Certain unspoken rules known as mores Essay Example for Free

Certain unspoken rules known as mores Essay In today’s world, there are certain unspoken rules known as â€Å"mores† that keep people from engaging in activities that are immoral and criminal. These mores vary slightly from country to country, but some seem to be followed by nearly every society. Murder is never socially acceptable, and in most situations, neither is incest. In an effort to understand why such different societies find the same actions repugnant, a branch of psychology known as Evolutionary Psychology has been formed. Evolutionary psychology is based on the ideas of Charles Darwin. He developed the theory of natural selection, which can be defined as â€Å"the differential contribution of offspring to the next generation by genetically different members of a population† (Crawford, p. 2). Evolutionary psychology takes Darwin’s theory of natural selection and applies the theory to explain how we as humans overcame certain problems that our ancestors encountered, primarily the issues of mating and incest. Following the idea of â€Å"the evolutionary psychology of brother – sister incest avoidance,† Darwinists have found that raising different sex children together has a profound impact on how they are attracted to each other (Crawford, p. 4). As a general rule, they do not wish to mate, and that wish â€Å"reflects a mechanism humans evolved† to avoid inbreeding and genetic problems often suffered by the next generation produced from incest (Crawford, p. 4. ). There are more researchers that take the idea of ancestral cues and evolutionary psychology and apply them to what most people think of as a serious health problem. Some researchers take the idea of evolutionary psychology and apply it to the problems that mostly young women have with anorexia. These researchers tend to focus on the idea that when young women feel they are in a situation that is unfavorable for reproduction, they attempt to render their bodies unfit for bearing children. The researchers believe that anorexia â€Å"may reflect an ancestral reproductive suppression mechanism activated by contemporary cues† (Juda, Campbell, and Crawford, p. 200). In more simplistic terms, the researchers believe that when a woman of childbearing age finds that she has a lack of support, a lack of resources, and an unsuitable mate, she will purposefully lose weight to the point that her body would not be able to become pregnant. In the unlikely event she did become pregnant the odds of the pregnancy completing successfully would be very low. The researchers believe the action taken by these women is triggered by a trait passed down from our ancestors that would keep the population low in times of trouble, such as famine, for example. However, society seems to lean toward the idea that women lose weight in an effort to look â€Å"beautiful. † Although being beautiful may be some women’s motivation to lose weight, researchers believe that beauty is not the only motivation. There are different standards for beauty all over the world. In the United States, there is a prevailing attitude that thinner is prettier. One can contrast that attitude with other counties that find bigger women to be more desirable. Most people think that â€Å"social pressures† make women in some countries want to be thin, but evolutionary psychologists have a different viewpoint. Some researchers believe that not only does an ancestral cue cause women to have eating disorders, but a similar cue could influence women to gain and lose weight in normal ranges due to the socio-ecological state in which they live (Salmon, et al, p. 2). More so, these same researchers believe that this cue is being felt to an extreme degree and for longer periods in the Western Hemisphere (Salmon, et al, p. 2). Thus, weight control is considered to be the result of an internal mechanism, not individual standards for beauty. Evolutionary psychology is an interesting branch of study that may prove useful in gaining a better understanding of what we do and why. Cues from the past influencing the world that we live in today is an interesting approach to determining the hidden reasons behind people’s actions.

