Break Stalin :: essays research papers

Break StalinDestalinization A Wise Political system Although many of his ideas did not bring the expected results, Nikita Khrushchev policies of de-Stalinization were politically wise. He went against many of Stalin&8217s tyrannical policies and gave the people a much great sense of freedom. In the process known as &8220de-Stalinization, legal procedures were restored, some greater degree of meaningful public controversy was permitted, forced elbow grease camps were closed and the cryptic police tactics of Stalin&8217s era were erased. Stalin&8217s method of personal swayer was replaced by group rule and more orderly processes of government, the terror apparatus was largely dismantled, the economy was notably modernized and foreign policy was conducted with much greater diplomatic initiative and flexibility. on that point was free political discussion, a standard forty-hour work week where people were free to change jobs, better government planning on production, a nd eased decease restrictions over the &8220Iron Curtain. In the process of de-Stalinization the cities that were once named in honor of Stalin were given new names or returned to their old names1. The statues and pictures of Stalin were undo and letters were sent to families of those who were killed in battle, which criticized Stalin&8217s weak leadership during the time of the war. Stalin&8217s grave was vandalized during this process, and Khrushchev gained approval from the West. These policies were used to erase the last(prenominal) and ease the minds of those who suffered under the dictator2. Khrushchev worked to denounce his former leaders doings and clean up the image of the nation on a worldwide scale. Khrushchev worked hard to be agreeable with the majority of people he ruled. He sought to contrast his own present policies with the extremities of Stalinism, and therefore restore public confidence in the Soviet system.3 Perhaps the most notable example of de-Stal inization was where Khrushchev denounced Stalin and criticized the dictator along with those who agreed with his views. These views which murdered so many Russian Citizens. At the 20th All-Union company Congress (1956) where Khrushchev delivered a &8220secret report on &8220The Personality Cult and Its Consequences, bitterly denouncing the rule, policies, and personality of Stalin.4 The speech was supposedly kept a secret so that the Capitalist media would not receive word of it and gain an edge over the Communists if they knew of the problems occurring within the party. Khrushchev accused Stalin of being responsible for mass murders and deportations, the German incursion during World War II (1939-1945), and the USSR&8217s

Materialism In Hong Kong :: essays papers

Materialism In Hong KongIs the Materialism serious in Hong Kong? Do peoplein Hong Kong dream of wealth and physical comfort quite an than spiritual and intellect things?Absolutely. Living in a thriving, busy and boomingcity which dreams for wealth and treat the luxuriesas a mark of success through the effect of media andthe attitude of enjoy-the-life-the-most, misery andimp everywhereished characteristics are dishonoured,however, it makes the whole society in Hong Kongfalls into an unlimited cliff, people would never return what the reality and the value of their life.The most obvious way of proving materialism inHong Kong is the flooding of advertisement and quickdevelop of luxuries, brand-named goods companies. The idea of become rich is ardent around Hong Kong. There was a survey states that almost 70% of theundergraduate student looking for the goal of abetter job, high salary and high maintenance standardafter they graduate rather than study for theirinterest or fulfilmen t of their unlimited field. Theory of success has been distorted by the overloaded mass media in Hong Kong. It is easy to knowwhere you can buy the brand-named and expensiveclothes and usually they strongly mention about whichsuccessful psyche or movie stars have them. Peoplethen agreed with the message comes from the massmedia and make themselves look like a successfulperson rather than being a real successful person.The dreams of wealth has the first position in HongKong atmosphere. Most of the children who are elevated in a high livingstandard family and bathing in the pool of parentsadore has been receiving over loaded information fromtelevision and advertisements. Before a child entersfirst grade class, and in advance entering in any realway into our religious ceremonies, a child will havesoaked in a large sum of money of advertisements. The timeHong Kong teenagers adsorbing advertisements morethan their total stay in high school. Especially inthe bitty area re sidence environment in Hong Kong. Most of the small sized families have theircorresponding small sized flats since the price ofreal estate in the market was in hyper inflation fewyears past and never fall down its price. Childrenspend their time in watching TV instead of goingoutside, doing sports or reading books compared tothe other countries. They have been raised and builtup their mind mostly by the commercial TV programmessuch as advertisements where children receive theirethnic value, their basic grasp of worlds meaning and accordingly create the habit of buying luxury

Rabies :: essays research papers

Rabies, it kills 30-70 thousand people each year around the world (CDC). 40,000 people are treated for it each year in the United States merely (CDC). Carried by rabid animals, this viral infection poses a threat to animal lovers alike. The primary problem of rabies is prevention, the effects are severe, and the causes are many.The computer virus is stretch out by animals. Warm blooded animals are required to transmit the virus and the disease is almost always fatal (CDC). It is passed through saliva from the host to the dupe also through mucous membranes like the eyes or nose. Yet the most common ways of transition is through a bite with the virus containing saliva. The main animals that hold the virus are skunk, fox, bat, raccoon, and the coyote (CDC). These wild animals account for 93% of the cases in the United States. The raccoon still leads as the major holder and the animal is domestic in the Eastern United States. The skunk is native to the inland states, parts of Texas to Montana and all the way to Wyoming. The fox and the coyote are both native to the Mid Southern US, and the fox is also spotted in Alaska along the coast. Although not heard of lately, bats are a bighearted carrier of the virus. They are common in most of the states except Hawaii (WebMD.com). The bats have also spread though out the world, and most late in Australia. Australia was once free of rabies until rabid bats were found there recently (Mayo Clinic Proceedings). The virus can also be spread to domestic animals, and most cases are reported in the summer and fall months. The three major domesticated animals are cats, dogs, and cattle.The symptoms in humans are flu-like symptoms, anything ranging from fever to headache. later a few days after exposure, the human will experience the symptoms of clinical rabies anxiety, confusion, agitation, hallucinations, and also insomnia (CDC). These symptoms may last two to ten days. at once the clinical symptoms have appeared the fata lity rate is very high. To date, there have only been six cases of survival from the clinical stage of rabies (CDC). Incubation stay ranges form ten days to one year, but the average is 20 days. Also bites closer to the brain will progress faster and bites in the begin appendages will take longer to spread (Mayo Clinic Proceedings).

death penalty Essay -- essays research papers

Death PenaltyIntroduction Informed arguments against the death penalty are more glib than arguments in favor of it, as the negative affects of the death penalty have become widely publicized and illustrate the ineffectiveness of this cruel punishment. The death penalty is an inefficient form of punishment as innocent offenders may be executed, superior forms of restitution are available, and it fails to deter crime, all of which contribute to informed arguments against it. bullyingThe primary function of the death penalty is to act as deterrence, yet evidence has indicted that this cruel punishment has failed to deter crime. Inconsistent Any punishment house be an effective deterrent only if it is consistently and promptly busy. The death penalty cannot be administered to meet these conditions as it is never consistent or employed correctly. Only a small proportion of first-degree murderers are sentenced to death, and even fewer are executed. The death penalty fails to deter be cause it is an inconsistent punishment, which permits offenders to believe that the punishment leave not be applied.Premeditated Persons who commit murder and other crimes of personal violence either premeditate them or they do not. If the crime is premeditated, the criminal usually concentrates on escaping detection, arrest, and conviction. The threat of even the severest punishment will not deter those who expect to...

Lorraine Hansberrys A Raisin In The Sun - The Importance of the Strug

The Importance of the Struggle in A Raisin in the Sun Why do some people persist despite insurmountable obstacles, while new(prenominal)s give up quickly or never bother to try (Gunton 118)? A Raisin in the Sun, a play by Lorraine Hansberry, is a commentary on life and our struggle to comprehend and control it. The last scene in the play betwixt Asagai and Beneatha contrasts two contemporary views on why we keep on trying to change the future, and reaches the conclusion that, far from being a means to an end, the real message of life is the struggle. Whether we succeed or not, our lives are purposeful only if we have tried to make the world a better place for ourselves and others- only, in other words, if we follow our dreams. Many self-described realists dismiss this attitude as naive and unrealistic, that finding value in the pursuit of dreams is merely a self-induced delusion. Often, this perspective is obtained after often bitter suffering for little or no apparent reason , as in the case of Beneatha Younger. Already a natural cynic due to the delimitate of the world into which she was born, a world where poor blacks with intents of something better were generally doomed, she became embittered with life when her dream of becoming a doctor was seemingly shattered. From an outside perspective, it seems obvious that she reacted seedy the money her brother lost, after all, was not hers at all but her mothers, and how she expected to finance college without the death of her father and the insurance check that followed is unclear. What is clear, however, is that the death of her long-held aspiration had a profound effect on her. A dream glanced from afar brings disappointment when it collapses a dream that dies w... ...th the mundane, everyday anxieties of life, giving little thought to what our cosmos means or how we can change it. There is another reason, however, that we should strive to mold our own future, no matter how futile a task it whitethor n seem. Lost causes can be winnable, if enough people care about them to make them succeed there is always the hundredth dream. Works Cited Bloom, Harold. Twientieth-Century American Literature. newfangled York Chelsea House Publishers, 1986. Draper, James P. Black Literature Criticisms. Detroit Gale Research Incorporated, 1992. Gunton, Sharon R. Contemporary Literary Criticisms. Detroit Gale Research Company, 1981. Hansberry, Lorraine. A Raisin in the Sun. Literature and the Writing Process. Upper Saddle River, refreshing Jersey Prentice Hall, 1996. Hansberry, Lorraine. A Raisin in the Sun. New York Signet, 1988.

Lorraine Hansberrys A Raisin In The Sun - The Importance of the Strug

The Importance of the Struggle in A Raisin in the Sun Why do some(prenominal) people persist despite insurmountable obstacles, while others give up quickly or never bother to try (Gunton 118)? A Raisin in the Sun, a play by Lorraine Hansberry, is a commentary on flavour and our struggle to comprehend and control it. The last scene in the play between Asagai and Beneatha contrasts ii contemporary views on why we keep on trying to change the future, and reaches the conclusion that, far from being a elbow room to an end, the real meaning of life is the struggle. Whether we succeed or not, our lives are purposeful only if we have tried to make the earth a better place for ourselves and others- only, in other words, if we check our dreams. Many self-described realists dismiss this attitude as naive and unrealistic, that finding value in the pursuit of dreams is merely a self-induced delusion. Often, this perspective is obtained after much blistering suffering for little or no a pparent reason, as in the case of Beneatha Younger. Already a natural cynic due to the condition of the world into which she was born, a world where poor blacks with aspirations of something better were generally doomed, she became embittered with life when her dream of becoming a doctor was seemingly shattered. From an outside perspective, it seems obvious that she reacted poorly the capital her brother lost, after all, was not hers at all but her mothers, and how she expected to finance college without the death of her father and the insurance check that followed is unclear. What is clear, however, is that the death of her long-held aspiration had a profound effect on her. A dream glanced from afar brings disappointment when it collapses a dream that dies w... ...th the mundane, everyday anxieties of life, giving little thought to what our existence means or how we can change it. There is another reason, however, that we should strive to mold our own future, no matter how futile a task it may seem. mazed causes can be winnable, if enough people care about them to make them succeed there is always the hundredth dream. Works Cited Bloom, Harold. Twientieth-Century American Literature. New York Chelsea sign Publishers, 1986. Draper, James P. Black Literature Criticisms. Detroit Gale Research Incorporated, 1992. Gunton, Sharon R. Contemporary Literary Criticisms. Detroit Gale Research Company, 1981. Hansberry, Lorraine. A Raisin in the Sun. Literature and the Writing Process. Upper Saddle River, New island of Jersey Prentice Hall, 1996. Hansberry, Lorraine. A Raisin in the Sun. New York Signet, 1988.

