Physiology and Medications of the Lumbar Disc Disease

Lumbar Disc Disease, as the name implies, is a disease attacking the lumbar area of the spinal column that is characterized by general pain, weakness, and numbness in any section of the lumbar area—five segments in the lower extremities of the spinal column and the disc connecting them or the intervertebral disc. Lumbar Disc Disease is often used interchangeably with the following associated medical terms— sciatica, lumbosacral radiculopathy (or simply radiculopathy), LBP (Lower Back Pain), (LRS)lumbosacral radicular syndrome, and herniated disc.Technically speaking though LRS or radiculopathy would be descriptive of the more specific leg pain or the sciatica. Physiology of the disease involves the â€Å"rupture†, â€Å"herniated†, or â€Å"bulged† condition of the intervertebral disc caused by disc compression through dehydration in the affected discoid area and accompanied by bulging out of nucleus pulposus and degeneration of the annulus fibrosis . Further disc degeneration can lead to herniated condition whereby the nucleus pulposus ruptures from the outer ring region and effecting weight or press on the sensitive nerves sublocated between disc spaces or the lumbar epidural spaces.Due to the â€Å"weight† or the â€Å"press†, the affected person experiences pain in the aforementioned region. The impingement on the nerve roots or the sinuvertebral nerves caused neurological symptoms in the regions that are supplied by the affected nerves. Disc herniation usually attacks between the fifth and the fourth lumbar bodies (L4-5) and the fifth lumbar body and the immediate sacral region (L5-S1). Size of the disc herniation is irrelevant to the severity of the symptoms of the radiculopathy.Inflammation from the disc hernia may also have resulted from increased activity of the phospholipase A2, nitric oxide, prostaglandin E, leukotriene B4 and thromboxane B2 in the disc region as caused by the hernia initiating nocicept ive and inflammatory responses. Such disease is a common ailment in the elderly or the aging individuals. It occurs on four per cent of the US population with ages from 40 to 60 for both male and female gender.Specific symptoms of the disease are dependent on the lumbar disc press on the specific nerve ends and may include any or a combination of the following: (1) intermittent or continuous back pain, (2) back muscle spasm, (3) sciatica, (4) muscle weakness/numbness in the lower extremities, (5) decreased joint reflexes, and (6) possible bladder malfunction. Symptoms may persist for more than a month. The disease is diagnosed through medical history examination, physical examination, x-ray diffraction, magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), Computed tomography (CT) scanning, Discography, Myelogram and Electrodiagnosis (e.g. Needle electromyography). Neurological and musculoskeletal system’s possible dysfunctions are observed thoroughly to detect sensory or motor deficits. As of r ecent, lumbar disc disease treatment would include conservative therapy (non-operative) — physical therapy (e. g. L5 reflex assessment), stress reduction programs, lumbosacral back support, weight management and medications for alleviating the painful symptoms—and operative therapy or the surgery or removal of the affected lumbar region, otherwise known as lumbar disketomy.In a study for the assessing the efficacy of surgery for lumbar disc disease conducted by Weinstein and colleagues in 2006, it was found out that both operative and non-operative therapy for curing the disease demonstrated substantial improvement in their â€Å"conditions,† however, the authors, did not indicate which therapy is more effective downplaying it to â€Å"statistical insignificance. † Bibliography Herniated Nucleus Pulposus (Slipped Disk) (2006). Retrieved January 10, 2008 from http://health. nytimes. com/health/guides/disease/herniated-nucleus-pulposus-slipped-disk/overview . htmlLumbar Disc Disease (Herniated Disc). Retrieved January 10, 2008 from http://www. ohsu. edu/health/health-topics/topic. cfm? id =8838. Malanga, G. (2007) Lumbosacral Radiculopathy. Retrieved January 10, 2008 from http://www. emedicine. com/SPORTS/topic66. htm Weinstein, J. et al. (2006). Surgical vs Nonoperative Treatment for Lumbar Disk Herniation. JAMA,. 2006, 296:2441-2450. Retrieved January 10, 2008 from http://jama. ama-assn. org/cgi/content/full/296/20/2441 What You Need to Know About Sciatica. (2007) Retrieved January 10, 2008 from http://www. spine-health. com/topics/cd/d_sciatica/sciatica. html

