Laozi Essays - Taoism, Laozi, Tao Te Ching, Tao, Chinese Philosophy

Laozi Laozi created Daoism, a well-known Chinese philosophy, but very little is known about his mysterious figure. It is said the he was born in the province of Henan in 570BCE (Encarta). Before becoming a philosopher, he worked as a court librarian at the imperial court. He also went by the name Lao-Tzu, which means Old Master. Very little is known about Laozis early life, but he is credited with creating Daoism and writing the Daode Jing, the most widely translated Chinese text. Laozis strong opinions and eccentric beliefs would lead to the formation of Daoism. Laozi overcame many obstacles before gaining followers. His wise council attracted followers, but he refused to set his ideas down in writing. He believed that written words might solidify into formal dogma (Internet 5). Laozi wanted his philosophy to remain a natural way to live life with goodness, serenity and respect. At age 80 he set out toward what is now Tibet, saddened and disillusioned that people were unwilling to follow his path to natural goodness (Grolier). Legend says Laozi set off into the desert on a water buffalo leaving civilization behind (Internet 5). When he arrived at the final gate at the great wall protecting the kingdom, the gatekeeper persuaded him to record the principles of his philosophy for posterity. The result was the Daode Jing. This ancient Chinese classic was translated more than any other book ever; except for the Bible (Internet 6). Laozi gained many followers after writing the Daode Jing. Laozi saw past everyday worries to focus on the dao, or the way of the universe as a whole (Ellis 91). The Daode Jing teaches that the dao is realized through recognition and acceptance of nothingness. Laozi thought that by doing nothing one could accomplish everything. He did not mean to literally do nothing, but to discern and follow the natural forces (Internet 6). First and foremost to be spontaneous in ones actions. He laid down no rigid code for behavior. He believed a person's conduct should be governed by instinct and conscience. Laozi believed that human life, like everything else in the universe, is constantly influenced by outside forces. He believed simplicity to be the key to truth and freedom. Laozi encouraged his followers to observe, and seek to understand the laws of nature; to develop intuition and build up personal power; and to use that power to lead life with love, and without force (Internet 5). Laozis teachings allowed fellow Daoists to have interesting views on the natural world. Laozis legacy will live on forever. His beliefs and opinions about the world as a whole are like none others. Scholars continue to study his teachings and find out more about this mysterious individual. Daoism will always remain one of the most interesting philosophies. Philosophy

How to Get More Traffic From Every Post

How to Get More Traffic From Every Post by Noah Kagan, Chief Sumo at SumoMe.com (free tools to grow your website traffic) Traffic can feel a bit like catch-22. You need people to share your posts but if you have no traffic there’s no one to share At the start of 2014, I decided to prioritize my email list and grow my blog from a small side project to one of the top marketing blogs. In less than a year, traffic grew by more than 400%! Today, I want to show you 10 actionable strategies you can use to grow your own blog’s traffic each time you publish a new post.How to Get More Traffic From Every Post (Plus How OkDork Grew Traffic 400% In 8 Months)  @noahkagan1- Start Building And Prioritizing Your Email List Growing your email list is an amazingly vicious cycle. You get subscribers, email them when an article goes live, they go read it and then share it with people. Then those people subscribe and the cycle delightfully continues. But, to build an email list you have to ask for visitors email addresses. The easiest way to do that is to use plugins for your blog. I use the SumoMe plugin (built by AppSumo) and the apps List Builder and Scroll Box. The tools will help you start building an email list without any technical knowledge. (Scroll Box is a great way to ask engaged readers to sign up towards the end of a postyou can set it to appear only after someone has read 50% or 75% of your post.) The blog is a great example of what you should be doing if you want to build an email list. Each blog post there is a chance to sign up at the top and in the middle of the post. They also have a pop-up that has a persuasive offer to first time or one-off visitors Now, if you had to pick only one place to ask for emails, where would you ask? It’s not in a pop-up or a scroll box: it’s your homepage. Before 2014, my homepage included links to recent blog posts, archives, and the menu bar. After using heatmaps, I removed all of the distractions and left visitors with only 1 option: Now my most trafficked page is also my #1 email address generator. If you’re serious about growing your email list, make it extremely simple for each visitor to give you their email address. Pro tip: How To Turn Your Blog Readers Into Paying Customers 2- Be Part Of A Community I got involved in two key communities for marketers: GrowthHackers and Inbound.org. Before asking for anything from these communities, I did my best to spend time where my readers are, add value, comment in the forums, share articles and upvote other posts (not just OkDork posts). Being part of these communities helped pinpoint what posts our target audience (other marketers) wanted to read, the common elements of the most liked/upvoted posts, and made it more natural to ask for help promoting OkDork content. As a result, by mid-2014 GrowthHackers and Inbound.org were the two largest referring sites to OkDork. Engage your readers (or customers) where they are already spending time. Respond to their questions, suggest resources, add value every time you login or visit the site. Find a forum, sub-reddit, or a similar site that carries your target audience, become part of the community, add value back, and then begin to submit your own high-quality content. Pro Tip: 50% Places To Repurpose Your Content 3- Publish Long Content Arguably the biggest change that brought traffic to OkDork was reaching out to writers who had lots of marketing data that could be put into long form content. Why? Because the content was outrageously good and exactly what our target audience/community wanted. In fact, the majority of viral articles are over 3,000+ words and explore a single topic in depth. The longer the post the most shares it got. (Plus each guest writer notified their own email list and shared the post on Twitter which brought additional targeted traffic to OkDork.) Although it may be tempting to write lots of short content or to ask guest writers to write short posts, set your standards high and publish long content that contains more of what your audience wants. Take note of the posts that get lots of share within your community and make sure you do the same with each post. If your community is data driven include 10x as many statistics or if they are image driven add 10x more images than usual. Pro Tip: 5 Things That Will Change Your Mind About Long Form Content Marketing 4- Build An Inner Circle In May 2014, I put together a list of 15 to 20 friends, colleagues, fans that a) wanted to help me and b) were already enjoying the content on the blog. This â€Å"Inner Circle† or â€Å"Insiders List† reviewed upcoming posts and provided an early traffic boost to new posts - often by sharing it 24 to 48 hours before the post was sent out by email to my main list. Here’s the first email I sent to the Inner Circle: To build your own â€Å"Inner Circle† first list out: Interesting people within the community you are a part of; Customers/readers who provide constructive feedback; People who regularly send you the best articles or resources; Any people connected to special sites or channels you want to be on; And a few influencers who seem too good to be true. After you have the list, send an email like the one above that explains why they were selected, what the list is, and what they’ll get. Offer them a way out so that you’re not spamming people each week. Once you have their permission send an email from your personal account once a week or once every two weeks with a link to the latest blog post. It’s also important to occasionally help your Inner Circle with whatever they are working on. 5- Post On Popular Aggregate Sites In the past, when a new post was live on OkDork I occasionally shared it on a few sub-reddits or a community site like GrowthHackers. There was no system and in the busyness of running a blog, there were times when it wasn’t shared at all. To solve this two things happened: I developed an â€Å"Inner Circle† (above) Created a checklist of the top aggregate sites that referred traffic in the past. The checklist helped me see which aggregate sites and sub-reddits had not yet posted the article. Most of the time the Inner Circle took care of sharing it on their favorite sites, but if a site was missing it was easy to remember to add it or reach out to someone I knew was active in that particular community or site. To create your own checklist list out the top sites/groups/sub-reddits where your customers/visitors spend time. 6-   Make Images and Posts Easy to Share As traffic grows on your site, one of the most obvious ways to help it along is to make it easy to share the content on multiple channels. If a visitor has to copy the link, create a new email, and then share it you’ll only have a few people sharing the article. Again does an awesome job at this with its floating social icons on the left of each post and with an image sharing plugin to make sharing images easier. On OkDork I added the Share plugin to so that on each post people can easily share it on the usual channels Twitter, Facebook, Google+ and LinkedIn. The plugin also offers a bunch of other services like Evernote, Amazon Wishlist, Digg, and plain ol’ email. I’m convinced that great long form content gets shares 1) because great content and 2) everyone wants their friends to think they read an indepth article whether they actually read it or not so make sure it’s as easy as possible to share! Pro Tip: Where Is The Best Place To Put Social Media Buttons On Your Blog 7- Repromote Your Old Content Repromoting old content was one of the easiest ways to grow traffic on OkDork. Every two months, we used Google Analytics to find content that hadn’t been visited over a certain threshold in the previous three months. (That threshold should vary depending on your own site.) Then we scheduled each post to reshare it on Twitter, Facebook, Google+, LinkedIn, etc. over the next three months. The advantage of this is you don’t have to do much work (no creativity required). You can also repromote and schedule content you just posted as well. Here’s a simple graphic from to show you how: Pro Tip: How Promote Your Blog With Social Media (And Double Your Traffic) 8- Quotes In my most popular posts (most shared and organic search), I added quotes throughout. While this had a smaller impact on overall traffic than some of the other methods, it is a more organic way to ask someone to share the post. When you select the best quotes from an article you make it easier to read, share, and re-share. As you repromote old content, you’ll also see an uptick in the number of shares. If you’re not already, you should be using the Plugin to make tweeting selections of your blog post a breeze. SumoMe also offers a highlighter that allows a user to â€Å"† their own selections. It’s a nice complement to the plugin. 9- Send The Highlights Of Each Post In An Email By now the tactics are getting really easy†¦but this is an important one. One of the biggest contributors to traffic came through the email list, but we found a simple way to drive traffic and get a boost in click through rates: making it easier and sexier to click through. Emails announcing a new blog post tend to do one of three things: Mention 1 new post and include a lead paragraph Link out to multiple new posts each with a lead paragraph Include an entire post in the email The first two aren’t terribly convincing- the meat of an article is almost never in the first paragraph! And the third option provides 0 reasons to actually click through and visit the site (meaning no additional traffic). Beginning this past summer, when an OkDork goes out it mentions only 1 new post and breaks out the 3 of the most valuable insights. It’s extremely simple (example below) and doubled click through rate from an average of ~5-6% to ~12-15%. Spend time figuring out what is most valuable to your audience and include those highlights in the email. Pro Tip: 5 Easy Lead Conversion Tips For Your Email Marketing Program 10- Publish on a Regular Schedule The other thing I did was create a calendar that we followed closely to make sure that new posts were going out every week and we didn’t fall behind. If you’re reading this on you already know that publishing regularly is critical to traffic. Not only does it help you be consistent, it creates a healthy expectation within your community and for your readers. A regular schedule made all of the other 9 strategies above doubly effective. In fact, if you’re not publishing regularly or at least with a consistent rhythm many of the tactics above will fall flat or produce few results. Pro Tip: Start A Free Trial Of Now

