Ocean Park Cast Study Essay Example for Free

Ocean Park Cast Study Essay Officially opened on 10th Jan 1977 by the Governor of Hong Kong, Sir Murray MacLehose, the Ocean Park was constructed with HK$150million funded from the racing profits earned from the Hong Kong Jockey Club while the land was given free by the Hong Kong Government. It is located in Wong Chuk Hang and Nam Long Shan in the Southern District of Hong Kong. The park has won several awards, including The Worlds Seventh Most Popular Amusement Park and 33rd Most Visited Tourist Attractions in the World by Forbes (American publishing and Media Company. ) and their vision is to be the world leader in providing excellent guest experiences in an amusement park environment connecting people with nature. On 1st July 1987, Ocean Park ceased to be a subsidiary of the Hong Kong Jockey Club, becoming its own statutory body, with a Government-appointed Board. At present, Ocean Park is managed by a financially-independent, non-profit organization called Ocean Park Corporation. In Jun 2005, Ocean Park achieved its highest recorded attendance in its history. Gross revenue grew by 12% and was HK$684 million in 2005 due to their monopoly conditions. It was then Hong Kong Disneyland was opened on Sept 2005 and Ocean Park faced serious competition. The Monopoly Days Even though Ocean Park monopolizes in Hong Kong, they suffered losses from 1999-2002. It was mainly due to the famous Asian financial crisis, while the SARS in 2003 inflict more damages to Ocean Park. The revamping of the brand logo from seahorse to sea lion (Whiskers) on 2000 did leave a better vivid impression to the public, but it was not enough. The management did not see innovation as a major factor to rein still interest to the public, the thrill rides eventually become out-dated and shabby yet Ocean Park remain contented with their current status. The huge investment on the Abyss Turbo Drop was a good start to innovate, but it does not give the public the urge to take a 2nd ride. Activities and festival events ideas were further introduce to attract the public which manage to receive great response from the public. Eventually, employees create a work culture and comfort zone which retards the Ocean Park’s reengineering policy, though the management realizes the need of culturing innovation. The workforce resisted the change and become reluctant and worried about facing the new challenges ahead. The Intervention of Hong Kong Disneyland On Sept 2005, 3rd Disneyland from Joint venture Walt Disney and Hong Kong SAR government was set up with their selling points on those famous Disney Cartoon Characters. Though the admission fees were much higher compare relatively to Ocean Park, their price was considered the cheapest entry for Disneyland and new thrill rides definitely act as surprises for the public who already attended Ocean Park before and acts as an option between the two strong rivals. In terms of attractions, Both Ocean Park and Disneyland have their unique selling point to have a fair market share in Hong Kong. Ocean Park is primarily focusing on nature and wildlife, providing educational to the public on animals while Disneyland emphasis on creating fantasy and virtual stimulations. With sure fierce confrontation from Disneyland, Ocean Park has to seek an immediate response to prevent them for doom. They fought back by introducing new roller coaster and aquarium; build hotels nearby to go head-on-head with Disneyland which always come with hotels for tourists. Major Problem Ocean Park faced Ocean Park already faced shortage of talented and educated employees, due to the fact that the majority of these employees tend to favor finance sector than tourism industry, The great demand is further enhance as Disneyland is competing with Ocean Park for these talents. In terms of career opportunities and prospect, Disneyland has the upper hand over Ocean Park. To add salt to injury, Disney is deemed to poach Ocean Park’s best workers. 3-way attack for Ocean Park (Defender Strategy) I will propose and advise on the management of Ocean Park a 3-way attack to have the lion share of the pie between the two rivals. *** Pricing Package/ Educational package Since Ocean Park has the advantage over Disney over the price of the tickets, I will propose the management team to setup a sales team to target the school and students. Implementation educational tour packages to Mainland/ Hong Kong students will eventually be interesting for school to organize excursion and post-exam events. Disney is more to a virtual land; they cannot provide the educational aspects as compare to Ocean Park. *** Human Resource Management (HRM) The ability of employees is essential to every organization. The management needs to introduce better remuneration packages, better salary wages for staffs whom they interested in keeping and bloom them. A lucrative pension scheme may be able to keep the current employees loyal. Next, provide strict interviews for new employees and send all the employees to service training to brush up their public relation skills to provide a class of service way above Disneyland. *** Innovation The ability to innovate will determine who has the lion share in the Hong Kong Market. Word of mouth is definitely the best form of advertisement. The only reason why tourists will intro to their friends/family the amusement park is fun and thrilling. Since the majority of the tourists are from Mainland (China) , it will be wise if they can do a short survey to poll the public what types of excitement they looking for in amusement park and begin source and introduce new fantastic rides. Take reference on those abroad amusement parks and why they are always so attractive to the public. Furthermore, Ocean Park can organize monthly events with relation to public holidays or the season with attractive discounts towards the price of the tickets. Conclusion. In terms of all rounder, Ocean Park definitely has the edge. The combination of high octane, thrills and spills rides, with superb, and educational, state of the art marine shows and exhibitions is unbeatable. Ocean Park has a pair of superb rollercoasters, a log flume and rapids ride. There are also a number of mid range action rides, meaning there is plenty to keep the family going all day. Disneyland on the other hand has only one rollercoaster and almost no mid range action rides, meaning anyone over the age of ten will be quickly bored. On the other hand, Disney does have a slightly better selection of toddler and young rides, although Ocean Park is also no slouch in this department. Furthermore, Ocean Parks selection of Marine shows are also first class, including shark aquariums, dolphin shows and the superb, sci-fi styled Jellyfish exhibit which provide a extra field of education. Disneyland has nothing to compete with these excellent family friendly shows. In conclusion, Ocean Park will eventually edge out Disneyland, proving that local companies can still compete head to head with big MNCs (Multi-national Company) References http://www. usatoday. com/news/world/2007-06-14-ocean-park_N. htm http://www. docstoc. com/docs/17307909/Ocean-Park-VS-Disney-As-we-know_-Ocean-Park-and-Disney-Park-are http://gohongkong. about. com/od/themeparks/a/OceanvsDisney. htm http://www. articlesbase. com/destinations-articles/hong-kongs-oceanic-aquarium-ocean-park-vs-hong-kong-disneyland-3530410. html.

