Ecology Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words

Ecology - Research Paper Example The transitions did not follow a successive order but were rather random for each squirrel. In addition, it became evident that a relationship exists between the behavioral transitions. From the analysis, the behavioral changes appeared to be the results of chance and were very random. The highest transition frequency was between the food searching behavior and food handling. The lowest frequency occurs in vigilance behavior and food searching. The animals must strive to strike a balance between safety precautions and food searches. For the balance to occur, squirrels have to set the priorities right. It is critical for them to determine when the urgency for security must surpass the urgency for food. Introduction The Eastern Gray squirrel’s main habitat is the eastern North America and parts of Canada (Makowska and Kramer 2006). This species relies on seeds, nuts, acorns, beechnuts, butternuts, and hickory nuts for food. These squirrels usually remain in their dens and nests during winter. The Gray squirrel must avoid getting into the way of its multiple predators. These predators include hawks, owls, raccoons, and snakes. Socially, these squirrels value relationships and have close associations within their communities. This species of squirrels exhibits unique behaviors when feeding. These squirrels have many predators and have to stay wary of while searching for food. This is the reason why squirrels exhibit multiple behavior changes in their search for food, as they have to strike a balance between feeding and remaining secure. Many scientists have tried to decipher the behavioral patterns of the squirrels in the venture for the search of food. Numerous ecologists have been striving to explain why these behaviors result. This experiment sought to establish the different patterns portrayed during the squirrel’s search for food (Parker and Nilon 2008). Prior to this experiment, we predicted that the gray eastern squirrel portrays several foragi ng patterns. In addition, we hypothesized that there was a relationship the transition from one pattern to the other. Specific predictions suggested that there was vigilance behavior that led to food searching. There was also a possibility that food-handling behavior would precede vigilance behavior. Methods In this experiment, we observed squirrels for duration of fifteen minutes. We used focal fallows to observe the behavioral patterns of the squirrels. After observation, we tallied the frequencies of transitions indicating. Finally, we used chi-square test to determine the relationship between the transition behaviors. Results Statistical analysis of the data derived from tallying the observations presented the data available in the table 2 in the figures shown. The graph in figure shows the number of squirrels that exhibited different transition behaviors. The highest frequency occurred between food searching and food handling. The transition from vigilance behavior to food sear ching presented the lowest frequency. The squirrels also switched from vigilance behavior to food handling at a remarkable frequency. Only in few occurrences did the squirrels exhibit a transition from either vigilance or food handling behavior to engage in social behavior. It became evident that the squirrels did not exhibit any transition from social behavior to food

Service Operations Management - Celebrity Cruises Case Study

Service Operations Management - Celebrity Cruises - Case Study Example Celebrity Cruises has an ambiguous strategy for marketing that lacks focus in attracting new customers and improving the loyalty of previous customers. First, celebrity Cruises must start by identifying clear marketing positions to source for additional potential customers. Secondly, their customer service is also failing them. Additionally, their services are getting old and need to be revitalized to attract new customers. Finally, their product also lacks consistency. To deal with these issues, Celebrity Cruises must alter its marketing strategy to place more emphasis on customer service. Pricing also requires to be changed to emphasize upgrades with added value rather than dollars off discounts. Finally, the employees need to be re-trained in customer service provision. Background The Chandris Group started celebrity Cruises in 1989 in Greece, originally as a shipping company. The company merged in 1997 with Royal Caribbean International to form the Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. in order for the two companies to target their particular market segments, the parent company decided to separate the two brand companies’ operations and marketing. Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. ... However, given the highly competitive nature of the cruise shipping line industry, the marketing strategy employed by celebrity Cruises is, at best, indistinct since it finds it difficult to find ways of creating and maintaining customer loyalty while also working towards increasing revenues. Problem Statement Celebrity Cruises is in possession of a marketing strategy, which is ambiguous and that has no focus on attracting customers and fumbles with increasing or improving customer loyalty. Analysis Celebrity Cruises needs to develop aspects of their operations, as well as transform them if they are to increase their market share (Vogel et al 22). First, celebrity Cruises must start by identifying clear marketing positions to source for additional potential customers. While Celebrity cruises has done a commendable job in appealing to their prospective customers, their marketing initiatives still require to be fine-tuned and implemented. Celebrity cruises needs to be able direct their efforts at marketing towards the correct market segment, which, in this case, is the multi-generational market and baby-boomers market. Baby boomers make up a large population of United States with one-fourth of the population in the US being aged between forty two and sixty in 2006 (Vogel et al 24). Celebrity Cruises is also missing out by choosing not to market to the people in the thirty to forty age bracket. While this has the ability to alienate the older crowd who like travelling on cruise ships, there will be some classy ones in this generation who are already used to dining in fine restaurants and knowledgeable in theater etiquette. For this generation

Chapter Essay Example for Free

