ShantanuT01/DACTYL-Pretraining huggingface dataset:
Introduction Department stores majorly sell a variety of products from a large retail premise. The range of products offered by the department stores includes furniture, home appliances, cosmetics, jewelers, toys and clothing. The department stores resort to selling a range of products as a protection measure incase sales of a single product fall in the market. This perhaps makes the difference between department store and specialized chain stores (Wittner 2003, p. 320). Five giants that control 89 percent of the market share categorically dominate the department stores industry in the United Kingdom. Other minor companies control the 11%. The dominant company in the department store industry market is Marks and Spencer, which has an outstanding market share of 55%. John Lewis, Debenhams, House of Frasers and Harrods control 15%, 12%, 4% and 3% respectively. It is estimated that department stores industry generated about 15.1 billion pounds to the UK financial system in the year 2007. Debenhams With about 140 department stores across UK, Debenhams chose to specialize in fashion other than putting more weight on home wares. The customized products offered by the company merely target the middle mass market. Although the products offered are of high quality, Debenhams chose to offer them at affordable prices (Peteraf 1993, p. 180). Debenhams perhaps have the best designers considering that its styled clothing and collections have attracted quite huge number of customers. The company as well has managed to sell products of its own label. In the year 2009, John Lewis witnessed an increase of 0.2 % i
Introduction Different people will choose different methods of teaching new languages depending on the convenience they attribute to the method. The direct method has been a common preference for many people due to its direct contact with the student and its ability to ensure that the content is clearly understood by the learner. In this method the teaching is done entirely in the target language (Stewart et al. 120). The direct method emphasizes more on good pronunciation and avoids grammar rules as well. Also known as the natural method, the direct method entails a full participation of the students in terms of listening and speaking of the language. In terms of the process, the direct method involves the gradual acquisition of the vocabularies and the grammatical structure as well. Here, the learner is taught to think more in terms of the target language, as opposed to the use of translation. Principles of the direct teaching method The direct method relies on a number of factors for it to be effective. It is based on the following principles (qtd. in Englemann 90):  1. Classroom instructions are conducted exclusively in the target language.  2. Only everyday vocabulary and sentences are taught during the initial phase; grammar, reading and writing are introduced in intermediate phase.  3. Oral communication skills are built up in a carefully graded progression organized around question-and-answer exchanges between teachers and students in small, intensive classes.  4. Grammar is taught inductively.  5. New teaching points are introduced orally.  6. Concrete vocabulary is taught through demonstration, objects, and pictures; abstract vocabulary is taught by association of ideas.  7. Both speech and listening comprehensions are taught.  8. Correct pronunciation and grammar are emphasized.  9. Student should be speaking at least 80% of the time during the lesson. 10. Students are taught from inception to ask questions as well as answer them. Reasons for preference of the direct method Experienced teachers have clearly explained that in order for a student to understand, what matters is not the teacher but the teaching method used by the teacher. The direct method works well with the instructor because it gives him the chance to give instructions in the target language. This enables the student, too, to learn the language faster because they get used to hearing the same language for long and therefore they develop good speaking skills by hearing every word from the instructor’s mouth (Swan
The needed US diversity information The United States has extensively been termed as a melting spot for various ethnicities, races and cultures. It is true that all groups situated in the United States have numerous similarities and differences. Having acquired the information about the peaceful coexistence of most of the U.S. inhabitants, I have been able to accept and tolerate the prevailing differences. Via embracing the diverse societal differences, I have gained new living concepts, novel thinking approaches as well as getting acquainted to a variety of foodstuffs that are enjoyable. In the end, all the diversified groups of people found in the United States have mutual interests of being happy, protected and loved (Naylor, 1999). Generally, it might be very useful for the entire society to concentrate on the key interests instead