Advantages of Activity Based Costing

In modern business environment, the use of traditional costing system is no longer relevance to the company to achieve competitive advantage. Nowadays, Activity Based Costing is considered as one of the effective tools to enhance the ability of the organisation to meet global competition. This had resulted in the change from traditional costing system to an increasingly popular costing system such Activity-Based Costing (ABC). ABC system has emerged as an alternative to traditional costing system to meet the need for accurate cost information about the products, services, customer and processes. ABC performs the arithmetic to provide accurate cost information while Activity Based Management (ABM) is focused on using this information obtained from ABC to manage activities in order to improving business (Gunasekaran et al. , 2000). Generally ABC systems enable indirect and support expenses onto each activity. Following by identify the cost drivers to measure the activity used by cost objects and allocate them to cost driver. In order word, ABC helps the manager to understand about the cost and expense in each production by giving managers a clearer picture of the economics of their operations to managerial decision making at a strategic level (Kaplan and Copper, 1998). Apart from that, in twenty-first century market which is global consumer markets and rapidly changing product technologies have forced global manufacturers to make dramatic changes in their products, markets as well as production strategies. In order to stay in the global market, organisations are advice to adopt ABC not only produces products at faster rates, but they produce with greater consistency and conformity to quality specifications. Also, ABC system allows the manufacturers to reduce the time between customer order and product delivery which can gives the manufacturer a competitive advantage in improving customer service (Gunasekaran et al. , 1999). Therefore, it is necessary for organisation to adopt ABC system which can assist managers in identifying the value-added activities which they could further improve to meet customer’s demands and enhancing the product quality and process simplification and efficiency (Marx, 2009). For example, MelCo is the company that implements ABC and gets the benefits from it. MelCo is the only manufacturer of engineering components in Melbourne. Its previous costing system was a conventional costing system where overheads were allocated to products based on labour hour utilised (Sohal and Chung, 1998). However, management found that implement ABC system in the organisation is seem to be useful because it can assist high level of flexibility and responsiveness that demanded by the marketplace. Besides, ABC system can generate true costing and pricing which automatically give performance measures and product profitability as well as provide a variety of information for management in strategic decision making. Even though it incur high cost, MelCo think that it is worthiness because it provides a tool for management for commercial decision making although it just implement for 12 months (Sohal and Chung, 1998). Due to the changes of business environment, the company requires to manufacture very wide product range for a large customer base with high quality and innovative products in order to fulfil the demand of the consumer. By implementing ABC in organisation, ABM guides efforts to adapt business strategies to meet competitive pressures as well as to improve business operations. ABC information enables ABM to yield continuous improvement process. By continuous improvement, organisation can yield the maximum profitability as well as improved the customer’s satisfaction (Gunasekaran et al. 2000). Nowadays, customers want products and services that fit their specific needs; they want quality service at affordable price to be right now. However, since traditional costing system is volume-based, inaccurate information will be generated which lead to company make wrong decision (Gunasekaran et al. , 1999). Apart from that, stable product and mass production are no longer valid for today manufacturing system. Thus, manufacturing companies have reduced the implication of traditional cost accounting system by implementing ABC systems. In contrast to standard costing, ABC can identify value-added and non-value-added activities. To clarify this, all activities should be compared with similar activities in another company or within the organisation in order to perform the best. Hence, benchmarking should be encourages to be carried out for both value-added and non-value added activities because it is a best practice which is mostly used in real-life situation (Gunasekaran et al. , 1999). For example, 100% on time delivery of customer orders is an essential activity. Apart from that, non-value-added activities such as inspection and material handling can be reduced by using different quality assurance methods and techniques such as total quality management and just in time. With ABC, the company has a better access to decision which related to TQM and JIT (Gunasekaran et al. , 1999). To achieve cost reduction in a strategic way, activity-based costing presents to be more accurate in determining costly activities in order to help companies to better manage those activities. Unlike the information available under traditional management accounting, ABC systems are capture the significant information among customer orders and provide strategic decision making with the indication of the changes in the customer’s specifications (Lere, 2000). By implementing ABC system, it also can reduce non-value activities as well as cost of their products to compete in today competitive market. Non-value added activities can be eliminated with the implementation of strategies such as total quality management, just in time and business process re-engineering. Managers should pay more attention to those activities which will incur high cost but does not add any value to the product. Besides, managers prepared with the ABC systems were able to reduce overall costs, identify the opportunities for continuous improvement of the products. Nowadays, technology plays a dominant role of integrating various functional areas. Although the automation in advanced manufacturing environment has reduced the labour component, at the same time overheads have increased (Gunasekaran et al. , 1999). Therefore, in manufacturing environment, it is necessary for organisation to minimize non-value adding activities to reduce the cost of their products to compete in the market. By implementing ABC system in organisation, it will help to reduce direct labour component, increase in overheads as well as productivity of knowledge workers. Apart from that, ABC also helps organisation in better communications and team working environment as well as reduce time required to perform an activities due to knowledge workers and re-engineering the suggestions by employees to reduce the non-value activities (Gunasekaran et al. 1999). In contrast, the traditional costing systems do not provide non-financial information such as defect rates, level of quality about the organisation. However, implementation of activity based costing is not an easy task as there are several difficulties in implementing ABC system. One of the first fundamentals for the success of an ABC implementation is top management support for the project (Zhang and Che, 2010). The failure of ABC projects can generally be attributed to lack of visible and active management. If the organisation’s senior managers do not show the commitment and act passive in the program, it will negatively reduce the motivation of the employees. Apart from that, the productivity of the employees will also affect as well. Therefore, top management should be give full support with clear understanding of goals and objectives of the whole organisation to the employees. Besides, they should meet regularly in order to advise the management on the strategic and technology business problems (Gunasekaran et al. , 1999). Commitment of employees is one of the important factors in implementing ABC system. For the successful implementation in ABC, the employees must have a clear understanding of its capabilities, goals and objectives (Zhang and Che, 2010). As a result, education and training are necessary for the employees to make sure that they understand the objective of ABC system. When the employees are well trained and educated, they can easily reduce the time and effort required to perform an activity, on-time delivery as well as reduce the cycle time of the product. Also, employees should be provide with internal and external company training facilities to ensure them gain latest knowledge and trend in order to maintain company’s standard in today global market (Zhang and Che, 2010). For example, MelCo is a company that implementing ABC system and it found that the problems during implementation was lack of available skills in-house which means that they do not have considerable amount of education and training. Therefore, MelCo are recommended that training of employees should be taking into consideration (Sohal and Chung, 1998). As a conclusion, the changes of global business environment had changes the way of the company doing the business and shift traditional management accounting to strategic management accounting for cost management in organisations. However, it does not means that traditional management accounting is usefulness and not applicable in today business environment. Relevance of traditional cost accounting is very subjective in each view of the organisation. It may be suitable for some companies treated standard costing and variance analysis as a tool that enhances planning and control and improves performance evaluation rather than abolished it. To compete in today business environment, strategic management accounting is the most suitable accounting system for the organisation as ABC method can provides more accurate and better cost information which can helps manager to understand and make strategic decision making. Furthermore, ABC system can eliminate the non-value added activities which added value to the product cost, by doing so, organisation can reduce those unnecessary costs. Thus, ABC system is most appropriate management accounting costing in today business environment. However, there are several problems and difficulties in implementing ABC system, company should take into consideration when implementing ABC in order to maximize the fully benefits for ABC systems.

