Friday, September 4, 2020

transport management :: essays research papers

Transport the board is presently unquestionably more refined than it was 10 years prior. Transport exercises create a wide scope of financial advantages. Somewhere in the range of 2% and 4% of absolute OECD business, for instance, is gotten from transport administrations, and an expected 4-9% of GDP in the OECD zone is owing to spending by the clients of transport (remembering use for framework). Over 10% of all out family unit use presently goes to buy transport administrations (OECD Publications/ECMT). The parity of global installments is likewise unequivocally impacted in terms of professional career in transport gear. Gigantic changes have occurred in the vehicle segment as of late. The most checked is its phenomenal development. Both stock factors (armada size, kilometers of street and rail foundation, etc) and stream factors (number of excursions taken, volume of products moved, and such) have extended quickly. The world's car armada, for instance, multiplied somewhere in the range of 1970 and 1990, to stand today at roughly 500 million vehicles. These numbers are required to twofold throughout the following 20-40 years, in spite of the fact that at a more slow rate in OECD nations than before. Generous auxiliary, changes have additionally occurred. For a certain something, there has been a significant move in where transport development is happening. In 1950, 75% of all vehicles were situated in the United States. From that point forward, the number outside the United States has developed by about 8% every year (Mackenzie Walsh 1990) with much increasingly momentous increments in certain areas. In Athens, for instance, vehicle possession blossomed from 35,000 of every 1964 to 650,000 out of 1984, and is relied upon to be around 900,000 by this year (Glaoutzi Damianidias 1990). Most future development in worldwide vehicle stocks is anticipated to happen in the creating scene, as the industrialized nations become progressively immersed with vehicles, as the creating nations experience urbanization and industrialization procedures of their own, and as individuals there understand their longstanding desires for greater versatility. There has additionally been a huge move in th e portions of various methods of transport. In the previous twenty years, the volume of street cargo traffic has multiplied, while rail and conduit volumes have stayed stable. Taking into account the velocity of these changes, it isn't astonishing that transport issues are creating impressive political discussion in many nations. The conventional methodology used to be to step up the gracefully of administrations; progressively, calls are being heard for arrangements that abridge request. Whichever approach is liked, a great part of the conversation fixates on the supposed 'social expenses' of transport.

Tuesday, August 25, 2020

International Economics Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Worldwide Economics - Essay Example Administrations part as it contributes just about 78 percent in U.S economy. In the event that U.S. or on the other hand so far as that is concerned any of the created nations, for example, UK, France, Germany, Japan needs to build the global exchange, their commitment needs to get through the administrations segment since they are prevailing benefactors in the GDP. The reasons that administrations can't be exchanged as openly as products can be are ascribed to the accompanying. 1. Numerous administrations are non-transportable; it requires geographic closeness among maker and shopper nations. 2. Numerous administrations can't be mass created; generally they are customized according to the geological needs representing a trouble in the global exchange. 3. Numerous administrations oblige the flexibly of the products and they can't be isolated to grant the advantages to the customers. Model is vehicles imported from Japan or China into US with 3-4 years guarantee. Adjusting cost is rem embered for the first cost. 4. It is hard to send out the administrations from created nations (U.S) to creating nations, for example, India. The explanation is that the expense of creating the administrations in a creating nation is a lot of lower than the expense brought about in created economies. The glaring model is IT (Information Technology) administrations redistributed to nations like India, China where the expense of creation is significantly less. Answer 2. Challenges to be determined of Payment (B.O.P) of the U.S in the here and now US is confronting Balance of Payment issue since last numerous years and it is consistently expanding from 1 percent in 1995 to right around 8 percent of the GDP now. The purposes behind such high shortages are numerous and fluctuated and can be counted according to the accompanying. (Riley, Geoff 2006) 1. It means that high utilization with a more vulnerable mechanical part. Shoppers are spending too far in the red prompting higher family un it obligation. 2. An exchange deficiency is likewise a sign of loss of business and yield. It is a net spillage among pay and spending. 3. Money esteem (read $) goes under weight against other driving monetary forms and keep on deteriorating as shortage proceeds or rises. This additionally requires an expansion in loan costs by the national bank. Answer 3. Thoroughly analyze the structure of the E.U and the USA (NAFTA). NAFTA (North American Free Trade Agreement) is a bargain between Canada, Mexico, and the United States. NAFTA has been operational since 1994. It oversees the whole North American exchange. NAFTA understanding has evacuated the duties between the part nations Mexico, Canada, and U.S for products dispatched between them. This has come about into the acquisition of merchandise by Mexico in enormous amounts from U.S. This outcomes into investment funds for Mexican organizations on imports and it spares American organization impressively on transportation costs. Interest ingly, EU has enormous number of part nations in it cultivating comparable collaboration among them. The significant contrast between these two is that EU individuals exchange a typical cash however NAFTA individuals don't have any regular money. In addition, EU has its own political contract as opposed to NAFTA who doesn't have any. Answer 4. Clarify Ricardo’s hypothesis of exchange and contrast it with the H-O hypothesis of exchange? The hypothesis of relative bit of leeway is behind the global exchange which both the nations profit by the exchange. Ricardo clarified this in his book on the Principles of Political Economy and Taxation giving case of England and Portugal. Portugal produces wine and material with less work contrasted with England for the

