BPA Plastic Essay Example

BPA Plastic Essay A Closer Look Into Bisphenol A: Definition, Influences And Actions Taken To Minimize The Exposure It is a universal truth that plastics have become part and parcel of modern life. However, there is much concern these days about the credibility of this daily item where some parties stated that plastics are detrimental to the users. Walsh (2010) mentioned that during the yesteryears, it was believed that even though plastic bottle contains chemicals that could infiltrate the human body, but as the quantity of the dose was too low, the effect was negligible. As biomonitoring improved, scientists iscovered that people were carrying much more chemicals than expected where some toxins would harm at extremely low levels. By that, Gurd (2007) stressed that there was a need to pay attention to the type of plastic that was used to produce water bottle. This can be done by checking the recycle symbol on the plastic-made- bottle where 2, 4 and 5 was representing high density polyethylene, low density polyethylene and polypropylene respectively. For instances, these bottles were fine. The bottle marked with 1 was only recommended to be used once only while 7 is the orst case among all as these bottles made of polycarbonate (PC) plastics may leach Bisphenol A (SPA). In order to gain a deeper understanding on the related issues of BPA, we should now take a scrutiny into this chemical; definitions, habits, the side effects and the efforts implemented to minimize the exposure of BPA to human. What is BPA? BPA is commonly linked to PC plastics which is a hard plastic used to make refillable bottles for students and camper (Harvard School of Public Health (HSPH), 2009). We will write a custom essay sample on BPA Plastic specifically for you for only $16.38 $13.9/page Order now We will write a custom essay sample on BPA Plastic specifically for you FOR ONLY $16.38 $13.9/page Hire Writer We will write a custom essay sample on BPA Plastic specifically for you FOR ONLY $16.38 $13.9/page Hire Writer Hence, what is the relationship between BPA and PC Plastics? HSPH efined PC plastic bottles as an imperative contributor to the quantity of BPA in the humans body. Supporting HSPHs perspective, De Coensel, David and Sandra (2009) further explained about BPA as the principal monomer in the production of PC plastics. These kinds of plastics which are strong, durable and possess good physical stability at high temperature are widely used to manufacture baby bottles too. Besides, Gurd (2007) also added that these colorful and fabulous plastics are marked with recycling symbol 7 and may leach BPA. Statistics showed that consumerism on BPA is becoming bigger nowadays as 2. 7 billion kilogram of these chemicals are produced globally every year (Walsh, 2010). Based on the study done by researchers of HSPH, they realized that participants who drank cold liquids for a week from PC bottles had shown a two-thirds increase of BPA in their bodies. According to Michels, associate professor of epidemiology at HSPH and senior author of this study, the levels of BPA will be considerably higher given that those bottles was heated. Due to that, attention should be drawn to babies since they are particularly susceptible to BPAs endocrine disrupting potential. Hence, there is a need for knowing how the migration of BPA from bottles occurred. Basically, at higher temperatures, hydrolysis of PCs can take place, releasing traces of BPA that eventually leached into food and beverages (De Coensel et al. ). Walsh in his article had cited that, The CDC or Center for Disease Americans over the age of 6 and the levels observed are considered well below the federal safety threshold of . 0 micrograms per kg. of body weight per day. scientists have learned more about the effects of even a bit of SPA. In short, the effects of BPA should not be looked from a narrow and shallow context and there is a need to further investigate the negative impacts of this chemical. With the objective of understanding the nature of BPA, an experiment carried out by De Coensel et al. (2009), concluding that the higher the temperature, the more t he BPA is released from the bottles. The method was simply done by heating water- containing-bottles that spiked with some d6-BPA at 4 selected temperatures with condition that the liquid was allowed to contact with the bottles for 30 minutes. The esult obtained vividly proved that BPA which brought along a lot of disadvantages exists within our daily life. Walsh (2010) in his article, The Perils Of Plastics strongly criticized that BPA, as a synthetic estrogen has the ability to mimic hormones, such as testosterone and adrenalin. Thus, immense biological and behavioral changes might be occurred if BPA did mirror the hormones role, especially if the people exposed to this chemical was undergoing critical period of development like the first trimester of gestation. In addition, Walsh also expressed his concern on children who are articularly vulnerable to chemical exposure, as their eating habits are more relative to their body weight compare to adults. Meanwhile, Walshs perspective where BPA is an estrogen was supported by Gurd (2007) who further described this chemical as xenoestrogen, an endocrine disruptor agent that can disturb our bodies hormonal messaging. Nevertheless, Gurd highlighted that xenoestrogens is harmful enough to cause breast and uterine cancer in women while testosterone levels in men were reduced. Apart from that, BPA can also lead to insulin resistance and Type 2 Diabetes. Having said that, HSPH (2009) pointed out that not only human can be the victims with the risks of suffering from cardiovascular diseases, to make the matter worse, animals reproductive development too, will be stunted if exposed to BPA. Another strange phenomenon was discovered by HSPH after another research was done by researchers from HSPH- 77 Harvard College students were ordered to drink cold beverages from stainless steel bottles for one week and provided urine sample as an effort to minimize BPA exposure. After the culmination of this Washout period, he participants were then entrusted with the obligation of drinking cold beverages from PC bottles for 7 days and provided urine sample. Instead of observing the BPA concentration, the spotlight was focused on the students urinary concentrations for the first time which were increased by 69% after they drank with PC bottles. However, the final result cannot clearly indicate that whether the escalating in urine concentration is good or bad to the user. Thus, even though BPA had taken a toll in our health, countries at every single nook and corner of the world always try to take tern and serious prompt in remedying this problem, as to create a more sustainable environment for us to live with. In the context of minimizing BPA, Canada prohibited the use of this chemical in PC baby bottles in 2008 (HSPH, 2009). On the other hand, Gurd (2007) mentioned that Europe also took initiative to ban all products made for children below age 3 that contained BPA in 2006. Later in 2007, a billion dollar class action suit was commenced against some US baby bottles company, such as Gerber and Playtex. By that, Gurd ad also suggested some alternatives like replacing PC plastics bottles with glass brass while avoiding to be exposed to sunlight, and always checks the recycling symbol on your plastics-made item. Moreover, Walsh (2010) also sincerely appreciated peoples effort in reducing BPA as he cited in his passage that, In January 2010, the Obama Administration launched a $30 million study of BPA over concern that children in the early stages of development are exposed to the chemical. In contrast, Walsh realized that some industry defenders raised the conflict that xposure of human to BPA was still considered to be well below the safety levels set by the government. Besides, they declared that the health agencies around the world claimed that BPA was safe for humans and excreted within one day or so. However, its ubiquity also proved that human were exposed to BPA almost every day. No matter what, Judging from different aspects, plastics bottles can be helpful sometimes due to the portability and characteristics that do not break when we drop them. In conclusion, people in this millennium always tend to neglect the importance of nderstanding the composition of the objects they used every day. PC plastics bottle which contains BPA chemical can be detrimental in depriving one from being hale and hearty. Hence, there is a need to rectify this problem immediately with the help of cooperation among countries and implementation of scientific knowledge in finding solutions to minimize BPA exposure to human. It is an undeniable fact that if we can find ways to decrease our dependence on plastic-made object, human future will definitely undergo dramatic change, being free from BPA, a harmful chemical.