Analysis John Proctor Essay

In a sense, the play, ‘The Crucible’, has the structure of a classical tragedy with John Proctor being the protagonist of the play and its tragic hero. As there is a saying â€Å"To err is human†¦ † John Proctor likewise was led to his grave due to a fatal flaw he possessed. Proctor, in his first appearance in the play, is presented as a quick-witted, sharp-tongued man with a keen sense of pride and a streak of confidence. He was a symbol of justice and righteousness. His secret affair with Abigail, before Elizabeth Proctor fired her, seemed to end since John no more harbored feelings for Abigail. Abigail Give me a word, John, A soft word. Proctor No, no, Abby. That’s done with. However, upon learning the truth†¦ Abigail I have a sense for heat, John, and yours has drawn me to my window, and I have seen you looking up, burning in your loneliness. Do you tell me you’ve never looked up at my window? This suggests that what Abigail had been saying to John was the truth too that he still had kind feelings for her, and created Abigail’s jealousy of his wife, Elizabeth, which sets the entire witch hysteria in motion. His wisdom, sharpness and his independence are traits would make a suitable person to question the motives of those who cry witchcraft. However, his guilt over his affair with Abigail makes his situation much more problematic because he is very guilty in the hypocrisy he detested to see in others. Secondly, John does not seem to be favoring the authority Parris possess that he blatantly said right in front of Parris that he would join the faction which was â€Å"against him and all authority†. Once the trials begin, Proctor realizes that he can stop Abigail’s rampage through Salem but only if he confesses to his adultery. Such an admission would ruin his good name, and Proctor is, above all, a proud man who places great emphasis on his reputation. Proctor is quite a brave, honest and honorable man, confessing his sin of adultery to the court in a bid to stop the agitation present in Salem by tarnishing the now saintly name of Abigail Williams so that the townsfolk would stop listening to her false accusations. He eventually makes an attempt, through Mary Warren’s testimony, to name Abigail as a fraud without revealing the crucial information. Proctor Then her saintliness is done with. We will slide together into our pit; you will tell the court what you know. When this attempt fails, he finally bursts out with a confession, calling Abigail a â€Å"whore† and proclaiming his guilt publicly. Proctor A fire, a fire is burning! I hear the boot of Lucifer, I see his filthy face! And it is my face, and yours, Danforth! For them that quail to bring men out of ignorance, as I have quailed, and as you quail now when you know in all your black hearts that this be fraud- God damns our kind especially, and we will burn, we will burn together! †¦ Proctor You are pulling Heaven down and raising up a whore! These quotes suggest that the Proctor who used to believe in God’s word is no longer devoted to Him anymore due to the injustice and evil around him. It’s as if he has become an atheist- God is dead! Only then does he realize that it is too late, that matters have gone too far, and that not even the truth can break the powerful frenzy that he has allowed Abigail to whip up. Proctor’s confession succeeds only in leading to his arrest and conviction as a witch, and though he lambastes the court and its proceedings, he is also aware of his terrible role in allowing this fervor to grow unchecked. Proctor is also a man who thinks of others. He stands up for the other townsfolk, refusing to give the names of innocent citizens. â€Å"I have no knowledge in that line. But it’s hard to think so pious a woman is secretly a Devil’s bitch after seventy year of such good prayer. † He saved others, while preserving his own honor. (I speak my own sins; I cannot judge another. ) Offered the opportunity to make a public confession of his guilt and live, he almost succumbs, even signing a written confession. His immense pride and fear of public opinion compelled him to withhold his adultery from the court, but by the end of the play he is more concerned with his personal integrity than his public reputation. He still wants to save his name, but for personal and religious, rather than public, reasons. (I have given you my soul; leave me my name! -Proctor) Proctor’s refusal to provide a false confession is a true religious and personal stand. Such a confession would dishonor his fellow prisoners, who are brave enough to die as testimony to the truth. Perhaps more relevantly, a false admission would also dishonor him, staining not just his public reputation, but also his soul. By refusing to give up his personal integrity Proctor implicitly proclaims his conviction that such integrity will bring him to heaven. He goes to the gallows redeemed for his earlier sins. As Elizabeth says to end the play, responding to Hale’s plea that she convince Proctor to publicly confess: â€Å"He have his goodness now. God forbid I take it from him! † Proctor dies as a man of integrity who never sold his soul and stained his name upon confessing to what God knows and speaks of as heathen. He lived up to be a man who ought to be given the utmost respect, by his wife and by his fellow Salemites. Nearing to the end of the play, Proctor redeems himself and provides a final denunciation of the witch trials in his final act. Elizabeth who respects Proctor deeply and is proud that he doesn’t confess suggests that she too loves him dearly. Even Mr Hale was not able to instigate Proctor in confessing a false crime and succumb the false crime of witchcraft. Hale Woman, plead with him! Woman! It is pride, it is vanity. Be his helper! – What profits him to bleed? Shall the dust praise him? Shall the worms declare his truth? Go to him, take his shame away! Elizabeth He have his goodness now. God I forbid I take it from him! Abigail Williams An antagonist of the play, she beats Parris and Danforth with all the villainy she possessed. In contrast to her beautiful looks, she is characterless and baseless as bastardy has ever stooped to be that low. Being a blatant liar, she is able to twist the situation so well that even the whole of Salem was sent to its doom due to her hysteria. Her pretty looks can be as deceiving as her character. Abigail it were sport, uncle! †¦ (innocently) A dress? †¦ No one was naked! You mistake yourself, uncle! †¦ Why, I am sure it is, sir. There be no blush about my name. These blatant lies came about one after another suggest that Abigail is not only lying but also disrespectful to those who take care of her by making them believe to whatever she says. In this manner, Parris was half convinced and had the courage to run the trials and commence a witch-hunt upon Abigail’s words. Abigail has a large role in the play as the villain of the play, instigating the downfall of many innocent townsfolk. While working in the Proctor’s house as a servant, she had an affair with John Proctor, which led to her being dismissed by the latter’s wife, Elizabeth Proctor. This suggests that she was not only ungrateful, but also in a way trying to seduce Proctor lest he bend toward Elizabeth. This leads to Abigail directing hate towards her and targeting her later in the play. Betty You drank blood, Abby! You didn’t tell him that!†¦.. You did, you did! You drank a charm to kill John Proctor’s wife! You drank a charm to kill Goody Proctor! Throughout the hysteria, Abigail’s motivations never seem more complex than simple jealousy and a desire to have revenge on Elizabeth Proctor. The language of the play is almost Biblical, and Abigail seems like a Biblical character-a Jezebel figure, driven only by sexual desire and a lust for power. Nevertheless, it is worth pointing out a few background details that, though they don’t mitigate Abigail’s guilt, make her actions more understandable. Abigail was a symbol of defiance. Although she knew that Salem was an entirely religion-based community, she chose to rebel against the somewhat restrictive customs and sinned again and again. From giving in to lust and sexual desires, to adultery and finally to lying and murder in a sense, her deeds went against the very code of religion. A mere accusation from one of Abigail’s troop is enough to incarcerate and convict even the most well-respected inhabitant of Salem. Whereas others once reproached her for her adultery, she now has the opportunity to accuse them of the worst sin of all: devil-worship. Abigail was also manipulative as she was able to take advantage of her friends, Reverend Parris and the judges to make them believe her so that she was able to attain freedom and have Proctor to herself after getting rid of Elizabeth. She only did this for her personal vengeance and benefit. Abigail could be even merciless if she had the choice, by sending nineteen innocent people to the gallows for crimes they did not commit. She was a shrewd mastermind who was opportunative, for her benefits. Although, she is strong and determined, this does not make her a good person. She used her intelligence in a shrewd yet cruel manner. She was thoughtless of the lives that were taken away, all due to her. She was the root of all evil. Having Proctor was her only ambition. And when she learns that Proctor, too, is dead when he was sent to the gallows, her utmost motive in recovering Proctor, her love, was gone. Her will to struggle was no longer present. So, she too left and never looked to turn back to Salem. Reverend Samuel Parris Basically, Reverend Samuel Parris is a paranoid, power-hungry, yet oddly self-pitying figure. Parris presents himself as a father who cares and worries for his daughter, Betty, who had been supposedly witched. Trying to hide the fact, he does not believe it. Parris No-no. There be no unnatural cause here. Tell him I have sent for Reverend Hale of Beverly and Mr Hale will surely confirm that. Let him look to medicine and put out all thought of unnatural causes here. There be none. Upon deeper analysis, Parris does not actually care for Betty and her friends but is ardent in saving his reputation. Parris Now look you, child, your punishment will come in its time. But if you trafficked with spirits in the forest I must know it now, for surely my enemies will, and they will ruin me with it. Parris is so blinded by lies that he would not be abele to distinguish between truth or lie. He is so gullible by allowing himself to be convinced by Abigail’s words that he was reluctant in listening to the townsfolk and get their opinion. Although he questioned Abigail repeatedly, he never had the idea (till the end) that Abigail could be using him for her personal benefits. But this didn’t mind Parris as he was just a coward because he guessed that the faction would grab this opportunity and ruin him with it. By blaming that all abominations began here, in the Minister’s house. And that would be the base of witchcraft and Lucifer’s den. Parris is full of greed. This can be proved due to the fact that although he earned sixty-six pounds (which was a lot at that time), he was not happy with it and wanted more. In addition, he could not bear the uprising faction which was against him and his authority. Parris is dogmatic in his opinions, intolerant of opposition, and suspicious of those whom he does not like. Parris has grown a grudge against Proctor after learning that Proctor was not hesitant in joining the faction that was against Parris and his authority. (Why, then I must find it and join it!) His belief in witches and his desire to punish his enemies set in motion the chain of events that leads to the hysteria in Salem. In my opinion, he is an incapable minister who is not able to take things in his stride but who listens to others. This suggests that he is more of a follower than a leader, although he has the full right to make his own decisions. Proctor You cannot command Mr Parris. We vote by name in this society, not by acreage. / During the witch trials, he pressures Danforth, the chief judge, to punish those who, in his opinion, are possessed or in league with the Devil.

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Chinese history--- Is Modernizing the Ancient Possible - Essay Example China stuck to the Confucian teaching of humanity and avoided by all means any technical skill acquisition or professional training. This no doubt led to its backwardness. As history would tell, China’s economic and political stagnation during the 20th century can be said to be their own folly. It is interesting to note that China was a giant of trade especially in the East, with all the resources that would be a pre-requisite for steering any growth and development of any country yet economically it was crippled (Wright 3). This could be explained through a number of factors. For instance, its response to the west when it (the West) widely opened its arms for trade with them. The Chinese rebelled against them seeing them not as potential economic partners but as enemies, coming to frustrate their culture and their way of life. This kind of reasoning is based on the fact that the Chinese were fully obsessed with their culture and the need to maintain the status quo that any foreign interference would be met with resistance. They were therefore not linked by a program which could foster the country’s growth but by their search for what th ey termed as spiritual values and critique of the West and their influence (BBC 1). The Confucians view morality as a key ingredient for the cultivation of social relations with the essence of government being nothing short of good morals. Things however began to change with the collapse of the Han dynasty causing a stiff religious competition with Taoism aimed at cultivation of meditation as a form of internal discipline. The reform that took place through the interaction with the outside world aftermath reshaped Buddhism as the neo-Confucians, giving it a new look on the self mindset and a philosophical evaluation of the world. This change was in itself not easy since China thwarted every attempt for change, especially one that they viewed as being imposed on them by foreigners. Even though the

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Ammianus - Assignment Example Gestae 31.4 the preferable perspective is that the battle was roman induced against Gothic since they were not settled and suffered hardships in the process of getting used to the Roman system. In support of this perspective, Ammianus’ Res Gestae 31.4 argues that the battle began in 376 after the death of Christ; the Goths after being displaced decided to get refuge in the Roman Empire. This is in the hope that they would get used to farming and become soldiers. On reaching the empire, the Gothic began revolts led by Lupinicus and Maximus since they were undergoing hardships in the hands of the Romans. As a result of these attacks by Gothic, the Roman emperor in 378 after death of Christ decided to retaliate with reinforcement from his allies and the Gothic claimed for some Roman territory in order to stop the battle. This made the emperor furious and combined the army into seven legions composed of war veterans. They aimed at capturing and enslaving the Gothic and to take over the lost territories (Ammianus’ Res Gestae 31.4) Ammianus’ Res Gestae 31.4 describes this perspective as preferable since there is evidence that the Gothic tried to take over the Roman Empire as a result of the hardships they went through. This came in a bid to stop the harshness that they were receiving from the Romans who were supposed to offer homage to the

