Letter assignment Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Letter assignment - Essay Example Fear is one of the emotions regularly observed with Nell since the first day we saw her. It should not be considered unhealthy or abnormal for her to feel fear. Any creation with normal instincts would feel fear of the unknown. A domesticated animal would feel fear when set out in the wild on its own. Fear is what provokes Nell to attack sometimes, which should again be considered normal and healthy. Any wild animal would attack when it feels cornered or endangered. It is the survival instinct embedded in the brain for self-preservation. We never consider those animals abnormal. Nor did we consider to lock up those animals because they pose danger to others. And since Nell displays the ability to be tamed and comforted even when scared, and reacts appropriately and in a timely manner to basic human gestures of comforting and appeasing --- which I firmly believe prove that her logic is working properly --- I would conclude that Nell is very much worthy to be allowed freedom to interac t with regular society. Another fact that I would like to dispute is the perception of Nell being mentally retarded. She is not mentally retarded. She was raised in a retarded environment. Her knowledge is parallel to what she was exposed to since birth. Being mentally retarded is the inability of the brain to cope up with everything presented to it. To consider Nell to be mentally retarded is similar to considering tribesmen as same. We cannot claim retardation to people just because they do not seem to understand nor fit in to what most people deem as normal society. We must also look into their ability to cope up when presented with a different scenario. Nell’s reactions to the novelty of things presented to her were similar to that of tribesmen --- fearful, curious, willing to understand and be understood. It should also be noted that for the past few months that Nell was exposed to our regular society, she adapted wonderfully. Sure she did weird

Communispace Essay Example for Free

Communispace Essay Communispace offers a unique process for administering market research. It offers a view into the minds of the customers of a brand by building brand-focused online communities in order to enable members to communicate with each other and generate focus groups to discuss the product. A community is built as a long-term project; it continues to produce valuable information for companies over the course of its existence. The business model utilized by Communispace helps to provide facilitation and management powered by technology and innovation. Communispace differentiates itself by focusing on the strategy of building online communities that act as an invaluable resource for testing ideas, generating feedback and exploring customers mindsets. Communispace can begin its analysis within 24 hours of launching an online community as it reaches out to a particular subset of people that would be most interested in commenting on and speaking about a particular product. A Word of Mouth campaign utilizes a different strategy. A targeted community would receive the product in the mail and would then ideally spread word around about the product to friends and neighbors. This campaign, while a beneficial tool for market research, was not a tool that Communispace utilized. There were many competitors that were better at this method. Simmons is a highly recognized FMCG company holding 20 brands that are found in over 95% of US households. Simmons wanted to promote its new organic product for weight conscious consumers via Communispace using word-of-mouth. The business problem being faced by Communispace was that it could not determine whether it would be undermining its strengths and strategy by taking this type of project or whether it would be detrimental to turn such an influential client down. The case states the communities are built on the foundations of sense of trust and the feeling that their contributions are really making a difference for the company. Communispace built its business on a strategy that reached potential customers by building online communities and did not serve the purpose of receiving a free product and talking about it outside the community. As Julie Wittes Schlack, Senior Vice President of Innovation and Design and a cofounder of Communispace points out in the case, the company’s growth depended solely on its core competency. Moreover, due to low entry to barrier into this particular arena of market research, there were many other competitors that had built their competitive advantage on doing word of mouth campaigns. So another problem that Communispace would be to weigh the options of benefits gained by entering into this WOM arena where they have no real advantage versus the damage they might incur by compromising on their core competency. In my opinion, Communispace should focus on the strategy that has defined them and not sacrifice their identity and corporate strategy. From the success and expansion of Communispace it is clear that they have gotten their process for building communities down to a science, thus allowing companies to not only to listen, but learn. Flipping this model on its head not only would completely alter the process in which companies engage in with their community, but it would also make for a far less exact science in what Communispace does? Moreover, word of mouth is something that can’t be manufactured to find success repeatedly, rather it should happen organically and not by force. Hence, making that a core competence for Communispace would prove exceedingly difficult because it is difficult to draw the valuation of a successful WOM and then repeatedly recreate its success. That is how would Communispace measure the effectiveness of the WOM campaigns? In the present scenario, they can provide their clients with reports and analysis on the conversations in the community, but how would they measure how effective their members are outside the community? Though advertising and creative marketing campaigns can spur word of mouth, a community approach would seem as a dishonest approach with a possibility of no results or backfiring on the credibility of the community. This, in turn would hamper the reputation that Communispace enjoys and might be detrimental to its social health in the long run as it would incite distrust amongst its community members which might lead to loss of present clients. The intense competition that Communispace will face, the potential loss of credibility of community members when they understand that the community is only for advertisement and the short-lived nature of WOM campaigns, hence, the campaign-fuelled business can undermine the long-time subscription model are reasons that support the decision to stick to their core services and not digress into an arena that utilises a model that is completely dissimilar to Communispace’s original one.

