Great Memory

Memory†¦ is the diary that we all carry about with us† is a quote by Oscar Wilde that in my personal opinion describes memory pretty well. Memory is something that people carry with them all the time. It is a powerful thing and something that most people never want to lose. In some cases memories can be of something good or they can also be a bad memory. It all depends on how you want to remember it. Samuel Taylor Coleridge talks about memory in one of his poems he wrote called â€Å"Frost at Midnight. † Also there is talk about memory in â€Å"Ode to the West Wind† written byPercy Bysshe Shelly. Both of these poems show how the authors are using their memories to write the pomes. Both writers talk about a memory they have and they tell a story using it. Coleridge talks about how he feels now and reflects to how he felt as a child while raising his own child. Shelly talks about how he wishes he felt different now and how he wants to feel like he did when he w as young. Both authors I think are sort of depressed. In their poems the tone is kind of melancholy and sad. In â€Å"Frost at Midnight† it is winter time hence the name.And in the winter is when he feels lonelier. The author lives in a cottage and it is very late at night. In the poem he talks about it being so quite. In the poem he says â€Å"The inmates of my cottage, all at rest. Have lett me to that solitude, which suits abstract musings: save that at my side my cradled infant slumbers peacefully' (as cited in Damrosch, 2004, p. 344). Everyone is asleep even his child is sound asleep; he is the only one up. And he is starting to feel lonely with all the stillness. The only other thing that is up is a piece of soot in the fire place.As Coleridge says in the poem â€Å"Only that film, which fluttered on the rate, still flutters there, the sole unquiet thing. Great Memory 3 Methinks, its motion in this hush nature gives it dim sympathies with me who live, making it a comp anionable form† (p. 344). This piece of â€Å"film† or soot makes him think back to his childhood. This is where the memory part comes into play. He is thinking back to his child hood. He is thinking about his birthplace, the old church-tower, and the bells of the poor man and thinking about this is making him homesick. Then he talks about how he was a lonely child.In the poem he says â€Å"save if the door half opened, and I natched a hasty glance , and still my heart leaped up, for still I hoped to see the stranger's face, townsman, or aunt, or sister, more beloved, my playmate when we both were clothed alike† (p. 344). This is when I think that the author is most depressed in this poem. Reflecting back to his childhood makes him sad and feel lonely. Reflecting back on his childhood and how he felt that loneliness he talks later on about how he wants better for his child. He doesn't want his kid to feel the emptiness and loneliness that he is feeling and has fe lt as a child.He says â€Å"but thou, my babe! Shalt wander like a breeze by lakes and sandy shores, beneath the crags of ancient mountain, beneath the clouds, which image in their bulk both lakes and shores and mountain crags: so shalt thou see and hear the lovely shapes and sounds intelligible of that eternal language† (p. 345). He wants his child to have better childhood than he did. He wants his child to have more and be better than he was a child. He says that he wants all seasons to be sweet for his child. In this poem he uses his 4 memory to tell a story and he was as a child and how he doesn't was his child to row up feeling like he did as a kid.In â€Å"Ode to the West Wind† Percy Shelly is talking about a storm that is going to hit. In this poem he talks about being weighed down and he wants to be free again. And he feels like this storm will do that for him. In this poem he wants the wind to inspire him to write poetry, and wants new thoughts. The writer doe sn't even care that this storm is going to hit. He is welcoming it with open arms. The wind is blowing the leaves and clouds and is blowing over the ocean. He wants to be the wind. Memory is talked about in this poem when the talks about how he wants to be ree again.He wants to feel Joy and emotion again. He feels like this storm can do that for him that's why he wants it to come. In the poem he says â€Å"The impulse of thy strength, only less free than thou, o uncontrollable! If even I were as in my boyhood, and could be free the comrade of thy wanderings over heaven, as then, when to outstrip the skiey speed scarce seemed a vision, I would ne'er have striven† (as cited in Damrosch, 2004, p. 401). This says if he was in his boyhood he would be free and as an adult he is not. So that is why he refers to going back to his childhood to be ree again. His childh memory is a g one.And as ne got older ne teels like ne isn't free and wants a free spirit. I think his tone in this is also sad. But when he talks about his boyhood I think he is feeling better. In both of these poem that I discussed go back to a memory. But however, both of the memories are different. In Coleridge's â€Å"Frost at Midnight† the memory he refers to is sad and Great Memory 5 not one that a person wants to remember. He talks about how lonely he was as a child how he hoped he would see someone he knows while he was at school. Every ay he hoped that he would see someone threw the window that he would know.And he hoped that his child would never feel like this. He wanted to make sure his child had better and felt better than he did. In Percy Shellys â€Å"Ode to the West Wind† the memory also goes back to his childhood, but in this poem his childhood was a good time. In this poem he talks about how he wished he was back in his boyhood because was free then. As an adult he doesn't feel free, he feels weighed down. That's why he wants to storm to come he feels it will make h im feel something again. This memory is a happy one. One that a person would want to remember, not like the one is Coleridge's â€Å"Frost as Midnight. In both of these poems I think that there is a common theme of emotion and nature. Both of them describe how they are feeling. One is lonely and one feels no joy. But they both use nature to describe it. Coleridge uses the winter and the frost. And Shelly uses the big storm that is about to his to describe how he feels in the poem. With both of these poem is shows that a memory is not always good or bad, happy or sad. They can be both. And In the two poems I picked to write about the authors, Samuel Coleridge and Percy Shelly, talk about memorys they had.Both of them happen to be different. One is a happy memory and one that he wants to remember. And the other is one that is not so happy, more of a gloomy memory that he doesn't want to remember. Memories are what you make of them. You are the only person who can decide how they are going to be remembered. Great Memory 6 No one else can tell you how to feel or how to keep things in your memory. â€Å"Memory is a way of holding onto the things you love, the things you are, the things ou never want to lose – From the television show The Wonder Years† I think this is a perfect quote for memory.

The Political Establishment in Germany Succeeded in Maintaining

The political establishment in Germany succeeded in maintaining the political status quo through a policy of moderate reform. How far do you agree? The junkers succeeded in keeping the existing political system the same through moderate reform, to what extent? When assessing whether maintaining the status quo in Germany was down to the effective use of moderate reform, we should also assess the effects of force maintaining status quo. Some would argue that it was indeed the use of moderate reform using Bulow’s reforms such as the tariff law and sickness insurance.However others would argue that it was the use of force, using ideas such as the Herero uprising. Some people may also use the policy introduced the Bulow called the Flottenpolitik. Furthermore; we should consider the economical and social factors which could have influenced this. The view that the policy of moderate reform succeeded in maintaining the political status quo; could be argued against by the fact that; Bu low’s strengths and interests lay firstly in foreign powers but he also implemented some reforms such as the tariff law in December 1902.This restored a higher duty on imported agricultural products which had a knock on effect on food prices which ended up rising. This helped maintain status quo because this would have made the public angrier henceforth could have made people rebel against the Junkers. Adding to this point; others could argue against moderate reform being the main cause of maintaining status quo on the basis that it was down to the use of force.To do this they could refer to the Herero uprising this makes clear the weaknesses of moderate reform maintaining status quo by showing one way that it led to the complete opposite; a rebellion. This uprising and how it was dealt with shows the strength and the forces and led to some members of the more conservative element of leadership of the centre part being cautious about challenging Bulow’s government. Thi s helped maintain status quo.On the other hand; Bulow created sickness insurance in April 1903 which gave ill workers longer and more generous help. This helped maintain status quo because this gave some people more reform which made people a little more happy which lowered the risk of them rebelling against the Junkers. Bethmann was Bulow’s successor as chancellor. He created reforms such as the imperial insurance 1911; this consolidated all previous workers’ insurance. This meant that some workers were now insured against sickness, old age and death.This also helped maintain status quo through moderate reform. Law such as the Sammlungpolitik also helped to maintain status quo; this law had the aim of trying to init people for the right wing leadership and take support away from the socialists. This was introduced by Bulow and he created a strategy called weltpolitik to achieve this take over the world using an army to unit people under the right wing leadership and a gainst the socialists which would help maintain the same political system and status quo.On the contrary to the above point others could argue that social or economical factors could have influenced this; for example workers wages were increasing (this made them the most urbanised state in Europe). This led to maintaining status quo because of something called the knife and fork question, this status that states that during periods of economical depression support for groups such as the socialists increase. This would be dangerous for the Junkers as they are left wing and conservatives (Junkers) are right wing.To conclude, the idea that the political establishment in Germany succeeded in maintaining the political status quo through a moderate policy of reforms can be supported using facts like how some of the reforms put forward by Bulow were successful at maintaining the same system and keeping people happy. However it can be argued against using facts like how some of the reforms put forward by Bulow and Bethmann were not successful and could be argued they did the opposite.When weighing these facts up its important to asses each of their impacts they made for example the unsuccessful reforms could be seen as having a bad impact of making the workers n happy with the system and lead to people rebelling this can be shown through the Herero uprising. The judgement I have reached is that. It wasn’t only down to moderate reform because other factors like force and also helped maintain status quo, due to the fact these factors could be seen as taking support away from the socialists which were the right wing leader’s main rival, therefore helping maintain the status quo.

Social Security Reform Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Social Security Reform - Essay Example This discussion briefly explains how Social Security is collected and distributed, how it affects different segments of society and why the fund is shrinking. It then examines the Bush administration’s proposed solution to the problem and debates the merits of this plan designed to privatize Social Security. The Social Security system operates by collecting taxpayer money and redistributing it to selected persons in need. Employees pay about six percent of their salary into Social Security and their employer contributes a matching amount. The fund earns interest by investing in U.S. Treasury bonds then pays retirees who have paid into the fund as employees. It also pays to the spouses of deceased retirees and to disabled persons of working age. Half of the nation’s elderly would live below the poverty line if not for the benefits paid by Social Security as opposed to the ten percent presently in poverty. Today, nearly 60 percent of retirees acquire more than half of their income from Social Security. For a third of recipients, benefits account for 90 percent of their total income. Today, Social Security is taking in slightly more money than it is paying out but, according to government estimates, the reverse will be true â€Å"within the next fifteen to twenty years† (Johnson, 2006) but will still be capable of paying full benefits until about 2042. The Social Security Administration estimates that the funding balance will tip by 2028 and steadily decline until the fund is exhausted in 2042 at which time it will retain the interest paid from the Treasury bonds and when that is depleted these bonds are sold back to the government to replenish the fund. An insufficient Social Security fund translates to reduced benefits. If the current system is not changed, full benefits would be paid through 2042 then decreased by at least 25 percent from then until 2078 and cut again after that. This looming deficit could be offset if

I love you Rosa Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

I love you Rosa - Essay Example An 11-year old Jewish boy’s love for his young, widowed sister-in-law! A writer-director can do more justice to the strength and originality of the movie than a professional director. For, a writer-director puts his heart and soul of the story, in the minutest details of direction. A religious theme has been tackled in a professional style without bias, fear or favor. He doesn’t bind the viewer and causes stress, with tension-producing interpretations, of religious revelations. â€Å"His story, unfolded mostly through a flashback, derives from the tenets in Deuteronomy on the duty of a man to marry his brothers widow as well as those involving the widows rights if shes refused. His hero, even under ancient law, is too young to marry, but he jumps at the chance to live with the sister-in-law he adores despite the opposition of his family and the taunts and attacks of friends and neighbors.† (Movie Review†¦.) The strongest character is the determined widow. Notwithstanding the ridicule and criticism she faces by the community leaders, she sticks to her position, she understands the affection of the 11 year young boy, but rejects him as her husband. Rosa, who has a progressive outlook, is not interested in either child-rearing or remarriage. Her rejection is strong and humiliating for the boy as she shoos him away. The boy still loves her and his sacrifice for his love is genuine, (they say, true love doesn’t expects to be loved back), he frees her from her religious commitment. In the end, she decides to marry him. The main characters in the movie are, Michal Bat-Adam, is the stalwart Roza, Gabi Otterman does the role of the boy torn apart and confused by tough and difficult-to-challenge religious beliefs. Avner Chezkiyahu is the understanding and affectionate rabbi, Yosef Shiloah is the widow’s suitor and the boy’s employer, who is trying to take undue advantage in a difficult

Solar Energy Harvesting Term Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Solar Energy Harvesting - Term Paper Example The device is essentially composed of a ‘light sponge’ of nanoparticles. The dye-sensitized property means that the titanium has a monolayer of absorbed dye which increases the likelihood of photon capture (Tulloch, 2004). Nanostructured semiconductor films have been identified as suitable for applications in solar cells as their physical and chemical properties make them ideal. These nanostructured films utilize these dye-sensitized photoelectrochemical solars(PES) cells. The large surface area of nanoparticles means that they are capable of harvesting large amounts of solar energy. There is a sensitizer grafted into the titanium. Light induced electrons are injected from the absorbed dye into the nanocrystalites and makes the titanium conductive (Gratzel, 2003). There are so far two concerns which have been identified in the application of these PESs. They are related to the ‘maximum light harvesting of sunlight and the efficient collection of photocarriers at electrons’ (Rodriguez et al., 2007). Both of these issues have attracted a large amount of research interest. This is mostly due to the interest which many governments have shown in recent years in developing ‘green technologies’ for energy generation. Solar panels are an ideal way of harvesting energy in a green way, but for them to be successful on a large scale as a replacement for power stations they must be efficient at harvesting and storing large amounts of solar energy. To address the issues of PES optimization research has focused on a number of issues with the composition of the solar cells. One of the key areas on which manufacturers have focused is in optimizing the chemical composition of titanium. Improvements in technology may allow for a thinner form of titanium to be manufactured which would overall allow for thinner titanium layers to be applied to solar applications. This would result in a reduction in recombination of photoexcited carriers, which would increase PES cell efficiency.