Easyjet: the Future of the Company Under Government Intervention

easyJet The future of the company under g every spatial relationnment intervention. Introduction Since the inception of the aviation diligence, it has had an amazing expansion with passenger growth still at 14% as recent as 2010 The Economist, 2011. For the historic period the aviation industry has been running, each flight causes a negative outwardness a root cause of foodstuff failure. To solve this problem of commercialize failure, political sciences have intervened by introducing a number of regulations over the year, to protect the welf argon of society.However, the externality the aviation industry causes jackpot non be solved so simply. Pollution of CO2 and NOx gasses ar the negative externalities caused by each flight, and with daily flights the damage is forever raising. To over induce this grocery failure in the aviation industry, the European Union Trading Scheme volition be introduced from 2012. The political science pull up stakes intervene by placing a cap on the union of gasses dissolutes atomic number 18 allowed to release through their flights. The theory of the plan suggests that emissions testamenting reduce over time and will push airlines to find alternative resources.Whats The line? Market failure is the term that economists use to describe situations where one person incurs be or enjoys the benefits of an early(a)s action Shiell, A, 2010. There be four chief(prenominal) causalitys as to wherefore market failure occurs Monopoly power, prevalent goods (see supplement A), Asymmetric information (see Appendix B) and Externalities. Within the airline industry, the latter comes into play. Market failure caused by externalities occurs when a party that is not involved in the decision qualification (third party) is affected as a result of that decision.There is a negative spill over effect and this causes markets to become inefficient and on that pointfore fail. Externalities are effects of production or inhalation on t hird parties where the mo simoleonsary value does not cover the to the panoptic cordial toll. They are classed as unconditional (see Appendix C) or negative (see Appendix D) Helbling, T, 2010. It is deemed that the externalities of the airline industry have more adverse effects in the form of taint, which may lead to a decreased quality of life. This problem has been throw out emphasized in the wake of the constant concerns of global warming in the media.There is likewise the issue of other externalities such(prenominal)(prenominal) as noise contamination (see Appendix E), congestion (see Appendix E), and the forgone production in terms of a polluted area (where an airport is located) is likely to affect activities such as tourism. Negative externality caused by market failure occurs due to the market not fetching into consideration the complete social cost of an action. As steadfastlys are profit maximising entities as described by neo classical economics, they will div ulge a great quantity of products compared to what is socially desirable.Taking an example of the aviation industry, the social be of the airliner carrying out more flights is an increase in pollution and the release of other toxic gasses. Equilibrium step 0 Price QMARKET Demand (private value) Supply (private cost) genial cost QOPTIMUM Optimum Cost of pollution As seen by the diagram, the social optimal output level is where the demand curve intersects with the social cost curve. only this is not the look as the current vestibular sense is at a lower place the optimum one, as private tightens only take into account private costs, creating inefficiency and hence market failure. Graph Adopted from Harcourt Brace Company. 2011). Externalities, Chapter 10. p16. There are a number of policies that can be put into the place in order to combat market failure. They may be private such as negation and compensation, or they may be implemented by government. Through direct or indir ect measures such as command and control policies or market based policies such as Pigouvian taxes. (Appendix F). The government had meticulously assessed the aviation market and concluded that there was a noteworthy negative externality in the industry. This externality caused by air travel became the governments chief(prenominal) concern of the industry.They discussed this at the Kyoto Protocol (see Appendix G) and decided to use command and control policies to work the industry in order to tackle the problem. There were three utensils that came about from the protocol and the third mechanism was deemed most important to the aviation industry the European Union Trading Scheme (EU ETS). This scheme aimed to be the primary method to reduce emissions. The idea of the EU ETS revolves around the introduction of the carbon market and the cap-and-trade ashes. This system was introduced in 2005 and commenced an initial trial period to create the markets infrastructure.During the trial period 12,000 facilities within the EU had been placed with an emissions cap, they were not allowed to pollute more than the cap give tongue to just they were allowed to trade these permits if in surplus. The tradable characteristic of these caps gave firms the opportunity to create abnormal profit by marketing them onto other firms that need the extra emission permit. A. Denny Ellerman and capital of Minnesota L. Joskow, 2008 The topic of much debate has been as to whether governments should have intervened in the industry. It is proven that the air industry only produces 2% of the total greenhouse gasses in the E. U.Therefore, it is gravid to pinpoint why governments have targeted the industry in the EU ETS. The EU have stated the main reason for this was to reduce emissions, but, there is evidence in other industries that shows an increase in taxes will not have an effect on pollution. It is important for easyJet to read Appendix H, as it will show that governments aptitude change their approach if their current choice proves ineffective. This will help easyJet k in a flash what might be expected of the industry in the future and may also give the firm a case to argue of the current pollution cap which may be deemed unfair by private companies.The Outlook for easyJet The main carriers in the UK are easyJet, Ryan air, flybe and bmibaby. They offer lower prices due to a number of characteristics such as direct booking, high siting density, uniform aircraft types (less economies of scale on servicing and maintenance), the use of secondary or cheaper airports and no frills such as free food and air miles (see Appendix I for further information). The main selling point of easyJet is its low prices. With the unexampledfound regulations cosmos implemented by 2012 (see Appendix J), expenditure will be sure to go up but this will not only affect the individual company, but the air industry a whole.These systems set up by the Kyoto protocol will cause forc eful changes to the calculate airline industry. The various firms will have to rethink their cost structure and their business plans. easyJet will need to assess what changes it will have to work on and how this would affect them against their competitors. In order to assess the market place, and how easyJet will be affected, Porters five forces model needs to be examined. It consists of substitutes available in an economy, the threat of new entrants, the power of the customer, the power of the supplier and the threat from direct competitors. Porter, 2008) The first main threat a wage hike due to higher costs is that of substitute products. The firm will need to analyse its costs compared to alternative signifys of transport like trains. Currently, short haul di offices are cheaper via train but for a enormous haul journey it is cheaper to use budget airlines, as seen by the diagram to the left. But, this is about to change with new regulations to reduce CO2 emissions, increasin g expenditure for budget airlines. Also, trains are becoming cheaper as they are electric and switching to a full online booking process.The main limitation with people switching to trains is the time constraint. Although the infract in price for long haul flights will reduce, it is hard to see customers moving to trains for these longer distances and the fact that most trains are not direct further makes it eluding for customers to keep use trains. This raises the question, if prices increase, wont people move to more luxurious airliners such as British Airways and Virgin? This is not the case as the non budget airlines in the industry are all currently performing inefficiently when compared to the budget airlines, and it is this characteristic that will be their downfall.With costs rising due to increasing inunct prices (see Appendix K) and the expenses of implementing new technology, budget airlines will still prosper. They are available to provide such a low price and their competitors like B. A will be forced to drop their price and make up the profits elsewhere, if possible. Non budget airlines are beginning to correct their inefficiency and are diversifying to duty tour alive in the industry but with the finite amount of oil, the budget airlines currently have an upper hand. Dr Patrick Dixon, 2008 The suppliers, in this case, the manufactures of the planes play an essential role, now more than ever, as it is up to them to figure out ways to make planes more efficient. The various firms have taken different approaches on how to deal with government intervention and environmental issues. Airbus advertised their aircraft, the A380, as being more fuel efficient per passenger kilometre than a small family car Emirates, 2011. A listen of further features of how the A380 and Emirates are driving towards fewer emissions is available in Appendix L. asyJet have also developed their technology to combat the problem by creating an unducted fan-driven aircraft that its officials regard is the next best thing in fuel efficiency Commercial Aviation Report, 2007. To be able to reduce CO2 emissions in the aviation industry there has to be a full digest on ways to reduce them, such as investment in new technology so planes can use alternative fuels (Appendix M) or become more efficient. This creates a trade-off where other problems caused by the aviation industry, noise pollution and the amount of NOx in the environment, will have less focus on them due to the efforts on the CO2 emissions.The suppliers of aircrafts, such as Boeing and Airbus, need to account for this. With the new regulations in place, the main threat is still easyJets direct competitors. The current growth in the airline industry is stagnant and will reduce in the coming years as evidenced by Appendix N and this pith the firm will need to think of new, more shrewd strategies in order to inhabit in the market place and a list of recommendations have been listed below. The fight between competitors will now be fiercer than ever, especially between the big 2 of the low cost airline industry Ryan air and easyJet.The budget airlines structure is much the same between these firms and it is important for easyJet to use a competitive strategy. Although with these new regulations, new firms will be reluctant to venture into the industry but if incumbent firms are inefficient, new airliners will come into the industry. Recommendations As the new regulations come into place, drastic changes will be made in the air industry. With pledges to reduce carbon emissions and switch to bio fuels, easyJet will have to adjust and remodel its framework.The question on how to reduce emissions is at the top of any firms agenda and what method it will use to tackle this problem will be crucial. The commonplace aim is to reduce emissions via newer planes which are seen as greener and thence have a lower carbon footprint. easyJets biggest competitor, Ryan air, struck deals with certain airports to reduce costs for them in order for the plane carrier to bring economic benefits to the area. But this plan has backfired as the various airports are finding the deal not viable and these deals are currently being looked in to by the European Commission.When easyJet looks at a way to keep costs low, they should not follow this system as it is deemed iniquitous and unethical by many but instead should investigate alternative methods. In order for easyJet to set its self apart, it will need to concentrate on competitive strategies such as cost focus or differentiation focus. Porter, 1980 With cost focus, a firm aims to achieve the lowest costs in the industry. Does the firm therefore invest in latest technology? This action will be capital intensive in the short run but will help in the long run.Do they concentrate on the short run and keep shareholders happy by simply purchasing excess pollution permits? With budget airlines, the factor above all others is the price. Passengers are not concerned with the pollution emitted as long as prices remain low. Consumers are happy to relent the minimal price, and if they werent, they would be travelling on a more luxurious plane such as BA or Emirates. easyJets current stance is to constantly upgrade to new technology as they believe this will increase efficiencies but it is advisable for them to just buy new permits to keep costs low, and to invest in new planes only when need arises.Advertising plays a huge role in the modern world. We see adverts everywhere and corporations pay millions to place their name and logo on various places. What if the airliner sold advertise space in the actual planes? Costs could be considerably reduced if there were advertising opportunities on the flight whether it is on the reading material or on the screens in front of the passenger. The idea of placing adverts to ease costs comes from Freeconomics developed by Chris Anderson. These savings could be passed onto the passenger through lower ticket prices, or simply kept by the company and used for purposes such as growth.Differentiation focus is where a firm sets itself apart from the competition by doing both(prenominal)thing different. There is currently a gap in the market for mid airliners, in terms of those that are between the range of the premium and budget airlines. The firm can exploit this and step up its efforts to excel in the market. With this the firm can charge a higher price which will offset the higher costs but in return give the consumers services that add value to the product such as car rentals, free food, and higher luggage weight capacity.Also increased customer service will be beneficial if they decide to jutting the prices up. There is alot of talk for the use of alternative fuels such as bio fuels and hydrogen, but the advisors point out that it is still not yet a viable extract for the firm. As airlines do not manufacturer their own planes, they are reliant on the manufactures like Airbus and Boeing to incorporate planes with these new technologies and at the same time making it commercially viable. These planes will then be available throughout the industry pushing the market more towards a perfect one with homogenous products.But this again ties in with the long-term short-term plan and if the firm are reluctant to invest, they will keep using brisk aviation fuels. If other airliners change, then the price of aviation fuel will reduce as the demand will be lower. From the advisors point of view, it will be more profitable to stay in the current segment due to factors such as the global economy being stagnated. In order to remain competitive and increase market share, costs need to be kept to a minimum and this will be achieved by the combination of buying excess permits and advertising.These new regulations will not only be faced by the firm in question but will be faced through the industry as a whole. The way in which the individ ual airliners react will show whether or not it will survive in this tightening industry. Appendix Appendix A Monopolies It is easy to see why there is market failure when there are monopolies in the industry and it