Tchaikovsky and Beethoven comparison

Tchaikovsky: The Nutcracker, MarchAdvertising We will write a custom essay sample on Tchaikovsky and Beethoven comparison specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More The famous â€Å"March† is a part of â€Å"The Nutcracker†, presented as the second piece in the first act. It was written by a Russian composer, Tcaikovsky Pyotr Ilych (1840-1893). It was written in 1891-1892, when the author was in his sixties. This composition is one of his last works. Beethoven: Symphony No. 5 in C minor, Op. 67, I Symphony No.5 in C minor is a part of the first act of the Opera 67. It was written in 1804 -1808 by Ludwig Van Beethoven (1770 – 1827). Writing this composition, the author was in his mid-thirties; his hearing was constantly getting worse. To compare the two pieces, several aspects should be analyzed, which include instrumentation, form, harmony, tempo, meter, texture, style period, meaning, and orientation. Instrumentation: The Nutcracker is performed by a range of instruments, namely woodwinds, flutes, triangle, violins, snare drums. The Beethoven’s Symphony uses such instruments as Flutes, oboes, clarinets, trumpets, timpani, piccolo, bassoons, contrabassoon, and trombones. Form: the Nutcracker consists of two acts, and the March is the second composition in the first act. This piece lasts around 7 minutes. The Symphony No. 5 lasts nearly 30 minutes. The work is presented in four movements. The first one has a form of sonata Form A :|| B A’; the second movement is presented by the theme and variations T,V1,V2, V3,V4,V5.Advertising Looking for essay on art and design? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More Harmony: in Nutcracker the harmony is mainly tonic, sometimes changed by subdominant; the Symphony has tonic and sometimes dominant harmony. Tempo: the Nutcracker is presented in tempo allegro; the Symphony has a comparatively complicat ed structure and therefore the tempo is changeable. The first movement is in tempo allegro; the second movement has the andante tempo, which is later switched back to tempo allegro and at the end changed to tempo accelerando Meter: the both compositions use duple vs. triple meters. Texture: in Nutcracker the loud parts are supported by soft instrumentation; in Symphony the melody is changed rapidly from soft to very loud and back. Style period: While the Nutcracker was written during the Romantic period, the Beethoven’s Symphony was composed during the Heroic period. The meaning of the Nutcracker is absolute. The meaning of the Beethoven’s Symphony is rather programmatic. The orientation of the Nutcracker is rather secular, while the Symphony has a sacred orientation.Advertising We will write a custom essay sample on Tchaikovsky and Beethoven comparison specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More In my opinion, the both melodi es have some strengths and weaknesses. Concerning the Nutcracker, it is a very harmonic composition, which gives a general impression of good mood and some importance. I liked the party of violins which made the melody smooth and supported the main instrumentation. However, the ending did not impress me much. In my opinion, it would be better to end a march with some kind of slow and loud – textured rising notes than with chords of tempo allegro. This would make the ending more distinctive and exuberant. The Beethoven’s Symphony is a very complicated composition which appeals to me very much. I like the rapid change of harmony and texture, which is very expressive. The instrumentation is perfect; in addition, the composer uses the loud and soft parties to contrast, which is a very successful method. I think that this work is a real masterpiece of Beethoven. This essay on Tchaikovsky and Beethoven comparison was written and submitted by user America E. to help you with your own studies. You are free to use it for research and reference purposes in order to write your own paper; however, you must cite it accordingly. You can donate your paper here.

The Long Voyage by Jorge Semprun

The Long Voyage by Jorge Semprun In his narrative, Jorge Semprun often switches from external to internal setting. Such tool plays an outstanding role in the plot presentation. For instance, it gives a chance for the author to compare and contrast general information and specific details, outlook and internal state of things, image and feelings, etc. Advertising We will write a custom essay sample on The Long Voyage by Jorge Semprun specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More In addition, Semprun tries to show the interdependence of the global things and some particular notions. Indeed, showing that a person is just a small detail in the enormous system of the world, the author later transfers to the inner world of one individual, showing that it can be as great as a separate Universe. While it may seem from the first sight that the rapid changes of setting from internal to external add needless complications in the narrative, each of them conveys a special message. In fact, th e nature of human consciousness suggests that people think with images, and their order is never chronologically or logically organized. Thus, Semprun tried to express the stream of those images in his narrative, showing the importance of every thought, emotion, feeling, or vision. What is more, the readers tend to focus on some impressive moments of the plot; in contrast, reading Semprun’s book keeps a reader in constant tension, as the general switches to the very specific and back. By these means, the author teaches us to think globally. The mentioned tool also serves as a intensifier of author’s testimony. As an example, in one of the episodes Semprun first describes the setting outside the boxcar, then switches to the inside, describing how many people are there; next, the author tells how unbearably it is to be one of them, and finally describes the pain in his knee. Such development of descriptions from general to specific allows the author analyze every level of the reality, showing the inconveniences, pain and fear on each of them. This method is often applied in the book. The reflections of the inside and outside change the traditional positions of both the writer and the reader. In some cases, the writer seems to discover the development of plot together with the reader. Indeed, in some scenes the author builds the narration in a way that shows his uncertainty in the situation, and the change of external and internal seems to help the narrator to find the solution. Advertising Looking for essay on literature languages? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More In other cases, the author seems to be watching the situation on the neutral situation, just like the described events are not happening to him. He also uses statements, which were apparently made by him, but which are familiar to everyone who might read them: â€Å"What carries the most weight in your life are the peop le youve known† (Semprun, 29). This makes the reader and the writer much closer than in traditional setting. When the author tells about the experience of fifteen years, the reader gets the feeling of being of the same age with author. Apparently, such effect is due to proper use of the mentioned tools. The relationship between inside and outside in the narration reflect various important notions. For instance, the notion of survival is presented in the contrast: in the most strict conditions people can be filled with desire to live, and this helps them to survive; on the other hand, even when a human has freedom, their inner world not always survives. This can be supported by the example of the German woman who was released: her both children were dead, and her own survival therefore was of no value to her. Similarly, the author presents the notion of return. Having told about his will to return, he turns back to the global understanding of what is happening, and assumes th at â€Å"perhaps one cant take this voyage back in the opposite direction† (Semprun, 23). All in all, switching of the inner and outer is an effective tool used in the narration. In addition, it can be viewed as the author’s personal philosophy of world perception.

