Friday, September 6, 2019

Dubois and Washington Essay Example for Free

Dubois and Washington Essay In assessing the suitability of W. E. B. DuBois and Booker T. Washington approaches towards the black development goals in the South of Jim Crow laws era we need to have a little ides of what the Jim Crow laws were designed to achieve. Permitting African Americans to develop while those laws were in place and peaceful struggle to work against the discriminatory laws would be my standard of suitability of the measures used by the two Race Leaders. I believe that Washingtons approach was too meek and would have damaged the black cause. On the other hand Duboiss approach seems arrogant for the time. Both Race Leaders being in the same period must have had a positive effect on the black rights as each approach considered separately was likely to be harmful to the black cause. Jim Crow Laws During the period of slavery, the relationship between white masters and black slaves was clearly defined as that of a master and slave, with all the rights belonging to the master and none to the slave. Once the blacks were declared as free, the need for keeping the ex-slaves in their place became important and the states and local communities began to pass laws to segregate blacks in social and public life. Blacks were, as to say segregated from cradle to grave (from hospitals, schools, trains, restrooms, water, fountains, parks, dance halls, barbershops, penitentiaries, restaurants, theaters, asylums, and institutions for the blind and deaf, cemeteries [Mercer Beckett, 2003]). Initially blacks were intimidated to keep away from politics and using their votes but gradually a variety of bureaucratic and extra legal methods were used to disenfranchise the blacks. The legal and extra legal methods such as violence and intimidation to disenfranchise the African Americans was to ensure that blacks are not in a position to use their political strength to oppose the second class status assigned to them in the South [Mercer Beckett, 2003]. These discriminatory laws were called Jim Crow laws after a character in the then popular song and dance minstrel show. Dubois and Washingtons Approach to Black Rights Jim Crow laws were designed to destine the black Americans to a second class citizen status. Booker T Washington was faced with living and operating in the southern United States which had still not come to term with the equality of races. Washington realized that in order to improve the lot of his black countrymen he would need the support of white majority He knew that he would have to allay their fears regarding all claims of equality to seek their help to provide education and support for the black causes. W. E. B. Du Bois was settled in the much relaxed and liberal North. Du Bois wanted to see an America with social equality where individuals would be rewarded according to their merits [Bauerlein, 2004]. Washingtons Atlantas Compromise was effectively a surrender to the wishes of White racist America and Jim Crow laws and made Washington the favorite black leader of the white America who were happy to see him advocate their vision of blacks role in America. Conservative blacks who wanted to consolidate their position before demanding their rights found Washingtons approach pragmatic and supported him whole heartedly too. Du Bois on the other hand insisted that the black Americans had every right to be treated as equals, the right to vote and opportunities for the talented blacks (what he called Talented Tenth). He warned that if the blacks were not given their rights the white America will suffer too . DuBois Critiques Booker T. Washington Du Bois acknowledges Washingtons success as being the result of different interpretation of his Atlanta compromise, The radicals received it as a complete surrender of the demand for civil and political equality; the conservatives, as a generously conceived working basis for mutual understanding. So both approved it, and today its author is certainly the most distinguished Southerner since Jefferson Davis, and the one with the largest personal following [Dubois, 1903]. He recognizes Washingtons success and acknowledges that Washington has to work in difficult southern setting, In the South especially has he had to walk warily to avoid the harshest judgments, and naturally so, for he is dealing with the one subject of deepest sensitiveness to that section [Dubois, 1903]. Dubois criticizes Booker Washington for his approach and asking Black Americans to give up claims for political power, their insistence on civil rights and higher education for black youths. He argues that Washingtons advocacy of these critical matters resulted in black disenfranchisement, legal creation of civil inferiority of Black Americans and withdrawal of financial support from institutions of higher education for blacks [Dubois, 1903]. DuBois accuses Booker Washington of encouraging evil, It is wrong to encourage a man or a people in evil doing; it is wrong to aid and abet a national crime simply because it is unpopular not to do so[Dubois, 1903]. On one hand Booker Washington follows a eek approach and hopes that blacks will eventually prove themselves to be worthy of being treated as equals, On the other hand Duboiss arrogant attitude could only be expected to create additional obstacles in the obviously racist South of that period. Discussion and Conclusions I find that both leaders approaches were unsuitable to handle the Jim Crow laws. Washingtons approach was that of a pathetic submission to second class status for black Americans. Duboiss approach went to the other extreme alienating even the sympathetic whites from the cause of helping blacks achieve their rights. While, Washingtons submissive approach won him huge funds for his projects and a leadership role that was acknowledged right up to the White house. Dubois insistence on equality now and legal course to winning the black rights did restore the pride of black America. Thus the counterbalance of the two approaches reduced the possible harm that the two approaches would have done the cause of black America if they were applied without the influence of the other. Bibliography Bauerlein, M. , (2004), Washington, Du Bois, and the Black Future, the Wilson Quarterly, Volume: 28. Issue: 4, Page Number: 74+, Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars. Du Bois, W. E. B. , (1903), The Souls of Black Folk, Chicago Mercer, D. and Beckett E. , (2003), New Jersey AAH Curriculum Guide _ Unit 8: The Rise of Jim Crow and the Nadir, 1878-1915, New Jersey State Library. [Online] retrieved from Internet on May 06, 2007, http://www. njstatelib. org/NJ_Information/Digital_Collections/AAHCG/unit8. html Olson, J. , (2005), W. E. B. Du Bois and the Race Concept, Northern Arizona University, USA, http://www. yale. edu/polisci/info/conferences/W. E. B. %20DuBois/Papers/Olson-DuBoisRace-III. pdf Tell, B. , (1996). Separate yet One, Library of Congress Information Bulletin, [Online] retrieved from Internet on May 06, 2007, http://www. loc. gov/loc/lcib/9603/booker. html

