Link between Borrowers Risk and Mortgage Lending

The History of the Common Bean

The History of the Common Bean The domestication history of the common bean (Phaseolus vulgaris L.) is vital to understanding the origins of farming.  Beans are one of the three sisters of traditional agricultural cropping methods reported by European colonists in North America: Native Americans wisely intercropped maize, squash, and beans, providing a healthful and environmentally sound way of capitalizing on their various characteristics.   Beans are one of the most important domestic legumes in the world, because of their high concentrations of protein, fiber, and complex carbohydrates. P. vulgaris is by far the most economically important domesticated species of the genus Phaseolus. Domesticate Properties P. vulgaris beans come in an enormous variety of shapes, sizes, and colors, from pinto to pink to black to white. Despite this diversity, wild and domestic beans belong to the same species, as do all of the colorful varieties (landraces) of beans, which are believed to be the result of a mixture of population bottlenecks and purposeful selection. The main difference between wild and cultivated beans is, well, domestic beans are less exciting. There is a significant increase in seed weight, and the seed pods are less likely to shatter than wild forms: but the primary change is a decrease in the  variability of grain size, seed coat thickness and water intake during cooking. Domestic plants are also annuals rather than perennials, a selected trait for reliability. Despite their colorful variety, the domestic bean is much more predictable. Centers Of Domestication Scholarly research indicates that beans were domesticated in two places: the Andes mountains of Peru, and the Lerma-Santiago basin of Mexico. The wild common bean grows today in the Andes and Guatemala: two separate large gene pools of the wild types have been identified, based on the variation in the type of phaseolin (seed protein) in the seed, DNA marker diversity, mitochondrial DNA variation and amplified fragment length polymorphism, and short sequence repeats marker data. The Middle American gene pool extends from Mexico through Central America and into Venezuela; the Andean gene pool is found from southern Peru to northwestern Argentina. The two gene pools diverged some 11,000 years ago. In general, Mesoamerican seeds are small (under 25 grams per 100 seeds) or medium (25-40 gm/100 seeds), with one type of phaseolin, the major seed storage protein of the common bean. The Andean form has much larger seeds (greater than 40 gm/100 seed weight), with a different type phaseolin. Recognized landraces in Mesoamerica include Jalisco in coastal Mexico near Jalisco state; Durango in the central Mexican highlands, which includes pinto, great northern, small red and pink beans; and Mesoamerican, in lowland tropical Central American, which includes black, navy and small white. Andean cultivars include Peruvian, in the Andean highlands of Peru; Chilean in northern Chile and Argentina; and Nueva Granada in Colombia. Andean beans include the commercial forms of dark and light red kidney, white kidney, and cranberry beans. Origins in Mesoamerica In 2012, work by a group of geneticists led by Roberto Papa was published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (Bitocchi et al. 2012), making an argument for a Mesoamerican origin of all beans. Papa and colleagues examined the nucleotide diversity for five different genes found in all forms- wild and domesticated, and including examples from the Andes, Mesoamerica and an intermediary location between Peru and Ecuador- and looked at the geographic distribution of the genes. This study suggests that the wild form spread from Mesoamerica, into Ecuador and Columbia and then into the Andes, where a severe bottleneck reduced the gene diversity, at some time before domestication. Domestication later took place in the Andes and in Mesoamerica, independently. The importance of the original location of beans is due to the wild adaptability of the original plant, which allowed it to move into a wide variety of climatic regimes, from the lowland tropics of Mesoamerica into the Andean highlands. Dating the Domestication While the exact date of domestication for beans has not yet been determined, wild landraces have been discovered in archaeological sites dated to 10,000 years ago in Argentina and 7,000 years ago in Mexico. In Mesoamerica, the earliest cultivation of domestic common beans occurred before ~2500 in the Tehuacan valley (at Coxcatlan), 1300 BP in Tamaulipas (at (Romeros and Valenzuelas Caves near Ocampo), 2100 BP in the Oaxaca valley (at Guila Naquitz). Starch grains from Phaseolus were recovered from human teeth from Las Pircas phase sites in Andean Peru dated between ~6970-8210 RCYBP (about 7800-9600 calendar years before the present). Sources Angioi, SA. Beans in Europe: origin and structure of the European landraces of Phaseolus vulgaris L. Rau D, Attene G, et al., National Center for Biotechnology Information, U.S. National Library of Medicine, September 2010. Bitocchi E, Nanni L, Bellucci E, Rossi M, Giardini A, Spagnoletti Zeuli P, Logozzo G, Stougaard J, McClean P, Attene G et al. 2012. Mesoamerican origin of the common bean (Phaseolus vulgaris L.) is revealed by sequence data. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences Early Edition. Brown CH, Clement CR, Epps P, Luedeling E, and Wichmann S. 2014. The Paleobiolinguistics of the Common Bean (Phaseolus vulgaris L.). Ethnobiology Letters 5(12):104-115. Kwak, M. Structure of genetic diversity in the two major gene pools of common bean (Phaseolus vulgaris L., Fabaceae). Gepts P, National Center for Biotechnology Information, U.S. National Library of Medicine, March 2009. Kwak M, Kami JA, and Gepts P. 2009. The Putative Mesoamerican Domestication Center is Located in the Lerma-Santiago Basin of Mexico. Crop Science 49(2):554-563. Mamidi S, Rossi M, Annam D, Moghaddam S, Lee R, Papa R, and McClean P. 2011. Investigation of the domestication of common bean ( Functional Plant Biology 38(12):953-967.Phaseolus vulgaris) using multilocus sequence data. Mensack M, Fitzgerald V, Ryan E, Lewis M, Thompson H, and Brick M. 2010. Evaluation of diversity among common beans (Phaseolus vulgaris L.) from two centers of domestication using omics technologies. BMC Genomics 11(1):686. Nanni, L. Nucleotide diversity of a genomic sequence similar to SHATTERPROOF (PvSHP1) in domesticated and wild common bean (Phaseolus vulgaris L.). Bitocchi E, Bellucci E, et al., National Center for Biotechnology Information, U.S. National Library of Medicine, December 2011, Bethesda, MD. Peà ±a-Valdivia CB, Garcà ­a-Nava JR, Aguirre R JR, Ybarra-Moncada MC, and Là ³pez H M. 2011. Variation in Physical and Chemical Characteristics of Common Bean (Phaseolus vulgaris L.) Grain along a Domestication Gradient. Chemistry Biodiversity 8(12):2211-2225. Piperno DR, and Dillehay TD. 2008. Starch grains on human teeth reveal early broad crop diet in northern Peru. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences 105(50):19622-19627. Scarry, C. Margaret. Crop Husbandry Practices in North America’s Eastern Woodlands. Case Studies in Environmental Archaeology, SpringerLink, 2008. J, Schmutz. A reference genome for common bean and genome-wide analysis of dual domestications. McClean PE2, Mamidi S, National Center for Biotechnology Information, U.S. National Library of Medicine, July 2014, Bethesda, MD. Tuberosa (Editor). Genomics of Plant Genetic Resources. Roberto, Graner, et al., Volume 1, SpringerLink, 2014.

