Interpersonal Communication (Children of a Lesser God) Essay

Interpersonal Communication (Children of a Lesser God) - Essay Example ny other deaf persons, must rely on different skill sets in communication – and must rely, too, on the skill sets of others, including those not trained in the art of communication with deaf persons through sign language How, then, do people overcome these barriers in communication and convey thoughts and ideas to one another in meaningful ways? The answer is that whether or not we realize it, we all use nonverbal means of communication. This essay is going to focus on those communication methods. In a scene in the film when Hurt proposes to Matlin’s character that he teach her verbal communication, there is more being conveyed than personal interests; there is personal attraction. Matlin’s character is flirtatious, and her facial expressions, even when she challenges Hurt’s character’s signing proficiency, ends with a flirtatious look, a raised eyebrow, and a tilt of her head. â€Å"Our bodies don’t exist to carry our heads around,† we are reminded by Dr. Candace Pert, author of Molecules of Emotions (1997), and research professor in biophysics and physiology at the prestigious Georgetown University in Washington, DC. Rather, thinking process is not just a function of the brain, but of the entire body suggests Pert (Weiss, 2001). The brain, which has hundreds of thousands of protein neurons, is constantly processing information, and as it does, the neurons actually vibrate and change in shape (2001). The brain is as interconnected with the physiological and emotional system of the body as are the sensory perceptions of sight, sound, smell and taste; which we are closer to in our everyday thinking and understanding than we are to the brain. However, as Pert says, the brain and heart are tied into every function, every expression, every action that we make and think, and it has a long memory and its memories are triggered throughout the course of a day without our being aware of it on a conscious level. We see this throughout the film Children

Fruitless Unions from 1875 - 1900 Essay Example for Free

Fruitless Unions from 1875 1900 Essay Late 19th century America was a time of both industrial prosperity and poverty among workers. It was run by grasping corporations and proprietors. Workers found themselves alone, amidst the rest of the nation, merely individuals under the control of the lavish Rockefellers and Carnegies. Entire families found themselves working 10 hours a day, 7 days a week in unsanitary conditions just to have enough money to pay for simple necessities like food and rent. The issue of lowering working hours, increasing wages, and humanizing working conditions quickly became indispensable. While organized labor groups such as the National Labor Union, The Knights of Labor, and the American Federation of Labor all strived to resolve these issues, victories were seldom. The crusade towards organized labor from 1875-1900 was unsuccessful in improving the position of workers vastly because of the initial failure of strikes, the grueling feelings of superiority of employers over employees and the lack of support from the government. Beginning in the 1860’s, labor unions began to sprout in hopes of making reforms by unifying workers to fight for higher wages, and 8 hour work day, and various other social benefits. The National Labor Union (1866) was the first assembly established to take part in this fight. Strikes would have to be effective in order to initiate any major changes but at a time like this, more harm was being done than good. In 1877, many workers participated in the first great American strike which resulted in mass violence and little reforms. Afterwards, an editorial in the New York Times stated that â€Å"the strike is apparently hopeless, and must be regarded as nothing more than a rash and spiteful demonstration of resentment by men too ignorant or too reckless to understand their own interests†¦Ã¢â‚¬  (Document B) This editorial, which clearly favored labor unions, was acknowledging that nothing would be achieved through fighting and violence. Their failures so early on should have given them the signal to cease and, but year after year, strikes were arising and little was being down in the workers favors. Their failures would surely set the stage for future unions to come. In 1892, workers at the Homestead Steel Plant near Pittsburgh walked out on strike and took the lives of at least two Pinkerton detectives and one civilian (Document G). The violent acts at Homestead not only failed to gain rights but since non-strikers were killed it led people to think of laborers in a negative light. With the conditions only worsening after each and every strike, it was clear that organized strikes were not the way to improve conditions for workers. The industrial era gave more power to employers than ever before. With the introduction of the Scientific Management method designed by Frederick Taylor, autonomy among workers was even less common. By means of Scientific Management, there was no longer a need for workers of one particular trade, now; workers would only know how to make one particular part of a whole. The fact that many employees had to band together to face one employer displayed a great deal of inferiority. In 1883, in a testimony before the Senate Committee on Labor and Capital, a machinist said that 100 men are able to do now what it took 300 or 400 men to do fifteen years ago in trying to explain his insignificance to the company he worked for (Document D). Thus, workers felt even more inferior because it took fewer workers to make products; fewer workers amounted to easier management by the employers. In addition to inferiority to the employers, workers would also put restrictions on themselves by giving in and signing things like the Western Union Telegraph Companys employee contract that forbid them from joining unions (Document E). These yellow-dog contracts simply dragged the workers further down into the ground. The ineffectiveness of unions was shown in that the unions that were formed werent strong enough to even overcome their own benefactors which in turn only put them at a lower level in the end. I. Another main contributor to the ineffectiveness of labor unions was the lack of support from the government. With the involvement of the federal government, labor unions could have been much more successful in churning out better conditions for workers.