Analysis fo the Dairy Industry in Pakistan

Analysis fo the Dairy Industry in Pakistan Introduction The prospering dairy industry of the country seems an embryonic market for branded dairy products, especially in the urban areas, where branded and packed milk, curd and butter are rapidly capturing the market. In fact, the consternation of adulteration, germs, decades-old style of improper handling of dairy products, particularly loose milk and curd by milkmen and shopkeepers, are impelling a large number of consumers in the country to bid adieu to the traditional milkman. Consumer preferences have changed in the favor of packaged dairy products, which ensure better hygiene and good value for money. In Pakistan when we talk about adulteration in loose milk. These kinds of fears and health hazards relating to loose dairy items are steadily changing the mindset of the consumers. Seeing this change and an enormous untapped potential of growth in packaged dairy products in the country in future, several local and multinational companies have introduced their branded dairy items in the r ecent past. In Pakistan, when someone talks about branded milk and curd, the name of Haleeb and Nestle comes to the mind of the people as they have emerged as two strong market leaders, who have swiftly captured the unexplored business of packed milk, curd, butter, margarine, etc. The emergence of these two brand leaders in the country has also encouraged several others to introduce branded dairy products. At present over a dozen companies are actively marketing branded dairy items in the country and among them the most famous are CDL Foods Limited, Bhaipheru; Idara-e-Kissan, Pattoki; Kabirwala Dairy; Lahore Milk Plant, Lahore; Millac Food (Pvt) Ltd., Lahore; Monnoo Dairies, Bhowana; Nestle Milkpak Ltd., Sheikhupura; Noon Pakistan Ltd., Bhalwal; Pakistan Milk Food Manufacturers, Jhang; Prime Dairies, Manga; Royal Dairy Products, Karachi; Ravi Dairies, Jaranwala and Unilever Pakistan Ltd., Sheikhupura, Bhaipheru, Karachi. Besides marketing milk and curd most of the companies are sell ing dairy products with innovation such as yogurt (natural and flavored), sweetened milk, UHT and pasteurised cream, butter, ghee, cheese and ice cream. In Pakistan Nestle is a great success story for establishing the largest milk collection network and setting new trends in dairy sector. On the one hand, it has proved a regular source of income for farmers through an assured and growing income resulting from the sale of their milk, and on the other, it has enabled Nestle to collect better quality milk in the quantities it needs. The basic unit of Nestle milkmans milk collection system is the Village Milk Collection Centre where farmers deliver milk, morning and evening. A trained milk collection agent who tests and records every supply for quality and fat content collects the milk. Over three thousand such centres operate throughout Punjab. This milk is then transported to the nearest sub-centres for mechanical chilling and then to the main centres where it is consolidated and chil led further, before being transported in specially designed insulated tankers to the factories in Sheikhupura and Kabirwala. According to background, dairy is one of the growing segment of livestock sub-sector and important component of Pakistans economy. Pakistan is the fifth largest producer of milk in the world. The per capita availability of milk at present is 185 litres, which is the highest among the South Asian countries. Milk production in Pakistan has seen a constant increase during the last two decades. The production has increased from 8.918 million metric tons in 1981 to 27.031 million metric tons in 2001-02. Milk production for the year 2002-03 is estimated at 27.811 million metric tons. Investment Prospects: There is a large and untapped potential in the dairy industry. With a population of 160 million, a significant demand for dairy products exists in Pakistan. There is a need for establishing modern milk processing and packaging facilities based on advanced technolog y to convert abundantly available raw milk into high value added dairy products. In addition, with improved conditions for milk pasteurisation, availability of chilled distribution facilities and consumer preference for the low cost pasteurised milk, the sector provides unique opportunity for investment in establishing pasteurised milk production plants. There is also great scope for establishing related industries in the form of an efficient milk collection system and refrigeration transportation facilities. The sector offers opportunity to foreign investor for establishing a joint venture for the production of dairy products, particularly dried milk and infant formula milk for which great demand exists in the neighboring countries like Iran, UAE and Saudi Arabia. The dairy industrys main ingredient is milk, which is processed at the dairy plants to produce variety of dairy products. The average daily production of milk in Pakistan is estimated at approximately 95 million litres. Punjab is the leading province in milk production with a share of around 80%. Out of the total production of 95 million litres of milk per day, about 55% is consumed at source in the countryside while the remaining 45% is traded in urban centres. Most of the traded milk is marketed un-processed and currently only about 2.5 to 3 per cent of the traded milk is processed by the dairy industry in Pakistan. Processed liquid milk in the form of Pasteurized or Ultra Heat Treated (UHT) milk is the main dairy product in Pakistan while other products include Dry Powdered Milk, Cream, Butter, Butter Oil, Yogurt, Cheese and ice cream. Presently, about 13 units in the organised sector are engaged in the production of various dairy products. Majority of the dairy plants are located in the vicinity of Lahore, which serves as the hub of this industry Milk Processing Out of the 28 million tons of milk produced in Pakistan, only 2.5 to 3 per cent reaches the dairy plants for processing into