Case Study Strategi Audit Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Case Study Strategi Audit - Essay Example It was started in the year 1962 in Rogers, Arkansas, by Sam Walton. It took a long way to reach an annual sales turnover of $1 billion. By the year 2002, Wal-Mart became the world’s largest retail giant with sales of $218 billions. In the initial days of starting the business, Wal-Mart designed a strategy to build large discount stores in rural areas. Wal-Mart employed the strategy of selling branded products at a very low price. Initially, the management of the firm decided to develop the firm as a one-stop discounted departmental chain store with a vast variety of general merchandise goods to be offered to the customers that too at a low price. The management’s initial focus was on its purchase decisions. The firm focused on exploring each and every opportunity that helped in general merchandise goods. The two important products of the entire Wal-Mart product line on which the firm laid a strong emphasis were health products and beauty products. The stores used to maintain a high stock of these products. When the firma became successful in opening more than 279 stores by the end of the year 1979, the next focus was on designing strategies for expanding the firm aggressively. In contrast, to the other retail stores who built ware houses in order to serve the already existing outlets, Wal-Mart used to first build distribution centers and later started stores around the distribution centers. This strategy of Wal-Mart helped the firm in pooling the advertising and distribution overheads. The firm also focused on the transportation time needed for a customer to reach the outlet. The strategy of aggressive expansion turned out to be a big success because Wal-Mart became the largest retailer and discount stores in United States by the end of the year 1991 which had almost 1,573 Wal-Mart outlets in 35 states. Once the firm attained the position of national discount

Research Report Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3250 words

Research Report - Essay Example This saves the time that they would take in going to the ticket sale points in order to acquire them. This has also reduced the cases of theft by various parties involved in the processes of the designing of the manual tickets as most of them print extra ticked for sale without the knowledge of the management of the clubs (Benun, 2007, p.79). The money that they get from such activities go directly into their own pockets and this denies the clubs a lot of revenue. This is what has led to many companies and football teams adopting the technology of online ticketing for the purposes of saving time, money as well as maximizing on the revenue. The use of this technology also helps the clubs in knowing their members easily as fans are in a position of subscribing to the club’s website in order to gain membership. The fans are given their login details that they use to enter the website. After they have given their details, they are also notified through SMSs that are sent to them i nforming them of the upcoming matches and the ticketing information. This gives the fans in knowing when and where their team will be playing without having to rely on news from the mainstream media (Clark, 2003, p.48). The clubs are also able to sale their products such as merchandize through their website as the payments are done online and then delivery is done. Currently, nearly all the big clubs sale their tickets online and the sales can start as early as a week earlier before the kick off. In the website, the fans can acquire membership by creating their own accounts that they are identified with. The importance of the membership programs is that it gives them priority in matters ticketing as they become the first ones to get their tickets before the non-members. This can also give them the advantage of getting the tickets at cheaper prices as compared to the non-members. Literature review. Some websites are designed in a manner such that before one logs into the website, the y receive some messages that contain the codes that they use to enter (Krug, 2000, p.93). These are purposely for security to avoid things such as hacking. This also helps in avoiding things such as ticket broking whereby some other business people buy the tickets from the club at affordable rates and then sell them to other people at their own set price. This has the effect of locking out some fans from the stadium who cannot afford their ticket prices or even denying the club its revenue as potential clients are discouraged by the exorbitant prices set by the brokers, thinking that they are the clubs’ agents (Slatin, and Rush, 2002, p.78). Communication through SMS has been on a steady increase in personal matters, business and even purposes of information. Presently, many innovative applications are built on top of the technology of SMS and even development of more. Several organizations in the countries that are more developed have started using SMS services in interactio n with members and also sending notifications and alerts (Mueller, and Mueller, 2003 p.67). The major advantages of this technology is receiving and sending information to people and groups. Application of the SMS in web-based ecommerce The technology of SMS is now being applied in several organizations for delivery of their services in a more efficient and effective manner. The technology could be used in the provision of easy and quick access to the website of