Optically Active Polymers

Optically Active Polymers Optically active polymers play very important role in our modern society. The speciality of optically active polymers are known with its various characteristics as occurred naturally in mimicry. The present review describes the monomers and synthesis of optically active polymers from its helicity, internal compounds nature, dendronization, copolymerization, side chromophoric groups, chiral, metal complex and stereo-specific behaviour. The various properties like nonlinear optical properties of azo-polymers, thermal analysis, chiroptical properties, vapochromic behaviour, absorption and emission properties, thermosensitivity, chiral separation, fabrication and photochromic property are explained with details. This review is expected to be of interesting and useful to the researchers and industry personnel who are actively engaged in research on optically active polymers for versatile applications. Optically active materials are those which can able to rotate the plane of polarization of a beam of transmitted plane-polarized light containing unequal amounts of corresponding enantiomers. The optical activity originates from the presence of chiral elements in a polymer such as chiral centres or chiral axes due to long-range conformational order in a macromolecule. In fact, most naturally occurring macromolecules possess the ability to organize to more complex high structure rather than single one and manifest their functions. Optically active polymers are related to problems of the charged and reactive polymers, since optical activity is an inherent property of both natural macromolecules as well as a great variety of polymers synthesized. Chiral compounds are optically active and essential for life such as proteins, polysaccharides, nucleic acids, etc. and chirality is most important for existence. About 97% drugs are formed from natural sources, 2% are recemates and only 1% is achiral, in looking of chirality of nearly 800 drugs. Optically active polymers today have also become of great interest and thus play an important role in molecular arrangement and assembly, which is critical for optoelectronics super molecular structure [1-4]. The synthetic optically active polymers may also play important role like mimicry of naturally occurring polymers and that’s why the extensive studies are required on their synthesis, conformations and properties. Various kinds of optically active polymers e.g., fro m its helicity, internal compounds nature, dendronization, copolymerization, side chromophoric groups, chiral, metal complex and stereo-specific behaviour are reported, however, those are not placed in a systematic manner. In the present review an effort has been made to collect most of those works in one place for better understanding in the subject with detailed explanation of properties like nonlinear optical properties of azo-polymers, thermal analysis, chiroptical properties, vapochromic behaviour, absorption and emission properties, thermosensitivity, chiral separation, fabrication and photochromism. -Classification of optically active polymers Optically active polymers are divided into three types: Biopolymers as obtained from nature. Polymers prepared by almost completely isotactic polymerization by modification of naturally occurring polymer backbones such as polysaccharides. Synthetic polymers as per the requirement with proper tailoring of functional groups. -Speciality of optically active polymer Optical properties of polymers are not so different of other substances, excepting those characteristics related to the chain dimension and structure or conformational changes. Optically active polymers have found interesting applications because of their specific properties. The optical properties of these materials lie at the basis of many applications, for example in chromatographic methods for enantiomeric separations or creating complex optical devices. The dispersion of the specific rotation offers information regarding the conformational changes or Cotton effect. Optically active polymers characteristics as follows: Optically active polymers with configurational chirality: the optical activity is given by the presence of an asymmetric carbon atom in the backbone or in the side chain of the monomer; Optically active polymers with conformational chirality: the optical activity is related to the conformational changes; Optically active polymers with both configurational and conformational chirality: the optical activity is given by macromolecular asymmetry and by the presence of the asymmetrical centers. -Monomers of optically active polymers Some biological polymers are composed of a variety of different but structurally related monomer residues; for example, polynucleotides such as DNA are composed of a variety of nucleotide subunits. The solid-state structures of polystyrene – poly(Z-L-lysine) block copolymers were examined with respect to the polymer architecture and the secondary structure of the polypeptide using circular dichroism, quantitative small and wide-angle X-ray scattering, and electron microscopy [5]. Synthesis of optically active polymers The optically active compounds are synthesized by highly efficient methodologies and catalysts. The various synthetic approaches for optically active polymers are described below: Helical polymer: Helicity is one of the subtlest aspects of polymer chain where the polymer chain spiral structure along the chain axis acts like a spring. Helical polymers are frequently occurring in nature in single, double or triple helices form in genes, proteins, DNA, collagen, enzymes, and polypeptides. The helical conformations increase the stability of the natural polypeptides. Preparation of artificial helical polymers is a great challenge to the researchers. So far, only limited success has been achieved in constructing microscale particles using helical polymers, despite the great number of analogous microparticles created from vinyl polymers and even from other conjugated polymers like poly(thiophene), poly(phenylene ethynylene), and poly(fluorene) and polyacetylenes. Meckings et al has performed extensive investigations on preparing nanoparticles from polyacetylenes, which have shown interesting potential in inkjet printing. Later on, various group of researchers have successfully prepared both nano and microparticles consisting of optically active helical substituted polyacetylenes [6]. Such nano- and microarchitectures demonstrated remarkable optical activity and significant potential applications ranging from asymmetric catalysis, chiral recognition/resolution, and enantiomer-selective crystallization to enantio-selective release [7-9]. Synthetic helical polymers may be classified as either static or dynamic helical polymers, depending on the inversion barrier of the helical conformation [10-11]. Static helical polymers have a relatively high energy barrier for helix inversion and are stable in solution, while dynamic helical polymers have a relatively low energy barrier for helix inversion and exist as a mixture of right- and left handed helical domains that are separated by rarely occurring helix reversals. Even a slight incorporation of optically active repeat units can shift