The United States Economy in World War I

The United States Economy in World War I When war broke out in Europe in the summer of 1914, a sense of dread rippled through the American business community. So great was the fear of contagion from tumbling European markets that the New York Stock Exchange was closed for more than three months, the longest suspension of trade in its history. At the same time, businesses could see the enormous potential the war might bring to their bottom lines. The economy was mired in recession in 1914, and the war quickly opened up new markets for American manufacturers. In the end, World War I set off a 44-month period of growth for the United States and solidified its power in the world economy. A War of Production  Ã‚   World War I was the first modern mechanized war, requiring vast amounts of resources to equip and provision massive armies and provide them with the tools of combat. The shooting war was dependent on what historians have termed a parallel â€Å"war of production† that kept the military machine running. During the first two and a half years of combat, the United States was a neutral party and the economic boom came primarily from exports. The total value of U.S. exports grew from $2.4 billion in 1913 to $6.2 billion in 1917. Most of that went to major Allied powers like Great Britain, France, and Russia, which scrambled to secure American cotton, wheat, brass, rubber, automobiles, machinery, wheat, and thousands of other raw and finished goods. According to a 1917 study, exports of metals, machines, and automobiles rose from $480 million in 1913 to $1.6 billion in 1916; food exports climbed from $190 million to $510 million in that same period. Gunpowder sold for 33 cents a pound in 1914; by 1916, it was up to 83 cents a pound. America Joins the Fight   Neutrality came to an end when Congress declared war on Germany on April 4, 1917, and the United States began a rapid expansion and mobilization of more than 3 million men. Economic historian Hugh Rockoff writes: â€Å"The long period of U.S neutrality made the ultimate conversion of the economy to a wartime basis easier than it otherwise would have. Real plant and equipment were added, and because they were added in response to demands from other countries already at war, they were added in precisely those sectors where they would be needed once the U.S. entered the war.† By the end of 1918, American factories had produced 3.5 million rifles, 20 million artillery rounds, 633 million pounds of smokeless gunpowder, 376 million pounds of high explosives, 21,000 airplane engines, and large amounts of poison gas.  Ã‚   The flood of money into the manufacturing sector from both home and abroad led to a welcome rise in employment for American workers. The U.S. unemployment rate dropped from 16.4% in 1914 to 6.3% in 1916. This fall in unemployment reflected not only an increase in available jobs but a shrinking labor pool. Immigration dropped from 1.2 million in 1914 to 300,000 in 1916 and bottomed out at 140,000 in 1919. Once America entered the war, around 3 million working-age men joined the military. About 1 million women ended up joining the workforce to compensate for the loss of so many men. Manufacturing wages increased dramatically, doubling from an average $11 a week in 1914 up to $22 a week in 1919. This increased consumer buying power helped stimulate the national economy in the later stages of the war. Funding the Fight   The total cost of America’s 19 months of combat was $32 billion. Economist Hugh Rockoff estimates that 22 percent was raised through taxes on corporate profits and high-income earners, 20 percent was raised through the creation of new money, and 58% was raised through borrowing from the public, mainly through the sale of â€Å"Liberty† Bonds. The government also made its first foray into price controls with the establishment of the War Industries Board (WIB), which attempted to create a priority system for the fulfillment of government contracts, set quotas and efficiency standards, and allocated raw materials based on needs. American involvement in the war was so short that the impact of the WIB was limited, but the lessons learned in the process would have an impact on future military planning. A World Power   The war ended on November 11, 1918, and America’s economic boom quickly faded. Factories began to ramp down production lines in the summer of 1918, leading to job losses and fewer opportunities for returning soldiers. This led to a short recession in 1918–19, followed by a stronger one in 1920–21. In the long term, World War I was a net positive for the American economy. No longer was the United States a nation on the periphery of the world stage; it was a cash-rich nation that could transition from a debtor to a global creditor. America had proved it could fight the war of production and finance and field a modern volunteer military force. All of these factors would come into play at the start of the next global conflict less than a quarter-century later. Test your knowledge of the homefront during WWI. Sources The Economics of World War Iï » ¿Federal Reserve Bulletinï » ¿. p. 952. Oct. 1, 1919, Washington, D.C.Fraser. â€Å"War and Postwar Wages, Prices, and Hours, 1914-23 and 1939-44 : Bulletin of the United States Bureau of Labor Statistics, No. 852.†Ã‚  FRASER.Jefferson, Mark. Our Trade in The Great War. Geographical Review. American Geographical Society, 1917, New York.â€Å"Legal Immigration to the United States, 1820-Present.†Ã‚  Migrationpolicy.org.Perspectives, Advisor. â€Å"100 Years Ago, The New York Stock Exchange Experienced A 4-Month Long Circuit Breaker.†Ã‚  Business Insider. 29 July 2014.â€Å"Social Security.† Social Security History.Sutch, Richard. â€Å"Liberty Bonds.†Ã‚  Federal Reserve History.â€Å"World War I Centenary: 100 Legacies of the Great War.†Ã‚  The Wall Street Journal, Dow Jones Company.

