Cell phones how have they changed us socially Essay Example for Free

Cell phones how have they changed us socially Essay Some people might find it hard to believe that there was once a time when cell phones weren’t around. Having to recall a time when letters were used to get messages back and forth from one person to another. Then slowly we added the addition of phones. In the beginning phones were just a way to contact people if they happend to be home when called. Then we invented cell phones. With them we can make and receive calls in almost any location and we can send text messages . Cell phone use has increased in the past years because is really easy and economic to have one. Year into year cell phones become better and better. Today , except making and receiveing calls and also texting messages, we can do a lot of interesting things with them. For example we can listen to music, record voice notes, make video clips, play games, take pictures, access the internet and many other things. But there is also a bad side of cell phones. They affected the way we socialize these days; if you notice people are starting to text their friends and family instead if actually speaking verbally. Many adolescents and also older generations spend more time sending text messages or chatting on Facebook than speaking You go out to dinner and look around and see people out with family but there is no conversations going on at the table mostly just huh†¦ yeah†¦ mmhm.., because they are busy texting someone not there on their phones. I feel human communicant is slowly disappearing among friends and family. You even see parent’s texting their kids when in the same house to discuss something with them. Our communication between each other is depending on a little electronic device. People use cell phones in public places, and during church. I have even seen ten-year olds walking across the street texting their friends instead of paying attention to the cars.

Construction Budget Over Runs and Late Project Completion

Construction Budget Over Runs and Late Project Completion Construction projects are graded very successful if the work is completed within budget and to the deadlines agreed in the specification. However, the sad truth is that not all projects are guilty of being successful. Many projects experience failure due to the uncertainties associated with construction projects which include weather, materials, equipment, money and profitability, disagreements between clients, contractors and sub-contractors, statutory regulations, economic and political issues and functionality and purpose. To prevent these failures from constantly occurring, the types of failures need to be addressed so future construction projects do not fall into the same category of unsuccessful Civil Engineering construction projects. It is clear that some of these failures occur regardless of careful planning due to uncontrollable conditions such as climate change, recession, delayed deliveries etc. Therefore addressing the controllable issues, contractors can incorporate the se problems into their specification. By understanding the issues from previous unsuccessful construction projects and correlating the failures, it will be easy to identify the common errors and try to eliminate them from future projects. The research will be based on unsuccessful construction projects by using data from case studies, books, the internet and journals. The constraints and limitation of this paper will depend highly on the data received and analysed by previous sources and their opinion. The paper will also focus on two main factors, budget over runs and late completion. Examples of Budget Over-runs and Late Completion Projects There are many construction projects which have Budget Overruns and Late Completion. A few examples of budget over-run and late completion projects are: Wembley Stadium Sydney Opera House Tfls Jubilee Line Wembley Stadium The Wembley Stadium was a renovation construction project which required the old stadium to be demolished and rebuilt. The main purpose of the new stadium was to increase the capacity of the stadium, be the new home of English football and also host other sports and national events. The original estimated cost of the stadium was  £757m. This value at completion soared to about  £798m. Multiplex (main contractor) reported about  £45m losses in the construction of the New Wembley Stadium. These losses arose due to factors which include: Weather Sub-contractor walkouts (Cleveland Bridge steel company walkout) Sub-contractor disagreements (trade union of workers walkouts) and Changes in design due to failures. Due to the above factors the completion date of the project was pushed back by about three months. [1, 2] Sydney Opera House The Sydney Opera House was built as a performing arts centre and was designed by Jà ¸rn Utzon. The original estimated cost to build the Opera House was AUS $7m in 1957 and expected to be completed in five years. The project was started in 1959 and the value escalated to a massive AUS $102m and was completed in 1973. Not only did the budget over-run to 15 times the original estimate, but it also took 14 years to complete, which is a very late completion. The main factor which affected this project was insufficient planning during the design stage This led to a series of errors during construction, which effectively caused a domino effect. Hence, increasing the cost and pushing back the completion date [3, 4]. Tfls Jubilee Line The London Underground Jubilee Line extension was to link Stratford and the Docklands to Westminster. This project was planned in 1989 and estimated to cost  £1.2billion. The construction started 1993 and expected to take four years. This however was not the case due to a series of setbacks. There are four major causes for these delays: The project was put on hold for 18 months to find funding The movement of