ShantanuT01/DACTYL-Pretraining huggingface dataset:
Introduction The novel called The Story of the Stone , written by an outstanding Chinese writer, Cao Xueain is set around a traditional Chinese background of the eighteenth century. It brings out the major aspects of the accepted Chinese way of life; it touches the following spheres, which include literature, lifestyle, culture, and religion. Poetry was considered a subject that members of the prosperous families had to learn and follow in their daily activities. Other themes in the novel that stands out relate to truth and reality. The author of The Story of the Stone , Cao Xueain, integrates his own reality with the story in the novel. It seems that he tells the story as he has experienced it on his own. However, he includes some additional material and facts that otherwise make it fictional. The prologue shows that Cao Xueain writes the book in memory of his childhood friend, though there are certain aspects about the novel that seems to be too fantastic to have been real, even in his time. He talks of divine forces and mystical gemstones that characters are born with and other divine stones that are incorporated into the body of human beings in a bid to see the world. For example, Xuequin (1996) states, “Now this block of stone, having undergone the melting and molding of a goddess, possessed magic powers” (p.47). Of course, these seem too fantastic to be true. This means that the theme of truth, as depicted in the novel, is limited to what could possibly and rationally occur at some point in reality, and in this case, what could really have happened in the author’s childhood. The rest is part of fiction that is entwined in the story. Other than the personalities incorporated into the fantasy world created by the author, the rest of the characters are likely to have existed. Shi Xiangyun The hero of Shi Xiangyun is incorporated amongst 29 other main characters in the novel. This makes it easy to see why her significance in the book may not be given much airtime. But this kind of analysis is based on what Shi Xianyun appears to be on the face of the novel, and as far as a quick reading of it is concerned. However, her role is significant and this can be demonstrated alongside the themes. Themes The theme of reality versus appearance affects Shi Xiangyun in terms of what her life actually is like and the kind of person she appears to be on the outside. Xueqin (1996) says “Truth becomes fiction when the fiction’s true; Real becomes not-real where the unreal’s real” (p. 55). She is a cheerful person yet her circumstances betray this very nature. Shi Xiangyun is an orphan who finds herself amongst the children of wealthy men and women only after she becomes a ward of her uncle and aunt. Her guardians mistreat her by subjecting her to harsh labor late into the night, preparing items of needle work that are later on sold to add to the income of the family. This theme may be looked at from two angles: from the point of view of the author and from the story itself. As far as the author goes, Shi Xiangyun may h
Downsizing activities would all be focused on improving efficiency, productivity and competitiveness. The main motive behind a downsizing strategy is the anticipated cut off in costs that are incurred for paying the staff in a business organization. Downsizing by a margin of 15%is likely to bring forth a reduction in the workforce which will be reflected in the reduced costs of the business. This should be considered as a short term benefit but besides it lies a long term risk especially with the surviving workforce. This is in terms of their security, job satisfaction and other related factors. As a manager it is vital to tackle the challenge of downsizing with a lot caution. This particularly regards the workforce that survive the effects of downsizing. Since the process is inevitable, the best approach would concern good management of the workforce that survives. Firstly it is important to note that downsizing has implications to the remaining workforce in terms of confidence and loyalty to the organization. The best strategy would be to restore the declining confidence in the workforce and demonstrate to them that they are valued and that is why they survived the downsizing wave. Addressing the symptoms of layoff survivors is crucial towards the efficiency and productivity of the workforce. Things like anxiety, guilt, relief, depression and many other mixed reactions should be adequately dealt with so as to boost organizational moral. Adequately tackling the management of the survivors would be a long term strategy that would help the business improve on its competitiveness. The wise strategy would be to pick the low lying fruits and also focus on the safety of those that can be found higher on the tree. Outsourcing Important things to consider:   * Communication and It systems.The success of outsourcing is entirely dependent on good communication systems alongside excellent IT systems. All this is required to carry out all the logistics on the ground and deliver a reliable report concerning the viability of an outsourcing strategy.   * Availability of resources to foresee the implementation of outsourcing activities. This can be looked at in terms of finances and adequate IT personnel.   * The exact processes to be outsourced. Good decision has to be made on the perfect process the needs outsourcing. For banks data management seems to be the best choice it is easy to move but expensive to process at some locations.   * The readiness of the company to undertake outsourcing is yet another very important aspect. This has to do with to what extent the company is fully in control of the specific processes that matter in outsourcing. The stability of processes in the company is very crucial to outsourcing in future.   * The type of outsourcing arrangement to be adopted also matters, companies have to choose between outsourcing and captive arrangements in mixing and matching their outsourcing activities.   *
