Enzymes are important for food digestion Essay

Enzymes are protein molecules produced y the living cells as â€Å"instructed† by genes on the chromosomes. Enzymes referred to as biological catalyst – biological molecules that catalyze metabolic reactions. A catalyst is defined as an agent that speeds up a chemical reaction without being consumed in the process (Burton, G. R. W. , 2004). Enzymes are important in digestion of food in our body because they act as the vehicle in the chemical reactions of breaking up the food elements. If the enzymes are not present in the digestion of the food, the energy of the chain reaction will face different problems such as acidity, diarrhea, bloating and burning sensation and it also helps strengthening the immunity of the body. There are different types of enzymes. These are metabolic enzyme, digestive enzyme and food enzyme. Metabolic enzymes are responsible for the destruction and removal of toxins in the body. Digestive enzymes are responsible for the digestion of food, absorption and the delivery of nutrients throughout the body and food enzymes enables the body to digest the food by breaking down the various nutrients and this enzyme are responsible for maintaining the optimal health. I will focus more on the digestive enzyme because it has an important role in the digestion and distribution of nutrients in the body. This enzyme can also help on the recovery of many diseases such as Irritable Bowel Syndrome (IBS) and Crohns disease. There are 3 important enzymes for the digestion and these are protease which digests protein; amylase which digests carbohydrates and lipase which digests fat. The two groups of digestive enzyme are intrinsic and extrinsic digestive enzyme. The intrinsic digestive enzyme is naturally produced inside the body and secreted from several organs to break down foods. Salivary gland is the most common enzyme produced by the mouth and the gastric gland produced by the stomach. If you experienced burning sensation and bloating and always in need of antacids after eating a certain types of food, the most common reason for this is due to eating of highly processed or over cooked food. This is commonly called indigestible foods. This type of food has naturally occurring enzymes but some healthy nutrients have been removed. The foods that has no enzymes and indigestible is bad for your health. The enzymes will work with the help of other necessary nutrients called the co-factors such as vitamins, minerals and essential fatty acids. In the absence of the co-factors of the enzymes, enzymes will have no activity. In some studies, it shows that the burning sensation you feel after eating a heavy meal like steaks, chickens, hamburgers and the like is because the digestive system demands more enzymes to digest them but if you eat raw type of food like fresh fruits and vegetables you will not feel any burning sensation because fresh vegetables and raw already contains lots of enzymes that digestion can be easier. We can eat any kind of foods that are rich in fat and sugars and our body will try to break it down by means of enzyme (Garcia, B. , n. d). To prevent the burning sensation, acidity and excessive gas, we should eat a natural raw kind of food and light cooked foods. Over cooked foods and processed destroys the enzymes that we need. Reheating the left over food at 47 degrees Celsius also destroys the enzyme that we need for digestion. The best way to have a good digestion is we should eat fresh fruit, steamed vegetables and dairy products to get plenty of digestive enzymes for easy digestion and absorption of nutrients in our body. If we are about to eat roasted meat, try to add some raw vegetables because it contains vegetable enzyme that will help for easy digestion. Eating this kind of food is very economical and it helps with digestion illnesses. Enzymes are important in our life. Without enzymes we easily get sick or acquire diseases. Lacks on enzyme in our body makes our blood dirty and dirty blood are the basis of acquiring diseases. One specific function of enzymes is to reduce and lighten the inflammation such as arthritis. We should always remember that the healthier that we eat, the longer we live. With the help of this enzymes other diseases or illnesses such constipation and gastroesophageal reflux disease or GERD will be prevented. Proper nutrition and exercise is the key to a healthy life (Garcia, B, (n. d).. References: Burton, G. R. W. (2004). Biochemistry: The Chemistry of life. Goucher, J. (Ed. ), Microbiology for health sciences (p. 149). Lippincott Williams and Wilkins. Garcia, B. (n. d). How the Different Types of Enzymes Support the Process of Life. Retrieved from http://ezinearticles. com/? How-the-Different-Types-of-Enzymes-Support-the-Process-of-Life&id=291981 Garcia, B. (n. d). Enzymes: An overview. Retrieved from http://ezinearticles. com/? Enzymes:-An-Overview&id=275873

Jacob Lawrence Essay

1.0 Background Jacob Lawrence, one of the most important artists of the 20th century and best known for his series of narrative paintings depicting important moment in African American history was born on 7th September 1917 in Atlantic City (pbs.org, para. 1). He spent a portion of his childhood life in Pennsylvania after which his parents separated in 1924. Jacob and his siblings went with the mother to New York and settled in Harlem. He was introduced to art at his teen age when his mother enrolled him in Utopia Children’s center which provided an after school art program in Harlem. By 1930’s he could participate in the art programs at the Harlem Art Workshop and the Harlem community art centre, where he got a chance to meet leading American artists of the time such as Augusta Savage and Charles Alton, the director of Harlem workshop at the time and who later became a professor of art at Howard University (pbs.org, para.1). Having trained as a painter at the Harlem workshop inside the New York Public Library’s 113 5th street branch, and despite being much younger than   most of the artists and other writers who took part in the Harlem Renaissance of the 1920’s, Lawrence was a force to recon with (Hughes, para.2). He was not interested in the type of idealized and fake primitives of blacks otherwise referred to as the Noble Negroes in art Deco guise, as they were usually produced as an antidote to the stereotypical racists. He gained confidence particularly from Alain Locke, who was a Harvard trained artist and also the first black Rhodes scholar in America. Locke strongly believed in the pieces of work done by blacks, as it could speak explicitly to African-Americans while still embodying value as well as self critical powers of modernism. Precisely, Locke believed that, â€Å"There is in truly great art in no essential conflict between racial or national traits and universal human valu es† (Hughes, para. 2). 2.0 The work of Jacob Lawrence Lawrence became well known at the age of 21 years when he did his â€Å"Toussant L’Ouverture Series†, a 41 painting collection that depicted a successful rebellion by the Haitian slaves. Three years later at the age of 24, his work became the first from an African American to be included in the permanent collection of the New York Museum of Modern Art (Lawrence, para. 1). Lawrence therefore considered himself to be both an artist and an educator. He used his art to tell stories about the black American history as he felt that this was being overlooked in the teaching of history in America. For instance, Lawrence did a forty panel series which he called â€Å"The Life of Harriet Tubman† who in the 1800s had helped many slaves in the north to free through an Underground Railroad (Sernett, pp. 218). From his childhood, Lawrence had been steeped in stories about movement and migration and therefore with encouragement from Locke, he worked hard to get historical background and related facts right. Months of research in the Schomburg Collection of the Public Library which is the chief archive of African American life and history in New York, saw the realization of his other piece of work, â€Å"Migration Series† which could help trace the mass influx of African Americas from the south to the North as a result of World War I. The two series are known for use of detailed titles and creative images to create narrative history of events (Lawrence, para. 2). Additionally, the series are notable for lack of language use. The author was in no way a propagandist. He however advocated for front social realism which was at its peak in America at the time as evidenced by labor camps, prisons, deserted villages, city slums and race riots which were mainly his subject matter. Lawrence attributed his success to his black experience which was his heritage, more so as far as black Americans struggle to secure independence and justice was concerned. Even during adult hood, he extended this theme to include all human struggles for liberty, and although each of his paintings evidenced his sense of humor as well as human pain and misery, they offered hope for the human condition. In 1937, Lawrence secured a two-year scholarship to the American artist school, where he studied with the   Wilson, Philip Riesman and Eugene Moreley before marrying one of the pupil of Savage who was also a west Indian painter, Gwendolyn Knight in 1941.This scholarship took him out of Harlem but he still maintained a close contact with the community which was the focus of his work as evidenced by his work â€Å"Street Scene Restaurant†, â€Å"Street orator†, â€Å"Interior† and â€Å"Interior scenes† which were shown in 1938. Other notable work that was done by Lawrence were a 32 painting series, â€Å"The Frederic Douglass† and the 22 panel   series that he painted while on honeymoon in 1941. In the explosive 1960s, Lawrence painted what most critics have called his work of â€Å"Protest† in favor of civil rights struggle in the South. In one of his paintings, â€Å"The ordeal of Alice†, he showed a black girl dressed in white trying to get into a newly desegregated school in the South but demonic tormentors attack her with arrows in a scene that is common only with religious martyrs. In the late 1960s though, Lawrence progressed from portraying racial injustice into showing racial harmony. At this time he did his series, â€Å"Builders†, which showed both whites and blacks working together in building projects, scenes which could be interpreted to mean rebuilding the society. Despite the changing trends, both political and in artistic field, Lawrence remained true to his own original and creative path until his death in June 9, 2000 (Sernett, pp. 82). 3.0 His work compared with others A comparison between the work of art done by Jacob Lawrence and that of other artists of his time reveals a lot of difference, with most these differences inclined to Lawrence’s outstanding. While most of the artists, especially those doing watercolor paintings like him, are usually inclined to beauty and elegance, Lawrence was different. Even the most recent artists such as Thomas Deir, despite making  Ã‚   the highest sale of $ 10,000 in the Waikiki gallery, do not seem to belong to the same school of thought with Jacob Lawrence (hawaiiart.com). The work of Lawrence, despite bringing out beauty, also carries some real life meanings as far as human life is concerned. The â€Å"Toussant L’Ouverture Series†, for example is a series that is not only elegant but also carries success. Depicting a successful rebellion by slaves, especially at the time when slave trade and slavery accompanied with a lot of other human misery was rampant, the painting can be said to carry more than Thomas Dier’s   â€Å"Mokulua Milky Way   valued at   over $2000† as far as   human values and relevance   is concerned (hawaiiart.com). Other renowned artists such Judy Abott or Michelle Amatrula, though recognized for making huge sales from their pieces of work, do not address contemporary issues like Lawrence does. The other artist who could in away compares to Jacob Lawrence is Martin Johnson Heade (1819-1904) who is particularly known for his Luminists landscape particularly of the storms and marshes in South America as well as still life paintings. Martin Johnson Heade (originally Heed) was equally a talented artist of the nineteenth century. He is remembered for   his flora, fauna and landscape paintings that do not only have a rich effect of color and light but could also portray some poetic sentiments. Lawrence however still appears to outweigh Heade in what can be drawn from a critical analysis of their work. Put in simple terms, while the work from both artists share beauty, Lawrence has some educative aspect injected into his work. By all definitions, Lawrence was better than most of the other artists of the time as evidenced by the numerous awards and credit that goes to his name. In 1974, the Whitney Museum of American Art held a major retrospective of the work done by Lawrence which later resulted to his election to the American Academy of Arts and Letters in 1983, while in 1977, he received an invitation to paint during the inauguration of Jimmy Carter. In May 2007, the White House Historical Association bought Lawrence’s â€Å"Builders† shown below for $2.5 million at auction. This painting today hangs in the white House Green Room (Crehan, para.5). 4.0 Conclusion Jacob Lawrence is probably one of the best artists that ever appeared on the face of earth. His work reveals a rare talent that he recognized and exploited fully. Despite being a black American, he beat all odds to become one of the best artists of the 21st century while the plight of fellow black Americans remained a dear concern to his heart. This is what his work addressed.  Jacob Lawrence is no doubt a legend whose life deserves recognition by and over generations while his artistic work will continue to demand respect over centuries.