Saturday, August 22, 2020

Purchasing and Inventory at Brisbane Outdoor Power Centre

Question: Talk about thePurchasing and Inventory at Brisbane Outdoor Power Center. Answer: Presentation The various ideas and the hypotheses of the tasks the executives should be assessed as these can help in drawing out the ideal positive results the firm concerned. Brisbane open air has made an extreme name all through the purposeful market portions of Australia (Benton McHenry, 2010). This examination paper will help in assessing the administration forms associated with Brisbane Outdoors and the suggestions expected to improve it. Moderately than considering vital oversight as a simple method of buying region, one can associate each decision creator who needs to execute for the enterprise and gain income for its sake. Current Purchasing and the Inventory Management Process of Company Brisbane open air has built up a solid notoriety all through the concentrated market fragments of Australia. The buying, just as the stock administration procedure of the organizations, assumed the most pivotal job in building up the financial development of the firm. All through the 1980s, there were three all the more retail outlets of the firm. The accessibility of the wide assortment of the brands strikes the brains of the clients (Armstrong, 2014). The exhibitions of the firm including the unwavering quality of administrations gave to the clients after the deals expanded the brand notoriety of the association. Excellency in the administration conveyance to the entirety of the clients was one of the most urgent parts of the association. The apparatuses and the segments like the extra parts and the reachable supplies helped the firm in keeping up the proficiency of the gracefully chain the executives arrangement of the association. The staff at the firm assumed the most significan t job in helping the clients without hardly lifting a finger. The distinctive operational administration ideas uncover the way that administration and working of the present procedures of the concerned firm should be improved according as per the general inclination of the clients. The most fascinating truth is that the retail clients likewise got pulled in by the solid brand nearness of the Brisbane Outdoor. The essential thought process of the association is to convey the best nature of the items and it has been seen that clients can without much of a stretch purchase the items from various stores yet for getting great nature of items they came to Brisbane open air (Burritt, 2011). Along these lines, the notoriety has unequivocally been developing before the individual clients. The reality lives that, speculations and the ideal ideas of operational administration fundamentally assess that the creation and the assembling procedure alongside the gracefully fasten the board framework should be improved of top generally quality as this aides in expanding the benefit and the profitability of the firm. The present procedures at the Brisbane open air mirrored the way that the staff was proficient and had the option to hold every one of its clients without breaking a sweat. For any of the decentralized association, there are a portion of the urgent things, for example, generosity, presence of mind, and common participation. Favorable circumstances of the Processes Used There are a few favorable circumstances of the administration forms utilized by Brisbane outside. The administration forms brought a few positive changes inside the firm. It builds the unwavering quality and the trust of the clients towards the firm. A portion of the benefits of the procedure are the methodology of the great stock procedure improves the ideal exactness of the concerned improved stock requests. The viability and the effectiveness of the gracefully chain the board framework increment (Stroke: most recent treatment choices in intense administration, 2015). The organization has made its notoriety by filling in according to the fulfillment and dependability of the clients however the procedure of the present procedure just as the great stock procedure helps in sorting out the stockroom. The procedure helped the firm in expanding the effectiveness alongside the efficiency of the association. The essential points of interest were the returning of the customers just as the c lients to the firm and this was viewed as critical for holding the clients inside the firm. The conveying of the best nature of the items with the effective administrations helped the firm in making the brand picture of the firm all through the concerned market sections (Du, 2013). It is clear to realize that the stock administration forms helped the firm in overseeing and following the ongoing alongside the financial advantages to build the ideal development of the association inside the focused on advertise fragments. Drawbacks of the Processes Used As the concerned retail speculation, it was seen that there was a pivotal necessity of the immense venture for the ideal stocks alongside the powerful and solid methods o the speculation the board techniques. Green used to care for the work in the branches with due security and severity and go for a stroll routinely around the working grounds to have an appropriate support on the creation segment (Du, 2013). As a reality, it was seen this didn't help in the improvement of the organization as the laborers didn't think of it as productive and marvel in their own pace (HaãÅ"ë†rtel Fujimoto, 2010). The association required overwhelming interest in stock and furthermore legitimate upkeep of it was required. While Donald Saxon was not a man of tight approaches and methods and totally believed his branch administrators so as to put the need of the firm first. Green had watched the escape clauses of the working of the association and ran a tight activity in Strathpine, yet Saxon was merc iful and didn't take up any such methodologies of improving the workplace of the organization. Following a voyage through 3 weeks all through the 3 outlets of the association, Green understood that one of the segments should have been taken consideration in buy and stock area. The executives Concepts of Supply-Chain and Inventory So as to build the gracefully chain the board procedure for an organization and to expand its yield the organization ought to follow the accompanying techniques so as to pick up the equivalent: Setting up of legitimate flexibly tie process-Setting up a gracefully chain the executives procedure, will assist the organization with getting appropriate course to work and help in lining up with flexibly chain technique with the association's system (Du, 2013). Utilizing such systems will assist with beating obstructions that hamper the development of the association the flexibly chain chamber should hold standard gatherings and deal with the working of the organization. Legitimate adjusting of staff in flexibly chain the board: It is hard to create methodology for gracefully chain the executives that will bring benefit for the organization, however this is probably the best strategy to procure a decent return for the organization (Special Topic Forum on Resources and Supply Chain Management, 2013). An organization can likewise adopt up cross breed strategy in expanding the capability in the flexibly chain the board procedure and cause minimal cost in venture for the organization to adjoin additionally keep up the stock. An association can likewise take up techniques for the putting of items, acquisition, and different factors accurately in the distinctive association so the gracefully chain the executives can be valuable for an organization. Utilizing of right innovation: There are numerous organizations that select programming and think about it to work effectively and follow the structure of their booked work and other picked techniques according to the need of the organization. Rather than doing as such, an association ought to experience the procedure and the focuses that should be improved and afterward select the innovation that fulfills the procedure needs. One may consider it as plainly obvious yet choosing the procedure and afterward applying on the organization makes the working of the association moderate and the advantage is nil. Creating contact with boss providers: An association who needs to come top in the market works intimately with its providers. This is by and large alluded as the executives of provider relationship (Entrekin Scott-Ladd, 2013). This is known as one way correspondence, yet associations request two method of the correspondence systems for example both the vender and the purchaser together deals with the working of the organization, and aides in improving the flexibly chain the executives procedure of the equivalent (Special Topic Forum on Supply Chain Management in Emerging Markets: Critical Research Issues, 2013). The essential goals of improving the flexibly chain the board are: Giving legitimate instrument to make certain about the sound connection between the provider and the association Making a stage for settling the issues that emerge. Guaranteeing about execution estimating destinations Creating objectives for both the gatherings so as to improve the benefit Participating in Collaborative Strategic Sourcing: Vital sourcing should be the foundation in the strategy for flexibly chain the executives. In any case, a community oriented sourcing of the board starts better outcomes for the organization (Googles most recent achievement: refining advertising practice, 2012). As opposed to thinking about vital administration as a basic strategy for the buying division, one can connect each chief who needs to perform for the organization and procure the benefit for its sake. Suggestions It turns out to be significant for any association to keep up the adequacy of its present administration and the stock gracefully chain frameworks as these assistance in expanding the ideal development of the association to a more extensive region of the concerned focused on showcase sections. The expansion in the information on the representatives is imperative to give total help to the clients however the aptitudes, just as the encounters of the workers, assists with improving the general unwavering quality of the clients all through the concerned serious market fragments. In this way, it turns out to be significant for the firm to expand the abilities just as the ideal certainty of t

