Reflective Learning Account (Ref) Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Reflective Learning Account (Ref) - Assignment Example This essay stresses that working in a team where the members have different backgrounds in terms of gender, age, ethnicity and religion can be a very hard undertaking. This is due to the fact that each member portrays a certain kind of behavior, which the other party may deem to be inappropriate. This in the long run affects the overall performance of the team. Moreover, it might cause conflicts, making it difficult to accomplish the goal and objectives that brought the team members together. To avoid such situations, the team must possess certain qualities and adopt some behaviors that will ensure that they succeed in the undertakings. The group must be made up of members who have the appropriate requirements for the projects. This paper makes a conclusion that just like in developed countries, the developing nations have embraced and incorporated IT into their practices. However, there are some challenges that continue to be experienced which impact negatively on the success of those companies using such technologies. This study on the use of ICT in an NGO in the developing world provided a clear picture on the state of the field in these areas. Among the things identified to affect the use of IT include the size of the organization, organizational overheads, different expectations on ICT infrastructure and staffing problems. Some of these problems may also be encountered in the developed nations. They must however be dealt with in time and effectively.

Postmodernism, Hyperreality and the Hegemony of Spectacle in New Hollywood Essay Example for Free

Postmodernism, Hyperreality and the Hegemony of Spectacle in New Hollywood Essay After the screening of The Matrix on its first release, a dear cousin of mine, film connoisseur and avid fan of classical movies, spontaneously made the following comment: â€Å"This is an entirely new cinema to me! † If anything, The Matrix is a clear marker of cultural change. A film with state-of-the-art production values like this is bound to elicit in us the belated realization of how slow our response has been to the cultural products of an entirely transformed film industry, that of New Hollywood. My cousin’s casual and unwitting remark reflects the embarrassment felt by both professional critic and layman alike in coping with contemporary movies, especially when we still tend to approach New Hollywood products with the standards of the Old Hollywood cinema. Because of our adherence to tradition, we still tend to look for those classical values of â€Å"development†, â€Å"coherence† and â€Å"unity† in narratives only to find with disappointment that narrative plots become thinner, that characters are reduced to one-dimensional stereotypes and that action is carried through by loosely-linked sequences, built around spectacular stunts, dazzling stars and special effects. Narrative complexity is sacrificed on the altar of spectacle† (Buckland 166) as today’s blockbusters turn out to be nothing but calculated exercises in profit-making, all high-concept, high-gloss and pure show. Similar cries of warning about the loss of narrative integrity to cinematic spectacle have been voiced at different periods, usually at times of crisis or change in the history of the American cinema. One could cite, for example, Bazin’s disdain at the â€Å"displacement of classicism† by the baroque style, marking the end of the pure phase of classical cinema. His coined term, â€Å"superwestern, †designates the â€Å"emergence of a new kind of western† (Kramer 290), that, according to Bazin, â€Å"would be ashamed to be just itself, and looks for some additional interest to justify its existence—an aesthetic, sociological, moral, psychological, political, or erotic interest† (150-1). Similarly, in 1957 Manny Farber, taking his cue from Bazin’s superwestern, laments the â€Å"disappearance of this [classical] roduction system and the closing of action-oriented neighborhood theaters in the 1950s†. He claims that directors like Howard Hawks â€Å"who had flourished in ‘a factory of unpretentious picture-making’ were pushed towards artistic self-consciousness, thematic seriousness, and big-budget spectacle â€Å"(Kramer 293, emphasis added). A decade later, Pauline Kael too expresses her fears at the disintegration of filmic narrative which she attributes to the abrasion of traditional film production in general. She laments not only the emphasis on â€Å"technique† â€Å"purely visual content,† and â€Å"open-ended, elaborate interpretations† of the experimental and innovative art film of the New American Cinema, but as Kramer puts it, she was equally critical of the experiences facilitated by Hollywood’s mainstream releases. The lack of concern for coherent storytelling on the part of producers and directors in charge of the volatile and overblown process of filmmaking was matched by the audience’s enthusiastic response to spectacular attractions and shock effects, irrespective of their degree of narrative motivation. 