Genetic Engineering: There is No Genetic Definition of Humanity Essay

With advances in genetics and the decryption of the human genome, many people are taking the time to sit back and ponder the questions of what humanity is and where it comes from.1 Will techniques such as gene therapy eventually create people who aren't quite human? If humanity is a flexible and ever-changing concept, then how do people know if they are human? Does some standard measure of humanity seem likely in our future, and is it even ethically proper to impose such a standard? Philosophy offers the most satisfying definition of humanity: a human person is a conscious individual who interacts with an outside world. The details of the various philosophical debates on the exact nature of personhood would be enough to fill a library, but the main ideas can be summarized as follows: a person is self-aware, having the ability to think about thinking. Nothing in this definition of humanity involves matters of genetics or quantitative analyses of specific traits, which makes this definition applicable to people who may not be human in the way science tries to define the term. Defining humanity in a scientific sense, however, is a nettled endeavor. Many "strictly human" traits can be found in animals. Wolves have a complex social structure. Bonobos, a subspecies of chimpanzee, can learn an abstract symbol-language and show the ability to understand grammar and syntax.2 In other experiments dolphins-who are genetically more distant from humans than bonobos-learned a type of sign language showing that they, too, are able to grasp complex rules of language.3 One only has to yell at the family dog to see that animals can express emotion and empathy. What, then, is left to humans? Many point to our advanced technology as proof... ... 1. This paper was originally written for the course, "Human Genetics, Society, and Ethics," held at Washington College, Chestertown, Maryland. 2. Robert A. Baron, Psychology 5th ed. (Boston: Allyn and Bacon, 2000). 3. Baron. 4. N. A. Campbell, J. B. Reece, and L. G. Mitchell, Biology 5th ed., (New York: Addison Wesley Longman, 1999). 5. Matt Ridley, Genome: The Autobiography of a Species in 23 Chapters (New York: HarperCollins Publishers, 1999) 24. 6. Ibid. 7. Baron. 8. Ridley, 24. 9. Ibid. 10. Campbell et al., 446. Bibliography Baron, Robert. A. Psychology. 5th ed. Boston: Allyn and Bacon, 2000. Campbell, N. A., J. B. Reece, and L. G. Mitchell. Biology. 5th ed. New York: Addison Wesley Longman, 1999. Ridley, Matt. Genome: The Autobiography of a Species in 23 Chapters. New York: HarperCollins Publishers, 1999.

