Book Review: Treasury of Royal Scandals is a national bestseller book written by Michael Farquhar

A Treasury of Royal Scandals is a national success book composed by Michael Farquhar that depicts â€Å"The Shocking True Stories of History’s Wickedest, Weirdest, Most Wanton Kings, Queens, Tsars, Popes, and Emperors. † This book is an irregular assortment of various illustrious families and people who in spite of their numerous distinctions, have a few similitudes. In any case, they are regularly dull and negative similitudes. Regardless of what individual, family, or development somebody is discussing generally, six subjects appear to consistently come up, are talked about, and are discussed. These subjects incorporate strict prejudice, dismissal for the basic open, broken individual lives, outrageous quest for tradition, a feeling of predominance, and imbalance towards ladies. These subjects have impacted the results of history from past to introduce †and may keep on later on. It is inside these topics that the similitudes between the individuals and families referenced inside this book can be found. Strict opportunity might be something that numerous individuals in the United States underestimate today, however individuals who lived during Pope Gregory IX’s rule were progressively acquainted with strict bigotry. Pope Gregory IX had made his uncle’s mistreatment of apostates an official capacity of the congregation when he set up the Inquisition in 1232. During his standard, Catholics were urged to â€Å"squeal† on different people’s demonstrations of apostasy, youngsters affirmed against their folks, and moms affirmed against their kids. Anybody blamed for apostasy was hauled before ecclesiastical inquisitors to answer charges, and once censured, a casualty was sent to be singed at the stake. The whole town of Champagne, France was even put being investigated and consumed at the stake after the neighborhood diocesan was blamed for permitting sin. After Pope Gregory IX’s demise, Pope Innocent IV came to govern and â€Å"improved† upon the probe strategies. He presently permitted torment to be utilized, yet just permitted an individual to be tormented once. Shockingly for those individuals, be that as it may, one torment meeting could most recent half a month. It got clear during the hour of the probe, that there was no strict opportunity what so ever. On the off chance that there was one individual whose life exemplified a negligence for the average citizens, that individual was Gregory Rasputin. Rasputin was a â€Å"greasy, smashed worker, with the habits of a farm pig, and a stunning instance of b. o. o boot, he was additionally ruler of creepy† (194). Obviously, a man who develops this sort of notoriety for himself unmistakably has no worry for the assessment of others. Rasputin’s eyes were incredible †a light blue shading with the capacity to puncture and stroke, while as yet looking guileless and sly. Rasputin utilized these eyes to overwhelm each individual he was conversing with †with the power they had, yet in addition the manner in which he persistently gazed at individuals for extensive stretches of time. Rasputin impacted and overwhelmed the imperial family through Alexandra, the spouse of the tsar, who was ignorant concerning his internal goals. In spite of the fact that Alexandra wouldn't see this, the individuals saw impeccably. The individuals realized that Rasputin was an extortion whose impact on society was turning out to be increasingly more broad as time went on, and in the long run every last bit of it would end in an uprising or the like. In the end, Rasputin was executed after numerous sensational attempts by Yusoupov (most extravagant man in Russia and tsar’s nephew by marriage). It appeared that Rasputin was not prepared to bite the dust, in any case, since he was harmed, shot, shot twice increasingly, beaten upon, and suffocated before he was proclaimed dead. Albeit numerous issues from the beginning of time were among rulers and their kin, a few rulers likewise had useless individual lives. A genuine case of this is Napoleon, who decided to separate from his first spouse so as to wed another person who might give him a beneficiary, and who was continually battling with his sibling (Joseph). Childless, Napoleon named his nephew beneficiary to the seat, which insulted Joseph. Joseph had accepted that he would be beneficiary to the seat and accepted that he reserved the option to the seat as the oldest individual from the family. This suspicion insulted Napoleon consequently, and the squabble between the two siblings proceeded. After some time, Napoleon’s make progress toward power caused different contentions among his kin, and at long last just three siblings (out of seven kin) assumed dynamic jobs in his realms. It could most likely be said that a significant number of the rulers since the beginning had their brain on everything, except what was best for their kin. In this way, it is just common that Austrian Empress Maria Theresa continually had her psyche on making a line. Maria was a particularly inquisitive ruler, who made the Chastity Commission †an uncommon division of the police accused of stifling bad habit. It was said that Maria even had an impact in the commission, masking herself and wandering Vienna looking for her unfaithful spouse. At the point when she was not occupied with â€Å"storming the rooms of her people,† she focused on offering her youngsters to the families that would help fortify her position. One â€Å"episode† that indicated Maria Theresa’s needs was one including her child Prince Joseph. He was beneficiary to the seat and had become hopelessly enamored. Lamentably, be that as it may, Princess Isabella of Parma (his picked one) was a lesbian and had her eyes on another person other than Prince Joseph. Maria Theresa could never have endured a lesbian relationship, that could endanger the administration, yet that all finished when Isabella out of nowhere kicked the bucket of smallpox at the age of twenty-one. In spite of the Prince being crushed by his misfortune, Maria Theresa burned through no time and promptly remarried him to a lady, whom he challenged not contact with his finger in light of her â€Å"painfully ugly† appearance. There were hardly any rulers, particularly rulers, who came up short on a sentiment of â€Å"superiority over standard men† (34). Louis XIV of France unquestionably didn't do not have this attribute of rulers. Indeed, Louis XIV additionally felt himself to be better than different rulers. It was said that â€Å"Louis wouldn't be assembled with different rulers under the term â€Å"Their Majesties† in light of the fact that, he clarified, from that there may be reasoned â€Å"an fairness which doesn't exist† (34). During Louis’s seventy-two-year-rule (longest in European history), he endeavored to have the entirety of the brilliance and distinction of France center around himself. Louis controlled everything from tree support to how guests ought to enter the nursery of Versailles with a particular goal in mind to respect him. Two activities of Louis’s especially showed his sentiments of predominance. The first of these activities was the point at which he chose to consider himself the â€Å"Sun king,† on the grounds that he needed to be the sun and light up everything for the entirety of France. In any case, it appeared that Louis needed to illuminate things for himself, not France, as appeared by his next activity that basically placed France into chapter 11. The â€Å"Sun King† revamped and developed the manor at Versailles, which he had begun to look all starry eyed at a youthful age. Versailles turned into a symbol that took after the thriving of France for the time, while it additionally nearly drove France into insolvency. Maybe it is the account of Henry VIII and his spouses that appears to fit into pretty much every topic. Nonetheless, it is Henry VIII’s imbalance towards ladies that stands apart the most, as he separated from half of his spouses for their women in holding up who were living in a similar family all through the whole separation process. Henry’s dismissal for women’s rights was incredible, as he wedded and separated every now and again in his triumph to have a child, who might turn into the beneficiary to the seat. For instance, Henry proclaimed himself Supreme Head of the Church in England so as to formally separate from his first spouse, Catherine of Aragon, by pronouncing their marriage unlawful. Accordingly, Catherine was never given a reasonable preliminary, and her solitary girl (Mary) was proclaimed ill-conceived. Strict bigotry, negligence for the normal open, useless individual lives, outrageous quest for tradition, a feeling of prevalence, and disparity towards ladies have all affected history. Notwithstanding, despite the fact that there have been numerous rulers associated with outrages, those rulers have likewise done extraordinary things. At the hours of a portion of these outrages, the acknowledged â€Å"practice† was unique, yet human advancement has advanced to an altogether extraordinary level. Despite the fact that history may rehash itself sooner or later (and has by and large), it is a portion of these embarrassments that have carried us to where we are today. For instance, it was Henry VIII’s second spouse Anne Boleyn who bore Queen Elizabeth (â€Å"The Virgin Queen†), all because of Henry VIII’s want for a child and separating from his first wife. Along these lines, urge others to raise, talk about, and banter these themes, which have helped shape history, great and awful, to the point it has arrived at today.

What Hemingway Leaves Out :: essays research papers

Sincere Hemingway is known for forgetting about things in his composition. He accepted that on the off chance that you realized something all around ok, you could forget about it and still express what is on your mind. In the short story "The End of something", he forgets about a couple of things. A few things he doesn't state at all and others the peruser knows something before he says it. He should have recognize what he was expounding on in light of the fact that he the peruser can derive certain things.      In this specific story, the peruser knows a few things about scratches past. Hemingway doesn't state it, however Nick is an accomplished fisher. This is appeared by scratches activities. In the pontoon, Nick realizes that despite the fact that the trout are taking care of, they won't strike. At the point when the trout broke the outside of the water, Nike instinctually pulled hard on one paddle to turn the lure towards them. He likewise advises Marge not to remove the ventral balance from the roost. These things are the activities of a genuinely extraordinary angler.      Another thing Hemingway forgets about is the sum of scratch and Marge's relationship. The peruser gets only the last scenes of an involved acquaintance. Marjorie calls the disintegrating factory "our old ruin". This shows they had done this excursion ordinarily. The plant had a place with neither scratch nor Marge. It was their ruin since it had developed on them. Hemingway says that Marge wanted to angle with Nick. This was a bond that had created between the to of them. These two have clearly had a profound relationship.      The peruser can likewise deduce what will occur. Scratch's activities show that they are going to separate. During the whole pontoon ride Nick doesn't utter a word yet short answers to Marge.

Columbia Approves New SIPA Dual Degree In Brazil COLUMBIA UNIVERSITY - SIPA Admissions Blog

Columbia Approves New SIPA Dual Degree In Brazil COLUMBIA UNIVERSITY - SIPA Admissions Blog Columbias University Senate has approved SIPAs establishment of a dual degree in São Paulo, Brazil with the Fundação Getulio Vargas Escola de Administração de Empresas de São Paulo (FGV). Pending approval from the state of New York, SIPA and FGV plan to enroll the first class in the fall of 2010. SIPA and FGV have designed a unified two-year curriculum, drawing on each school’s strengths, cultures and traditions. During their first year of study, students will complete the core curriculum in public policy in New York or São Paulo, developing analytical skills in economics, statistics, and political systems and gaining an overview of public and nonprofit management. Students will then move to the partner school for a second year of study during which they can choose from a wide array of public policy and business fields to develop a specialization, and graduate with a degree from both institutions. SIPA already offers dual degrees in partnership with Sciences Po Paris, the London School of Economics and Political Science, Lee Kuan Yew School of Public Policy at the National University of Singapore, and Hertie School of Governance in Berlin. Additionally, SIPA is in the process of developing new exchange programs in Moscow, Cairo, and Mexico City, and a program with INSEAD, one of the world’s leading and largest graduate business schools, with campuses in France, Singapore and Abu Dhabi. These partnerships will complement SIPA’s existing exchange programs with Centro de Investigación y Docencia Económicas (CIDE) in Mexico City, the University of Tokyo Graduate School of Public Policy, and the School of Finance at Renmin University in China. The exchange programs allow students to transfer credits toward their degree at SIPA. Since 2006, SIPA has participated in the Global Public Policy Network (GPPN), a partnership between Columbia University, Sciences Po Paris, the London School of Economics and Political Science, and the Lee Kuan Yew School of Public Policy at the National University of Singapore. The mission of the GPPN is to address the most pressing public policy challenges of the 21st century. It aims to have policy impact, be influential in public policy education and training, and to be innovative in teaching and research through dual degree programs, student and faculty exchanges, collaborative research and publications, and more.

How To Make Kastle-Meyer Solution

The Kastle-Meyer test is a simple, reliable and inexpensive test to detect blood. Here is how to prepare the Kastle-Meyer solution used for the forensic test. Kastle-Meyer Solution Materials 0.1 g phenolphthalein powder25% w/v sodium hydroxide solution (aqueous)0.1 g mossy zincdistilled water70% ethanol Procedure In a test tube, dissolve 0.1 g phenolphthalein in 10.0 ml of 25% sodium hydroxide solution.Add 0.1 g mossy zinc to the tube. The solution should be bright pink.Add a boiling chip and gently boil the solution until it changes color to become colorless or pale yellow. Add water, as necessary, to maintain the volume during boiling.Allow the solution to cool. Decant the liquid and dilute it to 100 ml with 70 ethanol. This is the Kastle-Meyer solution.Store the solution in a tightly-capped blue or brown bottle.

