussion will cease...you'll use your strength to win the argument...") to act aggressively. The gun is another phallic symbol; hence much of this aggressive behaviour takes on a sexual quality. Unlike Dorfman's play, Polanski does not try to make us accept, without a struggle, the simple truth that to victimize our tormentors is to sink to their level. We get the general feeling that Polanski is much more sympathetic to Paulina and the type of justice her injuries call out for. In Polanski's film adaptation, far from being driven by blind rage, Paulina is the only character that takes responsibility for her own actions, and cares little for the self-interested considerations of consequences.

Free Essays on The Case Of Agostino Steucco

Polishing The Papal Image In The Counter-Reformation: The Case of Agostino Steuco One of the results of the Pope’s persistence to keep a papal system intact was the branching off of Catholics into Protestants. In this article, there is an analysis of a writing by Agostino Steuco called The Two Books Against Lorenzo Valla Concerning the False Donation of Constantine, in this article it dissects the very relevance of a papal system in the Catholic church. It gives a plethora of â€Å"reasons† for why the system should remain intact. First, he states that Rome’s secular power and holdings were an integral part of the â€Å"spiritual welfare of people†. (Delph, 1992; 37) Second, the wealth of the Pope was fundamental for the church to function. Third, without the temporal power, the people would abandon their religion and begin to have an â€Å"anti-social behavior†. (Delph, 1992; 38) Fundamentally, from a humanistic understanding of human nature, Steuco believed that temporal authority of the papacy played a positive role in th e spiritual life. This article gives rise to many reasons that led to the split and formation of the Protestant religion. Steuco, with his humanistic approach defends the temporal power and processions of the papacy. He justifies this by making a point that secular power and holdings of the church played a part in the â€Å"spiritual welfare of people† (Delph, 1992; 37) He then correlates â€Å"rituals and visible signs of the sacred† (Delph, 1992; 37) necessary for worship. These socializing effects that the people enjoyed were only because of the temporal might of Rome. The argument that Steuco gave made it clear that the ornate nature of religion brought people to worship. Steuco makes a point when referring to the Old Testament as well as the New Testament in making the claim that God himself always appeared â€Å"†¦in forms that rendered him venerable and terrifying†. (Delph, 1992; 40) Steuco ... Free Essays on The Case Of Agostino Steucco Free Essays on The Case Of Agostino Steucco Polishing The Papal Image In The Counter-Reformation: The Case of Agostino Steuco One of the results of the Pope’s persistence to keep a papal system intact was the branching off of Catholics into Protestants. In this article, there is an analysis of a writing by Agostino Steuco called The Two Books Against Lorenzo Valla Concerning the False Donation of Constantine, in this article it dissects the very relevance of a papal system in the Catholic church. It gives a plethora of â€Å"reasons† for why the system should remain intact. First, he states that Rome’s secular power and holdings were an integral part of the â€Å"spiritual welfare of people†. (Delph, 1992; 37) Second, the wealth of the Pope was fundamental for the church to function. Third, without the temporal power, the people would abandon their religion and begin to have an â€Å"anti-social behavior†. (Delph, 1992; 38) Fundamentally, from a humanistic understanding of human nature, Steuco believed that temporal authority of the papacy played a positive role in th e spiritual life. This article gives rise to many reasons that led to the split and formation of the Protestant religion. Steuco, with his humanistic approach defends the temporal power and processions of the papacy. He justifies this by making a point that secular power and holdings of the church played a part in the â€Å"spiritual welfare of people† (Delph, 1992; 37) He then correlates â€Å"rituals and visible signs of the sacred† (Delph, 1992; 37) necessary for worship. These socializing effects that the people enjoyed were only because of the temporal might of Rome. The argument that Steuco gave made it clear that the ornate nature of religion brought people to worship. Steuco makes a point when referring to the Old Testament as well as the New Testament in making the claim that God himself always appeared â€Å"†¦in forms that rendered him venerable and terrifying†. (Delph, 1992; 40) Steuco ...

Corhn's Disease Annotated Bibliography Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Corhn's Disease - Annotated Bibliography Example The authors aimed to deteremine the effect of using corticosteroids as a therapeutic intervention for Crohn’s disease, particularly Azathioprine and Infliximab, studied individually and subsequently, in combination. Through expounding on the study design and the patients who were selected to be part of the study, the authors presented the study treatments and an evaluation of deemed efficacy, as well as safety of the interventions noted. The findings noted the highest effective rate of efficacy in treatment for combining the two corticosteroids, to wit: â€Å"infliximab monotherapy and combination therapy with infliximab plus azathioprine, as compared with azathioprine alone, resulted in significantly higher rates of corticosteroid-free clinical remission among patients with moderate-to-severe Crohns disease† (Colombel & et al., 2010, p. 1393). The Crohn’s & Colitis Foundation of America (2012) provided an online comprehensive discourse regarding Crohn’s disease through a discussion of various sub-topics ranging from: understanding the diagnosis, an overview of the illness, it being identified as a chronic illness, population or people at risk, its causes, signs as well as symptoms, types, patterns, and treatment with recommended medications. Other relevant considerations were likewise expounded such as options for surgery, the required diet and nutritional intake, alternative and complementary interventions, coping techniques as one lives with the illness, and additional information and support systems which could assist people interested to find out more on Crohn’s disease. This site is very informative and useful for researchers and those found to have family members afflicted with the illness. The authors presented a comprehensive study regarding management of Crohn’s disease through initially providing

Outline the main elements in Karl Marxs social theory and examine the Essay

Outline the main elements in Karl Marxs social theory and examine the strengths and weaknesses of his theory. Explain why Marxs social theory has had such a - Essay Example Ideologies in this context refer to the values, feelings and ideas by which people perceive their particular societies which the upper-class controls so as to prevent people in the lower-class from knowing how society truly operates. For example, literature can be used to form a society’s ideology as was prevalent in eighteenth century England. The fundamental conception behind Marxism is identified as materialism, socialism and the unification of action and structure. Marx’s idealistic view of socialism involved actions that would better serve society within the realm of unselfish inspiration, a society not interested in existing social inclinations. The wealth of a nation should be divided not according to greed but to need. He sees the technological advances as the basis for entire societies to be redistributed in accordance to the requirements of the upper class. Marx â€Å"sees the source of these changes in changing technologies, ‘productive relations,†™ which bring changes in the way people are organised or ‘social relations.’† (Sowell, 1985: 70). His theory does not suggest philosophical concerns or the study of social structures alone but the actions necessary to implement social change as well. One of the most often used axioms in the Marxist ideology is that their ambition is ‘not to study society but to change it.’ According to Applebaum (1988: 15), society should â€Å"understand how Marx sought to bridge the concerns of both philosophy and science in developing a theory that operates simultaneously at the levels of structure and action [†¦] the philosophic critique of consciousness, the ‘scientific’ analysis of capitalist economic institutions, and the historical study of politics and society.† This is the intent of this discussion along with identifying various strengths and weaknesses of the theory and to examine the reasons why Marx’s social theory has

