Test Bank Essay Example

Test Bank Paper Chapter 1—Strategic Management and Strategic Competitiveness TRUE/FALSE 1. The Chapter 1 Opening Case shows that Borders was unsuccessful in competing in Internet book sales, but not against brick-and-mortar stores. ANS:F 2. According to the Chapter 1 Opening Case, Barnes Noble and Amazon were more competitive than Borders and adjusted more effectively to changes in the retail book market. ANS:T 3. The Chapter 1 Opening Case illustrates that while Borders was able to achieve strategic competitiveness, it did not achieve above-average returns because of conditions beyond the control of of its top management. ANS:F 4. According to the Chapter 1 Opening Case, Barnes Noble and Amazon were more effective than Borders in using the strategic management process as the foundation for the commitments, decisions, and actions they took to pursue strategic competitiveness and above-average returns. ANS:T 5. Strategic competitiveness is achieved when a firm successfully formulates and implements a value-creating strategy. ANS:T 6. Alligator Enterprises has earned above-average returns since its founding five years ago. Since no other firm has challenged Alligator in its articular market niche, the firm’s owners can feel secure that Alligator has established a competitive advantage. ANS:F 7. The goal of strategic management is to develop a competitive advantage that is permanent. ANS:F 8. Risk in terms of financial returns reflects an investor’s uncertainty about economic gains or losses that will result from a particular investment. ANS:T 9. Average returns are returns in excess of wha t an investor expects to earn from other investments with a similar amount of risk. ANS:F 10. Returns can only be measured in accounting terms such as return on assets, return on equity, or return on sales. We will write a custom essay sample on Test Bank specifically for you for only $16.38 $13.9/page Order now We will write a custom essay sample on Test Bank specifically for you FOR ONLY $16.38 $13.9/page Hire Writer We will write a custom essay sample on Test Bank specifically for you FOR ONLY $16.38 $13.9/page Hire Writer ANS:F 11. According to the Chapter 1 Strategic Focus, Huawei was successful in the US market primarily because of its ability to build Guanxi with the US government. ANS:F 12. The Chapter 1 Strategic Focus shows that while Guanxi is an important element of doing business in China, it is unimportant in doing business in the United States as Huawei discovered when it entered US markets. ANS:F 13. Economies of scale and huge advertising budgets are just as effective in the new competitive landscape as they were in the past, but they must be reinforced by strategic flexibility. ANS:F 14. The two primary drivers of hyper-competition are the emergence of the global economy and technology. ANS:T 15. The rate of technology diffusion has been steadily increasing over the last two decades. ANS:T 16. While patents may be an effective way of protecting proprietary technology in some industries such as pharmaceuticals, many firms competing in the electronics industry do not apply for patents. ANS:T 17. Examples of incremental innovations include iPods, PDAs, WiFi, and web browser software. ANS:F 18. The rapid rate of technological diffusion has increased the competitive benefits of patents. ANS:F 19. Apple (Chapter 1 Strategic Focus) is a source of hypercompetition through its development and introduction of disruptive technologies such as the iPod. ANS:T 20. Developed countries still have major advantages in access to information technology over emerging economies because of the significant cost of the infrastructure needed for computing power. ANS:F 21. The rate of growth of Internet-based applications could be affected by the possibility of Internet service providers charging users for downloading those applications. ANS:T 2. The new CEO of Opacity Enterprises is determined to make the long-established firm strategically flexible. The CEO feels that the employees of the company have the ability, training, and resources to engage in continuous learning. The main obstacle the CEO must face is inertia. ANS:T 23. One capability characteristic of a firm with strategic flexibility is the capacity to learn. ANS:T 24. The I/O (industrial organization) model assumes that the uniqueness of a firm’s resources and capabilities are its main source of above-average returns. ANS:F 25. The CEO of Twin Spires, Inc. , is emotionally and intellectually committed to using the resources of the firm to serve the needs of the natural gardening community by providing rare and native plants to individuals and nurseries around the United States. This commitment has carried the CEO through long periods of below average returns on investment. The perspective of the CEO of Twin Spires is consistent with the assumptions of the industrial organizational (I/O) model. ANS:F 26. Although the fast food (or quick-service) industry is unattractive, McDonald’s has earned above-average returns through product innovations, enhancing existing facilities, and buying properties outside the United States. ANS:F 27. The five forces model suggests that firms should target the industry with the highest potential for above-average returns and then implement either a cost-leadership strategy or a differentiation strategy. ANS:T 28. The uniqueness of a firm’s resources and capabilities is the basis for a firm’s strategy and determines its ability to earn above-average returns under the I/O view. ANS:F 9. Research shows that a greater percentage of a firm’s profitability is explained by the I/O rather than the resource-based model. ANS:F 30. The resource-based model assumes that if firms have resources that are rare or costly to imitate, this is sufficient to form a basis for competitive advantage. ANS:F 31. Resources are considered rare when they have no structural equivalent. ANS:F 32. The assumptions of the industrial organizational model and the resource-based model are contradictory. Therefore, organizational strategists must choose one or the other model as the basis for developing a strategic plan. ANS:F 33. An effective vision statement will specify the market to be served. ANS:F 34. An effective vision stretches and challenges people and can result in increased innovation as illustrated by Apple’s CEO Steve Jobs who is known to think bigger and differently than most people (â€Å"putting a dent in the universe†). ANS:T 35. Organizational mission statements typically do not include statements about profitability and earning above-average returns. ANS:T 36. A firm’s mission tends to be enduring while its vision can change in light of changing environmental conditions. ANS:F 37. Organizational stakeholders are the firm’s internal resources, capabilities, and core competencies that are used to accomplish what may at first appear to be unattainable goals in the competitive environment. ANS:F 38. The degree to which the firm is dependent on a stakeholder group gives that stakeholder less influence. ANS:F 39. The needs and desires of organizational stakeholders are inherently contradictory. ANS:T 40. Relative power is the most critical criteria for prioritizing the demands of stakeholders. ANS:T 41. Hourly workers on the production line of a chicken-processing plant are considered organizational stakeholders. ANS:T 42. Customers, suppliers, unions, and local governments are examples of capital market stakeholders. ANS:F 43. When the firm earns lower-than-average returns, the highest priority is given to satisfying the needs of capital market stakeholders over the needs of product market and organizational shareholders. ANS:FPTS 44. Six years ago, Colette Smith founded a successful catering company that specializes in providing a wide assortment of miniature cheesecakes for corporate and social events. Although Ms. Smith is no longer active in the actual production of the cheesecakes, she continues as president of the catering company. Ms. Smith could be considered a strategic leader of this firm. ANS:T 45. Organizational culture refers to the core values shared by the firm’s top-level managers but not necessarily accepted by lower-level employees who are often transitory and not committed to the organization. ANS:F 46. Although organizational cultures vary considerably, one cannot make an objective judgment that some organizational cultures are more or less functional than others. ANS:F 47. Strategic leaders must have a strong strategic orientation while embracing change in the dynamic competitive landscape. ANS:T 48. Profit pools allow strategic leaders to predict the outcomes of their decisions before taking efforts to implement them. ANS:T 49. Corporate-level strategy in a diversified organization requires a common business strategy for each component business. ANS:F 50. An organization’s willingness to tolerate or encourage unethical behavior is a reflection of its core values. ANS:T