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How will professional organizations play a role in your professional Assignment - 1

How will professional organizations play a role in your professional life - Assignment Example More powerful processors are used in the mobile phones, cameras to process the various types of signals, playing of multimedia. We think that fridges, gas cooker, iron, etc. devices will have much developed microprocessor to process various tasks. People’s desire to make all processes automatically done, force people to use various processors-integrated devices, for instance, processor in the microwave can decide how to heat products, and in the future processors will automatically cook dishes, almost without the people’s intervention. We should underline that professional organizations assist their members in finding their jobs, or offer them job listings and they help members to find their job. And I think that in my professional life it will be the start of my career. We know that after the study process we do not have enough experience to present good job and professional organization can help with mentoring.. And it can be considered as the cornerstone of our professional life, as professional organization can give the worker ability to gain experience from other much experienced workers from the same field. Professional organization can also offer professional development through the courses, publications, workshops, and they can have some special information available only for website members (Anderson, 2012). They can send necessary information to the worker to know new industry trends, and will help in dealing with them. We can also underline special annual conferences aimed on the networking. This is a good opportunity to mix with others workers who for long time work in field. Moreover, such conferences can be a job fair, where one can make contacts with the future boss (Anderson, 2012). Anderson, L. (n.d.). 5 Reasons Professional Organizations are Worth Joining. Retrieved February 23, 2015, from

Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act Research Paper

Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act - Research Paper Example PPACA will impact small, medium, and large businesses. In addition, this paper brings into light the impact of PPACA on the current and future employees in small, medium, and large businesses. Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (PPACA) is a health care reform act officially signed into law by Barrack Obama, the current president of the United States (Timby and Smith 4). PPACA is also referred to as Obamacare. This act was drafted with the main objective of making available a cost effective or inexpensive health care to individuals in the U.S. who until that time could not afford health care insurance. Statistics from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) cited by Timby and Smith shows that "Prior to its passage, approximately 47 million Americans had no access to healthcare, and another 30 million had inadequate healthcare coverage" (4). It is of significance to note that those individuals already covered by healthcare insurance before the enactment of PPACA ar e likely to observe only slight changes in terms of their health insurance coverage. (Timby and Smith 4). Estimates explicated by Timby and Smith shows that approximately 32 million individuals in the United States were anticipated to have healthcare coverage by the year 2014 as a result of Obamacare (4). There are a number of issues stipulated in the PPACA act. Firstly, the act obligates individuals in the U.S. who can afford health insurance to pay for their cover or otherwise pay a fine (Timby and Smith 4).

George and Lennie Essay Example for Free

George and Lennie Essay All the characters played in the novel Of Mice and Men are lonesome, living an empty life everyday consisting of mainly hard labor. The characters all live a very disheartening life, with the lack of happiness, love and affection in their lives. This can be seen also when George mentions that ranch workers are the loneliest people in the world and dont belong nowhere. Of the many characters in the novel, Curleys wife might be one of the most pathetic and reviled of the outsiders. Steinbeck introduces her to us as an outcast, where she is isolated from the community. Being a minor character in the novel, Steinbeck manages to illustrate her as a character that deeply influences the lives of the main characters George and Lennie. Throughout the whole novel, Curleys wifes name is never mentioned. This initiates the readers to feel the sense of belonging of Curleys wife to Curley and to emphasize as an pariah, being feared of, leaving her with nobody to talk to and her identity as a mystery. Apart from that, Curleys wife is portrayed as the only female in the ranch, and although she is married to Curley, the bosss son, giving her a high status at the ranch, they are psychologically separated, and are never witnessed together, leaving her desperate for camaraderie. Her desire of attention and escape from loneliness leads her to try to seek attention from other men working in the ranch by flirting. Her coquettish actions and inappropriate dressing leads other characters to think of her as a tart. The ranch workers are uneasy about this and avoid her in fear of being reprimanded by Curley which may cost them to lose their jobs innocently. She is first introduced by Steinbeck when she comes into the bunkhouse disrupting a conversation that Lennie and George are holding. The depiction is dramatic, Both men glanced up, for the rectangle of sunshine in the doorway was cut off. This suggests that she has obscured the light, and darkened the room with her presence. This gives a dark and threatening image. Steinbeck describes the image of her standing and peering through the door, heavily made-up with full rouged lips and her fingernails being applied with red nailpolish. The fact that she was looking in through the door standing there accentuates her as an outsider. She is also described wearing red mules and with bouquets of red ostrich feathers on them. The constant repetition of the word red used in the novel to describe Curleys wife portrays her as one who is dangerous because the color red is quite provocative and has connotations such as love, passion and danger. Her hair hung in little rolled clusters, like sausages implies the extensive amount of time she has, being alone with nothing better to do than to curl her hair. Her inappropriate body language proves how she dreadfully tries to seek attention and flirts openly with men as she positions herself against the door frame so that her body was thrown forward. She smiles archly and twitch(es) her body. This gives the reader the general impression that Curleys wife is an attractive young lady who seeks attention of men. Georges immediate comments such as Jesus, what a tramp, and So thats what Curley picks for a wife and reactions to Curleys wife, however, allows the reader to realize that she is a potential threat to George and Lennie. George fumes when he knows of Lennies admiration of her being one who is purty and fiercely tells him not to even take a look at that bitch and refers to her as poison and jail bait and to leave her alone. It is obvious that she longs for friends and for someone to talk to, however, males on the ranch dislike her because they see has as one who is a magnet to trouble.

The Evolution Of The Food And Beverage Industry Marketing Essay

The Evolution Of The Food And Beverage Industry Marketing Essay The evolution of the food and beverage industry in tandem with restaurants can be said one of the most fundamental inceptions of all time. According to Kiefer (2002, p.58), Paris is often cited as the birthplace of the modern-day restaurant, but restaurants existed long before the French Revolution in other locations when economics and social mores made them feasible. He continues by saying that as of today, there are millions of restaurants across the world that offer variant types of food, services and experiences as opposed to limited scope of the original restaurants (p.58-60). Nonetheless, it is vitally inherent to note that in spite of the monumental positive steps that have been made in this industry over the recent times; much more still needs to be done so that restaurants achieve their full potentiality in the present world (Morgan and Watson, 2007). It is for this reason that there has been an increasingly popular need for marketing of restaurants in particular and food industry in general. In respect to that, Warden and Martens (1998) say that over the recent times, Marketing and advertising have developed as industrial applications of socio-scientific techniques of data gathering and analysis for the purpose of selling commodities. And in order to do this marketing, it is fundamental to establish the important precepts that of restaurants so as to adequately plan do the marketing. It is for this reason that this dissertation proposal focuses on concisely outlining the roles that food and experience play in marketing. Then based on the findings whic h are drawn from a wide range of write-ups by numerous authors; we will be able to know which of the two precepts (food and experience) should be increasingly used by restaurants owners to market their food joints in their websites. Aims and objectives of the proposal To establish which of the two precepts (food and experience) is most important and intrinsic in website marketing of a restaurant to its targeted public. To find other essential contributing factors that concurrently complement the roles of food and experience in the marketing of a restaurant through a website. To investigate how food and experience are represented on restaurant website for their promotion. To determine how competition may be handled in restaurant marketing website for food and experience. Notably, all the above aims and objectives are based on the literature reviewed below. 3.0Literature Review Web marketing has become very important in our modern world of new technology. Web marketing also known as internet marketing, online marketing, digital marketing or e-marketing is defined as marketing which is probably done through the e-mail and media which is wireless. Electronic customer relationship management system is considered as internet marketing. Media is placed in varying stages of customer circles referred to as circles of customer engagement using search engines. Marketing reports show that 80% of customers use internet search to locate for restaurants located locally. An estimated 50% of the customers view menus, reviews, pictures in the internet to locate for restaurants. Companies need to have well and easily navigated restaurant websites to market themselves locally and nationally. The main objective is to ensure the web site should increase the number of customers and increase the sales. A restaurant company that faces stiff competition can use websites to earn reputation in the market. Social networking is effective tool in marketing restaurants. Marketing specialist or the owner can prepare a blog containing the recent trends in the restaurant. Book marking is used to create a large online space for the restaurant. Company can create a review site and pay some people to comment negatively or positively about the restaurant. Customers feel honored when given a chance to voice out their ideas and thoughts about the restaurant. This can attract customers to the hotel because they think they are stake holders of the restaurant. News letters can be printed to depict the restaurants latest advertising, promotional and performance trends. Customers will tell others about the restaurant and reduce extra costs of advertising because advertising by word of mouth is very important in the field of business. Companies should hire marketing firms to market their restaurants online. Clear details of the restaurant should be provided online. They include menu offerings, telephone number, and address and restaurants history. Many people visit the website nowadays and your restaurant can attract people from different regions of the world. The restaurants website can be made available both offline and online. Changes to the restaurants web site should be made gradually. 3.1 Advantages of online restaurant marketing Cheap as compared to traditional methods of advertising like use of radio, news papers, magazines and bill boards. Reaches so many customers world wide using the internet. Quick and effective for customers who frequently use the internet. Helpful in reducing competition among other restaurants using web marketing. 3.2 Disadvantages of online restaurant marketing In applicable when customers dont have access to internet services. Failure to frequently update restaurant web site may lead to trailing performance. Lack of enough information about the restaurant may make marketing and advertising in effective. 3.3 Website analysis 10 Steps are followed in order to analyze a web site. Understand the purpose of the website immediately. Navigate through the website quickly and when you are lost then exit the web. Find out whether the website is attractive. Look on how white space page is displayed. Website covered with images means that the legibility is bare. Navigate and find out where you are there and why. Typography should be clear througho8ut the website search. Website should be well organized with invisible grids provided underneath. When the content is placed in all part of the page then it means the designer had been lost in the designing of the web. Colors used in designing the website should be used in alignment with the content. Colors that are not interesting to the viewer of the website make the design to fail. The design of the website should be consistency from the start to the end of the page. The website should be designed in a way that is compatible to the browser whether internet explorer or fires fox. Website should be created fast and light so as to ensure easy and quick browsing without waiting for minutes for the page to be displayed. 4.0Research Methodology 4.1 Content analysis of the website chosen Under this section we shall use an example of a website of Steve restaurant in Toronto. The website is www.steves restaurant.ca. The website among many others discussed is very explicit and shows all the details in the web page. In order for a restaurant to succeed in internet marketing the website should be very attractive. Steves restaurant website has a clear purpose for the business activity to be carried. When we look at the displayed page the hotel building is clearly drawn and written with words which are inscribed in red color.Steves Restaurant The content is not paced in all the part of the page but here are spaces underneath. The website is easily navigable and the pages are consistent from the beginning to the end. The colors used in the pages especially when you browse to the menu page are very attractive. When you look at the costs of meat, eggs and pancake all appear in different colors ranging from red, blue, yellow, and white. Pages are light and fast to open and a person does not wait for long to be displayed. Topography is clear and the website is compatible to the users of internet explorer and Mozilla fire fox. A restaurant which can afford to develop a website like the one discussed a above then it is in a good position to market itself both internationally and locally. It can increase sells and the flow of the customers within the region of operation. 4.2 Reliability and validity Because Steves restaurant has been in operation since 1946 in Toronto in the U.S then any other hotelier or a business exercutitive can create a website which is clear and professional like that of Steve. The menu, home page, map, info, photos, contest and contact us are well displayed. Telephone numbers are provided on top of the first page. Images of tables, chairs and small tomato sauce bottles are shown. The restaurant looks to be located in a busy street with people moving up and down. The building appears greyish in colour and the area is cool with enough shade. 4.3 Limitations to research To arrive at a discussed website for a given restaurant is very hard because you first ask yourself whether to create your own website or to look for examples of websites that have been created following the crucial ten steps for web design. Some pages providing clear website designs may not open therefore derailing the research exercise. It is costly to carry out an internet search especially in regions where internet cyber cafes are few. 4.4Conclusion Internet marketing especially for food and beverage providers is important. Most restaurants especially in the developed countries should hire qualified web designers to design restaurant websites. Websites should be changed after a given time to make them look a new to increase the customer base.Owers that dont recognize internet marketing especially in the United states, England, Spain, France and others need to change their business marketing altitudes and adopt modern ways of online marketing. Food has more weight than experience and excellent advertising and marketing functions should be addressed online.