is because as they have a negatively incline demand curve, they will tend to maximise profits by ensuring outputs remain at a level where marginal costs are exceeded by price.Public Goods With public goods, market failure arises as the firm usually has no-rivals and it is not excludable meaning any losses are reimbursed from public tax money. Appendix B Market failure due to asymmetric information occurs when one party of a transaction has more information than the other group. One market where this occurs is in the used car market where there is the lemons problem. Adverse selection happens before the transaction as only high-risk consumers will want to buy insurance. scour hazard occurs after the transaction as once you have insurance, you are likely to act in a m ore risky way.An example of this is that airliners are likely to operate in risky conditions such as those of the Icelandic ash cloud as they know if the plane gets damaged, the insurance company pays. Quantity 0 Price QOPTIMUM Demand (private value) Supply (private cost) Social cost QMARKET Value of spillover Equilibrium Optimum Appendix C Positive externalities occur when those individuals who are not directly in the market for the good in question gain benefits. Positive externalities may also have an adverse affect on markets and thus could lead to market failure as a smaller quantity than that which is socially desirable is produced.As seen in the diagram, the intersection of the demand curve and the social value curve determines the optimal output level. The efficient output is below the market equilibrium quantity. The aviation industry may bring about positive externalities such as employment opportunities and RD this has positive effects pasts the producer as the knowledge gained in this process may lead to other discoveries and developments. Appendix D Negative externalities transpire when there is a cost to an individual who is not directly involved in the production or consumption of a particular good e. . cigarettes. Equilibrium Quantity 0 Price QMARKET Demand (private value) Supply (private cost) Social cost Cost of pollution If there are negative externalities, the cost of production to society is larger than that to the producer. The supply curve will have to be shifted upwards in order to accommodate for the full cost of production to the society. Appendix E Noise pollution has been a growing concern ever since the aviation industry was set to grow at an exponential rate. It is the local residents that are in the vicinity of the airport who are mainly affected by this.There has been research to suggest that the noise caused by aircrafts is damaging to humans, there is a full list published by the World Health Organisation stating the effects o f noise in Appendix G. As hygienic as being a general annoyance noise damages health, it detracts significantly from the quality of life, it stops local residents enjoying their gardens or simply enjoying tranquillity and quiet, it damages wildlife, it damages the learning ability of schoolchildren and it costs a great deal of money through the costs of noise mitigation and noise abatement. commode Whitelegg, 2000. The World Health Organisation(2010) states that noise has a number of adverse effects which include, hearing impairment, cardiovascular effects and pschedocrine effects. To add more to local resident woes, airports relent an amazing amount of congestion on the roads. It is a hotspot for taxis, buses and trains. All of these add to the general emissions we as a human race pollute. Appendix F To combat externalities there may be a number of private solutions available, one in particular is in the form of negotiation and compensation.This would mean the people producing the negative externality reimburse the third parties, other producing positive externalities are compensated by the third parties. Others may be social sanctions and clean-living codes. Private solutions do not always work and in the case of this occurrence, public solutions need to be taken into account to solve the problem in the form of direct or indirect governments participation in markets. Figure Adopted from Office of Fair Trading. (2009). Government In Markets why competition matters. 14. The two main reasons as to why governments directly intervene in markets are to provide public goods and services that free markets would be unlikely to provide at an appropriate level and to benefit from the commercial value of public sector assets (Office of Fair Trading, 2009). Command and control policies are the regulations set by government and include forbidding certain behaviours like disallowing smoking on the plane, and it could also make certain behaviour necessary such as dr op in low emission technology.This method of intervention is usually used in the aviation industry. Governments intervene indirectly where there are private markets that produce side-effects that have an impact on social welfare. They include certain acts like the use of tax or subsidies to combat market failure. Price Effects of a Tax Quantity Private cost with tax Private cost Private value Social Value P2 P3 Q2 Q1 Q3 Q1 = Market Value Q2 P2 = Full Social Cost In the aviation industry, certain market based policies are in the pipeline and may come to affect in the form of Pigouvian taxes such as fuel tax.As can be seen, the fuel tax could increase the price of an airline trip to P3 which might make consumers feel a lesser need to travel and demand would move to Q3. With this tax on fuel and the current increase in fuel prices due to the unrest in the Middle East, people would find it cheaper to use others means of transport such as trains and ferries and could this be the demise of budget airlines. Appendix G The Kyoto Protocol was a meeting within the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change in Kyoto, Japan in 1997. It was in this meeting that 37 industrialize countries agreed to band together to reduce global emissions.From this meeting three mechanisms came about on how to reduce emissions, the first being the clean development mechanism in which members of the original 37 countries to invest in developing countries, for example installing solar panels and energy efficient boilers. The second mechanism to reduce emissions is the give voice implementation mechanism this is when the original members invest in each others country where it is easier cut costs UNFCCC. int, 2011. Appendix H In regards to the environment, government intervention could have been avoided as no one owns the property right to things such as air.Public goods are free goods available to everyone and include clean air, clean water, and biodiversity these are mainly non excludable and non rival goods. These public goods have no property rights and thus the business and home plate sectors do not put adequacy wildness on these goods and they often face a collective action problem. So if no one owns these, why should an airliner have to pay for pollution costs as they cannot be technically accountable to anyone? As there is no single owner of the air that is being polluted airlines could argue that it is not their state and so why should they be forced the pay the full social cost.The problem of corporate social responsibility then arises this would argue the blame for the pollution lies with the airlines as they provide a chunk of air pollution. After undertaking a wide-ranging consultation of stakeholders and the public and analysing several types of market-based solutions, the Commission concluded that legal transfer aviation into the EU Emissions Trading System (EU ETS) would be the most cost-efficient and environmentally effective option for controlling aviation emissions. European Commission Climate Action, 2011 every form of taxation will not work as these measures have failed to work in the reduction of emissions.One example is the car industry where patronage the heavy taxes the number of car owners across Europe relates to increase. Taxation on air transport will not have any effect on the emitence of greenhouse effects but will instead have an adverse effect on the growth within the European area. Also governments putting emphasis on the aviation industry which produces less than 2% of EU emissions means that the main reason for intervention is not an environmental factor. It is unclear as to the reason why air transport is a priority in the ETS instead of larger green house gas producing industry.The impact is so small that if household heating had to improve by 15%, it would cancel out the effect of the aviation industry. Ethically, government intervention was the right way forward as leave it to the private companies would not have proved effective as their aim is to keep private costs to a minimum. Market failure is bad for your health but social injustice is worse. Oxford Journals. 32 (1), p12-13. It is easyJets duty to abide by any government law. A number of recommendations have been put below as to how the company can best prosper with these new conventions. Appendix ILow Cost Characteristics Low cost airliners offer a determine strategy on a first come first serve basis and this means at the passengers who book earlier pay less. Smith, (No Date) Passenger service costs are lower because there is no free food. Sales and reservation and commission cost lower because virtually everything is done online. The number of rung on board an aircraft is reduced as they are not needed due to not serving food. Smith, (No Date) Appendix J Currently the aviation industry is not included in any of the 12,000 facilities that are included in the trading scheme.However, from the start of 2012 th ere will be a cap on the CO2 emissions from all international flights that arrive or depart from any EU airport. Airlines will receive the same permits and caps that the previous 12,000 facilities received. These firms will then visualise the carbon market where they can buy or sell permits, whichever maybe the case. If the company finds itself with an excess amount of permits they can choose to put them into the market or to simply keep them to cover future emissions. If the airline is in need of more permits they will need to enter the market and purchase the number of permits they require.The firm should also consider investing in alternative technology that will reduce their emissions efficiently. They can also earn emission credits by taking part in the clean development mechanism. European Commission Climate Action, 2011 The aviation industry has begun to explore new fuels e. g. Bio-fuels. It is out of necessity that new fuels are being researched as these are considers more greener compared to oil. There is currently research into using algae as a bio fuel and into other techniques to make aircrafts more environmentally friendly. whatever improvements have already been made through the industry reduced fuel consumption and passenger-friendly cabins Commercial Aviation Report, 2007. Appendix K Oil has always been a finite resource it was always known it will run out at one time or another. As we approach this time the cost of oil and fuel for the aviation industry will increase as oil becomes rarer. In this time it will be budget airlines that prevail and will continue to operate irrelevant of oil prices. It is their fundamental principle that will pull them through the rising oil prices, to deliver the basic minimum a consumer needs and to charge extra for add-ons.Budget airlines have a way of finding ways to cut costs in non essential places, they will continue this practise and will eventually gain the competitive advantage over others in the indust ry. For those companies who exceed their permit limit will have to pay a fine, to give up or purchase extra permits to cover their emissions. John Walker and Amrit MacIntyre, 2008 Appendix L * The Emirates A380 burns up to 20% less fuel per seat than other large aircraft * This is the most significant advancement in reducing fuel burn and emissions in four decades. Low fuel burn means lower C02 emissions. The A380 produces less than 75g of C02 per passenger kilometre, almost half of the European target for cars manufactured in 2008. * Emirates A380s will progressively feature digital inflight magazines, entertainment guides and shop catalogues, saving 2kg per seat or almost one tonne per aircraft. * Emirates A380s, which offers more space per passenger in all classes, will also meet ICAOs gaseous emissions standards by a substantial margin. * We will comfortably meet current Stage Three and proposed Stage Four noise level standards. Our new Emirates A380 maintenance facilities in Du bai are state of the art, efficient buildings. * A380s feature lightweight materials that account for 25% of its structure. * Our emissions components such as NOx will be well under the regulated cap four rule * Emirates is working with Airbus to further reduce weight of our future A380s. * Larger aircraft mean less take-off and landings (in passenger terms, some Emirates A380 versions would be the equivalent of flying up to seven smaller aircraft types). Emirates average fleet age is less than half that of many European airlines, meaning newer technology and efficiency breakthroughs characterise our aircraft. Appendix M The aviation industry has begun to explore new fuels e. g. Bio-fuels. It is out of necessity that new fuels are being researched as oil is a limited resource. There is currently research into using algae as a bio fuel and into other techniques to make aircrafts more environmentally friendly. Some improvements have already been made through the industry reduced fu el consumption and passenger-friendly cabins Commercial Aviation Report, 2007.Appendix N Graph Adopted from The Economist. (2011). Budget airlines In the Cheap Seats. With traffic expected to slow, low-priced air carriers are getting fancy, p1. The graphical illustration shows the number of passengers carried by budget airlines are growing but its set to decline from 14% in 2009 2010 to 6% by 2013 The Economist, 2011. With fewer consumers entering the market, companies have to think of other ways to make money from existing customers. easyJet have approached this by increasing frequency on their routes and using more primary airports.Customer satisfaction will now become an even greater part of the aviation industry with features such as priority boarding and loyalty schemes, also the trivia of losing luggage should become a thing of past. The low-cost carrier market used to be about fast growth and un compound strategies, says Keith McMullan, of Aviation Economics, a consultancy. Now it is about slow growth and complicated strategies. The Economist, 2011 Reference List 1. Dr Dixon, P. (2008) , Future of budget airlines, Online Video Available http//www. youtube. com/watch? v=BVTxPbr_UAc. go bad accesses 18/03/2011. 2. Economist. 2011). Budget airlines In the cheap seats. Available http//www. economist. com/node/18010533? story_id=18010533. Last accessed 03/03. 2011. 3. Elbling, T. (2010). What are Externalities?. Finance and Development. 47 (4), p2. 4. Ellerman, D and Joskow, P. (2008). The European Unions Trading Scheme in Perspective, p1-3. 5. Emirates. (2011). Emirates greener, cleaner, quieter A380s take to the skies. Available http//www. theemiratesgroup. com/english/our-vision-values/emirates-a380. aspx. Last accessed 10/03/2011. 6. European Commission Climate Action. (2011). Reducing emissions from the aviation sector. p1. 7. Graph Adopted from Harcourt Brace Company. (2011). Externalities, Chapter 10. Available http//www. westga. edu/dboldt/ECON2 105/CHAP10. PPT p16. 8. Hamilton, S. (2007). Airline industry grapples with increasing environmental concern. Available http//www. leeham. net/filelib/091007CAR. pdf. Last accessed 20/03/2011. 9. Hamilton, S. (2007). Airline industry grapples with increasing environmental concern. Available http//www. leeham. net/filelib/091007CAR. pdf. Last accessed 20/03/2011. 10. Office of Fair Trading . (2009). Government In Markets why competition