296) Voices of dissatisfaction were heard at another major turn in the history of Hollywood, that is in the late 1970s, when the â€Å"unprecedented box-office success of Jaws (1975) and Star Wars (1977), signaled Hollywood’s aesthetic, cultural and industrial re-orientation towards movies with more emphasis on special effects and cin ematic spectacle† (Kramer 301). Unlike the classical movies produced on the assembly line under the studio regime (films that respected narrative integrity and refined story ideas into the classical three-act of exposition, complication and resolution), the products of New Hollywood, says critic Richard Schickel, seem â€Å"to have lost or abandoned the art of narrative. [Filmmakers] are generally not refining stories at all, they are spicing up ‘concepts’ (as they like to call them), refining gimmicks, making sure there are no complexities to fur our tongue when it comes time to spread the word of mouth†(3). Contemporary cinema has come to depend so much on shrewd marketing and advertising strategies that its pictures, as Mark Crispin Miller points out, â€Å"like TV ads, aspire to a total ‘look’ and seem more designed than directed† (49). The difficulty that critics nowadays face with films like The Matrix and the new situation in Hollywood, is not only unlike the layman’s inability to assess â€Å"any recent Hollywood film as a discreet textual artifact that is either ‘better’ or ‘worse’ than the artifact produced under the studio regime,† Cook and Bernink note (99). It has also to do with regarding â€Å"the textual form of recent Hollywood as expressive of changed production circumstances that lead to a different kind of textual artifact†(ibid. ). In other words, as we move on in our globalized, high-tech age, it is becoming increasingly difficult to regard any single movie as a self-contained, autonomous text. On the contrary, as Eileen Meehan contends, it has become imperative to look upon any New Hollywood mainstream release â€Å"always and simultaneously as text and commodity, intertext and product line† (31). In order to revise our critical standards and respond effectively to the new status of the contemporary Hollywood movie, we need to grasp the dramatic changes that the American film industry has undergone in the post-classical period, which started right after World War II and culminated to a point of radical transformation in the post-1975 period, which has eventually come to best warrant the term New Hollywood. These changes have been lucidly described in a number of historiographic studies (Ray 1985, Balio 1985, 1990, Schatz 1983, 1993, Gomery 1986, Bernardoni 1991, Corrigan 1991, Hillier 1992, Wasko 1994, Kramer 1998, Neale and Smith 1998, Cook and Bernink 1999) which collectively shed ample light on the completely new situation defining New Hollywood. What has drastically changed is both the ways movies are made and the ways in which Hollywood has been doing business. After the government’s dismantling of the â€Å"vertically-integrated† studio system, the industry turned to producing and selling motion pictures on a film-by-film basis, resulting in the shift of power from studio heads to deal-makers (agents), in the rise of independent producers/directors, and in a more competitive and fragmented movie marketplace (Schatz 9). To the rise of TV and the emergence of other competing media technologies (VCRs, Cable and Satellite TV) Hollywood responded with a re-orientation towards blockbuster movies, â€Å"these high-cost, high-tech, high-stakes, multi-purpose entertainment machines that breed music videos and soundtrack albums, TV series and videocassettes, video games and theme park rides, novelizations and comic books† (Schatz 9). Despite the â€Å"increasingly fragmented but ever more expanding entertainment industry – with its demographics and target audiences, its diversified multimedia conglomerates, its global(ized) markets and new delivery systems†, the calculated blockbuster, as New Hollywood’s feature film, remains the driving force of the industry (ibid. ). This is testified by the monumental success of the blockbuster at the box-office. Schatz cites Variety’s commissioned study of the industry’s all-time commercial hits, in which only 2 movies of the classical period appear to have reached the top, whereas â€Å"90 