Thursday, September 5, 2019

Freezing Point Depression Osmometer

Freezing Point Depression Osmometer 1. Osmolality is a commonly used unit of measurement that represents the concentration of a solution as the total number of solutes per kilogram of pure solvent (mOsm/kg): where Ø is the osmotic coefficient accounting for the degree of molecular dissociation; n is the number of particles left after the molecule dissociates in solvent, where n = 1 for non-electrolytes; and C is the molal concentration of the solution (moles/kg of water). As a variant of molality, only osmotically active particles that affect a solutions osmotic pressure are considered. It is the number, rather than the size of type, of these solutes that controls the osmotic pull of a solution. Specifically, the presence of solute particles dilutes the solvent and restricts it to remain as a liquid as it is entropically favorable. Fittingly, the freezing point depresses proportionally with the increase in solute concentration since the temperature continues to drop instead of reaching a plateau during the process of crystallization as more pure solvent becomes separated from solution leaving behind a smaller mass of liquid with higher solute concentration. Accordingly, the concentra tion of a solution can be determined by its relationship with this colligative property; thus, osmolality is really a measure of the chemical ac of water in an aqueous solution of dissolved particles. Overall, this term-independent of temperature and pressure-is used in medical laboratories (as opposed to osmolarity (mOsm/L) for bedside calculations) to describe the osmotic strength of bodily fluids as it can be easily attained by freezing point osmometry. A freezing point depression osmometer quantifies the amount of osmotically important body fluid chemicals dissolved in blood serum by the relationship that 1 mole of particles decreases the freezing point of 1 kg of water by 1.86à ¯Ã¢â‚¬Å¡Ã‚ °C. This device is calibrated using standards within the osmolal range of interest (250-350 mOsm/kg for blood serum). Applied on a paper slide, the sample is inserted into an insulated-cooling module of circulating ethylene glycol and water refrigerants that chill the solution below its freezing point. An operating head then slides down on the sample container, immersing a thermistor temperature probe and stirring wire. Once the solvent molecules have aggregated and been supercooled, the stirring is set to vibrate more rapidly and aggressively to seed the solution with crystals, partially freezing it into a slush. During this liquid-to-solid phase transition, thermal energy is released into the solution as heat of fusion and proceeds until a tem perature plateau that is slightly below the true freezing point is reached. The thermistor responds to this temperature change by altering its electrical resistance, thereby creating small variations in current sensed by a galvanometer, which also detects the direction of current flow in the Wheatstone bridge that subsequently measures the unknown resistance. Lastly, a balancing potentiometer adjusts this resistance until the galvanometer returns to its null position of zero current, sequentially displaying the osmolality that is calculated by the following formula: where kf is the cryoscopic constant (1.86 Kà ¢Ã¢â‚¬ ¹Ã¢â‚¬ ¦kg/mol) and ΆT is the temperature change. Diabetes mellitus is a chronic endocrine disease characterized by abnormally high serum glucose (>360 mOsm/kg). In a study conducted by Siervo et al., they measured blood serum osmolality levels in diabetic and non-diabetic older adults as an indicator of their hydration status, which is correlated to this disease. By using the Bland-Altman method to compare to a measured reference standard (via an osmometer), a successful serum osmolarity prediction formula-based on freezing point depression-was used to assess osmotically important chemicals in the control and study group: Calculated Osmolarity = 1.86 ÃÆ'- (Na+ + K+) + 1.15 ÃÆ'- glucose + urea +14 (mmol/L) (eq.3) With 79% sensitivity and 89% specificity, this equation serves as a first-stage screening method for diabetes diagnosis. Individuals with diabetes mellitus was shown to have higher serum osmolality levels (> 300 mOsm/kg) and glucose levels characteristic of their dehydration state. 2. Fluorescence anisotropy describes the phenomenon that occurs when a fluorophore that has been excited with linearly polarized light emits fluorescence with unequal intensities along different polarization axes as its absorption and emission transition moments lie along specific directions within its structure. The degree of this linear polarisation in its emission-resulting from photoselection of an optically isotropic sample-is described by its steady-state anisotropy: where I|| and Ià ¢Ã…  Ã‚ ¥ are relative intensities detected for emission that is parallel and perpendicular to the electric vector of linearly polarized incident light, respectively (where a non-zero reveals a polarized emission). The denominator represents total fluorescence intensity (I) as it incorporates the three mutually orthogonal emission components, including the second perpendicular emission plane that sets anisotropy apart from polarization. By timeà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ resolved measurements, this quantifies depolarisation of fluorescence emission mainly caused by an energy transfer to another molecule of a different orientation or rotation (due to Brownian motion). Subsequently, enzyme-substrate binding constants and reaction kinetics can be studied since the rotational correlation time of a molecule would change, which is related to anisotropy by a Perrin equation thus allowing for determination of its molecular size and mobility: (eq. 2) where ro is fundamental anisotropy of the fluorophore; à Ã¢â‚¬Å¾ is the fluorescence lifetime; and ÃŽÂ ¸ is the rotational correlation time. The purpose of the study conducted by Schrell et al. was to develop a microfluidic biochemical test that can monitor insulin secretion dynamics upon glucose stimulation of single islets via interactions between insulin and its antibody. They were inspired by the fact that assays available today involves difficult separation systems that pose a challenge to non-specialized laboratories. This device can examine mechanisms behind abnormal secretions of metabolic diseases such as diabetes mellitus in real-time. Islets of Langerhans were isolated from male mice and incubated in RPMI-1640 media. A singlet islet was housed in a microfluidic chamber and stimulated with various levels of glucose from a gravity-based perfusion system. These channels have inputs for low and high glucose concentrations. Flowing from a top-to-bottom direction, most of t he mixed perfusion solution is sent to waste through a shunt channel while a portion of it is directed to a sealed islet chamber. The total perfusate containing the islet secretions then combines with solutions of high affinity insulin antibodies (Ab) and Cy5-labeled insulin* as it passes the assay mixing channel where both insulin and insulin* competitively bind to Ab. Since insulin* has a smaller rotational time compared to the Ab-insulin* complex, its emission is more depolarized and by measuring the bound/free ratio of the Ab-insulin* complex and free insulin*-via capillary or microfluidic electrophoresis-insight on insulin secretion dynamics can be gained as it is indirectly proportional to the amount of insulin in the sample. With a laser-induced fluorescence detection system, linearly polarized light from a 635-nm laser passes through a linear polarizer and reaches a dichroic mirror that focuses the beam towards the microfluidic channel (to excite the immunoassay mixture) vi a a microscope which also collects the fluorescence light emitted from the sample. It then travels back to the dichroic mirror and through an emission and 635-nm notch filter for removal of stray incident light. Next, a cube-shaped polarizing beam splitter splits the emission into parallel (Ià ¢Ã‹â€ Ã‚ ¥) and perpendicular (Ià ¢Ã…  Ã‚ ¥) component intensities to individual linear polarizers before detection by PMTs. The fluorescein-PMT signals are converted to anisotropy via eq. 1 and by using its online fluorescence anisotropy immunoassay calibration curve, insulin concentration (thus its online secretion dynamics) can be determined. 3. Created primarily by plasma cells, antibodies (or immunoglobulins) are large Y-shaped proteins recruited by the immune system to neutralize foreign agents via a precise lock-key binding mechanism. They attach to the epitope of antigens using the paratope of its fragment antigen-binding (Fab) region with high specificity. Although widely established and characterized in proteomics, antibodies have limited target potential since their targets must elicit a strong immune response for these proteins to be produced. Recently, the revolutionary development of a simple, controlled, and scalable in-vitro technique called systematic evolution of ligands by exponential enrichment (SELEX) has allowed for the isolation and identification of aptamers which were evolved from random oligonucleotide pools. Unlike their protein counterparts, these small oligonucleotide or peptide ligands can fold into unique 3D structures than can bind to many classes of target biomolecules due their wide range i n molecular recognition. Therefore, these high-affinity ligands have the benefit of unlimited diagnostic and therapeutic applications. Aptamers can now supplement monoclonal antibodies in pharmaceutical research since they have greater advantages in their stability, in-vitro capability, size, immunogenicity, target potential, production, and ability to be modified. First, the temperature resistance of aptamers prevents denaturation and loss of structure, providing them stability at room temperature. Antibodies, contrastingly, require refrigeration as proteins denature easily, degrade over time, and have a shorter shelf life. Though, proteins have the benefit of not being affected by nuclease enzymes found in the body, which specifically cleave nucleic acid bonds. Second, aptamers are made in-vitro via SELEX; this selection means that they can be manipulated to adapt to any conditions. For antibodies, the adaptability of proteins made in-vivo are restricted to the environment of the host animal as their distribution requires the stimulation of an immune response in that live organism. Third, these smaller-sized aptam ers enable them to interact with targets that may be inaccessible to the larger proteins like cell surface targets and fragments. Also, despite their improved bioavailability, they have a shortened half-life due to susceptibility to kidney filtration. Fourth, the immunogenicity of aptamers protects them from recognition by the immune system and a subsequent negative immune response. Conversely, antibodies are frequently tagged as foreign substances which, with higher dosing, increases their chances of eliciting an immune response. Fourth, with unlimited target potential, aptamers have a greater selection of targets compared to antibodies since their targets are independent of the immune system. Fifth, aptamer synthesis does not require the large-scale production of many different colonies in cell cultures that antibodies depend on which is costly, subjected to viral or bacterial contamination, and may cause variation per batch created. Lastly, aptamers can readily adopt conjugation chemistries such as dye or functional group attachments without it being stochastic, negatively affecting activity, or leading to product mixtures hence any shortcomings such serum degradation, variable pharmacokinetic and systemic properties, can be combated with additional modifications. The SELEX process is an useful technique that can decipher a proteins binding site on ss-DNA/RNA or peptides. This enrichment protocol requires the following steps: (1) define the target molecule; (2) form a large combinatorial double-stranded oligonucleotide library of DNA/RNA ligands with primer binding sites at its ends and wobble bases in the middle for potential PCR amplification; (3) expose this pool of oligonucleotides to the target molecule; (4) partition and isolate the successful binding aptamers that have been selected by the target molecule from the non-binding ones then amplify and subject them to additional selection cycles for further enchainment; (5) from the remaining small amount of high affinity binding molecules: isolate and sequence the individual aptamers, then refine them with altered nucleoside triphosphates like 2-fluoro-dCTP to increase stability against endonuclease degradation by becoming unrecognized. 