Medicinal Marijuana Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Medicinal Marijuana - Essay Example What if a number of patients have concrete evidences on the medicinal effects of marijuana? Should the government allow them to use it legally to save their life or continue its prohibition? Dr. Andrea Barthwell representing the White House National Drug Control Policy pointed at Dr. Oz’s show that state legalization of medical marijuana will only increase abuse incidences especially with the youth as the most vulnerable sector. On June 29, 2011, the U.S. Department of Justice in Washington sent a memo nationwide stating that the state laws do not spare the patient or other users from federal prosecution when found guilty of abuse (Laitner and Bell, 2011). This memo was sent after Michigan reported a large scale law breaking incidents related to medical marijuana. Arguments against legalization of medical marijuana is sustained by the National Institute on Drug Abuse and by other similar studies of crusaders against marijuana with report stating the adverse effects of smoking marijuana includes disorientation of some brain functions, cardiac vulnerabilities, lung diseases, and addiction (2010). The federal government believes that legalizing medical marijuana will only provide more opportunity for abuse like in the state of California where restrictions on the use of drugs is loose a person can acquire medical marijuana card when a physician recommends it for treatment just for any kind of ailment. As presented at The Dr. Oz Show, medical marijuana across the states where it is legal can be prescribed for a bundle of diseases ranging from life threatening such as HIV, multiple sclerosis, chronic pain due to cancer, and non-life threatening such as headache, anxiety, stress, and insomnia among others (2011). On the contrary, notable medical marijuana advocates present at the Dr. Oz show like Dr. Donald Abrams, Director of the Integrative Oncology Research Program at the University of California, San Francisco, believes on the potential of marijuana to be used as medicine for critically ill patients because of its anti-inflammatory and anti-oxidant characteristic. Another guest Montel Williams, famous host and author who is a multiple sclerosis patient, revealed that since he used medical marijuana no brain plaque growth has been observed in his brain . Williams shared that the University of Southern California, San Diego published its 2010 study which revealed medical marijuana as one of the top choices of physicians in treating patients suffering from multiple sclerosis and that there are no evidence suggesting smoking of marijuana as dangerous to lungs. Both sides taken considerably, the conflict is two tiers, at the government level and at the physician-patient level. The federal government declares that it illegal to use and distribute marijuana, and the Food and Drug Administration has not approved use of marijuana for medical purposes but many states are legalizing medical marijuana with varying and mostly loose regulations. T he studies done to prove and disprove the medical efficacy and effectiveness of marijuana are done separately by different physicians and patients looking into its different aspects. Such that oncologists like Dr. Abrams looked into how medical marijuana can help alleviate sufferings of terminally ill patients while psychologist and other

Ernest hemingway Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Ernest hemingway - Research Paper Example The paper in which Hemingway worked offered reporters the directions to follow to improve their writing: â€Å"Use short sentences. Use short first paragraphs. Use vigorous English. Be positive, not negative† (cited in Tyler 15). This includes the distance, reflected in a deliberately emotionless manner of narration, the replacement of description by the show to let the reader evaluate his reading, the functionality and thingness of the prose. Every detail fixes the impression of an event in the story or interlude. This also includes character comparisons, unambiguous and even deliberately limited. Hemingway’s Style Like every great writer, he sought and found his own way in literature. One of his main goals was clarity and brevity of expression; he wanted â€Å"to strip language clean, to lay it bare down to the bone† (cited in Bloom 74). Hemingway’s famous short and exact phrase became a subject of controversy in literature – whether the understat ement really exists. According to Hemingway, it does. It is based on the deep layers of collective consciousness, on the universal categories of culture, which is raised by the artist in his work and which are enshrined in the customs, ceremonies, various forms of folk festivals, folk subjects of peoples of the world. In those early years, Hemingway also discovered his â€Å"dialogue† – his characters are exchanging small phrases, accidentally broken, and the reader feels behind these words, something significant and hidden in the mind, something that cannot be expressed directly. All of Hemingway’s works were interpreted and considered in terms of â€Å"being lost†, when the main thing is a search for identity, for example, injured by war, which lost its ideals and its place in the world. Therefore, the object of Hemingway’s study was the tragedy of his contemporaries, thrown into the brutal world of wars, murders and violence, alienation of peopl e from one another. His collections of short stories offer the best samples of psychological narration. This paper considers three stories from two collections: The Killers (1927), Hills Like White Elephants (1927), and The Snows of Kilimanjaro (1936). The works of this period defined the main features of Hemingway’s style of and the main type of his characters. All of them are deeply sensitive and really suffering people. However, centuries old Anglo-Saxon and even sporty self-control causes them to talk quietly, biting one’s lip. His characters can be considered as hard-boiled, though some argue that: T. S. Eliot called Hemingway â€Å"the writer of tender sentiment, and true sentiment† (cited in Meyers 19). Hemingway’s dialogue is deliberately sloppy and seemingly insignificant. This is just a mask, sometimes hiding the grimace of pain, which in fact must not be shown to others. And anyway, why should he speak of self-evident things? Dialogue, accordin g to Hemingway, is an easy thing for him, but it would be wrong to assume that this is just a naturalistic account of everyday conversations. No, this is a special kind of seemingly artless, but strictly deliberate selection and sharpening. A short chain of not interconnected phrases performs the basic task – to show the decaying ties of shifted and fragmented world, as it is directly perceived by a troubled mind, not, as it is organized later by a cool mind and fit into the traditional forms. The way of expressing information without any explanation of the

American Historical Association Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

American Historical Association - Essay Example The diversity of people makes them want to study history, as it would help them understand certain predicaments. History is mainly important to those individuals who want to find out the meaning of being humans. People who dwell on the history of the origin of human become more self-aware as, through it, individuals learn about the actions of individuals in the past. It is through the study of colonization that a person is able to understand completely what the European nations were doing in Africa (Velasquez, 2014). Events such as the Holocaust or Hiroshima bombing teaches a historian about the dangerous side of humans. It is vital for an individual who wants to develop the art of critical thinking to study history. This is cultivated by the detailed information and explanations provided in history. Individuals who found themselves in foreign places ought to study history to help them answers any questions that they may have. Some of the questions that they may have are the difference in color or accent (Velasquez, 2014). People in countries with different cultures would turn to history to help them understand the difference in the two cultural practices.