Marriage and Dating Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2250 words

Marriage and Dating - Essay Example Was it a consequence of parents not being concerned in choosing the one their children should date or marry Or was it for the reason that parents are so strained in choosing the partner/suitor for their child There are numerous cultures where the parents are implicated in choosing whom their children should rendezvous or who to marry. These are widespread scenarios as to traditionalists. There are some matters involved as to the reason of such conduct of parents such as cultural variety or religious wisdom but also occurrence to broken homes and just pure concern to their children. The optimistic side as to parents deciding the one you date or the one you should wed are the for the subsequent motives: your parents only fancy the finest for you; they want somebody that is maybe for them is more fine looking or presentable, reputable or for other basis; they would want a spouse that would best suite you as to ethnicity, monetary status or even political status; the affluence of the family will not be shared to of those they consider that are lesser than yours but ought to be equivalent or superior than you have is a must; or they want to follow cultural norms; or merely they believe that the person they would like would mesh well with you than the one you opt. The downside of this is how about what you would like Almost certainly being with the person they chose would be agony on your part because of indifferences as to fondness, cultures, compatibility issues and the like which may lead to unproductiveness of the connection or even break up, heart ache and eventually separation. Family sociologists have shaped a variety of theories to make clear cultural and tribal disparity in marriage. Financial resources, partner-selection course, and culture are the center notion for the most widespread of these enlightenments. Both premise and experiential scrutiny suggest that larger economic possessions allow marriage and can amplify the motivations for marriage, particularly for men (Becker, 1991; Oppenheimer, Kalmijn, and Lim, 1997; Landale and Tolnay, 1991). When we sight the whole range of history and at hand human societies matrimony can be portrayed as a ethnically accepted relationships or a amalgamation of one man and one woman that is monogamy, of one man and two or more woman which is polyandry, there is cultural support of sexual contact amid the wedded partners of the conflicting and, generally, the anticipation that children will be bear of the affiliation (International Encyclopedia of the Social Sciences, 1977). To get the endorsement of the society it is essential that the unification be formed and documented in agreement with the understood mores and taboos, as in customary societies, or in agreement with standard laws, as in more urbane societies (Westermark, 1977). The tradition of marriage differs in a variety of parts of the globe and every civilization produces a marriage prototype suitable to itself (Ludlow, 1965). For Asian cultures it is ordinary to them that the parents would concur to each other that their brood should end up collectively. Maybe for the grounds of the following: keeping their affluence within the family, not allowing other backgrounds to mix with their culture, their child's hand for matrimony for trade

Healthcare Fraud Resulting in Fewer Referrals to Homecare Services Research Proposal

Healthcare Fraud Resulting in Fewer Referrals to Homecare Services - Research Proposal Example In fact, considering that the data on direct losses that is available regarding health care fraud today quite significantly underestimate the real value of the cost. While the healthcare fraud may not be very pronounced in the public domain currently, it may not be ignored as it has a potential of growing to astronomic levels given time and left unattended. Fraud has undermined the value of studies on healthcare practices, organization, and financing. In the healthcare sector, fraud has presented itself as a multi-faceted demon involving both individuals and corporate organizations. While some officials engaging in the provision of fraudulent or inaccurate data with an aim of getting corporate approval, some organizations engage in the withholding of data that may damage their reputation, the reputation of their products or researchers. The effects of health care fraud have far-reaching effects on the overall performance of the sector. Cases of fraud have for example impacted negatively the relationship between physicians and patients, and by extension, their relatives. In a bid to curb the problem of health care fraud, a number of measures have been introduced by the US government. The new measures have also impacted the way physicians provide services to patients – both in-patient and out-patient. This being the case, it may be postulated that healthcare fraud has had an impact on referrals to healthcare services. This research seeks to establish the existence of a correlation between health care fraud and the referral to home care services. Homecare caters for a wide range of social, medical and support services. Homecare services are entitled to people such as; the elderly, disabled people, those with long-term health conditions, terminally ill, chronically ill and to people who are recovering (Piper, Roberto, and Wacker, 2002).  

Tourism, Leisure, Culture, Society & Politics Essay

Tourism, Leisure, Culture, Society & Politics - Essay Example First and foremost, tourism is a result of consumerism. It deals with a set of services people have at their disposal for a particular amount of money. The financial issue is one of the most significant drives in touristic choices (Haan, 2008). That is to say, tourism and consumerism are close in their practical meaning with landscape as the main medium of attraction for tourists (Aitchison, MacLeod, & Shaw, 2001). In turn, capitalism is always consumerism regarding to the notion among Western countries. Hence, it is indicative of many people to be troublemakers instead of tourists, as they intrude into the milieu of cultural and ethnical diversity of some people with no excuse as long as they are driven by the idea of their right for letting loose in accordance with money they spent for such a pleasure. Besides, there is a clear distinction between tourism and traveling. Andrews (2011) admits that tourism does more harm to the environment than traveling, since it the former touches upon invasion, pollution, and narrow-mindedness while the latter is characterized by discovery, understanding, intelligence, adventures, and broad-mindedness. In this vein, tourism is a mark of a person’s identity looking at the places one visits and the services one prefers most of all with an idea of a cultural merge in mind (Weiermair & Mathies, 2004). It is all about the financial substantiality of individuals. Thus, they want to pay for their pleasure in terms of the price to be paid for that. On the other hand, tourism, leisure, political activities, rights of individuals are all incorporated in the field of globalization. To say more, tourism and leisure are socially constructed and are subject to the power of a man’s feelings and inner states (Andrews, Deconstructing tourism & leisure, 2011). In the historical cut, individuals tried to perceive multiculturalism when traveling around the globe. In some cases it was favorable (India, Africa) in some other (Magell an and the Philippines) it ended up ferociously. Nonetheless, tourism has become an exploration of one’s ability to cope with different identities and in close relation with the local authenticity. The works by Paul Gauguin, Somerset Maugham, Jules Verne, and many other representatives of art and literature were among the pioneers of the global trend for cultural and aesthetical tourism. However, it was nice at a glance from the very outset. It changed significantly with the advent of commodification versus authenticity. Cole (2007) points out in his study that commodification of different places (so attractive for tourists) leads to negative outcomes based on the political manipulation over the villagers for the sake of the tourists’ well-being. In fact, such a trend designates the very purpose of tourism in this or that location and in accordance with this or that cultural identity. Talking on the commodification and authenticity, one should bear it in mind that tour ism is a direct search for difference and dominance as long as some experts compare it with neo-imperialism (Andrews, Creating ‘the Other’: People as Tourist Commodities, 2011). In addition, it is Western people who are more devoted to explore other countries in the same manner as their predecessors did in the colonial age. Thus, it is a hidden drive for pleasure and its

Social Sciences Essay Example for Free

Social Sciences Essay 1. Primary data are those which are collected afresh and for the first time, and thus happen to be original in character. They are gathered by the researcher for the specific purpose of addressing the research problem. Secondary data, on the other hand, are those which have already been collected by someone else and have been processed statistically. These are collected for some purpose other than the problem at hand (Polonsky Waller, 2005; Kothari, 2005). Some of the disadvantages of using a newspaper or magazine article as secondary source are doubts in the reliability, credibility and accuracy of data as sources may not be known, and the obsolescence of data as well (Summers Johnson-Morgan, 2005). Primary and secondary data alone are not sufficient. They should be both used in research because secondary data can be lacking something that only primary data can provide (Groucutt, Leadley, Forsyth, 2004). 2. Television broadcasts such as news are not totally valid as there is a tendency, especially in programs aimed at a wide public, to oversimplify data. News normally offers one set of secondary data. It would be a better practice to compare data from different sources (Walliman, 2006). The questionnaire, as a means for collecting primary data, should have minimal errors in its design in order to minimize bias in reporting and to maximize the likelihood of generating information that is reliable and valid (Amedeo, Golledge, Stimson, 2008). A systematic research design is aimed to ensure that appropriate issues are taken into account. It provides the mechanism by which research processes and practices can be assessed. The research design lays the foundation for a sound hypothesis describing the interrelationship of variables and providing the researcher with a baseline from which to work. A good research design eliminates ambiguity in concepts, thus ensuring construct validity. The actual design of the research process ensures that no other variables can affect the study, hence enhancing internal validity. The research design also provides control to unwanted variables that may arise in the conduct of the research in order to uphold its external validity. Statistical tests are used as instruments to verify the validity of the hypothesis. Hence, if statistical information is wrong, the hypothesis will be invalid (Black, 1999). References Amedeo, D. , Golledge, R. G. , Stimson, R. J. (2008). Person-Environment-Behavior Research: Investigating Activities and Experiences in Spaces and Environments. New York: Guilford Press. Black, T. R. (1999). Doing Quantitative Research in the Social Sciences: An Integrated Approach to Research Design, Measurement and Statistics. California: SAGE Publishing. Groucutt, J. , Leadley, P. , Forsyth, P. (2004). Marketing: Essential Principles, New Realities. London: Kogan Page Publishers. Kothari, C. R. (2005). Research Methodology: Methods Techniques. New Delhi: New Age Publishers. Polonsky, M. J. , Waller, D. S. (2005). Designing and Managing a Research Project: A Business Students Guide. California: SAGE Publishing. Summers, J. Johnson-Morgan, M. (2005). Sports Marketing. Ontario: Nelson Thomson Learning. Walliman, N. S. R. (2006). Social Research Methods. California: SAGE Publishing.