Health Effects from Cell Phone Tower Radiation Essay

The safety of cadre strait prevails is the subject of extensive scientific debate. at that place is a growing body of scientific evidence that the electromagnetic radiation they emit, even at downcast trains, is dangerous to human health. The cell address exertion is expanding quickly, with over century,000 cell send for towers now up across the U. S. , which is expected to increase ten-fold over the next five eld.The industry has set what they say argon safe levels of radiation picture, but at that place atomic number 18 a growing number of doctors, physicists, and health officials who strongly disagree, and foresee a public health crisis. legion(predicate) towers shake off been built recently in Siskiyou Colorado, with dozens more planned, as telecommunications companies rush to corner markets in this fast-growing industry. These towers emit radio frequencies (RF), a plaster cast of electromagnetic radiation (EMR), for a distance of up to 2-1/2 miles. They argon basically the same frequency radiation as atomizes in a microwave oven.Studies become shown that even at low levels of this radiation, there is evidence of footing to cell tissue and DNA, and it has been linked to brain tumors, cancer, suppressed immune function, depression, miscarriage, Alzheimers disease, and legion(predicate) other serious illnesses. 1 Children are at the greatest risk, due to their thinner skulls, and rapid rate of growth. Also at greater risk are the elderly, the frail, and heavy(predicate) women. Doctors from the United Kingdom have issued warnings urging children under 16 not to use cell phones, to reduce their moving-picture show to radio frequency (RF) radiation.Over 100 physicians and scientists at Harvard and Boston University Schools of Public Health have called cellular towers a radiation hazard. And, 33 delegate physicians from 7 countries have declared cell phone towers a public health emergency. The U. S. Federal Communications Commission (FCC ) is in charge of setting the standards of expo authoritative for the public, and claims that, based on scientific studies, the topical levels are safe. But it is not a public health agency, and has been criticized as being an arm of the industry.Many who work for the FCC are either past, lay out or future employees of the very industries they are supposed to regulate. With an explosively emergent $40 billion dollar a year industry at s defy, critics have stated you can bet that their studies are going to show whatever they want them to show. Our national government also once told us that asbestos, cigarettes, thalidomide, and the bloodline supply were safe, but which were later found to be harmful. You can bet that their studies are going to show whatever they want them to show. Cathy Bergman-Veniza, at Vermont legality School Environmental Law Center Conference, 1996 The current U. S. standard for radiation exposure from cell phone towers is 580-1,000 microwatts per sq. cm. (mW/cm2), among the least nurseive in the world. More innovative European countries have set standards 100 to 1,000 times lower than the U. S. Compare Australia at 200 microwatts, Russia, Italy, and Toronto, Canada at 10, China at 6, and Switzerland, at 4. In Salzburg, Austria the level is . 1 microwatts (pulsed), 10,000 times less than the U. S. youthful Zealand has proposed yet more stringent levels, at . 02 microwatts, 50,000 times more protective than the U. S. Standard. 3, 4Contrary to what the communications industry tells us, there is vast scientific, epidemiological and medical evidence that confirms that exposure to the RF and microwave radiation emitted from cell towers, even at low levels, can have big(p) adverse effects on biological systems. 5, 6, 7, 8. thither is vast scientific and medical evidence that exposure to cell tower radiation, even at low levels, can have profound adverse effects on biological systems.Scientists and advocacy groups say that the current FC C safe standards are based on 1985 research, and bolt to consider more recent research that found brain cancer, memory impairment, DNA breakdown, and neurological problems with RF at much lower levels. The earlier studies considered solely the thermal, or heating effects of the radiation in other words, the level at which the radiation would heat tissue, or cook a person, in the same exact manner that a microwave oven works.The FCC levels may ensure our tissues are not cooked, but they fail to address long-term chronic exposure at low levels, or what is called non-thermal effects. Doctors say that RF radiation is wreaking havoc with normal biological cell functions. RF alters tissue physiologysays Dr. George Carlo, an epidemiologist who found genetic damage in a $28 million research program, paid for by the industry. He now fights to have safety levels lowered. 9 In 1998 the Vienna Resolution, signed by 16 of the worlds atomic number 82 ioelectromagnetic researchers, provided a c onsensus statement that there is scientific agreement that biological effects from low intensity RF exposure are complete. It says actual scientific knowledge is inadequate to set reliable exposure standards. No safe exposure level can be open at this time.The worlds leading electromagnetic researchers say real scientific knowledge is inadequate to set reliable exposure standards. The Vienna Resolution, 1998 The Salzburg Resolution, adopted in 2000 at the International Conference on Cell Tower Siting, would prohibit any cell site from emanating more than . mW/cm2 10,000 times more stern than the current U. S. standard. This limit channels into account the growing evidence for non-thermal RF bioeffects. 10 Cell phone towers expose the public to involuntary, chronic, cumulative Radio Frequency Radiation. Low levels of RFR have been shown to be associated with changes in cell proliferation and DNA damage. Some scientific studies show adverse health effects reported in the . 01 to 100 mW/cm2 range at levels hundreds, indeed, thousands, of times lower than the U. S. standards.These harmful low levels of radiation can reach as far as a mile a mode from the cell tower location. Reported health problems include headache, sleep disorders, memory impairment, nosebleeds, an increase in seizures, blood brain barrier leakage problems, increased heart rates, lower spermatozoon counts, and impaired nervous systems. 11 Long term and cumulative exposure to cell tower radiation has no precedent in history. There are no conclusive studies on the safety of such exposures, and the growing body of scientific evidencereports such bioeffects and adverse health effects are possible, if not probable.Dr. Neil Cherry, Ph. D. biophysicist from New Zealand, reports that There is no safe level of EMR radiation. He said the standards are based on thermal effects, but important non-thermal effects also take place, such as cell death and DNA breakdown. Dr. Cherry wrote a 120-page r eview of 188 scientific studies. The electromagnetic radiation causes cells to change in a way that makes them cancer forming. It can increase the risk of cancer two to five times, he said. To claim there is no adverse effect from phone towers locomote in the face of a large body of evidence. To claim there is no adverse effect from phone towers flies in the face of a large body of evidence. Dr. Neil Cherry, biophysicist Public health officials caution that we err on the side of conservatism, apt(p) the massive public health risk that is possible.Other federal health agencies disagree that safe levels of exposure have been identified, much less built into the FCC standard. The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) does not agree with the FCC standards, and analysts have recommended that EMR be classified as a probable human carcinogen. 12 Deputy Director of the Department of Health and Human Services, Elizabeth Jacobsen, has stated that the safety of RF has not been established nor has the necessary research been conducted to test it, and cites risk of brain cancer, tumors and DNA breakdown. The California Public Utility Commission has urged the cell phone industry to not grade towers near schools or hospitals. And the World Health Organization reports many epidemiological studies have addressed possible links between exposure to RF field and excess risk of cancer.These studies do not provide enough information to allow a proper evaluation of human cancer risk from RF exposure because the results of these studies are inconsistent. The safety of RF has not been established, nor has the necessary research been conducted to test it. Elizabeth Jacobsen, Deputy Director, US Department of Health Our bodies are exquisitely refined to subtle electromagnetic harmonics, and we depend upon tiny electrical impulses to conduct complex life processes, says Dr. Robert Becker, author of The Body Electric, and Cross Currents, The Perils of Electropollution.He says at the present the greatest polluting element in the earths environment is the proliferation of (these) electromagnetic fields. Radiation once considered safe, he says, is now correlated with increases in birth defects, depression, Alzheimers disease, study disabilities, Chronic Fatigue Syndrome, and cancer. The incidence of brain cancer is up 25% since 1973, and this year 185,000 Americans will be diagnosed with brain cancer. Brain tumors are the second leading cause of cancer death for children and young adults.Yet, the United States has a de facto policy of post sales surveillance with respect to RF radiation. Only after years of exposure, will there be studies to characterize the health consequences. Some adverse health effects show up immediately, but it can often take 3 to 10 years for the longer term effects of RF illness to appear, such as cancer. Many researchers, public health officials and citizens believe that consumers shouldnt be forced to act as guinea pigs in a bioef fects experiment for the next 20 years. In short, we are the experiment, for health effects. Dr.Gerard Hyland, physicist, says existing safety guidelines for cell phone towers are completely inadequate, since they focus only on the thermal effects of exposure. 15 Hyland, twice nominated for the Nobel Prize in Medicine, says existing safety guidelines afford no protection against the non- thermal influences. Quite justifiably, the public remains skeptical of attempts by governments and industry to reassure them that all is well, particularly given the unethical way in which they often operate symbiotically so as to promote their own vested interests. Existing safety guidelines for cell phone towers are completely inadequate. Dr. Gerard Hyland, Physicist two-time nominee, Nobel Prize in Medicine The industry lobbied Congress with $39 million in 1996 to ensure passage of a law which essentially gives them the right to place these towers in our neighborhoods, and makes it next to impo ssible to oppose them based on health reasons. It is no coincidence that EPA funding was also cut in 1996 for electromagnetic radiation health studies. Citizens and communities across the country are angered, and are protesting this imposition of involuntary, 24-hour-a-day microwave exposure, without proven safety levels.As one citizen stated, Theres no place left to escape. The industry lobbied Congress with $39 million in 1996 to pass a law that took away citizens rights to oppose cell towers based on health reasons. Also, once a cell tower is erected, it has proved very difficult to verify the radiation is within legal limits. There are no safety measures in place to ensure that the towers are not emitting higher radiation levels than legally allowed. One frustrated resident eventually spent $7,000 purchasing his own equipment to test a cell phone tower near his home, and found it emitting radiation at levels 250% ver the legal limit. 16Property set have also been known to dro p once a cell tower is erected, due to the perceived risk of negative health effects. Cellular phone frequencies have also seriously disrupted local anesthetic emergency and law enforcement radio communications. Massachusetts lawyer Mark Berthiaume, opposing placement of a cell phone tower, said Municipalities.. .. are being bullied every day by providers of wireless telephone service who use their financial clout and the federal (law) to confine the communities into allowing them to place large towers in inappropriate locations. 17Some Questions and Answers But dont we need and depend on cell phones? Of course. No one is proverb not to have cell phones and towers, but to make them safer. If Austria can have levels 10,000 times more protective, then so can we. It is just more high-priced to the companies. Also, we dont have to let these cell towers go anywhere and everywhere the industry wants them. We can require that they erect the minimum number inevitable to provide adequate coverage, and be put in the safest places possible. Why dont we just oppose the construction of cell towers in our county?In a strategic move, the cell phone industry has tried to make it illegal for citizens to oppose the towers based on health concerns. In the Telecommunications Act of 1996, state and local rights were seriously limited with regard to opposing towers based on health concerns. The constitutionality of this Act has been challenged in the Supreme Court, and a long legal battle is sure to follow. But it will take years, while the public continues to be exposed to chronic, cumulative radiation with each new cell tower. So what CAN we do?The Telecommunications Act prevents citizens from opposing the towers based on concerns about RF emissions, but we can oppose them on numerous other valid grounds. There are still rights we and our local elected officials maintain, that allow us local control of the number, size and placement of cell towers, while still providing for a dequate cell phone coverage. Numerous communities have called for moratoriums on tower construction, allowing them needed time to study the issue, and enact strict ordinances that require the industry to respect community desires, such as building the minimum towers necessary, in appropriate locations.During these moratoriums, communities are preparing non-industry biased studies of cell phone tower need, and creating cell tower Master Plans, to help protect the rights and health of citizens, while complying with the law. 18, 19, 20 Siting of cellular towers is an important function of our elected officials. Protection of citizens health and property rights should be foremost in the responsibilities of local government. We urge our elected officials to protect the health and welfare of the citizens who live here, rather than big-money interests with profit as their bottom line.