A Working Report on Grameen Phone Community Information Center (Gpcic) Essays

A Working Report on Grameen Phone Community Information Center (Gpcic) Essays A Working Report on Grameen Phone Community Information Center (Gpcic) Essay A Working Report on Grameen Phone Community Information Center (Gpcic) Essay have worked in Grameen phone Community Information Center ( GP CIC) as an intern from 1st June to 31st August, 2008. During this limited time, the completion of this report was possible because of the cooperation of many people. I offer my most sincere admirations to all of those who provided their invaluable advices and encouragements in this endeavor. I am truly grateful to all the employees of Grameen phone Community Information Center (GP CIC) especially my super visor, Mr. Md. Shafiqul Islam Sikdar. And to end with, I would like to express my extreme appreciation to my honorable supervisor, Mr. Md. Sohel Islam and to my respected instructor Mr. Md. Muzahid Akbar. Their precious contributions enhanced my self-belief and helped me to finish my study in time as well. III Executive Summary CIC initiative taken by Grameen phone – is a countrywide massive network grown in the last few years with over 500 centers across 450 Upazilla of the country which is designed to provide he benefits of internet service among the disadvantaged population and increase employment in this part of the country. Despite of such success of self-sustainability of most of the centers, around 10% of them are still struggling financially. In the point of time, when it is planned to expand the initiative, it is necessary to understand the dynamics behi nd success of such centers and take stock of work so far so as to effectively replicate the experiences and success stories. This report is basically prepared to asses the current business condition and future prospects of he project CIC, in the context of Grameen phone. Even though, I tried to gather as much information as possible relevant to the purpose of the study, still some necessary data might be missing in order to follow the rule of the company confidentiality. However, both primary and secondary sources were used to collect data for the study. Interviews were taken of the User, Non user, GP CIC employees and some Entrepreneurs of the CIC. Secondary data were collected from the Internet, Journals, and Newspapers and from the company Grameen phone itself. IV TABLE OF CONTENTS Contents Page No. Letter of Transmittal Acknowledgement Executive Summary 1. 0 AN OVERVIEW OF GRAMEEN PHONE LTD 1 1. 1 FLOW CHART OF THE COMPANY 2 2. 0 BACKGROUND OF THE REPORT 3 2. 1 OBJECTIVES OF THE REPORT 3 2. 2 METHODOLOGY OF THE STUDY 4 2. LIMITATIONS OF THE REPORT 4 2. 4 OVER VIEW OF THE APPROACH 5 3. 0 GRAMEEN PHONE COMMUNITY INFORMATION CENTER (GPCIC) 6 3. 1 What is GPCIC? 6 3. 2 Objective of the CIC 7 3. 3 How to form a CIC 7 3. 4 General services available in the GPCIC 9 . 5 Target Market of the CICS 10 3. 6 Flow-Chart for CIC Support 10 3. 7 Impact/ Outcome of the project 11 4. 0 Activities that I performed during the Internship Program 14 5. 0 Challenges that I faced 15 6. Learning through the Internship Program 16 V 6. 1 New CIC Roll Out 16 6. 2 C CI IC C O Op pe er ra at ti io on ns s 1 17 7 6 6. .3 3 T Te ec ch hn ni ic ca al l S Su up pp po or rt t f fo or r t th he e E En nt tr re ep pr re en ne eu ur rs s 1 19 9 7. 0 Findings 20 7. 1 Positive findings 20 . 2 Negative Findings 21 8. 0 RECOMMENDATIONS 22 9. 0 CONCLUSION 23 10. 0 References 25 11. 0 Appendixes 26 1. 0 AN OVERVIEW OF GRAMEEN PHONE LTD. Grameen phone Ltd, the leading cell companies states its voyage with an aim? f ensuring affordable telephony service to entire population of Bangladesh. Grameen phone was offered a cellular license in Bangladesh by the Ministry of Posts and Telecommunications on November 28, 1996 and launched its service on the Independence Day of Bangladesh on March 26, 1997. Grameen telecom, is a not for profit company and works in close collaboration with Grameen bank. Grameen telecom, with the help of Grameen Bank, manages the village phone program, through which Grameen phone Ltd provides its GSM services to the fast growing rural customers. Grameen telecom which owns 38% of the shares of Grameen phone Ltd and the rest 62% owns by Telenor AS, the leading cell company in Norway. It has listed both in Oslo and NASDAQ stock exchange. Grameen phone Ltd considers them as a medium to connect the people through their mobility. Management has brought a change in the organizational structure in view of need of time. As of the recent change, line function of the company comprises of the 7 major tasks. These are: Networks (IT Technical) Commercial (Sales, Marketing, Distribution, Logistics, Data New Business, segments, Regional Sales) Communications (Corporate Communications, Information, Public Relations, CSR) Finance (Finance, SCM,HSSE) HR Admin. Customer service Corporate Affairs Government Relations A Working Report on Grameen phone Community Information Center (GPCIC) 2 1. 1 FLOW CHART OF THE COMPANY: A Working Report on Grameen phone Community Information Center (GPCIC) 3 2. 0 BACKGROUND OF THE REPORT After the completion of Four years (12 semesters) BBA Program of Independent University ? Bangladesh; 3 months organizational attachment is a must. I completed this internship period in ? Grameen phone Ltd (GP), the number one telecommunication company in Bangladesh. I worked he GPCIC (Grameen Phone Community Information Center) project under Data and new Business, Commercial Division. I focused on Roll Out, Operation Technical Support of the project. After the kind approval of my instructor, the report originated. 2. 1 OBJECTIVES OF THE REPORT The objective of this working report is to figure out debrief the over all process of the Roll Out, Operation Technical Support Team. Initia tive was also taken to find out the reason behind the GPCIC s success.? ? Understanding the need for information center in rural areas of Bangladesh. ? Understanding the reason behind successful CIC. Understanding the reason behind drop out CIC. ? Understanding the concept of CIC as a social business initiative. A Working Report on Grameen phone Community Information Center (GPCIC) 4 2. 2 METHODOLOGY OF THE STUDY The study required a holistic approach to adequately diagnose the over all circumstance of the CICs. Thus it required a combination of Primary and secondary data collection. Primary – to get an in depth understanding of the entire CIC dynamics / issues from different respondent groups and help fine tune the KSF (Key Success Factors) determinants and Secondary – To capture all etails including cross examination of the KSFs, keeping the study objective in view. The proposed methodology is outlined below: Primary data collection: Primary data have been collected directly to solve the problem at hand. The primary data were collected through taking feedback from the under mentioned sources. CIC operators GP Employees related to CICs Users Non-users Secondary data collection: Secondary data were collected through Internet CIC Booklet CIC report in Media Other secondary source 2. 3 LIMITATIONS OF THE REPORT Alike most of the study time was a constraint for doing this treatise. Since I have been allotted a time frame of three months for my intern it was almost impossible to get the actual figure which can reflect the result of the study with 100% accuracy. The other restraint for executing the study A Working Report on Grameen phone Community Information Center (GPCIC) 5 was the limited access to the internal issues. As an intern, I had very little access in the decision making and other sensitive confidential issues. On the other hand, different centers are located in the rural areas and it is hardly possible to contact with them. Thus, I had to take the interviews via Telephone. As a result, it was really inflexible to identify the actual outcome. Moreover, the financial statements of GP for 2009 have not been published yet. As a result, most of the data those have been provided in the organizational part is based on year 2008. 2. 4 OVER VIEW OF THE APPROACH GP employee Feedback: Partnership arrangement with CICs, Support services made available to the CICs. Need Gap analysis, Reasons for Good or Poor performance etc. Secondary data collection : Area profiling, verify population density, presence and location of important socio-economic, business, educational or other infrastructures ith particular relevance to CIC success. Non-user Feedback: Awareness on CICs service bundle Need/demand for CIC services, Reasons for not using CIC services. Way forward to attract non-users. Profile User Feedback: Awareness on service bundle, Services availed, Role of CIC in their life and living. Need Gap assessment, User profiling. CIC Feedback: CIC Entrepreneur Interview. To explore service bundle offered, services on demand, opportunity lost or problem encountered, complaint handling, customer services profitability etc. A Working Report on Grameen phone Community Information Center (GPCIC) 3. 