Fisher Body Essays

Fisher Body Essays Fisher Body Essay Fisher Body Essay The initial relationship between Fisher Body, a producer of auto bodies, and General Motors was a long-term contract of ten years. Such contract agreed that GM would only purchase its metal bodies from Fisher body with a price formula set to equal Fisher Bodys variable cost plus 17. 6 percent. (Klein 1998: 241) One would then ask why this was necessary since it restricted GM from being able to switch to other partners and use the market as its efficient government structure? The answer lies on specific investments. In order to produce metal bodies for GM, Fisher Body had to invest in very specific pieces of equipment that meant they could not have been able to use the same stamping machine to supply other automobile manufacturer. Once Fisher Body had made its specific investments, General Motors could have threatened Fisher Body in switching suppliers of its bodies unless they reduced its prices. (Klein 1998: 241) Fearing this hold-up problem was the attempt to draw up a contract before any such investments were to be made so to reduce both parties from behaving opportunistically. However according to Masten (1996: 388), as transactions become more complex and the environment more uncertain, the limitations of contracting as a safeguard against opportunism grow. An unforeseen substantial increase in demand for closed metal automobiles in 1920 allowed Fisher Body to hold up General Motors by taking advantage of the contractual incompleteness (Klein 1998: 241). : By adopting a highly labour-intensive production-process and locating their plant far away from General Motors production facilities, Fisher Body was able to inflate its variable costs and placed a 17. 6 percent surcharge on their transportation costs. (Klein 1998: 42) But by exploiting loopholes in the contract, the hold-up by Fisher Body had proved to be very costly for General Motors. This would not have been the case if the changes in market conditions were anticipated since GM would obviously have include such contingency in its contract. In 1926, General Motors decided to integrate its transactions by acquiring Fisher Body. According to Williamson this was logical because where the three critical dimensions of transactions (Masten 1996: 390) namely: frequency, degree of uncertainty, and asset specificity was present, the most efficient government structure emerged, this being vertical integration. Where GM integrated backwards in their supply chain in order to internalise transactions within one organisational structure, markets and hierarchies represent alternative government structures. If General Motors assets were non-specific, then they could have purchased its assets through a normal market relationship based on relevant prices. But as we can see with such market structure, it poses the possibility for agents to act opportunistically. With GM and Fisher Body, we see the emergence of a vertically integrated firm as an efficient response to the transaction cost associated with market-type coordination. Therefore, by adopting Transaction Cost Economics as a way of analysing organisations we can predict that vertical integration hierarchies will take place within an industry, like that of Fisher Body and General Motors, through the present of these three distinct dimensions1: i) the frequency of a transaction, ii) the uncertainty surrounding the transaction and iii) the level of asset specificity associated with the transaction. However, the predictive validity of Transaction Cost Economics in an attempt to explain the Fisher-GM case study has been closely scrutinized when comparing the hold-up with Williamsons behavioural assumption of opportunism. In Kleins account of the hold-up problem between Fisher Body and GM, he proposes that explanations of hold-up behaviour based upon transactors deception are often clearly inconsistent, in which there was no real evidence of any precontract deception on either contractors part. (1998: 224) Both parties were aware of the possibilities of a hold-up due to the incomplete contracts they entered into yet they believed it would have been more costly to write a more complete contract covering every possible angle. (Klein 1998: 224) If both parties were to cover every contract criteria and contingency then not only would that be timely to write down, but also costly in having the need to inform, confer and verify with each other continuously. And if we add the concept of bounded rationality, a complete contract is likely to be unrealistic because contractors simply cannot determine all of the many events that might occur during the life of a contractual relationship and write a prespecified response to each. (Klein 1998: 242) As a result we can see that the contract between the two parties was, to some extent, infused by trust so that the costs of negotiating, writing and monitoring the contract could be economised. Hence, trust economises on transaction costs. (Todd 1996: 88) Transaction Cost Economics behavioural assumptions offered by Williamson neglected this important aspect of trust. The statement made by Williamson that agents are self-interest seeking with guile (Williamson, p554) therefore does not necessarily justify why GM had accepted such an imperfect and incomplete contract with Fisher Body. Where Fisher Body and GM had entered into a long-term contract, the role of trust rather than opportunism, can in fact alter the choice of government structure. (Todd 1996: 88) In his revisited paper in 2006, Coase makes a similar argument when he points out that the contractual arrangements and working relationship prior to the 1926 merger exhibit trust rather than opportunism.