Chapter Essay What do you think are the prime advantages and disadvantages of National City Corporation’s virtual tryouts? The advantages of using virtual tryouts are competitive edge against other companies. Allows them to pick candidates better suited for their work environment, allows candidates the knowledge that they are applying for a company that is at the cutting edge of technology and they want to move forward with the times. Unfortunately there are also disadvantages associated with virtual tryouts. Employers may grab the interest of candidates, however if real day to day activities at work do not contain some of the aspects that the virtual test had, then employees will get uninterested and quit. 2. Do you think there would be any EEO concerns regarding this system? I don’t think there would be any EEO issues with this system, otherwise it would not be offered in the market. However I do believe that this new system â€Å"Virtual Tryouts† is not necessarily right for all hiring aspects for every type of position/ company. There are aspects of a perfect employee to company match that a computer test cannot guarantee. Example, you can have a candidate that gets great results in the virtual tryouts given the situation that they are told to address, yet in the real day to day situation of the position they do not do very well, and vice-versa. 3. Would you suggest the company tailor its system for different types of candidates? Yes, I recommend that the company tailor its system for the different types of positions and the different types of candidates required to fill those positions. Chapter 8 Case Study Appraising Employees at the San Diego Zoo. 1. Do you think the San Diego Zoo’s old appraisal system needed to be changed? I think it needed to be changed because before they weren’t taking it seriously and it was a low priority to them. Now with the new system the employees will get raises depending on their performance which in turn will ncrease company performance. 2. What do you think are the pros and cons of using a Web-based appraisal system? The pros of using a web-based appraisal system is that it is convenient because a large group of people can be rated in less time and it will control personal bias. The cons of using a web-based appraisal system is that it gives too little attention to the overall performance of workers and in person interviews are more effective in rewarding or po inting out deficiencies in workers. 3. How do you think the new appraisal system will affect employees and the types of employees who work at the zoo? The new appraisal system will affect employees positively for those employees that are looking to grow with the company and be a part of the growth. When an employee is given targets and goals to reach, then they know what they are working towards and they are aware that if they reach the targets and goals there is a gain for them at the end. With this set, you will get employees that are willing to do the work and the time to get a job done right.

Ethnic Conflict Or Insurgency In Nepal Politics Essay

Ethnic Conflict Or Insurgency In Nepal Politics Essay Although the unification of Nepal began in the later-half of the eighteenth century, integrating many small principalities and emerging as a nation state of the Westphalian model, Nepal always remained a multiethnic, diverse country without having any core ethno-federal region.  [1]  While Nepal did not experience any significant ethnic problem for almost two and half centuries after it came into being, some of its ethnic groups enjoyed more privilege in the socio-politico-economic sector than others. Yet, after the establishment of a democratic system in 1990, grievances of underprivileged groups surfaced. As the ethnic grievances were burgeoning, the abrupt start of the Maoist insurgency in 1996 overshadowed all ethnic movements, assimilating them into the large-scale Maoist rebellion. Thus, it is difficult to classify the Nepalese ethnic problem and perceive it either as an ethnic conflict, ethnic violence, or a rebel movement. Prior to the initiation of the Maoists armed move ment, ethnic problems in Nepal were based on political, economic, social, and cultural issues, limited, to the level of conflict but did not escalated to the level of violence. However, with the beginning of the Maoist insurgency, the Nepalese conflict turned into an ideological based violent political power struggle against the existing government by a rebel organization. While there may be different interpretations and perceptions regarding whether the Maoist movement was successful or not; one thing is clear, it was successful in outmaneuvering the then governing regime becoming the largest political party bloc in the Constitutional Assembly election. The puzzle remains why the ideological conflict was successful despite the proclamation of end of the history by Francis Fukuyama and a Clash of civilization as a form of future conflict by the eminent political scientist Samuel Huntington after the end of the Cold War.  [2]  My purpose in this paper is to analyze this divergent outcome in Nepal. There has a been a nascent ethnic awareness after the establishment of a democratic system in Nepal, yet, the political mobilization of ethnicity by elites would not have been possible without the political incentives to activate it. I argue that the intervention by the Nepalese Maoists mutated the nature of the ethnic conflict into a fusionist one. Before addressing the core question, I attempt to analyze the Nepalese ethnic conflict through different theoretical lenses. Nepalese Conflict from a Broad Perspective Generally, any ethnic conflict can be explained in the light of three broad approaches -situational, instrumental, and primordial. While explaining the various motivations of conflicts in Nepal, the situational and instrumental approaches seems to be more convincing than a primordial one.  [3]  However, some dimensions of primordial force cannot be ruled out; especially a rise of grievances caused by taking the lid off after the collapse of the monarchy in 2006. When the authoritarian Panchayat system ended in 1990, it had created a power vacuum in Nepalese politics. When political and ethnic entrepreneurs rushed in to fill the void, namely vested, as well as parochial interests weakened the state and formed new democratic institutions. Manipulating these opportunities of political chaos and ethnic grievances, the Maoists came entered the scene with a strategic objective of establishing a totalitarian communist regime. They divided the country into their own administrative units and subunits to consolidate and advance their struggle more effectively and efficiently. Their administrative division of the country based on ethnic lines validated their excessive reliance on ethnicity to achieve ideological strategic objectives.  [4]  According to Michael E. Brown, a single-factor explanation cannot fully explain the evolution and intensity of internal and ethnic conflict, rather he advances multiple arguments derived from in theory existing, causes of internal conflict. Therefore, the Nepalese conflict can also be analyzed by means of three main arguments underlying factors, catalytic or proximate factors, and a role played by domestic elites.  [5]   Underlying Causes of the Nepalese Conflict Four underlying factors suggest why the Nepalese situation and its geography contributed to ethnic conflict. First, the structural factors explain the likelihood of ethnic conflict in terms of weak states, intra-state security concerns, and ethnic geography. While other symptoms of weak states are also more or less prevalent in Nepal, where the political institutions remained in a rudimentary state. Some of the reasons for such an existence of rudimentary political institutions in Nepal are explainable by unhealthy inter-party political rivalry after the establishment of the multiparty democracy in 1990, and the legacy of 104 years of the Rana oligarchic, political system from 1846 through 1950. Some other endogenous factors such as endemic corruption, administrative incompetence, and inability to promote economic development also have contributed immensely as precursors to the conflict. When the Nepalese state became weak, the power struggle between and among various political parties increased. The two major political parties, the Nepali Congress and the Communist Party of Nepal United Marxist Leninist (CPN-UML), and other political parties formed different alliances to claim paramount state power. Most of the time, during the multi-party democratic period, the Nepali Congress was in power; nevertheless, it could not complete even single full term of its tenure in the government following a split in the party. Because of this power struggle among the major political forces, ethnic groups such as Rai, Magar, Limbu, Tamang, Sherpa, Newar, Tharu, and Madhesi, which formerly had been oppressed by the center, were able to assert themselves politically. The weakening state structure also resulted in a less effective control of the Nepal-India border. Such a less effective control rapidly increased cross-border movements of arms, ammunitions, explosives, and other smuggl ed goods. This was a fertile environment for the Maoists to launch their violent ideological struggle. Many people from rural areas moved to neighboring India for greater security and employment. This situation also created a huge number of Internally Displaced People (IDP) within different parts of Nepal When the state grew further weaker, different groups and individuals started arranging for their own security. This also provided incentives to the Maoists for military preparations. The establishment of a Maoist Militia to defend themselves and fight against their enemies threatened the states security apparatus and other groups at community level, resulting in doubling the size of Nepals military and lead as well to the formation of anti-Maoists community defense forces at the local level. This again galvanized an upsurge of the Maoists military structure and a resulting armed violence creating a vicious cycle of security dilemma. At times, community defense forces exhibited offensive capabilities, even if they were formed for defensive purposes. This intensified the security concern caused by the Maoists.  [6]   Nepal was a multi-ethnic fabric woven by a thread of a common language, religion, and tradition obtained through the unification process. During some thirty years of authoritarian rule, from 1960 through 1990, the Panchayat system was relatively successful in consolidating a nation-state based on a single language, religion, and culture; intermingling various ethnic groups throughout the country. However, the melting pot did not completely melt everything in the pot and Nepalese leaders were unable to produce a homogeneous mixture. Some ethnic groups such as the Brahmins and Chhetries intermingled with other ethnic minorities throughout the country while some other ethnic minorities existed in a separate ethnic-geography. Many ethnic groups did not raise secessionist demands; whereas other ethnic non-integrated groups were on and off raising their secessionist demands. At times, these secessionist demands weakened because of the some effects of intermingling with other ethnic communi ties. After establishment of the multi-party democracy in 1990, as a result of a third wave of democratization, ethnic minorities started to demand their rights in a now more liberal political, social, and economic environment. Among various ethnic groups, the Magars in the western part of Nepal became more aggressive and consequently were effectively utilized by the Maoists to initiate their armed struggle. Second, political factors such as the dimensions of discriminatory political institutions; exclusionary national ideologies; inter-group politics; and elite politics serve to explain the Nepalese conflict. The closed authoritarian Panchayat system generated much resentment over time because many minority ethnic groups viewed the system serving primarily the interests of higher caste groups, such as Brahmins and Chhetries. The perceived disproportionate representations of ethnic minorities in government, the military, the police, the political parties, and other state and political institutions created substantial grievances in them. The ethnic conflict grew especially during the political transitioning from authoritarian rule to democracy in the early 1990s. The states repressive attitude during the democratic transitioning as well contributed to propagate insurgency in Nepal. While there were no exclusionary national ideologies per se, the lack of pragmatic implementation of egalitarian principles enshrined in the constitution and civil code contributed the outbreak of the conflict. Although the Nepalese people usually demonstrated civic-nationalism while protesting against foreign interference, the ethno-nationalism prevailed when the institutional vacuum occurred due a drastic political change. But, so far, the ethno-nationalism has not progressed towards an intense secessionist movement. It is pertinent to mention here that the Nepalese exclusionary practices were based on the caste system rather than on religious or ethnic