Gift Giving in Thailand

Gift giving in Thailand nowadays is more Westernized than ever and less formality compare to other countries in Asia. In general, gifts are not required but it is appreciated. And as we all know, Thai people is considered as collectivist culture. So when it comes to receiving gift or giving gift, loss of face or making someone lose face is best to avoid. They will not open gift in front of the giver because they don’t want to look greedy or appear disappointed if they don’t like the gift.Instead, they will say thank you and put it aside and open it later after the giver left. Some foreigners especially westerners might feel put off by this reaction but if they wish to create a good relationship with Thai clients or show Thai business people their goodwill. They should follow the procedure. Here are some tips of what foreigners should do and avoid when they give or receive gift from Thai people whether the gift is exchanged at the meeting or give when invited to Thai peo ple home.Don’ts 1) Expensive and â€Å"run-of-the-mill†. Do not offer gift that is obviously expensive and run of mill. If your gift is obviously expensive, it will make the recipient feel uncomfortable and refuse to take it because it might look like you trying to bribe them especially in business context or with government official agencies. And by Run of the mill it means common stuff such as things that the recipient already has or they buy it frequently. Because it can interpret that you are careless. ) Sharp objects or personal stuff. Do not give sharp objects such as knives and scissors, and mirrors, as gifts. If you are involved in business transaction with Thai business people or especially Chinese-Thai business people, you would want to maintain a good relationship with them. By giving those sharp objects, to some people it can imply that you want to sever the relationship. Moreover, do not give personal stuff such as perfume and handkerchief as a gift becaus e it might convey different message to the recipient.And these are things that people usually buy for their love ones. 3) Rip the wrapping paper of the gift. As I mentioned that Thai people will open the gift they receive in private in order to avoid loss of face and this is the rule that foreigners should follow. But if you are invited to open the gift you received in front of the giver, do not rip the wrapping paper of the gift. Because it is consider as being rude and not appreciated the gift. You should carefully remove the wrapping, fold and set aside.Dos 1) Research As I said before that Thailand is consider as collectivist culture where respect for hierarchy and senior is important. Therefore, it is better to know about the social status of the person or the structure of the company you going to give gift to. It will help you a lot in terms of finding the right thing to give. 2) Appropriated gifts Small, inexpensive and thoughtful gifts should be given. You can buy them thing s like chocolate, fruit or flowers.These are also things you could give to the hostess if you are invited to their homes, including brandy/liquor, cake and candy. In business, you should also bring a small gift for anyone who works for you regularly. Give brandy, liquors, books, special food items and desk attire is appropriate gifts. At New Year's it is common to give  gift  baskets  full of tinned fruits, cookies, whisky and other items. These are usually given and received on behalf of a company. 3) Nicely wrapped gift. It is important to wrap the present before you give it to someone or firms.Gifts should be wrapped attractively, since appearance matters than the gift itself. Use bright colors for your  wrapping. Bows and ribbons add to the sense of festivity. Use red wrapping paper if giving a gift to a Chinese Thai because red color represents good fortune. 4) â€Å"Wai† For foreigners simply say Thank you is enough when you received gift from someone. But if yo u want to impress them, Wai is another way to show that your appreciation and respect to Thai culture. 5) Right Hand Always receive and give gift with right hand.

John Updike`s A&P Essay

â€Å"A & P† is first-person narrative revealing the delusively ordinary story related by the checkout boy in the grocery store named in the title. In â€Å"A & P† the first-person narrator is defined largely by his tone and vocabulary. Updike molds his protagonist through the use of specific writing style, thus Sammy is casual and colloquial. The customers in his grocery are referred to as â€Å"the sheep† the commonness of which has been one day disturbed by the appearance of a sexually uninhibited, young ladies in bathing suits. Surveying the three girls as they wander the aisles, Sammy describes the girls, and here Updike’s style is prolifically intoxicated with the description of the girls with the flights of slang language, trying to show why these teenagers deserve the sacrifice: chunky with â€Å"a sweet broad soft-looking can†, breasts, on the other hand, become â€Å"two smooth scoops of vanilla†, the shoulder bones become â€Å"dented sheet of metal tilted in the light†. Besides, Sammy’s narration is lard with the discourse markers that make his flow of narration softer and folksy: â€Å"kind of jerk†; â€Å"she kind of led them†; â€Å"she had sort of oaky hair† The colloquial style is expressed not only in the vocabulary of the protagonist but in the violated sentence structures. Updike’s uniqueness lies in his process of detachment. Coming in adjective or adverb modifiers rather than main sentence elements, the ironic posture emerges without affecting plot: â€Å"and a tall one, with black hair that hadn’t quite frizzed right, and one of these sunburns right across under the eyes, and a chin that was too long–you know, the kind of girl other girls think is very â€Å"striking† and â€Å"attractive† but never quite makes it, as they very well know, which is why they like her so much† Not rare are also broken structures like: â€Å"She had on a kind of dirty-pink–beige maybe, I don’t know–bathing suit†, or â€Å"The sheep pushing their carts down the aisle–the girls were walking against the usual traffic (not that we have one-way signs or anything)–were pretty hilarious. † The story is presented through the present-tense narration. Such choice of grammar technique imparts narration the sense of immediacy, makes it a chronicle of one event, so that reader feels as if he himself is a witness of that event. â€Å"IN WALKS these three girls in nothing but bathing suits†, â€Å"The girls, and who’d blame them, are in a hurry to get out, †¦ †, â€Å"Lengel sighs and begins to look very patient and old and gray. † Updike’s striking adjectives appear often: â€Å"kind of dirty-pink–beige maybe†, â€Å"chubby berry-face†, â€Å"long white prima-donna legs†, â€Å"the cat-and-dog-food-breakfastcereal-macaroni-rice-raisins-seasonings-spreadsspaghetti-soft-drinks-crackers-and-cookies aisle†; Their intrusiveness increases and besides literary irony, they produce an ambiguity of intent or author’s attitude (hence diction) in his story, which is matched somewhat by unexpected metaphors or visual comparisons, like â€Å"two smoothest scoops of vanilla†, â€Å"outside the sunshine is skating around on the asphalt outside the sunshine is skating around on the asphalt†, â€Å"his back [was] stiff, as if he’d just had an injection of iron†. All of these figures, although appropriate functionally to the text, often call attention to themselves and piece out Updike’s style. Updike, John (1962) Pigeon Feathers, and Other Stories. New York: Alfred A. Knopf.