Economic Recovery of Greece Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Economic Recovery of Greece - Research Paper Example The state made efforts to keep the economy going by spending a lot which consequently increased the country’s debt level in the eurozone. Further efforts were made to reduce the impact of the economic crisis where the Greek State borrowed a loan of â‚ ¬45 billion on 23 April, 2010 from the European Union and the IMF. This was in attempt to cater for its financial requirements for the remaining period of 2010. Their efforts were futile as standard and Poor’s cut the country’s debt rating to junk status a few days after acquiring the loan. The move was in fear of a possible default by the country where the investors were likely to lose 30-50% of their savings. As a result the securities market in the world and the entire euro currency went dipped low in reaction to the S & P downgrade (Stein, 2006). Below is an explanation as to why the European Central Bank must keep the level of interests low with the intention of rescuing Greece. Justification as to why the i nterest rates must be kept low to help Greece The lowering of the interest rates will give some relief to Greece particularly with its delicate Southern tier. The banks in Greece will eventually borrow heavily from the European Central Bank since the bank will find it difficult to hold more cash in the central bank when borrowing is low. Lending in the private markets will also increase which will enable the households and business free up their cash for more expenditure and investment that can improve the economy of the country. The interest rates of the loans are closely pegged on the formal policy rate hence in one quarter point European Central Bank decrease will eventually reflect into â‚ ¬2.5 billion less yearly payment of interests as approximated by economists (Stein, 2011). Efforts have been by the eurozone monetary policy through the European central bank to help in rescuing Greece which has been coordinated by several actions. This is in response to the escalating thre at of the world’s economy as a result of the crisis in Greece. First and foremost, the European Central Bank made a cut on the interest rates to a record low of 0.75%. This was an urgent move to counter the extreme run of the economic information. However, this has driven the strong shift in recuperating the State’s bond purchase policies or flooding banks with a long lasting liquidity term (Bartha, 2011). According to Butler (2010), the European Central Bank is also anticipated to make a further cut with more measures to enable the Greece economy to come back to its feet. Consequently, the Bank of England whose lending rates are currently hitting low of 0.5% has intentions of rejuvenating its printing procedures and purchasing of US$ 78 billion of its assets. This is in line with its freshly established monetary guidelines to assist in lifting the eurozone out of downturn. The reaction by the European Central Bank to ease the market tension has been implemented throug h cutting of borrowing costs for debts by 25 basis units. The interests’ rate record low of 0.75% has the main purpose of promoting the declining eurozone economy. The justification for this move was instigated by the increased pressure on European Central Bank by the investors and other stakeholders such as the IMF to take bolder steps in countering the economic downturn. Hence the European Central Bank had to buy back most of the sovereign debt securities for Greece distressed economy. Besides, the cuts and the

Personal Development Plan (PDP) Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2750 words

Personal Development Plan (PDP) - Essay Example â€Å"A primary school teacher teaches children between the ages of 3 and 11 years† (Ahmed, 2010, para. 1). It is one of the core responsibilities of the primary teachers to do proper grooming of the children of the above-mentioned age. For this purpose, primary teachers apply their learned skills and knowledge in the behavioral and mental grooming of the children. Primary teachers make use of informal and friendly teaching methods to make the pupil learn (Hayes, 2009, p. 16). Primary school is the first place for parents or teachers who seek some kind of information related to teaching. Primary teachers educate the children the importance of getting good grades. The age of 6 to 12 is a very crucial age for the children and if they become aware of the importance of good grades at this point of time, they excel in their future by trying to achieve good grades in higher classes. Another responsibility of primary teachers is to create awareness among the children about the importance of good behavior. Teachers make the students know how they should deal with their friends and family members. They also teach them what are good behaviors and what characteristics make a person acceptable in a society. To enter into the profession of primary teaching, a person must possess some basic skills and knowledge. A primary teacher needs to have knowledge about different learning and teaching styles that he can use to teach the students. The people interested in the profession of primary teaching need to show the evidence of interpersonal abilities and leadership skills. â€Å"Teacher leadership is an inseparable part of a teachers daily life† (Can, 2010, para. 2). A primary teacher must be able to communicate effectively with both the students and the parents. He should have understanding of different stages of child development and the behaviors associated with those development

Forensic Analysis of Soil Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Forensic Analysis of Soil - Assignment Example Soils develop on these accumulated sediments because of physical and chemical weathering. The characteristic of the uniqueness of the soil such as horizon that has unique physical and chemical properties, color, structure, and texture are the common features that and in forensic analysis. Techniques currently used to characterize soil samples rely on either physical descriptors such as color, density gradient, particle size determination, and microscopy or chemical analysis chemical analysis such as elemental composition. However, these characterization techniques are not adequately capable of investigating organic compounds present in the soil. On the other hand, Fourier Transform Infrared Spectroscopy (FTIR) technique involves collecting a range of soil sample that has already undergone oxidative pyrolysis hence all organic have been degraded. This spectrum is spectrum is subtracted from the spectrum of the same sample that contains the organic prior to pyrolysis. The result IR spectrum represents the organic portion of the sample. Samples of soil collected from within the agriculture site where the murder scene is committed to the victim. After soil samples are collected from the surface to 3.4 below, the sample from the scene is compared with various color layers of different places several miles from the ‘agricultural site’ of the scene. Each sample is compared to every color in the Munsell Color Chart and is assigned a Munsell value. A second examiner later confirms each color assignment. The assigned values help to indicate the soil color both before and after pyrolysis is similar within the ‘agricultural site’. Color is a useful tool to distinguish soils that do not share a common color to show that they do not have a common source. Lastly, those soil samples that cannot be distinguished using color are submitted to a more rigorous analysis to eliminate common provenance.

Managing workplace diversity Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3000 words

Managing workplace diversity - Essay Example It is evident from the study that for the last decades, the term diversity has been used to mean the â€Å"demographic constitution of a particular group or team†. In experimental studies, the diversity of a team is normally determined using compositional technique, which focuses on how demographic characteristics such as ethnicity, gender, age among others are distributed within the team. Assessment of diversity in workplace entails determination of the extent in which members are similar or dissimilar to one another. According to Caleb, diversity represents the numerous individual disparities existing among people in particular organization. In studies of diversity in workplaces, various attributes of employees have been proved to be of critical importance in the current management practices. They include gender, ethnicity, length of service in the particular organization, areas of specialisation and skills, level of education, cultural values in addition to personality of t he individual. The content of diversity in workplaces has been a subject of many research studies. Aparna and Susan classified the content of diversity into two categories, namely task and relations oriented. Relations oriented diversity involves the availability of traits or attributes that are influential in determining interpersonal associations. In normal circumstances, relations oriented diversity does not have direct noticeable effects on the performance of tasks (Aparna and Susan, 2000: 60). Mike (2004: 157) consider relations oriented diversity as the social -category diversity. Task oriented diversity is the distribution of the performance-relevant attributes. Examples of attributes that are more likely to be relationship-oriented diversity include age, sex, race, ethnicity, religion, political association, sexual orientation and nationality. These attributes are readily indentified or recognised in a particular context (Caleb, 2006). Other relationship oriented attributes are not readily detected in workplace setting. They include gender, attitudes, values, personality, racial and ethnic identity, sexual and class identity among other social identities. Task oriented diversity attributes in the work place include readily identified qualities such as education level, membership to an organisation or department, association with professional bodies, formal credentials and titles in addition to organisation tenure. However, some task oriented diversity attributes are not obvious, or easily detected. They include knowledge and expertise, cognitive skills and abilities, in addition to physical skills and capacities (Aparna and Susan 2000: 201). Research on performance of employees in a multicultural background indicates that diverse teams perform differently from homogenous groups (Kreitner and Kinicki 1995:72) Although the exact mechanisms that cause the disparity in performance remain speculative, various existing theories provide feasible explanation t o the difference.

Capital budgeting Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Capital budgeting - Essay Example In addition, NPV approach provides a clear indication on how the profits will be obtained, unlike IRR and payback approaches. Therefore, the NPV is the most useful tool in project valuation (Arthur, 2014). Of the three techniques (NPV, IRR, and payback period, the least useful tool to use is the IRR, because discount rate has an inverse relationship with NPV. When NPV continues to increase, the anticipated future cash flows become less valuable and hence making IRR least useful tool to use in project valuation. On the other hand, payback approach is the second least useful tool to use after IRR. The Payback period indicate how long the cash flow obtained from the project will recover the initial capital outlay. In addition, the payback period fails to indicate the amount of cash flow to be generated from the project. However, it is the simplest method of calculating project forecast (Arthur, 2014). The answer would not be the same because a negative NPV will be obtained when cost of capital increases from 14% to 25%. It means that as the cost of the capital increase the return obtained from the project decreases significantly up to a negative (Peterson & Fabozzi,2002). Such decrease makes the project un-profitable and, therefore, it is advisable for the EEC not to invest when cost of capital increases to 25%. If EEC did not save an even cash flow of $500,000 per year, the answer would be the same.The least amount of investment that would make this investment attractive to EEC is $100,000. From the above scenario, the EEC would be willing to pay the supplier $2000, 000. The president of EEC should be aware that if the cost of capital increases as discussed above, the underlying effect is a negative NPV. It means that the project will be no longer profitable to the company (Arthur, 2014). If the expected savings are less than $500,000 per annum, it will be difficult for the ECC to pay its supplier a capital of $2000, 000, and