The Theory Of Substance Dualism

The Theory Of Substance Dualism An argument has been made against Descartes interactive substance dualism theory that will be analyzed and evaluated in this paper. The Christian apologist J.P. Moreland argued in an online video that goes as such: If interactive substance dualism is true, a non-physical substance could have an effect on a physical substance. It is metaphysically impossible that a non-physical substance could have an effect on a physical substance. Interactive substance dualism is false. (Moreland J. P., 2009) This paper will set forth to point out that this argument against Descartes interactive substance dualism theory, while being valid in nature, is unsound because its second premise is false. With the help of modern science; this paper will argue that it is indeed metaphysically possible for a non-physical substance to have an effect on a physical substance. Before we can appropriately analyze and evaluate the argument, some terms must be defined first so that we may understand how this paper will defend interactive substance dualism. The first step when evaluating an argument is to look at the logic of the argument. According to Bruce Miller of the University of Michigan an argument is logically sound only if the premises were true, this fact would constitute good grounds for accepting the conclusion as true (Miller, 2000). The current argument against Descartes appears to follow logical correctness which leads to the next idea. Is the argument a deductively valid one? Miller also states that an argument form is deductively valid if and only if it is impossible that its conclusion is false given its premises are true. (Miller, 2000) If we were to assume that the premises of the argument in question were true then we would also be drawn to the same conclusion found in the argument. The second premise of the argument states that the first is untrue and therefor the conclusion is true. If the second premise were in fact true, then one could safely claim that interactive substance dualism is indeed false. This flow of sound logic structures and frames this as a deductively valid argument, but is it deductively sound? Even though an argument can be structured logically and found to be deductively valid; that may not always make the argument sound. A sound argument can be summed up as an argument that is based on truths. If a conclusion or argument is drawn from false premises then the argument is considered unsound. For instance, if I were to say that all X are Y and all Y are Z, then I could safely conclude that all X are Z. Yet using a qualifier such as all or every can be tricky, because if just one Y is not Z, then not all Xs could be Zs making the statement deductively unsound. So now that we understand what deductively sound and unsound is, let us apply it to the argument at hand. To do this we will evaluate the premises and decide whether they are true or false. The first premise of the argument at hand is a reiteration of Descartes interactive substance dualism theory that a non-physical substance could have an effect on a physical substance. Substance dualism generally holds that the body is a physical object having physical properties and that the mind is a mental substance containing mental properties irreducible to the physical. (Moreland Craig, 2003) When one experiences pain for example, the body may incur certain electrical and chemical stimulus (physical properties), which results in the self or mind consciously experiencing the felt quality and awareness of the pain (mental property). Descartes argues within substance dualism that the mind and brain closely interact with each other, though they are different substances with differing properties. This is considered to be Descartes main point in the interactive substance dualism theory and this premise will be considered true. The second premise is where this paper focuses because the argument claims that it is metaphysically impossible that a non-physical substance could have an effect on a physical substance. This premise is false because modern science has shown the effects a mind has over a body and vice versa. It appears fairly obvious to most that physical properties do not have the same features as mental properties. For example, we are unable to apply physical qualities like mass and spatial dimensions to mental events such as thoughts, feelings of pleasure and sensory experiences. (Moreland Craig, 2003) As philosopher Keith Maslin summarizes, physical occurrences do not just appear to be different from consciousness; they are utterly different, so utterly different in fact, that it is inconceivable how the physical could produce the mental. (Maslin, 2001) Yet in a published journal we find that Bruce Hinrichs pointed out that when a person reads a sentence, hears a speech, experiences an emotion, or thinks a thought, a cluster or network of brain cells fires in a certain pattern with particular intensity and timing. (Hinrichs, 2001) Similarly, it has been observed that when a part of ones brain is touched with an electrode, it may cause a mental experience such as a memory to occur. (Moreland Craig, 2003) This is evidence in itself that mental states (the mind) can be reduced to physical states (firing of electrodes/electricity); but this only demonstrates so much. While the mind is partly connected to the body, they are not identical. Therefore, the distinctiveness of mental and physical properties and states argues favorably of substance dualism; and the casual connection the mind and body share is evidence supporting Descartes interactive substance dualism theory. The existence of secondary qualities also argues favorably for interactive substance dualism. Secondary qualities are said to consist of properties like color, taste, sounds, smells and textures, whereas primary qualities are properties that characterize matter such as weight, shape, size, solidity, and motion. (Moreland Craig, 2003) Frank Jackson explains that a strictly physical and material world would arguably force us to deny it: We sense the world as made up of coloured, materially continuous, macroscopic, stable objects; Science and, in particular, Physics, tells us that the material world is constituted of clouds of minute, colourless, highly-mobile particlesà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦ Science forces us to acknowledge that physical or material things are not colouredà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦ This will enable us to conclude that sense-data are all mental, for they are coloured. (Jackson, 1977) Effort should be made to at least acknowledge the criticisms of interactive substance dualism and potentially defend against them. Some have pointed out a problem of interaction when it comes to substance dualism. This may be the leading criticism against Descartes theory. How can the soul, lacking all physical dimensions, possibly affect, and be affected by, the extended body? (Maslin, 2001) It does not appear that we reasonably explain how each separate substance could interact with the other. This argument though appears to be based on an appeal to our ignorance. It assumes that if we do not understand how X causes Z that it is not reasonable to believe the two can interact. Craig and Moreland wrote that a tack can be moved by a magnetic field, and gravity acts on a planet millions of miles away. (Moreland Craig, 2003) The magnetic fields and gravitational forces have very different properties to the solid and spatially located entities they affect, and while we may not fully und erstand how such an interaction occurs, it nevertheless does just as we recognize the interaction between mind and body. An argument was made against Descartes interactive substance dualism theory that will be analyzed and evaluated in this paper. The paper set forth to point out that this argument against Descartes interactive substance dualism theory, while being valid in nature, is unsound because its second premise is false. We discussed that the argument, while logically framed and deductively valid, was inevitably false because of its second premise. The paper presented several arguments in favor of substance dualism by showing the distinctiveness of mental and physical properties and states; as well as the existence of secondary qualities. The paper also examined the main criticism of interactive substance dualism and the problem of interaction between mind and body. Given the above arguments for interactive substance dualism and the successfully countered criticism, it seems clear to me that it is indeed metaphysically possible for a non-physical substance to have an effect on a physical substa nce. If this paper has performed its purpose adequetly, then you as the reader can agree that the 2nd premise of the argument against Descartes is false. If a conclusion is drawn from a false premise then the argument becomes deductively unsound and should leave the interactive substance dualism theory in a very convincing position.

