Response to “Superman and Me” Essay

â€Å"Superman and Me† is an article by Sherman Alexie that addresses his early experiences with literature. Illiteracy is a huge issue in some lower class groups. Alexie states that, as a Spokane child, his future would likely consist of minimum wage jobs (Alexie 89). The author portrays literacy as a method of escaping these circumstances. In â€Å"Superman and Me†, Alexie describes how he gains his ability to read and write. He begins his journey to literacy in the most unlikely of places: a Superman comic book. The author explains that his reading trials expanded beyond those colorful pages, and allowed him to read the novels his father brought home. Clearly, the fact that he was surrounded by literature seems to have led to him becoming literate. These efforts led to hardships. Cultural expectations of Native Americans challenged him throughout his childhood. It is amazing that he had so many of these struggles as a child. Regarding the time he spent in class, the author notes, â€Å"We were Indian children who were expected to be stupid† (90). Alexie describes his classmates as being brighter outside of the classroom. This contradiction is puzzling. It seems as though the children are seeking to fulfill a role expected of them by the mainstream. It would take a strange kind of culture to disapprove of reading and learning. Still, Alexie disregards such negative influences. The story is painting a bigger picture, as far as literacy goes. Just as Superman breaks through the door to his target, Alexie does so as well. The breaking of the door represents a mental breakthrough. Instead of superpowers, Alexie has knowledge. He knows that literature can open the door to new opportunities. This is why he wishes so strongly for those failing students to strive for more; they can become something more than Spokane reservation kids. â€Æ' Works Cited Alexie, Sherman. â€Å"Superman and Me.† The McGraw-Hill Guide: Writing for College, Writing for Life (Student Edition): Duane Roen, Gregory Glau, Barry Maid.

