Free Indirect Discourse in Emma

Free and Direct Discourse in Jane Austen’s, Emma Jane Austen is often considered to have one of the most compelling narrative voices in literature. Blurring the line between third and first person, Austen often combines the thoughts of the narrator with the feelings and muses of the focalized character. Emma is perhaps her most prominent example of free indirect discourse, where the narrator’s voice is often diffused into that of the characters. In the following passage, Emma takes on her role at match-maker between Mr. Elton and Harriet Smith, two naive and somewhat air-headed characters in the novel.Mr. Elton was the very first person fixed on by Emma for driving the young farmer out of Harriet’s head. She though it would be an excellent match; and only too palpably desirable, natural, and probable for her to have much merit in planning it. She feared it was what everybody else must think of and predict. It was not likely, however, that anybody should have equa led her in the date of the plan, as it had entered her brain during the very first evening of Harriet’s coming to Hartfield. The longer she considered it, the greater was her sense of expediency.Mr. Elton’s situation was most suitable, quite the gentleman himself, and without low connections; at the same time not of any family that could fairly object to the doubtful birth of Harriet. He had a comfortable home for her, and Emma imagined a very sufficient income; for though the vicarage of Highbury was not large, he was known to have some independent property; and she thought very highly of him as a good humoured, well-meaning, respectable young man, without any deficiency of useful understanding or knowledge of the world. (Austen, 88)The narrative technique used in this passage is clearly free indirect discourse. There is a definite blur between the narrator and the character, who in this case is Emma, as it often is. The very first sentence delves into Emma’s p lotting thoughts of connecting Mr. Elton and Harriet. Austen then goes on to say that Emma has been the first to think of this, as she did so at Harriet’s first arrival in Hartfield. It almost sounds as if Austen is bragging that Emma was the first to think of this earthshattering idea, but then again, was it Austen or Emma who was bragging? It is hard for the reader to decide.Emma thought the idea so obvious that everyone must have already thought it, but what made her idea better was that it was had first. If a strict third person narrator would have related Emma’s idea to us, we would not get as much insight into why it was such a good idea and Emma’s thought process on it. Perhaps a third person narrator would have simply said, â€Å"and then Emma had the idea that Mr. Elton could replace the unworthy farmer. † In the next couple of sentences, Emma continues her stream of consciousness by listing the qualities that make Mr. Elton a suitable match for Harriet.This portion of the passage reflects Emma’s subjectivity and can be considered â€Å"a transcript of [her] conscious thought† (Gunn, 40). These considerations were not being made by the narrator. The person telling Emma’s story has no gain or loss in who Harriet decides to marry, but to Emma, it is of the utmost importance. This shows that the stream must be originating from Emma’s consciousness, and not that of the narrator. The reader can hear Emma’s judgments especially in the phrase, â€Å"quite the gentleman himself,† which shows that she thinks all of these qualities that Mr.Elton possesses makes him a worthy gentleman, and thus a candidate for Harriet’s love and affection. Even the style that this phrase is uttered in is representative of a stream of thought. It is interjected into the sentence discussing Mr. Elton’s suitability. Had a strict, third person narrator written this sentence, it would have been more c rafted and less conversational. The entire concept itself is not entirely necessary for the reader to follow, but it helps to understand the character of Emma and why she feels such a need to be a match maker among her acquaintances.Emma also expresses her thoughts about Harriet’s suitability in the following sentence, although it is brief. She says of Mr. Elton that he is, â€Å"at the same time not of any family that could fairly object to the doubtful birth of Harriet. † Here, it is Emma, not the narrator, who is acknowledging Harriet’s inferior and â€Å"doubtful† birth. It is Emma who does not think that it will be an issue to be acted upon for the simple reason that Mr. Elton has no family to object to the union. Although Emma’s voice is very prominent in this passage, the third person narrator still remains, which is what essentially makes it Austen’s style of ree indirect discourse. In phrases such as, â€Å"Emma imagined,† or , â€Å"she thought,† the reader is forced to considered that the third party narrator is still present and relating the story. Some literature theorists consider this â€Å"contamination† to free indirect discourse (Gunn, 40). Instead of contamination, I think it is what makes Austen’s narrative voice so interesting. The reader must stay attentive in order to follow the stream of consciousness wavering between the narrator and the characters.While being told the story, the reader is also made aware of more minute details that they may not have been presented with had the story been told without free indirect discourse. The fact that the two voices do intermingle so often is a suggestion â€Å"that the distinction between them is arbitrary, at least in Austen’s fiction† (Gunn, 40). Although Emma’s thoughts are freely transcribed within Austen’s passages of free indirect discourse, the ever-present narrator remains in order to guide th e characters in their thoughts as to what needs to be presented to the reader.The 2009 BBC film version of Emma did a very nice job reflecting Emma’s thoughts throughout the movie with voice overs while showing a tight shot of her face on the screen and her respective facial expressions to the thoughts she was having. In this movie, the narrator was removed when Emma pondered over her thoughts. An interesting way to do it could be that the narrator remains, still telling the story through free indirect discourse just as in the novel and filming it in a similar way to the BBC version.The narrator would speak almost directly from the novel and Emma’s facial expressions would still reflect her passions about what was being said. In this particular passage, the narrator would be speaking Emma’s thoughts on Mr. Elton’s qualifications while Emma reacted. This would still allow the story to be told from a third person point-of-view while simultaneously allowing the viewer free range of Emma’s thoughts. Resources: Jane Austen’s Emma in electronic form Gunn, Daniel. â€Å"Free Indirect Discourse and Narrative Authority in Emma. †Ã‚  Free Indirect Discourse and Narrative Authority in Emma. 12. 1 (2004): 35-54. Print.

Language Essay Essay

The importance of language Language is an important tool to have because it allows individuals to write, speak, and communicate their thoughts, and gives a unique diversity to each individual, and provides individuals with their own identity. There are multiple forms of language, and with language, the process of hearing language, speaking language, and learning language is easier. Language is the most efficient way of communicating your thoughts, and without language, everyday activities become much harder. We use language to let others know how we feel, what we need, and to ask questions about certain things. People rely heavily on language which most people take for granted. Language rises like a spring among the mountains, and learning to speak language properly and how it was meant to be spoken can increase your vocabulary substantially. An example from â€Å"Teaching New Worlds/ New Words† where Bell Hooks explained how white Americans haven’t yet acknowledged diverse language, and how language is being taken advantage of. Over the years, language has deteriorated greatly, because of people becoming more and more lazy and using shortened versions of words. Different forms of Language come and go like time spent through an hourglass, people often forget different forms of language that aren’t heavily promoted. In â€Å"Teaching New Worlds/New Words† Bell Hooks explained how black vernacular was dying off and being replaced by standard English. Language can be very confusing and difficult to understand, and is constantly changing. In â€Å"Politics and the English Language† George Orwell explained that how overtime politics has greatly influenced the English language in a negative way and filled it with euphemisms, â€Å"Modern English, especially written English, is full of bad habits which spread by imitation.† This quote explains that the English language has become monstrous because people are imitating the language they see, which may not be good language.