Evaluate the main Problems Associated with Using Plastic Bags Essay

Evaluate the main Problems Associated with Using Plastic Bags - Essay Example As the report stresses in India non-biodegradable bags result in long-lasting litter at landfill sites. This is especially dangerous to wildlife away from areas of human population. Collecting plastic bags is not profitable for waste pickers in India, and this leads to plastic bags continuing to create a major threat to the environment. As a consequence the landscape of India is dominated by litter from plastic bags. Presently, plastic accounts for an estimated 10 percent of generated waste. This paper discusses that some of the litter that does not end up in landfills results in blocked drains and choked soil. Plastic bags are light and so they lead to blocked drains which results in water logging and nuisance to citizens. They can also lead to choked soil because they are non-porous, and do not permit the free flow of water and air, hence causing plants to choke. The rotting waste from pits generates methane. The toxins present are dissolved, permeates the soil and pollutes groundwater during monsoon rains. Plastic bags are photo-degradable instead of bio-degradable – which means that they break down into small toxic bits. This results in the contamination of the ground and waterways. This becomes a heath hazard to humans, animals, marine life and plant life. Suffocation as a result of plastic bag is not uncommon, especially in Malaysia. There have been accidental deaths, both among small children who play with shopping bags and adolescents who are solvent abuse rs. There have been instances of homicide cases, and the victims are invariably infants or adults who are frail or terminally ill and are not able to struggle or show resistance (Perez-Martinez et al 1993). Impact on plants, animal and marine life In India dumping grounds are filled, levelled off and converted into parks. Owing to the fact that the soil was predominantly plastic bags, the trees were not able to anchor firmly into the ground. The flora is destroyed due to the uprooting of trees from the high velocity winds that blow over the city during the

Adolf Hitler- Long Live Germany Essay Example for Free

Adolf Hitler- Long Live Germany Essay The ruler, commander, leader, â€Å"God like† image to all of German in between his rising years, 1928-1935, had great power over all living being in Germany at the time. German flags would be raised wherever you may travel in German; Nazi’s over-ruled the people in many streets Here is a poster of Adolf Hitler, during 1935, showing us how mighty and powerful he is. Showing us how he can change German individuals’ lives into a better life, and how he and his party, can make a change into German. Es lebe Deutfchland! † A phrase that has been used in front of the poster, meaning â€Å"Long live Germany! † We all know that Hitler’s rise to power between 1928-1933 made him a strong and well-known man. Everyone in Germany would look up to Hitler, and here shows how Hitler would die for his country, how he would do what so ever to protect his country. He is telling us in this poster that he himself would fight for Germany, he would be able to lead his country, and the people in it, and keep them from harm. Having an eagle hover against the light of heaven over Hitler in this poster connects back to Christ when a dove descended upon Him when He was being baptised by John the Baptist. This would give us a clue that Yes! Hitler was an idealized God to the Germans’, knowing that he has done a lot for them. Overcoming the great depression, helping the citizens of Germany get employed and many other offers. People would praise in Adolf Hitler’s name. They would die for Hitler. As you can see at the back of Hitler are his followers, much likely to be the Nazi’s and German people holding the German flag and hailing Hitler. Thousands, let’s say billions had gathered to support Hitler, and trying to persuade us that Hitler is a trustworthy man, and how he can help German citizens overcome anything when they are in deep crisis. We all know that in Hitler’s time, everyone idolized him, but for what reason? Hitler was a powerful and spellbinding speaker who attracted a wide following of Germans who were desperate for change in Germany. This poster tells us more of how Hitler won over, changed Germany and became successful in many things. To conclude this Visual essay, Hitler was successful in his days, knowing by the looks of this poster. He did have everybody fooled by his beauty and the way he structures himself, to make people think he is on their side, but in reality he’s just another beast getting revenge for his mother country, Germany. â€Å"Heil Hitler† they say, and have German flags flowing for him†¦ â€Å"Heil Hitler! †

Old Orleans Essay Example for Free

Old Orleans Essay Who do you believe is the most to blame for Blanches fate at the end of A Streetcar Named Desire? How far do you think Blanche qualifies as a tragic heroine during the course of the play? There are many connecting themes that lead to Blanches long-anticipated downfall. These themes I will discuss in my essay. She is under the influence of fate, her own sexual the desire for money. Major themes explored are death, fate and madness. Ironically the title incorporates the word desire, as we know this as an underlying theme in the novel. The fact that Williams saw an actual streetcar in Old Orleans gives the impression that Williams play is close to own heart; we know that his sister could be viewed as a representation of Blanche in the play. She too had casual, frequent encounters much like Blanche has in the play. She was a nymphomaniac who was finally lobotomised and sent to an asylum. It is clear that A Streetcar Named Desire is personal to the Playwright. Blanche has annoying obsessive behaviour and it is clear that the Writer portrays Blanche as a person who would be clearly hell to live with. Blanche is first introduced in the play as being moth like; immediately she is compared in her smartness to the shabby, rundown street ironically named, Elysian Fields: She is daintily dressed in a white suit with a fluffy bodice Her appearance is grand and starkly contrasted to the grubby settings. We also learn that Blanche is snobbish. Eunice is forced to speak: . Defensively, noticing Blanches look. Blanche is unhappy in Old Orleans and she shows that she does not want to be associated with the standard of living, this she shows by her facial expressions and her posture whilst she sits in her chair. We also know she is a secret drinker: I rarely touch the stuff . . . Blanches drinking habit could be seen as a way of suppressing her guilt and anaesthetising her pain. Blanche has many weaknesses and drinking is one of these. She is self-destructive and these weaknesses are largely to blame for own her mental deterioration. Blanche talks to herself, which is considered to be strange: [Faintly to herself] Ive got to keep a hold of myself! This is the first clue we get to Blanches declining mental state. We see this as a slightly wild that she talks to herself. Blanche allows as she has done in the past, her sexual desires dominate her life. She is self-destructive although that does not mean that the audience does not have sympathy for her. Stella is aware of Blanches need of flattery; it is suggested that Stella knows Blanche too well. She says to Stanley early on: Tell her she looks pretty. . . Stella is acutely conscious of Blanches need of flattery, and Stella quietly tries to please Blanche by telling Stanley to be nice. Blanche also has obsessive behaviour, which the audience can see as very annoying: I havent bathed or powered my nose, and yet you are seeing me here. She sings in the bath and cleans all day long, Blanche pesters both Stanley and Stella, but Stanley has more of a short fuse. His tolerance quickly runs out. Blanche is always living in the past. This becomes highly evident when she is idly reminiscing about one of ex-boyfriends: Yes I ran into Sheep Huntleigh I ran into him on Biscayne Boulevard, on Christmas Eve, about dusk. Tennessee Williams characters are always trying to capture their former golden moment. Blanche is not living in present reality; she cannot bear the infringement of ugly reality into her wonderful make-believe world of the past. . Blanche to some extent is trapped in this rundown street with only her sisters support, which later in the play we know is lost. We feel sympathy towards Blanche at this point because it is clear that at this instance she is quite senseless. Blanche has a constant need to be flattered. She ceaselessly fishes for compliments from Stanley, Mitch and Stella: Stella you havent said one thing about my appearance. Blanche has a fixation in her head that her looks are everything to her; she is very self-absorbed: Do you know I havent put on one ounce since you left Belle Reve. She boasts about the fact she is still beautiful; she is scared, however that people only see her for her looks as she never wants to look anything less than her best: I will not be seen in this light . . . Blanche does not like looking plain or aged because it makes her feel insignificant and unwanted; she likes to have the constant assurance of someone telling her she looks nice so she can feel good: I need kindness right now Blanches growing madness becomes evident at the beginning of the play: I cant be alone. Because as you must have noticed Im not very well . . . Later on in the play the audience sees Blanches character unfold. We see that she is highly manipulative and flirts with men to get them to do what she wants, although it does not work with Stanley as we see early on: [She smiles at him radiantly] Do you think it possible that I was once considered to be attractive?. . . This quotation is showing that Blanche is treading dangerously in flirting with her sisters husband. We have a great deal of insight into Blanches sexual background. We know from her past that she was very promiscuous and she indulged into one-night stands at the Hotel Flamingo, back in Laurel. Blanche does this in order to feel needed because she wants to be noticed: You have got to be seductive . . . put on soft colours and glow make a little temporary magic and glow We feel sympathy that Blanche has to sleep with men but this is very seedy behaviour and very much a personal weakness that Blanche cannot change. Her promiscuity leads her to the acknowledgement that her life is nothing in the hotel she tries to get away from her past but it keeps catching up with her. Stanley and Mitch remind her of this. Blanche again in her critical speech about magic stresses the importance of appearance: I dont know how much longer I can turn the trick. You have to be soft and attractive, and Im fading now. Mitch is taken in by Blanches manipulation. The relationship between Blanche and Mitch could be seen as an escape route into reality, as it is what Blanche: needs a house of her own and a permanent relationship to settle down in. Blanche lies to Mitch about her own age and Stellas: I call her little in spite of the fact she is somewhat older than I.