0 GRAMEEN PHONE COMMUNITY INFORMATION CENTER (GPCIC) What is GPCIC? The Grameen phone Community Information Center is a shared premise where rural people may access a wide-range of state of art services such as Internet, voice communications, video conferencing and other information services. This initiative is part of Grameen phone s drive to ? do something good for the rural community, which is a major portion of the population of the country. CICs developed a unique business model that was highly applauded by local government the International community . Set up with technical assistance from the GSM Association, Grameen phone Community Information Centers (GPCICs) are equipped with the minimum of a computer, a printer, a scanner, a webcam and an EDGE-enabled modem, to access the Internet using Grameen phone s nation? -wide EDGE connectivity. The pilot project started in February 2006 with 16 CICs; today the project has become a massive operation with over 500 CICs operational in nearly 450 Upazilla s. The sho? rt-term plan of this initiative is to establish at least one CIC in each of the 462 Upazilla s. In the long? -run Grameen phone plans to increase the umber of CICs substantially so that very CIC can support the information needs of four adjacent villages. GPCICs are designed to be run independently as small businesses by local entrepreneurs. The entrepreneurs are trained and are provided with continuous support from Grameen phone. To help the entrepreneurs earn a living, Community Information Centers also provide other Grameen phone services, such as payphones (again using Grameen phones mobile network) and electronic recharges (Flexi load) for prepaid and postpaid mobile accounts. A Working Report on Grameen phone Community Information Center (GPCIC) 7 Objective of the CICs: GP’s perspective: Create access to information Generate employment Produce business through self sustained economic activities Socio-economic upliftment of the rural masses Brighten GP s image as Social Entrepreneur? Bridging the digital-divide Entrepreneur’s perspective: Working with Viable business case Opportunity to promote ICT in the local community. How to form a CIC? Technical Option A Working Report on Grameen phone Community Information Center (GPCIC) 8 CIC User User ` MS Windows XP/Linux USB UPS Backup Mainline Power Supply Internet Modem Basic Option Multiple Terminal CIC User CIC User 1GB link CIC User Terminal w/ keyboard mouse Terminal w/ keyboard mouse Terminal w/ keyboard mouse NIVO unit NIVO unit Mainline Power Supply USB EDGE Modem ` Linux Server UPS Backup Switch NIVO unit A Working Report on Grameen phone Community Information Center (GPCIC) 9 General services available in the GPCIC : Internet surfing and e-mailing Content on health, agriculture, etc. Locally relevant customized and open content Chatting with Voice, Picture Video conferencing Typing Scanning, Printing Commercial Mobile Call E-governance services GP value added services such as Flexi Load, Ring tones downloading etc. E-Fax CD Writing Telemedicine services (to be introduced) Multimedia education for children (Meena Cartoon, courtesy of UNDP ) Target Market of the CICS: The inhabitants of the village community (generally). The Government (local central agency, utility services and for e-governance etc. ). Teachers, students and the youth (for internet browsing, distance learning etc. ) Professionals (such as Doctors, Paramedics, Midwives, Agriculturists telemedicine etc. ) Farmers the rural business community (for price applications, rural trading business etc. ) A Working Report on Grameen phone Community Information Center (GPCIC) 0 NGO, Women (at least one worker in the CIC would be a woman) Community Workers etc. FLOW CHART FOR CIC SUPPORT START Problem found by CIC Operator Call CIC Helpline/Raise Workflow Mailer Ticketing System Can CIC Team Solve the problem ? Escalate the problem to other Dept as per SLA Can Concerned Dept. Solve the problem ? Call vendor END Yes Yes No No A Working Report on Gra meen phone Community Information Center (GPCIC) 11 Impact/ Outcome of the project: Socio Economic Impact on GP s Business? Impact on ICT Sector Education Agriculture Health Employment Gender Equity SOCIO-ECONOMIC Bangladesh is an agrarian country. Literacy rate is below 30%. There is a tendency in the populace to leave their village homes in search of livelihood in the already overcrowded cities. These situations must have to be altered and the trend need be reversed soon enough. By creating job opportunities in the villages positive impacts ? on the socio-economic sphere has been made. IMPACT ON GP’s BUSINESS The proposed business model implicated local entrepreneurs; generate business activities in the rural Bangladesh. Business had run as self sustained business units. This has eventually onsequent in positive financial impacts on the business of GP as well. IMPACT ON TELECOM AND INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY SECTOR Telecom is the thrust sector in the country. To keep pace with the rest of the world, Bangladesh has no other alternative but to pace its advancement in telecommunications and tele-density in both voice and data. A Working Report on Grameen phone Community Inform ation Center (GPCIC) 12 GP has noticeably performed in fulfilling its obligation towards Universal Service Obligation in telecom. This project has implemented at the initiatives of GP, has endear GP to the Regulator, he Government and the mass to a great extent. EDUCATION The inhabitants of the villages have come across many educational opportunities through these centers. These would enrich their knowledge. The training facility at the centers provides them the opportunity to learn more about ICT. The literacy rate has increased eventually. AGRICULTURE Bangladesh is mainly an agricultural country with nearly 75 percent of the population dependent on agriculture for their livelihood. Agriculture accounts for approximately 30 percent of Bangladesh s GD? P. Improved farming techniques and the use of irrigation and high-yield grains ave greatly increased Bangladesh s ? agricultural output. This project provided the rural population of Bangladesh with information on issues related to ag riculture. These sites reckoned for information on plants, plant diseases, types of farming, use of pesticides and herbicides etc. Apart from having a vast reservoir of information, CICs keep farmers updated on various agriculture related Government schemes, their details, duration of offer and eligibility. Availing these schemes is beneficial to farmers and local entrepreneur will assist farmers in procuring other details, thus saving their time and energy. HEALTH Information on health helps the citizens remain healthy and fit. It has covered a wide range of topics from Pregnancy to Child health to First Aid tips. Project gives the shortcuts, the little- known tricks and proven methods to help everybody in their quest for good health. By A Working Report on Grameen phone Community Information Center (GPCIC) 13 understanding the basic principles of healthy living and applying them with sense and moderation, people can vastly improve the quality and well increase the length of their lives. Through a section like Ask the Doctor citizen posts any query regarding health advice. CIC has forwarded this query to panel of specialists in Dhaka and people can get a reply. The advances in medicine have truly been staggering. Applying what we already know to the healthcare can lead to continued good health. The project introduces Telemedicine facilities in the long run. EMPLOYMENT It is appreciated from the implementation experience of the project in Bangladesh that there is a direct employment generation for at least one person for each center. After the activity peaks up, with passage of time, at least three persons are indirectly supported by each center which holds a romise for significant employment generation from this project. GENDER EQUITY Government of Bangladesh has announced equal opportunity for women. Parliament has reserved seats for women members. For other areas also, there are many opportunities forthcoming to the rural women for which information and knowledge are lacking. The Community Centers, established on the principle of inclusion, brought b etter knowledge to women. Knowledge brought options, options have created opportunities and opportunities lead to reduction of gender inequality and increase sustainable development of family and the ommunity. DIGITAL DIVIDE Out of 80% of Bangladesh population living in rural and remote areas has little to no access to information. There are many governmental poverty alleviation and development schemes, health A Working Report on Grameen phone Community Information Center (GPCIC) 14 advisory bulletins, information pertaining to citizen-charter, legislation and so on for the rural people, information which do not reach them. But because of the implementation of the CIC empowerment of rural citizen has taken place through these ICT enabled centers by way of rapid flow of information on such issues. Thus the digital divide narrowed up in the long run in the rural Bangladesh. 4. 0 ACTIVITIES THAT I PERFORMED: CIC Identification: Sort out growth centers from LGRD database. A total of 6500 growth centers identified through out the country. Entrepreneur Selection: Archive CIC Entrepreneur application form in electronic database. Assigned weight to application form as per pre set criteria. Responded to entrepreneurs general query over email.? Database Creation: Created a simple database in excel format for closed CIC where commissioning to closing of the project activities was considered. Cut off date was 10 th August 2009. CIC Product Support: Mapped CIC with reload distributors according to their respected territory. Total 87 CICs were mapped with corresponding distributors for Flexi load / reload SIM handover to CIC entrepreneur. Follow up Flexi load out of stock balance for 550 GPCICs. Feed back collection: Collected post event feedback from the Entrepreneurs for various ATL and BTL activities undertaken by Grameen Phone. Assisted in ad hoc task of monitoring evaluation of implementing agency. Mentionable, both ATL and BTL program is carried out by GP to build awareness about GPCIC promote CIC s service ? o different target audience. A Working Report on Grameen phone Community Information Center (GPCIC) 15 Online Over phone training: Occasionally I was blessed with the responsibility to help CIC Training team members to train entrepreneurs over phone and email. The basic task was to guide the entrepreneurs to navigate to appropriate URL for fertilizer recommendation software. Total 3 0 CIC training were conducted by me. Assisted in other ad hoc tasks by CIC team members as and when it was necessary. 5. 0 CHALLENGES THAT I FACED GrameenPhone has a fair recruitment policy. This policy can be classified as a Regular, Contractual, and Part-Time Intern. Every individual Duties, Rights responsibilities have been clearly defined in the employment term. The organization environments are conducive of applying theoretical knowledge in to reality. Like many other big corporate houses GrameenPhone share information on need to know basis. Sometimes it has been felt that people in GP work under strict deadline. They focus more on their immediate deliverables. That time it is difficult to seek their valuable time on any issue for further clarification or to clear up my concept. During CIC field visit it was difficult to move independently. It can be said that CIC center are geographically dispersed. Visiting CIC from different category (e. g. state in their life cycle, revenue earning status, different level of enterprising quality, and varying service augmentation by end user, successful unsuccessful CIC) need considerable time, money energy. Due to their nation wide presence getting all kind of CIC in a single/ few short tour plans is not possible. Strong external competitor has not emerged for CIC till time. A Working Report on Grameen phone Community Information Center (GPCIC) 16 6. 