of the top 100 hits have been produced since 1970, and all of the top 20 since Jaws in 1975†(9). The big-budget, all-star, spectacular hits of the late fifties and early sixties (such as The Ten Commandments, Ben Hur, Cleopatra, or Dr. Zhivago) have some sizable profits to show for (all in the vicinity of $25-to $50 million). By the standards of their age, they were considered colossal box-office successes; however, by today’s standards they seem quite puny contestants to the post-75 era of super-blockbusters which generate record-setting grosses, well beyond the $100 million barrier (always in constant dollars). And such a figure applies only to theatrical rentals, which accounts just for a percentage of the total revenue of a movie which also finds outlets in ancillary markets. he industry’s spectacular growth and expansion (its horizontal integration) is to a great extent owing to the take-over of the majors (Paramount, Fox, Columbia, MCA/Universal) by huge media empires (Warner/Time Communications, Murdoch’s News Corporations, Sony, Matsushita, respectively) forming multimedia conglomerates with diverse interests in the domestic and the global market, with holdings in movies, TV production, cable, records, book and magazine publications, video games, theme parks, consumer electron ics (both software and hardware). These huge corporations provide financial muscle for the multi-million production budgets of the blockbusters (since the production costs have themselves sky-rocketed), but also market muscle for promotion. Marketing and advertising strategies have been the key to the unprecedented success of the New Hollywood movie since Jaws: through pre-selling, usually cashing in on the popularity of a novel published prior to production, a movie becomes a media â€Å"event† by heavy advertising on prime-time TV and the press, as well as by the massive simultaneous release in thousands of mall-based multiplex theaters. Calculated blockbuster productions are carefully designed to ensure the greatest potential profit not only through extended theatrical rental (sequels, re-issues, remakes, director’s cut), but also though capitalization in ancillary markets: soon the movie will come out on videocassette, audio-cassette, novel, computer game, and the increasingly popular since the mid-nineties, DVD, let alone an extended market career through by-products ranging from the CD movie soundtrack to T-shirts and toys, which contribute to the impressive surge in profits. It becomes obvious thus why contemporary movies cannot be conceived of as individual entities and cannot be separately examined from their economic intertext that renders them part (or rather the driving belt) of a larger entertainment machine and advertising campaign. Expensive blockbusters, which in the early days of the post-classical period were the exception and now, as Schatz states, have become the rule, â€Å"are the central output of modern Hollywood. But what, aside from costs, are their dominant characteristics? How are they able to attract, engage and entertain millions of people? asks Warren Buckland (166). The blockbuster syndrome has also changed the movies’ mode of address. Designed around a main idea, what is called â€Å"high concept†, a blockbuster becomes increasingly plot-driven, increasingly visceral, kinetic, fast-paced, increasingly reliant on special effects, increasingly â€Å"fantastic† (and thus apolitical), and increasingly targeted at younger audiences. And significantly enough, the lack of complex characters or plot [as for example] in Star Wars opens the film to other possibilities, notably its amalgamation of genre conventions and its elaborate play of cinematic references. But while these movies enjoy a great popularity among younger audiences, as their huge box-office success indicates, the loss of narrative integrity to spectacle, and the sense of escapism and triviality usually associated with high-gloss, star glamour and dumb show, has driven most academics or old-cinema cinephiles to summarily shun or dismiss blockbusters as merely calculated exercises in shameless profiteering. Warren Buckland thinks that these arguments about the loss of narrative potential in the contemporary feature film are overstated and attempts to reverse the â€Å"unhelpful and hostile evaluative stance† (167) of the critics towards the blockbuster. Focusing on a typical action-adventure blockbuster, Spielberg’s Raiders of the Lost Arc heproposes adopting an analytical and descriptive approach to these films, an approach dubbed by Bordwell and Thompson â€Å"historical oetics. † Part of the argument he makes is that â€Å"historical poetics† can account for the popularity of movies with