the block signalling system caused delays The location of the O2 Centre (Millennium Dome) had not been established and Due to the collapse of Heathrow Express Tunnel, work was put on hold again. This caused many changes to the original design therefore causing the project to be completed in early 1999, which was a twenty months late completion. The cost also increased to  £3.5billion, an astonishing 70% budget over-run [5]. What Are Budget Over-runs? Budget Overrun can be simply defined as when the final cost of the project exceeds the original estimates [6]. In terms of construction, this means the actual cost of the project at completion minus the original tendered cost during the tendering stage. This therefore creates either a positive value or a negative value. If the value is positive, the project is within budget and has created a profit, if the value is negative, the project has created a loss and is referred to as a Budget Over-run. Why Do Budget Over-runs Occur and What Are The Causes? Budget Over-runs occur constantly in construction projects around the world. The main aim of any business (Construction Company) is to make money, however, it is very common in construction to hear companies reporting losses due to budget over-runs. If the project is completed within the budget specified, it can be graded a success. Therefore this is an ideal factor to use, to rate the success of a project. Budget over-runs occur due to many factors, which are sometimes split into two groups, controllable and extent of damages. The types of budget over-runs are caused by: The cost variations between clients and contractors and sometimes a third party e.g. project manager, consultant etc [7]. Poor estimation during tendering process Disagreements with Trade Union of Workers Climate change Late completion Changes in design etc. This shows that the slightest mistake or changes made could increase the cost of the project dramatically. Research carried out around the world on construction projects has shown that: [8] 9 out of 10 projects over-run Between 50 and 100% over runs were common There was a constant correlation of over-run projects for 70 years in each of the 20 nations and 5 continents surveyed. Average construction project costs are about 33%[9] Another source of research carried out by Jahren, et al [10] predicted that the factors which increased the chances of a budget over-run are: Project size Method of delivery Amount of competition Quality of contract documents and Interpersonal relations There have been predictions published in the User Guide (2005), which outlines the common factors which cause budget overruns. These are: Poor Project Management The project manager/management team is employed to control the entire development to run smoothly and efficiently from start to finish for the project. They may or may not cover the costing depending on the clients preference. If the project management is poor, it will create an effect on the entire project and in the User Guide (2005) it is listed as: Lack of planning and co-ordination Poor communication between members of the project team and the project sponsor Failure to identify problems and institute necessary and timely design and programming changes Lack of control over time and cost inputs Lack of end user involvement. Unexpected Ground Conditions The ground conditions on any construction site are key, if the ground is not tested prior to tendering, the costs could escalate out of control, in order to put it right. This effectively will be the contractors responsibility. Although trial pits and bore holes are used to get an idea of the ground conditions, the true site condition will not be exposed until full excavation. From the time the trial pits and bore holes are carried out to the time of excavation, the ground conditions may have changed. Changes in ground condition may cause a redesign and also cause problems for any machines and materials ordered to site. This therefore should be taken into account as these could increase costs. Shortage of Construction Materials When construction is at its peak development stage in a certain areas, locally ordered materials could be in great demand. Some materials maybe required but cannot keep up with the demand, hence causing delays to the project. These materials might be ordered from other areas of the world, but may cost substantially more as it will need to be shipped in and pushing back the completion date due to delays in material deliveries. Therefore to prevent any shortages occurring this will need to be anticipated and added to the cost to prevent budget overruns. Change in Foreign Exchange Rates If specific materials are unavailable in the local market, it will then need to be imported from overseas. This can cause a problem to the budget if there are dramatic changes in exchange rates. This unexpected exchange rate should be taken into account during costing as it will cause an increase in the budget. Inappropriate and/or Inexperienced Contractors Selection of the right contractor is another key decision. The contractor must be suitable for the project as some projects use a wide range of tenders who price the job. Although, the cheapest tender may be very inviting, it does not guarantee quality. The decision should be made on contractors experience, the contractors successful history of completing jobs on time and within budget and also the most competitive price. Research carried out by Yates et al (2003), the contractors tender which is 15% less than the Engineer, it is very likely there will be a budget over-run. The tenders reputation should also be consider. This could be key as some companies may fall into hardship and bankruptcy. This will delay the project considerably and also increase costs as most contractors tend not to takeover other contractors jobs in case of any problems which could arise during later construction. Natural