Biography of Gregorio Zara, Inventor of the Videophone

Life story of Gregorio Zara, Inventor of the Videophone Gregorio Zara (March 8, 1902â€October 15, 1978) was a Filipino researcher most popular as the creator of the videophone, the initial two-way electronic video communicator, in 1955. Everything considered, he licensed 30 gadgets. His different innovations went from a liquor controlled plane motor to a sun based fueled water radiator and oven. Quick Facts: Gregorio Zara Known For: Inventor of the video telephoneBorn: March 8, 1902 in Lipa City, Batangas, PhilippinesDied: October 15, 1978Education: Massachusetts Institute of Technology, University of Michigan, Sorbonne UniversityAwards and Honors: National Scientist Award (Philippines)Spouse: Engracia Arcinas LaconicoChildren: Antonio, Pacita, Josefina, Lourdesï » ¿ Early Life Gregorio Zara was conceived on March 8, 1902, in Lipa City, Batangas, Philippines. He earned a lone rangers degree in mechanical building at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, a bosses in aeronautical designing (summa cum laude) at the University of Michigan, and a doctorate in material science at Sorbonne University in Paris (summa cum laude with Tres Honorable, the most elevated alumni understudy respect). He came back to the Philippines and got associated with both the administration and the scholastic universes. He worked in a few posts with the Department of Public Works and Communications and the Department of National Defense, for the most part in the flying. Simultaneously, he showed flying at a few colleges including the American Far Eastern School of Aviation, the Far Eastern University, and the FEATI University-and distributed numerous books and research papers on air transportation. In 1934 Zara wedded Engracia Arcinas Laconico, who the prior year had been named Miss Philippines. They had four youngsters: Antonio, Pacita, Josefina, and Lourdesï » ¿. Revelations Begin In 1930, he found the physical law of electrical dynamic opposition, known as the Zara Effect, which includes the protection from the entry of an electric flow when contacts are moving. Later he developed the earth enlistment compass, which is as yet utilized by pilots, and in 1954 his plane motor fueled by liquor had a fruitful dry run at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport. At that point came the videophone. Before video calling became as typical all things considered in the 21st century, the innovation had been grown however begun gradually, perhaps in light of the fact that it was so a long ways relatively revolutionary. In the 1950s, some time before the beginning of the advanced age, Zara built up the first videophone or two-way TV phone. The gadget left the domain of sci-fi and comic books when Zara protected it in 1955 as a â€Å"photo telephone signal separator network.† Videophone Catches On That first emphasis didnt get on, to a great extent since it wasn’t expected as a business item. In any case, during the 1960s, ATT started taking a shot at a model of a videophone, called a â€Å"picturephone,† focused on the general population. The organization discharged the videophone at the 1964 New York World’s Fair, however it was viewed as unfeasible and didnt charge well. It burst into flames as the computerized age was starting in the late 1990s. The videophone first got on as a gadget that handily empowered separation learning and video conferencing and furthermore demonstrated supportive for the consultation impeded. At that point came such deductions as Skype and cell phones, and the videophone got omnipresent around the world. Other Scientific Contributions Zaras different creations and disclosures include: Improving techniques for delivering and tackling sun oriented vitality, including new plans for a sunlight based fueled water warmer, oven, and battery (1960s)Inventing wooden airplane propellersâ andâ a relating propeller-cutting machine (1952)Designing a magnifying lens with a collapsible stageHelping structure the robot Marex X-10, which could walk, talk, and react to commandsInventing the fume chamber, used to picture radioactive components Zara kicked the bucket of cardiovascular breakdown at 76 years old in 1978. Heritage In the course of his life, Gregorio Zara amassed 30 licenses. In the time of his passing he was introduced the National Scientist Award, the most elevated honorâ the Philippine government provides for Filipino researchers, by President Ferdinand E. Marcos. He additionally got: The Presidential Diploma of MeritThe Distinguished Service Medal (1959) for his spearheading works and accomplishments in sunlight based vitality research, air transportation, and televisionThe Presidential Gold Medal and Diploma of Honor for Science and Research (1966)The Cultural Heritage Award for Science Education and Aero Engineering (1966) Sources Meet Gregorio Zara, the Filipino Engineer Who Created the World’s First Video Phone. Gineersnow.com.Today in Philippine History, March 8, 1902, Gregorio Y. Zara was conceived in Lipa City, Batangas. The Kahimyang Project.Role Models in Science Engineering Achievement: Gregorio Zara. Scienceblogs.com.Miss Philippines of the Manila Carnival, Engracia Arcinas Laconico. Manila Carnivals 1908-39.