Neural architecture

IntroductionThis article is traveling to discourse nervous web building from a different position than is usual in conventional attacks. This attack, which will be referred to asNervous Architecture, is intended to research building of nervous webs utilizing nerve cells asexplicitedifice blocks instead than anon. elements trained en mass. Simple Python plans will be used to show the construct for simple Boolean logic maps. The attack of this article is deliberately namedNervous Architecturebecause it is meant to parallel the manner in which a traditional designer consistently constructs a all right edifice: by developing well-known forms of building elements, which may be re-used to make of all time more sophisticated constructions. The conventional attack to nervous web development is to specify a web as consisting of a few beds in a multilayer-perceptron type of topology with an input bed, end product bed, and one or two concealed beds. Then a preparation algorithm such as backpropagation is applied to develop the interconnectedness weights. Sometimes a more sophisticated attack is taken such as utilizing a cascade or perennial topology but for all purposes and intents, the terminal consequence is a standard topology of a few highly-connected beds. This attack was a major discovery in the field because it led some people to get down believing outside the box of symbolic logical thinking that dominate d Artificial Intelligence at the clip. It has besides been successfully used in a assortment of pattern acknowledgment and control applications that are non efficaciously handled by other AI paradigms. However, these applications would non by and large be considered to stand for higher degrees of intelligence or cognitive processing. For illustration, say a nervous web is developed that can successfully acknowledge human faces under a assortment of conditions. This is a extremely utile application and good within the kingdom of conventional nervous webs. However, that is where the capableness of the web leaves away — at acknowledging the facial image. Aside from generalising facial characteristics, it can offer nil more in footings of concluding about those facial characteristics. Further, it is asserted that the standard attack to nervous web development is non suited for recognizing these higher degrees of intelligence. One of the cardinal jobs is the limited mode in which we approach the nervous architecture. To exemplify this job, we will return to the edifice architecture analogy. In this manner, our standard attack to nervous architecture can be likened to planing a edifice utilizing bricks. An designer who ever thinks in footings of bricks will non likely advancement beyond a certain degree of edification, because as a constituent, a brick merely offers one intent: to back up other bricks. Alternatively, an architecture increasingly develops more sophisticated, proved constructions based on the brick ( or other crude constituents ) which can be re-used to develop higher-level constituents. A house is conceived, non in footings of bricks and wood, but instead in footings of walls, doors, and suites. A sophisticated designer might even happen these constituents mundane and alternatively believe in more abstract footings of â€Å" infinites † , energy and flow of human traffic. This is the impression of â€Å" forms † , and in fact these ( architectural ) forms were precisely the inspiration for the field ofpackageforms. The same thought can be applied to nervous webs: a nerve cell by itself merely serves the map of exciting other nerve cells. And conventional nervous cyberspace acquisition algorithms are geared toward classification or other mapping operations. As a advocate of nervous webs, one believes that randomly complex intelligence procedures can be realized, and we have the human encephalon as pretty converting support of that belief. However, to go on advancement in this way, it is likely that we have to develop more sophisticated abilities as nervous designers and develop utile, proved nervous forms similar to the manner that edifice designers have done over clip, and in the manner package designers are now making. Adequate doctrine — we will now be taking a fresh expression at how forms can be constructed get downing with simple nervous elements, and specifically we will get down with Boolean logic elements. Architecting utilizing Boolean logic does non instantly offer an advantage over utilizing regular logic Gatess, but illustrates how sharp logic or symbolic elements can originate from fuzzed nervous processing elements. It will besides supply a conceptual foundation for future articles.Nervous websNervous web: information processing paradigm inspired by biological nervous systems, such as our encephalonStructure: big figure of extremely interconnected processing elements ( nerve cells ) working togetherLike people, they learn from experience.Nervous webs are configured for a specific application, such as pattern acknowledgment or informations categorization, through a acquisition procedureIn a biological system, larning involves accommodations to the synaptic connexions between nerv e cells.The first measure in the architecture procedure is to specify the crude edifice block, and if you have n't fallen asleep at this point, you have no uncertainty figured out that this will be anerve cell. The neuron theoretical account we will utilize is a version of the tried-and-true theoretical account used for package nervous webs, besides known as theperceptron. As illustrated in, the perceptron has multiple inputs and one end product. The mathematical theoretical account of the perceptron is given by: a = squash ( & A ; Sigma ; ( iiwi ) ) where:is input I to the perceptronis the weight for input Iis the activation ( end product )andsquash ( x ) = { 1 if x & gt ; threshold 0 otherwise The nature of the perceptron has been discussed many times elsewhere, including in Matthews, so we wo n't brood on it here. But fundamentally, the perceptron calculates a leaden amount of the inputs and so subjects it to a nonlinear â€Å" crushing † map — in our instance, this is a simple threshold operation. The nonlinear threshold operation is portion of what makes a nervous net exhibit interesting behaviour. Otherwise it would amount to matrix operations.Nature of the gameNow that we have the theoretical account for a basic nerve cell defined, we can now continue to specify basic logic Gatess by merely working out two things:the weight valuesthe thresholdFor our treatment we will presume that weights can be positive ( excitory ) or negative ( inhibitory ) and be in the scope between -1 and 1. The threshold will besides be assumed to be in the scope -1 to 1. If we cast this in footings of signals, so it equates to the demand that both inputs have to be sufficiently high to bring forth an end product. So, we will put our threshold to a high value of 0.8. Following we will put the weights for the two inputs at 0.5 each. If one input is one ( =1 ) so the nerve cell activation ( end product ) will be given by a = squash ( 1 * 0.5 + 0 * 0.5 ) = squash ( 0.5 ) = 0 since 0.5 & A ; lt ; 0.8 { the threshold } Therefore if either or both inputs is 0, the end product is zero. If both are 1, so the leaden amount will be greater than the threshold. Listing 1 show the Python plan that demonstrates the nervous AND gate, and will be used as a templet for other logic maps. The writer prefers Python for prototyping, because it consequences in compact codification that looks really close to pseudocode.Plan to prove InverterWe have shown how a simple set of logic Gatess may be implemented utilizing nerve cells. In theory, this is all we would necessitate to implement a cosmopolitan digital computing machine of arbitrary complexness, because that is all a microprocessor does. In fact, it can be shown that all the logic maps can be implemented with one type of gate: either all NAND Gatess or NOR Gatess. However, if that was our end, there would be no advantage to this attack over utilizing standard logic Gatess. The point is that a nervous attack can be used for planing intelligent constructions †” that is explicitly architecting ( there ‘s that word once more ) structures — every bit good as germinating them utilizing conventional nervous web preparation paradigms. With nervous architecture, we can get down with simple logic operations and construct them up into more interesting logical constructions. As an illustration, see our first illustration, the simple AND gate. This could be used to digitally execute an operation on spots, but it can besides be used to execute a logical AND operation on two regulations, for illustration: IF regulation X AND regulation Y THEN fire ( end product is active ) . Furthermore, by utilizing nerve cells, the inputs are non at wholly limited to binary signals, they could be analog signals ( regulation X is kind of true ) or even the end product of an full nervous web.DecisionThe nervous architecture attack can be seen to hold the undermentioned key advantages or possibilities:Can develop constructions built on a cosmopolitan ne rve cell edifice block.The same basic edifice block can be considered as a nerve cell ( standard perceptron ) or a logic gate.The attack allows sharp constructions to interface with fuzzed 1s, uniting the nondeterministic and evolutionary belongingss of nervous webs along with the advantages of explicit, structured design.Can develop recognizable higher degree edifice blocks, a of import demand for recognizing continuously more complex architectures.