Domestic Business Activities from an International and Global Point of Research Paper

Domestic Business Activities from an International and Global Point of View - Research Paper Example As Vice President, it is important to have knowledge of domestic activities and policies and to understand the various cultures and operations of the sales force outside of the United States. This can only be accomplished by using a human resource (staff) from around the world as they are familiar with the countries, company, and cultures in which they live and are operating. Proper training, understanding of a various cultures, how business is handled in different parts of the world, varying company policies and operations (although the company is one entity, policies and routines vary slightly, if not extremely, in order to accommodate the differences), language and cultural differences, various sales methods, training, customer service, account management, follow-up procedures, key accounts management, etc. can only be handled by working with the various sales teams and using their expertise. The Vice President must make use of his number one asset which is a human resource in ord er to apply the best approaches and methods and focus on both the macro and microeconomics of the global business. He cannot do this alone but will achieve success if he learns from those in the various parts of the world and learns from those who are experts in the various locations and cultures in which they live and work. They will know the best approaches to communication, sales, customer service, find solutions, developing innovative tactics, etc. The best way of managing a diverse sales team is to incorporate the sales management from each area and empowering them and learning from them.

Create a report consisting of an advice package which offers Essay

Create a report consisting of an advice package which offers guidelines, advice and practicable recommendations for implementing and managing large databases - Essay Example Database technologies are evolving to address the issue of handling large databases. These technologies are dynamic, but the fundamental principles and skills remain the same. Many purveyors are addressing the need for databases that support huge amounts of data; usually in the petabyte range (> 1,000 terabytes) (Kavanagh, 2004). Information technology is dynamic; data is collected as hardware and software advance to handle bulky data. This makes it difficult to define what a large database entails. What is large today will be tiny in the next ten years. A large database can be defined as follows; Implementing and managing large databases has been a problem for most companies. Companies ought to examine and evaluate their database design, to identify the inherent inhibitors to a seamless database management system. The size of a database is influenced by the data volume, hardware, throughput, and software (Dittrich, 2001). Data volume is represented by table numbers, and/or the size of the data. A small database running on a constrained server will portray characteristics of a large database. Throughput is the measurement of usage levels. If a small database serves 9 million users simulataenously, it will be termed as a large database. The software used explains the database management system employed, as well as its implementation. The database is only good at the weakest point of the four factors. These weaknesses can be compensated in various ways: In deciding how to scale a large database, there is the scale-up and scale-out options. Scaling-up is not a preferable option in the modern day of database management systems. Large servers tend to have an adverse price to performance ratio, when compared to commodity machines. The performance for every dollar expended on high-end servers is usually low. The next best alternative would be to scale-out. Upgrading a