grounds. Occasionally, Nepal experienced inter-group politics especially between Madheshi and non-Madheshi groups, but elite politics played a dominant role most of the time. Desperate and opportunist politicians always tried to take advantage of political and economic turmoil. For instance, the Maoists took advantage of fragile pol itical and economic situations to start their armed revolution. Third, economic and social factors also played important roles in initiating conflict in Nepal. Nepal remains an agrarian society and lacks an infrastructure for a market-based economic development in most parts of the country. Tourism is one of the important sources of income and employment, after agriculture. Over the last decades, foreign employment and remittance have become the main sources of national revenues. After the establishment of a democratic system in 1990, the aspirations of people for economic development went up astronomically. Nevertheless, peoples aspirations could not be met because of the lack of political stability, clear vision, commitment, and political consensus. Rather, unemployment, inflation, and resource competition provided the breeding ground for the conflict. Failure to jump start economic development by the new political elites contributed to an ever deepening political crisis. The failure to adopt an all-inclusive economic policy widened the gap bet ween rich and poor. Peoples from the oppressed community, scheduled caste, and minority ethnic groups did not have a stake in the countrys economic activities. Corruption, mismanagement, nepotism, and bribery moved the economic situations from bad to worse. Although there was no profound discriminatory economic policy, unequal economic opportunities, unequal access to resources, and vast differences in the standard of living were seen as unfair and illegitimate by the disadvantaged members of the society. Lastly, cultural or perceptual factors also had a considerable impact on the evolution of ethnic problems. Cultural discrimination against minorities was one of the principal, contributing cultural factors for ethnic conflict. The people from different ethnic groups found the educational opportunities inequitable; especially, teaching in minority languages became problematic because of lack of resources and investment. The Madheshi felt the compulsory Nepali language in school as languistic colonialism. Ethnic groups such as Magars, Gurungs, Rai, Limbu, Tamang, Newar, Maithili, and Bhojpuri wanted teaching in their own languages. Group histories and group perceptions also played a role in triggering conflict. Brahmin, Chhetrie, Thakuries and some other martial castes considered themselves the creators of a unified Nepal and took great pride in their nationalist feelings; whereas, other ethnic groups such as the Newar, who were defeated and subjugated during the unification process, c onsidered themselves apart from such glory. Proximate Causes of the Nepalese Conflict While the aforementioned underlying factors have been essential to explain what situations and conditions led to ethnic conflict in Nepal, the proximate causes of internal conflict are more convincing in explaining the ultimate triggers. One of the major proximate causes of Nepalese conflict was the persistent, internal problem of governance after the establishment of democracy in 1990, such as rampant corruption. The power vacuum created by removing the king from the center of state power galvanized many political parties to rush for power. The political parties created various alliances to remain in power in order to serve their personal or partisan interests. This situation made the government unable to cope with societal demands and ameliorate peoples stark challenges. However, a threatening security dilemma did formerly not exist in Nepal; however, as Nepal was not created from the rubble of a larger entity or gained independence from a colonial power. Rather, the government dee mphasized the military structure inherited from the previous Panchayat system, considering it unimportant in the new democratic environment. The government clearly showed skepticism to take ownership of the military. The deemphasizing of the military on one hand, and the emergence of a power struggle between, and among, elites on the other hand, triggered the initiation of ethnicity-based movements all over the country by desperate and opportunistic politicians thereby, preparing the ground for insurgency. As there was a lack of coordination and cooperation between the civilians and the military, the growth of ethnic movements and ineffectiveness of states mechanisms provided the breeding ground for the onset of the insurgency. The Maoists were able to transplant their communist ideology effectively into the ethnic movement. Thus, the energy created by the ethnic movement proved to be a force multiplier for the Maoists to advance their communist agenda. The issues, especially relate d to the inequality, exclusiveness, and discrimination formed basic grievances for different ethnic groups.  [7]  Despite the global declining trend of ideology as a source of conflict, the Maoists were successful in creating a fusionist violent movement by ingeniously combining ethnic conflict and communist ideology. Social and economic problems such as sharp competition for the scarce resources, the increasing divide between the poor and rich, and social, caste-based, inequalities and exclusiveness were the catalyst for the initiation and the growth of the internal conflict in Nepal. The Roles of Elites in the Nepalese Conflict While social and economic problems provided the underlying causes, the internal and external elite-level and mass level factors were more responsible to trigger the conflict.  [8]  External mass-level factors influenced especially the Terai region of the country. The many people of Indian origin that migrated to the plains area of Nepal along the border compounded ethnic tensions with the other non-Terai population. Although there were bad domestic problems and some bad neighborhood effects, the elite-level factors seemed more responsible than mass-level factors. Internal elite-level factors such as power struggles between different political parties; power struggles between political parties and the king; and ideological contests over how to manage the countrys political, economical, and social conditions among different political parties, played important roles in escalating the conflict. The bad leaders problem, created, in turn, an ethnic problem and subsequently lead to open conflict between, and among the government and different minority, ethnic communities. The major political parties were in the government most of the time, yet they could not lead the country towards a positive direction. Instead, the political leaders split the parties to fulfill their vested interests. The political opportunism led to the creation of many undesirable alliances. Such alliances kept on making, and breaking, government power. Some alliances lasted about a year, where some lasted just a few months. This situation created a fertile environment for an insurgency. The external, elite-level contentions, also played an important role in generating ethnic tensions. The foreign powers attitude towards Nepal, intermingling with domestic politics, covert cooperation with disgruntle political parties triggered the conflicts. These countries always had an interest in Nepal for their own security and not least for the vast water resources available in Nepal. The external powers also wanted to maintain their market monopoly in Nepal to pursue their own economic interests. Although they advocated promotion of democracy in Nepal publicly, claiming themselves as promoters of democracy in the world, democracy never remained a real priority in the face of their own national interests. Their indirect interventions became successful because of the attitude of the pro-foreign power political leaders in Nepal. They overtly did not support the Maoists, but the proxy war launched by them effectively paralyzed the states mechanism and contributed to the conflict in tensification. The bad neighbor effects may not have happened without the discrete and deliberate support by these countries. Although neighboring countries meddling in the Nepalese domestic affairs played an important role for the conflict, without the decisions and actions of the Nepalese domestic elites, the conflict could not have been sparked. The domestic elites conflicts were mainly power struggles and were ideological in nature. However, before the emergence of the Maoist Party, the conflict that erupted between competing elites was in effect only a struggle for power. The burgeoning political parties in the new democratic milieu contended for power and forged alliances between one another for one purpose to become the principal national power. Even within the political parties, the leaders competing and forging alliances were numerous, which contributed frequently to making and breaking of governments. This led to aspirations and grievances of underprivileged and minority ethnic groups, to go unheard and unaddressed, causing serious frustrations and dissatisfactions among these groups. These frust rated ethnic groups as well as some political opportunists unable to grasp power through democratic elections, started movements for the rights of ethnic minorities to gain power by another venue. Analysis of ethnic conflict in Nepal At some point, the ethnic self-images and the images of others played important roles to shape ethnic conflict in Nepal. During the monarchical period, the different ethnic groups co-existed because they shared the mutual history of unification of greater Nepal, and converged into a unified language and national character.  [9]  The Chauvinist mythmaking by the Shah dynasty was a hallmark of civic nationalism that contributed to overshadow the ethnic nationalism to some extent. Until the state was strong, no significant ethnic conflict existed in Nepal; however, the ethnic groups started devising mechanism to protect their groups after the state became weak. In certain degrees, the rise on the ethnic conflict was the result of the self-help mechanism employed by ethnic groups to protect their groups interest when the state failed to provide security. However, the decision to adopt a federal system in Nepal by amending the interim constitution acted as an important confidence building measure to promote the rights and positions of minorities by mitigating the strategic dilemma that would have produced violence.  [10]   The third wave of democratization changed the Nepalese political system and institutions as it swept throughout the Middle East, Africa, Latin America, and South Asia. The establishment of a liberal democratic institution and globalization changed the social structure in many of the countries around the world. The drastic change in political and economic structure broke existing social contracts resulting in resentment as well as opportunity, and provided fertile ground for the Nepalese political entrepreneurs to mobilize support around ethnic and sectarian identities leading to ethnic conflict.  [11]  Before the beginning of democratization, the ethnic issues were weak and limited among the people at large in Nepal. The political transitioning and democratization in 1990 provided elites ethnicity as a tool to harness popular energies for securing state power as more voters began to play a larger role in politics.  [12]  This led to ethnic conflict when contested elections we re held and varieties of political groups criticized the governmentand each other. Although the new constitution addressed the issue of minority rights, they did not feel their rights guaranteed because the privileged groups showed reluctance to surrender real political authority enjoyed by them versus that of the average Nepali citizen. Thus, initial steps in the rocky transition to democracy increased the risk for ethnic conflict when the immature political parties indulged simply in parochial party politics. Although many ethnic groups were demanding an ethnically-based federal state, only some sections of Madheshi had occasionally demanded an autonomous state with the right of self-determination. This section of the Madheshi people felt that the control of Terai region ensures their survival by protecting group identity. Since the Terai region was populated with Madheshi people and was considered their homeland, they launched a violent conflict when their interests clashed with those of the Maoists. Yet, some of the non-Madheshi groups and some factions within the Madheshi community heavily criticized this idea. Also, for the state, the control of territory was vital for physical survival.  [13]  However, after realizing the state would oppose their sovereignty demands with violence if necessary, these Madheshi backed down from their demand and contended for an autonomous region. It appears that Indian interests also might have played an important role to forgo the right for self-de termination, because such an action might lead to an intensification of a similar demand in an already contested situation in India. The Terai region being the breadbasket and strategically vital Nepal tract of land, the State was likely to use any means and level of violence to secure its control. The Madheshi uprising gained momentum after the Maoists entered the political main stream. The uprising was widely believed to be covertly backed by India primarily for two reasons. First, India wanted to counter the Maoists growing influence over the Terai region. Second, India wanted to exert its influence and control on the Terai region so that it could influence Nepals internal politics. When the Maoists tried to counter the Madheshi activities in the Terai, they faced fierce opposition, and violence broke out. Hostilities targeted the non-Madheshi people living in the Terai region, and many people fled to other areas leaving their homes. The mix of Madheshi and non-Madheshi populations raised the risk of inter- communal conflict during the violent Terai movement started in Gaur.  [14]  However, the rejection of secessionist demands by Madhesh-based political parties and patience from non-Madheshi groups, controlled violence from spreading further. The risk of communal violen ce was not observed in other multi-ethnic parts of the country. The two centuries of cordial intermingling among diverse ethnic groups and three decades of consolidation of civic nationalism under the Panchayat system based on single language and tradition, hardly left any room for a bottom-up demand for ethnic mobilization in Nepal. Certainly, there was ethnic awareness in Nepal, but it would, most likely not have evolved into organized political competition without being capitalized on by the political elites. As Jessica Pimbo asserts, Enduring ethnological cleavages were not likely to occur in the absence of political parties that attempt to mobilize ethnicity.  [15]   The dynamics of massive mobilization of ethnic groups for group-level purposes is not very clear. Altruistic and chauvinist leaders identified with specific groups seem to forgo their individual self-interests while seeking group interests. The subjective identity seems to go along with group identity rather than objective identity, which may only deal with an individuals life history. According to the logic of collective action, the group interests and the personal interest cannot progress concurrently, and most of group-oriented activities do not commensurate with group interests. Thus, alignment of group and self-interest leads to spirals of violence, and a groups betterment comes only at the cost of others. This leads invariably to zero-sum, or even negative-sum, situations in which nobody gains from the conflict.  [16]   The presence of rightist, centrist, and leftist ideologically-based political parties, such as the Rastriya Prajatantra Party (RPP), the Nepali Congress (NC), and various Communist Parties created tension over the organization of political, economic, and social affairs in Nepal. The ideological tensions existed between hardline communist parties and other political parties. The ideologies were mainly based on economic and class terms, creating struggles over how political, economic, and social affairs should be organized to create a New Nepal.  [17]  Although class-based movements with communist agendas were dwindling in many parts of the world, the Nepalese rebel movement transplanted into the political agendas of indigenous people and ethnic minorities was burgeoning. The Nepal Communist Party (Maoists) emerged because of political, economic, and cultural discrimination; widespread dissatisfaction, inequitable distribution of resources and disproportionate economic development. The Maoists effectively and efficiently utilized the energy and momentum gathered by the different ethnic groups political movements and gave voice to those ethnic minorities agenda with their own. As the amalgamated movement was progressing under the leadership of the Maoists, the government started repressing the movements rather than addressing the underlying causes for the conflict. This approach further propagated the movement and finally resulted in political negotiations; and, ultimately resulted in establishing the Maoists as a largest political party in the country. This movement attempted to shift civic-nationalism to ethno-nationalism in Nepal, and provided the political elites with powerful incentive to play the ethnic card. The mounting economic problem constituted the main reason for people to initially follow an ethnic movement and subsequently as well, a Maoists agenda which in turn had successively taken over many ethnic groupings. Although there were some traces of inter-group grievances, yet the existence of significant antagonistic group histories did not exist. Existing economic problems such as unemployment, increased inflation, and intensifying resource competitions forced more people to join the armed movement for a radical change in the countrys political course. It is evident that the emergence of elite competition was a major proximate cause, where as the socio-economic problems constituted the core for conflict in Nepal. Intensifying elite competitions and mounting economic problems played a crucial role promoting a strong political movement in Nepal; nevertheless, the movements would not have been successful, had there been homogenous populations and fewer ethnic grievances. In other words, had there been economic advancement like in Malaysia, Indonesia, or Thailand, which had ethnic grievances with a similar intensity as in Nepal, the ethnically energized Maoist conflict would not have occurred or succeeded so easily. Michael E. Brown and et. al assert: Sustained economic growth, which gives groups, even relatively disadvantages groups, incentives to avoid conflict and destruction of a system that is bringing more and more economic benefits.  [18]   With the Maoists armed movement causing the death of more than 13,000 human lives, and the ethnic mobilization as part and parcel of the Maoist insurgency, the Nepalese conflict graduated from an ethnic conflict to a hybrid conflict. It was a fusion of ethnic grievances of various ethnic groups and the ideological movement of the Maoists. This hybrid conflict was successful mainly because of the Maoists stratagem to combine ethnic movement with their ideological precepts acquiring the energy of a fusionist movement to fuel their ideological movement. Since this marriage of convenience was primarily focused on achieving success for the Maoists rather than to take on seriously solutions to existing ethnic issues.