Pat Tillman Essay

Situation Analysis of Tillman Story Stephen Stone Black Sheep, Tillmans platoon, had to make it to Mana on time. However, they had an inoperable fomite with them that had to bring back to the FOB, forward operating base. Black Sheep could not abandon the vehicle. There only viable option was to bring it to a nigh paved highway for a wrecker to pick it up. Luckily, they came across a topical anaesthetic who could tow it to the highway. However, they ran into an another problem.Whether to split the assort or not every form the whole platoon escort the local to the highway, split the platoon and have one half escort the local while the other half continued on with the mission, or let the local tow it alone. Black Sheeps attractors agreed that splitting the platoon would be inviting unnecessary danger and allowing the local to tow the vehicle alone was not unconstipated possible. However, the order came down from higher that the platoon would be split in order to stay on schedule. Black Sheep was split into deuce groups, Serial 1 and Serial 2.Serial 2 will escort the local while Serial 1 continues on with the mission. During this time, thither were some(prenominal) mis converses between provide and the platoon. Serial 2s original path was a difficult and harsh terrain. The local offered an easier and quick path that Serial 2s leader agreed upon. The local took the front of the convoy and led Serial 2 along the newly decided path. However, they came upon indirect bang, which was later, identify as mortar fire. The local stopped and took cover, which resulted in blocking the convoy on the narrow strip of pass.Serial 2s members had to force the driver to drive in order to the convoy out of the danger zone. Serial 1 heard the firefight near Serial 2 and went towards it to provide fire. However, communications between Serial 1 and Serial 2 was neer established during the incumbent firefight. As Serial 1s members got into position, Serial 2 mistakenly Serial 1 as hostiles. During the firefight, Serial 1 was engaged with the PID, positive identification, of the enemy while calling out ceasefire towards Serial 2.While all along, Serial 2 was engaged with who they believed was the enemy. Attached to Serial 1 was a AMF, afghan military force, soldier, who wasnt properly briefed upon to the platoon. Serial 2 mistaken the AMF soldier as an enemy and Serial 1 members near him as hostiles, even though, neither Serial 1 member or AMF soldier were wearing the traditional uniform of the enemy and wearing US Army uniform. Tillmans group was fire upon and hit. Most of the platoon was deafen by the firefight.It took a few minute before Serial 2 recognized the ceasefire and the aftermath, in which they called for help. Black Sheep had two killed in action, KIA, and few injured from the firefight mainly due to the friendly fires. One of the contributing factors to the deaths in Black Sheep was the leaderships devotion to staying on schedule. Leadership c ontinuously sacrifice forest fire fighters advantages in battle to make up lose time and get back on schedule. The leadership didnt provide their men enough time to prepare for the mission or at least properly brief their squad.For example, the AMF soldier was supposed to be introduce to the platoon, so friendly fire would not fall upon him like it did. The one of rangers standards of operation, SOP, is to operate at night in order to provide them the advantage over the enemy. At night, ranger has a huge advantage over the enemy through technology means and night takes away most of the control from enemy with roadside bombs. However, during the daytime, the enemy has an mild observation of US armed forces and optimal control of their use of roadside bombs and improvises explosive devices, IEDs.I would have further delay the platoon to give the platoon time to brief. I would have stuck to the SOP and used the guises of night to move out. One of the main contributing factors for the outcome was communication. Communication between the platoon and headquarters, communication between squads, and communications inside the squads had several flaws. Headquarters didnt establish properly with the platoon. Headquarters didnt take any of the suggestion or opinions from the platoon leaders into account and stuck to their schedule.Also, headquarters didnt polish off on certain items nor didnt the platoon make sure the intention of commander with items such as the route to the highway. Communications between squads were made hasty or were never established. During the firefight, the radio was crowded with Serial 2 taking to understand the situation so communication between Serial 1 and 2 was never established. Due to the noise from the firefight and time of day, verbal and visual communication for ceasefire and signs of friendly was not established in time. Communication within squads was never properly established.If there was proper channels established, the radio mig ht had been less crowded allowing room for Serial 1 to establish communication. Also, PIDs might have been properly established if communication was established with the squads. Due to the lack communication with Serial 2, there was no PID on the enemy, where Tillman was at, but Serial 2 continued to fire. I wouldve once more allowed for more time to the platoon to establish and/or go over the protocols to use the radios, if the radio goes down, reminders of rules of engagement, to ask questions, and such.The lack time and hasty movement contribute to the sectionalization of communication which enflame the disarray that surrounded the firefight. I would have sacrifice the time in order to not send my platoon into unnecessary danger. Army doesnt exigency to engage an enemy if we dont not have an overwhelm advantage. We do not want to set up ourselves for failure. However, when the leadership of Black Sheep didnt provide enough time to platoon to prepare and took away various advant ages of the rangers in order to stay on schedule. The leadership was setting up the rangers for failure.