Led Zeppelin: A Decade That Changed Rock Music Essay

Led Zeppelin was formed in 1968 and disbanded in 1980. During that interval there were dramatic changes in rock music, its mythologies, the industry, and its audience. Through circumstance, design, and luck the band occupied a central position in some of the most significant of these developments. The band’s impact on rock was music was noteworthy: Led Zeppelin rewrote all the record books. All subsequent bands were measured by the standards it set. As with few other popular bands, the truth depends upon the perspective one takes. Since Led Zeppelin’s demise popular music and its institutions have changed significantly, in this paper, I will attempt to give both sides their due by sketching a measured image of the band and the role it played in the development of seventies rock music. It will be seen that the band emerged at a transitional period in popular music, and that partisans and critics alike hold it responsible for changes that characterized rock music in the seventies. Led Zeppelin was formed by Jimmy Page in late-1968. It rose from the ashes of the Yardbirds, a blues-rock band that, along with the Beatles and the Rolling Stones, was one of the first-generation British groups. Despite the fact that it had been extremely successful in the United States, the group had little success in its native country. One of the band’s central claims to fame was that it employed in succession Eric Clapton, Jeff Beck, and Jimmy Page. Today, these musicians are revered as the holy trinity of white, English, rock-blues guitarists (Cole and Trubo 13-14). Page, a highly regarded session guitarist who played on numerous British hits, selected the musicians that would form his band. He first recruited another accomplished session musician, John Paul Jones, to play bass and keyboards. Discovering that his first choice for vocalist, Terry Reid, was unavailable he selected the relatively unknown Robert Plant. Plant, in turn, suggested a friend and former band-mate, John Bonham — â€Å"Bonzo† affectionately — to play drums. In their first rehearsal together, the four played the Yardbirds’ â€Å"The Train Kept a ‘Rollin. † The session has been described as â€Å"magic† by all present. The rest, as they say, is history (Yorke 21-3). Led Zeppelin, along with Blue Cheer, Black Sabbath, and Grand Funk, was a progenitor of the musical style known as â€Å"heavy metal† rock. As the name suggests, the genre features loudly amplified music that emphasizes the bottom register. Live or on a good stereo, its heaviness has a distinct somatic component — the throb of the guitar, bass, and drums can all be felt the in listener’s gut. Commentators interpret the genre as one of a number that emerged from the decomposition of psychedelic music in the late sixties (Straw 97-110), According to Straw, early heavy metal had three dominant stylistic traits; first, was the â€Å"cult† of the lead guitarist. Heavy metal bands were formed around guitar playing â€Å"geniuses† who were revered by fans for their instrumental prowess. As Weinstein reminds us, this extended to their use of, â€Å"A wide range of electronic gadgetry, such as wah-wah pedals and fuzz boxes† (Weinstein 23). Second, was the notion of the â€Å"power trio,† and other references to musical virtuosity. Unlike â€Å"pop† or commercial bands, whose relationship to musicianship was accidental at best, metal bands were made up of highly proficient musicians. Third, was the â€Å"supergroup† phenomenon, and the importance of extended solo playing that discarded the temporal limits of the pop song (Straw 97). As Weinstein observes, many of these attributes could also be discerned within pre-metal acts such as Hendrix or Cream (16-17). Later, the genre’s characteristics would sediment into distinctive stage shows, album cover designs, and audience dress and life styles. The success of this style has been interpreted as reflecting the emergence of a new rock audience, composed in Davis’ view, of, â€Å"Boys and young men between fifteen and twenty-four, an audience who like their rock to be loud, Anglo-Saxon, violent, 4/4, martial. The girls weren’t really at this party. It wasn’t a dance† (Davis 63). Audition tapes in hand, Led Zeppelin’s manager, Peter Grant, negotiated a five-album, ? 200,000 package with Atlantic Records in late 1969 (Lewis 45). In addition, the band was given complete artistic control over its music and album cover design. This was an unprecedented deal for a band that had yet to release a single album, and said as much for the negotiating skills of the principals as it did for the label’s expectations of the group’s potential for commercial success. In a move bound to raise more than a few eyebrows, the band removed the â€Å"a† from Lead Zeppelin, reportedly so that American fans would not mispronounce it. The magnitude of the deal would lead to charges that the band was based on â€Å"hype† rather than solid musicianship (Weinstein). Led Zeppelin’s early musical output fits squarely within the above stylistic categories. As Rockwell argues, its music was, â€Å"Essentially a prolongation of the nineteen-sixties British blues-rock tradition† (Rockwell n. p. ). Rather than offering a reinterpretation of the path laid down by its predecessors, the band’s music mutated the genre, creating a new offshoot. Two direct examples may be found on the band’s first album, Led Zeppelin: Willie Dixon’s â€Å"I Can’t Quit You† and â€Å"You Shook Me. † No mere covers, each song served as a point of departure for amplified, distorted, and shrieking musical efforts. Equally characteristic was the way Led Zeppelin offered up portentously expanded variants on American and British folk music. Songs such as â€Å"Babe, I’m Gonna Leave You† from the first album, or â€Å"Gallows Pole,† from the third, start with a vocal accompanied by an amplified acoustic guitar, building to complex tapestries of electrified sound and crashing drums (Yorke 72-4). These effects were realized by the way that Page used his guitar and electronic wizardry to explore the coloristic possibilities of distortion. Plant, on the other hand, used his voice like an instrument. This upset the vocal technique traditionally used by blues singers, which had required them to project emotion. Writing of this practice, Christgau argues, â€Å"Its influence on popular singing has been so widespread that, at least among males, singing and emoting have become almost identical — it is a matter of projection rather than hitting the notes† (n. p. ). Thus, singers like Bob Dylan or Neil Young who, by their own admission possessed little vocal talent, could be excused, or even revered, because of their ability to communicate not only lyrical content, but feelings. Plant’s vocals, in contrast, were devoid of feeling in the traditional sense. The expressive possibilities were found in the sound of his voice rather than in the lyric’s meaning (Lewis 67). No longer chained to lyrics, Plant used his voice as a sound rather than to express emotion, which often meant that a song’s lyrical content was often obscure or indecipherable. Led Zeppelin’s music did not emote in the traditional sense. Even the band’s acoustic work — sounds traditionally coded as â€Å"sincere† and â€Å"warm† — was sometimes interpreted as lacking feeling. The often meant that critics would interpret the band’s music as cold, or charge that it was just undifferentiated noise. With his characteristic penchant for hyperbole, Lester Bangs referred to Led Zeppelin’s music as, â€Å"The tonal equivalent of a 1933 Nuremburg rally (â€Å"Mighty† 62). An analysis of the band’s lyrical themes reveals a variety of topics and sources of inspiration. In Led Zeppelin’s early music, lyrical content, vocal style, and instrumental attack, often exemplify an aggressive, swaggering, male sexuality. All are found within the band’s â€Å"Whole Lotta Love,† one of its early hits. Recorded in 1969, the song has a â€Å"dirty† sounding, three-note riff, that has become one of rock’s most recognizable. Plant sung the lyrics, â€Å"borrowed† from Willie Dixon’s â€Å"You Need Love,† with his best histrionic ardor (Davis). Accompanied by the vocalist howling in orgasmic frenzy, the song’s middle section has churning, swirling, electronic sound effects that move from left to right speakers. On the same album, however, one finds â€Å"Ramble On,† a song that embodies and presages Robert Plant’s fascination with Tolkien-inspired imagery and Celtic themes. Undoubtedly, its lyrics owe a debt to traditional, blues-based tales of ‘ramblin men, who â€Å"have no time for spreading roots. † Ultimately, however, the song breaks from that mold by restating the narrative within the vernacular of an unrelenting, mythical quest for â€Å"the queen of all my dreams† (Lewis). Such songs are characteristic of Led Zeppelin’s output, and provide insight into what differentiated the band from its precursors. For Straw, one of the characteristics of their music was a, â€Å"Consistent non-invocation of rock history or mythology in any self-conscious or genealogical sense† (103). While he views this as a generic quality, it is particularly relevant to the analysis of Led Zeppelin’s music. Put differently, when Plant copped blues lyrics for a song it was rarely to evoke a specific musical mood or period. Instead, they became part of a larger musical dynamic. True, a song such as â€Å"Bring it on Home,† may have begun with the harmonica and voice mannerisms of an old, black, blues singer, but its inclusion was based primarily on architectural considerations rather than of a desire to pay homage to American urban music of the twenties and thirties. This misunderstanding is part of the reason that someone like Lester Bangs would write that Led Zeppelin’s, â€Å"Albums refine the crude public tools of all dull white blues bands into something awesome in its very insensitive grossness, like a Cecil B. DeMille epic† (â€Å"Review of Led Zeppelin† n. p. ). Rather than understanding the mechanics of the effect, or perhaps understanding but still not won over, critics found it easier to interpret the means Page used to achieve it. As it employed â€Å"inflated† or â€Å"excessive† means to achieve dynamic contrasts, Led Zeppelin’s music was often accused of being cartoon-like, the perfect intellectual nourishment for its young and uninformed audience (Cole and Trubo 49-50). According to Rockwell, â€Å"As it evolved from 1968 onward, Led Zeppelin became the first and greatest mass audience band built up through FM radio-play and live concerts rather than AM singles† (â€Å"Led Zeppelin and the Alchemy† 24). Christgau compliments this view, by observing that the band never â€Å"woodshedded† like Cream, that it had a mass audience from the start (n. p. ). Both facts reflected the changing structure of the music industry in the late-sixties and early-seventies. Traditionally, rock bands started at the ground floor. They toured in small venues and received local radio airplay, which they would then parlay into a local or regional base of support. Despite its commercial success, Led Zeppelin positioned itself as a band that lay outside the mainstream. Though it had a mass audience, the band’s fans felt as if they were members of a secret society. When their early albums were criticized by reviews in the Rolling Stone and other national music publications, they recoiled from contact with the music press. Unlike other bands, its members were rarely in the pages of music magazines (Lewis). Consistent with contractual stipulations, Led Zeppelin exercised absolute control over their artistic direction. They became known as a band that wouldn’t take shit from anyone. Tales of their contrariness have taken on mythic proportions. At a time when other popular bands were required to cut singles or engage in more subtle or obvious forms of merchandising, they were one of the few that had the power to abstain from these sordid affairs (Yorke 114-5). Despite many lucrative offers, the band refused to perform on television. These stories lent the band a distinctive mystique. Rockwell comments, â€Å"Led Zeppelin is a band that is almost a ritual among teen-agers and blissfully alien to the over-21-year-olds† (24). This combination of mass appeal and cult-like allegiance is an unusual and interesting phenomenon. In structure if not in meaning, the group was the musical equivalent of the Volkswagen Beetle. Even today, its status as a â€Å"people’s band† remains largely uncontested (Cole and Trubo 102). The hullabaloo surrounding the release of Led Zeppelin’s fourth album provides insight into how the band’s unique status was constructed. In 1971 it released its fourth album. Its jacket contained no words that would identify it as a Led Zeppelin album to â€Å"outsiders. † Inside, one found four â€Å"runes† at the top of the liner sleeve (Yorke 133). When asked to explain the rationale for this unorthodox packaging, Page replied, â€Å"We decided that on the fourth album we would deliberately downplay the group name and there wouldn’t be any information on the outer jacket. Names, titles, and things like that do not mean a thing. †¦ What matters is our music. We said we just wanted to rely purely on music†( quoted in Davis 141-142). Within the industry, confusion ensued over what to call the album. Critics labeled it â€Å"the fourth album,† or referred to it by catalog number, â€Å"Atlantic SD 7208,† while fans often referred to it as â€Å"Zoso,† a rough transliteration of the first rune. One does not have to challenge the sincerity of Mr. Page’s remarks to see how a belief that only music mattered, and that â€Å"Names, titles and things† had no relevance, might also function as an effective marketing tool. It played the game both ways: on the one hand, it affirmed the band’s distance from merchandising itself, while, on the other, it created an aura that drew suburban teens to record stores in droves (Cole and Trubo 73). Led Zeppelin toured North America every year from 1968 through 1973, returning in 1975 and 1977. The band had scheduled concert dates for 1980, although John Bonham’s untimely death halted their plans. The tours since 1973 were conducted with military-like precision. The band even went as far as leasing their own private jets to ferry them to and from shows (Yorke 142). The size of Led Zeppelin’s attendance and gate receipts were to become almost as legendary as its performances. In July 1973 the band broke the Beatles’ record for single concert paid attendance. The Beatles had drawn 55,000, with a $301,000 gross, to Shea Stadium in 1965. Yet that night 56,800 people paid $309,000 to see Led Zeppelin in Tampa, Florida (Robins 116). In 1977 the band played before 76,229 fans in Pontiac, Michigan, billed as the largest paid crowd for a single attraction in the history of rock. The band’s gross for the evening was $792,361, a record at that time (Swan Song Press Release). While its fans would proudly identify with the band’s â€Å"outsider† status, they also took a great deal of satisfaction in the band’s commercial success. This contradiction suggests that the rock ideology had mutated since the late-60, and that its oppositional stance had softened some, reflecting institutional changes that the genre and its audience had undergone during that time (Lewis). Plant and Page, around whom most of the show revolved, presented starkly different characters. On stage Plant was the front-man. He introduced the songs and chatted with the audience between them. The singer’s appeal was primarily to girls and young women. On stage he was, by turns, coquettish and phallic (Cole and Trubo 66-7). At one moment, he was a golden-curled, teeny-bop dream, provoking fantasies of castles and knights, at another, he was a groaning, pushing, back-door man, ready to break down the door to get what he wanted. Robins characterized his stage presence as, â€Å"Spirituality mixed with sexuality† (Robins 117). Unlike the singer, Page’s appeal was primarily to boys and young men. While the driving force behind the band, he almost never spoke to the audience. His is the silence of young boys, vulnerable and aloof. A waifish, Edwardian figure, Page’s guitar playing was accompanied by dramatic and grandiloquent gestures. On stage he often resembled a wizard marshaling the dark electronic forces at his disposal, an impression heightened by his reported dalliance with Satanism. He appeals to those who feel they have something important to say, but doubt their ability to say them (Davis). Led Zeppelin’s music always exceeded generic heavy metal boundaries. In the mid-seventies, however, these boundaries were eroding from developments within and without rock music. The stylistic diversity that marked its third and fourth albums was pushed even farther in later albums such as Houses of the Holy and Physical Graffiti. In each, the blues played a less prominent role, and the band’s lyrical concerns began to shift, in a generic sense, overlapping the terrain occupied by progressive groups such as Yes, King Crimson, and Emerson, Lake, and Palmer. In the mid- to late-seventies the distinctions between the audiences for heavy metal and progressive rock began to fragment (Weinstein 29). By the mid 70s, Led Zeppelin’s audience had become more varied. While still holding much of its traditional audience base, new groups such as Boston, Aerosmith, or Kansas, competed with the band for the allegiance of young listeners. By contrast, its music became part of the mainstream. In 1976, for example, the daughter of the president, Susan Ford, said on the Dick Cavett Show that Led Zeppelin was her favorite group. Not able to let its historical commitment to youth be outshone, the Democrats responded in kind. Speaking at the National Association of Record Manufacturers convention, Jimmy Carter â€Å"reminisced about listening to Led Zeppelin records during all-night sessions when he was governor of Georgia† (Davis 296-7). While anecdotal, both accounts suggest that Led Zeppelin had become something of an institution. As a signifier of youth, one needed only to refer to it to become cool. As is common in politics, however, the symbolism rang hollow. Although the undisputed ruler of America’s high school parking lots in the early seventies, by the dawn of the eighties Led Zeppelin was no longer able to unite different youth factions under its sonic umbrella. Instead, these same parking lots were the sites of tribal warfare, with one area given over to New Wave, another to Disco or dance music, and still another to Metal (Straw 101-3). Led Zeppelin was, arguably, the most commercially successful rock band of the seventies, all the while maintaining an aura that made its young audience feel as if it were part of a secret society. From their standpoint, fandom was an entry into a â€Å"community† the size of which has not been seen since. It was also, arguably, the most significant and influential rock band of the seventies. Emerging from the decomposition of 60s psychedelia, the band played a leading role in the development of the decade’s musical, performance, and business practices. Works Cited Bangs, Lester. Review of Led Zeppelin III, Atlantic SD 7201. Rolling Stone. (November 26,1970): NP. Bangs, Lester. â€Å"Mighty War Machine, Familiar as a heartbeat,† Creem. (February 1972) 62-63. Christgau, Robert. â€Å"A Power Plant† Newsday. (June 15,1972): NP. Cole, Richard and Richard Trubo. Stairway to Heaven: Led Zeppelin Uncensored. New York: Harper Collins, 1992. Davis, Stephen. Hammer of the Gods: The Led Zeppelin Saga. New York: Ballantine Books, 1985. Lewis, Dave. Led Zeppelin: A Celebration. Omnibus Press, 1991. Queenan, Joe. â€Å"Bookshelf: Sex V Drugs ‘n’ Rock ‘n’ Roll. † The Wall Street Journal. (August 28,1992): NP. Robins, Wayne. â€Å"Led Zep Zaps Kidz. † Village Voice. (February 3,1975): 116-118. Rockwell, John. â€Å"Led Zeppelin Excites Crowd at Garden But Somehow Delirium Wasn’t There. † New York Times. (February 4,1975): NP. Rockwell, John. â€Å"Led Zeppelin and the Alchemy of a Rock Group. † New York Times. (June 5, 1977): 19-24. Straw, Will. â€Å"Characterizing Rock Music Cultures: The Case of Heavy Metal,† in Frith, Simon and Andrew Goodwin (eds. ) On Record: Rock, Pop, and the Written Word. New York: Pantheon, 1990, pp. 97-110. Weinstein, Deena. Heavy Metal: A Cultural Sociology. New York: Lexington Books, 1991. Yorke, Ritchie. Led Zeppelin: The Definitive Biography. London: Virgin, 1993.