4. Total internal reflection fluorescence microscopy is a high axial-resolution imaging technique used to visualize a thin region of live specimen cells that have been incorporated with fluorescent molecules. Supported on a glass slide, this microscope optically sections the cell-substrate interface and emphasizes near membrane molecular events that are within ~100nm of the sample-coverslip contact region. Accordingly, single molecule fluorescence can be detected for fluorophores situated near adherent cell surfaces as they are being selectively irradiated, thereby minimizing excitation of fluorophores outside this focal plane and increasing the signal-to-noise ratio. This removes any out-of-focus intracellular fluorescence and reduces cellular photodamage, allowing for high-contrast and spatial resolution image production. With these advances, the biochemical kinetics and spatial-temporal dynamics of single biomolecules that are associated exclusively with process occurring at or ne ar the plasma membrane can now be studied. Depending on the incidence angle and refractive index differences of the two media, the collimated light beam can be reflected at the interface or refracted as it enters the second medium limiting most of the light to the higher-index medium. In TIRFM, total internal reflection occurs as the laser excitation on the glass microscope slide (n = 1.518) propagates the light wave towards an interface of a lower-index, aqueous medium (n = 1.33-1.37) at an incident angle greater than the critical angle. The critical angle can be calculated by Snells Law: (eq.1) where n(1) is the higher refractive index; n(2) is the lower refractive index; sin(ÃŽÂ ¸c) is the critical incident angle relative to the normal of the interface; and sin(90à ¯Ã¢â‚¬Å¡Ã‚ °) is the corresponding refracted angle. When the beam completely reflects into the microscope slide, a highly restricted electromagnetic field is induced in the specimen medium, immediately adjacent and perpendicular to the interface. With the same frequency as the incident light, this evanescent field extends a few hundred nanometers into the specimen. Since its intensity decays exponentially with distance, it can selectively excite fluorophores near the glass surface given that the energies of their electronic transitions match the wavelength bandwidth of the beam relative to its resonance conditions: (eq.2) where E(z) is the energy at a perpendicular distance z from the interface; E(0) is the energy at the interface; (d) is the penetration depth. The secondary fluorescence emission of the fluorophores is confined to a thin region and detected by microscope optics by the prism or objective lens method. Bowser and Khakh conducted a study to decipher the mechanisms behind astrocyte transmitter release during exocytosis by using TIRFM to image individual SpH-laden vesicles and discovered that these events were either evoked or occurred spontaneously. They used mixed hippocampal neuron-astrocyte cultures that were transfected with synaptopHluorin cDNA because this genetically encoded fluorescent SpH reporter allowed visualization of exocytosis at the single-vesicle level by exploiting changes in pH. With the objective lens adjusted to a high numerical aperture, total internal reflection was attained with a coherent laser source and the subsequent evanescent field event excited SpHs near the coverslip-sample interface. These SpH events appeared as spontaneous increases in fluorescence intensity as the loaded vesicles became brighter when they entered the evanescent field. Eventually, as the vesicles fused with the plasma membrane, the signal rapidly decreased as the fluorescently label ed contents diffused out of the cell. In agreement with the hypothesis, ionomycin (a calcium ionophore) increased its frequency during this event, which proves that these SpH events are representative of exocytosis. For further support, the investigators compared this control group with a negative control cells transfected with plasmids encoding for the light chain of botulinum toxin E. As expected, no SpH events were seen since this neurotoxin specifically cleaves proteins involved in synaptic vesicle exocytosis. 5. Gel electrophoresis is a laboratory method that uses an electric field to push a mixture of charged molecules-macromolecules or nanoparticles-through a porous (agarose or polyacrylamide) gel which serves as a separation medium. Unlike oligonucleotides, proteins and their fragments are not only separated and analyzed based on differences in size, but mostly by the magnitude of their charge. Generally, nucleic acids are sorted and visualized using agarose gel electrophoresis after being dispensed into the wells-by an operator-made during the casting of the gel. It takes advantage of DNA being negatively charged at neutral pH in the presence of ionic solutions like TAE or TBE due to its sugar-phosphate backbone. Connected to a power source, the gel is placed in an electrophoresis chamber. When an electric current is applied, they migrate from the cathode to the positively charged anode across the agarose matrix. The buffer solution serves to maintain the pH and salt concentration and contains 0.5-2.0% w/v of added agarose to successfully form a porous lattice to retard molecular motions by a sieving mechanism. Hence, shorter substrates travel faster and farther than longer ones as they can easily move through the pores, creating distinct bands based on their differential rates of migration. The gel can then be visualised with a U.V. trans-illuminator after staining the DNA with ethidium bromide. Contrarywise, capillary electrophoresis uses a fused-silica capillary tube that is filled with a polymer solution (such as hydroxyethylcellulose) instead of the traditional physical gel. It is essentially electrophoresis being conducted in a capillary tube, which also accomplishes size separation by inserting positive and negative platinum electrodes at its two ends, application of DC current and high voltage with a power supply, using buffer reservoirs for the mobile phase, and employing an on-column detector. However, the DNA samples are loaded differently by electrok inetically injecting them into the separation medium at inlet end. A positive charge is created at the outlet of the capillary to attract these negatively charged DNA via suction, which will then travel to the detector to produce a signal used to create an electropherogram. This method is the most efficient modern separation technique due to its shorter loading time and higher-resolution results, which is governed by the Van-Deemter formula where a smaller plate height indicates a higher efficiency of separation. The velocity of solute transport down the capillary tube is governed by the following equation: (eq. 2) where Veo is the electroosmotic velocity; Ve is the electrophoretic velocity; and Vtotal is the apparent ionic velocity. Specifically, the electroosmotic flow of the solution describes the nature of fluid movement and occurs due to the charge distribution at the silica/capillary interface. The negatively charged, surface bound silanol groups of the fused silica (~pKa 4) contains tightly adsorbed cations above it is the net positively charged-diffuse part of the double layer that is rich in cations. Beyond this, the bulk solution is electrically neutral. In other words, an electric double layer forms at the capillary wall. Under an electric field, the excessive solvated cations pull the water molecules during migration from the anode (inlet) towards the cathode (outlet) of the capillary, where the detector is located. This net movement of the solution front is described by the following formula: (eq. 3) where Veo is the electroosmotic velocity; ÃŽÂ ¼eo isthe electroosmotic mobility; and E is the electric field strength. Moreover, the electrophoretic mobility of the solute is based on the movement of a charged molecule under an electric field, which is proportional to its charge/solute size (q/r) ratio: (eq. 4) where Veo is the electrophoretic velocity; ÃŽÂ ¼eo isthe electrophoretic mobility; and E is the electric field strength. In the presence of electroosmotic flow, the magnitude of velocity for positive ions is greater than negative ions since they are naturally inclined to travel in the direction of the cathode rather than in reverse. References Question 1: http://ajcn.nutrition.org/content/100/3/867.short http://www.karger.com/Article/Pdf/345770 http://panza.uchicago.edu/Phys.261/materials/Osmometer/ http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/j.1476-4431.2008.00311.x/pdf http://www.geminibv.nl/labware/advanced-instruments-inc.-3300-micro-osmometer/advance-micro-osmometer-3300-users-guide.pdf/view https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3886624/ http://www.openisbn.com/preview/0471285722/%20 http://www.iupui.edu/~cletcrse/380/ch3suppos.htm https://books.google.ca/books?id=z9SzvsSCHv4Cpg=PA57lpg=PA57dq=osmometer+instrumentationsource=blots=JphQsqNWnFsig=UJ3t-Ax6d3kHyQEjdA40I5S8wx8hl=ensa=Xved=0ahUKEwjDyYqH7ZXSAhUb0IMKHSScAgcQ6AEIRjAH#v=onepageq=osmometer%20instrumentationf=false https://www.khanacademy.org/test-prep/mcat/physical-sciences-practice/physical-sciences-practice-tut/e/-using-a-freezing-point-depression-osmometer-to-measure-serum-osmolality Question 2 http://pubs.rsc.org/en/content/articlehtml/2017/ay/c6ay02899c https://www.iupac.org/publications/pac/pdf/2013/pdf/85030589.pdf http://www.horiba.com/fileadmin/uploads/Scientific/Documents/Fluorescence/Tech_Note2_-_Anisotropy.pdf http://link.springer.com/chapter/10.1007%2F978-0-387-46312-4_10 https://www.picoquant.com/applications/category/life-science/fluorescence-anisotropy-polarization http://www.utsc.utoronto.ca/~traceslab/FLD_Anisotropy.pdf Question 3 http://aptamerstbc2013.wixsite.com/aptamers/vs-monoclonal-antibodies http://www.nature.com/nrd/journal/v9/n7/box/nrd3141_BX1.html https://www.researchgate.net/post/Why_is_the_monoclonal_antibody_used_more_than_the_aptamer http://www.basepairbio.com/research-and-publications/aptamer-applications/aptamers-antibodies/ https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/17627883 https://www.google.ca/search?safe=strictespv=2q=advantages+of+antibodies+verus+apatmersoq=advantages+of+antibodies+verus+apatmersgs_l=serp.3..30i10k1.10392.13224.0.13547.15.15.0.0.0.0.155.1255.8j5.13.0.01c.1.64.serp..2.9.9150i22i30k1j33i160k1j33i21k1.QfKckWwb9sI http://www.nature.com/nprot/journal/v5/n6/full/nprot.2010.66.html https://www.trilinkbiotech.com/tech/selex.asp https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/21720957 Question 4 http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0091679X08006079 https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/11733042 http://www.olympusmicro.com/primer/techniques/fluorescence/tirf/tirfhome.html http://jcs.biologists.org/content/123/21/3621.short https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2964103/ http://www.pnas.org/content/104/10/4212.full https://www.microscopyu.com/techniques/fluorescence/total-internal-reflection-fluorescence-tirf-microscopy http://www.nature.com/nprot/journal/v1/n6/full/nprot.2006.449.html Question 5 http://www2.le.ac.uk/departments/emfpu/genetics/explained/electrophoresis https://www2.chemistry.msu.edu/courses