Disasters/Events These are disasters or events which cause inevitable delays and therefore budget issues to the project. The types of disasters/events which may cause delays and cost implications are wars, riots, earthquakes, landslide, fire, political and economic issues, types of projectile, contamination and many other disasters/events. Underestimations Deliberate cost underestimating occurs in order to gain the job. This will result in the project not being completed and the client having to either increase the budget or retender, hence, causing budget over-runs. Research carried out by Fllyvbjjerg showed that big construction projects were common culprits to underestimation and therefore led to the statement, whatever the cause, almost all large public projects contain initial cost estimating errors that result in the need for increased funding to complete the projects'[8]. The underestimation has been split into four major topics by Fllyvbjjerg: Technical These are known as forecasting errors which are errors requiring changes because of imperfect techniques, honest mistakes, inadequate data, inherited problems in predicting the future and lack of experience on the part of forecasters. In this case, the errors occur between the budgeted estimation and the actual cost of construction. [11] Economical The economical issues are split into two groups, public interest and economic self interest. Public interest is where there are promoters and forecasters who underestimate the cost of the project on purpose to give public officials an incentive to cut costs to save public money. Economical self interest is used to create jobs for Engineers and construction companies and shareholders also get involved to make more money. The fact that shareholders get involved tends to influence the forecasting process and therefore makes an impression on the result. [8] Psychological This is known as appraisal optimism. Promoters and forecasters are held to be overly optimistic about project outcomes in the appraisal phase, when projects are planned and decided. [12] By making the cost seem lower than it should be, will effectively cause the budget to over-run. Political Political explanations interpret cost underestimation in terms of interests and power. The political issue arises on the fact that whether forecasters are intentionally biased to serve the interests of project promoters in getting projects started. This is key in order to start a project quickly, however, there is a legal and moral deception attached this form of underestimation [13]. Change and Variation Orders These are changes to the project and are not part of the outlined work during the agreement of the project. In construction, changes tend to be inevitable and will cause a disruption to the project deadline and also budget. These decisions are therefore discussed prior to any changes being made as it may not suit the client or contractor. Inflation The general definition of inflation in economics is the increase in prices and fall in the purchasing the value of money [14]. This means that if there is an inflation increase, the value of all parts of the project will increase e.g. material costs, machinery hire, wages etc, which in turn increases the budget. To avoid these extra costs, predictions of the market should be checked during the tendering process, by both client and contractors. Acceleration This is where there is a delay but the client demands the project to be completed by the contractor on time, before the completion date or before the agreed extension completion date. Delays Of Completion Time and Payments Delays of completion tend to equal delays of payments, this will cause interest rate repayments to escalate causing the alleged interest trap for both client and contractor. What Are The Overall Effects From Budget Over-runs? It is clear that budget over-runs occur continuously in construction projects around the world. There are many causes for these extra costs which have not been considered during the tendering process. This has caused a bad impression not only on clients but also contractors and end users. The effects on each party is as follows: The client loses faith in the construction industry but in-particular their consultants who are unable to deliver the project on time. This also leads to higher investment being required from the client. The consultants reputation is ruined as they have an inability to control the project budget therefore leaving question marks for winning new projects. Contractors do not make the profits anticipated and failure to complete the jobs leaves their reputation in tatters. The end user will effectively be the one paying the highest price in terms of buying/renting/leasing in order for the shareholders to cover their costs. Overall, its the construction industry that suffers as it causes major headlines in the media for the wrong reasons. Clients will be more cautious before investing in large scale projects which will cause a drop in the construction industry projects due to its feeble reputation. Many construction projects which are accepted by the client will come with a greater risk to the contractor. How To Prevent Future Projects From Budget Over-runs? To prevent future projects from being unsuccessful in terms of budget, the management of costs need to be broken down to show exactly where costs will be greatest and smallest. The estimating, scheduling, accumulating and analyzing costs, and implementing measures to correct construction costing must be adhered to strictly. This will prevent any failures in terms of budget. There is a three step process which can be employed during the planning stage through to the construction stage: Identify the scale of the project (in terms of quality, completion time and budget), Ensure scope is adhered to strictly (in terms of time and budget) Monitor and control the above 2 steps