What Are Web Analytics Information Technology Essay

What Are Web Analytics Information Technology Essay Web analytics is reporting and analysis of data on website visitor activity. It is not only a tool to measure web traffic but also can be used as a tool for business and market research. Techniques used to access and improve the contribution of e-marketing to a business, such as referrals, clickstreams, online research data, customer satisfaction surveys, leads and sales. Thus, marketers use web analytics exploring data and reports to build their knowledge on customers preference and behavior according to types of sites, which areas customers click more often when they online. It also helps marketer understand their customers better and improve their business performance. (Dykes, 2012) Marketers wanting to conduct web-analytics have to first go through the following stages. (Figure I) These are three stages that they need to concern when setting up a web analytic tool. The analysis is the ticket for them move from Steupland to Actionland. It is the isolating of meaningful and actionable insights in data and reports that when acted upon by your organization can drive business value. (Dykes, 2012) Alignment stage: At this early planning stage, it is necessary for marketer to gather their business objectives and capture stakeholders online behavior by their online measurement strategy. Clearly understand measurement strategy and well analyze visitors is critical to success. Thus, marketers have to carefully handling relevant and meaningful data which will directly affect the business in the long-term. (Dykes, 2012) Collection stage: At this point of stage, large companies may spend amount of time on technical implementation such as multiple web domains and online marketing initiatives. (Dykes, 2012) Reporting stage: This is the last stage for companies move from Setupland to Actionland. This stage is important where you create report and distribute them to organization using a manual or preferably automated approach. (Dykes, 2012) TOOLS AND METHODS USED TO HELP MARKETER There are two types of web analytics, on-site and off-site web analytics. (Figure II) ON-SITE ANALYTICS On-site web analytics is used for marketers to measure a visitors activity when he browses on your website. This includes its drivers and conversations, for example which ads on landing page encourage more people to purchase and which title of information visitors click most. This data is used to analysis visitors online behavior and can be used to improve website or marketing campaigns audience response. Simply, on-site web analytics tools are used to analysis and measure behaviors of visitors journey and actual visitor traffic arriving on your website. For example, which landing page encourage visitors to make a purchase, what links visitors clicked on (from search engine to get to the site or came there directly) to the site, and time they spent and stayed on given page. Therefore, On-site web analytics measures of website in a commercial context. For the business, website became more important than ever before, it handles more information. Companies also need to know if their marketing campaigns are working on internet-based, just like John Shumway, the global vice president of product management at Akamai says marketing people are increasingly driving the need for we analytics. (Dave Chaffey, 2003) Firms can conduct on-site web-analytics through the following ways: Analytics Software Produced by Companies Some companies such as WebTrends and Google Analytics produce web analytics software that converts data by using combination of tables and graphs. It automatically monitors your websites traffic and highlights any significant changes,  thus, managers can easily understand and analysis the effectiveness of their campaigns. And, where visitors come from and which pages retain visitors the longest, and also, track visitors progress s they click though the site. As seen on Figure II.1. (Dave Chaffey, 2003) (Figure II.1) It can be simply shows daily visit on your website, type on traffic and time on site by country. Other technologies for data collection Other technologies companies used for data collection are eye tracking system and mouse tracking analytics. It is a key method for testing visitors behavior and areas they focus more often when they on a web page, and both eye tracking and e mouse tracking analytics studies offer businesses accurate and actionable results. Therefore, the result can be used to improve a web site or marketing campaigns audience response. Eye tracking system is utilized by many top enterprises such as Google. This tracking system uses specialist software to track internet visitors where the eyes land on a webpage. As shown on Figure II.2, Heatmaps areas are visitors look on more frequent on the webpage. (Ronan de Kervenoael, 2013) (Figure II.2) Similar to eye tracking system, Mouse tracking analytics  follows the mouse movements of internet users to simulate eye movement on a webpage. As seen on Figure II.3, the denser of the area is, visitor put more attention on that area of the web page. (Figure II.3) From the research, it has shown when both methods of testing are conducted simultaneously, in the result, they find out exactly what the visitors look at on the page which contains 84%-88% accuracy. In addition, both method of tracking analytics deliver valuable information to managers about visitors involvement and engagement with your website. This is vital to work out what changes you need to make in order to benefit your visitors experience as well as improve the website. (ClickTale, 2010) OFF-SITE ANALYTICS Off-site analytics data can be obtained for any website-including your competitors and partners. Which means is analysis the internet as a whole for the websites. Thus, the key differences of off-site web analytics measures from your potential audience (opportunity), share of voice (visibility), and buzz (comments). Unlikely to on-site web analytics only captures what happens when visitors visit and engage with your website, by using various technologies to help monitor and analysis website to create meaningful actions and results. However, as social website becomes more popular and ascendant channel for internet users, and everything becomes more transparent on social web, organization information are shared, spread on it, thus, through this platform, marketers are able to measure the latest buzz about website or organization.it is important for marketers to monitor not only what happens on the website but also outside of your website. Improving from what other people are saying about the company and provide products and services match customers requires. Off-site Web Analytics solutions can help businesses stay on the leading edge of overall trends.  (Monitoring Buzz With Off-Site Web Analytics, 2010) Firms can conduct off-site web-analytics through the following available software: Alexa and Compete There are numbers of web analytics software provided service to measure your competitors how much and what type of traffic are garnering to their site. Alexa  and  Compete are two free services help marketers to find top-level information, including the top searches people used to find the site, as well as traffic comparisons versus other Websites. For more comparison capabilities and a deeper level of demographic information, marketer can just simply upgrades their account. Similar to Alexa  and  Compete system offerings monitor and aggregate a wide swath of Web traffic, paid services from  Quantcast  and  Nielsen NetRatings also provide analytics tools and research related to online audiences, as well as online ad buying and selling. As by shown example of how Alexa provide services for marketers by monitoring and aggregating a wide swath of Web traffic from multiple sources to develop estimates for overall ranking and other factors. On the table 1 below, shows top 5 sites on the web. According to off-site web analytics is measuring about your competitors and monitoring the internet as whole website, it is obvious for marketers to analysis the market, so that company can generate more sales, reduce marketing costs, enhance campaign performance, provide better user experience, and reach specific target segments. As well as on table, more specific shows competitor daily/monthly search traffic and top queries from search traffic and more other details. Thus, research on your competitors and understand their strategy, is the advantages for the company to take step forward than others in the market. (Table 1) (Table 2) Co Tweet and HootSuite There are other tools like  CoTweet  and  HootSuite  are relative newcomers to the market when they looking further out into the social web. Especially for small and medium-size business that use tools to monitoring and engaging with social web. It started as management tools Twitter, but they are now expanding their support for other social channels such as Facebook and LinkedIn. It simply for an organization tracks the effectiveness of multiple marketing efforts in multiple social channels, and also from platforms. Because social web such as Twitter and Facebook, it creates more effective buzz to a company. Therefore, this platform is critical important for for small and medium-size business to enhance awareness. CoTweet is a web-based  social media management  and  analytics  tool. With CoTweet you can not only manage clicks on content you publish within the application, but also integrate any web analytics platforms with campaign codes and shortened URLs. Just like Bobowski believes it provides closed-loop reporting and allows marketers to associate revenue and other success metrics to social media activity. (Peters, 2011) As shown table below, CoTweet also provides updates and follow-up messages to be assigned to specific social media managers. Different knowledge of social media managers can responses immediately to appropriate questions and comments from followers, which shows to followers that there are person behind responding the questions. Also, from the questions and buzz marketers will know who he is talking with if question arise for as specific tweet. It helps marketers collected more accurate data and responded visitors needs. CONCLUSION This report has shown that Web continues to have growing importance in marketing efforts, therefore on-site and off-site Web Analytics solutions will likely become more crucial tools that lead to greater business success. This is supported by the number of toolset made available to businesses of all sizes to monitor and analyze web traffic on their sites in order to determine what is happening not only throughout the rest of the Web ecosystem but also in social media. Appendix There are other different online metrics collection methods that help marketers for analysis and understand visitors and purchasers. ID Technique Strengths Weaknesses 1 Server-based logfile analysis of site activity (web analytics) Directly records customer behavior on site plus where they were referred from Low cost Doesn t directly record channel satisfaction   Undercounting and over counting   Misleading unless interpreted carefully 2 Browser-based site activity data (web analytics) Greater accuracy than server-based analysis Counts all users, unlike the panel approach Similar weaknesses to server based technique apart from accuracy 2-  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Limited demographic information 3 Panels activity and demographic data Provides competitor comparisons Gives demographic profiling Avoids undercounting and over counting Depends on extrapolation from limited sample that may not be representative 4 Outcome data, e.g. enquiries, sales, customer service e-mails Records marketing outcomes Difficulty of integrating data with other methods of data collection when collected manually or in other information systems 5 Online questionnaires Customers are prompted randomly every  n  th customer or after customer activity or by e-mail Can record customer satisfaction and profiles Relatively cheap to create and analyze Difficulty of recruiting respondents who complete accurately Sample bias tend to be advocates or disgruntled customers who complete 6 Online focus groups; synchronous recording Relatively cheap to create Difficult to moderate and co-ordinate   No visual cues as from offline focus groups 7 Mystery shoppers. Example customers are recruited to evaluate the site, e.g. www.emysteryshopper.com Strstructured tests give detailed feedback Also tests integration with other channels such as e-mail and phone Relatively expensive   Sample must be representative

Vocal Sounds That Mean the Same in Every Language