such a broad appeal (and allows us to take them seriously as aesthetic, cultural objects) â€Å"especially because movies are examined in terms of their individuality, including their response to their historical moment, in which style and composition respond to the historical questions posed in the culture in which the film is made† (168-169). In other words, the issue is not so much about the so-called death of narrative—because narrative is still alive and well—but the emergence of a new kind of narrative, whose meaning is conveyed not through traditional narration but by emphasis on spectacle and the visual impact of the pictures which provide additional narrative pleasure and have changed the patterns of viewer response. Thus Buckland’s concluding remark that â€Å"it is perhaps time to stop condemning the New Hollywood blockbuster and to start, instead, to understand it,† carries more merit than we have been ready to admit. My intention in this essay is to extend the argument about the narrative/ spectacle issue in the direction suggested by Buckland, but within a wider, cultural perspective. The supremacy of the visual and the spectacular over traditional narration in the textual form of contemporary movies is not only expressive of the changed production values and the text’s signifying practices; it is also reflective of the changed cultural patterns and lifestyle habits in postmodernity. Classical cinema favored traditional storytelling because it provided a univocal interpretation of life and reflected a uniformity in entertainment habits: cinema was the predominant form of entertainment, as â€Å"the movies attracted 83 cents of every U. S. dollar spent on recreation† (Ray 26). Its nineties counterpart, with its emphasis on the sensational and the spectacular, on episodic action and generic diversification, is a postmodern cinema entertaining the possibility of multiple signification and the hyperreality of the visual, subject to an increasing commodified experience. As Anne Friedberg puts it, â€Å"today the culture industry takes on different forms: Domestic electronics (fax, modems, cable television) follow the interactive model of dialogic telephone communications. The personal computer turns the home user into a desktop publisher, the microwave turns every cook into an instant gourmet, the Walkman transforms each listener into a radio programmer. Both production and reception have been individualized; the culture industry no longer speaks in a univocal, monolithic voice. 189) This proliferation of entertainment venues offered to the individual points to a general malaise often regarded as the central feature of postmodernism, what Featherstone terms â€Å"the fragmentation and overproduction of culture—the key-feature of consumer culture† (76). As Jameson says, â€Å"in postmodern culture, ‘culture’ itself has become a product in its own right; the market has become a substitute for itself and fully as much a commodity as any of the items it includes within itself† (1991 x). In the â€Å"cultural logics of late capitalism,† Jameson’s code-phrase for postmodernity, what is commodified is not simply the image, which has acquired central role in contemporary culture but lived experience itself. As Guy Debord diagnoses in The Society of the Spectacle, â€Å"everything that was lived directly has moved away into a representation (1983 np). Baudrillard, as Friedberg notes, also talks about â€Å"the same phenomenon—representation of the thing replacing the thing—and extends it into a mise-en- abime of the ‘hyperreal,’ where signs refer only to signs. Hyperreality is not just an inverted relation of sign and signifier, but one of receding reference, a deterrence operation in the signifying chain†(178). A part in this process of the commodification of the sign and the derealization of the real has been played by media technologies, especially electronics, as Vivian Sobchack points out: The postmodern and electronic â€Å"instant† constitutes a form of absolute presence (one abstracted from the continuity that gives meaning to the system past/present/future) and changes the nature of the space it occupies. Without the temporal emphases of historical consciousness and personal history, space becomes abstract, ungrounded, flat—a site for play and display rather than an invested situation in which action â€Å"counts† rather than computes. Such a superficial space can no longer hold the spectator/ user’s interest, but has to stimulate it constantly in the same way a video game does. Its flatness—a function of its lack of temporal thickness and bodily investment—has to attract spectator interest at the surface. In an important sense, electronic space disembodies.