Managerial process can be described as a series of five stages which are related to the development of a strategy and its implementation. This paper is aimed at discussing each of these stages in greater detail. Moreover, one should evaluate the role played by corporate governance. This issue can be better examined by looking at the actions of a specific company, namely General Electric at the time when this organization had to undergo rapid transformation. This example can be helpful for understanding managerial process. These are the main questions that should be analyzed. At first, it is important to mention the development of the strategic vision. At this point, the management should identify the long-term goals of an enterprise. In other words, they have to describe an idealized version of a company (Rumsey, 2012, p. 380). This stage was critical for the development of General Electric. At that time, managers, stockholders, and board of directors had to determine how the stagnant company could transform itself (Macey, 2008, p. 10). For instance, the company had to become the world leading producer of electronics (Macey, 2008, p. 10). Moreover, it had to gain leadership in other markets. This vision shaped later policies developed by this corporation. The second stage involves setting specific objectives. At this point, it is necessary to identify a set of realistic and measurable goals that a business should attain within a specific period (Thompson et al., 2013). One can say that the effective corporate governance of General Electric took an active part in this process. In particular, stockholders and managers needed to set standards for financial performance of a company. Their objectives were related to the following aspects:  1. the profitability of each division;  2. labor expenses;  3. net revenues,  4. growth rates (Macey, 2008, p. 10). Additionally, they concentrated on such a criterion as the volume of production. Certainly, Jack Welch, who was the CEO of General Electric, was the main decision-maker at this stage. Nevertheless, he had to coordinate his efforts with the board of directors. One can say that the interests of stockholders were the top-priority for senior executives, including Jack Welch. So, corporate governance is vital for the accountability of senior executives. This is the main argument that can be put forward. Furthermore, it is critical to remember about the development of a strategy. This means that senior executives have to identify the actions that should be taken in order to achieve the objectives and vision. The strategy adopted by General Electric consisted of several steps. For instance, it was necessary to eliminate bureaucratic structures, increase the motivation of employees, and reward those people who contributed to the increased profitability of the enterprise (Boudreau & Jesuthasan, 2011, p. 10). Overall, this part of the managerial process is the most important activity
The authors of the book “Getting to Yes Text” have come up with a guideline that is supposed to promote peaceful negotiations and ensure that relationship between the negotiating parties is not destroyed or simply soiled due to disagreements that may arise. In the book, they focus on the four basic principles that can ensure that negotiations may be effective if the rules are followed. Furthermore, they also explain and illustrate how to deal with different parties taking part in negotiations, as well as the hurdles that negotiators usually face in the process of trying to make a deal between the wrangling parties. The authors argue that for negotiations to be satisfactory and efficient, they should be wise. They believe that a wise negotiation is one that is able to improve the relationship between the negotiating parties since it will be able to fulfil their interests as well as it will maintain a fair judgment which will be long lasting. The use of a principled negotiation is better than position based negotiation where the negotiators are more concerned about defending their hard-line positions. Thus, the position based negotiation has the potential to destroy relationships between the two parties where most of the time they tend to disagree due to the impossibility of coming up with a common ground during the negotiation. This happens because each party assumes that ceding ground is as good as a loss. Furthermore, the parties tend to take it as a direct attack on their personal interest, something that does not ogre well. The first concept is the separation of the different parties in the negotiation. This enables the negotiator to determine the different perceptions of the two parties in the disputes independently. Understanding their perception enables the negotiators to know how to approach the issue, and in the process, prevent a possible damage to their relationship. The other advantage of this technique is that