The Change of Baseball Over the Years Essay - 4039 Words

From the sandlot to stadiums seating over fifty thousand people, the game of baseball has provided people of all ages with a common foundation; a sport we can all call our national pastime. Though its concept sounds simple, a game using a ball and a bat, millions of people all over the world have sought involvement in it by either playing at some level, or just sitting back and watching a game. With professional baseball attracting more and more fans each season, no one knows what limits this sport can reach. For the time being though, it has been a real home run. Like any other sport, baseball developed over an extended period of time spanning way back to the 1600’s. The first evidence of the sport was a game called rounders,†¦show more content†¦A man by the name of Alexander Cartwright, a sportsman from New York started the first organized baseball club, the Knickerbocker Base Ball Club of New York (30). Along with establishing the first baseball club, he added a set of written rules, which are extremely parallel to the ones of today (30). Some of these rules, stated in 1845, include, the distance between all the bases being ninety feet, and having nine players on each side. No longer would players be plugging runners, but now they would be tagging them with the ball. The rule of forcing a player out at a base was also introduced in 1854. Finally, other rules changed over time such as the length of the game change to nine innings and the distance from the pitchers found to home plate now being sixty feet. Another major landmark in the history of baseball, the invention of the newspaper box score, occurred in 1845 as well. With all these new advances, the game naturally began to spread across the country (32). Not only did the famous Civil War (1861-1865) spread our nation into the north and south, but on a positive note, it also spread the sport of baseball all over the country. As an example, the union soldiers would play the game as a form of recreation as the rest of the union troops and even confederate prisoners would watch (47). Something similar to a domino effect started as the prisoners and soldiers came home fromShow MoreRelatedHistory of Baseball1338 Words   |  6 Pagesto three. Baseball today has many changes from 1952, such as team names. Todays World Series consist of the St. Louis Cardinals and Boston Red Sox, in which the Boston Red Sox defeated the St. Louis Cardinals four games to two. Baseball is Americas past time, some of the greatest players played in the past of baseball. What is Baseball? Baseball is a sport that is played between two teams and nine players on each team, baseball is a bat and ball game that last for nine innings. Baseball is playedRead MoreBaseball : The Origin Of Baseball Essay1336 Words   |  6 PagesThe Origin Of Baseball With upwards of ten million people participating in the sport of baseball in the United States alone, it is apparent that baseball is one of the world’s most popular sports. Throughout the years, the sport of baseball has evolved from a humble game played on empty sandlots to â€Å"America’s national pastime.† The game has come a long way, but how did this game come to be? Everything has its humble beginnings, and baseball is no different. Games that resemble baseball have been aroundRead MoreBaseball Is America s Sport1505 Words   |  7 PagesBaseball has been around for centuries and is a sport that has been one of america’s most popular sport for a very long time. Filled with excitement,happiness and fans that absolutely love the game baseball can Arguably be america’s sport. Created in 1846 and having many changes that have bettered and the game more exciting. Some will say that it is boring and lost its cool but baseball is far from losing its cool. The beauty of baseball is that it has no clock just straight nine straight inningsRead MoreBaseball And Its Impact On Baseball1736 Words   |  7 PagesBaseball was introduced to America in the 1800s. As the game of baseball started to become popular, many people became interested in the game. Baseball fanatics fell in love with the sport, but not everyone could play. Racial discrimination found its way to baseball when the game was first discovered and created many controversies that prevented many colored players from playing the game because of their skin color. This could be part of the reason why in today’s culture, you do not see many blackRead MoreEssay on Impact of Baseball on American Culture and Society1618 Words   |  7 Pages Baseball has for a long time been a staple in the American sporting culture as baseball and Am erica have grown up together. Exploring the different ages and stages of American society, reveals how baseball has served as both a public reflection of, and vehicle for, the evolution of American culture and society. Many American ways including our landscapes, traditionalRead MoreEssay on Steroids in Baseball1012 Words   |  5 Pages â€Å"Steroids in Baseball† nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp; nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;Today in the United States, millions and millions of kids, teens, and adults watch and play in the sport of baseball. It is probably the number one sport looked upon and what is happening to it is a bit discouraging. Players have started â€Å"cheating† by using steroids to help them play stronger and better. They are in league where you have to be the best at what you do to play, and if your using drugs to cheat yourRead MoreThe Movie The Boys Of Summer 1440 Words   |  6 Pagesabout the all American sport baseball, but in reality it is a movie about relationships and it uses baseball to tell the story. The movie does shows many different relationships some are unique to the 1960’s and some are timeless, some of the relationships shown include: a class struggle between the rich and the poor, changes in race relationships and, improvements in race relationships, it also demonstrates how poor kids can achieve succe ss through baseball, changes in family structure, comingRead MoreEssay on Integration in Major League Baseball1039 Words   |  5 PagesWhen asked to describe a baseball the first word generally voiced is white, and before April 15, 1947 that is exactly what the game of baseball was, white. â€Å"There is no law against Negroes playing with white teams, or whites with colored clubs, but neither has invited the other for the obvious reason they prefer to draw their talent from their own ranks† (‘42’). These were the feelings of people living in 1947, that blacks and whites were not meant to play baseball together. Then, why decades earlierRead MoreFinal Project Proposal : Joshua Abraham Kopin1076 Words   |  5 PagesFinal Project Proposal Joshua Abraham Kopin In the late 19th century, as the rules of the game of baseball were being developed out of a variety of regional forms of bat and ball games, which in turn were developed out of the immigrant games of cricket and rounders. As the game coalesced through the end of the century, one of its pillars, the counting stats like strikes, balls, hits, runs, runs batted in, and were in turn being developed, largely by a English born, reform minded journalist namedRead MoreEssay on A Brief History of America’s National Pastime1708 Words   |  7 Pageseven players in the Chicago dugout, began taunting and heckling the batter. What happened next went down in baseball history as one of the most famous and controversial at-bats. The batter was none other than Babe Ruth, who, with two strikes and two balls, stepped out of the batters box and gestured toward the outfield as if to show where he was going to hit the ball. Ruth hits the next pitch over the wall in center field for a home run. Ma ny people believe that Ruth was simply gesturing at the pitcher

Succubus Revealed Chapter 6 Free Essays

string(23) " with rain and clouds\." Fortunately, no dictionaries or bats ever came into play, and Seth and I spent a pleasant night together. He sent me off that weekend in a good mood, and during the time I was with him, it was easy to believe this might all end well. Once I began the tedious parts of travel by myself, the doubts began to set in. We will write a custom essay sample on Succubus Revealed Chapter 6 or any similar topic only for you Order Now The ride to the airport, security, safety instructions . . . all little things in and of themselves, but each one began to weigh on me. I just couldn’t see Seth moving to Las Vegas – not anytime soon, at least. That left long-distance dating, and it was hard to imagine us going through a trip like this every . . . hell, I didn’t know how often. And that was another problem. What exactly did long-distance dating mean? Visits every week? Every month? Too-frequent visits meant the irritation of travel. Too few put us in danger of out-of-sight, out-of-mind complications. So, naturally, I was all worked up by the time my flight landed in Las Vegas. And strangely, I took comfort remembering Jerome’s words, of all things. If Seth and I had survived the huge problem of immortal?Cmortal dating, then really, what was a two-hour plane ride compared to that? We could make this work. We had to. â€Å"There she is!† A familiar, booming voice startled me as I was waiting at the baggage claim. I spun around and found myself looking up at the tanned good looks of Luis, Archdemon of Las Vegas. I let him wrap me up in a giant hug, something he managed with remarkable delicacy, considering what a bear of a man he was. â€Å"What are you doing here?† I asked, once those muscled arms had released me. Realization hit me. â€Å"You’re not here to pick me up, are you? I mean, don’t you have people who have people to do that kind of thing?† Luis grinned at me, his dark eyes sparkling. â€Å"Sure, but I couldn’t trust an underling to pick up my favorite succubus.† â€Å"Oh, stop,† I groaned. My bag came around the carousel, but when I went for it, Luis brushed me aside and easily lifted it up. As I followed him toward the parking garage, I couldn’t even begin to picture Jerome doing something like this. â€Å"You scoff, but most of the succubi around here bore me to tears. Hell, most of our staff here does,† Luis said. â€Å"You get a full range of personalities and talent levels with so many. The exceptional and the unexceptional. You, my dear, are exceptional.† â€Å"You don’t have to try to sweet-talk me into the job,† I said, smiling in spite of myself. â€Å"Not like I have a choice.† â€Å"True,† he agreed. â€Å"But I want you to be happy here. I want everyone who works for me carrying stories about how awesome I am. It ups my cred at the annual company conference.† â€Å"Jerome’s trying to up his by having us beat Nanette’s employees in bowling.† Luis laughed at that and led us out to a gleaming black Jaguar double-parked in the handicapped zone. Once he’d stowed my suitcase, he even went so far as to open the door for me. Before starting the car, he leaned over conspiratorially and whispered loudly, â€Å"If you want to shape-shift into something else, now’s your chance while we’re still inside.† â€Å"Shape-shift into what?† He shrugged. â€Å"You’re in Vegas. Live the lifestyle. No need to resign yourself to jeans and sensible shoes. Give yourself a cocktail dress. Sequins. A corset. I mean, look at me.† Luis gestured grandly at himself, just in case it was possible to miss the gorgeous and undoubtedly custom Italian suit he was wearing. â€Å"It’s barely noon,† I pointed out. â€Å"Doesn’t matter. I dress like this the instant I get out of bed.† With a self-conscious look around the garage outside, I quickly shape-shifted out of my travel clothes and into a one-shoulder minidress that wrapped around me like a Grecian gown. The fabric glittered silvery when it caught the light just right. My long, light brown hair turned equally glam. Luis nodded in approval. â€Å"Now you’re ready for the Bellagio.† â€Å"The Bellagio?† I asked, impressed. â€Å"I figured I’d be shoved off to some crappy motel ten miles from the Strip.† I amped up my makeup for good measure. â€Å"Well,† he said, backing the car out, â€Å"that is actually what the normal budget allows for when it comes to new employee visits. I was able to pull some extra funds – and dip into my own pockets – to upgrade you a bit.† â€Å"You didn’t have to do that,† I exclaimed. â€Å"I could have paid for my own room somewhere.† Yet, even as I said it, I knew that if accruing funds over the centuries was easy for someone like me, it was a million times easier for someone with Luis’s lifespan. The car and his suit were probably bought with pocket change from his income. He waved off my concerns. â€Å"It’s nothing. Besides, my car would probably get stolen if I parked it at one of the ‘budget-friendly’ places.† The car’s readout told me the outside temperature wasn’t that far off from Seattle’s in December. The difference was in the light. â€Å"Oh my God,† I said, squinting out the window. â€Å"I haven’t seen the sun in two months.† Luis chuckled. â€Å"Ah, just you wait until high summer, when the temps hit triple digits. It cooks most people alive, but for someone like you, you’ll love it. Hot and dry. Doesn’t get below eighty at night.† I loved Seattle. Even without Seth in the picture, I could have been happy there for many, many years. But, I had to admit, my one weakness with the region was the weather. Relative to the extremes of the East Coast, Seattle was a very mild climate to live in. That meant it didn’t get very anything. Not very cold, and certainly not very warm. The hot weather we got in midsummer was fleeting, and then the mildness of the winter was marred with rain and clouds. You read "Succubus Revealed Chapter 6" in category "Essay examples" By February, I was usually ready to start consuming entire bottles of vitamin D. I’d grown up on the beaches of the Mediterranean and still missed them. â€Å"This is great,† I said. â€Å"I wish I were visiting while it was warmer.† â€Å"Oh, you don’t have long to wait,† he told me. â€Å"Another month like this, and then the temperature will start going up. You can break out your bikini by March.† I thought that might be kind of an exaggeration but returned his grin nonetheless. We were approaching the Strip and all its glory. The buildings became more flamboyant and expensive looking. Sidewalks and streets grew more crowded. Billboards advertised every form of entertainment imaginable. It was like an adult-oriented theme park. â€Å"You seem pretty happy here,† I said. â€Å"Yup,† Luis agreed. â€Å"I lucked out. Not only is the place great, but I command one of the largest groups of Hellish servants in the world. When I saw your name come up, I thought, ‘I’ve got to get her in on this.’ â€Å" Something in his words put a crack in the rose-colored glasses I was viewing the wondrous sights around me through. â€Å"When my name came up?† â€Å"Sure. We get e-mails all the time about transfers, job openings, whatever. When I saw you were being moved out of Seattle, I tossed my hat into the ring.† I turned toward the side window so he couldn’t see my face. â€Å"How long ago was that?† â€Å"Oh, I don’t know. A while ago.† He chuckled. â€Å"You know how long these things take.† â€Å"Yeah,† I said, trying to keep my voice light. â€Å"I do.† It was exactly what Roman and I had talked about: the painstakingly long time Hell took with personnel decisions. Roman swore the circumstances surrounding this transfer were suspicious and implied a rush. Yet Luis was behaving as though everything had gone along according to perfect procedure. Was it possible there really had just been some oversight with Jerome’s notification about my transfer? It was also possible, I knew, that Luis was lying. I didn’t want to believe that of him, but I knew that no matter how friendly and likable he seemed, he was still a demon at the end of the day. I couldn’t allow myself to be lulled into complete trust by his charm. We had a favorite saying among my friends: How can you tell if a demon is lying? His lips are moving. â€Å"I was surprised to be transferred at all,† I said. â€Å"I’ve been happy in Seattle. Jerome said . . . well, he said it was because I was a slacker employee. That I was being moved for bad behavior.† Luis snorted and pulled into the driveway for the Bellagio. â€Å"He did, huh? Well, don’t beat yourself up, honey. If you want a reason for them pulling you out, my guess is that it has something to do with Jerome getting himself summoned and letting nephilim and dream creatures run rampant with his succubus.† I had nothing to say to that, but fortunately, we reached the hotel’s entrance and yielded the car to a valet driver who seemed familiar with Luis and his generous tips. Entering the Bellagio, I was soon awash in stimuli – color and sound and life. A lot of the people moving in and out were dressed as glamorously as us, but plenty of average â€Å"everyday† people walked through as well. It was a mixing of all social classes and cultures, all here and united in search of enjoyment. Equally overwhelming was the intense wave of human emotion. I didn’t have any magic power to let me â€Å"see† emotion, exactly, but I was very good at reading faces and expressions. It was that same knack that had let me pick out the desperate and hopeless at the mall. This was the same, except magnified a hundred times. People swung the full gamut of hope and excitement. Some were joyous and eager, either high off of triumph or ready to risk it all for triumph to come. Others had clearly attempted it – and failed. Their faces were full of despair, disbelief at how they’d ended up in this situation and sorrow over their inability to fix things. Just as obvious were the good marks. Some guys were so blatantly trolling for a hookup that I could have propositioned them then and there. Others were ideal succubus bait, guys who had come here saying they were going to keep themselves in line – but who could easily step off the edge of temptation with the right finessing. Even with my heart tied up with Seth, I couldn’t help but take in and thrive under all the admiring looks I got. I was suddenly glad I’d taken Luis up on his shape-shifting suggestion. â€Å"So easy,† I murmured, staring around as we waited for an elevator. â€Å"They’re just there like . . .† â€Å"Cattle?† suggested Luis. I made a face. â€Å"Not quite the word I wanted.† â€Å"Not much difference.† An elevator opened, and a cute twenty-something guy gestured me forward. I smiled winningly at him, loving the effect I had. After he exited on his floor, Luis winked at me and leaned over to whisper in my ear. â€Å"Easy to get used to, huh?† Our floor came next, and Luis nodded to our right when the door opened. A few steps down the hall, I realized something. â€Å"I have a suite?† I asked, startled. â€Å"That’s a little much, even to make a good impression.† â€Å"Ah, well, that’s what I didn’t get a chance to tell you yet. You have a suite because it has more room. You have to share it with another new employee.† I nearly came screeching to a halt. Here it was, the catch in what was otherwise a sugar-coated fantasy. I envisioned myself rooming with another succubus and immediately knew I’d be seeking other accommodations. Succubi forced into close proximity put reality show drama to shame. â€Å"I don’t want to impose on anyone’s privacy,† I said delicately, wondering how I could get out of this. Luis reached a door and took out a keycard. â€Å"Nah, the place is huge. Two bedrooms and a living room and kitchen that go on forever.† He unlocked the door and opened it. â€Å"You could avoid each other all weekend if you wanted to. But somehow, I don’t think you will.† I was about to question that, but suddenly, there was no need. We’d stepped into a living room as expansive as Luis had promised, all sleek lines and modern furniture, colored in shades of gold and green with dark wood trim. A long window offered a sweeping view of the city, and a man stood in front of it, admiring the panorama. I couldn’t see his face, and something told me that even if I could, I probably wouldn’t recognize it. That didn’t matter. I knew him by his immortal signature, the unique sensory markers that distinguished him from everyone else. I could scarcely believe it, even as he turned around and smiled at me. â€Å"Bastien?† I exclaimed. How to cite Succubus Revealed Chapter 6, Essay examples