Recruitment Policies in IKEA

Recruitment Policies in IKEA Scenario: Human, physical, technological and financial resources are at the core of every organisation. The efficient management of these resources enable organisations to achieve their objectives. Also, for an organisation to survive, its finances need to be sound and secure, and the level of an organisations performance can be seen in its financial statements. A poor management of resources can have a negative impact on an organisations performance. You just been appointed as HR manager of newly opened IKEA in London and as part of your role, you have to recruit 7 sales assistants, undertake the following tasks in relation to the above: 1. Describe the recruitment documentation used in Ikea. 2. Describe the main employability, personal and communication skills required when applying for the job role of Sales Assistant in Ikea. 3. Describe the main physical and technological resources required in the operation of Ikea. 4. Describe sources of internal and external finance for the business of Ikea 5. Interpret the contents of a trading and profit and loss account and balance sheet for Ikea 6. Illustrate the use of budgets as a means of exercising financial control of Ikea. 7. Illustrate the financial state of Ikea. Summary of the unit: Business resources encompass different types of resources like human resources, financial, technological and physical. Proper human resources team can bring a good result in achieving a companys objective and success. In terms of financial management and financial control, is playing an important role in establishing a company. Besides this, business plan will assist and guide to where a company will go in present and in future. Overall, a good combination of business resources will bring success for any establishment of business. Introduction and Background of the organisation, companies or businesses:   IKEA Introduction IKEA is a private and known home furnishing company. Also it is an international home products retailer that sells flat pack furniture, accessories and kitchen items in their retail stores around the world. Mainly this company is pioneer in flat pack design furniture at affordable prices, is now the worlds largest furniture retailer. There are main chains of IKEA. The chain has 301 stores in 37 countries, most of them in Europe, North America, Asia and Australia. Background IKEA was founded in 1943 by 17 year old Ingvar Kamprad in Sweden and it is owned by a Dutch registered foundation controlled by the Kamprad family. The name IKEA comes from the initials of Ingvar Kamprad, I and K, plus the first letters of Elmtaryd and Agunnaryd, which are the names of the farm and village where he grew up. The headquarters of IKEA is in Netherlands. IKEA owns and operates 384 stores in 48 countries. IKEAs mission, vision and purposes: IKEAs main passion to work hard to achieve quality at affordable prices for the customers through optimising the entire value chain, by building long-term supplier relationships, investing in highly automated production and producing large volumes. The vision of IKEA also goes beyond home furnishing. They want to create a better thing for all people from this business. Mission: IKEAs mission is to offer a wide range of home furnishing items of good design and function, excellent quality and durability, at prices so low that the majority of people can afford to buy them. Vision: The IKEA vision is the foundation for its growth strategy. to create a better everyday life for the many people. To meet this vision IKEA provides many well designed and functional product for the home. Objectives: IKEAs business strategy focuses on growth in three main areas: Quality products at low prices through its unique design processes A sustainable future through its people and planet positive approach Also co-workers are essential in growth strategy Size of Business: In the IKEA Group, they have 328 stores in 28 countries (as of 31 August, 2015). Products range is about 9500. Around 1,002 home furnishing suppliers in 51 countries. 59% of IKEA production is in Europe.   Only in Europe there are 222 stores. Excluding the stores, at the end of FY15 they had 27 Trading Service Offices in 23 countries, 33 Distri ­bution Centres and 15 Customer Distribution Centres in 17 coun ­tries, and 43 IKEA Industry pro ­duction units in 11 countries. Corporate Structure: The IKEA corporate structure is divided into two main parts: operations and franchising. Most of IKEAs furniture, including the management of majority stores, the design and manufacture, purchasing and supply functions are overseen by INGKA holdings. Group franchises the IKEA retail system from Inter IKEA Systems B.V. in the Netherlands. Inter IKEA Systems B.V. is the owner of the IKEA Concept and the worldwide IKEA franchisor. The IKEA Group of companies (INGKA Holding B.V. and its controlled entities) has an ownership structure that ensures independence and a long-term approach. The IKEA Group operates throughout the whole value chain from range strategy and product development to production, distribution and retails. IKEA Group of companies Stakeholders: The key stakeholders in a company impacted positive or negatively. As IKEA is not a primary sector organization but it needs raw materials to develop its products. Hence primary sector suppliers, manufacturer for secondary sector are the stakeholders of IKEA. The key stakeholders of IKEA are the customers and employees, both are considered main stakeholders. Besides this, suppliers, internal employees, trade union, managers, owners, shareholders play an important role. Type of ownership IKEA is actually a privately held company owned by Stichting INGKA Foundation, a non-profit registered in Leiden in the Netherlands that is controlled by the Kamprads three sons. IKEA Limited is licensed to sell under the IKEA brand name by Inter IKEA Systems B.V., a company registered in the Netherlands. IKEAs Company Structure The structure of business can affect the way it works and performs. An organisational structure is when employees are grouped into functional areas, which relate to their job, so that people doing similar jobs work in the same area. Inter IKEA Group (Inter IKEA Holding B.V. and all its subsidiaries) is owned by Interogo Foundation, based in Liechtenstein and established in 1989.   Ã‚   The foundation is an independent entity with legal personality and its own governing bodies. The foundation exists for an unlimited period of time. Inter IKEA and Interogo were established during the 1980s to secure independence and longevity of the IKEA Concept. The IKEA Concept is the core asset of Inter IKEA Group and its franchisor operation. The overall purpose of Inter IKEA Group is to secure continuous improvement, development, expansion and a long life of the IKEA Concept. This will require investments in both good and bad times. 1. Describe the recruitment documentation used in Ikea. There are different types of documentation used in recruitment process, such as application letter, form, CV, person specification, interview, JD, Letter of appointment. The details are as follows: Application Letter A letter of application, also known as cover letter, is a job application document to provide detailed information of the candidate. The employers will able to know in which position a candidate apply for and why the employer will select the candidate. When writing an application letter should include: subject, greetings, body of letter and signature. Application Form An application form is an essential part of the job search for a candidate to fill for the company so that they can get the information they want. In addition, many large commercial companies are use standard job application form because they are much quicker and time saving. CV of a candidate A curriculum vita is a written overview of a persons experience and other qualifications. Businesses will use application forms and CVs to see whether an applicant matches the job specification or not. The closest matching applicants are invited to interviews in the selection stage. Interview: Interviews are the most popular form of selection. Interview can be one-to-one, two-to-one or a panel of people to interview people which is used to select people for important jobs. Some businesses include tests in their selection. Person specification: The person specification is the single most important document in effective recruitment and selection. It allows defining the kind of person a company want and so accordingly helps you to write an accurate job advert. It enables to assess each candidate fairly and objectively. Recruitment process of IKEA The traditional methods of job vacancies are to make people aware of the need to compete with the recruitment web-based systems. Traditional methods: newspaper advertising, paper-based curriculum vitae (CV), letter, word of mouth, the paper-based application form, job opportunities and the fair poster. Internet-based methods: online application form, online Curriculum Vitae, e-mail, Internet advertising, Curriculum Vitae information on the web page, the web page of the working group and the pop-up Web page. Online Recruitment is much faster than traditional methods and has a number of benefits over using paper. It is possible to monitor how many people have gone on to a website to look at a job. But each and every company has followed its own recruitment process. IKEAs recruitment process runs like following. First of all if anybody is interested in working in IKEA, he/she has to go through a list of open positions. If any post are suitable or challenging and moreover if he/she meet the requirements, apply via a button directly in an advertisement. If there is no open position interesting for a person but want to work in IKEA, send the CV to IKEA. IKEA will give an e-mail answer about receiving the request or CV in both cases. Then IKEA management will assess delivered applications then and choose from applicants several most suitable candidates for the particular job position. After that a formal invitation sent to the candidates via e-mail or phone to participate in a selection process. How a selection process runs Selection process usually consists of three rounds. First of them is assessment centre, second one is a personal interview with a future manager and third one is a personal interview with a boss of this manager. Assessment centre Assessment centre is a way to know more about their future colleagues when they are solving different tasks and discuss with others. There are about 10 applicants participating. Both group tasks which a person will solve together with other participants and individual tasks are included. The great advantage is that candidate can get a feedback from one of the assessors if he/she wants to. They can know about their own strengths and weaknesses important for the career, where the advantage lies for a candidate and where they can improve. Second round Two or three candidates who pass to the second round are chosen based on the assessment centre results. The second round is a personal interview with a future manager. Usually IKEA personnel do not ask tricky questions. They appreciate the most candidates honesty. They could ask to fill in a personal test as a part of the interview. If you want to ask anything about the future job, this is the right time to ask. 3. Personal interview The third round is a personal interview between the most suitable candidate and the boss of the persons future manager, so called grandparent principle. IKEA are also interested in a candidates motivation to work in IKEA in this phase and what expectation he/she has. JOB ROLE: HR Manager As a HR Manager I need to set some criteria regarding the scope of work within the organisation. IKEA always look for the following things within a candidate and thus they issue job description. This is a task of a HR manager. The manager should be aligned with other departments during the process of recruitment. Practical skills Ability to understand and get along with other people Ability to ask questions and give inputs Encouraged employees to question the management and express their ideas and belief Co-workers who had mastered their current jobs were encouraged to seek new challenges Job enlargement or enrichment Value fit was the selection criteria Why Savers- ideas to improve store The company even gave an advertisement inviting Why Savers to join the company Express Yourself- share companies concerns and complaints with Spiers Lopez This improved the morale within the company as she responded to their complaints personally It had a comprehensive communications system for employees like IKEA Radio and intranet. It also reached employees through printed material as well Job description: This document provides an understanding of the positions major responsibilities, details how the responsibilities are accomplished, and identifies the knowledge, skills and abilities necessary to perform the job. In the organization a job description sets out the scope of work of the main responsibilities and the main tasks to be done. A job description is needed to set out how to fit into the work structure a particular employee. So it sets out: The title of the job To whom the employee is responsible For whom the employee is responsible 2. Describe the main employability, personal and communication skills required when applying for the job role of Sales Assistant in Ikea. IKEA is an equal opportunity employer. IKEA does not discriminate in recruitment, hiring or terms or conditions of employment on the basis of race, religious creed, colour, age, sex, gender identity, genetic information, sexual orientation, national origin, religion, marital status, medical condition, physical or mental disability, military service, pregnancy, childbirth and related medical conditions, or any other classification protected by federal, state, and local laws and ordinances. IKEA called all its employees, regardless of rank, coworkers. To promote open communication, IKEA adopted a structure with no hierarchical distinctions. Employees were encouraged to express their opinions and ideas directly to the top management. Employees were rewarded with high level of empowerment. Cost consciousness was deeply embedded in IKEAs culture. IKEAs culture promoted diversity. Openness to change and adaptability were stressed at IKEA. Week-long orientation program in Sweden on the IKEA WAY An IKEA co-workers main task is to maximize sales and profitability in his/her area of responsibility using knowledge of the IKEA product range, local market conditions and the needs of customers. Candidate employability skills required when applying for the job role of Sales Assistant in Ikea include: Suitable qualification and experience in same role which helps to maximize sales and profitability by ensuring area of responsibility. Knowledge of product or services are required for the job role of Sales Assistant in Ikeato provide the company best sales performance. Need to share knowledge with customers and colleagues. Experience of specific industry will help to provide best input for a company Preparing area of responsibility for stock replenishment and next days business. Ability to observe and raise professional standards of production/service delivery. Candidate personal and professional skills required when applying for the job role of Sales Assistant in Ikea include: Patience and hardworking are the key elements in sales profession. Self-confidence about approaching and talking to people in a polite and friendly manner. Able to work with others in a team. Flexible approach to work and are open to change. Should have an interest in home furnishing and peoples everyday life at home. Ability to priorities and organize assigned work to make efficient use of time. Negotiation skills in sales work enhance the development in career Agreed with the sales target is a reflection of confidence Able to resolving conflicts 3. Describe the main physical and technological resources required in the operation of Ikea. Physical Resources Physical and technological resources are always required in the operation of a company. Whether these resources are physical resources, such as property, equipment and materials, or less tangible human resources, emergency provision, insurance and security, money is required to pay for their use. As a result, the management of finance is inseparable from the management of the business as a whole. Land, Labour, Capital and Enterprise are also referred to as the Factors of production. Physical resources of IKEA include machines which are used to fill the stock in self-serve and full serve areas are checked and charged daily. Physical Resources used in IKEA include: Buildings and Facilities IKEA has expanded its product base to include flat-pack houses and apartments, in an effort to cut prices involved in a first-time buyers home. The IKEA product, named BoKlok was launched in Sweden in 1996 in a joint venture with Skanska. Now working in the Nordic countries and in the UK, sites confirmed in England include London, Ashton-under-Lyne, Leeds, Gateshead, Warrington and Liverpool. The Ikea store on Yas Island will have a total floor area of 32,000 square meters and a sales area of 19,150 square meters. It will have a restaurant of 2,100 square meters with a seating capacity of 550, as well as 1,500 parking places. Yas Island store are providing a strong impetus for the Swedish furniture and Furnishings Company to push ahead with plans to expand in the region. Materials and Waste IKEA will need to make sure that all of their stores have the right amount of their products in the store to keep up with the demand of the customers buying them. In the warehouse, IKEA will need to make sure that they have the materials stored in a format where they are easily accessible so they can be made into the products being sold. IKEA needs to get rid of their waste and therefore may ask the government to help them with this. Plant and Machinery: Physical resources of IKEA like machines which are used to fill the stock in self-serve and full serve areas are checked and charged daily. The machines, building and production capacity are all well maintained to survive in retail business. They need to improve on POS terminal at exchange and returns where there have been cases of money laundering. Employees have stolen money and caught after many days. So these things need to be taken care of from the management and finance department. This leads to decrease in profits. IKEA Dubai has more than 300 employees from different nationalities and regularly they are given training in their training centre. Expert professors and managers give them training to increase employee knowledge of products and increase skills at their work. Equipment including ICT IKEAs IT facility is related with the other resources within and outside this company.   The company is planning to launch a new website, ikeabusiness.com, where small business owners can discover new ideas for designing their offices and share them with other entrepreneurs. Families can design their kitchens at IKEA Home planning service where once they design their kitchen they have to pay 500Dhs kitchen charges which is refundable once the customer buys the kitchen. Planned Maintenance and Refurbishment Important feature of IKEA stores is their long opening hours. Many stores are in operation 24 hours a day with restocking and maintenance being carried out throughout the night. Warehouse maintained in planned way. Emergency Provision IKEA have emergency provision in case of an accident and incident. Workers may have an emergency situation in that case after verification, documents provide to IKEA. Insurance The people who are engaged with IKEA FAMILY, they can enjoy free product insurance facility. They can insure their new products against accidental damage on the way home and during assembly by swiping the IKEA family card at the check outs. Security IKEA use the latest security technology to encrypt all personal information which a person submits through the IKEAs website, including card numbers, address and other information. They encrypt this information using SSL technology which allows it to be transmitted securely over the Internet without anyone else having access to it. The machines, building and production capacity are all well maintained to survive in retail business. At IKEA, they want to have a positive impact on people and the planet. Thats why theyre going all-in on things that really matter, from switching their entire lighting range to energy-efficient LED to sourcing all of the cotton they use in their products from more sustainable sources. They are also working towards 100% renewable energy producing as much as they consume in their operations and sourcing all of their wood from more sustainable sources by 2020. And the IKEA Group and IKEA Foundation have made new commitments that add up to $1 billion for climate action. IKEA resources can be classified tangible and intangible. The tangible resources available to the company IKEA, they may differ in Physical and Financial. Within the physical resources, find machinery, which is characterized by modern and specific. Secondly, they have distribution centres, which are computerized and automated hierarchical systems, and finally they have additional shops and services that have standard models, in which they can find special services such as restaurant, day-care and parking. Concerning financial resources, they have used Reinvestment in IKEA as a key resource. There are two types of intangible resources, human and non-human, as nonhuman, can highlight the technology, they find patents according to the composition of materials. Another thing is that IKEA has a unique company culture, since the vision, mission and values are present in every business process, plus annual management meetings are held to improve all business activities. Finally they find organisational resources, which are business ideas. Regarding human intangible resources, they can cover in this area to permanent workers, average wages and high standards of the company. Technological resources include operation systems and tools required to effectively produce or create a product or service. These include energy, information, people, tools, machines, capital and time. Technological resources help production processes and service delivery in companies and organizations. The main Technological resources required in the operation of Ikea include the following: intellectual property, for example designs, drawings, text, music, video Having the right type of intellectual property protection helps people to stop anybody stealing or copying: the names of products or brands inventions the design or look of the products things the company write, make or produce Copyright, patents, designs and trademarks are all types of intellectual property protection. So IKEA have their own design, drawing for their furniture. accumulated experience and skills; The accumulated experience is what people have gained over years of working. Employees with more experience are likely to better than new employees. Also there should be enough people with the skills to carry out the operations in the business. At IKEA they believe in people. Behind every product are humble, enthusiastic teams that make it possible. They offer exceptional career and learning possibilities. They encourage a person to try different roles, change between functions and even move abroad. A Person can design their own career path according to their development plan and future goals. IKEA believe in everyones ability to develop. Because as a person grow, IKEA grows too. software licences There are many businesses that they have to invest their money into specialists software programmes so that they can operate properly. They have their own software module which consists of various software and material for which the intellectual property rights are vested in companies in the IKEA group. protection via patents and copyrights IKEA can use their money to protect their technological resources, but they can also use legislation to protect their ideas that they have come up with and they will need to be able to prove that their idea has been used without permission. 4. Describe sources of internal and external finance for the business of Ikea Mainly IKEA is a privately owned company, hence they are not bound to disclose their financial information in the form of GPFRs i.e. balance sheets and PL statements. Therefore they only disclosed limited amount of information to the public. Objectives of financial management profitability, growth, efficiency, liquidity, solvency short-term and long-term These objectives remain constant for every business and due to the nature of IKEA efficiency is quite a major component of their management strategy. Also as IKEA is privately run and Ingvar Kamprad is one of the wealthiest men (currently 4th richest) on the planet then it could be easily seen that return on equity is a major financial objective. Inter dependence with other key business function  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚   They have their own software module with Influences on financial management Internal sources of finance retained profits External sources of finance Debt: short-term borrowing (overdraft, commercial bills, factoring), long-term borrowing (mortgage, debentures, unsecured notes, leasing) Equity ordinary shares (new issues, rights issues, placements, share purchase plans), private equity Internal owners equity, retained profits Internal sources would be used by IKEA to a certain degree in particular retained profits. As IKEA is not a publicly listed company and is operated through a trust structure, share issue is not particularly relevant to IKEAs current financial structure external short-term borrowing, (overdraft, bank bills), long-term borrowing (mortgage, debentures) leasing, factoring, venture capital, grants. External borrowings through debt financing are much more likely to be used by IKEA. The combination of short and long term would be utilized to maximize advantages to IKEA. Financial institutions banks, investment banks, finance companies, superannuation funds, life insurance companies, unit trusts and the Australian Securities Exchange Influence of government Australian Securities and Investments Commission, company taxation. Global market influences economic outlook, availability of funds, interest rates 5. Interpret the contents of a trading and profit and loss account and balance sheet for Ikea. IKEA produces the financial statement each year for their company. These statement is appear as company report. There are two main financial statement: The profit and loss account The balance sheet The profit and loss account may be updated regularly and shows how much profit or loss a business is making. A profit can be made in several ways, for example; From trading, in the case of a high street shop, i.e. buying and selling items such as home furniture, like IKEA From manufacturing, for example a company like IKEA made affordable prices furniture. It buys raw materials such as wood, bamboo, cane and Jute which helps to processes to make furniture. The top section of a PL account is known as the trading account for a business that buys and sells items e.g. a furniture shop. What is known as the gross profit is calculated by deducting cost of sales from turnover. The Balance Sheet The Balance Sheet is a snapshot taken at a particular moment in time giving a summary of the overall financ