of looking at the level of individual and groups differences. This will definitely close the chances of learning various other cultures that exist in life. The U.S population outlook by 2050 While it is anticipated that the United States population demographics will be shaped by immigrations, it is clear that when evaluated against the current U.S., the fiscal 2050 United States will seemingly look dissimilar from that of today. Despite the fact the current U.S. population is predominantly whites while the minority population is merely 30%, by the financial year 2050, the US minority population will possibly exceed 50%. In fact, not even a single advanced inhabited nation will experience and record such a level of diversity. Most of the net population growth in America will constitute of the mounting mixed race population as well as the minorities (Schaefer, 2012). The 2050 United States will take this look because the Asian and Latino inhabitants are anticipated to approximately triple. The immigrants’ kids will be well-known. Out of all immigrants, half will go straight to the U.S. as the most preferred destination. Challenges faced by US as a result of inhabitants’ diversity The United States often welcomes a diversified number of people from across the globe. By favoring such larger families in its localities, the United States anticipates problems associated with resource shortages and population growth. In fact, these two challenges are perceived to be very detrimental to the United States environmental and nature conservancy measures. Besides, diversity in the U.S. might probably result into job shortages since the arrival of groups and individuals would definitely create surplus labor. Creating enough employment opportunities to absorb such magnitudes of people might be difficult (Smith, 1991). Issues associated with acculturation by immigrant populations and the minorities as well as racisms are likely to be chronic stressors to the United States government. Finally, t
Red Sorghum (1987) is a very symbolic presentation of the past, the present, and the future. Each scene is full of symbols, and each frame has a particular meaning. Frame 4c is no exception. The frame depicts the protagonist of the film who has prepared food for the men before the attack. The frame reveals the woman’s determination and doubt; it also reveals the price which is going to be paid, i.e., deaths and a lot of innocent bloodsheds. In the first place, the meaning is revealed through the focus of the frame. The camera focuses on the woman and the table. The woman is in the center of the scene. This position reveals the central role the protagonist is playing in the affair. This is she who inspired the men to fight; this is her who sent them to fight. Focus on the table can also be regarded as a symbolic representation of the price to be paid. Thus, there is meat that is often seen as a symbol of sacrifice and death. Thus, the meat on the table is a symbol of death, which is near and which is expecting for the protagonist and the men. There are also bowls of red liquor, which stands for red blood to be shed. It is necessary to note that the background plays quite an important role. Though the focus is on the protagonist, the distillery is a part of the scene. The distillery is a symbolic representation of the protagonist’s life and her present. This is what she is fighting for. Of course, it is not only the way to earn living for the woman, it is her life. It is very remarkable that the protagonist is sitting at the table and is looking at the price to pay while she understands what she is fighting for as her very life (which is in the background) is the bet. The use of light is also remarkable. There is certain obscurity. There is smoke coming from some places, which also adds some obscurity to the scene. This can be regarded as a symbol of doubt and uncertainty. It can also stand for the wrong choices made. Thus, the protagonist does not see the picture clearly. Her mind is blurred, and she does not see that the price is too high. Nonetheless, there is a determination on her face. The obscurity adds to the atmosphere of solemnity and doom. It is necessary to note that another frame stresses the solemnity. Frame 4a reveals the idea of hope and represents the future, which is brighter than the present. Again, the focus is on the protagonist, or rather her face. It is also necessary to note that there is a lot of light and no trace of obscurity. The protagonist sees her son, who is the future. This is clear, and this is why there is so much light as it is obvious that the protagonist has the future, i.e., it is her son. To sum up, frame 4c can be regarded as central to the film as it reveals the past, the present, and the future of the protagonist. The light, the focus, and the background serve to create the symbolic representation of the three dimensions of human life. The frame reveals the decision made and the price to be paid. This frame is as symbolic as the entire film.