Chocolate Research Paper Essay Example for Free

Chocolate Research Paper Essay Chocolate is a key ingredient in many foods such as milk shakes, candy bars, cookies and cereals. It is ranked as one of the most favourite flavours in North America and Europe. Despite its popularity most people do not know the unique origin of this popular treat. Chocolate is a product that requires complex procedures to produce. The process involves harvesting cocoa, refining coca to cocoa beans, and shipping the cocoa beans to the manufacturing factory for cleaning, coaching and grinding. These cocoa beans will then be imported or exported to other countries and be transformed into different types of chocolate products. Cocoa beans grow in countries like Cote dIvoire, Ghana, Indonesia, Brazil, Nigeria, Cameroon, and Malaysia, but the highest cocoa producing country is Cote dIvoire. The production process of cocoa beans include: first, cocoa is harvested manually. The seed pods of cocoa are collected and the beans are selected and placed in piles. These cocoa beans are then ready to be shipped to the manufacturer for production. Cocoa grows in pods that sprout off the trunks and branches of cocoa trees. The pods have the shape and almost the size of football. The pods start out green and turn orange when they are ripe. When the pods are ripe they are harvested gently with machetes. Machines can damage the trees or the clusters of flowers and pods that grow on the trunk, so workers have to harvest the pods by hand, using short, hooked blades mounted on long poles to reach the highest fruit. The cocoa seeds then undergo a process of fermentation by placing them in large, shallow, heated trays or by covering them with large banana leaves. If the climate is right, they may be simply heated by the sun. Workers mostly women come along periodically and stir them up so that all of the beans come out equally fermented. This process may take up to five or eight days. After fermentation, the cocoa seeds are dried before they can be scooped into sacks and shipped to chocolate manufacturers. Farmers simply spread the fermented seeds on trays and leave them in the sun to dry. The drying process usually takes about a week and results in seeds becoming reduced to about half of their original weight. During the production process, labor is not equally divided between men and women who work in the planation; this brings us to the issue of gender division. The gender divide that exists on the cocoa plantation is that most farm work is conducted by men, although most certainly there are tasks where women are very active, such as scooping the beans from the already opened husks, turning the beans during the fermentation and drying process, and sewing the jute sacs needed for the packaging of the dried beans. Women in the farms normally tend to the needs of the family. When female labor is hired during the harvesting time the wages given to them are not the same as those for men. Perhaps another reason why men are preferred is because of their assumed higher productivity rate compared to that of women. Due to different practices followed in individual regions, even within countries, the participation of women and their assigned tasks vary enormously. For instance, because of the popular method of sun drying cocoa beans in Ecuador, it is necessary to â€Å"clean† the beans. This job is mostly undertaken by women. This is not the case in Ghana or Brazil where sun drying is accomplished while protecting the beans from foreign matters and waste. It is interesting to note however that there is no specific pattern for the assignment of tasks to women, except during the harvest when the scooping of the beans from the opened pods is primarily performed by women in most cocoa producing countries. Given the great differences in the systems of production in producing countries it is difficult to find a common percentage that reflects the average participation of the female work force. It is worth mentioning that unlike the coffee agricultural sector, there are no associations or specific groups that house ‘women only’ involved in the cocoa sector at any level, although all associations and cooperatives are open to all who qualify. Due to fluctuation of cocoa prices in the world market, farmers have no long-term security, and in some situations, they do not have enough funds to support their farming business. Cocoa farmers are always faced with financial hardship; they are not able to provide for their families as they would want nor have enough funds to start up their own farming business because they only receive a fraction of the proceeds from the selling of the beans on the world market and there are many people in the trading chain. Cocoa farmers around the world face many challenges. It is estimated that about one-third of global cocoa crops are destroyed by pests and diseases every year. Many cocoa farmers have limited access to the latest agricultural technologies or methods of cultivation and few of them have business backgrounds to help them effectively market their products and manage their operations. Many of the farming communities live in poverty and are infected with diseases. Industry groups, governments and consumers worldwide have raised concerns about the use of pesticides and child labor on West African cocoa farms. An interview conducted by Christophe Koffi showed that one major problem that women in cocoa production encounter is the lack the of financial capability or backing due to the fact that most of these women find themselves in a male dominated occupation. It is very difficult for them to secure financial aid or loans to manage their farms. For instance, â€Å"Women cannot inherit or even create a cocoa plantation under our patriarch-dominated tradition,† said Vanie, criticising what she called a â€Å"backwards and misogynist† practice† (Koffi, 2008) because we still live in a patriarchal dominated society where women do not have the right to own lands and properties. This paper further talks about the sustanability in the production process of cocoa. We will be looking at Lindt Sprungli’s which is a family company and a major producer of chocolate and other cocoa products with a headquaters in Kilchberg, Switzerland. Lindt Sprungli is one of the few chocolate makers that have complete control over every step of the production chain starting with the precise selection of the finest cocoa varieties from the best growing areas in the world right on through the careful and expert processing until ending with the elegant packaging. Lindt gets its cocoa beans mostly from Ghana and Central and South America. Lindt has been very conservative in the amount of energy its invests in the chocolate production process. Each existing and future facility and investment undergoes very detailed analysis to determine how much energy can be saved. Through better insulation and energy recovery, Lindt Sprungli was able to cut down on energy consumption by more than 13% per ton produced between 2004 and 2010. The company intends to continue reducing the energy consumption rate per ton produced by an average over the coming years. According to the Lindt publication, The company’s efforts: since 1999, Lindt Sprungli’s Swiss subsidiary, Chocoladefabriken Lindt Sprungli (Schweiz) AG, has been an active member of the Lake Zurich Energy Model Group†¦The Swiss government and independent engineers have audited the progress and as a result, the Swiss subsidiary has been granted the official certificate. (Kilchberg, 2012) Since 2007, Lindt Sprungli under water conservation has been participating in the Carbon Disclosure Project (CDP)†¦Since then, the measurements of water emissions and energy consumption have been largely based on the concept of the ‘Methodology Fossil Fuels’ set out in the CDP Protocol†¦Waste water, Lindt Sprungli continuously monitors and analyses the use of water and the output of wastewater in the production process and intends to further reduce the use of fresh water in this process, which, in turn will impact the output of wastewater (Kilchberg, 2012). The major people that benefit from cocoa production are mostly the big corporations. The corporations exploit cocoa farmers in the sense that they do not pay them the true worth of their labour. Women who work on the farms are underpaid and marginalized. There is also the issue of child labor where children of school going age are forced to work on the farms instead of going to school thereby denying them the right to education. The big corporations are not forth coming in releasing information as to how and where they get their cocoa beans from. Most of these African countries where these big corporations get their raw materials from do not have access to good roads, health care facilities, schools, electricity, and there is poverty in most of the communities. These big corporations buy the cocoa beans at a very cheap rate and then import them to the western society and the refined product is processed into different kinds of chocolates (e. g. chocolate drink, chocolate bars of different shapes and sizes and chocolate candies etc. ) . Which are sold consumers at exorbitant prices considering the price at which the cocoa beans are bought from the cocoa farmers. This explains how capitalism and big corporation exploit cheap labour. Almost everyone enjoys a bit of chocolate every now and again. But if you take a closer look at how cocoa is produced, it may well leave a bitter taste in your mouth. The conditions under which the cocoa farmers in many producer countries live and work are worrying: Despite the fact that cocoa is usually their main source of income, the families struggle to make a living from it. Child labour is not uncommon. As consumers we can work with NGOs to find means of helping the farmers to adapt to new systems of cocoa farming that result higher yields, under socially more acceptable and environmentally friendly conditions, to meet market demands and hence ensure a stable flow income. As a major part of the global cocoa industry which has remained inactive and invisible for so long, consumers of chocolate can demonstrate that they want slavery in the cocoa sector stamped out, and your pressure can highlight their lack of commitment and make them more accountable. Finally all cocoa products, including chocolate, run the risk of being tainted by child labour and slavery. To achieve a satisfactory standard of ethical production in chocolate consumers must help to ensure that companies commit to credible and sufficient actions against such things as use of child labour and the exploitation of cocoa farmers and not make false and unsustainable promises to consumers of being â€Å"slavery- free†. The consumers can liaise with government bodies and NGOs to negotiate fair prices for the purchase of cocoa products and this will in turn help the farmers to gain access to basic social amenities of life. Reference Page Archer, D. (2012). ADM’s commitment to sustainable cocoa. Milwaukee: Copyright 2012 Archer Daniels Midland Company . Clarkson, T. (1998). Anti-slavery. Retrieved November 15, 2012, from www. antislavery. org: http://www. antislavery. org/english/privacy_policy. aspx Kilchberg. (2012, April 22). The environment in the Production Process. Retrieved November 13, 2012, from www. Lindt. com: http://www. lindt. com/swf/eng/company/social-responsibility/lindts-sustainable-cocoa-supply-chain/ Koffi, C. (2008, November 7). Ivory Coast women defy taboos. Retrieved November 11, 2012, from iol News: http://www. iol. co. za/news/africa/ivory-coast-women-defy-taboos-1. 423405.

Hong Kong Artist :: Jackie Chan Actors Movies Films Essays

Hong Kong Artist Have you ever seen "Rush Hour" or "Shanghai Noon"? Were you excited when you see all the stunts and kung fu fighting in those films? All these film starred a famous international artist and singer, Jackie Chan, who was originated from my hometown, Hong Kong. It is interesting to know about his childhood, and how he became who he is today. Jackie Chan's Childhood was not very pleasant because his family was very poor. Jackie Chan's real name was Kwong-Sang Chan, and he was born in Hong Kong on April 7, 1954. His Chinese name Kwong-Sang means "born in Hong Kong." Jackie was delivered after twelve months of pregnancy. That was three months more than usual delivery. Therefore, his mother had to have a surgery to bring him out. At his birth, Jackie weighed more than twelve pounds. Jackie had a nickname called "Ah Pao" which means a cannonball. Jackie was not a kid who loved school. He attended the Nah-Hwa primary school in Hong Kong, but he disliked school and left after finishing first grade. At age of seven, his father took position as chief in the American Embassy in Australia. His father determined that the boy should learn some skills and sent him to the Peking Opera School. In Peking Opera School, Jackie learned dancing, singing, acrobatics, acting and martial arts. Also, Jackie met Sammo Hung and Yuen Biao who became successful actors today. During the school days, Jackie and his friends had to train everyday from morning till night. Jackie had mentioned it was the hardest period of his life. They needed to study and work 19 hours a day. Jackie and his friends would be punished and beaten up if they did not fulfill their practice or failed to achieve the standards. After days of practice, they would perform in a troupe called "The Seven Fortunes". Among them, Sammo Hung was the big brother of the group. They often performed in public performances at the Laiyuen Amusement Park and other venues. This was the childhood of Jackie Chan. The early years of Jackie Chan in the film industry was not successful at all. As time changed, the Peking Opera School declined. Their master started to loan "The Seven Fortunes" out as stuntmen to film company. Jackie worked as a stuntmen or the Shaw Brothers Film Company. He performed many dangerous stunts for the company and soon got noticed.