UK Books and Publishing Industry Analysis

UK Books and Publishing Industry Analysis Table of Contents 1. Introduction5 1.1 Objective5 1.2 Reasons for Choosing the UK Books and Publishing Industry6 2. Industry Overview9 2.1 Market Size and Attraction10 2.2 Market Sectors10 2.2.2 Paperback11 2.2.3 Electronic11 2.2.4 Fiction11 2.2.5 Non-fiction11 2.3 Industry Target Markets12 2.4 Market Sales, Performance and Activities14 2.4.1 Domestic Market14 2.4.2 Export Sales15 2.4.3 Imports16 2.5 Publishing Companies17 2.6 Employment19 2.7 Distribution20 2.8 Major Trends and Developments21 2.8.1 Emerging Book Formats21 2.8.2 Emerging Distribution Channels and Markets22 2.8.3 Developments in Technology and Concerns in Copyright and Production23 3. Industry Analysis – PESTEL24 3.1 Using the PESTEL Analysis24 3.2 Political Factors24 3.2.1 Taxation24 3.2.2 Pricing24 3.3 Economic Factors25 3.3.1 Global Economic Factors25 3.3.2 UK Economic Trends25 3.4 Social Factors26 3.4.1 Consumer Preferences26 3.4.2 The Internet and Technology26 3.4.3 Reading Habits27 3.5 Technological Factors27 3.5.1 The Digital Age27 3.6 Legislative27 3.6.1 Copyright and Intellectual Property27 3.6.2 Market Regulations for New Entries28 3.7 Environmental 28 3.7.1 The Issue of Paper28 3.7.2 Other conservation measures29 4. Industry Analysis – Porter’s Five Forces Model29 4.1 About Porter’s Five Forces Model29 4.2 Rivalry29 4.3 Supplier Power29 4.4 Buyer Power30 4.5 Threats of Substitutes30 4.6 Barriers to Entry30 5. Conclusion31 References34 List of Tables Time Spent of Main Activities, by Sex, 20058 Total Book Sales 1998-200210 Projected Book Sales: 2002-200710 Unit Book Sales by Format: 1998-200211 Projected Book Sales by Format: 2002/200712 Value Book Sales by Target Market: 1998-200213 Projected Book Sales by Target Market: 2002/200713 Publishers’ Export Sales: 1998-200116 Book Imports: 1998-200117 Leading Publishers Ranked by Total Retail Sales 2001/200218 Total Employment in the Publishing Industry 1998-200220 Retail Distribution21 The UK Books and Publishing Industry Analysis 1. Introduction According to the Encyclopaedia of Global Industries (‘Book Publishing’, 2007), global spending on books increased from US$85.3 billion in 2000 to US$104.6 billion in 2005. This is despite the fact that the global demand for books had significantly dropped for a number of reasons. One of the major reasons cited for this drop was the September 11 terrorist attacks in the United States. In contrast, the United Kingdom (UK) is currently one of the world’s leading players in the world of publishing. However, it remains behind to major global producers the United States, Japan and Germany. UK is followed by another European major publisher, France In 2002, the UK book and publishing industry reached the value of à ¢Ã¢â‚¬Å¡Ã‚ ¤2.5 billion (‘Books and Publishing – United Kingdom’, 2003) and continues to be the major location of European publishing’s central operations and the U.S. publishing’s gateway across the Atlantic. 1.1 Objectives The UK books and publishing industry is one of the UK’s distinct industries. As stated above, UK ranks among the world’s major book and publication producers. Readers across the globe are familiar with the UK’s contribution to the publishing world . UK writers have long been one of the more famous sets of writers in the classic and modern histories. Ranging from William Shakespeare to J.K. Rowling’s Harry Potter franchise, the UK books and publishing industry continues to play a significant role, especially among the English-language readers across the globe. However, the new media forms that have been emerging lately such as electronic and online forms of publishing currently challenge the publication preferences of the consumers today and UK print media too has got impacted. The present study is an attempt to analyse the UK books and publishing industry. The objectives of this industry analysis are as follows: Provide an overview of the UK books and publishing industry, its current status and projected directions. Analyse the factors that influence the current and future operations of the industry by using the tool of PESTEL analyses. Assess the books and publishing industry and its impact and performance in the market by using market analysis tools of Porter’s Five Forces. Determine the critical factors that can determine the future of the UK books and publishing industry. 1.2 Reasons for Choosing the UK Books and Publishing Industry The UK remains to have a healthy and dynamic book and publishing market; not only does the UK contain one of the significant market shares in the global book market, it boasts of a number of in-demand authors. Books and publishing in the UK highlights the society’s inherent love for books . What is interesting in the UK book and publishing industry can be seen in the following factors: (1) UK has had a significant role in the publishing world especially among English-language readers across the globe; however, in terms of industry size, UK remains behind book producing giants the United States, Japan and Germany. These three countries have a competitive production advantage: the United States has strong media and entertainment industry which has also influenced its publishing sector; Japan is known for its graphic novel and books publication, as driven by the strong manga culture and demand; Germany’s media corporate giant, Bertelsmann, has managed to own and merge with large publishers, which makes this German company a significant player in the global industry (‘Book Publishing’, 2007). (2) New forms of media, electronic publishing and the Internet, have emerged which have challenged the conventional publishing forms. Electronic publishing and the Internet has become a challenge in a number of areas including the redefinition of publication format (electronic or published through the Internet) and publication access (self-publishing has become popular online). This also influences the amount of interest the public continues to have in books especially when more recreational forms have evolved which may be preferred over picking up a magazine or a book. Besides, recent times have also witnessed a rise of online / virtual schools and other forms of virtual reality which has now given way to emergence of digital versions of these books or e-books. (3) Emerging markets brought by globalisation also affect the expansion of UK publishers to other parts of the world. This is in addition to the increasing demand for English-language learning courses in non-English speaking nations can encourage the publication of books. Regional authors too can increase the interest of the global readers, and it is interesting to see how the UK publishing industry has responded to these new opportunities. In addition to this, it is interesting to evaluate the performance of this huge industry that reaches different global markets and at the same time, is serving a more particular sector of the people’s reading habits. Based on a survey on leisure activities in 2005 by the National Statistics Office’s, reading has been cited as constituting a negligible part of how people spend their time every day. Reading, on an average, only accounts for 23 minutes among men and 26 minutes among women. The following table illustrates how this industry has been catering to a fraction of people’s average daily activities: Time Spent of Main Activities, by Sex, 2005 (‘Time Use Survey’, 2006) As can be seen in the table, reading has taken a backseat as compared to the time people spend watching television or having a â€Å"social life†. A similar survey conducted in 2001 among full-time workers on how they spend their free time, reading emerged as the third highest activity whereas games/hobbies/computing came in close behind (‘Lifestyles’, 2004). Evidently, in the previously cited more recent survey, games/hobbies/computing activities have overtaken reading. However, this peculiar development holds true among males who spend an average of 37 minutes in playing games, indulging in hobbies or working on computers whereas women tend to be ardent readers, thereby spending more time reading than other hobbies. It should also be noted that reading does not only limit itself to the products of the book and publishing industry as the Internet has also become a significant source for information. 