Women and Minorities in Psychology

Before the call war women and minorities were not allowed to pursue higher direction and were discouraged to study the sciences because of their lack of Intelligence. However, Margaret Washburn was the first off fair sex to graduate with a doctorate In psychology studying with Ethylene In the area of visual Imagery on tactile sensitivity, (Goodwin, 2008). Dry. Washburn went on to suit the president of the American Psychology Association in 1921 (Goodwin, 2008).African Americans were referred to as a beast of burden as was thought of as being even more than inferior than the lowly female and it was the life that that if African Americans were educated it would encourage them to think about freedom ( Goodwin, 2008). During the post-civil war era African Americans were allowed to attend a limited number of separate but equal schools, most attained teaching degrees and returned to their communities as teachers.Those African Americans who did recognise an advanced degree in psychol ogy according to Goodwin (2008), had a very limited opportunity to use their degrees other than teaching at a black college. Francis Sumner was the first African American to earn a doctorate degree in psychology in 1920 (Goodwin, 2008). Because of the school of thought at the time in the 19th century of the superiority of the white-hot males women and people of color were not granted the opportunity to pursue a higher education in the case of African American no education at all.They were treated marginally and living on the fringe of society as having no value as a human being at all. Women and people of color were disenfranchised and deem to have little or nothing to offer. Many African Americans credit W. E. Dubious as being the first African American psychology because he wrote so eloquent about the psychological struggles of African American in his classic work entitled The Souls of obtuse Folks.The omission of women and people of color from the field of psychology, any psych ology results would not have been an accurate because of the blabs of the studies over half of the population was not included. Reference Contributions of African Americans to the Held of Psychology Shells R. Black, Susie A. Spence and Gasify R. Omar Journal of Black Studies Volvo. 35, No. 1 (Seep. , 2004), up. 40_64 Goodwin, C. (2008). A History of Modern Psychology, 3rd Deed. USA John Wiley & Sons, By Sandy beyond simple reading and writing it would have a dangerous effects would be not e good for a women health ( Goodwin, 2008).

American Apparel Case Analysis Essay

Key Facts of the Case (no analysis)-Who is the decision maker? (Remember in analyzing a case you bind to put yourself in the position of the decision maker and try to figure out what YOU would do in his/her position). -maximum 5 key facts that summarize the case.Key closing churchmanBoard of Directors (AA is a publicly traded lodge)Key FactsAmerican Apparel minimized their use of outsourced labour. They localized their manufacturing activities and were known for their anti-sweatshop practices The social club was also praised for their environmentally social practices such as using organic and recycled materials in several of their products, and participating in charitable causes Their advertising campaigns stirred up a lot of disceptation for the company, as roughly consumers believed them to be too sexual and borderline pornographic Charney (CEO) took the ad pictures himself using women he found on the streets or his own employees. As a hiring practice, employees were requi red to provide full length self-portraits to him Charney brought heat to the company via sexual harassment lawsuits and by creating a hostile working environment (using severe language, walking around in his underwear, flirting with employees, etc.)Problem(s) Statement-What is the main problem(s) or opportunity(s) that you (as decision maker) must deal with? -How urgent and how important is this issue and why? important ProblemThe main problem presented for American Apparel is that there are discrepancies between their controversial advertisements and study practices and their positive business initiatives, which has resulted in a sacking of sales for the company. They must determine how they are going to move forward and inspire a turnaround.UrgencyModerately urgentThe company forecast a turnaround by 2015 (3 years to the future)Problem(s) Analysis-What is the background that has led to the problem(s)?-What are the key points that the decision maker must consider when figuring o ut a solution? (eg. constraints that limit the possible solutions or opportunities that could arise) -If a financial analysis is required, outline that in this section. -Perhaps a different format for analysis is more provide? (eg. SWOT, PEST, Porters Five Forces).BackgroundAmerican Apparel strived to promote raw natural beauty. To do this, they used real, non-photo-shopped, airbrush-free models in their advertising campaigns Their signature advertisements have women in racy outfits and poses Charney took the pictures himself and either found women on the streets or used his own employees Charney said it was the companys way of marketing to millennials, targeting contemporary adults who sought after sexual freedom, and fighting against the pressures on women to achieve perfection Charneys strange and inappropriate workplace behaviours made some employees feel uncomfortableSWOTStrengthsPro-labor practicesAnti-sweatshopmake in USA labelPay their employees nearly double minimum wage Provide job security and good benefits for employeesEnvironmentally friendly practices usance of organic and recycled materialsStrong international presence 253+ retail stores in 20 different countries Reasonably priced and good quality productsWeaknessesProvocative advertisementsStore environment makes some customers feel uncomfortable reeked of sexual sin CEO Dov Charneys workplace behaviour and practices which have led to complaints and lawsuits The companys cost of production is presumable higher than their competitors because of their made in USA policy High labour costs$120 million in debtOpportunitiesThe company has the opportunity to tame their challenging advertising campaigns They can also steer the focus back onto their positive business initiatives Ethical buying habits are on the rise consumers are proper more conscious of the environment Expand online and catalog business sectors Focus product lines eliminate those that arent as successful and profitable Reform advertising campaign focus more on AAspositive political activism and homegrown products Restructure corporate-executive-suite and construct a more positive public shape Expand online and catalog business sectors Focus product lines eliminate those that arent as successful and profitable Reform advertising campaign focus more on AAspositive political activism and homegrown products Restructure corporate-executive-suite and construct a more positive public image ThreatsTheir competition who offer analogous products at equal or lower price points, and have cheaper production costs Threats of lawsuits against Charney which create a negative public image Threats of consumers shopping elsewhere due to dissatisfaction with AAs sexual advertisementsSWOT Findings The SWOT analysis shows that American Apparel needs to bring the focus back onto the strengths of the company. They need to remind consumers of the ethical motive the company was built on and their good leave behind and valuab le contri scarceions. Their weaknesses primarily revolve around being too overtly provocative, whether this is towards consumers or within the workplace itself. The company clearly can non go on with this dispute, as they risk overshadowing the positive aspects of their business.Decision Criteria for Solutions-What goals or objectives must be achieved by any potential solution to the problem? (eg. essential maximize market share) -What constraints limit the range of solutions (eg. Cant cost more than $1 Million)Goals and ObjectivesThe goal is to save the companys reputation which allow for in turn stop their money-losing streakConstraintsMust not incur further debt10Identification of Realistic & Practical Alternatives available to the Decision Maker In most situations there will be at least 3 alternatives, one of which can be status quo. One or ii short sentences to describe each. Each alternative MUST be a stand alone solution to your problem(s).Alternative 1 American Appare l should firing their current CEO, Dov Charney,and elect a replacement.Alternative 2 American Apparel should change their advertising strategy by toning down their sexual nature and charge on their business strengths to create positive publicity.Alternative 3 American Apparel should continue with their current advertising strategies.Pros and Cons of each AlternativeAlternative 1ProsCharneys provocative vision and proneness to scandal will leave the company with him It shows that AA will not stand for sexual harassment and inappropriate workplace behaviours The company can bring in a new vision and have a fresh startConsThe company may lose customers who back up Charney and his vision The replacement CEO may not be any better than Charney at running the business Alternative 2ProsIt helps AA to fix the disjunction between their ethical and wrong practices It reminds consumers of the companys positive valuesConsCharney may not go for the new vision he may campaign backIt doesnt s olve the issue of unethical workplace incidents The company may lose customers who support the provocative and natural ads Alternative 3ProsNo changes will need to be made, therefore employees will not need to be trained or guided through any change The controversy surrounding the company may actually bring in customersConsDiscrepancies of the companys business practices will not be solved Consumers who do not like the provocativeness of the company may continue orstart to avoid itRecommendation & Implementation Plan You must have a sentence that says, I recommend alternative Do not combine alternatives. Pick just one. Defend your choice of alternative. Explain WHY it is better than the others. If applicable, explain how the alternative will be implemented. (who, what, where, when, how)RecommendationI recommend alternative 1 firing Dov Charney.I do not believe alternative 3 is an option because the unethical advertisements and workplace practices would likely catch up with the co mpany and really affect their performance in the long run. The reputation of American Apparel would just continue to deteriorate if nothing is changed, which would deter consumers from shopping there.Alternative 1 is a better path to take than alternative 2 because it really gets at the base of operations cause of all the issues Dov Charney. The provocative and controversial advertisements were largely inspired by the CEO himself. Simply changing the companys advertising campaigns is good and well, but there is no guarantee that Charney will even go for that. And whats to say he wouldnt go back to his old ways in the future? Also, alternative 2 doesnt fix the issue of employee complaints and sexual harassment lawsuits that have given the company a bad image. Alternative 1 has the potential to resolve both the advertising strategies and the inappropriate workplace incidents.ImplementationWhoBoard of DirectorsWhatFire Dov CharneyWhereAt a board meetingWhenAs curtly as possibleHowGa ther all documentation of Charneys inappropriate behaviours Review the termination agreement that was made at the time of hiring Charney Review the companys succession plan for the CEO determine who may be able to take Charneys place in the interim Seek rede from the companys lawyers on the best method to fire CharneyOverall Quality (logical consistency & readability)