Vocal Sounds That Mean the Same in Every Language Are there vocal sounds that mean the same whatever your language? Discuss, with examples. The presence of vocal sounds, sounds which are produced via the human vocal tract, which convey the same meaning whatever your language will as a result be sounds that are universally recognised, both in terms of the sound being identified and with regard to the message the sound carries. Considering the lack of cultural exposure between certain language groups (Saul, 2014), vocal sounds with cross-linguistic meanings point towards evolutionary adaptations which by their very nature are inherently universal. The following essay shall show that there are vocal sounds that mean the same whatever your language, it shall do this both by discussing studies that provide evidence for vocal sounds with cross-linguistic meaning, as well as explaining these vocal sounds in an evolutionary context; thereby affirming them as sounds which carry universal meanings no matter what the recipients native language is. Evidence of laughter in our evolutionary relatives such as chimps, (Falk, 2004) and even more distant mammalian relatives such as dogs and rats (Panksepp, 2007) clearly points towards its status as an evolutionary adaption; one which would be universal and therefore be considered a vocal sound which means the same whatever ones language. Further studies indicate that laughter in both humans and non-human primates involve similar neural structures, such as parts of the limbic system (Meyer, Baumann, Wildgruber, Alter, 2007; Scott, Lavan, Chen, Mcgettigan, 2014) and mechanisms involved in endorphin activation linked to positive affective states (Scott et al., 2014). Its status as a universal evolutionary inherited trait is further confirmed by its presence in congenitally blind and deaf infants (Meyer, 2007) who are quite clearly born without the ability to hear or otherwise perceive laughter and therefore who have not learnt to laugh via socialisation. Clearly laughters presence in non-human primates involving similar cortical structures and neural mechanisms, in addition to it being observed in the congenitally blind and deaf, pointing towards its presence as a biological evolutionary adaption; one which would quite clearly be universal and therefore is an example of a vocal sound which conveys meaning whatever ones language is. The context laughter takes place in further points to it being an evolutionary adaption; laughter is in itself innately social, we are around 30 times more likely to laugh in a social situation than when alone (Scott et al., 2014), this is mirrored in non-human primates where it frequently takes place in social situations appearing to facilitate bonding and social cohesion (Ross, Owren, Zimmermann, 2009). Whilst non-human primate laughter typically occurs during physical contact (Provine, 1996), it is contextually comparable with human laughter due to this occurrence in social situations. It is this comparison both in terms of context and the underlying neural mechanisms which point towards a universal evolutionary adaption, one that continues to facilitate social bonding. Therefore similarities between human and non-human primate laughter point towards a level of biological inheritance, one which considered in an evolutionary context must be shared by all despite differences in ter ms of language use, meaning that laughter can clearly be seen as a vocal sound which means the same whatever ones language. However, laughter is not the only affective stimuli shown to carry meaning cross-linguistically. It is widely established that cross-cultural recognition of emotions exists (Sauter, Eisner, Ekman, Scott, 2010), although this point is firmly embedded in the literature (Ekman, 1992) it fails to provide evidence for vocalisations that carry cross-linguistic meaning considering the environmental and visual contexts in which they are typically conveyed (Elfenbein Ambady, 2002). Elfenbein and Ambady (2002) performed a meta-analysis on the universality of emotional recognition on 97 studies on 42 different regions, finding that whilst there was an in-group advantage for members of the same nation, region and/or language, emotions were universally recognized at above chance levels. Although their meta-analysis looked at studies using a range of channels to convey emotions, this above chance level remained when considering studies that focussed on vocal stimuli alone (Elfenbein Ambady, 200 2). Elfenbein and Ambadys meta-analysis (2002) provides evidence that there are vocalisations that mean the same whatever your language, by statistically analysing a variety of studies and showing patterns of correlation between them the argument carries greater weight than considering one or two studies in isolation. Furthermore, it suggests that certain emotions are universally recognised and most likely that this is due to biological mechanisms (when one considers the lack of cultural exposure some groups have had with one another). Of course the presence of universal cognitive mechanisms which decode aspects of emotional vocalisations also mean that there are vocal sounds which mean the same whatever your language, as the emotions have been recognised from purely vocal stimuli and the meta-analysis supports the notion that this recognition is universal and therefore not dependent upon specific languages. However removing multiple channels of communication such as facial expression and body language isnt sufficient when one considers the linguistic context in which emotional vocalisations are usually realised (Pell et al., 2009); even to non-speakers a foreign language may convey linguistic features that somehow alter the meaning of vocal cues. In order to circumvented these potentially confounding effects speakers must express emotions through pseudo-utterances which mimic the morphosyntactic and phonotactic properties of the language presented (Scherer, Banse, Wallbott, 2001). It therefore seems sensible to suggest that the recognition of emotions cross-culturally through the presentation of pseudo-utterances, presented independently from other potential cues (such as facial expression and body language) will provide substantial evidence for there being vocal sounds that mean the same whatever your language; after-all all other confounding factors will have been removed other than the vocal sound itself. A number of studies using pseudo-utterances presented with purely vocal stimuli suggest that emotions can be recognised across languages by non-native speakers (Pell Skorup, 2008; Pell et al,. 