0 LEARNING THROUGH THE INTERNSHIP PROGRAM NEW CIC ROLL OUT To establish new CIC in uncovered Upazilla GP follow bellow mentioned steps. 1. Site Identification: Identify Upazilla establish CIC considering demography, growth center, and long term Business viability. 2. Press advertisement: GP go for press Advertisement for getting application from prospective entrepreneur. 3. Site Selection Data collection: So many technical details e. g. Serving cell, / neighboring cell longitude latitude, radio condition, shop dimension data collected to choose from competing center. Finally CIC team Short list CIC site according to field data. 4. Entrepreneurs Selection: CIC team Evaluate application among competing alternatives. Then Follow competitive selection process, Call for interview, Select the entrepreneur. Finally, pass the selected entrepreneur list to training team. 5. Agreement Signing Logistics Distribution: Following steps are taken in to account ? Administer agreement signing with Individual entrepreneur Immediately after training session ? Compliance issue ? Distribute GP WAN GPPP SIM ? Distribute banner, festoon Poster, leaflet, other POSM. 6. Soft Launch: at this stage under mentioned steps need consideration ? Activate Sim. Verify soft launch status through BSCS, TAPS other tools. A Working Report on Grameen phone Community Information Center (GPCIC) 17 7. Channel Dedication / FPDCH Definition ? Sending request to concerned technical department to Identify of serving cell and needful channel dedication. ? Getting feedback from networks test performance. ? Update in life cycle database ? Collect extern al antenna for CIC with Poor network quality. 8. Shop Profiling ? Raise Purchase Requisitions for all kind of Branding, Profiling marketing materials ? Communicate with Brand or Creative for design related issue ? Allocate work among vendor to maximize efficiency ? Confirm work completion quality in delivery with entrepreneur ? Create move order to disburse bill from finance. 9. Reload SIM Handover: ? send request to reload department ? reload verifies according to agreed process ? reload register SIM send to regional reload ? Regional reload distribute Flexi load SIM to distributor ? Distributor handover Flexi load SIM to entrepreneur. C CI IC C O OP PE ER RA AT TI IO ON NS S 1. CIC Product maintenance: under mentioned things are taken into account for CIC Product maintenance. ? GP WAN ,GPPP, Flexi load Bar – Unbar issue ? Sim Replacement A Working Report on Grameen phone Community Information Center (GPCIC) 18 ? Credit Limit fixation ? Grace period issue ? Update sales report in ERP ? Providing necessary VAT TAX Treatment ? Ensure smooth operation of CIC operation ? Follow up bill collection ? Follow up agreement terms 2. Make shift of apparatus for disqualified Entrepreneurs: under mentioned things are taken into account for Make shift cases Inform regional team regarding disqualification ? Collect SIM from CIC entrepreneur ? Collect marketing materials from CIC entrepreneur ? Collect Signboard from CIC 3. Adjacent CIC Survey: Following steps are done ? Identify CIC/ telecenter Close to one another ? Collect data according to checklist ? Making decision based on collected data ? Inform entrepreneur 4. Organizing Event: It includes following tasks. ? Taking necessary budgetary approval from concern ? Determining suitable alternatives ? Do the needful to organize event ? Bill settlement with finance A Working Report on Grameen phone Community Information Center (GPCIC) 19 5. Marketing promotional material Production delivery ? Determine Marketing Promotional material for Production ? Communicate with Brand or Creative for design related issue ? Determine Ideal Quantity for each CIC Raise PR ? Receive goods from vendor ? Ensure delivery ? Create necessary move order ? Issue work completion certificate ? Expedite bill to finance for settlement T TE EC CH HN NI IC CA AL L S SU UP PP PO OR RT T F FO OR R T TH HE E E EN NT TR RE EP PR RE EN NE EU UR RS S 1 Receiving customer complaints: here activities involved are as under ? Online tic ket system. ? E-mail ? Support Over phone ? Physical visit ? Ad hoc requirement 2. Verification of the complaints: It includes following tasks ? Contact entrepreneurs over phone to verify complain. ? Involve CTC to verify complain for network problem in required cases. ? Visit when necessary 3. Troubleshooting complain resolution: It includes following tasks ? Contact entrepreneurs over phone to verify. A Working Report on Grameen phone Community Information Center (GPCIC) 20 ? Involve CTC to verify complain for network problem. ? Visit as necessary regarding complain. 4. Escalation: It includes following tasks ? Escalated SIM related issues to activation-HLR reset.. ? Escalate Network related issue CTC through GPTTS ? Hardware issues escalated to respective vendors 5. Feedback: It includes following tasks are done ? Feedback from respective departments. ? Provide feedback to the entrepreneur. . Future follows up: At this stage following tasks ? Optimization request to concerned network department for unresolved complaints. ? Advice and support for other technological enhancement related issue for business expansion. 7. 0 FINDINGS: Positive Findings Although, till date the society is not much prepared for the services based on such advanced technolo gy and the understanding on the services are not much clear because of the existing socio-economic condition of the specially in the rural part of the country, however the overall condition of the country is moving forward may be slowly but steadily. And the long existing traditional practices are being changed. Examples are the changed practice of checking results of government exams through the internet, looking for education related information using internet, increased level of email use, seeking different government forms through internet. Off course it requires time and effort for behavioral change of people. However, the change is taking place. A Working Report on Grameen phone Community Information Center (GPCIC) 21 The other important aspect is the absence of strong competitor in the market in the areas of such services. And a large space for work exists related to service development focused to not only the rural part of the country but also for the urban part. This creates a huge opportunity for the service providers to grab the market before other competitors and remain ahead of them. Negative Findings: ? Pricing strategy The current pricing strategy is resulting disadvantage for the CICs as any potential shop can have an internet SIM and start providing internet service. This situation keeps no competitive edge for the CICs in some short term business cases. ? Lack of skill among the entrepreneurs: The average computer skill English language comprehension skill are barely minimum to support CIC operation . However GP is taking manifold program to develop entrepreneurs skill set. Practicality is human capacity development is very costly time taking matter. Sometimes people can actually visualize true benefit of ICT. ? Image crisis of the CICs: The image of CIC is not much different from a „Flexi-load shop and suffering from image crisis. ? The main reasons are inability of the CICs to introduce itself strongly as „Information shop and ? signboards/POS materials with similar color/design with other STP service providers. Sustainability: Insufficient revenue due to low entrepreneurs commitment level, sometimes experiencing Slow internet speed, Communication gap between the CIC owner and Operator, change in entrepreneur s business scope, tendency to exploit grace period, technological advancement and ? so on causes short time sustainability of some CICs. A Working Rep ort on Grameen phone Community Information Center (GPCIC) 22 8. 0RECOMMENDATIONS The key issue for sustainability is sufficient revenue which can be obtained through creating demand in the form of awareness building. Well designed communication should e carried out which would be understandable to the target community. Both ATL and BTL are required to generate sufficient awareness and understanding on the services. Promotional programs should be developed around the benefits of the services and success stories should be highlighted. Within the process technical terms/words should be avoided. Service bundle should be designed based on the demand and profitability and new service line should be added. Usage of existing information service i. e. contents has to be increased as well. Monthly internet charge for the CICs should be reduced compared to others providing ompetitive edge for the entrepreneurs. Educated young person with higher educational level, higher computer skill and plea sant personality should be preferred. Partner organizations should also be requested to recommend for such candidates. Sufficient speed for internet should be ensured for smooth running of the business. Skill of the entrepreneurs should ensured by providing proper training to the entrepreneurs specially in the area of identifying proper address/ source of information ability to find appropriate information from right place and deliver the service to the users with faster speed. To keep the motivation level of the entrepreneurs, increased communication should be ensured. Regular workshops and training programs can serve the purpose. A Working Report on Grameen phone Community Information Center (GPCIC) 23 Technical support should also be strengthened and appropriate method of communication should be developed for faster service. Local influential persons should be involved with this initiative as they have a strong influence and reliability within the community. And finally, image crisis of the CICs should be overcome. The CICs should be differentiated from a „Flexi-load shop . Different colors and designs from other shops can ? be used for differentiating purpose. 9. 