Fibre optics Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Fibre optics - Essay Example In this theory, the behavior of light is able to be shown or rather described within the optical fiber. This theory is majorly used in describing the causes of attenuation, dispersion of light and also the optical fiber absorption. Construction of Fiber Optic Cables Fiber optic cables are first given the core size which is 50/125 as the diameter then followed by the cladding size which is 125 microns while the 8/125 has a core diameter of 8microns with a cladding diameter of 125microns.A larger diameter has a larger core which allows more light which can be coupled depending n the angle cone. They can ether operate on a single mode propagation or a multimode propagation. The fiber-optic cables are made up of either glass, plastic or plastic-clad silica which differ to its attenuation. Attenuation can be seen to be majorly caused by absorption or scattering. In the glass fiber optic cable it is seen to consist of the lowest attenuation which when made it consists of glass core and gla ss cladding. It is also the most common preferred and has spread worldwide as it is easy to install because most of the people have accessed to it. The glass used is pure mad of silicon dioxide which during its fabrication process the impurities are added in order for it to produce a desire refraction of light. Boron or Fluorine is also added to decrease the refraction index. Plastic fiber optic cable has the highest attenuation as compared to the others made of plastic core and cladding. The core is made up of the polymethymethacrylate and coated with fluoropolymer. It’s better to used considering its costs and also do not have the flammability effect. Plastic clad silica fiber optic cable attenuation is between the glass and plastic. Its fiber optic cable has glass core commonly vitreous silica and its cladding is plastic. Its use of the silica makes it have a lower refractive index. It is fabricated with silicone elastomeric cladding which causes difficulty in its applicat ion, plasticity and also it makes it insoluble in organic solvents which bar it from being used by most of the people. Basic Fiber Optic Cables This is the type f technology which uses glass threads in order to transmit information or data. The bundles of the glass threads used are the ones capable in transmitting information which is later modulated into light waves. It is majorly used because of its advantages over the metal cables used earlier regarding on speed which is high as compared to the other communication lines among other advantages like it being thinner and light in weight. Although they are advantageous they also are disadvantageous in that they are expensive in its installation and also fragile among others. Fiber optics are becoming common in the local area networking enabling companies being able to use this as a better communication way. Types of Fiber Optic Cable There are 2 main types of fiber optic cables; these are the single mode and multimode fiber optic cab le. The single mode fiber optic cable (also referred to as uni-mode fiber, mono-mode fiber among other names) is used for a broad range of transmission as it covers longer distances making it suitable for multichannel television broadcasting system among other long distances transmission (Tricker 2002, pg. 20). This is caused by the ability to restore or allowance for a larger capacity for the transmission of information as it can retain the fidelity of light pulse. In this kind of fiber a lot of information is able to be sent

Media's influnces Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Media's influnces - Research Paper Example As such, the power that media has upon the lives of individual around the globe is dynamic and likely will increase as globalization and media integration continue to be evidenced. As a function of seeking to understand the impact that media has on stakeholders within society, the following analysis will engage the reader with some of the most prominent ways in which media impacts the way in which people think, act, and define/constrain their lives. A negative aspect regarding the current realities of media coverage and terrorism is with respect to the overall level of understanding that continual 24/7 coverage of terrorism related events ultimately has upon societal consciousness. If one considers, for instance, the recent Boston bombing was indicative of the way in which media proliferation and continual coverage worked to undermine any type of understanding, realization, or remorse for the events and focused upon anything but rational or substantiated reports. In effect, the media circus that surrounds many of the terrorism incidents, especially those take place to mastic way, has escalated to such a scale as to diminish any semblance of professional reporting and devolve this into something of a media circus/frenzy in which each and every potential angle and/or hearsay is given air time and discussed as a means of continually providing the viewer/listener/reader with a new take, a new stance, or new information concerning the topic at hand. Ultimately, all of this is done as a means of providing the media outlet with a further level of revenue. This is due to the fact that they are solely and completely aware of the realization that their profits and revenues are contingent upon their ability to continue to manufacture and engage the participant with what can be considered â€Å"new† information. Understanding that is necessary to continually compete with the viewer/reader/listener’s attention, these media outlets engage in a form and level of coverage that would have been unheard of that a few years previously. Although such a level of analysis is circumstantial at best, the reader could seek to create a level of understanding between the rapid increase in global terrorism and the rapid increase in media coverage that it is garnered over the past 10 years time. The profit-driven nature of the news media strikes at the very core of the issue up for discussion within this analysis. Ultimately, the very sad reality is that the news media derives a very great deal of profitability of the suffering and magnitude of harm that both man-made and natural disasters in her around the world (Thomas 53). At Within such an understanding, it becomes quite obvious to the reader that the news media is ultimately desirous of events such as terrorist actions which will greatly increase the scope of viewership that they would otherwise derive any one particular time. Although this is indeed sadistic, a rapid increase in viewership as a res ult of terrorist action allows for the news/media outlets to rapidly increase its profitability. Once again, although such a reality is difficult to fathom and completely understand within an ethical interpretation of the current paradigm, it is nonetheless true and impacts upon the extent and level to which terrorism is engaged and the extent and level to which societal stakeholders are presented with a continual influx of