variety of dairy products. Pakistans dairy industry produces Ultra Heat Treated (UHT) Milk, Pasteurized Milk, Dry Milk Powder, and Condensed milk. Other major milk products produced by the dairy industry include butter, yogurt, ice cream, cheese, cream and some butter oil. Approximately half of the 0.3 million tons of milk available to the industry is processed into UHT milk, 40 percent into powdered milk, and the remaining 10 percent into pasteurised milk, yogurt, cheese and butter etc. Dairy plants in Pakistan Of the 38 major dairy plants established in the country with a capital investment of Rs. 2.392 billion and having a daily rated capacity of 2,180,000 litres, only 13 plants are currently in operation. The rated milk processing capacity of the 13 plants in operation is estimated at a little over one million litres per day. In addition, two dairy farms of the Pakistan military operating on non-commercial basis have raised Pakistans daily production of processed milk, yogurt and butter. The reasons for failure of large number of dairy plants are several and may differ from plant to plant. The most common reasons include an over estimation of demand for processed milk, too rapid investment in UHT technology, lack of consumer education, high price of UHT processed milk, non development of sustainable milk collection system, lack of trained manpower and insufficient operational funds. For the same reasons, the capacity utilisation of dairy plants in operation is around 40 per cent. The low capacity utilisation prevents most UHT milk processing plants from recovering much more than their variable costs. Next to the raw material i.e. raw milk cost available to the plants for Rs. 14 per litre on average, packaging is the most important cost element. Expensive packaging forms part of UHT technology. Despite immense potentials the dairy sector in Pakistan has been victim of criminal neglect by the successive governments in the country. Even at its present lowest-in-the-world yield per milk cattle, Pakistan is surplus in milk production; but due to lack of proper planning, collection and distribution facilities, a major portion of the total production is consumed, per force, by the producers in the far-flung areas. As against this we are importing 25000 tonnes of powder milk annually to meet the demand of the urban areas at a cost of above 300 million dollar. Pakistan ranks 7th among milk producing countries, with an estimated 21 billion liters of milk produced annually. A lthough this level of milk production is more than adequate on a per capita basis for todays population, lack of processing and poor distribution system in a long hot weather (milk has a shelf life of only four hours under moderate temperatures) keeps it from reaching consumers in areas that are either deficient in milk production, particularly the urban centres, or those that are difficult to access. The milk yield per cow in the neighbouring country is about 3000 liters per lactation period as against 1000 liters in Pakistan. In Western Europe the average exceeds 5000 liters, in USA 9000 and Israel exceeds 7000 liters per lactation period. After extensive research Indian Livestock Ministry has introduced a programme to gradually replace buffaloes with cows, which give more milk, by educating their farmers through their well-established cooperatives and successfully carried out the replacement programme during the last decade or so. During this period India has almost doubled its m ilk production from 38 to 72 billion liters and now ranks at No. 2 after USA with 74-billion liters in milk production. Despite feeding its huge population, India is exporting huge quantity of powder and processed and packed milk. To increase its yield of milk, India has made full use of Israeli expertise who have been trained by the US. Through artificial insemination India had developed a new breed of cows which yield 3000 liter per lactation period instead of previous record of 1200 liters. Pakistans tremendous potential to increase its milk production has so far remained unexplored due to the inactivity of the government and the related bodies which were created with much of fanfare. This neglect appears criminal in view of the fact that milk production despite its lowest yield, is even today far ahead of the major cash crops such as wheat, cotton, rice and sugarcane Conclusion There is huge demand of both powdered and packed milk in the neighbouring countries of Iran, UAE, Saudia Arabia beside Malaysia, and Philippine which Pakistan can successfully harness to its advantage if due attention is paid to this sector. By copying Indian plan, Pakistan can also develop a new breed of cows within a period of about 4/5 years and thereby increase its production by over 100 per cent. Pakistan can become a big exporter of dry and processed milk provided due attention is paid to this sector. Presently in Pakistan only about 22 per cent of milk production is processed, about 57.5 per cent is supplied to urban areas in raw form in most unhygenic conditions causing real health hazards. Rest is consumed by the farmers, mostly per force, specially in the far-flung areas for lack of proper facilities to take it to deficient areas. About 75 per cent of the total production of raw milk is produced in Punjab, 14 per cent in Sindh 10 per cent in NWFP and only 1 per cent in Balo chistan. In Punjab we have more buffalos than cowl in about 60-40 ratio, in Sindh it is 50-50, in NWFP dead 20 per cent buffalos and 80 per cent cows. In Balochistan there are mostly cows. Unlike other progressive countries where sale of raw milk is disallowed by law and processing is mandatory due to milk being one of the two major carriers of diseases (water being the other), Pakistan continues to allow 97-5 per cent milk to be distributed through the traditional gawala system. To the bacteria of tuberculosis and hepatitis that naturally occurs in milk, the gawala adds many more varieties through the addition of contaminated water for its dilution. The contractors, who