Policymaker Power point Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3750 words

Policymaker Power point - Essay Example Face to face interaction with a policy maker ensures effectiveness of the visit as almost all the questions are assured of an answer and the policy maker can hear all the policy issue concerns. In my visit to the policy maker, I placed a call to their office before visiting in order to book for an appointment. I obtained the number from the blue pages in my phonebook and called between the normal working hours. After calling his office, the call went through his personal assistant who was so quick to dismiss me. However, I insisted on talking with the Policy maker and the personal assistant heeded my plea and connected me to the commissioner’s line. Though the commissioner was busy, I knew I had limited time to persuade him and I told him about the primary aim of my visit and told him that meeting him would assist in reducing childhood obesity within the constituency as it had become prevalent. I knew that the commissioner had interest in the policy issue and that he would be willing to meet me to talk of the way forward and discuss some of the possible remedies to reduce its prevalence. After explaining myself, the policy maker told me that his weekly schedule was a bit tight, but he would slot some time on April 10th at 11 am for us to meet. I thanked the policy maker and we all looked forward to meeting each other. After this confirmation, I knew that I had to survey his office and numerous other areas to identify the ideal place for us to meet. I had to look for a room or place where we would be least distracted or with less noise. I considered the school library, a reading lawn or his office. However, I deliberated on his office as it would be convenient for him too since he had acknowledged that he had a busy week. I then communicated to him on where the meeting would be held. He was also relieved that we would hold the meeting in his office. The one

Animals as source for human organ transplants Case Study

Animals as source for human organ transplants - Case Study Example The issue mainly relates to problems associated with xenotransplantation. The purpose of this paper is to discuss the problems raised and discuss whether the problems raised concern me or not. The paper will also explain the main ethical approach groupings that are most influential in my thinking about the case and the consequences most important to me regarding the case. Xenotransplantation prospect is associated with public health issues. It is reported that xenotransplantation is capable of transferring some risks to the wider society (Patel and Rushefsky 103). The major concern is that xenotransplantation is capable of transmitting infectious agents, like viruses from animals to human beings. It is noted that retroviruses are the major concerns since there exist several examples of such viruses moving from one species and becoming infectious in another. It is also noted that retroviruses fails to show signs of the disease at its initial stages (Institute of Medicine 42). Therefore, in case transplant patients become infected with a retrovirus, then the virus would be capable of spreading to the patient’s family, close contacts, carers and the entire population before it can be established that the infection has occurred (McLean and Williamson 43). The widespread introduction of xenotransplantation has cost implications to the health care system. Opponents of Xenotransplantation argue that the procedure would displace other methods, which are perhaps more worthwhile (McLean and Williamson 43). Therefore, the procedure should not be embraced. Institute of Medicine note that the argument is based on the fact that survival rate for xenograft recipients has been poor (42). As such, early recipients are the one being used as subjects of experiment for this technological development. Some of the issues raised with regard to the case concern me while others do not. The ones that concern me