Wednesday, September 4, 2019

Shangri La Hotels Business Analysis

Shangri La Hotels Business Analysis Introduction Shangri-La Hotels (M) Berhad is an investment holding company and also a public limited company. This company was incorporated on June 29, 1971 and currently having a total of 2364 employees. Its headquarters is located at the Batu Ferringhi Beach, Penang. This company is engaged with the operations of services such as hotels and beach resorts, golf course and clubhouse, property management and investment and commercial laundry. The Companys segments has two segments, which include hotels, resorts and golf course, which is engaged in hotel, beach resort and gulf course business; investment properties, which includes rental from offices, shoplots and apartment and rental of car parks, and others, which include commercial laundry services and investment holding. Shangri-La Hotels (M) Berhad has many hotel branches located at many different states and locations in Malaysia. Also, customers may have an infinite choice of luxury possibilities with Shangri-La Hotels as there are over 66 hotels located across the globe. Most importantly, customers may find themselves living in a hidden paradise once they chose to stay in Shangri-La Hotel. They can feel relaxed in the luxurious guestrooms, pampering themselves in a 5 star rated hotels with all the supreme services and facilities. As of December 31, 2010, Shangri-La Hotel (M) Berhad hotel had its properties included Rasa Sayang Resort Spa, Shangri-La Hotel Kuala Lumpur, Traders Hotel Penang, Golden Sands Resort, Palm Beach Resort and Rasa Ria Resort. However, its subsidiaries include Shangri-La Hotel (KL) Sdn Bhd, Komtar Hotel Sdn Bhd, Golden Sands Beach Resort Sdn Bhd, UBN Holdings Sdn Bhd, UBN Tower Sdn Bhd, Pantai Emas Sdn Bhd, Madarac Corporation and Wisegain Sdn Bhd. The principal activities of the Company are investment holding and the operation of a beach resort, namely Rasa Sayang Resort. In Malaysia, Shangri-La Hotels (M) Berhad owns the 29-storey, 720rooms Shangri-La Hotel Kuala Lumpur. On the other hand, it also owns the Golden Sands Hotel, Komtar Hotel and Palm Beach Hotel in the island state of Penang. Shangri-La hotels always differentiate their service to match with customers taste and demand. Company Background The company was incorporated in Malaysia on 29 June 1971 under the Companies Act, 1965. The company was limited by shares with the registered name Taman Developments Sdn Bhd. On 7 September 1974, the name was then changed to Rasa Sayang Beach Hotels (Penang) Sdn Bhd. The company was converted to public company on 23 February 1977 under the name of Rasa Sayang Beach Hotels (Pg) Berhad. On 1 September 1982, the company was listed on the Kuala Lumpur Stock Exchange (KLSE). Yet, the company was delisted from KLSE on 21 December 1987 due to a general offer made by Perlis for the entire issued share capital of the Company and acquired more than 90% of the issued share capital of the company. On 2 January 1992, the company assumed its present name. The company had successfully merged with UBN Holdings Sdn Bhd which comprised the acquisition by the company from Kuok Brothers Sdn Bhd and Landmarks Berhad, the entire issued share capital of UBN Holdings Sdn Bhd on 21 September 1992. However, the company was re-listed on the KLSE on 1 December 1992 with the company undertook a bonus issue and subsequently a public issue. Shangri-La Hotels (M) Berhad has its own vision for achieving the goals to be the best hotel. Its vision is to be the first choice for our guest, colleagues, shareholders and business partners. Whereas Shangri-La hotels also has its mission at all the time which is to delight our guests every time by creating engaging experiences straight from our hearts. The company is operating based on the following principles: Ensuring leadership drives for results. Making guest loyalty a key driver of the business. Enabling decision-making at the guest contact point. Creating an environment where colleagues may achieve their personal career goals. Demonstrating honesty, care and integrity in all relationships. Ensuring policies and processes are guest and colleague friendly. On top of that, Shangri-La hotels (M) Berhad is operating under all professional persons in order to make Shangri-La hotels to be the top hotel in the world. Board of directors include : Tan sri A. Razak bin Ramli (Chairman) Kuok Oon Kwong (Managing Director) Datin Rozina Mohd Amin (Executive Director) Dato Haris Onn bin Hussein (Independent Non-Executive Director) Dato Seri Ismail Farouk Abdullah (Independent Non-Executive Director) Datuk Supperamaniam a/l Manickam (Independent Non-Executive Director) Dato Dr Tan Tat Wai (Independent Non-Executive Director) Tan Yew Jin Dato Khoo Eng Min Ravinder Singh Grewal Sarbjit S Joseph Patrick Stevens (Alternate Director to Ravinder Singh Grewal Sarbjit S) Business What is the basic requirement of a hotel in order to satisfy customers? Hotel is basically belongs to service industry which mostly provide accommodation services to people for a comfortable stay. Service is very important to a hotel as it will bring to customer satisfaction and customer loyalty. Shangri-la Hotels (M) Berhad are definitely the best hotel which provides high standards of services to customers as it had awarded Best Business Hotel Brand in Asia Pacific by the Business Traveller 2012. Under Shangri-La Hotels (M) Berhad, it has currently 9 brands of hotels in the service industry. It includes, Shangri-La Hotel Kuala Lumpur, Traders Hotel Kuala Lumpur, Shangri-Las Rasa Ria Resort Kota Kinabalu, Shangri-Las Tanjung Aru Resort and Spa Kota Kinabalu, Putrajaya Shangri-La, Traders Hotel Puteri Harbour Johor, Golden Sands Resort Penang, Shangri-Las Rasa Sayang Resort and Spa Penang and Traders Hotel Penang. Every hotel under Shangri-La Hotels (M) Berhad are doing very well as mostly hotels are ranked five stars hotel and have a very good reputation among customers. Every hotel has its own special attractions such as Traders Hotel always located in the city which easier attach to the entertainment. Whereas Shangri-La hotel offers stylish and luxurious environment for customers. In order for a hotel to maintain and improve its business, Shangri-la hotels always push their services to a higher level as services are the main key to bring in more businesses. Its five-star reputation always maintaining a world-class service at all the time. Stylishly decorated, the luxurious guestrooms at Shangri-La hotel present large clear windows with beautiful city views. Memorable and satisfaction of every customer became the crucial mission of Shangri-La hotel. Shangri-La hotel differentiate its rooms according to customers preference. Rooms can be chosen in Deluxe room, Executive room, Horizon Executive room, Premier room and Executive Suite. Customers are able to choose their rooms to prefer a better environment and comfortable stay in the hotel. There are varieties of services provided by Shangri-la Hotel in order to satisfy customers and bring customers loyalty to the business. Facilities provided by Shangri-la Hotel are partially free of charge for customers to fully utilize such as the facilities of fitness centre, outdoor swimming pool, tennis courts, steam room, sauna, massage, aerobics or dance studios and many more. The beautifully landscaped outdoor swimming pool is the facility always satisfied the customers as they are able to relax and enjoy the fascinating environment. The fitness centre is also an important facility for hotel as many people nowadays are going to fitness centre every week. This had become a habit to them and the fitness centre is an important place for them to workout. In Shangri-La hotel, there have the facilities of clinic to provide medical service for customers who in ill. This will make customers convenient as they do not need to go clinic outside and able to rest in the hotel after getting medical treatment. Shangri-La hotel also provide disabled facilities for handicapped such as handicapped toilet as to satisfy them although they are people with disabilities. Customers are able to choose non-smoking rooms or smoking rooms according to their preference. Safe deposit box also provided to let customers safe keeping their important documents or expensive goods. Parking facilities and valet service are provided for customers who looking for a stay in the hotel. Services such as the complimentary shoeshine service is provided for customers who staying in the hotel for a period of time and looking for shoeshine service. Postal and courier service also provided in order for customers to deliver documents or packages. Laundry service provided for customers who want to wash their clothes. Those services are provided to easier customers as they are not necessary to looking those service outside. Child care or babysitting service also provided in the hotel as some parents have some urgent things to do, they can looking for babysitting of their babies. A hotel can be occupied without few facilities, but cannot be occupied without restaurants and bars. Shangri-La hotel features the impressive selection of international, award winning restaurants, including the award-winning Restaurant Lafite, which serves the finest western cuisine. There are five awesome restaurants and two bars located inside the hotel. The wide selection of dining options makes Shangri-La hotel a best location for travellers who enjoy fine cuisine, and also makes the hotel an excellent location for businessman to convene meetings and conferences. Not only that, Shangri-La hotel provides free breakfast or drinks for customers at the cafà © while they preparing rooms for customers. This implication done by Shangri-La hotel is to concern the desired expectation of customers and try to satisfy customers by exceeding customers perceived expectation. Shangri-La hotel also provides 24-hour room service which customers are able to request dishes or drinks with a simply phone call. 24-hour room service is best required by businessman who went out for business meeting and came back late night. It will satisfy them with a delicious meal and the fast delivery. Few shops are located inside the hotels such as the foreign exchange counter and gift shop. Foreigners are able to exchange their currency in the hotel and tourists can