collect milk in bulk from villages in Punjab through the dodhis the middlemen, and sell it to the urban consumers, go a step further. They add unhygenically produced ice slabs, caustic soda and sometimes formaline to the milk they collect to prevent it from going bad due to intense heat in summers. The UHT process, although expensive, has proven to be a success in Pakistan as it increases milks shelf life to 12 weeks. On the other hand, the pasteurization process inspite of its low procession cost, had not made much of a headway due to the short shelf life of its product and its dependence on old chain from production to consumption. Taking advantage of this cost factor, some milk marketers have begun marketing loose milk in urban areas which they claim to be pasteurized. The UHT process add heavily to the cost of milk as it requires huge investment to set up the plant, production of packing material and above all the collection cost of the milk making it beyond the purchasing power of poor and even lower middle class. Pasteurization process is much cheaper comparatively as the process is much simple and packing material much cheaper. Small pasteurization plants can play an important role to meet the milk demand of cities and towns provided there is a strong and efficient organization to ensu re that all necessary precautions are taken and hygienic requirements for pasteurization process are met before supplying milk to the ultimate consumers. Village cooperatives in India have efficiently handled this problem and about 80 per cent of the milk requirement of urban areas are met through pasteurized milk at an average selling rate of Rs. 15 a liter as against Rs. 24 per liter in case UHT processed and packed milk. Nestle Milk Pak. Ltd., a joint venture with the reputed multinational Nestle of Switzerland operating in over 80 countries around the globe, has done the poineer work in the field of milk collection UHT processing on most modern and state of art machines and quality packing. Nestle has almost the monopoly of UHT processed milk in Pakistan. It is a household name in our affluent families. Poor and lower middle class cannot afford the price and for them it is still a luxury which they can enjoy only once a while. The price of Rs. 28 per cent for Nestle UHT processe d and packed milk appears high, but if you consider the cost of infrastructure manpower and middle men involved in the whole process the selling price is justified. Nestle is concentrating only in Punjab and has developed a remarkable set up to collect milk from areas stretching about 80,000 KMs, and keeping the collected milk chilled in the most hygenic conditions until it reaches the processing factory which may take 8 to 12 hours. They have set up over 2500 milk collection centers from where it is transported to the 520 chilling centres within less than 3/4 hours. Chilled milk is then transferred to the two factories at Sheikhupura near Lahore and Kabirwala near Multan in special trucks with freezing arrangements. It sounds unbelievable but it is a fact that all this organizational structure for collection of milk has been set up by a Swiss expert who arrived in Pakistan only seven years back. To meet J. Moser Head of Milk collection department of Nestle at one of Milk chilling c entre at Mandi Bhauddin was one of most exciting experience of my life. By any standard. J. Moser is an authority on milk production and milk cattle. He can talk for hours on various breed of cattle around the world, their milk yield, how they increased the yield and their future plants, domestic consumption of milk, pattern of consumption and capacity to export milk and milk products to deficient countries. In order to keep his knowledge up-to-date he frequently goes on tour of different countries. He has worked in Sri Lanka, frequently instead India since posted in Pakistan in 1993. In this region he is most impressed by the work done by India to increase their milk production, manage its collection and distribution to its ultimate consumers at an affordable cost. The cooperative societies in Indian rural areas have played a very significant role in developing the dairy sector in India. Hundreds of thousand milk collection centers have been set up to supply milk in bulk to thousan d of pasteurization plants under required unhygienic conditions in the outskirts of almost every city to ensure supply of good milk in abundance. Through artificial insemination programme going on for over a decade with the help of Israel and United States they have developed a special breed of cows with yield of over 3000 liter of Milk per lactation period as against 1000 about 12/13 years back. Mr. Moser told this correspondent that he developed his milk collection and chilling centres on the pattern of Indian cooperatives. A business organization, whatsoever bigger size it may have cannot meet the national requirements. We are concentrating only on the central parts of Punjab which is densely populated and where more milk is available. For other areas in Punjab, Sindh, N.W.F.P. and Balochistan no such arrangement exists. This huge task cannot be done without the financial assistance, help and cooperation of the government. With proper planning and financial support of the governm ent Pakistan Milk production can be doubled in 10 years time and country can become a big exporter of milk and milk products, Mr. Moser said disclosing that by giving shorts of seaman imported from Europe we have successfully carried out artificial insemination programme in Pakistan on experimental basis. Our experiment proved successful as some of the cows conceived and nurtured through this system are giving 18 liter milk a day instead of normal 10 liters. The work has to be done at a large scale for which Nestle is not equipped, he added. It is imperatives, therefore, that the issues of increase in its production, and distribution are tackled on progressive line. The federal government may appoint a task force to study the various aspect of the disarray