Benefits Behind Mergers And Acquisitions Economics Essay

Benefits Behind Mergers And Acquisitions Economics Essay This assignment is going to include a discussion of the theoretical benefits behind mergers and acquisitions, a review of the empirical evidence and also two real world examples, one where value was created and one where it was destroyed. Theory The benefits of mergers and acquisitions stem from a concept known as synergy which can be illustrated using a formula, PVab =PVa + PVb + gains (Arnold, 2008: 866) also represented as, 2+2=5. The theory behind this is that a combined unit would be greater in value than the sum of its parts, basically meaning two firms together are worth more than the value of the firms if they were apart. One benefit of this is the increase in market power which is a firms ability to exercise a degree of control over the price of a product. This can be achieved in more than one way but for example if a firm merged with another and then found itself in a monopoly position it would have the ability to push up the price of its products because consumers would have fewer alternative suppliers. Another advantage is the increase in economies of scale achievable. In most cases the larger the size of a firm the lower the cost per unit of output because of cost advantages being better exploited. For example i f two firms in the same industry merged they could gain marketing economies of scale through joint advertising perhaps and also administration economies by sharing administrative activities and accounting. There would also be financial economies as funds borrowed on the capital market would be provided at lower costs and with more favourable rates of borrowing. Internalisation of transactions is also a benefit; if two firms at different stages of the production chain merged, a greater efficiency of co-ordination of the different levels may be the outcome. This could be achieved because of reductions in costs such as communication, monitoring, contract enforcement and bargaining. Usually entering in to a new market or industry takes years of effort and during the early period losses may even be incurred, however through the process of mergers and acquisitions this once daunting task can become much easier. By acquiring an existing firm that already posses the required skills and mark et strength it eliminates the need for them to be generated internally. There are also tax advantages of acquisitions in some countries because losses of subsidiaries can be used to offset present taxable profits of the parent company meaning a lower tax bill. Therefore acquiring firms which have accumulated tax losses may be beneficial; however this benefit is not present in the UK due to much stricter rules being in place. Another benefit of mergers and acquisitions would be risk diversification. A firm may be viewed as less volatile if its cash flows come from a wider range of sources meaning shareholders gain from a reduction in risk but with no decrease in return. The greater stability of earnings may also be appealing to lenders which could result in lower interest rates. Mergers and acquisitions are usually used as an instrument to create shareholder value (Sudarsanam 2003), this is the main objective; however there also seem to be managerial motives present. When a firm acquires another is consequently becomes a larger enterprise meaning managers have more responsibility and so may be justified to receive a much larger salary. Some may feel more successful and important because of this and this sense of achievement may become a personal driver for managers to carry out mergers and acquisitions. Another reason could be survival, the management team may begin to feel the best way to avoid being taken over or dominated is to grow themselves, especially if regular mergers are occurring in the industry the firm operates in. This could lead to firms not merging for just the benefit of shareholders but also to try and assure the survival of the management team. A question one may wish to ask is how the value of the benefits of mergers and acquisitions can be measured? The benefits of acquisitions are usually not easy or straightforward to put in to numerical form. For example the application of superior managerial skills or entry in to a new market cannot accurately be measured; even things such as competitive position and reputation with customers, the list goes on. These items will not be found on balance sheets so therefore the true value of a firm may not be presented; however one indicator which could perhaps value the benefit may be the firms share price. Empirical evidence Although the theory behind mergers and acquisitions suggest that they create value for both the shareholders of the offeror and offeree companies the empirical evidence doesnt always seem to support this. (Meeks 1977) conducted a statistical test to represent the effects of mergers, he took profits from the merged companies after the merger and compared them with the weighted average of the participants profits had they not merged based on their earnings prior to the merger. His conclusion was that merged profits were less than those that the participants would have received had they not joined forces. However some have questioned Meeks research There are weaknesses in Meekss work (Ulen, 1980: 234). This being said Alan Gregorys review of the long run performance of UK acquiring firms reached a similar conclusion the long-run shareholder wealth effects of recent acquisitions in the UK have been, on average, significantly negative (Gregory, 1997: 984). However a study to evaluate take overs in the UK from 1955-1985 suggest that both offeror and offeree company shareholders gain from mergers we find that mergers have, on average, been value-creating for shareholders as measured by equity market prices around the merger announcement date. Shareholders of targets gain, and bidder shareholders gain or do not lose. (Franks and Harris, 1989: 247). Empirical evidence of the overall wealth gains of target shareholders from stock mergers were reviewed by (Loughran and Vijh 1997). They found that target shareholders that sold out soon after the acquisition date gain from all acquisitions; however those who held on to the acquirers stock find their gains diminish over time. Studies on post merger performance of acquiring firms seem to generally forecast negative results as can be seen here We find that stockholders of the acquiring firms suffer a statistically significant wealth loss of about 10% over the five years following the merger completion. (Agrawal, Jaffe Mandelke r 1992: 1618) and also here We find that these takeovers have a positive but not always significant impact on profitability, and a negative impact on short and long run returns (Cosh, guest and Hughes 2005: 489). Real world examples In 2006 Disney bought Pixar for $7.4billion. The two companies had been working together prior to the merger but with two different sets of shareholders there were barriers that existed, however with the merger the two companies became able to collaborate freely and with ease. Pixar has doubled its yearly film output something that would have been unthinkable before the merger and with expert advice from Disney has improved vastly in fields such as advertising and merchandising. Pixar  movies tend to perform better than animated movies developed by Disney itself (Garrahan, 2010: 16), Toy Story 3 is on course to become the biggest grossing animated film ever released by Walt Disney after generating $630.2m in its first month in cinemas (Garrahan, 2010: 16). In 1994 BMW acquired Rover for  £800 million. Only six years later and after millions of pounds worth of investment they sold the company, The brand had declined too far to be rescued. The German group ploughed {XEU} 4bn into its English patient before getting out in 2000. (The financial times, 2005) The company was sold to the phoenix four for  £10! Who  bought Rover  from  BMW for [pounds sterling] 10 (Eaglesham Peel, 2008: 5). This was a huge disaster, some blamed it on communication When  BMW bought  the  Rover  business, communication with the German managers was even worse (exacerbated by political infighting on the German side). Failure was the inevitable and bitter result. (Lester, 2007: 8) and others on the fact that Rover may have been a lost cause to begin with Even the mighty  BMW, which  bought Rover  in 1994, had to accept in the end that the brand had declined too far or at least to give it a future would cost far too much money. (The financia l times, 2005) Conclusion To conclude having researched for example Meeks and Gregorys financial analysis of the empirical evidence and reviewing the real world examples discussed above one may argue that mergers and acquisitions on average may not be beneficial to the shareholders of the acquiring firms. Management tends to underestimate the level of organisation required and therefore take off more than they can chew. However as seen in the Disney-Pixar case mergers can benefit both the offeror and offeree at times. Wordcount: 1492

John Smith in Jamestown Essay -- John Smith Jamestown Essays

John Smith in Jamestown The leadership strengths and weaknesses of John Smith evoked a profound effect on the Jamestown colony. The fact that Smith actually arrived in the colony as a common prisoner and was able to achieve the leadership role that he gained is amazing. His creativity and knowledge in certain areas actually saved the colonists from attack and starvation in the early days. Some of the rules he enforced as a leader were actually instrumental in saving the colony. His skill in dealing with the natives allowed him to gain their support and continue trade that resulted in the survival of the colony. Christopher Newport, the admiral that transported John Smith and many of the colonists from England, left the Jamestown colony in the fall of 1607. Immediately all work in the settlement ceased to exist. The colonists had decided to wait on Newport to return with new workers. The plan was for the natives to provide food for them while they waited. When the natives never came with food, Ratcliffe, the current president of the colony, ordered John Smith to visit the neighboring natives and trade tools and metals for corn. The natives had noticed how the English were unable to feed themselves by planting their own crops. The natives refused to trade more than a few handfuls of corn and bread for the hatchets and iron that were offered. Smith realized the reason why the Kecoughtans were not trading more than just those small amounts and created a way to solve the problem. To prove to the natives that the English were not poor, Smith gave free beads and trinkets to the children. This was to show the Kecoughtans that the English were economically strong and possessed more valuable items. Smith used the mentality of â€Å"weakness in appearance†¦was weakness in reality† (Price 57) to justify his travels from village to village, collecting a large of amount of corn, bread, and other foods for the Jamestown colonists. Smith thought the natives would trade more food if they did not realize what a small amount of food stores that the English had actually acquired. If the natives had known what large quantities of food Smith had actually traded for, they would have realized how desperate the state of the colonists. Smith performed his trading sessions this way â€Å"’least they should perceive my too great want.’† (Price 57) In this manner, John Smith saved the ent... ...into believing the English had enough stores of food actually help protect the colonists from attack. It also allowed Smith and the colonists to continue to bring back enough food and supplies to last the settlement through the first winter. By the second winter, John Smith had taken the position of President of the settlement. This put him in a position of power where he could invoke some rules among the colonists. Invoking the â€Å"he that will not work shall not eat† rule was a key factor in surviving this winter. During the same season the food supply again became dangerously low. Rats had again infested the main food supply. John cleverly divided the colonists into three groups. Despite the risk of having the settlement devastated by the division, Smith pulled it off and saved the colonists again. John Smith remained committed to the interests of the common man throughout his efforts in Jamestown. This character trait and well as his impulsiveness and temper outburst s weakened him in the eyes of the Virginia Company. Unfortunately, this shortened his time as a leader for the settlers. Despite his flaws, John Smith was a critical player in the success of the Jamestown settlement.

Language Grows Out of Life:Abduction, Juxtaposition, and Culture :: Education Learning Essays

Language Grows Out of Life: Abduction, Juxtaposition, and Culture Language grows out of life, out of its needs and experiences . . . Good work in language presupposes and depends on real knowledge of things. I never taught language for the purpose of teaching it; but invariably used language as a medium for communication of thought: thus the learning of language was coincident with the acquisition of knowledge (Thomas, 48). For my students in the prison, and for many students in "regular" schools, English class seems removed from the "needs and experiences" of life. My students are confused by the isolated teaching of grammar rules that seem to have no impact on their "true" use of language on the streets, in their neighborhoods, or with their families. I am equally confused. Many schools insist that teachers "transmit" a pre-determined body of information to students as if they are receptacles. For my students, many of the works of literature in this body of information are "unrealistic," and they feel they are "fake" and unimportant to them. The schools also often ask instructors to ignore their students' cultures and social circumstances. This is an impossibility. Donald Thomas states this nicely when he writes: "We bequeath to words what we cannot ourselves decipher from the rush of daily being. Words are juxtaposed to the world just as we are" (2). Simply put, culture and language are interconnecte d. We strive to make sense of the world around us through language. There is no way to separate culture and language and no reason to do so. I become more aware of how experience affects language and expression each day. Several months ago, I was working with my students on the use of setting in literary works. I tore pictures of different settings from National Geographic magazines. My students had a huge range of pictures to choose from and their assignment was to write a story that would logically take place in the setting of their picture. We had been discussing literature genres and I was sure that the student who chose the picture of the mist-surrounded castle on the rocky island would create a magical fairy tale complete with a king, knights, and a fire-breathing dragon. I was wrong. I have read many fairy tales in my lifetime. If I had received the picture of the castle, I would have written a "typical" fairy tale. My home culture has nurtured this type of story and appreciation for it.