Accomplishment Report

Commercial property valuation requires a more complex method, taking into account the income potential of the property, historical revenue, cash flow with owner perks removed and much more. b. Residential Properties type of property is by far the most popular with both new and experienced agents. Real estate agents then further specialize in types of homes, including condominiums, separate homes, duplexes, high value homes, vacations homes, etc. c. Industrial Land situated in areas that are exclusively reserved and used for industrial purpose. 2. Land Improvement 3. Chattel is a term in the world which refers to personal property which can be moved; it is also known as movable property. Some examples of chattel include jewelry, cars, and furniture. Some people just call chattel â€Å"personal property,† differentiating it from things like real estate with the term â€Å"immovable property. † Assessors also look at building value under the cost analysis method, but only in terms of how much it cost to construct them. The corporation determines, at the outset of incorporating, how many shares it shall issue and what classes of shares (No Par, Par, Common, Preferred, Participating, tc. ) it will issue. Valuation Procedures 1. Cost Approach – valuation method is based on the principle that no prudent purchaser will pay more than what it cost him to acquire an equally desirable substitute site and to build a similar improvement of equal desirability and utility. 2. Income Approach – based on the principle that value tends to be set by the present worth of the right to future net benefits that may be derived from ownership. Important Document that an Appraiser should be able to look and verify: a. Sales invoice b. Letter of credit c. Deed of assignment CHAPTER 11 SHARES OF STOCKS AS COLLATERAL Capital stock has to do with all the shares of stock that represent the ownership of a given company. The exact number of shares that can be issued in the way of capital stock is normally recorded in the current balance sheet for a company. Capital stock will involve all types or classes of stock that the company is authorized to issue. The basis for issuing capital stock is normally outlined in the charter of the corporation. Common stock is stock in a company which comes with voting rights and an opportunity to share in the profits of the company. This type of stock is commonly issued by companies’ making offerings of stock and is a popular choice for people interested in buying and selling stocks. Prices for common stock vary depending on market pressures. Stock exchanges offer opportunities for people to buy, sell, and trade common stock with each other and with brokers. This type of stock should be contrasted with preferred stock, another type of stock which works slightly differently. Preferred stock offers several advantages over common stock. The first advantage is a fixed dividend, which generates more reliable returns than common stock; although it also means that the stockholder can miss out when large profits are made because the dividend will not be adjusted. Preferred stock, also known as non-participating preferred stock, is a type of stock that pays the investor a specific dividend only. In addition, in the event of a bankruptcy, preferred stockholders are ahead of holders of common stock, as are creditors, lien holders, and so forth. There are some advantages to holding common stock. Voting rights can be important because they allow people to vote on members of the board of directors, policy, and stock splits, which gives them a role in the governance of the company. Convertible preferred stock is a type of preferred stock that has the option of being converted into common shares issued by the same company. One of the less commonly employed approaches of issuing shares of stock. Participating preferred stock dividends are usually a fixed percentage of the par value of the stock. Participating preferred stock owners usually do not have any voting rights at stockholder meetings. Owners of common stock do have voting rights Cumulative participating preferred stock can accrue dividends that will be paid to the investor once the company’s performance improves. In finance, par value is the least amount that a share of stock can be sold for, according to the terms and conditions that are found in the regulations of the issuing company. CHAPTER 12 LAND AS COLLATERAL Collateral is borrowing funds often requires the designation of collateral on the part of the recipient of the loan. Collateral is simply assets that have been pledged by the recipient as security on the value of the loan. In the event that circumstances make it impossible for the recipient to repay the loan, ownership of the collateral is transferred to the entity that issued the loan in order to settle the debt. Function of Land it provides â€Å"standing room†. In spite of the fact man has learned to fly, and to dive under the surface of the water in submersible ships, we are still bound pretty close to the surface of the earth. Modes of acquiring title: . Public grant – acquisition of public land of homestead patent, sales patent and miscellaneous patent. 2. Private grant – voluntary transfer or conveyances as deed of sale, donation, exchange or assignment. 3. Involuntary grant – acquisition against consent of former owner, such as foreclosure or sale. 4. Inheritance – acceptance of hereditary succession. 5. Reclamation – filling of submerged land subj ect to government regulation and existing laws. 6. Accretion – more lands adjoining banks or rivers due to gradual deposit of soil. 7. Prescription – title by actual, open continuous and uninterrupted possession for a period of time under claim of title. Zonal valuation Different approaches to valuation of properties have been introduced in this country. In the case of land, not only it its price dictated by the interplay of supply and demand but moreover by the concept of zonal valuation instituted by the government. Government agencies like the Office of the Register of Deeds under the Department of Justice. IMPORTANT FACTORS IN OWNERSHIPPEACE AND ORDER The prevailing peace and order affects the value of the land. Today, a number of areas in the country are infested by the presence of bandits and other lawless elements like the NPAs for instance. They are known to have been exacting be so-called â€Å"revolutionary tax† on business establishment in such areas. Such deplorable conditions inhibit buyers from any interest. In buying such land or even in locating their business establishments. CHAPTER13 COLLECTION POLICIES AND PROCEDURES Collections are a part of a process in the accounts receivable or billing department. It means that, at some point in time, a company xtended to another company or an individual credit terms for goods or services, or a cash loan advance of some kind that was to be paid or repaid at a certain time. If that bill is not paid when it is due, or within an agreed upon grace period, the collection process begins. Collection procedures usually consist of a set of in-house company policies that are written in a manual or guidebook of some kind, though smaller compan ies may not have a manual. Usually, law firms that engage in collection practices will have manuals and training classes for their employees before they make their first collection call to a debtor. Most of the time, large corporations and small companies have a collection manager or collection department that will go through certain housekeeping procedures before an unpaid debt is turned over to a lawyer. Laws and Regulations The laws that cover collection policies and procedures are mandated by federal and state governments. On the federal level, the Federal Trade Commission regulates what is called the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act (FDCPA). In the case of a conflict between state and federal law, federal law prevails. Those who extend credit to others should be aware of the legal rules about how to collect money that is past due, particularly as those rules apply to bankruptcy. A collection policy is a set of business practices and procedures that outline the way a company goes about collecting money owed to it as a result of an extension of credit. Companies often allow their best business customers to establish payment terms that give the customer an extended amount of time, such as 30, 60 or 90 days, to pay an outstanding invoice. Other companies extend credit to individual consumers and implement a collection policy to control the process of obtaining payment on the credit account. Credit extensions allow individual consumers to obtain needed merchandise upfront but pay for purchase over time. In the case of business-to-business transactions, the extension of credit is carried on the supplier’s book under accounts receivable. Extensions of consumer credit are typically carried on the books under a separate consumer credit category that is also a type of receivable. Accounts receivable is a company’s list of outstanding extensions of credit to customers. The company’s collection policy establishes how the accounts receivable or collections department should go about reminding customers that payments are due and how the department should handle delinquent accounts or accounts that are not paid as agreed. Types of Bad Debt Buyers Also known as junk debt buyers, bad debt buyers are firms that purchase unpaid debts from different types of creditors at rates that are below the actual face value of the debts, and then attempt to collect the full amount plus interest and penalties from the debtor. Bad debt buyers sometimes specialize on securing and collecting specific types of debt, including credit card debt, business debt, or loan debt. Credit card bad debt buyers are one of the more common types of junk debt buyers. Here, the buyer purchases old credit card accounts with outstanding balances that the originator was unable to collect. CHAPTER 14 BANKRUPTCY Bankruptcy is the process where a person legally declares himself or his business unable to pay outstanding debts. Depending upon the type filed, one meets with a judge to determine a payment schedule, or have a legal bankruptcy discharge most if not all debts. Businesses also may declare bankruptcy, which either means the business will close, or that the business will continue to operate with reduced payments to debtors It depends on what type the person intends to file, and also how quickly he or she can gather together information about his or her income and debts. Bankruptcy is the most common proceeding, and it is usually filed when a person doesn’t have a large number of assets that he or she needs to protect. Financial distress may also occur due to unforeseen factors that have an adverse effect on the different revenue streams that the corporation enjoys. The bankruptcy action may be necessary to protect the business from creditors while the company is reorganized under the direction of the courts, allowing the corporation to at least have a chance of getting back on a firm financial foundation. Liquidation maybe partial or complete, depending on the amount of debt involved. With a partial liquidation, the business sells off assets, including divisions of the business that are not needed for the continued operation of the core businesses. A complete liquidation means the selling of all assets and the eventual dismantling of the company as a business entity. Insolvency is the inability of a person to meet his obligations as they mature (Equity sense). It refers to the excess of liabilities, in the case of corporation, excluding capital stock over assets. (Bankruptcy sense) Two types of Insolvency Voluntary Insolvency Under voluntary insolvency, an insolvent debtor, owing debts exceeding in amount the sum of P1,000. 00 may apply to be discharged from his debts and liabilities by filing a petition with the Court of First Instance of the province or city which is the domicile of the petitioner for six months preceding the petition. He shall moreover annex to his petition a schedule and inventory in the form as prescribed under the Declaration of Insolvency Upon receipt of such petition, together with the schedule and inventory, the court or the judge thereof in vacation, shall make an order declaring the petitioner insolvent. Involuntary Insolvency an adjudication of insolvency may be made on the petition of three or more creditors, residents of the Philippines, whose credits or demands accrued in the Philippines, and the amount of which credits or demands are in the aggregate of not less than one thousand pesos. Provided, that none of the said creditors has become a creditor by assignment, however made, within 30 days prior to the filing of said petition. The following shall be considered acts of insolvency, and the petition for insolvency shall set forth one or more of such acts: 1. That such person is about to depart or has departed from the Philippines, with intend to defraud his creditors; 2. That being absent from the Philippines, with intend to defraud his creditors, he remains absent; 3. That he conceals himself to avoid the service if legal process for the purpose of hindering or delaying or defrauding his creditors. 4. That he conceals, or removing, any of his property to avoid its being attached or taken in legal process; 5. That he has suffered his property to remain under attachment or legal process for 3 days for the purpose of hindering or delaying or defrauding his creditors; 6. That he has confessed or offered to allow judgment in favor of any creditor or claimant for the purpose of hindering or delaying or defrauding his creditors or claimant; 7. That he is willfully suffered judgment to be taken against him by default purpose of hindering or delaying or defrauding his creditors or claimant; 8. . That he has suffered or procured his property to be taken on legal process with the intent to give a preference to one or more of his creditors and thereby hinder, delay or defraud any of his creditor; 9. That he has made any assignment, gift, sale, conveyance, or transfer of his estate, property, rights, or credits for purpose of hindering or delaying or defrauding his creditors or claimant; 10. That he has, in contemplation of insolvency, made any payment, gift, grant, sale, conveyance, or transfer of his estate, property, rights, or credits; 11. That being a merchant or tradesman has generally defaulted in the payment of his current obligations for period of 30 days; 12. That for a period of 30 says he has failed after demand, to pay any money deposited with him or received by him in a fiduciary capacity; and 13. That an execution having been issued against him on final judgment for money, he shall have been found to be without sufficient property to execution to satisfy the judgment.

Radiography Skills Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Radiography Skills - Essay Example erior views commonly used in plain radiographs normally give distorted images as a result of the normal curvature and flexion of the scaphoid (Hackney & Dodds, 2011). Therefore, to produce clearer tomographic images, the helical CT is normally used. This view involves projecting x-rays through the wrist while rotating the x-ray source around the patient. This view is desirable for scaphoid fractures since it is faster and gives room for multi-planar reconstructions of the initial data. This is because AP image is a natural anatomical position conducted with the palm up; thus, it demonstrates the carpal interspaces better than the PA image. Additionally, the carpal interspaces are almost parallel to the divergence of X-ray beams; thus using PA would not bring out the best view. Thumb X-rays are slightly different from finger X-rays due to the functional anatomy of the thumb. It has a fine motor opposition, as well as an exceptional mobility compared to the fingers. Additionally, it has saddle joint articulation responsible for its movement with the trapezium. Therefore, while positioning the thumb for an X-ray the radiography should focus on the anterior lip of the metacarpal situated at the ligamentous trapezium’s attachment. This is what brings about the

Beethoven Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Beethoven - Essay Example Compare. The orchestras are performed in mini-sonata form. This is because the oboe and flute in both played the main melody. There is no playing of countermelody Also the orchestras end with recapitulation where fugue is maintained by all strings. The two recordings start ambitiously with one of the greatest opening movement of any symphony composed to date. The orchestras also dispense the movement with an unhurried section. The total performing time of each recording is approximately 15 to 18 minutes. The Baltimore Chamber Orchestra performance is analyzable as a prolonged symphonic form with some rondo elements. Instead of the tidiest, foursquare assortment of first time, which frequently packs it up at the selected stand and time aside for the next event; Beethoven’s symphony utilizes a thematic group wherein the same material takes on numerous distinct personalities. The development of the recordings, similar to the rest of the pieces, is characterized by remarkable rhyt hmic and harmonic tension owing to dissonant chords, as well as long passages of syncopated tempos. Most amazingly, the Baltimore Chamber Orchestra initiates a novel melody in the development part, breaking the classical tradition, which the development section simply works with present materials. The development sections of the recordings lead back into the recapitulation; particularly, the horns seem to come in early with the tonic melody whereas the strings are still playing the leading chord. The Eroica symphony is a funeral hymn in C minor accompanied by a trio in C major. It carries multiple forgets, and its somberness has led to its being utilized in public funerals. The tempos of the two recordings were slightly different with the Baltimore Chamber Orchestra is slightly faster than the Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra. The first passage of the Eroica symphony is a series much similar to the second phase of the Baltimore Chamber Orchestra, in that they utilize a melodic sequence , which unfolds all through the violins and winds. This begets a second and more energetic passage at the closing stages of the Baltimore Chamber Orchestra. Consider the rhythmic aspect of the melody in the Baltimore Chamber Orchestra, the team shifts this into the accompaniment and prolongs it because it interpolates three-quarter rests. The phrasing also appears to change from a beat-two orientation, witnessed through his organization to a beat-one orientation to the eighth note functions as a precursor. The curve of the Eroica symphony is actually similar, even though it is much more disjunct. In both orchestras, the finishing is a set length of variations and fugue on a subject Beethoven had formerly composed for The Creatures of Prometheus – his ballet music. Contrast. Oboe of Vienna Orchestra has a sharp sounding than Baltimore’s which penetrated through staccato. The flute that played the melody in Vienna had a varied volume and its tempo was fast. In Baltimore, the flute had equal volume and its te

What Should government do to protesct society from mass shootings Research Paper

What Should government do to protesct society from mass shootings - Research Paper Example The debate rages on. In recent years, the debate has become increasingly vocal, as mass shootings have begun to invade the American landscape. Some argue that such shootings are the very reason why the Constitution guarantees citizens the right to bear arms. Others, however, argue that society has changed in the past 300 years and the time for strict gun control has come. There are valid points to both sides and this paper will highlight some major positions, while arriving at the conclusion that the right to own and maintain a gun must remain a part of the American fabric for now and the foreseeable future. The Argument for Gun Control Individual freedom and liberty is a cornerstone birthright that comes with being an American citizen. There are certain rights that are written into the Constitution in an effort to prevent any future government from taking that liberty away. As time goes on, however, and society develops, the language written into the Constitution can become muddled and filled with doubt and uncertainty. There are some, for example, that claim the right to own a gun is not actually a fundamental right guaranteed under the second amendment. Much of this opinion involves cause and effect, and examining that actual reasoning behind the second amendment. There are multiple reasons a person might own a gun. Some may own a gun to hunt wild game, while others will maintain a functioning weapon for purposes of self-defense. Still others might have a gun due to military or police service, and some might own a gun to commit a crime such as robbing a bank. The modern day argument in support of gun control, then, largely centers on this issue. Since the Constitution does not possibly permit the right of a gun owner to use such a weapon in the commission of a crime, then it certainly does not permit the right of every individual in the country to own a gun. Guns are permitted under the second amendment for purposes of military service. Few would argue that point. Many would argue, however, that the Constitution does not inherently protect the right of gun ownership for other reasons (Stevens para. 4). The center of this debate is on the language in the Second Amendment. While it seems so clear to some, it is far from it to others. While the courts have generally upheld the principle that Americans have the right to gun ownership, there is a growing movement in government circles to have the courts take another look at the language and to issue new rulings. On this side of the issue, the opinion is that gun ownership is a right for some, but not for others. The distinction comes in the language used to write this part of the Constitution. The actual purpose governing the inclusion of the Second Amendment into the Constitution was to allow citizens to protect themselves from a well-regulated militia. In other words, if the government took away the rights of the people, the people had a right to fight back, or to defend themselves. In th is vein, people have argued for gun control on the basis that gun control, and the limiting of gun ownership, is permissible under these guidelines (Faria 133). In recent years, there has been an unfortunate rise in violence on school campuses, particularly colleges and universities. Some have used this as an argument for gun ownership and the permissibility of students to be able carry guns on campus in order to better protect themselves against threats, such as mass shootings. Others, however, have argued that this is the very reason we should have gun control. By taking guns out of the hands of all individual citizens, they claim

Assignment 4 Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words - 4

4 - Assignment Example So far, the quantities have lagged behind the quantities expected. Meeting the cellulosic mandate faces considerable challenges (O.E.C.D et al, 2012). The fuel consumption increased by 28.63% in 15 years. This was because the population in 15 years increased. In addition, the number of people owning vehicles increased thus increasing the amount of fuel consumed. Even though the prices of fuel increased, people cannot stop fuelling their cars. The increased percentage is insignificant. The consumption of gasoline does not decrease with an increase in price. Other factors affect the reduction in consumption. This is because from 2005-2007, the consumption increased with a higher price but in 2008, the consumption decreased while the price was the same like the one in 2005-2007. Thus, other factors must have affected the decrease in consumption. Bullis, K. (2007). Will Cellulosic Ethanol Take Off? Fuel from grass and wood chips could be big in the next 10 years–if the government helps. Retrieved from http://www.technologyreview.com/news/407365/will-cellulosic-ethanol-take-off/Bottom of

The Concepts of Case Laws and Statutes Research Paper

The Concepts of Case Laws and Statutes - Research Paper Example The supplementary foundation's law consists of case law by the Court of Justice, the general doctrines of the European Union law and international law. The supplementary bases of the European law are unrecorded bases consisting of the Court of Justice of the European Union case law, general principles and international laws. The supplementary foundations are normally of judicial derivation and are applied by the Court of Justice of the EU in cases where the secondary and/or primary legislation may or cannot resolve the matter amicably. From during the 1970s, fundamental rights which are acknowledged as the general principles of the European Union law have been incorporated into the principal legislation in the EU. The EU and its member countries are compelled to abide by the international law, as well as its customary law and treaties, and this fact by itself has particularly made it manipulate the growth of the universal principles of the EU. Nevertheless, the Court of Justice of th e EU may reject some particular principles of the international law that it regards as contrary with the composition of the EU, for instance, the principle of reciprocity in the achievement of state requirements. The Court of Justice of the EU is founded through Article 19 of the Maastricht Treaty and comprises of specialized courts, General Court and Court of Justice. The duty of the court is to ensure that in the application and interpretation of the Treaties the law is strictly observed.