sector, identify the factors which has hampered growth sofar and recommend measures to develop this sector properly to harness its tremendous potential for the betterment of national economy. Inclusion of a person like, J. Moser i n the proposed task force can be a real help. With the every passing day, dairy products are becoming costlier because live stock farming has not scientifically grown with the increase in population and also it did not match with the pace of urbanization. Recently, milk prices in Karachi increased without any reason. In a short time of two years, milk prices have gone up from Rs 20 per liter to Rs 25, showing a 25 percent increase. Moreover, meat prices have also risen to about 25 percent in the last six months. In such a situation, the only way to control prices is to develop the dairy industry on scientific lines, which will not only provide meat and milk in abundant quantities to the domestic consumers but extra quantities can also be exported. In spite of having a large population of LIVESTOCK, the country is spending some $40 million annually on the import of formula milk only, which is the highest amount spent by any country in the world on this particular commodity. Pollution affecting the Pakistani Dairy industry Seventeen units, including three run by multinational companies, are engaged in the manufacture of dairy products in Pakistan, but environmental pollution, as well as an inadequate supply chain, is hampering the growth of the dairy industry. Noise pollution is one of the factors. Pakistan exports meat to Saudi Arabia but is yet to export dairy products to it, although that is a possibility, said Ibad-ur-Rehman, an executive of Cleaner Production Programme, a private-sector company based in Karachi that offers environmental solution packages to the industry in the backdrop of rising local and international competition. The growth necessitates consistent and adequate supply of raw material, and this is possible in contract production. This is being done by at least one multinational company. Balochistan and Tharparkar district in Sindh, which have a sizeable livestock population, are some of the ideal locations for dairy farming, besides Punjab, he said. Milk, by and large, is the main ingredient of almost all dairy products. Average daily production of milk in Pakistan is about 130 million litres. Most of the traded milk is marketed unprocessed, and hardly two percent of the traded milk is processed by the dairy industry in Pakistan. Processed liquid milk in the form of pasteurised milk or ultra-heat-treated (UHT) milk is the main dairy product in Pakistan. Other products include dry powdered milk, cream, butter, butter oil, yoghurt, cheese and ice cream. The milk-manufacturing process includes pasteurization, homogenization, UHT treatment and packing. Through little additional work, cream is also produced during the pasteurization cycle. Pasteurized cream is churned to make butter. In order to obtain butter oil, butter is heated to 90C degrees in ghee-melters and then liquefied. The milk powder-making process primarily involves evaporation and drying. The main steps around which whole ice cream manufacturing process revo lves are pasteurization, homogenization, freezing and packing. But CPP findings show that the major environmental problem of the dairy industry is wastewater, while solid waste, soil pollution and noise pollution are potential aspects of environmental pollution. Wastewater generation at a dairy industry is characterized by very large volumes of discharge besides the pollution loading from various dairy processes. Estimates show that the proportion of the waste discharge at a typical dairy industry per unit of processed milk ranges from 12:1 to 24:1. This is a very high figure considering the typical ratio of 3:1 in cleaner factories in the developed countries. In modern plants this ratio gets as low as 1:1

How to say no Summary :: essays research papers

Chapter 1- Saying No: The Basics In the first chapter of How to Say No Without Feeling Guilty, the authors present the basics of saying no. But why say no? Many times people are persuaded into doing things they don’t want to do, simply because they can’t find the right words to say no. Another reason why people don’t say no is because they are afraid of what the person will think of them if they say no. I can understand this, because many times I have found myself doing things for people because I couldn’t think of a good excuse to get myself out. After reading the first chapter, I learned the basic techniques to politely saying no. The first one is surprisingly simple—just buy more time. If you can put off your decision to accepting a request from someone, you then have the time to really think about what it will take to satisfy the other person. One of the phrases they suggested was, â€Å"I need to find out if I work first†. As a college student, my work schedule is anyth ing but consistent, so that phrase will be great for me to use. Another suggestion was to say you have a â€Å"policy† against doing something. It’s good because it lets the person know how important it is to do what you need to do. But for me, I don’t think this would be any good, because my friends wouldn’t buy the fact that I have a â€Å"policy†. The prevention technique seemed like it would be a good one. I have a friend who whenever I see, he always wants to go out to a bar and drink. I normally don’t mind, but if I go over to visit him and I’m not in the mood to go out, he will insist that we go anyways. Prevention would be good in this case because if I don’t feel like going out that night, I should probably just avoid this friend entirely. Lying to someone in order not to hurt them, or the face-saving excuse is also a good tactic. If an unattractive girl were to ask me out, I wouldn’t tell her no because I thought she was unattractive. I would probably tell her that I have a lot of work to do for the next couple of months, and I don’t really have time to be going out with her.