Strategic Management For Fly Dubai

Strategic Management For Fly Dubai This paper explores the existing aviation company Fly Dubai in a manner that analyzes and evaluates their current operations and efforts in a manner relative to strategic management. Further to this, the paper suggests that Fly Dubai is still relatively young in the market and requires a significantly more amount of experience before it can be labelled as competitive with other companies in the industry- namely, Emirates Airlines, Etihad Airlines and Air Arabia, SAMA, NAS in Saudi Arabia. The first part of the paper comprehensively analyzes the aviation industry at the present, and this serves purpose to gain knowledge about the competition and the market before a constructive and logical analysis can be made about Fly Dubai. Therefore, important factors such as the external environment, internal environment and Porters Five Forces are discussed. The second part of the paper is directly relative to Fly Dubai as well as their chief competitors in the industry. Here, certain Generic strategies are analyzed and proposed to indefinitely help the company gain a competitive advantage. Another important framework we used is the Product Growth Matrix, which analyzes the situation that they are facing, and we have proposed that they use Market Development. Ultimately, the paper ends with a conclusion and recommendations, which we believe would best, support Fly Dubai. Part 1- Industry Analysis Introduction This paper is focused on developing Strategic Management for a major public aviation company and their expansion into the industry with a new strategy to give them a competitive advantage against their competition. Unlike a business plan, a strategic management focuses on the two major factors that surround scheme of business development for the related industry, and the company. Since the core value of a business is generating acceptable returns, this paper concentrates on the methods that they particularly went through in order to achieve it. Although strategic management is increasingly important for the success of products, it is also important to establish that the industry is swiftly ascending with fresh ideas continually making a consumers life relatively easier and more pleasurable. A service-based business is extensively labour-intensive, and to sell the service requires an excellent business development team and therefore, it is also necessary to productively market your employees and their skills in order to gain more business. Therefore, in this paper, we will be studying the public aviation business based in Dubai that only concentrates on chartering passengers through the use of their Low cost carriers. This company is known as Fly Dubai. Our Strategic Management analysis will conclude theories and frameworks commonly used in the corporate world today such as PEST Analysis, Competitor Analysis, SWOT Analysis, Porters Five Forces, Porters Generic Strategies and many more. Ultimately, we will establish a number of results and based on it we will provide several recommendations and a conclusion. Industry Trends The Aviation industry in the UAE developed in 1985 when Emirates Airlines was founded after Gulf Air reduced their flight services to Dubai. This is when Sheikh Ahmed bin Saeed Al Maktoum took action and started the company in order for citizens in the UAE to be able to travel more frequently. In October 1985, the company flew their first routes from two leased planes. Nowadays, many other airlines have emerged in the UAE to compete with Emirates including Etihad Airways, Air Arabia and Fly Dubai. (AFP, 2009). Not with standing the increased success in commercial airlines appearing in the UAE, Fly Dubai differs largely due to the fact that it is a cost effective airline. According to Saif Mohammed Al Suwaidi, Director General of GCAA said: Air operations in UAE so significant growth in the first quarter of 2010 (n/a, 2010). The Middle East Business Aviation Association (MEBAA) has confirmed that the number of business jets in Middle East region have grown to about 500 aircraft in the past few years showing a growth of approximately 30-40%. Further to this report, the Aviation industry is expected to grow at 15-20% annually over the next four years to become a multi-billion dollar industry. It also assumes that from the year 2012-2018 the MENA region will receive 20-25% of the new business amounting to about  £300 billion. (n/a, 2009). PEST Analysis The first general method, which is commonly used in the analysis of the external environment, is through the PEST Analysis. It is increasingly important to understand the nature of external surroundings as they inevitably play a major role in effecting the companys operations. Fly Dubais PEST projections can be seen on the next page. Factor Description Implications on the Aviation Industry Political Low government intervention Supports foreign direct investments which leads to political stability In regards to locally owned companies, the government does not intervene and actually supports their operations Investments help increase the countrys GDP which is favorable for the government Economic Inflation over the past few years has led to more costs Stable interest rates and no taxes Rise in GDP and disposable income GCC unemployment rate had decreased from 12.4% to 10.5% (McGinley, 2010) Inflation has led to higher labor and operating costs, but also shows the expansion in the UAE This has led the business being able to borrow more without the fret of taxation and increased cost The countrys growth in GDP and disposable income mean that consumers have more money to spend on Aviation services This gives a positive sign to increase liquidity in the market. Socio-cultural Growing social trend in the Aviation industry Young workforce Low cost appeal (n/a, 2010). Increased number of tourism More people are using chartered services which indicates an overall industry growth A younger workforce will reduce costs for pensions Because of the recession, people have decreased their spending by allocating cheaper airlines Tourism will increase by 40% in next 3 years. (n/a, 2008) Technological New plane models available in the market Better operational technology Online booking These models which companies have ordered make them more competitive as their service is more desirable by having modern technology Business operations can run smoother as technology helps them reduce costs and improve quality of the service LCC dont focus on sales offices for lowering their costs ,so they focus on their website and make it more efficient for them and clinets. Strategic Group Map As we can see from the graph above, the two measurements we have chosen for our strategic group map is product quality and price. The graph above shows us that Emirates airlines and Ettihad airways have the biggest market share and they are competing against each other. As Emirates Airlines announced in their website, that they aim to increase their market share to 70% by 2010 without compromising their reputation for quality. (Emirates, 2010). Although they dont start from the same point, but Ettihad Airlines are trying their best to compete with Emirates by giving better offers and prices to same destinations, so people got attracted and didnt mind the 45 minutes drive to Abu Dhabi for the same kind of quality and cheaper prices. Now these two companies are indirect competitors for Fly Dubai. The major competitor for Fly Dubai is Air Arabia, where they launched in Sharjah Int. Airport before Fly Dubai was established. So, people were aware of Air Arabia and tried the experience of flying on a low cost