Academic Paper Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3000 words

Academic Paper - Essay Example It can be seen in factors such as business performance, integrity levels, fairness and involvement of the local community. Even after ensuring that all these are in place, a company is always at the mercy of the public and any kind of deviation results in a drop in corporate credibility. Toyota Motors Corporation has over the years built a world class corporate reputation by putting emphasis in quality, design excellence, customer focus as well as constant improvement in its manufacturing and operation processes. This has brought many benefits including customer loyalty and increased market share. The 2009 recall however strained this brand by bringing in quality concerns in the vehicles. This treatise will rely on impact of persuasive information in the forming of opinions to demonstrate that Toyota Motors Corporation’s corporate reputation was compromised by the recall. This is done by looking at buyers’ opinion on several media platforms such as newspapers, newswires, forums, auto blogs and online

Business Plan Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Business Plan - Essay Example Whether you want to start a small consulting business or start selling accessories, you need money to get the business started and operate it until the business is profitable (Attard, ). Finding the money to start your business may be a bit difficult; however, there are ways for you to obtain the cash you need. One way to obtain the cash you need to start your business is to get a part-time job. Savings from working a part time job can add up and in some cases, also many business owners start out by sharing their business time with a part time job. In order to save on money, you can start your business from home. In fact, most successful business owners started out from their home. Later on when the business begin to pick up you may find a suitable location. To save money to start your business you may have to live frugally at times. Living frugally does not mean that you have to starve yourself. It means that you do not have to buy everything you see just for buying sake. In order t o save effectively, you need to buy the necessary things. Another way to save to start your business is by applying for use of a credit card. A credit card is a loan given by a financial institution. The owner of a credit card has in his or her possession whatever amount the financial institution allows them to use with the expectation that they repay back the amount. Banks and other financial institutions often help new entrepreneurs to start their business by giving them business loans to do so. However, most financial institutions require that their customers have enough security to cover for the loan. If you are unable to find the necessary security that is required, you may seek the help of friends or family members to co-sign for you. By co-signing for you friends or family members will use their own assets to secure a loan on your behalf. Most ways persons get capital to start their small business is by borrowing from friends and family members. Unlike financial institutions, when you borrow from friends or family members you may not need to pay them back with interest. Money left as inheritance is another way by which many persons get capital to start their small business. When a person starts a small business through the means of inherited money, he or she does not have anyone to pay back and so the stress of saving for repayment purposes is out of the way. Another way of obtaining capital to start your small business is by using your insurance policy to do so. Life insurance polices that has cash value can be cashed in at any time and this cash used to start your business. If you own stocks and bonds, you can easily turn them into cash and use this money to start your business. In fact, sacrificing your stocks and bonds for your business may prove more profitable for you in the end. After you have your capital taken care of, the first step is to write a business plan. Why must you write a business plan? The reason being is that it is best to have a p lan to follow. Without a business plan to follow, your business may be doom for failure. A business plan should have an executive summary, a description of the business, a plan for how you will market and manage your business, financial projections and the necessary business support documents. In the body of your business plan must consist of a description of the type of business that you are desirous of starting. A marketing plan by which to follow closely is very essential for the success of your