Business Model Re-Engineering: Myspace

————————————————- Business Model Re-engineering MySpace Date: November 4, 2011 ————————————————- Word Count: 3742 Introduction Nowadays, increasingly more industries, especially the media sector, are facing a continuous change. In the case of media, this is mainly a result of steadily developing digital technology. Even though a company’s business model might have been successful for many years, it suddenly can start to become weaker. The media market is quite competition-driven and hence a competitor with a new business model might alter the industry almost instantly (Business model re-engineering, n. d. ). In such a competitive market, the â€Å"strategy [†¦] is about being different. † (Eisenhardt & Sull, 2001, p. 116). This statement perfectly implies that companies and their products need to be so unique with such a well thought-out and innovate business model that they can create a competitive advantage. However, this adaption of the business model in an ever-changing media environment turns out to be quite a complex challenge, since now many companies face a decline of customers and revenue. A good example for a business model that could not survive the changing media environment in terms of online social networking is the one of Myspace. Consequently, I am going to propose a re-engineering of its business model. In this paper, I will focus on the problems of the current business model and carefully analyze the context of the market in order to propose a refreshed model that will help Myspace to survive and to compete more successfully in nowadays’ social networking market. Myspace needs a business model that provides value to its customers, guarantees a competitive advantage, as well as collects revenue (Teece, 2010). Myspace Myspace. com, which was founded in 2003 by Chris DeWolfe and Tom Anderson (Piskorski, Chen, & Knoop, 2008), is an online social networking ervice that is now owned by Specific Media LLC and singer Justin Timberlake (Specific Media Acquires Myspace, 2011). Specific Media LLC is a media company which sells advertising online with a technology that aims at targeting specific customer segments (Specific Media LLC, 2011). Specific Media LLC, however, has not been the owner of Myspace for long. In June 2011, the company bought Myspace for about $35 million and as part of the deal pop star Justin Timberlake took an ownership stake (Specific Media Acquires Myspace, 2011). Before, from 2005 until 2011, it was owned by Rupert Murdoch’s News Corporation (News Corporation to Acquire Intermix Media, Inc, 2005). From 2005 until 2008, Myspace was the most popular social networking website in the world, as measured by the visitors. But the number of 75. 9 million visitors per month in 2008 dropped to 34. 8 million in May 2011 (Gillette, 2011). Problems Is Facebook Myspace’s biggest problem? Since 2008, Myspace has been continuously losing members which was at the time when it was overtaken by Facebook (Mack, 2008). Myspace has been gradually losing its users which can be expressed by the declining members and visitors of the website. As from February 2010, the visitors decreased by 43. 3 per cent (Arrington, 2011) and the members shrunk by ten million within one month at the beginning of 2011 (Stafford, 2011). This decline brings along a dramatic loss in revenues which are solely generated by advertising (Enders, Hungenberg, Denker, & Mauch, 2008). Facebook has now about 25 times more users than Myspace (Stafford, 2011) and it seems that members migrated from Myspace to Facebook, but there is other reasons for the failure of Myspace, mainly in terms of innovation. Myspace was performing really well at the time of News Corp’s acquisition and it barely had any competitors. However, with the rise of its first great competitor Facebook, the former leading social networking site had to confront one of its severest lacks: innovation! At the very beginning, Facebook entered a niche market, namely the one of college students. Firstly, it was available to Haravard students, then more and more universities wanted to join Facebook and today, almost everybody is using this social network, no matter if college student or not (Piskorski et al. , 2008). Today, around 600 million users enjoy keeping in touch with people all over the world via Facebook (Cauwels & Sornette, 2011). Facebook managed this great success because it was innovative. New features have been added all the time since it has been launched, hence people were involved and kept coming back as a result of new innovations such as the ‘news feed’ at that time (Stafford, 2011). While Facebook managed to be innovative all the time, Myspace failed to adapt to the market and did not add new features as Facebook did. Additionally, Myspace did not allow third party developers to create new features such as applications (e. g. Facebook – FarmVille etc. ), they rather kept everything behind closed doors. Therefore, Myspace lost the competition of controlling the market at the time between 2006 and 2008 and consequently it became boring (Stafford, 2011). Even though Myspace had certain features, they did not all work very well. For example, members were able to create their own backgrounds either themselves or they could download an existing design from many providers who specialized in creating Myspace profile designs. This feature turned into quite a mess, problems, and confusion regarding certain profiles. The whole competition resulted in a confusing mess and one could not be sure on what Myspace was focusing. Not only because of the customized user profiles but also because of some other flaws in the site’s design, Myspace was confronted with security issues. Results were spyware (Hesseldahl, 2006), phishing, and spam (Webb, Caverlee, & Pu, 2010). Another security fear was regarding the profile content. Users were concerned about trust and privacy and even law enforcement officials claimed, â€Å"MySpace is used by sexual predators to lure teenagers† (Dwyer, Hiltz, & Passerini as cited by Schrobsdorff, 2006, p. 5). The last problem I want to focus on is the revenue model. As previously mentioned, Myspace operates on revenues from advertising. Especially under the ownership of News Corp, the main focus was on generating revenue. It seemed that Rupert Murdoch solely focused on revenues and nothing else which is a great flaw for a social networking site, as it needs to focus on the onsumers. In 2006, Google pledged to pay News Corp as many as $900 million over three and a half years and in return Google was allowed to provide search services and advertising on Myspace (Piskorski et al. , 2008). For Myspace’s customer it seemed that the site was full of too much unorganized advertising, hence the website appeared unp rofessionally (James, 2009). The previously listed problems of Myspace are mainly problems of the time when Myspace lost the competition against Facebook, and reasons why Myspace is not successful anymore. With regards to the Business Model Canvas by Alexander Osterwalder (2009), I will focus on the problems based on the following elements: Value Propositions, Key Partners, Revenue Streams, and Media Channels. The element of value propositions â€Å"seeks to solve customer problems and satisfy customer needs with value propositions† (Osterwalder & Pigneur, 2009, p. 16). I consider this part to be Myspace’s greatest problem regarding the issues of trust, privacy, spam, spyware, and phishing. Furthermore, the lack of innovation was one of the major problems why Myspace lost that many users who constantly want to experience something new. With its lack of good and new features as well as its unclear point of focus, Myspace was not able to deliver value which would result in customers continue to use the social network. From my personal experience, I can say that Myspace faded into obscurity which can be backed up by the low number of users now, compared to the time of 2006 when Myspace was at its peak (Snyder, Carpenter, & Slauson, 2006). I was a Myspace user around 2006 as well, when I was 15 years old. It seemed to be a meeting point for teenagers and for me it was not any different from the German social networking site ‘Schuler VZ’ except that it is international. However, as time went by, I decreasingly used Myspace as for me it always was too confusing and it could not compete with the German social network. Besides, I got spammed with advertising, random men (who were not at my age) thought it was a dating service, and it simply became boring. Therefore, I can state that Myspace’s biggest problem is that it is not valuable enough for the users. Theory Firstly, I will focus on the value propositions as all the other elements, I chose to focus on, follow up on the value propositions. When looking at value propositions, I would like to consider the three types of value propositions according to Anderson, Narus, and van Rossum (2006), namely ‘all benefits’, ‘favorable points of difference’, and ‘resonating focus’. In the case of Myspace, it certainly would not be enough to â€Å"simply list all the benefits† (Anderson et al. , 2006, p. 2) since there are too many competitors in the Internet environment that share most of the benefits and values. The ‘favorable points of difference’ approach is promising in so far that it distinguishes the valuable points that the competitors do not offer. However, I believe that Myspace does not present many highly valuable aspects over their competitors and therefore it would be most convenient to concentrate on the ‘resonating focus’. With this approach, I will focus on â€Å"the one or two points of difference [†¦] whose improvement will deliver the greatest value to the customer for the foreseeable future† (Anderson et al. , 2006, p. 4). In connection to that, I will of course need to study the greatest competitors with regards to their value propositions in order to highlight Myspace’s most valuable points of difference. Furthermore, I will need to research what customers expect from online social networking, what they value about Myspace, and what they generally find lacking in the social networking environment in order to develop ideas for a possible niche market. Additionally, for this customer value research, I will need to conduct research on focus groups with regards to problems mentioned in the previous section (safety and innovation). Furthermore, the design is an important aspect of the value propositions as well. As I previously stated, the old Myspace design was quite confusing which resulted in safety problems. Hence, a new design is needed which is unified for every user, yet attractive and which does not allow bugs. Secondly, in relation to innovation, I will need to look at the Key Partners who will be part of the re-engineering of the Media Channels as well and concerning revenues. Through Media Channels, the company can communicate with its customers and deliver the value propositions (Osterwalder et al. 2009). Especially in the online environment, awareness can be raised with the help of other key partners. For example, you can share content from one website on another. Not so long ago, Myspace introduced connection opportunities to Twitter and Facebook (Myspace introduces mashup with Facebook, 2010) and also youtube allows sharing videos on myspace. Myspace’s connections to Facebook which will al so help to generate user-specific streams according to the user’s Facebook profiles. However, Facebook for example, does not allow a connection to Myspace. Accordingly, Key Partners are needed that would help promoting Myspace. Moreover, the former revenue model which only consisted of advertising, has proven to be quite annoying for the users, hence Myspace needs Key Partners who will not only make the website more appealing but also help to make revenue. Hence, research has to be done on Key Partners who are willing to help financing Myspace as well as who would be interested to offer for example applications (which then help the Key Partners as well). As I said before, Myspace faded into obscurity. For this reason, I will also need to look at other media channels such as campaigns and marketing strategies in order to bring Mypsace back to people’s minds. In that relation, research needs to be done on what marketing strategies worked for successful social networks such as Facebook and also what media channels can help to basically re-introduce a media product like Myspace. Assumptions & Best Practices Review First of all I need to mention that Myspace decided in 2010 to focus on music and entertainment (About Myspace, 2010). However, for now I will only consider online social networking sites as websites that focus on music and entertainment are not Myspace’s greatest competitors. Of course, I will need to take Facebook into account as Myspace’s greatest competitor and as today’s most popular social network which was the most visited website in June 2011 (Smith, 2011). Facebook first started in a niche market of college students and it got awareness from the very beginning. It did not use any special advertising campaigns to become popular but the promotion was rather by word to mouth (Mitchell, 2009). The popularity has then been covered by newspaper articles and television which reported on the success (Ibid). Mark Zuckerberg launched Facebook as a unique and intimate website and constantly added new features that kept the site interesting. Facebook is far more innovative than Myspace and therefore the members keep using it and promote it by word-of-mouth advertising. Similarly to Facebook, Twitter was initially successful in a niche market. At the beginning, primarily computer- and technology specialists as well as bloggers used Twitter for example to promote their blogs (How did Twitter become popular? 