0 CONCLUSION The internship program helped me discover a new era of ICT innovation for the latest world of art technology. Telephone internet (Mobile plus Landline) Penetration in Bangladesh is less than 30 % 3% respectively. It s a green field market for CIC (generic name Telecenter) in ? Bangladesh. Here I found that ICT can bring meaningful changes for the country people. Other landline PSTN operator can also initiate such project as social business. The business model is self sustainable. Unlike many other projects, there is no fear of shutting down the project after the expiry of project fund. Entrepreneurship is being promoted by GP in Collaboration with Public Private Partnership. There should have Clear Policy from Bangladesh Telecom Regulatory Commission to promote this short of ICT Initiative through out the country. Technology itself can not bring changes for the community peoples lives. Moreover Capacity building is required for the person who will be using this technology to exploit the benefit from technology. Additionally some other organizations are evolving as content developer to isseminate digitized content for a fee. A Working Report on Grameen phone Community Information Center (GPCIC) 24 REFERENCES: ? www. grameenphone. com ? www. gpcic. org ? anovatechbd. com A Working Report on Grameen phone Community Information Center (GPCIC) 25 ANNEXURE-1 Table: CIC services Sl. Category Services 1. Agriculture 1. 1 Crop production (Seed Varieties, Irrigation e tc. ) 1. 2 Tools (Procurement, Marketing, Hiring) 1. 3 Marketing 1. 4 Pricing 1. 5 Financing (Micro credit) 1. 6 Crop Insurance 1. 7 Weather reports 1. 8 Disaster warnings 2. Animal Husbandry 2. 1 Animal Health Veterinary Services . 3 Finance Schemes 2. 4 Production (Best practices) 2. 5 Livestock development 3. Citizen Services 3. 1 Procedures 3. 2 Documentation 3. 3 Forms 3. 4 Contact Directory 3. 5 Grievances/ Redressal 3. 6 Schemes Benefits 3. 7 Birth Death Certificates 3. 8 Matrimonial 3. 9 STD, PCO, Cyber Cafe 3. 10 FAQs 4. Health 4. 1 Vaccination Schedule 4. 2 Maternity Care 4. 3 Family Planning 4. 4 Medicines 4. 5 Ambulance Services and Transportation 4. 6 Hospitals / Primary Health Centers Information 4. 7 Blood Bank 4. 8 Life Saving Drugs 4. 9 Doctor’s Database 4. 10 Appointment with doctors 4. 11 e-Diagnostics 4. 2 Material Management Systems (Medicine) 5. Education 5. 1 School/College/University 5. 2 Syllabus 5. 3 Education Results 5. 4 Education Abroad 5. 5 S chemes/Scholarships 5. 6 Counselling/FAQs 6. Land/Property 6. 1 Land Records 6. 2 Property Transfer and Registration 6. 3 Property tax 6. 4 Property Rules and Regulation 6. 5 Land Income Certificates A Working Report on Grameen phone Community Information Center (GPCIC) 26 7 Employment 7. 1 Job Opportunity (Exchange) 7. 2 Registration 7. 3 Self employment scheme 8 Social Welfare 8. 1 Schemes and Benefits 8. 2 Directory of NGO 8. 3 Citizen Rights 9 Utility Services 9. Applications 9. 2 Outstanding bill Statements 9. 4 Bill Collection on various Utilities 10 Business 10. 1 Procedures 10. 2 Documentation 10. 3 Forms 10. 4 Schemes (Subsidy loans) 10. 5 Compliances with Rules Law (Vat etc) 10. 6 Desktop Publishing 11 Union Parishad Matters 11. 1 Birth 11. 2 Death 11. 3 Utility Connection (Water, electricity etc. ) 11. 4 Property Transfer Registration 11. 5 Tax Rules 11. 6 Tax Payments 11. 7 License and Concession 11. 8 Permits 12 Consumer Welfare 12. 1 Consumer Rights 12. 2 Consumer Co urts 12. 3 Legal Assistance 13 Environment 13. 1 Pollution Control Information/ forms 13. 2 Environment 3. 3 Grievances/Redressal 14 Tourism Transport 14. 1 Room Availability/Booking 14. 2 Booking of Long Distance Bus Tickets 14. 3 Information on Transport Routes, Sight seeing places 15 Entertainment 15. 1 Video Cable TV Total Category: 15 Total Services: 80 A Working Report on Grameen phone Community Information Center (GPCIC) 27 ANNEXURE-2 FINANCIALS OF THE GPCIC A A. . C Co os st t o of f t th he e P Pr ro oj je ec ct t: : Sl Items Quantity Actual Cost 1 Fuel generator 1 18,000 2 Local PC 6 200,000 3 Internationally branded PC 1 42,000 4 Clone PC 6 170,000 5 Laptop 3 180,000 Printer 16 36,000 7 Scanner 16 30,000 8 UPS 8 20,000 9 Web cam (0. 3 MPx) 16 24,000 10 Web cam (1. 3 MPx) 2 10,600 11 Release fee for Solar Panel 1 0 12 Portal Development 1 25,000 13 Terminal 3 0 14 Internet switch 1 2,500 15 Clone PC 1 30,000 16 1 GB cable 1 2,000 17 UPS 5 10,000 18 Motorola C117 2 10,000 19 e-Trust antivirus 16 25,000 20 Clone PC 3 88,500 21 UPS 3 6,000 22 Digital banner 16 23,000 23 Business card 4800 8,000 24 Poster 320 13,000 25 Leaflet 4800 11,000 26 Motorola C117 2 5,580 27 Windows XP CD 3 170 28 Cosonic headphone 2 500 29 DKU 5 cable 2 1000 0 Spiral binding 15 3000 31 Spiral binding 11 200 32 Power strip 2 200 33 FDD 1. 44 MB 12 4,680 34 FDD cable 12 360 35 Headphone 19 2,800 36 USB camera cable 16 3,500 37 Power strip 10 2,300 38 Blank CD 10 300 39 Spiral binding 28 550 40 Multi Socket 14 580 41 Miscellaneous cost 3 20,000 Total cost of the CIC Project BDT 1,030,320 USD 15,152 A Working Report on Grameen phone Community Information Center (GPCIC) 28 B: Table: Income forecast for the established CIC Income Head 1st Month / day 2nd Month / day 3rd Month / day Internet Browsing 1hrs X Tk 20 20 2hrs X Tk 20 40 3hrs X Tk 20 60 Computer Compose 5 page X Tk 10 50 10 page X Tk 10 100 15 page X Tk 10 150 Printing 5 page X Tk 5 25 7 page X Tk 5 35 10 page X Tk 5 50 Scanning 2 nos X Tk 5 10 5 nos X Tk 5 25 10 nos X Tk 5 50 Digital Photo using web cam 2 nos X Tk 20 40 2 nos X Tk 20 40 3 nos X Tk 30 90 PC Phone 10 Min X Tk 15 150 15 Min X Tk 15 225 20 Min X Tk 15 300 Information Service (Health, Agri, Education) Lump sum 20 Lump sum 50 Lump sum 70 Total Daily Sales 315 465 700 Total Monthly Sales ( 25 days) 7,875. 00 11,625. 00 17,500. 00 Total Monthly Sales from 16 Center 126,000. 00 186,000. 0 280,000. 00 Total Sales in 1st Year (per center avg. ) 194,500 Total Sales in 1st year from 16 Center 3,112,000 A Working Report on Grameen phone Community Information Center (GPCIC) 29 C. Operating Expenditure (per month) Item of Cost 1st Month 2nd Month 3rd Month House Rent 1,000. 00 1,000. 00 1,000. 00 Electricity 800 1,000. 00 1,000. 00 Internet 600 600 600 Spare, Ink, Cartridge, etc 2,000. 00 3,000. 00 4,000. 00 Stati oneries 200 300 500 Telephone Bill 4,500. 00 5,000. 00 6,000. 00 Net-2 Phone Card cost 100 100 200 Staff Salary 2,000. 00 2,000. 00 3,000. 00 Content 500 500 1,000. 0 Travel and conveyance 500 500 700 Maintenance 0 0 500 Others 500 600 1,000. 00 Total monthly expenditure for 1 Center 8,200 9,600 13,500 Total monthly expenditure for 16 Center 131,200 153,600 216,000 Total expenditure in 1st year for 16 Centers 2,444,800 Particulars 1st Month 2nd Month 3rd Month Monthly Operating Profit from 1 Center (325. 00) 2,025. 00 4,000. 00 Monthly Operating Profit from 16 Center (5,200. 00) 32,400. 00 64,000. 00 Operating Profit in 1st Year 1,051,200. 00 A Working Report on Grameen phone Community Information Center (GPCIC) 30 1. Name in capital letter 1. 2 Family Name 1. 3 Other Names 1. 4 Gender Put a cross (x) in the relevant box Male Female 1. 6 Date of Birth D D M M Y Y Y Y 1. 8 Nationality Photograph (Passport Size) 1. 5 Marital status Put a cross (x) in the relevant box Single Married 1. 7 Place of Birth About you Part 1 GPCIC Application Form 2008 A Working Report on Grameen phone Community Information Center (GPCIC) 31 2. 1 Your full permanent address 2. 6 Contact details if different from above Degree Institution 2. 2 Father’s name 2. 3 Mother’s name 2. 4 How long have you lived at this address Years Months 2. 5 Contact number(s) 2. 7 E-mail address Year Result Your contact details Part 2 Your institutional education Part 3 A Working Report on Grameen phone Community Information Center (GPCIC) 32 3. 1 Full address of proposed site/shop 3. 3 Distance of nearest internet service provider from proposed site 3. 5 Distance of nearest GP BTS 3. 7 Type of ownership of the proposed site. Self owned Rented If ‘rented’ please complete part 3. 6 3. 9 Agreement signing date. 3. 2 Location address of nearest internet service provider 3. 4 Area measurement of proposed site 3. Type of proposed shop/site 3. 8 Do you have any agreement with the shop owner? Yes No If ‘yes’ please complete part 3. 7 3. 8 3. 10 Agreement expiry date. Your professional expertise Part 4 Proposed site information Part 5 A Working Report on Grameen phone Community Information Center (GPCIC) 33 Please put a cross (x) in the relevant boxes to show that these necessary hardware you already have Computer Scanner Webcam Headphone Digital Camera EDGE modem Printer UPS Ensure you submit all relevant documents. If you submit false document it will adversely affect your pplication. Please put a cross (x) in the relevant boxes to show that these document will be submitted with your application Passport size photograph (4 copy) attested by 1st class gadgeted officer Photocopy of all academic and professional certificates attested by proper authority. Photographs of proposed site/shop. Signed Agreement/deed in between site owner/vendor and Entrepreneur, applicable only in the cases when the site is an rental basis Attested photocopy of original title deed (sub-kabala/heba/exchange)/agreement for long-term possession (Verified with the original), applicable in all cases. Mutation Parcha along with DCR in the name site owner in respect of the site, land and building. Succession certificate (if the site owner acquires the title and possession by way of inheritance). Registered Power of Attorney (if the site is controlled, managed, supervised and possessed by the constituted lawful attorney on behalf of the actual site owner) Resolution of Governing Body including by-laws (applicable only in the cases when the site belongs to any school, college, trust, society or similar institution/organization. ) Approval for construction, plan and structural design of the site building from concerned local overnment authority Approval for commercial use of the site building from concerned local government authority, if the building is located within any residential area Holding Tax Receipt, if the site building is located within any city corporation/municipality area Copy Of recent Utility Bill Trade License of the Entrepreneur Supporting documents checklist Part 7 Business compliance documents Part 8 Hardware checklist Part 6 A Working Report on Grameen phone Community Information Center (GPCIC) 34 You must now read the declaration below and sign it. This must be signed by the applicant personally nd not by a representative or other person acting on his/her behalf. I hereby apply for owning a GPCIC. The information I have given is complete and true to the best of my knowledge. I also declare that the photograph submitted with this form is a true likeness of myself. I understand that all information provided by me will be processed for evaluation of my candidature for GPCIC entrepreneurship and I also consent the processing of information provided by me by GPCIC. Applicant’s signature Date D D M M Y Y Y Y Declaration Part 9