Rebellion in Margaret Atwoods The Handmaids Tale :: Handmaids Tale

Rebellion in Margaret Atwood's The Handmaid's Tale "Rebels defy the rules of society, risking everything to retain their humanity. If the world Atwood depicts is chilling, if 'God is losing,' the only hope for optimism is a vision that includes the inevitability of human struggle against the prevailing order." -Joyce Johnson- Margaret Atwood's The Handmaid's Tale analyzes human nature by presenting an internal conflict in Offred: acceptance of current social trends (victim mentality) -vs- resistance for the sake of individual welfare and liberties (humanity). This conflict serves as a warning to society, about the dangers of the general acceptance of social evils and boldly illustrates the internal struggle that rebels face in choosing to rebel. Offred is a Handmaid in the republic of Gilead and while she seems unhappy about this, she is confused about her identity and even starts to accept the role that has been imposed upon her. It seems strange that one might accept such radical changes so easily. Offred has been manipulated into believing that this sinister system was designed for her own good. Peter S. Prescott says: " Offred at first accepts assurance that the new order is for her protection." (151) She must lie on her back once a month and hope that commander makes her pregnant because her sole purpose is to act as a vessel. She even starts to measure her self-worth by the viability of her ovaries and this negatively affects her self-image. This is how Offred characterizes the deploring act : "The commander is fucking. What he is fucking is the lower part of my body. I don't say making love because that's not what he is doing. Copulating too would be inaccurate because it would imply two people,when there is only one. Nor does rape cover it. Nothing was going on here that I haven't signed up for. There wasn't a lot of choice, but there was some and this is what I chose." (Atwood,121) This statement is very dangerous. It shows how Offred has convinced herself that this deploring act is not so bad. It also shows how she is beginning to embrace the system and justify the violations that are being commited against her. By calling it a choice she has shifted the blame from her oppressors to herself and labeled the blatant crime as a mere ritual. Offred shows signs of a developing victim mentality where she accepts defeat and associates the regime's will with her own.

Literary Analysis “Life After High School” Essay

The short story, â€Å"Life After High School† by Joyce Carol Oates, is set in the small town of South Lebanon, New York in 1959. The first three quarters of the story is the tragic tale of one-sided love where Zachary Graff, the intelligent but socially awkward teenager falls in love with Sunny Burhman, the attractive and popular girl that everyone adores. She rejects his proposal and he can’t take it and decides to take his own life. Later, we find out his real love was Tobias, his one friend. His love for Sunny was his last way to fit in with the norms of society. Oates shows us the intertwined lives of three high school students and the paths taken to free themselves of the entrapment of their uncomfortable 1950s conventional lifestyles. Barbara â€Å"Sunny† Burhman is known as the popular too good to be true Christian girl in the story. She was everything the perfect, all American 1950’s girl was supposed to be. In the beginning of the story she is referred to as ‘Sunny’ because her 6th grade teacher suggested calling her this because of her sunny personality. â€Å"Tell you what, boys and girls – let’s call Barbara ‘Sunny’ from now on – that’s what she is† (Oates 512). Sunny’s freedom came by Zachary taking his own life. â€Å"The irony had not escaped Barbara Burhman that, in casting away his young life so recklessly, Zachary Graff had freed her for hers† (Oates 518). She drops the name Sunny and just goes by Barbara Burhman. When she goes off to school she excels in college and solely works on academics. She drops all the â€Å"Sunny† aspects of her life that trapped her and she became a prestigious teacher and author. There was no place for an agnostic gay male like Tobias Shanks in a 1950’s small town high school and he is forced to lead his life in secrecy. After Zachary’s death Tobias Shank’s secret is safe from his fellow high school students. Tobias, like Barbara, changes his name after high school and goes by T.R. Shanks. Unlike Barbara, the author doesn’t let us know Tobias’ exact  point of his freedom from the restrictions of the 50’s lifestyle, but it does come. It possibly comes after the changing times of the 60’s and 70’s. T.R. is able to come out and find his place in the world as a gay man. He goes on to become a successful playwright and director winning many awards Oates leads us to believe that in the beginning of the story Zachary is a typical awkward intellectual that falls in love with the perfect girl in his high school. In reality, his true love is his one friend Tobias, but the constraints of the 1950’s lifestyle led Zachary to believe that Sunny was his perfect choice. Up until death Zachary was conflicted. When both Sunny and Tobias reject him, death seems his only way to freedom. Oates gives some additional insight about Zachary’s thoughts by telling the reader the contents of his car after his suicide. The author, by her quirky ending, left it up to the reader to decide that Zachary may have contemplated other scenarios that possibly wouldn’t have been appropriate with the 50’s perfect life style. In Zachary’s suicide note he takes responsibility and releases all parties of any guilt. This suggests that he did feel constrained by the 50’s lifestyle to the very end. Oates writes a story about three high school students of the 1950’s that students of today can empathize with. Although there still may be other issues of acceptance, the time period in which the story is placed was an especially conservative time. Suicide, homosexuality, and women playing important roles in society outside the home were not part of the social norm of the 50’s. Today these issues are much more accepted. Oates shows us the intertwined lives of three students and the paths taken to free themselves of the entrapment of their uncomfortable 1950s conventional lifestyles.