Designer babies; scientific and ethical considerations Essay

Designer babies; scientific and ethical considerations - Essay Example There is no "random collection of facts", but the examples are relevant and logically linked together. The scientific considerations are concise introduce briefly the reader to the methods used. The figures, although not strictly necessary, are there to support the text in a visually pleasing manner. Starting a sentence with a verb may not be common, but it isnt wrong either. However, the incriminated sentence could be re-worded as: "IVF is an assisted reproductive technology (ART) that involves..." The ethical considerations didnt miss any major points, but had to be shortened in order to fit the essay format. This paper isnt an exhaustive review on the topic, or it would have been far much longer. The conclusion does make a clear summary of the various aspects of PGD then broadens the scope once again to make the reader think about the topic once the paper has been read. This is basically an article about the philosophy of science, and should encourage the readers to think for themselves after exposing the problem in a clear manner. In general, the language used is professional, without any slang, and the punctuation is indeed correct. The grammatical mistake highlighted by the reviewer is actually a misquote of the paper and should read: "Both techniques combined gave rise to..." All subsequent appreciation of the grammar should therefore be viewed with a critical eye, as there doesn’t seem to be any

The Issue of the Negative Externalities of the Profit Maximization Aim Essay

The Issue of the Negative Externalities of the Profit Maximization Aim of the Big Corporations - Essay Example In this essay, he is against the big corporations which exploit the community in order to raise their profits, and condemns their motives and actions, accusing them of selfishness and non-humanitarianism; therefore his reputation instigates the reader to accept his blatant accusations and emotional appeals, thus the way a reader would read this essay. He bases his claim on the pieces of evidence from law pertaining to different illegal acts in the American society, proceeds on to include the numerical figures of the houses and villages that have been uprooted due to the tyranny of the big corporations, furthermore he states the abnormal profit figures generated by GM.  Ã‚   The main focus of his essay is on pathos since it is obvious that he is using sensitive terms such as ‘destroys Parma, moral, kills, illegal, hazardous, rights’ etc., in order to appeal to the emotions of the readers and arouse their sensitive side. To some extent he also makes use of ethos, since he has a reputation of speaking the blatant truth, and people usually respect him for his honesty and blunt opinion on any issue (IMDB, 2010), in addition to this, he also states that his film â€Å"Roger and Me† has been viewed by all bottom-line feeder, but this is a argue that is subjective in nature, and not at all being backed by evidence, this is a logical fallacy known as ‘hasty generalization’ since Moore is claiming that all people of the mentioned group have seen the movie. Moore has made other logical fallacies in this essay as well, such as the use of emotionally loaded terms, which makes the basis of this work has a ‘pathos’ approa ch. Furthermore, he has overly simplified the matter, since the way he has presented the argument for making the point of selling crack and corporation actions  appear on equal footing seems to be very simplified, while it actually might not be the case, since selling of crack would not affect the economy and health of the people the same way as other matters.

Principles of Marketing Financial Services Essay

Principles of Marketing Financial Services - Essay Example Around the world, financial services organizations are driven to increase revenues while decreasing costs. They need the ability to quickly go to market with new products, deepen customer relationships, increase revenue per customer, and improve the accuracy of their strategic decision making. At the same time, they need to control operational and compliance costs, ensure interoperability of existing applications and infrastructure, and provide seamless interactions with their customers. All within an increasingly complex compliance environment. High-performance financial institutions understand the link between operational performance and financial performance. The ability to uncover and turn vital insights into operational value levers—such as customer-facing activities, exposure to credit risk, and market share—and link them to financial value levers like operating margin, loan-loss ratios, and cost of assets in a timely and accurate fashion is key to optimizing over all performance and driving value creation. Abbey’s vision is to be the outstanding financial services company in the UK. It is the sixth largest bank in the United Kingdom and aims to achieve the largest position in the market. The purpose of Abbey is to achieve above average growth in share holder value over the long term by meeting stakeholders needs. A detailed and more specific description of the products and services offered by Abbey includes – Current Accounts, Credit Cards, Loans, Mortgages, Insurance, Savings, ISAs and Child Trust Fund. ... The ability to uncover and turn vital insights into operational value levers-such as customer- facing activities, exposure to credit risk, and market share-and link them to financial value levers like operating margin, loan-loss ratios, and cost of assets in a timely and accurate fashion is key to optimizing overall performance and driving value creation -> Abbey An Overview : Vision: Abbey's vision is to be the outstanding financial services company in theUK. It is the sixth largest bank in the United Kingdom and aims to achieve thelargest position in the market. Purpose: The purpose of Abbey is to achieve above average growth in shareholder value over the long term by meeting stake holders needs. Products and Services: A detailed and more specific description about theproducts and services offered by Abbey includes - Current Accounts, CreditCards, Loans, Mortgages, Insurance, Investments and Pensions, Savings, ISAs and Child Trust Fund. Strategies Implemented : The right mixture of strategies which suits the market place and customers are being implemented so that there would be an optimum utilization of resources and maximization of profits can be achieved. -> SWOT Analysis : Its main strength is its expert knowledge of finance. This meant that it should focus on this area. Its main weakness is its size. As only the sixth largest bank it could not offer thesame range of products as bigger banks. This meant that it should offer a simplerange. The main opportunity was to provide simpler products which customer wouldbetter understand. The main threat is from other banks, who might want to take over Abbey, so it

