Strategic Choices And Evaluations Apple Inc. - 2160 Words

Strategic choices and Evaluations Apple Inc. Leadership Apple Inc. like any company has undergone changes with regard to its leadership over the years. Steve Jobs, however, the co-founder and CEO of the American consumer electronics company was renowned for his unique leadership style, which was a key ingredient to the success of Apple. Steve Jobs was a master at arranging ideas, art and technology in ways that repeatedly invented the future (Isaacson, 2011). Isaacson stated, â€Å"Some leaders push innovations by being good at the big picture. Others do so by mastering details. Jobs did both, relentlessly† (2011). Jobs was voted as one of the greatest entrepreneurs of all time by Buniess Week and by 2010 the World’s best CEO by Harvard†¦show more content†¦He would tell you that your work, your ideas and sometimes your existence were worthless right to your face†¦working for Steve was also ecstasy. Once in a while he would tell you, you were great and that made it all worthwhile† (Cruikshank, 2006). It is well known that Jobs could be arrogant however he possessed many positive qualities of great charismatic leader. He had a clear vision, a passion for the company and its people and the ability to inspire trust. Jobs also ensured everyone else at the company bought into his vision, thus creating a ‘higher purpose’ for the company (Henson, 2014). His passion and sheer determination for Apple is legendary; Jobs said, â€Å"I’m convinced that about half of what separates the successful entrepreneurs from the non-successful ones is pure perseverance.† This passion was evident for everyone to see and so his employees trusted him; he was able to show them repeatedly his competence in many different areas and wasn’t driven by his on ego (Henson, 2014). Furthermore Jobs was credited with imposing discipline on Apple; an attribute the company had lacked for years (Johnson et al. , 2014). Apple’s leadership didn’t accept easy, it was believe d that when the company wins, everyone wins (Merchant and Nilofer, 2010). In January 2009 Jobs left Apple due to health issues. He would still be involved in major strategic decisions, however COO Tim Cook would handle everyday operations (Johnson et al. ,

The Glass Menagerie By Tennessee Williams - 914 Words

Various psychological frameworks can be applied to analyze the problems of literary characters, as well as those of real people. One such framework is Buddhism with its analysis of suffering and its causes. Noted Buddhist teacher Thich Nhat Hanh states that Letting go gives us freedom, and freedom is the only condition for happiness. If, in our heart, we still cling to anything – anger, anxiety, or possessions – we cannot be free (78). More specifically, Nhat Hanh and many other Buddhists recommend that letting go of greed, aversion and delusion, referred to by Buddhist as the Three Poisons (or Kilesas), in order to be gain the greatest happiness. According to Theravada Buddhist teacher Nyanatiloka Mahathera delusion (also referred to as ignorance) is the worst of these three dysfunctions because, â€Å"If there is no more ignorance, there will be no more greed and hatred, no more rebirth, no more suffering† (O’Brien). The three main characters of Tennesse e Williams’ play The Glass Menagerie exhibit these dysfunctional states of mind to varying degrees. The play effectively explores various motifs including various examples of escapism, economic anxiety and generally dysfunctional ways of relating to others to illustrate the convergence or interplay of dysfunctions that a family can have. Due to the precarious economic situation of the central characters, including Amanda Wingfield, an overbearing mother figure, escapism is a dominant theme in this drama. Her daughter LauraShow MoreRelatedThe Glass Menagerie By Tennessee Williams985 Words   |  4 Pageshardly catch it going. ¨ This quote by the author of The Glass Menagerie, Tennessee Williams, describes both The Glass Menagerie, a memory play, and the life of Tennessee Williams himself, for whom memories played a large role in his life. Within the play, many parallels can be drawn between the life of Williams and the life of Tom, the main character, such as a disdain for factory work. In addition, several characters in The Glass Menagerie have a difficult time fitting into the roles that theirRead MoreThe Glass Menagerie By Tennessee Williams Essay940 Words   |  4 PagesTennessee Williams was a renowned Pulitzer Prize-winning playwriter for his numerous plays throughout his career. One of such plays is The Glass Menagerie. After perfecting his play for many years, The Glass Menagerie was first introduced to Broadway on March 31, 1945. As a young writer, Williams lived vicariously through his plays. Throughout this play in particular, there are several allegories that pertain to Williams life. Although Williams had a relatively happy childhood, his life changedRead MoreThe Glass Menagerie By Tennessee Williams986 Words   |  4 PagesTennessee Williams’s The Glass Menagerie, is a classic drama about a young man who is tired of his dull and boring existence. Tom, the main character, struggles to deal with his family, who is apparently hold ing him back in life. With the use of powerful writing techniques, Williams is able to captivate his audience and create a play that has stood the test of time. An excellent writing technique employed by Williams that contributes to The Glass Menagerie’s success is his use of plot. ThroughoutRead MoreThe Glass Menagerie By Tennessee Williams932 Words   |  4 