2009). Twitter could convince with its simplicity and real life experience. Real life experience in so far that people twittered news from certain events such as the Mumbai attacks or recently the uprisings in Tunisia as different to regular news channels (Ibid). The best practices that made Twitter and Facebook successful and popular are therefore word-to-mouth advertising and t he Internet itself. Word-to-mouth advertising only worked because of the convincing and interesting designs and usability. Both platforms are innovative, as they have been creating new features that make them enjoyable, flexible and interesting (The Success of Twitter, 2011). Those best practices worked for Myspace as well – in the beginning. However, the task now is to remake Myspace aware to people’s minds and the goal is that the users actually keep using Myspace because of the new design and value propositions. I would suggest sending a short and catchy email to the Myspace users which shortly introduces them to the new Myspace. Users might want to get to know the new Myspace and then tell people about their good experience. Additionally, since Myspace is focusing on music, an advertising campaign might help to make new bands aware of Myspace’s ability to promote their work. Facebook uses an aggressive innovation approach, meaning that it comes up with new features that users initially might not like but after a while they cannot imagine Facebook without those new features anymore. Furthermore, Facebook constantly adapts the privacy settings in order to meet the customers’ needs with regards to safety (Blodget, 2010). Innovation keeps Facebook interesting and worthwhile to continue using it. Another highlight it offers for their users are applications. Many software developers create applications for Facebook which make the site not only more interesting and entertaining but also help to generate revenues (Stone, 2007). With the help of key partners, Myspace can get help for its design as well as applications that help to make the site interesting. What is more, key partners help financing; hence Myspace would not only be dependent on advertising revenues. As users find the amount of advertising quite annoying, Myspace can focus on less but personalized advertising. Those steps would help to make Myspace more innovative and it can easier meet the users’ needs in terms of design, safety, new features that make it worth to use. Research Proposal – Method Myspace needs change! More specifically, Myspace needs a re-engineered business model. The previous statistics show that the numbers of Myspace users decline gradually. If this decline continues, the once most popular social network (Bains, 2009) will soon be almost unknown or at least unused. However, with further research on my previously stated ideas based on the problems of Myspace in relation to the Business Model, I will be able to help Myspace creating a new and innovative Business Model that will help to avoid further declining user numbers and to create competitive consistency in the environment of social networking. In order to study the value propositions carefully, I will conduct qualitative research. Only with qualitative research I will be able to gather in-depth understanding of the reasons why people do not use Myspace anymore. I can gather such information in two ways: through interviews and through an online research community. With the help of a qualitative research interview I will gather the facts as well as analyze the meaning (Kvale, 1996). As a result, I will be able to understand the values customers need as well as the reasons and problems which caused the failure of Myspace. By using an online research community, Myspace can put â€Å"the customer at the heart of [the] marketing strategy† (Simon, 2009). Such research communities allow efficient and deep qualitative research online. In such a community, members can discuss certain aspects such as new features and designs, and Myspace can adapt accordingly. Besides, a qualitative research online will probably bring more results since people rather take the time to discuss issues online. However, the qualitative Interview will also be needed because it is an additional in-depth analysis with face-to-face communication that enables immediate follow up questions and answers with high reliability. The qualitative research of both forms will be base on current or former Myspace users and also on general social network users in order to determine the general arget group’s values. Questions for both kinds of researches will for example include what they currently like about Myspace, what they do not like, why they use Myspace, or why they (stopped) using Myspace, what they generally value about Myspace, and their opinions about the competitors such as Facebook. For good measure a detailed research on the competit ors and their best practices is essential. This can be done by further online research on the competitor’s strategies in order to find out what could work for Myspace as well. Plan The following table provides an overview of the estimated time and costs for this project – subject to modifications. For now, I will conduct the research for three weeks, meaning that for example that the online community will be run for three weeks. Part| Time| Costs per hour| Costs per day| Creating online community(5 employees)| 8 hrs| EUR 10 (x5)| EUR 400| Leading discussion online(10 employees)| 3 wks (120 hrs)| EUR 8 (x10)| EUR 9600| Analyzing online community (10 employees)| 2 wks (80 hrs)| EUR 12 (x10)| EUR 9600| Developing questions for both onliny community and interview (4 employees)| 8 hrs| EUR 12 (x4)| EUR 384| Interviews (5 hrs per day)(10 interviewer)| 3 wks (75 hrs)| EUR 12 (x10)| EUR 9000| Evaluation Interview(10 employees)| 2 wks (80 hrs)| EUR 12 (x10)| EUR 9600| Total Costs for staff:| EUR 38584| Further costs: Possible travel costs (for interviewers):ca. EUR 300 Equipment (for Interviewers – recorders etc. ):ca. EUR 400 Technical equipment for online community:ca. EUR 10000 Total Costs:ca. EUR 49284 The additional costs might not apply if the equipment already exists. All prices are including value added taxes. Reflection In this paper I laid the foundation for a re-engineering of Myspace’s Business Model. Back in 2006 and 2007 I was a member of Myspace as well. However, I never liked this social network much since it was confusing, annoying because of all the advertising and I did not feel safe using it. Overall, it did not really work out. Now I am a Facebook user and I totally forgot about Myspace. Apparently, other social network users feel the same way which can be expressed by the declining number of Myspace users. Myspace became quite unpopular, fewer and fewer people visit that site and Facebook out-competed Myspace fast. Therefore I analyzed the problems that resulted in the failure of Myspace. The main overall problem is innovation. Myspace failed to add new features in order to make the platform interesting and worthwhile to keep using it. Myspace totally faded into obscurity wherefore it is essential to re-engineer at the media channels. Also, Myspace did not allow third party developers to help designing the page and add for example applications which not only would make the network more entertaining but also help generating revenues other than advertising. Instead, members were able to design their own profiles. This feature, however, resulted in an overall confusing design and safety problems. Safety problem arose from the bad software as it was easier to install for example spyware. Myspace could not meet the values that the customers need. Aside from bugs such as spyware, spam and phishing, users experienced a great lack of trust and privacy in that online network. To sum it up, I focused on the re-engineering of the following parts of the Business Model Canvas by Osterwalder and Pigneur (2009): Value Propositions, Media Channels, Key Partners, and Revenue Streams. All parts of the business model are connected though. That is why I analyzed all parts with regards to the others. My idea is that Myspace needs to be innovative. It can do so in analyzing both the values of customers and the best practices of the competitors and then adapt accordingly. With this method, Myspace can add new feature that will surely meet the customers’ desires. This is connected with a new design and key partners. Key partners can not only help with the design but also with innovation by adding applications that make Myspace more interesting. Furthermore, key partners would create another method of generating revenues. Then, Myspace would not only depend on advertising revenues and can reduce the annoying advertising to unostentatious, user-personalized advertising. After its changes, people need to be made aware of the new Myspace. This can be done with a short and catchy email to Myspace members who will then positively experience the re-engineered Myspace and spread the word. Additionally, television and Internet advertising campaigns might help to bring Myspace to the people’s minds. I am convinced that those methods and the further research, suggested in form of qualitative interviews, qualitative online community research and qualitative research on the competitors, would help Myspace to survive the competition in the online environment of social networks as well as stop a further downfall. References About Myspace. (2010). Retrieved November 1, 2011 from Myspace http://www. myspace. com/pressroom/2010/11/myspace-introduces-mashup-with-facebook/ Anderson, J. C. , Narus, J. A. , van Rossum, W. (2006). Customer Value Propositions in Business Markets. Harvard Business Review. Arrington, M. (2011, March 23). Amazingly, MySpace’s Decline is Accelerating. Retrieved October 29, 2011 from http://techcrunch. com/2011/03/23/amazingly-myspaces-decline-is-accelerating/ Bains, L. (2009). Facebook Overtakes MySpace as Most Popular Social Networking  Site. Retrieved November 2, 2011 from http://www. switched. com/2009/01/27/facebook-overtakes-myspace-as-most-popular-social-networking-sit/ Blodget, H. (2010). Ignore The Screams–Facebook's Aggressive Approach Is Why It Will Soon Become The Most Popular Site In The World. Retrieved November 2, 2011 from http://articles. businessinsider. om/2010-05-17/tech/29991115_1_ceo-mark-zuckerberg-facebook-s-pr-innovation Business model re-engineering. (n. d. ). Retrieved October 27, 2011 from AMR International http://www. amrinternational. com/services/corporate_and_business_unit_strategy/business_model_re-engineering Cauwels, P. , Sornette, D. (2011). Quis pendit ipsa pretia: facebook valuation and diagnostic of a bubble based on nonlinear demographic dynamics. Retrieved October 30, 2011 from Cornell University Library http://arxiv. org/abs/1110. 1319 Dwyer, C. , Hiltz, S. , Passerini, K. (2007). Trust and Privacy Concern Within Social Networking

