Synopsis Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Synopsis - Assignment Example foreign policy after the events of 1848, was just a continuation of â€Å"Metternichian† tradition of working for peace, balance of power within Europe and for the greater interests of the continent. His assertion is that it was not Prussia, but Austria that was endangering European security overall; one more proof he offers to his claim of influence the Habsburgs had. As a result of that, he sees the last Emperor, Franz Joseph as a tough ruler, one that always believed that the honor of his dynasty must be implemented by force only. Franz Joseph showed his willingness to do so in the conflict with Italy when he was a young ruler, as well as in the case of Serbia in 1914. The case of Serbia and the assassination of Archduke and heir apparent Franz Ferdinand, in reality triggered the events that started the World War I, one in which Habsburg Empire dissolved and disappeared giving room to new countries of Czechoslovakia, Hungary, Austria and Yugoslavia. The second major issue Sked deals with in his book, is the issue of nationalism within the borders of the Empire. Habsburg monarchy incorporated numerous ethnic groups, each of which felt burdened by the rule from Vienna and wanted to achieve some sort of independence. Sked claims that those separatist movements were essentially weak while forgetting that regimes not based on popular satisfaction and feeling, eventually disappear. Sked saw separatist movements as a collective phenomenon, however failing to look on it from different viewpoints. Most noticeably, he fails to look more critically upon nationalism in the Habsburg Empire from psycho-sociological and economic aspects. Sked also, discusses the Compromise of 1867, in which the monarchy was, de facto, divided into two parts, Austria and Hungary, with separate parliaments and prime ministers, but with, de iure, one central ruler. Sked contends that the Compromise was made after the rising nationalism in the Empire threatened its future. The Compromise

Prostate Cancer Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Prostate Cancer - Essay Example Significantly, prostate incorporates gland cells that produce some of the seminal fluid and this fluid protects and nourishes sperm cells in semen and supports the ejaculatory ducts, or sperm tubes. The growth of the prostate normally continues till man reaches adulthood and it is maintained after it reaches normal size as long as male hormones are produced."Prostate cancer begins most often in the outer part of the prostate. It is the most common cancer in men older than age 50.In most men, the cancer grows very slowly. In fact, many men with the disease will never know they have the condition. Early prostate cancer is confined to the prostate gland itself, and the majority of patients with this type of cancer can live for years with no problems." (Prostate cancer) In certain cases, prostate cancer may spread from the prostate to nearby lymph nodes, bones or other organs and such spread is generally called metastasis. It is also essential to note that most prostate cancers originate in the posterior prostate gland, while some others start off near the urethra. As the US National Institute of Health suggests, the estimated new cases and deaths from prostate cancer in the United States in 2009 are: new cases of 192,280 and deaths of 27, 360. According to some important surveys, there aremore than2 million American men currently living with prostate cancer. The given data for the year 2009 in the US indicates the relevance of further researches and medical treatment for prostate cancer and this paper makes a reflective analysis of some vital elements of the prostate cancer. In a profound analysis of the prostate cancer, it becomes lucid that it is mainly found in older men, compared to younger ones, and the prostate may get bigger and block the urethra or bladder, when men grow old. Such phenomena within the reproductive system of elder men, in which prostate gets bigger and block the urethra or bladder, will cause difficulty in urination or it will interfere with sexual function. This condition called benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH) can be corrected through surgery and it is not cancer, although the symptoms of benign prostatic hyperplasia or of other problems in the prostate will be similar to symptoms of prostate cancer. "Possible signs of prostate cancer include a weak flow of urine or frequent urination. These and other symptoms may be caused by prostate cancer. Other conditions may cause the same symptoms." (General Information about Prostate Cancer) It is important to consult a doctor if any of the following problems occur, as it may indicate prostate cancer. Such signs include weak or interrupted flow of urine, frequent urination (especially at night), trouble urinating, pain or burning during urination, blood in the urine or semen, a pain in the back, hips, or pelvis, and painful ejaculation. It is important to comprehend that prostate cancer is one of the most common diseases in the US and the curability of prostate cancer is based on how immediately one identifies the disease. Significantly, the 'cure' rates for prostate cancer, similar to all cancers, describe the percentage of patients likely remaining disease-free for a specific time and it is common that, the earlier