Elie Wiesels Night and Alicia Appleman-Jurmans Alicia :: Elie Wiesel Night Essays

ElieWiesel's Night and Alicia Appleman-Jurman's Alicia    Wars between groups of people over race, religion, and beliefs have been fought throughout human history. Millions of people have been killed simply because of what they look like, whom they worship, how they live, and what they believe in general. However, it was not until after Hitler's Holocaust that the terms "genocide" and "ethnic cleansing" - the systematic destruction of entire groups of people for petty and irrational reasons - came into use. Hitler's holocaust was different than all of the wars fought for cultural reasons that came before the Holocaust. The Nazis did not wish to simply subdue the Jews, oppress them, and try to force their beliefs upon them. Instead, Hitler and the Nazis wanted nothing less than the complete annihilation of the Jews, and everything related to Judaism. Hitler's campaign against the Jews was hardly a war. Rarely did the killers encounter large, armed and organized bodies of Jewish soldiers. Rather, the Nazis encountered largely defe nseless ordinary people: women, businessmen, farmers, and the elderly. Most vulnerable of all the victims were the children. On the weakest members of society, the Nazis showed perhaps the least mercy.    Children are always less suited for physical hardship than all but the frailest of adults. Children can not travel on foot long distances, go without food, or resist disease as well as adults. Clearly, this made them extremely vulnerable to the will of the Nazis during World War II. They could not endure the long death marches, starvation, and disease inflicted upon them by the Nazis as well as adults could. As a result, in a purely physical sense, the Holocaust must have been far more torturous to children than to adults.    Often, the Nazis specifically targeted children. Upon his arrival at Auschwitz, ElieWiesel was told to lie about his age by a Jew already imprisoned there. If he had given his real age, fifteen, he would have likely been immediately sent to the gas chambers. Instead, by saying he was eighteen, he was spared immediate death in order to be put to work (Wiesel 28). Shortly thereafter, Wiesel witnessed "a lorry ...at the pit and [delivering] it's load - little children.

Airline Safety Essay -- Essays Papers

Airline Safety Systems, Parts and Maintenance In July of 1996, a Boeing 747 carrying the designator Flight 800 took off from Kennedy Airport in New York. On board were two hundred and thirty people who were entrusting their individual safety to an aircraft that had one of the best safety records in the airline industry. The Boeing 747 has been in service for many years, and has been utilized for many different things including the one designated Air Force One. Nine miles off the coast of Long Island the aircraft exploded, killing everybody on board (Adcock 08). The wreckage was strewn over a wide area of the Atlantic Ocean and proved to be very difficult to recover. It took several months to sift through the sand on the ocean floor and recover the parts from the aircraft. Speculation that the aircraft had somehow been the victim of a terrorist act was the topic of the day. There were theories that the aircraft had exploded as a result of a bomb placed aboard (Adcock 08). There were theories that it had been the victim of a gro und to air missile or an air-to-air missile. There were investigations to find out if the Navy had inadvertently shot the aircraft down. Accusations were flung in the most unlikely places. Security at the international airports was increased and bomb squads regularly checked each departing aircraft for any explosives. People were afraid to fly because they were afraid of terrorist attacks. The Federal Aviation Administration investigated all of these possibilities and one more. They investigated the possibility that a part on the aircraft had failed and caused the explosion. This wasn't a popular theory because of the Boeing 747's excellent safety record and the fact that aircraft in general weren't in the habit of exploding in mid-air. When all of the information was in and the final report issued, it was determined that the cause of the crash was probably a wire in the fuel indicator system that had grown old and frayed. There wasn't enough direct physical evidence to prove it beyond a shadow of a doubt, however subsequent investigations of aircraft that were as old as the 747 on Flight 800 - twenty five years - showed wiring cracks and fraying in a manner consistent with the theories advanced about the crash of Flight 800 (Adcock 08). The Federal Aviation Agency has since initiated an aging aircraft program with t... ...e need for adequate funding and personnel by the FAA. The FAA is obviously doing everything that it can under the circumstances, however the trend toward cost cutting and compromise of maintenance programs is continuing. It is showing no signs of lessening due to the fact that the airlines are continually being squeezed between needing to lower fares and pay higher maintenance costs. WORKS CITED Dickey, Christopher. "What Went Wrong." Newsweek International. August 2000 Fed: Undercarriage collapses on Qantas jet. AAP General News (Australia). April 22, 2000 "FENA for proper maintenance of DC-10s to keep these running, The Independent". September 2000 Hinson, David. "ValuJet Airlines crash." Jet lag.(Federal Aviation Commission ( The New Republic ). 12-16-1996 â€Å"Incorrectly Reports Inspection Cycle for Part Implicated in the Alaska Flight 261 Tragedy†. Business Wire. May 2000 "Oversight of Maintenance & Repair Facility Practices Under Examination". Air Safety Week. July 1999 PG Sullivan, John. "FAA delayed telling airlines about failed cables Agency defends move, saying part not crucial for flight control†. The Dallas Morning News. June 2000 Airline Safety Essay -- Essays Papers Airline Safety Systems, Parts and Maintenance In July of 1996, a Boeing 747 carrying the designator Flight 800 took off from Kennedy Airport in New York. On board were two hundred and thirty people who were entrusting their individual safety to an aircraft that had one of the best safety records in the airline industry. The Boeing 747 has been in service for many years, and has been utilized for many different things including the one designated Air Force One. Nine miles off the coast of Long Island the aircraft exploded, killing everybody on board (Adcock 08). The wreckage was strewn over a wide area of the Atlantic Ocean and proved to be very difficult to recover. It took several months to sift through the sand on the ocean floor and recover the parts from the aircraft. Speculation that the aircraft had somehow been the victim of a terrorist act was the topic of the day. There were theories that the aircraft had exploded as a result of a bomb placed aboard (Adcock 08). There were theories that it had been the victim of a gro und to air missile or an air-to-air missile. There were investigations to find out if the Navy had inadvertently shot the aircraft down. Accusations were flung in the most unlikely places. Security at the international airports was increased and bomb squads regularly checked each departing aircraft for any explosives. People were afraid to fly because they were afraid of terrorist attacks. The Federal Aviation Administration investigated all of these possibilities and one more. They investigated the possibility that a part on the aircraft had failed and caused the explosion. This wasn't a popular theory because of the Boeing 747's excellent safety record and the fact that aircraft in general weren't in the habit of exploding in mid-air. When all of the information was in and the final report issued, it was determined that the cause of the crash was probably a wire in the fuel indicator system that had grown old and frayed. There wasn't enough direct physical evidence to prove it beyond a shadow of a doubt, however subsequent investigations of aircraft that were as old as the 747 on Flight 800 - twenty five years - showed wiring cracks and fraying in a manner consistent with the theories advanced about the crash of Flight 800 (Adcock 08). The Federal Aviation Agency has since initiated an aging aircraft program with t... ...e need for adequate funding and personnel by the FAA. The FAA is obviously doing everything that it can under the circumstances, however the trend toward cost cutting and compromise of maintenance programs is continuing. It is showing no signs of lessening due to the fact that the airlines are continually being squeezed between needing to lower fares and pay higher maintenance costs. WORKS CITED Dickey, Christopher. "What Went Wrong." Newsweek International. August 2000 Fed: Undercarriage collapses on Qantas jet. AAP General News (Australia). April 22, 2000 "FENA for proper maintenance of DC-10s to keep these running, The Independent". September 2000 Hinson, David. "ValuJet Airlines crash." Jet lag.(Federal Aviation Commission ( The New Republic ). 12-16-1996 â€Å"Incorrectly Reports Inspection Cycle for Part Implicated in the Alaska Flight 261 Tragedy†. Business Wire. May 2000 "Oversight of Maintenance & Repair Facility Practices Under Examination". Air Safety Week. July 1999 PG Sullivan, John. "FAA delayed telling airlines about failed cables Agency defends move, saying part not crucial for flight control†. The Dallas Morning News. June 2000