purchase gifts in the shop. As now technology became more important, Wi-Fi is the best tool for tourists and businessman. Free Wi-Fi access is provided for every room guests in order for them to access to the internet. Shangri-La also provides travel and transportation service for customers. Airport connection is one of the service included, guests can choose to reach hotel by hotel limousine pick-up, express train or taxi. This usually is made for foreigners and tourists. Hotel limousine pick-up can be chosen with different types of cars. Car rental service and travel agency also provide for customers in order for them to visit any places nearby the hotel. This services provided for customers so they do not need to look at outside of the hotel and can be avoid scamming. Many business amenities are offered to businessman such as the meeting rooms, binding service, laser printing, scanning and photocopying services in order for them to prepare important documents in their trip. Prompt and fast check-in and check-out service also attract customers as they dont have to wait for so long with the service process. Helpful and cheerful receptionists are also type of service that the hotel provided for customers. Receptionists and customer service can help the customers to solve problems such as the changes of rooms or handle complaint. Outstanding staff will satisfy customers as they provide great and wonderful service for them. Hotel employees with smile and cheerful look will make the customers feel happy and satisfied in terms of hospitality service. By according to the feedback received online, Shangri-La hotel can said to be the highest positive feedback received by the customers. Most customers are satisfied and happy with the services provided by the hotel. Satisfied customers will promote and recommend to others with the great services they received at the hotel. Positive word of mouth can improve the reputation of the hotel and this enable the hotel to attract more customers. Customers satisfactions always brings Shangri-La hotel the effort to do better and it leads to customers loyalty where customers will come back to visit the hotel next time. Shangri-La hotel always maintain a high standard of services as they believe service is the crucial rules of a successful hotel. This is how Shangri-La Hotels (M) Berhad do business in a fully competitive environment and yet did so well in the service industry. SWOT Analysis A companys successfulness always depends on the strategy that the company used to improve its business. SWOT analysis is one of tools that most companies like to use to determine the companys strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threat. Hotel industry such as Shangri-La hotels (M) Berhad also need SWOT analysis to use as a guide for the business and distinguish between today situation and future situation. SWOT analysis will be very effective and useful for Shangri-La hotels (M) Berhad to improve its strengths and opportunities and yet minimize the weaknesses and threats. Strengths, which are the beneficial aspects of the organization or the capabilities of an organization, which includes human competencies, process capabilities, financial resources, products and services, customer goodwill and brand loyalty. One of the strengths of Shangri-La hotels (M) Berhad is the brand name. Brand is very important for every business as it helps to internationally recognized for its luxurious hotels and resorts. Shangri-La hotels (M) Berhad is said to be an aspirational brand to the public. Besides, the leadership and management skills of Shangri-La hotels (M) Berhad is well known for its fine and tuned management that is capable enough to run the whole corporation. It helps Shangri-La hotels provide great and excellent service for every customer. Next, the high quality service of Shangri-La hotels (M) Berhad also attract a large number of repeat customers which form a loyalty between them. In addition, another strength of Shangri-La hotels is its five-star venture that won numerous awards including the leading spot as the Top Asia Hotel in Malaysia, Best Luxury Hotel in Malaysia by the 2012 Trip Advisor Travellers Choice Awards and World Luxury Hotel Awards Global Winner in the Best Luxury Business Hotel and Best City Hotel category 2011. These awards build up a branded image for Shangri-La hotels and reputation in the hotel field. Not only that, Shangri-La hotels (M) Berhad also is the leading corporation on its line of food expertise in various cuisine from eastern to western. Many customers visit Shangri-La hotels are mostly due to the delicious and relaxing restaurants. Clean and tidy of the hotel rooms are the main reason of customers likes to visit Shangri-La hotels as they always satisfied with the environment. Weaknesses, which deteriorate influences on the organizational success and growth. There are little of weaknesses of Shangri-La hotels (M) Berhad as they always minimize their weaknesses and transform to their strengths. One of the weaknesses is the inadequate of staff with qualifications as Shangri-La only hires personnel with skilled expertise and the draught for manpower. This may affect the shortage of workers and influence the performance of the hotel. Furthermore, the concept of Shangri-La is outdated and does not appeal to younger generation. They rather go for hotels such as Hard Rock Hotel or G Hotel. Next, the maintenance cost is too high to handle as Shangri-Las hotel and resort must be excellent to its quality for accommodation. This will increase the expenses of Shangri-La hotels and thus the price of the hotel room will also increase. Opportunities, that are presented by the environment within which our organization operates. These arise when an organization can take benefit of conditions in its environment to plan and execute strategies that enable it to become more profitable. As economy of Malaysia had improve steadily nowadays and tourism sector is growing and booing in the recent years making the demand for hotels to increase significantly. Economy of the country will directly enhance the tourism sectors, thus service industry such as hotel will be attractive. Besides, online market is one of the opportunities that helps the growth of Shangri-La hotels as it ranks No.1 in the Tripadvidor website. Technology helps Shangri-La hotels to attract customers as it is kind of marketing and promotion strategy. On the other hand, partnership with international airways, KLIA, is one of the opportunities that more foreigners will be able to visit Asia. This in return increases the occupancy in hotels. Besides, as the steadily growth of economy had increase the job opportunities in Malaysia and this will occurs the lack of human resource. Thus, the lack of human resource will encourage expatriates to come and work in Malaysia. These are the upper class people and usually require hotels for their choice of stay. Threats, one of the threats facing by Shangri-La hotels (M) Berhad is the competition of the business. Rival hotels are setting up their base in Asia and lower their prices making it more competitive. Those competitors will influence the sales of Shangri-La hotels. Guesthouses will also compete as they provide much lower rate and affordable to all people. Low budget hotels are the competitors which offering lower costs of accommodation for customers to compete with Shangri-La hotels. In addition, spreading virus such as SARS and H1N1 and robbery cases will discourage people not travel overseas and thus affected the business of Shangri-La hotels. SWOT analysis is one of the tools that are very important and effective for every business to determine the situation of the business and thus making improvement for it. Shangri-La hotels (M) Berhad will keep providing great service for customers after doing SWOT analysis as understand the internal and external determinants of the business. Marketing Strategies (7 Ps) A companys success is not only depends on the effectiveness and efficiency of the companys management. It also need to focus in marketing which is the important process of communicating the product or service with customers. Customers are important as without customers, a company will not grow and success. In order to grow a company, customers satisfaction need to get into details. Shangri-La hotel is a company which marketing its services to the customers. Therefore, Shangri-La hotel must has its marketing strategies to achieve the companys goals. Marketing strategies defined as the marketing logic by which the business unit hopes to achieve its marketing objectives. Marketing strategy consists of specific strategies for target markets, marketing mix and marketing expenditure level. Marketing mix is the most common strategy used by many company. Shangri-La hotel is one of the companies which implement marketing mix strategy. Marketing mix consists of 7Ps for developing an effective marketing strategy. It consists of product, price, people, process, promotion, place and physical evidence. The first P Product, usually defined in the capacity of goods or services. Product can be differentiated with quality, design, variety and features. The product of Shangri-La hotel is providing services to customers instead of goods. Shangri-La hotel provides online customer service for customers and customers can get to know the hotel with their website provided. Accommodation service is the main service a hotel provides for customer. So, in order to satisfy customer, types of rooms are playing an important role. There are five types of rooms provided for customers according to their preferences. A hotel must always satisfy customer and build a good relationship with customer through service provided in order to get loyal customer for the hotel and yet maintaining a long term business. Shangri-La hotel provides variety of facilities for convenience their customer to enjoy the stay from the time check-in until check-out. Facilities can be included exclusive room facilities, hotel facilities, dining and entertainment, sport and leisure for customers. Services with intangible are the helpful services provided by receptionists and the smiling face welcoming customers by the staff. The second P Price, is the amount of money for customers to pay for accommodation service in the hotel. Shangri-La hotel always fixed the