Abnormal Psychology and Therapy Paper Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Abnormal Psychology and Therapy Paper - Essay Example Modern world is living in a world of stress and is going through a lot of psychological disorders due to so many factors. Some of them may be individual while the others may come from the family or the society. The modern financial crunch in world economy has increased the fears more. The abnormal psychic nature has led to so many unhealthy incidents in the modern era. There are a lot of incidents in which even the members of the family killing each other without any serious reasons. Studies showed that the number of patients with psychological disorders goes on increasing day by day. There are few schools of psychology which are dealing with psychic disorders. Functional psychology, Structural psychology, Associationism, Behaviorism, Gestalt psychology, and Psycho analysis etc. are some of the common schools of psychology. The method of approach to psychological disorders will be different by different schools of psychology. â€Å"Abnormal psychology can be described as an area of psychology that studies people who are consistently unable to adapt and function effectively in a variety of conditions† (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Abnormal_psychology.) A person with abnormal psychic nature will feel, think, speak and behave differently. The classification of normal and abnormal psychology is sometimes difficult. As per the old traditional parents of some countries, the children should be punished by beating them if they make any mistakes. It is considered as normal. But now it is considered as abnormal by certain psychologists. â€Å"Theories of abnormal psychology describe mental illnesses, suggest possible causes of these illnesses, and propose certain methods of treating them. These theories can be divided into four main groups or schools: (1) biophysical, (2) intrapsychic, (3) existential, and (4) behavioural.†( http://www.a2zpsychology.com/articles/abnormal.htm) Physical causes lead

The Old Kingdom in Kemetic (Egyptian) History Essay

The Old Kingdom in Kemetic (Egyptian) History - Essay Example Afterwards, the name Misri replaced the name Kemet and the name continues to be in use by the Egyptians until today. The word Misri simply means a country. From then, Egypt prospered for many years as an autonomous country with a culture that is very famous for the great cultural developments in each and every section of human acquaintance right from arts, science, technology and even religion. The great monuments that still Egyptians celebrate influenced numerous early civilizations with a good example being both Greece and Rome (Mark 1). The Sahara desert, which is found in the Northern part of Africa nearly dividing the continent into two, is a good proof of overgrazing of cattle in the area. The Sahara desert, together with the discovery of many artifacts is a good evidence of the ancient agricultural civilization in the area at the time. Well organized agricultural activities both animal keeping and crop growing began in the area around 5000 BCE and the Badari community began to advance along the river Nile. The Amratian, Gerzean and Naqada communities later on joined the Badar and all together contributed to the development of the Egypt early civilization. At some time between 5000 BCE and 3200 BCE the written background of the land began with the development of Hieroglyphic characters by the culture of Naqada. The practice of mummifying the dead body was in place in the city of Hierakonpolis by 3500 BCE. Just like in all other cultures in the history of the world, the diminutive agrarian societies in ancient Eg ypt advanced into big urban areas (Mark 1). The unification of the Northern and the Southern kingdoms by Pharaoh Manes is the common event that took place between 3150 and 2686 BCE. Menes, who originated from the North successfully conquered south and joined it to the North to make one larger kingdom. This account came from Manetho who either lived

Oil Companies Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Oil Companies - Essay Example According to the report, titled, Hot Profits and Global Warming: How Oil Companies Hurt Consumers and the Environment, the soaring prices are not dampening demand because most families have little leeway to alter their driving habits. Federal government statistics show this summer's gasoline demand up between 1.6 and 1.9 percent from 2005. The increased prices of gasoline have translated into record oil company profits. In the first six months of 2006, the five largest US oil companies posted $59.4 billion in profits. These companies have spent $112 billion since 2005 to buy back their own stock and pay dividends rather than invest in infrastructure or alternative energy sources, according to analysis done by Public Citizen. (Raymond J. Learsy. The Blog Eat The Press Becoming Fearless. The Huffington Post). In this regard, the American government summoned British Petroleum before the House Committee on Energy and Commerce for clarification. It is alleged that the company allowed its Alaska pipelines to deteriorate despite such large profit margins, causing a partial shutdown of oil production in the US's largest oilfield and temporarily driving up global oil prices. Surprisingly it was reported that the officials of British Petroleum responded that the profits and saving secured were adjusted with the losses the company suffered due to the fluctuation of oil prices. The company was able to convince the panel easily, however the later reports indicated that the company in actual manipulated the accounts, and invested the money for the purchases of physical equipments which were off the record. British Petroleum has claimed itself to be renewable energy leader; it invested only $800 million a year in solar, wind, natural gas and hydrogen energy, less than 2 percent of the total amount the company posted in profits, stock buybacks, dividend payments and cash reserves in 2005. "Under the current market framework, oil companies aren't making investments in ways to break our addiction to oil and apparently have no intention of doing so," said Tyson Slocum, director of Public Citizen's