Pages THE GLASS MENAGERIE Name Instructor Institution Course Date The Glass Menagerie Tennessee Williams, the author in the play †The Glass Menagerie† that is based on his life that presents characters that, as caught animals in an cage, live in woeful states and just wish to unravel themselves from this state (Fisher, 2010). The primary clash in the story emerges through their longing to encounter a different world, but their condition opens them to life s unforgiving realities. LifeRead MoreThe Glass Menagerie By Tennessee Williams1249 Words   |  5 Pagesthe outside world The Glass Menagerie is very interesting because William s play relates to alot of people and their situations, people can learn alot from it alot whether they connect to Amanda and her past or to Laura and her lack of confidence and being in a world of her own or to Tom and his internal conflict about abandoning his family or staying with them. Laura s life is all about her glass menageries what happens when her glass unicorn breaks? What happens when a gentlemanRead MoreThe Glass Menagerie By Tennessee Williams1619 Words   |  7 PagesIsolation is prevalent in â€Å"The Glass Menagerie† by Tennessee Williams. This is presented in symbols such as blue roses and the glass unicorn, for they are imagined objects and only existent in another fantasy world. Williams incorporates such arcane symbols to draw out his characters, Amanda, Laura, and Tom, and how they cope with confinement. Most importantly, the symbols of the play represent how isolation debilita tes them psychologically in an attempt to connect with reality. The jonquils representRead MoreThe Glass Menagerie By Tennessee William1014 Words   |  5 PagesIn the play â€Å"The Glass Menagerie† of Tennessee William, he wrote a drama play to emphasize readers about the life is at a standstill the Wingfield family. Through of the Wingfield family, he uses many symbols which represent many things, but the important main symbolization is fire escape that shows three main characters; Tom Wingfield, his fire escape is the way out of Amanda and Laura. Amanda Wingfield, hope gentlemen callers to enter their lives, and Laura Wingfield, who wants in her own worldRead MoreThe Glass Menagerie By Tennessee Williams1534 Words   |  7 PagesThe Glass Menagerie by Tennessee Williams Tennessee Williams, born Thomas Lanier Williams, wrote The Glass Menagerie, a play which premiered in Chicago in 1944. This award winning play, autobiographical in nature, represented a time in which Williams felt the obligation of his responsibilities in regards to the care of his family. Robert DiYanni, Adjunct Professor of Humanities at New York University, rated it as, â€Å"One of his best-loved plays...a portrayal of loneliness among characters who confuseRead MoreThe Glass Menagerie By Tennessee Williams Essay876 Words   |  4 PagesIn Tennessee Williams’ The Glass Menagerie, there is a collection of glass animal figurines that belong to Laura. Laura uses those figurines to escape her reality. The â€Å"glass menagerie† is also a metaphor because all of the characters have a metaphorical glass menagerie that they use to escape their reality. Tom escapes his reality by going to the movies, drinking, and writing poetry. Tom says, â€Å"I go to the movies because – I like adventure†¦ something I don’t have much of at work† (Williams 33)Read MoreThe Glass Menagerie By Tennessee Williams867 Words   |  4 Pagesdraw the line between getting what you want and doing what you are obligated to do? In The Glass Menagerie by Tennessee Williams, the main characters are torn between fulfilling their desires and aligning with their role in society. On the surface, Amanda Wingfield plays the role of a caring mother that would do anything in her children’s best interest. However, according to the play, â€Å"The Glass Menagerie†, you should never be fooled by the â€Å"Illusion of the truth.† She indeed values her children’s

The Expansion Of The United States - 1078 Words

The expansion of the United States into the territory west of the Mississippi River began with the Louisiana Purchase in 1803. Thomas Jefferson doubled the size of the nation with a great deal of $15 million from France. While, American development was influenced by westward expansion, the purchasing of more land created controversy. Many disagreed with the idea of expanding and taking over land because Indians who already occupied the land wasn’t included in the agreement that was made and the Constitution did not have any thing that supported this idea. Although, the Louisiana Purchase showed Jefferson s ability to make a logical political decision, it was opposed by Federalists who questioned the purchase and his ability. They were oblivious to the fact that United States was going to become powerful and progress with growth. United States expansion was a fulfillment of manifest destiny because the U.S. was obligated to spread and so it was necessary, inevitable and desira ble that the Americans did this. Expansion westward seemed perfectly natural to the United States. The American believed that god was the one who destined them to expand their land. John O’Sullivan believes that American had to fulfill the concept of manifest destiny because god given them the right. He also believes American had to spread and conquer anything and everyone as they grew across the North American continent. In his writing titled Great Nation of Futurity (1839), he writes â€Å"We areShow MoreRelatedThe Expansion Of The United States1638 Words   |  7 Pagesinvolve colonizing land, buying it, or even going to war over