Organization and Behavior Satisfaction with Life Scale

Question: Discuss about the Organization and Behaviorfor Satisfaction with Life Scale. Answer: A person's well-being can be considered as the ultimate goal of life. The connection between money and happiness has always been a popular topic of debate where measuring happiness is a complicated process. It also becomes essential to study the effects of hourly wage on an individuals happiness. DeVoe and Pfeffer have conducted four different studies to examine the effects of hourly wages on ones happiness where the studies mostly revealed a strong relationship between income and happiness for those individuals who are paid by hours. All the four studies showed consistent results that how a person is paid depends on the subjective welfare evaluation. The results are discussed in this response article post critical evaluation of DeVoe and Pfeffers study regarding the effects of hourly wages on ones money-happiness connection. Utility models show that money leads to happiness. The authors aim is to study the effects of hourly wages on ones happiness. Multiple data from the United Kingdom and the United States has been evaluated which shows evidence that an individual emphasizes more on his income when it is paid on an hourly basis while measuring happiness. Being paid by hours enables one to become well aware of the worth of an hours work. The arguments by the authors are that an individuals happiness is affected when there is exposure to practices of organizations like being paid on an hourly basis which in turn facilitates proper economic evaluation of the usage of time. The authors present their ideas and prove their hypothesis through extensive research where cross-sectional data from the United States has been used. Panel data from the United Kingdom has been studied and in another study, the importance of an individual's hourly wage has been manipulated experimentally. The studies thus showed similar results. Therefore the arguments are evaluated and supported through pieces of evidence from the studies conducted. In Study 1, the survey data consisting of an individual's happiness, income and hourly status from a sample of national representative of U.S has been studied and Study 2 was conducted on a larger sample from U.S. In Study 3, the panel data from the survey of British employees was considered to observe effects of the changes in income on welfare which was represented as a function of hourly pay and in Study 4, the salience of hourly wages was manipulated. Adequacy of the evidence to represent the arguments is enough and strong. The Gene ral Health Questionnaire (GHQ) is used as a measure of subjective and mental well-being. Also, the Satisfaction with Life Scale (SWLS) has been used as a measure. For the first study, survey data from residents of 48 states has been used. Further study was conducted by using dependent and independent variables where in the case of the dependent variable, subjective well-being of the respondents was evaluated using a particular scale. Dependent variables like income were studied using 23 levels of income. Study 2 consisted of a larger data from National Survey of Families and Households and happiness of the respondents were measured as a single item using a scale of measure. Study 3 used panel data of British employees where the sample consisted of 52996 observations of 12431 respondents. Unlike incorporating demographic variables like the first three studies, study 4 dealt with fixed effects and changes in how people are paid. The studies are logical as relevant statistical calculat ions are used in every study with proper quantitative analysis of the responses recorded. Regression analysis is used to prove the assumptions. To avoid multicollinearity problems among the different variables, in both study 1 and 2, mean centered income has been squared and then included in the regression equations. Both the studies are consistent with the hypothesis. In study 3 the demographic variables are all statistically controlled and the well-being measure was regarding GHQ. For all the studies, correlation, standard deviation and means have been calculated to incorporate in the regression analysis model. A positive relation was predicted between income and responses to GHQ. As predicted, there was a strong relation between income and well-being for the worker paid by hours. In the case of welfare as a measure of SWLS, the results were similar to GHQ. Therefore the evidence proved the hypothesis and according to the study, there is a positive relation between income and happ iness when the payment is on hourly basis. The results are agreeable in many cases but there are other factors as well that determine ones happiness. Hourly wages put a price on an individuals time. Moreover, when one is paid by hours, the individuals tend to think of time as a measure of money. This affects ones leisure, which too is essential for welfare. In turn, the tendency of the person to enjoy the other pleasures of life gets highly reduced due to hourly payments. Higher wages generally foster well-beingand the well-being increases manifold when the wages are hourly but evaluation of the happiness-income becomes critical as it is also important to analyze the levels of wages at which an employee agrees to trade off his leisure. Though the study of DeVoe and Pfeffer proved the hypothesis, but there lies a reason to also disagree with the results as the findings are only from the data observed in U.S and U.K. Therefore the results cannot be taken as a conclusion about the hypothesis as the study completely ignores the e valuation of other counterparts of the world. Hourly wages are prevalent in U.S and in some parts of Europe and hence the results are in favor of the predictions. Whereas in other parts of the world, many places do not have the practice of hourly wages and hence the results may vary and a similar conclusion cannot be drawn. The positive relation of hourly wages with happiness may not always be true when hourly wages affect the leisure of an individual and happiness thus gets affected. The results of the paper are also disagreeable when it is with respect to different countries and people other than the sample of people surveyed. The preference of work-leisure balance also varies among people across different countries. It is also not necessary that money and happiness will always possess a relation. The implications of authors arguments are such that hourly wage is an essential organizational practice of payment and affects ones happiness. From the results, it can be concluded that hourly wages and evaluation of happiness have a positive relation and the hourly paid workers gives more importance to their incomes while measuring their happiness. According to the other, economic authors, the percentage of people to support the statement is high but this is not the only factor that provides the happiness that the individual needs. The authors have mentioned that there are many who instead of earning a good amount of money fails to lead a happy life11 . The article can be improved by including and studying data from other countries as well other than U.S and U.K, which will give results that are more accurate. The study can also include non economic factors as those factors too play a role in determining happiness. Hourly wages affect ones happiness but other factors too, like family, health and leisure-activities are important to measure happiness. The research concludes that the organizational practices of hourly wages is an important factor in determining ones happiness and also has a positive relation with welfare. There has been extensive studies conducted on survey data from U.S and U.K and those data are statistically evaluated to prove the hypothesis. Though the studies revealed consistent results but it did not study any data from any other country. Measuring happiness is critical and involves numerous factors that need to be evaluated. The study, although conducts extensive logical research using survey data consisting of various demographic variables and proves that hourly wage is essential in evaluating happiness, it overlooks many important variables. From the paper, it can be learnt that hourly wages is an important criteria for happiness and workers paid on hourly basis rely more on their incomes than workers who receive non-hourly payment, especially for United States and parts of Europe. The happiness index of the other Asian countries also shows clear evidence that the individuals mental satisfaction is related to the money he earns. The other countries like Egypt, china, Tunisia have voted for the statement that the happiness of the , is surely based on the earning as the security of the income provides them with some kind of confidence by which they are able to deal with the difficult situations of life. On the other part of the coin lie, the non-economic factors which is also responsible for the happiness. The security of the hourly wage is obviously the base but spending time with close ones or travelling with them provides the same sort of happiness. Man is a social being and the very sense of getting close to the society where he belongs is definitely a factor of happiness for him. For the well-being of a man, the mental satisfaction is surely needed but if his health fails to support him, the whole order falls apart. In order to be happy one needs to be healthy enough to work properly. A good health and a sound mind make a man spontaneous. Whereas, doing the things that sooths the mind can be considered as another factor responsible to bring happiness into ones life. References "Stanford Researcher: Money Makes People Happy, Especially If They're Paid By The Hour". Stanford University. N.p., 2016. Web. 29 Sept. 2016. "The Advantages Disadvantages Of Hourly Wages". Smallbusiness.chron.com. N.p., 2016. Web. 29 Sept. 2016. Bryson, Alex, Erling Barth, and Harald Dale-Olsen. "Do higher wages come at a price?."Journal of economic psychology33.1 (2012): 251-263. Connors, Scott, et al. "Time, Money, and Happiness: Does Putting a Price on Time Affect Our Ability to Smell the Roses?."Journal of Experimental Social Psychology(2016). DeVoe, Sanford E., and Jeffrey Pfeffer. "When is happiness about how much you earn? The effect of hourly payment on the moneyhappiness connection."Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin(2009). DeVoe, Sanford E., and Julian House. "Time, money, and happiness: How does putting a price on time affect our ability to smell the roses?."Journal of Experimental Social Psychology48.2 (2012): 466-474. Dykman, April. "Hourly Vs. Salary: Which Is Better?". Get Rich Slowly - Personal Finance That Makes Cents. N.p., 2016. Web. 29 Sept. 2016. Gleibs, Ilka H., et al. "Unpacking the hedonic paradox: A dynamic analysis of the relationships between financial capital, social capital and life satisfaction."British Journal of Social Psychology52.1 (2013): 25-43. Krause, Annabelle. "Dont worry, be happy? Happiness and reemployment."Journal of Economic Behavior Organization96 (2013): 1-20. Kushlev, Kostadin, Elizabeth W. Dunn, and Richard E. Lucas. "Higher income is associated with less daily sadness but not more daily happiness."Social Psychological and Personality Science6.5 (2015): 483-489.