Types Of Computer Typology Computer Science Essay

Types Of Computer Typology Computer Science Essay Computers that function alone without a connect to another computer called a stand-alone. Network is a way of connecting one computer to another computer using the cable and network card, and controlled through a network operating system. The user can exchange data or programs, and to use the data or programs together in the same time. If one computer to crash, its work could be taken over by another computer. Network topology refers to how computers are connected in the mapping. Network topology is divided into two types physical topology and logical topology. Physical topology of a network refers to configuration available on cable, computers and other peripherals. Logical topology is also the method used to transfer information or information on a computer maintained between one other computers in the workstation. Here are there some types of topologies which are Bus network, Star network, Ring network and Tree network. MAIN BODY  ¿Ã‚ ½Network topology is the layout pattern of interconnections of the various elements links, nodes, etc.of a computer network.Network topologies may be physical or logical. Physical topology means the physical design of a network including the devices, location and cable installation ¿Ã‚ ½ [2]. Bus topology, also known as Ethernet using a line length in which each node in relation to that. ¿Ã‚ ½ A bus topology uses a linear segment of cable to connect all network devices. Devices typically connect to the bus the cable through T-connectors ¿Ã‚ ½ [4].Data will be sent by each node in the hope that it does not collide with data transmitted from other nodes. If it happens, the node will try again until successful. The weakness of this bus topology in terms of maintenance. It is quite difficult to maintain because the connection is in serial form. If something went wrong on any line at any node, it will cause the entire system will not work. In addition to accurately detect nod al points or damaged. Each node can be connected to the network and can also be removed at any time without affecting the whole system directly. Furthermore, if one node does not work it would not affect other computer networks. Another advantage is there in this topology is that it uses a single cable and requires no additional hardware for establishing networks. But it does not require a very high cost for maintenance purposes. Excess computer or other devices are easily connected to the main cable. Requires a smaller quantity of cable than the star topology. The disadvantages of this topology are the entire network can not function if there are problems with the main cable. Finish line or device terminators are required on both ends of the cable backbone. It is difficult to detect if the entire network does not work. Not suitable if only the topology is only within a building. Star topology is a network system in which all the computers or other devices may be connected to a central distribution system known as the Hub or Switch. Hub or Switch is responsible for managing the computer network. All messages or data that is sent to a central control hub for avoid collisions from happening. There are two operations that used by the hub or switch that is operating broadcast and the shift operation switching. The distribution operations, hub or switch will make the transmission of data received from one station to all the routes connecting them. In the transition operation, the hub or switch will store the data received and sent data via the receiving station route. Each node can be connected to the network and can also be removed at any time without affecting the whole system of directly. Furthermore, if one node does not work, it also will not affect other computer networks. Any damage to the connection between the hub nodes will not affect the overall system, but if the damage occurred at the hub, the entire system will also be affected. The main drawback of this topology is that it requires a fairly high cost in view of all systems connected to it computers, scanners, printers, and many more requires a separate cable. Advantages of star topology are the installation and connection tools. The process of installing or removing any additional devices that are involved will not interfere with the network system. Any damage to the network system can be detected more easily and quickly. The disadvantages of this topology is requires more cable length than a linear bus topology. If the hub is damaged, all the nodes can not function in the network system. Higher costs when compared to linear bus topology Ring topology or a ring connecting all nodes such as a circular chain ring. Messages or data to be transferred in order according to the same route in the same ring. Each data node will be checked by delivery location. If not equal to the node through which it passes, it will be submitted to the next node and this will continue until the delivery address the same node strike. Since the data is transferred by the same route in the sequence, the possibility for data breaches seem to be similar to the network and can also be removed at any time without affecting the whole system of directly. But one problem is that if one node fails, the whole network system may be similarly affected. The composition of the nodes in this topology is almost the same physically as the star topology, logically is just a ring-shaped. The attachment is required in this topology is called Multi Station Access Unit (MSAU). MSAU is mounted in a ring-shaped network where it is more than one unit. If only one uni t only used the physical topology is similar to the star connection. The advantages of this topology are cable fault are easily located making trouble shooting easier. Ring networks are moderately easy to install. The disadvantages are expansion to the network can cause network disruption. A single break in the cable