the equilibrium to excess one-handed helicity. The chiral recognition properties of biopolymers with skilled emulating of synthetic helical polymers are currently a focus of much interest. Enantioseparation, catalysis, and sensing are among the more promising applications of molecular recognition based on responsive three-dimensional intramolecular or intermolecular superchiral structures. Optically active conjugated polymers represent an attractive class of chiral macromolecules adaptable to this purpose because their chiral behaviour can be augmented by nonlinear electrically conductive or optical properties arising from conjugation along the backbone. The first example of optically active polycarbazoles, poly[N-(R)- or (S)-3,7-dimethyloctyl-3,6-carbazole]s (R- or S-PDOC) were synthesized in 60-70% yield using modified nickel coupling method [12]. Helical polymers are easily denaturalized by certain physical factors e.g. heat, ultraviolet irradiation, and high pressure and by other chemical factors such as organic solvents. Various helical polymers have been synthesized, which include polyisocyanates, polyisocyanides, polychloral, polymethacrylates, polysilanes, polythiophenes, poly(p-phenylene)s, poly(1-methylpropargyl-ester)s, poly(phenylacetylene)s and poly(-unsaturated ketone) [13-19] (Fig. 1). Other polymers are whose optical activity is main chain or side chain chirality dependent e.g. amino-acid-based polymers are nontoxic, biocompatible and biodegradable. Optically Active Polymers Optically Active Polymers Introduction Optically active polymers are related to problems of the charged and reactive polymers, since optical activity is an inherent property of both natural macromolecules as well as a great variety of polymers synthesized. Most of the naturally occurring molecules/macromolecules, such as nucleic acids, proteins, and polysaccharides are chiral and optically active. Chirality is essential for life. This situation can be very obviously seen if  we look at the chirality of nearly 800 drugs (about 97%) derived from natural sources. Only 2% are racemates and only 1% is achiral. Synthetic optically active polymers are of great interests, since they might mimic the fascinating functions of naturally occurring polymers, leading extensive studies being conducted on their synthesis, conformations and functions. In fact, most naturally occurring macromolecules possess the ability to organize to more complex high structure rather than single one and manifest their functions. Optical activity is a ph ysical spectral property of chiral matter caused by asymmetric configuration, confirmations and structures which have no plane and no centre of symmetry and consequently have two mirror image enantiomeric forms of inverse optical rotation. The recemic mixture of chiral enantiomers is optically inactive. The great majority of natural molecules contain chiral centres and are optically active. This is the case because living systems and their extracts as enzymes are able to produce completely stereoselective asymmetrical synthesis or transformations. This led Pasteur to say that ‘life is asymmetrical’ at the molecular level. The majority of food and drug molecules of physiological activity are chiral [1]. Xi et al. [2-8] investigated about chirality of optically active compounds. Optically active polymers today have also become of great interest owing to their chiral structure which may play an important role in molecular arrangement and assembly, which is critical for optoelectronics super molecular structure [9-12]. Chiral polymers with helical chain backbone have received increasing attention due to their helicity generating from secondary interactions such as hydrogen bonds and van der Waals forces. These chiral helical polymers undergo conformational change as well as helical reversal easily. The concept of the optically active aromatic chromophore as ‘conformational probe’ in isotactic polymers can be further extended by the use of optically active monomers [13]. Optically active polymers have exhibited a number of interesting properties in several highly specialized areas such as chromatographic resolution of steroregular [14], chiral [15-16], asymmetric catalysis and phase of the separation of racemic mixtures [17], thermosensitivity [18], synthesis molecular receptors and chiral liquid crystals for ferroelectric and nonlinear optical applications [20]. In the last year [52], Angiolini and co-workers have synthesized and investigated methacrylic polymers bearing in the side chain the chiral cyclic (S)-3- hydroxypyrrolidine moiety interposed between the main chain and the trans azoaromatic chromophore, substituted or not in the 4’ position by an electron withdrawing group. In these materials, the presence of a rigid chiral moiety of oneprevailing absolute configuration favours the establishment of a chiral conformation of one prevailing helical handedness, at least within chain segments of the macromolecules, which can be observed by circular dichroism (CD). The simultaneous presence of the azoaromatic and chiral functionalities allows the polymers to display both the properties typical of dissymmetric systems (optical activity, exciton splitting of dichroic absorptions), as well as the features typical of photochromic materials (photorefractivity, photoresponsiveness, NLO properties). Recently, highly efficient methodologies and catalysts have been developed to synthesize various kinds of optically active compounds. Some of them can be applied to chiral polymer synthesis and in a few syntheses for optically active polymers; chiral monomer polymerization has essential advantages in applicability of monomer, apart from both asymmetric polymerization of achiral or prochiral monomers and enantioselective polymerization of a recemic monomer mixture. Optically active chiral polymers are not only fundamentally interesting, due to the rich and complex architecture of macromolecular chirality as compared to that of small molecules, but also technologically important because their unique chiral arrays give rise to a number of potential, and in some cases commercially implemented. Classification of Optically active polymers: Optically active polymers are divided into three types: Biopolymers: Biopolymers are the main type of biomaterials. According to their degradation properties, biopolymers can be further classified into biodegradable and non-biodegradable biopolymers. Many implants, such as bone substitution materials, some bone fixing materials, and dental materials, should possess long term stable performance in the body. Recently biopolymers acts as developments in bone tissue engineering, vascular tissue engineering, nerve tissue engineering, genitourinary tissue engineering, regenerative medicine, gene therapy, and controlled drug delivery have promoted the need of new properties of biomaterials with biodegradability. Biologically derived and synthetic biodegradable biopolymers have attracted considerable attention [21]. Polymers prepared by almost completely isotactic polymerization by modification of naturally occurring polymer backbones such as polysaccharides. Synthetic polymers: Polymers synthesized from low molecular weight compounds are called synthetic