Book One of John Milton’s Paradise Lost: Satan as Hero Essay

In literature and other forms of art, the character of Satan had always been depicted as nothing more than an evil entity. He was usually represented as the Devil, the creature capable of the ultimate form of wickedness. He was known to be against the Supreme Good, for he was the angel who initiated a rebellion against God. In various stories and movies, Satan had always been depicted as this static character. However, the depiction of Satan in Book One of John Milton’s â€Å"Paradise Lost† was truly an exception to the stereotype. In the first part of his epic, Milton showed the readers that Satan had positive traits, though he used it in a negative way. Contrary to the usual portrayal of the persona of Satan, John Milton depicted Satan as a heroic character in Book One of â€Å"Paradise Lost†. What makes a character heroic? One feature which makes a hero is a commanding presence. Heroes in literature, such as Achilles and Odysseus, are characterized with remarkable strength. These are individuals who possess imposing, if not dominant, personalities. It is their commanding presence which allows them to lead their men effectively, as it renders them as figures of authority. Combs wrote, â€Å"Heroic qualities reside in some larger-than-life figure who committed great deeds in a mythical past† (26). While Satan’s deeds can only be considered great in his own opinion, it cannot be denied that he was rendered by Milton as a larger-than-life creature in Book One. Milton presented Satan as a hero to the readers by showing how massive and mighty he is. To demonstrate the size and strength of Satan, the narrator of the poem used an analogy with reference to Greek mythology. Satan was depicted as similar to the titans who fought against Jove. Milton wrote, â€Å"Lay floating many a rood, in bulk as huge/ As whom the Fables name of monstrous size,/ Titanian, or Earth-Born, that warr’d on Jove† (I. 196-198). Milton also compared Satan to the Leviathan, which he described as â€Å"hugest that swim th’ Ocean stream† (I. 202). Indeed, the author had established Satan to be larger-than-life in the epic. Satan is considered as a heroic character in Book One because of his commanding presence. Another trait which a hero must possess is courage. Heroes are known to be courageous figures, those who remain unnerved during difficult struggles or when confronted with the inevitable. Satan is a heroic character in Book One of â€Å"Paradise Lost† because of the courage he displayed. He proved to be courageous because he displayed unshakeable resolve amidst trying times. It is known that Satan used to be an angel who sought to overpower God. He gathered his followers and rebelled against Him, only to fail in their selfish pursuit. As a result, Satan and the other angels were sent to Hell. Hell proved to be most unpleasant compared to Heaven. While there was a fiery lake in Hell, its flames gave off darkness instead of light. Milton wrote, â€Å"As one great Furnace flam’d, yet from those flames/ No light, but rather darkness visible† (I. 62-63). While a weaker personality may have given up on such dire situation, Satan was undaunted by his present dilemma. Instead of being dragged down by his fall from grace, he embraced his place in Hell. Satan remarked, â€Å"To reign is worth ambition though in Hell:/ Better to reign in Hell, then serve in Heav’n† (I. 262-263). In addition, Satan’s fall from grace did not diminish his determination in his pursuit of evil. God may have defeated Satan in the rebellion, but the Supreme Deity did not defeat his will to fight. Satan said, â€Å"All is not lost; the unconquerable Will,/ And study of revenge, immortal hate,/ And courage never to submit or yield:/ And what else not to be overcome? † (I. 106-109). Hence, Satan is a hero because of the courage he displayed. Also, Satan appeared to be a hero in the first part of Milton’s epic poem due to his bravery. How did Satan exhibit bravery in Book One? Satan proved himself to be a brave character because he did not reveal fear even though he was confronted with danger. After the angels failed in their revolt against God, some of Satan’s comrades have lost hope. For instance, Beelzebub was greatly disheartened by the defeat. Their failure convinced him of God’s power. Beelzebub told Satan: â€Å"Fearless, endanger’d Heav’ns perpetual King;/ And to put to proof his high Supremacy† (I. 131-132). Unlike his companion, Satan still wanted to challenge God’s power. He does not regret initiating the war, and still wanted to execute another battle. Satan wanted to wage a second war against God, hoping that the next attempt would be more successful. He uttered, â€Å"We may with more successful hope resolve/ To wage by force or guile eternal Warr/ Irreconcileable, to our grand Foe† (I. 120-123). Satan is a heroic character in Book One of Paradise Lost because he was unafraid to face an enemy stronger and more powerful than him. The three aforementioned traits truly render Satan as a heroic character. With those three traits, Satan would follow the tradition of other heroes in literature. Milton made Satan appear as a warrior hero with the other angels as his comrades. However, it cannot be denied that there would be instances wherein the other warriors are discouraged by the outcome of their battles. Therefore, it would be the responsibility of the leader to motivate the rest and make them continue on in the path they chose to travel. In this case, Satan again proved to be a heroic character in Book One. He was heroic because he asserted his leadership and convinced the other angels to do as he pleased. Satan had a plan against God and despite the defeat, he never strayed from it. In contrast, the other angels had become weary of their situation. It became Satan’s task to uplift his followers and make them believe in his plan. When Beelzebub was discouraged after hearing Satan’s suggestion of another attack, the latter gave a speech to convince the former. Satan said, â€Å"To do ought good never will be our task,/ But ever to do ill our sole delight† (I. 159-160). His optimism over his grand scheme against goodness was so persuasive that the other fallen angels had obeyed his orders. Because he was a leader who kept his followers on the path towards his desired end, Satan can be considered as a heroic character. In Book One of â€Å"Paradise Lost†, Milton truly painted a rare picture of Satan. He made one of the most despicable characters in history as an appealing character. Satan became appealing to the readers because Milton’s depiction paid more attention on his positive qualities. His larger-than-life persona, as well as his courage, bravery and leadership, made Satan an admirable individual. Moreover, not only did Milton make Satan appealing, he made him sympathetic as well. It is obvious that Satan had questionable logic; his arguments were flawed. Despite this, he was still able to persuade the other angels. He was also able to make the readers sympathize to his cause, no matter how wicked it was. When Satan first spoke in Book One, he described the fallen angels’ undesirable state in Hell. His words persuaded the readers of God’s wrath. Satan said, â€Å"He with his Thunder: and till then who knew/ The force of those dire Arms? † (I. 93-94). From his speech, Satan allowed the readers to think that God was at fault and his actions against Him were justified. Nevertheless, the text itself is proof of Satan’s free will. Satan was free to act as he pleased, and he chose to gather his followers and rebel against God. Satan was the one at fault because he was made free but he decided to use his freedom for evil. Therefore, while Satan may seem to be a heroic character, it does not mean that he was not flawed. Unlike most accounts of Satan, Book One of â€Å"Paradise Lost† proved to be different. John Milton deviated from the stereotype and presented Satan as a heroic figure. He made Satan as a commanding character who was courageous, brave and convincing to others. As a result, Milton depicted Satan as a character with redeeming qualities. However, these redeeming qualities are not enough to make him a perfect persona. Indeed, Satan is portrayed as a heroic character in Book One of â€Å"Paradise Lost† by John Milton. Works Cited Combs, James E. Polpop: Politics and Popular Culture in America. Wisconsin: Popular Press, 1984. Milton, John. â€Å"Paradise Lost. † University of Oregon Web Site. 1997. 17 July 2009 < http://darkwing. uoregon. edu/~rbear/lost/lost. html>.

Ashford University

Your Devices in the Near Future Which input/output devices will you be using in the next one to three years as â€Å"computing† devices? I really have fallen in love with my Dell desktop computer; so until I need to buy a new one I will just stick to what I know. Plus I have a great computer guy that can fix any problem that may arise and he is always updating and putting protective ware on my pc. I also love my computer because it is simple and I can easily print out things that I need. I love my Dell! Which features/components/form factors will be prominent?Why? I really do love my Dell computer and don’t really want to get anything new unless I had to. If I did have to get a new device I would buy a desktop for sure. I would want one that is easy to use, simple, and to the point. I really dislike all that fancy stuff. I don’t understand it and I’m comfortable with what I know. There are a few gadgets out there such as the ipad but I really don’t like touch screen stuff. I like touching and the feel of the key board and a mouse. Which features/components/form factors will be important to you? Why?Again the features important to me would just be something simple and Stephanie proof. I am the biggest dork and electronics and I don’t usually get along all that well. I don’t do well with complex devices. I have tried some of them that my friends own but, for me to fork out that kind of cash I would have to go to college just to learn how to operate them. I still have a flip phone and the original iPod. Which applications will you be using on these devices? The only applications that I would be using on my device would be internet explorer, Microsoft office, and to play games.I really don’t use my computer for much more than surfing the web, playing games, and doing my school work. How may these devices change your life in terms of benefits and risks? I don’t think these devices will change my life oth er than the cost of a new device. I don’t have all the money in the world so I just stick to what I know. I am not against the new and advancing technology but I like the good old days. Also the only thing other than the price tag on these devices is my ability to understand how to operate them. I know I can learn but, for right now I am doing just fine with what I have.

Fifth Business Relationship Essay

Fifth Business Seminar: Relationship between Dunstan Ramsay, Paul Dempster, and Boy Staunton In the novel â€Å"Fifth Business† by Robertson Davies, the three characters Dunstan Ramsay, Paul Dempster, and Boy Staunton all have a very complex relationship with one another. We can easily recognize Dustan’s role as fifth business, in which he affects many other character’s lives, but his role within the relationship between Paul and Boy is more important; Just as Boy and Paul are equally important in this relationship among the three of them. We can analyse the relationship, and each individual character, and a cause and effect scenario is often found. This proves that their relationship changes or at least alters each other’s lives. For instance, Dunstan Ramsay’s relationship with Boy Staunton has been an interesting one. They always come off as friend and enemy to one another, yet the relationship lasts all of their lives. From the beginning, Boy tried to make Dunstan feel lesser than him. If it wasn’t his expensive mittens bought from the city, it was the women Boy was â€Å"conquering’. Dunstan is relatively unaffected by Boy’s attempts to make him jealous, and even learns to profit from Boy’s success. Boy helps Dustan with his financial investments that pay off very well for Dunstan. If Dunstan did not have the extra money, it would have restricted him from doing some of the things he does in the novel. Like take care of Mrs. Dempster, or travel to far off places, where he runs into Paul Dempster on two occasions. Boy also confides in Dunstan on several occasions, when his knowledge of business, and financial areas are useless. He needs help with Leola on occasion, and Dunstan helps even though he has reason to take offence to Boy for â€Å"rubbing it in his face’. Leola is an example of Boy’s conquest over Dunstan; he steals away Dunstan’s love, and marries her. Paul Dempster is also woven into the relationship between Boy and Dunstan. Paul is the result of Boy’s snowball, meant for Dunstan. When they were around ten years old, an argument between Boy and Dunstan leads to Boy following Dunstan home, throwing snowballs at him the whole way. When Dustan avoids one of his snowballs, it finds its way to hit Mary Dempster. Mary falls to the ground, and Dustan witnesses a â€Å"scene’ between the Dempsters. The snowball incident sparks the early birth of Paul Dempster, so early in  fact that it almost kills him. He does however survive, but his life is miserable. When Mrs. Dempster, in her â€Å"simple’ state, commits adultery with a tramp, Paul’s life is made even more miserable. Kids at school tease him for this, and he begins to hate his life, and resent his birth, and even his mother. We know that Paul’s premature birth, and his mother’s simple state is all a result of the snowball thrown carelessl y at Dustan, by Boy Staunton. Dustan also knows, which strengthens his role as fifth business. Dunstan’s relationship with Paul would probably have never have taken place, if he hadn’t felt partially responsible for what happened on the day of his birth. Dunstan would have never led Paul to the interest in magic, which eventually shapes his life. When Dunstan performs magic tricks for Paul, he realizes how quick and adept Paul is at performing them himself. Dunstan nurtures the talent, teaching him tricks that he himself cannot perform, even at his much older age. Dunstan feels no jealously, and is probably proud of Paul’s every accomplishment. The same incident with the snowball would have also led to the relationship with Dunstan, and Paul’s mother, Mary Dempster. A very serious relationship for Dunstan, he is unsure of what his feelings mean towards the woman. He enjoys taking care of her, he enjoys talking with her, and he does this even though it brings teasing upon him at school. Later in life, Dunstan is again looking after Mrs. Dempster when her caretaker passes away. He is using funds that he gained from Boy Staunton’s financial advice, to care for Mary Dempster. While doing this, he leaves for one of his trips to study the Saints, and he runs into Paul Dempster. He chooses not to tell Mary about Paul, but eventually gets Paul to help partially pay for his mothers care. When the facts come about that Paul has been sending money, it sends Mary into a fit, and she is changed forever. She later dies, and it is difficult to say if Paul feels remorse for the woman he resents for bringing him to life. Towards the ending of the book, the three characters are all in the same room together. Dustan Ramsay, Boy Staunton, and Paul Dempster are all in a room together, and the truth comes out. Dunstan confronts Boy about the  snowball, and displays the rock that was hidden within it. The rock that brought on Paul’s birth, and made his mother â€Å"simple’ for the rest of her life. Paul now has somebody to blame for the torment that his life has been. Dunstan played his role as fifth business, and it allowed Paul to know the truth, and Boy had to confront his past. When Boy denies it all, it is clear that he has tried to forget about the past, and he has done this so well that he actually believes he didn’t do it. Paul knows better, or at least feels that he does, and Boy is found murdered the next day, with the stone in his mouth. The relationship of the three is what spurs many plots of the novel, but it really comes into play at the end of the book, when the three confront one another. Many areas of the story are a direct result, or an indirect result of the three characters having interacted with one another somehow. In the end, Dunstan tells the truth, and Paul and Boy are instantly enemies. The relationship never seems so completely dependent on each of the three characters as it does at this point, and it finishes with the mystery of which one of them actually ended up killing Boy Staunton. (provided it was not suicide)