Fast Food Thesis

CHAPTER I PROBLEM AND ITS SETTING INTRODUCTION Like every other country, the food industry has flourished very well in the Philippines. Filipinos especially students love to eat and that’s the reason why you will see a lot of restaurants and fast foods restaurants scattered in the cities. These restaurants and fast food can be local or international food chains. Filipino food and chefs are considered one of the best in the world. It is hardly surprising that Filipino food is often labelled as somewhat strange (like the ‘’balut’’ for example) but in its own way, its food is a unique mixture of eastern and western cuisines and reflects the history of Philippines. The Filipino food includes dishes and cooking procedures from China, Spain, Mexico, United States, and more recently from further abroad. â€Å"Fast food† generally refers to the type of restaurants that sell quick, inexpensive take-out food. During a relatively brief period of time, the fast food industry has helped to transform not only diet, but also landscape, economy, workforce, and popular culture. The extraordinary growth of the fast food industry has been obsessed by fundamental changes in society. The whole experience of buying fast food has become so habitual, that it is now taken for granted, like brushing your teeth or stopping for a red light. However, what makes them Filipino is the history and society that introduced and adapted them. The people who turned them to their tastes and accepted them into their homes and restaurants, and specially the harmonizing culture that combined them into modern Filipinos fare. Students preferred some of the most popular fast food chains in the Philippines and these are Jollibee, Mcdonald, KFC, Chowking, Mang Inasal and many more and we wonder why? BACKGROUND OF THE STUDY The Fast food industry is popular all over the Philippines, the source of its innovation and many major fast food chains are based. The presence of multi-national fast food chains like McDonalds, KFC, Pizza Hut, Jollibee, Greenwich and many more have somewhat catered to the high income segment therefore developing a niche as upscale fast food chains. The development in the nutrition industry and technologies had a great contribution to the quick development of the fast food nutrition system. Such developments have changed the nutrition habits and preferences of people. Additionally, fast food chains are not the only or even the primary source of fast food in the Philippines. Many local chains have developed to compete with other popular fast food chains and provide menu items that appeal to the unique tastes and habits at comparatively low costs. STATEMENT OF THE PROBLEM The purpose of this study is to identify the most well-liked fast food chains here in the country. The purpose of the study is to answer these following questions: 1. What is the demographic profile of our respondents? 2. What promotional channels are used by food marketers to reach children or students? 3. If food promotion is shown to have an effect, what is the extent of this influence relative to other factors? 4. What is the most prefer fast food chains of Grade 10 students in Sacred Heart College? SIGNIFICANCE OF THE STUDY This research study was conducted to provide helpful ideas, concepts, and information to the following: Students This research study will help students to identify their type of fast food according to their taste and budget. Parents This research study will help the parents to aid their child better in terms of their health and other nutrition facts coming from fast food chains. Fast Food Restaurant Owners This research will also help owners of different fast food chains to identify their strengths and weaknesses when it comes to serving food to their student customers. SCOPE AND DELIMITATION The study covered by our group is all about the children/students who prefer fast food chains and if the foods that they eat are healthy. These fast food chains target the minorities and teenagers. DEFINITION OF TERMS Fast food – food that is a take-out restaurant that is quick, convenient, and usually cheap. Demographic Profile-Information about the population of a particular place, how much they earn, spend. Respondents-a group of specific  persons  who  responds  or  makes  reply. Promotions-Generally, promotion is communicating with the public in an attempt to influence them toward buying your products and/or services.

Concept of Phytoremediation