Multi-Perspective Approach to Understanding Organization Essay

What are the advantages and disadvantages of a multi-perspective approach to understanding organization? In answering the question you will need to engage with the nature of the various perspectives and how they enable and limit our understanding of organization. There are different ways in how people produce different knowledge and thus many people have come out with their own concepts and theories. This results in multiple perspectives that help to generate idea about different organization and organizing. The more knowledge of multiple perspectives, concepts and theories, the greater will be your capacity to choose a better approach with regards to the problems faced in your current company. Multi perspective is created as belief, assumptions and knowledge of the world influence how researchers carry out their research and manage their organization. What you do is to assume which approach does best for your industries and organization and for that you design and amend accordingly to be the best way to of optimizing man power and profit. The benefits of a multi-perspective approach would be (cited from page 11) multiple perspectives will also help organization embrace complexity and uncertainty and their contradictory demands. Managers and employees now are expected to do more with less, to maximize both short term gain and long term investment, and be more efficient as well as more humane and ethical. By confronting such a variety of contradictory forces demands the broadest set of concept and theories that your mind can grasp. Secondly, people raised question about the nature of ethical action and manager’s face when trying to act in socially and organization responsible ways. The advantages of using multiple perspective helps people aware of the assumption and values underlying your theory and practices, which in turn should make you more conscious of your reason for doing things and better able to understand the reason behind the action taken by others. Being able to reflect on your own reasoning process a nd compare them you will develop ethical awareness. Thirdly, if you learn about multiple perspective, you will be able to understand how different perspectives influence the way you and others experience by interpreting and shape organization realities. You will become a more effective member of any organization to join. Let me evaluate with the two important philosophical choices of ontology and epistemology. Ontology concerns our assumtion about reality which you don’t question whether all this things are real or have an existence undependent because of you (cited from pg12) pjilosphers sometimes refers to these as existential question because they attribute existence to one set of things(reality) but not to another (unreal). Which means that you carry out task upon your own perspective only, while you disregard other perspective. The disadvantages will be it will lead to arguments between those who maintain different perspectives and cause them to set up seperate and conflicting mates. This is a major concerns as people have been always living in their own world and never care of other people’s feeling which causes conflict around their organization and families. People experience different things as what they do everyday or even their personalities are different from other peoople we call this term subjectivist. Whereas Objectivist is different, theybelieve that what reality exist independently of those who lives in it, people also reacted to what is happening around them in predictable ways because their behaviour is part of the material world in which they live is determined by causes (cited from page 12). Example, if you are hoping to own a european car and the behaviour in which you have to work hard to pay for it is determined by wanting to own the car. Epistemology whereas is concerned with knowing how you can know. Epistemology is closely related to ontology because the anwsers to there questions depend on and help to forge assumptions about the nature of reality. This two terms determined the three major multiple perspective approach to understanding organisation. Usually the three multiple perspectives can be comparable using these two variables ontology and epistemology. Modernism is usually objectivism, you must limit commit to limiting what you count as knowledge to what you can know through your five senses. Results can be taken again if steps of the procedure is followed again using the five senses and the respective sense-enhancing devices. Modernist organization theorist also believes that if they can get whole of the complete knowledge by understanding how and why organisations function the way they do and how their function is influence by different environment conditions. Therefore to get a modernist perspective effective organisation is to being able to balace internal and external pressures, develop core competencies, increase efficiency and versertile to changes. The theories that influence modernist are general system theory, socio-technical systems theory and contingency theory. General system theory is to understand and grasp the concept of system and it characteristics of the company, which it can also mutually interrelated into parts called subsystem for easier understanding of each process. By using differentiation it provides the system with the benefits of specialization. To put into simpler terms a organisation if want to use the general system theory, that means that they will divide the units and departments and each department with the benefits of specialization. For socio-technical theory, they focus on a number of humanistic issues, by treating organisation as a social system, the social and psychological consequence of work design, the importance of the work group compared to the individual and the need for a division of labour that considers increasing rather than decreasing the variety of work skills and task. Socio-technical theory also suggest that self-managed teams should be the building blocks of organizational design and that could lessen the need for hierarchy form of organisation. Whereas for contingency theory, theorist will try to identify the key contingencies in each situation and try to determine the best fits between them, this theory have remain very popular among companies because they take seductive form of recipes for success.