2009a; Pell, Paulmann, Dara, Alasseri, Kotz, 2009b; Sauter et al., 2010). Although studies report a small in-group advantage when participants listen to pseudo-utterances based upon their native language (Pell et al., 2009b), similar results between non-native listeners suggests the presence of cross-linguistic vocal sounds with identical meanings, (Pell Skorup, 2008; Sauter et al., 2010). This argument is further strengthened when considering studies involving participants from groups with little to no cultural exposure to each other, such as Sauters (2010) study with the Himba people of northern Namibia. Here the correct identification of emotions from purely vocal pseudo-utterances lends weight to the argument of cognitive mechanisms derived from universal evolutionary adaptations, capabl e of decoding meaning from vocal utterances. Clearly with no cultural exposure (which may have enabled the learning of emotional expression in another culture) and with the correct identification away from other potential cues (such as a linguistic framework and body-language), it seems highly probable that the identification of emotions cross-culturally is in part due to universal evolutionary adaptations, which in turn enable the existence of vocal sounds that mean the same whatever your language. Cross-cultural data clearly provides evidence for vocal emotional expressions which exhibit core acoustic perceptual features that promote accurate recognition across languages (Pell Skorup, 2008). The use of pseudo-utterances removes linguistic structure and language itself as confounding variables, meaning that emotions successfully conveyed and recognised must be done so through associated changes in prosody, such as changes in timing, pitch, volume and the rate of speech (Frick, 1985; Scherer, 1986). Furthermore, it appears that the expression of these discrete emotions corresponds with distinct modulation patterns (Pell, 2001), for example vocal expressions of sadness tend to be conveyed with a lower pitch and at a slower speaking rate in comparison to other emotional vocalisations (Pell et al., 2009b). It should also be noted that as well as being the most distinct from other emotional vocalisations (in terms of its prosodic elements), sadness is also frequently cited as being one of the most accurately identified from vocal stimuli (Pell et al., 2009a, 2009b). This increase in recognition along with its high distinctiveness in terms of modulation patterns provides further evidence for accurate recognition as being due to prosodic elements, clearly the correlation lends support to the aforementioned theory that emotional vocalisations are recognised due to the recognition of distinct prosodic patterns. This line of thought is further supported when one considers that emotions with less distinct prosodic patterns have been associated with lower rates of recognition; for example surprise and joy have been shown to possess similar prosodic elements (Pell et al., 2009b) and in turn have been reported at low accuracy rates, with surprise frequently being incorrectly categorised as joy (Pell et al., 2009a, 2009b). The presence of distinct prosodic elements in the vocalisation of emotions further explains our premise that there are distinct vocal sounds which m ean the same whatever your language; this point is further supported by the correlation between the distinctiveness of a vocal expressions prosodic elements and higher levels of accurate recognition. Prosody has also been studied outside of emotional vocalisation, pointing to further universal cross-linguistic meanings such as dominance and submission, confidence and the signalling of a statement or question to the listener. Ohala (1984, 1996) claims that we associate fundamental frequency (f0) with sexual dimorphism, size and as a result dominance; with males lower and larger larynxs leading to a lower f0 and more confident vocalisations (Hurford, 2014, p.77-80). Similarities can be drawn from avian and other mammalian vocalisations with regards to f0, with low f0 vocalisations frequently made by individuals with greater dominance (Morton, 1977). In turn Ohalas (1984, 1996) claim is supported by a variety of evidence which shows low f0 voices to be interpreted as more masculine (Culver, as cited in Gussenhoven 2002; Junger et al., 2013) as well as being associated with dominant attributes such as confidence and leadership (Klofstad, Anderson, Peters, 2012). Whilst these studies predominantly focus on vocalisations from a Western language base (such as English and Dutch), the comparison across species as well as the universal presence of larger, lower based larynxs in human males (Hurford, 2014, p.77-80) suggests a universal evolutionary adaption, in which differences in the larynxs size and location have evolved due to the selective advantage they provide as a result of the meanings low f0 vocalisations confer with regards to dominance, size and aggression. Studies comparing these affective interpretations across a broader range of languages would add further to Ohalas conclusion (1984, 1996); however, it seems improbable that other language bases would offer different interpretations when considering the effect of low f0 vocalisations in our evolutionary ancestors, in addition to explanations concerning universal sexual differences of larynx size and location. The affective interpretations of f0 have been taken further from signals of dominance to signalling the distinctions between questions and statements (Ohala, 1984; Gussenhoven 2002). This seems a logical step when considering the nature of questions being relatively uncertain in meaning, whilst it seems probable that statements will need to confer more certainty in order to convey a more authoritative status. This is confirmed by cross-linguistic studies showing that higher f0 towards the end of vocalisations are frequently perceived as questions (Hadding-Koch Studdert-Kennedy, 1964; Gussenhoven Chen, 2000). Ohala (1994) claims that this pattern is too wide spread to be explained by a common linguistic source, suggesting its existence due to universal evolutionary adaptations. Gussenhoven and Chens (2000) study should be highlighted for its use of three languages (Hungarian, Dutch and Chinese) quite distinct from each other both in terms of structure and due to their status as belo nging to distinct separate language families; the fact that this interpretation of f0 is present in these three languages which have evolved separately removes the suggestion that its presence is tied to linguistic structure rather than universal evolutionary instilled cognitive mechanisms. Therefore cross-linguistic evidence suggests that a rise in f0 towards the end of a vocalisation signals a question whatever ones language, again providing evidence for cross-linguistic meaning in vocal sounds. To conclude, cross-linguistic studies support the claim that there are vocal sounds which mean the same whatever your language. Studies using pseudo-utterances remove the possibility of