energy program and the report's author. "With $1 trillion in assets tied up in extracting, refining and marketing oil, their business model will squeeze the last cent of profit out of that spent capital for as long as possible." (Johnston, 2005) IMPORTANCE OF RESERVES (Why reserves value are so important) It is understandable that fraction of the profits stem from the international rise in the prices of petroleum, the report has mentioned that, large oil company mergers have squelched competition and has created negative impact on US consumers. Recent mergers between giant oil companies such as Exxon and Mobil, Chevron and Texaco, and Conoco and Phillips have resulted in just a few companies controlling a significant amount of gasoline in the US. Since 2005, the largest five control 55 percent of the refining market, and the largest 10 dominate 81.4 percent. The purpose of these exercises was to increase the amount of reserves produced and refined by the merged company. These exercises are further responsible for giving a strong image to the company, on the basis of their production activity. It is to be mentioned that the company's total

Aggregate Demand and Supply Models Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Aggregate Demand and Supply Models - Essay Example A change in the rate of unemployment will hence result to a change in the demand and supply hence affecting the equilibrium market. People form expectations about prices; quantity supplied and inflation based on previous information. If individuals expect a shortage of goods, they will increase demand to store the goods for the scarce season. Sellers will however hold the goods and hence reduce supply since they anticipate increased costs during the scarce period. The same happens in case the customers and sellers expect an increase in prices (Tucker, 2010). Use of past information to form expectations is not efficient as it may result to wrong predictions hence affecting the equilibrium market negatively. Unemployment and expectations hence affect the aggregate equilibrium between supply and demand. The government should, therefore, develop measures to influence this non-price factors affecting demand. The economy will hence operate at equilibrium by avoiding surpluses or

Airline Distribution Systems in 2013 Essay Example for Free

Airline Distribution Systems in 2013 Essay Web based commerce and internet technology have dramatically transformed the airline industry throughout the past thirteen years. The internet has enabled travelers to bypass the traditional distribution pattern of travel agencies and enabled airlines to sell more directly to passengers (European Commission, 2006). Since the mid-1990s there have been some major changes to the airline ticket distribution industry which were both a result of internet technologies (GAO, 2003). Major U. S. Airlines claimed a net operating loss of nearly $10 billion in 2002 and had paid over $7 billion to distribute tickets to consumers (GAO, 2013). These distribution expenses include booking fees to global distributions system to the amount of hundreds of millions of dollars (GAO, 2003). Airlines would receive a set booking fee each time an airline ticket was purchased through a travel agent by the global distribution system used by the travel agent (GAO, 2003). Due to most U. S. carriers being largely dependent on each of the global distribution systems for distributing tickets to different travel agent and consumers and consumers having to subscribe and pay fees to each, there are concerns that the global distributions systems may exercise market ower over them (GAO, 2013). Market power would allow global distribution systems to charge high, noncompetitive fees to airlines and in turn, these costs may be passed on to consumers (GAO, 2013). Environment Two major changes have occurred in the airline ticket distribution industry since the 1990s that have produced cost savings for some major U. S. airlines (GAO, 2013). The airlines have developed less expensive internet ticketing sites that bypass global distribution systems and their fees and encourage consumers to book directly rather than through travel agencies (GAO, 2013). Between the years 1999 and 2002 the average percentage of tickets booked on-line either from airlines or travel agencies grew from 7% to 30% (GAO, 2013). (See Appendix A). The next effort to reduce costs that airlines made was the cutting the amount of commissions they would pay to travel agencies (GAO, 2013). These attempts have still not eliminated the dependence airlines have on global distribution systems. In the report made by the U. S.  Government Accountability Office (GAO), they were unable to determine the exact relationship between global distribution system booking fees and related costs and were not able to reach any conclusions towards the potential exercise of market power by global distribution systems in the airline ticket distribution industry (GAO, 2013). Despite these reports there have still been numerous complaints from airlines that the companies who distribute airline flight and fare information are stifling competition and violating federal anti-trust laws (Koenig, 2011). Government reports help airlines because they investigate claims which are made that could possibly violate anti-trust laws and act as a middleman to solve disputes. Travelport and Sabre are two large global distribution systems which have had investigations against them (Koenig, 2011). A third company, Amadeus, is another global distribution system and the three of them make up for all of the distribution systems in the U. S. (Koenig, 2011). The justice department has clearly stepped into the mix by investigating claims of monopoly power and anti-trust. Only announcements of such investigations have taken place with no more real