Euripides’ Medea reflects a woman’s inner world and addresses the troubles of females regarding their freedom. The given speech demonstrates Medea’s history of struggle with members of the opposite sex. She emphasizes that a woman’s happiness or well-being in life is highly dependent on the chance of getting a decent and good man. Throughout the text, she claims that being a man is far better than being a woman. However, it is critical to address that Euripides does not imply that women are unfortunate. On the contrary, he wants to illustrate how they perceive their existence and do not understand the hardships of being a man. Euripides aims to show women’s perspective and demonstrate that they underestimate men’s issues. The speech given by Medea can be interpreted as an opinion of most women about the patriarchic system and how their liberty is reliant on the other party. In the beginning, she highlights the fact that a woman can only be happy if she meets a decent man. It is important to note that Medea says, “And he, my husband, has turned out wholly while” (Euripides et al. 8). She wants to point out that her circumstances were not positive. Medea says, “take for our bodies a master; for not to take one is even worse” (Euripides et al. 8). Here, Euripides attempts to show how women feel trapped and dependent on men in order to survive and feel protected. In addition, she states, “A good one or bad one; for there is no easy escape” (Euripides et al. 8). The author tries to illustrate that a woman cannot leave a marriage, even if it does not bring satisfaction or happiness. Therefore, Euripides demonstrates that females are forced to be with a male, and once she is bound to a companion, she cannot get out of this partnership. Moreover, the speaker addresses the privileges and freedom of being a husband, whereas a wife is not able to do the same. Medea says, “But we are forced to keep our eyes on one alone” (Euripides et al. 9). She claims that a man can enjoy his spare time with his friends and colleagues, whereas a woman is socially restrained. Later, she states, “But I am deserted, a refugee, thought nothing of by my husband” (Euripides et al. 9). Medea is trying to compare herself with a prisoner, chained to her male master. Lastly, she says, “I would very much rather stand three times in the front of battle than bear one child” (Euripides et al. 9). In other words, she is trying to claim that a man’s struggles and duties are not as difficult as a woman’s hardships. In conclusion, it is important to note that Euripides had two goals in the given piece of speech, which is to show women’s perspective and how they underestimate the hardships of men. The given statement is an honest expression of Medea’s thoughts and opinion on patriarchic inequality. However, Euripides is attempting
Technological advancement has led to great impact on writing. Like in other areas, advancement in technology has influenced the way people write both positively and negatively. Writing emails, chatting using social networking websites and writing short text massages have become day to day activities. Today computer has become the basic tool for writing. Instead of using pen and paper or typesetting, today people prefer to type their work using word processors. Word processors are the technology that has great influence on my writing process. I prefer to use word processor software when writing instead of conventional ways. In the paper, I report impact of word processors on my writing process. Using word processors has transformed my writing to a higher level. When using traditional pen and paper, I had to care more on mechanics of writing than communicating my message. I paid undue attention to hand writing, spelling, sentence structure and other basic mechanics. By using word processors, I am able to concentrate more on writing rather than caring about my hand writing or trying to check up spelling in a dictionary. Word processors have allowed me to write at ease and improve on my critical thinking and writing. Before embracing word processors, writing seemed very complex. Before producing a final piece of writing, I had to go through many tedious steps including making an outline, writing a draft, editing and recopying the final draft. Using word processors has not only helped me to overcome mechanical difficulties in writing but also improve my attitude towards writing. Word processors have many advantages over conventional pen and paper or typesetting. The main advantage of using word processors is ability to edit work without having to recopy. Word processors make it easy to edit, enabling one to correct mistakes, add or remove ideas without having to rewrite a piece of work. Ability to rewrite my work without having to recopy motivates me to revise my work and therefore improve my writing skills. Unlike when using conventional ways, using word processor allows me to write quickly. Word processors have inbuilt support that make writing and editing to be considerably fast. Because of support provided by word processors, I do not worry much about style when using them but instead concentrate on communicating my message. Good writing is a process that can take many ye