polymers, e.g., polyethylene, PVC, nylon and terylene [7]. This polymer is also divided into three types: (a) Addition polymers: Addition polymers are including vinyl, aldehyde, isocyanide and acetylene polymers that were prepared via addition polymerization reaction such as poly(acryl amide)s, polyolephynes, polystyrene derivatives, polyazulenes, poly(vinyl ether)s, polymethacrylate, polymethacryloylamine, polychloral, polyisocyanides, polyisocyanates, polyacethylene and polyethers [22–32]. (b) Condensation polymers: Condensation polymerization continues to receive intense academic and industrial attention for the preparation of polymeric materials used in a vast array of applications [28]. One of application is synthesis of chiral polymers. For this purpose, monomer must be optically active. (c) Cross-linked gels: One of application is synthesis of chiral polymers. For this purpose, monomer must be optically active. One of application is synthesis of chiral polymers. For this purpose, monomer must be optically active. Why optically active polymers are important? or Speciality of optically active polymer Optical properties of polymers are not so different of other substances, excepting those characteristics related to the chain dimension and structure or conformational changes. Optically active polymers have found interesting applications because of their specific properties. The optical properties of these materials lie at the basis of many applications, for example in chromatographic methods for enantiomeric separations or creating complex optical devices. The dispersion of the specific rotation offers information regarding the conformational changes or Cotton effect. Optically active polymers characteristics as follows: -Optically active polymers with configurational chirality: the optical activity is given by the presence of an asymmetric carbon atom in the backbone or in the side chain of the monomer; Optically active polymers with conformational chirality: the optical activity is related to the conformational changes; Optically active polymers with both configurational and conformational chirality: the optical activity is given by macromolecular asymmetry and by the presence of the asymmetrical centers. Monomers of Optically active polymers Polymerization is the process of combining many small molecules known as monomers into a covalently bonded chain or network. During the polymerization process, some chemical groups may be lost from each monomer. This is the case, for example, in the polymerization of PET polyester. The monomers are terephthalic acid (HOOC-C6H4-COOH) and ethylene glycol (HO-CH2-CH2-OH) but the repeating unit is -OC-C6H4-COO-CH2-CH2-O-, which corresponds to the combination of the two monomers with the loss of two water molecules. The distinct piece of each monomer that is incorporated into the polymer is known as a repeat unit or monomer residue. The identity of the monomer residues (repeat units) comprising a polymer is its first and most important attribute. Polymer nomenclature is generally based upon the type of monomer residues comprising the polymer. Polymers that contain only a single type of repeat unit are known as homopolymers, while polymers containing a mixture of repeat units are known as copolymers. Poly(styrene) is composed only of styrene monomer residues, and is therefore classified as a homopolymer. Ethylene-vinyl acetate, on the other hand, contains more than one variety of repeat units and is thus a copolymer. Some biological polymers are composed of a variety of different but structurally related monomer residues; for example, polynucleotides such as DNA are composed of a variety of nucleotide subunits. The solid-state structures of polystyrene – poly(Z-L-lysine) block copolymers were examined with respect to the polymer architecture and the secondary structure of the polypeptide using circular dic hroism, quantitative small- and wide-angle X-ray scattering, and electron microscopy [33]. Synthesis of optically active polymers Much of the attention in chiral polymers results from the potential of these materials for several specialized utilizations that are chiral matrices for asymmetric synthesis, chiral stationary phases for the separation of racemic mixtures, synthetic molecular receptors and chiral liquid crystals for ferroelectric and nonlinear optical applications. Presently optically active compounds are synthesized by highly efficient methodologies and catalysts. In a few synthetic approaches for optically active polymers, chiral monomer polymerization has essential advantages in applicability of monomer, apart from both asymmetric polymerization of achiral or prochiral monomers and enantioselective polymerization of a racemic monomer mixture [17].

Islamic Religion :: essays research papers

Todays Muslims are branded as terrorists or fudamentalist. But their religion is a gentle religion. On the Arabian Penninsula, home of the Arabs, was isolated and they were able to develop their civilization without outside influences. It is about 1 million miles square, that is located between the Red sea and the Persian Gulf. There are two distinctive regions. The first has well-watered valleys between mountains and the second is arid plains and desert. Grass grows quickly during the showes of the rainy season. In ancient times the Arabs were bedouin (nomads that hersed sheep, goats, and camels. and lived in tents made made of felt from camel or goat hair.) They ate fresh or dried dates and drank milk from their herds. On special occasions they ate mutlon. their tribes were made of related families. They valued family ties becuase because they ensured they ensured protection and survival. They had a chief (sheikh). The sheikh ruled as long as the tribe allowed him. They had a counsil of elders. There was warfare over waterholes and pastures. Their way of punishment is an eye for sn eye and a tooth for a tooth. To improve warrior skills they had camel and horse. They had story telling in frount of the campfire. They had poetry about battles, desert, camels, horses, and love. In 500 A.D. they started a town called Makkah, which was fifty miles inland of the Red sea. Trade was mostly of animal producys for weopeans dates grains, spices, jewels ivory, silk, and perfumes. They had caravans travel there from as for china. Arabs had and worshipped many ditied business ties were replaceing family ties, and old tribal laws were not adequat Byzantine and the Persin armies were threatining to conquer them. The tribes had the some language but they had no central goverment, or sense of unity, The Arabs searched for new beliefs. The prohet of Islam was muhammad. He was born in Makkah in 570 A. D. . He was orphaned at an early age and was adopted by his uncle. He worked as a carovan leader on a trade route. He was know to be honest and able. His employer khadij'a ,a weakthy window if age 40, put him in charge of this business and proposed marriage to him. He went to a cave outside the city in 610 A.D. to pray and fast reveloution (vision) there. He was told to recite. "Recite in the name of your lord, the creator who created man from clots of blood. Rwcite! Your lord os the most bountiful one who by the pen has taught mankind things they didn't know.