Costimulatory activity of dendritic cells Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Costimulatory activity of dendritic cells - Essay Example T cell activation is a highly regulated event involving complex receptor-ligand interactions, ultimately leading to downstream signaling events (Annu Rev Immunol. 2002). Optimal activation of naà ¯ve T cells requires at least two signals, antigen recognition and co-stimulation (Bretscher and Cohn 1970).The first signal requires engagement of an antigen receptor by foreign antigen. Professional antigen presenting cells (APCs) such as dentritic cells, macrophages and B-lymphocytes play a major role in this. They present different sets of antigens and serve to activate T cells at different points during immune response. These cells on encountering foreign antigens such as bacteria, engulf and destroy them. The major histocompatible cell (MHC) present in the APCs binds to a piece of this antigen and displays the antigen to the cell surface. This MHC molecule that displays the antigen is recognized by a compatible T cell receptor (TCR). Thus, these APCs communicate with a T cell (Underst anding Autoimmune Diseases. How Does the Immune System Work? 2007).For a T cell to respond to a foreign antigen on the MHC, a second signal is required. (P.Anton van der Merwe.2000).This second signal or co-stimulation is an antigen-independent signal required for sustained cell proliferation, effector/memory cell generation and prevention of energy or apoptosis. APC participation is required in the second signaling also. In addition to antigen presentation, these cells provide co stimulatory signals. ... Provide the co-stimulatory signal necessary for T cell activation. When a naive T cell binds to its specific peptide: MHC complex, the CD28 on the T cell's surface binds to the B7 molecules on the APC (Fig.1). These two signals together lead to the production of several cytokines. Fig.1: T cell activation by two-signal pathway. [Online] Available at http://www.clinsci.org. Dendritic cells are the most effective stimulators of T cell activation. They continuously express high levels of co stimulatory B7 (Fig 2). Upon recognition of infectious particles, these cells migrate through the lymphatics to the nearest lymph node. In the follicles of the lymph node, they come into close contact with the nave T cells where it begins expression of the B7 molecules. Once the T cells are activated, they will leave the lymph node and travel to the sites of inflammation. Macropohages, in the absence of infection, express low levels of MHC II and almost no co stimulators (B7). In the case of infection, however macrophages poses certain types of receptors that recognize differential carbohydrate patterns on foreign cells. They also have receptors for specific bacterial products such as lippolysaccharide endotoxin. When these molecules bind with their ligands, they stimulate the macrophages to up regulate MHC II and B& providing these cells with strong antigen presenting properties. They also start to secrete cytokines that aid in their functions. It is at this point that antigen presentation by MHC II will activate T cells. Macrophage Dendritic Cell B cell MHC-II Expression Low levels. Induced by Bacteria and/or Cytokines Always Expressed. Always Expressed. Inducible upon

Arab Spring - The Utility of the Foucauldian Notion of Resistance as Essay

Arab Spring - The Utility of the Foucauldian Notion of Resistance as Opposed to The Critical - Essay Example Tunisia’s government was replaced because of protestors who were rural, and joined with labor, and that the Tunisian government was eventually replaced with a government which was amenable to labor. In Egypt, the cosmopolitan and educated young people organized the uprisings, and they soon were backed by the Islamic Brotherhood. However, these young people did not topple the government so much as the military did, and now there is a clash between the democratically backed Brotherhood and the military, and there is not yet a new power structure in place. In Libya, the country devolved into a civil war, as the power structure was voided and no new centralized power structure took its place, therefore, the nation is ran by tribes, and has been marked by multiple secessions, and kin networks are providing the goods and services, along with the safety and security (Anderson, 2011, p. 6). The question is whether the critical theory of international relations and emancipation mark th ese conflicts or do they more closely resemble the Foucauldian view of resistance? The short answer is that Egypt and Tunisia resemble resistance theory and Libya resembles emancipation theory. This paper will explain the two theories and show why each country more resembles one theory as opposed to the other. Emancipation Theory According to Dougherty (2001, p. 470), emancipation theory is based upon revolutionism, which, in turn, is one of the principal traditions of international-relations theory. Specifically, Dougherty (2001) states that revolutionism places human emancipation as being paramount, as it helps to reach â€Å"the fullest human potential† (Dougherty, 2001, p. 477). Devetak (1996, p. 155) states that critical international theory works to bring about radical change by removing constraints on freedom. To this end, Devetak (1996, p. 155) asserts that critical international theory underpins the theory of emancipation, in that it has as its focus the understanding of conditions which would make emancipation possible. Linklater (1990, p. 89) states that the other two traditions of international theory – realism and rationalism - are both based upon order and power. In contrast, emancipation theory is based upon individualism. Furthermore, emancipation, or revolutionism, forms the bas is for critical theories of international relations whereas the other two traditions of realism and rationalism form the basis for traditional theories of international relations (Linklater, 1990, p. 90). Habermas, according to Goode (2005), promoted emancipation by stating that freedom is embodied in the public square of the bourgeois, while overlooking â€Å"antagonistic class relations† (Goode, 2005, p. 34). Neufeld (1995, p. 66) states that critical theory and emancipation have, at their roots, the theories of Kant, Hegel and Marx, although he credits Marx with bringing the theory into its maturation. Perhaps because Marx though that reason would somehow trump power structures and oppression, critics refer to emancipation theory as â€Å"Utopian,† although Wyn-Jones (2001, p. 58) states that while the principles underlying emancipation theory are utopian, the value of emancipation theory relies on this optimism. Devetak (1996, p. 157) further goes on to state that emancipation is based upon three concepts – autonomy, security and community. Autonomy means, according to Devetak (1996, p. 163) that individuals are free to live their lives without constraints which are unnecessary and are inhibiting to freedom. Security means the absence of threats, because autonomy cannot exist in the face of threats – threats curtail freedom, because if individuals are not safe, then they cannot pursue freedom. Among the threats