Availability Of Instructional Materials Essay

Some people learn in different ways. Some people are extraordinary good of retaining information fed to them orally and others absorb and retain a great deal of information that they’ve read. Others need visual stimulants or cues to facilitate learning. Education in Basilan State College is now experiencing a period great change, and problematic situations that can spur creative and innovative effects  towards educational experiences. The needs to restore the learners are the instructional materials, because it helps to stimulate and motivate learners. (Esu, Enukoha and umeron 2004). Education will have to project new vision and a new perspective which will expand the school of the community and make it its laboratory for the teaching-learning opportunities that will be provided. Teachers will be a key factor in education and in a culture like ours, they will still be accepted authority in the classroom. Educational facilities and instructional materials do need in improving performance, but in view of limited resources creativity and innovativeness most are experience in their used. Since all effort will involve all people, actions of education system must be directed to make all sectors like media, association and other government and non government agencies compliment rather than compete in the task in developing education so that it can contribute more substantially to the rebuilding of our nation. Instructional materials are said to be part of the instructional procedure. Thus, studies have shown that when skills are related to practical situations, attitude and improve. Inyang-Abia and Esu (1990) cited in Esu et. Al (2004) asserts that instructional materials are the pivot or which the wheel of individuals differ in so many aspects and they learn at different levels, so providing alternative resource materials is very necessary. The purpose of instruction therefore, is to help people learn. Instruction may include events that are generated by a page of prints, by a picture, by television program, or by combination of physical objects among other things. The aim of designing instruction is to activate and support learning of the individual pupil. This aim is characteristic of instruction whenever it occurs whether between a tutor and the pupil in a school classroom, an adult interest or the job setting. A fundamental reason for designing instruction is to ensure that no one educationally disadvantaged and that all pupils have equal opportunities to use their individual talents to the fullest degree. Instructional design calls for a preplanning it involves preparing a blue print of instructional development and delivery, utilizing multimedia, multi disciplinary approaches with objective of improving the teaching and learning processes on one hand. These instructional materials brought about meaningful insight and provide direction for change in education. Basic instructional materials will have to be developed very carefully since these may have in the process of education. They should provide for the desirable values and the skills and knowledge proposed to be learned in each learning level and adequately provide for mastery learning which is requisite to the achievements of quality. Good teaching is not an accident. It is thoroughly planned and organized by a teacher who has in mind the nature of the learners, the objective of the lessons and the availability of materials. All that happens inside the classroom contributes to the learner’s acquisition of knowledge, values and skills. The learning environment provides very meaningful experience not only to the learners but to the teachers as well. Good teachers become better teachers when they used appropriate materials in their classroom. Theoretical Framework Instructional materials have been defined by various authors. For example, Obanya ( 1989) viewed them as didactic materials thing which supposed to make learning and teaching possible. According to Abdullahi (1982) instructional materials or tools usually made or imported that could made  tremendous enhancement of lesson impact if intelligently used. Ikiereonwun (Isola 2010) refered to them as objects or devices, which help the teacher to make a lesson make clearer to the learner. Instructional materials are also described as concrete or physical objects which provides sound, visual or both to the sense organs during teaching (Aguina-obu) 2005). There are also instructional materials that educators use which provide creative ideas to assist in the learning process. Finally, instructional materials can help one troubleshoot a product that is not functioning properly. Instructional materials serve as the channel between the teacher and the students in delivering the instruction. They may also serve as the motivation on the teaching- learning process Instructional Materials serve as the channel between the teacher and the students in delivering the instruction. They may also serve as the motivation on the teaching- learning process. Use to get the attention of the students in order for them to experience boredom, just want to add the importance of instructional materials is that good instructional materials do not teach it encourage the learners to learn. Conceptual framework Instructional materials are in various classes. Independent Variables Dependent Variables Implication Statement of the Problem This study was conducted to determine the availability of instructional materials of the college of Health and Science in Basilan State College. Specifically, it answers the following questions. 1. What are the instructional materials use by the teacher of college of Health and Science a. Audio b. Visual c. Audiovisual 2. To what extent is the audio instructional materials used by the teacher in terms of: a. Radio b. Tape recording 3. To what extent is the visual instructional materials used by the teacher in terms of: a. Chalkboards b. Chart c. Slide d. Film Strip 4. To what extent is the audio-visual instructional materials in terms of: a. Television b. Picture c. Slide show Hypothesis of the Study The under listed hypothesis were formulated to guide these study. There are no significant difference between students taught with standard instructional materials, improvised materials and convention instruction. There is no significant relationship between availability of instructional materials and effective implementation of College of Health and Science. Significance of the Study With insights on the availability of instructional materials brought about meaningful insights and provide direction for change in education. Through the use of instructional materials the students are easily arouse their learning. Students may have different interest and abilities that determine their pace of learning. The Teacher With the use of instructional materials for the teacher in place, their instructional efficiency can be improve. The overcome of this research may help the teacher in place and load more available instructional materials in their classroom or materials. The Department This research will increase and improve the implementation of the available instructional materials to indulge the learning of the students. Scope and Delimitation of the Study Teaching materials is a generic term use to describe the resources teachers use to deliver instruction. Teaching materials can support student learning and increase student success. Teaching materials come in many shapes and sizes, but they all have in common the ability to support student learning. This study was conducted in the College of Health and Science at Basilan Sate College Isabela City Basilan. This study determines the availability of instructional materials in College of Health and Science. Teachers at all levels utilize a variety of instructional materials such as textbooks, presentations, and handouts to enhance the quality of their lessons. The quality of those materials directly impacts the quality of teaching. Knowing how to find the best instructional materials is valuable skills for a teacher. What the use of instructional materials should be useful when they used it, the students can easily gain important information. These instructional materials are used to aid the transference of information from one to another. Right for instance, a teacher may use instructional materials to aid in the learning of subject matter in the class. Instructional materials serve as the channel between the teacher and the students in delivering the instruction. They may also serve as the motivation on the teaching learning process. Definition of Terms For better comprehensive of this study, the following terms were defined: 1. Availability – The quality or state of being available (Merriam Webster) 2. Instructional Materials – Educational resources use to improve students’ knowledge, abilities, and skills to monitor their assimilation of information, and to contribute to their overall development and upbringing. 3. Students – is a learner or someone who attends an educational institution. 4. Teacher – Teacher is the one of parent who thinks good for our future and is the only person who helps us to make the decision then the right for us. 5. Needs – A need is something that is necessary for organisms to live a healthy life. Needs are distinguished from wants because a deficiency could clear a negative outcomes, such as disfunction or death. Needs can be subjective or physical, such as food, or they can be subjective and psychological, such as the need for the self – esteem. Chapter II Review of Related Literature and Studies Some people say that learning can be learned through the use of visual-aids and as a matter of fact, 75% of learning can be acquired through the sense of sight. Now a days students are very much particular with its comes to the teachers visual-aids. Sometimes they find the discussion boring if the teacher didn’t provide their visual-aids. Traditional instructional materials are the materials traditionally use by the teachers to their students in teaching their lessons. It includes the use of textbook, chalk, board, marker, charts and flash cards. These are the common materials that help the teachers to explain the lessons clearly. Instructional materials These are materials that are use to aid the transference of information from one to another. For example, a teacher may use instructional materials to aid in the learning of subject matter for a class. These instructional materials could include power point presentations (visual aids). Books Articles The list can go on and on some call them instructional materials while others may call learning or teaching aids. Instructional materials serve as the channel between the teacher and the students in delivering the instruction. They may also serve or the motivation on the teaching learning process. Students learn principally through interactions with people (teachers and peers) and instructional materials (textbooks, workbooks, instructional software, web-based content, homework, projects, quizzes, and tests). But education policymakers focus primarily on factors removed from those interactions, such as academic standards, teacher evaluation systems, and school accountability policies. It’s as if the medical profession worried about the administration of hospitals and patient insurance but paid no attention to the treatments that doctors give their patients. There is strong evidence that the choice of instructional materials has large effects on student learning—effects that rival in size those that are associated with differences in teacher effectiveness. But whereas improving teacher quality through changes in the preparation and professional development of teachers and the human resources policies surrounding their employment is challenging, expensive, and time-consuming, making better choices among available instructional materials should be relatively easy, inexpensive, and quick. Student learning occurs primarily through interactions with people (teachers and peers) and instructional materials (textbooks, workbooks, instructional software, web-based content, homework, projects, quizzes, and tests). The contexts within which these interactions  occur are surely important. The effectiveness of teachers, the behavior of peers, and the instructional materials with which students have the opportunity to interact are affected by layers of influences that range from circumstances in the home, to leadership in the school, to the international macro-economy and everything in between. But students do not engage in instructional interactions with the governance mechanism for their school or with state standards or with a school district’s evaluation system for teachers or with collective bargaining agreements or with the leadership qualities of their school principal—they learn by engaging in cognitive processes that are triggered and shaped by interactions with people and instructional materials. The balance between attention to context and attention to instruction has come to be substantially out-of-kilter among education policymakers.2 It is as if the managers of a professional sports team spent most of their time and resources on the layout of the stadium, the advertising of the games, the logistics of travel, and the equipment in the weight room while giving little attention to playing the game itself. Instructional interactions are the core of student learning but policymakers attend mostly to context. We must give priority to the education policies that are most likely to improve instructional interactions if we are going to achieve substantial progress in student achievement. CHAPTER III RESEARCH DESIGN AND PROCEDURES These chapters discuss the Research Methodology, Instructional Materials and Achievement Grades, Survey Data and Survey Population and Instrument. METHODOLOGY An instructional material has been shown to have positive impact on teaching and learning in classrooms (Baylor and Ritchie, 2002). For this study, instruction materials were defined as all the materials and equipment that  are used to enhance the teaching and learning process, specifically chalkboards, flip charts, locally available resources, overhead projectors, videos, and computers. The academic achievements in the College of Health and Science could be attributed to many factors among which teachers strategy itself was considered as an important factor. The teaching without instructional materials may certainly result in poor academic achievements. The availability of instructional materials has been found to the consistently positive determinant of academic achievement. In addition to studying the effects of availability of instructional materials like textbooks on achievement it is important to know the extent to which the instructional materials being used in the College of Health and Science to the learning needs of the students in the said college. The purpose of this study was to survey students to determine what instructional materials were available in the teacher training colleges. INSTRUCTIONAL MATERIALS AND ACADEMIC ACHIEVEMENTS There have been several studies on instructional materials and academic achievement. For instance, Momoh (Isola, 2010), conducted a research on the effects of instructional resources on students’ performance in West Africa School Certificate. Examinations (WASCE) in Kwara State. He correlated material resources with academic achievements of students in ten subjects. Data were collected from the subject teachers in relation to the resources employed in the teaching. The achievements of students in WASCE for the past five years were related to the resources available for teaching each of the subjects. He concluded that material resources have a significant effect on student’s achievement in each of the subjects. In the same manner, Moronfola (1982) carried out a research in Ilorin Local Government Area of Kwara State. She used questionnaires to collect data on the material resources available for the teaching of some selected subjects  in ten secondary schools and related these to students’ achievements in each of the selected subjects and to the amount of resources available for the teaching of the subjects. Finding showed a significant effect of material resources on the students’ academic performance in these subjects. In the same vein, Popoola (1990) investigated the effect of instructional resources on the academic achievements of students in Ogun State. Five secondary schools in Abeokuta were used for this study. Questionnaires were designed to elicit responses on instructional materials that were available for the teaching and learning of each of the three school subjects he examined. He collected WASC examination results for five years and compared achievements of students in schools with adequate material resources and achievements of students in schools with inadequate material resources. He found a significant difference in the achievements of the two sets of students. The schools with adequate instructional materials performed better than those with inadequate instructional materials. The absence instructional materials in the school were great limitation to a number of teachers. Administrators should be aware of the importance of the instructional materials as an instructional tool and provide it to the teacher. Like for instance, textbooks and exercise books are the most important teaching/learning aids. In this study it was found that in general teachers had textbooks for the subjects they were teaching. THE SURVEY DATA There are several ways that surveys can reach respondents for completion. A researcher can contact respondents by mailing the surveys to them and wait for their responses. The advantages with mail out surveys are that the researcher is able to reach participants who are scattered and cannot easily be met in person, and also that respondents have ample time to think of the answer. On the other hand, mailing has a disadvantage because in many cases response rate is low, and the researcher must make several attempts to remind participants to respond (Ary, Jacobs and Razavieh, 2002, Fowler, 2002, Rea and Parker, 1997). In this study the researcher administered the survey in person, one by one. Despite the time and expense incurred, this approach helped the researcher to have a high response rate (Ary, Jacobs, and Razavieh, 2002), since the surveys were collected immediately after completion. Another advantage was that since the respondents were clustered at their classes it was possible to get almost all respondents at the same time and allow them to fill in the surveys at the same time. In addition, as Ary, Jacobs, and Razavieh (2002) put it, â€Å"the researcher is present [and can] provide assistance or answer questions† about the items. SURVEY POPULATION AND INSTRUMENT The population for the survey was derived from the ten (10) respondents in the College of Health and Science. The instrument used in this study were self-design contains of 7 items and 2 choices or options the â€Å"Yes or No â€Å". The respondents are the students of College of Health and Science an we gathered at least 10 respondents in the said college. The students were made to check the answer of the survey questionnaire. The survey questionnaire was use to measure the achievements of the students in the College of Health and Science through the use of various instructional materials through the contribution also of their teachers. And it was used to measure how does these instructional materials affecting the grades pr the achievement grades of the students in the College of Health and Science.