it. The Unites States started off in 1607 when Englishmen colonized and founded Jamestown, Virginia while the Indian people lived in the land . In 1803 President Jefferson acted beyond the constitution and made the Louisiana Purchase which doubled the United States in size, because he did not want the French people in North America . The expansion of the United States continued throughout the years . In 1846 war started with Mexico, since MexicoRead MoreThe Expansion Of The United States1075 Words   |  5 PagesThe belief of the Manifest Destiny, that caused the westward expansion and led to many wars between all different types of people and the different countries that used the land. The expansion allowed for the lifespan to increase, the economy blossomed, and the main goal was accomplished which was getting occupation of America from ocean coast to ocean coast. In the early 1800s the United States started their goal of the westward expansion. The idea of Manifest Destiny helped Americans to advance theirRead MoreThe Expansion Of The United States1200 Words   |  5 Pages The progress of expansion in the United States is one filled with complicated, complex, and irrational decisions. Geographically, North America changed dramatically by having the landmass grow, through discovery, by at least doubling what it was before. The European discovery of North America, the Mississippian shatter zone, Louisiana Purchase, and the Mexican-American war are all historical events that changed the path and future of America dramatically, through the making of controversial decisionsRead MoreExpansion Of The United States1761 Words   |  8 PagesThe United States expanded territorially in many different ways. One of the main ways was war, also purchasing land or just taking land, as they did to the Indians. There were many points of view on expanding te rritorially and many reasons why or why not the United States should expand. The ideas of manifest destiny, imperialism, social darwinism, and the fear that if the United States didn’t join in and try to acquire land then there would be no land left for them. They would be inferior to otherRead MoreThe Expansion Of The United States840 Words   |  4 PagesSimilar to the oppressive structure of the United States, which favors residents of a higher socioeconomic status, and favors the dominant culture while oppressing minorities (primarily poor blacks and Hispanics), Jerusalem’s structure is oppressive to Palestinians. Yes, Jerusalem’s growth politics are concerned (partially) with economics, but the driving force here is maintaining and expanding Jewish control through claim of space, and by oppressing Palestinians through displacement. When buildingRead MoreExpansion Of The United States1460 Words   |  6 PagesThe United States of America is a flawless nam e for the country. It is afterward all countless states united. But to have states you have to have earth for those states. Before those stats come to be earth they have to be a frontier, or as described by Webster’s Dictionary, â€Å"A span that forms the margin of stayed or industrialized territory.† American past has been in a colossal degree Tethe past of the settlement of the Outstanding West. Expansion of the United States can be drew from the earlyRead MoreExpansion Of The United States1460 Words   |  6 PagesThe United States of America is a flawless name for the country. It is afterward all countless states united. But to have states you have to have earth for those states. Before those stats come to be earth they have to be a frontier, or as described by Webster’s Dictionary, â€Å"A span that forms the margin of stayed or industrialized territory.† American past has been in a colossal degree Tethe past of the settlement of the Outstanding West. Expansion of the United States can be drew from the earlyRead MoreThe Expansion Of The United States Essay1918 Words   |  8 PagesThe United States in 1973 had spent the past two decades in the largest economic boom of world history. The rapid growth of industry and expansion of the automobile industry that characterized this time period led the U.S. to comprise a staggering 30% of the world’s total energy consumption, the chief source of which was oil. However, the U.S. only contained 6% of the world’s known oil reserves, so there was no way it could meet it’s own demands through domestic production alone. This created a hugeRead MoreThe Expansion Of The United States1246 Words   |  5 PagesFor states all through the nation in the not so distant future, there s a typical topic: an atmosphere of instability coupled with a feeling of veritable open door. In the midst of stresses over the national government s disappointment to help financing for framework, n umerous states are making moves to create that subsidizing all alone. Congress appears to have stalled—once more in its endeavors to change the movement framework, however states are sanctioning bills intended to give new rightsRead MoreThe Westward Expansion Of The United States960 Words   |  4 PagesThe Westward expansion began for the United States with the Louisiana Purchase in 1803. For $15 million dollars, President Thomas Jefferson purchased from France 828,000 square miles, including most of 14 current states, thus doubling the size of America. Jefferson now had the land, but how to populate it was another story. On a three year expedition, Lewis and Clark were sent by Jefferson to explore the lands to get a better understanding of the geography and resources of the West. During the 1830s

America Should Pursue Redefining Education Through...