Mens Cosmetic Market Essay Example for Free

Mens Cosmetic Market Essay The definition of a niche market is that the product interests just a few people. The target is represented by a limited segment and, in order for the market to be profitable, only one or two companies can be positioned on this specialized segment. In the market of hygiene and beauty for men, and especially in the cosmetics, the offer has been ignored by the cosmetics brand for a long time. In fact, until the end of the 1990s, beauty products for men were almost non-existent on the market. They did not have a special space the stores and the men strictly used products in a utilitarian aspect. This market has interested just a few brands because it was considered as a niche. Only the group L’Oreal had the courage to launch itself in this segment in 1985 with Biotherm Homme. This brand is considered like a pioneer in the men’s’ cosmetics. In fact, Biotherm was almost alone for more than 15 years, and it is the first one which dares to proclaim that men also need to take care of themselves, to clean their skin, combining the pleasure and the wellness by usingcreams, lotions, even anti-wrinkle creams. In the 90s, Nickel, an exclusive brand for men, launched an offensive by creating masculine beauty institutes. Then, in 1996, it launched its own line for men only. In fact, thanks to the succeed of its institutes, the brand noticed an real capacity and opportunity in this market. This new brand bound to men only knew how to enter in this market, thanks to its concept composed by different offers: one on the products, and the other one on the performance of services. But, the real revolution occurred in 2001 with the arrival of Vichy for men and Clarins in 2002. A lot of brands begin to be seriously interested in this growing segment and real competition appears. A new potential is detected by the big cosmetologist firms. †¢ The â€Å"masculinity of the women’s products It is important to consider the cosmetics’ world in two distinct parts; the market for the men and the one for the women. Even if there are not big distinctions between the products, those two markets are quite different. In fact, the men have not the same demand concerning the product. That is why the offer cannot be the same for both. The ideal product for most men must have some properties and qualities such as being invisible, fast, pleasant to put, easy to use, without smells and with an efficient result. Thus, men are not searching for a feminine product, otherwise, they will continue to use their wife’s ones. They really look for a product adapted to them and to their needs and wants. Moreover, the demand is different from the women: They (the women) like to use make up, take care of their body and their face by putting moisturizing cream on it†¦ Men have not already surpassed the taboos of the society, and, moreover, they do not like to â€Å"spread† cream on their body. That is why they will be more attracted by products for shaving, for hairs. But this current demand will probably change in the next years. The strength of Nickel was to propose from the beginning a technique and know-how studied specially for men. For instance, in his institutes, the technique for depilation was specially adapted for them. Moreover, in order to stay in â€Å"a masculine tonality†, the brand gave names with a masculine connotation that do not make the men â€Å"guilty†, such as â€Å"torse de boxeur† (boxer chest) or â€Å"jambes de cyclistes† (biker legs). 1. 1. 2. Changes in the men cosmetics’ market Blossoming (rapid development) of cosmetics for men As it was said before, the market of cosmetics, at the beginning, interested just a few brands and also, few men. Initially, this world is attributed to women only. In fact, cosmetology is synonymous of seduction, beauty, healthiness, or pleasure. Those words represent what the women are looking for when it comes to cosmetics. But, finally, the market of men cosmetics takes off after years of waiting thanks to different changes: mentalities of the new masculine generation, appearance of â€Å"metrosexual†, social liberalization of homosexual, and the fact that men want to stay young. The relationship between men and cosmetic products has changed and nowadays, they admit the fact that they also look for pleasure and wellness by using cosmetics. Bit by bit, firms pass over some barriers that men did not think they could transcend: make the men taking care of their skin, then, make them epilating and after, everything follows and continues to change. Make-up, Spa centres, beauty institutes, anti-wrinkles cream, hair cares†¦ â€Å"Their interest for their appearance expresses in their point: thus, they are 64,6% to take care of their skin, 73,8% to attach importance to their hair, and 31,8% like trying novelties. In addition, 38,7% states they devote time to take care of themselves. Those figures are clearly higher for the men under than25 years old and decrease gradually with the age†. All begins in 1985 when Biotherm launched Biotherm Homme, a line specially dedicated to men use. But, the market really took off in 2001 with the appearance of many brands interested in that specific market such as Nivea for Men, Klorane, Vichy Homme, Nickel, Phytomer, Clarins Men. Many lines and brands still appear on this market. It is in constant growth since its apparition and above all since 2001. This market is bound to be successful for both top-of-range and mass distribution. †¢ Opportunities of the market The advantages of this market are real since it is accessible and opened on the growth. In fact, forecasts are optimistic but the results are above the foretold success. For instance, Clarins Men reached 170% of its objectives in 2002 18 by the fact that the average number of products bought by the men is higher that the women’s one. According to Christian Courtin from Clarins, men buy â€Å"well beyond their forecast, men buy on average 4 products, against only two for women. Another example is Biotherm Homme, the pioneer: its line counts 45 products. Between 1997 and 2002, this brand knew a growth of more than 250%. It is true that the purchase from the men reaches unhoped-for proportions, but a demand without attracting cannot be a balanced market. This is why many brands of hygiene-beauty specialized in the female market launch a reserved range for the men in order to benefit from a market less encumbered, of a stronger growth, evolution of mentalities and to create a place in this market before being lagging behind. Indeed, some firms benefit from advantages before even catapulting themselves in the masculine care, because while being already present for the women, they enjoy a good reputation, therefore of a true credibility, an image of specialist and financial means the consequent ones. The arrival in force of the interest for the male world does not reach only the beauty care. The readers express a real passion for the male press, which arranges the market because, thanks to this mean of communication, it makes them known. Whether it be Maximal, Men’s Health, New look, or even Mr. Magazine, they approach each subject having attracted with the beauty. Men’s cosmetics amount to 50% (one in every two men), whereas nowadays, it is just 21% and in 1994, it was just 4% of men who stated they used regularly face care products 1. 2. THE MARKET IN FACTS 1. 2. 1. The global cosmetics’ market: The market of men cosmetic is absolutely not the rival of the women market because it represents only the fortieth 24 of the feminine cosmetology. But, in spite of its modest size, this market is bound to a continuous and fast growth, which is a sizeable advantage. According to the French newspaper â€Å"le Monde†, the trends are not so optimistic for the manufacturers of cosmetics. In fact, in Europe, the market of cosmetics in general is about 59,47 billion euros according to the European Association of the companies of hygienebeauty- perfumery (Colipa) and it presents a growth of the sales modestly positive (+ 2% in 2004, against + 3,5% in 2003). Those sales even start to regress in Germany and France, the two biggest European markets. If the women still buy as many hair or skin care products, the purchases of perfumes, and more generally of make-up (nail varnishes, for example) decrease. The main reason seems to be probably the price. 1. 2. 2. The European market of men’s cosmetics 2013: It has been a somewhat mixed year for the men’s lines market across the Big 5 wih some ups and downs. Male grooming continues to be a market that on the whole, is growing. But that is not to say the category hasn’t been affected by the credit crunch – a crisis Europe is only now making proper strides out of France As all the group members are French, and because this market is quite representative about what is happening through all Western Europe, it is interesting to present the facts and figures for the French market. The French industry of cosmetics is an industry which â€Å"draws† the growth: In 2006, French cosmetic industry saw its sales progressing for the fortieth consecutive year. The sales turnover is divided harmoniously between exports (57%) and the sales in France (43%). For 2006, cosmetic industry grew of 3,5% which is half more quickly than the national economy. The French market for men’s cosmetics follows the world tendency. The total sales turnover (produced care, of beauty and perfumes for men) progressed of almost 140% between 1998 and 2003, to 42,16 million euros, according to statistics of the federation of industries of perfumery (FIP). For the only products of care and beauty, the progression is 294%, with 21,37 million. Products for men, account for 10,3% of the total French market of the cosmetic, but 25% of the sales of perfumes. 2013: In France figures from SymphonyIRI France revealed that male grooming fell by 0. 2% over the past year in value terms, with volume figures slumping by a worrying 1. 8%. The male grooming market in France is now worth â‚ ¬934. 6m, while volume sales came in at 195. 05m units. Natural products have always been popular with French men and the past year was no exception. Germany  In Germany things were a bit brighter for the male grooming market, which saw growth of 4. 2% over the past year in value terms to total â‚ ¬538. 61m, according to SymphonyIRI Germany. Volume figures were also positive up 3. 2% to 265. 36m units. All areas saw a growth in value sales – men’s shower products put on 1. 6% to make â‚ ¬122. 84m, while men’s deodorant products rose 4. 5% to â‚ ¬140. 62m and men’s facial skin care products increased a massive 13. 5% to â‚ ¬1. 89m. Italy  Male grooming in Italy experienced a disappointing turn of events over the past year as value sales slid by 3%, according to industry body Unipro. All sectors saw a decline in sales with a 1. 7% drop in male soaps, shaving foams and gels; a 3. 7% decline in aftershave products; and a 4. 4% decline in treatment creams. Although the figures for the past year do not seem to suggest it, Italian men are famously into their beauty products and L’Oreal Italy predominantly monopolised launches in this category. Spain  More bad news was in store for Spain, where male grooming fell by a worrying 5. 69% in value terms to â‚ ¬312m and 4% in volume terms to 45. 2m units, according to SymphonyIRI Spain. In terms of what each individual sub-sector was worth, razors accounted for the lion’s share of this, at â‚ ¬203. 1m; shaving foams, creams and gels made â‚ ¬43. 5m; pre-shave treatments and aftershaves were worth â‚ ¬30. 1m; while facial treatments accounted for â‚ ¬35. 3m worth of sales. The recent gloomy environment, however, does not seem to have deterred brands from new product development as quite a few new launches for men hit Spanish shelves over the last year. UK  Fortunately it has not been all doom and gloom in the UK over the past year – the market here put on 2. % in the past year to make ? 782. 74m in value terms, according to Kantar Worldpanel. Volume also inched up by 0. 8% to 345. 15m units. All sub-sectors saw good growth including fragrances up 11. 9% and hairdressing products up 9. 8%. A slew of new launches hit shelves including those from supermarket giant Tesco, salon range Bed Head and a number of British niche brands. 2. 2. 2. THE MARKET ACTORS Men cosmetics’ market is still in a structuring phase. Nevertheless, 3 kinds of actors are appearing: †¢ Cosmetics industry leaders These actors are the most powerful in the market. They all have important financial and organisational ways to impose their products in the male market. They pursue a roll-over strategy close to the one used since a long time in the female market. Among the leaders: Beiersdorf with Nivea for Men, Clarins with Clarins Men, Estee Lauder with Aramis and Clinique, L’Oreal with Biotherm, Vichy, L’Oreal Paris and Lancome, and Shisheido with Shisheido, Jean-Paul Gaultier and Decleor. To keep their ranks, the leaders are now compelled to spread their product ranges to stay in the competition. Care universe actors Some brands benefit of a strong credibility thanks to the care market. This market has several advantages in the distribution network pharmacies, institutes, spas thanks to their support. Actually, these actors take advantage of the know-how and the credibility which characterize care and pharmaceutical world, and could get a determinant rank in the market. Brands and laboratories to know are for instance Pierre Fab re with Klorane, Sanofi-Aventis with Lipofactor, Phytomer and Decleor. †¢ Independent cosmetics’ makers They strongly stimulate the market by adapting their offer to men, but their diffusion stay confidential. To become strong, this group needs distributors to give visibility to beauty for men through specific spaces or special concepts. Independent makers have to use particular ways and specific concepts to introduce the market because they do not have the power of the market current players. Examples of independent makers are The Body Shop or Nickel. 2. 2. 3. Competition analysis †¢ New entrants threat Cosmetics sector is a very competitive one where in which are many brakes. Indeed, companies have to think about rules, high investments’ level, and scale economies. Innovation should be a primacy objective. However, research amp; development and communication costs are very high, and all companies can not invest heavily. This is of course not the case of firms such as L’Oreal, Nivea and Clarins, which already have a past fame very important. Thanks to this successful past, it would be hard for new entrants to find some place in the market. †¢ Substitutes threat Substitutes are not a real threat in cosmetics’ market. Yet, men use more and more aesthetic surgery. Actually, a patient on ten is a man. Today, men better assume their beauty’s envy. Most of men do not like going to buy beauty products. That is why they borrow them to their partners, who have, moreover, an adviser role. Finally, the distributors’ brands can be a threat. The market shares of these brands is growing more and more. Nevertheless, male products in supermarkets are often just shaving products and deodorants. †¢ Suppliers’ power Suppliers’ power seems to be light as well. Without big brands, suppliers and conditionment factories could not live. It is still important to keep good contacts with suppliers, especially those which have rare raw materials. †¢ Customers’ power A company has always to maintain its sustainable advantage by creating original products, adapted to the market targets. It is difficult to attract man’s attention since he is maybe not used to buy cosmetic products. So it is necessary to know and to analyse his needs and wants, and to succeed to satisfy him: a satisfied man is a loyal consumer for a long time.