Factors Affecting Organizational Behavior Essay

All companies today have internal and external forces that impact organizational behavior. The purpose of this paper is to explore the impact of internal and external forces on organizational behavior. The four forces we will discuss are, customer demands relating to Sinclair Oil, economic forces outside of Select Portfolio Servicing, restructuring within Nestle, and globalization factors relating to Northrop Grumman. Customer Demands Customer demands have a large impact on organizational behavior (OB) of the Sinclair Oil Corporation (SOC). SOC owns and operates three oil refineries, a trucking division, a pipeline division, the retail service stations, and eight hotels and resorts. The diverse nature of the company leads to many different customer demands. The oil refineries have two types of customers. The first is the retail service stations. The refineries must produce enough finished product each day to supply the service stations in 17 different states. The second type of customer is the federal government. Over the last eight years SOC has held the contract to provide jet fuel to Hill Air Force base. The average amount of finished product produced at the refineries is 600 hundred thousand barrels a day. This output is usually enough to supply the service stations needs and have some oil to put into reserve. Working conditions within the refinery are inherently dangerous, if production cannot keep up with demands operators often begin to feel additional pressure to keep pace; this distress can lead to additional dangers. There are three different types of hotels and resorts within the SOC/Little America organization. There are roadside properties, which cater to travelers and tourists, the elegant hotels and the ski resorts. Each type of property gears itself and its organizational behavior towards the customer base. The roadside properties, such as Little America Cheyenne, have a more casual approach to the customers; due to the affluent nature at the Grand America the environment is formal. The resorts are highly influenced with a European flair. This help the customers feel a sense of adventure. Economy While customer demands are one of the primary forces on SOC, economic forces greatly impact the OB of Select Portfolio Servicing (SPS). SPS is a mortgage servicing company. The resource group or hardship group is within the loan resolution department. Loan resolution assists borrowers who have fallen delinquent on their mortgage. The resource group assists customers that have hardship, such as, illness, death, loss of employment for extended periods of time, and property damage. When the economy falters the activities of loan resolution are in higher demand. Loan resolution and the resource group profit off the economic hardship of their customers. The purpose of loan resolution is to turn loss into profit for their investors. Loan resolution limits or prevents the loss which the investor experiences when a customer defaults. Loan resolution is paid based off of the percentage of delinquent accounts that they get re-performing, get paid in full, or liquidate for a loss. With the faulty economy there is more a more work that loan resolution must perform. Loan resolution is understaffed and overworked. The influx of high phone call volumes has caused little time for the resource group to complete their administrative duties. Morale is low department wide, largely due to the administration feeling they are performing two jobs daily. Answering phone calls and trying to complete the work the inbound calls generate cannot be completed eight hours a day. While loan resolution’s numbers still satisfy the investors giving them business, the administrative departments, such as, the resource group are becoming stressed and overwhelmed with a never-ending workload. Restructuring Economic factors affect companies like SPS and Nestlà © alike, but Nestle has chosen restructuring as the answer to its dilemma. Nestle is suffering from  the â€Å"big elephant† syndrome. In the old market diversifying and buying up the competition allowed it to survive and prosper, but in the new economy which is consumer driven the â€Å"big elephant† has been asked â€Å"to dance† for the customer. Nestle must rise to the challenge of change or it will be driven into extinction. The strategic decision makers at Nestle are trying to â€Å"trim the fat† on the elephant, and they have turned to organizational behavior to restructure their workforce. Globalization and technology have evened out the playing field for Nestle and its competition. Nestle as well as the competition is able to obtain the same raw materials at the same prices, and technology has allowed each company quick and efficient ways to process information. So, where will Nestle find its sustainable competitive advantage for the future? The innovation and the motivation of its employees will be the source of its sustainable advantage. Nestle needs to find a way of unlocking this source of intellectual capital. The corporate leaders feel restructuring is the key. This restructuring process has changed the organizational behavior of the company from a rigid hierarchical structure to a facilitator driven, empowered employee structure. The organization believes improving speed at the point of execution will make the business more successful, and it is the front line employees that are at the point of execution. To develop empowered employees organizational behavioral changes needed to be made. Monthly training has taken place on subjects like: change, communication, one hundred percent responsibility, situational leadership, and teamwork so far. Layers of supervision have been cut, and reincorporated into the workforce. Supervisors are being groomed as coaches and facilitators, instead micromanaging. Equipment operators are learning mechanical â€Å"first aid† to fix small problems and improve efficiency. A mentoring program has been instituted, so that empowered employees with positive attitudes are the role models for new workers. Globalization Northrop Grumman Corporation (NGC) considers itself a world class leader in  the production of military defense products. Many of these products are created for, and consumed by, customers in the United States, but many are also created and sold to companies and or countries all over the world. The company’s current position has not been easy to reach. Maintaining and growing this position requires constant vigilance in an ever expanding global market place. In fact, global factors in today’s economy have forced the company to make constant internal improvements to remain competitive in the global market. Exportation of intellectual property and gains in technological advances and capabilities of companies in countries abroad have resulted in more foreign competition. The entry of additional competitors in the defense business market has forced companies like NGC to look closely at internal business processes to find ways to gain or maintain a competitive edge. NGC has learned to modify the organizations overall behavior by training individuals in the use of business methods such as LEAN, Six Sigma and Training Within Industry (TWI). The following is a simplified description of what each of these business methods is intended to do. LEAN is specifically used to improve processes, manage inventory and manage movement of product throughout the production phase as well as eliminate practices which don’t add value. Six Sigma is applied as a tool to measure critical processes in a way that insures they stay under control. This is essentially done by setting control limits and then collecting data and analyzing the trends or movement of data as it relates to the control limits. TWI is being employed to ensure that every employee has the proper skill set to function within their specified job requirements. This training process employs a regiment of training that teaches, measures what has been learned, as well as maintains critical training information and/or tricks of the trade. This training method also provides the company with details of each employee’s specific capabilities and certifications. These internal changes have proven themselves invaluable to the company, saving NGC time, money, and valuable recourses as well as assist them in monitoring the company’s daily business. Most of all, changes in NGC’s OBhas been noticed by a number of the company’s customers who have noted the positive impact.