information being handed to the public. American and US Airways have both filed lawsuits against the global distribution giant, Sabre (Koenig, 2011). Sabre was actually created by American Airlines but later spun off as a separate company (Koenig, 2011). American also sued Travelport for using monopoly tactics and burying their flight information (Koenig, 2011). With Travelport accounting for nearly $2. billion of American’s ticket sales last year, it is hard to see where the complaint lies yet American is intent of wrongdoing and is asking for government assistance through lawsuits (Koenig, 2011). Government institutions try to protect consumers and smaller companies in tourism by imposing anti-discrimination and anti-trust regulation to ensure that real information is presented and competition levels remain satisfactory (Beatrice, Cezar, Alexandra, 2013). Industry Airlines and independent travel agencies were amongst the first to take advantage of the marketing and sales opportunities the internet provided (Borenstein, Rose, 2013). Airlines saw the internet as a way to bypass the traditional sales channel of travel agents in order to gain control of lower costing electronic ticketing methods (Borenstein, Rose, 2013). The internet provided an alternative for airlines and lowered their fears of sales being blocked by ticketing agencies (Borenstein, Rose, 2013). Domestic airlines in Mumbai, India are attempting to not follow the conventional fixed commission system (Cuckoo, 2005). The issue of commission reduction has caused a huge stand-off between travel agents and international airlines (Cuckoo, 2005). Legacy airlines let by flag carrier Air-India announced in May, 2005 that they would cut commissions from 9% to 5% (Cuckoo, 2005). British Airways joined in with this plan and other European and Southeast Asian carriers were expected to follow suit (Cuckoo, 2005). Travel agents are planning to fight the commission cuts through the Travel Agents Association of India (TAAI) and the Travel Agents Federation of India (TAFI) (Cuckoo, 2005). Just as many U. S. Carriers have claimed fear of, agents in India announced a plan to boycott Air-India and to stop selling their airline tickets in the event of commissions being cut (Cuckoo, 2005). Low-cost carriers have an advantage to the internet because they can start off with new models of distribution whereas legacy carriers have been using agents for decades and it is hard for them to step out (Cuckoo, 2005). Air Decan is a low-cost airline in India that sells 35% of its tickets online and has been knowingly boycotted by agents because it offers a lower price, usually around 5% less, to consumers who book directly from them (Cuckoo, 2005). An International low-cost airline, Air-Arabia, will not pay any commissions to travel agents with its India flights (Cuckoo, 2005). Air-India’s low-cost subsidiary, Air-India Express will also have their passengers pay handling fees instead of the airlines (Cuckoo, 2005). Another Airline to consider is Frontier who makes their lowest fares available on both their own website and on the big online travel agencies (OTAs) such as Priceline and Expedia (Perkins, 2012). There is a difference however, when passengers purchase from any other site or agency other than Frontier, they only earn half of the amount of frequent flyer miles, do not get advanced seating, and will face higher fees for various changes (Perkins, 2012). Marketing Strategy and Situational Analysis Some may find it peculiar that companies are now battling other companies that they themselves created. The three major GDS systems that control most airline ticket distribution worldwide, Amadeus, Sabre, and Travelport provide OTAs with fare information and transact sales (Perkins, 2012). OTAs are used by most airlines in order to sell their tickets along with their own websites. In addition to providing airfares OTAs also provide hotel accommodations, rental cars, and most other popular travel services (Perkins, 2012). Airlines now want to avoid fees which were once accumulated through the use of agents and GDSs charge them anywhere between $5 and $12 to book a flight while a transaction through their own system probably costs less than $1 (Perkins, 2012). Now that the internet source is available and extremely efficient the airlines want to gain control back of their customers in order to be able to sell them additional services (Perkins, 2012). On their own sites they could have the ability to present upgraded options such as a bundled no-fee fare packages and can provide passengers with the ability to book semi-premium economy seats (Perkins, 2012). Airlines also want to avoid the easiness of price comparisons passengers have with OTAs in order to maximize their profits once again. The problem, as stated earlier in this paper, is that GDSs account for more than half of their business and to cut them out of the transaction stream completely would be extremely difficult (Perkins, 2012). Airlines are also signed into long-term GDS contracts that require that they provide the same fares to GDS that they have available on their website (Perkins, 2012). A third problem is that large buyers and managers of business travel are extremely dependents on GDS for various reasons such as fare, price, and other information that is required to control travel costs (Perkins, 2012). Attempts to move completely from GDS systems by most airlines have been unsuccessful but many have been able to find ways to shun them. Southwest is one who has managed to have their own system entirely because if you want to fly Southwest, you have to go to Southwest (Perkins, 2012). Allegiant and Spirit also provide only limited participation with GDS (Perkins, 2012). Others get around the contractual agreement of having the same fares available by offering discount