Supply and demand curve Supply and demand is one of the central concepts of capitalism, the leading economic system of the Western World as well as in such individual nations as Japan or Singapore. In the capitalist system, supply and demand determines all prices of goods and commodities, services, and salaries or wages. To discuss the concept of supply and demand, however, it is perhaps helpful to address first the basic capitalistic model. Capitalism is based on the “free” interaction between those individuals who own capital- the means of production- and those persons who do not. Means of production, such as large factories or machines, are generally unaffordable to most people, so they sell their specific services in the form of labour to the owners of these means. (Jones, 339-356)Theoretically, owners are able to produce whatever commodities they wish in whatever manner and quantities they wish. In the same vein, workers are able to sell their labour to whomever they wish and at whatever price they want. The agreements between these two basic groups result in the wage rate, which defines what proportion of the total goods produced goes to the labourers and what goes to the capitalist owners. Every economic item in the capitalist system has a price, and the individual receives compensation for what she or he sells and then uses this income to purchase other economic items. Again, supply and demand determines the price, or worth, of any economic item. For example, in industrialized countries such as the United States or Great Britain, wide gaps exist between the income of affluent or middle-class wage earners and the income of their working-class or poor counterparts. Supply and demand partially explains these often glaring discrepancies. Wealthier workers usually garner their larger salaries because of their educational credentials; they possess advanced, not easily understood, knowledge that was gained either from extensive schooling or perhaps through a lengthy apprenticeship. High-paying professions include law, accounting, or engineering. While these are diverse careers, they all possess one important thing in common: they require at least a college degree to break into them. These professions require specialized, complex training, and individuals who have such extensive training are very much in demand. Therefore, workers in these fields possess highly marketable skills, and their augmented incomes reflect this increased marketability. (Grantham, 115) In sharp contrast, workers who possess limited knowledge usually earn much lower incomes. These workers have, at most, a general high school diploma, and they lack specific, easily marketed skills. They usually hold low-status positions that require little or no training. Since most people could ho
Introduction Aviation is an operation that entails travelling in space. Largely, aviation involves planes and either cargo or passenger planes. It is important to have a high level of safety in aviation because the occurrence of accidents could be highly disastrous as witnessed in several plane accidents. When looking at aviation risks, we find that, fire risks are the most common and therefore there is a great need to prevent them. In case an accident occurs, it is good for all affected to have the required information and skills on how to prevent massive destruction. Pilots and the entire plane’s crew should be well trained in order to minimize the occurrence of spacecraft accidents through human error. There are international standards and safety measures, which have been set regarding fire safety and are highly recommended by the aviation fire and rescue services. These measures are undertaken in case of fire in the aviation sector to avoid great damages and losses (Jarvis, 2006). For a high level of safety to be achieved, it is essential that the training and development of fire and safety within an aviation organization be effective. Safety facilities and personnel should always be available and easily accessible at all times, since risks can occur at any time. Some of the resources and facilities used in aviation such as fuel are dangerous whenever handled without care. Therefore, measures should always be put in place regarding the manner they are handled. Considering all these, it could be beneficial for the local authority fire rescue services and the aviation fire rescue services to join hands in trying to curb the risks associated with fire outcomes. Aerodrome and licensing requirements An aerodrome is a location in which space craft’s operations normally take place. Aerodromes thus comprise of airports, airfields, and military airbases. There are standard operations procedures outlined for use in an aerodrome. The aerodromes are categorically grouped into two. One category involves the unattended aerodromes in which flight information is currently being provided. The second category of aerodromes involves the controlled aerodromes. In matters concerning fire risks in aerodromes, pilots are required to make turns towards the direction of the traffic circuit unless otherwise instructed by ATC in control. This helps avoid clashes with other planes, which can easily cause fire breakouts, since the planes were in motion. The overhead circuit joining procedure should always be followed in unattended aerodromes or in cases where a pilot is not familiar with the given aerodrome (Civil Aviation Authority, 2007). In controlled aerodromes, pilots are supposed to notify the operating ATC on the nature of movement that they intend to undertake. This applies to both departing and arriving airplanes. The pilot is also required to have an aerodrome control clearance before landing or taking off. The speed required for the pilots to operate within in any aerodrome is usually published in the specific aerodrome publication. It is mandatory for all pilots operating within a gi