Technology in America Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Technology in America - Research Paper Example According to Beer (52) â€Å"the use of social media on the internet has been shown to reduce with increasing age†. Thus, technology has changed the social norms in the American society. Technology like the internet has revolutionized how individuals relate to each other. Family members, colleagues at work and even students in school can now communicate easily and faster among each other. The internet is fast and sometimes more private and this has increased social interactions especially on social platforms like Facebook, twitter, MySpace and Google plus. People no longer have to meet physically or send letters in order to communicate. They can even form groups and have meetings online without having to meet physically. With technology making interaction between individuals easy and efficient, an increase in the feeling of sense of belonging has been the observed in many of these individuals. According to the 2010 Consumer reports, Technology has fostered creation of new relationships and even sustained the ones that existed before. However, despite the many positive changes that technology has brought, many negative effects have been observed in the subsequent stu dies carried out. Dangers of online networking especially on the teenagers have been clear demonstrated. Social networking reduces face-to-face interactions among the teenagers and the consequence has been an increased level of loneliness and stress. Cross (40) states that â€Å"some teenagers even end up committing suicide as a result of feeling left out or inferior† A substantial number of the avid internet users have become addicted to it. They can hardly spend ten minutes without looking at their phones; staying away from their computers is a hard ordeal to them. Missing out in important activities has been the consequence if this addiction. Those who are