2. Industry Overview 2.1 Market Size and Attraction According to the Confederation of British Industry, the book sector has been one of the significant drivers in the overall UK retail sales growth, along with furniture and groceries (‘Books and Publishing – United Kingdom’, 2003). This shows that books are among the main purchases that people make in a combined demand in the leisure and educational sectors. The UK books and publishing industry reached the à ¢Ã¢â‚¬Å¡Ã‚ ¤2.5 billion mark in 2002, making this industry having a positive overall outlook. Volume and value gains were seen rising from 2001 to 2002 at 12.1% and 16.8% respectively. The 12.1% volume increase reflected the 323.8 million units sold by 2002, which contributed to the compounded annual growth rate (CAGR) of 2.9%. Positive developments were also experienced, which started from the late 1990s up to the beginning of the millennium, with strong value gains eventually contributing to the 4% CAGR since the surge in sales in 1999 (‘Books and Publishing – United Kingdom’, 2003). Total Book Sales 1998-2002 ( Euromonitor International: Country Market Insight) Projected Book Sales: 2002-2007 ( Euromonitor International: Country Market Insight) According to the Publishing Industry Market Review 2006, the total publishing market was worth 18.63bn in 2005, having increased by 7.6% across the review period (2001 to 2005). The Publishing Industry is defined by Newspapers, Magazines as well as Book publishing. Newspaper publishing accounts for the largest share of the markets total value, followed by magazine publishing and book publishing. Within the books and publishing industry in 2004, retail book sales were  £3.98bn which represents a 3.2% increase on 2003.( UK Publishing Industry 2005,) Since 1999, the market has grown by a total of 16% and around 67% of the markets value is consumer books. The UK Publishing Industry 2004 report indicates that the UK publishing market is expected to grow by 12.9% between 2004 and 2008. Magazine revenues are likely to rise by 17.3%, newspaper revenues by 15.2% and book publishing by 14.7%. (UK Publishing Industry 2004,). 2.2 Market Sectors The commercial publishing industry extends far beyond books and journals. Products are available in electronic as well as print form. The overall book and publishing industry (‘Books and Publishing – United Kingdom’, 2003) can be classified on the basis of format and category Format: 2.2.1 Hardbacks Hardback formats are hardbound books. This format can be commonly found among books for children, new releases, and non-fiction books. 2.2.2 Paperback Paperback or softback is the most common format . This dominantly makes up the books targeted for commercial and educational purposes. 2.2.3 Electronic The electronic formats are the non-paper based products available on CD-ROM, or as audio books, e-books etc. Category: 2.2.4 Fiction The fiction category includes children’s books, novels across genres (crime, Western, thriller), historical, romance, etc. 2.2.5 Non-fiction The non-fiction category includes educational, academic and professional books, reference books, travel guides, DIY, etc. The performances of these different sectors (by format) are illustrated in the following table (‘Books and Publishing – United Kingdom’, 2003): Unit Book Sales by Format: 1998-2002 (Euromonitor International: Country Market Insight) Projected Book Sales by Format: 2002/2007 (Euromonitor International: Country Market Insight) Based on the performance of the two main categories, fiction and non-fiction, the latter continues to dominate the book sales and continues to grow (‘Books and Publishing – United Kingdom’, 2003): 2.3 Industry Target Markets Books can also be classified on the basis of the target market: consumer and institutional (‘Books and Publishing – United Kingdom’, 2003). The consumer market is the mainstream book market which includes regular readers and individual buyers. The institutional market for books is defined by institutions or organisations that buy books for specific purposes such as libraries. It also includes the books bought by the education sector. There is a potential confusion as to the identification of the consumer and the institutional market as the consumer market also includes publications for academic and professional purposes. However, institutional books are mostly identified by means of prevailing theme and the market segment, such as in the case of libraries and field-specific institutions (i.e. law books collection) whereas the consumer market’s main source of distribution channel are bookshops, online stores, etc. In terms of performance, the consumer market has a significant market share over the institutional market. The total sales brought by he consumer market in 2002 was at à ¢Ã¢â‚¬Å¡Ã‚ ¤2.0 billion, thereby having 80.3% of the overall book market share. Average growth was cited at 17.4%, with the surge of sales throughout the year usually picking up during the last quarter (‘Books and Publishing – United Kingdom’, 2003). The institutional market has been also experiencing positive growth at 14.3%, with its sales reaching à ¢Ã¢â‚¬Å¡Ã‚ ¤490.6 million and comprising 19.7% of the overall market sales. Educational sales continue to dominate the institutional sales at 63.4% whereas contributions from the library sector continue to fluctuate. As can be observed from the table given below, there was a significant drop in library sales from à ¢Ã¢â‚¬Å¡Ã‚ ¤114 million to à ¢Ã¢â‚¬Å¡Ã‚ ¤101 million from 1998 to 1999, with this particular sector experiencing fluctuations until 2002 (‘Books and Publishing – United Kingdom’, 2003). Value Book Sales by Target Market: 1998-2002 (Euromonitor International: Country Market Insight) Projected Book Sales by Target Market: 2002/2007 (Euromonitor International: Country Market Insight) 2.4 Market Sales, Performance and Activities The UK books and publishing industry relies on various market forces in order to maintain its dynamism; this can be attributed to its performance mainly on domestic sales, and then through the export and import volume and sales. 2.4.1 Domestic Market As previously mentioned, the consumer market mainly comprise of the industry’s domestic sales. Strong performance has been seen across sectors and categories, with positive developments in fiction as well as non-fiction books. Sales in fiction category experienced an average increase of 56% from 1998 to 2001, although non-fiction remains to have the significant market share (‘Books and Publishing – United Kingdom’, 2003). A number of market strategies have emerged in order to have the publishers improve their performance. It has been noted that UK has even adopted an American market strategy framework which includes book tours and taking advantage of the different media channels to increase exposure and promotion such as online book ordering promotions and book superstores (‘Book Publishing’, 2007). It can be observed that this has been apparent in the franchising sector in which UK fictional giant, the Harry Potter franchise, have further ventured into film and consumer products. In a way, books have established a force to create a peripheral market sector which relates the books to other relevant industries. However, the opposite takes place when classic British books such as J.R.R. Tolkiens’ The Lord of the Rings and C.S. Lewis’ The Chronicles of Narnia were made into movies, and because of the success of this channel, book sales for these works have also experienced a significant increase as this has become a promotional means in order to sell more books. Such strategy is not only felt in the UK domestic sector but also in other global sales as well. 2.4.2 Export Sales UK books are exported throughout the world and a cited increase of 4.4% was seen from 1998 to 2002. As per a Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) report, the export market is worth approximately  £1.4bn a year. However, UK’s main export competition comes from the United States, which also produces English-language books. Some exporting strategy can be also seen through the industry (‘Books and Publishing – United Kingdom’, 2003, p. 19): Although the worldwide Harry Potter phenomenon had a strong impact on exports, particularly over the 1999/2000 period, non-consumer publishing book sales were also a mainstay of export performance. English is the world language for titles in the scientific/technical/medical category and as such, the UK dominates the field internationally in terms of sales. For publishers of these kinds of texts exports can account for up to 60.0% of sales, particularly to the US, and it can be of great advantage for a publisher to have an American arm or to be part of an American-controlled group in terms of securing US rights of publication. In this case, despite the stiff competition with the US titles, UK books have also been performing fairly well in the United States; the UK mainly exports to the United States. In fact, UK has been the largest exporter of books to the United States books market. The performance of the UK publishers’ export sales are as follows (‘Books and Publishing – United Kingdom’, 2003): Publishers’ Export Sales: 1998-2001 (Euromonitor International: Country Market Insight) 2.4.3 Imports The UK also imports books from overseas markets such as the United States. Interestingly, Asian markets have been contributing significantly to UK book imports. The second largest imports, after the United States, come from Hong Kong, and the fourth largest market is Singapore; China too is also among the top sources, gaining the eighth import source position in 2001 (‘Books and Publishing – United Kingdom’, 2003). Interestingly, UK imports increases industry