Fence discrimination defence(not sure which one) Essay

Fence discrimination defence(not sure which one) - Essay Example The fences we put up are getting bigger, more inhuman and harder to overcome. It is the argument of this paper that these fences should not be allowed to exist, that we should not fence people in, whether the context is moral, social or cultural. Dr. Christina Kochemidova , in her article The Culture of the Fence: Artifacts and Meanings, brings up the various contexts a fence can be looked at. A fence can be used in many ways; as a bar, or barrier, to prevent ingress or to prevent escape. Alternatively it can be used as simply a marker, to demarcate a boundary. More often, fences are used as a division and increasingly as a means of control. These sorts of fences are invisible; they exist as rules, laws, and attitudes. This is also noted by Naomi Klein in her article Don' Fence Us In. There are numerous examples of this; racism, privatization and property rights are the most prevalent. These create barriers that are incredibly difficult to overcome. Man may have originally have used the fence to demarcate, but over the centuries it has evolved into more; a protective barrier, in one way, to keep the "other" out. The other can be anyone we perceive as a threat, or conversely anyone we wish to control. The fence as a control measure is frightening. This avatar is especially clear in the case of racism Racism is universal. Whether it manifests itself as the oppression and slavery of blacks in the United States, or as hatred of Pakistanis and Muslims in Norway, or the conflict between Hindus and Muslims in India and Pakistan, the common factor is the segregation and separation of two peoples based on the belief of the inherent superiority of one over the other. In fact, the word "apartheid" was created from the Afrikaans word for "separate"; the whole concept of a fence lies in that word. Racism has been responsible for some of the most horrible atrocities ever committed; the Holocaust, the slavery of blacks. In the United States, prior to the Civil War, Blacks were not even allowed the right to be citizens of the country; they were not even given the right to be considered human. Segregation in the south of the country took the form of separate facilities for everything including transport and housing. Even when they were finally recognized under the Constitution, they were still e ducated separately under the guise of "separate but equal" schools under the law. This sort of segregation is a fence. It separates and empowers one group, and suppresses another as is evidenced by the example given above. Denying an ethnic group the status of "human" is one of the most horrific fences that can be put up. This status was used to control the blacks and keep them "in their place". Denied education, proper housing, denied their very independence, the blacks were successfully controlled by these fences that kept them exactly where they were wanted. Education became an extremely important way to break out of these barriers. However, as noted by Hansman et al, education itself is prone to racist overtones. They remark that in many multicultural institutions, the structure of the work is planned around the majority culture, thereby leading to the ineffectual training of minority groups. Institutional factors therefore have a role in maintaining racial prejudice. Another

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An International Relations - The Soviet Unions Invasion Case - Essay Example Despite the harshness of its land and its multi ethnic society, it is one of the most historically attractive land for conquest purposes.   It had been invaded by armies from Persia, Greece, Macedonia under Alexander the Great, Arab hordes, the Mongols and other warriors from central Asia.   In the 19th century, Great Britain and Russia competed for control of Afghanistan with Britain successfully invading it in 1839-42 and in 1878. Despite the harshness of its land and its multi ethnic society, it is one of the most historically attractive land for conquest purposes.   It had been invaded by armies from Persia, Greece, Macedonia under Alexander the Great, Arab hordes, the Mongols and other warriors from central Asia.   In the 19th century, Great Britain and Russia competed for control of Afghanistan with Britain successfully invading it in 1839-42 and in 1878. But it was in late 1979 that a significant event occurred and various countries’ interests in Afghanistanâ₠¬â€some overt and some covert—took hold. The situation began on December 27, 1979 with Russia’s invasion of Afghanistan. This was to set off a chain reaction that would involve dozens of other countries, both American and Russian cold war proxies. Afghanistan would effectively become Russia’s Vietnam—but Russia would pay a higher price than the United States. Throughout the war, from 1979 to 1989, countries such as the USA, Great Britain, Saudi Arabia, Iran, Pakistan, China and Egypt were drawn to the conflict.

Identity Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Identity - Essay Example For example a resolver in psychological terms consciously desires self growth, on a personal level such an individual acknowledges the importance of personal skills and greatly puts them to practice .Within a social context a resolver will be responsive to societies that provide an opportunity for self growth. According to Gergen Kenneth, a person’s identity can also include the relational self, pastiche personality and the strategic manipulator. In Social Anthropology, identity is used to refer to the idea of self hood which implies an individuals’ properties and individuality that makes such a person distich and unique from others. It is virtually difficult to have a clear definition of identity, its all depends on the field of study upon which one is relating to, however, there are some prominent people in the society whose roles and involvement is various fields easily spell out their identity. Such characters are Dr Manhattan whose real identity is John osterman, R orschach’s and Ozymandias identities in the vigilantism and as Nietzsche's Ubermench (Klock, 2002). All the three characters have featured in the Watchman besides the Comedian, the Nite Owl and the Silk Spectre. The main aim of selecting the characters was to present six radically opposing ways in perceiving the world in terms of morality. The Watchman is based on super hero properties acquired form Charlton Comics during the early 1980’s. Jon Osterman who was later referred to as Doctor /Manhattan, was changed not god like blue –skinned being after accidentally being disintegrated in an â€Å"intrinsic field Subtracot† Jon Osterman identity is the same as that of Dr. Manhattan is a number of ways. First of all, while still a normal human being, he involved himself in unusual things for instance, very few people would take dare become physicist due to its complexity. However Jon Oserman was intensively involved in the discovery which led to his transforma tion after being stuck in a chamber. As Dr. Manhattan, he continues to engage himself in unusual scenarios, for example even after being employed by the United States of America defense Ministry and infighting crime, he goes no with his physics research, his love for this subject leads him to b the inventor of the electric advanced vehicles. Both identities prove Dr Manhattan as a determined and very hardworking individual. However, there are some differences between the two personality identities and this has widely been influenced by the social surrounding. Previously he gains an indentify of a loving and caring man with ability of bringing his girlfriend along to the work station. On the other hand, Dr. Manhattan is view as a biter and emotionless super being; however his perception has been changed by exploitation by normal human beings. He claims that he is used a s a puppet and can even see all the strings attached to him â€Å"We're all puppets, Laurie. I'm just a puppet who can see the strings† (Gibbons, 2008), he knows that he has been turned into something lethal; he is excited that he knows the delight of not knowing. According to the Cote and Levin (2002) typology he can be regarded as a â€Å"searcher â€Å" with high sense of dissatisfaction ,quickly shows disdain for imperfection and mostly interacting with role

Fiber and health benefit of fiber Article Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Fiber and health benefit of fiber - Article Example Hence, additional benefits apart from maintaining health of the digestive track. Fiber comprises of two categories, which include soluble and insoluble where each has a specific role in the body (Vuksan, Rogovik, Jovanovski & Jenkins, 2009). The latter category increases stool’s bulkiness besides easing its passage out through the gut whereas the soluble fiber performs other diverse roles like reducing diseases’ risks. The objective and goal of this study entails highlighting fiber’s diverse and essential benefits in the body despite its â€Å"inertness† as contended by health and nutritional experts. Studies contend that fiber intake normally reduces cardiovascular disease risks by 40% especially among the high-fiber takers compared the low eaters (Anderson, Smith & Gustafson, 1994). This is because soluble fiber aids in excreting of the excess abnormal blood cholesterol found in the human intestines. Mainly, this entails shunning excessive absorption of cholesterol in an individual’s intestines via combining bile and dietary cholesterol, which eventually excretes after their reaction (Vuksan, Rogovik, Jovanovski & Jenkins, 2009). Hence, maintaining the necessary cholesterol or HDL levels in the body besides shunning risks that might yield to heart predicaments or reduce severe conditions among the chronic individuals (De Koning & Hu, 2011). Soluble fibers have also proved to be helpful among people experiencing both types of diabetes where they all emanate from legumes, pectin and vegetable roots like carrots. This is especially via regulating body sugar levels evident in the body after food intake. The process entails making a hindrance to the fast gastric emptying in the stomach coupled with slowing glucose entry into bloodstreams. Besides, it also lessens the rate of sugar rising, which occurs in every post-meal both in normal and diabetic people (Anderson, Baird,

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The Increasing Collaboration in U.S. Military - Essay Example The challenges that they encounters in their quest to transform and adapt to more collaborative strategies are discussed. Areas that the military has attained success during its collaborative endeavors have been mentioned. Further, a clear description of collaboration is presented, including those involved with the military, the objectives of military in collaborating and the present status as well as the success measures. Introduction In military warfare, the world is increasingly embracing collective and collaborative efforts in accomplishing the military activities and practices effectively. Collaborative efforts are practiced in military command relations, joint operations, strengthening personnel and equipment, training and tactics as well as in fostering cultural relations. Collaboration develops best in environments where relationships are mutual and well nurtured (Bushe, 2010). In military operations and practices, collaboration with other stakeholders is perceived as problem atic because the military forces are compelled to certain demands with the collaborative partners. The collaboration partners may be perceived with element of suspicion, leading to reluctance in sharing information on matters of national security out of fear. Consequently, collaborative work in military is more pervasive and complex. The United States military forces are working toward increased collaborative methods because of their understanding of how to improve collaborative work. Growing U.S. Military Collaboration Description of Collaboration Collaboration is the practice and concept of bringing appropriate individuals jointly in productive ways with proper information to establish genuine goals and strategies for tackling the common issues of the collaborative organizations or communities. This practice or concept is practiced because it helps to deal successfully with complex organizational or community issues. Collaboration strategies can be used as a means of building soci al capital, sustaining a democratic society and transforming the civic culture of communities or regions besides being used to address public concerns. Collaboration requires that the shared issues be addressed through engagement, dialogue, inclusion and power sharing. Mutual learning is a basic concept in collaborative working. The collaborating partners mutually benefit from the relationship to realize common goals and objectives through sharing responsibilities, accountability as well as authority for achieving the set results. Collaboration involves sharing of information and knowledge by the partners, and cooperation and coordination to help achieve the objectives (Chrislip, 2002). Involved Parties Multiple stakeholders are usually involved in collaborative work with the U.S. military personnel, depending on the desired goals and objectives to be accomplished. The U.S. military collaborates with civilian interagency, such as civilians from U.S. Department of State and U.S. Agen cy for International Development (USAID) among other organizations. The civilian interagency helps the U.S. military personnel in counterinsurgency operations and activities. The interagency for example, helped the U.S. military through collaboration in operations in Afghanistan and Iraq to facilitate reconstruction and development of the nations and advising the military on how to reach out to the indigenous communities (Green, 2012). U.S. military col