Impact of Green Marketing on Young Consumers

Impact of Green Marketing on Young Consumers INTRODUCTION This study provides an overview of green marketing (is also known as ethnical and environmental marketing), the impact of green marketing towards the young consumers in Malaysia. The first part covers section on research problem, research objectives and research questions. RESEARCH BACKGROUND Throughout the twentieth century, many technologies and business practices have contributed to the destruction of the very ecological systems on which the economy and life itself depends, including toxic contamination, depletion of fisheries and forests, soil erosion, and biodiversity loss (Ottman et al.,2006). Many companies and consumers are beginning to respond to programs to help conserve the Earths natural resources, and green marketing is making a comeback (Ottman et al., 2006). Business management researchers Stuart Hart and Mark Milstein argue that the emerging challenge of global sustainability is catalyzing a new round of creative destruction that offers unprecedented opportunities for new environmentally sensitive innovations, markets, and products (Ottman et al., 2006). The progress of environmentalism in a country has significant role in changing consumers purchase behaviour as well as changing companys strategies to more environmental friendly. According to Kotler and Armstrong (2008), the first wave of modern environment and quality of life by environmental group and concerned consumers whereas second wave which passed law and regulations governing practices impacting the environment. At the moment, environmentalism waves is merging into a third and stronger wave in which companies are accepting responsibility for doing no environmental harm by adopting policies of environmental and sustain environment and produce profit (Kolter et al, 2008). PROBLEM STATEMENT The emerging trend of Go Green in the global is becoming more significant to the society in line with the growing awareness of global warming is accelerating, and the perception that it is posing a serious threat to humanity and the worlds environment (Star Publications (M) Bhd, 1995-2011). According to Our green world research report 2008 survey conducted by global insight and information group TNS, United Kingdom and other European countries are showing high interest in adopting changes in lifestyle and behaviour in the past to benefit the environments. The environmentalism in Asian countries especially for Thailand and Singapore are even more distinct through the society adaptation in environmental protection and green purchases through the effort of governments. On the aspect of eco-friendliness of habits and behaviours only 8% of Malaysian respondents responded they have changed their behaviour in a great deal to benefit the environment (Nabsiah Abdul Wahid et al, 2011). Despite the social adaptation of environmental consumption is rising, research indicates that many green products have failed because of marketers myopic focus on their products greenness over the broader expectations of consumers or other market players (such as regulators or activists) (Ottman et al., 2006). On the other hand, Tully and Schonfeld (1994) found that young consumers showing high concerned with social issues, particularly environmentalism. Many products are begin to tailored to suit young consumers as this group is representing a new generation of consumers with a strong potential impact on the type of goods and services offered in the market (Tan Lau, 2009). It is undeniable that young consumers play a relatively important consumers segment in the market as many researchers have been studying the behaviour and consumption patterns of this group which are the future marketing planners, policy makers and the new educators of the new economy. Therefore, the research is striving to find out how young consumers in Malaysia aware of green marketing? Does green marketing effectively changes the adaptation of green purchases among young consumers? RESEARCH OBJECTIVES The objectives of this study are as following: To review the concept of green marketing in consumer market. To analyse the environmental awareness, attitude and knowledge of young consumers in Malaysia. To evaluate the way that young consumers aware of green marketing. RESEARCH QUESTION What is the concept of green marketing in consumer market? What are the extent of environmental awareness, attitude and knowledge of young consumers in Malaysia? How the young consumers aware of green marketing? SIGNIFICANT OF STUDY The study aims to contribute the understanding of how young consumers perceived about green marketing in Malaysia. The research will examined the level of awareness of young consumers towards green marketing whether it will leads to positive environmental knowledge and attitude in making purchases. At the end of research, it is believed to provide some insights to green marketers regarding how they can expand their operation in Asia especially in Malaysia (Elham Rahbar and Nabsiah Abdul Wahid 2011). LITERATURE REVIEW Green marketing Green marketing is defined as holistic marketing concepts where in the production, marketing consumption and disposal of products and services happen in a manner that is less detrimental to environment with growing awareness about the implications of global warming, non-biodegradable solid waste, harmful impact of pollutants etc (Tariq Ahmad, 2010). Kotler Armstrong (2008) defined it as an organized movement of concerned citizens and government to protect and enhance peoples living environment. The concept is starting to popularize in many countries and companies as a cognitive persuasion strategies to involve environmental costs into the consumers decision process (Suplico, Luz T, 2009) especially in their purchases of goods and services. Marketers always coined the term ecological marketing, green marketing, environmental marketing, eco-marketing and sustainable marketing (Coddington, 1993, Fuller, 1998 and Ottman, 1998) as a label of the greenness of their product and services. Despite many agree with the powerful function of green marketing, green products is still remained as niche goods attributed to marketers selling strategy which only to committed ethical consumers without the aid of mainstream marketing techniques (Josephine Pickett-Baker and Ritsuko Ozaki, 2008). Thus, many companies has started to include green concept in advertising as a way to connect consumers with their environmental friendly product and services. Green advertising Green advertising is known as environmental advertising which include popular terms such as recyclable, environmentally friendly, ozone safe and biodegradable (Clare DSouza Mehdi Taghian, 2005). Consumers response towards green advertising may turn out to be effective when the products meet their needs and aligns with their values (e.g saving money on fuel and increasing childrens safety) (Josephine Pickett-Baker Ritsuko Ozaki, 2008). Some consumers response negatively towards the messages in green advertising due to the credibility of green advertising is relatively low (Kilbourne, 1995) which is insufficient for attitudes change towards the advertisement leads to changes in brand attitudes (Gorn 1982; Lutz, Mac Kenzie and Belch, 1983; Mitchell and Olson, 1981). However, the study of Davis (1993) revealed that consumers weak response to environmental advertising is not the consequence