Effect of Alcohol Dependency on Spouse

Effect of Alcohol Dependency on Spouse Psychiatric illnesses are increasingly known to be common in the recent decades and affects over 25% of people at some point in a adults at any point in time, and at least one affected individual living in one every four families—(1). Alcohol dependence syndrome is the maladaptive patters of alcohol intake with tolerance craving, loss of control, and withdrawal symptoms (3). Bipolar affective disorder is episodic in nature with manic or hypomanic or depressive or mixed symptoms occur. Patients exhibit fluctuating severity of any of these symptoms interspersed with a symptom free (euthymics 2) or subsyndromal periods. Cwvently the prevalence of bipolar affective disorder (BPAD) is around 0.4-0.5% with an 1 year prevalence of 0.5to 1.4% and a life-time prevalence of about 2.6 to 7.8% (4). The life-time prevalence of bipolar disorder is about 20.8 per 1000 population in India (6  ±); and that of alcohol use ranges from 1.15% to upto 50% in general (8, 9). Burden Definition (10) – Platt Stigmatization, chronic emotional and economic burden from caring are endured by the families of individuals with psychiatric illness. The illness impact on the primary caregiver’s leisure time activities work and social relationships. These deficits evoke different reactions infifferent or expressed emotional reaction towards the patients, and a sense of insufficiency and helplessness in themselves, all of which impact on the progression and prognosis of the patient’s illness (1). AIM To compare the family burden, the quality of life and psychiatric morbidity between female spouses of patients with alcohol dependence syndrome, patients with schizophrenia, and patients with bipolar affective disorder OBJECTIVES To find the family burden and quality of life in female spouses of patients with alcohol dependence, schizophrenia and bipolar affective disorder To evaluate the prevalence of psychiatric morbidity in female spouses of patients of these three groups To study the association between symptom severity in patients, perceived apathy, significant life events and family burden, and the quality of life and psychiatric morbidity in female spouses in these groups To compare psychiatric morbidity, family burden of care and quality of life in female spouses between all patient groups. MATERIALS AND METHODS: The sample is drawn from male patients with female spouses attending the outpatient Psychiatry department at this hospital. Design: Crosssectional, comparative study, including 64 patients with alcohol dependence, 64 patients with schizophrenia, and 64 patients with bipolar affective disorder, and their female spouses. With consecutive sampling from Outpatient department, a total of 192 patients with their spouses are taken up for the study. Duration and period of Study- 4 months Inclusion criteria: male patients with equal to or more than 10 year duration of alcohol dependence or schizophrenia or bipolar affective disorder, satisfying the criteria for the corresponding DSM IV-TR diagnoses patients with onset of psychiatric symptoms/disorder after marriage female spouses who provide care for the patients participa nts should be not less than 60 years of age participants to be willing to provide informed consent for the interview and assessment patients willing to allow spouse to be assessed Exclusion criteria: those who did not give their consent refusal to allow spouse to be evaluated patients and/or their spouses with any chronic general medical illness spouses with a history of substance abuse, suicide or previous history of psychiatric symptoms and intervention spouses with a family history of psychiatric illness spouses related to the patients by consanguinity Instruments used A semistructured profoma to collect the sociodemographic details, family history details and a semistructured clinical profile International Classification of Diseases ICD-10 Shortform Alcohol Dependence Data Questionnaire SADDQ Clinical Global Impressions CGI-BP bipolar and CGI-SCH schizophrenia, severity scales Presumptive stressful life events scale PSLES Apathy inventory –caregiver version Burden Assessment Scale BAS; Caregiver Reaction Assessment -Selfesteem, High life-esteem -positive caregiving, Burnout -Negative Caregiving subscales –CRASH-BOUNCE score WHO Quality Of Life WHOQOL –BREF-1 General Health Questionnaire GHQ-12 MINI plus 5.0.0 v Mini International Neuropsychiatric Interview –plus Beck Depression Inventory BDI; Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale –anxiety HADS-A CGI-BP Bipolar disorder is a cyclic and polymorphic disease. Patients may show manic, hipomanic, depressive or mixed symptoms, and they may be in partial or complete remission. For this reason, the assessment of the course, severity and outcome of the disorder is very complex. Most of the available psychometric instruments have been designed for the assessment of acute episodes of specific polarity. The CGI-BP-M, a user-friendly scale for the assessment of manic, hypomanic, depressive or mixed symptoms, and long-term outcome of bipolar disorder, is a useful tool for the assessment of the efficacy of several treatments. CGI-S: Amongst the most widely used of extant brief assessment  tools in psychiatry, the CGI is a 3-item observer-rated  scale that measures illness severity (CGIS), global  improvement or change (CGIC) and therapeutic response.   The illness severity and improvement sections of the  instrument are used more frequently than the therapeutic  response section in both clinical and research settings. Amongst the most widely used of extant brief assessment  tools in psychiatry, the CGI is a 3-item observer-rated scale that measures illness severity (CGIS), global  improvement or change (CGIC) and therapeutic response. The illness severity and improvement sections of the  instrument are used more frequently than the therapeutic  response section in both clinical and research settings. Burden Assessment Schedule (BAS) (104): [ANNEXURE IV] It is an instrument to assess burden on caregivers of chronic mentally ill. It was developed to assess subjective burden in Indian population, as many of the burden assessment instruments developed in the west were not culturally suited to Indian population. This schedule has 40 items and 9 domains. The different domains are Spouse related, Physical and mental health, External support, Caregivers routine, Support of patient, Taking responsibility, Other relations, Patients, Patients behaviour and Caregivers strategy. Each of these 40 items was rated on a 3-point scale marked 1-3. The responses were not at all, to some extent and very much. Depending on the questions were framed, the responses and the score for each of those responses would vary. In this study the schedule was modified by arranging 40- items into the above 9 domains. Total score of each domain was calculated separately and at the end the total burden was calculated. This was done to get the domain score apart from the total score. In the spouse was replaced with either son, daughter, brother, sister, mother or father, depending of the patient to the caregiver. In the items 2 and 4, the word ‘sexual and marital’ was replaced by ‘family’ as and when needed. The minimum total score of burden in BAS is 40 and the maximum score in 120. In this the severity of burden was categorized into 4 groups, in the following way, 40-60 –Minimum burden 61-80 –Moderate burden 81-100 –Severe burden 101-120 –Very severs burden Method Consecutive patients attending the Psychiatry OPDs of hospitals attached to J.J.M. Medical College, diagnosed as BPAD and Alcohol dependence according to DSM IV criteria who met the inclusion criteria and did not get excluded were included in the study. Written informed consent was taken from the patients or from the caregivers depending on their ability to give consent, following an explanation about the nature and the purpose of the study in the language in which the patient could understand. Sociodemographic details were recorded on the self designed proforma. The primary family care-giver was one who met at least three of the following criteria (108). Is a spouse, parent or spouse equivalent. Has the most frequent contact with the patient. Helps to support the patients financially. Has most frequently been collateral in the patient’s treatment. Is contacted by treatment staff in case of emergency. Burden Assessment Scale (BAS) was administered to assess the burden on caregivers of BPAD group and ADS group. Severity of alcohol dependence was assessed using Short Alcohol Dependence Data (SADD) Questionnaire. GHQ Validity Discriminative validity There was a non-significant trend in GHQ Total scores and Depression subscales  scores to be higher for carers using Admiral Nurse (AN) teams vs. carers who did not  (Woods et al., 2003). On follow-up, a significant difference was found on the Anxiety  and Insomnia subscale, where outcome was better for the AN group. Another study  showed that carers of dementia patients showed higher levels of distress as measured  by GHQ than carers for patients with depression (Rosenvinge et al., 1998). Furthermore, significant differences in GHQ scores have been found between carers  of people with anorexia and psychosis (Treasure et al., 2001). GHQ scores have also  been found to differ in carers of people with a head injury according to different time  intervals post-injury. The GHQ scores were higher for carers of people with a recent  head injury, which indicates greater burden in this group (Sander et al., 1997). Predictive validity Coping style has been found to contribute significantly to GHQ score variance, with  emotion-focused coping being related to GHQ scores in a study by Sander et al.,  (1997). Furthermore, coping accounted for more of the GHQ variance than disability  scores. Socio-demographic variables Gender has been found to have a significant effect on GHQ scores, but neither race  nor relationship to the injured person had a significant effect (Sander et al., 1997). Dimension-specific variables Strong positive correlations were found between the GHQ and the Relatives Stress  Scale (Draper et al., 1992). Responsiveness The GHQ-28 has been shown to be responsive to change in a study using cognitive  behavioural therapy in carers of Parkinson’s disease patients. Both the Total score and  the scores for 3 of the sub-scales decreased in response to the intervention (Secker and  Brown 2005). Both conventional and AN services led to lower GHQ scores overall  and 2 of the 4 subscales over an 8-month period (Woods et al., 2003).

Cookies & Privacy :: essays research papers fc

Data Communications â€Å"Cookies and their Impact on Privacy†   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  In today’s fast paced world of internet commerce it would be hard to accomplish many of the tasks without the creation of â€Å"cookies.† Since their advent, cookies have been given a bad name and associated immediately with a loss of privacy. In April of 2001 a newspaper article defined cookies as, â€Å"†¦programs that Web sites put on your hard disk. They sit on your computer gathering information about you and everything you do on the Internet, and whenever the Web site wants to it can download all of the information the cookie has collected.† (www.howstuffworks.com) This article could not be any farther from the truth. Cookies are not programs and do not perform any actions as they sit on your hard drive. According to Netscape, â€Å"Cookies are a general mechanism which server side connections (such as CGI scripts) can use to both store and retrieve information on the client side of the connection. The addition of a simple, persist ent, client-side state significantly extends the capabilities of Web-based client/server applications.† As cookies have emerged to the forefront their association with their user’s privacy has become more of an issue as time progresses.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Even though cookies serve an important role in today’s e-commerce and advertising industries, it is impossible not to think of them as a breach in user security. There is something about a seemingly forced piece of information being saved on your computer for the use of a computer hundreds or even thousands of miles away. One can only think of one word. Privacy. Who’s to say that company’s are using the information gathered by these cookies and using them for good. How do I know that you are collecting cookies for your own advertising or e-commercial purposes rather than probing me as a candidate for the ever-present adware? Do I want vendors to know exactly what it is I usually shop for when I get online? Do I really need to save my shopping time by one or two clicks with the sacrifice of decreased privacy? These are questions that each user asks themselves when we look at our internet security settings or when we are denied access to a site based on our cookie settings. Many companies have been labeled with improper actions concerning cookies. A company named DoubleClick was forced to reach a settlement in 2002 for improper conduct concerning cookies.

Legalazation Of Cannabis :: essays research papers

These are some of the reasons that prohibition is a failure. When we realize that prohibition is a failure we can move on to more and better uses of cannabis. Abraham Lincoln once said this famous quote â€Å"Prohibition will work great injury to the cause o temperance. ...for it goes beyond the bounds of reasons In that it attempts to control a mans appetite by legislation and makes a crime out of things that are not crimes. A prohibition law strikes a blow at the very principles that our government was fo ded.†   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  If you would recall the government trying to prohibit alcohol in the earlier part of this century. Crime soared, criminal organizations became rich. People died or were crippled by unregulated products. Millions of untold tax payers dollars were spent the so called â€Å"Drug Wars†. The results had no effect on the wars and just dissipated tax payers money.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Foreign drug cartels earning as much as the Gross National Product of some countries, only to send their illegal unregulated products to America. They tried to prohibit their drugs as well, but had the same results.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Children killing children with auto-automatic weapons. HIV spreading like a plague. The absurd waste of tax payers dollars on a prohibition that doesn’t even work. Our prisons filling up over the edge. Why? For a prohibition of cannabis.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Cannabis is one of the single most versatile important agricultural products next to the soybean. Growing cannabis helps the environment as well. Lady bugs, which we all know helps everything, provide a source of extermination for the bugs that plague he cannabis crop. If you are running low on cash and are growing it you can sell it for a pretty penny. Of course you can’t until it gets legalized.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Medical properties of cannabis are well documented. Just think how many people would benefit if cannabis was readily available for use. Why criminalize, or restrict access to find relief from suffering. Cannabis can ease the pain and sometimes take it ay. Why criminals for use as medicine?   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Now you will hear some peoples thoughts of why cannabis should not be legalized. Many of the people that want it to stay illegal are mothers of people under the age of 18. In fact 66 percent of those mothers want it to stay illegal. Most say cannabis smoked for fun or because of addiction. People kill for it and people kill each other for money for it.

