Response and Analysis Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words - 3

Response and Analysis - Essay Example As a result, of intimidation, women suffer in silences. Therefore, it is prudent for Jane to roll up an activism campaign against gender discrimination. Consequently, she will free suffering women from the hand of discriminative husbands. If she pursues the course of activism, men will not impose laws that make it mandatory for women to put on veils. Mary Jane’s father is a significant character in the novel. As witnessed from the story, the father played an important role in informing her about Iranian history. From the father’s narration, Mary Jane understands the extent to which the Muslim laws are misused. On the other hand, the role played by her mother is equally significant. The fathers’ information highlights that not all men support unfair laws. Equally important to mention, the farther inspires Mary Jane to strive for an equitable society. This courage is evident in Mary Jane’s habit of slapping disrespect men. The father’s refusal to leave Iran confirms his desire to ensure that all individuals enjoy equal treatment. This brave act is a show of patriotism and his commitment towards accomplishing change in a fundamentalist religious

Group Minds Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Group Minds - Essay Example However, the fact of life is that all individuals live their life in a group. There are very few people who appreciate to live a solitary life as numerous cannot stand solitude for long. Majority of the people are group animals, even if they fail to recognize it and this is what creates problem i.e. the failure to understand the social law that governs the group and thus that governs us. It is undeniable that the ideas and opinion of an individual belonging to a certain group is influenced by the opinion of that group. It is a tough task to maintain individuality against group opinion. Psychologist and sociologists have carried out various experiments to exhibit that usually the individuals are influenced by the opinion of the group and give up their opinion because the opinion of the majority in-group does not agree with them. People who have experienced this scenario agree that it is a shameful memory of theirs that they gave up their opinion under the influence of the group. It is important to realize this and various other mechanisms of human behavior so that in future we just do not limit our self to collection of information about ourselves but use it to improve our life and situation and free people from blind loyalties and obedience (Lessing,