of consumers unwillingness to take action and change their behaviour to purchase green products; rather consumers are unwilling to change their purchase behaviour given the manner in which green products have been promoted and advertised (Elham Rahbar and Nabsiah Abdul Wahid, 2011). However, many authors believe advertising works well when it tries to appeal to those values that drive consumer decision processes (Josephine Pickett-Baker, Ritsuko Ozaki, 2008) Hawkins et al. (1998) explain how the emotional content in advertisements increases attention, a critical step in the perception process. Emotional messages may be processed more thoroughly and remembered better as a result of increased alertness. It is reasonable to assume that advertising green products using emotional content would be more successful (Josephine Pickett-Baker Ritsuko Ozaki, 2008). Mendleson (1994) even commented that marketers should emphasize the ecological knowledge in their organizations, their products and their advertising in order to achieve the goal of changing the consumer purchasing behaviour (E lham Rahbar and Nabsiah Abdul Wahid, 2011) Young consumers Generation Y is the prevalent group of young consumers born between the years of 1980-1994 (Halstead, K, 2006 cited in Tee, 2007) which has greater purchasing power than any prior generation and it will heavily influence markets in the near future (Martin and Turley). Gen Y learns to shop at young age will eventually shape their shopping behaviour as adults (Ward, as cited in Halstead K, 2006). Therefore, it came as no surprise that many marketing and promotional efforts are targeted at this group of growing young consumers (Tan Lau, 2009) from consumer acceptance of unethical consumptions). Pratt et al. (1983) in their study found that young consumers often differ from elderly consumers in terms of their moral thinking (Tan Lau, 2009). This group of people are more open minded and strongly influence what happens in their homes (Josephine Pickett-Baker and Ritsuko Ozaki, 2008) Young consumers purchase decision According to Kotler and Armstrong, consumer purchase decision involves three major components: inputs, process and output (). The input consists of both internal and external influences. The output component involves the purchase behaviour and the post-purchase evaluation. The process component involves the psychological field such as motivation, perception, learning, personality and attitudes (Kotler Armstrong, 2008 cited in Luz T. Suplico, 2009). The study followed the proposed model of consumer decision-making process used in Luz T. Suplico (2009) that involves inputs, process and the output. Inputs will include environmental attitude, knowledge and the extent of awareness to green marketing (Peter Olson, 2009 cited in Luz T. Suplico, 2009). The expected output is the whether the consumers choose to purchase the product. Green consumption Green consumption defined as contradicted as consumer concerns about the environment do not necessarily behave in a green way in general, or in their purchasing (Josephine Pickett-Baker Ritsuko Ozaki, 2008). Green consumption began when consumers purchase behaviour is influenced by environmental concerns (Shrum, McCarty Lowrey, 1995 cited in Clare DSouza Mehdi Taghian, 2005). Study found that people who are environmentally conscious do not necessarily behave pro-environmentally: for example, people might throw rubbish away when most people around them do so (reactive process, as opposed to intentional decision making (Ohtomo and Hirose, 2007 cited in Josephine Pickett-Baker Ritsuko Ozaki, 2008). In most cases, consumer will experience an improvement of environmental quality only when major sectors of the global population pursue generalized green consumer behaviour. Thus, the perceived individual customer benefit might not be a sufficiently powerful motivation to green purchasing (Belz and Dyllik, 1996 cited in Patrick Hartmann, Vanessa Apaolaza Ibà ¡Ãƒ ±ez, 2006). Environmental Awareness Environmental awareness and behaviours were found to be influenced by values, attitudes and knowledge (Haron et al, 2005). German scholars of Pakistan have added that the buyers level of awareness will affect attitude to environmental protection, the attitude of the environmental protection will affect the attitude of his green lifestyle, people with positive attitude of green lifestyle will involved in the purchase of green product and consumption activities (Juan Zhang, 2010, p.178). Unfortunately, in the case of Malaysia, the environmental awareness is still very low from the view of the importance of separating household solid waste and involvement in recycling programmes (Haron, S.A., Palm, L. Yahaya, N., 2005, p.428). Environmental Attitude Attitudes are the most consistent explanatory factor in predicting consumers willingness to pay for green products (Chyong et al., 2006 cited in Tan, Lau, 2010, p.30). Consumers product purchasing decisions are often based on their environmental attitudes (Irland, 1993; Schwepker and Cornwell, 1991 cited in Tan Lau, 2010). Environmental attitude is defined as the individuals value judgement of environmental protection which taps the individuals cognitive assessment of the value of the environmental protection (Lee, 2008 cited in Nabsiah Abdul Wahid et al, 2011). However, the demand and attitudes for green products is likely to be uneven across different market segments and cultures (Ottman Peattie, 1992 cited in Elham Rahbar and Nabsiah Abdul Wahid 2011) which need to be closely study. Environmental Knowledge In numerous studies, knowledge is an important factor in consumers decision-making process. Cohen (1973) commented that green marketing activities had play an important influence on increasing consumer knowledge and in shifting consumer into purchasing green products (Elham Rahbar and Nabsiah Abdul Wahid, 2011). Findings of Gendall et al reveals that men tended to have more knowledge than women; younger people tended to be more knowledgeable than older people; and the higher the level of education, the higher the level of knowledge (Haron, S.A., Palm, L. Yahaya, N. 2005, p.428). However, they concluded that generally the overall level of knowledge of Malaysian teenagers is low, especially among those studying in the arts stream compared with those studying in the sciences stream. (Haron, S.A., Palm, L., Yahaya, N., 2005, p.428). Bradley et al. (1999) commented that environmental education is able to create environmental awareness and promote environmentally responsible behaviour (c ited in Tan, Lau, 2009). Malaysian government has been promoting sustainable consumption practices among the public in various strategies. Social advertising is one of the approaches of Malaysian government to educate and foster environmental concern among the public (Haron et al., 2005). HYPOTHESIS Referencing from the existing literature, it is thus hypothesized that: HI: Green marketing has a positive H2: H3: RESEARCH METHODOLOGY THEORETICAL FRAMEWORK Independent Variable Dependent Variable Impact of Green Marketing on Purchase Behaviour of Young Consumers in Malaysia Environmental Awareness Environmental Attitude Environmental Knowledge RESEARCH DESIGN For the purpose of this study, descriptive research will be undertaken using quantitative methodology to examine the impact of green marketing on young consumers purchase decision, environmental awareness, attitude and knowledge. SAMPLING