carrier. Thats their major competitor, and they have other competitors but from different countries such as, Al jazeera airlines where they are based in Kuwait, and Fly Nas and Sama airlines where they are based in Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. Five Forces Analysis Michael Porter, the man behind the theory of differentiation states that a business needs to spend more money on creating these values added products or services in order to make it relatively obvious that the product or service is different. (Cordle, 2008). Michael Porter developed the Five Forces Analysis, which primarily helps companies in dealing with internal and external competition from customers and suppliers as well as from other competitors. It also establishes the risk of the current product or service offered. This is all incorporated into a diagram, which is illustrated below: Threat of new entrants Product differentiation: Medium as the aviation industry has been quite innovative on product development and has used all the ideas available- however; they have also proven to be strong competition and adapted similar features as well as their own unique features. Capital requirements: High as the technology used is constantly changing, developing and growing which would justify the need for high capital technological assets and new aircraft models Cost advantages independent of size: High as costs generally vary depending on how large the establishment is, how many staff members are employed, and the amount of customers that use the services or buy the products Access to distribution channels: High as the airline companies can acquire customers through different means such as the internet, travel agencies, sales calls and from their own offices After this analysis we can see that the threat of new entrants is low because the industry is hard to enter. Bargaining power of buyers Concentration of purchases: High as the amount of purchases is decided by the buyer and ultimately determines sales revenue Alternatives and substitutes: High as there are a large amount of carriers that consumers can choose from and all have access to Price or cost sensitivity: High as consumers would generally select a business that offers a fair otherwise cheaper price for the same products Importance of quality: High as consumers have adapted to a certain taste and they constantly assess product quality and customer service to determine their buy Amount of money saved by consumer: High especially during the financial crisis where savings and survival is has grown to be extremely important. (n/a, 2009). Here the bargaining power of buyers is high. Threat of substitute products Price limitations: Medium as this affects the highest amount they are able to charge to consumers and ultimately demonstrates the amount of revenue they will make Ability to upgrade: High due to the rapid advancement of technology and the introduction to newer models of aircrafts from different companies Costs in production: Medium as technology can enable cheaper production but they still employ a large amount of staff in the region Price of substitute: High as this can negatively affect each companies sales growth if another company gains customers due to cheaper prices- this ultimately seems to benefit Fly Dubai more due to their cheaper prices Performance and quality: Low as Low cost carriers are new companies that only started up a few years ago and their scope in the business is low. That is, they do not fly to many destinations and they do not have a wide customer base at the moment. It is high for companies such as Emirates as they have experience, and their high quality brand name and services is difficult to match Here the threat of substitute products is Moderate. Bargaining power of suppliers Low cost carriers purchase their complete air fleet from suppliers such as Boeing and Airbus. They then hand this to third party companies to input entertainment systems and furnish the interior for the different classes, which ultimately create value-added amenities by using this method. Here we can see that the bargaining power of suppliers is Moderate Rivalry among competing firms Numerous competitors: High rivalry as each company is trying to capture the same target market and therefore use their advertising, marketing and promotion techniques Industry growth: High-the market has shown that this industry has grown significantly over the years and more people are gaining access to travelling Differentiation: Medium as there is only a limit to the innovation that can be done on an airplane. However, Low cost carriers have incorporated many other components on their plane such as entertainment, shopping and many more. Amount of fixed costs: This can be determined by factors such as rent, wages and capital expenditure. From this, we can say that it is high. Height of exit barriers: Low for Low cost carriers as they control a relatively small market share, but it is high for Emirates and Etihad who have a vast number of customers which they cater to. Here we can see that the Rivalry among competing firms is Moderate/high. In conclusion, we see after analyzing the five forces, we can say that the market is moderate to high, which is hard to get in because of the difficulties, high starting cost and the experience needed to enter to airline industry. Core Competencies/Key Success Factors A core competency is defined as a companys basic business and area of greatest expertise that provides consumer benefits, not easy for competitors to imitate and can be leveraged widely too many products and markets. (Campbell Luchs, 1997) Essentially, a core competency should accomplish three things: Concrete on the popular destinations to expanded their market. Significantly improve the following attributes. Availability / Scheduling Terminal / Ground Services Price Reputation Prove to be challenging for competitors to imitate their cost leadership strategy. Based on this, airlines would have three major competencies to gain a competitive advantage over each other in the region. The first core competency that low cost carriers will have is related to their prices, which is significantly cheaper compared to other airlines in the region. To accomplish this, they will need to identify and analyze their operations and costs thoroughly to see where they can minimize their costs so that their low fares will not disrupt their ability to generate profit. This will give them a competitive advantage, as customers would prefer low cost airlines, and retain their loyalty to the brand. The second core competency they will offering additional services to customers. Generally, people associate a low-cost airline with no service- but Low cost carriers will differentiate them here and offer a special service by adding additional costs for the service. The last core competency will be the vast variety of destinations they travel to. Although the companies are still relatively small now- they will eventually expand and fly to a large number of countries in the different regions which will attract more people to use their service for less cheaper price from the other airlines. Industry Environmental Scan External Opportunities and Threats Opportunities Lack of price competition in the UAE market: Since most of the airline carriers are relatively high in costs compared to others in the world, local air carriers do not engage as actively in price competition. Fly Dubai however has started with this. Potential to attract clients from the entire region: Since the other airline companies in the GCC do not often fly internationally to popular destinations, the local air carriers in the UAE can attract them as they do fly to these areas. Expansion into international markets: Due to their value added services and state of the art planes, they appeal more to customers and therefore if airline companies in the UAE situate themselves more internationally, they can gain more customers. Contract to corporations and executives: The airline companies can further increase the amount of frequent flyers and gain more revenue by targeting companies that are situated around the GCC. In particular, multinational companies are ones that have executives