Fool Chapter 9

NINE TOIL AND TROUBLE So why is it that we are going to Great Birnam Wood to look for witches?† asked Kent as we made our way across the moor. There was only a slight breeze but it was bloody cold, what with the mist and the gloom and my despair over King Jeff. I pulled my woolen cape around me. â€Å"Bloody Scotland,† said I. â€Å"Albany is possibly the darkest, dampest, coldest bloody crevice in all of Blighty. Sodding Scots.† â€Å"Witches?† reminded Kent. â€Å"Because the bloody ghost told me I'd find my answers here.† â€Å"Ghost?† â€Å"The girl ghost at the White Tower, keep up, Kent. Rhymes and riddles and such.† I told him of the â€Å"grave offense to daughters three† and the â€Å"madman rising to lead the blind.† Kent nodded as if he understood. â€Å"And I'm along because†¦Ã¢â‚¬  â€Å"Because it is dark and I am small.† â€Å"You might have asked Curan or one of the others. I'm reticent about witches.† â€Å"Nonsense. They're just like physicians, only without the bleeding. Nothing to fear.† â€Å"In the day, when Lear was still Christian, we did not do well by witches. I've had a cartload of curses cast on me.† â€Å"Not very effective, though, were they? You're child-frighteningly old and still strong as a bull.† â€Å"I am banished, penniless, and live under the threat of death upon discovery of my name.† â€Å"Oh, good point. Brave of you to come, then.† â€Å"Aye, thanks, lad, but I'm not feeling it. What's that light?† There was a fire ahead in the wood, and figures moving around it. â€Å"Stealthy, now, good Kent. Let us creep up silently and see what is to be seen before revealing ourselves. Now, creep, Kent, you crashing great ox, creep.† And with but two steps my strategy revealed its flaw. â€Å"You're jingling like a coin purse possessed of fits,† said Kent. â€Å"You couldn't creep up on the deaf nor dead. Silence your bloody bells, Pocket.† I placed my coxcomb on the ground. â€Å"I can leave my hat, but I'll not take off my shoes – we'll surrender all stealth if I'm screaming from trodding tender-footed across lizards, thorns, hedgehogs, and the lot.† â€Å"Here, then,† said Kent, pulling the remains of the pork shoulder from his satchel. â€Å"Dampen your bells with the fat.† I raised an eyebrow quizzically – an unappreciated and overly subtle gesture in the dark – then shrugged and began working the suet into the bells at my toes and ankles. â€Å"There!† I shook a leg to the satisfying sound of nothing at all. â€Å"Forward!† Creep we did, until we were just outside the halo of firelight. Three bent-backed hags were walking a slow circle around a large cauldron, dropping in twisted bits of this and that as they chanted. â€Å"Double, double, toil and trouble: Fire burn, and cauldron bubble.† â€Å"Witches,† whispered Kent, paying tribute to the god of all things bloody fucking obvious. â€Å"Aye,† said I, in lieu of clouting him. (Jones stayed behind to guard my hat.) â€Å"Eye of newt and toe of frog, Wool of bat and tongue of dog, Adder's fork and blind-worm's sting, Lizard's leg and owlet's wing, For a charm of powerful trouble, Like a hell-broth boil and bubble.† They double-bubbled the chorus and we were readying ourselves for another verse of the recipe when I felt something brush against my leg. It was all I could do not to cry out. I felt Kent's hand on my shoulder. â€Å"Steady, lad, it's just a cat.† Another brush, and a meow. Two of them now, licking my bells, and purring. (It sounds more pleasant than it was.) â€Å"It's the bloody pork fat,† I whispered. A third feline joined the gang. I stood on one foot, trying to hold the other above their heads, but while I am an accomplished acrobat, the art of levitation still eludes me; thus my ground-bound foot became my Achilles' heel, as it were. One of the fiends sank its fangs into my ankle. â€Å"Fuckstockings!† said I, somewhat emphatically. I hopped, I whirled, I made disparaging remarks toward all creatures of the feline aspect. Hissing and yowling ensued. When at last the cats retreated, I was sitting splayed-legged by the fire, Kent stood next to me with his sword drawn and ready, and the three hags stood in ranks across the cauldron from us. â€Å"Back, witches!† said Kent. â€Å"You may curse me into a toad, but they'll be the last words out of your mouths while your heads are attached.† â€Å"Witches?† said the first witch, who was greenest of the three. â€Å"What witches? We are but humble washerwomen, making our way in the wood.† â€Å"Rendering laundry service, humble and good,† said witch two, the tallest. â€Å"All it be, is as it should,† said witch three, who had a wicked wart over her right eye. â€Å"By Hecate's[27] night-tarred nipples, stop rhyming!† said I. â€Å"If you're not witches, what was that curse you were bubbling about?† â€Å"Stew,† said Warty. â€Å"Stew, stew most true,† said Tall. â€Å"Stew most blue,† said Green. â€Å"It's not blue,† said Kent, looking in the cauldron. â€Å"More of a brown.† â€Å"I know,† said Green, â€Å"but brown doesn't rhyme, does it, love?† â€Å"I'm looking for witches,† said I. â€Å"Really?† said Tall. â€Å"I was sent by a ghost.† The hags looked at one another, then back at me. â€Å"Ghost told you to bring your laundry here, did it?† said Warty. â€Å"You're not washerwomen! You're bloody witches! And that's not stew, and the bloody ghost of the bloody White Tower said to seek you here for answers, so can we get about it, ye gnarled knots of erect vomitus?† â€Å"Ah, we're toads for sure now,† sighed Kent. â€Å"Always a bloody ghost, innit?† said Tall. â€Å"What did she look like?† asked Green. â€Å"Who? The ghost? I didn't say it was a she – â€Å" â€Å"What did she look like, fool?† snarled Warty. â€Å"I suppose I shall pass my days eating bugs and hiding under leaves until some crone drops me in a cauldron,† mused Kent, leaning on his sword now, watching moths dart into the fire. â€Å"She was ghostly pale,† said I, â€Å"all in white – vaporous, with fair hair and – â€Å" â€Å"She was fit,[28] though?† asked Tall. â€Å"Lovely, you might even say?† â€Å"Bit more transparent than I care for in my wenches, but aye, she was fit.† â€Å"Aye,† said Warty, looking to the others, who huddled with her. When they came up, Green said, â€Å"State your business, then, fool. Why did the ghost send you here?† â€Å"She said you could help me. I am fool to the court of King Lear of Britain. He has sent away his youngest daughter, Cordelia, of whom I am somewhat fond; he's given my apprentice fool, Drool, to that blackguard bastard Edmund of Gloucester, and my friend Taster has been poisoned and is quite dead.† â€Å"And don't forget that they're going to hang you at dawn,† added Kent. â€Å"Don't concern yourselves with that, ladies,† said I. â€Å"About to be hanged is my status quo, not a condition that requires your repair.† The hags huddled again. There was much whispering and a bit of hissing. They broke their conference and Warty, who was the apparent coven leader, said, â€Å"That Lear's a nasty piece of work.† â€Å"Last time he went Christian a score of witches were drowned,† said Tall. Kent nodded, and looked at his shoes. â€Å"The Petite Inquisition – not a high point.† â€Å"Aye, we were a decade spelling them all back to life for the revenge,† said Warty. â€Å"Rosemary here still seeps pond-water from the ears on damp days,† said Tall. â€Å"Aye, and carps ate my small toes while I was pond-bottom,† said Green. â€Å"Her toes thus gefilted,[29] we had to seek an enchanted lynx and take two of his for replacement.† Rosemary (who was Green) nodded gravely. â€Å"Goes through shoes in a fortnight, but there's no better witch to chase a squirrel up a tree,† said Tall. â€Å"That's true,† said Rosemary. â€Å"Beats the burnings, though,† said Warty. â€Å"Aye, that's true,† said Tall. â€Å"No amount of cat toes'll fix you if you've all your bits burnt off. Lear had him some burnings as well.† â€Å"I'm not here on behalf of Lear,† said I. â€Å"I'm here to correct the madness he's done.† â€Å"Well, why didn't you say so?† said Rosemary. â€Å"We're always keen on sending a bit of the mayhem Lear's way,† said Warty. â€Å"Shall we curse him with leprosy?† â€Å"By your leave, ladies, I don't wish the old man's undoing, only the undoing of his deeds.† â€Å"A simple curse would be easier,† said Tall. â€Å"A bit o' bat spittle in the cauldron and we can have him walking on duck feet before breakfast. Make him quack, too, if you've a shilling or a freshly-strangled infant for the service.† â€Å"I just want my friends and my home back,† said I. â€Å"Well, if you can't be persuaded, let us have a consult,† said Rosemary. â€Å"Parsley, Sage, a moment?† She waved the other witches over to an old oak where they whispered. â€Å"Parsley, Sage, and Rosemary?† said Kent. â€Å"What, no Thyme?† Rosemary wheeled on him. â€Å"Oh, we've the time if you've the inclination, handsome.† â€Å"Jolly good show, hag!† said I. I liked these crones, they had a fine-edged wit. Rosemary rolled her good eye at the earl, lifted her skirts, aimed her withered bottom at Kent, and rubbed a palsied claw over it. â€Å"Round and firm, good knight. Round and firm.† Kent gagged a little and backed away a few steps. â€Å"Gods save us! Away you ghastly carbuncled tart!† I would have looked away, should have, but I had never seen a green one. A weaker man might have plucked out his own eyes, but being a philosopher, I knew the sight could never be unseen, so I persevered. â€Å"Hop on, Kent,† said I. â€Å"Beast-shagging is thy calling and thou surely have been called.† Kent backed into a tree and half cold-cocked himself. He slid down the trunk, dazed. Rosemary dropped her skirts. â€Å"Just having you on.† The crones cackled as they huddled again. â€Å"We've a proper toading for you once the fool's business is finished, though. A moment, please†¦Ã¢â‚¬  The witches whispered for a moment, then resumed their march around the cauldron. â€Å"Nose of Turk, and Tartar's lips, Griffin spunk and monkey hips, Mandrake rubbed with tiger nads, To divine undoing for the old king mad.† â€Å"Oh bollocks,† said Sage, â€Å"we're all out of monkey hips.† Parsley looked into the cauldron and gave it a stir. â€Å"We can make do without them. You can substitute a fool's finger.† â€Å"No,† said I. â€Å"Well, then, get a finger from that comely hunk of man-meat with the bootblack on his beard – he seems foolish enough.† â€Å"No,† said Kent, still a tad dazed. â€Å"And it's not bootblack, it's a clever disguise.† The witches looked to me. â€Å"There's no counting on accuracy without the monkey hips or fool's finger,† said Rosemary. I said: â€Å"Let us make do and gallantly bugger on, shall we, ladies?† â€Å"All right,† said Parsley, â€Å"but don't blame us if we bollocks-up your future.† There was more stirring and chanting in dead languages, and no little bit of wailing, and finally, when I was about to doze off, a great bubble rose in the cauldron and when it burst it released a cloud of steam that formed itself into a giant face, not unlike the tragedy mask used by traveling players. It glowed against the misty night. â€Å"‘Ello,† said the giant face, sounding Cockney and a little drunk. â€Å"Hello, large and steamy face,† said I. â€Å"Fool, Fool, you must save the Drool, Quick to Gloucester, or blood will pool.† â€Å"Oh, for fuck's sake, this one rhymes, too?† said I to the witches. â€Å"Can't a bloke find a straightforward prose apparition?† â€Å"Quiet, fool!† snapped Sage, who I was back to thinking of as Warty. To the face, she said, â€Å"Apparition of darkest power, we're clear on the where and the what, but the fool was hoping for some direction of the how variety.† â€Å"Aye. Sorry,† said large steamy face. â€Å"I'm not slow, you know, your recipe was short a monkey hip.† â€Å"We'll use two next time,† said Sage. â€Å"Well, all right, then†¦ â€Å"To reverse the will of a flighty king, Remove his train to clip his wings. To eldest daughters knights be dower, And soon a fool will yield the power.† The steamy face grinned. I looked at the witches. â€Å"So I'm to somehow get Goneril and Regan to take Lear's knights in addition to everything else they have?† â€Å"He never lies,† said Rosemary. â€Å"He's often wildly fucking inaccurate,† said Parsley, â€Å"but not a liar.† â€Å"Again,† said I to the apparition, â€Å"good to know what to do and all, but a method to the madness would be most welcome as well. A strategy, as it were.† â€Å"Cheeky little bastard, ent ‘e?† said Steamy to the witches. â€Å"Want us to put a curse on him?† asked Sage. â€Å"No, no, the lad's a rocky road ahead without adding a curse to slow him.† The apparition cleared his throat (or at least made the throat-clearing noise, as, strictly speaking, he had no throat). â€Å"A princess to your will shall bend, If seduction in a note, you send, And fates of kings and queens shall tell, When bound are passions with a spell.† With that, the apparition faded away. â€Å"That's it, then?† I asked. â€Å"A couple of rhymes and we're finished? I have no idea what I'm to do.† â€Å"Bit thick yourself, then, are you?† said Sage. â€Å"You're to go to Gloucester. You're to separate Lear from his knights and see that they're under the power of his daughters. Then you're to write letters of seduction to the princesses and bind their passions with a magic spell. Couldn't be any clearer if it was rhymed.† Kent was nodding and shrugging as if the bloody obviousness of it all had sluiced through the wood in an illuminating deluge, leaving me the only one dry. â€Å"Oh, do fuck off, you grey-bearded sot. Where would you get a magic spell to bind the bitches' passion?† â€Å"Them,† said Kent, pointing rudely at the hags. â€Å"Us,† said the hags in chorus. â€Å"Oh,† said I, letting the flood wash over me. â€Å"Of course.† Rosemary stepped forward and held forth three shriveled grey orbs, each about the size of a man's eye. I did not take them, fearing they might be something as disgusting as they appeared to be – desiccated elf scrotums or some such. â€Å"Puff balls, from a fungus that grows deep in the wood,† said Rosemary. â€Å"In lover's breath these spores release An enchanting charm you shall unleash Passion which can be never broken For him whose name next is spoken.† â€Å"So, to recap, simply and without rhyme?† â€Å"Squeeze one of these bulbs under your lady's nose, then say your name and she will find your charms irresistible and become overwhelmed with desire for you,† explained Sage. â€Å"Redundant then, really?† said I with a grin. The hags laughed themselves into a wheeze-around, then Rosemary dropped the puff balls into a small silk pouch and handed it to me. â€Å"There's the matter of payment,† said she, as I reached for the purse. â€Å"I'm a poor fool,† said I. â€Å"All we have between us is my scepter and a well-used shoulder of pork. I suppose I could wait while each of you takes Kent for a roll in the hay, if that will do.† â€Å"You will not!† said Kent. The hag held up a hand. â€Å"A price to be named later,† said she. â€Å"Whenever we ask.† â€Å"Fine, then,† said I, snatching the purse away from her. â€Å"Swear it,† she said. â€Å"I swear,† said I. â€Å"In blood.† â€Å"But – † As quick as a cat she scratched the back of my hand with her ragged talon. â€Å"Ouch!† Blood welled in the crease. â€Å"Let it drip in the cauldron and swear,† said the crone. I did as I was told. â€Å"Since I'm here, is there any chance I could get a monkey?† â€Å"No,† said Sage. â€Å"No,† said Parsely. â€Å"No,† said Rosemary. â€Å"We're all out of monkeys, but we'll put a glamour on your mate so his disguise isn't so bloody pathetic.† â€Å"Go to it, then,† said I. â€Å"We must be off.† ACT II How sharper than a serpent's tooth it is to have a thankless child. – King Lear, Act I, Scene 4