Good afternoon, 21 million students attended college in the fall of 2014 (Back to School Statistics). The total student debt in America is 1 trillion dollars, the majority held by members of the middle class (Back to School Statistics) (Carrns). Student debt is negatively affecting the economy by encumbering the middle class with absurd financial burden thus widening the wealth gap and decreasing social mobility. America should pursue redefining education through lowering the cost of college and reevaluating social stigmas attached to states schools or community colleges. Middle class Americans who do not qualify for a lot of financial aid and who cannot actually afford the cost of college are forced to take out student loans; these students are often ignorant about matters of long term investments, like college education, and make ill-informed decisions. The average student debt upon graduation is about $35,000 (Levin). Students applying for loans in the 2014-2015 school year will pay an interest rate of 4.66% for federal student loans whereas the current mortgage rate as of 10/8/2014 is 4.18% (Carrns) (Current Mortgage Rates). The projected student loan interest rate for 2017 is 6.8% (Carrns). The government made 50.6 billion dollars in profit off student loan interest last year alone (Levin). While private loans can sometimes advertise a lower interest rate, they are far more unpredictable and do not have payment plans fitted to annual income making them a greaterShow MoreRelatedReebok Marketing Plan11312 Words   |  46 PagesRealflex will dominate the competition through altering some aspects of the marketing mix and introducing the Realflex shoe as a healthy shoe meant to better consumer fitness. Taking into consideration the SWOT analysis, which pinpoints Reeboks can improve and the things Reebok are already doing well, the target markets can be better identified and the marketing mix can be better modified. When looking at target markets, Reebok has narrowed its markets to college aged adults interested in maintainingRead MoreMarketing Management Mcq Test Bank53975 Words   |  216 Pageswith the power of a brand D) the process of comparing competing brands available in the market E) use of online interactive media to promote products and brands Answer: C Page Ref: 243 Objective: 1 Difficulty: Easy 1 Copyright  © 2012 Pearson Education, Inc. Publishing as Prentice Hall 4) Brand ________ is the added value endowed to products and services. A) loyalty B) equity C) preference D) identity E) licensing Answer: B Page Ref: 243 Objective: 2 Difficulty: Easy 5) ________ is the differentialRead MoreArticle: Performance Appraisal and Performance Management35812 Words   |  144 Pagesappraisal of employee’s performance is not sufficient. Employee’s contribution should be aligned with organizational objectives and strategy. Performance management eliminates the shortcomings of performance appraisal system to the some extent. Keywords: Human resource (HR), HR development, performance appraisal, performance management, performance evaluation. I. INTRODUCTION Organizations are run and steered by people. It is through people that goals are set and objectives are realized. The performanceRead MoreExploring Corporate Strategy - Case164366 Words   |  658 Pagespractice. They are not intended to be a comprehensive collection of teaching material. T hey have been chosen (or speciï ¬ cally written) to provide readers with a core of cases which, together, cover most of the main issues in the text. As such, they should provide a useful backbone to a programme of study but could sensibly be supplemented by other material. We have provided a mixture of longer and shorter cases to increase the ï ¬â€šexibility for teachers. Combined with the illustrations and the short caseRead MoreHuman Resources Management150900 Words   |  604 PagesCHAPTER 1 Changing Nature of Human Resource Management After you have read this chapter, you should be able to: ââ€"  Identify four major HR challenges currently facing organizations and managers. List and define each of the seven major categories of HR activities. Identify the three different roles of HR management. Discuss the three dimensions associated with HR management as a strategic business contributor. Explain why HR professionals and operating managers must view HR management as anRead MoreFundamentals of Hrm263904 Words   |  1056 PagesAsk your local representative for details! Collaborate with your colleagues, find a mentor, attend virtual and live events, and view resources www.WhereFacultyConnect.com Pre-loaded, ready-to-use assignments and presentations www.wiley.com/college/quickstart Technical Support 24/7 FAQs, online chat, and phone support www.wileyplus.com/support Your WileyPLUS Account Manager Training and implementation support www.wileyplus.com/accountmanager MAKE IT YOURS! Fundamentals of HumanRead MoreStrategic Marketing Management337596 Words   |  1351 Pagesand Patents Act 1988 or under the terms of a licence issued by the Copyright Licensing Agency Ltd, 90 Tottenham Court Road, London, England W1T 4LP. Applications for the copyright holder’s written permission to reproduce any part of this publication should be addressed to the publisher Permissions may be sought directly from Elsevier’s Science Technology Rights Department in Oxford, UK: phone: ( 44) 1865 843830, fax: ( 44) 1865 853333, e-mail: permissions@elsevier.co.uk. You may also complete yourRead MoreManaging the International Value Chain in the Automotive Industry60457 Words   |  242 PagesKalmbach, Roland Berger â€Å"Thecoordinationofinternationalvalueactivitiesisacrucialfactorinachievingsuccess.† Decentralized centralization: Romania as a focus of value creation for Renault’s Logan 1. TheRenaultGroupasaleaderinthelow-costcarsecto r 2. TheconfigurationofvalueactivitiesfortheLogan 3. Thecompetitiveadvantagesofferedbyemergingmarkets 4 6 8 9 10 11 17 24 30 31 35 40 51 60 66 67 77 90 Speaking with Coimbatore K. Prahalad, Ross SchoolRead MoreMarketing Management130471 Words   |  522 Pagesconcepts 3.4. The Marketing Mix (The 4 P s Of Marketing) 3.5. Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) and Ethics in Marketing 4. Have you understood type questions 5. Summary 6. Exercises 7. References 1. INTRODUCTION: The apex body in United States of America for the Marketing functions, American Marketing Association (AMA) defines marketing as â€Å"Marketing consists of those activities involved in the flow of goods and services from the point of production to the point of consumption. The AMA has sinceRead MoreManagement Course: Mba−10 General Management215330 Words   |  862 PagesManagement Course: MBA−10 General Management California College for Health Sciences MBA Program McGraw-Hill/Irwin abc McGraw−Hill Primis ISBN: 0−390−58539−4 Text: Effective Behavior in Organizations, Seventh Edition Cohen Harvard Business Review Finance Articles The Power of Management Capital Feigenbaum−Feigenbaum International Management, Sixth Edition Hodgetts−Luthans−Doh Contemporary Management, Fourth Edition Jones−George Driving Shareholder Value Morin−Jarrell Leadership

Efffects of School Busing to Students Free Essays