Default and Disputes Essay Example for Free

Default and Disputes Essay In this paper I will discuss the reasoning and methodology behind government contract defaults and disputes. I will also give recommendation to acquisition and cost containment. The standard contract clause which gives a customer the right to unilaterally terminate the contractor if the contractor fails to perform according to the specified terms. The contractor is generally not entitled to any payment for the unfinished part of the contract and, instead, may be liable for (1) repayment of monies advanced, (2) liquidated and other damages, and (3) excess cost incurred by the customer in completing the contract under a new contractor. Two primary types of terminations can arise under government contracts: â€Å"termination for default† and â€Å"termination for the government’s convenience†. Besides a criminal conviction or debarment or suspension for default is undoubtedly the most severe agency sanction that a termination can befall a government contactor. Terminations for default are much more common in supply contracts than in construction contracts. The standard clause used in supply and service contracts recites that the government has the right terminate for default if the contractor fails to (1) deliver the contract supplies or perform the services on time, (2) make progress so as to endanger performance of the contract. The â€Å"Termination for Cause† term also names three bases for terminating a commercial item contract for default: (a) â€Å"any default† by the contractor, (b) failure by the contractor â€Å"to comply with any contact terms or conditions,† and (c) failure by the contractor to provide the government on request, with â€Å"adequate assurances of future performance. The government’s right to terminate is not limited by standard inspection clauses, because they permit the government to exercise any other rights and remedies allowed by the contract. â€Å"Default terminations are provided for in government contracts under standard clauses set forth in the FAR. 52. 249–8 Def ault (Fixed-Price Supply and Service). As prescribed in 49. 04(a)(1), insert the following clause: DEFAULT (FIXED-PRICE SUPPLY AND SERVICE) (APR 1984) (a)(1) The Government may, subject to paragraphs (c) and (d) below, by written notice of default to the Contractor, terminate this contract in whole or in part if the Con- tractor fails to—(i) Deliver the supplies or to perform the services within the time specified in this contract or any extension; (ii) Make progress, so as to endanger performance of this contract (but see subparagraph (a)(2) below); or (iii) Perform any of the other provisions of this contract (but see subparagraph (a)(2) below). 2) The Government’s right to terminate this contract under subdivisions (1)(ii) and (1)(iii) above, may be exercised if the Con- tractor does not cure such failure within 10 days (or more if authorized in writing by the Contracting Officer) after receipt of the no- tice from the Contracting Officer specifying the failure. (b) If the Government terminates this contr act in whole or in part, it may acquire, under the terms and in the manner the Contracting Officer considers appropriate, supplies or services similar to those terminated, and the Contractor will be liable to the Government for any excess costs for those sup- plies or services. However, the Contractor shall continue the work not terminated. (c) Except for defaults of subcontractors at any tier, the Contractor shall not be liable for any excess costs if the failure to perform the contract arises from causes beyond the control and without the fault or negligence of the Contractor. Examples of such causes include (1) acts of God or of the public enemy, (2) acts of the Government in either its sovereign or contractual capacity, (3) fires, (4) floods, (5) epidemics, (6) quarantine restrictions (7) strikes, (8) freight embargoes, and (9) unusually severe weather. In each instance the failure to perform must be beyond the control and without the fault or negligence of the Contractor. (d) If the failure to perform is caused by the default of a subcontractor at any tier, and if the cause of the default is beyond the control of both the Contractor and subcontractor, and without the fault or negligence of either, the Contractor shall not be liable for any excess costs for failure to perform, unless the subcontracted supplies or services were obtainable from other sources in sufficient time for the Contractor to meet the required delivery schedule. e) If this contract is terminated for de- fault, the Government may require the Con- tractor to transfer title and deliver to the Government, as directed by the Contracting Officer, any (1) completed supplies, and (2) partially completed supplies and materials, parts, tools, dies, jigs, fixtures, plans, drawings, information, and contract rights (collectively referred to as manufacturing materials in thi s clause) that the Contractor has specifically produced or acquired for the terminated portion of this contract. Upon direction of the Contracting Officer, the Con- tractor shall also protect and preserve property in its possession in which the Government has an interest. (f) The Government shall pay contract price for completed supplies delivered and accepted. The Contractor and Contracting Officer shall agree on the amount of payment for manufacturing materials delivered and accepted and for the protection and preservation of the property. Failure to agree will be a dispute under the Disputes clause. The Government may withhold from these amounts any sum the Contracting Officer determines to be necessary to protect the Government against loss because of outstanding liens or claims of former lien holders. (g) If, after termination, it is determined that the Contractor was not in default, or that the default was excusable, the rights and obligations of the parties shall be the same as if the termination had been issued for the convenience of the Government. (h) The rights and remedies of the Government in this clause are in addition to any other rights and remedies provided by law or nder this contract. FAR 52. 249-10 â€Å"Default (Fixed-Price Construction)† Clause (a) If the contractor refuses or fails to prosecute the work or any separable part, with the diligence what will insure it’s completion within the time specified in this contract including any extension, or fails to complete the work within this time, the government may, by written notice to the contractor , terminate the right to proceed with the work (or the separable part of the work) that has been delayed. In this event, the government may take over the work and complete it by contract or otherwise, may take over the work and complete it by contract or otherwise, and may take possession of and use any material, appliances, and plant on the work site necessary for completing the work. Although the â€Å"Termination for Cause† term in commercial item contracts does not contain a â€Å"cure notice† requirement, the FAR termination procedures for commercial item contracts require the Contracting Officer to send a standard cure notice ‘prior to terminating a contract for a reason other than late delivery. Consequences And Remedies Of â€Å"Termination For Default† And â€Å"Termination For Convenience† If a board or court determines that the contractor was not actually in default or the default was excusable, the termination for default will be converted into a termination for convenience. Similarly, before the appeal is even decided, the Contracting Office r can convert the termination for default into one for the government’s convenience. The Contractor’s recovery under a convenience termination may be significant. For example, under a convenience termination, the contractor is eligible to recover its costs of performance, some â€Å"continuing costs,† settlement expenses, and a reasonable profit on completed work. Should the contractor be unsuccessful in contesting the propriety of the default termination itself, it may still be able to challenge the excess costs assessment and achieve a reduction or elimination of those costs. The Fulford doctrine permits contractors to challenge the government’s imposition of excess re-procurement costs even if the time has expired for appealing the underlying default termination, but does not trump the Contract Disputes Act election doctrine. Remedy of â€Å"Excess Cost of Re-procurement† and â€Å"Liquidated Damages† The standard measures of excess costs is the difference between the contract price of the terminated contract and the price the government is required to pay to the re-procurement contractor for quantity f supplies or services called for under the terminated contract or for completion of unfinished work remaining under the terminated contract. To assess excess costs against the defaulted contractor, the government must show that the re-procurement contract has been performed and that complete payment has been made. The government may not obtain re-procurement costs for work that the government prevented the contractor from performing. If the default-terminated contract contains a â€Å"Liquidated Damages† clause, those damages may be assessed against the contractor until the government obtains completion of the contract work. Liquidated damages are in addition to the excess costs of re-procurement The Liquidated Damages† clause used in fixed-price supply and service contracts provides that, in the case of a termination for default, the contractor shall be liable for liquidated damages (as well as excess costs) â€Å"until the time the government may reasonably obtain delivery or performance of similar supplies or services. The â€Å"Liquidated Damages† clause requires the contractor to pay the government a specific amount for each calendar day of delay. The stipulated amount of the liquidated damages is set at the time the contract is entered into and is the parties’ estimate of the extent of loss that one party’s breach of the contract would cause to the other. Government policy is to use a â€Å"Liquidated Damages† clause in a contract when both (1)the time of delivery or performance is such an important factor that the government may reasonably expect to suffer damages if the delivery or performance is delinquent, and (2) the extent or amount or actual damages would be difficult or impossible to ascertain or prove. Contract Disputes Act The Contract Disputes Act of 1978 (â€Å"CDA†), which became effective on March 1, 1979, establishes the procedures for handling claims relating to United States Federal Government contracts. All claims by the contractor against the Federal Government must be submitted in writing to the Governments Contracting Officer for a decision. All claims by the Federal Government against the contractor must be the subject of a decision by the Contracting Officer. Apart from claims by the Federal Government alleging fraud in connection with a claim by the contractor, all claims by either the Federal Government or the contractor must be submitted within six years after the accrual of the claim. Claims by the contractor that exceed $100,000 must be accompanied by a certification that (i) the claim is made in good faith, (ii) the supporting data are accurate and complete to the best of the contractors knowledge and belief, (iii) the amount requested represents the contract adjustment for which the contractor believes the Federal Government is liable, and (iv) the certifier is authorized to submit the certification on behalf of the contractor. There are procedures in the statute for remedying certifications that do not exactly mimic the required certification language. For claims of $100,000 or less, the Contracting Officer is required to issue a decision within 60 days of receipt of the claim provided the contractor requests a decision within that time period. For claims in excess of $100,000, the Contracting Officer is required, within 60 days, either to issue a decision or notify the contractor when a decision will be issued. All decisions should be issued within a reasonable time, taking into account the nature of the claim, and, if they are not, the contractor may either request a tribunal to direct the Contracting Officer to issue a decision within a specified time or treat the failure to issue a decision as an appealable deemed denial of the claim. If the contractor is dissatisfied with the Contracting Officers decision on a claim, the contractor may (i) appeal that decision to the cognizant agency board of contractor appeals within 90 days of receipt of the decision or (ii) bring suit on the claim in the United States Court of Federal Claims within 12 months. Decisions not appealed within one of these time periods become final and conclusive. There are procedures in the statute authorizing the use of mutually agreeable alternative dispute resolution techniques for handling disputes and well as for the use of streamlined and accelerated litigation procedures for smaller claims at the boards of contract appeals. The losing party may appeal a decision by either a board of contract appeals or the United States Court of Federal Claims to the Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit. A contractor is entitled to interest on the amount found due on its claim running from the date the Contracting Officer received the claim until the claim is paid. Good acquisition planning is crucial to the overall project objective, government spending, tailored to objectives and constraints, and is flexible enough to allow innovation and modification as the project evolves. The strategy balances cost and effectiveness through development of technological options, exploration of design concepts, and planning and conduct of acquisition activities. These elements are directed toward either a planned Initial Operational Capability or retention for possible future use, while adhering to a program budget. The strategy should be structured to achieve program stability by minimizing technical, schedule, and cost risks. Thus the criteria of realism, stability, balance, flexibility, and managed risk should be used to guide the development and execution of an acquisition strategy and to evaluate its effectiveness. The acquisition strategy must reflect the interrelationships and schedule of acquisition phases and events based on a logical sequence of demonstrated accomplishments, not on fiscal or calendar expediency.