Black Soul Of The 1960s Music Essay

Black Soul Of The 1960s Music Essay In the early 1960s before the British invasion black soul music, Doo wop, Motown and RB dominated the American audiences. The 1960s saw the civil rights movement. In 1963, a march on Washington saw the passing of the civil rights act of 1964 which outlawed discrimination in public accommodations and employment. This followed with the assassination of Malcolm X and Martin Luther King, spurring riots in 125 US cities in 1968, coinciding with the civil rights act of 1968. The 1960s saw Billboard change the name of its RB chart to Soul, but the term Soul had been used as a label since the mid 50s. It had its beginnings in the 1950s when Ray Charles exploited the gospel sound to create fusions of black religious and RB music with songs such as I got a woman based on the gospel song My Jesus is all the World. Sam Cooke also contributed a great deal to Soul. Cooke produced an almost unbroken sequence of hits from 1957 to 1964, the year of his death his music gave proof that anything was possible. This influenced artists who would later become global black Soul performers such as Aretha Franklin, The Falcons and James Brown. Groups such as The Angels, The Shirelles and The Righteous Brothers helped to popularize the music as mainstream. For much of the 1960s soul could be seen as the umbrella term for black popular music, which dominated American audiences in the early to mid 1960s. However one of the biggest success stories was the Detroit based Motown, which could be seen as pop soul which gave fame to names such as Diana Ross, Gladys Knight and Smokey Robinson. Tamla Motown was created by Berry Gordy Jr and although the stars were all black, you couldnt fully define it as black music as the intent was to make music palatable to white audiences. Gordy was also known to have controlled the performing styles and clothes in a way to prepare them for the wider mainstream audience. Amongst the most successful of his artist was Marvin Gaye, who was the first to take his artistic control over his recordings and repertoire. The East Coast DooWop and girl groups also made a contribution to African-American music during the 1960s. They were singers and groups whose origins were found on the street corners in the form of cappella groups found in many urban centres. With very rare exceptions, these groups did not write their own songs, but relied on their handlers to set up the recording sessions, pick the material, and produce the records. In fact, many of these behind-the-scenes people eventually became stars in their own right in the seventies. The influence of Doo Wop can be seen in soul music through groups such as William Robinsons, The Miracles who started a Doo Wop group whilst at school. White popular music of the UK developed into one of the most leading musics in the world. Through the 1950s there existed a barely understood American style. Rock and Roll. At the beginning of 1960 American pop music continued to set the patterns of the native musical efforts in the UK. The US contribution to the British charts was large and extremely important At this point- the twist was in full swing, Chubby Checker, Elvis Presley and Jerry Lee Lewis dominated the British charts. After rock and roll, Britain returned to its traditional values with the likes of Cliff Richard and Living Doll which brought mums and dads along as well. For a short while in Britain at the end of the 1950s into the early 60s there was a revival of American Skiffle, made popular by Skiffle artist, Lonnie Donegan. Skiffle was the first attempt undertaken to appropriate American popular music. It was a growing interest in rural and urban blues. Many of these interests involved a conservative nostalgia for the authentic of some imagined yesteryear. Skiffle would later influence John Lennon and Paul Mcartney in their first band The Quarrymen and The Beatles. We can also see the influence of African American artists through British RB which developed as a major musical movement in the early 1960s, initially in London, but also in other urban centres in the UK, as predominately young white male musicians attempted to emulate the style and recordings of African American RB artists. We can see this influence through The Rolling Stones. Muddy Waters used song extension to transform 1940s Chicago Blues. This was achieved by reviving repertoire he had learnt and increasing amplification. 15 years later The Stones and subsequently Cream and Canned Heat followed his example in substance as well as spirit by themselves drawing from the same source. Thus The Stones recorded I Just want to make love to you and I cant be Satisfied. Blues songs and influences continued to surface in the Rolling Stones music throughout their long career. Cream made versions of the delta blues and Canned Heat took their inspiration from the delta bluesman Tommy Johnson. This song copying tradition played a big role in the pop music.- All these African American influences such as Skiffle, RB and Soul along with white American Rock and Roll gave way to Beat music or the Merseybeat. Bands who defined this genre were largely the Beatles but also Hermans Hermits and Gerry and the Pacemakers, to name a few. In Walter Everetts The Beatles as Musicians he describes their compositional style as imitations of buddy holly and RB techniques practised by the witty guitarist Chuck Berry, the energetic Little Richard, and the humorous and skilful coasters After the large success of the Merseybeat in the UK, it transformed over to the US led by The Beatles on the 7th of February 1964. This would be then followed by other beat, pop and rock groups. Among the most successful bands in the genre were the Rolling Stones, The Yardbirds, The Kinks, Manfred Mann, The Animals, the Spencer Davis Group and The Who. Many of these bands dominated the UK and US charts from 1964, becoming a second wave of British Invasion acts in the US, and in the UK were central to the Mod subculture. Several of the bands and their members went on to become leading rock music performers of the late 1960s and early 1970s, helping to create sub-genres that included psychedelic, progressive and hard rock and making RB a key component of that music. However the British Invasion ended careers of black artists such as chubby checker and fats domino with only a handful surviving such as the Motown artists. However soul music did remain popular through evolved forms such as Funk which can be associated to James Brown. This later developed into Funk and Soul influenced by Phychedelic Rock. A good example would be the band Sly and the Family Stone and their album Stand! who were successful. However groups such as The Miracles and The Supremes found it hard to keep up with the changing trends and could never recover. Black music charted a musical path different from white rock. Although much black music crossed over to the pop charts, black performers did not share common ground with their white counterparts.-