Creating a Splash Screen in Delphi Applications

Creating a Splash Screen in Delphi Applications The most basic splash screen is just an image, or more precisely, a form with an image, that appears in the center of the screen when the application is loading. Splash screens are hidden when the application is ready to be used. Below is more information on the different types of splash screens you may see, and why theyre useful, as well as steps for creating your own Delphi splash screen for your application. What Are Splash Screens Used For? There are several types of splash screens. The most common are start-up splash screens - the ones you see when an application is loading. These usually display the applications name, author, version, copyright, ​an image, or some type of icon, that uniquely identifies it. If you are a shareware developer, you could use splash screens to remind users to register the program. These may pop up when the program first launches, to tell the user that they can register if they want special features or to get email updates for new releases. Some applications use splash screens to notify the user of the progress of a time-consuming process. If you look carefully, some really large programs use this type of splash screen when the program is loading background processes and dependencies.  The last thing you want is for your users  to think that your program is dead  if some database task is performing.   Creating a Splash Screen Lets see how to create a simple start-up splash screen in a few steps: Add a new form to your project.Select New Form from the File menu in the Delphi IDE.Change the Name Property of the Form to something like SplashScreen.Change these Properties: BorderStyle to bsNone, Position to poScreenCenter.Customize your splash screen by adding components like  labels, images, panels, etc.You could first add one TPanel component (Align: alClient)  and play around with BevelInner, BevelOuter, BevelWidth, BorderStyle, and BorderWidth properties to produce some eye-candy effects.Select Project from the Options menu and move the Form from the Auto-create listbox to Available Forms.Well create a form on the fly and then display it before the application is actually opened.Select Project Source from the View menu.You can also do this through  Project View Source.Add the following code after the begin statement of the Project Source code (the .DPR file): Application.Initialize; //this line exists! SplashScreen : TSplashScreen.Create(nil) ; SplashScreen.Show; SplashScreen.Update; After the final Application.Create() and before the  Application.Run statement, add: SplashScreen.Hide; SplashScreen.Free; Thats it!  Now you can run the application. In this example, depending on the speed of your computer, you will barely see your new splash screen, but if you have more than one form in your project, the splash screen will certainly show up.For more information on making the splash screen stay a bit longer, read through the code in this Stack Overflow thread. Tip:  You can also make custom shaped Delphi forms.

Battle of Antietam in Maryland-1862(bloodiest day in all of recorded Essay

Battle of Antietam in Maryland-1862(bloodiest day in all of recorded American History. 23,000 American deaths...even more than D-Day invasion in World War II) - Essay Example The lesson learnt from the Battle of Antietam has been vivid through the following lines and it is for one and all to comprehend what actually went into the actual battle that took place between the United States of America and the Confederates. The Battle of Antietam is also known by the name of The Battle of Sharpsburg. This battle was fought on the 17th day of September in the year 1862 near Maryland in Sharpsburg which is close to the Maryland Campaign. This indeed marked the initial basis for any kind of war to have taken place on the North American soils after the American Civil War had started. Nearly 23,000 casualties speaks volumes about the war being the bloodiest day in the history of America as it played an indirect yet tactical role in giving President Abraham Lincoln the much needed power to have his ‘Emancipation Proclamation’. Each year, the battle is commemorated at the Antietam National Battlefield. The result of the war without any shadow of a doubt was that it was tactically full of loopholes and it entailed a strategic victory for the union. The main combatants in the war were the USA and the Confederate States of America. The commanders at both ends were George B. McClellan for USA and Robert E. Lee for the Confederates. The USA outnumbered the Confederates by double the men, where the former had 87,000 while the Confederates had only 45,000 to contend with. There were around 12,401 casualties at US end, which included 2,108 men killed and another 9,540 wounded badly. 753 were either captured or missing in the whole scenario. At the end of the Confederates, there were 10,318 casualties which included 1,546 as killed and another 7,752 injured. 1,018 men were either captured or missing. Coming to the original topic at hand and finding out as to why this battle began in the first place, we find out quite a few things