The Happy Man Essay Example

The Happy Man Paper  «Life is full of compensations » Somerset Maugham William Somerset Maugham is one of the best known English writers of the 20th century. William Somerset Maugham (1874-1966), a well-known English novelist, short-story writer, playwright and essayist, was the son of a British diplomat. He was born in 1874 in Paris and educated at Kings School in Canterbury, studied painting in Paris, went to Heidelberg University in Germany and studied to be a doctor at St. Thomas Hospital in England.Although Somerset Maugham did not denounce the contemporary social order, he was critical of the morals, the narrow-mindedness and hypocrisy of bourgeois society. Maugham became internationally celebrated; his plays were performed all over the world. Now independent and well able to enjoy life Maugham began to travel. He traveled a lot and spent long periods in the United States, the South Seas and China. But his favourite country was Spain and a great deal of his works devoted to it. For instance  «The Happy man » that was written in 1927.Somerset Maughams style of writing is clear and precise. He does not impose his views on the reader. He puts a question and leaves it to the reader to answer it. When criticizing something he sounds rather amused than otherwise. I’d like to analyze the text, which is entitled â€Å"The happy man†. The author is William Somerset Maugham, an English writer. He wrote novels, short stories and plays and most of them had a great commercial success. He is known to have explored many professions including doctor, spy, and playwright.There are many biographical details in his stories and characters, for example in the text â€Å"The happy man† the narrator and the second main character are the doctors; and the narrator is, at the same time, a writer, because he wrote the book about Spain, and the story itself in some way concerned with the process of travelling. The genre of the story is narration. The theme of the novel is t he act of giving advice. At the beginning of the story the author reflected on the subject of life, destiny and the problem of giving advices.He stated that it was dangerous thing to order the life of others. Anyway, the author knew that once he had advised well. One day a stranger visited him, his name was Stephens and he was a doctor. Because of the fact that the narrator wrote a book about Spain, Stephens wanted to figure out information about it, he planned to live there. Stephens told the narrator the story of his life; he wanted to change it and asked the narrator to give him advice. The narrator told him if he did not care of money but was content to earn to keep body and soul together then he could go.Stephens left him and the narrator forgot about that episode. Many years later the narrator was in Seville and had to see a doctor because of some indisposition. The doctor happened to be Stephens. The narrator learnt of outcome of his advice. Stephens thanked him, because he f ollowed the narrator’s advice and was satisfied with his life. The plot structure shows the actions of the characters, presenting events in chronological order. The exposition in the text is the philosophical reflection given in the first paragraph.Inciting incident is the visit of Stephens in order to talk to the narrator. The risking actions, such as development, are the monolog of Stephens about his life, the explanation why he wanted to visit Spain. Climax is the act of giving advice. The falling actions are the event when the narrator went to Seville, the need to see a doctor, because of the narrator’s indisposition, the second meeting of two main characters. The resolution is the process of getting knows the outcome of the act of giving advice, that it was a good outcome, the description of happy Stephens.The denouement is made up of Stephens’s thoughts about his life. Speaking about the main characters, there were two main characters: the narrator and Ste phens. The narrator of the story was described indirectly and Stephens – directly and indirectly. The direct description means that the author himself tells us what this or that character is like. The indirect one is when the character is revealed through actions, thoughts, speech and appearance.The narrator was a round and dynamic character, that indicates the idea that his character was complicated and exhibited numerous traits, he seemed like a real man; his dynamics was seen in the structure of the text: in the first paragraph there was stated that giving advice is a dangerous thing, but the whole story showed the positive outcome of the act of it. The narrator, first, was willing to give the advice, he was a little bit careless, but in the introduction he decided that it was a dangerous thing, he changed his views. The narrator was a doctor, but he did not practice. Instead of it he travelled and wrote a book about Spain.I can say that he preferred writing to medicine, h e was versatile, liked to try new things and feelings, and he was interested in life. Some time later he did not want to give advices, so he was not eager to take responsibility for other people’ lives; it does not mean that he was a coward; it means that he did not want them to do unchangeable mistakes in their lives. He was observant, because he managed to define each feature of Stephens’s appearance and behavior, each detail of Stephens’s consulting room. He liked to listen to other people stories of their lives, he was not indifferent.He gave a good advice to Stephens, so he was wise enough. He creates the image of the writer. The writer, who likes to travel, because he needs to find new themes for his novels, he is interested in life, that is he is not indifferent and he reflects a lot. Stephens was a dynamic character; he changed by events, by interactions with other characters. As the narrator said Stephens seemed a trifle embarrassed, so Stephens was shy . He dropped his umbrella he was clumsy and he was not confident. His quick, sharp movements were stand for his being nervous and absent – minded.His apologetic laugh and the way he talked to the narrator (â€Å"I hope you don’t mind my coming†¦Ã¢â‚¬ , â€Å"I hope you won’t think it very odd for a perfect stranger†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ) showed that he was polite. It is interesting that Stephens told the story of his life to a perfect stranger. It makes us thing that he was somewhat careless, or may be was so dissatisfied with his life, he wanted to change it, but could ask for a help only â€Å"a perfect stranger†. He used 7 sharp, short sentences in his monolog, 4 of them were negative – it proves the fact that Stephens was very unhappy, he decided that the negative things prevailed in his life.There was repetition in his speech, this repetition made the readers feel the boredom of Stephens’s life. He mentioned only facts, spoke using per sonal pronoun – it shows Stephens’s self – centrism. These monotonous sounds, expecting of better life, the feeling of boredom illustrated a person who is completely fed up, there were no emotions in his monolog about the life. But when Stephens spoke about Spain, he spoke differently: the sentences were affirmative, impersonal – it signifies that in Spain he tried to find the solution of his loneliness.Stephens compared sunshine with warmth, wine with cheerfulness, colour with interest, emotions, air with freedom – all that let us see how Stephens was despite and how he did not like his life. We should say that Stephens’s dreams were illusive, but still down to earth; they were close to the material world. A contradiction of the nature of Stephens’s dreams signifies the instability in his inner state. Stephens talked differently about his present life and life he hoped to have in Spain, this contrast stands for the suggestion about t he instability of his character.As we have mentioned Stephens was a dynamic character, his dynamics is clearly seen through the text. There were 3 stages of Stephens’s development. The first was presented before Stephens decided to visit the doctor; his life was boring and uninteresting. He worked a lot, there were no emotions in his living, and he could not stick it anymore. The second stage was observed in Stephens’s being doubt, hesitated, and at the same time courageous. He was not sure that had decided right about Spain, he was on the edge and that is why he came to the narrator.The last stage was seen when the narrator was in Seville, he met absolutely another Stephens. Stephens who was a happy man, he had an â€Å"entirely sympathetic appearance†, he smiled a lot, may be he was not a very qualified doctor (the narrator thought that one might have hesitated to let Stephens remove his appendix, but one could not have imagined a more delightful creature to d rink a glass of wine with), but he was a good companion, he became an extravert and he was in harmony with surroundings. So to sum it up, Stephens creates the image of a dreamer.A dreamer is a person, who gets an illusive idea of happiness, it is not material, it is life in harmony. Now let’s pass over to the style of the text. It is complicated and emotional. Firstly, neutral, formal and literary words prevail in the text, for example: â€Å"to surmise†, â€Å"to errand†, â€Å"to dissipate†, â€Å"trifling indisposition†, â€Å"to perceive†. They are used mostly by the narrator, and it shows that he was educated. Secondly, a few stylistic devices can be found in the text, such as epithets, simile, metaphor, irony, parallel constructions which are used in order to attract more attention to the story.The epithet, represented by adjective, characterizes an object, some of the properties or features of the object and displays the writerâ€℠¢s emotional attitude. For example: â€Å"a perfect stranger†, â€Å"a bullet – shaped head†, â€Å"a bacchanalian smile†. The epithets create more colourful description of Stephens’s appearance. Simile characterizes one object by bringing it into contact with another object belonging to an entirely different class of things: â€Å"as though he knew a good bottle of wine†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ; â€Å"he had somewhat the look of a young Silenus†. These examples stand for the fact that Stephens has changed in Spain, he became cheerful and merry.Metaphor based on the principle of identification of two objects, it is transference of some quality from one object to another: â€Å"the look of a young Silenus†. Moreover, the author uses metaphors in the narrator’s speech: â€Å"a prisoner in the solitary tower†, â€Å"the dark cloak of Destiny†. Parallel constructions presented in Stephens’s speech: â€Å"I was broughtâ € ¦I’ve never been†¦I’ve never done†¦I’ve been†¦I have†¦Ã¢â‚¬  they create a monotonous tone of Stephens’s speech; â€Å"there’s sunshine there, and there’s good wine, and there’s colour, and there’s air you can breathe† – they create atmosphere of Spain, it is some kind of wonderful place.Irony produces a humorous effect. It is based on contrary concepts, on the simultaneous realization of two logical meanings, but they stand in opposition to each other. For instance, the narrator uses irony in Stephens’s behavior during their first meeting: â€Å"He seemed a trifle embarrassed. I offered him a cigarette and he had some difficulty in lighting it without letting go off his hat. When he had a satisfactory achieved this feat I asked him if I should not put it on a chair for him.He quickly did this and while doing it dropped his umbrella†; then when the narrator met him in Sevill e: â€Å"You might have hesitated to let him remove you appendix, but you could not have imagined a more delightful creature to drink a glass of wine with†. The stylistic devices make the text more expressive and vivid. Additionally, the third element of the style is syntax. It is complicated. The author through the narrator’s speech reflected on the subject of life, destiny and giving advices and because the paragraph was a philosophical one he used composite sentences, they show complicatedness of the author’s thoughts.We found simple sentences in Stephens’s monolog they have simple, uninteresting ideas of his life; 4 of sentences are negative, they mean denying of the facts. The main idea of the story can be expressed like this: giving advice is dangerous, because people are different, they have their own individuality, if your advice is a bad one, it may cause disharmony between Destiny and Life, and the result of this conflict is unhappiness, if the advice is good, then everything is visa versa (a good advice creates harmony, Destiny finds the correct realization in Life and this composition brings happiness).All concepts, such as Destiny, Life, Harmony, Happiness, Unhappiness, Giving advice, are interconnected and interrelated. Stephens came to the narrator for a piece of advice, he was unhappy, he decided to change his life. The narrator did not care much of the dilemma if his advice would be a good one or not. He did not think that it might change Stephens’s life, and that could cause disharmony between Destiny and Life.Fortunately, the story has a happy end, because the narrator’s advice was good, Stephens changed Life, but Destiny found right realization in it, it brought Harmony, which caused Stephens become happy. In my opinion, it is an interesting story, as all the stories of Maugham are. The author’s style is exact, economical and expressive. Maugham knew how to keep readers’ attention. It was interesting to read how one man decided to change all his life, give up a good safe job for his dream. While reading I was glad that Stephens went to Seville and became happy there.Moreover, this story made me think that one who gives advice should know the person and the situation very well before doing it, because everyone needs an individual care. If your advice won’t be a success then a bad outcome will be yours mistake, so you should feel responsibility of the fact that you may change one’s life. Precisely, I enjoyed reading this story. Realistic portrayal of life, keen character observation, and interesting plots coupled with beautiful, expressive language, simple and lucid style, place Somerset Maugham on a level with the greatest English writers of the 20th century

Quotes from Much Ado About Nothing

Quotes from Much Ado About Nothing Much Ado About Nothing is a play of comic capers with a touch of romance. The romantic interludes between the main characters of the play, Claudio and Hero, are offset by the love-hate relationship between the other pair, Beatrice and Benedick. Claudio and Hero struggle for their union, while Beatrice and Benedick get into intellectual brawls. Heres a collection of quick-witted quotes from one of Shakespeares best-loved comedies. Act One Scene One He is of a very melancholy disposition.He wears his faith but as the fashion of his hat.Shall I never see a bachelor of threescore again?Benedick the married man.A very valiant trencher-man. Act Two Scene One He that hath a beard is more than a youth, and he that hath no beard is less than a man.Silence is the perfectest herald of joy: I were but little happy, if I could say how much.What, my dear Lady Disdain! Are you yet living?I have a good eye, uncle; I can see a church by day-light.As merry as the day is long. Scene Three Lie ten nights awake, carving the fashion of a new doublet. He was wont to speak plain and to the purpose.Sigh no more, ladies, sigh no more,Men were deceivers ever,One foot in sea and one on shore,To one thing constant never.Sits the wind in that corner? Act Three Scene Two Every one can master a grief but he that has it.From the crown of his head to the sole of his foot, he is all mirth. Scene Three I thank God I am as honest as any man living that is an old man and no honester than I.To be a well-favoured man is the gift of fortune; but to write and read comes by nature.If they make you not then the better answer, you may say they are not the men you took them for.You shall comprehend all vagrom men.The most peaceable way for you if you do take a thief, is to let him show himself what he is and steal out of your company.Shall quips and sentences and these paper bullets of the brain awe a man from the career of his humour? No, the world must be peopled. When I said I would die a bachelor, I did not think I should live till I were married.I know that Deformed.Are you good men and true? Scene Five A good old man, sir; he will be talking: as they say, When the age is in the wit is out.If I were as tedious as a king, I could find it in my heart to bestow it all of your worship. Act Four Scene One O, what authority and show of truth /Â  Can cunning sin cover itself withal!O, what men dare do! what men may do! what men daily do, not knowing what they do! Scene Two A fellow that hath had losses, and one that hath two gowns and every thing handsome about him.Flat burglary as ever was committed.Condemned into everlasting redemption.O, that he were here to write me down an ass!Masters, it is proved already that you are little better than false knaves; and it will go near to be thought so shortly.The eftest way. Act Five Scene One Men can counsel and speak comfort to that grief / Which they themselves not feel.Charm ache with air, and agony with words.He hath indeed better bettered expectation.For there was never yet philosopher /Â  That could endure the toothache patiently.Patch grief with proverbs. Scene Two I was not born under a rhyming planet. Scene Three Done to death by slanderous tongues.

Philosophy - gun control article Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Philosophy - gun control article - Essay Example However, in November 1993, legislators passed the Brady bill. The Brady bill mandated federal checks on the background of purchasers of firearms in the United States. However, has this bill been successfully instituted? Has it had tangible results? This paper aims to show how this bill, while noble in intention, has failed to address the real nature and reason for criminal activity, via the eyes of the author. The notion about linkage of violence and guns, however, immaculately documented is mistaken. Firearms and their possession do not cause a surge in crime rates. The resulting legislation of laws controlling possession of firearms causes the surge in crime rates. Violence and crime rates are currently below the monstrous rates, witnessed in the 70’s. An increase in population of 15-24 year old males, who are noted as being the at-risk population, will inevitably lead to worsening crime rates. There is certainly no evidence that this fresh criminal generation will find it more difficult to obtain firearms than their elder statesmen will. As the violence grows, call for harsher laws will escalate. However, each piece of legislation will only precede renewed frustration over seemingly un-deterred criminals (Polsby 1). The argument that gun control works is ignorant, to say the least. Markets that deal with the illicit trade of firearms will always find a way to adapt to the intense scrutiny, regulation and bureaucracy hurled at them by the legitimate world. It is also worth noting that the increased control of firearm supply infringes on privacy interests and freedom, which are the foundation of American life. Moreover, the war on prostitution, pornography and drugs should at least educate us on the methodology of illicit markets and expenses the public has to foot in a doomed effort to control them (Polsby 1). The Brady bill is an amalgam of two types of firearm control laws in the US; those that seek to the regulate

Psoriasis in adults Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Psoriasis in adults - Research Paper Example Although researchers have not yet established the actual cause of the condition, most medical experts believe that there is a genetic connection to the disease. This condition has adverse effects on the patient both physical and psychological. Even though there is no direct link of the condition with psychological problems, it is evidence that knowledge of having the disease leads to stress, anxiety, anger and sometimes depression. In general, psoriasis reduces the quality of life of an adult due to the humiliation and embarrassment that he receives as well as the constant medication and irritation. The signs and symptoms of the disease vary according to the part of the body affected. Despite these effects, it is possible to contain and manage the adverse symptoms of this condition though a number of ways including oral and injectible medications, various therapies and home-based measures. This paper will examine the occurrence of psoriasis in adults. It will examine the major causes and risk factors of the condition, the adverse effects of the condition to adults as well as symptoms and diagnosis criteria. It will also address the various forms of treatments of the condition in adults and discuss some side effects of drugs used. The paper will conclude that although psoriasis is a condition that affects the well-being of an infected adult in a great way, it is possible to manage and better still control the condition. Introduction Psoriasis is a familiar noncontiguous skin disorder that causes speedy reproduction of skin cell, which results to red, dehydrated patches of coagulated skin. Medical experts assert that these dehydrated crumbles and skin scales result from speedy increase of skin cells. Generally, the areas majorly affected by this condition include the skin of knees, scalp and elbows. However, psoriasis occurs in stages, with severe and a more mild psoriasis. The individuals affected by the mild psoriasis often do not realize that they may be havin g a skin disease. On the other hand, the individuals who experience severe psoriasis have most part of their body covered with red dry patches on the skin (Alai, 2011). Usually, psoriasis is a lasting condition, even though most victims have phases of diminution when the psoriasis symptoms vanish for some time. This condition approximately occurs equally in both sexes, but is commonly prevalent in adults and young adults (Carson, 2011). Psoriasis can have a major negative effect on the emotional, psychosocial and physical health of affected people, especially the adult patients. Although the condition occurs through out the world, its prevalence fluctuates among diverse races and ethnic groups. This is because of exposure to different environmental conditions and lifestyles that accelerates the condition. Although psoriasis has a strong genetic causative factor, health professionals assert that various environmental conditions lead to the onset of the disease for instance various in fections (Langley et al, 2011). It is also evident that there are some people, whose conditions of psoriasis accelerates due to some weather changes for instance during the cold seasons. On the other hand, there are people who cite enhancements on their health conditions during warmer seasons or after exposing themselves to sunlight for some time (Alai, 2011). Sholl (2008) states that in general, Psoriasis occurs if five major different forms or types. Most people have