Different Parenting Styles on Children

Researcher Diana Baumrind, help to identify and describe the four basic parenting styles; authoritative, authoritarian, permissive, and uninvolved parents. Research studies have proven that parenting style has a massive impact on a child's psycho-social development. Parenting styles have different outcomes on a child’s social relationships, school performance, and self-esteem. Authoritarian parents lack emotional nurturing. Permissive parents lack structure, but are better at providing more emotional support. Authoritative parenting is a combination of both authoritarian and permissive. Authoritative parents are better at setting ground rules and specific boundaries and sticking to them while also giving the child the emotional support they need. Uninvolved parenting is when children have parents that tend to neglect them. Uninvolved parents are so wrapped up in themselves and could care less about providing their child with emotional support or focusing on their child’s wants and needs. The authoritative parenting style is the most positive style for children. Consequently, children who have parents that are permissive or uninvolved engage in more high risk criminal behaviors that have a lasting effect on into adulthood. Keywords: Parenting, authoritative, authoritarian, permissive, uninvolved, psycho-social development â€Å"No surprise that there are big differences in the ways we approach parenting – our culture, the situations in our lives, and even the way our parents raised us influence what we think is the right way to parent† (Ritter, 2011). Since the 1920's, health and psychology experts have wondered why children behave the way that they do. They developed an interest in a child’s behavior and the style of parenting used in the home. Diana Baumrind is a psychologist and expert in parenting adopted the four differing parenting styles. She was responsible for the idea that different parents have different parenting styles and have a different way of raising their children. Research has suggested cultural specifics sometimes play a part in parenting strategies in their relation to a child’s behavior problems. Socioeconomic statuses were also found to have an effect on child-rearing practices. Social status can have a major effect on the parental-child relationship which can cause the parents to be a lot less nurturing. This research is to uncover the different parenting styles and the effect it has on a child’s educational, mental, and social development. â€Å"Parents are high on control but low on responsiveness. They emphasize rigid behavior standards, place a premium on obedience, and are emotionally distant and unresponsive† (Conger, Simons, Gordon, Leslie 2007). This style of parenting relates to authoritarian parents. These parents attempt to mold their child into what they would like to see them grow up to be. Authoritarian parents try to control their child’s actions by enforcing strict rules, and boundaries. This is the parenting style that allows no room for error or change. These parents lack affection in their style of parenting and are a lot less nurturing. â€Å"Children with authoritarian parents tend to do less well in school, are typically less skilled than their peers and have lower self-esteem. Children can appear passive or highly aggressive. The children's wishes have not been listened to nor valued† (Baumrind, 1991). These children lack the social skills needed for healthy relationships, however, they do very well when it comes to academics. Children of authoritarian parents have very good listening skills and are use to obeying rules and always having someone tell them what to do. They do this in order to avoid getting in to trouble. Authoritarian parenting is defined as punitive. Punitive parents tend to use physical punishment as a way of disciplining their child or children. Research has shown that parents who use physical punishment to discipline their children learned it from previous generations. Both theory and research suggest that harsh physical discipline is likely to undermine adolescent efforts to express autonomy and relatedness. Experiences of harsh discipline may lessen an adolescent’s sense of felt security in the family, and thus signal to the adolescent that relationships with parents are too fragile to survive an increase in autonomy† (Bender, Allen, McElhaney, An tonishak, Moore, Kelly, Davis, 2007). Children with punitive parents often suffer from depression, lower self-esteem, and lack social skills. A problem with children that have authoritarian parents is that when a child is in need of guidance or needs help solving a problem, they often turn to someone that they can trust, feel loved, and accepted by. Authoritarian parents have such high standards for their children in order for them to be successful adults, but they fail to realize they are missing out on real opportunities to provide the guidance that their child needs the most. It is healthy to have high expectations and limits for children but it is unhealthy when the balance love and affection is not defined. This is a balance that authoritarian parents need to find in order to successfully raise their child or children. Children with authoritarian parents tend to have more mischievous behaviors then their peers’. These children lie a lot and hide their behaviors for fear what their parents will say and do. They are afraid to be honest because of the consequences that can be given or have previously been given for their actions. Even if the child’s behavior is positive, and the parent does not agree that the child should be doing the active and that this is something that goes against what the parent has planned. The child will begin to hide all their behaviors even if they could receive negative or positive feedback. Furthermore, these parents fail to realize that their children are lying to avoid always being punished and that they are helping their child develop a life full of deceitful behavior. Permissive parents are parents that seek more pleasure out of their children and are more open to letting their children to behave any way they would like. According to Baumrind, permissive parents â€Å"are more responsive than they are demanding. They are nontraditional and lenient, do not require mature behavior, allow considerable self-regulation, and avoid confrontation† (Baumrind, 1991). â€Å"Research has also shown permissive parenting to be associated with negative outcomes such as school misconduct, substance abuse and low frustration tolerance† (Ang, 2005). Permissive parents have an uncontrollable love for their child but prefer to be more of the child’s friend than their parent. Permissive parents have a harder time when it comes to setting boundaries and struggle to carry out the consequences. These parents have few rules to keep order in the home such as, table manners, chores, bedtimes, homework, mealtimes, and being responsible. Permissive parents tend to let their children have control over their own behavior and make their own decisions. Even though permissive parents are loving, their lack for setting boundaries causes their children to suffer from insecurities. Lack of boundaries can cause a child to become selfish. Children with permissive parents have a high level of self –esteem and develop better social skills; however they tend to have more problematic behavior. These children lack motivation and interest in school because they are not held responsible for their actions. Children of permissive parents are self-centered and lack discipline. These children do not have many friends and lack good social skills. â€Å"Although authoritarian and permissive parenting styles appear to represent opposite ends of the parenting spectrum, neither style has been linked to positive outcomes,† (Bornstein, Bornstein, 2007). Children with permissive parents have a lot of insecurities because of the relationship that they have with their parents. They feel that their parents could care less about them. After all, these children have the freedom to do whatever they want and their parents not pay them any attention, or give them the guidance that they need to have a successful life. Dismissive parenting; or neglectful parenting; are also known as the uninvolved parenting style. This parenting style is almost like permissive parenting. One difference between the two styles is; uninvolved parents could care less about their children. These parents â€Å"lack emotional involvement and do not provide proper supervision† to their child (Dubai, 2009). Uninvolved parents provide for only their child’s basic needs such as, food, shelter, and clothing. One of the worse cases for these children is that some of these neglectful parents have major addictive behaviors which may leave the child to act as their own parent or guardian. A lot of these children lack the basic social and academic skills needed to have a successful life. They may even begin to become involved in criminal behaviors. These children do not attend school regularly which causes them to have poor academic records and a higher dropout rate. These children are more subject to become victims of physical, mental, sexual and emotional abuse due lack of supervision from their parents. These children have been found to have lasting mental and physical health problems that can affect them on into adulthood. Dismissing a child’s feelings or needs by ignoring them or telling them to forget it or get over it can have tremendous effects on their development as they grow into adulthood. The child will learn how to hold back their emotions and will have trouble with expressing their emotions properly to the people around them. Additionally, the child will develop problems establishing positive, healthy, and safe relationships. These children will even have trouble in school. Most times uninvolved parents try not to have any type of interaction with their child. These parents tend to keep themselves deeply involved in their work and any other activity they may feel is more important than their child. An uninvolved parent is a parenting style that can be learned from previous generations. Their parents may have also appeared to always be too busy to raise them, show them love, and affection, or give them positive influence for their life. Finally, children of uninvolved or neglectful parents have been found to be rated at the lowest level of all domains in life; physical, social, educational, and cognitive. The most positive, loving, warmest, parenting style would be the authoritative parent. Authoritative parents are more open to disciplining their misbehaving child; however their punishments are not very strict. They are more involved in their child’s life than the uninvolved parents and are not as harsh as authoritarian parents. Baumrind stated authoritative parents â€Å"monitor and impart clear standards for their children’s conduct. They are assertive, but not intrusive and restrictive. Their disciplinary methods are supportive, rather than punitive. They want their children to be assertive as well as socially responsible, and self-regulated as well as cooperative† (Baumrind, 1991). Research has shown that children who are raised by authoritative parents have higher self-esteem levels, rely more on themselves, and tend to listen more cooperatively to rules. With all of these positive influences in the child’s life they tend to be more successful in their academics and later on in life in their careers as adults. It was found that higher socioeconomic status parents are more like to display an authoritative parenting style, i. e. they are responsive to the needs of their children, and foster demands through bidirectional communication and the encouragement of independence† (Chng, no date). Authoritative parents are firm, fair, and provide continuous discipline to help their child develop proper behavior skills. These parents actively listen and consider the child’s opinions and feelings about decisions. This parent can clearly explain their expectations to their children and encourage their child to do well in all of life’s domains; such s mental, social, physical and emotional. Authoritative parents find pleasure in the child’s accomplishments. The style of parenting used by authoritative parents tends to balance the differences between authoritarian and permissive parenting styles. For example, when a parent tried to get their child obey them, no matter how the child feels or what they think about it, there times when a parent needs to step back and allow their child to make their own mistakes and do things on their own without have the parent there to interfere. In all, children that are raised by authoritative parents have more freedom to explore and be and find themselves, while receiving the love, affection, and support that they need to have a successful while have certain boundaries that have been set by their parent. Parenting styles can determine how a child will develop in the major areas of their life. After researching and learning the major impact that the four parenting styles have on a child’s development it has been shown that the authoritative parenting style has the most productive and positive effects on children. Authoritative parents instill proper amount of love, encouragement, and nourishment, while also setting the right amount of boundaries for their child. We can also evaluate that the â€Å"lack of parental involvement, poor monitoring and supervision, and harsh and inconsistent discipline, have all been established as strong predictors of antisocial outcomes in children and adolescents† (Dadds, Hawes, 2006). Authoritative parenting style can be a hard style to develop and achieve, because of culture, family size, generational background, economic status, educational level, religion and even different personalities between the parent and child. Child temperament may elicit certain parenting styles just as parenting styles may affect the relations between child temperament and behavior. It is possible that early levels of behavior problems influence parenting styles and behavior in middle childhood, which in turn influence later behavior problems† (Williams, Degnan, Perez-E dgar, Henderson, Rubin, Pine, Steinberg, Fox, 2009). It is important for parents to find a healthy parenting style that will positively produce a healthy, loving, happy child.