Traditional And Contemporary Japanese Graphic Design Cultural Studies Essay

Traditional And Contemporary Japanese Graphic Design Cultural Studies Essay This could be just a regular day in Japan: kimonos and mobile phones, traditional ceremonies ending at fast food restaurants, expensive branded handbags, and totally packed trains. (Kozak Wiedman, p. 16) Japan has always been a progressive part of the world. Not only in the field of graphic design, but also in design generally, in technological process, in science etc. They have always been and always will be one step forward from the western world. We can only guess why it happened and when it started. The result of what kind of influence could lead to such exceptional anomaly? It might be cultural aspects: the Japanese culture is one of the kind, unique and sometimes indescribable. You cannot find anything similar or even alike in any other culture in the world. It always contains gargantuan spiritual message. It might be a harmony, which is the most respectable value in Japan in almost all spheres of activity. Maybe it is the other way of perception things, different mentality, which is based on parenting and surroundings and that in turn creates diverse individual personality and helps to build face of society in general. All of the above establish chain links where are one depen ds on another and every each of them influence one other. (Kozak Wiedman, pp. 15-22) I was always admired by the Japanese progression and it always inspired me not only in a creative way but also in a way of lifestyle. This pushed me to choose the theme of my dissertation: Contemporary Japanese Graphic Design is direct extension of Japanese Prints (Ukiyo-e) of the end of 18th the beginning of 19th century. I started to think if the contemporary Japanese graphic design is inspired and influenced by old examples of Traditional Japanese graphics. How deep is this inspiration and how Japanese people themselves perceive the progression of design, because for the western mentality it is something unbelievable extraordinary and conceptual? It is well known that the respect for the traditional Japanese art among artists not only in Japan, but all over the world is very deep, but for Japanese society it is extreme. And it is seen in most of the contemporary graphic design pieces: deep appreciation and honor to be a part of it. (Kozak Wiedman, pp. 15-22) Further I will try to answer questions to describe the current situation in relative to the perception of the traditional graphics and contemporary graphic design: study history of traditional Japanese graphic design, critically analyze it try to understand the most important aspects of life and try to grasp the essence of themes graphics and the main streams and details in the paintings of artists choose two traditional artists who worked in different genres and critically analyze their life and work study evolution of contemporary graphic design and identify mainstream chose the sphere of the graphic design which more correspond to traditional Japanese graphics choose several designers who perform in genre of graphic design investigate their life and works compare contemporary graphic design with traditional Japanese prints and detect influence and understand how current designers are inspired by Japanese old prints and techniques how deep is this influence In my dissertation I will try to prove that nowadays designers from Japan are very much influenced and inspired by the works of traditional graphic artists and that this influence is very deep and broad or I will refute this fact. History of Japanese Traditions and culture. Until modern times, the Japanese wrote with the brush rather than a pen and their familiarity with brush techniques has made them particularly sensitive to painterly values. They found sculpture a much less sympathetic medium for artistic expression. (Pioch, 2002) Japanese art started to develop sometime in the tenth millennium BC. For the long period of time, Japanese managed to develop the ability to absorb and assimilate different elements of foreign cultures which have been brought from the continent. They succeeded not only to implement these specific features in their own culture, but also to create new, based on their experience from this contact. (Pioch, 2002) Buddhism had a Dramatic impact on Japanese culture and traditions. It was introduced to Japan by travelers and visitors of China and Korea. Together with religion several art techniques as the design of pottery and metal vases, more advanced methods of casting in bronze and also new techniques and mediums for paintings were brought from continent. The religion became a very important factor in contact and relationships between Japan, Korea, China and whole Asian continent. (Hooker, 1996; Pioch, 2002) First Ukiyo-e emerged in the middle of the 17 century in the city named Edo, which is now turned into famous and eccentric Tokyo. Everything was concentrated in Edo: politics, art, religion, this city was a centre of Japanese development. The Japanese art has always been characterized by unique polarities: simple content of images and a very deep and controversial meaning. The main topic of art in that period were pleasures of life, in fact the whole name of the art stream Ukiyo-e can be understand as pictures of the floating world. As the art at that era was the prerogative of the upper class which can afford to buy original paintings the artists themselves wanted the lower classes to be involved in the art life of the society. So, the special technique was introduced in Japan that time. The woodblock prints were very popular and inexpensive so, everyone could buy them. The essence of woodblock prints laid in the copying of original art work with the help of woodcuts, and that is wh y it is called Japanese prints. One of the most important and popular motif of art at that time was an image of soldier and war theme. The popularity of this flow started from Onin war, which took place between years of 1466 and 1467 and was one of the most devastating civil wars in 15th century. During the 16th century the new historical order was established in Japan by two misfires of the country Oda Nobunaga and Toyotomi Hideyoshi, who started an early Modern Age in Japan. In art this time period is called Momoyama period. The main motifs of traditional Japanese art which started to appear in Momoyama art period were: landscapes paintings, images of flowers and animals in different season of the year, scenes from every day city life, the pictures of historical events, unusual views of famous places, tea-houses visits, geishas images, motif of bijin-ga which can be encrypted as portraits of beautiful women, erotic pictures and also a heavy demand for scenes of brothels and theaters was touched in the paintings. One of the most well-known entertainments for public was theatre where the Kabuki performance was held. Kabuki means song-dance-art and it was founded by Izumo no Okuni. Kabuki was presented by men in kimonos who danced in traditional style for Japan. This performance was very popular among public and generated Kabuki-mono dance. This trend was copied by prostitutes who danced on the street and in the brothels to attract new clients. With time Kabuki-mono dance became an art, and upper class prostitutes and courtesans, who owned this art to perfection, could be very expensive. This trend generated with time the new flow, only Geishas can perform the Kabuki-mono dance and only them had a right to do that. This phenomenon had a heavy impact on artists and at that period the pictures of geishas, courtesans and Kabuki dance actors became very popular stream which stayed in the Japanese art for several centuries. (Fahr-Becker, pp. 10-36) UTAMARO KITAGAWA 1753-1806. The man who loved women: this was Kitawaga Utamaro. It would be hard to think of an artist more intent on the opposite sex. Or one who left more images of women working, wating, arranging their faces, combing their hair, readying themselves for the day performance (or the nights trade) or simple thinking, feeling, watchingà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦ Laure Cumming (Guardian News and Media Limited, 2010) There are not much known facts about Utamaro, he was born around 1753 probably in province named Musashi. After his father death, young artist moved to Edo. After some time in year 1775 he joined the studio of a painter Seiken, who might be his relative. He stayed there for 7 years. In year 1780 he was discovered by a leading publisher at that time Tsutaya Juzaburo, who recognized his talent and entranced him to Yoshiwara, which at that time was a rendezvous for artists and poets. Two years later Utamaro signed the contract with Juzaburo and together they published several book illustrations, which made Kitagawa famous At the same time he changed his name from his original name Ichitaro Kitagawa to Utamaro Kitagawa and under this name he became popular (Fahr-Becker, pp. 173-230; Artelino GmbH, 2010). His style became completed and built only in 1790s. He had conquered the field of Ukiyo-e with his bejin-gas. In 1793 Utamaro started to work on his most famous erotic graphics paintings of women from Yoshivwara (Glenn, 2010). He was truly inspired by female body Kiyonga graceful and elegant female type, which he surrounded with a mist of eroticism. Utamaro was one of a kind his style was unique; he was the very first artist that time who started to picture women more realistic, without lying (Artelino GmbH, 2010). His works contain very good composition, easy command techniques; he used silver and gold powder and different paintings styles in his art works (Fahr-Becker, pp. 173-230). Utamaro was a master of half-tones; his colors run from black and white to all shades of grey, umber, soft ochre and plum. It is seems, he was dreaming while painting. He played with silhouettes shadows illusions and reality. The way Kitagawa portrayed prostitutes and courtesans is contains