that need to constantly travel, and therefore they can take advantage of this situation. Threats Increasing costs in the aviation industry: Due to the increase in technology and the value added services they provide, costs have become increasingly expensive for the aviation industry. Furthermore, the costs of labor are also quite high which adds to their total expenses. Shortage of skilled labor: In some areas, the aviation companies here lack skilled labor to perform certain tasks such as aircraft engineering and maintenance, marketing and other activities. Emirates is the only company who has skilled employees in these departments whereas others are not as efficient. Damaging impacts on the environment: The emission of carbon and greenhouse gases from the aircraft fuel has proven to be detrimental to the environment and therefore companies need to be aware of this and somehow prevent it. Falling prices: In certain industries such as real estate, prices have fallen drastically, and this leaves corporations with less money to spend on services. As a result, companies have cut back their traveling costs. Competitors increasing: Due to the increasing amount of free zones in the UAE, multinational companies have found it convenient to start their developments in the region as it is low in cost. As a result, there is an increase in competition from other airlines internationally. Industry Internal Scan Internal Strengths and Weaknesses Strengths Support and patronage from government: The UAE government owns and controls all of their airlines and therefore they all gain financial support. Diversified and state of the art planes: The planes, which they own, are newer and significantly better than many other airline companies around the world. Popular and growing companies: The aviation industry consists of the few primary companies offering flights and since their services are relatively good, this improves their brand image to the population. Value added services provided to all customers: The service incorporated in the UAE airline companies are significantly better than others around the world Memberships: They all have memberships in prominent establishments such as Middle East Business Aviation Association which improves their trustworthiness Weaknesses Based mostly in UAE which limits their intake of customers from abroad and around the region: Most of the aircraft companies focus solely on chartering customers in the UAE which limits the potential business they could be making High employee turnover due to low morale: Labor laws are constantly being refined in the UAE, as it is still a developing country. Further to this, they require more experience human resources staff in order to motivate employees to enjoy their job and stay at the company as well as performing highly Business opportunities such as cargo transporting are not always taken advantage of and are expensive: The UAE is a business hub and many companies around the world are establishing themselves. However, most of these companies have restrictions so they cannot produce many products and local companies only produce products for the UAE- the rest is imported. This greatly increases the amount of costs as exported goods are expensive, and they do not partake in exporting their own products, which could potentially earn them more revenue. Part 2- Company Strategy Analysis Mission Statement A mission statement may be identified as the purpose behind a companys existence. The aim is to create an internal image towards employees and an external image towards the public indicating their intentions of operating the business, as well as what they wish to accomplish. Fly Dubai does not have a mission statement on their websites, but from the words of the chairman (Sheikh Ahmed bin Saeed Al Maktoum), he mentioned the following: Our mission is to bring some two billion regional inhabitants affordable, efficient and flexible travel options to and from Dubai. Nine Essential Components of a Mission Statement Customers Services Markets Technology Concern for Survival, Growth and Profitability Philosophy Self-Concept Concern for Public Image Concern for Employees Judging by the various essential components of a mission statement, it is clear that Fly Dubai still needs to work on developing theirs more. (FARNBOROUGH, 2008). Fly Dubai Generic Strategy Essentially, a company that excels in the industry with exceptional performance that yield significantly larger profits than their rivals, they are said to possess a competitive advantage. There are two common strategies that allow a company to reach this goal, and this can be identified as: Cost Strategy Niche Differentiation Strategy (CAPA, 2009). Cost Strategy In order for a company such as Fly Dubai to implement a Cost Strategy, they need to be able to deliver the same benefits as competing airlines, but should operate under a lower cost. In the research studies on Strategic Management, the resource-based view is a well-established principal that helps a business gain competitive advantage by working on their Value Chain and implementing value-added principals. In the next section, I will describe Fly Dubais value chain, which will allow us to see how they gain a competitive advantage. The Value Chain The value chain comprises of a number of activities that are commonly found in business operations, and is identified as important in gaining a competitive advantage and developing and sustaining shareholder value. The diagram below best represents the value chain and the significant inputs that are analyzed: Primary Activities Inbound Logistics: This refers to how Fly Dubai receives their aviation products and services before distributing it. Operations: This refers to how Fly Dubai uses their resources and change it into a service. Their resources are primarily their fleet of planes, which are docked at several international terminals, and in this method they pick up and drop off passengers. Outbound Logistics: This refers to the channels of distribution Fly Dubai uses to effectively sell their flights to customers. They mostly use online booking, travel agencies, and contact customers directly, or customers can contact them via their office. Marketing and Sales: This refers to the identification of target markets, which bring Fly Dubai sales revenue. Fly Dubai carries out extensive market research to reach their customers who are interested in low fairs. Also, they have to create brand awareness among their customers since they just launched. This step is important to expand their market share. Also, through out their marketing research, they can develop new attractive packages as part of their promotions. It will be difficult to develop large marketing campaign because most of their money will be as operational expenses. Moreover, sales are more cost effective when they make it through Internet. However, consumers in Middle East region are not used to buy from Internet. Service: This refers to the post-purchase activities that ensure customer satisfaction. Fly Dubai issues a questionnaire, which they can follow up with customers on the quality of their products and customer service. Also, they added additional services to their customers such choosing seats when purchasing tickets. Those extra services will add more value to Fly Dubai image. In addition, those services will generate a good publicity for the company through word of mouth. Support Activities Firm infrastructure: Fly Dubais firm infrastructure ensures that certain policies and procedures are followed to support the primary activities. Fly Dubai operates from Dubai International Airport, Terminal 2. Dubai Government developed high infrastructure for Dubai Airport to provide excellent services to passengers. Since Fly Dubai fully owned by Dubai Government, they have all the necessary facilities under their control. Human resource management: Fly Dubai uses extensive human resources practices to recruit the best employees, and effectively trains them, develops them in certain company positions and finally gives them compensation for their hard work through salaries, benefits, bonuses and motivation. However, lack of experience is major issue in this new company. So, they