constantly till the completion of the project. A successful project is based on the project manager and contractor working hand in hand to get the greatest efficiency from a project and tend to be based on time, performance and cost. There are many types of key principles and actions which should be followed for a project to be labelled successful and a few are listed below [15]: Good project definition and sound business case, Appropriate choice of project strategy, Strong support for the project and its manager from higher management, Availability of sufficient funds and other resources, Firm control of changes to the authorized project, Technical competence, A sound quality culture throughout the organization, A suitable organization structure, Appropriate regard for the health and safety of everyone connected with the project, Good project communications, Well-motivated staff, Quick and fair resolution of conflict. Risks and uncertainties increase the budget of any project. Therefore, a 10% of the estimated cost contingency plan is usually inputted into many projects to prevent the project from delays and going over budget. Although 10% sounds fairly small, by adding other control systems to the project performance, this value could increase dramatically. However, a good project management costing is more desirable and efficient than a contingency plan. What are Late Completions? In construction projects a late completion is commonly referred to as the time between the actual deadline agreed, to the time the project is completed. This is commonly called a delay in construction and tends to have a major effect on the client, end user, contractor and shareholders. If delays occur in construction projects, the contractor will be subjected to: Additional/Extension time of completion, Immediate termination of contract, Reduced profit or A mixture of the above. This is not always the case, as some delays are not the contractors fault. The other parties involved in the construction stage are, clients, consultants and external influences e.g. suppliers, machinery, mother nature etc. Any delay will create problems between all/some of the parties involved. Why Do Late Completions Occur and What Are The Causes? Delays can be split into three categories, these are: Excusable Delays These are delays which are not caused directly or indirectly by the contractor and in turn the contractor is allowed an extension of time. The excusable delay can also be split into two parts, Excusable With Compensation This is where the contractor is delayed due to the actions of the client, and is given and extension of time and compensated with money for wasted time. An example is if client cannot access the site after the client has approved for the work to start. Excusable Without Compensation This is where the client and contractor cannot be blamed for the delays caused and the contractor is only given an extension of time. An example would be Mother Nature. Non Excusable Delays These are delays caused by the contractor or sub contractor and the contractor is not given any extensions. But the client may get liquidated damages. Concurrent Delays These are delays which occur at the same time. If, and only if two delays or more occur at the same time, then the contractor is entitled to an extension. Delays are caused by the members directly involved in the project and also members indirectly involved in the project. Research was carried out by Odeh and Battaineh (2002) and their finding showed that [17], Client Delays The client caused delays in terms of: Finance and Payments, Constantly Interfering, Indecisive Decisions on Design and Requirements, Very Unrealistic Forced Time Schedule, Minimal Experience of Construction Projects, Minimal Experience of Co-ordination and Communication, Very Poor Employment of Representatives, Inappropriate Feasibility Study. Consultant Delays The consultant causes delays in terms of: Poor Management/Management Team in general, Poor Management of the Contract, Lack of Preparation and Poor Drawings leading to Slow Approval of Drawings, Quality Assurance and Control, Improper Site Investigations and Slow Approval of Tests and Inspections, Poor Consultant Team with Minimal Experience. Contractor Delays The contractor causes delays in terms of: Poor employment of Sub-contractors, Poor Site Management, Inappropriate Construction Methods, Poor Planning including costs, time, budget etc, Terrible Decision Making during Construction, Inadequate Contractor Experience. Material Delays Material cause delays in construction projects in terms of: Overall Quality, Its Demand and Supply, Importing Materials, Inflation Rate of Materials, Late Delivery and Unreliable Suppliers Labour and Equipment Delays Labour and Equipment cause delays in construction projects in terms of: Labour Availability and Productivity, Skilled Labour Availability, Low motivation and morale, Strike Action and Absent Labourers, Equipment Demand and Supply, Frequent Breakdown and Maintenance of Equipment, Improper and Inadequate Equipment. Contract Delays Contract cause delays in construction projects in terms of: Constant Changing of Design, Mistakes and Discrepancies in Contract Documents, Different Party Relationship Breakdowns e.g. disputes, negotiations, breakdown in communication, improper organisation. External Delays External influences cause delays in construction projects in terms of: Climate and Weather Changes, Unexpected Ground Condition Changes, Regular Changes e.g. security codes, I.D.s etc, Complaints and Problems from Neighbours, Inflation of All Materials, War, Riots, and Other Conflicts, Slow Clearance of Site. How To Prevent Future Projects From Late Completions? There are many factors which cause late completions of construction projects. The delays can be caused by direct or indirect actions. Direct actions are delays which can be avoided as these tend to be made by the parties involved. Indirect actions are uncontrollable and therefore by minimising the direct actions, the delay can be kept to a minimum. Research carried out by Nguyen, et al. (2004) on project success factors in large construction projects in Vietnam, Aibinu and Jagboro (2002) on acceleration of site activities and contingency allowances, Koushki, et al. (2005) on what the minimization of time delays and cost overruns would require, and Odeh and Battaineh (2002) on recommendations for improving the situation of construction projects allowed for a table of thirty five methods to be created. These methods would show how to minimise/eliminate delays from construction projects.   