as much dignity as his portraits of aristocrats (Guardian News and Media Limited, 2010). Even thought he portrayed his women more realistic than any artist before, he liked to idealize them. His women are taller and slimmer than they really were. Indeed his graphic painters looked like nowadays fashion magazine photos (Artelino GmbH, 2010). One of the most meaningful and important works of his life was a pillow-book E-hon Utamakura published in year 1788. It is said to be the most sophisticated work of an erotic graphic at that time in Japan. Utamara was the most successful and well-known author of the beautiful women motifs. He showed women with deep sensitivity and respect as no one before him. (Fahr-Becker, pp. 200-230) KATSUSHIKA HOKUSAI (1760-1849). From the age of six I had a mania for drawing the shapes of things. When I was fifty I had published a universe of designs, but all I have done before the age of seventy is not worth bothering with. At seventy five Ill have learned something of the pattern of nature, of animals, of plants, of trees, birds, fish and insects. When I am eighty you will see real progress. At ninety I shall have cut my way deeply in to the mystery of life itself. At a hundred I shall be a marvelous artist. At a hundred and ten everything I create; a dot, a line, will jump to life as never before. To all of you, who are going to live as long, as I do, I promise to keep my word. I am writing this in my old age. I used to call myself Hokosai, but today I sign myself The Old Man Mad about Drawing. Katsushika Hokusai (Andreas.com, 2010) One of the greatest artists of the Japanese prints was born on 12 of October in 1760 in the city of Edo, which is now known as city of Tokyo. History did not tell us anything about his real parents, in age of 3, Katsushika was adopted by Nakajime Ise, mirror maker (Fahr-Becker, pp. 173-178). Work of his new father included paintings and design around mirrors, and this was a real inspiration for small Hokusai and pushed him closely to art. During his artistic life, he changed his name at least 30 times; probably it was a trend for artists of that time (Katsushikahokusai.org, 2010). Small Katsushika started to pain in age of 6 years old, in age of 12 his father send him to work in the public library, where he was reading a lot and where he firstly was introduced to Ukiyo-e, Japanese prints. In 1775 Hokusai started to study at the art school of Katsukawa Shunsho, who had been a master of ukiyo-e (Fahr-Becker, pp. 173-178). He spent about 19 years in this art studio, after what, he was fired because he started to attend another art school, called Kano, and that was a well known fact. Later he had changed his school again and again, and each time he had been choosing a new name (Glenn, 2010). His first work was published in 1779, it was a picture of actor, he published it under the name Shumo, and three years after his first big project appeared, it were illustrations of the book-novel. During his studying he was very inspired by European art and, what is more important by Chinese historical art and after, he was known like a Japans expert on Chinese paintings. One of the most well known of his works is woodblock print series Thirty-six Views of Mount Fuji (1831), where we can found most famous and recognized in the whole world print called The Great Wave of Kanagawa, which was produced during the 1820 (Katsushikahokusai.org, 2010). World know this series as a thirty six illustration work, but originally, before the series were published author included ten more prints. In his work all spectrum of Ukiyo-e art can be found: picture books, books of anecdotes, erotic books, individual prints, surimono, illustrations of verse and historical romances, paintings, sketches etc. (Japanese prints). Katsushika passed away after a very productive life; he left more than 30  000 works which included: woodblocks prints, silk paintings, erotic illustrations, picture books, sketches, manga and travel illustrations (Andreas.com, 2010). His manner of work is known to be as a very realistic one; his main themes were everyday life, people in nature life, animals, nature, plants, landscapes and mythological scenes. Katsushika was a very productive and active person this can be seen though his art work and paintings. During his life he had changed his home more than 93 times, he was married twice, become a father of several children. Hokusai brought a new greatness to Ukiyo-e art (Fahr-Becker, pp. 173-178). CONTEMPRORY GRAPHIC DESIGN intro Graphic design has been introduced to our everyday life long time ago, so song we cant even see it now. Everything we are surrounded with television, advertising, internet, web pages, faces of the companies, packaging and more is a graphic design, we live in it, we surrounded by it, we cannot imaging our life without it. Japan is probably a center of this circle, of contemporary graphic design life. Many mainstreams of contemporary graphic design are coming from Japan. It is Mecca for many graphic designers. Here you can found the most bold and bright ways of introducing graphic design to life. Tokyo is seen from abroad as a gigantic bright and never-sleeping city. As Japan itself for foreigners it is a mystery and unpredictability, which they could never found at home. Everything in Japan exists in a form of harmonized polarity. And this kind of polarity can be found not only in graphic design and art, but in everyday life. Because of island situation, Japan is very hard to see with your own eyes and ever harder to discover. Japan is a country of contact, where everything happens simultaneously. Japanese traditional culture is originally based on a simplicity, harmony and sensitivity, which is based on the respect for balance, the perfect example for that would be the Japanese language itself the hieroglyphs, which combine all the features so important not only for the Japanese culture but what is more meaningful for the people of Japan. Same simplicity can be seen in traditional Japanese art forms as Kabuki mono dance, and Ukiyo-e woodcut graphic prints. In contrast ther e is another flow which is very popular in Japan nowadays bright, colorful, brush and busy style, mainly influenced by Manga comic books and Anime animated movies. The existing and using of four different languages in speaking and writing in Japanese culture make the possibilities of combination of different symbols far more richer for Japanese designers than for any others. (KozakWiedman, pp. 15-22) KENYA HARA 1958. Design is like a fruit of a tree. In product design vehicles and refrigerators are the fruit. Design functions from the perspective of how to produce a good fruit. If you look at the tree from some distance, you see next to the tree that bears the fruit and then the soil in which the tree stands. Important to the whole process of creation good fruit is the condition of the soil. Kenya Hara (The Designers Review of Books, 2009) Kenya Hara was born in 1958 in Tokyo, he represents new generation of designers born in post World War two periods in Japan and raised in the 1960-1970 when the nation transformed from a heavily militaristic Asian society with feudal roots in to a new developing power of the world (Dezeen, 2010). Kenya Hara is not only a great graphic designer, but more importantly he is a thinker, philosopher and orator. According to his words, the main aim of design is not design itself, but a concept and perception. Before created something, you have to understand and realize what are the reasons and functions and features of what is supposed to be created (Theme Magazine, 2008). From the beginning of his art career he was searching for the meaning and purpose of his work. He wanted to find his design methodology which would define his design life and he recently found his life principles. He claims that his methodology is inspired by traditional graphics of Japanese masters of Japanese prints Ukiyo-e (Core77, Inc., 2010). He incorporated traditional Japanese art culture to contemporary graphic design through his works. One of many examples would be the designing of Nagano Winter Olympics opening and closing ceremonies, where he tried to show the essence beauty and spirit of Japanese culture to those who came abroad of forget about their roots (Moleskine, 2010). Kenya developed his unique methodology, which is based on notions of emptiness, minimalism, escapist colours and archaic form. He advocates simplicity in design, and most of his work is done exclusively in white colour, he insists that: White is a colour, from which colour has escaped, but its diversity is boundless. According to him, the emptiness in design is dramatic in contrast with western perception of this idea Japanese would argue that emptiness is a chance for probability it is not defined and this concept goes far deep into Buddhism and Zen concept (Core77, Inc., 2010; Bigin Japan 2010). One of the greatest examples of his perception of art is his book published 2007 Designing Design, which is the translation into English of his book Design of Design, which was published in Japan in 2003 and received several Awards (Moleskine, 2010). One of the main purposes of translating this book into English was according to the author to show and introduce unique Japanese culture and its concepts to Western world and to bring closer Western world to Japan. Now Kenya Hara is a professor at the Musashino Art University in Tokyo and Art Director of Muji (a brand with no-brand policy) since 2002. He is interested in travel and deepening his concept of perception, so he can bring those new ideas into his art work. YAYOI KUSAMA 1929. One day I was looking at the red flower patterns of the tablecloth on the table and when I looked up, I saw the same pattern covering the ceiling, the windows, and the walls, and finally all over the room, my body and the universe. I felt as if I had began to self-obliterate, to revolve in the infinity of endless time and the absoluteness of space, and be