Nigeria and South Africa

Introduction The literature review was crucial to this dissertation since it was the major part of the dissertation that examined several secondary sources and reinforced the aim which is to critically analyse and investigate the extent to which physical infrastructure has influenced the tourism industry in Nigeria compared to South Africa. This dissertation has an adapted version of Handy’s (1994) Product Lifecycle Model because it shows the development of physical infrastructure in regards to accessibility within Nigeria and South Africa.This dissertation also has Butler’s TALC Model (1980) to demonstrate the development of tourism in Nigeria and South Africa. The dissertation assesses the impacts of the 3 A’s accessibility, Amenities and Ancillary Services by comparing Nigeria to South Africa. The dissertation answers whether physical infrastructure has positively or negatively influenced Nigeria and South Africa’s tourism industries. This dissertation also includes the Travel and Tourism Competitiveness Index indicators and the Global Competitiveness index indicators in order to compare the infrastructure rankings in Nigeria and South Africa.There are conclusions which evaluate what the researcher found throughout the dissertation. The recommendations stem from what the researcher discovered and discussed in the conclusions within the dissertation. Aim and Objectives Aim To critically analyse and investigate the extent to which physical infrastructure has influenced the tourism industry in Nigeria compared to South Africa. Objectives To scrutinise secondary research which discusses the state of physical infrastructure.To assess the impacts of the 3 A’s in Nigeria in comparisons to South Africa. To find out whether physical infrastructure had a positive or negative influence on both countries tourism industries. To critically analyse competitiveness indicators in relation to other data sources. To make several recommendati ons based on the conclusions in this dissertation. Rationale The main purpose of this dissertation is to answer the question- How has physical infrastructure influenced the tourism industry in Nigeria in comparison to South Africa?There are various reasons to why this dissertation is being written. The first reason is there is a gap in academic literature seeing that there is no existing research that compares how physical infrastructure has influenced the tourism industry in Nigeria and South Africa. This could be due to the fact that there are no qualified researchers who have been focusing on documenting such research since researchers may view Nigeria and South Africa as developing economies and would rather conduct research on other countries like England or United States of America.The second reason is that the researcher would be able to explore the aim in great detail through the usage of secondary research and secondary data. Nigeria and South Africa were chosen because bot h countries have significant roles and influence on the African Continent. Kwintessential (2011) states: â€Å"Along with South Africa, Nigeria is considered a super-power in the African continent. † Tourists frequently visit Nigeria and South Africa. In 2009/ 2010, more than forty-nine million tourists travelled to Africa.The top ten African Countries were Morocco which had nine point twenty-nine million tourists, South Africa had eight point nine million tourists and Nigeria had one point forty-one million tourists (TV3news, 2011). In 2011 Nigeria’s new President Goodluck Jonathan commissioned twenty-five trains and also in 2011 South Africa Transport Minister Sibusiso Ndebele introduced a law called Road Transport Management System (RTMS) which was implemented successfully.Secondary data from 2009, 2010 and 2011 was used because information linked to the Access, Amenities and Ancillary Services was available as major events closely linked to Access, Amenities and An cillary Services occurred in Nigeria and South Africa. Contribution Secondary data would be required since quantitative data, such as statistical figures are of great importance because they are needed in order to effectively support the findings in this dissertation.The 3 A’s Accessibility, Amenities and Ancillary Services According to Buhalis (2000) there are six A’s which are Attractions, Accessibility, Amenities, Available Packages, Activities and Ancillary Services however for the purpose of this research, this dissertation will only focus on three A’s which are Accessibility, Amenities and Ancillary Services as tourists take these three A’s into consideration when travelling aboard. Accessibility is essential as it enables tourists to travel to visit numerous places within Nigeria and South Africa.Hall et al (2006) refers to Butler (1980) and Wolfe (1952) who believe that accessibility is important seeing that they acknowledge that when accessibilit y improves an area would experience a growth in tourist numbers. Amenities are vital since tourists need to stay and sleep in accommodation whilst in Nigeria and South Africa. Bhatia (2006) and Hall (2009) agree that accommodation gives tourists the opportunity to spend some time in a destination.Ancillary Services for instance medical facilities like hospitals are important because tourists may need medical assistance so travel insurance is recommended to cover medical emergencies. Cowie (2011) reveals that The Association of British Insurers (ABI) believe there has been an increase in the number of travel insurance claims from holidaymakers particularly holidaymakers over the age of sixty-five. The 3 A’s Attractions, Available Packages and Activities Table The table below discusses why the researcher would not use the other 3 A’sAttractions, Available Packages and Activities which are also part of Buhalis’s Framework. | | | | | | |Attractions |The researcher w ould not use attractions as the researcher does not intend to discuss the various types of | | |attractions that tourists can visit on holiday when in Nigeria and South Africa, furthermore discussing several| | |attractions would not enable the researcher to answer the aim. | | | | | | |Available Packages |The researcher would not use available packages because the researcher’s dissertation is not about the | | |different types of holiday packages available that can be booked for a tourist going to Nigeria and South | | |Africa, therefore information on holiday packages would not be relevant in this dissertation. | | | | | | |Activities |The researcher would not use activities since the researcher’s dissertation does not involve finding out the | | |range of activities that tourists can partake in whilst in Nigeria and South Africa so information about types | | |of activities would be irrelevant in this dissertation. | Table 1 Chapter 1 Literature Review This lite rature review provides definitions of infrastructure, historical influences on infrastructure, definitions of the tourism industry, an overview of Nigeria and South Africa’s tourism industry. Butler’s TALC Model is used to showcase the development of tourism in Nigeria and South Africa and physical infrastructure in Nigeria and South Africa is discussed. Furthermore a theoretical framework is linked to the aim of the dissertation.In addition the literature review also includes Nigeria’s and South Africa’s political backgrounds, African Union agreements that Nigeria and South Africa have agreed to, the fact that South Africa is part of B. R. I. C. Baldauf (2011) reveals that South Africa joined the club of emerging economies in the world. The club is now known as BRICS which is an acronym for Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa. An overview of infrastructure studies in tourism 1. 1 Defining Infrastructure in the tourism industry Infrastructure ca n be defined as essential elements which people need and can use within a Country, for example accommodation, roads and rail and medical facilities, like clinics and hospitals. Dutt and Ros (2008, p. 01) refer to Ingram & Fay (2005) who discuss: â€Å"In mid-twentieth century, infrastructure was seen as a key determinant of economic development – ‘the commanding heights’ of the economy – and market failures in infrastructure provision were thought to be endemic. † Dutt and Ros (2008, p. 301) also refer to Ingram and Fay (2005) who believe that there are various elements to infrastructure such as telecommunications, airports, roads, piped water, railways, power, ports and sanitation. Dutt and Ros (2008) also cite Hirschman (1958) who agrees that physical infrastructure consists of transportation, power, roads and water. Guttal (2008) agrees with Dutt and Ros (2008) in terms of what infrastructure is however the author adds that parks and shopping ce ntres are part of infrastructure.Guttal (2008) has a negative perspective of infrastructure as Guttal (2008) believes that infrastructure can often have negative impacts which lead to local community’s food and water being damaged or completely destroyed and communities becoming displaced. Mascardo (2008) has a positive view of infrastructure because Mascardo (2008) believes that infrastructure helps to enhance local people’s living conditions. 1. 2 Historical Influences on infrastructure World History (2011) and History (2011) both agree that Nigeria gained Independence from Britain on the 1st of October 1960. About. com (2011) African History (2011) and History Orb. com (2011) both agree that on the 31st of May 1910 South Africa became independent from Britain.South Africa History Online (2011) and Priory World History (2011) agree that in 1652 South Africa had been colonised by the Dutch. Nigeria and South Africa are similar as both countries were British colonies in the past. History (2011) and Wars Of The World (2011) agree that in the Northern part of Nigeria Moslems killed Christians which lead to a civil war and briefly divided the country. This civil war lasted from July 1967 to the 11th January 1970. History (2011) emphasises what happened during the civil war and how the civil war negatively impacted Nigerians by saying that: â€Å"The state lost its oil fields its main source of revenue and without the funds to import food, an estimated one million of its civilians died as a result of severe malnutrition. OnlineNigerian DailyNews (2011) and IRIN humanitarian news and analysis (2011) both agree and recognise that Nigerians have experienced two separate eras of military rule in the country, the first military era was in 1966 to 1970 lead by Gowon and the second military era was lead by Buhari, Babangida and Abacha 1984 to 1999. Robinson (2011) and SouthAfrica. TO (2011) agree that Afrikaner Nationalist came into power in 1948 its main aim was to keep races separated from each other through the implementation racist legislation. Robinson (2011) notes that: â€Å"The implementation of the policy, later referred to as â€Å"separate development,† was made possible by the Population Registration Act of 1950, which put all South Africans into three racial categories: Bantu (black African), white or Coloured (mixed race). Nigeria and South Africa have had corrupt leaders in the past who did not improve their countries physical infrastructure this lead to negative implications on the countries physical infrastructure. In Nigeria military rule had a negative effect on Nigeria as the military leaders caused the physical infrastructure to deteriorate because the leaders did not use the money budgeted for maintenance of the roads to maintain the roads instead the money was used for personal expenses. Online Nigerian News (2011) stated that: â€Å"Years of its rule, brought corruption, injustice, religious and ethn ic intolerance, poverty and misery still abound indicating that military rule largely failed. In South Africa part of the apartheid policies caused separation of facilities, such as people had to use public toilet facilities depending on his or her race. Presently, the Nigerian President Goodluck Jonathan has had positive implications on the country’s physical infrastructure particularly the rail infrastructure as part of the President’s Agenda is to restore all structures that would improve the railways in Nigeria. Azubuike (2012) reveals that Nigeria’s Minister of Transport, Senator Idris Umar believes that the rehabilitation of Akere Bridge in Niger State was part of President Goodluck Jonathan's transformation agenda for rail service in Nigeria.South African President Jacob Zuma has also had positive implications on the country’s physical infrastructure like the airport infrastructure since part of the President’s world cup infrastructure plans was to upgrade the facilities in the airports. Lelliott (2010) states that â€Å"President Jacob Zuma officially opens revamped expanded OR Tambo Airport. † Another part of the plan was to build a new airport called King Shaka International Airport in South Africa which has now been fully built and opened in 2010. Province of Kwazulu-natal (2010) reveals that the South African President Jacob Zuma performed the last part of the World Cup infrastructure by opening Durban’s new international airport King Shaka International Airport.South Africa’s improvements in its airports won awards and South Africa needed to have world-class infrastructure in order to host the world cup in 2010. Ongoing repairs to the railways mean that there has been an increase in the number of trains operating in Nigeria. 1. 3 Definition of the tourism industry The tourism industry can be defined as an industry that consists of different components due to the fact that there are various to urism businesses, for instance accommodation businesses, like hotels are where tourists stay throughout their visit in a destination and food businesses, such as restaurants in which tourists can eat local or international cuisines.Lafferty (2001), Planck (2008), Hall (2008) and Ekwere (2010) all believe that the tourism industry includes accommodation establishments, shops, restaurants, travel agencies and tour operators. However Hall (2008, p. 11) identifies the fact that there are different types of accommodation by saying â€Å"Accommodation operators, include hotels, motels, caravan parks and camping grounds. † Parks (2007) indicates that the tourism industry has a diverse range of products and services which include cruise ships, campsites, car rentals, five star hotels and airlines. Parks (2007) reveals that the tourism industry is closely linked to various types of travellers or tourists, for instance business tourists, leisure tourists or people that are visiting fam ily and friends which is sometimes referred to as (VFR’s). 1. Overview of the tourism industry in Nigeria and South Africa Nigeria’s and South Africa’s Tourism Industry has experienced tourism growth through the global economic crisis. Euromonitior International (2011) Media Club South Africa (2012) and South Africa. info (2011) both agree that South Africa’s Tourism Industry was not severely affected by the global economic crisis as there was an increase in the number of leisure tourists who came to watch sports in 2010 compared to 2009. Media Club South Africa (2012) acknowledges that in the first quarter of 2010 South Africa received close to six million tourists arrivals which was an increase of 17. 1% compared to the same time period in 2009.Media Club South Africa (2012) also acknowledges that the second quarter in 2010 showed a 91. 3% rise in tourists from the Americas in the same time period in 2009 because South Africa hosted the World Cup. Eurom onitor International (2010) Nigerian Tribune (2011) World Bank Report (2010) and Champion Newspaper (2011) also both believe that the global economic crisis did not immensely affect Nigeria’s tourism industry seeing that Nigeria had more inbound tourists come to visit the country in 2009 and also in 2010. World Bank Report (2010) states that â€Å"The number of International tourist arrivals in Nigeria was 1,41,4000 in 2009. † Champion Newspaper (2011) believes that in 2010 Nigeria tourist arrivals increased by 8. 8 percent.South Africa’s tourism industry has been more successful at attracting leisure tourists compared to Nigeria’s tourism industry since South Africa promotes and provides leisure tourists with various types of holidays which range from wine tasting to bungee jumping. South Africa Index (2011, p. 10) indicates that fifty-seven percent of tourists visited South Africa for leisure purposes. It could be said that some States in Nigeria want t o attract more leisure tourists. Emelike (2011) reveals that governors, like Liyel Imoke in Calabar, Nigeria are making attempts to encourage leisure tourists to visit Nigeria by holding an annual carnival festival for thirty-two days in December.It could also be said that South Africa is trying to get more business tourists. South Africa. info (2011) indicates that South Africa is targeting business tourists that tend to spend more money compared to leisure tourists when business tourists become leisure tourists that go on tours after they have gone to their business meetings or when business tourists decide to return to the country just to experience the available range of leisure activities. Whereas in the Nigeria tourism industry, cities like Lagos have already experienced a boom in business tourism with a great rise in business tourists as there are many business opportunities available in Nigeria, for example in the retail and hospitality sectors.Jacobson (2011) believes that there has been a high number of business tourists going to Nigeria every month compared to other African Countries and the increase of business tourists in a city like Lagos has lead to a rise in luxury hotels being built in Lagos to meet the needs of the business tourists who tend to come from European Countries. Jacobson (2011) reveals that the immigration office at Murtala International Airport figures show that sixty-five percent of passengers who come on British Airways flights from London to Lagos between Mondays to Saturdays are in Lagos for business purposes. However some authors believe that Nigeria’s tourism industry is not as developed as it should be when taking into consideration the country’s size, abundance of areas of natural beauty and culture.Encyclopaedia of the Nations (2011) and Emelike (2010) agree that the Nigeria tourism industry is currently operating below its potential. Encyclopaedia of the Nations (2011) reinforces this by saying: â€Å"Tou rism in Nigeria is highly undeveloped, considering the West African nation's available tourist resources: land, climate, vegetation, people and their festivals, abundant art treasures, national monuments, ports, traditional sports, and music. † The World Travel Tourism Council had positive projections for Nigeria and South Africa in terms of how the travel and tourism industries would increase the countries GDP. World Travel Tourism Council (2011) believes that by 2021 Nigeria’s travel and tourism industry would rise by 1. % and South Africa’s industry would rise by 5. 