Drug Abuse Essays -- Illegal Drugs Addiction

Drug abuse is a widespread problem that makes individual drug users the prime victims. But drugs also affect all of us, wherever we live and whatever we do. Drug abuse can cause serious physical and mental deterioration. The problem can tear apart the family structure and make it hard for learning. Difficulties on the job due to drug abuse make it hard for employers to run their businesses. Stealing form employers or from individuals to get money from for drugs causes pain and economic loss to the victims. Arrests and jailing of drug users and dealers puts a strain on law enforcement officials and the criminal justice systems; the cost to taxpayers is enormous. The millions of dollars spent on illegal drugs in America encourage criminal activity and ribs the government of tax revenues. For all these reasons and many more the subject of drug about is extremely important. As a way of considering this vast subject, experts have classified the drugs according to their primary effects on the bay. Thus, the eight basic drugs classifications are: antidepressants, anti-anxiety tranquilizers, anti-psychotic tranquilizer, cannabis, hallucinogens, narcotics, sedative/hypnotics, and stimulants. Antidepressant drugs are substances that improve a person’s mood and are commonly used in the treatment of depression. Depression is a psychiatric problem that is characterized by a loss of interest in the most aspects of life, a slowing-down of activity, a feeling of worthlessness, and sometim...

Perceptual Process

Perceptual Process The perceptual process is the sequence of psychological steps that a person uses to organize and interpret information from the outside world. The steps are: * Objects are present in the world. * A person observes. * The person uses  perception  to select objects. * The person organizes the perception of objects. * The person interprets the perceptions. * The person responds. The selection, organization, and interpretation of perceptions can differ among different people (Figure 0).Therefore, when people react differently in a situation, part of their behavior can be explained by examining their perceptual process, and how their perceptions are leading to their responses. Perceptual Selection Perceptual selection is driven by internal and external  factors. Internal factors include: * Personality – Personality traits influence how a person selects perceptions. For instance, conscientious people tend to select details and external stimuli to a greater d egree. Motivation – People will select perceptions according to what they need in the moment. They will favor selections that they think will help them with their current needs, and be more likely to ignore what is irrelevant to their needs. * Experience – The patterns of occurrences or associations one has learned in the past affect current perceptions. The person will select perceptions in a way that fits with what they found in the past. External factors include: * Size – A larger size makes it more likely an object will be selected. Intensity – Greater intensity, in brightness, for example, also increases perceptual selection. * Contrast – When a perception stands clearly out against a background, there is a greater likelihood of selection. * Motion – A moving perception is more likely to be selected. * Repetition – Repetition increases perceptual selection. * Novelty and familiarity – Both of these increase selection. When a perception is new, it stands out in a person's experience. When it is familiar, it is likely to be selected because of this familiarity. Perceptual OrganizationAfter certain perceptions are selected, they can be organized differently. The following factors are those that determine perceptual organization: * Figure-ground – Once perceived, objects stand out against their background. This can mean, for instance, that perceptions of something as new can stand out against the background of everything of the same type that is old. * Perceptual grouping – Grouping is when perceptions are brought together into a pattern. * Closure – This is the tendency to try to create wholes out of perceived parts.Sometimes this can result in error, though, when the perceiver fills in unperceived information to complete the whole. * Proximity – Perceptions that are physically close to each other are easier to organize into a pattern or whole. * Similarity – Similarit y between perceptions promotes a tendency to group them together. * Perceptual Constancy – This means that if an object is perceived always to be or act a certain way, the person will tend to infer that it actually is always that way. Perceptual Context – People will tend to organize perceptions in relation to other pertinent perceptions, and create a context out of those connections. Each of these factors influence how the person perceives their environment, so responses to their environment can be understood by taking the perceptual process into account. ANOTHER DEFINITION Perception is a process consisting of several sub-processes. We can take an input-throughput-output approach to understand the dynamics of the perceptual process.This approach emphasizes that there is input, which is processed and gives output. The stimuli in the environment – subjects, events, or people –   can be considered as the perceptual inputs. The actual transformation of th ese inputs through the perceptual mechanisms of selection, organization, and interpretation can be treated as the throughputs , and the resultant opinions, feelings, attitudes, etc, which ultimately influence our behavior, can be viewed as the perceptual outputs.