Dell Computer Corp †Case Study

Dell Computer Corp – Case Study Free Online Research Papers Introduction: According to Dell.com (online), Dell Incorporated describes itself as the worlds leading computer systems company. Dell is the largest and fastest growing among all major computer systems companies worldwide, with more than 46,000 employees. Dell designs, builds and customizes products and services to satisfy a range of customer requirements. Its global strategy is to be the premiere provider of products and services, including those that customers require to build their information technology and Internet infrastructures. Dell has manufacturing facilities and sales offices throughout the Americas, as well as Europe and Asia to remain close to Dells customers wherever they are located (Dell USA: About Dell, 2004). Dell regularly communicates to the public in a variety of ways. For example, according to the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (online) pursuant to the requirements of the United States Securities and Exchange Commission, Dell Incorporated regularly reports its financial performance to investors, creditors, bond holders, insurers, banks, employees and other interested parties in the form of quarterly and annual filings with the SEC. Another important SEC filing is form 8-K. An 8-K report is required to be filed with the SEC in a timely manner whenever events that are deemed to be of interest to investors or potential investors occur at a publicly traded company such as Dell. The provisions of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act passed following the accounting fraud related scandals involving such well known U.S. corporations as Enron and WorldCOM require even more prompt notice to the SEC of significant events (The Laws That Govern the Securities Industry, 2004). Another form of public relations communication between Dell Inc and the external public involves the use of press releases. In calendar 2004, Dell generated more than thirty press releases relating only to the companys financial condition. There were even more press releases addressing product launches and other aspects of Dells worldwide business operations. According to Luan Aten writing for LunarEclipse.net (online), a press release is simply a statement prepared for distribution to the media. The purpose of a press release is to give journalists information that is both useful and accurate. Generally, the first paragraph contains a brief overview of the press release. The second paragraph explains the information in detail, and typically includes a quote from a company employee. The final paragraph is a summation of the release as well as company contact information (Aten). Bob Francis of InfoWorld (1994) notes that Michael Dell created a business model that satisfies customers needs by building high quality and low cost computers to order worldwide. One of the important ways in which Dell Inc. communicates in a public relations sense is through its extensive product advertising and promotions programs. The advertisements that Dell run tend to emphasize the high quality, low cost, and customizable features of its product sales (Francis, 1994, 6). Recently, Dell expanded its product offerings to include items such as portable music storage devices, printers, and flat screen television sets. As a result, Dells most recent television ad campaigns emphasize both the companys traditional products including desktop personal computers and laptop computers, as well as the companys new products. Dells marketing campaigns have been highly successful. Dell has convinced potential customers that all of the following statements are true: Dell is committed to meeting the unique needs of customers around the world. This is why each computer is build to order. In reality, the business model that requires customers to pay in advance for products from Dell offers customers the opportunity to customize the products they prepaid. Dell operates one of the worlds largest and most profitable e-commerce sites with more than $40 million in sales daily. It positions the e-commerce site as a benefit to customers who can take as much time as necessary to customize their system. In reality the advantage to Dell is that this self-service process means that its salespeople do not need to spend their time helping customers decide what to order. The result is higher profits for Dell resulting from lower sales costs. Dells marketing campaign suggests that by eliminating the middleman in the supply chain, Dell is able to control costs and pass the savings on to customers. The effect of this message on its external public is that customers believe that Dell is able to offer top quality, cutting edge technology at rock bottom prices. In reality, by bypassing retailers, Dell is able to earn the profits the retailer would have made. Dell does not offer the lowest priced products on the market, and the technology it employs is not leading edge. For Dell to maintain this cost leadership strategy requires a company to continuously search for cost reductions in all aspects of its business. According to Elizabeth Corcoran writing for Forbes (2004), Dell was among the earliest computer companies to outsource customer service and technical support calls overseas. After sales customer support is a public relations communications process. Dell set up its first offshore technical and customers suppprt center in Bangalore, India in 2001. Dell Inc. opened a second site in the city of Hyderabad in 2003. For Dell, this particular public relations communication process has had mixed results. According to Corcoran, the cost savings for Dell are substantial. Unfortunately, language and cultural differences between U.S. customers and Dells bright but unseasoned Indian support staff led to a number of complaints. U.S. customers were often frustrated when Dell employees answering customer support and technical support calls seemed unwilling t o depart from a script of questions. In November of 2003, in response to mounting dissatisfaction with this arrangement Dell took the rare step of rerouting its large and medium-business support work from India and back to its corporate headquarters in Austin, Texas. However, customer support and technical support for small-business and consumer accounts remains in India (Corcoran, 2004, 50). Dan Briody and Jeanette Borzo writing for InfoWorld (1997) suggest that irrespective of where customer support takes place, Dell has found that direct customer relationships including pre-sale telephone support as well as after sales customer and technical support provide Dell with a constant flow of information about customers plans and requirements. This portion of the public relations communications process enables Dell to continually refine its product offerings in addition to adjusting prices, changing product features, and evaluating the impact of its marketing and advertising campaigns on customer inquiries and on customer sales (Briody, Borzo, 1997, 8). References Aten, L. How to Write a Press Release. Eclipse E-zine, Retrieved Dec 21, 2004, from lunareclipse. net/pressrelease.htm. Briody, D., Borzo, J. (1997). PC PRICE CUTS ABOUND IN REACTION TO DELLS DISTRIBUTION-EFFICIENCY MODEL. InfoWorld, 19(29): 8. Corcoran, E. (2004). Un-outsourcing. Forbes. 173(10): 50. Dell, Inc., (2004). Dell USA: about Dell. Retrieved Dec. 21, 2004, from Dell.com Web site: http://www1.us.dell.com /content/topics/global.aspx/corp/background/en/index?c=usl=ens=corp. Francis, B. (1994). Medica says Build-to-order Notebooks are Dells Edge. InfoWorld, 16(9): 6. U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, (2004). The Laws that Govern the Securities Industry. Retrieved Dec. 21, 2004, from About the SEC Web site: sec.gov /about /laws.shtml. 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Leakey Richard essays

Leakey Richard essays Richard Leakey was born December 19, 1944 in Nairobi, Kenya. His parents were the esteemed anthropologists Louis and Mary Leakey. Richard first became a tour guide in Kenya, but changed his mind when he found an extinct human jaw. He then schooled himself by completing a two-year secondary education program in six months. From 1967-77 he and his co-workers dug up around 400 fossils, that accounted for 230 individuals. The most important discovery was an almost complete skull found in 1977, which Richard believe to be a new species called Homo habilis. Richard Leakeys accomplishments are discovering the crania of Australopithecus boisei in 1969 with the archaeologist Glynn Isaac on the East shores of Lake Turkana, Homo habilis in 1972, and Homo erectus in1975. He was appointed administrative director in 1968 of the National Museum of Kenya, and in director 1974. Since 1989 he has been director of the Wildlife and Conservation Management Service, Kenya. His publications include Origins in 1977 and The Making of Mankind in 1981, both with Roger Lewin. Australopithecus africanus inhabited the earth roughly 3 - 1.6 million years ago. The characteristic difference between the Ausrtalopithicus afarenis and africanus is the height and brain capacity. The height of the africanus is 1.4 m and the brain capacity is approximately 400 - 600 cc. Smaller incisor teeth and a slightly flatter face are also noted. The afarensis has a height of 1.2 m and a cranial capacity of 380 - 450 cc. Sticks, and stones were most likely used to gather food by the Australopithecus africanus. Homo habilis (also known as "handy man") is theorized to have lived with Australopithecus africanus. Homo habilis was known as handy man because he used primative stone tools. The flat face and large molars of the Homo habilis resemble the Australopithecus lineage. The brain size of the Homo habilis is about 700 cc w ...