Five forces Analysis of Two-wheeler industry Essay

As shown above, the business model is formulated as input ïÆ'   process ïÆ'   output. For a two wheeler industry, The inputs to the OEM constitutes of 1. Import of parts: the basic ingredients for model building are the parts such as drive chains, engines, components, transmissions etc. 2. Auto Component Manufacturer: There are 300+ players in the industry which manufacture auto parts components and perform tasks such as castings, forgings, tires etc 3. Raw material Supplier: This forms the initial requirement for the development of any vehicle. The raw material of which it is composed of consists of sheet metal, aluminium etc. The processing involves: 1. Manufacturer Original Equipment Manufacturer(OEM): The industry is highly concentrated with 3 players constituting 80% of the market share, namely Hero Moto, Bajaj Auto & Honda Motors. This industry has a turnover of 55K Cr by producing over 13.33mn units in the FY 2011. 2. Dealership Network Dealer: In the Indian domestic market, the dealer are numbered over 2000 Sub- Dealer: The sub dealers, also known as the touch points are over 12000. This dealership network forms the competitive advantage of a company in the market Service Centers: These provide after sales service for the two wheeler industry and form the part of maintenance and helps in building customer loyalty. The output part of the business model comprises of 1. Domestic Customers: There is a low penetration in the domestic market with coverage in rural market as low as 7%. 2. International Customers: The major markets for two wheelers are Africa, Latin America & South East Asia INDUSTRY ANALYSIS The industry is highly concentrated and there is a strong foothold by 3 major players in the industry namely Hero Moto constituting 39% of the market share, Bajaj Auto constituting 27% of the market share and finally Honda Motors with 14% market share. So, these 3 major players sum to 80% of the total industry market share. The Indian Auto sector had a volume growth of 13% CAGR over the last 5 years- Driven by two wheelers which account for 80% of the total volumes Two wheeler sales reached INR 55K Cr and volumes reached 13.3 mn units clocking a CAGR of 15% and 13% respectively over 2006-2011. This works to an average realization – Rs 42000 or 1.2x the real per capita GDP of India. Domestic volume growth has been strong over the past five years growing at 11% CAGR Exports have been a significant factor to contribute to overall volumes with a growth of 27% CAGR over the last 5 years. Year to date, the volume sales growth in two wheelers has surpassed all other automobile segments. FIVE FORCES ANALYSIS What is it? Five Forces Analysis is a tool that enables managers to study the key factors in an industry envi ­ronment that shape that nature of competition: (1) rivalry among current competitors, (2) threat of new entrants, (3) substitutes and complements, (4) power of suppliers, and (5) power of buyers. When do we use it? In a strategic analysis, Five Forces Analysis is an excellent method to help you analyze how competi ­tive forces shape an industry in order to adapt or influence the nature of competition. Collectively, the Five Forces determine the attractiveness of an industry, its profit potential, and the ease and attractiveness of mobility from one strategic position to another. Because  of this, the analysis is useful when firms are making decisions about entry or exit from an industry as well as to identify major threats and opportunities in an industry. Why do we use it? This analysis was originally developed by Michael Porter, a Harvard professor and a noted author ­ity on strategy. While all firms operate in a broad socioeconomic environment that includes legal, social, environmental, and economic factors, firms also operate in a more immediate competitive environment. The structure of this competitive environment determines both the overall attractive ­ness of an industry and helps identify opportunities to favorably position a firm within an industry. Porter identified five primary forces that determine the competitive environment: (1) rivalry among current competitors, (2) threat of new entrants, (3) substitutes and complements, (4) power of sup ­pliers, and (5) power of buyers. 1. Rivalry Among the direct and obvious forces in the industry, existing competitors must first deal with one another. When organizations compete for the same customers and try to win market share at the others’ expense, all must react to and anticipate their competi ­tors’ actions. 2. Threat of Entrants New entrants into an industry compete with established companies placing downward pressure on prices and ultimately profits. In the last century, Japanese automobile manufacturers Toyota, Honda, and Nissan represented formidable new entrants to the U.S. market, threatening the market position of established U.S. players GM, Ford, and Chrysler. The existence of substantial barriers to entry helps protect the profit potential of existing firms and makes an industry more attractive. 3. Substitutes and Complements Besides firms that directly compete, other firms can affect industry dynamics by providing substitute products or services that are functionally similar (i.e., accomplishing the same goal) but technically different. The existence of substitutes threatens demand in the industry and puts downward pressure on prices and margins. While substitutes are a potential threat, a complement is a potential opportunity because customers buy more of a given  product if they also demand more of the complementary product. For example, iTunes was established as an important complement to Apple’s iPod, and now the firm has leveraged connections among its suite of products including iPhone, iPad, and the like. 4. Power of Suppliers Suppliers provide resources in the form of people, raw materials, com ­ponents, information, and financing. Suppliers are important because they can dictate the nature of exchange and the potential value created farther up the chain toward buyers. Suppliers with greater power can negotiate better prices squeezing the margins of down ­stream buyers. 5. Power of Buyers Buyers in an industry may include end consumers, but frequently the term refers to distributors, retailers, and other intermediaries. Like suppliers, buyers may have important bargaining powers that dictate the means of exchange in a transaction. According to Porter, successful managers do more than simply react to this environment; they act in ways that actually shape or â€Å"enact† the organization’s competitive environment. For example, a firm’s introduction of substitute products or services can have a substantial influence over the competitive environment, and in turn this may have a direct impact on the attractiveness of an industry, its potential profitability, and competitive dynamics. I. Bargaining power of buyers: High Who are the buyers of this industry: Individual customers who purchase and use two wheelers for the purpose of transportation. This category of customers considers two wheelers as a necessity than a luxury. In a developing country like India, especially in tier 2 and tier 3 cities, two wheelers are extremely popular amongst families and students. Scooters are considered to be utility vehicles transporting a family of 2-3 at a time and providing good mileage. Bikes on the other hand come in a variety of segments. They can cost less, acting as utility vehicles. They can be costing very high, acting as luxury products for their owners. The  following points can be aggregated to determine the relative bargaining power of buyers against the automobile manufacturing firms. The bargaining power in this case would mean to what extent the buyers can negotiate prices of the two wheelers. This buying power would determine the market price of the two wheelers in the long run. It also indicates the intensity of rivalry amongst the existing firms in the market. Product Differentiation: Low The features in two-wheelers