reduced to nothingness. As I realized it was actually happening and not just in my imagination, I was frightenedà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦ Yayoi Kusama (McShane Eliason, 2010) She was born on 22 of March in 1929 in Matsumoto City in Japan (Gagosian Gallery, 2010). According to her words, her mother was extremely violent and hated to see her painting, she beat her almost every day and destroyed many of her first paintings. Yayoi started to see hallucinations since she was ten years old and that was the time she started to paint. She ran away from her family to study art in Kyoto, but she found her school to conservative out of touch with reality of modern art. So, she did not really attend classes, she used to paint in dormitory instead (Bomb Magazine, 2010). She also studied Nihonga panting rigorous formal style developed during the Meiji period (1868-1912) ( Gagosian Gallery, 2010 ). At the same period of her life she began to receive psychiatric treatment. In one of her interviews, Yayoi claims that she tried to cure her disease by translating her hallucinations and fear of hallucinations into paintings (Bomb Magazine, 2010). In 1957 Kusama moved to New York, where she started a new life. She stayed in USA for next 10 years and was broadly recognized as genius artist not only among critics and colleagues, but also she was rediscovered by public (Kusama, 2007). She produced astonishing number of works; among them we can found not only paintings, but also sculptures, collages, photo-collages, installations, performances, graphic design, fashion design and even film. She could not be defined as artist of particular style or rubric, as she does not fit in any of the categories. Many connoisseurs of art tried to put her in categories like pop art, minimalism, post minimalism etc., but she is everything and nothing, she is unique (The Museum of Modern Art, New York, 1998). The pumpkins and flowers are one of her iconic motifs, which she likes to paint using polka dots and nets. She was often called by paparazzi while living in New York Polka Dot girl (Switchedonart.com, 2010; Gagosian Gallery, 2010). Main themes of her works have always been Infinity, partly due to her disease, which she has been fighting all of her life, and partly due to her philosophy of art and life. Philosophy, which is in my opinion had been influenced by traditional Japan philosophy, Japan culture and mentality. All of this surrounded her since her childhood and had a huge impact on her life and art work, even if she does not want to recognize this fact. In one of her interviews she said that she has never been influenced and inspired by anything, but in practice it is almost impossible as the whole world affect us and our creativity (Kusama, 2007; Bomb Magazine, 2010). In year 1973 Yayoi returned to Japan. Since then she is living in hospital, still creating unique pieces of art and trying to fight her disease (The Museum of Modern Art, New York, 1998). COMPARING. To prove my initial argument about inspiration of contemporary graphic design artists of Japan by traditional Japanese masterpieces Ukiyo-e from end of 18th beginning of 19th century I decided to compare work of Katsushika Hokusai 36 views of mount Fuji: The South Wind Dispels the Clouds and work of Kenya Hara MUJI Horizon (Uyuni Salt Lake; poster). 36 views of mount Fuji by Hokusai Katsushika is a series of woodblock prints where the Fuji Mountain is portrayed from different viewpoints. The particular painting I have chosen is named The South Wind Dispels the Clouds it is regarded not only as Hokusais masterpiece, but the masterpiece of art among all Japanese woodcut prints. The mountain on this picture symbolized tranquility, equanimity, spirituality, stability, harmony, balance as the mountain is still and the life around it flows without stresses and live all problems and questions behind. You can find there place without fear and doubts; you can find your soul up in the mountain. Hokusai creates a mist of soft clouds which are dispelled by the wind as a symbol of the disappearance of all the extraneous thought and lives you in a state of meditation. The artist uses soft pastel colour and russet tones to high light the softness of clouds. The simple diagonal composition with a lot of space around mountain personifies the mai n idea of a picture harmony and emptiness as an idea of endless possibilities. (Fahr-Becker, pp. 99-109) The project Muji horizon by Kenya Hara is a series of posters which took the artist to the Mongolian prairies and Bolivian salt lakes, where photographer Tamotsu Fujii captured these memorable billboard images of emptiness and possibility. And this idea of emptiness and possibility is a design philosophy of Kenya Hara. I have chosen this work because it is also a series like 36 views of mount Fuji by Hokusai Katsushika. In this poster we can find a small figure on an empty landscape as symbol of a soul seeking for harmony and balance. As if in the work of Hokusai you already have found the balance and tranquility, but on the poster of Kenya Hara you are on the way to that calmness and harmony. The composition is again very simple and static as on the 36 views of mount Fuji, but it is horizontal, and the presence of space is valuable. The idea of emptiness and possibility is very important to Hara and comparing these two works we can defiantly say that Hara is inspired by the philosop hy and work of traditional Japanese art masters. (Dezeen, 2010) To prove my argument I also would like to compare two other works, which are in contrast are not that obviously alike. For my second analyses I have chosen Woman Playing a Poppin by Kitigawa Utamaro and The Polka Dots by Yayoi Kusama. Woman Playing a Poppin by Kitigawa Utamaro. We can see, like almost always, beautiful women playing on Poppin, which was obviously some traditional Japan musical instrument. Woman has a typical Japan face, hair and dress, which is portrayed with using a pattern. Woman is showed to us in normal everyday life. The composition is simple and vertical; we can see just a woman, nothing more without any other details. It is very harmoniously. The drapery of dress softly creates a nice, playful line. The face is very calm and is portrayed in very easy way, just line. The line is very important in this kind of prints. I think, by the idea of artist, the first thing you see is a pattern and dress and only later the face. (Fahr-Becker, pp. 173-230) On picture by Yayoi Kusama The Polka Dots we can see self-portrait where she is using a pattern of polka dots everywhere, on wall, on chair, even to her dress to show that same pattern unifies everything together into one seamless and harmonious element. It is her obsession, same like an obsession of Utamaro with beautiful women bijin ga and with patterns too, which he used on dresses and not just on them. We can see calm and peaceful expression of her face, like on Utamaros woman. The composition is very similar too, it is simply and vertical. In the work by Yayoi Kusama we can also see the line as a one of the main structural elements on the picture, but in contrast with Utamaros picture it is hidden within the dance of polka dots. As on the Woman Playing a Poppin by Kitigawa Utamaro, in the work of Kusama first we see the pattern and only later we recognize the face of the lady presented on the picture. So, it is seem like Yoayami was somehow inspired by Japanese traditional art. May be it is not that obvious like in the Kenyas Hara works but probably she was also inspired by the traditional Japanese prints, and even though it is hard to see the spirit of tradition can be found in her so modern and Pop art works. (Kusama, 2007) CONCLUSION. In the process of the research I have deepen my knowledge about history of Japan, culture, traditions, Japanese traditional art and Japanese Prints of 18-19 century Ukiyo-e. I have discovered amazing Japanese painters, found out more about their life, career, work, habits, obsessions and art path. One of the most entertaining parts of my work has been exploring different techniques and methods, which were used by the painters in Japan. In the process of my study I learned what were the main themes and trends which were popular among painters of Ukiyo-e in the end of 18th century and beginning of 19th century. The same I can say about the second part of my study. I discovered many talented and sophisticated contemporary Japanese designers and other artists. I have become acquainted with a lot of new names in the field of contemporary graphic design, with their art works. From this long list of interesting artists and designers I have chosen two absolutely different creators. I was introduced to the new beautiful complicated astonishing world of their ideas and philosophy. In particular I was amazed by the works, ideas and concepts of Kenya Hara, which are very close to my perception of perfect concept for the successful, functional and outstanding design. This person has become one of my tutors not only in my creative life, but also in my life path. As a conclusion of my work I would like to express my opinion on the inspiration of contemporary graphic designers by the traditional Japanese art. I was convinced by all the facts that the traditional Japanese masterpieces as Japanese history culture and religion have huge impact on the inspiration and creativity of contemporary graphic designers. I am sure that many of Japanese designers are inspired by the traditional art and philosophy, consciously or unconsciously. And even if some of them would not admit it we still can find a elusive elements and more in the techniques, using of colour, motifs, themes and etc. Nowadays in the beginning of 21 century we are still admired and inspired by old master pieces, their perfection, deep meaning and philosophical question which are raised in them. So, how the contemporary graphic design would look like in a 22 century when artists would be inspired by us, and if they would?