competition, with its value rising at 16.6% within the period 1998-2001. The following table shows the import value during this time period (‘Books and Publishing – United Kingdom’, 2003): Book Imports: 1998-2001 (Euromonitor International: Country Market Insight) 2.5 Publishing Companies Each of the three sectors of publishing in UK-newspapers, magazines and books- is dominated by around a dozen companies. Only a few companies are active in more than one sector. In fact, only Pearson PLC is involved in all three markets in a significant way. News Corporation, which publishes newspapers and which owns the book publisher Harper Collins too has entered the magazine market early in 2006. The UK publishing industry is still primarily UK owned. However, in the magazine market, there are several foreign-owned companies. These include the following: The Conde Nast Publications Ltd Hachette Filipacchi (UK) Ltd IPC Media Ltd The National Magazine Company Ltd The Readers Digest Association Ltd and VNU Business Publications Ltd. As indicated in Books and Publishing – United Kingdom 2003 The UK is not the home base of any major media player, such as Bertelsmann, Vivendi or AOL Time Warner. The regulations on media ownership make it easier for new entrants from abroad to establish a presence in the UK than for UK companies to substantially enlarge market share. Most of the major players in the book industry are owned by international multimedia publishing concerns, and therefore the most helpful form of comparison is to analyse leading publishing houses, and the results of the consolidated groups which own them. (‘Books and Publishing – United Kingdom’, 2003, p. 23) Thus, the books and publishing industry in the UK is characterised by a handful of global conglomerates or international companies, such as Reed Elsevier Group PLC, Pearson PLC, The Random House Group Ltd and Harper Collins Publishers Ltd. The leading publisher in the UK, HarperCollins, is a merger of British publisher William Collins Sons and Co Ltd. and the American publisher Harper Row. Today, HarperCollins is owned by the American media conglomerate, News Corp., although HarperCollins UK is the UK’s leading publishing house (Books and Publishing – United Kingdom’, 2003; ‘Harper Collins’, 2007). In the recent years, many other companies have been acquired and merged. For instance, in 2004 a major development was the acquisition of Hodder Headline from WH Smith by the French publisher Hachette Filipacchi in 2004. This merely added to further internationalisation of UK publishing. Hachette already owned Orion which further owned Weidenfeld Nicholson. This has lead it to become the UKs second-largest consumer book publisher. Macmillan and Random House are both owned by German companies. These main drivers of these developments have been the business strategies applied by these corporations. These strategies can be observed to be influenced by forces such as globalisation and certain deregulations when it comes to foreign operations. Besides these, other major publishers are Blackwell and the university presses of Oxford and Cambridge. The following table shows the leading publishers in the UK according to sales (Books and Publishing – United Kingdom’, 2003): Leading Publishers Ranked by Total Retail Sales 2001/2002 (Euromonitor International: Country Market Insight) 2.6 Employment By 2002, the books and publishing workforce, which also include employees in the printing sectors, were recorded at 352,000; according to the National Statistics, this figure was at 366,000 in 2001 (Books and Publishing – United Kingdom’, 2003; ‘Harper Collins’, 2007). In 2004, approximately 280,000 people were employed nationally and about 15% work part time. It has been cited that the books and publishing industry has not offered a very promising development to its workforce in terms of pay and employment confidence (Books and Publishing – United Kingdom’, 2003, p. 22): †¦ In a recent survey by Bookcareers.com, 66% of employees in the industry said that they had lost colleagues to redundancy. There is widespread discontent in the industry, particularly over the issue of pay. Levels of pay, especially for starting salaries, are notoriously low, particularly bearing in mind the level of education required for publishing work, and starting salaries can be as little as  £15,000 a year. Pay is a factor in most employees’ lives, particularly because most of UK publishing centres around London and the South East, where house prices are simply unaffordable for people earning average salaries in the industry. In addition to this, professional development does not sound as promising in this industry due to the lack of training initiatives and specific professional skills. Professionals in this industry are mostly managerial in nature. Hence, in terms of skills development, the demand has not been as impressive in this sector. It is therefore not as surprising that the number of employees in the industry has been discouraging in terms of rate, and employment has been also bleak due to redundancies. Total Employment in the Publishing Industry 1998-2002 (Euromonitor International: Country Market Insight) 2.7 Distribution In the past consumers were buying books through a variety of distribution channels such as large chain bookstores book clubs and independent and small chain bookstores, mass merchandisers, mail order, food and drug stores, discount stores, used books etc. The traditional bookshops have been losing their influence and as a result such booksellers have been also starting to fold up. The Internet is becoming one of the most active distribution channels for books and publications. Although the Internet does not have as much distribution share at this point, it continues to contribute significantly in this area as it also continues to increase as a highly-used distribution channel. Book retailers continue to dominate the product distribution; these retailers include chained retailers and independent bookshops. As compared to independent bookshops, in recent times, , bookshop chains are starting to increase its market grasp and influence (Books and Publishing – United Kingdom’, 2003). Another distribution source is through book clubs. The UK’s leading book club, BCA, combines to book club concept and its mail-to-order scheme, in addition to smaller subdivision of smaller book clubs. The book retail distribution trends have been presented in the following table: (Books and Publishing – United Kingdom’, 2003): Retail Distribution (Euromonitor International: Country Market Insight) It can be observed that there has been significant increase in sale through Internet and multiple (chained) booksellers whereas there has been a decrease in distribution through independent booksellers and book clubs/mail-to-order. 2.8 Major Trends and Developments The dynamism of the books and publishing industry in the UK can be determined by the key trends and developments that can eventually affect how the industry operates and performs. 2.8.1 Emerging Book Formats As previously mentioned, new formats such as e-books, CD-ROMs and audio books have now entered the market. Among the three, e-books have been creating a stir due to a number of reasons: it is in digital format that can be easily downloaded. What also works well with the emergence of e-books is the emergence of technologies.. For example, PDAs have now developed into small, handheld computers that can carry a substantial amount of data; e-books, which are usually in the PDF can be easily downloaded in PDAs and accessed through PDF reader (Microsoft Reader and Adobe Acrobat). Hence, people do not have to carry large books around as they can easily access them through their devices. As per the statistics from an online download source for public domain books, manybooks.net, PDF downloads have reached almost 140,000, not including the other electronic book formats such as eReader and RTF, and downloadable text in HTML format (Nagle, 2007). In any case, the number of downloads can reach hundreds of thousands, and this only includes books from one website and works within the public domain. Another popular source of free e-books is Project Gutenberg (Project Gutenberg, http://www.gutenberg.org/wiki/Main_Page) which claims to have over 2 million downloads every month. 2.8.2 Emerging Distribution Channels and Markets As discussed in the distribution channel section, the Internet is becoming to impress its influence among UK consumers; book sales online experienced an 11% growth in 2001 and continues to be significant till date. Although some online start-ups wanted to take advantage of the UK market, most of them were adversely affected by the dotcom bubble in the 1990s. Expectedly, Amazon.co.uk is the top online seller of books in the UK (Books and Publishing – United Kingdom’, 2003). 2.8.3 Developments in Technology and Concerns in Copyright and Production Technological developments have largely affected the books and publishing industry. As previously mentioned, technolo