Conclusion From the research carried out, it appears that Budget Over-runs and Late Completions are a common aspect of the construction industry. However, it is clear that not all Budget Over-runs and Late Completions are controllable and some are fabricated to seem as over-run and completed late due to the process of tendering. In appears that there is a connection between late completion and budget over-runs hence, these are key factors which need addressing. The most influential effects for over-running and late completion are delays, insufficient finances, loss of reputations and controversial decision making from clients, consultants and shareholders. It is therefore compulsory that all the above measures should be followed, but a few major recommendations must be adhered to in order to make sure the project is always successful. The major recommendations for all parties involved are, Client The client should make sure all finances and payments are available and paid on time, the feasibility study is well planned and accurate as possible, the client should be proactive in decision making and understand what is feasible and what isnt, and the client should recommended a deadline but allow for any anticipated delays. Consultant The consultant should have good people skills, understand the projects objectives and the clients obligations, any misunderstood/discrepancies should be ironed out prior to construction and during the construction stages, this will prevent any major changes required during construction. The management team should be more than adequate and have a good history in the field of the construction project, quality control and assurance procedures should be put in place along with potential disagreement solutions which could arise. Contractor The contractor should tender based on the actual job costs and not the minimum tender in order to gain the contract. The contractor should employ reliable sub-contractors which have a good history in terms of completion and quality, the contractor should have a good management history as well as a good reputation in the type of construction project.

The Security Issues With Social Networks Media Essay

The Security Issues With Social Networks Media Essay Social networks such as Facebook and twitter are becoming more and more popular among the younger generation. Social networks were designed to keep in touch with friends no matter where in the world they were located. Parents though are worried that their childrens privacy is not protecting on the social network. According to pole results realised most parents think their children share to much information online and that the search engines are not doing enough to protect them. Privacy is the ability to conceal personal information about yourself from other people but if they wish to show their information it is selective. Parents are increasingly worried that their children are under threat by hackers and conmen, parents want far more education and leadership about online privacy, and they clearly want the industry and the federal government to update privacy policies. Criteria B- The IT background of the Issue Social networks are places where you can communicate with others no matter where they are in the world and is also a ways of communication for other purposes such as business. A social network is a social structure that maps out the relationships between individuals. Technically we all belong to one giant social network, but we also belong to smaller, tighter social networks defined by our families, our friends, where we live, where we work, where we went to school, our hobbies and interests and much more. Social networks are helpful as they help us to keep all the people we know in one place and we are able to communicate with theme at any time, imagine if you sat down with a pen and paper, it would be difficult to map out all the people with whom youre connected and all the people with whom theyre connected. Thats why social-networking Web sites are so powerful. Criteria C- Impact of the Issue The main issue of social networks are privacy concerns. Even though social networks were set up for people to keep in contact with friends and family around the world but despite these aspects the sites are dangerous because much information is shown. This causes parents to worry about how much information is put online. Even though most information is put on these networks is voluntary some things are not meant to be public but security issues might occur, a security issue occurs when a hacker gains unauthorized access to a written language. These breeches into personal information are a problem because people might be exposed in inappropriate manners and personal information can be gathered to do be used inappropriately. Also, talking to friends over lunch, the Internet keeps a permanent record of what we say to each other. If you are having an online conversation with your friend(s) then you should be aware that conversation can be seen by countless others and that a record of tha t conversation will be kept somewhere on the Internet. Criterion D- A Solution to a problem arising from the Issue The only solution is for the website to create a way to