Culture and the Collective Consciousness: Nelly Richard and Crítica Cultural Essay

French born but Chilean based, Nelly Richard is an influential figure within contemporary Latin American cultural studies, though she has often taken issue with the use of this term to describe her work. A leading proponent of psychoanalytical and feminist understandings of the social, Richard, editor of the Revista de Crà ­tica Cultural between 1990 and 2008, is an innovative thinker responsible for creating a way of approaching cultural analysis which has been dubbed crà ­tica cultural. Her conceptual framework privileges theoretical insights gleaned from structuralism, which in French includes what is commonly referred to in the Anglo academy as post structuralism. Our discussion of her work focuses on her vision of the role of the social sciences in Latin America today. Richard questions the conceptual underpinning of these disciplines and argues for a more thoroughly contextualised understanding of the relationship between knowledge production and power. Richard, Nelly. â€Å"The Social Sciences: Front Lines and Points of Retreat†. In The Insubordination of Signs: Political Change, Cultural Transformation and Poetics of the Crisis. London: Duke University Press, 2004. Beasley-Murray, Jon. â€Å"Reflections in a Neoliberal Store Window: Nelly Richard and the Chilean Avant-garde†. Art Journal 64 (3): 126–129. PDF Pino-Ojeda, Walescka. â€Å"Critica cultural y marginalidad: Una lectura al trabajo de Nelly Richard†. Revista de Crà ­tica Literaria Latinoamericana, Aà ±o 25, No. 49 (1999), pp. 249-263. PDF Del Sarto, Ana â€Å"Cultural Critique in Latin America or Latin-American Cultural Studies?† Journal of Latin American Cultural Studies: Travesia, Volume 9, Issue 3, 2000. PDF