Online Banking Services: Benefits and Risks

Online Banking Services: Benefits and Risks Internet banking ABSTRACT Internet banking started in 80s and nowadays its considered globally as an essential need of todays modern banking facilities. The debate about moving secure investment and banking transaction to the web is indeed over because they are already in progress but analysis of the dimensions of this revolution are far from complete. This research is done to reveal the views/perceptions of todays modern day customers about online banking. The main objectives were (a) customers perceptions of the benefits of online banking (b) customers perceptions of the risks/the issues/threats/problems associated with the online banking. The outcome of the study may help the higher management of banks to plan and implement more secure and effective online banking services. The researcher collected the primary data through questionnaires and then data was analyzed through frequency analysis and mean score analysis. The results show that online banking minimizes inconvenience, saves time, the cost of transaction and facilitates quick responses showed the highest mean scores i.e. 4.38, 4.26, 4.21, and 4.20. The outcomes of the benefits of online banking are similar to earlier studies of Ahmad Kaleem (2008). The customers gave average responses to rest of the statements of the benefits of online banking. The second part which was related to the risks associated with online banking show that the customers fear of the chance of fraud in online banking is at the top of the list with the highest mean score of 3.19.The chance of govt access to data comes second which showed the mean score of 2.56. Rest of the statements showed low mean scores. And the results of the risks associated with online banking are a bit different from previous studies. INTRODUCTION History tells that technological innovations have always added up in human general and professional life. And last two centuries can easily be called as the era of technological revolution. And during the process of this modern technological era the innovation of computer has totally changed the landscape of todays modern world. Rapid technology advancements in this field have totally changed the world wide economic and business atmosphere. Same way innovation of internet banking in the banking sector has opened a new and totally different platform for speed up communication and transactions of financial transactions for the customers (Booz et al, 1997). It is essential to introduce this latest banking tool to customers in a positive way and create awareness in customers minds to get the most out of this new innovation for both the customers and the service providers. Internet banking started some 20 years back and at the moment millions of people access their bank accounts online every single day and this number is increasing day by day. You can access accounts, make payments, can transfer funds online, pay bills, view your account statements, change your personal details etc online. Instead of traditional operating boundaries, in online banking financial institutions suddenly find themselves in a different kind of environment where they compete for the customer loyalty and liquidity. Starting of this new-era of online banking facility has helped customers in many ways but it has also introduced a number of risks which were never there before in any other generation both for the customers and the banks. Although internet banking has attracted hundreds of thousands of customers around the world but still the customer satisfaction/acceptance level, security issues and the future growth of the industry are still challenged. Online banking has develo ped at a tremendous rate and now even banks/financial institutions are competition each other in providing online services. But only those companies who will provide more value-added services will win the customer loyalty. Some of the barriers/drawbacks of internet banking are continuing investment that banks have to do to make sure that their online system is secure. These investments are mostly done in expensive, proprietary networks and software solutions to make their server secure from hackers and viruses. Although online banking has already completed more than twenty five years but analysis of the dimensions and the direction and the degree of risk involved in this revolution are far from complete. As every body knows that customer satisfaction is one of the basic requirements for the success of any business in any sector around the world (Welch et al., 2005, Terblanche, 2006, Perreault et al., 2006, Cohen, 2006, Athanassopoulos and lliakopoulos, 2003) The main reason to this is that high customer satisfaction in return gives higher market share and higher level of profits (Szymankski and Henard, 2001). Satisfaction levels with online banking are improving over the years. In this study the benefits that the customers are getting from using the online banking services are evaluated and the risk they are facing by using this service as well. In past few years, the margin of profits in banking sector has increased a lot. And online has also contributed to it. Although the ratio of accepting this new technology is different in different countries but still people are accepting it almost all over the globe. One of the positive aspects of todays modern world of commercial banking sector is the formation of new deliverance channels for customer satisfaction and most recent of them is online banking (Daniel, E. 1999). Traditional way of providing services only by bank branches is not enough to meet the needs of todays customers (Bradley, L et al, 2003). Adoption of online banking is increasing day by day although the level of adoption could be different in different countries. Online/Internet banking can be defined as an alternative to traditional banking system which allows the customers to perform almost all financial transactions e.g. balance checking, money transfer, account upgrades, bank statement printing etc on the banks secure website which otherwise can be performed only by visiting the banks branch. History of Internet Banking in UK Online banking services started from the early 80s in New York and in 1981. In the beginning Citibank, Chase Manhattan,Chemical and Manufacturers Hanover offered home banking services by using the videotex system but at that time videotex system didnt became popular except in France and UK where they used videotex minitel and prestel.Now we are going to discuss the history of online banknig in UK which started in 1983 and Nottingham Building Society was the first one to start this service at that time. It was based on the UKs prestel system and used a computer such as the BBC Micro or keyboard connected to the telephone system and television set. So, the customers had the facility to view their bank statements, bank transfers and also had the facility of making online bill payments. And at that time some part of it was done manually as well e.g. if any customers likes to make bank transfers or bill payments, (includeing details of the recipient)washad to be sent to the Nottingham Bui lding Society had to be notified in written form who set the details up on the Homelink system. Usually people used it for paying their gas, electricity and telephone bills. While Stanford Federal Credit Union also joined NBS in October 1994 and started online banking services to its customers and was the first one to do this. Types of Online Banking Online banking is divided into three types and this division is done on the basis of functional level of online banking that is currently employed in the market. Informational Communicative Transactional Informational (Websites) This has been identified as the first level of internet banking. Typically the bank has the marketing information about the banks products and services on a stand alone server. The risk is very low as informational systems typically have no path between the server and the banks internal network. Communicative/Simple transactional (Websites) This type of internet banking allows some interaction between the banks systems and the customer. The interaction is limited to e-mail, account inquiry, loan application or static file updates (name and address). It does not permit any funds transfers. Advanced Transactional (Websites) This level of internet banking allows bank customers to electronically transfer funds to/from their accounts, pay bills and conduct other banking transaction online like CABS in Zimbabwe. Features of Online Banking Online banking consists of many characteristics and some of them are listed below: Transactional Features: Features which are used to perform a financial transaction are called transactional features such as money transfer from one account to another account of either the same customer or different customers, paying bills,applying online for a credit card or for a loan or a new account etc Non-transactional Features: These features include online viewing or printing of account statement, checking links, cobrowsing, chat, wire transfer, sending mail to banks/financial institution administration. Different ways of attacking Online Banking Websites There are a number of ways used these days to directly attack either the banks websites providing the facility or their customers. But it is much easier to deceive the customers, most of the attackers try to deceive the user to steal his/her login id and password. Two of the most used methods for such kind of attacks are phishing and pharming. Other methods used to steal login information includes cross-site scripting and key logger or trojan horses. Even hackers try to attack signature based online banking method as well and they try to manipulate the software. By using this method real and genuine transactions are seen on the front page by the user to deceive him/her and faked transactions take place in the background. A recent report by FDIC Technology Incident Report tells that around 536 cases of computer crimes related to hacking and phishing and data loss have been registerd. And if we calcute the worth of these losses it goes around $30,000 per incident . And the grand total could be up to $16-million loss within 2007. Such kind of money loss due to computer crime have already increased at a rate more than 100 percent in last 2 to 3 years. And in most of these cases the attacker cannot be identified and the targeted custormers are those who are using online services in one way or the other. The latest method used by the hackers to attack is that a trojan horse allows the hacker to change both the destination account number and the amount of the user. Security Measures by the Banks In online banking increasing number of security issues day by day as compared to conventional banking is one of the major worries of banks. The most basic method used by the banks to provide security to the customers is allowing the customers to access the data by using a one time password authentication method. Most of the secure Internet shopping sites use this method for providing security to the customers. But using this method for online banking is not secure way of doing things online. Banks/financial institutions use two different security measures to fail the attacks by the hackers. The first one is the PIN/TAN system in which users are given new passwords every time they login and do the financial transactions. And mostly these passwords are sent to the customers by post. The most appropriate way of using TANs is to generate them only when customer needs them. This is basically a two-factor authentication way and the positive aspect of adopting this method is that no additional encryption is required. The second method is also a commonly used method and this method used is Signature based in which all transactions are signed and encrypted digitally. And the digital signatures of the custoemrs are then stored either on any kind of memory storage disks or smartcards. Countermeasures for failing such attacks Banks and financial institutions are using several countermeasures techniques to avoid all these kinds of attacks which have been discussed in previous heading e.g. to stop attacks that are done by both phishing and pharming, digital certificates have been introduced. On the other hand, class-3 card readers are introduced to fail those attacks which target signature based online banking. While on the users end, they should use virus scanners to be on the safe side against different ways of hacking tools like phishing, pharming, Trojan horses etc. It is also been observed that when people download material from internet, many times some hacking files also enter the systems and later those files are either used directly by the hackers to steal data or those files simply start sharing and sending your data with the hackers computer. Another step taken is the multifactor authentication (MFA) process. History of Banking The earliest of all banks in old age were the temples of that time. This practice started around third millennium B.C. And if we think that the culture of having banks in a society only started with the invention of money, then we are wrong because they started even before this. At that time instead of money people used to deposit grain. But after sometime at a later stage, people started depositing cattles and agricultural implements. Eventually comes the deposits in the form of gold, precious stones, metals etc in the form of compressed plates were used as deposits. One of the strongest reason of using temples and palaces to keep the precious goods were that they were the safest places to store gold at that time because they were almost always full of monks or worshippers and were well built as well. On the other hand, temples were sacred places so temples give an extra protection to precious goods from robbers. Even the culture of giving loans is as old as around 18th century BC i n Babylon. And most of the times those loans were given by priests/monks of that time and mostly to the businessman community of that time. Ancient Greece also has a history of banking. Most of the transcations at that time were giving loans, deposits, exchaning the currency. And proofs have been found that rather than giving money in cash which was taken as a loan, a credit note is given to the customer in one city and the customer used to take cash in another city by showing that note. And the advantage of doing it is that it was saving the customers from getting robbed on their way from one city to another. And this technique of credit-based banking was very common in 4th century B.C.in the Mediterranean world. Egyptian people also used to use grain as an alternative of money. By the fall of Egypt, the no. of different government based financial institutes of that time were combined into a single network of grain banks and their head office was in Alexandria from where they were monitored and the transactions of grains and other stuff from all the state granary banks were recorded. And even at that time paymets were done from one account to the other without actually moving money from one place to another. During last few decades of 3rd century B.C., an island of Delos, known for its magnificent harbor and famous temple of Apollo, became a leading and well known banking hub of that time due to the temple of Apollp and excellent harbour. Same way in Egypt, without moving cash from one place to another financial transactions used to take place by just writing a credit receipt. Ancient Rome took this art of doing financial transactions to a new level and started forming some rules and regulations and a set infrastructure for the system and formed and practice d many regulations for banks/financial institutions. Although interest charging was an old traditions but make it more structured. But further growth of Roman banks was limited because they used to do cash transactions more frequently. And even in Christinaity practice of charging interest is considered immoral, so the further development haulted at that time. And the last but not the least point to add here is that due to the fall of Roman empire banking also diminished and didnt came on screen until the start of the crusades. Western Banking History Modern Western banking history initiated in London with the formation of London Royal Exchange in 1565. At that time their offices where they used to sit and do financial work were called banks. There exsisted also a hierarchical order among professionals at that time. The list included bankers, city exchanges and pawn shops respectively.Before the Industrial Revoultion Amsterdam was the financial capita of the world in 1609. And during last decade of 17th century Amsterdam, London, and Hamburg were like the central banks of the world. And the famous East India Trade company was the most stable of that time. Global Banking In the 1970s and 1980s there was a wave of deregulation and privatization of government enterprises. The basic reason for doing so is to improve economic growth of the countries and it was private-sector at that time which was given the responsibility to participate positively in the growth and development of the country. Even the developed countries of today were facing the issues of economic growth at that time. This gave a chance to large companied to expand their business internationally. During this phase of globalization and expansion banking sector also grew tremendously. And U.S. emerged as the largest stock market in the world. And their economy and assessts grew twice the rate of the rest of the world. But they didnt enjoyed that kind of growth rate during last twenty years. And U.S. Foreign investments also play a part in this decline. And the other factor is growth of foreign financial markets. For example Japan where ratio of savings has gone up in last two decades and t hen the deregulation in other parts of the world is also a factor influencing U.S. growth rate. Such growing trend of globalization and the avaliability of opportunities of economic growth abroad has totally changed the traditional banking and now many banks have shown keen interests and preference for the universal banking model. And these banks can perform all kinds of financial services. And Internet banking is used as a major tool to meet the ever growing and changing demands of todays modern customers and so internet banking also expanded its wings globally under this new era of global banking. Such is a proof of global banking setup that by the end of 2000 around $10.5 trillion worth of financial activities were recorded breaking all the previous records. The top ten leading banks holding most of that market share was 80%. Among ten top ranked banks of the year the seven of them were multi-national bank who are doing business all around the globe and among them were three American and four European banks. Benefits of Online Banking Electronic Banking has many benefits and we are going to discuss them in detail now. First of all you can transfer funds from one account to another. And this could be done either between different accounts of the same person or vice versa. You can pay bills online, apply for a loan or a new account etc.Other features include printing of bank statement, changing personal details, contacting bank administration. Now if we go further in detail, we are going to examine more benefits of online banking. , service, technology, change, knowledge about computer usage and internet are a main Thornton and White (2001) found that there are many electronic distribution channels available for banks in US and then they compared them all and concluded that customer orientation towards convenience source of usage of different channels. And online banking is playing an important role to minimize the queues in branches which in turn increases efficiency of bank employees because if they got fewer cust omers in bank they can give them enough time and could solve their problems in a better way rather than looking at the long queue and getting stressed and under pressure (Thornton and White, 2001). Howcroft et al., (2002) found that the most important factors which are helpful in an increased number of usage of electronic banking are less fees and the reducing paper work and removal of the factor of human error.