Is Facebook Making Us Lonely Essay

In Stephen Marche’s article â€Å"Is Facebook Making Us Lonely?† (2013) Marche suggests that over time, loneliness is becoming more prominent in today’s society. Marche develops his claim by using many published research and scholarly articles. In order to make readers aware of this growing epidemic, Marche’s purpose is to show that by using Facebook people are becoming more isolated. The target audience for this article is Facebook users and people who are interested in joining. Although Marche argues that Facebook is making people lonely, Facebook doesn’t isolate people because of the many networking features such as sending messages and writing on walls. After reading Marche’s article, I was confused because I disagree with his opinion of Facebook. Marche suggests that Facebook is making people lonely, but I believe that Marche’s correlation between Facebook and loneliness is mere speculation. Marche begs the question â€Å"Does the internet make people lonely or are lonely people more attracted to the internet?† (278) I agree with the Australian study â€Å"Who Uses Facebook?† The study concludes, â€Å"People who have unhappy family relationships in the first place seek companionship through other means, including Facebook.† (279) Marche’s argument is weak because his lack of evidence, despite his research. Marche states â€Å"Facebook arrived in the middle of a dramatic increase in the quantity and intensity of human loneliness.† (275) This statement proves that Facebook is not the cause of the increase in loneliness. Some of Marche’s research disproves his correlation between Facebook and loneliness. Moira Burk (graduate student) conducted a study that does not support the assertion that Facebook creates loneliness. Burke concluded â€Å"People who experience loneliness on Facebook are lonely away from Facebook. Facebook is a platform for lonely skulking.† (280) Work Cited Marche Stephen. â€Å"Is Facebook Making Us Lonely.† Connections: Guide to First Year Writing Clayton State University. Mary Lamb. Southlake: Fountain Head Press. 2013. 273-284. Print

Bcg on Hul Essay

Once you know which businesses stand where in your business portfolio, you also come to know which businesses need investments, which needs harvesting (making money), which needs divesting (reducing investment) and which needs to be completely taken out of the business portfolio. For a major organization like HUL, ITC etc which have multiple categories and within the categories, they have multiple lines of products; the BCG analysis becomes very important. At a holistic level, they get to make a decision on which product to continue and which product to be divested. Which product can give new returns with good investment, and which products are reaching the apex of market share. BCG Growth Share Matrix –  The BCG growth share matrix was developed by Henderson of the BCG group in 1970? s. The matrix classifies businesses / SBU’s by 1) Relative Market Share –  The market share of the business / SBU / Product in the market as compared to its competitors and overall product / category. 2) Market growth rate –  The growth rate of the industry as a whole is taken into consideration from which the growth rate of the product is extrapolated. This growth rate is then pitched on the graph. Thus by having 2 basic but at the same time very important factors on X axis and Y axis, the BCG matrix makes sure that the classifications are concrete. Calculating the Market growth rate comprises of both industry growth and product growth rate thereby giving a fair knowledge of where the product / SBU stands in comparison to the Industry. The market share on the other hand comprises of the competition and the product potential in the market. Thus when we consider growth rate and market share together, it automatically gives us an overview of the competition and the industry standards as well as an idea of what the future might bring for the product. Once the businesses have been classified, they are placed into four different quadrants of the matrix. The quadrants of the matrix are divided into 1) Cash Cows –  High market share but low growth rate (most profitable). 2) Stars –  High market share and High growth rate (high competition) 3) Question marks –  Low market share and high growth rate (uncertainty) ) Dogs –  Low market share and low growth rate (less profitable or may even be negative profitability) On the basis of this classification, strategies are decided for each SBU / Product. Let’s discuss the characteristics and strategies of each quadrant in detail. Explanation: 1) Cash Cows –  The cornerstone of any multi product business, cash cows are products which a re having a high market share in  a low growing market. As the market is not growing, that cash cow gains the maximum advantage by generating maximum revenue due to its high market share. Thus for any company, the cash cows are the ones which require least investment but at the same time give higher returns. These higher returns enhance the overall profitability of the firm because this excess revenue can be used in other businesses which are Stars, Dogs or Question marks. In the case of HUL following are the Cash cows like Mass Soaps, Beverages, Oral care and Laundry which are running very well in the market today, Oral and Mass soap today is doing very good hence it is the cash cows for HUL today. Strategies for cash cow –  The cash cows are the most stable for any business and hence the strategy generally includes retention of the market share. As the market is not growing, acquisition is less and retention is high. Thus customer satisfaction programs, loyalty programs and other such promotional methods form the core of the marketing plan for a cash cow product / SBU. 2) Stars –  The best product which comes in mind when thinking of Stars is the telecom products. If you look at any top 5 telecom company, the market share is good but the