DESIGN Target Population The target population for this study will be the under graduate, graduate and postgraduate students age ranging 18 to 25 years old. The reason of choosing individuals above this age is because they are familiar with purchasing of products and are also empowered in their decisions for choosing the right items between many available choices, therefore, considerate to environmental issues in their purchasing behaviour (Elham Rahbar and Nabsiah Abdul Wahid, 2011). Sampling Technique In this study, cluster sampling is deployed as it is a type of probability sampling where a random of subgroups is selected and all members of the subgroups become part of the sample (David A. Aaker, V. Kumar, George S Day, Robert P. Leone, 2010). By using probability sampling technique, the research findings can be generalized to the target population with a specified level of confidence (Hair et al., 2007). The advantage of cluster sampling is able to enhance sampling efficiency improved by decreasing cost at a faster rate than accuracy. The limitation of cluster sampling is resulted in relatively imprecise samples, and it is difficult to form heterogeneous cluster because, for example, household in a block tend to be similar rather than dissimilar (David A. Aaker, V. Kumar, George S Day, Robert P. Leone, 2010). Sampling location The questionnaire survey will be conducted in four private colleges or universities in Klang Valley in order to enhance the results of the findings. Sampling size The sampling size involved in this study will be 400 participants either in private colleges or universities in Klang Valley. DATA COLLECTION The data collections of this study consist of primary data and secondary data. Primary data will be collected through the distribution of questionnaires. James P. Neelankavil (2007) stated that secondary data collection is an important step in the research process because it is the key to accomplishing low cost research programme. The secondary data is retrieved from different websites, newspaper, magazines, journal articles database such as Emerald insight and Anglia Ruskin e-library which is both permanent and available in a form that may be checked relatively easily by other (Denscombe, 1998 cited in Saunders, M., Lewis, P. Thornhill, A., 2007). However, the secondary data might fails to provide the information that appropriate to answer the research questions or research objectives will result in invalid answers (Kelvin, 1999 cited Saunders, M., Lewis, P. Thornhill, A., 2007) PILOT STUDY According to Zikmund, et al (2010) the questionnaire has to be pretested to ensure the respondents understand the intended meaning of the questions as well as checking the problems attached in the wording and measurement. Thus, pilot study will be conducted by circulating 200 questionnaires among universities or colleges which the result is important to check the reliability and suitability the instrument. MEASURES The questionnaire will be divided into four sections. The first section will include demographic information which adapted from the study of Fong (2006) on environmental orientation of consumers in Malaysia (Nabsiah Abdul Wahid et al., 2011). The second section include the The third section of the questionnaire measuring on the respondents environmental attitude, the respondents environmental awareness and respondents green purchasing behaviour based on a 5-point Likert scale (1 = strongly disagree, 5 = strongly agree) and (1 = never, 5 = always) is used in the study of Nik Abdul Rashid and Elham Rahbar and Nabisha Abdul Wahid. DATA ANALYSIS For this research, the data will be processed using statistical techniques which include factor analysis, descriptive analysis, and multiple regression analysis. Factor Analysis Factor analysis which is one type of multivariate analysis is used to define the underlying structure called factors among the variables in the analysis (Hair et al., 2007). Factor analysis will performed using the all the variables in this study to test whether the concept is correctly theorized. Descriptive Analysis Descriptive analysis involved summarizing and transforming the data into an understandable and interpretable mode (Zikmund et al., 2010). Descriptive analysis will be utilized in most parts of the analysis using mean and standard deviation of variables to help researchers understand the respondents perception of variables and other detailed analysis that were performed (Elham Rahbar and Nabsiah Abdul Wahid, 2011). Multiple Regression Analysis Multiple regression analysis will be performed to analyze the relationship between a dependent variable and independent variables and addressed hypothesis (Coakes and Steed, 2001; Hair et al., 1998 cited in Elham Rahbar and Nabsiah Abdul Wahid, 2011). The control variables to be analyse included age and educational level of respondents whom constantly influenced by environmental knowledge (Haron et al, 2005). LIMITATIONS There are few limitations in this study. Firstly, the main limitation is the study will opened for colleges or universities students in Klang Valley only. Therefore, the result may not be appropriate to generalize finding to all young consumers in Malaysia. TIME SCALES REFERENCES Afzaal Ali, Athar Ali Khan, Israr Ahmed Waseem Shahzad, 2011. Determinants of Pakistani Consumers Green Purchase Behavior: Some Insights from a Developing Country. International Journal of Business and Social Science [e-journal] 2(3) Available at: [Accessed 18 April 2011]. Clare DSouza Mehdi Taghian, 2005. Green advertising affect on attitude and theme. Asia Pacific Journal of Marketing and Logistics [e-journal] 17(3)Available through: Emerald Group Publishing Limited database [Accessed 13 February 2011]. David A. Aaker, V. Kumar, George S Day, Robert P. Leone, 2010. Marketing research. John Wiley Sons (Asia) Pte Ltd: Asia. Elham Rahbar and Nabsiah Abdul Wahid, 2011. Investigation of green marketing tools effect on consumers purchase behaviour. Business Strategy Series. [e-journal] 12(2) Available through: Emerald Group Publishing Limited database [Accessed 13 March 2011]. Hair, J.F.Jr., Money, A.H., Samouel, P., Page, M., 2007. Research methods for business. Chichester: John Wiley Sons Ltd. Haron, S.A., Palm, L. Yahaya, N. 2005. Towards sustainable consumption: an examination of environmental knowledge among Malaysians. [Online] Available at: [Accessed 10 April 2011]. James P. Neelankavil, 2007. International business research, M.E.Sharpe, Inc: New York. Josephine Pickett-Baker Ritsuko Ozaki, 2008. Pro-environmental products: marketing influence on consumer purchase decision. Journal of Consumer Marketing [e-journal] 25(5) Available through: Emerald Group Publishing Limited database [Accessed 12 April 2011]. Juan Zhang, 2010. Green Marketing Strategy Analysis of Real Estate Based on Low-Carbon Economy. [online] Available at: [Accessed 1 April 2011]. Kaman Lee, 2008. Opportunities for green marketing: young consumers. Marketing Intelligent Planning [e-journal] 26(6) Available through: Emerald Group Publishing Limited database [Accessed 4 February 2011]. Kaman Lee, 2011. The Green Purchase Behaviour of Hong Kong Young Consumers: The Role of Peer influence, Local Environmental Involvement and concrete Environment Knowledge. Journal of International Consumer Marketing. [e-journal] 23(1), Abstract only. 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The Economy Essay -- Economics