Free College Essays - Machiavelli’s Politics in The Prince :: Machiavelli Prince

The Prince - Machiavelli’s Italian Politics The Prince was one of the first humanist works of the Renaissance.   Indeed it is a work of art, a literary masterpiece of sorts.   Yet this work has been vehemently debated over the centuries and remains one of the most controversial pieces of writing today.   Although many critics consider The Prince a satire, simply an attempt to reveal the problems with the ruling class, most see Machiavelli’s work as a serious attempt to lay the groundwork for the reunification of Italy under the Medici family of Florence.   Machiavelli’s idea that the model prince should use a variety of tactics to secure his power—namely that the end justifies the means—is the most controversial issue raised in The Prince.   Knowing that this notion would not be universally accepted, Machiavelli, through his book, tries to justify his idea by showing that men are inherently evil.   Though religion can often serve to unify a prince and his people, it can also serve to undo him.   Thus, Machiavelli proposes that politics and religion should be held in separate spheres—religion, in God’s sphere—politics, in man’s.   Many readers applaud this theme as refreshingly realistic; others attack Machiavelliâ€⠄¢s assertions, saying that they compromise moral integrity.   Yet Machiavelli’s prince does not wish to preserve moral good or spiritual integrity; he simply wants to attain and maintain his principality.   Machiavelli struggles to pave a road for order in this world, in the here and now; he doesn’t attempt to secure the otherworldly blessings of God.   This notion, of course, stands in sharp contrast to the moral virtue promoted by most Greek, Roman, and Hebrew politicians and writers.   These thinkers saw no clear distinction between religion and politics, instead seeing the king as the human embodiment of God.   Thus, Machiavelli gives a general overview of human behavior, hoping that future princes can establish peace and security in their kingdoms, using this basic knowledge.