Stereotyping of Latina Women in the United States Research Paper

Stereotyping of Latina Women in the United States - Research Paper Example But some sections of society seem to be purposely promoting the stereotypical images of some races for conveniences of a certain kind. One of these sections is the entertainment media industry and their convenience in this regard is the ease in selling their product. While there are a few common tendencies of the TV and film industry of stereotyping groups of people, like African Americans and chopper riders, this paper sheds light on the entertainment media’s love affair with certain portrayals of Latino women. It traces the origins of the practice of stereotyping Latinas on TV and film, investigates its immersion in modern society, calculates its impact on the lives of its affectees and alludes to the solution of the problem. Stereotypes It was Gary D. Keller (2) who, in 1994, first drew a detailed picture of the problem, characterising the three principle types of stereotypes that are promulgated by the mainstream TV and film media. These include the image of a sexually att ractive, flamboyant middle-aged woman; the ill-fated, subservient, selfless single woman and the deceptive and cunning beauty that stabs its admirers in the back for vested interests. The portrayal of Latino women as sexual objects is the most common stereotype of Latinas in the TV and film industry. ... It is also common for producers to cast Latinas as poor housewives sacrificing their joys for the well being of their family’s interrelations or as housekeepers showing utter selflessness and subservience to their masters. In a recent study (Rivadeneyra, 393), seven groups of thirty seven students in total were shown montages of different TV shows and movies casting Latino actresses. In their observations, two of the seven groups noted that that it is rare to see Latinos playing positive roles on television: â€Å"They always portray them as the lower class or as the maids or whatever. You never see a CEO of a company being Hispanic or whatever like in a regular TV show.† These trends of stereotyping of Latinas are not fading away yet. Just this year a new show called "Devious Maids" (Shearmur), produced in the famous ABC studios aired, depicting the story of five Latino maids. The show seems to combine two popular stereotypes of Latino women and proves that there still is great market demand for such portrayals of Latino women. Origins and Causes The portrayal of a certain group of people on camera cannot have much bearing on the group’s place in the real world. How then, does this stereotyping of Latinas by the TV and film industry translate to the great inaccuracy in perception of Latinas in American society? In her critical analysis of this issue’s manifestation in the popular TV series Desperate Housewives, Debra Merskin (133) answers this question: â€Å"It is through the repetition of these Latina stereotypes in mass media, both on and off screen that solidifies these stereotypes of Latina women in society.† It is evidently well qualified to say that

Bauhaus by Walter Gropius Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Bauhaus by Walter Gropius - Essay Example Looking out from the building means seeing lines that obstruct the windows and frame them into multiple small panels. The building uses long floors through which the experience of being on the interior reflects a restricted, ordered feeling, based upon the way in which the exterior seems to promote long rectangular shapes. Movement inside the building would provide a reflection of the exterior through interior spaces that are interpreted as a reflection of the continuation of that aesthetic. From the external descriptive perspective, Gropius’ work reflects the avant-garde elements of architecture that arose through the period of the Modernists. The World Heritage List reports that â€Å"It made a major contribution to breaking ‘the power of tradition’, not only in the field of architecture, but also in the design of articles of everyday use and in advertising, creating a new language of form†. The period in which it was built was processing the world throug h an understanding of industrialization and human beings as they fit into an industrialized world. The intention of the work was to reflect a fusion of craft and industry, supporting the concept that â€Å"there is no distinction between monumental and decorative art†. The new aesthetics that were being taught at the time that this building was constructed were based upon the idea that the old world ideas about craft could be implemented into new world ideals that used modern materials and high quality craft, but reflected the aesthetics of the manufactured.

Homework Coursework Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words - 8

Homework - Coursework Example There was a gradual escalation and then the South Vietnamese executed members of the secret police. Kennedy did not change his policies. 2. How did Johnson â€Å"Americanize† the war in Vietnam, and how effective was this strategy? Johnson did not want the reputation of the country to suffer by continuing involvement with Vietnam. But he did order air strikes on North Vietnam after hearing that North Vietnam military had fired on U.S. ships. He continued support to South Vietnam and the U.S. military became more aggressive. Military and economic assistance to the government and military of South Vietnam continued. Instead of Johnson having a defensive military presence, he changed it so that it was more of an offensive approach. Some of that pressure was also coming due to approaching presidential elections. 3. What different strategies and criticisms of society were offered by mainstream and radical feminists? (CH28) During Johnson’s time in office, he created a lot of reform that helped bring people out of poverty that helped male-headed households but worsened female-headed households. Many civil rights groups were created to protest Johnson’s changes. There were several new movements during this time so feminists could accomplish goals of equality. Women were involved in changing the collegiate environment so that there would be more religious studies programs. Women that were lesbians began a movement so that they no longer had to keep their sexuality hidden and there was a Stonewall Riot that resulted in more attention to gay rights. More women began to take jobs. Women realized their opportunities were not equal and they began to go to school more. The National Organization for Women was created for more civil rights for women and there was an investigation in the w orkplace where the Equal Pay Act of 1963 made it illegal to pay women less than men for the same

The process of organizing Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3000 words

The process of organizing - Essay Example Thus, at its core marketing is a transaction or exchange. In this broad sense, marketing consist of activities designed to generate and facilitate exchanges intended to satisfy human or organizational needs and wants. Market-driving companies are able to match customer value opportunities with their capabilities precisely because they drive the structure of the marketplace. As previously indicated, this is achieved by a greater capacity of market-driving firms to influence the behaviours of customers and competitors. Such capacity results from an organizational culture that fosters the creation and implementation of innovations (Dawn Burton, 2005). Market-driving organizations are better able to gain a sustainable competitive advantage by changing the structure or composition of a market and/or behaviours of its players (Dawn Burton, 2005). The market-driving organization is likely to propose offerings more valued by consumers than competitors. In addition, driving markets allows organizations to exploit opportunities that competitors cannot (Robert E. Morgan, Christopher R. Turnell, 2005). Market-driving organizations may achieve greater performance than market-driven organizations by reshaping the structure of the market according to their own competencies and by exploiting the competitors' weaknesses. Market type culture is oriented toward the accomplishment of well-defined goals as well as toward enhancing productivity and efficiency (Gordon E. Greenley, 1996). Market type cultures allow for successful communication of innovations and coordination of activities between departments. The formality of communications and inter-functional coordination facilitates the implementation of innovation