William Wordsworth Walking: Art, Work, Leisure, and a Curious Form of Consumption :: William Wordswroth Walking Essays

William Wordsworth Walking: Art, Work, Leisure, and a Curious Form of Consumption William Wordsworth spent a good portion of his life on foot, walking. Consider a sequence of Dorothy's journal entries: Monday the 14th, "Wm & Mary walked to Ambleside in the morning to buy mousetraps" (about 5 miles round trip); Tuesday the 15th, "Wm & I walked to Rydale for letters" (about 3 miles round trip); Wednesday the 16th, "After dinner Wm & I walked twice up to the Swan & back again" (3 miles), met Miss Simpson and walked with her to the Oliffs and then back to her house (another 3 miles); Thursday the 17th, "we had a delightful walk" (a couple of miles); Friday the 18th, "Mary & Wm walked round the two lakes" (about 6 miles); Saturday the 19th, "We walked by Brathay to Ambleside" (6 miles). Now such distances are not remarkable in fine weather, but these were walks from the 14th to the 19th of December 1801, and Dorothy's notes include "A very keen frost, extremely slippery," and "Snow in the night & still snowing," and "the evening cloudy and promising snow" (GJ 48-49). Undeterred by bad weather, Wordsworth (and Dorothy) gave walking a central position in their daily lives, even to the extent that not walking becomes a remarkable event. Dorothy records that on September 13, 1800, "William writing his preface did not walk" (GJ 22). And of course in better weather there were shorter and longer walking tours such as Dorothy's record of September 3, 1800, in which Wordsworth, Coleridge, and Jonathan Wordsworth left "after breakfast" to walk "upon Helvellyn" and returned home at 10 at night, having covered probably 15 to 20 miles (GJ 20-21)--a long, but not unusually long for them, walk. In short, Wordsworth habitually spent at least several hours a day walking, and it was not at all uncommon for him to spend entire days on foot. The central role of walking in Wordsworth's life suggests a number of interesting questions, but I will focus here only on those related to the theme of this conference, work and leisure. Obviously, much of Wordsworth's walking could be classed as leisure-time activity. There was probably no compelling reason for Wordsworth and Dorothy to walk twice to the Black Swan or for Wordsworth and Mary to circumambulate the lakes.

St. Johns Wort As A Treatment For Depression: Herbal Healer or Ineffec

St. John's Wort As A Treatment For Depression: Herbal Healer or Ineffective Alternative? This country has its share of major health issues, and Depression has remained a prominent one. With a prevalence rate of one in twenty suffering from this psychological disease in the US, (1) it is no wonder that many varying treatment options now exist for sufferers. The most common approach to treating Depression is with some form of psychotherapy coupled with prescription drugs. However, this traditional course of treatment now has the so called 'alternative' approaches to contend with. One such alternative therapy is Hypericum, an herb that is more commonly known as St. John's Wort. There is a bubbling debate between believers in the herbal treatment and non-believers (comprised mostly of doctors and researchers) who think St. John's Wort does nothing for Depression. From both sides of the debate, however, there have been some interesting findings. There is a common understanding that St. John's Wort was named after John the Baptist. Hypericum perforatum is its Latin name. St. John's Wort is a naturally occurring plant characterized by its black-spotted yellow flowers. Historically it has been hailed as an effective treatment for an array of ailments, including digestive disorders, lung ailments, skin abrasions, and as a general inducer of state of 'well being'. From its supporting side, the argument is that St. John's Wort should be treated as comparable to prescription antidepressants and as just another available option for the millions who are depressed in this country. Supporters often site the fact that German doctors endorse millions of doses of the herb daily, and elsewhere in Europe, the medical community readily ack... ...cription", mixing herbs with prescription drugs For More Information: http://my.webmd.com/content/article/13/1668_50209 7) Newsweek article "A Natural Mood Booster", treating Depression with St. John's Wort http://www.iherb.com/iherb/newmay519nat.html 8) National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH), "Information About St. John's Wort" page http://www.nimh.nih.gov/publicat/stjohnswort.cfm 9) National Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine , St. John's Wort Fact Sheet http://nccam.nih.gov/nccam/fcp/factsheets/stjohnswort/stjohnswort.htm 10) National Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine , St. John's Wort Q & A http://nccam.nih.gov/ne/press-releases/stjohnswort/q-and-a.htm 11) Health World Online , index of articles on Depression and herbal remedies http://www.healthy.net/asp/templates/condition.asp?ConditionId=90