Friday, August 21, 2020

Unilever and Proctor Gamble Essay Sample free essay sample

A Frenchman named Henri Fayol ( 1841-1925 ) . albeit an applied researcher thought of a hypothesis. He changed the thoughts of concern removal and shaped a development of course that is rehearsed even now in this twenty-four hours and age by an immense figure of organizations around the world. This hypothesis of his. presently typically known as ‘The 14 guidelines of heading by Fayol’ is venturing out to be applied in two uber associations, for example, Uniliver and Proctor A ; Gamble ( P A ; G ) : Proctor A ; Gamble and Unilever are two huge transnational enterprises that fabricate a major extent of purchaser merchandise, for example, drinks. supplement. individual consideration stocks. stocks for the spot. and so on. The previous is an American transnational organization while the last is a Dutch-British transnational partnership. In around 1997. Unilever concluded that it was clasp to get down populating up to its conceivable. The new expect to increment point of convergence and better results. obviously go a priority. We will compose a custom paper test on Unilever and Proctor Gamble Essay Sample or on the other hand any comparative point explicitly for you Don't WasteYour Time Recruit WRITER Just 13.90/page Clear way was set and it was concurred about nem con that the organization should coordinate its point of convergence on explicit endeavors and stocks that made a difference. For case. the offer of the synthetics worry in 1997. albeit considered as a truly encouraging possibility. on the off chance that holding been permitted to remain in the portfolio would hold brought about a difference of administrative joining in. work. support. and so forth. This aided Unilever confer a greater amount of its clasp and vitality into their different stocks as they didn’t need to stress over the concoction concern any more. This and other such cases at long last lead to a precarious developing in the advancement for Unilever. During the 1990s. Unilever understood that it wasn’t creating and turning truly quick †both in footings of total compensation and size. The leader of the numerous occupations was that they centered an impressive total of clasp and vitality on too much numer ous endeavors. the greater part of which did non require that much joining in. At long last. Unilever understood that despite the fact that they had the equivalent perception and intends to turn on an a lot quicker and bigger graduated table. non bounty was accomplished to work the monetary framework to do a genuine and alluring developing plane for them. A genuine lacking of big business was only however self-evident. In spite of the fact that there was innovativeness. there was no 1 to take up the wand and run with the idea. Debut doesn’t end at the idea. What makes the most of it is the point at which the idea bursts into a world through the flashes of executing. Since the beginning of the new century. considerations were executed and the consistent becoming was inescapable. Furthermore, to advance this. Unilever contributed US $ 1 billion for the twelvemonth 2001 devoted for the goal of innovative work. It other than included an overabundance US $ 5. 7 billion for the selling of its stocks. In a motivational film Remember the Titans ( 2000 ) ; the chief of a secondary school American-football crew is confronted with the endeavor of bringing together his members who are of the two races. high contrast. At that cut. because of the fortunes sing bigotry. to try and accept of value between the two aforesaid referenced races as a chance would be franticness. Also, to add to the coach’s pile of a situation. he required assurance into his crew as he was an African American. However, one line that doesn’t neglect to converse with the chest of the onlooker is when Coach Boone. remaining on a similar land where the Gettysburg Battle was battled. communicates the longing for his crew to build up the espirt de corps by yelling out these words to his crew. â€Å"If we don’t meet up on this blessed land. we exorbitantly will be decimated! † Equity and esprit de corps travel connected at the hip. Also, Unilever. recognizing that they were one of the most global organizations known to man. guaranteed that by first settling the way that every individual was equivalent to another and figure was higher than another by race. confidence. sex or some other factor. Since without perceiving value. individuals can non build up the espirt de corps which requires concordance and trustworthiness among individuals. Once Unilever had managed balance among the representatives. it was anything but difficult to mix individuals into various crews and in this manner deliver more noteworthy outcomes as various positions and positions were added to collaboration with the guide of various foundations. gigantic encounters and different human advancements from these workers. An extremely comparative arrangement was followed and still is followed in P A ; G. P A ; G’s make progress toward respect to be appeared all through and on each level of the organization plans to at last observe a total a nnulment of power. bias. enslavement. and so forth and accordingly at long last build up the esprit de corps for itself in agreement and trustworthiness. Numerous associations