1980s Essay -- essays research papers

This report is to inform you on the decade of the 1980s. People’s jobs, income, ideas, opinions changed so much from 1980 to 1989. Fewer Americans belonged to labor unions in the 1980s. In 1980 there were nearly 21 million union members; that number had declined to 17 million by 1985. The most important â€Å"aspect† of a job for the majority of Americans was a â€Å"feeling of accomplishment, beating out high pay by a better than 2 to 1 margin.† In the mid-Eighties, 88% of Americans said they were satisfied with their jobs. In spite of this, less than 40% expected to remain in their current job for more than five years. Most Americans didn't think it would be difficult to get another job. This â€Å"indicated general optimism† about the economy and the job market in the mid- and late-Eighties. In the late Forties, Americans went to the movies an average of at least twice a month, but by the 1980s, people only went to the movies an average of five times a year. About 67% of Americans attended a play or a live theater performance at least once a year, and 60% attended a concert or other musical performance. In the 1980s the majority of Americans believed sex education should be taught in public schools. 85% of people who voted were for this. That included 68% of all â€Å"born-again Christians†, 80% of Republicans, and 77% of â€Å"rural people†. One reason that people wanted sex education in schools was that Aids was causing a sense of panic among the general public. Also they felt that if sex education were not available there would be even more unwanted teenage pregnancies. A few years after the Supreme Court decision in Roe v Wade, 60% of Americans supported legalized abortions. But by the 1980s that had decreased to 50%. Some Americans compared abortion with murder, and felt that the fetus should have rights. On the other hand, some feared that if abortions weren't legal, more women would die from complications with illegal abortions. But most Americans said they could support a woman's decision to have an abortion if her life or mental health were in danger, or if she had been the victim of incest or rape. And while both Jimmy Carter and Ronald Reagan were opposed to abortion, and Supreme Court Chief Justice William Rehnquist's â€Å"goal† was to overturn Roe v Wade, three-fourths of all Americans were convinced that abortion would never be made illegal In 1981 there were 2,422,0... ...xually transmitted diseases, AIDS in particular. Of the 11 million cases of sexually transmitted diseases reported in America in 1987, only 15,000 were AIDS, while there were 500,000 cases of herpes and 1,800,000 cases of gonorrhea. However, since AIDS was 100% fatal, it was the main concern, and by that year, 50,000 Americans had contracted it, with 73% of these being homosexual or bisexual men, 17% intravenous drug users, and 4% heterosexuals. Only 6.6% of AIDS victims were female. In 1987 there were 63,542,000 children under the age of 18 in this country. Many lived with only one parent. A decade-long National Family Violence Survey revealed that severe violence against children was declining during the 1980s. This was due to tougher penalties against abusers, and the increased likelihood that child abuse would be reported   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  From 1987 to 1989 statistics showed that there was a slight change in employment rates, personal income, birth and death rates. This year was full of energy with new and exciting invention such as the car phone and better TVs and computer. Although AIDS is still a growing academic, research for finding a cure is still under way.