Birmingham :: essays research papers

Foundations   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Today is an important day for myself, as well as all African Americans still fighting for our basic human rights that were spelled out in the Constitution almost two hundred years ago. We no longer want to be known as uneducated or secondary citizens. It is time that we are recognized as an equal race of people, and not simply just as â€Å"niggers.† The oppressor will never free the oppressed; it is up to the oppressed to free themselves. Therefore, the black people will cease to be kept quiet and will begin to make a united stand against the racial barrier that exists in the United States, especially in Birmingham.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Under the leadership of Dr. Martin Luther King our people will continually work to create chaos until the so-called â€Å"elite† hears us. His clear vision has, and will continue to guide us through the obstacles that stand in the way of achieving political, economical, and social equality in this nation. A nation that was founded by men of many nations and backgrounds; it was founded on the principle that all men are created equal. Human rights are the foundation for human existence and co-existence, and when one man’s rights are threatened, every man’s rights are diminished.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Through Dr. King’s courageousness, commitment and sacrifice, African Americans in Birmingham will be able to effectively protest the wrong doings and hardships of the past two centuries, in an attempt to forgive We now refuse to be held down or persecuted against by hate groups and those in elected positions. If you choose not to fight with us, then you are a part of the problem and not part of the solution – may God have mercy on your soul. Nothing will stand in our way to keep us from accomplishing our goal of freedom. At the very least our efforts will work to achieve tolerance for the differences between the majority and the minority. Success will be the only acceptable result.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  However, a clear plan will be followed to attain this outcome, and this plan that has been shaped by Dr. King himself does not involve the use of violence.

Should Teenagers Have Intimate Relationships?

In teen society, a relationship could seem a bad effect on the people around you. But is that really what a relationship is? Is it really wrong to be involved in a relationship during teenage life? No, I don’t think so, in fact there are more benefits to it. Some people think that if you get into a relationship, it would be extremely dangerous to yourself. They think that once you are in love with that person, you tend to give in all your heart and soul into the relationship. And if he/she ever leaves you, you would be in a depressing state or even seek suicide.However, this is all not true, some early matured teenagers have prepared mentally to protect themselves against sudden break-ups. In fact, some teens with high-level of maturity can be as mature as a 35 year old adult. Furthermore, there are people think that once a teenager gets into a relationship, he/she would neglected his/her friends and family. Also in the process of having a relationship, the boy or girlfriend m ight be exceptionally possessive and refrain his/her partner from getting close to friends and family.Though some teens are like the example I have given above, but not all are ungrateful brats to their friends and family, I would say. There are many who managed to bring their spouses out for gathering with their friends or families to get to know each other well. And I will definitely bring my girlfriend out for any kind of events. Apart from that, some people might even say relationship is bad, because of the word sex.Teens are curious about the bodies of the opposite sex while they are young, especially boys. So people always have this mindset of when teens are having a relationship is always related to sexuality, but that is definitely not true. Some boys are physically needy while girls are emotionally needy. For instance, boys want their spouses to satisfy them in sexual way, asking the girls to complete sexual acts for them, where the female might refuse to, but do it anyway, to prevent the relationship from ending.And females might want the boys to be always there for them; listening to their complaints, talking to them, spending time understanding her etc. ; which the guys might feel it is a bit unrealistic. Despite that there are many boys that actually does it, there are some boys who is very concerned towards their girlfriends and sensitive to the feelings of their spouses. Also there are males who wouldn’t take sex as the most important phase of relationships.It is utterly unfair for some of the boys out there. In summary, I am not against on intimate relationship at all. Because age isn’t a barrier to prevent relationship from taking place, what matters most is whether you are emotionally wise to manage your time, your work, and your stress. And whether you are able to control your physical needs till your marriage. I don’t think teens having involved in relationship will do any harm to the society we are living in.