Tok Essay Essay Example for Free

Tok Essay Essay People’s choice of belief is possibly one of the most intriguing topics one can study. The journey of gaining knowledge in itself is so dynamic and full of factors that one couldn’t possibly be able to analyze in full. In this essay, the question that is to be answered encompasses and questions the details of that journey in one of the most controversial topics of all time; religion. The question above subjects the issue of belief to the spotlight as it is one of the largest aspects of life that is to many people asserted with no concrete evidence to be found; in my perspective. Yet again not all people agree that evidence must be concrete and therefore the relativity of evidence from a believer to a non-believer could be drastic. Thus, this essay will examine my argument for this statement through personal experience and the lenses of emotion and language in the subjects of World Religions and Philosophy as well as possible counter arguments. Many followers of faith would disagree with Hitchens on this statement, taking the believers of the Abrahamic religions as an example; they believe that their prophets came with miracles like Christ walking on water for example. They don’t have concrete evidence yet to them they see that what came in either the Torah, Bible or the Qura’an is definite truth for many reasons; each generation was told by those before them that these stories did take place so the generations that supposedly witnessed the miracles told their kids about them and the stories kept passing down until our day today. Moreover, the authority of a parent tends to be huge therefore when these stories are told to little kids to be true the kids believe their parents, they take it as a 1+1=2 situation where the student is taught the very basic rules of math, if one asks me why or how do I know the 1+1=2 I wouldn’t be able to answer yet I know it’s a mathematical fact (even though I know there is reason and evidence behind it now, but I am not really interested in reading) so these kids take what their parents teach them at such a young age and not question it. Just like the followers tend to not dig around what they believe to be true because they believe it is already true, the same way many people don’t look into why and how 1+1=2. Believers tend to have what they call a relationship with God, what they feel when they pray is something they can’t put into words yet they know it’s truth for themselves even though they can’t prove it and therefore they won’t agree with the Hitchens statement. Those people have no concrete evidence yet that â€Å"relationship† is evidence enough to them. The followers of Islam for example brag about how the Qur’an has an answer for everything and that to them is evidence enough it’s true, yet again many don’t try to look for the real reasons. The followers of religions in general have a problem with accepting that there are some things one just doesn’t know, they need to be certain about everything to go on in life and that is basic human nature. By the same token though, a lot of other people do agree with the statement above, the majority of scientists, doctors, mathematicians and many more as a mere example. In the subject of world religions we are taught that religion is passed down through language; that in itself proves the Hitchens statement right. Language is a very molding way of knowledge; it changes from time to time according to society it is in. Things can get out of context, meanings could be lost in translation or lost due to the changing nature of language, for example the word â€Å" † which is now used as an adjective for â€Å"good† literary translates to â€Å"wicked† or â€Å"horrid† in classical Arabic and therefore this could be applicable both ways to this arguments; words that were used 1400 years ago in Islam could have meant something in it’s cultural context but now means something completely different which would make a certain rule of Islam that is now applied invalid or vice-versa. Also, Christianity being the most popular religion in the world was originally written in the common Greek language of the first century yet now circulates mostly in English. A huge limitation to this fact is that meaning could’ve been lost in translation, as some words that are used in one language just don’t translate to other languages, therefore basing some of the religion on misinterpreted verses. Now looking at the use of emotion in Philosophy of religion, a theme studied in the subject of Philosophy; the epistemological theory of evidentialism is best described by Clifford’s quote: â€Å"It is wrong always, everywhere, and for anyone, to believe anything upon insufficient evidence† (Clifford 1879: 186). † Which agrees with the Hitchens statement above. Since I’ve established above that there is no concrete evidence about the truth of any kind of religion, one must assume that believers use emotion as a way of knowledge and not evidence. This in itself has many limitations to it because when emotion is used on it’s own as a way of knowledge it usually prevents one from being objective. Moreover, it also limits the use of other ways of knowledge; for example perception, where because of emotion one might look at things differently or even reason, where if one is too attached to what they â€Å"believe† in this could lead to their lack of open-mindedness. The use of emotion too also leads to a huge logical fallacy; the â€Å"appeal to emotion† fallacy where if for example X makes me feel good I will assume X is true, which is basically the basis of many religions. Furthermore, religions tend to use Pathos in most of their verses; for example in the Qur’an verse 102:3 until 102:7 says: â€Å"No! You are going to know. Then no! You are going to know. No! If you only knew with knowledge of certainty. You will surely see the Hellfire. Then you will surely see it with the eye of certainty. † The use of emotion here to scare the reader that is being spoon-fed since an early age that this is the absolute truth when reading this will defiantly lead him to think a thousand times before questioning the religion because he is scared he’ll â€Å"surely see the Hellfire† and thus making many believers just people that are afraid to think or tempted with the concept of heaven but very few that actually went through the process of actually trying to find out if what they believe in is absolute truth or not. In conclusion, as someone that will be studying law, being objective, putting aside emotion and avoiding logical fallacies are vital to me. I also never felt that â€Å"connection with God† and therefore I do agree with the Hitchens statement â€Å"That which can be asserted without evidence can be dismissed without evidence. † Because the counter arguments aren’t convincing enough and there are too many question marks on them. On the other hand my argument is a lot more valid because it’s Empiricism based, which means it’s based on facts and past experiences, not speculations. [ 1 ]. Most Popular World Religions. About. com Geography. N. p. , n. d. Web. 06 Dec. 2012. [ 2 ]. Standard New Testament introductions listed below under Further reading: Goodspeed, Kummel, Duling and Perrin, Koester, Conzelmann and Lindemann, Brown, and Ehrman.