Currency Devaluation and Its Effects on the Economy

| Currency devaluation and its effects on the economy | Focus on the Argentine economy | Agustina DalFabbro, Michele Mottola, Giuseppe Merlino, Saskia Diehl 26. 05. 2012 | Inhalt 1. Introduction2 2. Convertibility and its problems in the 1999/2001 period2 1. 1Previous Devaluation Process in Argentina2 2. First moments of devaluation3 2. 1 Fixed exchange rate vs. floating exchange rate regimes3 2. 2 Two types of exchange rates and free floating currency5 2. 2 Free floating currency6 3. Effects of Devaluation process on6 3. 1 Trade Balance6 3. 2 Productive capacity6 3. 3 Salaries6 . 4 National Accounts6 4. Conclusion6 5. Literature7 1. Introduction Stable currency exchange rate regimes are a key component to stable economic growth (http://www. policyarchive. org/handle/10207/bitstreams/1311. pdf) 2. Convertibility and its problems in the 1999/2001 period 1. 1 Previous Devaluation Process in Argentina Three main large devaluation episodes prior to the monetary reform of 1991 can be iden tified in the graph: 1975-1976 (the so called â€Å"Rodrigazo†), 1982-1984 (the â€Å"Post Malvinas War† monetary collapse) and 1989-1990 (the â€Å"Hyperinflation†). (http://www. cavallo. om. ar/wp-content/uploads/2012/05/Devaluation-and-Inflation-. pdf) 2. First moments of devaluation Basically you can distinguish three half-year periods centered on the political and financial collapse at the end of 2001 namely: Precollapse (to September, 2001); Collapse (October 2001 to March 2002); and Depression (from April 2002). This section will focus on the end of the Collapse and the beginning and ongoing Depression. As earlier mentioned Argentina applied a currency board at the beginning of the 90’s which pegged the peso to the dollar and formed a fixed exchange rate.After the Crisis of Argentina had begun they had to decide how they can diminish the effect of the emerging depression. In December 2001 Argentina officially defaulted and in February 2002, the val ue of the pesos was almost half of the dollar, Eduardo Duhalde became president. He had to manage a country which was in a really bad condition. Different economists favored different strategies to stabilize the economy. Some favored a â€Å"pesification followed by a free-floating regime† and others â€Å"devaluation and subsequent dollarization†.Both of those possibilities are heavily discussed between the leading economists worldwide. After the financial crises in the 1990’s they suggested for developing countries to choose a corner solution and all intermediate exchange rate regimes were dismissed in order to be too risky. But in 2003, after the crisis of Argentina had reached its peak, the bi-polar view might be a good solution as well. The next section will be examine what Argentina did try to escape the crisis, after they had already implemented a currency board (fixed exchange rate), which eventually, with a lot of accompanying factors, evoked the crisis .They actually started floating their currency and implemented several other measures to save their economy. If this mixture of policies was successful will be analyzed in the following. 2. 1 Fixed exchange rate vs. floating exchange rate regimes For a better understanding what the next section is talking about, a brief introduction about the different exchange rate possibilities and their advantages and disadvantages will be implemented. A fixed exchange rate regime can be created in three different ways. The first two are either a Soft Peg or a Hard Peg of the currency.Hard Pegs are for example currency boards or currency Unions (Eurozone) and mean a complete fix to the currency of a foreign country (e. g. the currency board of Argentina pegged the Peso to the Dollar). Soft Pegs are the less strict version and link to other currencies is less direct. The third possibility is a fixed exchange rate peg to several countries. The main focus of this paper lies on the currency board as it was the case in Argentina. The main economic advantage of a hard peg (currency board) is, that it comes to a better trade between the countries that are part of the arrangement.Since the volatility of floating rates causes costs for exports and imports. It also encourages international capital flows which can profit the welfare of a country. Especially in case of developing countries these capital flows can be very large. One big Problem of the exchange rate regimes is the loss of monetary and fiscal possibilities to stabilize the economy as well as Limitation of the ability to pursue domestic goals. There is a slight difference between a hard peg and a fixed exchange rate, since the fix exchange rate can be with several countries whereas the hard peg only pegs it currency to one foreign country.They have more or less the same ad- and disadvantages, but with a fixed exchange rate, which is pegged to more than one country, the pursuit of domestic goals is easier, since the country does not depend on one foreign economy. One major weakness of the fixed exchange rate is, that when devaluation becomes necessary through fundamental changes in economy. Even the announcement of devaluation creates the danger of a crisis and eventually ends in a crisis, like the case of Argentina shows. It is also likely that a currency crisis after devaluation can end up in a banking crisis, since fixed exchange rates give incentives to take on debt. see below for further information) Floating exchange rates can be found for example in the arrangement of the U. S. with their major trading partners. It means that the value of the exchange rate will be freely determined in the market, depending on demand and supply. The main economic advantages of floating exchange rates are that they leave the monetary and fiscal authorities free to pursue internal goals. They can concentrate to generate full employment, stable growth, and price stability. Exchange rate adjustment often works as an automatic stabilizer to promote those goals.One main disadvantage of floating exchange rates is, that the exchange rate volatility and uncertainty, concerning costs on trade and investments, may discourage international investment. If foreign investment is a main source, as it is the case for most developing countries, floating exchange rate may impose real costs, not only for the exporters but also for the whole society. Whether a country should choose a fixed or a floating exchange rate depends on the dependency of the country on their neighbors and therefore their sensibility to external shocks.If it is very dependent on their neighbors and especially their neighbors’ economy the country is better of with a fixed exchange rate. But if the country is economically independent, a floating exchange rate would be the better choice in order to favor macroeconomic stability. 2. 2 Two types of exchange rates and free floating currency As the era of the currency board of Argentina was described earlier, the following focuses on the measures taken after the default of Argentina. The government chose a mixture of the two strategies mentioned before.Duhalde implemented his measures in a â€Å"schizophrenic† way. They started to devaluate the Peso from the originally 1 Peso to 1 Dollar rate to a 1. 4 pesos to 1 dollar rate (January 6 2002). On January 9th the government â€Å"pesified† dollar assets and liabilities, by converting the dollar to pesos at a 1 to 1 rate. This led to a â€Å"massive destruction of property rights† and a lot of utilities and companies ended up in bankruptcy. On February 9th they floated the peso by using the asymmetric pesification. This meant that dollar deposits were converted to pesos at the rate of 1 to 1. and dollar loans converted to pesos one to one. This imposed a large loss on the banking system and favored debtors owing dollar debts. A wide range of dollar denominated debt would be converted into pesos a t the old parity of one peso to one dollar. The holders of dollar deposits in the bank could convert those at a much more favorable exchange rate 1. 4 pesos to one dollar. It followed a great loss on the balance sheet of the Banks, who could only remain one peso for one dollar in debt owed by borrowers but owed 1. 4 peso for each dollar to the debtors.The asymmetric pesification amounted a total loss of $ 10- 15 Million Dollar compared to their equity of $ 17 million they had at the end of 2001. The government finally realized that it could not risk a total collapse of the banking system and offered to help the banks. They granted $ 9 million in the form of government bonds in order of compensation. This compensation covered most of the losses in nominal accounting but since the market value of the bonds was far below par not in real terms. 2. 2 Free floating currency http://www. nber. org/papers/w9808. pdf? new_window=1 in many emerging market economies, exports, imports, and ntern ational capital flows are a relatively large share of the economy, so large swings in the exchange rate can cause very substantial swings in the real economy. (p6) Under these circumstances, the monetary authority is likely to display â€Å"fear of floating† (Calvo and Reinhart, 2002), defined as a reluctance to allow totally free fluctuations in the nominal or real exchange rate, which Mussa (1986) showed are very closely linked. To â€Å"pesofy† all savings and debts Currency apparently has destroyed more the trust into the financial sector than the hyperinflation in 1989 did, although it was created to generate more trust.Argentina suffered from diverse devaluations of other currencies and then they devaluated their own currencies. Which effects did that have on other economies and their own? This question will be answered in the following section. 3. Effects of Devaluation process on 3. 1 Trade Balance 3. 2 Productive capacity 3. 3 Salaries 3. 4 National Accounts 4 . Conclusion 5. Literature Cline, William R. , 2003. â€Å"Restoring Economic Growth in Argentina†, Band 3158 von Policy research working papers , World Bank Publications 2003, 111 pages Labonte Marc, 2004. â€Å"Fixed Exchange Rates, Floating Exchange Rates, and Currency Boards: What Have We Learned? , Analyst in Macroeconomics Government and Finance Division, CRS Report for Congress, 24 pages Schuler, Kurt, 2002. â€Å" Ignorance and Influence: U. S. Economists on Argentina’s Depression of 1998-2002â€Å", Econ Journal Watch, Volume 2, Number 2, August 2005, pp. 234-278 ——————————————– [ 1 ]. http://www. nber. org/feldstein/argentina. pdf, p 10 [ 2 ]. Clarin. www. clarin. com. December 2001, available at http://www. servicios. clarin. com/notas/jsp/clarin/v8/edicant/edicantArchivo. jsp? dia=&mes=12&anio=2001&edAntTipo=edanter_diario&x=13&y=10, [ 3 ]. W. R. Clin e p. 47 [ 4 ].Labonte et al, 2004, p. 7 [ 5 ]. Labonte et al, 2004, p. 5- 18 [ 6 ]. Labonte et al, 2004, p. 3-5 [ 7 ]. Corrales, 2002, p. 38 [ 8 ]. Or â€Å"pesofication†, means conversion to pesos [ 9 ]. Corrales 2002, p. 39 [ 10 ]. http://www. tradingeconomics. com/argentina/currency [ 11 ]. Schuler 2003 (http://www. hacer. org/pdf/Tirania. pdf) p. 30 [ 12 ]. http://books. google. com. ar/books? id=HbEJy8KwYxcC&pg=PA53&lpg=PA53&dq=asymmetric+pesification&source=bl&ots=WWVnkeKfcW&sig=MEpQ9lphc-QTV68m-ctUWT2bAPk&hl=de&sa=X&ei=W6jCT5ekDZKk8QTnr-DACw&redir_esc=y#v=onepage&q=asymmetric%20pesification&f=false p. 45