Introduction Perceptions of alien cultures are normally formed through a series of impressions from varied sources. Some may be newspaper articles written about people from that land; others may be books on the same while others are television programs or movies about that culture. Every contact that an individual has with any of these avenues can either contribute to a deeper and true understanding of the alien culture or it may lead to a prejudicial and mistaken image or perception of the group. This research will focus on the Chinese as the alien culture and western audiences as the reference group formulating these images. Movies will be the communication medium that gets this information out. An analysis of Chinese stereotypes reflected in movies – Background of the research China has had a tumultuous history over the past five decades. It underwent a cultural revolution in which its leaders tried to eliminate foreign (especially western) elements of culture in their land. This has the result of isolating China and Chinese culture from the rest of the world (Spence, 2010). Its people were inaccessible and many people did not understand them subsequently. Much has changed in China since the 1970s because the Chinese have travelled around the world and the world has gone to China. Nonetheless, these interactions do not guarantee accurate and well grounded understandings of the Chinese people. Some westerners still choose to look at them based on their past political, social and cultural misgivings and these perceptions get conveyed through communications and media. Alternatively, others may see them for what they are but may choose to focus on the negatives inherent in their culture and this leads t
Introduction Over the recent times, cases of bullying have reportedly increased across the world. In my hometown, Orlando, Florida, the situation is not different. An escalated number of kids have been able to come out reporting variant cases of bullying in school and home as well. It is therefore vital that such cases of bullying are not only brought to light but also relevant steps are taken to proliferate this destructive behavior. In essence, bullying simply refers to a form of behavior which involves the use of force or coercion to negatively affect another person’s well-being. This form of behavior is normally habitual—whether in school, work or even at home (William et al., 2005, p.10-20). In most cases, the person or people being bullied are normally defenseless no wander their bullies take advantage of them (Balsom, 2009). Regardless of whether one is a child or an adult, bullying affects the victims in a great way and should thus be mitigated at all costs (Einarsen et al., 2003, p.20-30). In this paper, central focus is going to be on the nature of bullying of children in my hometown, Orlando Florida, how it can be solved, and most importantly; establishing the importance of having knowledge of bullying as an art educator. Bullying in Florida and the connection with Art Educators In Orlando, Florida, bullying of children mostly comes in the following forms: verbal bullying where intimidating words or derogatory terms are used on the victim; physical bullying such as shoving, kicking, boxing or slapping the victim unnecessarily; cyber-bullying via the internet or even cell phones; racial discrimination; sexual bullying; social bullying—especially through isolation and exclusion from certain people or events; spreading of lies and false rumors; issuance of threats to victims; and having your things taken by the bully, among many others. Going by my personal observations, majority of these bullies have a low self-esteem. By bullying others and seeing others suffer, they therefore feel like they are attaining some form of self-worth. Other than this, others normally bully their peers in order to exert some form of power or control to their victims. As a result of this power, they get some favors for rewards from their victims—mostly in form of material stuff like money or doing some chores. Sadly enough, most of these bullies tend to get away with their actions since a majority of the victims chose to suffer alone in silence rather than opening up to others to get help. This is usually based on the fact that most of the bullies threaten their victims to the point that they feel safer suffering in silence and less-safer when they open-up to others about their ordeals. A good example of bullying that recently happened in my hometown is reported by Courtney (2011). In this case, a bus driver bullied a girl on her way to school. When the girl’s mother learnt about the incident, she decided to confront the bus driver so as to know the specifics of the occurrence. In response, the driver refuted the claims an
Introduction Sustaining successful operations in any business is normally a universal confrontation that investors and managers experience as the business world, which is gradually experiencing an augmentation in market competition and customer focus. Precisely, it costs a business some significant amount of resources, work force, and time to expand exponentially and more importantly, to gain global reputation upon which customers can build a permanent trust in its operations. For several decades, the world has been witnessing a massive influx of approaches, stratagems, and policies enacted within organisations to improve their efficiency primarily to gain customer satisfaction and employee involvement that subsequently enhance corporate image. A number of organisations in the current decades within developed nations have engaged in an incessant competition to woo customers to consider using their services or buy their goods. Google Company is perhaps among the most renowned and praised global companies. This study seeks to examine why Google ranks among world’s best companies. Background of Google Company Perhaps the most outstanding achiever in the global business realm is the most renowned international search engine company known as ‘Google Company.’ The global population and researchers in specific have remained speculative of the uniqueness of this company that has left little known about itself within the public. Google is one of the global companies that have managed to demonstrate an exceptional success within the shortest period ever (Great Place to Work Institute 2007). Google Inc. started its operations in the year 1998, when two inventors, Larry Page and Sergey Brin, ingeniously combined efforts to develop the Google search engine. Larry Page and Sergey Brin “first met at Stanford University in 1995, and in a span of one year, they had managed to develop a search engine Backrub that utilised links to determine the importance of individual WebPages” (Google Inc. 2013, Para.15). With the support of financier and Sun co-founder, Andy Bechtolsheim, who offered approximately $100,000, Google Inc. officially began its operations in September 1998. The modern Google Inc The meeting of the two innovators was never in vain. Immediately after 1998, Google Inc. started to grow exponentially to the reckoning of global reputation when ‘Google doodle’ emerged and subsequently in 2000, AdWords came up. Within four years, viz. on April Fools Day in 2004, the company introduced Gmail to support speedy search, large data storage, and storing of threaded messages (Google Inc. 2013). After acquiring digital mapping company keyhole, the company got underway with Google Earth Google Maps in 2005 that currently feature in enhancing transit directions, live trafficking, and street-level imagery as Google Earth allow users to explore the moon and the ocean (Google Inc. 2013). In 2006, the company made life easier by purchasing the online video sharing site YouTube that allows self-broadcas
Abstract The purpose of this paper was to analyse Kroger’s workforce planning model. The analysis revealed that the company uses the strategic workforce planning model to meet its labour force needs. The model has enabled the company to recruit and retain the right number of employees. In addition, the model allows the company to hire only individuals with the right skill set. As a result, the company has avoided the costs associated with having excess employees. Kroger’s competitiveness has also improved because its employees have adequate skills and knowledge. Nonetheless, the model fails to address the unique labour force needs of its numerous business units. This weakness is attributed to the fact that workforce planning is done at the corporate rather than unit level. Therefore, the company should conduct workforce planning at the unit level to ensure that its labour force needs are addressed effectively. Introduction Workforce planning refers to the “systematic process of identifying and addressing the gaps between the labour force of today and the human capital needs of tomorrow”. Effective workforce planning is central to the success of a business because it helps managers to forecast and address company-wide staffing needs. This involves identifying and addressing the internal and external challenges that might limit access to the desired skill set. Workforce planning also helps managers to deploy employees and organise work effectively to achieve the strategic objectives of their companies. Generally, staff expenses account for nearly 40% of operating costs in most organisations. In addition, nearly half of the employees are often assigned knowledge-intensive roles that directly influence the profitability of their companies. Therefore, failure to use an effective workforce-planning model can adversely affect the performance of a business. It is against this background that this paper will analyse the workforce planning process/ model used by Kroger. The first part of the analysis will provide a detailed description of the workforce planning processes that are currently being used by the company. This will be followed by an assessment of the strengths and the weakness of the model. The second part of the paper will provide recommendations to improve the company’s workforce planning processes. Current Workforce Planning Processes Kroger uses the strategic approach to workforce planning. The company has chosen the strategic approach in order to ensure value improvement and reduction in labour costs. The company’s workforce planning cycle consists of five major steps, which include the following. Setting Strategic Direction The first step in workforce planning at Kroger involves aligning labour force needs to the company’s strategic intent. The aim of this step is to help the company’s managers to gain a clear understanding of why workforce planning is needed. In this respect, the company’s vision and mission statements provide a broad framework for identifying the number of employees and skills that are required by the company. In addition, the
Introduction Max Weber focused on major principles that governed human societies. He analysed theories concerning various phenomena which took place in human societies. Thus, he reconsidered Marx’s theory. However, his ideas concerning religion and the role of religion in humans’ life are quite exceptional. Weber’s theories can help to understand and, maybe, explain stimuli of people who lived in the notorious Jonestown. Weber’s ideas concerning domination and the Baptist Sects provide insights into the processes that led to the tragedy of 1978. Domination According to Max Weber people tend to organize (or be organized) into groups. It is necessary to point out that these groups do not interact on equal terms. This is where domination comes into place. Weber (1978) defined domination as “the probability that certain specific commands (or all commands) will be obeyed by a given group of persons” (p. 212). There are many factors that affect people and make them obey. Weber (1978) pointed out three types of authority that made people obey: traditional authority, rational-legal authority and charismatic authority. This classification can be used to explain the phenomenon of Jonestown. Jim Jones became a charismatic leader and created a group of believers (Jonestown, 2006). Those people followed him as they believed in his “revelation, his heroism” and his personal qualities (Weber, 1978, p. 216). However, it can be difficult to understand what made people believe in that (even charismatic) personality. Weber (1978) provided an answer to this question as well. The renowned sociologist suggested several reasons which could make people obey. One of these reasons is particularly important when considering the case of Jonestown. Weber (1978) stated that people could submit from their helplessness as there was no alternative for them. This was precisely the case of people who left their homes to settle down in Jonestown (or just believe in Jim Jones). People found themselves in the hostile society where multinationals and corporations ruled the world, where racism and other forms of discrimination were still there (Jonestown, 2006). People longed for a new world where equality and peace ruled. Jim Jones promised them to build such a society. Notably, Jim Jones did not simply create an ordinary organization; he created a religious organization based on major principles of Christianity. Admittedly, this was one of the main qualities of the organization that attracte