privatise information to users but at the same time be shown to users that you wish it to be shown. The users theme selves can more carefully approach to what they share and with the growth of social networks, its becoming harder to effectively monitor and protect site users and their activity because the tasks of security programmers becomes increasingly spread out. The growth of users of these sites has grown very rapidly take this as an example, if a prison whose inmate count jumped from  a few dozen to 250 million in less than five years only employed 300 guards (in the case of MySpace). In reaction to the growth of pressure to users most chief networks are now enabling users to set privacy controls for who has the ability to view their information. But increase privacy settings are not always definite privacy. Also Do Not Call methods can be used on social networks but developed in such a way that it becomes Do Not Track Kids like stated in the article. Parents survey says social networks dont protect kids privacy CNN Wire Staff (CNN) Most parents think their children share too much information online and that search engines and social networks arent doing enough to protect privacy, according to poll results released Friday. More than 90 percent of the parents surveyed by Zogby International said they are concerned that their children share too much information online, and 75 percent said they would rate the job social networks are doing to protect online privacy as negative. The results, released by the nonprofit advocacy organization Common Sense Media which commissioned the poll do not mention particular social networks or websites by name. Common Sense Media CEO James Steyer said the need for reform is clear. Parents want far more education and leadership about online privacy, and they clearly want the industry and the federal government to update privacy policies, Steyer said in a statement The organization begins a campaign Monday aimed at protecting kids personal information and reputations online. We need a Do Not Track Kids approach similar to the Do Not Call policies that restrict telemarketers, Steyer said. The results also include a survey of 401 teenagers aged 15 to 18. Common Sense Media said 79 percent of the teens surveyed also think their friends share too much personal information online, and 85 percent of them want search engines and social networking sites to ask for permission before using personal information to market products. The poll results present a clear divide between the industrys view of privacy and the opinion of parents and kids, Steyer said. To conduct the online poll of parents, Zogby International used a sampling of 2,100 adults from its online panel, which the polling firm says is representative of the adult population of the United States. The sampling margin of error is 2.2 percentage points. The sampling margin of error for the online poll of teenagers was 5 percentage points. Criterion E- Bibliography CNN Wire Staff, 2010,Parents survey says social networkes dont protect kidsprivacy http://www.cnn.com/2010/TECH/social.media/10/08/parents.poll/index.html Wikipedia, Privacy, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Privacy Fast Company, Privacy and security issues in social Networking http://www.fastcompany.com/articles/2008/10/social-networking-security.html Help Net Security, Social networking privacy issues http://www.net-security.org/article.php?id=1331 How stuff works, How social networks work http://communication.howstuffworks.com/how-social-networks-work.htm

Dulce et decorum est and An Irish airman forsees his death :: English Literature Essays

Dulce et decorum est and An Irish airman forsees his death Analysis of two war poems I am going to compare the two poems â€Å"Dulce et decorum est† by Wilfred Owen and â€Å"Channel Firing† by Thomas Hardy. The poem by Hardy talks about the great German guns â€Å"Big Berthas† which fired across the channel at the nearest coastal villages, and how the noise of these guns is so terrific that it wakes the dead in their graves. â€Å"Dulce et decorum est† is a poem about a group of tired, worn out soldiers who are making their way back from the front line. They come under a gas attack and Owen describes to us the scene which is presented to him of a fellow soldier and companion â€Å"drowning† in his own mucus. Both poems portray a sense of helplessness to this exposure to the war! In the poem â€Å"Dulce et decorum est† we are being told of the gas attack directly by Owen in the first person plural. It is an immensely vivid description that Owen describes to us and his message is hits the reader right between the eyes with its certitude. In the poem â€Å"Channel Firing†, however, Hardy uses two narrative voices. One is the voice of the dead who describe being awoken by the noise of the great guns, the other is God! IN this the message is more abstract because of the way Hardy jokes with us about the war and Gods views on it. Wilfred Owen's poem "Dulce Et Decorum Est" was written during his World War I experience. Owen, an officer in the British Army, deeply opposed the intervention of one nation into another. His poem explains how the British press and public comforted themselves with the fact that all the young men dying in the war were dieing noble, heroic deaths. The reality was quite different: They were dieing obscene and terrible deaths. Owen wanted to throw the war in the face of the reader to illustrate how vile and inhumane it really was. He explains in his poem that people will encourage you to fight for your country, but, in reality, fighting for your country is simply sentencing yourself to an unnecessary death. The breaks throughout the poem indicate the clear opposition that Owen strikes up. The title of the poem means "It is good and proper to die for your country," and then Owen continues his poem by ending that the title is, in fact, a lie.