Night World : Daughters of Darkness Chapter 15

Tiggy. She was running. Throwing the door open. Visionsof kittens impaled by tiny stakes in her mind. It wasn't Tiggy on the front porch. It was Ash. He was lying flat in the purple twilight, little moths fluttering around him. Mary-Lynnette felt a violent wrench in her chest.For a moment everything seemed suspended-and changed. If Ash were dead-if Ash had been killed †¦ Things would never be all right. She would neverbe all right. It would be like the night with the moonand stars gone. Nothing that anybody could do wouldmake up for it. Mary-Lynnette didn't know why-itdidn't make any sense-but she suddenly knew it was true. She couldn't breathe and her arms and legs felt strange. Floaty. Out of her control. Then Ash moved. He lifted his head and pushed up with his arms and looked around. Mary-Lynnette could breathe again, but she still felt dizzy. â€Å"Are you hurt?† she asked stupidly. She didn't dare touch him. In her present state one blast of electricity could fry her circuits forever. She'd meltlike the Wicked Witch of the West. â€Å"I fell in thishole, â€Å"he said. â€Å"What do you think?† That's right, Mary-Lynnette thought; the footsteps hadended with more of a crash than a thud. Not like the footsteps of last night. And that meant something †¦if only she couldfollow the thought to the end†¦ . â€Å"Having problems, Ash?†Kestrel's voice saidsweetly, and then Kestrel herself appeared out of the shadows, looking like an angel with her golden hair and her lovely clean features. Jade was behind her, holding Tiggy in her arms. â€Å"He was up in a tree,† Jade said, kissing the kitten's head. â€Å"I had to talk him down.† Her eyes were emerald in the porch light, and she seemed to float rather than walk. Ash was getting up, shaking himself. Like his sisters, he looked uncannily beautiful after a feeding,with a sort of weird moonlight glow in his eyes. Mary-Lynnette's thought was long gone. â€Å"Come on in,† she said resignedly. â€Å"And help figure out who killed your aunt.† Now that Ash was indisputably all right,she wanted to forget what she'd been feeling a minuteago. Or at least not to think about what it meant. What it means, the little voice inside her head said sweetly, is that you're in big trouble, girl. Ha ha. â€Å"So what's the story?† Kestrel said briskly as they all sat around the kitchen table. â€Å"The story is that there is no story,†MaryLynnette said. She stared at her paper in frustration. â€Å"Look-what if we start at the beginning? We don't know who did it, but we do know some things about them. Right?† Rowan nodded encouragingly. â€Å"Right.† â€Å"First: the goat. Whoever killed the goat had to bestrong, because poking those toothpicks through hidewouldn't have been easy. And whoever killed the goat had to know how your uncle Hodge was killed, because the goat was killed in the same way. And they had to have some reason for putting a black irisin the goat's mouth-either because they knew Ashbelonged to the Black Iris Club, or because they be longed to the Black Iris Club themself.† â€Å"Or because they thought a black iris would represent all lamia, or all Night People,† Ash said. Hisvoice was muffled-he was bent over, rubbing hisankle. â€Å"That's a common mistake Outsiders make.† Very good, Mary-Lynnette thought in spite of herself. She said, â€Å"Okay. And they had access to two different kinds of small stakes-which isn't sayingmuch, because you can buy both kinds in town.† â€Å"And they must have had some reason to hate Mrs. B., or to hate vampires,† Mark said. â€Å"Otherwise, why kill her?† Mary-Lynnette gave him a patient look. â€Å"I hadn't gotten to Mrs. B. yet. But we can do her now. First, whoever killed Mrs. B. obviously knew she was a vampire, because they staked her. And, second †¦ um†¦second . . .† Her voice trailed off. She couldn't think of anything to go second. -240 â€Å"Second, they probably killed her on impulse,† Ash said, in a surprisingly calm and analytical voice.†You said she was stabbed with a picket from the fence, and if they'd been planning on doing it, they'd probably have brought their own stake.† â€Å"Verygood.† This time Mary-Lynnette said it out loud. She couldn't help it. She met Ash's eyes and saw something that startled her. He looked as if itmattered to him that she thought he was smart. Well, she thought. Well, well. Here we are, probably for the first time, justtalking to each other. Not arguing, not being sarcastic, just talking. It's nice. It was surprisingly nice. And the strange thing was, she knew Ash thought so, too. They understood each other. Over the table, Ash gave her a barely perceptible nod. They kept talking. Mary-Lynnette lost track of timeas they sat and argued and brainstormed. Finally she looked up at the clock and realized with a shock that it was near midnight. â€Å"Do wehave to keep thinking?† Mark said pathetically. â€Å"I'm tired.† He was almost lying on the table. So was Jade. I know how you feel, Mary-Lynnette thought. Mybrain is stalled. I feel †¦ extremely stupid. â€Å"Somehow, I don't think we're going to solve the murder tonight,† Kestrel said. Her eyes were closed. She was right. The problem was that MaryLynnette didn't feel like going to bed, either. Shedidn't want to lie down and relax-there was a rest lessness inside her. I want †¦ what do I want? she thought. I want †¦ â€Å"If there weren't a psychopathic goat killer lurkingaround here, I'd go out and look at the stars,† shesaid. Ash said, as if it were the most natural thing inthe world, â€Å"I'll go with you.† Kestrel and Jade looked at their brother in disbelief. Rowan bent her head, not quite hiding a smile. Mary-Lynnette said, â€Å"Um †¦Ã¢â‚¬  â€Å"Look,† Ash said. â€Å"I don't think the goat killeris lurking out there everyminutelooking for people to skewer. And if anything does happen, I can handle it.† He stopped, looked guilty, then bland. â€Å"I mean we can handle it, because there'll be two of us.† Close but no cigar, buddy, Mary-Lynnette thought. Still, there was a certain basic truth to what he was saying. He was strong and fast, and she had the feeling he knew how to fight dirty. Even if she'd never seen him do it, she thoughtsuddenly. All those times she'd gone after him, shining light in his eyes, kicking him in the shins-and he'd never once tried to retaliate. She didn't think it had even occurred to him. She looked at him and said, â€Å"Okay.† â€Å"Now,† Mark said. â€Å"Look †¦Ã¢â‚¬  â€Å"We'll be fine,† Mary-Lynnette told him. â€Å"We won't go far.† Mary-Lynnette drove. She didn't know exactly where she was going, only that she didn't want to go to her hill. Too many weird memories. Despite what she'd told Mark, she found herself taking the car farther and farther. Out to where Hazel Green Creek and Beavercreek almost came together and the land between them was a good imitation of a rain forest. â€Å"Is this the best place to look at – stars?† Ash saiddoubtfully when they got out of the station wagon. â€Å"Well-if you're looking straight up,† MaryLynnette said. She faced eastward and tilted her head far back. â€Å"See the brightest star up there? That's Vega, the queen star of summer.† â€Å"Yeah. She's been higher in the sky every nightthis summer,† Ash said without emphasis. Mary-Lynnette glanced at him. He shrugged. â€Å"When you're out so much at night,you get to recognize the stars,† he said. â€Å"Even if you don't know their names.† Mary-Lynnette looked back up at Vega. She swallowed. â€Å"Can you–can you see something small and bright below her-something ring-shaped?† â€Å"The thing that looks like a ghost doughnut?† Mary-Lynnette smiled, but only with her lips.†That's the Ring Nebula. I can see that with my telescope.† She could feel him looking at her, and she heardhim take a breath as if he were going to say something. But then he let the breath out again and looked back up at the stars. It was the perfect moment for him to mention something about how Vampires See It Better. And if he had, Mary-Lynnette would have turned on him and rejected him with righteous anger. But since hedidn't,she felt a different kind of anger welling up. A spring of contrariness, as if shewere the Mary in the nursery rhyme. What, so you've decided I'm not good enough to be a vampire or something? And what did I really bring you out here for, to the most isolated place I could find? Only for starwatching? I don'tthink so. I don't even know who I am anymore, she remembered with a sort of fatalistic gloom. I have the feeling I'm about to surprise myself. â€Å"Aren't you getting a crick in your neck?† Ashsaid. Mary-Lynnette rolled her head from side to side slightly to limber the muscles. â€Å"Maybe.† â€Å"I could rub it for you?† He made the offer from several feet away. Mary-Lynnette snorted and gave him a look. The moon, a waning crescent, was rising above thecedars to the east. Mary-Lynnette said, â€Å"You want to take a walk?† â€Å"Huh? Sure.† They walked and Mary-Lynnette thought. About how it would be to see the Ring Nebula with herown eyes, or the Veil Nebula without a filter. She could feel a longing for them so strong it was like a cable attached to her chest, pulling her upward. Of course,that was nothing new. She'd felt it lots of times before, and usually she'd ended up buying another book on astronomy, another lens for her telescope. Anything to bring her closer to what she wanted. But now I have a whole new temptation. Something bigger and scarier than I ever imagined. What if I could be-more than I am now? Thesame . person, but with sharper senses? A Mary-Lynnette who couldreally belong to the night? She'd already discovered she wasn't exactly whoshe'd always thought. She was more violent-she'd kicked Ash, hadn't she? Repeatedly. And she'd admired the purity of Kestrel's fierceness. She'd seenthe logic in the kill-or-be-killed philosophy. She'd dreamed about the joy of hunting. What else did it take to be a Night Person? â€Å"There's something I've been wanting to say toyou,† Ash said. â€Å"Hm.†Do I want to encourage him or not? But what Ash said was â€Å"Can we stop fightingnow?† Mary-Lynnette thought and then said seriously, â€Å"Idon't know.† They kept walking. The cedars towered around them like pillars in a giant ruined temple. A dark temple. And underneath, the stillness was so enormous that Mary-Lynnette felt as if she were walkingon the moon. She bent and picked a ghostly wildflower that wasgrowing out of the moss. Death camas. Ash bent and picked up a broken-off yew branch lying at the footof a twisted tree. They didn't look at each other. They walked, with a few feet of space between them. â€Å"You know, somebody told me this would happen,† Ash said, as if carrying on some entirely different conversation they'd been having. â€Å"That you'd come to a hick town and chase agoat killer?† â€Å"That someday I'd care for someone – and itwould hurt.† Mary-Lynnette kept onwalking. She didn't slow or speed up. It was only her heart that was suddenly beating hard-in a mixture of dismay and exhilara tion. Oh, God-whatever was going to happen washappening. â€Å"You're not like anybody I've ever met,† Ash said. â€Å"Well, that feeling is mutual.