Biography of Maria Stewart, Activist and Abolitionist

Biography of Maria Stewart, Activist and Abolitionist Maria W. Stewart (1803–December 17, 1879) was an American activist, abolitionist, and lecturer. A contributor to The Liberator, Stewart was active in progressive circles and influenced groups such as the New England Anti-Slavery Society. After her career as a lecturer came to an end, she worked as a schoolteacher in Washington, D.C. Fast Facts: Maria W. Stewart Known For: Stewart was an activist against racism and sexism; she was the first known American-born woman to publicly lecture to audiences that included both women and men.Also Known As: Maria MillerBorn: 1803 in Hartford, ConnecticutDied: December 17, 1879 in Washington, D.C.Published Works: Meditations from the Pen of Mrs. Maria W. StewartSpouse: James W. Stewart (m. 1826-1829) Early Life Maria Stewart was born Maria Miller in Hartford, Connecticut. Her parents names and occupations are not known, and 1803 is the best guess of her birth year. Stewart was orphaned by age 5 and became an indentured servant, bound to serve a clergyman until she was 15. She attended Sabbath schools and read widely in the clergymans library, educating herself to make up for her lack of formal schooling. Boston When she was 15, Maria began supporting herself by working as a servant, continuing her education in Sabbath schools. In 1826, she married James W. Stewart, taking not only his last name but also his middle initial. James Stewart, a shipping agent, had served in the War of 1812 and had spent some time in England as a prisoner of war. With her marriage, Stewart became part of Bostons small free black middle class. She became involved in some of the institutions of the black community, including the Massachusetts General Colored Association, which worked for the immediate abolition of slavery. James W. Stewart died in 1829; the inheritance he left to his widow was taken from her through long legal action by the white executors of her husbands will, and she was left without funds. Stewart had been inspired by the African-American abolitionist David Walker, and when he died six months after her husband died, she went through a religious conversion in which she became convinced that God was calling her to become a warrior for God and for freedom and for the cause of oppressed Africa. Writer and Lecturer Stewart became connected with the work of abolitionist publisher William Lloyd Garrison after he advertised for writings by black women. She came to his papers office with several essays on religion, racism, and slavery, and in 1831 Garrison published her first essay, Religion and the Pure Principles of Morality, as a pamphlet. Stewart also began public speaking- at a time when Biblical injunctions against women teaching were interpreted to prohibit women from speaking in public- to mixed audiences that included men. Frances Wright had created a public scandal by speaking in public in 1828; historians know of no other American-born public woman lecturer before Stewart. The Grimkà © sisters, often credited as the first American women to lecture in public, were not to begin their speaking until 1837. For her first address, in 1832, Stewart spoke before an audience of women at the African American Female Intelligence Society, one of the institutions founded by the free black community of Boston. Speaking to that audience, Stewart used the Bible to defend her right to lecture and spoke on both religion and justice, advocating activism for social equality. The text of the talk was published in Garrisons newspaper on April 28, 1832. On September 21, 1832, Stewart delivered a second lecture, this time to an audience that also included men. She spoke at Franklin Hall, the site of the New England Anti-Slavery Society meetings. In her speech, she questioned whether free blacks were much more free than slaves, given the lack of opportunity and equality they had. She also questioned the move to send free blacks back to Africa. Garrison published more of her writings in his abolitionist newspaper, The Liberator, under the heading the Ladies Department. In 1832, Garrison published the second pamphlet of her writings as Meditations from the Pen of Mrs. Maria Stewart. On February 27, 1833, Maria Stewart delivered her third public lecture, African Rights and Liberty, at the African Masonic Hall. Her fourth and final Boston lecture was a Farewell Address on September 21, 1833, when she addressed the negative reaction that her public speaking had provoked, expressing both her dismay at having little effect and her sense of divine call to speak publicly. Then she moved to New York. In 1835, Garrison published a pamphlet with her four speeches plus some essays and poems, Productions of Mrs. Maria W. Stewart, which likely inspired other women to begin public speaking. New York In New York, Stewart remained an activist, attending the 1837 Womens Anti-Slavery Convention. A strong advocate for literacy and educational opportunities for African-Americans and women, she supported herself by teaching in public schools in Manhattan and Brooklyn, eventually becoming an assistant to the principal of the Williamsburg School. She was also active there in a black womens literary group. Stewart supported Frederick Douglass newspaper, The North Star, but did not write for it. Baltimore and Washington, D.C. Stewart moved to Baltimore in 1852 or 1853, apparently after losing her teaching position in New York. There, she taught privately. In 1861, she moved to Washington, D.C., where she taught school during the Civil War. One of her friends in the city was Elizabeth Keckley, a former slave and seamstress to First Lady Mary Todd Lincoln. Keckley would soon publish her own memoir, Behind the Scenes: Or, Thirty Years a Slave and Four Years in the White House. While continuing her teaching, Stewart was appointed to head housekeeping at the Freedmans Hospital and Asylum in the 1870s. A predecessor in this position was Sojourner Truth. The hospital had become a haven for former slaves who had come to Washington. Stewart also founded a neighborhood Sunday school. Death In 1878, Stewart discovered that a new law made her eligible for a widows pension for her husbands service in the Navy during the War of 1812. She used the eight dollars a month, including some retroactive payments, to republish Meditations from the Pen of Mrs. Maria W. Stewart, adding material about her life during the Civil War and also adding some letters from Garrison and others. This book was published in December 1879; on the 17th of that month, Maria Stewart died in the hospital in which she worked. She was buried in Washingtons Graceland Cemetery. Legacy Stewart is best remembered today as a pioneering public speaker and progressive icon. Her work influenced the anti-slavery and womens rights movements of the 19th century. Sources Collins, Patricia Hill. Black Feminist Thought: Knowledge, Consciousness and the Politics of Empowerment. 1990.Hine, Darlene Clark. Black Women in America: The Early Years, 1619-1899. 1993.Leeman, Richard W. African-American Orators. 1996.Richardson, Marilyn. Maria W. Stewart, Americas First Black Woman Political Writer: Essays and Speeches. 1987.