Causes and Consequences of the Deep Rooted Conflict among Hindus Buddhists and Muslims Essay

Religion is a deeply rooted aspect in mankind. Since the early civilizations, human beings have developed in such a way there is worship of deity beings. Though there are many aspects of religion, the act of common worship of these deities and practices is major. At most times, political and economic factors are to blame for conflicts around the world. However, some of the conflicts have been caused by religion. The differences in the worship of deities and the practices have from early civilizations resulted in quarrels and supremacy battles amongst the different religions. This document will review the causes and consequences of the deep-rooted conflict among three of the known worldwide religions namely Hindus, Buddhists, and Muslims. Causes Most of the religious conflicts among the Muslims, Buddhists and Hindus have resulted from the stance taken by each of the religions. These standpoints can be said to emanate from the texts used for reference in this case the scriptures by each of the religions. This in return has led to the rise of fundamentalists. The interpretation of the scriptures over the years has been done in such a way that each of the religions’ fundamentalists hold their scripture as the only authority with regard to the truth. For the Muslims, the Koran is their guide and the teachings of Muhammad are to be followed by all. For the Hindus, the worship of Gods and adhering to the teachings of the Vedas is the right form of religion. The Buddhists on the other hand will refer to the works of Buddha for guidance. The fundamental principles taken by each of the three religions is what has led to the unending conflict (Dressler & Arvind-pal, 201). Four major selection criteria result in the differences. One of them is faith. At most times, decisions that are made as a result of faith are determined by societal and cultural factors. This understanding is however not taken into consideration by the fundamentalists who determine faith by the virtue of the text used for reference. The Muslims belief is based on the Koran, which to them is the only true scripture. The Hindus on the other hand base their faith in the teachings of the Veras and Buddhists their belief in the teachings of Buddha. This difference results in conflict (Neville, 173). The other criterion that has led to the long spanning conflict by the three religions is on prophecies. For each of the religions, there are prophecies that are held dear by the followers. Deemed to be correct, the prophecies are used to validate the scriptures or reference books. The Muslims will not deem prophecies made by the Buddha or the Hindus’ seers revelations as correct and true. The Hindus will not believe Muhammad’s prophecies or those of Buddha. The Buddhists will not believe in neither the prophecies in the Koran or those proclaimed by Hindu seers, gurus or sages. This prophecy based differences have and will always culminate in conflicts (Dressler & Arvind-pal, 198). Morals are also a part of the selection criteria used by the three religions contributing to the deep-rooted conflicts. For each of the three religions, only their reference texts or the beings of their worship can dictate what is morally right. Everybody else is wrong. The Muslims will consider it immoral for a woman to go in public without a Burkha. This code of dressing in women is not stressed by the Hindus or Buddhists. For the Hindus, cows are sacred and should not be slaughtered. Buddhists on the other hand do not have strict or specific actions considered immoral but leaves it to individuals to judge themselves. Such differences in what to consider as a sin or wrong has continued to fuel the religious conflict (Dressler & Arvind-pal, 178). The last selection criterion that has fueled the wars between the Muslims, Buddhists and Hindus is on popularity. Each of the three religions wants to be more popular than the other, thus in most times, each of the groups feels threatened by the other. Muslims will fight any other religion apart from their own. This is reciprocated by the Buddhists and Hindus where each will want to dominate thus the never ending supremacy battles spiraling into conflicts (Neville, 120). Consequences The religious conflicts between Muslims, Hindus and Buddhists have negatively affected the society. One of the outcomes has been social instability in the affected regions. The constant attack of Buddhist temples and Mosques in India has affected the region. Religious conflicts have evolved and now act as automatic flashpoints for aggression and upset. Constant fights have and continue to break out among the three religions’ believers. In Myanmar, Indonesia there is constant violence between Buddhists and Muslim believers. This is also witnessed in Sri Lanka with a minority Muslim who are constantly attacked by Buddhist advocates. These happenings have led to violence related acts such as sex crimes and destruction of property, fueling instability further (Adian et al., 155). Loss of lives is also an outcome of religious conflicts. This is more evident in Asia, where most of the conflicts have occurred. In India, communal rioting in 1949 between the Hindus and Muslims resulted in deaths. In 1992, there was an eruption of riots all over the country which led to the killing of thousands of Muslim faiths. In Mumbai, there was loss of lives when the Bodh Gaya, a revered Buddhist site was bombed (Adian et al., 180). Conclusion As long as there will be different religions, each with its own practices and teachings, the human world will always be locked in religion conflicts. Striking a balance where Muslims, Hindus and Buddhists all come together is impossible. The presence of the fundamentalists believing and preaching the righteousness of their own religion will always cause conflicts. References Adian, Donny G, and Gadis Arivia.  Relations between Religions and Cultures in Southeast Asia: Indonesian Philosophical Studies, I. Washington, D.C: Council for Research in Values and Philosophy, 2009. Print. Dressler, Markus, and Arvind-pal S. Mandair.  Secularism and Religion-Making. New York: Oxford University Press, 2011. Internet resource. Neville, Robert C.  Religion in Late Modernity. Albany: State University of New York Press, 2002. Internet resource. Source document

computer science essays

computer science essays Computer science is one of the fastest growing career fields in modern history. Dating back only a few decades to the late 1950s and early 1960s, it has become one of the leading industries in the world today. Developed through the technological architecture of electrical engineering and the computational language of mathematics, the science of computer technology has provided considerable recognition and financial gain for many of its well deserving pioneers. Originally conceived as an organizational solution to the massive amounts of information kept on nothing more than paper, computers have evolved and advanced to become a common part of modern day life. In the early days of the computers age, the newest and most complex computers took up no less than an entire building or very large room. It was inconceivable that these machines would after only about fifty years be many times more powerful and small enough to be held with tweezers With the introduction of miniature circuitry and transistors, the days of vacuum tubes and computers that filled entire buildings are long gone and the centerpiece of the todays computer industry is the CPU, one of the modern marvels of science and technology. It is essentially the brain of the computer and though it is the main determining factor in the processing power of the computer as a whole, many other parts of the machine are just as important in overall performance. Many people dont know this and that is how computer corporations have cheated people out of their money for so many years by selling them cheap systems with high megahertz numbers for the processors in them. This is one reason for the success of the computer industry. When people find out that they have been cheated, they will try to ...