Love in The Old Maid by Sara Teasdale :: essays research papers

The poem â€Å"The Old Maid†, by Sara Teasdale, takes place on a sidewalk on Broadway. The speaker in the poem is a woman walking with who you can infer to be her fiancà ©e and she is describing a brief encounter she had with another woman in the car driving by her. The speaker describes the woman as â€Å"The woman I might grow to be,† She then notices how her hair color â€Å"†¦was as mine† and how â€Å"Her eyes were strangely like my eyes†. However, despite all these similarities the woman’s hair compared to the speaker’s was â€Å"†¦dull and drew no light†. Her eyes also did not shine like the speaker’s. The speaker assumed that the reason for the woman’s frail appearance was because she had never had the opportunity to know what it was like to be in love. In the last stanza, the speaker no longer looks upon the old maid but to her lover and knows that even though they may look similar she will never be li ke her. In order to completely grasp exactly how the old maid appears to the woman on the sidewalk and the love she feels for the man walking with her, Sara Teasdale uses personification to describe the characters in the poem. One would be, â€Å"Her soul was frozen in the dark/ Unwarmed forever by love’s flame.† Obviously, a person’s soul cannot be frozen, but the meaning is that the old maid had never felt a heated intensity between herself and someone special to her which could give her a cold outlook on life. Another time the poet uses personification is when the speaker states, â€Å"His eyes were magic to defy†. Eyes cannot be magic. By saying that his eyes were magic the reader can get the notion that when the speaker looks into the eyes of her lover she feels awed, happy, or even entranced. Sara Teasdale also uses a metaphor in her work, â€Å"Her body was a thing growing thin,† In that line the speaker is comparing the old maid’s draining b ody to something that can get thinner. The poet uses a rhyme scheme of rhyming the second with the fourth line and there are four lines in every stanza. Finally, in this narrative poem there are eight syllables per line of the poem.

Scavengers and Nothing’s Changed. Two very different poems, written by :: English Literature

Scavengers and Nothing’s Changed. Two very different poems, written by two very different poets, both of whom write with regards to their own cultures, backgrounds and places of origin SCAVENGERS and NOTHING’S CHANGED Scavengers and Nothing’s Changed. Two very different poems, written by two very different poets, both of whom write with regards to their own cultures, backgrounds and places of origin – all of which are very different. What could these two poems have in common. Ostensibly, nothing. Scavengers is simply about the social divide between the upper and working classes, whilst Nothing’s Changed tells of a young man’s anger at being discriminated because of his colour. But after even the most shallow disection it is easy to see the connection between these two poems. Nothing’s Changed’s angry young man is obviously a victim of other peoples racial prejudice, but the two bin men of Scavengers are also victims of prejudice, looked down upon by the middle and upper classes because of their job, their financial situation, their parents. There’s your first shared theme. Then you got the second: hypocrisy. The hypocrisy theme runs strong in both poems. In Nothing’s Changed it’s that this poem takes place after a law had been passed against racial discrimination. Laws change. Attitudes don’t. There may not be a sign on the door denying the young boy entry, for it is an unwritten law that he is rebelling against. He is rebelling against the attitudes of the people inside the resturant. With Scavengers it is the entire American Dream that is called into question and shown up to be what it is: a lie. The American Dream is that anyone, no matter the class, creed or connections, can do anything, be anything. A person born into poverty and raised on the streets can rise to be president. All it takes is hard work, and you can be whoever you want to be. Which is, of course, a lie. The current president of the United States is a straight C student. In this country, he might have scraped into Sixth Form by the skin of his teeth. He might have got to be a office desk jockey for a paper merchant. But in the US, he’s the son of a former president, argo – he’s president. Of course, blood has nothing to do with it *please read with dripping sarcasm in mind*. The poem is quite clear in it’s message: The American Dream Is a Lie! Great Hemocracy? Great Hipocrisy. There’s another thing that connects the two poems. It’s the idea that many people in these unfortunate positions often hinder any sort of

Ford Motor Company: Options for a Successful Future