produced by the Indian manufacturers like Bajaj, Honda, TVS etc. are very close to each other. These features include appearance, Price, Quality and other functional features. This implies that: The buyers can shift from one product to another, as they do not have affinity for any specific product Information Availability: High High availability of information over the internet, leads to higher bargaining power with the buyer to compare the various features and price of products thus leading to lower bargaining power with the manufacturing firms. Type of Economy: Developing India being a Developing economy, is a big hub for two wheeler manufacturers. A two wheeler is a necessity in small towns even today. The large number of customers lowers their bargaining power to some extent. However, this is offset by the large number of suppliers. This is good news for the automobile firms as their product is going to remain in demand for a while at least and they don’t have to worry about declining sales for some time in India. Number of Suppliers: High The number of companies manufacturing automobiles is high in India. With each major player opening showrooms in not only Tier I but II and III cities, the consumers have a wide variety of options to choose from. The number of buyers and sellers in market is high. These two effects offset each other. This implies that: The bargaining power of consumers is high because of this effect as the consumers have the option of going to another brand if they do not like the functional features or price of one brand. In case of utility  vehicles manufacturing category, Rohtak alone has two showrooms of the major players in the market. This implies an empowered consumer. Switching Cost: Moderate The switching costs are higher than FMCG goods however are low compared to many other high involvement products. A basic two wheeler starts from about Rs 40,000. This cost maybe high for some people and not so significant for others. However as two wheelers hardly have any associated products, which would require compatibility with the product, the switching cost is low. Also due to a well-established second hand market in India, the vehicles can be easily resold these days. This also covers up for the switching costs to some extent. II. Bargaining Power of the Supplier : LOW Organizations would be at a disadvantage if their suppliers are powerful. They should preferably not be dependent on any supplier. Now suppliers can be powerful if the number of firms providing thie particular service or product are few in number( eg. A monopoly, oligopoly).The number of the firms determine their bargaining power. The power gets by the increase in existence of switching costs for the various firms. Moreover, firms in an industry have power if they have many alternative sources of supply or if they have a credible threat of integrating backward to provide their own sources of supply. So even supply chain management is particularly important in industries where the potential power of suppliers is high. Now, for a 2 wheeler Industry there would be various suppliers which can be broadly classified into 4 broad categories:- 1)Steel industry 2)Tyre industry 3)Auto components industry 4) Battery industry Steel Industry The 2 wheeler industry in India mostly imports all the automotive steel. Around 65% of the steel is imported for automobiles. The cheap import duty helps the 2 wheeler industry to import high quality steel. So the prices of  steel is determined by mostly international markets, so the bargaining possibility is less for the steel suppliers. Demand for automotive steel such as inner components and outer body parts comprises just 7-8 million tonnes (mt) a year out of India’s total production of about 78 mt, but is growing at 10-20% a year even as overall demand growth lags economic growth. The companies in India which develop automotive steel have now decided to expand in this area and many companies have entered into joint ventures with various international companies like Sumitomo + Bhushan Steels, Jfe+jsw, Tata+Nippon joint ventures. So the 2 wheeler industry has a lot of vendors both nationally and internationally to choose from. Thus, the bargaining power of the supplier is low. Auto components and Battery Industry Both the Auto Components industry and the Battery industry in India are highly fragmented .There suppliers highly outnumber the 2 wheeler companies. Examples of a few companies which provide auto components in the automobile industry are Rico Auto Industries Ltd, JBM Group, Sona Koyo Steering Systems and Lumax Industries, Indication Instruments Ltd Aisin Seiki Co.,BorgWarner,Continental, Delphi, Denso Corporation, Eaton, FAG, Faurecia, GKN,Honda Foundry Co. Ltd., Honeywell,Knorr Bremse, Koyo,Magna,Magneti Marelli, Mando Corporation, Meritor,Mitsuba Corporation, NHK Spring,Robert Bosch,Showa Corporation, Sumitomo Wiring Systems, Toyoda Gosei, USHIN, Valeo, Visteon,Yazaki and many more. Amaron ,exide,luminous,kaycee ,sumangal,action,tata batteries are just a few examples of the Battery Companies in India.Thus, since the number of suppliers is huge the bargaining power they enjoy is low. Tyre Industry It can be clearly seen in the pie chart below that for tyre industry in India, 53% of the tyre consumption is by the 2 wheeler industry. The benefits are given to them as they are buying in bulk and the relation gives the tyre firms a strong brand association. At present there are 40 listed companies in the tyre sector in India.Major players are MRF, JK Tyres, and Apollo Tyres & CEAT, which account for 63 per  cent of the organized tyre market. The other key players include Modi Rubber, Kesoram Industriesand Goodyear India, with 11 per cent, 7 per cent and 6 per cent share respectively. Dunlop,Falcon, Tyre Corporation of India Limited (TCIL), TVS-Srichakra, Metro Tyres and Balkrishna Tyres are some of the other significant players in the industry. Thus , with so many players in the market and also with the power to give tyre companies brand association, the 2 wheeler industry is at a huge advantage and the bargaining power of the tyre suppliers is low. III. Threats of Substitutes : LOW Number of Substitutes: High Substitutes can be cars, electrical vehicles, public transport and rickshaw/taxi. There are many players in the market for four-wheelers. Also, in metros and some of the tier-II cities, public transport facility is quite good. Thus, this can be a negative factor for two-wheeler industry. But two-wheeler may be a better option for 2 people in the same price range. Flexibility is also high compared to public transport. These facts nullify the negative effect of this factor. Public Transport Infrastructure: Moderate As of today, public transport is not very well developed in India but its developing day by day. In tier-1 cities, people have started preferring public transportation for routine tasks but people in other regions don’t have an option. Scope of Differentiation: High There is a high scope of innovation in this industry as the technologies are ever changing. Customization according to the customer needs is important and attracts consumers’ attention towards one vehicle from another. Lifestyle in India: Changing Common Man’s lifestyle is changing in India and number of people working in a family are increasing. Most of them prefer one vehicle per head to commute. For a middle class family, two wheeler is the only feasible option in such cases looking at its flexibility and affordability. Thus, changing lifestyle  is a positive sign for this industry. Cost of Switching to Substitutes: High People switch to substitutes for a reason. Given below are some of the reasons why people switch to substitutes. Cars: Comfort, status Symbol, safety Public Vehicles : Affordability, Safety, Cost, Pollution, Time saving Electrical Vehicles: Environmental friendly, Maintenance cost Here is the negative side of switching to substitutes. Public transport vehicles are not readily available for transportation within the