After four decades of school integration America has given up, and the question is â€Å"Why? † I believe the answer is because absolutely nothing worked! Bussing was a hassle, most magnet schools were set up for false reasons, and everything was very costly. With everything they tried there were still no significant changes in the test scores of the minority students. So now here we are in the late 21st century and it can all be summed up with what Chris Hansen of the American Civil Liberties Union in New York City believes the courts are saying, â€Å"We still agree with the goal of school desegregation, but it’s too hard, and we’re tired of it, and we give up. We will write a custom essay sample on Efffects of School Busing to Students or any similar topic only for you Order Now † It all started with Brown v. Board of Education saying â€Å"Separate educational facilities are inherently unequal. † There began a plan to desegregate public schools across America. The first plan was bussing when Swann v. Charlotte-Mecklenburg Board of Education stated that federal courts could order bussing to desegregate schools. However in most cases bussing became much more of a hassle than a helper. There were many revolts from parents making situations even more horrible. Most students wanted to go to their neighborhood schools and not be bussed for long trips to attend a ‘better’ school. In Seattle the school board unanimously voted to avoid race-based school assignment and increase enrollment in schools closer to home. The busing plan was not working and soon many schools were trying to deactivate this maneuver. There is evidence that federal courts are realizing that the 25-year-old policy of busing to achieve racial balance in schools has not worked as a means for ending segregation or improving the academic performance of minority students. Busing did not work out as planned; scores for minority students were not higher and neither was their happiness. Peter Schmidt opinion is that â€Å"after seeing some districts’ labyrinthine busing maps, that mandating the integration of classrooms has cost a good number of students any chance of a fair and quality education. † Another reason why plans for integration stopped was that many believed they were morally wrong. Mr. Symington, a Republican, said, † The education of Arizona’s children should not be held prisoner by a racial quota system. † While Edward Newsome feels it’s just patronizing to blacks, â€Å"that the courts are so willing to assume that anything that is predominately black must be inferior. † There were also problems with magnet school programs. Most were designed to attract white students to predominately black schools and vice versa. The communities were using magnet schools to lure whites away from private schools. Along with being unjust the magnet school plan also did not work. In 1985 one district was 73. 6% minority, 11 years later the district is now 75. 9% minority. Missouri v. Jenkins stopped the unjustness of Judge Clark and his magnet schools when they ordered it was wrong of him to pay for a plan just to attract suburban students. Plus last June the Supreme Court said the district court had no right to order expenditures aimed at attracting suburban whites. The systems to integrate schools were also very costly. On average the cost for one student per year to be bussed is between $300 and $400. Kansas City spent $1. billion on magnet schools in town, a 10-year failure. San Francisco spent $200 million since 1982 to improve desegregation and after found it lacked even modest overall improvement. John F. Huppenthal, the Republican chairman of the Senate’s education committee said, It is evil to hold them in a system which isn’t doing much for them, particularly when it is so damn expensive. The huge amount of money they used to pay for these methods came out of what could have gone to improving general schools or improving academic standards. My opinion is that the plans for integration stopped because their maneuvers were not working. I believe those maneuvers should have stopped. They should spend more time improving the schools than integrating the students. There should be more schools like the J. S. Chick elementary school that doesn’t look down upon its 98% African American school. In that school the students outscore many of the magnet schools’ students on the standardized tests. Minorities don’t score lower on tests because there are all minorities sitting around them; they score poorly because the school is poor. I go along with J. Anthony Lukas when he states, † Our task is to educate the kids who’re here, instead of yearning for those who have left. And, who knows, perhaps if we do a good enough job, some of those who have left may start trickling back. † I believe some of the plans were a little immoral and wrong. So after four decades of trying to desegregate schools, the plans failed and the country is giving up. Over the time most standardized tests showed minor improvement in minority scoring. The plans cost a lot of money but at least some schools were improved. The intents ended because the costly plans were not working. Neither busing nor magnet schools raised minorities† academic performances, so the country has stopped the integration plans. How to cite Efffects of School Busing to Students, Papers

Appearance and Reality free essay sample

The  Allegory   of the Cave, Plato,presents, in brief form, most of Platos major philosophical assumptions: his belief that the world revealed by our senses is not the real world but only a poor copy of it, and that the real world can only be apprehended Looking Beyond the Structure Chapter Two – What are Appearance and Reality Example given – Parthenon â€Å"column isn’t straight† â€Å"From where you are standing the column isn’t straight. People believe what they see – and this is not always how things are. Looking at an object from different angles will appear different, this is called perspective. Perspective distorts – example entasis VItriuvius, Palladio Representation – (plans, sections, orth) capture only partial aspects of reality *Bertrand Russell’s – essay appearance and Reality – â€Å"The Problems of Philosophy† In Architecture and Interior Design the Architects need to decide how the design will look to the client. Success of project depends upon how effectively the designer communicates how the client will experience its spaces. Appearance and reality have to do with the more philosophical issues regarding the problem of knowledge. Designers deal with this problem everyday of appearance and reality. The architect uses drawings (representation) mock-ups and renderings as ways to describe to my client how they will experience the spaces I design for them. Object depends upon its representation (tools-software). Becomes a fundamental problem how one is to adequately communicate how someone will experience a space. Bertrand Russell – table – we can’t be sure a table has a single uniform color, texture, we can’t say a table has either a color texture inherent to it. sense-data) The experience of object depends on the person who experiences it. How can we guarantee our clients will see, smell, feel and hear our design in the way we suggest it. Each spectator experiences an object differently *Plata – the Allegory of the Cave We can begin to think of design as a kind of critical thinking. Russell-contends that philosophy deepens our interest in the world by asking basic questions about the conditions of experience, such as the appearance and reality of the objects we see, hear, touch, and feel. Philosopher: the objects we believe we see, hear, touch, and feel – philosophy provokes us to reflect on the ordinary and see it in a new way by questioning our basic assumptions in everyday experience. It gives us a valuable tool: skepticism. A skepticism that takes nothing for granted. A skepticism that allows us to ask larger questions and see more