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Medical ethics (abortion) - Research Paper Example The reason that the concept of abortion is so controversial is because of the conflicting nature of religious beliefs and society. This was highly disputed in the case of Roe vs. Wade which was an attempted by officials to legalize the use of abortion in the United States. The controversy relied on the concept that a child is innately alive from conception. Therefore, the abortion of the child would be considered euthanasia or murder. Other proponents for abortion argued that a fetus is no aware up to a certain point in conception, therefore it could be medically feasible to discharge a the fetus if it was the mother’s choice. Even though there are physiological consequences to abortion, but there are also a numerous number of consequences that can result psychologically. Even though some mothers may see abortion as a medical option for a way out of having a child, there are many studies, which show it can cause more damage psychologically. Many different types of research have show that depression, higher anxiety, and feelings of sadness result from the abortion of a child. This can pervade all of their behavior, which can lead to alcoholism, drug abuse, suicide, and other forms of self-destructive behavior. There are two methods by which abortion can occur. The first requires the use of pharmaceuticals. It requires the oral uptake of mifepristone that terminates the pregnancy. There is a certain window of time that a woman has the opportunity to take the pill before other methods are to be used. The pill has a 97% effective rate of terminating an unwanted pregnancy. The medication has been tested by the FDA and has been deemed safe for women to use, however there are certain side effects that can be expected when taking the risk. Many women choose this option because they believe that it will provide more privacy as there is a stigma associated with abortion as well as gives them more control over the process. Once the time window for

The Airasia Company Strategic Management Essay Example for Free

The Airasia Company Strategic Management Essay Nowadays, the competition among airplane industries is very tough. According to Daniel Chan (2000), with just about two years to go to the turn millennium, air wars over Asia are hotting up, with some of the world’s biggest airlines engaged in intense over Asian skies[1]. Each Of Airplanes Company in the world trying to conduct some strategies to compete with another competitor in their industry. A lot of airplane companies come out with different strategies to make their company better than their competitors. To compete with their competitor in the business environment, a company needs to make a strategy to achieve their long terms objective and can be successful for doing their business. 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The internal factor can take a look into strength and weakness in a company, and for the external factor, a company can look at opportunities and threats in the external environment. Furthermore, according to Daniel Chan (2000), the airline industry is a unique and fascinating industry. It captures the interest of a wide audience because of its glamour, reach, and impact on the large and growing numbers of consumers/travelers worldwide[2]. Based on this statement, airline industry become the greatest opportunity for AirAsia. The growing numbers/travelers worldwide can be the wonderful opportunity for AirAsia for running their business. In addition, to captures and attract a customer to choose AirAsia as an airline option, AirAsia need to develop and create a wonderful strategy and come out with special offering to their customer to successfully in their business. On this paper, I would like to identify and analyze the AirAsia Company strategic management: â€Å" How AirAsia can be a leader in the lowest cost carrier in the airplane industry†. I’m interested to more deeply identify and analyze the strategic management in AirAsia Company because AirAsia have a lot of achievement and awards since year 2001 until present and than they have the greatest strategy which is can make AirAsia to be a leader in the world’s low cost carrier in airline industry. And than, AirAsia is one of the companies with good company strategic management and has a successful story in the airplane industry in the world. AirAsia now becoming the leading low cost carrier airline in the world and the achievement that AirAsia received to ascertain that AirAsia is one of the best airplane companies. The achievement that AirAsia received in 2009 on the last awards and recognition is the best low cost airline in the world. In Addition, on this paper will be structured into four sections. Section 1. 0 is introduction, Section 2. 0 covers about AirAsia Current issues, in this section will be discusses about why AirAsia need to consider a strategy, and AirAsia current issues. Section 3. mainly discusses about AirAsia business strategy, this section also will be discusses about why AirAsia stressed to be low cost carrier in airline industry, AirAsia SWOT (strength, weakness, opportunity, and threat) analysis, and also AirAsia business strategy to solve the current issues. And than, section 4. 0 would be the last section is conclusion for this paper. 2. 0 AirAsia Current issues: how to be low cost carrier lead er in airline industry On this section, I will discuss about the AirAsia current issues: how to be low cost carrier in airline industry. This section involve, why AirAsia need to consider a strategic management, and than what is the current issues that happen in AirAsia Company. This section will discusses the importance of developed and consider strategic management in AirAsia Company, and identify of current issues in AirAsia Company. 2. 1 Why AirAsia need to consider a strategic management Why a company needs to consider a strategic management nowadays? According to Daniel Chan (2000), since the 1970s, the competition for the Asian air travel market has always been intense. This became more intense in the 1990s as traffic volumes were squeezed[3]. Based on that statement, the competition among airplane industry will become more grow, traffic volume also would be increase, and also the Asian air travel market has always been intense. When the competition in the airplane industry becoming though, complex, and rapidly change, AirAsia company as a company that joined in the airplane industry business need to thinking strategically and also must preparing a good strategic management. The AirAsia strategic management needs to effectively and efficiently prepare and implement in the AirAsia company management. Why AirAsia need to consider strategic management? The first reason is because the airline industry is a unique and complex industry[4]. Based on the statement, the complexity and unique of the airline industry, AirAsia need to come out with the greatest strategy to compete with their rival in the same industry. Without the right strategic management, its possible AirAsia could not be able be compete with the complex business environment in the airline industry. Furthermore, the second reason why AirAsia need to consider a strategic management because in a company nowadays, general management which is the process of achieving organizational goals by engaging in the four major functions of planning, organizing, leading, and controlling may not sufficient and supportive for the organization succeed in the world of complex environments. It concerns about the process to manage the company internally but do not concentrate more on creating competitiveness regarding environments affecting the organization. Even companies adopt general management to sustain profitability by reducing the defects or costs, and improving operations process in order to increase productivity, they may not succeed in the competition because they perform only similar activities better than competitors but do not create distinctive competitiveness. Additionally, they perform only operational effectiveness but not strategy. Operational effectiveness and strategy are both essential to superior performance but they work in very different ways.