Buss1001

3/11/2012 BUSS1001 Understanding Business Week 2: What is Business? Associate Professor Philip Seltsikas Associate Dean (Undergraduate) THE UNIVERSITY OF SYDNEY BUSINESS SCHOOL Preview of today’s lecture †ºWhat is Business? – Narrow view – More complex view †ºAssessment 1 2 What is business? The narrow view †ºÃ¢â‚¬ËœAny activity that seeks to provide goods and services to others while operating at a profit’ (Nickels, McHugh and M H h 2010 p. G 14) d McHugh 2010, G-14). 3 1 http://images. google. com/imgres? q=henry+fayol&hl=en&gbv=2&tbm=isch&tbnid=L07_nJsWisbAAM:&imgrefurl=http://mariaavilla 4zKAcE9kM&w=131&h=173&ei=rrUvTvP0BJGmizar. logspot. com/2008/09/henry-fayol-vs-max-weber. html&docid=gigzs4 sAOJ9Lkd&zoom=1&iact=hc&vpx=287&vpy=150&dur=2276&hovh=138&h hovw=104&tx=81&ty=75&page=1&tbnh=128&tbnw=88& start=0&ndsp=35&ved=1t:429,r:1,s:0&biw=1429&bih=723 Total returns on assets must exceed cost of capital required to finance assets http://en. wikipedia. org/wiki/Max_Weber http://en. wikipedia. org/wiki/Scientific_management Reinvestment Returns Reinvestment Returns Assets Debt Equity The Value Creation Equation A ‘model’ of all businesses Assets †º 1841-1925 Henry Fayol Founder of Classical Management Theory 1856 – 1915 Frederick Taylor Developed ‘scientific management’ †º 1864 – 1920 Max Weber Studied organizational bureaucracy Fayol, Weber, and Taylor All capital is a costly resource Debt Equity 3/11/2012 2 3/11/2012 What doesn’t this model show us? WHAT? Organizational building blocks †º †º †º †º Mission, Vision, Goal, Purpose Strategy Collection of assets Configuration of Assets – into a structure (s) – to enact business processes Management (decision making & control) – using structure – using policies & procedures – using rewards & punishments DON’T NORMALLY SEE DON’T NORMALLY SEE †º Wh ere did these companies come from?WE SEE SOME OF THESE or ASPECTS OF THEM M 3 3/11/2012 Someone is at the controls – Keeping it running and navigating the environment 10 What is a BUSINESS? †º ‘Structure’ – multiple meanings †º This is ‘part of’ understanding Business Structure †º Organisational Structure will help us understand: ‘What is a Business’? 11 Dimensions of Organizational Structure †º †º †º †º †º †º Job specialization Departmentalization Span of control Chain of Command (c. f. hierarchy) Line functions and staff functions (front office/back office) Power and authority †º †º Divisionalization Centralization / Decentralization 4 3/11/2012 Organization ChartCEO CFO CIO COO Marketing Director IT Manager Sales Director Production Manager Marketing group A Marketing group B IT department Sales region A Sales region B Plant workers French & Raven 1959 5 bases of organizati onal power †º Coercive Power †º Reward Power http://www. carrollcoaching. com/coaching †º Legitimate Power †º Referent Power †º Expert Power Functional Organization Measures of Success? †º Profit †º Market Share †º KPIs (key performance indicators) 5 3/11/2012 Inside and Outside Perspectives †º Organisations are subject to external forces but may also influence the operation and effect of those same forces. Key aspects of the capacity of organisations to effectively shape their own destiny include the decisions that they make about: k b t ? Strategy ? Structure; and BUSS1001 Understanding Business ? Behaviour BUSS1002 The Business Environment Business: key player in society †¢ Is a major change agent †¢ Has the potential to be a ‘force for good’ g prosperity †¢ Drives growth and p p y Society †¢ Impacts on business †¢ Is constantly changing and so, must business change †¢ Affects what businesses do and how they do it What is business? A broader perspective Transformation of inputs into outputs to produce goods and services that meet needs and wants in the society [adapted from Wetherly and Otter 2011] For-profit businesses Private P i t sector t Types of business activity Public sector Non-profit organisations Government organisations 18 6 3/11/2012 Purpose of a ‘For-profit’ business organisation †ºMaximising returns on debt and equity †ºThis is achieved through sustainable competitive titi advantage 19 Sustainable competitive advantage †ºOutperforming your competitors in the long run †ºHow is this done? 20 Next week What? Why? Strategy 21