Juridical and Juridicial

Juridical and Juridicial Juridical and Juridicial Juridical and Juridicial By Maeve Maddox Peter Ki asks: Whats the difference between juridical process and juridicial process? My first reaction to the question was juridicial isnt even a word! However, juridicial is a word and a Google search brought up several thousand uses of it, although the list of hits was headed by Googles little red Did you mean: followed by the word juridical. The OED acknowledges the existence of juridicial with this curt entry: a. Relating to the legality of an action.  Ã‚  b. = JURIDICAL Merriam-Webster, on the other hand, doesnt even have an entry for juridicial, My conclusion is that juridicial means the same thing as juridical, so, unless lawyers attach some specialized meaning to juridicial, Id go with juridical. A juridical process is a process determined by law. Juridical differs from judicial. The adjective juridical means relating to the administration of the law. The adjective judicial means relating to courts of law or judges. We can talk about the judicial system (the organization of courts and judges) or a judicial decision (one made by a judge). We can talk about a juridical interpretation of an action (strictly according to the law) or a juridical system (a body of laws by which a state or organization is governed). Then theres the word judicious which, although derived from the same origin as the legal terms, is a word for general use. A judicious person has sound judgment. Its to be hoped that judges will hand down judicious decisions from the bench, but theyre not the only ones who can be judicious. Careful shoppers can make judicious decisions about what to spend their money on. Want to improve your English in five minutes a day? Get a subscription and start receiving our writing tips and exercises daily! Keep learning! Browse the Vocabulary category, check our popular posts, or choose a related post below:The Royal Order of Adjectives Time Words: Era, Epoch, and Eon50+ Words That Describe Animals (Including Humans)

Criminal Law Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words - 6

Criminal Law - Essay Example rtunity for the federal government to pursue and pressure criminals and terrorists this is one of the effective ways of ejecting criminals including drug dealers and terrorists among others out of their cocoons. Because the Patriot Act is not just confined to the pursuit of terrorists, its focus on other areas of crime makes it an effective tool in dealing with crime in general. The government needs no court approval in order to summon a suspected computer or internet criminal. In the age of technology, with no effective anti-crime legislation such as the Patriot Act, a society is bound to crumble as criminals take control. Because the Patriot Act overrides the civil rights of individuals, the government is at liberty to obtain information about suspected individuals thus it is in a position to uncover and apprehend risky individuals. The act creates the possibility of aborting terrorists’ plans before they are actually executed, thus making it an effective tool for fighting terrorism. Though the Act is effective, the government should come up with an initiative in which every individual is expected to know at least ten neighbors and report any strange behavior of their neighbors as soon as they

CHILDHOOD OBESITY Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

CHILDHOOD OBESITY - Research Paper Example I. Parents fear the intervening in their child’s life regarding food and eating would result in their losing their child’s love and appreciation. A. Parents need to realize that their child’s health issue needs to be identified and confronted. B. This intervention should be done by the parents since they are the ones whom the child can trust and gain support from. II. Some parents feel that their overweight children will grow out of their weight problems as the years go by. A. Children normally gain weight throughout their early years of childhood because it is a necessary part of the growth process. B. However we cannot depend on the child’s routine growth spurts to compensate for the child’s weight problem. III. Some parents feel that their child may seem overweight based on growth charts but it is not really a weight problem since everyone in their family is ‘big boned’. A. Focus should be on the growth and body mass index charts. B. One cannot rationalize the overweight issue of a child. IV. Parents are responsible to adapt healthy meals and exercise routines to help their children to lead healthy lifestyles. Parents should therefore lead by example. Childhood obesity is one of the leading healthcare issues facing children and adolescents in America today. Nearly 10% of children below 2 years and 21% of children between the ages of 2 and 5 years are classified as being overweight for his or her age and height (Ogden et. al., 242). Childhood obesity has been found to be more prevalent among non-Hispanic black and Hispanic preschool-aged children compared to non-Hispanic white children (Anderson et. al., 344). The extra pounds in children often lead to health issues that were once common among adults like diabetes, high blood pressure and high cholesterol. Childhood obesity can also lead to poor self esteem and depression in children. Although a lot has been blamed on television food advertising (Mehta, 535), sp ending too much time in front of the T.V. or computer, lack of exercise and proper nutrition, one cannot ignore the fact that parents are ultimately responsible for the health of their child and they need to set examples and encourage their children to choose a healthier lifestyle. Some parents do not agree with this idea because they maintain that their children should grow up being independent and have the freedom to choose what they want to eat or what they want to do. They claim that if they intervene in their child’s life regarding food and eating, it could make matters worse or lose their child’s love and appreciation (Natenshon, 2). They also fear that they may interfere with their child’s privacy and developing autonomy by stepping in to rectify an eating problem in the making. However, parents need to recognize that their child’s health issue cannot be resolved unless and until it is identified and confronted. And who better to do it than someone whom they can trust and gain support from – the parents! In fact, some health care professionals also believe that parents should not be involved in their child’s treatment for eating disorders. They express concern about the issues of separation/individuation and the need for protecting the child’s privacy. But this stance too frequently blinds them to the need to educate and guide parents through family therapy, where they become mentors to their child and provide a supportive environment to their child to assist in the recovery process. These professionals must understand that the most successful separation takes place through healthy bonding between parents and children. Studies have shown that working with parents to prevent obesity in the early years can place young children on a lifelong trajectory toward