1% in contribution to the GDP. Nigeria and South Africa on the Butler’s (1980) TALC Model The diagram below is based on Butler’s TALC Model which exhibits the development of tourism in Nigeria and South Africa. Figure 1 6 3. 9 1. 4 656,000 0 SOURCE: Butler (1980) Butler’s TALC Model above illustrates that over time the number of tourists travelling to Nigeria and South Africa i ncreased so both countries went from the Exploration Stage to the Involvement Stage in which local people became more involved in the tourism businesses which changed Nigeria’s and South Africa’s environment to the Development Stage.The changes at the Development Stage encouraged foreign tourism business to invest in both countries and this lead to the Consolidation Stage, for example Hilton opened branches in Abuja, Nigeria and Cape Town, South Africa. southafrica. info (2011) revealed that the newly opened Hilton Cape Town Hotel is the third Hilton Hotel in South Africa. The Consolidation Stage for Nigeria and South Africa was positive since there was investment in both countries tourism industries however the Consolidation Stage went into the Decline Stage due to conflicts in Jos, Nigeria but in South Africa the Consolidation Stage went to the Rejuvenation Stage because local tourism businesses are re-investing and making improvements to their businesses. Applying N igeria to Butler’s TALC ModelStage 1: Exploration The Exploration Stage is the stage in which tourists originally started visiting Nigeria. The World Group (2011) indicates that the first international tourists came to Nigeria in 1995 and the total number of international tourists in 1995 was 656,000. Stage 2: Involvement The Involvement Stage is when there was an increase of tourists to Nigeria and local people started businesses within the tourism industry. Tassiopoulos (2009) agrees with William (2009) who refers to Cohen (1972, p. 8) who says that: â€Å"Some local residents will react to the economic opportunities by providing basic facilities for tourists (such as accommodation). † Stage 3: Development The Development Stage is a stage that has caused changes to the physical environment in Nigeria since foreign companies, such as luxury hotels have set up their businesses. Wall et al (2006) and Huybers (2007) believe that there are evident changes to the physica l appearance of the area and local facilities may stop operating if they are unable to compete with new-modern-up-to- date facilities.Stage 4: Consolidation The Consolidation Stage refers to the stage whereby famous businesses now have new branches and franchises to supply the tourists with products and services they want and are use to back in their countries of origin. Hospitality Net (2010) indicates that Best Western opened a new branch called The Best Western Island Beach Hotel in Lagos, Nigeria. Talking Retail (2010) reveals that Spar has entered the Nigerian retail sector by opening a Spar supermarket in a new shopping centre in Lekki-Ajah which is an emerging area of Lagos.Stage 6: Decline The Decline Stage is evident in a city called Jos in Northern Nigeria that was once popular and visited by many tourists. Iyanu (2011) discusses Jos and indicates that many years ago the city was given the slogan ‘The home of Peace and Tourism’ as it could boost of a city tha t was full of tranquillity and had well-known attractions which inbound and outbound tourist visited. However there has been a dramatic decline in the number of tourists to the city throughout 2011due to religious conflicts. Walker (2011) talks about the conflicts in Jos and believes that the conflicts mostly stems from Muslims settlers feeling marginalised by the indigenous Christians.Applying South Africa to Butler’s TALC Model Stage 1: Exploration The Exploration Stage refers to the stage when tourists initially started coming to South Africa. South info (2011) reveals that International tourists began visiting South Africa after Apartheid in 1994 and the total number of International tourists that visited South Africa was 3. 9 million. Stage 2: Involvement The Involvement Stage is when there was a rise in tourists coming to South Africa so the indigenous people got involved in the tourism sector.Dale (2006) and Disgupta (2011) agree that Indigenous people see business op portunities in the tourism industry so they decide to open businesses that offer facilities for the tourists, for instance guest houses and restaurants. Stage 3: Development The Development Stage has occurred as more multi-national companies came into South Africa to establish their accommodation establishments, man-made or purpose-built attractions. Dale (2006) and Devashish (2011) believe that the multi-national companies such as hotels could take over the accommodation sector in a destination because the local hotels cannot compete with them. Stage 4: ConsolidationThe Consolidation Stage relates to well-known businesses setting up to franchise and cater to the continuous inflow of tourists to South Africa. Ivanovic (2009, p. 202) discusses the consolidation stage in South Africa by saying that: â€Å"In this stage the major franchises in food, hotel and retail chains enter the market, such as McDonalds, Hilton and Dolce and Gabbana. † Stage 6: Rejuvenation The Rejuvenatio n Stage is the stage in which local businesses in South Africa have decided to invest in their businesses by spending more money to upgrade and increase the number of attractions offered to tourists. Bruyn (2009, p. 03) talks about Durban Beachfront in Durban, South Africa and states that: â€Å"Durban Beachfront has rejuvenation projects such as the R21. 5 million ($ 3. 2 million) Wilson’s Wharf, uShaka Marine World Theme Park. † Theoretical Framework The diagram below is an adapted version of Handy’s (1994) Product Lifecycle Model that illustrates the different types of transportation in Nigeria and South Africa. Transportation in Nigeria and South Africa 650 450 250 50 40 30 20 0 The adapted model above indicates that the trains in South Africa started operating in 1860 and in Nigeria the trains starting operating in 1902.In South Africa the first international flights disembarked in 1945 and in Nigeria the first international flights flew in 1958. Lawal (20 11) agrees with Nigeria’s The International Civil Aviation Organisation report that reveals 30 million flights arrived in Nigeria. Irwin (2011) believes South Africa’s airport improvements enabled 40 million passengers to come on flights into South Africa. There is a lack of records in regards to how many railway passengers travelled seeing that records were mainly noted later on in the twentieth century. Nigeria’s recorded figures start from 1964 which showed that 11. 2 million passengers travelled by rail, in 1974 4. 3 million, 1978 6. million, in 1984 Nigeria reached its peak in terms of passenger numbers, then went down to 3 million in 1991, 1. 6 million passengers in 2003 but in 2009 and 2010 the number of railway passengers grew again. South Africa’s recorded figures started in 1992 and exhibited that there were 286 million railway passenger, 2007 13. 8 million, then went up to 646 million and declined to 520 million railway passengers in 2010. Phys ical Infrastructure in Nigeria and South Africa 1. 5 Airports Both Akpan (2011) and Ayodele (2011) believe Nigeria’s airports in major cities in Nigeria are in a dreadful condition.Ayodele (2011) reinforces this by explaining how passengers were affected when there was a power cut at Lagos Airport by stating: â€Å"On May 9, the terminal building was filled to the brim with passengers who were unable to access their luggage because the outage had affected the conveyor belt which had already aged. † Eze (2011) and Daily Trust (2011) both agree that Murtala Muhammed Airport in Lagos was built thirty-two years ago, the airport was originally built to accommodate one million passengers however the airport currently reaches twelve million passengers and this has had a negative impact on the facilities in the airport.Eze (2011) discusses displeasure in the state of Nigerian airports but mainly focused on the Murtala Muhammed International Airport (MMIA) Lagos and recognise s the fact that the airport is a gateway into the country and views the facilities as a shame by saying â€Å"The Murtala Muhammed International Airport (MMIA) Lagos, in particular have deteriorated to the extent they have become an embarrassment. † Afrique Avenir (2011) acknowledges that The Managing Director of Skyway Aviation Handling Company Limited, Lagos, Mr. Isaac Orulagbagbe has criticised the infrastructure in Nigerian airports. Afrique Avenir (2011) agrees with Mr Orulagbagbe who believes that the federal government needs to improve the infrastructure in Murtala Mohammed International Airport because the airport is full to its capacity. However Harding (2011) talks about South Africa infrastructure in the airport which showed that the infrastructure was impressive as South Africa won awards based on the county’s airports.South African Government Information (2011) notes a statement from Ms Hlahla, ACSA who agrees with Claude Harding by saying: â€Å"Current airport infrastructure in South Africa has been recognised as being of world class standard. † Harding (2011) and SouthAfrica (2011) both give explanations of the reasons to why Tambo Airport which is also known as Johannesburg International Airport was voted the second most improved. Tambo Airport won since it provides adequate facilities for seventeen million passengers each year, the building was expanded and the airport plays a significant role in the city’s economy. Nkosi (2011) and Skytrax (2011) both discuss Cape Town International Airport winning awards.On one hand Nkosi (2011) explains the factors that contributed to Cape Town International Airport getting an award for the best Airport in Africa by referring to Airports Council  International survey which indicated that Cape Town International Airport had high scores in terms of the level of cleanliness in the washrooms and ease of passengers being about get trolleys and find car parking spaces. On the other hand Skytrax (2011) also explains that Cape Town International Airport got an award for Staff Service by stating: â€Å"Cape Town International Airport wins the Staff Service Excellence Award for Airports in Africa, as passengers recognise the high quality of front-line service delivery. † 1. 6 RoadsBoth Abubakar (2011) and Ezekiel (2011) believe the roads in Nigeria are in an appalling state and this has caused a significant number of car accidents and deaths. BluePrint (2011) refers to The National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) who say: â€Å"There were a total of 20,910 road accidents or crashes in 2010 and the total mortality or deaths caused by these accidents were 6,853. This means that 6, 853 Nigerians lost their lives to accidents, caused by bad roads across the country. † Ezekiel (2011) and Samade (2011) both indicate the factors that lead to the poor state of the roads in Nigeria and agrees with the Minister of Transportation Mrs.Diezani Alison-Madueke that the present conditions of roads in Nigeria are a result of the lack of maintenance culture. Southafricagoodnews (2011) and SustainableTransport&Mobility (2011) agree that 50% of the roads are in a terrible state. Arizona Auto Accident Attorney News (2011) confirms this by saying: â€Å"The 2010 December/January festive season in South Africa resulted in over 1500 deaths as a result of accidents on the road and recent statistics indicate that an average of 36 people die on South Africa roads on an average day. † The Transport Minister took action and made a road safety law in 2011 which helped to decrease the number of deaths due to bad roads. allAfrica. om (2011) Transport Minister Sibusiso Ndebele has commended the road transport industry for their efforts in implementing the Road Transport Management System (RTMS) to reduce road deaths. SustainableTransport&Mobility (2011) also discusses the factors that have contributed to the state of the roads in South Africa and agrees with The South African Road Federation President Mutshutshu  Nxumalo that the current state of roads in South Africa are due to poor management skills and also a poor maintenance culture. 1. 7 Rail Sunday (2011) and ThisDayLive (2011) agree that Nigeria’s railways have been neglected but ThisDayLive (2011) acknowledges the fact that the railways are improving as new trains were acquired stating that: The nation’s comatose rail system appears to be roaring back to life with the recent commissioning of the newly acquired 25 modern locomotive engines belonging to the Nigerian Railway Corporation (NRC) by President Goodluck Jonathan. † Euromonitor International (2011) supports the fact that there are new trains with figures that show there has been an increase in the number of passengers travelling by train in Nigeria seeing that 1. 9 million passengers travelled on the train in 2009 and 2. 1 million passengers travelled by train in 2010. However there are arguments ab out the state of South Africa’s railways. Roberts (2011) states that: â€Å"The best description of the current (201l) state of railway preservation in the country was probably ‘parlous'. †BRICS (2011) reinforces this with figures that illustrate passengers traffic by railway decreased in 2009 to 644 million passengers and further declined in 2010 to 520 million passengers, but Euromonitor International (2011) disagrees with the figures and shows an increase in passengers carried by rail. African Online News (2011) supports Euromonitor International (2011) by stating that â€Å"The biggest growth came from a great rise in the usage of rail services. † Furthermore Railways Africa (2011) reveals that train accidents increased as there were eight train accidents between April 2010 and March 2011. 1. 8 Accommodation Punch (2011) notes why hotels are expensive and agrees with the Managing Director of Thornberry Africa, Mr Church who believes that in Nigeria the hotel rooms are expensive. This is due to the fact that hotels have high operating costs which include generating their own electricity supply. Emelike. 2011) refers to Ajonumah who believes that in Nigeria international hotels, for instance Sheraton Lagos Hotel have 85 percent+ occupancy rate due to the fact that business tourists and expatriates continuously occupy the hotel rooms. Lenhart (2011) discusses costs of staying in hotels and agrees with Mr Anderson international marketing director for Sun International, a South Africa-based hotel company who believes that hotel room prices in cities like Cape Town, South Africa are reducing with better rates and more availability. Mintel (2011) acknowledges that South Africa has different accommodations from guesthouses to five-star hotels. SouthAfrica. nfo (2011) agrees with Mintel (2011) and states: â€Å"These hotels include the Cape Grace, Arabella Sheraton Grand, Table Bay and Mount Nelson hotels in Cape Town; the Grande Roche i n Paarl outside Cape Town; The Plettenberg on the Western Cape Garden Route; and the Grace in Rosebank, Michelangelo, Saxon and Westcliff hotels in Johannesburg. † Africa Point. com Online Travel Agent (2011) recognises that Nigeria also has a wide variety of accommodation ranging from budget to luxury hotels. However Africa Point. com Online Travel Agent (2011) and Maps of World (2011) both agree that most of the luxury hotels with international standards are situated in Lagos and Abuja.Maps of World (2011) reinforces that this by mentioning two well-known luxury hotels in Lagos – Eko Hotels and Suites  and Sofitel Lagos Moorhouse Ikoyi Hotel. 1. 