city/town/village except in a few cities in India. For the regions where public transports are not available, only four-wheeler or electrical vehicles remains the substitute to a two-wheeler. Electrical vehicles at present not competitive with respect to present petrol running vehicles. No established player is offering Electrical vehicles. Switching cost from a two-wheeler to a four-wheeler is quite high as investment will be needed to switch the product. Also running cost is more for a four wheeler. The above table shows the calculation of running cost of a two-wheeler and a four-wheeler per km. The numbers are rationally assumed for reaching to quantified figures. As we can see from above calculations, running cost of a four-wheeler is almost 3.5 times more than that of a two-wheeler. Thus, we conclude that the cost of switching to substitutes is LOW in the case of two-wheelers. Seeing all the five factors contributing to Threats of Substitutes, it can be safely concluded that this threat is LOW. Lower running costs, higher addressable market and lack of public transport make two wheeler industry attractive. IV. Threat of New Entrants : MODERATE-WEAK Capital requirements: Moderate High capital requirements mean a company must spend a lot of money in order to compete in the market. The investment made by the company depends upon the type of expansion. High capital requirements positively affect 2 Wheeler Industry India. â€Å"High Capital Requirements (2 Wheeler Industry India)† is an easy qualitative factor to overcome, so the investment will not have to spend much time trying to overcome this issue. Easy to overcome this disadvantage High sunk costs High sunk costs make it difficult for a competitor to enter a new market, because they have to commit money up front with no guarantee of returns in the end. High sunk costs positively affect 2 Wheeler Industry India. This statement will have a short-term positive impact on this entity, which adds to its value. â€Å"High Sunk Costs Limit Competition (2 Wheeler Industry India)† will have a long-term negative impact on this entity, which subtracts from the entity’s value. â€Å"High Sunk Costs Limit Competition (2 Wheeler Industry  India)† is an easy qualitative factor to overcome, so the investment will not have to spend much time trying to overcome this issue. 5 Forces analysis: High negative impact in the long run High positive impact in the short run Easy to overcome this disadvantage Strong brands If strong brands are critical to compete, then new competitors will have to improve their brand value in order to effectively compete. Strong brands positively affect Two Wheeler Industry India. The 3 major players contribute to 80% of the market share Hero Moto, Bajaj Auto, Honda Motors. Advanced technologies Advanced technologies make it difficult for new competitors to enter the market because they have to develop those technologies before effectively competing. The requirement for advanced technologies positively affects Two Wheeler Industry India. Economies of scale Economies of scale help producers to lower their cost by producing the next unit of output at lower costs. When new competitors enter the market, they will have a higher cost of production, because they have smaller economies of scale. Economies of scale positively affect Two Wheeler Industry India.†Industry Requires Economies of Scale (Automobile Industry India)† has a significant impact, so an analyst should put more weight into it. â€Å"Industry Requires Economies of Scale (Two Wheeler Industry India)† will have a long-term negative impact on this entity, which subtracts from the entity’s value. This force has significant impact High negative impact in long run Patents Patents that cover vital technologies make it difficult for new competitors, because the best methods are patented. Patents positively affect Two Wheeler Industry India. Customer Loyalty It takes time and money to build a brand. When companies need to spend resources building a brand, they have fewer resources to compete in the marketplace. These costs positively affect Two Wheeler Industry India. High learning curves When the learning curve is high, new competitors must spend time and money studying the market before they can effectively compete. High learning curves positively affect profits for industry. High switching costs High switching costs make it difficult for customers to change which products they normally purchase, due to costs. High switching costs positively affect Two Wheeler Industry India. High Switching Costs for Customers has a significant impact, so an analyst should put more weight into it.†High Switching Costs for Customers will have a long-term positive impact on this entity, which adds to its value. This statement will have a short-term positive impact on this entity, which adds to its value. This force has significant impact High positive impact in long run High positive impact in short run Strong distribution networks Weak distribution networks mean goods are more expensive to move around and some goods don’t get to the end customer. The expense of building a strong distribution network positively affects Two Wheeler Industry India. â€Å"Strong Distribution Network Required † has a significant impact, so an analyst should put more weight into it. â€Å"Strong Distribution Network Required – Two Wheeler Industry India† will have a long-term positive impact on this entity, which adds to its value. â€Å"Strong Distribution Network Required – Two Wheeler Industry India† is a difficult qualitative factor to defend, so competing institutions will have an easy time overcoming it. This force has significant impact High positive impact in long run Difficult to defend advantage High entry barriers When barriers are high, it is more difficult for new competitors to enter the market. High entry barriers positively affect profits for Two Wheeler Industry India. So to sum it all, for the two wheeler industry the threat of new entrants is moderate to weak. INTENSITY OF RIVALRY AMONG EXISTING COMPETITORS : MODERATE Among the direct and obvious forces in the automobile industry, existing competitors must first deal with one another. When organizations compete for the same customers and try to win market share at the others’ expense, all must react to and anticipate their competitors’ actions. There are 3 main factors along which the intensity of rivalry amongst existing players in the automobile industry have been identified 1. Number Of Competitors:- The number of competitors within an industry is a direct correlation to the intensity of competition, all else being equal. The industry concentration was studied using Hirschman-Herfindahl Index. The data for studying HHI was obtained from the Centre for Monitoring Indian Economy. Yearly sales volume data for various brands of two-wheelers in the three segments were obtained for the period 2008- 2012 and was computed. The above figure shows that the 2 Wheeler Industry is oligopolistic in nature and there is less competition even after deregulation of the Indian Economy. The Motorcycle segment is characterised by a few large players who have established their presence. The leading player is Honda Motorcycles with almost 50% market share. The Moped industry is a monopoly and TVS is the only player which has been able to capture the entire market. The scooter industry has crossed the shakeout phase post 2004 when the Activa type models were being imitated by all major players across the segments. This too has a HHI of .309 indicating less competition. 