(Kiang et al., 2000). One more important factor which was concluded by Byers and Lederer, (2001) was that due to a rapid change in technology during last one century consumer attitudes have changed as well and people like to go for the usage of latest technology rather than bank cost a structure that determines the changes in distribution channels. Now users can do banking outside normal banking hours as well. Normally users can only do banking only between 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. And this amount of time is only 8 to 9 hours per day. Now they have got the facility of 24 hours a day and 7 days a week to do banking operations. And this is one of the most important reasons for the adoption of online banking. Banks provide customers convenient, inexpensive access to the bank 24 hours a day and seven days a week. Another point is also found in this scenario that ATM machines are contributing a lot as well in this new era of technology and these machines are performing the same kind of transactions as do a member of the staff at a bank will do. And the point to note in this sentence is that the ATM is performing these transactions at half the cost a human can do and with a four-to-one advantage in productivity. Gerrard and Cunningham (2003) found a positive correlation about the factor of convenience and online banking because you can now do all the banking transactions even from the ease of your home and you dont need to go to branch and wait in a queue to be served. Multi-functionality of this IT technology is also contributing feature to higher the customer satis faction level which is not an easy task in a highly competitive time of today. With the availability of self-service machines or channels, banks can reduce their branch network and to some extend number of staffs as well. Because if people are being served by machines in the same way as by an employee and in return the customers are satisfied as well, so it means that these alternative channels are helping banks in improving their efficiency and reducing their branch network or the number of employees. And that number of staffs can be used in some other profitable venture by the bank (Birch and Young, 1997). And this thing can ultimately help towards achieving improved customer satisfaction and increasing the institutions efficiency level (Thornton and White, 2001). Nowadays banks are even competing over providing better and secure online services and even non-banking financial institution are involved in this race. With more usage of online system customers now can compare differen t prices by different suppliers easily and quickly. The Internet increases the power of the customer to make price comparisons across suppliers quickly and easily. And as a result this stabilizes the prices of different products and the customers can have a better product in reasonable price. Yakhlef (2001) found out that almost all banks are responding different to this new fast growing and adopting technology. He also found that those banks which are taking it in a positive way are achieving better communication levels with customers. This point has also been discussed that by providing financial services to them right into their home/office is strengthing the bond and trust level between cutomers and the banks. As a result banks are enjoying increased customers loyalty and satisfaction. Nancy et al. (2001) took forward this debate in a different way and viewed that customers still like and prefer to go to branch and interact with a human to solve their banking problems rather than choosing machines to solve their problem. Because they found that there are more possibilities of asking a same question in a different way or asking many different questions at a same time. And the bank clerks are less vulnerable to machines with a quick level of response to all possible questions. This increases the probability of offering customer a new product or a best suitable product to customer and at the end it leaves a good image on the customer and enhances customer loyalty. We should note another point over here that level of usage and popularity of online banking is not the same in different countries around the world and the level of response in many developing countries around the world is less than the level of response in developed countries. There are many factors which p lay role in such kind of response. It includes ignorance, illiteracy, insufficient security measures by the banks and the government for online banking, preference for banking in branches rather than on internet etc. For example Polatoglu and Ekin (2001) studied about online usage in Turkey and found the same reasons as described above for the low level of usage of online banking. They found that ignorance to the usage of email system and preference of doing everyday banking at bank branches are some of the main reasons of low level of adoption of online banking in Turkey. So as a result e-banking is not that famous and in use in Turkey. Risks Associated with Electronic Banking Now it is time to discuss the risk factor included in the usage of electronic banking. Now we are going to discuss that although customers are getting a lot of benefits by using online banking services but by using online services they are exposing them to a number of risks that should be considered before using online banking on regular basis. One of the most basic and first point in this debate is that although we accept that online banking is providing a lot of opportunities for the banks in terms of efficiency and time and money saving and customer loyalty but it also limits this whole system and its future and current growth due to security issues, complexity of the system and technical problems involved (Sathye, 1999: Mols, 1999). Now these issues can be viewed in different ways. Some people will view them as an issue related to the level of trust on ones bank. Even Hewer and Howcroft (1999) in their studies defined these risk issues as level of trust to a measure the amount of risk. A number of previous studies have concluded that level of trust in case of electronic banking and perceived risks have a positive impact on commitment and customer loyalty and trust which ultimately leads towards overall satisfaction level of the customer about electronic banking. In this scenario, we can say that reputation of the service provider also affects the customers level of trust on the financial institution/bank. Doney and Cannon (1997) defined reputation as the safety of customers money and privacy. Because if the customers are not sure of the honesty or loyalty of their service provider they will simply quit that service provider and move to some other service provider which they think is better and more honest and concerned about the security of their financial transactions. Level of trust is the first and the most basic step of doing any kind of business with any firm/institution or service provider. Tyler and Stanley (1999) also argued on the same thing that b y showing commitment, honesty and cooperation between them and the customers, they can win customer loyalty. In some cases it is found that customers do have complains about the longer logon times consumed during online banking transactions rather than using any other medium for communication e.g. phone call etc. Min and Galle (1999) found one of the common factor in their survey which is the disruption of information access to be one of the most common factor which draws the customers away from using Internet channels for commerce. Similar results have been found by Liao and Cheung (2002) in their research and they also suggested that customers expect the online system to be always accurate, friendly, fully secure, level of service should be good i.e. response time. If these factors are there then we can say that online banking can grow and it does hold a future otherwise the future is a bit doubtful and some positive changes are needed in the online system. Confidentiality or privacy of data is also one the major factors to be considered in adoption of online banking because a large number of customers feel unsecured about sharing their personal information by this medium and feel that their personal information could be used in a way to exploit them or to share with someone without have the right to share their personal information. (Gerrard and Cunningham, 2003). In the same scenario a research was conducted in UK by White and Nteli (2004) about the number of internet users n the country and the number of on line banking users in the country. And the major factor which came up at the end of the study was that people in UK are vary of sharing their personal information on Internet and they are still not satisfied about the laws by the government about internet banking and the frauds and hacking. This is an example of unfair or incomplete and unprotected system available to be used by everybody from a genuine customer to a hacker. In some cases people are not sure that in case of a dispute whether electronic documents and records are enough to prove their point or they ar not acceptable. And if a dispute arises in case of a fraud then what is going to the result of it, whether they will have enough material or not to prove their point. Other similar kind of risks include loss of job for many employees because of more frequent use of machines for financial transactions rather than going to bank branch. They it affects the social part of the society as well. because if people are doing all such things at home then they will not go out and contact with other people will reduce which will reduce the opportunities for people to socialize and interact with other people and to some extent can add up to a less active society (Black at al., 2001). LITERATURE REVIEW How Banks perceive Online banking in developing countries Online banking provides substitutes of fast services of banking to a large number of customers. Online banking services are fast becoming popular both among academics and practitioner. Rapid advancement in banking industry has brought a lot of amendments in the sector. Public banks dominated the financial markets before 1990. After 1990 the privatization of banking sector started. Many amendments and improvements came after the privatization of banking sector. Even the electronic banking started after the privatization of the sector. Out of many technological wonders electronic banking is one of the wonders. Quite a lot of online services are being provided by different banks in Pakistan i.e. checking account statement, account balance, checking current balance, transfer of funds, credit cards payments, direct payments, utility bills payments, cheque book requests, stop payments requests, demand draft requests, new fixed deposit requests, statement download, other information and gui delines download. This study describes the risks and benefits of online banking in Pakistan. It minimizes inconvenience, reduces transaction cost and saves time. It also reduces the risk of cash carrying. But it leads to data access to public which leads to data insecurity and enhances the chances of fraud and embezzlement. Electronic banking involves lower fee and less paper work and human error. O Crisis Management: Impact of a Crisis Crisis Management: Impact of a Crisis JAMES WALKER INTRODUCTION Crisis management will most likely require more than being remorseful to the press or the CEO of some organization appearing on the news. We know the news that is broadcasted goes viral quick. Organizations must be vigilant to respond to a crisis quickly and decisively utilizing all platforms of communication to speak to the public. Furthermore, the most important thing is for organizations to accept responsibility for the actions and not distant themselves from the crisis or from the public. Its given there is no fix for all methods to remedy a crisis, but the lessons learned should be important. In this assignment, it will allow chance to analyze a major crisis and the impact on a community, nation, and the world when bearing in mind crisis management. The assignment will discuss the threat or hazard to the organization, elements of surprise, decision making of leadership with timelines of event and decisions made, successful and unsuccessful decision making, and changes resulted or should be considered. THREAT TO ORGANIZATION The New York Times accused Coca-Cola, stating that the company was funding obesity research that attempted to disprove the link between obesity and diet and shifted the problem to lack of exercise. It was said that Coca-Cola financed the new nonprofit Global Energy Balance Network and it advocated propaganda and deflects the role of soft drinks in the spread of obesity and Type 2 diabetes. (reference COCA). The accusation had a huge impact to the company to a point it was losing in the market sales. It was a first-class type of crisis for Coca-Cola and it was caught off guard, especially the intent was to fund scientific researches for health and well-being programs. The idea was misconstrued from the publics and social medias eyes. LEADERSHIP DECISION-MAKING EVENTS During the crisis that could cripple Coca-Cola, the CEO (Muhtar Kent) had professionally managed the crisis and to act quickly to make decisions. He assumed responsibility, owned up to it through the whole ordeal. He understood the businesss level of reputation and if he left the crisis to take its course, the business could have lost it reputation and the market sale of the products. The CEO is the best spokesperson to rectify the issue and that person is who you want out front telling the truth or the intent. In most public relations (PR) incidents, the CEO is shielded and it portrays that the CEO has no interest to the issue. The making of an outsized response is crucial to the crisis. Overreacting is preferred to a small measure or ignoring the critics helps as well, since it is all about opinions. CEO Muhtar Kent led Coca-Cola to initiate a management committee of impartial experts to give governance on the investments of the business from an academic research and appoint profes sionals to investigate opportunities for research and health initiatives. The bottom line is that Coca-Colas response to the allegations that it finances a group to protects it interests at the expense of public health is a case study in PR crisis management. The explanation by CEO Muhtar Kent characterizes a business response that encompasses the important elements of effective business PR crisis management. SUCCESSFUL/UNSUCCESSFUL DECISION-MAKING The successful outcome for Coca-Cola over this accusation was all due to the CEOs professional decision-making. He provided guidance when responding to occurrences and apologies. CEO Muhtar Kents first successful decision was admitting the companys mistake while not really apologizing in his explanation, Well Do Better. Furthermore, he took this accusation in a resilient way, at the source, which was acknowledging the accusations that were deceiving the publics and social medias eyes about its support for scientific research. In return, he defends the company by attempting to confront the global obesity epidemic and that the company had good intentions. However, CEO Muhtar Kent admits the intention is not working. Additionally, the actions that were taken to support the research for health and well-being were misconstrued and it caused a lot of confusion and mistrust. In the CEOs explanation, the company will act forward and with more transparency. It will put on the website the list of health and well-being partnerships and research activities it supported in the past five years and updating bi-annually. CEO Muhtar Kent stated that efforts will be made to continue to support the healthy options by having lower sugar and calorie drinks to include his company will stay committed to fight obesity. The unsuccessful decision-making by the leaders was broadcasting their intent and ensuring it wasnt misleading to allow the intent to make out that Coke was averting criticism about the role sugary drinks have played in the spread of obesity and Type 2 diabetes. The support was in good intentions with health and well-being, but how the public and social media viewed it was the opposite. It became a huge PR crisis as it seemed that Coca-Cola was trying to save their sales by funding an alleged cover up. CONSIDERATIONS AND RESULTS FOR CHANGES The businesses or organizations can save themselves from potential crisis is the highpoint of their element. In the event the organization is faced with these crisis, its ability to rise from the bottom and reveal the strength shows its crisis management plan. Additionally, the organizations do have practice something called the Conflict Management Life Cycle. It is a cycle that supports organizations to remain stable during or after a crisis. The Conflict Management Life Cycle is the cycle that gives the know how to manage a conflict or crisis. The cycle deals with being proactive (environmental scanning, issue tracking, issue management, and crisis planning), strategic (risk communication, conflict positioning, and crisis management), reactive (crisis communications, litigation PR, and conflict resolution), and recovery (reputation management and image restoration). Coca Cola had a Crisis Management Plan and the CEO Muhtar Kent utilized the Conflict Management Life Cycle. The considerations that was discussed for Coca-Cola was dealing with issue management, plan for communications, and how to respond to a crisis. For issue management, the key steps were to identify the issue (accusation of supporting for the wrong intention), evaluate the facts (support for the right reasons), priorities (reputation and sale), response (response from CEO with the real facts), and implementation (plan to gain trust and show intentions were good). The communication plan that CEO Muhtar Kent (Coca-Cola) had allowed for anticipation (identify the threat and monitor risks), prepare (define the key information in advance and anticipate information), and response (react quickly and efficiently, utilize the organizations processes and procedures, and practice potential events). CEO Muhtar Kent responded with Coca-Cola supporting health and well-being programs was in goo d intentions and not to be misconstrued. He responded with the 5Cs (confidence, clarity, control, concern, and competence). CONCLUSION Crisis management requires more than being remorseful to the press or the CEO of some organization appearing on the news. Organizations must be vigilant to respond to a crisis quickly and decisively utilizing all platforms of communication to speak to the public. Furthermore, the most important thing is for organizations to accept responsibility for the actions and not distant themselves from the crisis or from the public. Its given there is no fix for all methods to remedy a crisis, but the lessons learned should be important. Coca-Colas CEO, Muhtar Kent, quickly addressed the accusations professionally into the reactive phase of the Conflict Management Cycle. Furthermore, he made statements acknowledging accusations and the strategies is not working. Even though he did not completely express regret, he disclosed the company did not choose the best way to fight obesity and assuring they would be transparent from now on. The CEO benefits from this approach to move on to the reputation management part of the recovery phase by promising that Coca-Cola will update frequently a list of its well-being partnerships and research activities. In this manner, the publics trust will be salvaged and the companys image will be restored. Coca-Cola did a noble thing when they took responsibility for their unsuccessful decision-making. The company showed interest and sent their CEO to address the problem that had good intentions by following the Conflict Management Life Cycle and their Crisis Management Plan. The importance of the CEO speaking out is critical since communication plays a relevant part in not identifying the crisis and the impact. A crisis can damage the organizations products or services, threat public safety, harm employees, customers and stakeholders (physically, emotionally, and financially). Furthermore, it can cause operational, financial and reputational loss to include the impacting the future probability and growth. The frameworks, Conflict Management Life Cycle and Crisis Management Plans, are essential when it comes to being proactive to a crisis, using strategy for a crisis, being reactive to a crisis, and recovering from a crisis. BIBLIOGRPAHY Bernstein, Jonathan (N/A) Free Management Library, All About Crisis Management, Retrieved from: http://managementhelp.org/crisismanagement/. Cantoria, Ciel S. (2011). Bright Hub Project Management, Great Real-Life Examples of Successful Crisis Management, Retrieved from: http://www.brighthubpm.com/risk- management/104704-great-real-life-examples-of-successful-crisis-management/, January 29, 2011. Comcowich, W. (2015). Cyber Alert, Case Study: Coca-Cola PR Crisis Management, Retrieved from: http://www.cyberalert.com/blog/index.php/case-study-coca-cola-pr-crisis- management/. Preach (N/A). How do you act in crisis?, Public Relations, Retrieved from: https://bronk002.wordpress.com /2016/10/25/how-do-act-in-crisis/. Poston, Leslie (2012). Salesforce Marketing Cloud, Shining examples of excellent social media crisis management, Retrieved from: https://www.marketingcloud.com/blog/shining-examples- of-excellent-social-media-crisis-management, September 21, 2012. OConnor, A. (2015). The New York Times, Coca-Cola Funds Scientists Who Shift Blame for Obesity Away From Bad Diets, Retrieved from: http://well.blogs.nytimes.com/2015/08/09 /coca-cola-funds-scientists-who-shift-blame-for-obesity-away-from-bad-diets/?