The Economy Economic Factors: Interest Rates: An interest rate is the rate of increase over time of a bank deposit Inflation: Inflation is persistent increase in the level of consumer prices or persistent decline in the purchasing power of money. Exchange Rates: The exchange rate is the price of one currency when traded with another. For Example, Â £1 will approximately buy the following at a given point in time: 1.50 Euros 2.70 Australian Dollars 1.60 US Dollars Impact of changes on WFP: Rising interest rates: Rising Interest Rates will work to the disadvantage of West Ferry Printers. They will have to pay more amount of money on loans and, as a result, their expenditures will increase. Falling interest rates: Falling Interest Rates will benefit West Ferry Printers. It can adopt an aggressive market strategy by reducing the prices of its products and enhance its market share In a situation involving a high rate of inflation, West Ferry Printers will not be able to plan its finances accurately. If the company is left with less money it will not be able to pay its staff decent remuneration for their services. Disputes may occur if workers are unable to secure wage increases to sustain their standard of living. Like any other business, West Ferry printers will be better off if rate of inflation stays within the normal range. West Ferry Printers will have ample time to devise their costing and other plans carefully. Low in...

Week 3 Acct2522

ACCT2522 Management Accounting 1 Session 1, 2013 Tutorial Week 3 – Cost basics Overall Theme We will explore fundamental assumptions of cost functions and discuss the relationships between cost behaviour, cost estimation and cost prediction. The concept of cost driver analysis and its application to cost estimation and cost management will also be discussed. We will also describe how to estimate cost behaviour using managerial judgment, engineering methods and other quantitative techniques. Desired Learning Outcomes and Essential Reading Langfield-Smith, K. , H. Thorne, and R. W. Hilton (2012).Management Accounting 6e: Information for Managing and Creating Value, 6th ed, McGraw-Hill Australia Pty Ltd. (Hereafter referred to as LS) †¢ Chapter 2 †¢ Chapter 3 (include Appendix 3 portion on â€Å"Evaluating the regression equation† p. 108109) TOPIC 3 COST BASICS After completing this topic, you should be able to: 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. Why are costs important? Wh at does ‘different costs for different purposes’ mean? Understand and apply various classifications of costs. Understand cost drivers and the role of cost driver analysis. Describe and apply the activity hierarchy of costs and cost drivers.Explain the relationships between cost estimation, cost behaviour and cost prediction. Understand and apply various methods for cost estimation. Understand some practical issues faced in estimating cost functions. 1 Tutorial Questions (must be prepared prior to the tutorial) Question 1: Langfield-Smith, Chapter 3, Case 3. 41 Parts Q3-8 only Please note that all numbers in the cost functions should be rounded off to 2 dec places. Excel regression outputs are as follows: Part 1: If only patient load is considered as a determinant of administration costs, a simple regression can be used, utilising Excel.The output is reproduced below. Regression Statistics Multiple R 0. 927088078 R Square 0. 859492304 Adjusted R Square 0. 824365379 Stand ard Error 401. 9749382 Observations 6 ANOVA df Regression Residual Total 1 4 5 Coefficients Intercept Patients 6 181. 36646 3. 838509317 SS 3 953 664. 596 646 335. 4037 4 600 000 Standard error 730. 0175478 0. 775999898 MS 395 3665 161583. 9 F 24. 468191 Significance F 0. 00778042 t Stat 8. 467422 4. 946533 P-value 0. 0010661 0. 0077804 Lower 95% 4 154. 51281 1. 6839882 Upper 95% 8 208. 220107 5. 993030436Part 2: When both patient load and the number of emergency procedures are considered as determinants of administrative cost, a multiple regression must be used. Utilising Excel, the regression statistics are reproduced below. Regression Statistics Multiple R 0. 92919029 R Square 0. 86339459 Adjusted R Square 0. 77232432 Standard Error 457. 669779 Observations 6 ANOVA Regression Residual Total df 2 3 5 SS 3 971 615. 12 628 384. 8797 4 600 000 MS 1 985 808 209 461. 6 F 9. 480532 Significance F 0. 05048959 Standard Lower Coefficients Error t Stat P-value 95% Intercept 5943. 98625 1161 . 190869 5. 18871 0. 01443 2 248. 558665 Emergency 24. 9140893 85. 10570782 0. 292743 0. 788799 -245. 930256 Patients 3. 80756014 0. 889819838 4. 279024 0. 023443 0. 975756281 Upper Lower Upper 95% 95. 0% 95. 0% 9 639. 414 2 248. 5599 639. 414 295. 7584 -245. 932 95. 7584 6. 639364 0. 975756 6. 639364 2 Question 2: Refer to Beth and Jessie’s ice cream factory from the tutorial last week. Please assume that in addition to chocolate chip ice-cream, Beth and Jessie have expanded their operations to produce Extra Chewy Cookie Dough ice-cream and Super Creamy Strawberry Cheesecake ice-cream. They hired semi-retired chef on a project-by-project basis to help develop these two flavours; and he is currently experimenting with another new flavour – Very Juicy Mango Delight. We further assume that the processes are exactly the same to manufacture all three types of ice-creams, except that different flavours and different â€Å"extra ingredients† are added. A. Please give examples of the following: Cost object = A box of ice-cream. 1. A unit level cost 2. A batch level cost 3. A product level cost 4. A facility level cost B. For each of the your examples, 1. Suggest a potential cost driver 2.Classify the cost as manufacturing or non-manufacturing 3 Self Study Questions and Solutions (complete in your own time) 1. 2. 3. 4. LS, Chapter 2, Self-Study problem 1. LS, Chapter 2, Review Question 2. 7 LS, Chapter 3, Question 3. 34. Mowen, Chapter 3, Question 3. 10. (Note: You are not required to run a regression, the output table is provided below. 4 Self Study Questions and Solutions (complete in your own time) 1. LS, Chapter 2, Self-Study problem 1. Solution is on p. 61-62 with the following amendments: 4) Answer should a, and h. (Sales and marketing are often used interchangeably. 7) Answer should be a, and NOT b. (The word-processing equipment is used for administration purposes and should not be inventorised. ) 9) Answer should be a, and either g or h. (If the new product packaging is designed to attract customers’ attention and increase sales, the cost of material can also be considered a marketing cost. ) 2. LS, Chapter 2, Review Question 2. 7 When analysing cost behaviour the ‘level of activity’ refers to the level of work performed in the organisation. The activity generally causes the cost and, for this reason, the level of activity is often referred to as the level of cost driver.Activity can be expressed in many different ways, including units produced, number of machine hours, number of direct labour hours, number of transactions, kilometres driven, kilowatts used, pages printed, number of set-ups, number of engineering hours and so on. 3. LS, Chapter 3, Question 3. 34. Answers to this question will vary. Rather than looking for a right answer, students should seek an understanding of the concepts. 1. Given that a full-time technician is hired, this component of the cost is a fixed cost.The additional c ost of repairs by the local dealer may be related to the number of instruments used in the school, or number of hours of instruction. A semi-variable cost. 2. The number of audit hours is a cost driver, which, in turn may be related to the number of students (influencing the number of transactions. ) A variable cost. 3. No cost driver – a fixed cost; step-fixed cost if the number of students grew beyond the ability of existing admin staff to cope and another new staff has to be hired. 4. Number of students enrolled, or number of hours of instruction. Variable cost. . No cost driver i. e. a fixed cost (if annual fixed salary paid) or, (if paid on an hourly basis) the number of hours employed or the number of hours of instruction (i. e. , a variable cost). 6. Number of students enrolled. A variable cost. 7. A fixed cost; no driver. (However, in the long term, the cost of new instruments purchased will drive the depreciation charge. ) 8. Probably fixed; no cost driver. 9. Number of hours the school is open. A semi-variable cost. 5 4. Mowen, Chapter 3, Question 3. 10 Note: You may have a slightly different figure due to rounding (e. g. ,  ±1). 6

Dividing a Word When Writing or Typing

Dividing a Word When Writing or Typing Sometimes it is necessary to divide a word at the end of the line because there is not enough space for the completion of the word. These days many computer programs automatically take care of this problem for you. However, if you are using a typewriter or handwriting on stationary it is useful to know these rules. In order to divide a word add a hyphen (-) typed without a space immediately after the first part of the divided word at the end of the line. For example ...The matter of job compen-sation is extremely important... Rules for Dividing Words Here are the most important rules to follow when dividing a word By syllable: Divide the word by syllables or units of sound. For example, important, im-por-tant - important has three syllables; thinking, think-ing - thinking has two syllables By structure: Divide the word into the smaller units of meaning from which the word is constructed. It may have a beginning (a prefix) such as un-, dis-, im-, etc., (im-portant, dis-interested) or an ending (a suffix) such as -able, -fully, (as in desirable, desir-able). By meaning: Decide how each part of the divided word is best understood in order that the word is easily recognized from the two parts. For example, compound words such as houseboat made up of two words combined to make a single word, house-boat. Here are six further rules to help you decide when and how to divide words. Never divide a word within a syllable.Never divide an ending (suffix) of two syllables such as -able or -fully.Never divide a word with an ending of two letters such as -ed -er, -ic (exception -ly)Never divide a word so that one of the parts is a single letter.Never divide a word of one syllable.Never divide a word of fewer than five letters.

The Original Boss--William Tweed

The Original BossWilliam Tweed The Original BossDuring the "Golden Years" of America, in the middle of the 19th century, it seemed as though nothing happened in New York City unless the Boss wanted it to happen. William Marcy "Boss" Tweed, a formidable politician, ruled and corrupted the city so shamelessly in the years right after the War Between the States, that his name became synonymous with dishonesty. Construction of the Brooklyn Bridge could not proceed until Tweed got a seat on the bridge company board. It was reported that he redirected more than $6 million of the city's money into his own bank account. Known among political reformers as the forty thieves, The Tweed Ring [Peter Sweeny, city chamberlain; Richard B. Connolly, city comptroller; and Oakey Hall, mayor (to name a few)], "sold" money-making franchises to companies they controlled, padded construction bills, practiced graft and extortion, and exploited every opportunity to plunder the city's funds, the Boss was a figure to be reckoned with.Englis h: Caricature of Boss Tweed by Thomas Nast.Both beloved by many of the city's poor immigrants yet the target of pointed jabs from political cartoonist Thomas Nast, these were two opposite faces of the Boss.There is little question that the Tweed Ring practiced thievery and that Tammany Hall had a series of reoccurring scandals. An estimated 75 to 200 million dollars were swindled from the City between 1865 and 1871. Yet, there is more to the story than a confrontation of the machine form of city government and the ideology of reformer exhortations. Tammany represented a form of organization that wedded the Democratic Party and the Society of St. Tammany (started in 1789 for patriotic and fraternal purposes) into an interchangeable exchange. The weave of city politics was the triangulation of the Mayor's office, the Democratic Party and the social club organization. During the...