Marketing Communications Plan and Presentation Essay

Marketing Communications Plan and Presentation - Essay Example Samsung are targeting low income category but Ipad still remains the market leader due to its high quality and high speed. Ipad needs to target companies in order for them to remain the market leader. Apple is focusing on increasing its Ipad sales and in the recent past it has opened outlets in other countries like China and Japan (Fill, 2002). Category After a survey, where five people were asked to compare Apple and other tablet manufacturers, apple was rated as the best in tablet manufacturing. The respondents said that apples products including the ipad were the best since they are able to meet almost all of their demands. Ipad has the highest processor speed of all the tablets in the market, the reason why it is the market leader. This is according to the respondents of the interview as seen in the appendix (Halborg, 2001). Benefit Most of the tablet customers are looking for speed, long battery life and an elegant and smart tablet for their day to day activities. Ipad is a uniq ue product in the market it gives its users all these. Ipad accessories are compatible with other hardware from other manufacturers therefore are easy to maintain and use as compared to other tablets in the market like the Samsung galaxy. Ipad take less time to boot compared to other products like windows tablets. Ipads are less prone to computer virus compared to others like the Samsung galaxy (Nash, 2000). IDU analysis Importance Importance refers to the significance of the benefits to the fundamental motivation. It is good to know that a benefit assumes importance if it motivates the consumer to purchase it. It is therefore the role of Apple to aggressively market its ipad product so as to remain a market leader and also help the consumer perceive the ipad as important in their life. The consumer should be convinced that the ipad will solve some if not all of his digital problems. Compared to other brands in the market, ipad is perceived as an important product in the market. Ipa d is seen as the most unique amongst the other tablets due to its unique features. From the survey, respondents said that ipad is important to them as it has a longer battery life compared with the Samsung galaxy (Schultz, 2000). Delivery This is the perception that the product, ipad, has the ability to provide the benefits to the consumer. Apple should convince its customers that ipad has the ability to fulfill the expected benefits. Ipad has successfully earned this perception as most of the respondents used in the survey said they preferred ipad to other brands in the market. Most of the respondents said ipad has a high ability to delivery as compared to Samsung galaxy and android (Shimp, 1993). Uniqueness This is the perception of a brand/product to deliver on the benefit relatively better than its substitutes. Ipad is definitely a unique brand in the market according to the respondents in the survey. Ipad has a longer life battery compared to android and Samsung galaxy. Ipad ta kes less time to boot as compared to the android and Microsoft tablet. Ipad is also less prone to virus compared to others tablets in the market. This uniqueness is a strong selling point for the ipad, and Apple should always endeavor to ensure that the ipad is always unique in the market (Tannenbaum, 1994). Positioning statement Product positioning involves creation and maintenance of a unique perception of a product in the customers mind; this will help in increasing the

Does age matter in reltionships Essay Example for Free

Does age matter in reltionships Essay Relationships shape our lives. People can fall in love without considering nothing at that time. When it comes to the age, sometimes no matter for them how old or how young the partners are. Even if they do not consider about the age, but society criticizes and judges easily. As long as the partners satisfy and bless each other who cares about the age except our society. Mi (2011) explains When it comes to love age is just a number. Many couples who have a large age difference, they are so happy with their relationships(para. 6). Age may cause problems for a lot of people in their relationships sometimes not. However, our society affects most of the time. If older women date with younger   men, the women will be frowned directly in our society. According to Mastery (2013) No matter how common it may already sound, dating scenarios such as; older women dating with younger men are still frowned upon by society. People have heard whining from their family. For example; you cannot date with him, he is too old or too young and if people date with young or old people then everybody says about them. It really influences you and makes you guilty however there is nothing wrong to worry. Curley (2013) says What matters love is love, no matter what age or circumstance with more love in your life, there will be more life in your love.. For example; if people have young partner, they can take care of each other better than having old partner. If you have same age partners then partners will definitely need help because they will not be as energetic as before. For example; if you have young partner, he or she can take care of you better than having old partner. If you have same age partner you and your partner will definitely need help because you and your partner will not be as energetic as before. In conclusion, many people might think the different ages cause so many problems in their relationships. I agree, it might be true, but problem is everywhere in relationships does not matter about age even though people are in the same age still they will have different problems. As long as people are happy with their relationships, there is no necessary to say anything. Schilling (2007) explains When it comes to love, age is just a number

Brain Development :: Child Development, Neurons

Child development is crucial throughout the early years, during this time the development of the brain occurs. The development of the brain contributes to the functioning of the body. The anatomy of the brain is made up of neurons and divided into four different lobes. The temporal, frontal, parietal, and occipital lobes control a variety of cognitive functions. The brain controls simple functions such as fine and gross motor skills, vision, and memory. According to Meadows (1993, p.263), at all sorts of levels in the brain there are programs for functions such as breathing, sleeping, and producing coherent language. Brain development in children is vital during the early years. During the early years, children brains are active enabling children to learn a variety of information. Many studies have been conducted and they have concluded a healthy lifestyle, physical activity, and exposing young children to a variety of education material assist with child development. The first few y ears of a child’s life is crucial as far as his intellectual as well as socio-emotional abilities are concerned (Bose, 2000). Brain Development Brains and the more nonessential parts of the nervous system are made up of neurons (Meadows, 1993 p. 266). The brain is made up of neurons, axons, dendrites, and synapse. They all have their individual job that contributes to the functioning of the body. The weight of the brain increases as a child develops into adulthood. According to Siegler & Alibali (2005, p13), the changes in the size of the brain make it possible for advanced thinking. The neurons are the functioning core of the brain (Brotherson, 2005). The brain begins to develop in the mother’s womb and continue to develop as the child develops. The neuron has branches protruding from the cell sending signals to the synapse and axon. The synapse and axon shapes the brain which allows connections to be made. Young children learn new information when they follow the same routine on a regular base. If a parent repeatedly calls a child a certain name, then connections form that allow the child to recognize that name ove r time and he or she will begin to respond to that name (Brotherson, 2005). Through repetitive experiences the axons and synapse strengthen causing learning to take place. The brain is divided into four major lobes: the frontal lobe, parietal lobe, occipital lobe, and the temporal lobe. Each lobe contributes to cognitive development in young children.

My Fashion, My Self, My Life Essay

Walking down the street wearing my favorite faded Levi’s and vintage Jimi Hendrix t-shirt with the classic black and white Converse Chuck Taylors distinguishes me from the Abercrombie & Fitch crowd, especially when I wear my Ray-Ban sunglasses and tie-dyed bandana.   My style choices fit in and complement my alternative and earth-conscious lifestyle because fashion is an important indicator of what a person’s unique values and interests are. Living in such a saturated consumer culture means that it is impossible to avoid being branded.   That being the case, I feel it is important to consciously choose what type of image to adopt.   I disagree with people who claim that image is everything; however your image does mark you as an individual within a certain subculture. In my case I identify with rock and alternative music that is socially conscious therefore I choose to wear clothes that reflect those interests.   In marking myself this way I can make myself visible to the outside culture in a way that will hopefully draw the attention and acceptance of like-minded individuals, or at least it will hopefully lead to an interesting discussion with people who may not agree with my fashion sense. I know this because it happens all the time, although many times it will be me going up to someone with an Abercrombie shirt on and asking them what they like about paying seventy-five dollars for pre-torn jeans when they could come with me to the thrift shop and get a pair of torn jeans for five dollars.   They will most often tell me that they do not like the idea of wearing clothes that other people have already worn, or that they just like the way brand new jeans feel, or that they had a gift card to the store, or that their girlfriend likes that them in that brand, or that all the cool models wear that brand, or that all of their friends shop there, or etc†¦ On the other hand, there are people like myself who love to shop second-hand and for as many reasons as people like to shop at the mall.   Personally, I like digging through old clothes trying to find the random gem, like my Jimi concert t-shirt from Woodstock that I got for three dollars and seventy-five cents.   I also like the idea of second-hand shopping because it is a form of recycling that eliminates some of the demand for the creation of new clothes. The fact that in sweatshops around the third world people (and sometimes children) are working away their lives for meager pay just so that the first world can dress themselves in brand new clothes and be at the cutting edge of fashion is appalling.   I would much rather wear the rags of a generation ago than to support that practice. Of course not all brands and companies that produce new clothes are earth-sucking evil-doers, but some are, including many that I see our consumer culture wearing all the time in the commercials, in the malls, and on the streets.   And of course I have purchased new clothes, we all have, but as I have grown older and learned more about the global supply chain, my consumer habits have become much more eco-conscious.   With this in mind, when I do buy new stuff I buy from companies that support environmentally safe production methods and from companies that support progressive labor rights issues.   My fashion, my self, my life.