can disrupt three entire networks. Among all the network topology we can find that the tree topology is a combination of bus and Star Topology. The tree like structure allows you to have multiple servers in the network and you can branch network in many ways. This is especially useful for colleges, universities and schools so that each branch to identify the relevant system within their own network and not connected to a large network in several ways. Tree structure most appropriate when the network is widespread and highly divided into many branches. As with other topologies, tree topologies have advantages and disadvantages. Tree networks may not be suitable to small networks and cable may be a waste to use it for a small network. Tree Topology has some limitations and the limitations of the configuration should be appropriate. The advantages of this topology are Tree topology is supported by many vendors and even advertising network hardware vendor. Point A to point connections is possible with the Tree Networks. All computers have access to their network larger and more immediate. The best topology for the branch network. Tree Topology Limitations in a long-range network topology depends on the type of cable being used. Tree Network Topology is completely dependent on the stem, which is the main backbone of the network. If that fails then the entire network will fail because the network topology is difficult to provide a large tree and can get complicated after a certain point. This tree topology to follow a hierarchical pattern in which each stage is connected to the next higher level in symmetrical patterns. Each level in the hierarchy to follow a certain pattern in the connecting node. As the top level may be only one node or two nodes below the level of the hierarchy and probably a few more points to work on point to point connectivity, and a third level also has a pattern of asymmetric node to node and each of these levels are associated with root level in the hierarchy . Think of tree branches in various directions and all the branches and trunk of the tree roots need to survive. A tree structured network is very similar to this and that is called the Topology Tree. The signal being sent by the root node is received by all nodes at the same time. This improves the efficiency of all network functions. Network topology tree can be updated easily work and theres no limit to how much can be renewed. Additional root node can be added and they can be interlinked in a single network. CONCLUSION In the field of information technology, network is a series of points or nodes interconnected by communication paths. Networks can link with other networks and contain subnetworks.The most common topology or general configurations of networks include bus, star, ring, symbolic, and network topologies. It can also be characterized by networks in terms of spatial distance and local area networks (LANs), metropolitan area networks (MAN) and wide area networks (WANs). Network systems and network architecture, by whether it carries voice, data, or both types of signals; that could be that those who use the network public or private, by the nature of the usual links dial-up or switch, or a custom no switched, or virtual connections and the types of physical links for example, fiber optic and coaxial cables, open and twisted pair. Phone networks and large networks using the infrastructure such as the Internet have sharing and exchange arrangements with other companies so as to create larger networks

The Ground Work Trust :: Papers

The Ground Work Trust The first Groundwork Trust was established 21 years ago on Merseyside. Seventeen years later, there are 44 independent Groundwork companies all over England, Wales and Northern Ireland, each with charitable objectives to bring social and economic regeneration into areas of need. The Groundwork approach has also been adopted in Japan and the USA where the National Park Service is supporting a growing number of Trusts. Groundwork's purpose is "to build sustainable communities through joint environmental action". They do this by getting residents, businesses and other local organisations involved in practical projects that improve the quality of life, bring about regeneration and lay the foundations for sustainable development . The Projects of the Ground Work Trust aim to improve things in three ways: - creating opportunities for people to learn new skills and take local action - creating better, safer and healthier neighbourhoods - helping businesses and individuals fulfill their potential The Groundwork Trust recognises that people, places Photo - Communitiesand (www.Groundwork.org.uk ) prosperity are inextricably linked and so aims to design projects that bring benefits for all three at once. They believe this integrated approach is vital if we are to bring about sustainable development - 'meeting the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs' In 2000-2001 Groundwork spent  £76 million on practical regeneration projects. We received money from the following sources: * UKGovernment and national assemblies* -  £14.2 million (18%) * Private sector -  £16.5 million (22%) * Local authorities -  £13.3 million (17%) * European Union -  £10.7 million (14%) * National Lottery -  £6.2 million (8%) * Other regeneration funding (RDAs, SRB etc) -  £16.3 million (21%) Last year Groundwork received a central grant of  £7.7 million from the Department of Transport, Local Government and the Regions (DTLR). The money was spent as follows: * Physical environmental improvements -  £44 million (58%)

The Balek Scales: a Measurement of Injustice