consider the pay of its workers somewhat of a sensitive object. The existent fight lies in happening the correct harmony between working hours. benefits. councils and wages that will benefit both the organization and the worker. Be that as it may. on the off chance that this ‘balance’ is met. the chances of an organization keeping up its representatives run massively high. In the case of Unilever. they had made a program to keep up their representatives each piece long as they perchance could. They began by first picking the opportune individuals for the occupation. All around. these were individuals who demonstrated high strength. When the individual was chosen. a decent compensation was given to him alongside reasonable working hours and plentifulness of advantages. This brought about a consistent turnover from the representatives and a stableness of powers as workers were content with their hands on conditions and didn’t feel the interest to happen work in new brushing lands. It was other than helpful for Unilever as effect ivity and by and large outcomes turned for the better of the association. By keeping up its representatives. Unilever was truly giving them considerably more involvement with their exceptional field of work furthermore uplifting the chances of exposure inside the organization rather than outside connecting with which regularly ends up being an increasingly costly and drawn-out strategy. P A ; G all around has the lesser total of occupations with regards to wage and stableness of its workers. As the workers are brought into the organization after classes. advancement plans and recreation outings to the U. K. what's more, Ireland. a safe place is accidentally worked for them. They are other than given specific joining in and are made to go to a few classs on the introduction and activity of P A ; G. Other than an overwhelming pay. workers are granted enormous incitements and fillips for completing endeavors. Impetuses are given to three classs of productiveness: top performing specialists ( the individuals who perform far superior to the set imprint ) . cardinal supporters ( the individuals who perform what they were asked ) and the individuals who perform beneath the imprint set for them. The organization sets its pay on indistinguishable degrees from that of other major overall organizations however decides to introduce high fillips to elevate its workers to maintai n a strategic distance from truancy and slack in productiveness. In 2001. Unilever found the interest to part work. after the procurance of top organizations, for example, Bestfoods and Slimfast. These new techniques for course split the point of convergence from a truly broad situation to a particular way of bearing. A different segment was set up to neglect the procedures for supplement and another was set up to make the equivalent for homo and individual consideration. Each area had its ain research crew and concern crew. Consequently. various imprints were set for each area with the goal that each segment would try for greatness through a solid consolation to its innovation and speedier assurance concocting. which would follow in an enlivening in the execution of those judgments. Unilever. with its since a long time ago run assault to course and developing. discovered that it is better for a man to go starting with one runing organization then onto the next ( inside Unilever ) in order to get the maximal experience he perchance can and to expand his situation on bearing itself. Despite the fact that this may seem to be as a sign of uncertainness and distress in the short-run. in the long count this is an approach has demonstrated emotional outcomes as chiefs return back to the primary region as ranking executives and friends work hypothetical records. Puting the general great of the organization preeminent methods puting the hierarchical point as priority over the individual end. This doesn’t infer that the individual points of the representative are to be squashed and that they are to make simply as the organization orders. What this truly implies is that despite the fact that each worker has his/her ain ground for fall ining the unconventional organization. conferring those grounds in such a way, that it regards the organization and to the worker is what is attractive. P A ; G permits its representatives to take drawn-out occasion interferences and work lesser hours a hebdomad yet on a status that when the representatives are working. there is a 100 % productiveness and effectivity from their segment. Despite the fact that it might look as a however P A ; G is losing cut since its representatives are working less contrasted with those in different organizations. it is actually the answer for their high productiveness rates. With regards to ‘calling the shots’ . the individuals in higher spots with the more noteworthy approval make the conclusions. Authority is the option to provide orders and to get deference. There are mainly two different ways in through which these judgments are taken: centralisation or decentalisation. Most associations utilize a blend of the two frameworks. Centralization is the point at which the conclusions are made at the caput of the house. Albeit considered as parent organizations. both Unilever N. V. ( Netherlands ) and Unilever plc. ( U. K. ) work a