Oystercard – Electronic Ticketing System

pic pull together plug-in Electronic sh ruboring pic Time is money, we be told, and increasing mobility is a way of saving snip, but how successful ar modern transport musical arrangements at saving snip? ( joke Whitelegg, Time Pollution, Ecologist 23, no. 4 1993) operate choice reasons pic If you live in capital of the United Kingdom, you exit probably know the garner observation fairly well. More or less everybody has one. You use it to pay for passenger car or tube travel top up some money on the plank and instead of perverting a paper just the ticket each(prenominal) time, secure place your government note on a yellow reader, and it will work out how much the expedition price and automatic each(prenominal)y deduct it from your tease.It does hold open a ton of time, and quite a bit of money too (tickets are cheaper on gather). When I first came to capital of the United Kingdom, I found extremely benefcial victimization the gather Card to move around t he city and realized how crucial is this receipts in order to pull out pack travel fast and saving time during their journey. I come from a place where the concept of Public channel is missed at all. We do not have underground trunks, buses are few and always late.In my hometown, Palermo, there are neither move nor boat run and if you want to cycling you have not to be busybodied bicycle paths are just in the historical centre, which is the car kingdom. Last but not least, people are not utilize to walk crimson if distances are very short. I have chosen to analyse the huitre Card as I honestly think it is a light, useful and well-designed service supporting another service, in other worlds an electronic ticketing serving the public transport system. Travelling around capital of the United Kingdom, I have been utilize my Student gather Card and I rarely had problems.When it has happened, I have always found punctual and kind help from the capital of the United Kingdom Und erground Staff. In a urban center as London is, where our journey is not an easy one, we need to go fast, simplifying all the touch points that allow us to buy a ticket, to board on a bus or to finally come impale home. My experience with this service has been pleasant and easy so far, and I guess close to of the people who live in London will agree with me. pic Piccadilly Circus picture taken by myself. Value proposition picProject gather Card creator Transys Year 2002 pic The gather Card, developed as divide of the ? 1. 2 billion Private Finance Initiative, was introduced for three reasons first, to reduce queuing at ticket offices during peak periods second, to make better use of ply and third, to reduce fraud. channel for London placed the contract with Transys, a consortium of specialist firms, for the provision of an advanced ticketing system. It was hoped that the gather Card would eventually replace most paper tickets.The pain broadsheet system went live in Novem ber 2002 when the pull together brand was launched and the first humors were made available to 80,000 staff. 1 Fraud, estimated to be trail at ? 43 jillion per year, was the main driver of the project. The main loss of revenue stemmed from nodes either travelling without tickets or using tickets not valid for the whole journey. other(a) countries have similar smart cards and some of them are used for other types of micro-payments as well as transport for example Hong Kongs Octopus card and Japans Suica card.At the moment about over 70 similar systems are runned across 5 continents. Since the gather card has been introduced in London, the advantages for the customer have been the stronghold and ease with which they stand get through barriers and on to the station, and also in the savings that they make through using the oyster Card. It keep currently be used on the London Underground, London buses and trams, Docklands Light runwayway and field Rail Services in London, p roviding seamless journeys across London. In future, the huitre Card will be linked to the provision of other services including shopping.This is a great example of advances in technology being applied to meliorate customer experience. 2 Core service pic What it is for? TheOyster Cardis a form of electronic ticketing used on public transport services within thegreater Londonarea of the United Kingdom. Where tin use it? Oyster Card is promoted by channelise for London and is valid on a number of varied travel systems across London, including o London Underground o buses o theDocklands Light Railway(DLR) o London Overground,trams o someriver boat services o mostNational Railservices within the London Fare Zones. How it looks like?A standard Oyster Card is a forbidding credence-card-sizedstored value cardwhich can hold a variety of single tickets, period tickets and travel permits which must be added to the card prior to travel. It is also acontactless smartcardwhich passengers must touch onto electronic reader when entering and leaving the transport system in order to validate it or deduct cash. pic pic Front and back of an early Oyster card. How it works? The way Oyster works is pretty simple you purchase the card, buy tickets or concessions either at terminals or online, because rustle the card at a reader when you take a train or bus trip.The Oyster card makes ticketing much more cost-effective for the consumer no paper tickets, no handover of cash, little to no interaction with ticketing staff, speedier processing when entering the train station or bus. For the transport authorities, there are cost savings and instances of ticket payment avoidance / counterfeit are greatly reduced pic Oyster Card aims to replace the paper Travelcard by storing period tickets electronically. pic pic Examples of card readers at London Tube Stations.The cards may be loadd in person from numerous sales points, byrecurring payment authorityor byonline purchase. Usage is encouraged by offering substantially cheaper pick outs on Oyster than payment with cash. 3 The card was first issued to the public in July 2003 with a control range of features and there continues to be a phased introduction of gain functions. By March 2007 over 10 million Oyster cards had been issued4, and more than 80% of all journeys on services run by Transport for London used the Oyster card. 5 Technology picThe Oyster card is acontactless smartcard, with a claimed law of proximity range of about 8cm (3inches). The scheme is operated byTranSys, and is based onNXP/PhilipsMIFAREstandard 1k chips provided by Giesecke & DevrientandSchlumbergerSema. 6 pic A damaged card, revealing the microchip in the lower undecomposed corner, and the aerial running around the edge of the card. MIFARE DESFireis now being rolled out on bracingly issued Oyster cards offset January 5th 2010. It is the same contactless smartcard asTouch n Gocard inMalaysiawhich is mainly used for tollway exe cutes. picThemalasian Touch n GoorTnGsmart card. The technology used for the Oyster card is known asradio-frequency identification(RFID), which is the same technology used in other electronic pass cards like JapansSuicafare cards and other cards used all over the world. 7 pic The japanese Suica( Suika )smart card. Suica Smart Card additional services in operation(p) lockers Airport check-in Coupon Bank account access. Advertising, label Identity and Analogies pic The London Tube Oyster card resides inside a plastic thingie that opens up, just like a clam (oyster) does.According to Nicole Carrol, thus of EDS, the name reflects the way the oyster protects a pearl in much the same way that the card protects the cardholders money. 8 pic picpic Oyster Current more popular Oyster card wallet By Ikea Yellow background, blue writing, unmistakably IKEA. But it is not justt the colours of the most popular Oyster Card which remarks the sponsor, it is also the sentence(s) on the leaflet Travel is a means to an end.Home. Fact behind the story Its the IKEA latest rivulet about putting the concept of HOME in the Lon dors minds. Two years ago, in point, Swedish home store Ikea is launching a ? 2 million outdoor campaign which included sponsorship of the Ideal Homes Show 2008. Since the Oyster Card has been introduced, several different type of wallets have been launched and produced much(prenominal) as Designer Oyster Card Wallets, Oxfam, Pimp My Oystercard (by Ben Jarvis and Tim Crook -badoyster, a Comp whatever that makes satirical oyster card wallets. 9), Virgin, and so on.Every one aimed to advertising or sponsoring a Brand or a Company just because a Oyster Card wallet is a good launch window. picpicpic picpicpic Exaples of Oyster card wallet. Adverstising Campaigns examples Agency M & C Saatchi Client Transport for London a. One poster was headlined Blue is the new pink. It showed a photograph of a one day Travelcard and an Oyster card. Text beneath stated F aster Smarter Easier Oyster. b. A second poster was headlined The correct change. It showed a photograph of an Oyster card. Text below stated Faster Smarter Easier Oyster. c. A third poster stated Did you know?Using Oyster is cheaper than buying daily single tickets. Ask our staff about Oyster Pre Pay. d. A fourth poster stated Still paying cash for single and daily tickets? Using Oyster Pre Pay is cheaper quick avoid queues more convenient no need to plan your journey in advance . 10 Features Registration and protection Oyster tease can be registered or protected for loss or theft. Full registration can be done at aLondon Undergroundstation, an Oyster Ticket spare (shop) or a Travel teaching Centre an Oyster registration form must be filled in (either at time of purchase or subsequently).Registration enables the customer to buy any product for the card and to have an after-sales service, and it protects against theft or loss. All adult Oyster Cards purchased online or by ph one are fully registered. (This does not include Visitor Oyster Cards. ) Oyster Cards obtained at post or shops cannot be fully registered online. However customers canprotect their Oyster Card online by setting up an Oyster online account and recording their card to that account. Sales Oyster Cards can be purchased from a number of different outlets in the London area London Underground or London Overground ticket windows o cash-only vending machines at some stations, they charge ? 5 for the card (? 3 refundable deposit and ? 2 worth of credit) o about 2,300 Oyster Ticket Stop agents (usually newsagent shops) o exacted National Rail stations which are also served by London Underground o Travel Information Centres o online via the Oystercard website o by telephone sales from TfL. 11 pic Oyster Card Machine installed at London Bridge station in December 2006. A refundable deposit of ? 3 is paid for all new Oyster Cards. 12 A registration form is provided at the time of purchase. If the form is not pass with flying colorsd the Oyster Card is circumscribe to Pay as you go and weekly tickets. Most National Rail stations and termini do not sell or top up Oyster card products TfL publish a list of the participating stations. At several main line termini, TfL run Travel Information Centres which do sell Oyster. describe Touch screen ticket machines report the last eight journeys and last top-up amount. The same information is available as a print-out from ticket offices, and also on-board London Buses by request.The counterbalance is displayed on some Underground barriers at the end of journeys that have caused a debit from the balance and can also be call for at newsagents and National Rail stations that provide a top-up facility. A complete 8 week touch history can be requested from Transport for London For registered and protected Oyster Cards, Transport for London can provide the history for the previous 8 weeks, but no further back. The Oyster website giv es lucubrate of the most recent journeys charged to pay as you go if and only if credit has been purchased online, but not for other journeys, or those paid for by Travelcard.Renewals When the Oyster Card Travelcard is due to expire, it can be renewed at the normal sales points and ticket machines at London Underground or London Overground stations, Oyster Ticket Stop agents, or some National Rail stations. Travelcards can also be renewed online via the Oystercard website, or by telephone sales from TfL users must then nominate a Tube station where they will swipe their card in order to charge up the card with the funds purchased. This can only be done the day after ordering. 13Travelcard renewals cannot be added from a reader on a bus.Recharging When the PAYG balance runs low, the balance can be excel up at the normal sales points or ticket machines at London Underground or London Overground stations, Oyster Ticket Stops or some National Rail stations. All ticket offices at stati ons run by London Underground will sell or recharge Oyster cards, or handle Oyster card refunds. However, some Tube stations are actually operated by National Rail train in operation(p) companies, and their ticket offices will not deal with Oyster refunds. DLR ticket offices do not sell any Oyster Card top-ups or handle refunds.PAYG funds and Travelcard season tickets (but not Bus & streetcar track Passes) can also be purchased online via the Oyster online website or by calling the Oyster helpline users must then select one station or tram stop where they will validate their card in order to load the funds or Travelcard purchased. This should be done as part of a normal journey to avoid the risk of paying an Oyster maximum fare. If the customer is purchasing PAYG, the top up will be at the gates of their nominated station, or Tramlink stop thenextday (ready for first train, provided they made the purchase before 11 PM the previous night).It will remain at the gates for 7 further d ays before dropping off the system. If the customer purchases a Travelcard season ticket, it will arrive at the gates, up to 5 days before the start date of the ticket and will remain there until 2 days after the ticket has started. If the customer does not make their pick up in time, it will take a further 14 days to refund automatically to the bank card they made the purchase with. 14Top-ups of this type cannot be added from a reader on a bus. Auto top-up Customers can set up and manage Auto top-up online for their subsisting Oyster Card.They register adebitorcredit card, make a payg top-up purchase (minimum ? 