Roadmap to the Development Process of Toyota Prius Essay Example for Free

Roadmap to the Development Process of Toyota Prius Essay Toyota Motor Corporation is a famous Japanese multinational corporation, and is considered the world’s second largest automaker of automobiles, trucks, buses, robots, and providing financial services. When Toyota and other Japanese carmakers entered the American market, they were not considered as a threat to the American auto industry because it was believed their cars had no appeal to American consumers However, in the 1970s, due to several problems like environmental regulations, and quality control issues with American cars, a good number of American car owners began searching for alternatives to poorly made American cars. In response to these changes, Toyota and other Japanese carmakers aggressively marketed their cars to Americans as being fuel-efficient, environmentally friendly, and having better build quality than American cars. In addition, Toyota marketed their cars with commercials involving young Toyota drivers jumping in the air. As a result, the Japanese’s marketing campaign along with continuing problems from the Big Three auto manufacturers, allowed import cars to make up about 20 percent of the US car market by 1980. Stage1. General Motors, Ford and Daimler-Chrysler focused in the late 1990s on mergers and acquisitions for improving their business positions to meet future challenges. Toyota, meanwhile, centered its business strategy on technological innovation and persistent environmental product development. The price of oil was not especially high during the 1990s when Toyota started its hybrid car program. Oil prices were below US $20 barrel in 1994 and were to fall to a 50-year low around 1997 when the Toyota Prius was first sold in Japan. Clearly something else was driving Toyota and other Japanese companies to invest so heavily in hybrid car development. There are three probable reasons: 1 . High petrol taxes in Japan, due to the Japanese government wanting to reduce the dependence of Japan on imported oil. While this would have certainly driven the Japanese development of hybrid cars, petrol was cheap in the key US market at this time. 2) The potential to gain a market advantage by developing the key technologies required to successfully commercialize hybrid cars, and then owning these developments via patents. 3) The expectation that ownership of these key fuel savings technologies would become very valuable when world oil prices rise from the lows of the mid-1990s, which was a fair long-term assumption to make during this period. Stage2: Decision Making Process: In 1994, the executive team acknowledged the potential threat of depleting oil reserves and climate change and change their strategy or products to meet the needs of future customers. Course of Action: Toyota set up a group tasked with meeting the challenge of creating a vehicle for the 21st century, which would work within the parameters of natural resource constraints and environmental issues. Commitment to course of action: Toyota pioneered the concept of Hybrid (petrol/electric) technology to mass produce the world’s first eco-efficient vehicle, the Toyota Prius. Evaluation of decision/re-engineering: The first prototype of the car had even faced starting problem. It took almost six months to roll the car. Finally, when the car started, it moved for a few yards only. It was hard to imagine that Toyota, which was known for its efficient production systems, was facing such trouble. Initially it felt that ‘Prius’ was a case of technological problems, impossible demands and multiple miscalculations. It proved how a great company could overcome obstacles and turn a dream into reality. Though ‘Prius’ represented only a small fraction of the nine million cars and trucks that the Japanese company planned to produce in 2006, it would be the first vehicle to provide a serious alternative to internal combustion engines, designed for a world of scarce oil and was branded as ‘The car for the future’. Stage3: Toyota carefully studied the US market and sees there is a growing oil crisis and foresees a need for change in the structure for cars, converting their needs to oil saving cars. While American car manufactures lacked producing such cars, then Toyota caught that opportunity and tried to occupy this niche market. By 2002, it was being sold in North America, Japan, Europe, Hong Kong, Australia and Singapore. Analysts opined that the demand for hybrid cars would rise because of the unstable oil prices and the growing need for environment friendly products. Post Evaluation By examining the external environment and acknowledging the potential threats of depleting resources and increased concern over environmental issues, Toyota have turned a threat into a business opportunity, boosting their reputation both as an environmentally conscious and as technological innovators and established themselves as leaders in this growing market. The car industry faces many complex issues, but the introduction of the Prius provided Toyota with a competitive advantage. RoadMap to the development Process of Toyota Prius. Stage1| Stage2| Stage3| Executive level| 1 Expressed concern about the future of the automobile2. Embarked a new project called G21 to the team3. Communicated the vision and priorities to the team| 1. The executive team acknowledged the potential threat of depleting oil2. Challenged the team for the innovation of new model using new technology| 1. Toyota unveiled the Prius in Japan in October 1997, two months ahead of schedule. 2. Made strategy plans for introducing cars to US and other prospective continents| Management and Team level| 1. Engaged in improving the existing internal combustion engine technology2. Started making refinements to the existing technology | 1. Team committed to the course of action using hybrid technology. 2. Came up with around 80 alternatives. 3. Identified numerous problems heat, reliability, noise, and cost. 4. Narrowed the list to four models. 5. After endless fussing and tweaking, the team finally reached 66 miles per gallon the 100% mileage improvement. | 1. Team has started putting efforts towards with second and third generation Prius. 2. Redesigned the model for making it more appealing to the consumers. | Marketing /Sales Team| 1. Identification of the growing oil prices. 2. Identification of Growing middle class around the world. | 1. Raised the concern that Premium price for the hybrid would make it impossible to sell. 2. Challenged with building consumer technology awareness. | 1. Devised new marketing ways to cut down dealership costs in US. 2. Devised new ways to boost the sales through internet, relied on grass-roots marketing, and public relations events|.

Cpk Case Essay Example for Free

Cpk Case Essay California Pizza Kitchen, Inc. (CPK) is a United States based dining restaurants chain. The company primarily offers a mixture of assortments of hearth-baked pizzas, a wide variety of unique appetizers, desserts, pastas, salads, soups and sandwiches. CPK operates across more than 253 locations in 32 states, the District of Columbia and 10 foreign countries. It owns 205 and 48 franchised restaurants across the world and is headquartered at Dover, Delaware. An external analysis of the California Pizza Kitchen reveals several challenges facing the business: Political, economical, social and technological changes to be specific. CPK’s communication strategy focuses on marketing the California Pizza Kitchen brand through many creative and non-traditional avenues. As one of the pioneers of premium pizza, they continue to benefit from national media attention featuring their co-founders and co-CEOs, Richard Rosenfield and Larry Flax, this is believed to provide CPK with a noteworthy competitive advantage. New restaurant openings, high-profile fundraisers and media events currently serve as the focal point of their public relations and media outreach efforts. As early as 2009 CPK landed a sponsorship agreement with the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim and the Los Angeles Kings to promote California Pizza Kitchen at Angel Stadium and STAPLES Center, respectively. In the same year their public relations efforts led to coverage on a national level in various outlets including the Business Week Magazine, ESPN the Magazine, Los Angeles Times, USA Today, Wall Street Journal, The View, FOX National News and CNBC Power Lunch. CPK’s objective is to expand its leadership position in the restaurant and premium pizza market by selling original, high quality pizzas in addition to creative salads, distinctive pastas and related products and by providing extraordinary customer service, thus building a high degree of customer loyalty, brand awareness and superior returns for stockholders. To reach these objectives, CPK plan to increase the market share by expanding their restaurant base in new and existing markets, leveraging their partnerships in non-traditional and retail channels and offering inventive menu items. CPK is pursuing a disciplined growth strategy that, to be successful, depends on the ability and the ability of franchisees and licensees to open new restaurants and to operate these new restaurants on a profitable basis. Successful growth depends on numerous factors including: the hiring, training and retention of qualified working ersonnel, especially managers; competition for restaurant sites; negotiation of favorable lease terms; timely development of new restaurants, including the availability of construction materials and labor; management of construction and development costs of new restaurants; securing required governmental approvals and permits; competition in our markets; and general economic conditions