Prozac Nation

Prozac Nation tells the story of Elizabeth Wurtzel’s childhood, her troubled relationship with her father who left her and her mother and refused to accept his responsibilities to his family, her move to Harvard, and her mental decline leading to several stays in hospital and a suicide attempt. Finally, after trying many different psychotherapists, psychiatrists, and medications, she tries Prozac and it helps her rise above her despair. In the Afterword to Prozac Nation, written for the paperback edition in 1995, Wurtzel asks the question that will have occurred to many of her readers.What on earth makes a woman in her mid-twenties, thus far of no particular outstanding accomplishment, have the audacity to write a three-hundred page volume about her own life and nothing more, as if anyone else would actually give a shit? (p. 354) She gives a long answer, the crux of which is: I wanted this book to dare to be completely self-indulgent, unhesitant, and forthright in its telling of what clinical depression feels like: I wanted so very badly to write a book that felt as bad as it feels to feel this bad, to feel depressed.I wanted to be completely true to the experience of depression—to the thing itself, and not to the mitigations of translating it. I wanted to portray myself in the midst of this mental crisis precisely as I was: difficult, demanding, impossible, unsatisfiable, self-centered, self-involved, and above all, self-indulgent. (p. 356) Wurtzel certainly succeeds in her aim to portray herself as capricious and self-preoccupied. Indeed, according to her own description, she seems so impulsive, self-preoccupied, needy in relationships, and manipulative that readers will probably wonder whether depression is indeed Wurtzel’s most basic problem.It’s very tempting to speculate that Wurtzel has just as much claim to a diagnosis of borderline personality disorder as she does to depression. Wurtzel says that her psychiatrists gave her a diagnosis of atypical depression, and DSM-IV-TR tells us that personality disorders may be more common in those with atypical depression. Of course, even if I were a psychiatrist, which I’m not, would be ridiculous to offer a diagnosis based on an autobiography.What is clear, however, is that Wurzel’s goal of telling some general truth about clinical depression is not accomplished. Reading Prozac Nation is a very different experience from reading other memoirs of depression such as Tracy Thompson’s The Beast and Martha Manning’s Undercurrents because Wurtzel manages to provoke such a mixture of conflicting feelings in her reader, while other authors of depression memoirs provoke far more consistent sympathy. By the end of the book, one feels far more sympathy for Wurtzel’s mother and her friends than one does for her.Normally, I count myself as able to identify and empathize with people who suffer from serious mental illnesses, but I have to confe ss that, given the way she describes herself, unless she has changed dramatically, I’d recommend her friends to run a mile rather than put up with her manipulation. Note that one gets a similar impression from Wurtzel’s second memoir, More, Now, Again, (reviewed in Metapsychology April 2002) in which she becomes addicted to Ritalin and cocaine, and spends most of her time lying and hiding her addiction from her friends, mother and publisher.In Prozac Nation, Wurtzel several times suggests that she was addicted to depression and makes clear that her self-defeating behavior was often willful. What makes it so hard to sympathize with her is that that her problem seems to be her personality, rather than some affliction she has to overcome. To be more precise, Wutzel describes herself sometimes as the agent of her predicament, and other times as the victim of it, and it’s unclear for the reader what reasons there are for these switches.She manipulates people close to her: for instance, she tells calls her therapist at all times of the day and night, and then tells her therapist that if she does not listen to her problems, her (Wurtzel’s) blood will be on her (the therapist’s) hands. Sometimes even her crying seems like a deliberate action. But at other times she feels immobile, and can’t get out of bed. Consider, for example, how she feels after her brief romance with a man called Rafe, uring which she was miserable, clingy, and insecure, and she explicitly ignored his request that he spend time away from her, since he needed to be with his family, who had their own needs. I couldn’t move after Rafe left me. Really. I was stuck to my bed like a piece of chewing gum at the bottom of somebody’s shoe, branded with the underside, adhering to someone who didn’t want me, who kept stamping on me but still I wouldn’t move away. (250) Wurtzel’s alternating acceptance and denial of her agency bemuse s the reader, and ultimately makes Wurtzel a less credible witness to her own mental states.Far from knowing exactly how it was for Wurtzel, even though it is clear that she was desperately unhappy for most of the time, readers will be confused and exhausted by her narrative. Far from undermining the work, these features are what make Prozac Nation so distinctive, standing out among other memoirs. It is a tour de force, and a powerful evocation of Wurtzel’s experience, although it’s not so clear whether that experience is depression, borderline personality disorder, or some other mental disorder.

Ielt Task 2

Advertising encourages consumers to buy in quantity rather than promoting quality. To what extent do you agree or disagree? Words: 281/ Time: 45’ Whether or not customers are encouraged by advertisers to purchase products in quantity without promoting quality is a controversial question. Some people would say â€Å"yes† with that idea. However, as far as I am concerned, I strongly oppose that perception. First and foremost, although nowadays consumers are bombarded with information of products and services, viewers are still decisions-makers.Some people concern about quality, others have interest in quantity. But, they generally buy products according to their own interests, tastes, income and other factors. Moreover, customers are now increasingly cautious about advertised products, they thus ask for advice from their friends and families, instead of buying them impulsively. In simple terms, it is customers rather than advertisers who decide to purchase a certain produ ct.It is also noted that the main function of advertising is to provide customers with adequate information about a lot of aspects of a product including quality, package, functions, warrantee, and promotion, not only price. In fact, advertising is usually criticized on the ground that it leads customers to follow the advertisers’ desire. However, according to marketing principles, that advertising merely satisfies consumers’ information needs. Unarguably, price is an important factor that marketers use to boost sales.Nevertheless, it is more important to remember that the role of advertising is to offer specific information on a product and service. Therefore, advertising simply conveys the message relating to price, rather than use it to attract consumers. To sum up, I believe that consumers have different attitudes toward advertisements because they are influenced by various factors, not only price. The general perception of advertising as a stimulus for purchasing in quantity rather than promoting quality is in fact a bias.