price according to the types of rooms chosen by customer. Customers are able to make booking online as to convenient them for make comparison and know the price. Online booking usually will requested customers to choose few options according to their choices and they can pay the total amount of the room by using credit card. Besides, online booking will convenient foreigners as it provide currency converter for them to convert into their currency. Pricing strategy using by Shangri-La hotel is based on the service ordered by customers, so customers will be more satisfy with the service because the hotel provide service according to customers order. Discounts and allowances will be given by Shangri-La hotel in the off-peak seasons as to attract more customers to increase sales. By giving discounts in a special room rate, customers can have the chance to stay in the hotel with a relatively lower price and the hotel can build the customer loyalty at the moment. Customers also can made their payment with cash or card as to convenient customers and prevent hassle of customers. The third P People, relate to persons who involve in the process of interaction. People can be classified into target customers and service personnel by Shangri-La hotel. Target customers of Shangri-La hotel are mostly from upper-class or those who posses higher financial ability. Shangri-La hotel is mostly targeted customers of tourists and businessman. Tourists who come from overseas are willing to stay in a luxurious and expensive hotel as they are of higher financial group and likes with relaxing lifestyle. Besides tourists, businessman is another target customer who mostly required to stay in a five star hotel as their expense will be paid by company. By choosing a five star hotel by business travelers, it will create a good image of the company he/she represented. Whereas the people of service personnel involve in the interaction, Shangri-La hotel must recruits and hires employees with skills and attitudes. Skills can be relate to the qualification, ability and competency. Attitudes are those behavior that every staff in the hotel must be acquired such as helpful, responsive and smiling. Shangri-La hotel has provided training programmes for all the hotel employees to make improvement. With skills and attitudes, employees are able to satisfy customers in any issues and lead them back to loyalty. The fourth P Process, refers to the systems used to assist the organization in delivering the service. For example, when enter a hotel, you welcomed by staff with smiles, check-in service is fast, baggage is taken to room, have a great service from the restaurant and facilities, and finally ended trip and baggage delivered to you. This is the process in Shangri-La hotel. Shangri-La hotel demonstrate process involve in delivering services. Fast check-in process is the key of first impression of customer as reservation will be served directly by the receptionist. Besides, when customers are in hunger and order dishes through room service, a fast delivering process is enough to satisfy customers. If customers want to make a complaint regarding the non-working of air-conditional, the fast process of making complaint and solve the problem is very important. Shangri-La hotel always help customers to solve problem as they care of customers. The fifth P Promotion, usually made to attract more customers to increase sales. Shangri-La hotel usually have promotion and special offer to build long term relationship with loyal customer. Shangri-La hotel is using advertising and online marketing to make promotion. Advertising can be regarded as the banner and brochures of the hotel. Technology had become very important nowadays as most people know how to surf internet. Online marketing is the trend to promote Shangri-La hotel. Customers can book hotel rooms at other website such as booking.com and agoda.com. Those websites are able for customers to leave feedback regarding their stays. Positive feedback will successfully attracted more customers to visit the hotel. Furthermore, customers are able to pay less for more with special offer and promotion made by Shangri-La hotel. Customers can enjoy delicious meals at the restaurant with the special offer made in particular day such as Valentines day. Positive word of mouth is one of the ways for promotion as satisfied customers will recommend other customers to visit the hotel. The sixth P Place, where customer can receive the service. Shangri-La hotel is a world-class hotel as hotels are distributed all over the world such as Malaysia, Hong Kong, Taiwan, China, Australia and etc. New hotels are built by according to the demand chain management as the company knows what places are demanded by people for a hotel. There are three Shangri-La hotels in Penang, two at Batu Feringgi and one located in Georgetown. Batu Feringgi Beach is one of the tourist attractions in Penang. Foreign travelers love to visit the beach and this had made the popularity of Rasa Sayang Resort and Golden Sands Resort. Traders hotel is located in Georgetown where most of the businessman likes to visit. Hotels located in the city will be more preferable by travelers as they can go visit any place nearby. Places of the locations of Shangri-La hotel are wonderful and it has its own specific environment. The seventh P Physical evidence refers to services in tangible. The most common physical evidence of Shangri-La hotel is the brochures which mostly customers can requested at the counter. Business cards of receptionists or managers can be regarded as physical evidence as it can be used for next visits or recommendations. Customers can enjoy the beautiful and extraordinary designs of the outdoor swimming pool as it is regarded as the physical evidence. When customers made payment of the hotel room, an invoice of payment will be received by customer. It belongs to physical evidence as shows that customers are able to enjoy the optimum level of satisfaction of services. Service Issue Shangri La Hotel Berhad is a limited company that operates throughout Malaysia. Although Shangri-La Hotels (M) Berhad is doing good in the service industry, there have some issues that need to be improved and overcome. One of the issue faced by Shangri La Hotel Berhad is the insufficient manpower to conduct the daily operations. This is because Malaysia is facing lack of workers and is importing workers from other foreign countries. The link between manpower and Shangri La Hotel Berhad is fairly simple as manpower is proportional to productivity. The more people are available to work, the faster projects can be completed or the more projects a company can take on. Conversely, a lack of adequate manpower prevents businesses from completing tasks. The lack of productivity translates into a reduction in revenue and profit, which in some cases means the business cant stay operational. Hence if Shangri La do not handle this issue adequately, the efficient and effectiveness of the company will be affected. The second issue faced by Shangri La is the standards of the hotel staff not on par. With the increasing challenges the hotel sector is facing globally and the escalating demand for tourism products and services, especially in the emerging markets, there is urgent need for players in the region to offer high quality performance standards to survive. As stated, because of insufficient workers, Shangri La has to hire foreign workers in order to balance up the workforce. Foreigners on the other hand are usually hired from third world countries because of their low cost. This in return has taken toll on the overall performance of the company. Therefore, Shangri La should also look into this matter. The third issue is about the maintenance handled by Shangri La. As noted Shangri La Hotel Berhad is engaged in the operation of hotels and beach resorts, a golf course and clubhouse, property management and investment and commercial laundry. In the field of golf courses and clubhouse, maintenance is the upmost important. Shangri La on the other hand is doing just average based on the reviews. Because Shangri La Hotel Berhad is a five star company, they should be able to improve their maintenance and achieve excellence. As stated, maintenance is important in the hospitality trade as it reflects the service provided by Shangri La to their customers. Besides that, Shangri La also engages in beach resorts, having one in Batu Ferringhi and one at Sabah which is the more popular ones. Based on the reviews of the hotels, Shangri La Hotel Berhad has received complaints on the lack of entertainment provided on the beachfront which is also one of the issue faced by Shangri La. The beach itself is already amazing to enjoy. However, being viewed for their excellence, Shangri La Hotel Berhad should enhance a solution to that matter. Several reviews stated that there is nothing for the people to do at the beach but loafing around making the stay boring and unworthy. All these issues should be addressed by Shangri La Hotels Berhad as to maintain their international standards. If these service issues are solved, there is no doubt that Shangri La Hotels Berhad will achieve excellence in their line of trade. Latest Venture / Business Plan Although Shangri-La hotels (M) Berhad already owns 66 hotels all over the world and has long term customers, Shangri-La hotels (M) Berhad want to keep expand and differentiate its business in order to provide more service to the public. This is also a way to get more income and try to satisfy customers in a long run. Recently, Shangri-La hotels (M) Berhad have some new business plan and latest venture for its business. For example, they planned to have some major renovation programme for certain resorts. For example, some renovation would be held in Rasa Ria Resorts Garden Wing guestrooms. When the renovation is fully completed, those improved room products will give the resort a stronger business platform for the companys future growth and well to compete strongly in this competitive marketplace. They try to satisfy customers of their specific services provided which cant be found among competitors. This will lead to a competitive advantage for them and customers will looking forward for new venture and service provided by Shangri-La hotels (M) Berhad. Besides, Shangri-La Hotels (M) Berhad has planned to