than what we may be expected to see (this is the philosopher’s approach (Socrates) our approach in design, we call this critical thinking. The architect takes a previous condition, a site, a plan-and transform it into a new condition. In order to do that, though, he must be attentive to what constitutes the previous condition, to all the factors that make up the site, for instance, not only physical and material factors but social, political and historical factors that determine in many ways a site’s material conditions. The trouble is critical thinking is fundamental to the design process becomes confused with problem-solving. Problem solving involves the creation of solutions to given problems. Critical thinking asks about the conditions of a given problem. â€Å"why is this a problem to begin with? Critical Thinking involves reflection on: * the tools of perception and representation * Language, so far as this can be considered fundamental to how things are represented and then communicated to other * The distinction between real problems and apparent problems Russell states that even the tools we use (example of microscope) to perceive things can offer only a position from a certain perspective. It is always possible to experience the object from a different perspective, which changes our experience and sometimes challenges our experience. Arch: gives the example that the drawing in front of the student, physical drawing or a computer model, is a representation of something that does not yet exist. The drawing or model is the appearance of that â€Å"future reality† it is this way because it is necessarily imperfect because it is partial and incomplete. It is impossible to represent all the possible perspectives from which to experience the object, in time and space. Even when the building becomes real with material, one still has to experience the building from a certain perspective, at a certain time of ay, during a specific season and climate Drawings and renderings are representations of an object intended to communicate characteristics of the object. (example, when cutting a column in an elevation-the result in plan is the space is divided into two space) Drawing as a form of language in design, the, is subject to correct and incorrect interpretations and readings. Because the client (sponsoring the project) is the one who will decide whether your project becomes a â€Å"future reality† it is best to find a way to communicate your design clearly to him. Philo: to present your designs to the design audience, you could expand on issues involving perception and perspective. For the client, one approach might be to approach the design as part of an architectural history dating back to the Greeks. Some clients might even find it interesting to think their commission could be part of a long tradition while still departing from it. How fundamental appearance and reality are to critical thinking? Critical thinking differs from problem-solving, in critical thinking the designer questions the problem he or she is given to solve, then what designers do is differentiate between real problems and apparent problems. The example is given about the Parthenon’s columns, (the conventional aesthetic terms) is that they designed the column to be wider in the middle to compensate for an illusion due to perspective. If we are satisfied with this answer, we are missing out on a critical opportunity to ask why correcting for perspective was a problem for the Greeks in the first place. Entasis shows us that architecture, at least for the Greeks is more than a practical science. It entails a reflection on a human spectator and a reflection on the limits of human perspective – architecture concerns itself also with a shaping of perception. The Table – page 40 to the eye it is oblong, brown and shiny, touch, smooth and cool and hard, when tapped, it gives out a wooden sound. Anyone who sees and feels and hears the table will agree with this description. As soon as we try to be more precise we run into problems†¦. lthough I believe the table is really of the same color all over, the parts that reflect the light look much brighter than the other parts. If I move, the parts that reflect the light will be different. If several people are looking at the table at the same moment, no two of them will see exactly the same distribution of colors, because no two can see it from exactly the same point of view and any change in the point of view makes some in the way the light is reflected. To the painter this difference is important –he must learn to see things as they appear-this is the distinction between appearance and reality. He must unlearn the habit of thinking that things seem to have the color which common sense says they really have and to learn the habit of seeing things as they appear. Back to the table-the color of the table appears to be of different colors from different points of view. The color of the table can change depending on different points of view , color will seem different from artificial light, or a color-blind man or a man wearing blue spectacles. Color is not inherent in the table, but something depending upon the table and the spectator and the way the light falls on the table. These colors which appear under other conditions have just as good a right to be considered real. Same thing applies to texture, with the naked eye we see the grain, but otherwise the table looks smooth and even. Under a microscope, we see roughnesses and hills and valleys and all sorts of differences that are imperceptible to the naked eye. We would say that what we see under the microscope is real, but that would change under a more powerful microscope. The shape of the table is no better, we judge the table as to the real shape, but we know from drawing, a gien thing looks different in shape from every different point of view. If the table is really rectangular, it will look, from almost all points of view rectangular. We don’t see the real shape†¦. it is inferred. What we see is constantly changing in shape as we move around the room. Our senses do not give us the truth about the table itself, but only about the appearance of the table. What have we discovered so far? Our senses do not tell us the truth about the object but only the truth about certain sense data, which depend upon the relations between us and the object. What we directly see and feel is â€Å"appearance† which we believe to be a sign of some ‘reality’ behind. Russells marks a distinction between the ways a â€Å"practical person† , a painter and a philosopher might approach the problem of appearance and reality. Russell coins the term â€Å"sense-data† in order to distinguish between the characteristics we experience of the table and the table itself. According to Russell, we do not know the table â€Å"immediately†: our knowledge of the table is mediated by our perception of certain sense-data color form, texture, etc What we have is an immediate relationship to is our perception of the table, not the table itself. We thus infer the existence of the table, Russell argues, from our perception of these sense-data. intellectually; his idea that knowledge cannot be transferred from teacher to student, but rather that education consists in directing students minds toward what is real and important and allowing them to apprehend it for themselves; his faith that the universe ultimately is good; his conviction that enlightened individuals have an obligation to the rest of society, and that a good society must be one in which the truly wise.