Health and Safety of Disposable Chopsticks | Experiment

Health and Safety of Disposable Chopsticks | Experiment Abstract I heard some stories about disposable chopsticks being dangerous and poisonous. And I wanted to find out myself whether it was true or not. I found out that certain types of disposable chopsticks have greater risks to be acidic and non-disposable chopsticks are much safer. My results were important because I could help raise the awareness of the risk of using disposable chopsticks. This awareness not only saves us from cancer or damage to body, but also helps make the world a greener place to live. Background Research This experiment is about Are disposable chopsticks safe to use? My hypothesis is that some disposable chopsticks may not be processed appropriately to be safe to use. I choose this project because many restaurants use disposable chopsticks and to test whether disposable chopsticks are safe or non-disposable chopsticks are safe. I really want to prove if my hypothesis is correct about various of chopsticks. For the safety of many people in the world who use disposable chopsticks, it might be better to use non-disposable chopsticks or the other way around depending on the results. The normal pH level water is 6.5 to 8.5 and below 6.5 the water is acidic, soft, and corrosive. The pH water level 8.5 and above is hard, but it can cause aesthetic problems. Chopsticks can be made of bamboo, wood, plastic, and stainless steel. Sulfur dioxide and hydrogen peroxide are used to bleach the wooden disposable chopsticks. Many people use disposable chopsticks all over the world for lunch, dinner, and sometimes breakfast. I hope my experiment will help raise the awareness of using the right kind of the chopsticks and improve the safety for many. Non-disposable chopsticks may be safer than disposable chopsticks, but it will depend on research and test data to prove. I dont want to get sick or get illness by using disposable chopsticks. So there is an importance of this experiment. Experiment Details Experiment Question What is the effect of production processes on disposable chopsticks? How does the improperly processed chopsticks affect our safety? What types of chopsticks are better to use? Experiment Hypothesis Are disposable chopsticks safe to use? My hypothesis is that some disposable chopsticks may not be processed appropriately to be safe to use. Ive heard that disposable chopsticks are put into bleach and this was brought to my concern. Experiment Variables Independent Variable The different types of chopsticks, different temperatures of water (hot and cold) and different soaking durations will be changing. Dependent Variable I am measuring the pH level of the water after soaking the chopsticks for certain duration for time. Controlled Variables The chopsticks will stay in the same glasses and the amount of water will stay the same as well. Materials and Procedures Materials Used pH Meter Disposable chopsticks- 4 kinds Stainless steel chopsticks Plastic chopsticks Hot water boiler Tap water Bottle drinking water Glasses Timer Computer Camera Scotch tape Procedures STEP 1: First, characterize the pH level of the tap water and bottle drinking water. Record the readings on paper. STEP2: Next, put hot water into glasses. Then soak four kinds of disposable chopsticks and two kinds of non-disposable chopsticks (stainless steel and plastic) into each designated cups for 30 minutes. STEP 3: Use the pH meter to measure the pH level of each designated water in the glasses. If below pH6.5, it could be acidic, soft and corrosive. STEP 4: Then repeat the above steps with additional designated period of times. STEP 5: Repeat the same procedures by using cold water in the glasses and record the results. STEP 6: In the end, we will compare the results of each design of experiments to find out whether the pH level for disposable chopsticks are different from the non-disposable chopsticks with various soaking times and water temperature. We can then conclude if it is safe to use disposable chopsticks or not. Also this will confirm if my hypothesis was correct. Challenges and Technical Issues The challenges I had during my experiment are as follows. 1. The electrode tip of the pH meter need to be in the water about 3 cm deep. Dipping too deep or too shallow will affect the readings somewhat. However, with some practices and getting familiar with the depth of the tip, it is not difficult to adjust. 2. The pH meter will take some time to stabilize the reading. Need to make sure the reading does not fluctuate for a few seconds. Then take the reading. The tip is to practice several measurements and take readings patiently. Experiment Results A. Baseline Comparison of Different Waters: 1. House tap water is on the hard side, pH level 8.30. 2. The difference of pH level between home tap water and drinking water is 1.21. 3. My experiment is using home tap water. So if using nominal pH level water or lower pH level water, the resulted pH levels would be proportionally lower. Water Type (pH) Home Tap Water 8.30 Bottled Drinking Water 7.09 Difference -1.21 B. Tested with Hot Water: 1. This experiment is more closely simulating the actual usage of the chopsticks (hot meals hot soup). 2. Both stainless steel and plastic chopsticks are very stable when soaked in hot water for an hour. So they are safe to use. 3. Plastic chopsticks are performing the best, with least changes in pH level. 4. All four kinds of the disposable chopsticks had pH levels lower by 1.53 to 2.15. Bamboo type 3 (PB)) of the chopsticks is the worst, pH level lower by 2.15. So these chopsticks could pose safety risks by using them with hot meals/ soup. 5. If the baseline water were not pH 8.30, instead of pH 7.09, then the pH levels of all four kinds of the chopsticks would be lowered to the even more dangerous acidic levels. So disposable chopsticks are relatively unsafe to use. 6. Bamboo 3 (PB) had the worst yellowish discoloration of water. Bamboo 1 (FL) and Bamoo 2 (GL) also had some yellowish discoloration. MATERIAL TYPE BASELINE 30 Min. Changes from 1 Hour Changes from (pH) (pH) Baseline (pH) (pH) Baseline (pH) Stainless Steel 8.30 8.95 0.65 8.89 0.59 Plastic 8.30 8.92 0.62 8.64 0.34 Bamboo 1 (FL) 8.30 6.45 -1.85 6.77 -1.53 Bamboo 2 (GL) 8.30 6.78 -1.52 6.47 -1.83 Wood 8.30 7.35 -0.95 6.77 -1.53 Bamboo 3 (PB) 8.30 6.09 -2.21 6.15 -2.15 C. Tested with Cold Water: Both plastic and stainless steel chopsticks were very stable within one hour, while all other 4 kinds of disposable chopsticks were starting to turn acidic in an hour. When chopsticks were soaked in water longer than 1 hr, they all turned more acidic, with disposable chopsticks worse. Soaking in water longer than 1 day, both 2 days and 4 days, the pH levels for most of the chopsticks were stabilized. Most of the changes happened within the first day. Bamboo 3 (PB) had the worst yellowish discoloration of water. Bamboo 1 (FL) and Bamboo 2 (GL) also had some yellowish discoloration. Data Analysis and Discussion It was predicted and confirmed that the disposable chopsticks would have lower pH levels, which could be acidic, than the plastic and stainless steel chopsticks after soaking in both hot and tap waters. One possible explanation for low pH readings is that some disposable chopsticks used sulfur dioxide and hydro-peroxide to bleach the chopsticks without appropriate cleaning during the production processes. In the hot water experiment, the results were more prominent, after 30 minutes to an hour we saw dramatic pH level changes on the disposable chopsticks. At the same time, both plastic and stainless steel chopsticks, the pH levels were very stable after one hour. The two worst Ph level changes were the third bamboo disposable chopsticks (-2.21 pH level, with the plastic bag wrapping) and the first bamboo disposable chopsticks (-1.85 pH level, with the Fu-Lu characters). The worst pH level reduction occurred at 30 minutes in hot water, not 1 hour. For cold water experiment, the pH level changes were at a slower rate than the hot water experiment as expected. Still the worst pH level changes with cold water are still the third bamboo chopsticks (-0.84 pH at 30 minutes -2.17 pH at 1 day) and the first bamboo disposable chopsticks (-0.71 pH -2.25 pH at 1 day). The pH level changes were stabilized after 1 day. Plastic and stainless steel chopsticks were also more stable on pH readings. The worst kind of the disposable bamboo chopsticks- type 3 (PB) also showed the worst kind of discoloration (yellowish) in both hot and cold water experiment. I further noticed both bamboo type 3 (PB) and bamboo type 1 (FL), the worst two disposable chopsticks have less density in the structure. This could confirm that if they are not cleaned well in the production processes, they could contain most unwanted chemicals (bad stuff) and easier to dissolved into hot (especially) and cold waters. My original question was that Are disposable chopsticks safe to use? My hypothesis was taken in the right direction because after figuring out both the observations of the hot and cold water experiments everything started to fit quite well. This is supporting my hypothesis that disposable chopsticks are not as safe. Moreover, if the baseline water were not pH 8.30 (tap water), instead of pH 7.09 (drinking water, difference of Ph1.21), then the pH levels of all four kinds of the disposable chopsticks after soaking in hot water would be even lower and in the more dangerous acidic levels. I will certainly recommend using either the plastic chopsticks or stainless steel chopsticks for hot meals and hot soups and avoiding using disposable chopsticks. Conclusion From my hot and cold waters experiment with both reusable and disposable chopsticks, I can conclude that its better to use the plastic or stainless steel chopsticks (reusable). The disposable chopsticks are relatively unsafe to use. We should avoid using both Type 3 (PB) and Type 1 (FL) bamboo chopsticks. Also refraining from using the disposable chopsticks will also save the bamboos, trees, forest and earth. Its not only healthy, but also environmental friendly. Recommendations This project was done with limited time and resources. The sample size of chopsticks and time interval may not be big enough, the calibration of the pH meter was not done with the sample of pH 7.01 buffer (lack of test sample sheet) and use home tap water (pH 8.30). I will recommend to future project leader to use bigger samples size of chopsticks, take more readings in shorter time interval, calibrate the pH meter with the right sample buffer and use bottle drinking water (pH 7.09, in the middle of the safe drinking water pH range) to perform the experiment. Work Cited PH Levels.Freedrinkingwater.com. 29 Sept. 2010 . Scary Disposable chopsticks. eats-time.blogspot.com. 29 Sept. 2010 . Experiment Notes: In a packet.