Neurological Effects of MSG

Neurological Effects of MSG Abstract Due to evolving since in fields such as food science pharmacology, pediatrics, medical psychology, and toxicology, various food additives have come under a sharp review. In the medical field, a controversy has been ranging as to whether MSG should be used at all since diverse research case studies have not only shown its negative effects on health in general but also its neurological effects. Monosodium Glutamate (MSG) has been used as a flavorant in the food industry for close to one hundred years in foods consumed by the masses daily. Although the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) classifies MSG as a food ingredient that is considered generally safe for use by the public, a number of researches such as by Schwartz have shown that it is harmful to the users health and should therefore be banned. Glutamate is naturally found in foods such as milk, poultry, meat and vegetables. Further, the body naturally produces glutamate which is essential for the nervous system. However, syntheti c manufacture has been proven to be harmful. This study purposefully outlines such effects on the nervous sytem and serves to support other recent findings against the use of MSG. Introduction MSG is a food additive that is found in most of the commercial foods. It improves the flavor of the food hence attracting customers. In itself, there is no value addition in terms of nutrition. It actually does nothing to food, but to the eater it is detrimental to their health. MSG is referred to as an excitotoxin or neurotoxin. This is the case since it widely involves the neuroscientists field in that it has degenerative and deadly effects on the brain and the nervous system. MSG actually over stimulates the brain neurons to exhaustion leading to their death. MSG goes to the brain through the membranes in the mouth and the throat. It also enters the blood stream through the digestion of food in the digestive system. MSG will trick the brain to thinking that it is getting value from the foods that are being taken in. MSG is not natural in nature. It is manmade from glutamic acid which is an amino acid which is found in complete proteins. Amino acids do occur naturally from many pla nts and animal tissues. The artificially created types of Amino acids are processed through the breakdown and the change of the natural form of glutamate. Some of the natural substances used for this purpose are molasses, grain starches and corn. The manipulation process produces various form of glumate. The d-glumate is never found naturally. The free glumates could enter the body 8 to 10 times faster than the bound or the natural glumates. Natural glumate is found in foods like tomatoes, milk and the mushrooms. The commercial methods or techniques used to manufacture glumate were not in use until the 1960s. The MSG in use today is not at all natural Literature review The current research shows that MSG is the cause of neurodegenerative diseases like Alzheimers Huntingtons, Parkinsons and Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis. Neuroscientists, such as Adriene, have explained that MSG attacks the blood-brain barrier of the brain cells which is responsible for protection and regulation of the delicate chemical exchange within the brain cells. The chemical exchange process is normally well balanced and its functionality is unquestionable. Under normal conditions also the brain and the body immune system handles all kinds of pollutants, diseases and stress. A very small amount of toxic substance can actually cause the brain call to over react leading to excessive exhaustion and death (Samuels). MSG is one of the major excitotoxins and is widely known to cause damage to the brain part that governs or controls other systems in the human body. The damage will probably appear as a disorder in the nervous system and the endocrine system. This can be manifested in the cases of unusual sleeping patterns, persistent hunger and food cravings. This usually leads to obesity. MSG is also known to cause migraine headaches, behavioral disorders, asthma attacks, depression, heart irregularities, arthritis, sinus problems and digestive problems (Anglesey). MSG is a neurotoxin that takes a very short time to create a widely diverse and dramatic effect on the human body. An individual may take a mild dosage of a prescription drug and have mild effects which may even be favorable. However, another person may take the same prescription drug and instead, get depressed, have stomach disorders, a swollen tongue and aching joints. The different parts of the brain do govern various body functions. The part which is attacked will directly depend on the brain part that has been attacked by the excitotoxin. If for example a person has had a head injury, a genetic pinch in a given part of the brain, has had a fever that is attacking parts of the brain, or even has had a stroke, then it is certain that the part of the brain that has been affected will be due to the toxins. Some of the foods that are sold are sold as weight loss promotions to the people. When food substances such as fat and sugar are removed from the foods, MSG together with aspartame is usually added. These excitotoxins are known to cause obesity and irregular heartbeats in many people. FDA usually allows the labeling of MSGS as natural flavors, hydrolyzed proteins and autolyzed yeast when used as just a component ingredient in an additive and not purely MSG. Americans today are consuming 160 million pounds of MSG per annum. A toxicologist and an author by the name Dr, George Schwartz claims that two table spoons of MSG on a piece of bread could kill a medium sized dog within a minute. The FDA in the year 1995 claimed that no one can react to less than 3 grams of MSG per meal. However, despite their confirmation, they have warned that MSG should be avoided by children, pregnant or lactating women, the elderly and those who suffer Asthma. A highly sensitive individual can react even to less than a gram of MSG (Blaylock). Effects and Related disorders Research has shown that in the late 1950s, an estimated amount of 12 grams per person per year of MSG was used by the Americans. Looking at the same issue today, the estimate has shot to between 400 and 500 grams per person per year. This is an amount that needs evaluation by FDA. (Anglesey) The wide usage of MSG came in the mid 1970s. It gained much popularity with producers of food through the 1980s. Two powerful excitotoxic food additives that took the food industry by storm were the MSG and aspartame. MSG has been widely associated with a wide range of diseases, symptoms and complaints. As earlier stated, it affects the neurological system of the body. The same ailments are today being reported to be on their rise. Often the ailments are quite unexpected and hard to explain either. Neorological effects of MSG and statistics of interest published by national organizations have been listed here-in. Fibromyalgia: this is a growing epidemic. Its patients eliminated MSG and aspartame during the study conducted by Florida University which reported complete relief of symptoms in 2001. However, the most cognitive study was carried by Smith, Shmidt and Guns who sought to prove the link between Fibromyalgia and MSG with several other additives as a common rheumatologic disorder. In this case, 4 patients were diagnosed for 2-17 years with fibromyalgia syndrome. However, they had undergone various modalities of treatment while failing to consider MSG as the causative agent. After eliminating aspartame and MSG from their diets, complete or near complete resolution of symptoms diagnosed were recorded within months. In this case analysis, the subjects were women who had multiple comorbidities and recurring symptoms after the ingestion of MSG. It is therefore indicative that t he excitotoxins, present in substances such as Aspartate and MSG, become excitatory neurotransmitters once ingested, and if consumed in excess can lead to neurotoxicity. These 4 patients may therefore represent this fibromyalgia syndrome and act as a link to conclusively establish a link to MSG. Therefore, persistent studies, if carried out on a larger sample, might serve to link the fibromyalgia syndrome to MSG and aspartame more concretely (Murray). Further, a study posted in MSGTruth.org is instrumental in linking MSG to pituitary adenomas. MSG overstimulates the hypothalamus which consequently leads damage on the neurons. The hypothalamus is responsible for directing the pituitary glands actions, which is also referred to as the master gland since it in turn directs all other glands in the body and their actions such as metabolism, development of sex and reproductive organs and other key development functions. Statistics have shown that 25% of Kenyans develop a pituitary adenoma in the course of their lives. However, studies linking pituitary adenomas to MSG are inconclusive. Some studies had previously depicted this as a genetic disorder but have however been proven wrong. About half of the pituitary adenomas secrete prolactin. Prolactinomas vcan become extremely large over time to crowd the optic nerve thereby affecting vision. It is however detected early in women since it interferes with menses and stops ovulation. This prevents conception or pregnancy in general. Further, since prolactin is responsible for lactation, secretion can cause lactation in the victim even if they were never pregnant or even if they are male. Hence, men with these adenomas develop breasts which have the capacity to secrete milk. Unlike in women who are forewarned by the effects on vision or associated headaches, this condition is deadly in men since the tumor can only be detected when it is large and dangerous. Further, research records by most governments are only kept for cancerous tumors while benign tumor, such as in this case, are neglected hence making it the more difficult not only to research on especially as to its link to aspartine and MSG but also to treat. Trea tment is very expensive. There are only two treatments with Dostinex, a carbegoline, is normally preferred which costs approximately $ 30 a tablet. Therefore, there is a need to sponsor more research as to the link to MSG and brain tumors (Monosodium Glutamate (MSG) and Aspartame). Other effects that have been attributed to MSG and its neurological disorders are headaches and migraines, asthma, obesity among others. In headaches and migraines: an approximate amount of $ 2.2 billion per year are being spent on drugs which treat headaches. This chronic condition has received a 74% increase from the years 1980 to 1990. Secondly, Asthma has been linked to MSG and related to the brain effects. According to statistics there was a decline of asthma until the mid-eighties. Since then however, there has been a recorded 100% increase in the rate of death among the children and the seniors. This incidence has increased 600% in the last 10 years. FDA has identified that the uncontrollable asthma can be caused by MSG, unfortunately no further measures are taken to deal with the situation. Defects of birth and disorders of production: MSG has been identified as a mutagen i.e. mutates fetuses. It is said to cause damage to the intellectual development, reproduction, growth pa tterns and the gonadal functions. However, such research has not been concrete. Other effects are neurological or emotional disorders. Laboratory studies have shown devastating effects on brain development. This includes autism, attention deficit, dyslexia, hyperactivity, violent episodes or rage, panic attacks, depression, paranoia, seizures and cerebral palsy. Rats were used for this study. However, human beings are 5 times more sensitive to MSG than rats. Obesity too has been linked to MSG and the nervous system. This is the most consistent effect of excitotoxins exposure and can be termed as a growing problem that does not respect age or sexual boundaries. In fact scientists uses glumate to feed animals used in the laboratories with an aim of inducing obesity. MSG will trigger insulin or adrenalin or fat storage or even a food craving response. This actually depletes the serotonin levels which in turn trigger headaches, depression and fatigue and also leads to food cravings. Finally, it is vital to note the following maladies and diseases are also attributed to MSG. Heart maladies: for the Americans, more than 70 million of them do suffer one or more forms of cardiovascular disease. 43% of all deaths in America are related to this same problem. Cardiovascular operations in the US went up with 287% from the year 1980 to 1990. Alzheimers disease: in the 1980s, this disease was nowhere among the highly identifiable health threats. It is however ranked third in todays statistics after cancer and heart disease. There are 4 million people afflicted by the disease at a cost of $47,000 per person per year in healthcare costs. Parkinsons, ALS, MS and the Huntingtons diseases like Alzheimers are all progressively growing neurogenic diseases that show brain and nerve cell damage. There are also other symptoms of MSG sensitivity that include swollen throat and tongue, joint pain, skin disorders, sleeping disorders, burning, tightness of the face or its redness, vert igo and gastrointestinal complaints. This subject of disorders in behavior for children is becoming a common discussion among professionals. The Studies that are already done have widely associated the violent behavior, attention deficits and emotional instability to chemical imbalances occurring in the brain. The reason that young brains are developing the blood-brain barrier, it is now becoming an extreme possibility that there will be early damage caused by excitotoxins. In April 1994, a time magazine article confirmed the rising problem of behavioral disorders. The magazine stated that the attention deficit hyperactivity disorder was not in existence 15 years ago. It is however said that it is now affecting 3.3 million American children. This magazine article quotes a prominent research which 10 years ago stated that symptoms of ADHD and ADD (attention deficit hyperactivity disorder) vanished with maturity. Today however, ADD is now the fastest growing diagnostic category for the adults. The combination of excitotoxins i.e. MSG and aspartame came into wide usage in the 1980s. The drug sale rate for these disorders has shot up by almost 400% in a period of 4 years only. MSG is now a known mutagen. Its damage occurs in the womb as chemicals pass from the womb of the mother into the blood system of the fetus. The old people do show high vulnerability rates to the progressive neuro-generative diseases. An example of such diseases is Alzheimers.