Endosymbiotic Theory

Endosymbiotic Theory The endosymbiotic theory is the accepted mechanism for how eukaryotic cells evolved from prokaryotic cells. First published by Lynn Margulis in the late 1960s, the Endosymbiont Theory proposed that the main organelles of the eukaryotic cell were actually primitive prokaryotic cells that had been engulfed by a different, bigger prokaryotic cell. The term endosymbiosis means to cooperate inside. Whether the larger cell provided protection for the smaller cells, or the smaller cells provided energy to the larger cell, this arrangement seemed to be mutually beneficial to all of the prokaryotes. While this sounded like a far-fetched idea at first, the data to back it up is undeniable. The organelles that seemed to have been their own cells include the mitochondria and, in photosynthetic cells, the chloroplast. Both of these organelles have their own DNA and their own ribosomes that do not match the rest of the cell. This indicates that they could survive and reproduce on their own. In fact, the DNA in the chloroplast is very similar to photosynthetic bacteria called cyanobacteria. The DNA in the mitochondria is most like that of the bacteria that causes typhus. Before these prokaryotes were able to undergo endosymbiosis, they first most likely had to become colonial organisms. Colonial organisms are groups of prokaryotic, single-celled organisms that live in close proximity to other single-celled prokaryotes. Even though the individual single-celled organisms remained separate and could survive independently, there was some sort of advantage to living close to other prokaryotes. Whether this was a function of protection or a way to get more energy, colonialism has to be beneficial in some manner for all of the prokaryotes involved in the colony. Once these single-celled living things were within close enough proximity to one another, they took their symbiotic relationship one step further. The larger unicellular organism engulfed other, smaller, single-celled organisms. At that point, they were no longer independent colonial organisms but instead were one large cell. When the larger cell that had engulfed the smaller cells went to divide, copies of the smaller prokaryotes inside were made and passed down to the daughter cells. Eventually, the smaller prokaryotes that had been engulfed adapted and evolved into some of the organelles we know of today in eukaryotic cells like the mitochondria and chloroplasts. Other organelles eventually arose from these first organelles, including the nucleus where the DNA in a eukaryote is housed, the endoplasmic reticulum and the Golgi Apparatus. In the modern eukaryotic cell, these parts are known as membrane-bound organelles. They still do not appear in prokaryotic cells like bacteria and archaea but are present in all organisms classified under the Eukarya domain.

Intellectual property rights Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Intellectual property rights - Research Paper Example Intellectual property regards legal attachments to concepts. These concepts are original creations or new improvement on existing concepts. These ideas range from wide areas of: art works, musical ideas, authorship of books, scientific discoveries and innovations and computer innovations. Intellectual rights form one of the fundamental issues in business law. Due to the increasing innovation and integration of ideas into business concepts, it is essential that businesses take a deeper concern into ideas. As concerns property rights, both individuals and companies have a right to legal ownership of ideas (Miller & Jentz, 2010). Apart from that, intellectual property is becoming IT oriented because of the risk of placing information online. However, litigation due to IP rights infringement can be avoided by licensing. A license is an agreement between a creator and an intended user regarding a work.Intellectual property rights exist in various forms. The most common elements include tr ademarks, patents, copyrights, trade secrets and industrial designs. To begin with, this research explores the idea of trademarks. A trademark, as the name suggests, is a unique mark assigned to a product that makes it easily recognizable in a world of sea of products. Apart from the use in identification of a product, a trademark also states a product’s origin. Examples of trademarks include logos, emblems, mottos or drawings. The law protects the trademark used by a company or a person from use by another entity.