Ideas for Young Activists

Transparency International, 2014 Philippines: A Million New Inspectors About 1 million boy and girl scouts in Philippines have counted textbooks and conducted quality inspections throughout the country. Working hand-in-hand with government and non-government agencies, the programmer discourages theft of textbooks and helps promote long-term transparency in the country schools.The Department of Education provided an open door to programmer organizers, including access to budget information, contracts, and delivery points, as well as providing inspection sites. Local organizations and volunteers that include schoolchildren also carry out the monitoring – including surprise inspections – during the textbook production process. The programmer has proved successful at reducing corruption In the textbook distribution process. India: I Paid a Bribe On www. Liberated. Com. Citizens can report their experiences of corruption.The site received almost 22,500 reports between 2010 a nd 2012, some of which were kicked up by the media and resulted in arrests and convictions. On the flipped, citizens can also report positive experiences they've had with honest officers. Solomon Islands: Comics against Corruption The Solomon Islands government, in partnership with Transparency Solomon Islands, ran a programmer that used comic-style posters and comic strips in newspapers to increase awareness of corruption in the country. It encouraged Solomon Islanders to say â€Å"Nap Ana! To corruption by reporting anyone they believe to be involved In corrupt practices. The comic was timed to coincide with International Ann-corruption Day on 9 December. Each comic told the story of average Solomon Islanders In everyday situations, and how their lives can be deeply affected by seemingly simple acts of corruption. The campaign covered the topics of bribery, favoritism, misuse of funds and what you can do to stop corruption. The series of anti-corruption comics ran in all three of Solomon Islands' major newspapers – and was even available as a pull-out poster insert in the Solomon Star.Afghanistan: Kabuki's Corruption Marathon Afghan youth Atari Equatorial uses marathons to fight corruption. He sees sport as the best way to spread awareness among Afghan youth, so he organized his first big marathon against corruption. The team was able to gather around 500 young Afghan boys and girls In one of Kabuki's many dusty streets. Their message was loud and clear: â€Å"Don't pay or accept bribes†. The participants did not run a long distance, but a large crowd noticed the group. Strider also involved local radio stations in his outreach helped them convey their message to an even larger audience.India: The â€Å"Zero Rupee† Movement The â€Å"zero rupee† note was created by an Indian physics professor who was harassed by endless extortion demands. He handed out the â€Å"zero rupee† notes as a polite way of saying â€Å"no† to officials who held out their hands. Printed on the note was â€Å"Eliminate Corruption at all levels† and â€Å"l promise to neither accept nor give a bribe†. When a corrupt official suggests to a citizen that they should pay a bribe to get something done, the citizen can hand over the â€Å"zero rupee† note and its effects have taken hold.The Indian MONGO 5th Pillar has now distributed more than 1 million bills in five languages since 2007. Solomon Islands: Clean Election Pledge A group of young volunteers established the â€Å"Clean Election Campaign† in the Solomon Islands. Their approach was to gather voter pledges, each being a promise to not take part in corrupt activities during that year's election. Their pledge states: â€Å"l pledge that I will reject all bribes. I will not accept any false promises. I will not sell my vote. I will not involve myself in any corrupt activities during, before and after the elections.And also I pledge that I wi ll use my full conscience to decide on my vote and ask God to help me to decide my vote. And I pledge that I will only vote for an honest leader. † Kenya: Mapping the Election Jacuzzi is an open-source platform designed to courseware information via SMS and online messaging and appears on an interactive map. Pioneered in Kenya after the fall-out of the deadly 2008 elections, the website had 45,000 users in Kenya reporting on both instances of electoral fraud and acts of integrity during the following presidential elections.Activists launched the platform to courseware data via Twitter, SMS, Android, e-mail and the web. More than 4,500 reports were cast – and a staggering 58 per cent of these claims have been verified. The findings were referred to by Jenny's electoral commission and international media. Venezuela: Tweeting the Election Twitter is a simple way to monitor elections with your friends and community. Use or create a credible twitter name so that fellow tweet ers know whom to contact for details on election monitoring. Design a washrag so that voters tweeting claims of election fraud are streamlined (e. #Pomegranate or #Cafeteria). In Venezuela, civil society organizations came together to cast a watchful eye on the national elections via Twitter. They received tweets – including photos – from around the country to gather data on election violations at the polling stations through several hostage. They received more than 1,000 tweets claiming electoral fraud. These strategies do you think be the most effective in dealing with corruption? Choose two and explain why. 3. What other strategies do you think local people could use to deal with corruption in their government?