Tuesday, September 3, 2019

Civil War Essay -- American History Civil War

The election of Lincoln, secession of the southern states and the Confederate States of America Constitution set the stage for the bloodiest and saddest war in American history. Before the Civil War even began the nation was divided into four very distinct regions; Northeast, Northwest, Upper south and the Southwest. With two fundamentally different labor systems, slavery in the south and wage labor in the North, the political, economic and social changes across the nation would show the views of the North and the South. The civil war was based on the abolitionists' ideas of emancipation and liberation of slavery the North wanted the war in order to create a society without slavery. The North's aggression to control the south lead to the where were it was no longer tolerable for the South. With the election of the anti-slavery Republican Abraham Lincoln, the southern states decided they had to take drastic action in order to protect their own interests. The south had been waiting fo r an excuse to secede form the union, the election of Lincoln by the North was their chance. The Northern abolitionists' states were mainly responsible for the Civil war in many political, social and economic aspects. Politically, the Northerners contributed immensely to the opening of the Civil War. John Brown's Raid at Harpers Ferry made the south believe the Northerners had a whole scheme to ban slavery. The South wondered how or why they would remain in the Union when a "murderous gang of abolitionists" were running around. Southerners also believed that this violent abolitionist's view was a common one shared by the entire North. This act of the North made the South resent the North's pushy ways and begin to think of leaving the Union. The Dred... ...nt to the south to free the slaves from their masters and the Underground Railroad that secretly moved slaves from safe house to safe house until they were in Canada, tremendously angered the South. They realized that they needed to fight in order to get the independence they wished for, so then there could therefore do what they wished. Politically, the North further split the views on issues and developed more laws against slavery in the South. Socially the North strengthened their own cause in the because of things like Uncle Tom's cabin; that lead to Northerners forming the Underground Railroad. Economically, the South was crushed with protection tariffs that emptied out southern pockets. The North most definitely contributed to the Political, Social and Economic issues that divided and angered the country in the time before 1861; eventually leading to Civil War.

History of Marriage Law Essay -- Essays Papers

History of Marriage Law While abortion law is a lot more straightforward and the patterns are obvious, marriage law in the United States is a bit more complicated. -English common law, and early American law, before the 1820's treated marriages like business mergers. The fathers paid dowries and often arranged marriages for their daughters. In the early 1800's fathers could contract their daughters to marriage as early as age 12 and there was no consent on her part. Boys had to be 14 before they could enter into a marriage contract. -The age at which a woman could enter into marriage in the mid-nineteenth century varied widely from state to state, and therefore a timeline of laws is very difficult to accomplish. -Throughout the 19th century and the early 20th century the age at which women could legally marry rose slowly to anywhere from 16-18 years of age by the mid 20th century. -States differed widely on what rights women had in a marriage. Until 1873 women had absolutely no claim to custody of their children unless proof of abuse of the children was offered and corroborated. -This is about the time that women began to get property rights as well in some states. The responsibilities that came with these rights, however, were huge and not all states were universal in their protection of a woman's property. If a woman did own anything, she had the legal obligation to use it to support completely any illegitimate children, all of her children from her marriage, her husband, her grandchildren, and her parents. So if any of these people asked her to support them she could not legally refuse. -Coming into World War I women could not divorce a husband for adultery, even though he could divorce his wife for the ... ...d so much about the decision, about the issue, and about the legality that reproductive choice makes even more sense to me now than it did originally. I recommend that anyone very interested in the issue of choice read the decision and look into the Griswold case and the issue of Right to Privacy. Bibliography "About.com Women's History: Comstock Law." Available online at www.about.com. "About.com Women's History: Man and Wife" available online at www.about.com Blackmun, Supreme Court Justice. Majority Decision in the Case of Roe v. Wade. Delivered January 22, 1973. "Brief History of the Emergence of the Crime of Rape" available online at Hansel.mnstate.edu/classes/CJ400/Monograph/Oldlaw21.html "History of Marriage" available online at www.2-in-2-1 co.uk/university/brhistory/index2.html Schwartz, Bernard. A History of the Supreme Court. 1993.