growth rate too is good. Thus because these two factors are high, the telecom companies are always in competitive mode and they have to juggle between investment and harvesting vis investing money and taking out money time to time. Unlike cash cows, Stars cannot be complacent when they are top on because they can immediately be overtaken by another company which capitalizes on the market growth rate. However, if the strategies are successful, a Star can become a cash cow in the long run. Just like the products from HUL like Hair Care products, Skin Care products, Premium Soaps & Laundry products, Deodorants and it’s lately release brand Water (PureIt) Strategies for Stars –  All types of marketing, sales promotion and advertising strategies are used for Stars. This is because in cash cow, already these strategies have been used and they have resulted in the formation of a cash cow. Similarly in Stars, because of the high competition and rising market share, the concentration and investment needs to be high in marketing  activities so as to increase and retain market share. ) Question Marks –  Several times, a company might come up with an innovative product which immediately gains good growth rate. However the market share of such a product is unknown. The product might lose customer interest and might not be bought anymore in which case it will not gain market share, the growth rate will go down and it will ultimately become a Dog. On the other hand, the product might increase customer interest and more and more people might buy the product thus making the product a high market share product. From here the product can move on to be a Cash Cow as it has lower competition and high market share. Thus Question marks are products which may give high returns but at the same time may also flop and may have to be taken out of the market. This uncertainty gives the quadrant the name â€Å"Question Mark†. The major problem associated with having Question marks is the amount of investment which it might need and whether the investment will give returns in the end or whether it will be completely wasted. Processed foods and Color Cosmetics are few of the Question Marks for HUL since it is very rare found in the market due to the reason that it is not giving results as much expected in the consumer market today. Strategies for Question marks –  As they are new entry products with high growth rate, the growth rate needs to be capitalized in such a manner that question marks turn into high market share products. New Customer acquisition strategies are the best strategies for converting Question marks to Stars or Cash cows. Furthermore, time to time market research also helps in determining consumer psychology for the product as well as the possible future of the product and a hard decision might have to be taken if the product goes into negative profitability. ) Dogs –  Products are classified as dogs when they have low market share and low growth rate. Thus these products neither generate high amount of cash nor require higher investments. However, they are considered as negative profitability products mainly because the money already invested in the product can be used somewhere else. Thus over here businesses have to take a decision whether they should divest these product s or they can revamp them and thereby make them saleable again which will subsequently increase the market share of the product. Dogs for HUL are its Sea Products which is definitely and alarm for HUL to kill it. Strategies for Dogs –  Depending on the amount of cash which is already invested in this quadrant, the company can either divest the product altogether or it can revamp the product through rebranding / innovation / adding features etc. However, moving a dog towards a star or a cash cow is very difficult. It can be moved only to the question mark region where again the future of the product is unknown. Thus in cases of Dog products, divestment strategy are used. Sequences in BCG Matrix [pic] Success Sequence in BCG Matrix – The Success sequence of BCG matrix happens when a question mark becomes a Star and finally it becomes a cash cow. This is the best sequence which really gives a boost to the company’s profits and growth. The success sequence unlike the disaster sequence is entirely dependent on the right decision making. Disaster sequence in BCG Matrix – Disaster sequence of BCG matrix happens when a product which is a cash cow, due to competitive pressure might be moved to a  star. It fails out from the competition and it is moved to a question mark and finally it may have to be divested because of its low market share and low growth rate. Thus the disaster sequence might happen because of wrong decision making. This sequence affects the company as a lot of investments are lost to the divested product. Along with this the money coming in from the cash cow which is used for other products too is lost. Results on the strategies for HUL based on the BCG Matrix. There are four strategies possible for any product / SBU and these are the strategies which are used after the BCG analysis. These strategies are 1) Build –  By increasing investment, the product is given an impetus such that the product increases its market share. Example  Ã¢â‚¬â€œÃ‚  Pushing a Question mark into a Star and finally a cash cow (Success sequence) ) Hold –  The company cannot invest or it has other investment commitments due to which it holds the product in the same quadrant. Example –  Holding a star there itself as higher investment to move a star into cash cow is currently not possible. 3) Harvest –  Best observed in the Cash cow scenario, wherein the company reduces the amount of i nvestment and tries to take out maximum cash flow from the said product which increases the overall profitability. 4) Divest –  Best observed in case of Dog quadrant products which are generally divested to release the amount of money already stuck in the business.