Freuds concepts and their value for contemporary psychology

Freuds concepts and their value for contemporary psychology Sigmund Freud (1856-1939) is well known as the founder of psychoanalysis in psychiatry and is thought of by many as a key figure in psychology. Throughout his work Freud came up with numerous concepts and theories, many of which still cause a lot of debate amongst psychologists. In this essay I will discuss some of Freuds key concepts including; development of personality, personality structures and defence mechanisms. After which I will attempt to assess their significance in modern psychology and conclude whether or not I believe Freuds concepts are of value to contemporary psychology and if we should continue to look into his work. One key concept developed by Freud is the development of personality. He came up with five distinct stages, known as the psychosexual stage, to describe how our personalities develop from birth to about 18 years of age. He places particular emphasis on the development of sexual drives and how this shapes our personalities. Furthermore, each stage has a region, known as the erogenous zone, where the libidinal energy is focused. The five stages are: Oral stage (birth one year old), in this stage Freud (1901) suggests that events around feeding are the focal point of pleasure for the infant, the erogenous zone includes the lips, mouth and tongue (Maltby, Day and Macaskill; 2007). Anal stage (1year -2 years), Freud believed that bowel movement gives the baby sensual pleasure, also at this stage the child is rewarded for bladder and bowel control (Maltby et al., 2007). The anal region becomes the new erogenous zone. Phallic stage (3 years -5 years), at this stage the child starts to mature physiologically and the libidinal energy is transferred to genital region (new erogenous zone). At this stage gratification is gained from masturbation (Maltby et al., 2007). Freud thought that girls experienced what he called penis envy as they become aware that boys have penises and the do not. In addition, boys become sexually aware of their mother and start to view their father as a sexual rival (and experience castration anxiety fear of losing their penis), this is known as the Oedipal complex. Latency stage (5 years -12 years) can be seen as a resting period of the psychosexual stage. Social interactions are most important in this stage, children develop friendships with same sexed peers, as well as, identifying with the same sexed parent (Maltby et al., 2007) resulting in socialisation of gender roles. Genital stage (12 years +) as this stage puberty begins, which reawakens the libidinal energy, resulting in a more mature sexual attachment, in normal development the main sexual objects are members of the opposite sex (Maltby et al., 2007). Freud also developed the idea of personality structures. He identifies three personality structures that develop in every person, these are the; ID (present from birth), EGO and superEGO (these two form later on in development). The ID is the primitive, pleasure seeking part of the personality, it strives for immediate gratification (i.e. I want X and I want it now!). The EGO plays an important role as the mediator and is the rational aspect of our personalities (i.e. You will find a way to get X, just be patient). Finally the superEGO is the moral, guilt driven side of the personality which then becomes our conscience (i.e. You cant have X because its wrong). And finally I will talk about defence mechanisms, a well-known concept developed by Freud. Defence mechanisms can be described as the minds way of protecting itself from unacceptable or painful thoughts, as well as, conflict from the three personality structures. Freud mentions eleven defence mechanisms: Repression, denial, projection, reaction formation, rationalisation, conversion reaction, phobic avoidance, displacement, regression, isolation and undoing. The two most known defences are: repression the idea that we push undesirable thoughts, feelings and impulses from our conscious mind into our unconscious in order to shield ourselves from pain and protect our self-esteem. In other words Freud saw repression as the Ego and superEGOs way of supressing the ID. Denial is simply when we refuse to face certain situations or realities as we do not find them acceptable. Cramer (1991) states that the boundaries between these two defence mechanisms are often hard to distinguish between (cited in Baumeister, Dale and Sommer Freudian Defence mechanisms and empirical findings in modern social psychology; 1998). The next part of the essay will aim to assess the value of some of Freuds work in contemporary psychology. The concept of personality development is solely based on how libidinal instincts shape us. Maltby, Day and Macaskill (2007), state that Freud does not meet the parsimony criteria in his explanation of the motivational basis of behaviour, Freud implies that sexual and aggressive instincts are the only motivators of human behaviour (Maltby et al., 2007). The psychosexual stages, do not fully explain human behaviour as they are highly reductionist and ignore the complexity of the human mind, as well as, being bias in only emphasising one aspect as the basis of all behaviour, therefore, it