Women fashion

What kind of clothing did women wear in ass's advertisements? Women use to put on dresses that were limited and perfected Just below the knees, head scarf became more popular. Look today isn't as precise as it was in the ass's. Pattern now days are occasional. Women now wear Jean and pants rather than proper gowns. In the ass's female get into gowns at home typically today female would put on something more offhand and easy. The approach of women replaced now a days in the last 73 years, because of the adjustment to the recession, behavior, and the home.I am going to treasure trove how females have changed from ass's advertisements through today. Fashion has not only given to the approval. In the ass's a change in fashion showed up. The war was up so community initiated growing into fashions that feature the dead soldier who fought in the war. So for memorable moment if a person had battle in a war he'd wear his uniform and his partner would wear a plain office skirt. In the ass's wo men fashion was very different from today. In ass's it was socially acceptable to wear full clothing covering everything.Models in ass's saw females expertly designing a line behind their legs, to give the reaction that stocking were frayed. Fewer material was used to form skirts and Jackets, and so they be turned into shorter. A decade back, what was Make 2 treated as brutally awful like females wearing pants, became a normal act. Nonetheless, the pant favored by females were easy long-term or pants with boots. Heels were still decorated by the females with the spontaneity of slim floor. Swing skirts were enough in interest in those days, with the decorative edition the drawing ruing the fresh ass's fashion.Beauty today is basically had the finest body, ideal hair, refreshing clothes, and perfect clothes. Many females view the advertisements for look and appearance, striving to view and be like the female in the ads because it is what the earth says charm is. An ad for Ban deodoran t, for instance, displays an angular, bright young woman adoring her body in the mirror. This apparently has nothing to do with deodorant, but it give the picture to female that using this deodorant makes you look like her.When glancing at ads in both magazines and television, you can barely usually see an ordinary looking woman. Now a day females are consistently advertised as this ideal person with no responsibility or concern, breathing the imagination life because of what they are wearing. Present-day ordinary females look at 400 to 600 ads per day. Today's fashion model's weigh 23% fewer than the ordinary women. Wistfully for women this is proceeding more and more. Women advance themselves to the Max, and in the end it hurts. Women fashion By Tamaki

Dear America Dreams In the Golden Country The Diary of Zipporah Faldman, A Jewish imigrant Girl

Dear America Dreams In the Golden Country The Diary of Zipporah Faldman, A Jewish imigrant Girl September 1, 1903My name is Zipporah Faldman. I am a 12 year old Jewish girl from Russia. I have two older sisters. The oldest is Tovah. She is 16. The middle child is Miriam. She is 15 and I zipporah (Zippy for short), am the youngest. I am 12 years old. Me, my two sister and my mother are finally going to America.September 2, 1903I am so confused and Lost. I am not at home is Russia. I really don't like America. My oldest sister Tovah says that I shouldn't hate America until I have lived here two years. I don't get what she is saying but I still have America. I could list a bazillion things that I hate. One thing for sure is that I don't like change.September 3, 1903I am finally at my American home. I kind of like it. It's bigger than our one room house in Russia.English: Miriam depicted on the rightAmazingly, It's a three bedroom house!!! I am feeling so much more lucky to have the family that I have. I am starting to like America a little bit. New York, Elliss Islad is amazing.Se ptember 11, 1903Tovah is teaching me english, it's really interesting. I am going to start going to school on Monday. I am really nervouse!!! What will happen? Will people hurt me? Now I'm scared!!!!!!! Well, I guss that I will have to wait and see...September 17,1903School is absolutly horrible. I am stuck in a room with a bunch of seven year olds in first grade! The seats are to small. The seats aremade for seven year olds. It's not fair!!!!!!!September 24, 1903I have made a new friend at school, her name is Blue. Although we arent very similar, we still love to talk...

A Review On Nelson Mandela History Essay

A Review On Nelson Mandela History Essay Nelson Mandela, the first democratic South Africa president was not just a great leader due to her leadership skills and traits, but also because he was a leader with a vision, persistence and courage. He is considered one of the greatest leaders of 21st century and a hero to many for his actions and personality. Nelson is a great leader, a leader other modern leaders need to emulate, if they need to fight corruption and provide the best leadership to those below them. Nelson Mandela aka Madiba was a leader by birth and a leader to the end as until today many people see him as a leader although retired. In his first year in Fort Hare University, he started involving himself in the council representing students, called SRC, which was opposing harsh and unfair policies in the University. After retiring in 1999, he went ahead and formed organizations to help other people mostly those with HIV in South Africa. Mandela was a leader with a vision that he ensured it was fulfilled no matter the hindrances. During his trial, he said that he had fought the dominion of white and that of black people and he was ready to die to ensure that all people had the same rights, irrespective of their race. During his 27 years in jail, he continued to influence and fight apartheid through his wife Winnie Mandela. He even studied a bachelor in law from London External Program University while still in the prison with no hope of when he was to be released. In all times, Mandela was a leader who sacrificed himself for the benefit of other. He sacrificed his youth and life to fight against racialism. At age of 20, he was still involved in fighting apartheid. He even went to jail for 27 years just because of his stand of equal rights to white, black and colored people. After being in jail for 27 years for his country, he became the president for only four years and then retired in order to give chance for another leader to lead South Africa (Klerk, 2). Moreover, he even sacrificed his g ood peaceful retirement just to cater for those people with HIV and AIDs and those poor. These are great sacrifices that not all leaders mostly todayà ¢Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â‚¬Å¡Ã‚ ¬Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â‚¬Å¾Ã‚ ¢s leaders can be able to do just for the sake of those under them. An influential characteristic was one of his traits. To support this, when he was in first year, he was ordered to leave the University due to his involvement in boycotts and his great influence which the university saw as a threat. They even black mailed him by asking him to be elected in SRC if he wanted to remain a student in the university. Another indication that he is an influential person is that still when in prison, he was able to gain supporters both inside and outside the prison with the help of his wife Winnie. When he came out of prison, all people with one voice wanted him to become the president even the former president, as he was able to convince all that he was indeed the leader they were looking for.

TARGET MARKET & COMPETITIVE ANALYSIS Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

TARGET MARKET & COMPETITIVE ANALYSIS - Essay Example A diverse set of customers visit the Geary St. Part of the reason is that there are many upscale shops like Louis Vuitton, Dior, Chanel, Michael Kor and Apple Store as well as many outlets like Forever 21, H&M, Zara, Gap, and Guess that keep medium ranged apparel and stocks. As a result of this people with high incomes, middle income groups as well as a lot of students visit this area. Since these people belong to different economic and psychographic groups, they want different food items and at different price points. The Cheesecake Factory has a numerous menu options including burgers, sandwiches, pastas, salads, side dishes, cheesecakes, specialty desserts, ice creams and creamy milkshakes. The restaurant also offers hot drinks, iced and frozen drinks and specialty drinks. Blended cocktails, bottled bears, champagne and sparkling wine are also served at the restaurant. This vast array of menu options has the potency to satiate the taste buds of a diverse guest base. With close to 200 items on its menu ranging from $11 to $30, the restaurant chain can cater to all shoppers across all income groups. The second value that shoppers seek is convenience. People who have been on a shopping spree are likely to seek convenient seating arrangement. Couples and families will like to spend quality time together. On the other hand, there would be some shoppers who are running against time. They want to have a quick snack and move on. The quick service and take-out facility available at The Cheesecake Factory will appeal to such customers. The choice of food may also vary depending on what time shoppers visit The Cheesecake Factory. The restaurant is open from 11: 00 am to 11: 00 pm from Monday through Thursday. It is also open from 10: 00 am to 11: 00 pm on Sunday. Thus shoppers can visit the restaurant anytime during these hours. They have the option of eating lunch or