The future of Ford Motor Company and its ability to remain at the top of the automotive industry requires the company to focus on products, resources, planning, and implementation. Decisions must be made relative to product lines, sales. and re-directing the organization’s resources for future success. In order to do so, four options have been recognized and the company must determine which options are best suited to move the company in a positive direction. Discuss at least three criteria the company should use to decide which of the four listed options is best and the reasons why each criterion should be used. Ford Motor Company has the option to close down older plants in an effort to realign production and sales. The criteria identified in order to determine if this option is in Ford’s best interest include: What will be the total cost to the company to buy out employees, close plants and the political ramifications of this decision? What are future trends? What is the differential between production and sales? The second option for Ford Motor Company to determine is whether to produce only smaller cars, eliminating or sharply reducing the SUV and truck lines. In order to determine the validity of this option, the company would need to evaluate the following: Can fuel economy be realized in these particular vehicle lines without significant cost being passed on to the consumer? Will there be a continuing market for SUVs? How will reducing or eliminating truck lines affect overall sales? Option number three requires reducing the North American presence and focusing more on international markets where Ford has been very successful. The determining criteria for this option includes: What is the sustainability of the Ford brand in the international market? How will reducing or removing North American presence affect the overall brand? Can reducing North American presence act as a catapult and raise demand for Ford vehicles in that geographical location? The fourth option to be considered by Ford is the possibility of selling its luxury line – the PAG group. The determining factors for choosing this option would include: Performing a profit and loss analysis of the group to determine the losses sustained by the company relative to continuing to invest in this product line. Could redirecting investment from this product be better spent lsewhere? In light of the possibility that market conditions can and do change, discuss at least three examples of how the company should build-in flexibility to back up its decision-making process. The possibility of market fluctuation is imminent. Therefore, Ford must be certain to build in flexibility to sustain change. Using an options based approach will allow flexibility by reserving resources such as time, people, money, or production capacity. (Williams, 2010). By maintaining flexibility, Ford will be better equipped to adjust to changes and fluctuations in the market. Discuss how an effective action plan can be created and how progress can be tracked. Creating an effective action plan involves setting both short term (proximal) and long term (distal) goals. Achieving short term goals is motivational to the employees who will assist in the achievement of the long term goal. Short term goals are more easily attainable than long term goals. However, long term goals are essential. Another way to track the progress of an action plan is by providing frequent feedback regarding performance to workers and employees. This will allow Ford to make adjustments in order to achieve goals. Williams, 2010) List at least three steps that make-up a workable plan and explain why each is important. Setting goals is the first step in creating an action plan. Goals should be specific, attainable, realistic and timely (S. M. A. R. T. ). (Williams, 2010) Once goals have been set, a workable plan that develops commitments to the goals must be created. Enlisting the commit ment of upper level management and employees is essential to achieving goals. An effective action plan indicates who, what and when for accomplishing goals. (Williams, 2010). The best options for Ford Motor Company would be to limit production of SUVs. Today’s economy lends itself to more fuel efficient, eco-friendly vehicles. With gas prices soaring to new heights on a weekly basis, maintaining a large SUV is simply no longer cost effective for the average American family. The price point for this type of vehicle is also a downside to ownership. However, the truck lines produced by Ford should remain intact. Ford’s truck line has become known as a reliable brand and people take stock in the Ford brand when it comes to company fleet vehicles, construction vehicles and even the agricultural and farming industries rely on the Ford truck brand. Without question, Ford should sell the PAG group. With losses i n the billions and rising, resources from this product line could be redirected into better selling ventures such as the smaller vehicle product line discussed earlier. Ford does not have to rely on the PAG group for growth and profits. This venture is simply a dog that needs to be put down. The option to reduce SUV production and sell the PAG group would be the options best suited to produce growth and stability in Ford Motor Company. These options allow Ford to focus on the traditional product lines of smaller and more economical vehicles and durable truck lines. Producing more cars than it can sell at this point in time would be detrimental to their future success. More inventory does not equate to more sales. The PAG is a loss that continues to be a thorn in Ford’s side. Eliminating this group would free billions of dollars for re-investment into fuel consciousness research for smaller vehicles while upgrading the truck lines. Implementing these options will contribute to Ford’s longevity, profitability and growth.