supported by Emirates Group to overcome this weakness. According to Arabian Business that Fly Dubai has received more than 11,500 applications from flight and cabin crew. (Sambidge, 2009). This shows the huge amount of applicants who want to work with this company because they believe that it has bright future because of the reputation gained from its mother company Emirates Group. Technology development: Fly Dubai uses technology to lower their cost by selling tickets through their website www.FlyDubai.com. Adding more features to help customers to print their boarding pass and to choose their seat location by extra fees. Analyzing customer surveys to help with the general support of the company. Their technology is also developed to monitor sales and create functional reports. Differentiation Strategy The differentiation strategy is when a company can successfully thrive in the market while charging premium prices to their consumers for products or services. Essentially, leveraging either a better standard of service quality towards consumers, or having a better product performance does this. Fly Dubai can be differentiated from other competitors by adding flights to popular destinations that have great demand from their target market. Since their market is fragmented, differentiation is important to attract more customers and to expand their market share. There are several different ways in which Fly Dubai gain a competitive advantage in this way. It is renowned that they offer a great airline service along with the most state-of-the-art amenities and technology for all classes, and people gather such information when a company expresses their differentiation. The company does this in a number of ways, and this includes: Brand Awareness Fly Dubai can use extensive advertising techniques in order to penetrate the aviation market and create a higher demand for their services. Firstly, it is important to note that Dubai is one of the fastest growing tourist destinations in the world. Their rapid expansion in major industries has led them to dominate the tourism market. Business Operations Another method, which Fly Dubai can use to gain a competitive advantage through differentiation, is by offering cargo services, freight and logistics, engineering services, and plenty of other subsidiaries which associate these services with the company. Therefore, this reflects positively on the brand name. Service Quality Fly Dubai has won recognition for their high service quality. They spend extensive amounts of their budget on the development of human resources, which ultimately leads to a better service quality, and this improves customer satisfaction. Value Added Features Fly Dubai has a number of value added features, which basically offers them more for the money they spend when flying with them. Firstly, they have a service staff, which is guaranteed to delight every customer they serve. These features contribute to customer satisfaction and improve loyalty in the long run. Marketing Mix One of the prime theories of analysis for a business includes analyzing the market in several terms that would help them identify ways in which they can improve, but more importantly creates a structure in which a company can base their product lines on. This is known as the marketing mix or the 4 Ps as it generally covers the following four factors- products, price, promotion and place. Product: The product entails analyzing the services that Fly Dubai currently offers to their customers and how it meets their demands. They are a public aviation charter service that flies a target market of consumers to a number of countries. Price: The type of services that Fly Dubai offers generally have a high cost margin as they are using modern technology along with the most knowledgeable staff to carry out their operations. Therefore, we can establish that Fly Dubai uses a cost-plus pricing approach where they charge the cost of the operation plus a mark-up for their services. Promotion: Currently, Fly Dubai uses many major forms of promotion, and they generally rely on loyal customers and repeat business to make their profits. They consider various forms of advertising through media sources such as television, radio, newspaper, magazines, cinemas, and Internet. Place: Their operations are run from their primary location, which is in Dubai, UAE. Although they are currently quite profitable and the industry has witnessed a large amount of growth, they have room for expansion in the UAE and other GCC countries as a start. Dubai is quickly being recognized as a business hub and Fly Dubai can exploit that market to be competitive and increase their overall profitability. Competitor Analysis When developing a Strategic Marketing strategy, it is always important to identify the main competitors and find out information about their services and how much of a threat they are to your company in the market. The most efficient way to do this is to compare their marketing mix with Fly Dubai, which is seen below: Emirates Airlines (Indirect) Etihad Airlines (indirect) Air Arabia (direct) Product They offer a range of flights to various different destinations and have a luxurious brand to speak of. They also have cargo transportation that is widely used by corporations. This company offers similar services to Emirates but they do not focus on luxury and are limited to flights. Etihad has cargo services but the division is relatively small They offer similar services to Fly Dubai in terms that it is cheaper- but they are still more expensive. Furthermore, Fly Dubai has better planes. Price Emirates has the most expensive prices in the region but they justify it due to the high value services that are offered They offer slightly lower prices than Emirates but their aircraft fleet is very limited and their services are less desirable Their prices are comparable to Fly Dubai, but their services are not as good Promotion Emirates advertises extensively and has many marketing promotions which is seen throughout the media They

Introduction to Computer Organization and Computer Evolution Essay

In describing computers, a distinction is often made between computer architecture and computer organization. Although it is difficult to give precise definitions for these terms, a consensus exists about the general areas covered by each. Computer Architecture refers to those attributes of a system visible to a programmer or, put another way, those attributes that have a direct impact on the logical execution of a program. Examples of architectural attributes include the instruction set, the number of bits used to represent various data types (e.g., numbers, characters), I/O mechanisms, and techniques for addressing memory. Computer Organization refers to the operational units and their interconnections that realize the architectural specifications. Examples of organizational attributes include those hardware details transparent to the programmer, such as control signals; interfaces between the computer and peripherals; and the memory technology used. As an example, it is an architectural design issue whether a computer will have a multiply instruction. It is an organizational issue whether that instruction will implemented by a special multiply unit or by a mechanism that makes repeated use of the add unit of the system. The organizational decision may be based on the anticipated frequency of use of the multiply instruction, the relative speed of the two approaches, and the cost and physical size of a special multiply unit. Historically, and still today, the distinction between architecture and organization has been an important one. Many computer manufacturers offer a family of computer models, all with the same architecture but with differences in organization. Consequently, the different models in the family have different price and performance characteristics. Furthermore, a particular architecture may span many years and encompass a number of different computer models, its organization changing with changing technology. A prominent example of both these phenomena is the IBM System/370 architecture. This architecture was first introduced in 1970 and included a number of models. The customer with