Tragic Flaw in Sophocles' Oedipus the King Essay

Tragic Flaw in Sophocles' Oedipus the King - Essay Example That way the audience can experience a proper moral fear that badness always brings forth bad result. In the case of Sophocles’ â€Å"Oedipus the King†, the character that passes out as â€Å"tragic flaw† in the Oedipus is no doubt his pride and arrogance. In this paper we will be looking at the principle of â€Å"tragic flaw† as postulated by Aristotle in the context of Sophocles’ play â€Å"Oedipus the King†. The idea of tragic flaw that became synonymous to Greek tragedy was postulated by Aristotle, which might explain why this principle featured prominently in almost all his poetics. Tragic flaw basically describes a hero in a story making some fundamental mistakes that are mostly triggered by pride or hubris, which forms his main flaw in an otherwise perfect character, thereby marking his downfall. There is strong evidence to suggest that the development of the principle of tragic flaw was informed by the need to respond to the principle of tragedy which despite dominating Greek plays for so long was being challenged by the likes of Plato on moral grounds. In this regard, the principle of tragedy was attacked ostensibly for corrupting the audience by alluding to the futility of being virtuous. According to Plato, tragedy corrupts the audience by showing good and virtuous people perishing instead of emerging triumphant. It is, therefore, extremely disheartening to see them falling by the wayside primarily because of their virtues and goodness. It was in response to this challenge that Aristotle decided to add some flaw to an otherwise heroic character so as to explain his downfall on moral ground. By so doing Aristotle had offered a solution to the principle of tragedy as presented by Plato and other Greek writers and playwrights. In the play the Oedipus the King Oedipus commits a number of mistakes that can be blamed on his pride, which forms the tragic flaw in his character. One of such mistakes is his impatience with Creon after embarking in a journey to Apollo’s temple to plead with him to save the city of Thebes from the plague that has destroyed crops and livestock while rendering women sterile. After the arrival of Creon from Apollo’s temple we see Oedipus commanding Creon to tell him what Apollo has to say concerning the plague despite Creon’s protestation on spilling the information in front of his subjects. This offer from Creon to do it in private should have awaken Oedipus to the reality that whatever he was about to hear was not good to be spilt in the midst of his subjects. However, in total disregard of Creon’s advice he stood his ground and received the information in the presence of his subject, something that smirk of extreme pride. A careful analysis of the play will show a keen reader that this is a dangerous mistake that Oedipus has made because the answer that comes from Creon set the stage for his downfall. It is also important to note that ha d he agreed to receive the message from Apollo in private, things would not have gone out of hand as they eventually did. King Oedipus curiosity for truth is arguably the worst trait that contributes to his downfall in this play. If only he had decided to forget about where he came from and concentrated on resolving issues surrounding the plague, then

Academic Skills Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Academic Skills - Essay Example The aim of education, then, is the full intellectual, moral and spiritual development of the student. Students should acquire discipline and self-mastery, possess mental skills and have a firm character and goodwill. These dispositions are to serve the proper ends of humankind. Clearly students need practical skills to navigate in the everyday world, but the main orientation is toward the ideal, perfect, transcendent realm which truly defines human existence. Planning is one of the academic skills which helps to organize the education and personal schedule. Planning bridges the gap from "where we are" to "where we want to go." It makes it possible for things to occur which would not otherwise happen. In an overall sense, planning is a function that is intellectually demanding and the most basic of all education functions. Planning should logically precede the execution of the educational goals and strategies of organizing, directing, and controlling. It is a function of management wh ich is unique in that it provides direction for all group effort. The purpose of planning is to provide a student with a framework in which decisions can be made which will have an impact on the learning process. A conscious effort to systematize the effort and to manage its evolution is preferable to an unmanaged and haphazard evolution. The basic planning problem is how to allocate the limited resources. The major benefits to be expected from planning include an improved sense of direction for the learning and a student himself, better performance, increased understanding of the learning and its purpose, earlier awareness of problems, and more effective decisions. Assessment allows a student to choose between alternative and find the most reliable and objective information. Assessment, analysis and synthesis are closely connected with planning seen as a process for setting future direction, a means to reduce risk, and a vehicle for training managers. It is also a process for making strategic decisions, a way to develop consensus among top managers, and a means to develop a written long-range plan. Strategic planning can be defined as a method of guiding studnets so that their decisions and actions affect the future of the education process in a consistent and rational manner, and in a way desired by top management. Planning, assessment and restricting helps me to study the course and effective use my time resources and skills. Planning/thinking entails tactica) planning--the planning of those actions to be taken to put strategies into effect. This type of planning answers the question of how to get the job done. It often consists of specific objectives accompanied by short narrative action plans. Assessment may have two diametrically opposed definitions. One is that it is the overall encompassing effort for total planning of a learning process, meaning that planning is merely a portion or "tool" of learning. Planning and restructuring are a part of the day-to-day implementation of an strategic plan. I suppose that I have a good planning and restructuring skills, but need some practice in assessment and analysis. These skills are s core of the effective management of change within the course. It is the implementation of strategies developed to determine a new direction for the personal development through transition, so it may fulfill its responsibilities in a rapidly changing environment. I suppose that planning is not visionary or futuristic thinking, but an example of process versus substance. Planning is the process that creates a balance between what is desired and what is possible. Assessment enables students to distinguish truly important decisions from less important ones