In recent years it has become clear that some environmental chemicals can cause risks to the developing embryo and fetus. Evaluating the developmental toxicity of environmental chemicals is now a prominent public health concern. The suspected association between TCE and congenital cardiac malformations warrants special attention because TCE is a common drinking water contaminant that is detected in water supplies throughout the U.S. and the world. There is a lot of concern about the clean up of toxic pollutants from the environment. Traditional methods for cleaning up contaminated sites such as dig and haul, pump and treat, soil venting, air sparging and others are generally harmful to habitats. Some methods strip the soil of vital nutrients and microorganisms, so nothing can grow on the site, even if it has been decontaminated. Typically these mechanical methods are also very expensive. Most of the remediation technologies that are currently in use are very expensive, relatively inefficient and generate a lot of waste, to be disposed of. Phytoremediation is a novel, efficient, environmentally friendly, low-cost technology, which uses plants and trees to clean up soil and water contaminated with heavy metals and/or organic contaminants such as solvents, crude oil, polyaromatic hydrocarbons and other toxic compounds from contaminated environments. This technology is useful for soil and water remediation. Phytoremediation uses one basic concept: the plant takes the pollutant through the roots. The pollutant can be stored in the plant (phytoextraction), volatized by the plant (phytovolatization), metabolized by the plant (phytodegradation), or any combination of the above. Phytoextraction is the uptake and storage of pollutants in the plants stem or leaves. Some plants, called hyperaccumulators, draw pollutants through the roots. After the pollutants accumulate in the stem and leaves the plants are harvested. Then plants can be either burned or sold. Even if the plants cannot be used, incineration and disposal of the plants is still cheaper than traditional remediation methods. As a comparison, it is estimated a site containing 5000 tons of contaminated soil will produce only 20-30 tons of ash (Black, 1995). This method is particularly useful when remediating metals. Some metals are also being recycled from the ash. Phytovolatization is the uptake and vaporization of pollutants by a plant. This mechanism takes a solid or liquid contaminant and transforms it to an airborne vapor. The vapor can either be the pure pollutant, or the plant can metabolize the pollutant before it is vaporized, as in the case of mercury, lead and selenium (Boyajian and Carriera, 1997; Black, 1995; Wantanbe, 1997). Phytodegradation is plants metabolizing pollutants. After the contaminant has been drawn into the plant, it assimilates into plant tissue, where the plant then degrades the pollutant. This metabolization by plant-derived enzymes such as nitrosedictase, laccase, dehalogenase, and nitrilase assimilates into plant tissue, where the plant then degrades the pollutant. This metabolization by plant-derived enzymes such as nitroredictase, laccase, dehalogenase, and nitrilase, has yet to be fully documented, but has been demonstrated in field studies (Boyajian and Carriera, 1997). The daughter compounds can be either volatized or stored in the plant. If the daughter compounds are relatively benign, the plants can still be used in traditional applications. The most effective current phytoremediation sites in practice combine these three mechanisms to clean up a site. For example, poplar trees can accumulate, degrade and volatize the pollutants in the remediation of organics. Phytoremediation is more than just planting and letting the foliage grow; the site must be engineered to prevent erosion and flooding and maximize pollutant uptake. There are 3 main planting techniques for phytoremediation. 1.Growing plants on the land, like crops. This technique is most useful when the contaminant is within the plant root zone, typically 3 – 6 feet (Ecological Engineering, 1997), or the tree root zone, typically 10-15 feet. 2.Growing plants in water (aquaculture). Water from deeper aquifers can be pumped out of the ground and circulated through a â€Å"reactor† of plants and then used in an application where it is returned to the earth (e.g. irrigation) 3.Growing trees on the land and constructing wells through which tree roots can grow. This method can remediate deeper aquifers in-situ. The wells provide an artery for tree roots to grow toward the water and form a root system in the capillary fringe. The majority of current research in the phytoremediation field revolves around determining which plant works most efficiently in a given application. Not all plant species will metabolize, volatize, and/or accumulate pollutants in the same manner. The goal is to ascertain which plants are most effective at remediating a given pollutant. Research has yielded some general guidelines for groundwater phytoremediation plants. The plant must grow quickly and consume large quantities of water in a short time. A good plant would also be able to remediate more than one pollutant because pollution rarely occurs as a single compound. Poplars and cottonwoods are being studied extensively because they can used as much as 25 to 350 gallons of water per day, and they can remediate a wide variety of organic compounds, including LNAPL’s. Phytoremediation has been shown to work on metals and moderately hydrophobic compounds such as BTEX compounds, chlorinated solvents, ammunition wastes, and nitrogen compounds. Yellow poplars are generally favored by Environmental Scientists for use in phytoremediation at this time. They can grow up to 15 feet per year and absorb 25 gallons of water a day. They have an extensive root system, and are resistant to everything from gypsy moths to toxic wastes. Partial listing of current remediation possibilities. Plant Chemicals Clean-up numbers Pondweed TNT & RDX 0.016-0.019 mg of TNT L per day Poplar Trees Atrazine 91% of the Atrazine taken up in 10 days Poplars Nitrates from fertilizers From 150 mg/L to 3 mg L in under 3yrs. Mustard Greens Lead 45% of the excess was removed Pennycress Zinc & Cadmium 108 lb./acre per year & 1.7 lb./acre per yr. Halophytes Salts reduced the salt levels in the soils by65% Advantages and Disadvantages to Phytoremediation: Advantages: ( www.rtdf.org/genlatst.htm) 1.Aesthetically pleasing and publicly accepted. 