Determinants of Investment free essay sample

Industrial sector in India has been undergoing significant changes both in its structure and pattern owing to the policy changes. Since the early 1950s up until the early 1980s the evolution of manufacturing sector was guided by protected industrial and trade policies, which restricted the growth of the economy in general and manufacturing sector, in particular. Under old industrial and trade policy regime, manufacturing sector was characterized by extensive public sector participation, regulation of the private sector firms, restrictions on foreign investment, high tariff and non-tariff restrictions on imports, which held up the growth of the manufacturing sector in India. This has been replaced by a more liberal industrial and trade policy regime, through the inception of new economic policy in 1991. The major focus of these policies had been to dismantle the complex web of controls that severely constrained the emergence and operation of the private entrepreneurs. Investment performance has been a key emphasis in the policy debate following the reforms (Athukorala and Sen 1998). It is observed that new policies have made tremendous effects on the industrial sector, in terms of conducive business environment and future growth process of industries. Understanding of the behaviour of investment provides an important insight into the process of economic development. The economic growth critically depends on capital accumulation and it stems from investment. The economys productive capacity can be expanded by investment spending as a dynamic variable, on long life capital goods which embody technical advance. However, recent theoretical and empirical studies on the determinants of investment focused on the role of government policy and tried to derive an explicit relationship between the principal policy instruments and private investment (Blejer and Khan 1984, Greene and villaneuva 1991). More importantly, as evidenced in many research works (1), it is the private investment that plays a greater role than public investment in determining economic growth in developing countries. Investment refers to increase in the total assets of a corporation, where new investment consists of addition to its assets, which enables it to produce more output. The growth in industrial output is primarily associated with new investment in plant and machinery. If firms are confident that demand will remain buoyant, they invest more in new plant and machinery which generate even more demand. The escalating domestic demand and growing export orientation has brought an upsurge in the Indian manufacturing sector. Phenomenal growth is registered in automobile sector, iron and steel, machinery and equipment, including transport and basic chemicals sector in recent years. Emphasizing the role of private investment in determining economic growth in a developing economy, a short run analysis of investment determinants becomes crucial for understanding year to year changes in industrial performance. In this paper, we made an attempt to assess the determinants of investment patterns of Indian Manufacturing sector over the years, at an aggregate level of major industry groups. The aim of this paper is to examine the role of accelerators and financial variables affecting on investment. The broad objective is to investigate, the significance of internal funds as a source of finance and the role of external funding (debt and equity) for industries in determining investment, which are usually channeled towards growing and profitable industries. It is observed that an extensive volume of research works have emerged, both at the theoretical and empirical levels, to counter the above issues. Theoretically, in modeling the determinants of investment behaviour of a firm, five broad approaches are considered; which include the simple accelerator model, the liquidity theory, the expected profits theory and the neo classical theory of investment. One of the first theories of investment and the base for other approaches was the simple accelerator model, (Clarke, 1917) which maintains expected future sales as the main determinant of investment. This acceleration concept hypothesized a direct functional relationship between a rate of change in a flow and additions to a stock, (Meyer. J and Edwin Kuh, 1955). Specifically, additions to the stock of physical capital were considered, as a simple function of the rate of change in output. This model was soon transformed into the flexible accelerator model of investment behaviour (Chenery, 1952 and Koyock, 1954), which states that, the adjustment of capital stock to the desired level is not instantaneous because of delivery lags and delayed responses to changes in the level of demand. They incorporated financial variables along with future sales as the determinant for investment decisions, where they assumed the level of desired capital to be proportional to output. There are other theories, which are propounded as alternatives to the rigid accelerator theory i. e. Liquidity theory and Expected Profits theory. In the liquidity theory of investment behaviour, desired capital is proportional to liquidity (Jorgenson and Calvin D. Siebert 1968), where as in expected profits theory desired capital is proportional to profit. The Profits theory holds that the amount of investment spending depends on the amount of profits that firms and industries are making i. e. profit expectations determine investment behaviour. As, against the above investment theories, the neo classical investment path, based on firm profit optimization, has been most dominant in applied research (Robert. S. Chirinko 1993). There are two major variants of this approach; one is the user cost of capital model, pioneered by Dale Jorgenson (1963), which postulates that output levels and user cost of capital are the two key determinants of investment. The theory of a profit maximizing firm, subject to a production function through which a technical relationship between inputs and outputs get defined is central in the neo classical model. The model assumes flexible accelerator prices and capital markets. The other variant of the optimizing approach is the [q. sup. 2] theory pioneered