The Mobile Phone Market in China Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 4000 words

The Mobile Phone Market in China - Essay Example At the same time, there is a heavy reliance on group affiliation and group membership in China that continues to feed growing consumption demand ratios for mobile phone products as a means to stay connected with other Chinese family members and peer acquaintances. There is also a growing demand for mobile services in the business environment for executives and generic employees alike, representing a whole different market segment other than just the middle class Chinese buyer. Therefore, there are multiple market segments that are available for targeting which will require the creation of an integrated marketing campaign for business and generic consumer markets. China, however, is a saturated market for mobile phone marketers, with such competition as Nokia, Motorola, Toshiba, Panasonic and other local Chinese manufacturers under partnership with NEC and other Chinese service providers (Myers & Yuan, 2008; Wang, 2005). This must be taken under consideration prior to market entry as unit volumes of competitor mobile phones have exceeded 134 million in 2008 (Fu, 2007). Subscribership to mobile services of varying variety has reached 480 million in China by 2008, a 20 million unit increase since 2007 (Fu). Thus, in order to be competitive in this market, the business must develop a marketing strategy that targets key demographics using a marketing strategy that is differentiated from competition and caters to local market needs. In 2006, Mitsubishi was forced to exit the Chinese mobile market due to a lack of acceptable market presence and failure to adopt marketing strategy to fit the local Chinese consumer (Myers & Yuan, 2008). Toshiba also was forced out of the market in 2006 after a joint venture with Nanjing Patina Wang Zhi Corporation was unable to meet market demand (Myers & Yuan). These are important factors to consider that have opportunities for new market entry and also to illustrate the importance of consumer influence in the Chinese mobile market. De spite the saturated presence of competition, research has identified much significant potential for revenue growth in China if the business develops an appropriate integrated strategy that targets multiple buying groups. The goal is to maintain an image of local market fluency that fits the psychographic profile of Chinese consumers related to their lifestyle, preferences, and social tendencies. This report provides research data on the Chinese consumer, the mobile market, competitive practices, and describes opportunities for short-run and long-run revenue growth in this difficult NIC market with ample consumer market availability. To succeed in China, the business must be flexible, innovative, and also invest considerable capital into promotion and advertising. 2. Background analysis on China The Chinese market currently maintains a 34.5 percent growth in mobile phone usership, with an increase of 20 million year to year in subscribership to mobile services (Fu, 2007). Growth in m obile phone usage has occurred by new industrial developments, new job opportunities, and also the balance of payments equilibrium that exists in China associated with import and export volumes and capital expenditures. The Chinese government maintains a significant trade surplus with other countries, but is able to offset this through capital outflows into foreign investment (Warren & Keegan, 2009). China has been

Decision Support Systems in Medicine Research Paper

Decision Support Systems in Medicine - Research Paper Example This computerized system would ease the timely calculation of the organization’s payroll and with very little chance of any errors in those calculations. Information Systems can be viewed as work systems where all activities are centered towards digital processing of data provided to them. An information system constitutes of: A Computing device, A storage device in order to store data being processed and also the outputs. Previous data bank Instructions and procedures. INFORAMTION SYSTEMS TYPES Categorically there may be several types of information systems. This categorization is with respect to the difference in the organizational levels that exist. The types may be narrated as follows: Transaction Processing Systems- example: Payroll systems, Order Processing System. Office Automation Systems- example: Word Processing Systems. Knowledge Work Systems- example: Engineering Workstation. Decision Support Systems- Clinical Support Systems. Management Information Systems  œ Sales Management Systems. Executive Support Systems – High Level Managerial Forecasting Systems MEDICAL INFORMATICS The infusion of Information Technology in the field of health and medicine has led to the rebirth of the said field. Technological advancements that have affected the field of health have affected the human society as a whole directly and have mostly proved to be beneficial rather than hazardous. Formally speaking, the definition of Medical Informatics, as quoted at openclinical.com, is stated as follows:   Medical Informatics  is the "scientific field that deals with biomedical information, data, and knowledge - their storage, retrieval, and optimal use for problem solving and decision making. It accordingly touches on all basic and applied fields in... According to the research medical informatics is the "scientific field that deals with biomedical information, data, and knowledge - their storage, retrieval, and optimal use for problem solving and decision making. It accordingly touches on all basic and applied fields in biomedical science and is closely tied to modern information technologies, notably in the areas of computing and communication (medical computer science)". Thus, in the light of the above-mentioned definition, medical informatics can very well be termed as the handling of data with respect to health and medicine with the assistance of computers and computer related systems. Medical information management, or simply put, the managing of all information related to health and medicine has become an integral part of the health care profession in the modern times. The present state of health and medicine cannot be executed without the involvement of information systems that are computer based. Decision support systems a re one of the types of information systems that assist in medicine. They can be termed as information systems that assist in decision making. Improved decision making can be achieved by information systems that are flexible, interactive and adaptable. Recent advancements in Health informatics pertaining specifically to the implementation of information technology in the present day hospitals is ideally referred to as a means of reduction of distress for the patient as well as the practitioner.