Capital Punishmennt Essay

Merriam-Webster online dictionary (2011) defines capital punishment as punishment by death for a crime. There are many factors that go into the process of capital punishment and it must start with a crime followed by an arrest, trial, conviction, appeals process and ultimately the execution of the individual. Through the many stages of the process there numerous individuals who are affected, including the criminal and their family, the victim and their family, jury, judge, witnesses and administrators or physicians who perform the execution. In this paper I will look at the ethical issues of capital punishment using the following ethical theories: utilitarianism, Kantian ethics, and the rights and justice theory. In each of these theories I will examine how advocates and opponents to capital punishment can use the theories to validate their position on capital punishment. I will conclude my paper with my position on capital punishment using one of the theories I listed above. According to Boatright (2012) the principle of utilitarianism is the basic premise of pleasure over pain. Utilitarianism considers the impact an event and outcome will have on everyone and they use the fifty-percent theory as the tipping point in decision making. If the pleasure of an event has more benefit than the pain then a decision can be made. Utilitarianism only considers the benefits and consequences when taking into account whether the death penalty is ethical and disregards the natural rights or self-worth of a person when deciding if the death penalty is ethical (Bedau, 1980). The pleasure over pain principle in capital punishment must consider the impact it will have on everyone involved and according to Boatright (2012), â€Å"Utilitarianism requires that we calculate utility not only for ourselves but for all person affected by an action.† When deciding whether or not capital punishment is just an individual must look at the benefits and consequences of everyone involved and determine if capital punishment is ethical. I do not think that one person can make this decision as it would require them to think on behalf of individuals or groups who they may have a conflicting interest with. An example of this would be a sibling of a murder victim deciding if the offender should receive the death penalty. Their feelings on the issue would differ from the offender’s family and create a conflict of interest when using the fifty-one percent theory. I will now examine the utilitarian principle of consequentialism and how it relates to the ethical issue of capital punishment. A consequentialist argument uses deterrence as a benefit of how the death penalty can promote their stance (Douglas and Wilkinson, 2008) and executing a murderer would serve as a possible consequence for the killing of another human being. This may serve as a deterrent to future killings but that is not always the case. Out of 238 paroled offenders who committed murder, less than 1% went back to prison for committing another murder (White paper on, 2012). This statistic shows that the death penalty does not serve as a deterrent to future killings and thus the theory of capital punishment serving as a deterrent holds no merit. Examining the ethical issue of capital punishment must also look at a cost-benefit analysis that uses a monetary value rather than the classic utilitarianism principle of pleasure over pain (Boatright, 2012). According to Boatright (2012) an application of a cost-benefit analysis needs to place a value on human life. The issue with using a cost-benefit analysis of capital punishment is that not everyone may value human life the same. A person who commits a murder may not value human life the same as someone who does not kill. The family of a victim may find that the life of the killer has no value to them and in contrast the family of a murderer may value the life of the offender as more valuable to them. The cost of capital punishment also needs to be examined when using a cost-benefit analysis. The total cost per execution was $216 million more than life imprisonment (White paper on, 2012). In addition to the cost to execute an individual in a capital offense case there is the cost of trials, the process of appeals and attorney fees that need to be examined. In California the cost of a death penalty prosecution is up to twenty times more expensive than the cost of a life in prison without parole case (Williams, 2011). Also according to Williams (2012), â€Å"the least expensive death penalty case cost $1.1 million more than the most expensive life without parole case.† The cost of the death penalty is more expensive than a life in prison without parole sentence and twenty offenders could be given a life in prison sentence for the amount that it takes to execute one offender (Williams, 2011). I have come to the conclusion that the utilitarianism principle does not justify capital punishment. The pleasure over pain principle requires us to consider the impact on everyone and it does not require us to ignore our interest but we must place our interest no higher and no lower than anyone else (Boatright 2012). When I looked at the cost-benefit analysis I could not justify the use of capital punishment due to the massive costs that a capital punishment case incurs as opposed to the cost of a life imprisonment case. I will now look at the ethical issues of capital punishment using Kantian Ethics. According to Boatright (2012) the first principle of Kant is universalizability which is to, â€Å"act only on rules that you would be willing to have everyone follow.† The second principle of Kant is respect for persons which indicates one should respect other people and ourselves as human beings (Boatright, 2012). Kant was in favor of capital punishment for the crime of murder and based his view of the death penalty on the theory of retributivism (Potter, 2002). When an individual commits the crime of killing another individual they violate Kant’s first principle and do not follow the rules that everyone is following; namely the right to life which I will cover later in this paper. The killing of an individual also violates the second principle of respect for persons. According to Kania (1999), â€Å"each of us agree not to kill others in exchange for the security that others will not kill us or those dear to us.† Kant subscribes to the term â€Å"isu taloinis† which means the wrong doing is punished by a similar punishment and also believes that the death penalty is the only right way to punish a murderer because the punishment should be the end goal (White paper on, 2012). Kantian Ethics also involves autonomy which means self and law (Boatright, 2012). Autonomy relates to Kant’s principle of respect for persons and a society living autonomously involves creating their own rules and acting freely. This principle is seen in the laws that society has developed to prevent the killing of an innocent person. In the United States it is illegal to commit the act of murder which is different from the killing of a person. The killing of a person may occur during self-defense when an individual fears that their life is in danger. According to Potter (2002) Kant says in a general statement that all murderers should be executed and death is the punishment that must be carried out on the wrongdoer. Violating the principle of universalizability, respect for persons and autonomy all justify the use of capital punishment in Kant’s view. The third ethical theory I will look at is Rights and Justice. I will first examine the rights theory and how it relates to the ethical issue of capital punishment. Rights are part of many of the ethical issues in society and the term rights can be used in many different ways (Boatright, 2012). According to Bedau (2012), a human being has the right to life simply by being born and it is a violation of rights to murder another person. The violation of the right to life does not mean that we are authorized to violate another’s right to life. The judges and juries take another person’s life in their hands during a capital punishment case and by sentencing an offender to execution violates their right to life. Bedau (2012) states, â€Å"Even if a person has committed murder and has therewith intentionally violated another’s right to life, the criminal still has his or her own right to life.† The legal rights are in force to protect us from having our right of life taken away, and if our right is violated we do not have the rights to take someone else’s right to life. In contrast to the paragraph above John Locke argued that a person’s right to life can be forfeited if a person violates the right of life of another person. Locke goes onto say that the execution of a murderer does not violate their right to life (Bedau, 2012). Based on this argument Locke would be an advocate of the death penalty. Since the offender forfeited their right to life they no longer have their own right of life. Locke further states that a person forfeits their right to life when they commit a criminal act that deserves death (Bedau, 2012). The ethical issue of capital punishment and the justice theory coincide using the retributive justice theory. Justice involves the righting of wrongs and retributive justice involves the punishment of wrongdoers (Boatright, 2012). The justice retribution theory indicates that a criminal must and deserve to be punished and that the punishment must fit the crime (Bedau, 2012). The punishment of the crime may be different in each state or country as not all states and countries have the right to sentence an offender to the death penalty. The issue with the theory that the punishment must fit the crime is that each person may have a different viewpoint on how to punish the same crime. For the act of murder one could argue for the death penalty while another person may argue that death penalty is unethical based on their ethics. This leads to some confusion in the retribution theory as each person may have their own idea of proper punishment and retribution. According to Roberts-Cady (2010), â€Å"A retributivist would argue for the death penalty based on the claim that death is what a murderer deserves.† The retribution theory also values that a punishment should be exactly the same as the crime committed which is known as the eye for an eye principle (Roberts-Cady, 2010). Using the eye for an eye principle, a murderer would be subject to the same act they committed and subject to death themselves. It does not involve a judge or jury sentencing them to the death penalty and I interpret it as an automatic sentence for the murderer. The eye for an eye principle supports that murderers ought to be put to death (Bedau, 2012). An advocate of the death penalty using the retribution theory would find that capital punishment is just in cases involving murder. The issue with the above reasoning is that it is sometimes not possible to apply the eye for an eye principle in every situation. It would not be possible to punish an individual or group of individuals who commit mass murder that has more victims than offenders. An example of this would be the execution of the hijackers who flew planes into the World Trade Center killing thousands of individuals. The number of victims of this act far outweighs the number of hijackers that were aboard the planes. According to Bedau (2012) the execution of a mass murderer is morally inadequate as retribution cannot be served upon the offender given their inhumane and heinous acts. Another counter-argument for the eye for an eye principle is the equivalent to the crime is not always morally acceptable (Roberts-Cady, 2010). For example if a person were to be sexually assaulted, the retribution to the offender would entail being sexually assaulted in return. This would force the victim to decide if their offender should be subject to the same offense they endured and the victim may not be willing to make that decision and prefer to leave the punishment up to the justice system. The legal system in the United States takes this decision off of the victim and places it on a judge and jury. Although the victim will have to testify and recount the crime they would not deciding the fate of the offender. According to Robert-Cady (2010), â€Å"For certain heinous crimes, either the punishment would be roughly equivalent and immoral, or it would not be roughly equivalent.† The justice and rights theory seeks justice for those whose rights are violated but it is not applicable in all situations. If we are looking at capital punishment strictly from a rights perspective the right to life is violated when a person is murdered but what right do we have to take someone else’s right to life? Retribution and justice involve the righting of a wrong and uses the eye for an eye principle which is not always applicable to the crime committed. Using the rights and justice theory I came to the position that capital punishment is not ethical as I do not believe that I have the ethical grounds to take someone else’s right to life. The retribution theory is not clear enough for as I believe life in prison without parole would be just as effective as the death penalty. In this paper I have examined how utilitarian, Kantian ethics, and the rights and justice theory apply to the issue of capital punishment. I presented both an advocate and opponent view to the death penalty and whether capital punishment is ethically just according to each theory. Prior to researching this topic I considered myself as an advocate of capital punishment as I felt it was the most effective way to serve as a deterrent to murder and also a just punishment. I also consider myself a subscriber to the utilitarianism theory and choose to look at the big picture of an issue and how it affects everyone. I also look at situations using the cost-benefit analysis which allows me to make an informed decision. After researching the ethical issue of capital punishment and applying the information to my beliefs I realized that my stance on the death penalty conflicted with my utilitarianism view. In the utilitarianism section of the paper I came to the conclusion that capital punishment was not ethical. I also presented the cost-benefit analysis of capital punishment and the cost of an individual is much more expensive than sentencing a person to life in prison without parole. I have come to the conclusion that based on my utilitarianism view that capital punishment is not ethical. References (2012). White paper on ethical issues concerning capital punishment. Ferney-Voltaire, France: World Medical Journal. Bedau, H. A. (1980). Capital punishment. Matters of life and death, 1033-66. Boatright, J. R. (2012). Ethics and the conduct of business. (7 ed.). Upper Saddle River, New Jersey: Pearson Education Inc. Capital Punishment. 2011. In Merriam-Webster.com. Retrieved May 8, 2011, from http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/capitalpunishment House, R. (2009). The death penalty and the Principle of Goodness. International Journal Of Human Rights, 13(5), 680-688. Kania, R. E. (1999). The Ethics of the Death Penalty. Justice Professional, 12(2), 145. Potter, N. T. (2002). Kant and capital punishment today. The Journal of Value Inquiry, 36(2), 267-282. Roberts†Cady, S. (2010). Against Retributive Justifications of the Death Penalty. Journal of Social Philosophy, 41(2), 185-193. Wilkinson, D. J., & Douglas, T. (2008). Consequentialism and the death penalty. The American Journal of Bioethics, 8(10), 56-58. Williams, C. J. (2011, June 20). Death Penalty Cost California $184 Million a Year, Study Says. Los Angeles Times. Retrieved from http://articles.latimes.com