† Ash stripped some of the papery purple bark offhis yew stick. â€Å"And, you see, it's difficult becausewhat I've always thought about humans-what I wasalways raised to think †¦Ã¢â‚¬  â€Å"I know what you've always thought,† MaryLynnette said sharply. Thinking,vermin. â€Å"But,† Ash continued doggedly, â€Å"the thing is andI know this is going to sound strange-that I seem to love you sort of desperately.† He pulled more bark off his stick. Mary-Lynnette didn't look at him. She couldn't speak. â€Å"I've done everything I could to get rid of the feeling, but it just won't go. At first I thought if I left Briar Creek, I'd forget it. But now I know that wasinsane. Wherever I go, it's going with me. I can't kill it off. So I have to think of something else.† Mary-Lynnette suddenly felt extremely contrary. â€Å"Sorry,† she said coldly. â€Å"But I'm afraid it's not very flattering to have somebody tell you that they love you against their will, against their reason, and even-â€Å" â€Å"Against their character,† Ash finished for her, bleakly. â€Å"Yeah, I know.† Mary-Lynnette stopped walking. She stared at him.†You havenot readPrideand Prejudice, † she said flatly. â€Å"Why not?† â€Å"Because Jane Austen was a human.† He looked at her inscrutably and said, â€Å"How do you know?† Good point.Scary point. How could she really knowwho in human history had been human? Whatabout Galileo? Newton? T ycho Brahe? â€Å"Well, Jane Austen was a woman,†shesaid, retreating to safer ground. â€Å"And you're a chauvinist pig-,' â€Å"Yes, well, that I can't argue.† Mary-Lynnette started walking again. He followed.†So now can I tell you how, um, ardently I loveand admire you?† Another quote. â€Å"I thought your sisters said youpartiedall the time.† Ash understood. â€Å"I do,† he said defensively. â€Å"Butthe morning after partying you have to stay in bed. And if you're in bed you might as well read something They walked. â€Å"After all, weare soulmates,† Ash said. â€Å"I can't becompletely stupid or I'd be completely wrong for you.† Mary-Lynnette thought about that. And about thefact that Ash sounded almost-humble. Which he had certainly never sounded before. She said, â€Å"Ash †¦I don't know. I mean-weare wrong for each other. We're just basically incompatible. Even if I were avampire, we'd be basically incompatible.† â€Å"Well.† Ash whacked at something with his yew branch. He spoke as if he half expected to be ignored. â€Å"Well, about that †¦ I think I couldpossibly change your mind.† â€Å"About what?† â€Å"Being incompatible. I think we could be sort offairly compatible if . . .† â€Å"If?† Mary-Lynnette said as the silence dragged on.†Well, if you could bring yourself to kiss me.† â€Å"Kissyou?† â€Å"Yeah, I know it's a radical concept. I was pretty sure you wouldn't go for it.† He whacked at another tree. â€Å"Of course humanshave been doing it for thousands of years.† Watching him sideways, Mary-Lynnette said, â€Å"Would you kiss a three-hundred-pound gorilla?† He blinked twice. â€Å"Oh, thank you.†Ã¢â‚¬ I didn't mean you looked like one.†Ã¢â‚¬ Don't tell me, let me guess. I smell like one?†Mary-Lynnette bit her lip on a grim smile. â€Å"I mean you're that much stronger than I am. Would you kissa female gorilla that could crush you with one squeeze`? When you couldn't do anything about it?†He glanced at her sideways. â€Å"Well, you're notexactly in that position, are you?† Mary-Lynnette said, â€Å"Aren't I? It looks to me as ifI'd have to become a vampire just to deal with youon an equal level.† Ash said, â€Å"Here.† Hewasofferingher theyew branch.Mary Lynnette stared at him. â€Å"You want to give me your stick.† â€Å"It's not a stick, it's the way to deal withme onan equal level.† He put one end of the branch againstthe base of his throat, and Mary-Lynnette saw that it was sharp.She reached out to take the other end and found the stick was surprisingly hard and heavy. Ash was looking straight at her. It was too dark to see what color his eyes were, but his expression was unexpectedly sober. â€Å"One good push would do it,† he said. â€Å"First here and then in the heart. You could eliminate the problem of me from your life.† Mary-Lynnette pushed, but gently. He took a step back. And another. She backed him up against a tree, holding the stick to his neck like a sword. â€Å"I actually meant only if you were really serious,†Ash said as he came up short against the cedar's bare trunk. But he didn't make a move to defend himself.†And the truth is that you don't even need a spear like that. A pencil in the right place would do it.† Mary-Lynnette narrowed her eyes at him, swirlingthe yew stick over his body like a fencer getting the range. Then she removed it. She dropped it to the ground. â€Å"You really have changed,† she said. Ash said simply, â€Å"I've changed so much in the lastfew days that I don't even recognize myself in the mirror.† â€Å"And you didn't kill your aunt.†Ã¢â‚¬ You're just now figuring that out?† â€Å"No. But I always wondered just a bit. All right, I'll kiss you.† It was a little awkward, lining up to get the position right. Mary-Lynnette had never kissed a boy before. But once she started she found it was simple. And†¦ now she saw what the electric feeling ofbeing soulmates was for. All the sensations she'd felt when touching his hand, only intensified. And not unpleasant. It was only unpleasant if you were afraidof it. Afterward, Ash pulled away. â€Å"There. Yousee,†he said shakily. Mary-Lynnette took a few deep breaths. â€Å"I supposethat's what it feels like to fall into a black hole.† â€Å"Oh. Sorry.† â€Å"No, I mean-it was interesting.† Singular, shethought. Different from anything she'd ever felt before. And she had the feeling thatshe would be different from now on, that she could never go back andbe the same person she had been. So who am I now? Somebody fierce, I think.Somebody who'd enjoy running through the dark ness, underneath stars bright as miniature suns, and maybe even hunt deer. Somebody who can laugh atdeath the way the sisters do. I'll discover a supernova and I'll hiss when somebody threatens me. I'll be beautiful and scary and dangerous and of course I'll kiss Ash a lot. She was giddy, almost soaring with exhilaration. I've always loved the night, she thought. And I'll finally belong to it completely. â€Å"Mary-Lynnette?† Ash said hesitantly. â€Å"Did you likeit?† She blinked and looked at him. Focused. â€Å"I want you to turn me into a vampire,† she said. It didn't feel like a jellyfish sting this time. It wasquick and almost pleasant like pressure being released. And then Ash's lips were on her neck, and that wasdefinitely pleasant. Warmth radiated from his mouth. Mary-Lynnette found herself stroking the back of his neck and realized that his hair was soft,as nice to touch as cat's fur. And his mind†¦was every color of the spectrum. Crimson and gold, jade and emerald and deep violetblue. A tangled thorn-forest of iridescent colors that changed from second to second. Mary-Lynnette wasdazzled. And half frightened. There was darkness in among those gemlike colors. Things Ash had done in the past †¦ things she could sense he was ashamed of now. But shame didn't change the acts themselves. I know it doesn't-but I'll make up for them, somehow.You'll see; I'll find away†¦. So that's telepathy, Mary-Lynnette thought. She couldfeel Ash as he said the words, feel that hemeant them with desperate earnestness-and feel that there was a lot to make up for. I don't care. I'm going to be a creature of darkness,too. I'll do what's in my nature, with no regrets. When Ash started to lift his head, she tightened her grip, trying to keep him there. â€Å"Please don't tempt me,† Ash said out loud, hisvoice husky, his breath warm on her neck. â€Å"If I take too much, it will make you seriously weak.I mean it, sweetheart.† She let him go. He picked up the yew stick and made a small cut at the base of his throat, tilting his head back like a guy shaving his chin. Mary-Lynnette realized he'd never done this before. With a feeling that was. almost awe, she put her lips to his neck. I'm drinking blood. I'm a hunter already–sort of. Anyway, I'm drinking blood and liking it-maybe because it doesn'ttastelike blood Not like copper and fear. It tastes weird and magic and old as the stars. When Ash gently detached her, she swayed on her feet. â€Å"We'd better go home,† he said. â€Å"Why? I'm okay.† â€Å"You're going to get dizzier-and weaker. And ifwe're going to finish changingyou into a vampire–â€Å" â€Å"if† â€Å"All right,when. But before we do, we need to talk. I need to explain it all to you; we have to figure out the details. Andyouneed to rest.† Mary-Lynnette knew he was right. She wanted to stay here, alone with Ash in the dark cathedral of the forest-but shedidfeel weak. Languid. Apparently it was hard work becoming a creature of darkness. They headed back the way they had come. Mary-Lynnette could feel the change inside herself-it was stronger than when she'd exchanged blood with the three girls. She felt simultaneously weak and hypersensitive. As if every pore were open. The moonlight seemed much brighter. She couldsee colors dearly-the pale green of drooping cedar boughs, the eerie purple of parrot-beak wildflowersgrowing out of the moss. And the forest wasn't silent anymore. She could hear faint uncanny sounds like the soft seething of needles in the wind, and her own footsteps on moist and fungus-ridden twigs. I can even smell better, she thought. This place smells like incense cedar, and decomposing plants,and something really wild-feral, like something from the zoo. And something hot †¦burny †¦ Mechanical. It stung her nostrils. She stopped and looked at Ash in alarm. â€Å"Whatisthat?† 0He'd stopped, too. â€Å"Smells like rubber and oil†¦.† â€Å"Oh, God, thecar, † Mary-Lynnette said. They looked at each other for a moment, then simultane ously turned, breaking into a run. It was the car. White smoke billowed from under the closed hood. Mary-Lynnette started to go closer, but Ash pulled her back to the side of the road.†I just want to open the hood-† â€Å"No. Look. There.† Mary-Lynnette looked-and gasped. Tiny tongues of flame were darting underneath the smoke. licking out of the engine. â€Å"Claudine always said this would happen,† shesaid grimly as Ash pulled her back farther, â€Å"Only I think she meant it would happen with me in it.† â€Å"We're going to have to walk home,† Ash said.†Unless maybe somebody sees the fire†¦.† â€Å"Not a chance,† Mary-Lynnette said. And that'swhat you get for taking a boy out to the most isolated place in Oregon, her inner voice said triumphantly. â€Å"I don't suppose you could turn into a bat or something and fly back,† she suggested. â€Å"Sorry, I flunked shapeshifting. And I wouldn't leave you here alone anyway.† Mary-Lynnette still felt reckless and dangerous and it made her impatient. â€Å"I can take care of myself,† she said. Andthat was when the club came down and Ash pitched forward unconscious.