modest requirements could buy a cheaper, slower model and, if demand increased, later upgrade to a more expensive, faster model without having to abandon software that had already been developed. These newer models retained the same architecture so that the customer’s software investment  was protected. Remarkably, the System/370 architecture, with a few enhancements, has survived to this day as the architecture of IBM’s mainframe product line. II.Structure and Function A computer is a complex system; contemporary computers contain millions of elementary electronic components. The key is to recognize the hierarchical nature of most complex systems, including the computer. A hierarchical system is a set of interrelated subsystems, each of the latter, in turn, hierarchical in structure until we reach some lowest level of elementary subsystem. The hierarchical nature of complex systems is essential to both their design and their description. The designer need only deal with a particular level of the system at a time. At each level, the system consists of a set of components and their interrelationships. The behaviour at each level depends only on a simplified, abstracted characterization of the system at the next lower level. At each level, the designer is concerned with structure and function: †¢Structure: The way in which the components are interrelated †¢Function: The operation of each individual component as part of the structure The computer system will be described from the top down. We begin with the major components of a computer, describing their structure and function, and proceed to successively lower layers of the hierarchy. Function Both the structure and functioning of a computer are, in essence, simple. Figure 1.1 depicts the basic functions that a computer can perform. In general terms, there are only four: †¢Data processing: The computer, of course, must be able to process data. The data may take a wide variety of forms, and the range of processing requirements is broad. However, we shall see that there are only a few fundamental methods or types of data processing. †¢Data storage: It is also essential that a computer store data. Even if the computer is processing on the fly (i.e., data come in and get processed, and the results go out immediately), the computer must temporarily store at least those pieces of data that are being worked on at any given moment. Thus, there is at least a short-term data storage function. Equally important, the computer performs a long-term data storage  function. Files of data are stored on the computer for subsequent retrieval and update. †¢Data movement: The computer must be able to move data between itself and the outside world. The computer’s operating environment consists of devices that serve as either sources or destinations of data. When data are received from or delivered to a device that is directly connected to the computer, the process is known as input-output (I/O), and the device is referred to as a peripheral. When data are moved over longer distances, to or from a remote device, the process is known as data communications. †¢Control: Finally there must be control of these three functions. Ultimately, this control is exercised by the individual(s) who provides the computer with instructions. Within the computer, a control unit manages the computer’s resources and orchestrates the performance of its functional parts in response to those instructions. FIGURE 1.1 A FUNCTIONAL VIEW OF THE COMPUTER At this general level of discussion, the number of possible operations that can be performed is few. Figure 1.2 depicts the four possible types of operations. The computer can function as a data movement device (Figure 1.2a), simply transferring data from one peripheral or communications line to another. It can also function as a data storage device (Figure 1.2b), with data transferred from the external environment to computer storage (read) and vice versa (write). The final two diagrams show operations involving data processing, on data either in storage (Figure 1.2c) or en route between storage and the external environment Structure Figure 1.3 is the simplest possible depiction of a computer. The computer  interacts in some fashion with its external environment. In general, all of its linkages to the external environment can be classified as peripheral devices or communication lines. There are four main structural components (Figure 1.4): †¢Central Processing Unit (CPU): Controls the operation of the computer and performs its data processing functions; often simple referred to as processor †¢Main memory: Stores data †¢I/O: Moves data between the computer and its external environment †¢System interconnection: Some mechanism that provides for communication among CPU, main memory, and I/O FIGURE 1.3 THE COMPUTER FIGURE 1.4 THE COMPUTER: TOP-LEVEL STRUCTURE There may be one or more of each of the aforementioned components. Traditionally, there has been just a single CPU. In recent years, there has been increasing use of multiple processors in a single computer. The most interesting and in some ways the most complex component is the CPU; its structure is depicted in Figure 1.5. Its major structural components are: †¢Control unit: Controls the operation of the CPU and hence the computer †¢Arithmetic and logic unit (ALU): Performs the computer’s data processing functions †¢Registers: Provides storage internal to the CPU †¢CPU interconnection: Some mechanism that provides for communication among the control unit, ALU, and registers FIGURE 1.5 THE CENTRAL PROCESSING UNIT (CPU) Finally, there are several approaches to the implementation of the control unit; one common approach is a microprogrammed implementation. In essence, a microprogrammed control unit operates by executing microinstructions that define the functionality of the control unit. The structure of the control unit can be depicted as in Figure 1.6. FIGURE 1.6 THE CONTROL UNIT III.Importance of Computer Organization and Architecture The computer lies at the heart of computing. Without it most of the computing  disciplines today would be a branch of the theoretical mathematics. To be a professional in any field of computing today, one should not regard the computer as just a black box that executes programs by magic. All students of computing should acquire some understanding and appreciation of a computer system’s functional components, their characteristics, their performance, and their interactions. There are practical implications as well. Students need to understand computer architecture in order to structure a program so that it runs more efficiently on a real machine. In selecting a system to use, they should be able to understand the tradeoff among various components, such as CPU clock speed vs. memory size. [Reported by the Joint Task Force on Computing Curricula of the IEEE (Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers) Computer Society and ACM (Association for Computing Machinery)]. IV.Computer Evolution A brief history of computers is interesting and also serves the purpose of providing an overview of computer structure and function. A consideration of the need for balanced utilization of computer resources provides a context that is useful. The First Generation: Vacuum Tubes ENIAC: The ENIAC (Electronic Numerical Integrator And Computer), designed by and constructed under the supervision of John Mauchly and John Presper Eckert at the University of Pennsylvania, was the world’s first general-purpose electronic digital computer. The project was a response to U.S. wartime needs during World War II. The Army’s Ballistics Research Laboratory (BRL), an agency responsible for developing range and trajectory tables for new weapons, was having difficulty supplying these tables accurately and within a reasonable time frame. Mauchly, a professor of electrical engineering at the University of Pennsylvania, and Eckert, one of his graduate students, proposed to build a general-purpose computer using vacuum tubes for the BRL’s application. In 1943, the Army accepted this proposal, and work began on the ENIAC. The resulting machine was enormous, weighing 30 tons, occupying 1500 squre feet of floor space and containing more