3.Works with metals and slightly hydrophobic compounds, including many organics. 4.Can stimulate bioremediation in the soil closely associated with the plant root. Plants can stimulate microorganisms through the release of nutrients and the transport of oxygen to their roots. 5.Relatively inexpensive – phytoremediation can cost as little as $10 – $100 per cubic yard whereas metal washing can cost $30 – $300 per cubic yard. 6.Even if the plants are contaminated and unusable, the resulting ash is approximately 20-30 tons per 5000 tons soil (Black, 1997). 7.Having ground cover on property reduces exposure risk to the community (i.e. lead). 8.Planting vegetation on a site also reduces erosion by wind and water. 9.Can leave usable topsoil intact with minimal environmental disturbance. 10.Generates recyclable metal rich plant residue. 11.Eliminates secondary air or water-borne wastes. 1.Can take many growing seasons to clean up a site. 2.Plants have short roots. They can clean up soil or groundwater near the surface in-situ, typically 3 – 6 feet (Ecological Engineering, 1997), but cannot remediate deep aquifers without further design work. 3.Trees have longer roots and can clean up slightly deeper contamination than plants, typically 10-15 feet, but cannot remediate deep aquifers without further design work . 4.Trees roots grow in the capillary fringe, but do not extend deep in to the aquifer. This makes remediating DNAPL’s in situ with plants and trees not recommended. 5.Plants that absorb toxic materials may contaminant the food chain. 6.Volatization of compounds may transform a groundwater pollution problem to an air pollution problem. 7.Returning the water to the earth after aquaculture must be permitted. 8.Less efficient for hydrophobic contaminants, which bind tightly to soil. 1) At the Naval Air Station Joint Reserve Base Fort Worth, phytoremediation is being used to clean up trichloroethylene (TCE) from a shallow, thin aerobic aquifer. Cottonwoods are being used, and after 1 year, the trees are beginning to show signs of taking the TCE out of the aquifer. (Betts, 1997) 2) At the Iowa Army Ammunitions Plant, phytoremediation is being used as a polishing treatment for explosive-contaminated soil and groundwater. The demonstration, which ended in March, 1997, used native aquatic plant and hybrid poplars to remediate the site where an estimated 1-5% of the original pollutants still remain. A full-scale project is estimated to reduce the contamination by an order of magnitude (Betts, 1997). 3) After investigating using phytoremediation on a site contaminated with hydrocarbons, the Alabama Department of Environmental Management granted a site. The site involved about 1500 cubic yards of soil, and began with approximately 70% of the baseline samples containing over 100 PPM of total petroleum hydrocarbon (TPH). After 1 year of vegetative cover, approximately 83% of the samples contained less than 10-PPM TPH. 4) Phytoremediation was used at the decommissioned Detroit Forge plant to clean up approximately 5,800 cubic yards of lead-impacted soil. Two plantings were completed, the first using sunflowers and the second mustard plants. Following treatment, analysis indicated soil lead concentrations were below the target clean-up criteria. The project resulted in an estimated saving of $1,100,000 over hazardous waste disposal. 5) Water, soil, and trees transpired gases were monitored to track the fate of TCE. About 2-4% of the TCE remained in the effluent as compared to 68% in a non-vegetated control group. The field trial demonstrated that over 95% of TCE were removed by planting trees and letting them grow. Additional studies showed that the trees did not release TCE into the air, as no measurable TCE was present in the air immediately surrounding the leaves (captured in small leaf bags and analyzed) or in the general atmosphere (using a laser technology that can see TCE in the air in the tree canopy). Phytoremediation is an aesthetically pleasing, solar-energy driven, and passive technique that can be used at sites with low to moderate levels of contamination. Phytoremediation is more than just planting and letting the foliage grow; the site must be engineered to prevent erosion and flooding and maximize pollutant uptake. Currently, the majority of research is concentrated on determining the best plant for the job, quantifying the mechanisms by which the plants convert pollutants, and determining which contaminants are amenable to phytoremediation. Polluted sites are being studied, and phytoremediation looks promising for a variety of contaminants.