Friday, August 7, 2020

Fear of Flying

Fear of Flying This entry is meant to complement the one I wrote prior about being who you are at MIT. - When I found out I got into MIT, I was probably one of the happiest people on the face of the earth. Unfortunately, when other people found out that Id been accepted to MIT, their reactions werent so positive. A lot of people told me to my face, Bryan, you only got in because youre (blank). And you know what, it really hurt. Id worked very hard my entire school career, taken the tests, done the research, been involved in extracurricular activities, written the essays, filled out the forms. Sticks and stones may break my bones, but words may never hurt me. If only. For a long time, I questioned whether MIT had made a mistake or was admitting me on the basis of something other than my potential to do well at MIT. For a little while, I even questioned whether I wanted to go to MIT anymore because I feared failure. I mean, I think we all do. No one wants to get on a stage and forget their lines. No one wants to miss the game-winning goal. No one likes losing, and Im surely no exception. As mathematicians and scientists, we all like to explain things. No one likes to accept the its just the way it is comment. Wed all like to explain why things happen. I believe that my experience really reflects the desire for some of the people who made such comments to explain why they didnt get in. I wish it didnt happen that way, but it did. The more dangerous aspect of this situation is not what they were thinking, but what I was thinking. Was I actually supposed to be here? Was I going to be the laughing stock of the Institute? The answer, simply put, is no. However, I do say this in retrospect. I had to put up a fight. I felt when I first got to MIT that I had something to prove. I couldnt shake the words of those who attributed my acceptance to MIT to something other than my qualifications. Even though my grades were my business, I still felt like someway somehow that I had to put it out there that I deserved to be here. It wasnt until I started writing this entry that I realized who I was trying to prove it to. I was trying to prove it to myself. I have complete control over what Im affected by, and I was affected by those words that people said, and I began to actually believe it. As it were, I have high expectations of myself, and thus its essentially a double whammy when youre pushing yourself to the edge For those of you who like numbers, this year, MIT admitted less than 13% of those who applied. Thats the lowest number that Ive heard in a while, so for every person who got in, there had to be a reason why MIT accepted you. Think about it this way, MIT has a very strong reputation to uphold. Do you actually think theyre going to put their reputation on the line just to say that they accepted a specific type of person? I think not. So heres my challenge for all of you who got in: 1. Dont take your acceptance lightly. Its a very admirable accomplishment. 2. Dont let ANYONE discount your acceptance to any other reason that MIT accepted you because they had faith that you could succeed and flourish here. For all of you asking yourselves what I asked myself about three years ago, think happy thoughts. YOU GOT INTO MIT! For those of you who I will be seeing in the hallways next September, I really want you to remember this: MIT accepted you because they believed that you would be up to the challenge that MIT provides its students, so with that said, be prepared to give your all and then some.