by Tobin (1969), which incorporates Keyness analysis of share (stock) price instability into fixed investment volatility. According to Tobin, firm investment opportunities are summarized by the market value of its capital stock. In particular, firm investment expenditure is positively related to average q (also known as Tobins q) defined as the ratio of the market value of the firm to the replacement cost value of its assets. The use of q is based on the idea that investment opportunities can be captured by equity market. On the other hand, a vast literature (3) suggests that in addition to real sales growth and the user cost of capital, financial factors are also imperative in explaining short-run fluctuations in investment. However, irms first utilize internal funds for investment purposes so as to maintain their control. But, the external finance is also sought for financing their investment plans if the desired rate of growth is higher than that permitted by the internal finance. According to financing hierarchy hypothesis, i. e. Myers (1984) pecking order theory of financing, the firms capital structure will be driven by the desire to finance new investments, first internally, then with low-risk debt, and finally with equity only as a last resort. In contrast, transaction costs / or information asymmetries induce a cost premium that makes external finance an imperfect substitute for internal finance (4). Therefore, in a world of heterogeneous firms, financing constraints would clearly influence the investment decisions of firms. In particular, investment may depend on financial factors, such as availability of internal finance, access to new debt or equity finance, or the functioning of particular credit markets. In the following empirical works where we found the contradictory views regarding investment determinants. The studies, like Dhrymes, P. J. , and M. Kurz (1967), Sachs, Reynolds and Albert. G. Hart (1968), investigated the determinants of fixed investment in a broader way, where they determined the structure underlying the dividendinvestmentexternal finance triad of decision making process and found external finance activity of firms to be strongly affected by their investment policies. They indicated the considerable relevance of accelerator and profit theories in explaining the empirical behaviour of investment. Krishnamurthy. K and Sastry (1971, 1975), Bhattacharya. S (2008), also argued along similar lines, found the positive effects of accelerator, retained earnings and flow of external finance in determining investment behaviour of Indian manufacturing sector. These studies claim a significant support for the investmentaccelerator relationship. Similarly, Bilsborrow E. Richard (1977) analyzed the determinants of investment of manufacturing firms with different institution and cultural context of a developing country study of aggregate Colombian firms, where along with the accelerator and financial variables he appraised the importance of foreign exchange as a significant influence on annual variation in investment. Recent empirical works (5), revealed the dependence of investment on financial factors. Hubbard. G, (1998) emphasized on the contemporary models of capital market imperfection and the implications of these models in firms investment process. The study considers the applications of these models to a range of investment activities including research on inventory investment, research and development, employment, business formation, survival, pricing and corporate risk management. However, identifying a specific channel (debt covenants) and the corresponding mechanism (transfer of control rights) through which financing frictions impact corporate investment, Chava. S and Michael. R. Roberts, (2008), show that capital investment declines sharply following a financial covenant violation, when creditors use the threat of accelerating the loan to intervene in management. Further, the reduction in investment is concentrated in situations in which agency and information problems are relatively more sever, highlighting how the state-contingent allocation of control rights can help mitigate investment distortions arising from financing frictions. On the other hand, Cava La, Gianni (2005), Bond. S and Costas Meghir (1994), explored the impact of financial factors on corporate investment, and indicated the severity of financing constraints of firms. The study on innovation is that they distinguish financially distressed firms from financially constrained firms. The presence of financially distressed firms appears to bias downwards the sensitivity of investment to cash flow. The paper also explores the effects of cash flow on investment, where the availability of internal funding could significantly affect the investment of financially constrained firms. Real sales and the user cost of capital, which incorporates both debt and equity financing costs, also appears to be an important determinant. Their views have been contradicted to some other studies which argue for the government intervention in the allocation of investment finance (6). Emphasizing on the implications of the recent structural adjustment policy reforms of 1990s, for investment behavior Athukorala and Sen (1996) examined the determinants of private corporate investment in India. The results of their econometric analysis suggest that the net impact of the reforms on corporate investment has been salutary. The decline in real public sector investment brought about by the fiscal squeeze carried out as part of the reforms seems to have had a significant adverse impact on corporate investment. However, this adverse impact was outweighed by the salutary effects of the reform process on investment operating through the decline in real rental cost of capital and favourable changes in investor perception in the aftermaths of the reforms. Finally, they indicated the strong complimentary relationship of public investment with private corporate investment in India. The previous empirical studies focused on investment determinants, on the manufacturing sector as a whole for the pre and post reform period, with the variables such as level of output, expected future earnings, cost of capital, profits, and bank credit.