can be said that they are of little value to contemporary psychology. Freud also identified problems that may occur as a result of fixation in anyone of the five psychosexual stages. He then developed treatment, known as free association, which would allow the patients to resolve their emotional conflicts, which involved catharsis, where the patients discharged their emotions by speaking freely about anything they want, leading to resolution of these issues. This method has been widely reviewed and is still used in contemporary psychology. Greenberg (2002) concluded that emotional arousal and processing within a supportive therapeutic relationship is the core element for positive change in therapy. He emphasized the cognitive aspect of catharsis and the need to understand and make sense of emotions. (Esta Powell; 2007). Free association is replicable making it reliable and has many applications to contemporary psychology making it valid. Conversely, much of Freuds work on the psychosexual stages was largely based on his interpretations of observations of young children or self-reports of dreams and thoughts. Freud used Little Hans primarily to support his theory of the Oedipus complex (Jennifer Stuart; 2007). Critics contend that Freuds theory is lacking in empirical evidence and relies too heavily on therapeutic achievements, whereas others assert that even Freuds clinical data are flawed, inaccurate, and selective at best (Beystehner; 1998). Thus, the validity of his work is very much in question. As these concepts, such as the psychosexual stages, cannot be operationalized and tested they are not falsifiable and are of little relevance to contemporary research. Many of Freuds theories are simple in a way that they are not comprised of many concepts, for example, his theory on personality structure consists of three clearly definable structures. In this sense his work can be said to be parsimonious and has formed a basis for further research. According to Dangleish and Power (1999) the personality structure purposed by Freud has face validity as we are all aware of anxiety and conflicts in everyday life decision making (as cited in Maltby, Day and Macaskill, Personality, Individual Differences and Intelligence; 2007: 34). Face validity implies that there is support for his theory on personality structures, and so this theory can be operationalized and tested to see how personalities coexist within us and data from these tests can have practical applications. Furthermore, Freuds work on defence mechanisms was widely accepted and leads to follow up research, such as that by Brewin and Andrews. After reviewing this area of psychology, Brewin and Andrews (1998) concluded that 20% to 60% of therapy patients who had been victims of sexual abuse in their childhood reported not being able to recall being abused for large periods of time in their lives (cited in Maltby et al., Personality, Individual Differences and Intelligence; 2007: 36,37). This shows us that the mind does use methods, such as repression, to protect itself from indecent memories. This shows falsifiability as it is replicable and has practical applications in life which can be used and developed in contemporary psychology. Freuds work is very controversial and has provoked enormous debate, much of which has led to the development of novel ideas in psychology. Not only has his work been expanded upon and developed (e.g. to better treatment of mental patients) but many breakthroughs have been made in trying to disprove his theories. Although many of Freuds theories are subjective and based on his interpretation of dreams and thoughts which cannot be empirically tested, he has made many valuable contributions to psychology. These include the use of defence mechanisms and the idea of personality structures, both of which have supporting evidence from contemporary psychologists, e.g. Brewin and Andrews (1998) work supports the concept of defence mechanisms. As well as this he created clinical practice of psychoanalysis for treating psychopathology, developed therapeutic techniques such as the use of free association and concluded dreams are the primary insight into the unconscious mind. All of these have ha d practical applications and have formed the foundation of contemporary psychology. Thus, I believe that it is potent that Freuds theories and concepts continue to be revised. Referencing: Maltby, J., Day, L Macaskill, A. (2007). Personality, Individual Differences and Intelligence (2nd Ed.). London: Prentice Hall Baumeister, R.F., Dale, K. Sommer, K. L. (1998). Freudian Defence mechanisms and empirical findings in modern social psychology: Reaction Formal, Projection, Displacement, Undoing, Isolation, Sublimation and Denial. Oxford: Blackwell Publishing. Stuart, J. (2007). Little Hans and Freuds Self-Analysis: A Biographical View of Clinical Theory in the Making, 55, (3), 799-819. Beystehner, K. M. (1998). Psychoanalysis: Freuds revolutionary approach to human personality. Retrieved October 22, 2010, from Personality Papers Web site: http://www.personalityresearch.org/papers/beystehner.html Powell, E. (2007). Catharsis in Psychology and Beyond: A Historical overview. Visited on October 25, 2010, Web site: http://www.primalmatters.com/images/Catharsis%20.pdf