Tuesday, June 23, 2020

A Transactional Analysis of McCarthys No Country for Old Men - Literature Essay Samples

Every text represents an experience that both the author and the reader jointly construct; the author writes the details, drawing from empirical influence, and the reader filters those details through his or her own experience. When the reader is the intended reader, the author’s most manipulative ability apropos of writing can greatly shape the reader’s perception, though. McCarthy’s 2005 novel, No Country for Old Men, features his prowess in maintaining control of the reader’s perception and guiding it toward a particular, dismal comprehension of the reality of American civilization. In order to adequately position my assessment of this novel, especially for reader-response criticism, it is incumbent upon me to concede that I watched the film adaptation of the novel several times before reading the text itself. The film, therefore, played a significant role in shaping my perception of events in the book, especially because many scenes in the film are almost direct adaptations of their corresponding scenes in the book. Part of my argument involves the notion that the book itself—its narration, its imagery, its description, the pacing of its plot—strikes me as being very cinematic. As such, it is important to note that some measure of that perception is indubitably resultant of having viewed the film prior to reading the novel. That said, the text operates on a balance that privileges show over tell, giving the reader a walkthrough of the plot that is cinematic even in comparison to many other contemporary works in American literature. The syntax occupies what I may have simply dubbed a southern vernacular were it not for the contextual specificity I gleaned from the film, but with very little time at all, the book does establish (after strongly suggesting) that the story is a work of border fiction, a subgenre often attributed to multiple different genres including modernism and postmodernism due to their contemporariness. The text both provides the requisite materials and establishes the necessary boundaries to create the reading, (i.e. the experience), and in so doing, â€Å"It creates for itself an implied reader and uses certain structures to predispose the actual reader, who brings his own unique set of experiences to the act of reading the text, to respond as the implied one† (Dobie 140). In other words, there is a type of reader for whom the work is intended, and that reader is familiar with the drug trafficking that occurs between the United States of America and the United Mexican States. Many North Americans are quite cognizant of the fact that the southern border of the United States is fraught with drug trafficking, drug wars, and even guerilla warfare; all of which sustains a drug economy for which neither country officially accounts. The relevance of the text’s cinematic read stems from the fact that the aforementioned materials it provides and boundaries it establishes come to fruition by way of this cinematic narration. The scenes move quickly, and the narration is thorough in its descriptions despite only describing select things. The story expects that the reader is one who can extrapolate with minimal prompt and only the bare essentials certain key concepts that trigger understandings of what is occurring. For example, when Llewelyn Moss happens upon what remains of a drug deal gone wrong, very little is said. Dialogue is sparse, and every observation Llewelyn makes is important for the reader to understand what is being seen. McCarthy manipulates the reader in a variety of subtle ways, playing on the empirical knowledge he expects of the reader, which he knows will lend the reader to make certain assumptions that drive the plot themselves. When Llewelyn reaches the site of the botched drug deal, he finds holes in all the cars, several dead Mexicans, and two dead dogs. The surface details are important, and the reader is expected to recognize that a shootout occurred. Analyzing more closely, though, one Mexican is still alive, and this leads the reader to surmise prior to seeing any drugs that the conflict is fresh. The narration also never enters characters’ minds, so the reader is responsible for understanding what characters are thinking based on their words, actions, and behaviors only. Llewelyn finds the drugs and inquires about an â€Å"à ºltima hombre,† a survivor whom he knows must have taken the money. It is from the question and Llewelyn’s subsequent actions that the reader is to surmise that he intends to find the money, which marks a critically tragic decision on Llewelyn’s part. The antagonist, Anton Chigurh, is an excellent character to observe for the analysis of how McCarthy manipulates the reader into understanding what he is trying to convey. Chigurh is a complex character with a code of ethics that one might say borders on insanity, and his sociopathic nature is much harder to communicate to the reader implicitly than explicitly. It would be easier for the writer to simply compose discursive paragraphs dedicated to the in-depth analysis of the character so that the reader can understand the character properly, but McCarthy elects only to show the character through exchanges with