Marketing Analysis of Heathrow Airport

Marketing Analysis of Heathrow Airport Name: Jheanel Davidson AC 1.1 Discuss concepts of marketing for a relevant services industry Marketing, as a concept, implies the approach that is applied in order to transfer the products or services of an organization from just a concept to the customers. It is a process through which an organization communicates the features of its products and services and the brand message to the customers in order to create the demand for such product or service (Kotler, 2000). Marketing management, on the other hand, is considered as an approach that helps an organization in applying the resources of marketing in a disciplined way. The industry size influences the process of marketing management to a greater extent as a big industry will ensure more resources to be deployed for the process of marketing and the same will also help in regulating the process of marketing in the most favorable way. The present paper emphasizes upon understanding the way, the different elements of marketing will help in enhancing the marketing performance of Heathrow Airport (Winer, 2000). Research findings: 1. The marketing process involves a basic step, known as the market analysis. In this step, the market for a particular product or service is analyzed on the basis of the requirements of the customers and the demand for the particular product and service. 2. Customer satisfaction is one of the important elements of marketing. Marketing tactics are formulated in order to satisfy customer needs, in this regards, it is important to discuss providing value to the customer (Johnson and Gustafsson, 2000). 3. One of the important goals of marketing strategy is to create value for the product and communicate its benefits to the customers; this will lead to customer retention. Satisfied customers generally make further purchases. 4. Cost/benefit analysis and conducting an analysis of the efficiency of a marketing strategy is considered as an important step while framing a marketing plan for an organization. This is also considered as one of the essential elements of marketing (Johnson and Gustafsson, 2000). 5. The process of marketing is considered as a business philosophy. It is a business philosophy that focuses on understanding the needs of the customers and on the basis of the identification of the requirements. 6. Relationship marketing is another arm of marketing that emphasizes upon customer retention. This can also be considered as a part of the customer relationship management process (Egan and Harker, 2005). 7. Strategic marketing is considered to be a process that helps a business in disposing of its products or services in such a manner so that the objectives are achieved. Tactical marketing is a process that helps an organization to identify the most viable way to implement the marketing strategy in order to achieve the goals (Kerin, 2006). Discussion Marketing strategy is considered as essential for the survival and future development of every business. Heathrow Airport is one of the busiest airports in London, UK. Conducting market analysis would be regarded as a vital exercise for Heathrow Airport to frame appropriate marketing strategy. The concept of market analysis implies the initiatives taken to understand the requirements of the customers and their demand. In this new age of cut throat competition, conducting a market analysis would be highly beneficial for an organization to ensure its survival. The process of conducting the market analysis will help Heathrow Airport in understanding the growing needs of the customers, that the number of customers is increasing day by day and they have a tight schedule, hence, quality of service will play an essential role to fetch their needs (Ferrell and Hartline, 2005). Providing satisfactory and timely service to the growing traffic and passengers would be the duty of the Airport in order to hold its position. Heathrow Airport has analyzed the demands of the customers and as a result of that, it has formulated new strategies towards the runway and terminal expansion, constructing Heathrow railway hub, air track etc. Marketing strategy provides a huge benefit to different organizations to dispose of its products or services in such a way so that the customer requirements are satisfied. Heathrow Airport has formulated these strategies and communicated the same to the customers in order to provide them maximum satisfaction and strengthen the brand image of the Airport. Creation of value for the customers will be highly important for Heathrow Airport as the same would help the organization in retaining its image and increase the loyalty of the customers. Formulation of an effective marketing strategy would help Heathrow Airport to properly dispose the quality services to the customers that will create a value which is higher than the expectations of the customers, in this process the retention of the customer can be made possible. Tactical marketing would be equally essential for the airport, as the same will help the management in understanding the ways through which the marketing strategy will be implemented to get optimum results. Hence, it will also be paramount for Heathrow Airport to properly analyze the process of implementation and the financial viability of such marketing process. The management at Heathrow Airport is also required to focus on customer relationship management; this approach will help in retaining the customers and increasing their loyalty towards the airport. This can be done my constantly communicating with the customers and providing them quality services in a timely manner (Ferrell and Hartline, 2005). Conclusion An effective marketing strategy can bring incredible results towards the performance and profitability of Heathrow Airport. Through this process, the management will be able to understand the changing needs and demands of the customers and they will be able to track the right path to formulating effective policies and strategies to fulfill the needs of the passengers. Newer initiatives can be taken through the formulation of strategic marketing goals. The profitability of the Airport will enhance drastically through the process of implementing tactical marketing because the same will help the management in providing the ways through which the strategies can be implemented in the most profitable way. The process of marketing will pave news ways towards achieving the organizational objectives; on the other hand, this approach will help in bringing new customers and retaining the existing ones. An effective marketing policy will provide the required support to the management to take the necessary steps that will help in enhancing the competitive power of the airport and its market image. The Heathrow airport is one of the busiest airports in the UK and through formulating new policies to strengthen their services towards fulfilling customer requirements and creating value for them it will be able to increase customer loyalty. The policy of customer relationship management will also help the management in retaining the customers and enhancing the market image of the airport. In this way, the overall value of the organization will also improve. AC1. 2 Assess the impact of the marketing environment on the industry The industry is considered as a combination of different organizations, who jointly conducts certain operations for the purpose of producing goods to be sold and the production process is generally carried on in a factory or similar undertaking. The market is considered as a place, where a number of people gather regularly for the purchase and sale of commodities and services (Kotler and Armstrong, 2012). The hospitality industry in the UK is one of the big industries that contribute towards the GDP of UK substantially. There are different segments of the hospitality industry and each of them focuses on the provision of efficient customer services, as the same is considered as the backbone of the hospitality industry. The travel and tourism segment includes tour operators, airlines, travel and tourism organizations, airports etc. The market environment comprises of two different parts, namely micro and macro environment (Kotler and Armstrong, 2012). Findings The findings of the research conducted for the purpose of assessing the impact of the marketing environment on the industry have been provided below: 1. The micro-environment of an organization comprises of the stakeholders. Stakeholders are regarded as the persons or organizations that have an interest in the performance of an organization and its development. The stakeholders have the ability to influence the operations of an organization. There different types of stakeholders, such as the customers, the requirements of the customers influence the operations and strategies of a business, the owners are internal stakeholders, who seek higher return for their investments. Financiers are lenders who are interested in the profitability and stability of an organization for the security of the funds lent. Competitors formulate various strategies that an organization follows in order to maintain its competitive strength. The society is also an evaluator of an organization, effective measures are taken by an organization towards social development and environmental protection will enhance its market image (Mooradian et al., 2012). 