Organizational Behaviour In The Team Work Role

Organizational Behaviour In The Team Work Role Organizational behaviour in a team work plays a vital role and it is the topic has been discussed for a very long time and now nearly everyone knows about its concepts. Simply the organizations wont perform but the one person it should people. When it comes to people there should be a team and perform individuals cant perform whatever they want in an organization they have to form a team and perform individually as well as teams. So when forming a team, organizational behaviour influences toward its success. Organizational Behaviours is the key aspect to maintain and enhance interaction levels amongst people in the organizations. Other attributes like leadership, motivation, decision making, openness to discuss problems, challenge-initiative is all tied in to this base concept of Organizational behaviour to help the business achieve its strategic and in some business objectives. The proper definition of organizational behaviour with its understanding and management has resulted in development of few key offshoots to the concept of Organizational behaviours In my view a personality behaviour means how can we describe a person, how this person differences from the others behaviour, how we can measure the characteristics and differences. Psychometrics is also the most important related to the assessment and measurement of the personality, aptitude, intelligence. It is like the unique character of the individual and measure and understands the differences between the individuals. I think the term itself indicates the properties of behaviour which are both enduring and set the individual apart from others. These properties concern the individuals typical ways of coping with life. I am going to explain a few words about the group because it will explain the importance of individual in the group. The group may spend a lot of time on the each stage, but some groups never reaching the final stages because the personality and levels of dominance of each member may play a large part in the failure or success of the group and its ability to progress through the different stages, the time goes by changes occur, such as new members joining the group or old members leaving the group may re-enter the cycle and begin the development of the process all over again. In this assignment i am going to use the Leadership theory and Motivation Maslows theory. These theories are best suitable for my opinions or views that are raised in my experience and i like those theories a lot so the two theories are chosen. Let me start with those theories Leadership theory A simple definition of leadership is that leadership is the art of motivating a group of people to act towards achieving a common goal. Leadership is one of the most hotly debated topics in management studies, social psychology and organisational psychology (Pfeiffer 1993). Despite the depth and breadth of debate concerning leadership effectiveness, it remains an elusive construct. As a result, researchers and practitioners have not reached a consensus on a true and concise definition that represents an accurate depiction of effective leadership in all situations and possibilities. The leadership is one of the effective concepts and well defined as: Treat people with politeness, respect and dignity and in doing so create a strong role model for others to follow. Building a reputation of fairness gives you a buffer against the times when the policy is wrong or you behave badly Gratton (2000:206): According to Nathan F. Iannone, leadership can be defined as the art of influencing, directing, guiding, and controlling others in such a way as to obtain their willing obedience, confidence, respect and loyal cooperation in accomplishment of an objective. Leadership is about the future and about how do I tap into the group orientation (into what everybody shares). According to Jago (1982) the quality and the qualified, good leaders are not born instead they are made with the influenza ion of the training and the self-assessment, developing skills by improvising others. The natural people ability is also evaluated as a measure of walk their talk. The fascination of the leadership is much higher in terms of the charismatic leader. The leadership based on this charismatic model is really being focused towards the vision and also the ability and the talents are naturally born and also termed as gift. The natural leader adapts the tapping of their inner resources and also natural leaders are more often generalist (Stonefield, 1992:3). The leadership theory based on this contingency model states that there is no particular model of leadership which suits as appropriate in all times of situation. The variables are the basic elements and the preliminary components which determine the success rather than the leadership style which we intend to follow or insist. The leadership has a quality in order to follow the vital roles and also in order to perform the action depending and assessing the situation through various means (Cherry, 2010). The trait approach to personality is one of the major theoretical areas in the study of personality. The trait theory suggests that individual personalities are composed broad dispositions. Consider how you would describe the personality of a close friend. Chances are that you would list a number of traits, such as outgoing, kind and even-tempered. A trait can be thought of as a relatively stable characteristic that causes individuals to behave in certain ways. Unlike many other theories of personality, such as psychoanalytic or humanistic theories, the trait approach to personality is focused on differences between individuals. The combination and interaction of various traits forms a personality that is unique to each individual. Trait theory is focused on identifying and measuring these individual personality characteristics. According to Offer Mann, Hanges and Day (2001) much of the discourse on the internal characteristics of leadership over recent years has focused on values and ethics. They argue that disillusionment and a lack of confidence in political leadership have been generated by the particular values that political leaders use to motivate their actions. As a result, Offermann, Hanges and Day (2001) claim that the world is more aware of the importance that values play in leadership effectiveness and success. In addition, it has been shown that particular types of leaders attract different followers depending on their value types (Ehrhart Klein 2001). McShane (2001) argues that in order to motivate, influence, be liked and respected, a leaders values need to align themselves with those of their employees and to reflect integrity, honesty, compassion and assertiveness. The contingency leadership is one of the effective leadership techniques and also has an ability to act as a vital tool in establishing the focus on variables in an environment in order to determine the situations which really opt for our behaviour in any kind of situation. The leadership theory based on this contingency model states that there is no particular model of leadership which suits as appropriate in all times of situation. The variables are the basic elements and the preliminary components which determine the success rather than the leadership style which we intend to follow or insist. The leadership has a quality in order to follow the vital roles and also in order to perform the action depending and assessing the situation through various means (Cherry, 2010). My definition of Leadership is being able to: inspire others, motivate, set a vision, communicate, respect others, and lead by example. A leader must have an honest understanding of who they are, what they know, and what they are capable of. To be successful person you have to convince your followers, not yourself or your superiors. In my opinion this can build confidence in your followers in their faith in you to be able to lead. Followers Different person require different styles of leadership. For example, a company requires more supervision than an experienced employee. A person who lacks motivation requires a different approach than anyone with a high degree of motivation. You must know your people! The fundamental starting point is having a good understanding of human nature, such as needs, emotions, and motivation. You must come to know your employees be, know, and do attributes. Communication Communication is the exchange and flow of information and ideas from one person to another person; it involves a sender transmitting an idea, information, or feeling to a receive. What and how you communicate either builds or harms the relationship between you and your employees. Situation Situations are different from all time. Leader is an individual who can use different leadership styles based on the situations .decide the best course of action and the leadership style needed for each situation. For example, you may need to confront an employee for inappropriate behaviour, but if the confrontation is too late or too early, too harsh or too weak, then the results may prove ineffective. Also note that the situation normally has a greater effect on a leaders action than his or her traits. This is because while traits may have an impressive stability over a period of time, they have little consistency across situations (Mischel, 1968). This is why a number of leadership scholars think the Process Theory of Leadership is a more accurate than the Trait Theory of Leadership. Every organisation is subdivided into two different categories such as formal and informal. The organisation when seen as external spectator it appears to be formal with its will defined mission statement, policies and procedure and organisation structure charts, but this is just the tip of the great iceberg floating underneath in the form of informal organisation which a manger has to face. This informal organisation includes informal leaders which have no formal authority given by organisation but they have their influence on many employees, to maintain good relation with such informal leaders as sometimes they can help in getting things done. Internally organisation is subdivided into many groups based on their nature of job, their ethnicity, their culture, their language having their own norms and sentiments managers need to identify such groups and make consistent effort to maintain peace in groups by serving the role of mediator, for smooth running of organisation. Organisation consist of another route of power which can be said as counter organisation, that can be seen in the form of labour unions which are formed to keep check on organisation and make sure that profit hungry organisation dont exploit them. Such counter organisations are needed to be handled with great care. It can be said informal organisations are formed by the people of organisation to satisfaction of their cultural needs and a sense of personal identity and personal belonging. It also provides means to highlight deficiencies in the formal organisation such as excess time taken to complete a task. MASLOW THOERY OF MOTIVATION Motivation is a fundamental driving force behind people behaviour and performance. When the research was done to explain different aspects of motivation from an organisational behavioural perspective many theories or models used to describe the topic of motivation basically it is described as the extent to which persistent effort is directed towards a goal. It is very important to know about different types of motivation theories and their implementation in a group or organisation. These motivation theories specify the kinds of needs people has and condition in which they would want to exemplify these needs. Motivation can be internal or external. Example of external motivation is Deadlines . The fear of losing a contract or of not finishing a job on time you started is an example of internal motivation. Both internal and external motivation can be equally powerful. Why i am using this Maslows theory to reflect on my behaviour in group situations. This theory comes under content theories of motivation. There is significant relationship between behaviour and motivation particularly between group and individuals. Motivations of group have a serious impact on individual behaviour likewise the motivation of an individual can have serious impact on group. Abraham Maslow theory was proposed by Dr. Abraham Maslow in 1943, this theory is general overview of human motivation. His theory strikes a distinctive sense of balance between biological and social needs that integrates many motivational concepts. According to Maslow individual needs are set in a hierarchy, and everyone must satisfy their basic needs before they can satisfy their higher needs. The hierarchy is many times portrayed, as a pyramid beginning with physiological needs at the bottom and self-actualization at the top of this pyramid. The needs at the lower level are the most basic. These basic needs must be satisfy well before an individual can become concern with the higher needs like physiological needs, safety needs, security needs, social needs, law and affection, esteem needs. These needs must be satisfied before a person can act unselfishly. He called these needs deficiency needs. As long as we are motivated to satisfy these craving, people are moving toward growth, s elf-actualization, satisfying needs is healthy, which preventing gratification makes us sick or act evilly. Gareth Morgan suggests that employees are people with complex needs that must be satisfied if they are to lead perform effectively in a work place. Employees perform best when they are motivated by task, which will earn them some reward that satisfies their personal needs. Abraham Maslows theory of motivation most widely famous as hierarchy of needs states that human needs when arranged in form of hierarchy, ascending from lowest to the highest, as soon as need at lower level gets completed, the need at next level servers to be a motivator. Maslow divided human needs into five main categories such as physiological which include basic needs for sustaining life like food, water, shelter and sleep. Abraham Maslows needs hierarchy There are five different levels in Maslows hierarchy of needs: Self-actualizing Needs Self-actualizing Needs is the highest level of Maslows hierarchy of need. People are self-aware, concerned with personal growth, less concerned with the opinions of others and interested fulfilling their potential. Esteem Needs Esteem needs include the things that reflect on self-esteem, personal worth, social recognition and accomplishment. Social Needs Social needs include belonging, love and affection. Maslow considered these needs to be less basic than physiological and security needs. Relationships such as friendships, love, romantic attachments and families help fulfil this need for companionship and acceptance, as does involvement in social, community or religious groups. Security Needs Security needs include safety and security. Security needs are important for survival, but they are not as demanding as the physiological needs. Examples of security needs include a desire for steady employment, health insurance, safe neighbourhoods and shelter from the environment. Physiological Needs A physiological need is low needs. These include the most basic needs that are vital to survival, such as the need for water, air, food and sleep. Maslow believed that these needs are the most basic and instinctive needs in the hierarchy because all needs become secondary until these physiological needs are met. Maslow was correct when he said that one need has to be fulfilled before we can move to the next one. Without sufficient amount sleep I wouldnt be able to think of nothing but sleep. Also if I am hungry food will be the only thing on my mind. But because each day I satisfy these basic needs I am able to think about other things because these needs are no longer controlling my thoughts. Next priority is given to security which includes freedom from physical danger and other fears like losing job, property, food, or shelter. Since people are social animals they need to belong, to be accepted by others, hence acceptance third in the list of needs. Once people satisfy their need to belong esteem needs emerge in the form of satisfactions as power, prestige, status and self-esteem and at last when all the other needs are satisfied need for self-actualization which is the desire to maximize ones potential and achieve something. Applying this theory many organisations where suggested to motivate their employees by monetary gains or assuring security of their job. , Koontz, H, Weihrich (2008), Morgan (2006). There was a research conducted by Douglas T Hall and Khalil Nongame which studied needs of hierarchy involving a group of managers over a time span of five years. They found that there was no strong evidence of hierarchy, as managers get promoted in organisation their physiological needs tend to decrease, while on other hand needs for self-actualization tend to increase H, Koontz , H, Weihrich(2008). Upcoming flaws of Maslows theory the process theory of motivation stated, with the study of ones decision making process and deter mining how individual behaviour is energised, directed and maintained. The major process theory of motivation includes expectancy theory, equity theory, goal setting theory and reinforcement theory. In my classroom activities I am relating this theorys to my classroom activities in a group. When considered my experience in a group situation once while doing a group presentation in collage we all are five people. We had a 20 days time to presentation and from first day we all thought to meet at my place but no one turn up this happened many time every one say some other reason. It happened for all 19 day only 1 day left to submit the presentation than I thought to divide the task to my group members. Each one is assign a separate task and the task should complete before the particular schedule time. With this I emerge as leader that made me influenza ion as Leadership. Not only Leadership but also motivation In order to sleep tonight I have to complete my task of presentation before sleep. I need to satisfy my physiological need that is to sleep in time. I should complete the presentation before night CONCLUSION According to the trait theory the question arises of weather a leader is born or developed. There is no defined answer as many theorists have different answers to this. Understanding the concepts from above of motivation its rewards systems as to how useful it is for a leader to understand how it can be utilized in getting work done from people, decision making and its importance in growing more efficient, managing change and adapting quickly to it, understanding human perceptions and how they affect management, understanding the value of power in an organization without which a leader is nothing, politics and control and the other factors finally lead towards the understanding that leaders are developed. Many individuals may be born with the skill to be a leader this does not prove that he grows up to be an effective leader. However he can develop the ability to become one. Experience and the urge to learn can help one become an efficient leader. According to my understanding a pers on might be born with natural abilities to become a leader. This assignment is very useful to assess my past behaviour to the present behaviour and ways to develop the behaviour and to assess the performance by using these theories in a group. These are the two oldest theories what I used because older principles are the basic for anything i.e. the applications should follows the basic principle. Only few people are reached the self-actualization concept in the Leadership theory and Maslows theory. I am very much willing to taste that step. So I am going to putting my effort in this way and also looking the ways to develop. In my opinion if the group activities are conducted from the child hood they will be a very useful to the individual to improve their personality, behaviour and from that the concept of Leadership and motivation skills will also improve for the betterment of the future.