confounding variables such as linguistic structure or visual stimuli, showing that vocal sounds can carry information on affective states understood by the recipient whether or not they share a common language. Further cross-linguistic studies highlight the effect of prosody on meaning both in the deliverance of emotional vocal sounds as well as in a broader context; sounds which yet again have been shown to carry meaning across languages. Comparative research provides additional evidence for vocal sounds that carry meaning across languages, such as laughter in addition to displays of confidence and dominance. However, it remains important to consider these vocal sounds in an evolutionary context; vocal sounds with universal meanings must be understood as being due to biologically inherited adaptation s when one considers the lack of exposure many language groups have had with one another. References Ekman,P. (1992). Are there basic emotions? Psychological Review, 99(3), 550-553. doi:10.1037/0033-295X.99.3.550 Elfenbein,H.A., Ambady,N. (2002). On the universality and cultural specificity of emotion recognition: A meta-analysis. Psychological Bulletin, 128(2), 203-235. doi:10.1037//0033-2909.128.2.203 Falk,D. (2004). Prelinguistic evolution in early hominins: Whence motherese? Behavioral and Brain Sciences, 27, 491–541. doi:10.1017/S0140525X04000111 Frick,R.W. (1985). Communicating emotion: The role of prosodic features. Psychological Bulletin, 97(3), 412-429. doi:10.1037/0033-2909.97.3.412 Gussenhoven,C., Chen,A. (2000). Universal and language-specific effects in the perception of question intonation. Proceedings of the 6th International Conference on Spoken Language Processing, 91-94. Gussenhoven, C. (2002). Intonation and interpretation: phonetics and phonology. In Proceedings of Speech Prosody 2002, , Aix-en-Provence, France (pp. 47-57 Hadding-Koch,K., Studdert-Kennedy,M. (1964). An experimental study of some intonation contours. Phonetica, 11, 175-185. doi:10.1159/000258338 Hurford,J.R. (2014). The origins of language: A slim guide. UK: OUP Oxford. Junger,J., Pauly,K., Brà ¶hr,S., Birkholz,P., Neuschaefer-Rube,C., Kohler,C., . . . Ute,H. (2013). Sex matters: Neural correlates of voice gender perception. NeuroImage, 79, .275-287. doi:10.1016/j.neuroimage.2013.04.105 Klofstad,C., Anderson,R., Peters,S. (2012). Sounds like a winner: voice pitch influences perception of leadership capacity in both men and women. Proceedings of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences, 279(1738), 2698-704. doi:10.1098/rspb.2012.0311 Meyer,M., Baumann,S., Wildgruber,D., Alter,K. (2007). How the brain laughs. Behavioural Brain Research, 182(2), 245–260. doi:10.1016/j.bbr.2007.04.023 Morton,E.S. (1977). On the Occurrence and Significance of Motivation-Structural Rules in Some Bird and Mammal Sounds. American Naturalist, 01/1977(111), 855-869. doi:10.1086/283219 Panksepp,J. (2007). Neuroevolutionary sources of laughter and social joy: Modeling primal human laughter in laboratory rats. Behavioural Brain Research, 182, 231–244. doi:10.1016/j.bbr.2007.02.015 Ohala,J.J. (1984). An ethological perspective on common cross-language utilization of F0 of voice. Phonetica, 41, 1 16. doi:10.1159/000261706 Ohala,J.J. (1996). Ethological theory and the expression of emotion in the voice. Wilmington: University of Delaware, 3, 1812-1815. doi:10.1109/ICSLP.1996.607982 Pell,M.D. (2001). Influence of emotion and focus location on prosody in matched statements and questions. Journal of The Acoustical Society of America, 109(4), 1668–1680. doi:10.1121/1.1352088 Pell,M.D., Monetta,L., Paulmann,S., Kotz,S.A. (2009). Recognizing emotions in a foreign language. Journal of Nonverbal Behavior, 33(2), 107-120. doi:10.1007/s10919-008-0065-7 Pell,M.D., Paulmann,S., Dara,C., Alasseri,A., Kotz,S.A. (2009). 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New Deal America :: American America History

New Deal America The stock market crash of 1929 helped launch the United States and many other nations into the worst economic depression in history. The severity of the Great Depression called for federal government programs to protect the general welfare of citizens. The New Deal programs created by Franklin D. Roosevelt provided the framework for the welfare state that still serves as a basis for American public policy. All aspects of American society suffered during the Great Depression. By 1932, there were thirteen million people unemployed. There was no security for the millions who lost all of their savings in the bank failure or stock market crash. Volunteer organizations attempted to help the needy, but their resources were simply not adequate (Madaras and SoRelle 218). Hope seemed non-existent. Americans had never seen such a severe depression. They could not look to history for guidance. The New Deal was Roosevelt's attempt to restore the economy. His willingness to act decisively and experiment with new policies set him apart from previous presidents. He often said, "I have no expectation of making a hit every time I come to bat. What I seek is the highest possible batting average"(Tindall and Shi 1238). In the first years of Roosevelt's term he worked hard to empower the federal branch. The New Deal set the precedent for 20th century liberalism. The first order of business for the Roosevelt administration was financial reform. Banking is a crucial aspect of capitalism and Roosevelt was very aware of this fact. On his second day in office, Roosevelt called Congress to meet in a special session. The outcome was the Emergency Banking Relief Act, which permitted stable banks to reopen and provided managers to those who remained in trouble. The Glass-Steagall Act separated commercial and investment banking and created the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation. These actions all helped restore banking confidence within American people. Roosevelt ensured that it was safer to "keep your money in a reopened bank than under the mattress"(Tindall and Shi 1238). After accomplishing this task, the new administration was ready to solve other problems. Other financial programs included the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), National Industrial Recovery Act (NIRA), and the Agriculture Adjustment Administration (AAA). The SEC functioned in regulating the stock and bond markets. The NIRA and AAA were aimed at recovery through regulation. The NIRA played a big role in restoring faith and confidence in the system and helped to increase demand and wages, but realistically it was impractical; it abandoned the American market system.