2. Macro environment is regarded as the external environment surrounding an organization, it consists of different external factors which are uncontrollable, such as political factors, which are considered as the policies framed by the government, ecological factors, which are considered as the environmental factors, such as environmental protection, preserving natural resources etc., technological resources, these are the improved technological devices and the up-gradation in technology that helps an organization in improving its overall performance, economical factors, these are the economic factors such as, inflation, change in interest rates, recession etc. that can influence the financial performance of an organization, social and legal factors, these can be considered as the change in the behaviour of the customers, change in the attitude of the customers, new laws introduced by the government that may affect the industry (Kerin and Peterson, 2001). 3. There are various tools that can be used for conducting an analysis of the marketing environment of an organization. The internal environment can be analyzed by using the SWOT model. It is considered as a tool that has four different heads, strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats and it helps in analysing the mentioned factors relating to an organization. On the other hand, the external environment can also be analyzed by the utilization of certain tools such as PEST analysis and Porters Five Forces model. PEST analysis helps in analysing four main external factors such as political, economic, social and technological factors and Porters model helps in understanding the competitive environment of an organization such as the threat of rivals, bargaining power of the buyer and suppliers and threat of substitutes (McKinney, 2003). Discussion Heathrow Airport pertains to the travel and tourism segment of the hospitality industry and it is regarded as one of the most important airports in the UK. It is regarded as highly essential for the management of Heathrow Airport to analyze the impact of the marketing environment upon the organization and the industry as well. It will be considered as highly beneficial for the management to conduct a stakeholder analysis in order to understand the requirements of the internal as well as the external stakeholders of the organization, such as the customers, suppliers, financiers, owners etc. and to understand their power to influence the operations of the Airport (Hiam and Rastelli, 2007). On the other hand the external marketing factors will also be essential for the management to analyse, as they are uncontrollable and the Airport is required to adopt the changes that are taking place in the external environment such as changes in aviation law, changes in interest rates and inflation that will affect the pricing, how to facilitate sustainable development, the modern technologies that can be used for improving the operations of the Airport and to provide better customer service etc. The PEST analysis will help the management at Heathrow Airport to understand the changes taking place in the political, economic, social and technological factors. The SWOT model will help the management in analysing the internal factors, the internal factors such as the strengths and weaknesses will help the management in utilizing the strengths to provide better customer service, while the weaknesses are required to be minimized to maintain the image of the airport. Similarly, the opportunities and threats should also be considered, as the opportunities will help the management to understand the areas where the business can make further developments, while the threats can hamper the business performance. The competitive factors will drive the competitive environment and the same sh ould be considered by the management in order to maintain the competitive strength of the Airport. These factors include the bargaining power of the customers, the bargaining power of the suppliers of services and technology, the threat of new competitors and the threat of substitutions (Cravens, 1982). Conclusion Analyzing the market environment will be highly beneficial for Heathrow Airport as the same would help it in understanding the changes that are taking place in the internal and external environmental factors. The management will be able to control the internal factors to improve the performance of the Airport, while the external factors are uncontrollable, hence, an analysis of the external factors will help in adopting such changes in order to maintain the competitive strength. For this purpose, it is highly recommended for the management of Heathrow Airport to utilize the tools such as PEST analysis, SWOT analysis, and Porters model. AC 1.3 Evaluate the relevance of consumer markets in the industry Consumer markets are considered as those markets, where the purchase and sale of goods and services are done, which are meant for the general consumers only (Hassan and Kaynak, 1994). The consumer markets include consumer culture that implies the sociological and psychological influences made upon the buying behavior of the customers. There are various factors that can potentially influence the buying behavior of the customers such as, marketing, quality of service, price etc. It has been found in various studies that the objectives of an organization can be achieved by creating a balance between customer and competitor orientation. Moreover, creating value to the customers will also influence their buying behavior to a greater extent and the same will also help in retaining loyal customers (Alessandra, 2007). Findings The findings of the research have been provided below: 1. It has been found that the hospitality industry is highly dependent on the behavior and attitude of the customers. The customers play an important role in the hospitality industry as they decide the development and sustainability of a hospitality organization in the long run. The customer behavior is considered as one of the important factors that the industry players considers while framing new policies. The requirements of the customers are considered as a major factor that is taken into account, while, formulating the marketing policy of an organization (Kessler, 1996). The quality of services provided to the customers and the value created for them is considered as a driving factor that can retain the customers and ensure the long-term stability of an organization in the hospitality industry. This will also affect the profitability and enhance the revenue-generating capacity of the organization. 2. Customer culture is considered as the behavior of the customers that includes social status values and activities of the customers that influences their buying behavior. The customer culture influences the patter of consumption of the customers. The social status of the customers influences their pattern of consumption, such as a high-end customer will go for having luxurious goods, which are offered at high-end prices (Basch, 2002). The theory of consumer culture entirely focuses upon the psychological and sociological factors that influence the buying behavior of the customers. It is regarded as a branch of marketing philosophy that projects the psychological effects created by the buying behavior of the customers and different organizations follow this theory in order to market a particular product or service to the potential customers. This is done by clearly projecting and communicating the features of a particular product or service and how the same is going to affect the li festyle of the potential customers. 3. The hospitality industry highly emphasizes the quality of services provided to the customers and their pricing. The sole objective behind this initiative is to create value to the customers and satisfy their needs. Customer satisfaction and loyalty is a key for success to the participants of the hospitality industry. The participants of the industry always engage in the formulation of new strategies by considering the changing demands of the customers in order to meet them. This will help in achieving huge marketing success. Moreover, customer loyalty will help in enhancing the sustainability of an organization and for that purpose, it will be essential for an organization to create value for the customers and the same can be done by providing services that will meet or exceed the expectations of the customers. This process will help in retaining customers (Lowenstein, 1997). 