Pearl River Piano

Introduction PRPG was a state-owned enterprise and was developed form an old piano factory in Guangzhou of China. The piano factory is located Pearl River, so that the brand of  piano  is  called  Pearl  River. Since  the  adoption  of  an  open-door  policy,  Chinaexploited a range of new opportunities provided by a market-oriented economy for  expanding production, employments, and profits through free trade markets. As a result, PRPG face a chance due to import technology and export products, and then they were expended to become Pearl River piano Industrial Corporation.Their  Ã‚  business become more  successful , fter they merger with several small company. In2000, PRPG had more than 130 strategic alliance through-outs the country, in addition to 208 sales units. Question1 Drawing on  industry- resource- and  institution-based views, explain how  PRPG,from  its humble roots,  managed to  become  China’s  largest  and the   world’s second largest piano producer. 1. 1 Industry-based view Rivalry  among  established  firms  may  prompt  certain  moves. PRPG  face  somechallenges, since piano is traditional European musical instrument, European pianoshas a long history, and they always target upper market, such as Steinway.PRPG will face  a  strong  challenge  when  they  target  upper  market. For  example,  althoughYAMAHA is the largest piano producers, they focus on medium and low-end market;however, Tong would like their PRPG become best brand, next only to Steinway. Inaddition, PRPG not only import technology of piano making, but also learn andintroduce western culture to them. Higher the entry barriers, PRPG face the difficult entre in US  market; the US peopledo not believe PRPG can make low price high quality products. PRPG cannot easily target foreign people.US people stay loyal to their local product. The bargaining power of buyers may lead to certa in foreign market entries. In USmarket, there are many competitors, such as Steinway. Steinway product always target upper market. Buyers may buy Steinway product, rather than PRPG. 1. 2 Resource-based view in 1960-1980, the factory had very low productivities, lowcompetitive ability, even less than 100 labors and produce only 13 pianos per year. The industry introduced total quality of management in 1988, and they also promoteISO 9000 in 1998.Moreover, they built business partnership with YAMAHA via joint venture. As  a  result,  PRPG  learned  higher  technology  skill  via  business  activities. PRPG not only import technology of piano making, but also learn and introducewestern culture to them. Tong pay attention to communicate with their employees in order to build goodâ€Å"GUANXI†. Tong also established close relationship with some famous world well-know piano players, and recommended they play their Pearl River piano in their  concerts. This is à ¢â‚¬Ëœcelebrity's appeal’ strategy in order to target people.Innovation included the importation of new technology in production and quality measurement and production innovation. Production innovation can be concluded developing a wide range of pianos to meet the upper-, medium- and low-end marketin order to target different consumers’ group. 1. 3 Institution-based view Regulatory risksThese risks are associated with unfavorable government policies. Since the adoptionof an open-door policy, PRPG is allowed import high technology and export their  Ã‚  products. As a WTO member, the government’s has been encouraging local industries to learn from their foreign partners.Currency risk  China  is  becoming  an  export  powerhouse,  which  caused  the  friction  with  other  countries, United States in particular. The U. S. senators urging the Whitehouse toexert pressure to China for RMB revaluation most recently and President Obama gavean official statement to point out RMB should be appreciated. China’s direct responseto RMB rate issue can be found in Premier Wen JiaBao’s answer in the pressconference just after the NPC;amp;CPCC* this month in Beijing. Premier Wen claimedRMB is not raise in value by presenting China’s increased figure of imp/expo absolutevalue in 2009.Question 2Why did  Tong believe that  PRPG must engage  in significant internationalization(instead of the current direct export strategy) at this point? China  is  a  country  with  a  huge  exporting  activities,  recently  it  is  changing  itsexporting mode which from low-wage and low-labor-cost advantage towards high-tech, high-value-added exports. Pearl River Piano Group, a state-owned company inChina, had been stimulated from a slow-moving Chinese firm founded in the  1956 toa booming global company with growing sales in domestic market and internationalmarket.While it has a good performanc e in the low-end product segment in the international market, there was an issue about whether Pearl River Piano could be awell-known global brand  by ascending to the  mid-high product segment, and whether  it could achieve sustained growth by building a reputable and high-quality brandname in the world. 2. 1 Direct exports Direct  exports  represent  the  most  basic  mode  of  entry,  which  capitalizes  oneconomized of scale in production concentrated in the home country and affords  better control over distribution.However, if the products involved are bulky. This strategy essentially treats foreign demand as an extension of domestic demand,and the firm is geared toward designing and producing for the domestic market firstand foremost. While direct exports may work if the export volume is small, it is notoptimal when the firm has a large number of foreign buyers. 2. 2 Dissatisfied of the  Pearl River piano progress The  company  established  a  joint  venture  with  Yamaha  in  1995. Through  this  partnership, PRPG learned how to make a world-class and high quality product.Bythe end of 2000, PRPG was the largest piano builder in china, the second largest in theworld, with an annual production capacity of over  100,000 pianos. The company hadmore than 4,000 employees with a total asset value of approximately $130 million. Also it diversified into other musical instrument, and contains more than 50% of  Ã‚  piano market in China. However, Tong did not satisfy this progress; he thought thePearl River piano could be a world class brand. 2. 3 Competition in domestic marketHundreds of private companies began entering the market and competing with their  low quality and low price products. Such as the old well-known brand Star Sea and NiEr, and numbers of emerging piano builder company with a low price products. 2. 4 Future prospects of PRPG According to the case, Tong believed that the company could s urvive by themselvesin domestic market; however it is impossible for an entrepreneur to stay in the same  position permanently. And he thought that the company had made some successes, butit is not enough for a company to stay in the good position.The company is stilldeveloping and it needs to extend business in the global market in order to satisfycompany’s strategy. 2. 5 Challenges in international market When  compared  with  other  Chinese  piano  builders,  PRPG  had  gained  someexperience in exporting. Tong believed that although the  piano market in the  US was mature, PRPG could still take advantage in the market. Because US have  a high levelof labor cost, PRPG could take advantage of cheap labor cost in China with high levelof product quality to gain market position in US market. On the other hand, it isdifficult to enter into the US market.If company want to extend business in USmarket, firstly PRPG need to introduce the US partner to t he Chinese market, as anexchange for its  entry to the  US market. Finally, PRPG established a  sales subsidiaryin the US market for further expands. 2. 6 Building world class brand Direct exporting could be an efficient way for company to make sales, but it onlysuitable for a short term development. For long term, PRPG must build its world class  brand and provide high quality product to target upper level markets in order tomaximize profit for sustainable development.Question 3If you were one of the professors who visited Tong in March of 2000, how wouldyou have briefed him about the pros and cons of various foreign market entryoptions? 3. 1 Non-equity modes (exports and contractual agreements) Tends to reflect relatively smaller commitments to overseas markets, which do notcall require independent organizations. 3. 11 Exports 1) Direct exports: treats foreign demand as an extension of  domestic demand, and thefirm is geared toward designing and producing for the domesti c market first andforemost. ) Indirect exports: exporting through domestically based export intermediaries. 1 Non–equitymodes: 1 Non-equity modes : Exports| Pros| Cons| | Economics of scale in production concentrated in home country. | High transportation costs for bulky products. | Direct Exports| Better control over distribution (relative to indirect export)| Marketing distance from customers. |   |   | Trade barriers. | Indirect exports| Concentration of resources on production. | Less control over distribution (relative to direct exports)|   | No need to directly handle export processes. Inability to learn how to operate overseas. | 3. 12 Contractual agreements 1)  Licensing/franchising:  the  licensor/franchiser  sells  the  rights  to  intellectual  property such as patents and know-how to the licensee/franchisee for a royalty fee. 2) Turnkey projects: projects in  which clients pay contractors to  design and  constructnew facilities and tr ain personnel. 3) R;amp;D contracts: outsourcing agreements in R;amp;D between firms (that is, firm Aagrees to perform certain R;amp;D work for firm B). 4)  Comarketing:  agreements  among  a  number  of  firms  to  jointly  market   their products and services. Non-equity modes : Contractual agreements| Pros| Cons|   | Low development costs. | Little control over technology and marketing| Licensing/Franchising| Low risk in overseas expansion. | May create competitors|   | | Inability to engage in global coordination. | Turnkey projects| Ability to earn returns from process technology in countries where FDI is restricted| May create efficient competitors. |   | | Lack of long-term presence. | | Ability to tap into the best locations for certain innovations at low costs. | Diffecult to negotiate and enforce contracts. R;amp;D contracts| | May nurture innovative competitors. |   | | May lose core innovation capabilities. | Co-marketing| Ability to reach m ore customers. | Limited coordination. | 3. 2 Equity modes (joint ventures and wholly owned subsidiaries) Indicate relatively larger, harder to reverse commitments, and equity modes call for  establishing independent organizations overseas. 3. 21 Joint ventures : a new entity given birth and jointly owned by two or more parent companies. 3 Equity modes : Joint venture| Pros| Cons| | Sharing costs and risks. | Divergent goals and interests of partners.   | Access to partners' knowledge and assets. | Limited equity and operational control. |   | Politically acceptable. | Difficult to coordinate globally. | 3. 22 Wholly owned  subsidiaries 1) Green-field operations: building factories and offices from scratch. 2) Acquisition:  A corporate action  in which  a  company  buys  most, if  not  all, of thetarget company's ownership stakes in order to assume control of the target firm. 4 Equity modes: Wholly owned subsidiaries| Pros| Cons| | Complete equity and operati onal control. | Potential political problems and risks. Green-field projects| Protection of technology and know-how. | High development costs. |   |   | Slow entry speed (relative to acquisitions)| Acquisitions| Same as green-field (above)| Same as green-field (above), except slow speed. |   | Fast entry speed| Post-acquisition integration problems. | Question 4 Again, if you were one of those professors, what method would you have tosuggest as a way to tackle the US market? Method has been talked before: Joint ventures  Nowadays, joint ventures have been the main form of foreign direct investment (FDI). 4. 1 Problems to tackle the US market: 4. 1 How to  get a partnership with  local company? US don't believe Chinese company can make good quality and cheap price products. They don't trust overseas company. They consider Chinese company as a competitor  more than a partner. 4. 12 Administrative requirements: US government wants their own people to benefit from industri alization. So they pushforeign investors to ally with local firms before graniting access to market. 4. 2  Suggestions: 4. 21Share ownership with US companies: Increase the trust each other Goal: encourage some ethnic citizens to participate in industrial development. To