2. Incentive to Fight:- The incentive to fight is primarily related to finding out how competitors  fix prices i.e whether they engage in price wars, or engage in aggressive activities with the aim of increasing market share. This shall further be explored among 3 other parameters. A. Growth In Automobile Industry There has been substantial growth in the automobile industry in India and it has already crossed the 25 Billion Rupee mark and has had a 13.7% CAGR over the past 5 years. Over the medium term, the 2W industry is expected to report a volume CAGR of 9-11% to reach a size of 24-26 million units by 2016-17. This will be due to the (a) favourable demographic profile, (b) increasing personal income as well as (c) moderate penetration in relation to other Emerging Markets. Therefore there is substantial opportunity for growth leading to less competition. B. Demand – Supply Gap Most two wheeler have idle capacity as the supply exceeds demand. Moreover as many players are planning to increase manufacturing operations, it is estimated that the total supply will exceed demand by almost 15 to 20%. This problem has been compounded by the fact that foreign entrants are planning to enter India as growth in European and American markets have stagnated. This will lead to more competition. C. Nature of Demand The nature of demand is highly cyclical in nature. In times of high growth in the Indian Economy there is corresponding revenue growth for all 2 wheeler companies. This can be seen more from the growth of the 2 Wheeler Industry during recession which slowed substantially. In fact the motorcycles segment had dipped to negative growth during that period. Our group believes that after evaluating the three factors, there will soon be a tendency for the firms to engage in fierce competition as the stakes are increased manifold. This will ultimately lead to more competition for existing players and international players who are thinking of venturing into the industry. 3. Coordination between competitors According to the Indian Constitution, â€Å"The Competition Act, 2002, as amended by the Competition (Amendment) Act, 2007, follows the philosophy of modern competition laws. The Act prohibits anti-competitive agreements, abuse of dominant position by enterprises and regulates combinations (acquisition, acquiring of control and Merger and Acquisition), which causes or likely to cause an appreciable adverse effect on competition within India† which prevents firms from colluding implicitly or explicitly colluding. Till now there has been no tendency amongst firms of colluding, hence the market is still competitive in terms of the coordination between competitors. Considering all the factors, the competitive landscape within the industry is still not yet clearly defined. Even though firms are capacity constrained, there is still ample room for growth. Therefore our group believes that the competition is still low. The way ahead With consumers becoming increasingly aware about products and buyer power increasing, the manufacturers will have to differentiate their products. Then comes the era of green vehicles which will be powered by battery or green fuels and will provide mileage of 100 km/Rs 8. The relationship between suppliers and manufacturers is nasty at this point of time. It needs to be reworked. This will provide room for improved consumer feedback mechanism which will lead to improved product for consumers The projected sales of two wheelers in India in FY15 are 18MN. There is scope in the unisex category of scooters as already there are plenty of motorbike owners in the country. Companies could leverage on that. Another scope is there in rural areas and tier II, III cities. This market is relatively untouched by two wheeler marketers and hence this should be explored and custom made vehicles should be designed for people residing in these areas. Since the purchasing capacity of these people is low it should be kept in mind while making utility products for them.

How to Break a Bad Habit Essay

Research says that 40 percent of our actions are habits not conscious decisions. A Habit is defined as â€Å"a settled or regular tendency or practice, especially one that is hard to give up†. Generally habits are good things; but what about the bad habits- biting your nails, smoking, procrastination, etc.? Habits are learned, therefore they can’t just be deleted, but they can be replaced by more desired behaviors. Many people have habits that they want to break, but they feel like they can’t do it, the idea of it seems impossible or too difficult to challenge. Breaking a habit is easier than it seems. In order to break a bad habit we must first define the habit. What is the behavior you want to stop and why do you want to stop it? Many people are on board the idea of breaking a habit without being sure they really want to make the change and why they want to make the change. Once you recognize the habit you want to stop and the reason as to why you want/ need to stop it you then need to identify what triggers this habit. Many habits are habitual behaviors that have evolved because they have been rewarded in some way. Most bad habits come out as a way of dealing with situations that may cause stress, anger, boredom, etc. For example, many people who smoke look at it as a stress reliever. In order to break a habit it is important to identify what triggers the habit. What is the cue that sets you off? Is it a time a day, a memory, an emotion? Ask yourself â€Å"do I do this habit whenever blank occurs?† Once you are able to define whether it is a situational or emotional context that triggers the habit you are better able to find ways to break the habit and develop another healthier way of achieving the same reward. Next we need to identify the reinforcement and replace it with something that gives you the same satisfaction. What are you really getting out of this action/habit? This can be a really difficult step. By smoking you can get unhealthy skin, the risk of lung cancer, brown teeth, but it relieves your stress and so it’s justifiable, right? What can you do that is better for yo u and will give you the same satisfaction? For example you smoke because for you it relieves stress after you smoke you feel a sense relieve. What else gives you a sense of relief? Go to the gym, listen to music, chew gum, or cook. Visualize your success, in your mind practice breaking the habit by imagining yourself engaging in the desired  behaviors rather than the old ones. For example, if your goal is to eat better than visualize yourself in the kitchen preparing health meals. Visualize that in a short period of time you will lose the 10 pounds you’re trying to lose. Remember it is okay to think about the habit you’re trying to break, just remember to visualize and remind yourself of the outcome from breaking this bad habit. Support is very important when breaking a habit. When trying to break a habit tell supportive people about your plan, it’s a great feeling to have support and encouragement. Invite friends to call you out when you slip up and there be consequences. An example of this would be if you’re trying to stop cursing; keep a swear jar and every time you slip up you have to put a dollar or an amount you would hate to give up into your husband/wife/support jar as well as your own jar. Stick to this whenever you slip up. Eventually you’ll become more cautious of the things you’re saying because you’ll get tired of paying up. Habits are created when a behavior is rewarded in some way as I mentioned earlier. With that being said find a way to reward yourself for good behavior. For example, if you’re trying to break the habit of being late to class, you can reward yourself with something you like, like a caramel flan latte from Starbucks that you love so much every day that you’re on time to class, until the reward is no longer needed. However, the most successful reward will be the one that comes after that breaking that habit. Lastly, when breaking a bad habit, be patient. Behavioral training is a long process, and breaking a habit take time. Studies show that in most cases it takes 28 days to break a habit. However, reality is a lot more complicated and it progress depends on the individual and the habit. The first few days will be the hardest, but it important to stay focused and think about the outcome. There will be times when you want to give up there may even be times when you slip up but you must continue to push. Remember to you can do it!