9 Medical Facilities Health of Nations (2011), Travel. State. Gov (2011) and Ngex (2011) all agree that government medical facilities are lacking in terms of modern medical equipment and medications however Ngex (2011) notes doctors and hospitals tend to ask patients for cash before medical treatment is given. Allianz (2011) , Immigration South Africa (2011) and South Africa (2011) also agree that medical facilities in South Africa are great particularly in private hospitals. The nurses and general practitioners train in the top medical schools in South Africa.Connell (2011) and Immigration South Africa (2011) also acknowledge that some international tourists only visit South Africa to receive specific medical treatment to prevent them from waiting in long queues in their country or the medical treatment is less expensive compared to their country of origin. Nigeria and South Africa have agreed to abide by African Union agreements such as the AU Constitutive Act (2002). South Africa being a part of B. R. I. C this is economically beneficial to the country. South Africa (2011) refers to the International Relations and Cooperation Minister Maite Nkoane-Mashabane, who was briefing journalists in Pretoria last Tuesday and said: â€Å"South Africa would both benefit from and contribute to the grouping's am bitious goal of expanding inter-trade amongst BRICS countries to US$400-billion to $500-billion by the year 2015. †It could be said that as a result of reviewing literature the researcher has increased knowledge about what physical infrastructure actually consists of, an insight into how important infrastructure is to a country and the components that make-up the tourism industry. It could also be said that Nigeria’s and South Africa’s political background has affected the countries positively, negatively and has had implications on the countries physical infrastructure. On one hand both countries experienced the happiness of becoming independent from Britain but on the other hand not long after independence Nigeria was ruled by the military leader General Yakubu Gowon and South Africa was ruled by the apartheid leader Pieter Willem Botha. Presently Nigeria and South Africa have elected Democratic Presidents which are Nigerian President Goodluck Jonathan in Niger ia and South African President Jacob Zuma.In addition it could be argued that some of the existing differences between Nigeria and South Africa currently exist as a result of how much colonisation has affected both nations differently. It could be said that the western world has had a stronger influence on South African culture compared to Nigerian culture because South Africa was colonised by two European countries Britain and The Netherlands this is evident through the fact that many South Africans speak Afrikaans which stems from the Dutch language and several cities in South Africa have Dutch names for example Johannesburg and Bloomberg whereas the majority of states and cities in Nigeria have Nigerian names and a high percentage of Nigerians speak at least one Nigerian language.Furthermore another difference is that conflicts in Nigeria stemmed from disagreements between different ethnic groups whereas in South Africa conflict stemmed from an unfair system of racial segregation called apartheid imposed by the whites against blacks. Interestingly both countries share a political similarity, for example Nigeria and South Africa had civilian rule as the democratic presidents who were elected in the1990’s both men had originally been in prison and not long after being released from prison elections took place and the Nigerian President was Olusegun Obasanjo in 1999 and the South African President was Nelson Mandela in 1994. Literature Review Matrix Author |Year |Title |Journal |Relevant Content |Useful references the | | | | | | |author makes | |Buhalis |2000 | |Tourism Management |* Buhalis’s Framework | | |Butler |2009 | |Elsevier |* Butler’s (1980) TALC |Agarwal and Baum | |Butler |2006 |Tourism Area Life Cycle: | |* Handy’s Product Life Cycle |Handy | | | |Conceptual and theoretical| | | | | | |issues | | | | |Butler |1980 | |Canadian Geographer |* Butler’s (1980) TALC Model | | |Connell |2011 |Medical Tourism | |*People are going to South Africa for Cosmetic | | | | | | |Surgery | | |Dutt & Ros |2008 |International Handbook of | |History & Definition of physical Infrastructure |Ingram & Fay Hirschman | | |Development Economics | | | | |Guffery & Almont |2009 |Essentials of Business | |* Secondary Research | | | | |Communication | | | | |Guttal |2008 |IFI’s Tourism Perspectives| |* Definition and negative impacts of Physical | | | | |and Debates | |Infrastructure | | |Hall and Williams |2008 |Tourism and Innovation | |* History of Tourism Industry |Lofgren | |Mascardo |2008 |Building Community | |* Positive impacts of Physical Infrastructure | | | | |Capacity for Tourism | | | | | | |Development | | | | |Parks |2007 |Contemporary Sport | |* Definition of the Tourism Industry | | | | |Management | | | |The impacts of the 3 A’s in Nigeria in comparisons to South Africa |The impacts of the 3 A’s |Nigeria and South Africa | | | | |Accessibility |It is evident that accessibility ha s had a major impact in Nigeria compared to South Africa. Accessibility is | |(Roads) |very poor an indication of this is the fact that the numbers of deaths are increasing in Nigeria every year as a | | |result of car accidents and no action is being taken to reduce accidents which has led to so many people’s | | |deaths. | | | | |Amenities |It is also evident that amenities have had a major impact in Nigeria and South Africa.Amenities for example | |(Hotels) |hotels are diverse in both countries and both African Countries are able to cater to the different needs and | | |wants of business tourists and leisure tourists that visit the two African Nations however there is a lack of | | |awareness in regards to the less expensive accommodations available in Nigeria. | | | | |Ancillary Services |It is very clear that ancillary services have had a greater impact in Nigeria compared to South Africa.Ancillary| |(Hospitals) |Services for instance hospitals are extremely poor as the y are not adequately equipped whereas in South Africa | | |many people use the ancillary services for example South African surgeons perform cosmetic surgeries in South | | |African hospitals on patients from around the world. | The table below assesses the impacts of the 3 A’s accessibility, Amenities and Ancillary Services in Nigeria compared to South Africa. Table 2 Has Physical infrastructure had a positive or negative influence on both countries tourism industries? AirportsInterestingly even though airport infrastructure is in a terrible state in Nigeria it has not had a negative influence on Nigeria’s tourism industry as Nigerian Airports, for example Murtala Muhammed International Airport in Lagos received sixty-five percent of passengers who were business tourists on British Airways Flights (page 12, Jacobson, 2011). Airport infrastructure had a positive influence on South Africa’s tourism industry since its improvements lead to being chosen to hold the world cup which attracted leisure tourists. Roads Road infrastructure had a negative influence on Nigeria’s tourism industry and South Africa’s tourism industry because domestic tourists or people visiting friends and family (VFR’s) have been involved in car accidents which have consequently lead to their deaths.Rail Rail infrastructure had a positive influence on Nigeria’s tourism industry subsequently there has been a rise in people travelling on the trains. Rail infrastructure had a negative influence on South Africa’s tourism industry as a result there has been a decrease in people travelling by trains. Accommodation Hotels had a positive influence on Nigeria’s tourism industry since it brings in money into Nigeria when business tourists pay to stay in Nigerian hotels, for example Eko Hotels and Suites however the prices of hotel rooms has a negative influence because ultimately tourists pay extreme prices to cover the operating costs of the hotels.Hotels had a positive influence on South Africa’s tourism industry because it also brings more capital into South Africa as leisure tourists and business tourists can also pay to stay in hotels that have reasonably-priced hotel rooms that meet their needs and budgets, for instance business tourists can go to Table Bay Hotel in Cape Town, South Africa. Medical Facilities The current infrastructure had a negative influence on Nigeria’s tourism industry since people like domestic tourists may go to a hospital and cannot get medication or there is no modern medical equipment available if they needed to have an operation. The current infrastructure had a positive influence on South Africa’s tourism industry because more international tourists come to South Africa for cosmetic surgery (Page 24,Connell,2011).Chapter 2 Methodology 2. 1 Choice of research design Secondary research was chosen instead of primary research because the secondary research methods enabled the aim to be achieved more effectively due to the fact that there was so much relevant secondary research that was available. The researcher could independently get secondary research as soon as possible since secondary sources can be accessed online. Guffery et al (2009, p. 256) states that â€Å"Many writers turn to them first because they are fast,  easy to use and available online. † There was also control since decisions were made in terms of what information was included or excluded. Issue |Inclusion |Exclusion | |The year of publishing – academic materials: |The researcher included Journal articles that were |The researcher did not include any Journals which were | |Academic Journals |published since year 2000 but one of the journal |published forty years ago seeing that it would have been | | |articles was published in 1980 it had to be used |too old and not have the current up-date information that| | |because Butler’s TALC Model (1980) M odel had |the researcher could utilise in the dissertation. | | |essential information that was needed in the | | | |dissertation. | |The year of Publishing – Textbooks |The researcher included textbooks that have |The researcher did not use textbooks that were published | | |published appropriate information that could be |in the 1980’s and 1990’s because there were up-to-date | | |linked to the aim and objectives of the |books available. | | |dissertation, for instance information about the | | | |tourism industry. | |The year of Publishing – News Websites |The researcher included News websites that had |The researcher excluded News websites that had articles | | |articles which were published in the past three |published in 2008 since there was less information about | | |years because there was relevant contemporary |Nigeria’s infrastructure compared to South Africa’s | | |information available on the news websites. infrastruc ture in 2008 so the researcher choose to avoid | | | |having uneven comparisons when discussing Nigeria and | | | |South Africa. | Inclusion/Exclusion Matrix Table Primary research would involve travelling to Nigeria and South Africa, which would have been very time consuming as this dissertation has a specific deadline and sufficient information may not have been collected before the deadline this would negatively affect the dissertation. The researcher choose to use contemporary research since it is up-to-date information.The researcher did not use information published in 2008 because there was less relevant information about Nigeria’s physical infrastructure compared to South Africa’s physical infrastructure in 2008 so the researcher would not have be able to effectively meet the aim or fairly compare Nigeria to South Africa. The secondary research included the usage of relevant academic materials, for example Mintel Reports and the Global Market Information Data base published by Euromonitor International which are market research reports from the academic website Athens. Mintel and Euromonitor International were used to attain essential information like secondary data. For instance statistical data which was found by using keywords like rail passengers and accommodation into the search engines. The other secondary esearch was done by only extracting important information such as applicable quotes, from reading appropriate Nigerian Newspapers, for instance ThisDayLive, Daily Trust, Punch and BluePrint and suitable South African News websites, for example Southafricagoodnews, SouthAfrica and African websites such as Africa Online News and Afrique Avenir. However the researcher is aware that newspapers and websites can be potentially biased. The researcher maintained reliability relevance with newspapers by using newspaper articles that criticised the infrastructure rather than pretending that the infrastructure was perfect. The researcher al so used relevant textbooks and academic journals such as Tourism Management because academic journals are not biased.In addition The Travel & Tourism Competitiveness Index was utilised in order to obtain statistical data to measure infrastructure in Nigeria and South Africa. The researcher compared figures from 2009 and 2011. Furthermore the researcher also compared The Travel & Tourism Competitive Index indicators with The Global Competitiveness Index indicators in 2009 and 2011. 2. 2 Construction of the method Assessment Schematic |Authors claim |Position of the |Is the Author |Is the Authors claim accepted? | | |Author |biased? | |Ime Akpan (2011) Poor obsolete facilities in airports in Nigeria |Writer |yes |Yes as the claim is based on Nigeria’s Aviation Minister’s | | | | |statement. | |Claude Harding (2011) South Africa has great airports. |Writer |No |Yes since the claim is based on South Africa winning Skytrax 2011 | | | | |World Airport Awards. |Toba Agbo ola (2011) high operating costs in restaurants. |Writer |No |Yes because the claim is based on the statement by the Nigerian | | | | |restaurant Tantalizers. | |BRICS (2011) Less people are travelling by rail in South Africa. | |No |Yes the claim comes from a BRICS report. | |Punch (2011) It is costly to stay in hotels in Nigeria. | |No |Yes the claim is based on The Managing Director of Thornberry | | | | |Africa, Mr.David Church statement who is in the hospitality | | | | |industry high hotel prices caused by high running costs. | |Mintel (2011) South Africa has great a variety of hotels to suit | |No |Yes since the claim is based on an analysis of the accommodation | |different budgets. | | |sector in South Africa. | |Bongani Nkosi (2011) Cape Town International Airport best airport |Writer |No |Yes because the claim is based upon Airports Council  International| |in Africa. | | |survey. | |Afrique Avenir (2011) Nigeria airports are in a terrible state. | |Yes the claim is ba sed upon The Managing Director of Skyway | | | | |Aviation Handling Company Limited statement. | The assessment schematic above was constructed to exhibit what authors have said, state the authors position, establish whether the authors has written in a biased manner and whether the researcher of this dissertation accepts what the authors have claimed. 2. 3 Sample To select the literature, the researcher would use contemporary literature that reveals significant information about Accessibility, Amenities and Ancillary in Nigeria and South Africa. Non-probability sampling methods like snowball sampling would not be used the researcher ould utilise the cluster sampling probability sampling method since it is the most suitable method as the researcher could apply the method seeing that this type of probability sampling method tends to be used when quantitative data is being collected. Furthermore the researcher used figures from The Travel & Tourism Competitive Index that state the ra nkings and different elements of physical infrastructure in Nigeria and South Africa. United Nations World Food Program Office (2011) reveals that Probability sampling is mostly utilised during quantitative data collection methods. The fundamental reason for probability sampling is to split a study into different categories like children and adults when studying population. 2. Procedure Secondary data which is under specific pillars were selected from the Travel & Tourism Competitive Index from the 2009 and 2011 in the World Economic Travel & Tourism Competitiveness Report for Nigeria and South Africa because of its relevance to this dissertation seeing that it enabled the researcher to meet the fourth objective as this included quality of the airport infrastructure which comes under 6th pillar: Airport transport infrastructure, quality of roads, quality of rail infrastructure which is under the 7th pillar: Ground transport infrastructure, hotel rooms which comes under the 8th pill ar: Tourism infrastructure and Hospital beds which is under the 4th pillar: Health and hygiene.The Travel & Tourism Competitiveness Index rankings from the 2009 and 2011were compared with The Global Competitiveness Index rankings in 2009 and 2011. 2. 5 Plan for Data Analysis The secondary data would be used to meet the 4th objective. The analysis includes secondary data from the Travel and Tourism competitive index which would be in a table format seeing that it is an easy format for the reader to understand the data and the findings from the data. The analysis would also evaluate the findings that link back to the literature review, Butler’s (1980) TALC Model and the Theoretical Framework.Chapter 3 Discussion and Analysis This chapter discusses and analyses the findings from the indexes and the literature review. The table below illustrates where Nigeria’s and South Africa’s airports, roads, rail, hotel rooms and hospital beds ranks are positioned out of one hu ndred and thirty-three countries in 2009 and 2011 from The Travel and Tourism Competitiveness Index and also has the findings about the infrastructure. The higher the ranking the worse the level of the country’s infrastructure. Nigeria and South Africa’s rankings on The Travel and Tourism Competitiveness Index |Nigeria |South Africa | Travel and Tourism |2009 |2011 |2009 |2011 |Findings from the infrastructure rankings | |Competitiveness Index | | | | | | |Airport Transport Infrastructure | | | | |On one hand the quality of the airport infrastructure rank in Nigeria has | | | | | | |dramatically increased which clearly indicated that the airport infrastructure in| |Quality of air transport | | | | |Nigeria has deteriorated between 2009 and 2011. | |infrastr