Preface and Introduction Vocabulary from How to Read Literature Like a Professor by Thomas C. Foster Essay Example

Preface and Introduction Vocabulary from How to Read Literature Like a Professor by Thomas C. Foster Essay Example Preface and Introduction Vocabulary from How to Read Literature Like a Professor by Thomas C. Foster Paper Preface and Introduction Vocabulary from How to Read Literature Like a Professor by Thomas C. Foster Paper Essay Topic: Literature idiosyncrasy a mode of behavior or way of thought peculiar to an individual milquetoast a person who is timid or submissive incredulous (of a person or their manner) unwilling or unable to believe something apparatus a group or combination of instruments, machinery, tools, materials, etc., having a particular function or intended for a specific use arbitrary based on random choice or personal whim, rather than any reason or system inherently existing in something as a permanent, essential, or characteristic attribute veritable being truly or very much so predisposition a liability or tendency to suffer from a particular condition, hold a particular attitude, or act in a particular way archetype a model or first form; prototype

Beginning Perl Tutorial on Foreach Loop

Beginning Perl Tutorial on Foreach Loop The foreach loop is a control structure thats tailor-made to process Perl lists and hashes. Just like the for loop, foreach steps through each element of an array using an iterator. How to Step Through an Array in Perl With Foreach Rather than using a scaler as an iterator,  foreach uses the array itself. For example: You see that this gives the same output as printing the array myNames in its entirety: If all you want is to dump out the contents of the list, you could just print  it. In that case, use the foreach loop to make the output a bit more readable. Youll see that this code creates cleaner output by printing a new line after each item in the list. A Cleaner Foreach Loop The previous example used $_ to print each element of the list. Using this default implied scalar ($_) makes for shorter code and less typing, but it isnt always the best solution. If youre aiming for a highly readable code or if your  foreach  loop is complex, you might be better off assigning a  scalar  as your iterator. There are only two differences: the scalar $name between the  foreach  and the list and the replacement of the default scalar with it inside the loop. The output is exactly the same, but the code is slightly cleaner. Keep in mind: A  foreach  loop is a Perl control structure.It is used to step through each  element of an array.

GOOD HELP IS HARD TO FIND AND KEEPING IT IS EVEN TOUGHER Essay

GOOD HELP IS HARD TO FIND AND KEEPING IT IS EVEN TOUGHER - Essay Example tured Davis as a competent and highly qualified personnel for his ability to perform his duties and responsibilities according to the expectations of the clientele. The initial problem allegedly ensued two and a half years ago when Davis apparently had sexual relationships with one of his supervisors, Susie Jones. The relationship reportedly ended after nine months. Even after the relationship ended, Davis reported to the General Manager, Mark Evans, which Jones had continued to sexually harass Davis in the work setting. This is a relevant issue since sexual harassment was noted to be a violation of the organization’s policies and procedures; and more so, of the laws and regulations stipulated by the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC). Another relevant issue stemmed from Davis’ reportedly being afflicted with a skin condition, psoriasis, that recommended his not wearing underwear so as not to exacerbate the alleged irritation and swelling within his genital area (Leonard). To this, when he had to change to the prescribed uniform, other employees see him naked. Thus, another relevant issue that is related here is the inability of management to allot a reasonable accommodation where he and the other employees could change in private. As noted, Davis even suggested using the basement room (even if it had no door), rather than the common room which exposed him to other employees. In addition, it is also important to note that apart from these issues that were identified, the fact that Davis had reported matters to Evans, which were not effectively addressed, made the charges pressing. As reported, the sexual harassment issue was reported by Davis to Evans six months after their relationship ended; but apparently, Evans failed to make any remedial action (Leonard). Evan’s failure to address this matter was evident since the sexual harassment incidents continued and even caused Davis’ to be assigned to less profitable areas and where he was

Mental illnesses Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Mental illnesses - Essay Example In the United States, major depression is the leading cause of disability; it also has an effect on other countries (Duckworth, 2006, par. 1). According to the National Institute of Health, 50% of people between the ages of 20 and 50 will experience some type of depressive episode. Also, people who are depressed are "four times more likely to develop a heart attack than those without a history of illness" ( National Institute of Health as quoted in Depression and Bipolar Support Alliance 2006). According to the Center for Mental Health Services at the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, 33% of adults over 50 report that they had bouts of depression in their early teens (as cited in Bipolar Support Alliance, 2006). People with depression are four times as likely to develop a heart attack as those without a history of the illness. After a heart attack they are at a significantly increased risk of death or second heart attack. (National Institute of Mental Health, 1998). The research did not report that specific ethnic groups were more susceptible than others. According to the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders Fourth Edition (DSM-IV) an individual must have "a minimum of five symptoms" from the criteria list (with numbers 1 or 2 being one of the five) and these must occur during a two week period; the symptoms must also be a difference in the individuals previous functioning. A short version of the DSM-IV criteria includes: E. The symptoms are not better accounted for by bereavement, the symptoms last longer than 2 months or are characterized by marked functional impairment, morbid preoccupation with worthlessness, suicidal ideology, psychotic symptoms or psychomotor retardation (Caremark, "Major Depression"). According to Fram (2006), "twice as many women suffer from major depression than men" (par. 4) and this is largely due to hormonal fluctuations that women experience through "menstruation, miscarriage or