Invisible Man - Invisible to White Society :: Ralph Ellison, Invisible Man

  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The reason I chose," THE INVISIBLE MAN, "is because the black man in this story symbolizes the black the black man in society which is set up to fail. He is used, humiliated, and discriminated against through the whole book. He feels that he is invisible to society because society does not view him as a real person. Reading this book was very difficult, because the book was written in first person singular. I had to think hard on my opinion of Ellison's underlining message in this book. To do this I had to ask the question, what drives a man to believe that he is invisible to a society of people?   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The book starts out with a Negro boy shy and timid comes to a southern town to be awarded a scholarship. Together with some more Negro boys he is rushed to front of the ballroom were they witness a blond women dancing in the nude. This fiascle is frightening to the boys, because during this period in history a black man could have gotten hung for looking at white lady, not to mention a naked white lady. After this event the boys are blindfolded and made to beat each other to a bloody pulp. Afterwards the boy is made to give a speech of gratitude to the drunken white people while swallowing and nearly choking on his on blood. After this shocking opening the book kind of mellows out some. Next he goes off to college but while in school makes a mistake and takes a white donor through a Negro gin mill. Which from this event he gets expelled. Thinking he has a letter of recommendation, but it is really a document warning potential employers not to h ire him written by Dr.Bledsoe the same man who through him out of the college he adored so much. He travels to New York City. Once in New York his attitude changes it seems that all his misfortunes have taken an effect on him and his attitude changes. He joins a Communist group in which the reader can see the bitterness in his heart. Yet in the book Ellison talks about the party so bad it is a wonder they caught the I of his character at all. He later leaves the group. Yet, still it amazed me that a man could feel so out of place or even unwanted enough to join the communist party. Invisible Man - Invisible to White Society :: Ralph Ellison, Invisible Man   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The reason I chose," THE INVISIBLE MAN, "is because the black man in this story symbolizes the black the black man in society which is set up to fail. He is used, humiliated, and discriminated against through the whole book. He feels that he is invisible to society because society does not view him as a real person. Reading this book was very difficult, because the book was written in first person singular. I had to think hard on my opinion of Ellison's underlining message in this book. To do this I had to ask the question, what drives a man to believe that he is invisible to a society of people?   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The book starts out with a Negro boy shy and timid comes to a southern town to be awarded a scholarship. Together with some more Negro boys he is rushed to front of the ballroom were they witness a blond women dancing in the nude. This fiascle is frightening to the boys, because during this period in history a black man could have gotten hung for looking at white lady, not to mention a naked white lady. After this event the boys are blindfolded and made to beat each other to a bloody pulp. Afterwards the boy is made to give a speech of gratitude to the drunken white people while swallowing and nearly choking on his on blood. After this shocking opening the book kind of mellows out some. Next he goes off to college but while in school makes a mistake and takes a white donor through a Negro gin mill. Which from this event he gets expelled. Thinking he has a letter of recommendation, but it is really a document warning potential employers not to h ire him written by Dr.Bledsoe the same man who through him out of the college he adored so much. He travels to New York City. Once in New York his attitude changes it seems that all his misfortunes have taken an effect on him and his attitude changes. He joins a Communist group in which the reader can see the bitterness in his heart. Yet in the book Ellison talks about the party so bad it is a wonder they caught the I of his character at all. He later leaves the group. Yet, still it amazed me that a man could feel so out of place or even unwanted enough to join the communist party.

Childhood Illnesses Essay

2.1 There are many childhood illnesses listed below are some examples†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦ Croup – A child can get croup at any time of the year, although it’s more likely to occur during late autumn/ early winter. This may be because there is more are :- a sore throat, runny nose, high temp and a cough. Over a day or 2 specific symptoms of croup will develop these include a bark like cough, a horse or croaky voice, difficulty breathing ( a harsh grating nois;lk.e when they breathe in) and have difficulty swallowing. If a child shows signs of suffering with Croup seek medical advice / visit GP. Measles – The initial symptoms of measles appear around day 10 after you have had the measles infection and last for up to 14 days. The measles rash usually appears within a few days. The initial symptoms are :- cold-like symptoms ( runny nose, watery eyes etc) eyes will be red and light sensitive, a temp peaking at 40.6ËšC/105F for several days ( their temp will then start to fall but will increase again once the rash appears) small greyish-white spots in the mouth and throat, tiredness ,irritability, lack of energy, aches and pains, poor appetite and a red/brown rash. The Measles rash appears 2-4 days after thee initial symptoms and can last for up to 8 days. The rash usually starts behind the ear then spreads to the head, neck and the rest of the body. The spots will usually get bigger and join up together. If you suspect a child has Measles seek medical advise/ visit GP. Mumps – The symptoms of mumps usually develop 14-25 days after the child has become infected. This is known as â€Å" the incubation period†. Swelling of the glands being the most common symptom that a child has Mumps (they are just below each ear). Other symptoms may include headache, joint pain, feeling sick, dry mouth, belly pain, feeling very tired, loss of appetite and a high temp (38ËšC/100.4ËšF) or above. Seek medical advice/ visit GP if you suspect a child has Mumps. Chicken Pox – The most common sign that a child has Chicken pox is a red rash that can cover their entire body. However, ever before the rash appears the child may have shown flu- like symptoms. Soon after an itchy rash will appear. Some children may only get a few spots while other will be completely covered. The spots normally appear in clusters and tend to be behind their ears, on their face, in their scalp, under their arms and behind their knee’s. But the spots can appear anywhere including in their mouth and ears. The rash will start small but will develop quickly within 12-24 hours and the spots will develop into blisters and become increasingly itchy. If you suspect a child has Chicken pox seek medical advice/ visit GP. Whooping Cough – The symptoms of Whooping