Veet Promotion Campaign

To better understand the market and shape the key marketing problem, we conducted primary research to find out the general trends of hair removal among women in Singapore. From this we found a significant result of women in Singapore favouring razors over cream due to the main reason convenience. As such, the report seeks to explore different promotional methods that would allow us to help these heavy razor users to overcome their misconceptions of cream being inconvenient and subsequently to trial Veet ® hair removal cream.The promotional campaign incorporates intergrated marketing communications and features efforts including sampling, couponing, talks, and point-of-purchase displays, featured articles on blogs, mobile advertising, trade promotions and tie-in promotions. All in all, we hope that the campaign will successfully expose more consumers to Veet ® hair removal cream samples, convert them into Veet ® users and ultimately increase sales for Veet ® .Our overall ROMI sees a negative figure due to costs incurred from our sampling program but CLV is strong at 107 percent. Section Two: Situation Analysis 2A. Depilatory Industry The depilatories industry in Singapore is a steadily growing one, experiencing a 4% growth in 2009 to reach almost $4 million in total sales. Razors and blades for women are the fastest growing depilatories followed by hair removal creams. Depilatories (or hair removal products that remove hair to the level of the skin) include razors, shavers, creams, bleaches and pre-shaves.Currently, international manufacturers Procter & Gamble (S) Pte Ltd and Reckitt Benckiser (S) Pte Ltd have found dominance in the Singapore depilatories market with their popular brands Gillette and Veet ®  ®. However, with the increasing awareness of epilators (or hair removal products that remove the entire hair from the root), many women in Singapore are also turning to these methods, including the use of wax strips, epilators and lasers. 2B. Com pany & Brand History Company background Veet ® was first launched under the brand name, Neet, in Canada in 1901.It was later bought by Reckitt Benckiser Pte Ltd in 1960 and has since been sold in nearly 200 countries worldwide. Reckitt Benckiser is a British global consumer goods company, making and marketing household, personal and healthcare products. The company’s strategy is to have a highly-focused portfolio concentrating on its 17 Powerbrands which contributes to 62% of its net revenues in 2008. Veet ®  ®, one of its 17 most profitable and recognised brands, has two major products, namely hair removal creams and wax strips. Target marketVeet ®  ®Ã¢â‚¬â„¢s current target market consists of young female professionals and students aged 16 – 35 who are cost-conscious and seek convenience. Some may even be apprehensive of pain. This includes both first-timers who are seeking but have not yet tried hair removal products and also existing users of alternative hair removal products such as shavers and epilators. 2C. Marketing Mix Adopted by Veet ®  ® Veet ® has used the following marketing mix to develop a strong brand recognition, as well as competing for leadership position in the depilatory industry. Product Veet ® promises smooth, glowing skin in just 3 minutes.The hair removal cream/gel works by using an active ingredient to dissolve the hair and the specially designed Perfect Touch spatula enables quick removal of the cream for a smooth and long-lasting finish. The wax strips removes the hair shaft from the root by the mechanical action of removing the strip from the skin, comes in a 20s box. Place Veet ® is mass-marketed to Health & Beauty stores (Watsons, Guardian and Unity) and supermarket chains (NTUC Fairprice, Cold Storage, Shop N Save, Carrefour and Giant). It is also available online via the supermarket chain’s online shopping service. PricePrices of Veet ® ranges from $8. 45 for a 100gram hair remover cre am to $17. 20 for a 150ml hair remover gel. The Veet  ® wax strips (20s) are priced at $12. 90. Promotion In 2007 and 2008, Veet ® organized the Miss Veet ® Standout Challenge which selected 10 finalists to compete for the crowning through their catwalk and Q&A skills where notable personalities including local bloggers were guest judges. Brand Characteristics * Brand image: The product with its use of soothing colours and graphics of nature communicates an image of natural well being which appeals to the brand’s core customers – women. Brand personality: Veet ® relates to the personality of elegant, sensual, graceful and beauty. * Brand equity: The 3 green leaves on the Veet ® logo and the use of floral graphics on the product elude a natural feel to users. 2D. Internal Analysis for Veet ®  ® Veet ® Strengths Strong brand presence in Singapore market Procter & Gamble (S) Pte Ltd that manufacture Gillette series of razor brands and Reckitt Benckiser (S) Pte Ltd that manufacture Veet ® are the dominance brands in the market. Consumers trusted the brands as they provided relative good hair removing results.Strong brand equity allows Veet ® s to use sales promotion to build competition barriers that deter consumers from using private labels. Veet ® removing cream has smoother result as compared to other razors and shavers Clearly, we know the numerous side effects of using razors and shavers. Firstly, cuts happen when blade movement is perpendicular to the blade’s cutting axis. Following on, shaving of hair has been know for causing Hirsutism, a condition in which shaving certain parts of the body hair will result in hair stubbles and accelerates process of hair growth, causing a greater density of hair.Razors and shavers manufacturers through the years have been innovating new razor design to mitigate the problems but are unable to eradicate the shaving aftermath. By using Veet ® remover cream, consumers avoid the ris k of razor cuts, while growth hairs become finer. Veet ® remover cream contains moisturizing content that allows users to remove and moisture their skin at the same time. Veet ® dominates market share for hair removal cream Referring to appendix 456, the depilatories environment in Singapore is mainly dominated by razors and shavers brand (portions highlighted in orange).Following 53. 3% of the market share dominated by razors and shavers brands, Veet ® covers the next prominent portion of the market share (33. 6%). This proves that the next preferred depilatories after shaving is removal cream and/or waxing strips; and this market is primarily dominated by Veet ® . In terms of intratype competition, Veet ® faces weak competition from its rivalry brands, namely Nair removal cream, Marzena wax strip and other smaller brands that are currently sold in supermarkets and personal hygiene stores.Veet ® ’s high market shares also correspond to the net worth of the brand viewed by retailers. This implies that Veet ® distribution network, more specifically retailers, are more willing to cooperate with Veet ® in its upcoming sale promotion – since Veet ® ’s promotion will increase stock turnovers for the retailers. Veet ® Weaknesses Potential target market low expectation about Veet ® performance As highlighted in pointer three (3), consumers are more incline to use razors and shavers as they place focus on convenience when choosing depilatories.Consumers associate Veet ® with inconvenience as they have to apply the removal cream on intended areas and wait for six (6) minutes before washing the chemical away. This lengthy process as compared to shaving tends to discourage consumers from buying them. However, Veet ® ’s previous advertising campaign attempted to change consumer’s belief about Veet ® being an inconvenient product. The advertising campaign also aimed to change consumer’s focus on convenie nce to place heavier importance on the results of hair removing. Wide deviation in user’s review about Veet ® performanceRaise of social media importance will affect potential consumer’s expectation towards a brand and ultimately, affecting the consumer’s decision to purchase the brand. As a consumer engages in information search, it demonstrates her engagement with the brand in the HEM model. A search through users’ reviews in social media review centre explain that there is a huge different between the users’ rating. Some users rated Veet ® one (1) star as the brand did not remove their body hair effectively and it causes red chemical burns.Fortunately the bad ratings are neutralized as other users rate Veet ® five (5) stars as they love the product for being simple and easy to use. More importantly they love the brand because it produces better hair removing result than razors and shavers while not leaving chemical irritation on their skin . The two vast differences in users rating thus imply that potential customers still have to rely on other forms of peripheral cues to evaluate their product choices. Sales promotion will help to attract a portion of this market where consumers eventually have to purchase and experience hair removal results by themselves. E. External Analysis for Veet ® Consumer Evaluation Primary Research Method A primary research was conducted through an online questionnaire (Appendix 1) with one hundred women aging between 16 year and 35 year old. Through the survey, it will help us to gain understanding about target market’s depilatory products usage behavior and motivation. Veet ® Opportunity Veet  ® has relatively high brand awareness (Appendix 2A) According to survey results, Veet  ® products have high brand awareness. Consumers are able to recognize the product category that Veet ® belongs.With the high brand awareness, this shows that advertising efforts are showing positiv e results in the market. Market Share between Razor Market and Veet  ® Market – On Par (Appendix 2B, 2C, 2D, 2E) Majority of Veet ® target market have already performed some form of hair removal procedure as they are image conscious and are concern about how others view them if they appear to be untidy. Currently 18% of our respondents have not engaged in hair removal procedure and a significant portion of this group would either consider or may not do hair removal in the next three to six months period.This highlights that our promotional campaign should not direct at this group of consumers, as sale promotion is unlikely to change a consumer’s behavior. More advertising instead of sale promotion should be engaged to encourage this group of consumer to start removing hair through Veet  ® products. With the remaining 82% of the market that has started removing body hair, we learnt that that is an equal market share between Razor products and hair removal cream pr oducts. As covered previously, Veet  ® is the leader in the hair removal cream industry; therefore we can assume that Veet ® has a market share of 34%.More than half of our respondents who are using razors mainly are very likely to try Veet ® given that there is an attractive sale promotion campaign. With a higher perceive value, there is high potential to convert a portion of the razor users instead of non-hair removal users, to start using / trying Veet ® products. Veet ® Threats Key Performance Factor: Convenience (Appendix 2F) Consumers today are leading increasingly hectic lifestyles and these cause them to regard convenience as the key factor when choosing depilatory products.Consequently razors and blades continued to remain popular among consumers commanding a combine market share of around 40 percent in 2009 with Gillette Venus leading the pack taking 75 percent of the razor market. In addition, as consumers become more sophisticated, they are turning to products that promised a cleaner shave and even opted for products with enhanced functions like moisturizing effect or catered to sensitive skin. This explains why consumers are trading up other depilatories for Veet ® air removal cream which sees it clinching the top position with nearly 34 percent of the depilatory market share. However, there is still a large part of consumers who are still unaware of the convenience in using Veet ® which is well reflected in our primary research. We saw that 70 percent of the surveyed razor users have never use Veet ® before and hence have no knowledge about its convenience. Strong Price Competition from other Razor Brands The relatively low price of the Bic Soleil Shimmer Clic compared to other brands saw the fastest growth in 2009.We attributed this trend to the slowing down of the economy last year. The treat is not high since the sophistication and affluence of consumers would invest in a more functional depilatory with the recovery of the econ omy. Summarized SWOT Analysis Below is a SWOT diagram summarizing Veet ®  ®Ã¢â‚¬â„¢s internal and external analysis: Section Three: Targeting, Positioning, Objectives Setting, Budgeting 3A. Key Marketing Problem From our situation analysis, it is clear that while there is high awareness level for Veet ® hair removal cream.Being a market leader in the depilatories, Veet ® has generated adequate awareness for its hair removing products. However, Veet ® must compete mainly with razor product brands such as Gillette. The main threat that is stopping Veet ®Ã¢â‚¬â„¢s growth is that target market do not perceive Veet ® as convenience as razors. There is a need for our campaign to address this misconception about Veet ®  ®, and to further strengthen Veet ® positioning with the product benefit that razor product cannot achieve- benefit such bladeless solution to stubble free skin.Overall, the management team of Veet ® wants to find out: â€Å"What should be changed abo ut the current marketing efforts to increase the sales of Veet ® hair removal cream? † In our research to help Veet ® in this management decision issue, we will be looking into the following marketing research problem: â€Å"How can Veet ® promote trial of its hair removal cream in the hair removing market through a promotional campaign? † 3B. Segmentation of the Women’s Depilatories market in Singapore This research segments the women’s depilatories market in Singapore using a behavioural segmentation base.We have divided the market into several segments according to the frequency of using razors and the frequency of using Veet ® hair removal cream, as seen in the perceptual map in Appendix 3. The different segments as follows: 1) The Bladers: Heavy razor users who have never used Veet ® hair removal cream before. 2) The Biased: Relatively heavy razor users who use Veet ® only on special occasions such as parties. 3) The Balancers/Switchers: U sers of both razors and Veet ® . These consumers have no loyalty to either method and switch easily. ) The Professionals: High frequency Veet ® users who use razors occasionally to ensure better hair removal effect 5) The Cavemen: Non-users of hair removal products. These are hairy ‘monsters’ who have never shaved and also includes those who are ‘hairless’ and do not need to shave. 6) The Un-conventional: Non-users of razors and Veet ® but who are users of other hair removal methods such as waxing and lasers. 7) The No Bleeders: Our Veet ® lovers. 3C. Our Target Market Out of the different segments, we have decided to select ‘The Bladers’ as our target market for Veet ® hair removal cream.This is primarily due to the relative ease of conversions of ‘The Bladers’ into users of Veet ® hair removal cream, as compared to ‘The Cavemen’ who are non-users of hair removal products. ‘The Bladers’ alread y have a desire to remove hair, whereas â€Å"The Cavemen† do not even see a need to remove hair. This was based on our survey results, where we found out that there is quite a low percentage, 18%, of non-users who are willing to use hair removal products in the first place (Appendix 2D).However, there is a much more optimistic percentage, 58%, of current users of shavers who are likely or very likely to try hair removal creams since they already have a desire to remove body hair (Appendix 2E). Moreover, the market size for current users of razors is 32. 8% (Appendix 2C) while that of current non-users of hair removal products is only 18% (Appendix 2B). With a larger market, there is a greater potential to tap upon in the current market for users of razors. In addition, we did a targeting specified by personification for ‘The Bladers’.This person would represent the typical non-Veet ® user whom we hope to convert into a Veet ® user. Her profile is seen below: * Name: Rachel Quek * Age: 27 * Occupation: Marketing Executive * Hobby: Loves shopping, online shopping, going to the beach, clubbing, social networking * Personality: Fun, image-conscious, highly regards others’ opinions on her appearance, has a fear for pain * Shopping behavior for personal product: Loves trying products before deciding to buy * Current hair removal method: Uses Gillette Venus because of convenience * Monthly expenses on personal grooming: $300 Time spent on personal grooming daily: 2 hours on weekdays, 3 hours on weekends * Dressing habits: Frequently in dresses and above-knee skirts 3D. Positioning Statement Our positioning statement is: For women in Singapore who currently shave, who now seek a painless, smoother & longer-lasting hair removing effect; Veet ® is a bladeless hair removal product that moisturizes your skin – a total beauty experience that no woman should miss out on. 3E. Objective SettingThere is already high awareness of Veet ® hair removal cream in the women’s depilatories market in Singapore, with 95% of the market being aware of it (Appendix 2A). Yet, only 27. 9% of the market uses it (Appendix 2C). Through the implementation of our one-year campaign, we hope to be able to see an increase in this market share as we move ‘The Bladers’ up the Hierarchy of Marketing Communication Effects (HEM) from the ‘Awareness’ to ‘Trial’ stage (Appendix 4). However, ‘The Bladers’ currently either have no expectations or have a bad expectation of Veet ® where they think that it is inconvenient to use (Appendix 2F).For those who have no expectations, we want to push them to try our product through samples, creating expectations of convenience and pushing them to eventually buy since they have the assurance from trying the product first hand. For those who have poor expectations of the product being inconvenient, we need to give them samples to change this att itude and also further push them to buy our product. We have thus established our campaign objectives below: 1) To see 40 percent of ‘The Bladers’ being exposed to our campaign 2)To have 40 percent coupon redemption among all who received our sample and coupon 3) To achieve 20 percent of our target segment purchasing our tie-in promotion 4) To see 30 percent of the ‘The Bladers’ joining our contest 5) To collect a consumer database from our couponing system for Veet ® ’s future promotional campaigns 3F. Budgeting We will be employing the objective and task method of budgeting so that we can clearly specific what role each component of the marcom campaign satisfy for the brand and set the budget accordingly.The overall campaign budget will comprise fully of promotional dollars. The rationale of this decision links back to our objective of moving ‘The Bladers’ up the HEM from awareness to trial and therefore a heavy focus on promotion wi ll be a better plan. We did not specifically allocated portion of the budget for media and public relation (PR) spending since they consist of only a small percentage of the budget. They are still present in the campaign but act as a support for the main promotional campaign. Therefore they will be accounted under the under the promotion budget instead.That explains a 100 percent allocation of the S$400,000 budget to promotion. Promotion Budget Breakdown We strongly believe that it is crucial for our target segment to test our product before they can move from being ‘aware’ to eventually product ‘trial’. To accomplish this objective, the majority of the promotion budget will be devoted to heavy sampling (50 percent of promotion budget or S$200,000). A self created event will constitute one of the channels for distributing our samples and it will cost us S$10,000. We would like to incentivize our consumers as well and therefore 7. percent or S$30,000 will be allocated to a couponing exercise which will overlay sampling. A tie-in promotion with a complementary product will follow so as to induce purchase and further incentivize our consumers. This component will be given S$50,000 of the promotion budget. An online contest will also be running throughout the campaign but due to the relatively low investment involved, it will be weighted at 1. 