4. Maintenance of long term relationships with the customers has become highly important in almost every industry. The hospitality segment, particularly, has put increased emphasis towards formulating effective strategy towards customer relationship management (Anderson and Kerr, 2002). The industry participants have taken different steps towards maintaining customer relationships such as loyalty programs, maintenance of customer databases to send them promotional emails, collecting feedbacks from the customers etc. Discussion The sustainability and development of Heathrow Airport can be highly influenced by the consumer markets. Analyzing the consumer culture and preparing the marketing strategy to properly target the customers and communicating the features of the service provided will help the management in enhancing the profitability of the organization. Selecting separate marketing strategy for separate customers with different status and requirements will help the organization in attracting more customers and revenues. In this way, the airport will be able to generate demand for its services (Sheth et al., 1999). Analyzing the customer behavior and requirements will be highly beneficial for Heathrow Airport. For instance, the number of passengers is increasing gradually; this will affect the popularity of the airport due to limited facilities. Hence, the Airport should focus upon expansion of its runways and other facilities to properly accommodate the passengers, the customers have busy schedules an d they require timely services and hence, the management should emphasize upon the provision of timely services to influence the buying behavior of the customers. Customer satisfaction is an important part and the same will influence the management at Heathrow Airport to provide quality services at a reasonable price, as the same will satisfy the customers and create value for them. Customer retention and loyalty is highly paramount for the hospitality industry as the same will decide the long-term survival of the firms operating in it. The same is also applicable for Heathrow Airport. This will encourage the management to form new strategies towards customer relationship management (Sheth et al., 1999). Conclusion Customer market can be regarded as one of the important factors that, the management at Heathrow Airport must take into account. Understanding the behavior of the customers would help the same in formulating an effective marketing strategy that would help in creating demand for the services provided by the airport and to maintain its profitability and sustainability. It is recommended for Heathrow Airport to put more emphasis upon analysing the social and psychological factors that influence the buying behavior of the passengers and also to create a strong marketing strategy to attract the customers. Customer relationship management will also be beneficial for the airport, and formulate a strategy in this regards would help the management to retain the customers and create a strong market position. AC 1.4 Discuss the rationale for developing different market segments The concept of market segment has a higher relevance in regards to marketing. A market segment is considered as an association of customers, where the attitude and behavior of all the customers in such association are identical. Market segments are prepared to simplify the process of marketing strategy and strengthen the same (Kruger, 2011). Different market segments have different characteristics and separate marketing strategy is prepared for each of them. The market segments are utilized by different organizations in the hospitality industry to conduct the process of target marketing. The market segment can be done on the basis of four different characteristics, namely geographical segmentation, demographic segmentation, behavioral and psychographic segmentation. Market segments help in enhancing the performance of marketing efforts made by an organization because in this way they can target separate groups of customers and market the products or services as per their needs (McDon ald and Dunbar, 2004). Findings 1. Market segmentation is the process of segmenting the market into different parts in order to target different groups of customers for the purpose of product or service marketing. Market segmentation is beneficial for an organization because it helps in understanding the customer needs and formulating an appropriate marketing strategy for different types of customers (Kruger, 2011). The process of market segmentation helps in creating the demand for a particular product or service for different customers in a systematic way and in this way it helps in enhancing the profitability of a business. It helps in enhancing sales levels and hence supports business growth (Wedel and Kamakura, 2000). The research has highlighted another two strategies of marketing, which are targeting and positioning. 2.Targeting is considered as a process of targeting the potential customers for a particular product or service and formulate the marketing process in such a way that will help in satisfying their demands, this process also helps in enhancing the effect of marketing strategy and increases profitability with sales. 3. Positioning is another strategy of marketing, which is highly relevant to the hospitality industry (Pinson et al., 1996). Position refers to the position that a brand has acquired in the consumer market. The strategy of positioning helps in creating a distinct image for the products of a particular brand and helps in differentiating the products or services from the competitors. This process is essential as it helps in creating a unique brand image and helps the customers to identify the products of a particular brand easily (Hooley and Saunders, 1993). 4. There are four main ways of market segmentation. Geographical segmentation, this is the way of segmenting the market as per geographical regions. Demographic segmentation, it a type of segmentation that helps in segmenting a market as per the demographic features of the customers such as, age, income etc. Behavioral segmentation is considered as a type of segmentation that considers the behavior and attitude of the customers to create different segments. Lastly, the psychographic segmentation is considered as a type of market segmentation that helps in segmenting the market of a product or service as per the lifestyle of the customers. Discussion It will be favorable for the management at Heathrow Airport to formulate different market segments in order to get better outcomes of the marketing strategy formulated by the same. This approach will help in simplifying the marketing process of the organization and this process will also help the management at the Airport to divide the market into smaller groups and formulate an appropriate strategy for each of them. This process will ease the efforts of the marketing team and enhance the feasibility of the marketing process. Considering the psychographic segmentation, if the management formulates separate advertising message for the high-end as well as low-end passengers and properly demonstrate the facilities that are offered to them, then it will become easier to create a huge market demand for the services among the targeted segments (Sheehan, 2011). The strategy of segmentation and positioning will also help in creating a distinct image for the airport in the minds of the custom ers and the same will also help in enhancing the market strength and competitive edge of the airport. Targeting will be beneficial for the management as this process will help in selecting the potential customers, who the services should be marketed. This will increase sales and profitability substantially (Sheehan, 2011). Conclusion To conclude, it must be said that market segmentation is an important part of the marketing strategy for any business. Heathrow Airport must segment its market in different types in order frame a separate policy of marketing for each segment. A single marketing policy may not be effective for every kind of customers; hence, market segmentation is highly expected for the airport. In this regards, it is recommended for the airport to put additional emphasis on target market because this process will help the management in identifying different types of passengers and their needs, this process will help in creating market segments and along with it market positioning should also be taken into account, as the same will help in competitive edge to the airport as compared to the other renowned airports in Europe.