Monday, September 2, 2019

External/Internal Factors Paper Essay

The Frito-Lay is a worldwide recognized organization that began from the union of two companies in 1961. Within this organization, management has had to deal with internal and external factors that affect the four fundamental functions of management: planning, organizing, leading and controlling. Globalization, technology, innovation, diversity and ethics have also had their impact on the four functions of management in the Frito-Lay organization. Managers for the Frito-Lay organization have found ways to use delegation to manage the different factors and functions and perform in an effective and efficient way. The planning function of an organization is important because it involves determining the goals for the success of the company. An internal factor that may affect the planning function of management at the Frito Lay organization is attention to competitors. When Frito-Lay plans to incorporate new ideas and demands, they look to the competitors for insight of how to approach th ese new ideas in a positive and well-thought out process. According to Leyla Norman, â€Å"a hurried entrance into a new market can cost the company money in the long run and not make full use of managers’ planning abilities† (Norman, 2004). This means that if the Frito-Lay organization does not take the planning process into full advantage when rushing to compete with other companies, they could end up losing instead of gaining profits and customer preference. An external factor that could affect the planning function of management is the economy. While determining the goals of the organization, the economy plays large role. When the economy is not at a high point, planning within the Frito-Lay company may be â€Å"stopped, adjusted or taken in a new direction† (Norman, 2004). As the economy recovers planning may be resumed as needed. The organizing function of management involves â€Å"assembling and coordinating the human, financial, physical, informational and other resources needed to achieve goals† (Bateman & Snell, 2011). An internal factor that could affect the Frito-Lay company is a financial necessity. If funds are not  available to pursue and achieve the plans of the organization, then it could affect the realization of the goals for the company. An external factor that could affect the organizing function within the Frito-Lay company may be any new technological advance. If the Frito-Lay company is not up-to-date with their technological capabilities, this could affect the implementation of the goals mapped out in the planning function. The leading function is described by Bateman and Snell as â€Å"stimulating people to be high performers† (Bateman & Snell, 2011). A factor that could internally affect Frito-Lay management in the leading function could be lack of employee performance. If employees do not have the motivation to achieve the goals of the organization, the whole company could suffer. An external factor that could potentially affect the organization and management of Frito-Lay is ethical issues. When there are ethical issues outside of an organization, it could affect the company in a negative way. This could be a major reason that Frito-Lay creates opportunities and depends on the â€Å"minority and women-owned entrepreneurs (M/WBEs)† (Frito-Lay, 2014). In the controlling function of management, performance is closely monitored and changes are implemented as necessary. When employees deviate from the established performance standards, an internal factor that could affect the management function is a conflict of interest. When there are conflicts of interests, such as family relationships, it could internally affect the performance monitoring. An external factor that could affect the controlling factor in the Frito-Lay company could be labor laws. Although Frito-Lay has standards of performance and expectations, they must still comply with labor laws as they are established for the safety and security of employees. There are many internal and external factors that impact the leading function of management. One internal factor that impacts it is employee morale. â€Å"Morale is defined as the end result of many factors present in the workplace environment.† (Javitch, 2005). Morale can make or break any business. If your employees have poor morale, it will affect customer service and customer satisfaction which is the key component to businesses. Competition is an external factor that can impact the leading function of management. If there is an outside company that is doing better than yours, it can discourage employees and supervisors as well. This can lead to poor attitudes and morale in the workplace which then turns into  internal issues for that company. An internal factor that impacts the controlling function of management is technology. Having up to date technology can help improve things ranging from order accuracy to financial management which are both essential things for Frito-Lay as they are a very large corporation with consumers around the world. The economy is an external factor that impacts the controlling function of management. The economy affects their profitability and competition as well. The economy’s condition could potentially impact their sales and profitability. â€Å"Globalization is an elimination of barriers to trade, communication, and cultural exchange. The Theory behind globalization is that the worldwide openness will promote the inherent wealth of all nations.† (Jones, 2014). Globalization impacts all four functions of management. Globalization opens the doors for more business opportunities around the world and increases management globally. It allows production to increase and allows employees to transfer to other positions within the company to other locations around the world. Globalization also increases competition due to the increase in an increase in customer base. Larger customer bases increase the profitability of businesses. Not having globalization previously would decrease the values of products due to their limit of customers. It increases a company’s ability to compete worldwide instead of limiting it to its country of origin which also increases profitability. The four functions of management that are impacted in the technological sense would be planning, leading and controlling Utilizing the function of management process within the Frito-Lay’s organization has made it one of the most popular and long standing companies in the snack food industry. How they plan, organize, lead and control is important to the continued success of the organization. Because of the large scale volumes they have to produce and distribute efficiently and continuously to all their customers they have to utilize the planning process in order to stay in the competitive market they are in. They also have to look for new and better ways to process their product. Frito-Lay is in a competitive industry and they always need to know what technology is available to them that when used it saves cost and increases productivity. When implementing new technology you have to ensure that those leading and controlling the  employees have knowledge of the new technology. Frito-Lay also has to ensure that those operating or involved with the new equipment are trained well and capable of continuing to do the job they were previously doing, but better. When they implemented new packing equipment in their Kern County facility, they ensured that everyone was trained. Because the equipment was to eliminate jobs the managers communicated with the employees and assured them they would avoid lay-offs. (Mohsen & Grijalva, 2001). With the management functions used and a good management team in place they were able to implement the new equipment and improve productivity by 30% on the line. (Mohsen & Grijalva, 2001). Innovation is defined by Merriam-Webster as, â€Å"The act or process of introducing new ideas, devices and methods.† (Innovative, 2014) With innovation comes change. Since innovation has an impact on the leading and controlling portion of the functions of management, management has to have an open line of communication in order to hear new ideas that their employees may have. The more involved Frito-Lay allows their employees to be, the more opportunity they have to receive and enact their innovative ideas. It is important that an organization utilizes the knowledge and experience of their resources by encouraging them to change methods that may work better than what has been done in the past. Frito-Lay is a diverse organization with their workforce as well as the products they offer their customers. Diversity also impacts the leading and controlling functions of management. Communication and networking are important aspects of a diverse organization also, because they allow people to interact with others that they may not normally interact with. Diversity has allowed Frito-Lay to be successful in the global pursuit of introducing their products as well. When transitioning into another country they utilize someone that is familiar with the market and culture to ensure a smoother transition into that particular market. As far as the diversity of their products they are currently conducting a contest to find new flavors for their chips in an effort to diversify their product even further. With all the misconduct that occurs in the business world, ethics is an important factor that can impact all the functions of management. In all aspects an organization has to avoid unethical behavior within the business they conduct, how the deal and address their employees and customers. Because of the products that are available through Frito-Lay management has to concern  themselves with the employees behaving in an ethical manner as well. To ensure that the employees know and understand the ethical implications that can occur, they are required to attend an ethics course and sign a certification that they have done so on a yearly basis. Frito-Lay has to take all precautions in avoiding unethical behavior throughout their organization. The top managers over at Frito Lay © over see many parts of their overall organization. They continuously have to adapt to different factors that may arise, excel in efficiency, excel in effectiveness, and monitor daily operations. It would be almost impossible for one person to do all of these functions, while planning strategies for existing goals and new ones. In order for a manager to accomplish all of these objectives they must delegate their work to their subordinates. Using delegation has many advantages that help the mana ger and their subordinates. For top managers, they are able to take on more of the strategic planning of the company than the operational managing. The sixteen executive managers of Frito Lay © that oversee different divisions of the company cannot possibly specialize in each part of the department (Frito Lay 2014) They must delegate the work out to middle managers and line managers in order to complete operational tasks and planning. These levels of management have a more intimate knowledge of their division or department (Bateman 2011). A manager in marketing may have a clearer understanding of globalization and how to reach an international market. Managers in human resources or compliance will have a more precise view of ethical dilemmas could arise. Although upper management might be delegating out their work, they still have a final say on what choice to make. This makes the final responsibility land on the upper management. Managers must be adaptive to all the different factors that come up in business. The world market is a continuously changing and growing environment. In order for a business to survive in this environment the managers that are employed must recognize the issues that could arise and know how to adapt to them. External issues could range from global economic changes to environmental changes that limit resources. Some internal issues that should be considered could involve the growth of the company. Recognizing the company has out grown its current structure will allow managers to implement a new structure that will fit the growing company  better. Management will always need to know how to adapt to these changes as well consider them in their overall planning, organizing, leading, and controlling. Changing environments can shift how a manager views their own organization and how it is standing up against its competition. Sometimes, though, management needs to use their most crucial resource as efficiently as possible. This resource would be time, and a manager needs to use this resource as wisely as possible. In order to free up managers they have to delegate their work amongst their subordinates. Delegating their work frees them up to make all of the important planning that will guide the organization to their next achievement.

Sunday, September 1, 2019

Engineers Contributions

Society’s standards always change and engineers contribute to society by meeting these demands. Engineers create technology and devices that people use day to day. They innovate current technology by making it more practical and improving the quality to satisfy consumers. When society’s trends and fads change, engineers comply by redesigning products to accommodate for the changes. Engineers save time and money for every one by speeding up processes and cutting down production costs through efficiency. Society relies on engineers every day.Engineers create and develop various transportation modes, communicational devices and infrastructures that people use on a daily basis. Society uses technology that engineers construct. Many people in society use transportation technology to get to their destinations. Many people drive cars, take the train or bus and ride bicycles. Without engineers, all these transportation modes would cease to exist. Engineers play a major role in vehicle production and efficiency. Without communicational technology society cannot function and would crumble down.Communication takes part in every person’s life through different avenues. People use phones, e-mail and social networks on the internet to communicate with one another. Engineers developed these communicational technologies and continue to find ways to improve it. They discover ways to help society use technology by making it more practical. Practicality embodies an engineer’s mindset and this mentality contributes to society’s economy. Engineers stimulate society’s economy by allowing people to save money.Businesses hire engineers to help their production efficiency and to find ways to cut costs. Engineers redesign products so that they require less material but serve the same functions and capabilities. They find ways to boost the speed it takes to make each product. This allows the company to create more products per day and saves time. With the costs decreasing and production increasing, business can sell their goods for cheaper. Products that only the wealthy society could afford, such as televisions and cars, are now common amenities that many families have today.People can afford to buy vital products such as medicine at an affordable price. Engineers cut production time and costs to allow consumers to save money but always put safety as a priority. Engineers continually explore methods to ensure society’s safety. They look for ways to improve the environment’s health. They minimalize air pollution caused by cars and factories by producing eco-friendly products and components. Engineers improve land conditions for people and animals so that they may live in suitable conditions.The water that people drink goes through a purification and safety process that engineers conduct. Engineers perform test to validate a building’s integrity through simulated earthquakes and wind speeds. Every vehicl e a person drives goes through multiple collision examinations and redesigned multiple times by engineers to ensure the highest safety ratings. The roads that people drive on have speed limits specifically analyzed and set by engineers to reduce accidents. Engineers secure the society’s safety while progressing and planning for the future.Engineers constantly conform to society’s changing needs through innovation. With gas prices increasing rapidly, engineers develop electronic cars and maximize the vehicle’s miles per gallon ratio. People want computers to have better processors, load programs quicker, and carry less weight for traveling. Engineers have configured these electronic devices to perform at faster speeds and reduced material use to enhance the product’s portability. Society wants technology to keep developing with new inventions to provide more comfortability and less work.Engineers hold the key ingredient for technology innovation and they c ontinue to cater to society’s demands. People may not notice the direct contributions that engineers give to society but society can’t function without them. Every infrastructure in this nation is designed with maximum efficiency and practicality by an engineer. The amount that engineers contribute to society measures from small inventions such as a mechanical pencil to as large as a robot landing on the planet Mars. Society will always need engineers and engineers will always contribute to society.