promotional codes for direct bookings (Perkins, 2012). With the advantages of control of ticket distribution for the airlines stated and the various strategies used by each airline along with their strengths discussed, let us now look at the weaknesses of these distribution systems. The main weakness is that with the amount of passengers that do use OTAs, there’s a chance they will not use airlines that are not on these sites due to their popularity. Passengers want to be able to compare prices and OTAs provide just that. Passengers may not be willing to research fares on their own and may only go to their preferred airline if OTAs aren’t available. Airlines win if they are the airline of choice but if they aren’t they could be losing potential customers. Commercial Websites This study will look at two individual airlines and their websites and discuss how successful they are. According to Google Trends, the internet is the number one source for both business and leisure travel and roughly 83% of personal travelers use it as well as 77% of business travelers (The Economist, 2009). The two airlines in this review will be United Airlines and Southwest Airlines. Commercial websites need to consider what customers experience when searching for information, evaluating alternative products, and purchasing them (Peter, Donnelly, 2013). We will be reviewing these three basic areas of which web site designers should consider for each United and Continental Airlines. With information search, there needs to be ease of navigation, fast page downloads, effective search features, and frequent product updates (Peter, Donnelly, 2013). When evaluating alternatives, designers need to consider the ease of product comparisons, product descriptions, ease of contacting customer service representatives, and a status of the availability of items (Peter, Donnelly, 2013). With the purchase evaluation, designers need to consider security and privacy issues, the checkout process, payment options, delivery options, and the ordering instructions (Peter, Donnelly, 2013). United Airlines makes navigation simple by placing their flight search table right on the home page. They also include a section for members to sign in, passengers to print their boarding pass, check a flight status, and to change or view reservations right on the home page. These are some of their most used services which are placed right in plain sight on their home page making the information users are looking for easily obtainable. When searching for a flight the speed of the page downloads is quite fast especially considering that a query is being made and information has to be sorted. The results of the search used for this study came back fast and with more information than even requested. The site included many additional options to narrow the search down and was very up to date. When a search for a flight is made the results make it easy to compare similar flights available and even points to the direction of which options could/would give passengers a lower fare. The descriptions are accurate, clear, and comprehensive enough for customers to make informed decisions when choosing a flight. Customer service can easily be reached by clicking on the top right corner of the screen no matter what page of the site you are on. When a search is made unavailable flights or booked flights are not even visible making it easy for customers to view the availability of their options. When considering the purchase made on a web site, it is clear that United has all of the issues covered from security and privacy issues to ordering instructions. United airlines guides customers from the start of their home page all the way to the end purchase with ease. The steps are clear and the purchase can be made in a reasonable amount of time. Customers have various payment options such as credit card, PayPal, or buy it now as well. Southwest Airlines uses a more simplified homepage yet still has the flight search on their home screen to allow for ease of navigation. On top of providing ease of navigation they also use their home page to advertise promotions. The speed of pages downloads is quick, the returned information was effective, and the flight schedules were all up to date on Southwest’s site. They also provided multiple flights to choose from that incorporated a variety of different prices. The promotions continued through the flight selection process as well going on to add discounts if a hotel were to be booked as well. Flight comparisons and descriptions were easy to compare and were accurate, clear, and comprehensive enough to allow consumers to make informed decisions. Something I was surprised to find about the site was that the customer service phone number was not extremely easy to locate. Customers have to click through about 3 pages before a number is given and that is after they find the tiny help icon at the top of the screen. The status of availability is done the same whereas unavailable seating or options are not even displayed to customers. Southwest covers issues of security and privacy all the way to ordering instructions. Southwest Airlines guides customers from the start of their home page all the way to the end purchase with ease. The steps are clear and the purchase can be made in a reasonable amount of time. Customers have various payment options such as credit card, PayPal, or buy it now as well. Comparing the two directly, Southwest’s homepage is more simple and easier for consumers to take in whereas United has an abundant amount of options to choose from. They are both however, very effective and successful commercial websites and follow all of the guidelines mentioned above from the text with the exception of a number for customer service being more difficult to find on Southwest’s website (Peter, Donnelly, 2013).