Catcher in the Rye :: essays research papers

â€Å"The Member Of The Wedding† and â€Å"The Catcher The Rye† are both similar novels in the way adolescents want to belong to a group of people but there is one major difference. Frankie is looking to grow up so that she can fit in with the people around her while Holden wants to avoid adulthood completely as he sees the adult world as being false and corruptible. In â€Å"Member Of The Wedding Frankie feels like she doesn’t fit in to a child’s world. This is due to a number of reasons. She wishes now to belong to a more adult society. Frankie feels alienated from the rest of her friends. When they play underneath the arbour Frankie doesn’t â€Å"fit† because she is too tall. She resents this and sees her friends as â€Å"ugly screaming kids†. Frankie attempts to befriend the older girls but they say she â€Å"smells† and when they talk about sex Frankie doesn’t understand referring to this as â€Å"nasty lies†. Here we see Frankie excluded from the adult world that she desires to belong to. Frankie also feels excluded from her family. Her father won’t allow her to sleep in the same bed as him anymore. He says that she is â€Å"too big† now. He is rarely at home and when he is he hardly speaks to Frankie. She attempts to converse with him but he just â€Å"grunts† at her. Eventually when he does talk to her he doesn’t say much. After the wedding he shows a lack of understanding towards his daughter. She needs him but he tells her to wait until they are at home because then he will punish her for her behaviour. Berenice is the mother figure in her life but she returns to her own home and family in the evening. She feels excluded from Jarvis and Janice too because when they arrive home for a few days they invite Frankie’s father but not her. She feels this isn’t very fair as she is also part of the family. This heightens Frankies isolation and also heightens her desire to belong to a group. Frankie wants to â€Å"belong† to the navy and then decides to give blood to the Red Cross. She is refused on both accounts because she is too young. She thinks the â€Å"freaks† and â€Å"criminals† are trying to make eye contact with her so she can join their group but Frankie does not want that.

Automated Sorting and Organizing Systems :: Robotics

Background Research Sorting and Organizing Since the birth of civilization, organization has played an essential role in all aspects of life. The seven wonders of the ancient world could not have been built without extensive organization. The Egyptians made an impressive use of organization when they built the Great Pyramids. They had to organize their workers into different groups, each doing a different job. The architects also had to sort the bricks in order to build the pyramids. They sorted the bricks depending upon size and shape in order to reduce the amount of work they had to do shaping the bricks.1 This effectiveness of sorting can be seen today in the modern world. In recent times, sorting systems are automated requiring little human involvement. One company that uses sorting to make its company run faster and more efficient is DHL in Belgium. They have put into practice an automated sorting system called Verastream.2 Verastream can do the whole process of sorting, including weighing, measuring, and shipping without much human interference. Another company named Compac has an extensive sorting system that sorts produce by weight, color, blemish, shape, and density. Compac’s color sorting system uses an InVision 5000 Color and Demension System to sort its produce. This machine can distinguish between up to sixteen user-defined colors. In addition, it can choose the average color of the type of produce. After determining the 1 â€Å"Seven Wonders of the World - Pyramids of Egypt† 2 â€Å"Verastream Helps Automate Package Sorting for DHL† color of the produce passing through the machine, the produce can then be sent down the correct path.3 Compac’s color sorting system is similar to the soda sorting system. The soda sorting system uses a light sensor to sort the soda by color. When the consumer makes a choice of soda by clicking the corresponding button, the light sensor will look for the color of the corresponding soda. Once the light sensor acquires the correct soda, it will then send the information to another RCX. The other RCX will then find the correct type of soda, pick it up, and transport the selected soda to a soda can opener. The major advantage of the sorting machine compared to industrial sorting machines is that the robot sorter is much smaller. It is small enough to fit into a cabinet. Also this product allows an average person to have a remotely operated way of choosing a type of soda and bringing it to him or her. This is useful because a person may not want or be able to get up and get a soda for him or herself without missing part of his or her