The story â€Å"The Balek Scales† by Heinrich Bà ¶ll tells the experience of the narrator’s grandfather in the village upon which the Balek family had a firm grip. The Balek family, later known as Balek von Biligan, is part of the elite class, as the following quote describes: â€Å"the family who lived in the chateau and drove two carriages, who always maintained one boy from the village while he studied theology at the seminary in Prague† (Bà ¶ll 15-16).There are a lot more details, but given the following quotation, they can be seen as a prominent family from the elite class (Bà ¶ll 16). The scales—known as the Balek scales in the story—are the Baleks’ tool for trading mushrooms, herbs, and other tradable goods for money—marks and pfennigs. No one ever questions their sole possession of the scales.However, the narrator’s grandfather, Franz Brà ¼cher, discovers injustice within the measurement of the Balek scales. Even wit h this evidence, the efforts of villagers to seek justice are thwarted by the power and influence of the Balek von Biligan family, which Bà ¶ll portrays as a classic battle between the working and elite classes in â€Å"The Balek Scales.†Injustice is the recurring theme in the story as the Balek scales—the scales of justice for the villagers—favor the Balek von Biligan clan, as the story suggests in the following lines: â€Å"he pulled the five pebbles from his pocket, held them out to the young woman, and said, ‘This much, fifty-five grams, is short in every pound of your justice’† (Bà ¶ll 16).As the line states, the injustice that the narrator’s grandfather claims in front of Frau Balek von Biligan is the unequal or unfair measurement that the scales present for their foraged goods—mushrooms, herbs, and the like. Inevitably, the injustice results in a short bloody revolt with the Reeve’s gendarmes overpowering the pop ulation.Then everything goes back to normal, with the Balek von Biligan clan still on the driver seat—in control. The power of the Baleks is too strong for Franz Brà ¼cher’s, whose search for justice is seen as a futile attempt to overthrow the seemingly unfair rule of the Baleks over the village.Looking at it from a different angle, the village, along with the other two villages, could have avoided the short bloody revolt if Franz Brà ¼cher remained oblivious to the injustice that the Balek scales represented.Upon confronting this injustice, Franz experiences some tragic events, as stated in the following lines: â€Å"the reeve’s gendarmes arrived†¦shooting and stabbing as they came and removed the scales and the book by force. My grandfather’s little sister lost her life,† (Bà ¶ll 16-17) and â€Å"My grandfather’s parents had to leave the village, and the new grave of their little daughter† (Bà ¶ll 17).Franz Brà ¼cher expe riences two tragic moments in his lifetime which were caused by the Balek scales. These were his little sister’s death and their family’s constant migration. This could have been avoided by Franz if he remained ignorant to the injustice mentioned.A classic battle between the bourgeoisie and the proletariat classes unfolds in the story of The Balek Scale. Relating the story to the social divisions of society, it is a fact—always has been—that the rich have control over those who are not because of the wealth they possess and their strong influence over the government; at least a portion of it is attracted to the wealthy of prominent families like the Baleks in the story.The scales of the story represent the injustice in the society—they favor the rich over the poor most of the time anyway. The scales may actually represent the justice system in society as they can sometimes be distorted in favor of those with money. The story represents this illness that is quite evident in past societies, as well as in today’s society. Regardless of how strong is the resolve of the acting â€Å"hero† or â€Å"deliverer of justice,† his efforts are usually just futile.Thus, the story entails a classic battle between the rich and the poor. This battle is always intensified by a mere claim for an injustice brought about by the rich, supposedly, which affects the poor many times over. As the following quotation suggests, the injustice that Franz Brà ¼cher and his family experience in the village is actually present in every place they went to: â€Å"but did not stay long anywhere because it pained them to see how everywhere the finger of justice swung falsely† (Bà ¶ll 17).This clearly shows how injustice is present everywhere and how great is its effect on those who are least fortunate—the poor. It will surely take a long time to cure this illness of society because those who know about this injustice remain o blivious to its presence in society; they are just watching it eat away the true concept of justice.The last two lines in the story are probably the most striking as the Brà ¼cher family and many others realize the gravity of injustice in society: â€Å"And those who wanted to listen can hear the tale of the Baleks von Biligan, whose justice lacked a tenth part. But there were few who listened† (Bà ¶ll 17). In this line, those who receive the painful end of the spear of injustice find it futile to express to the suffering they are feeling caused by the injustice. It is futile because rarely do people listen to their woes and cries for justice.Hardly anyone listens to them because of their place in society as the poor working class—during that time, the poor do not seem to have a strong voice in society. The rich and powerful simply have control over most of them. Any revolt or uprising seems to be thwarted most of the time; however, there are times when a revolt beco mes successful.Heinrich Bà ¶ll’s stor,y The Balek Scales, entails a seemingly unending battle between the rich and the poor as the latter would usually rise against the injustices that the former inflicts upon them and the society. However, it seems that the rich are too powerful and influential to be folded easily. It remains uncertain for the tide of this epic battle to change as many still remain oblivious to the injustices that occur within society.Work CitedBà ¶ll, Heinrich. â€Å"The Balek Scales.† A Walk in my World: International Short Stories about Youth. Eds. Anne Mazer. New York: Persea Books, 2000. 9–17.