others and interactions with the world around him. The implied reader is not just someone familiar with problematic, North American drug policies but also with the grim perspective that North American society is rife with sociopaths and generally senseless violence, making it no country for old men. Chigurh is first seen strangling a police officer to death after having been arrested and booked. He takes the police cruiser, pulls someone else over, kills him, and takes a new car. These are crimes that can be rationalized, but Chigurh is subsequently seen throughout several scenes in the book as being completely irrational, which challenges the idea of what constitutes rationality in the first place—a challenge literary modernism often makes. One scene depicts a conversation between Chigurh and a gas station manager. Chigurh is hostile toward him in ways that do not advance any particular agenda, and he deliberately takes an argumentative response to everything the manager says. Finally, he tosses a coin and forces the manager to call heads or tails. He never explicitly threatens the man’s life, yet the reader is expected to understand that the man’s life is at stake. Though Chigurh does tell him that he stands to win everything and that he has been putting it up all his life without knowing it, it is worth considering that American culture may simply be so susceptible to the idea of losing everything on a coin toss that McCarthy could simply let these lines speak for themselves and allow the reader to draw the right conclusions from there. Capitalism, after all, engenders the attitude that privileges boldness and the ability to take risks because of its promises of the potential for upward mobility and the so-called pursuit of happiness, so it makes sense to an American that risks be taken, that every opportunity be seized, and that there is always an omnipresent possibility that one might lose everything as a result. In tandem with pop culture’s many depictions of coin tosses making very serious decisions (e.g. DC Comic’s villain, Two Face), it is likely that the implied reader is highly susceptible to this manipulation. Later in the novel, Carson Wells tells Chigurh that he is crazy, and Chigurh asks for clarification, thinking that Carson means that the conversation is crazy. At the end of the novel when Chigurh prepares to kill Carla Jean, she refuses to call heads or tails for her coin toss, explaining that the coin is not the authority and that, rather, Chigurh is making the decisions, which she asserts on the basis that only a rational creature (i.e. a human-being, not a coin) can even attempt to exact fate. Chigurh responds, though, that he reached her the same way the coin did, a point that implies a status for self that is equivalent to that of an inanimate object. The reader is constantly given one opportunity after another to observe Chigurh as being the kind of criminal of which one cannot make heads or tails; all of which makes it easy for the reader to consider society as being unpredictably, senselessly dismal and savage. A broader element that McCarthy uses to manipulate the reader is the separation of the story into pieces. The frame of the story is much different from what is considered conventional in American literature prior to the emergence of literary modernism. Three strands of the narration center on Sheriff Bell, Chigurh, and Llewelyn, respectively. Each can truly be argued to be a protagonist of sorts, even Chigurh. The fragmentation of the narration creates these pieces that are not independently coherent but interdependently form a cohesive work by commenting on one another. This is why the three characters follow a train of experiences in series. For instance, Llewelyn sees the crime scene first and makes a pivotal decision based on what he observes; thereafter, Chigurh sees the same scene and decides to pursue Llewelyn. Finally, Sheriff Bell also observes the scene. In parallel, the same can be said of Llewelyn’s couch in his trailer where each of them sits. When Bell sits there , Wendel asks him if he thinks Llewelyn has any idea what’s coming for him—alluding to his fate. Bell answers, â€Å"He ought to. He seen the same things I seen and it made a impression on me† (McCarthy 115). Several complex ideas coalesce in this statement, but one is that, on one hand, there is nothing new under the sun; however, people commonly say, â€Å"you learn something new every day.† The paradox is that one never sees fate coming for oneself despite knowing and even recognizing it for others as a universal truth—the fact that death befalls all. Ultimately, McCarthy uses exceptional narrative techniques to manipulate the implied reader into understanding what occurs, but more deeply, he uses them to manipulate the reader into accepting a very dismal perception of reality. This perception is neither without merit nor without precedent as literary realism, a common attribute of modernism, often lends itself toward these notions; moreover, the unresolved ending is a modernistic means to bolster those same points. Works Cited Dobie, Ann B. Theory into Practice: An Introduction to Literary Criticism. 4th ed. Boston: Thomson Heinle, 2015. Print. McCarthy, Cormack. No Country for Old Men. New York: Vintage Books, 2006. Ebook.