Amp Financial Company of Australia and New Zealand

This research study analyzes the business of the AMP Financial Company and also evaluates their financial data (Kelly et al., 2016). In the recent days, the AMP Financial Company leads the entire wealth management industry in Australia and New Zealand. The AMP Financial Company helps their customers by providing them financial advice, superannuation services for the business of their customers, retirement income, investments on individual products, life insurance, income protection, etc. The most important business significance of this AMP financial company is to provide services to their customers regarding all banking issues such as income protection, financial advice, selection procedure of banking products, investments in share, property, fixed interest and multi-asset funds, etc. For the AMP financial company their main motto is to understand the customer needs and provide them a good quality service which leads to their satisfaction (Buckless & Krawczyk, 2016). The AMP financia l company mainly helps the other business firms by researching the financial factors which help the firm to develop and improved in future. By accepting the advice and service of AMP financial company the business firms can able to get a better quality product at reasonable price and also can able to improve the standard of their firms. By analyzing the financial data the AMP financial company helps those business firms to maintain a good reputation and corporate image within the market and also helps them to gain a high level of profitability (Abhayawansa, & Guthrie, 2014). The AMP financial company also helps the government through paying revenue on profit and all types of service taxes. In this research study, the researchers want to expand the knowledge which is related to the study of the business procedure and about the financial information of the AMP Financial Company (Chan & Ryan, 2013). By the help of literature review, different literature sources and theories are reviewed for collecting the useful data or information about the research topic. By reviewing that literature the researchers can able to make a better quality research study through which a clear idea about the topic can be derived easily. The research study will undergo various terms that will help in detail explanation of the selected topic (Yang, 2012). In the recent days, there are several numbers of financial institutions which are operating throughout every country. The AMP Financial Company have to follow three numbers of general observations about the literature review before discussing the individual approaches towards the development of the financial system of the company. Firstly, it be comes more necessary to review the literature with extra caution. The recommendations within the study suggest that the countries should also need to introduce some improvement and development and also adopt innovative ideas within their organization (Berk et al. 2013). Secondly, the literature reflects that the donors and the governments have followed an approach which leads to the supply of finance and can able to emphasize the rate of increase of supply and also reduce the rate of loan cost in some specific sectors (Ghasemy et al. 2016). Thirdly the final observation is the donors and the governments have also shied away from the using of the private sectors for providing financial services to those specific sectors. The worth extant in the finance sector is described as per to the character of the financial transaction. In the recent times, the financial sectors are seriously observing contest where Latest Corporation are entering daily (Gattorna, 2016). The AMP Financial Compan y fundamentally describes surroundings where difficulties of the customers are interwoven beside with the services of the organization. Deliver worth to the organization also explain the service that delivers value to the customers (Keneley, 2016). As per Williamson, concerns of the organizations is associated with the customers’ requirements which help in better business activities and also brings a better level of sustainability to the organization. The resource-advantage theory describes the combination of the heterogeneous resources and the heterogeneous demand of the consumers. The capital of an organization can be financial, material, legal, human-based, organizational-based, informational and relational (Oh et al., 2013). As per recognition of the individuality present inside the association, main emphasis needs to be specified so that it can out hit competitor firm as well as draw clientele based on that source. At the time of adopting resource-advance theory, the org anization should try to use the competitive advantage of the company to become the leading financial company and enjoy the greater number of customers compared to their competitor organizations. According to the study of this research process, the researchers found some research question which clears the queries to arise at the time of studying that research paper. The main research questions for analyzing the problems and opportunities of the AMP Financial company are as follows – 1.  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   What is the fundamental problem? 3.  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   What is the relationship between the issue and the company? 4.  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Why is it important to overcome the problem? 5.  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   How the company planned to tackle the problem? 6.  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   How the company planned to broadcast their results? 7.  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Is the cash flow is a flow of cash to the shareholders or the company? 8.  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Is there having any reduction of value or cost of the fixed assets of the company? 9.  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Is the annual net income of the company can able to made that year or it only become a number? 10.   Is the book value become the best proxy to the share values? 11.   Is it become possible for the AMP financial company to have positive net income which never distributes the dividends in the postponement of payments? 12.   Is it better for the company to purchase shares and assets of other company?  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   13.   How is the optimal capital structure calculated? By the help of investigate method, the investigator tried to identify the most suitable research apparatus and techniques for studying the business procedure and the financial activities in the AMP Financial Company and can able to make a better quality research study. Research methodology is defined as the explanation of the process which is undertaken at the time of studying the research topic (Durocher et al., 2015). By the help of these research techniques, the researchers can able to analyze the collected financial data which help to understand the feedback of the respondents in a better way. The researchers generally analyze the financial statement of the company for revealing the importance of those items which is included in the Balance Sheet and Profit and Loss Account. According to Macmillan and Kennedy, Financial Performance is a type of scientific process by the help of which the researchers can able to evaluate the financial strength and profitability of any type of busi ness firms (Yap et al, 2014). Financial performance is actually a snapshot through which the researchers can able to determine the efficiency and ability of the company to survive within the market. By the help of the financial performance, the position of the company within the market can also be determined. Financial Performance is actually the blueprint of all those financial affairs which takes place in the organization (Bazley et al., 2013). Basically, Financial Performance is that medium through which any organization can able to evaluate the entire management performance within the organization. The key aim of the financial performance of a financial statement for the profit and loss account and Balance Sheet of a company is to diagnose the productivity, profitability, activity, liquidity and the financial condition of the business firm (Shaw, 2016). The main objective of the business is to earn satisfactory returns on that funds which are invested within the business. Each and every individual research study has their own frame of times which allows the researcher to arrange their research activities throughout the whole research process. According to Bernard, the Gantt chart is a type of research tool by the help of which the researchers can able to make a list of the task according to the time which is taken by the researcher at the time of the study the whole research process. classification of secondary information sources Preparing interview/survey, ethics form Conclusion as well as recommendations In the table of Gantt chart, the researcher points out the most important tasks which are required to emphasis at that time when the research is conducted. Gantt chart also helps the researchers to understand the status of that particular research study. The research process is a procedure through which the entire research work is taking place. The research process of any research study takes place through certain steps (Bunney & Therry, 2013). In this research study, the researchers want to analyze the financial activities of the AMP Financial Company. Therefore, for determining the financial activities of the AMP Financial Company the researcher follows the following steps – Step 1: At first, the researchers determine the need for the research of the financial performance of the company Step 2: After that they to identify and define the problems Step 3: Then the researchers should establish the objectives of the research study on that particular topic Step 4: After establishing the research objectives the researchers should prepare a research design Step 5: After that, the researchers should able to identify the sources from where the data are collected and also can able to determine the types of information which are collected from various sources. Step 6: Then the researchers determine the process or methods through which they can able to access the data. Step 7: In the next step, the researchers prepares the forms and make a design for collecting the data Step 8: Then the researchers determine the size of the sample and make a plan for the sample collection process regarding the factors which can affect t the sample. Step 9: After that, the researchers collect the data Step: 10 Then they analyze the data critically Step 11: At last, the researchers prepare the whole research paper properly and present it. The data collection process in a realistic sense will permit the investigator in experience different types of public and also help the researchers to improve their interaction skills. By the help of the study of research concepts, the researchers can able to gain knowledge about the process of data collection and also help the researchers to analyze the financial performance of the AMP Financial Company in future (Horngren et al., 2013). The researchers adopt or select the data gathering process depending on the character and types of data collected and according to the topic of the research study. The Data collection process adds value to the research quality by enlarging the platform of knowledge. By the help of data collection process, the researchers can able to collect two types of data. The two types of data are 1) primary data and 2) secondary data. The primary data are those data which are collected by the researchers directly from the environment at the time of conducting t he research process. By the help of main data, the researchers can able to gather the most relevant facts and information though it takes enough time, as it is a long procedure in contrast to secondary data. Whereas, the secondary data are guided on the basis that comprises the online and offline source of data. There are two types of data which are analyzed by the researchers at the time of conducting the research study. The two kinds of data are – 1) Qualitative data and 2) Quantitative data. The research study is more inclined towards the outcomes related to the value due to which the customers can able to obtain a better realization and satisfaction and also can able to serve a better quality of utility as well. After reviewing the financial statement of the AMP Financial Company, the researchers determine the five-year financial summary of the AMP Financial Company. In this research study, the researchers can able to analyze the business and financial performance of the AMP Financial Company. The most important business significance of this AMP financial company is to provide services to their customers regarding all banking issues such as income protection, financial advice, selection procedure of banking products, investments in share, etc. The resources of an organization can be financial, physical, legal, human-based, organizational-based, informational and relational. As per recognition of the individuality present inside the organization, main emphasis needs to be known so that it can out hit competitor firms as well as draw clientele based on that source. The AMP financial company mainly helps the other business firms by researching the financial factors which help the firm to develop and improved in future. By the help of this research study, everybody can able to get a clear idea about the financial performance of the AMP Financial Comp any.   Horngren, C.T., Sundem, G.L., Schatzberg, J.O. and Burgstahler, D., 2013.Introduction to management accounting. Pearson Higher Ed. Bunney, D. and Therry, L., 2013. Employability skills in the Master of Professional Accounting: One school’s journey.  eCULTURE,  3(1), p.3. Shaw, T.M., 2016. 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Web Server Application Attacks Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Web Server Application Attacks - Research Paper Example A command injection attack refers to an attack aimed at compromising the sensitive information featured in the back end database that supports the interactive aspects of a web application. Included under this category are issues like cross-site scripting (XSS) and Structured Query Language (SQL) injection. To curb this attack, organizations need to plan and address the security matters that pertain to their web solutions during web development or planning stages. Examples of such approaches would be to hire web application developers with proper knowledge on use of more sophisticated database capabilities like stored procedures to reside in the back end database system or the concept of data objects when writing APIs to access the database system that supports the web utilities. Equally, XSS issues can be handled by employing Model Viewer Controller (MVC) frameworks like Codeignitor while developing web applications. Such frameworks have in-built capabilities to suppress the efforts of clients who try to launch XSS attacks. A precaution taken during the development or planning of a web application is worthwhile for the reason that security issues are harder to handle once a system is deployed or implemented. The third type of attack that targets web servers is interception of unencrypted information that is channeled in communication sessions that take place between the client browsers and the servers. One way to combat this problem is to use Secure Socket Layer (SSL) in web-centered communication. SSL helps in creating an encrypted link between client-server communications. In particular, the concept uses SSL certificates (typically methods like symmetric and asymmetric encryption) to transfer sensitive information like social security numbers and credit card numbers. In the diagram, the server first sends a copy that bears its asymmetric