5) and select either ? 20 or ? 40 as the Auto top-up amount. Alternatively, a new Oyster card with Auto top-up and a mimimum of ? 5 pay as you go can be ordered via Oyster online. Whenever the pay as you go balance falls below ? 5, ? 20 or ? 40 is added to the balance automatically when the Oyster Card is touched on an entry validator. A light on the Oyster reader flashes t o indicate the Auto top-up has taken place and an email is sent to stick out the transaction. Payment is then taken from the registered debit or credit card.To ensure successful transactions, customers must record any changes to their billing address and update their debit or credit card details as necessary. pic Top up machine Touching in and out system picpicpic London Underground ticket barriers with yellow Oyster readers Travellers touch the card on a distinctive yellow circular reader (aCubicTri-Reader) on the automated barriers atLondon Undergroundstations to touch in and touch out at the start and end of a journey (contact is not necessary, but the range of the reader is only a few inches).Tram stops andbusesalso have readers, on the driver/conductors ticket machine and, in articulated buses, near the other entrances also. Oyster Cards can be used to store both periodtravelcardsand bus passes (of one week or more), and aPay as you gobalance. The system isasynchronous, the cu rrent balance and ticket data being held electronically on the card rather than in the central database. The main database is updated periodically with information received from the card by barriers and validators.Tickets bought online or over the telephone are loaded at a barrier or validator at a preselected location. picpicpic Oyster validators are placed at most entrances on London buses. Pay as you go system Oyster Route Validators pic The yellow symbol for Oyster validators. In addition to retentionTravelcardsand bus passes, Oyster Cards can also be used asstored-value cards, holding electronic funds of money. Amounts are deducted from the card each time it is used, and the funds can be recharged when required.The maximum value that an Oyster card may hold is ? 90. This system is known as pay as you go (abbreviated PAYG), because instead of holding a season ticket, the user only pays at the point of use. The use of PAYG differs across the various modes of transport in London, and passengers are sometimes required to follow different procedures to pay for their journey correctly. pic The pink symbol for Oyster Route validators In 2009, TfL introduced a new form of Oyster Card validator.These validators, distinguished from the standard yellow validators with a pink-coloured reader, do not deduct funds but are used at peripheral interchange points to confirm journey details. Oyster Pay as you go users travelling in the midst of two points without loss through Zone 1 are eligible for a lower fare, and from the 6 September 2009 they can confirm their route by contact their Oyster Cards on the pink validators when they change trains. By doing this, they can be charged the appropriate fare without paying for Zone 1 travel. pic A Thames Clipper river bus serviceAs with Underground, Buses, River Buses and DLR journeys, Oyster PAYG users on National Rail must swipe their card at the start and end of the journey to pay the correct fare. PAYG funds may also be u sed to cover any additional fares due from season ticket holders who have travelled outside the valid zones of their season ticket. Many large National Rail stations in London have Oyster Card-compatible barriers. pic National Rail ticket barriers with yellow Oyster readers pic Standalone Oyster readers provided at interchange stations between National Rail and the Tube. PricingThe pricing system is fairly complex, and changes from time to time. The most up to date fares can be found on Transport for Londons FareFinder website. To encourage passengers to switch to Oyster, payg fares (including Bus and Tram fares) are generally much cheaper than cash fares A cash bus or tram fare is ? 2, while the single Oyster fare is ? 1. 20, but capped at ? 3. 90 for any number of trips in a day. Using pay as you go, a single trip on the Tube within Zone 1 costs ? 1. 80 (compared to ? 4 cash), or from ? 1. 30 (? 3. 50 cash) within any other single zone. Penalty fares and maximum Oyster fareIn ord er to prevent misuse by a stated 2% of passengers, from 19 November 2006 pay as you go users who do not both touch in at the start and touch out at the end of theirrail networkjourneys are charged a maximum Oyster fare currently ? 6 (Mon Fri 0630 0930 & 1600 1900) / ? 4. 30 (at all other times) for most journeys, or more if the journey begins or ends at certain National Rail stations. Depending on the journey made, the difference between this maximum fare and the actual fare due is automatically refunded to the users Oyster Card upon touching out.Users must touch in and out even if the ticket barriers are open. At stations where Oyster is accepted but that do not have ticket barriers, an Oyster pass validator will be provided for the purposes of touching in and out. The maximum cash fare applies even if the daily price cap has been reached and does not count towards the cap. Maximum cash fares may be contested by telephone to the Oyster helpline on 0845 330 9876. 15 This involv es providing the Oyster Card number and the relevant journey details further journeys appearing on the card are helpful to validate the users claim.If the claim is accepted then the maximum Oyster fare minus the cost of the journey will be refunded. The customer should make the pick up as part of his or her regular travel pattern. This is because when they touch the reader with their Oyster Card, not only will the refund go on to the card, but a new journey will start. Oyster users who do not touch in or out when making a journey (in only for bus and tram journeys) may be liable to pay a penalty fare (currently ? 50) and/or reported for prosecution if caught by a revenue protection inspector. Issues proficient and security issues The system has not been without technical setbacks and criticisms. Passenger groups have expressed concern that buying single travel tickets with cash is far more big-ticket(prenominal) than using Oyster Cards, and it is suggested that this is putting many tourists off coming to London. Oyster has been promoted by Visit Britain and TfL, who sell them on their website and in their offices around the world. Despite this, visitors to London have often never heard of Oyster and its benefits, and are paying higher cash fares unnecessarily. 3 deposit is also seen as a checkout to tourists. other complication is the confusing terms of validity on National Rail services which serve many popular tourist sites on the outskirts of London. The system has been criticised as a threat to the privacy of its users. Each Oyster card is uniquely numbered, and registration is required for monthly or longer tickets, which are no longer available on paper. Usage data are stored both on the card and centrally by Transport for London recent habitude can be checked by anyone in possession of the ticket at some ticket machines.Privacy groups consider it a form of plug surveillance and are concerned with how these data will be used, especially given the in troduction of the London congestion charge by Mayor of London Ken Livingstone in February 2003. The police have used Oyster card data as an investigative tool, and this use is increasing. Between August 2004 and March 2006 TfLs Information Access and Compliance Team received 436 requests from the police for Oyster card information.Of these, 409 requests were granted and the data was released to the police. 16 The system has been criticised for usability issues in general system, website and top-up machine design. The most pregnant usability issue is that pay as you go customers who for whatever reason do not touch out at the end of their journeys will not be charged correctly. Users who have run up a pay as you go debt of as little as ? 1 are prohibited from using any period travelcards on the card until the debt is repaid.Another criticism is that problem diagnosis by London Underground staff is generally poorcitation needed as the system is new and complex, and the staff unfamili ar with all its workings and insufficiently trained this causes passenger frustration. On 10 March 2005 a software fault meant that the Oyster system was inoperable during the morning rush hour. Ticket barriers had to be left open and pay-as-you-go fares could not be collected. 17 On the day that the pay-as-you-go went live on all Oyster cards, some season ticket passengers were prevented from making a second journey on their travelcard.Upon investigation each had a negative prepay balance. This was widely reported as a major bug in the system. 18 However, the reason for the bug was that some season ticket holders, either knowingly or otherwise, were passing through zones not included on their tickets. The existing paper system could not prevent this kind of misuse as the barriers only checked if a paper ticket was valid in the zone the barrier was in. Touching Points and Journey Mapping pic Mapping the user journey from buying an Oyster Card, touching in at the barrier, catching t he tube, touching out, going to work and coming back home following the backwards corse.Highlighting all the touching points ticket machineoffice to purchase or top up the Oyster Card barriersvalidators in and out Tfl website Tfl green-line travel information center member of the staff for questions or problems crime department in case loststolen cards mailletter for student or photo cards pic Touching points pic pic Mapping the journey Surveys and Service Implementation pic stock http//www. transys. com/whatwedo/oystercardproject/results. php pic Source http//www. transys. com/whatwedo/oystercardproject/implementation. hp Conclusions In Principles of Marketing, Philip Kotler defines a service as any activity or benefit that one party can give to another, that is essentially intangible asset and does not result in the ownership of anything. 19 I, like millions of other people travel to and around London every week day for work and so have found the Oyster Card an invaluab le tool to help me in my journey. I think the main advantage of this card is that it means I can load a certain amount onto it for the month and then not have to worry about having actual cash on me to buy a new ticket each day.The Oyster Card can be carried in your wallet just like a credit card and so is small, handy and easy to use. The other great thing about the Oyster Card is that its cheaper to use per journey than if you buy a ticket with cash. Another thing I like is that if you swipe in and then there is a long delay on you line and you have to swipe right out again without going anywhere you can go back up to the ticket office and have them refund your money back onto the card. This however, must be done within 15 minutes of swiping out again otherwise they will not refund it for you.I also like the fact that if you journey is delayed for fifteen minutes or more (this happens quite a bit to me, sitting in tunnels for ? hour at a time) you can log onto the website given ab ove and ask for a refund. You can enter your Oyster Card details so they can see you are coitus the truth and then you will be sent a credit voucher in the post that you can then put back onto your Oyster Card to compensate you for your inconvenience. One of my criticisms though with the Oyster Card is that it does not always swipe first time and you are given a red light meaning you have to swipe your card again.This often causes backup at the gate, especially at rush hour in the mornings or evening. in general I find it is because you are standing too close to the gate and so if you back away a bit you should be ok to swipe after that. One thing I would urge is that you need to make sure that you swipe in and then remember to swipe out to complete a full journey and to avoid being charged a full amount. On one hand we can safely assume that such services are an optimized solution for our current need of travelling fast.On the other hand, we do not know the unpredictable conseque nces of our design actions. As John Thackara worn us, increases in mobility cause negative impact on the environment 20 and we use time gained by speed in order to travel further 21. 1 http//www. transys. com/whatwedo/oystercardproject. php 2 Bill Hollins http//www. designcouncil. org. uk/About-Design/Design-Disciplines/Service-design-by-Bill-Hollins/13-lessons-in-service-design/. 3 What is Oyster? . Transport for London. Retrieved 10 August 2008. 4Mayor to give away 100,000 free Oyster cards. Media Centre(Greater London Authority). 17 April 2007. Retrieved 8 October 2007. 5 New deal with Visit London and Superbreak makes Oyster even more convenient. Press Centre(Visit London). 28 August 2007. Retrieved 8 October 2007. 6 MIFARE. net rest period travel in Londons congested public transport network 7 Smart-card ticketing goes Underground. ZDNet. 20 October 2002. Retrieved 8 October 2007. 8 http//www. rfidnews. org/2002/12/01/a-tube-full-of-oysters-london-goes-contactless -A tube ful l of Oysters?London goes contactless . 9 http//londonist. com/2007/03/pimp_my_oysterc. php 10http//www. asa. org. uk/Complaints-and-ASA-action/Adjudications/2005/11/Transport-For London/CS_40497. aspx 11 Transport for London Oyster online shop 12 Changes to Oyster card deposit from 17 May 2009 Transport for London. Retrieved 27 September 2009 13 Transport for London. Oyster online help. Retrieved 17 November 2007. 14 Transport for London. Oyster online help. Retrieved 17 November 2007. 15 What should I do if I cant touch out at the end of my journey? . Transport For London helpsite. Retrieved 19 June 2008. 16 OysterCardRFI Letter from TfL in response to a freedom of information request 17 BBC News ? 50,000 lost in Oyster failure. 18 BBC News interrogation into Tubes Oyster card 19 PhilipKotler, Gary Armstrong 2005 Business & Economics- Chapter 9-pp 276. 20 John Thackara. In the Bubble Designing in a Complex World. The MIT Press, Massachussetts 2006. 21 John Thackara. In the Bubble Designing in a Complex World. The MIT Press, chussetts 2006.