International Management Group

International Management Group International Management Group is a business venture that was rapidly expanding with Southeast Asia being its latest phase of tremendous growth. Its founder and president Mark McCormack was reflecting on the journey the company had taken to become one of the most popular group in the entire globe.Advertising We will write a custom case study sample on International Management Group specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More As for the year 2000, the corporation’s market value of American sports stood at $200 billion and with this making it the nation’s eleventh largest industry. Among IMGs achievements was the fact that the business was a representative of talented and powerful athletes. These include tennis players Venus and Serena Williams and golf superstar Tiger Woods. In an effort to develop, the company had ventured in to other kinds of business such as owning and managing sporting events, television production, operating sp orts training academies, and engaging in other businesses apart from sports related ones. At the age, of 71 years, McCormack was on the verge of preparing for retirement, but, this was not the main issue at hand. The first issue was for the founder and president of IMG- McCormack to prepare the following board on ways to add value to the company’s clients and strengthen the company’s competitive position. The company having already broadened its scope of business the next crucial step is to maintain and preserve the current clients. At the same, the business needs to attract more top talent to the business. The new leadership that will come in place together with the current administration should focus on bringing on board more sports celebrities. This recruitment will be an indication of their excellent work and development. For instance, bringing on board other top golfers aside from Tiger Woods will be beneficial to the company, as it will enhance their credentials. Sports and musical fields are areas that grow with time meaning that today Tiger Woods could be the greatest golfer, but, in the next two years, someone else will have the title. Having some top golfers on board will broaden their scope of activities and, therefore, maintain the company on the market. On the other hand, restricting the size and diversity of IMG’s portfolio will only work against the company’s already popular name.Advertising Looking for case study on business economics? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More There are several competitors in the sports market for instance; the formation of Octagon was through merger of Advantage and API and its time IMG cemented its roots by employing various management tools. For instance, re- structuring the company’s management team will help boost the business’s idea, as most people will be on the management board. Since the business is focu sing on expansion and growth through venturing in to other businesses, it is essential that it consider obtaining highly trained and experienced specialists who will be responsible for guiding the business team in the other areas of business. For instance, the thought of venturing in to a new sport apart from golf and tennis will call for experienced people in those fields that the founder McCormack is not familiar. The employment of experienced people will minimize cases of agents stealing clients, as was the case in 1999 when agent Jeffrey Schwartz quit IMG and left with three tennis stars. Experienced legal firms with specialization in entertainment and sports contracts would have been critical in the above situation. The re-structuring of the business management will allow other people to contribute towards the administration of the business and avoid the aspect of the company trying to work out everything on its own. In as much as the venturing into other sports is a questionab le step, the company will take necessary measures to ensure there is no divergence of interests in its services. This will avoid cases such as the 1991 lawsuit by Dorothy Hamill. The expansion approach that the IMG has taken by exploring untapped international market in sports and entertainment will sustain the company in the business for another longer period. The broader the business it enters in the international market the more they require highly trained and experienced specialists to help them handle the international business affairs.