25 percent only. S$80,000 will also be budgeting for trade allowances for our partner retailer’s involvement in our full campaign as well as slotting allowances given for erecting our point-of-purchase (POP).Our POP will be given S$15,000 in the budget. The remainder of the promotion budget will be assigned to media and PR efforts to drive the promotional campaign. (Please refer to Appendix 5 for full budget allocation) Section Four: Our Promotional Campaign 4A: Allocation of efforts in the overall Integrated Marketing Communication Campaign Advertising – (1% effort) Through our situat ion analysis, we learnt that Veet ® has very high level of brand awareness, and this is mainly pushed by Veet ® advertising efforts.In addition, the target market has relatively little target consumers who have not started doing hair removing procedure, advertising investment will not be effective as the market coverage is significantly lower as compared to putting the investment in converting current razor users. Lastly, given our campaign objective of moving ‘The Bladders’ from brand awareness level to trial level, advertising will not be effective to move the target consumers into actions – by getting them to start trying Veet ® product.However, we will engage trade promotion tools by getting our partner retailer to advertise Veet ® sale promotion to its customers. Personal Selling and Public Relations – (1% effort) As Veet ® belongs to the FMCG (Fast Moving Consumer Goods) product category, it would unwise for our campaign to invest in sales people to encourage consumers to purchase Veet ® products. Moreover, hair removal procedure is considered a private personal grooming process. Therefore it is difficult to involve ‘The Bladders’ in an open environment for a hair removal demonstration.Little investment will be put into public relations as majority of the target market are aware of Veet ® usage. Direct Marketing – (5% effort) In our campaign, we will be adopting mobile advertising. The customer database will be collected through consumer’s opt in option when they send a SMS (Short Message Service) to obtain a SMS coupon. With the customer details collected, we will direct advertising messages via mobile services in the subsequent promotion campaign. Sales Promotion – (90%) Majority of our investment and efforts will be invested on Sale Promotion.Sale promotion will be the center of our campaign with the remaining IMC tools acting as a supporting role to communicate about the sales promotion to ‘The Bladders’. As consumers have the perception that Veet ® product is not as convenience as razors, the campaign will focus on changing this misperception by allowing ‘The Bladders’ to personally experience Veet ® product. In addition, ‘The Bladders’ will experience the smoother hair removal effects (stubble free), this will help to strengthen Veet ® ’s positioning. Shaping user experiences will be done primarily through sampling.With user experience appropriately shaped, couponing exercise and attractive contest incentives will be used to spur ‘The bladders’ to start trying Veet ® product. With the understanding of how investment will be made in this campaign, following is our proposed promotional campaign for Veet ® . 4B: Our promotional campaign for Veet ® Overview of campaign Our promotional campaign will be primarily revolving around bringing across the mindset of Veet ® hair removal cream as one that is convenient coupled with a plus point of better hair removal results to our target group ‘The Bladers’.The entire promotional campaign duration will be 12 months, and staged in three phases: (i) Feeling the stubbles, (ii) Long-lasting smoothness and (iii) The Veet ® Contest. Phase 1: Feeling the Stubbles Objective: Expose ‘The Bladers’ to our campaign and drive word-of-mouth As we are targeting ‘The Bladers’ who are already experienced customers in the hair removing market, they will be less likely to take notice of the convenience and added benefits of Veet ® if it is done through the mass media channels like commercials, ads or any other imagery that is forced upon them.Thus in ‘Feeling the Stubbles’, we will seek to first roll out the promotional campaign in a subtle manner with heavy sampling also known as tryvertising, by conveying the intended messages based on their experience with our product and also conc urrently incorporate mobile couponing as a piggyback to that to have a best reach to our target group. Diagram 2: Sample & Couponing Sketch The sample we will be giving out is a 30ml Veet ® hair removal cream tube that comes with the brand’s signature perfect touch spatula and tied together with the tube is a double sided information card.On the front side of the information card, it is a surface full of protruded patterns that resemble the stubbles after shaving with a razor following a tagline of ‘Feeling the Stubbles? ’ And on the flipside, it will feature our tagline of ‘Stubbles-Free in 3 minutes’ following our couponing exercise. Diagram 3: Mobile Couponing Process The recipients of the sample will be required to text in to our number with their name and identification number for a mobile coupon.The mobile coupon will then entitle them to a 10 percent discount on a full sized Veet ® hair removal cream at any of the stores of our partner ret ailer and also a contest entry chance. Each mobile coupon will come with a uniquely coded two-dimensional Quick Response (QR) code for tracking the redemption levels and from the codes to track which the efficiency of the sampling mediums deployed. The retailer will be incentivized with every mobile coupon redeemed. Sampling MediumsIn this heavy sampling exercise, we will be distributing our samples through three sampling mediums namely digital media platform, collaborative events and through our partnering retailer. The three mediums are The Sample Store, Corporate Luncheon and in the stores of Watsons. The Sample Store (www. thesamplestore. sg) is a local platform that distributes product samples online. Since its launch in 2008 it has since built a huge database of members both on its website and facebook fansite and still growing its popularity as many recognize it as one that operates on unbiased reviews that are given by members.Members who redeem any samples will receive them via mail. Other than having our samples be placed on the site, we will also want to minimize or prevent any possible clutter of the many different brands and products on The Sample Store. We will be working with the team over there with three additional features. First, we will have our product featured in The Sample Store’s blog as a new sample which members will be able to access directly to this page or link through the main site.Currently the site’s blog maintenance team has an updates indicator of how recent is the blog updated for the ease of members to track new entries. On the blog entry, there will be a link for the readers to direct them to page to grab our sample. Hello Rachel Veet ® Hair Removal Cream Sponsored Link The Sample Store Blog The Sample Store product placement Secondly on the actual product placement page, we will also be having our product be featured in the section of ‘Sponsored Link’ to further minimize the brand and product c lutter in our sampling exercise.Be it on the main page of ‘Samples’ or when members scroll through the pages of samples, the ‘Sponsored Link’ function will come in handy as it is a permanent display on the top of every page that effectively maximizes the chance of reach and redemption. Thirdly, we will also put up a special request to have our product placement be strategically located beside Gillette or any other razor products so as to have a better chance in reaching our target group ‘The Bladers’.Veet ® Corporate Luncheon is a series of collaborative events with the National Skin Centre’s Health Talk aiming at bringing these talks to the premises of 48 companies. These series of lunch talks will be done in a form of registered events in which employees register with the human resources department and there will be a seat limit capped at 50 for each session. During each hourly session, there will be a 40 minutes skin talk by the Nat ional Skin Centre’s dermatologists.Following up will be a 20 minutes product talk and interactive demonstration session by Veet ® whereby the models for demonstration will be picked from the audience. Thereafter, the dermatologists will wrap up the entire talk by testing the skin hydration levels of the models after using Veet ® hair removal cream product. Lunch will also be catered to encourage participants of the talk to clear any doubts regarding Veet ® ’s products while handling out Veet ® ’s samples. Sampling @ Watsons is the main highlight of the three sampling exercises as it is a highly targeted sampling exercise in conjunction with the ones mentioned above.From our primary research it shows that when ‘The Bladers’ want to make any purchase regarding personal care products, Watsons will be their first choice. Thus, to be in line with that, we will be making Watsons our exclusive partner for distributing Veet ® ’s samples acr oss Watsons’ good scalability of 101 outlets islandwide. Also derived from our primary research, we found that there are some complementary products that the razor-users are most likely to use before, during or after shaving. Diagram 6: Determinants of scanner-delivered samplingWith this information, we have designed a scanner-delivered sampling exercise whereby once any of these 6 items (body lotion, tights, sunblock, deodorant, razors and shaving aids) is purchased, a Veet ® sample will be automatically be presented to the customer. To gain retailer’s agreement and cooperation, a heads-on competition with other razors and shaving aids companies will be eliminated by having these two items as an exception. Only with purchase of other items on top of razors and shaving aids, will the customer be entitled the Veet ® sample.In addition to the scanner-delivered sampling conducted, we will be purchasing retail spaces at Watsons to have a point-of-purchase display at th e storefront of Watsons’ outlets. This will allow us to cast a bigger net to reach and expose our target group ‘The Bladers’ to our campaign should they coincidentally fall out of the sampling determinants during our campaign period. Diagram 7: Point-of-Purchase Display The display will be in line with the sampling exercise, seeking to convey the message of convenience being ‘Stubbles-free in 3 minutes’.Wobblers will be attached to the fixture indicating information including the mobile couponing exercise and contest entry chance. The entire Phase 1 sampling exercise will be held in a 4 months period, with the exception of the featured article on The Sample Store’s blog which can be posted up for the entire campaign. Couponing and redemption exercises will be conducted for a 5 months period. Diagram 8: Phase 1‘Feeling the Stubbles’ timeline 4B. Phase 2: Long-lasting Smoothness Objective: Build brand associations of better hair rem oving effect and experience After exposing our target group to the campaign in Phase 1, Phase ‘Long-lasting Smoothness’ will seek to build brand associations of Veet ® as one that provides a the total hair removing effect and experience. To be in line with that, we will be partnering with Vaseline a brand that is known for its long heritage of body lotions and the effectiveness of hydrating skin, bringing a great boost to both brands when seen as complementary products. Together, we will be offering a tie-in promotion bundle which includes a 400ml Vaseline body lotion and 100ml Veet ® Hair Removal Cream.Diagram 9: Vaseline and Veet ® bundle Pricing of the bundle will be at $15. 90, strategically seeking it to be lower than a separate purchase of either items and also importantly be lower than that of a combined purchase of razors or razor refills and Vaseline body lotion altogether. Based on the respondents of Phase 1, we will be deploying a closed-loop marketing tactic whereby we will be sending text messages to the people who redeemed our coupon in Phase 1 to inform them of the tie-in promotion.Similar to the point-of purchase display in Phase 1, we will be purchasing retail spaces at Watsons to have a point-of-purchase display at the storefront of Watsons’ outlets in addition to the closed-loop marketing text messaging. This will allow us to cast a bigger net to build brand associations of a total hair removing effect and experience to our target group ‘The Bladers’ should they not be in time to redeem our coupons during our couponing period. The same point-of-purchase fixture will be used from the previous occasion to lower costs.Wobblers will be attached to the fixture will be changed now to indicating information Diagram 10:Bundle Point-of-Purchase Display including the 15 percent savings with the special bundle pricing drawing comparison with its usual price, reinforcement of a total experience of long-lasting smoo thness and a contest entry chance. Bundle packages will also be concurrently placed on Vaseline’s shelves. Cards regarding contest information will be slotted in the bundles. The entire Phase 2 tie-in promotion will be held in a 4 months period after the sampling and couponing exercise of Phase 1.Diagram 11: Phase 2‘Long-lasting Smoothness’ timeline 4C. Phase 3: The Veet ® Contest Objective: Drive trial and traffic to Veet ® Singapore Facebook page. Build brand excitement and buzz Phase 3 of the campaign will act as a overlay campaign to both Phase 1 and Phase 2. To effectively drive product trial and building brand excitement, a Veet ® Singapore Facebook fanpage will be set up as currently Veet ® do not have any adoption of social media locally. Diagram 12: Contest Card SketchWhen the recipients of the samples make a purchase using the mobile coupon in Phase 1, purchase a bundle in Phase 2 or making a regular purchase after the 2 phases, the retailer wil l be handing out contest cards for every purchase. On the flipside of the contest card, it will visibly tell recipients that they have won one chance to ‘The Veet ® Contest’ by entering the scratch code on the contest card on Veet ® Singapore’s Facebook fanpage. Every additional purchase will entitle them an additional chance in becoming the grand winners of the contest.Diagram 13: Veet ® Singapore Facebook fanpage In addition, by liking Veet ® ’s page will entitle the contest participants 5 more winning chances to the contest. The top 3 winners of the contest will walk away with a $500 Watsons Gift Vouchers each and there will also be 5 winners who will walk away with a year’s supply of Veet ® hair removal cream as consolation prizes. Such information will also be detailed on the Facebook fanpage. At the end of the entire contest, announcement of contest winners will also be conducted via the Facebook fanpage.Phase 3 will be held as a sup porting role in the entire 12 months period, concurrently with Phase 1 and 2. Diagram 14: Phase 3‘The Veet ® Contest’ timeline Section Five: Conclusion 5A. ROMI and CLV (Appendix 6) Retail price of Veet ® hair removal cream is at S$10. Our profit margin for the product is at 40 percent or S$4. We will take annual discount rate to be at 12 percent and this will translate to 1 percent monthly discount rate. We are looking at a three tiers conversion model with light users purchasing once in two months, medium users once a month and heavy users twice a month. 1. Phase 1The sampling exercise overlay with couponing will see an estimated 40 percent conversion rate in total out of the sample/coupon given out over the four months. Of the 12,500 potential converts per month, we will be looking at 4 percent becoming heavy users, 16 percent medium users and 80 percent light users. This will transit to a monthly profit of S$32,000 but a negative return of marketing investment ( ROMI) of 56 percent. However, we are projecting a relatively high constant retention rate of the converts at 90 percent for heavy users, 85 percent for medium users and 80 percent for light users.Therefore this will give us a positive customer lifetime value (CLV) of 106 percent. 2. Phase 2 Our tie-in promotion with a moisturizer brand will see a conversion rate of 20 percent. However we foresee that three-quarter of them will be those who used the coupon in Phase 1 and are returning customers. Therefore we are looking at 1,560 new converts per month from the tie-in promotion. Although we will have a negative ROMI of 53 percent in this phase, we will be looking at the same retention rate for all three conversion segment hence getting a positive CLV of 124 percent. . Phase 3 The Veet ® contest will run from the start to the end of the one year campaign and we are expecting purely new converts (not from Phase 1 and 2) only from those who picked up a contest form from our POP at our partner retailers. Since we foresee that a percentage of them would be purchasing for the contest, we lowered their retention rate to 80 percent, 60 percent and 40 percent for the heavy, medium and light converts respectively.Given that our main intention of the contest is to create hype for the campaign and rewarding the real converts who purchase through Phase 1 and 2, we are expecting to see only 310 converts per month which will transit to a slightly positive ROMI of 5. 3 percent and only 25 percent in CLV. 4. Overall The overall campaign will see a conversion of 14,730 users per month and a total of close to 60,000 converts throughout the full one year campaign. Although we will be getting a negative overall ROMI of 55 percent and a slightly high average acquisition cost of S$5. 74 we will be achieving a strong CLV of 107 percent. . Best and Worst Case The best case scenario will see us having 25 percent more conversions from Phase 1, 50 percent more from Phase 2 and Phase 3 an d this will increase the ROMI to -44 percent and CLV to 162 percent.As for the worst case scenario, it will be the reverse having 25 percent lesser in conversions for Phase 1 and 50 percent lesser for Phase 2 and 3 will see us having a negative CLV for both Phase 2 and 3 but an overall CLV of 66 percent. ROMI will stand at negative 64 percent. 5B. Evaluation of Campaign The success of our campaign will depend on meeting our pre-set objectives. To have 40 percent coupon redemption among all who received our sample and coupon * To collect a consumer database from our couponing system for Veet ® ’s future promotional campaigns We can easily track this by tabulating the number of request for the mobile coupons. As the distribution of the samples with the coupons are highly targeted at ‘The Bladers’, we can foresee near to 100 percent of the mobile coupon being redeemed by our target segment. As for the database, when our consumer sends in a message requesting for t he mobile coupon, we would locked in their numbers and consolidate it into a database.This database will be straightaway put to use in Phase 2 of our campaign where we will send them a message informing about the tie-in promotion being offered in our partner retailers. * To achieve 20 percent of our target segment purchasing our tie-in promotion * To see 30 percent of the ‘The Bladers’ joining our contest The numbers for these two objectives can be tracked when our target segment sign up for the contest. When entering the contest on Facebook, they will be asked a simple question regarding when they were first exposed to the product.If they choose either through the tie-in promotion or through the sample with coupon distributed, we would know that they are our target segment ‘The Bladders’. As the contest card comes with a unique code for entering into the contest, a consolidation of the unique codes keyed in for each Phase of the campaign will indicate to u s the number of our target segment who participated in the online contest. * To see 40 percent of ‘The Bladers’ being exposed to our campaign The number of samples given out, coupons redeem and contest details will give us a rough estimate to how many of our targeted segment was in face exposed to our campaign.Appendix Appendix 1: Questionnaire Done Through Online Medium S/N| | Options| 1| Have you heard about the brand Veet ®? | Yes No| 2| Veet ® is product that| ShampooBody WashHair Removal CreamHand LotionNail Protection CreamFeminine Wash | 3| In the last 12 months, have you done any hair removing procedures? | Yes (Go to Qns 5)No (Go to Qns 4)| 4| Will you consider starting removing body hair in the next 3 to 6 months time? | Yes NoMaybe| 5| Which of the following hair removing method do you use dominantly? Razor blade (Go to Qns 6)Hair removal cream Wax Strips (Go to Qns 6)Saloon (Go to Qns 6)Others (Pls Specify: ______________)| 6| What is your reason for usi ng the particular hair removing method? | (Open ended answer)| 7| Given an attractive promotion, would you consider using Veet ® to remove body hair in the next 3 to 12 months? | YesNo (Go to Qns 8)Maybe(Go to Qns 8)|8| What is your reason for not considering using Veet ® to remove body hair? | (Open ended answer)| About Yourselves| | Age| 11 – 1515- 2021 – 2526 – 3031 – 3536 – 4041 – 4546 – 5051 – 55| | Occupation| (Open ended answer)| Amount of time spent on personal grooming daily (Weekday)| | | Amount of time spent on personal grooming daily (Weekend)| | | Amount of money spent on personal grooming monthly| | | Where do you usually purchase personal grooming products? | NTUCGuidanceWatsonVenusProvision ShopsGiantShop and SaveThe Market PlaceOthers (Pls Specify:________________)| | What are some products that you would usually purchase with hair removal product? | (open ended answers)| Appendix 2: Descriptive Survey Resu lts (Important insights) – Total Number of Respondents: 30 Appendix 2A: Graph Showing Awareness Level of Veet Hair Removal Cream 1.Have you heard of Veet Hair Removal Cream? Appendix 2B: Graph Showing market doing hair removal 2. Have you done hair removal before? Appendix 2C: Graph Showing Type of Hair Removal Method Used by Women 3. (For the 82% of women who have removed hair before) which type of hair removal method do you use? Appendix 2D: Graph Showing Percentage of Non-Users on Whether They Will Ever Do Hair Removal 4. Do you think you will ever do hair removal in the next three to six months period? Appendix 2E: Graph Showing Percentage of Razor Users on Whether They Will Use Veet 5. For current razor users) Will you use try using Veet hair removal cream? Appendix 2F: Summary of Reasons of Current Razor Users for Not Wanting to Try Veet 6. (For those who are unlikely to try Veet hair removal cream in Q5) Why not? * Inconvenient (Most responses) * I am unsure of the eff ects of using cream * May not remove all the hair as effectively as razors * Using cream makes my skin dry * More expensive * I am used to using razors already Appendix 3: Segmentation Map of the Women’s Depilatories Market in SingaporeAppendix 4: Graph Showing How ‘The Bladers’ Will Move Up the Hierarchy of Marketing Communication Effects (HEM) Appendix 5: Budget Allocation Appendix 6: ROMI and CLV Bibliography Veet Hair Removal Cream Review, retrieved on 19 October 2010, retrieved from http://www. reviewcentre. com/reviews74276. html Veet Bladeless Razor Review, retrieved on 19 October 2010, retrieved from http://www. viewpoints. com/Veet-Rasera-Bladeless-Razor-reviews Depilatory Industry Overview in Singapore, Euromonitor International: Country Sector Briefting, June 2010, retrieved on 22 October 2010