Cough can take between 6-20 days to develop. Whooping cough tends to develop in stages from mild symptoms at first followed by a period of more severe symptoms before improvement begins. The early symptoms of Whooping cough are often similar to those of the common cold. These early symptoms can last for up to 2 weeks before becoming more severe. The second stage is often characterised by intense bouts of coughing. This is often known as â€Å" the paroxysmal stage† and has the following symptoms :- intense coughing that brings up phlegm, a â€Å"whoop† sound with each intake of breathe after coughing, vomiting after coughing, tiredness and redness after coughing. Each bout of coughing usually lasts between 1-2 minutes, but several bouts may occur in quick session and last several minutes. Young children may also seems to choke or become blue in the face when they have a bout but they should return to normal once its finished. Seek medical advice/ visit GP if you suspect a child has Whooping cough. Rubella – The symptoms of Rubella take 2-3 weeks to develop. During this incubation period the child may have a slightly raised temperature and complain that they are getting a cold. The main Rubella symptoms are the rubella rash this is a distinctive red-pink colour. The rash appears as spots which may slightly itch usually starting behind the ear before spreading around the head and neck area. They may also have swollen lymph modes and a high temp. Ear infection – A pain in the ear is the number 1 symptom of an ear infection. The child may not be able to communicate their pain but they will be pulling at their ear and it will look red in colour. Other symptoms of an ear infection are a child complaining that it hurts to swallow. They may also have difficulty sleeping due to the pain. There may also be an unpleasant smell coming from the ear. They may also appear to be unsteady on their feet due to a lack of balance and have trouble hearing quieter noises ( may request things are turned up) If you suspect a child has an ear infection seek medical help/ visit GP has the child will require anti-biotics. Conjunctivitis – is a infection in the eye. It’s very common in the under 5 year olds. The signs to look out of ( as conjunctivitis is very contagious) are teary, red, itchy, painful eye. The eyelid may become swollen and my be weeping a yellow/green discharge which makes it difficult to open. Have a high temp and be sensitive to light. If you suspect a child is suffering from Conjunctivitis seek medical help/ visit GP has the child will require a course of anti- biotic cream. Impetigo – is one of the most common skin infections among children usually affecting pre-school and school age children. A child is more likely to develop impetigo if they have already been irritated by other skin problems such as eczema, poison ivy, insect bites and cuts/grazes from a recent injury. The symptoms that a child has impetigo are clusters of red bumps/blisters around an area of redness. There may be fluid oozing from the blister or look dry and crusty. The sores usually appear around the mouth and nose, or on skin not covered by clothing. Seek medical help/visit GP if you suspect a child has impetigo has its highly contagious and the child will need a course of anti- biotics.

Nursing as an Entity

Nursing as an Entity Casey Berling, BSN Student Eastern Kentucky University NSC 252 Intro to Professional Nursing Department of Baccalaureate & Graduate Nursing, College of Health Sciences October 31, 2012 If the question was asked, â€Å"What is your definition of nursing,† to the thousands of nurses in the world today, there would be one word that would unite them all, and that is the word care. Nursing strives to be a very unique profession where selfishness, and self-serving isn’t even thought of.It takes a special kind of person who can drop everything at an instance, and provide critical performance of skills and assessment to allow a patient ease in their time of need. My definition of nursing is a selfless entity in which caring, privacy, and safety of patients reign supreme when used with critical thinking essay writer law†¦.. quality assessment and patient needs are met with the most affectionate of hearts and minds, that deliver attentiveness to the pati ents outlook by providing suggestions and help in a non-demanding manner.Defining my Definition My definition above I believe encases not only the technicalities of the nursing profession, but also what entitles a good nurse to give quality care. Without the major points mentioned like safety, and privacy, how can a patient feel secure with not only their provider but with the entire industry as well. Nursing is a very resourceful occupation and to remain this way it must harness every aspect I believe it calls for. Including attentiveness, privacy, and selflessness.Attentiveness Nursing doesn’t judge nor take itself for granted. It utilizes every tool placed in its midst and allows for those caring men and women to take hold and deliver the highest quality of care to its clients. â€Å"Attentiveness entails the detection of the patient and/or family need. If the nurse fails to recognize the need, the patient or family will not experience caring,† (Lachman, 2012). With out paying attention to details a nurse is not allowing the patient to be top priority.This detail is enforced in hospitals when nurses do rounds, to show that every hour a patients needs are met, and they are never left in the dark/neglected. Another facet of my definition involves privacy and this is also extremely important in nursing as a profession. Privacy â€Å"Nurses have always recognized the necessity for confidentiality, beginning with the Nightingale Pledge,† (Kerr, 2009). Especially in today’s society with all the electronic transfer and readings of patient documentation it is harder to keep things under wraps.It remains at such a high standard due to the HIPPA laws, â€Å"To protect this data, rules were promulgated to set a national standard for the privacy of health information,† (Thede, 2010). But with the correct care nurses should put into being confidential it shouldn’t even be a big problem. It is well understood that nurses should al ways keep privacy as a key importance to ensure the fact care is kept to that patient, and to that patient only. SummaryTo take an undivided look at nursing one can see that it takes much more than what is simply asked of a nurse. A nurse must not only provide care with the tools set directly in front of him/her, but with thinking critically and on the spot. Nursing is so unlike any other profession due to the amount of time vested in caring, understanding, documenting, and coping with other people. With what seems like a complex mindset, of being selfless and totally attune to only caring in the moment, a nurse must let all other stresses escape from getting in the way.So when asked what my definition of nursing is, I hope it is noted that the main focus is putting the patient first, and allowing them to receive the copious care they deserve. Works Cited Kerr, P. (2009). Protecting Patient Information In an Electronic Age: A Sacred Trust. Urologic Nursing, 29(5), 315-318. Lachman, V. D. (2012). Applying the Ethics of Care to Your Nursing Practice. MEDSURG Nursing, 21(2), 112-116. Theode, L. (2010). Informatics: Electronic Health Records: A Boon or Privacy Nightmare?. Online Journal Of Issues In Nursing, 15(2).