_r=1. Prevention is Better than Cure: BCC- An Ultimate Life Saver Prevention is Better than Cure: BCC- An Ultimate Life Saver Sudipta Paul Introduction: India in global stage is aspiring to be a powerful country with its potential powers in various field but the policy makers and governments ended acting a feeble role due to lack of providing the basic amenities to people. Average poor people struggle to get basic health facilities and proper sanitation. Most of them are unaware of various health hazards, for example, about the unsafe cause of open defecation. Population explosion, high maternal mortality and infant mortality rate were observed in India. Lower rate of health literacy and cultural taboos made worsen the situations. There were urgent needs felt to enhance the health literacy among marginalised people and empowering them. Thus, government health policies are made to harness BCC strategies to fight the superstitions and myths from society. In 1951, policy makers recognised health education as one of the major components of health care delivery system. â€Å"In 1946, the Health Survey and Development Committee, headed by Sir Joseph Bhore recommended the establishment of a well- structured and comprehensive health service with a sound primary health care infrastructure. It was in this context that the concept of health promotion and health education were introduced to achieve desired outcomes† (Public Health Resource Network, Book 05, 2007, p. 6). Empowerment of rural folks on health education was named as IEC (information, education, communication) which in course of time harnessed with BCC programmes (Behavior change communication). BCC strategies are mainly part of development support communication and involve participatory action research which came out as critique of dominant paradigm of development communication. â€Å"Criticism of earlier approaches to health communication has resulted in development of the term â€Å"behavior change communication† (BCC), but so rapidly is the term BCC becoming associated with persisting past practices that one would not be surprised if there is done- from its current approach to an approach which involves the active participation of the community in directing the design of a strategy appropriate to social and cultural contexts which promotes good health and reduces their risk for ill health† (Public Health Resource Network, Book 05, 2007, p. 7). The book, Public Health Resource Network (2007, p. 2-3) defines BCC as, â€Å"understanding people’s situation and influences, developing messages that respond to the concerns within those situations and using communication processes and media to persuade people to increase their knowledge and change the behaviors and practices that place them at risk†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢ € ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦ In the BCC approach, there is more conscious focus on the receiver- rather than the sender- as the center of communication. Earlier IEC programmes tended to see their purpose as having to â€Å"sell† a particular message or idea. The BCC approach recognises individuals within the intended audiences as active, rather than as passive receivers of information and messages, who act on messages only if they are seen as advantageous or useful. In BCC approach there is greater appreciation that the audience may need new skills and social support to make and maintain behavior change.† One way process of communication of IEC compelled to introduce BCC process as a part of development process of communication. Neill Mckee (2002), defines BCC as, â€Å"research based consultative process of addressing knowledge, attitudes and practices through identifying, analysing, and segmenting audiences and participants in programmes and by providing them with relevant in formation and motivation through well-defined strategies, using an appropriate mix of interpersonal, group and mass media channels, including participatory methods† (cited in BCC strategy for NRHM in Uttar Pradesh, 2008, p. 9). BCC analyses the socio- demographic profiles of a particular target community and tries to remove the social and behavioral barriers with discussions, interpersonal communications. â€Å"It is about understanding the communities, context and environments in which behaviors occur. BCC is also about using persuasive techniques to demand health rights and to make public sector health services available and accessible to the neediest. BCC is about integrating new practices into long standing social, cultural and communication systems† (Nandita Kapadia-Kundu, 2008, as cited in BCC strategy for NRHM in Uttar Pradesh, p. 9). BCC uses mass media, interpersonal communication, community mobilisation for change of behaviors of community for improvement of health status and development of future. Behavior Change Communication is used to generate knowledge, tries to bring changes in attitude, behavior, intentions of people. BCC along with other strategies advocates adopting a healthy behavior and overcoming barriers- whether it is mental block or physical block such as difficulty in accessibility of health facilities. Behavior Change Communication helps to bring a sustainable change in health behavior of community. Conceptual framework of BCC: (Source: http://www.cpc.unc.edu/measure/prh/rh_indicators/crosscutting/bcc) Need of BCC: BCC tools are used to increase the intervention of the promotive and preventive aspect of health among people. â€Å"BCC is a process that motivates people to adopt and sustain healthy behaviors and lifestyles† (INFO Reports, January 2008, Issue no. 16, p. 1). Needs of BCC (Public Health Resource Network, Book 05, 2007, p. 11) are: â€Å"BCC alone can: Increase the intended participant’s knowledge and awareness of a health issue, problem, or solution Influence perceptions, beliefs, and attitudes that may change social norms Facilitate building of social/community norms that are facilitative and supportive to desired changes of behaviors/practices Motivate and provide the confidence and optimism needed for community action Demonstrate or illustrate healthy skills Reinforce knowledge, attitudes, or behaviors that are promotive of good health Show the benefit of behavior change Advocate a position on a health issue or policy Increase demand or support for health services Refute myths and misconceptions† Goal of BCC strategies: â€Å"Empowering the family and individuals to take health related decisions based on information and analysis. Motivating the community to play a proactive role in improving their health status. Effecting greater utilisation of health services through an improved public understanding of health care. Creating competencies and enabling environment to assist with the above objectives† (Public Health Resource Network, Book 05, 2007, p. 14). Tools of BCC: Tools of BCC are intended to delineate planning, implementation, development of BCC strategies of any programme. Major BCC tools for strategic plan are: Situation analysis: This stage involes identification of social determinants, mental blocks or areas which need to adopt a healthy behaviour or change of habits or attitudes of people. The reasons behind the particular health issue are identified in this stage. Research should done on audience analysis- demographic and attitudal profile of the audience; idenitification of the knowledge, attitude, behaviour, beliefs and values of people; identification of primary and secondary audience; availability of health services in the locality; available media or peer groups in the area. Strategic design: Strategic design should contain a ‘SMART’ objective- The strategic design contains the objectives of the BCC plan- the desired change in the behaviours, knowledge, attitude and practice of the target audience and also develops a conceptual framework of BCC plan to work out the objectives. Implementation plan is sketched in this stage. Drawing out a BCC plan involves these six steps- â€Å"Identifying key behaviors that need to be changed and analysisng their determinants. Stating the mix of audience- message- media and communicators. Deciding the monitoring and evaluation startegy- especially the indicators that help us assess whether communication occurred and whether it was effective in securing behavior change. Deciding the plans needed to build capacity to implement this plan. Deciding the budgetary requirements.† (Public Health Resource Network, Book 05, 2007, p. 16). Message development: Appropriate message should be developed for target group. ‘Type of appeal’ applicable for a particular group should be decided in this stage. Pretest: Pretesting the messages is required for modification of messages based on the reactions of the target groups. Implementation of the programme: According to Public Health Resource Network, Book 05, 2007, p. 15, key components of implementation framework are: â€Å"Message, media and communicators Monitoring, evaluation and feedback Institutional structure and functions Capacity building Management Budgetary aspect† Monitoring and Evaluation: Programme implementers should keep eye on the proper implementation of the programme and if needed, they may modify a change in the mid term of the programme after evaluation of the programme based on reactions and feedback from the target groups. BCC along with IEC helps to eradicate many killer diseases. The example of such success stories are given here: Success story Part-1: The Polio eradication in India (along with several other countries) is considered as one of the most successful campaigns in the field of public health, globally. In the year 1988 global leaders and countries decided to end polio and started initiatives to reach to every child in every country for immunization (although India introduced the oral polio vaccine in 1985 in an Immunisation Programme in the backdrop of over 200,000 cases of polio annually (as per estimates of the Indian Academy of Pediatrics). India committed itself fully into this mission which was globally led by UNICEF and WHO partnering with various international bodies and countries. It was no doubt a massive challenge for a country like India to achieve a zero-polio status as India has been contributor of almost half of Polio cases globally at some point of time. For a country as populated, as diverse, as difficult to reach out to rural areas there was a need for dedicated efforts on the part of the health workers, vaccinators the whole public health machinery supported by a communication strategy through which the message of polio vaccination and its importance needs to reach every Indian- from the Metro cities to remotest villages of country. Each year twice national level immunization campaign are held with an intent to cover all children under the age of five (http://www.unicef.org/india/health_3729.htm). In every campaign around 2.3 million lakh vaccinators are involved directly in the process led by 155,000 supervisors. To make all this fruitful in achieving the Zero-polio status an effective awareness campaign including inter personal communication component is vital. For each campaign awareness is done by IEC materials viz. banners, posters, leaflets, hoardings also through television, radio and newspapers along with extensive loudspeaker announcements. The vaccinators along with other health personnels were also trained to enhance their interpersonal skills, so they could mobilise communities better. There were in initiatives to make resistant communities, individuals understand accept the vaccination for the children. Mention of two different incidents during such campaign gives an idea of how both awareness initiatives and service delivery efforts complement each other. The Christian Science Monitor shared the story of Setarah Khatoon of Bihar, India (Taghavi, 2013, http://www.csmonitor.com/World/Asia-South-Central/2013/0504/Could-India-s-polio-eradication-success-story-be-a-model-for-its-other-health-issues). She got married at the age of 16 and by the age of 20 she had 3 miscarriages. She had one baby girl and one day she saw Bollywood star Amitabh Bachchans TV advertisement telling parents advocating do boond zindagi ki (two drops of life) actually during the polio campaign celebrities are engaged to spread the message that two drops of polio vaccine can save the life of a child. After watching the advertisement in her small Mumbai house she went to a pharmacy for getting her child vaccinated, the pharmacist directed her to a nearby clinic run by an NGO Doctors for you where her child got vaccinated (free of cost of-course). Her baby girl became the first in her family to get vaccinations and apart from that she got access to regular medical che ck-ups, advice on nutrition and about birth control options too. In another incident shared by UNICEF (http://www.unicef.org/india/reallives_7444.htm) in another part of the country millions of people were on their way to the annual Urs in Ajmer Rajasthan at a time of the year 2011. Before proceeding to Ajmer via Delhi the devotees need to make a stop over at Bareily, UP to pay homage to a local dargah. The local administration, along with gearing up to host over 200,000 devotees from West Bengal, Bihar, Jharkhand, Madhya Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh and Nepal, decided to administer oral polio vaccine to children upto 5 years of age travelling amongst the devotees. The administration with the health department and other NGOs were able to immunize 10,414 children as a result of this effort. The above two incidents show how the awareness IEC component go hand in hand with the service delivery component in achieving the desired output. Success story Part 2: Challenges of BCC: Gap between health education and BCC: Conclusion: In India especially in North East due to inaccessible geographical areas, cultural diversity and other reasons, access to health care services especially secondary and tartiary is limited to the large group of rural population. To make up for that gap the promotion of preventive aspect (PPA) of health plays a vital role. When it comes to saving life it becomes the ultimate life saver. But all the facilities in health system have to be lined up equally along with BCC efforts to provide health education to the masses. Service providers have to ensure the quality services to the people in the hospitals when people visit to them. It is more important to fruitful utilisation of services along with demand generated through IEC and BCC. Otherwise, the effort of health education would go haywire definitely. BCC successfully helps to create a demand of health seeking behavior among individuals and communities. References: Behavior Change Communication (BCC) strategy for NRHM in Uttar Pradesh. (2008). Available at https://www.google.co.in/webhp?sourceid=chrome-instantrlz=1C1AVSX_enIN408IN438ion=1espv=2ie=UTF-8# accessed on 18/ 06/2014 at 9.58 PM. David, Rohit. (2014, May 26). India’s Success In Polio Eradication Is A Model To The World: Dr. Nata Minabde. The Times of India. Available at http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/home/opinion/interviews/Indias-success-in-polio-eradication-is-a-model-to-the-world-Dr-Nata-Menabde/articleshow/32680701.cms, accessed on 19/06/2014 at 08:15 PM. Measure Evaluation and Polpulation Health’s Behavior Change Communication. (n. d.). Available at http://www.cpc.unc.edu/measure/prh/rh_indicators/crosscutting/bcc on 18/06/2014 at 10. 45 PM. Public Health Resource Network’s Behavior Change Communication and Training for Health (Book 05). (2007). Raipur: Surya Offset Printers (I) Pvt. Ltd. Taghavi, Roshanak. (2013, May 4). Could India’s Polio Eradication Success Be A Model For It’s Other Health Issues? The Christian Science Monitor. Available at http://www.csmonitor.com/World/Asia-South-Central/2013/0504/Could-India-s-polio-eradication-success-story-be-a-model-for-its-other-health-issues, accessed on 19/06/2014 at 08:18 PM. Tools For Behavior Change Communication. (2008, January). INFO Reports, John Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, Issue no. 16. Available at http://www.k4health.org/sites/default/files/INFO Reports_Tools for BCC_0.pdf#sthash.2xvFcwSi.dpuf accessed on 18/ 06/2014 at 10.03 PM. UNICEF India’s Polio Eradication. India Celebrates Victory over Polio.(n.d.). Available at http://www.unicef.org/india/health_3729.htm accessed on 19/06/2014 at 08:19 PM. UNICEF India’s Time To Take Stock, Time To Discuss RTE. (n.d.). Available at http://www.unicef.org/india/reallives_7444.htm accessed on 19/06/2014 at 08:20 PM. UNICEF’s The Story of The End of Polio. (n.d.). Available at http://www.unicef.org/immunization/files/The_Story_of_the_End_of_Polio.pdf accessed on 19/06/2014 at 10:04 PM.