than 18,000 vacuum tubes. When operating, it consumed 140 kilowatts of power. It was also substantially faster than any electromechanical computer, being capable of 5000 additions per second. The ENIAC was a decimal rather  than a binary machine. That is, numbers were represented in decimal form and arithmetic was performed in the decimal system. Its memory consisted of 20 â€Å"accumulators,† each capable of holding a 10-digit decimal number. A ring of 10 vacuum tubes represented each digit. At any time, only one vacuum tube was in the ON state, representing one of the 10 digits. The major drawback of the ENIAC was that it had to be programmed manually by setting switches and plugging and unplugging cables. The ENIAC was completed in 1946, too late to be used in the war effort. Instead, its first task was to perform a series of complex calculations that were us ed to help determine the feasibility of the hydrogen bomb. The use of the ENIAC for a purpose other than that for which it was built demonstrated its general-purpose nature. The ENIAC continued to operate under BRL management until 1955, when it was disassembled. The von Neumann Machine: The task of entering and altering programs for the ENIAC was extremely tedious. The programming process could be facilitated if the program could be represented in a form suitable for storing in memory alongside the data. Then, a computer could get its instructions by reading them from memory, and a program could be set or altered by setting the values of a portion of memory. This idea, known as the stored-program concept, is usually attributed to the ENIAC designers, most notably the mathematician John von Neumann, who was a consultant on the ENIAC project. Alan Turing developed the idea at about the same time. The first publication of the idea was in a 1945 proposal by von Neumann for a new computer, the EDVAC (Electronic Discrete Variable Automatic Computer). In 1946, von Neumann and his colleagues began the design of a new stored-program computer, referred to as the IAS computer, at the Princeton Institute for Advanced Studies. The IAS computer, although not completed until 1952, is the prototype of all subsequent general-purpose computers. Figure 1.7 shows the general structure of the IAS computer. It consists of: †¢A main memory, which stores both data and instructions †¢An arithmetic and logic unit (ALU) capable of operating on binary data †¢A control unit, which interprets the instructions in memory and causes them to be executed †¢Input and output (I/O) equipment operated by the control unit FIGURE 1.7 STRUCTURE OF THE IAS COMPUTER Commercial Computers The 1950s saw the birth of the computer industry with two companies, Sperry and IBM, dominating the marketplace. UNIVAC I: In 1947, Eckert and Mauchly formed the Eckert-Mauchly Computer Corporation to manufacture computers commercially. Their first successful machine was the UNIVAC I (Universal Automatic Computer), which was commissioned by the Bureau of the Census for the 1950 calculations. The Eckert-Mauchly Computer Corporation became part of the UNIVAC division of Sperry-Rand Corporation, which went on to build a series of successor machines. The UNIVAC I was the first successful commercial computer. It was intended, as the name implies, for both scientific and commercial applications. The first paper describing the system listed matrix algebraic computations, statistical problems, premium billings for a life insurance company, and logistical problems as a sample of the tasks it could perform. UNIVAC II: The UNIVAC II which had greater memory capacity and higher performance than the UNIVAC I, was delivered in the late 1950s and illustrates several trends that have remained characteristic of the computer industry. First, advances in technology allow companies to continue to build larger, more powerful computers. Second, each company tries to make its new machines upward compatible with the older machines. This means that the programs written for the older machines can be executed on the new machine. This strategy is adopted in the hopes of retaining the customer base; that is, when a customer decides to buy a newer machine, he or she is likely to get it from the same company to avoid losing the investment in programs. The UNIVAC division also began development of the 1100 series of computers, which was to be its major source of revenue. This series illustrates a distinction that existed at one time. In 1955, IBM, which stands for International Business Machines, introduced the companion 702 product, which had a number of hardware features that suited it to business applications. These were the first of a long series of 700/7000 computers that established IBM as the overwhelmingly dominant computer manufacturer. The Second Generation: Transistors The first major change in the electronic computer came with the replacement of the vacuum tube by the transistor. The transistor is smaller, cheaper, and dissipates less heat than a vacuum tube but can be used in the same way  as a vacuum tube to construct computers. Unlike the vacuum tube, which requires wires, metal plates, a glass capsule, and a vacuum, the transistor is a solid-state device, made from silicon. The transistor was invented at Bell Labs in 1947 and by the 1950s had launched an electronic revolution. The National Cash Registers (NCR) and, more successfully, Radio Corporation of America (RCA) were the front-runners with some small transistor machines. IBM followed shortly with the 7000 series. The second generation is noteworthy also for the appearance of the Digital Equipment Corporation (DEC). DEC was founded in 1957 and, in that year, delivered its first computer, the PDP-1 (Programmed Data Processor). This computer and this company began the minicomputer phenomenon that would become so prominent in the third generation. The IBM 7094: From the introduction of the 700 series in 1952 to the introduction of the last member of the 7000 series in 1964, this IBM product line underwent an evolution that is typical of computer products. Successive members of the product line show increased performance, increased capacity, and/or lower cost. Table 1.1 illustrates this trend. The Third Generation: Integrated Circuit A single, self-contained transistor is called a discrete component. Throughout the 1950s and early 1960s, electronic equipment was composed largely of discrete components–transistors, resistors, capacitors, and so on. Discrete components were manufactured separately, packaged in their own containers, and soldered or wired together onto masonite-like circuit boards, which were then installed in computers, oscilloscopes, and other electronic equipment. Early second-generation computer contained about 10,000 transistors. This figure grew to the hundreds of thousands, making the manufacture of newer, more powerful machines increasingly difficult. In 1958 came the achievement that revolutionized electronics and started the era of microelectronics: the invention of the integrated circuit. Microelectronics: Microelectronics means, literally, â€Å"small electronics.† Since the beginnings of digital electronics and the computer industry, there has been a persistent and consistent trend toward the reduction in size of digital electronic circuits. The basic elements of a digital computer, as we know, must perform storage, movement, processing, and control functions. Only two fundamental types of components are required: gates and memory  cells. A gate is a device that implements a simple Boolean or logical function. Such devices are called gates because they control data flow in much the same way that canal gates do. The memory cell is a device that can store one bit of data; that is, the device can be in one of two stable states at any time. By interconnecting large numbers of these fundamental devices, we can construct a computer. We can relate this to our four basic functions as follows: †¢Data storage: Provided by memory cells. †¢Data processing: Provided by gates. †¢Data movement: The paths between components are used to move data from memory to memory and from memory through gates to memory. †¢Control: The paths between components can carry control signals. When the control signal is ON, the gate performs its function on the data inputs and produces a data output. Similarly, the memory cell will store the bit that is on its input lead when the WRITE control signal is ON and will place the bit that is in the cell on its output lead when the READ control signal is ON. Thus, a computer consists of gates, memory cells, and interconnections among these elements. The integrated circuit exploits the fact that such components as transistors, resistors, and conductors can be fabricated from a semiconductor such as silicon. It is merely an extension of the solid-state art to fabricate an entire circuit in a tiny piece of silicon rather than assemble discrete components made from separate pieces of silicon into the same circuit. Many transistors can be produced at the same time on a single wafer of silicon. Equally important, these transistors can be connected with a process of metallization to form circuits. Figure 1.8 depicts the key concepts in an integrated circuit. A thin wafer of silicon is divided into a matrix of small areas, each a few millimetres square. The identical circuit pattern is fabricated in each area, and the wafer is broken up into chips. Each chip consists of many gates and/or memory cells plus a number of input and output attachment points. This chip is then packaged in housing that protects it and provides pins for attachment to devices beyond the chip. A number of these packages can then be interconnected on a printed circuit board to produce larger and more complex circuits. As time went on, it became possible to pack more and more components on the  same chip. This growth in density is illustrated in Figure 1.9; it is one of the most remarkable technological trends ever recorded. This figure reflects the famous Moore’s law, which was propounded by Gordon Moore, cofounder of Intel, in 1965. Moore observed that the number of transistors that could be put on a single chip was doubling every year and correctly predicted that this pace would continue into the near future. FIGURE 1.9 GROWTH IN CPU TRANSISTOR COUNT The consequences of Moore’s law are profound: 1.The cost of a chip has remained virtually unchanged during this period of rapid growth in density. This means that the cost of computer logic and memory circuitry has fallen at a dramatic rate. 2.Because logic and memory elements are placed closer together on more densely packed chips, the electrical path length is shortened, increasing operating speed. 3.The computer becomes smaller, making it more convenient to place in a variety of environments. 4.There is a reduction in power and cooling requirements. 5.The interconnections on the integrated circuit are much more reliable than solder connections. With more circuitry on each chip, there are fewer interchip connections. IBM System/360: By 1964, IBM had a firm grip on the computer market with its 7000 series of machines. In that year, IBM announced the System/360, a new family of computer products. Although the announcement itself was no surprise, it contained some unpleasant news for current IBM customers: the 360 product line was incompatible with older IBM machines. Thus, the transition to the 360 would be difficult for the current customer base. This was a bold step by IBM, but one IBM felt was necessary to break out of some of the constraints of the 7000 architecture and to produce a system capable of evolving with the new integrated circuit technology. The 360 was the success of the decade and cemented IBM as the overwhelmingly dominant computer vendor, with a market share above 70%. The System/360 was the industry’s first planned family of computers. The family covered a wide range of performance and cost. Table 1.2 indicates some of the key characteristics of the various models in 1965. The concept of a family of compatible computers was both novel and extremely successful. The characteristics of a family are as follows: †¢Similar or identical instruction set: The program that executes on one machine will also execute on any other. †¢Similar or identical operating system: The same basic operating system is available for all family members. †¢Increasing speed: the rate of instruction execution increases in going from lower to higher family members. †¢Increasing number of I/O ports: In going from lower to higher family members. †¢Increasing memory size: In going from lower to higher family members. †¢Increasing cost: In going from lower to higher family members. DEC PDP-8: Another momentous first shipment occurred: PDP-8 from DEC. At a time when the average computer required an air-conditioned room, the PDP-8 (dubbed a minicomputer by the industry) was small enough that it could be placed on top of a lab bench or be built into other equipment. It could not do everything the mainframe could, but at $16,000, it was cheap enough for each lab technician to have one. The low cost and small size of the PDP-8 enabled another manufacturer to purchase a PDP-8 and integrate it into a total system for resale. These other manufacturers came to be known as original equipment manufacturers (OEMs), and the OEM market became and remains a major segment of the computer marketplace. As DEC’s official history puts it, the PDP-8 â€Å"established the concept of minicomputers, leading the way to a multibillion dollar industry.† Later Generations Beyond the third generation there is less general agreement on defining generations of computers. Table 1.3 suggests that there have been a number of later generations, based on advances in integrated circuit technology. GenerationApproximate DatesTechnologyTypical Speed (operations per  second) With the rapid pace of technology, the high rate of introduction of new products and the importance of software and communications as well as hardware, the classification by generation becomes less clear and less meaningful. In this section, we mention two of the most important of these results. Semiconductor Memory: The first application of integrated circuit technology to computers was construction of the processor (the control unit and the arithmetic and logic unit) out of integrated circuit chips. But it was also found that this same technology could be used to construct memories. In the 1950s and 1960s, most computer memory was constructed from tiny rings of ferromagnetic material, each about a sixteenth of an inch in diameter. These rings were strung up on grids of fine wires suspended on small screens inside the computer. Magnetized one way, a ring (called a core) represented a one; magnetized the other way, it stood for a zero. It was expensive, bulky, and used destructive readout. Then, in 1970, Fairchild produced the first relatively capacious semiconductor memory. This chip, about the size of a single core, could hold 256 bits of memory. It was non-destructive and much faster than core. It took only 70 billionths of a second to read a bit. However, the cost per bit was higher than for that of core. In 1974, a seminal event occurred: The price per bit of semiconductor memory dropped below the price per bit of core memory. Following this, there has been a continuing and rapid decline in memory cost accompanied by a corresponding increase in physical memory density. Since 1970, semiconductor memory has been through 11 generations: 1K, 4K, 16K, 64K, 256K, 1M, 4M, 16M, 64M, 256M, and, as of this writing, 1G bits on a single chip. Each generation has provided four times the storage density of the previous generation, accompanied by declining cost per bit and declining access time. Microprocessors: Just as the density of elements on memory chips has  continued to rise, so has the density of elements on processor chips. As time went on, more and more elements were placed on each chip, so that fewer and fewer chips were needed to construct a single computer processor. A breakthrough was achieved in 1971, when Intel developed its 4004. The 4004 was the first chip to contain all of the components of a CPU on a single chip: the microprocessor was born. The 4004 can add two 4-bit numbers and can multiply only be repeated addition. By today’s standards, the 4004 is hopelessly primitive, but it marked the beginning of a continuing evolution of microprocessor capability and power.