ShantanuT01/DACTYL-Pretraining huggingface dataset:
Functions to outsource and how they would benefit Haircuts Outsourcing is a business strategy that is used by business establishments to obtain some functions from external businesses (Handley & Benton Jr, 2009). If Haircuts has to outsource some of its functions from an external business entity, then it has to look for entities that have competitive advantages in their areas of specialization. One of the functions that the business can outsource is accounting. The firm can contract the function to an external business with a competitive advantage. This will enable the business to avoid hiring an accountant on a permanent basis. In fact, the business would only contract its accounting functions on a monthly or annual basis. The business owner could also choose to contract the IT solution technology execution to an external business that has a competitive advantage in that area. This way, it will not buy and maintain the software, hardware and other facilities that are intended to support the technology. It will greatly reduce the costs associated with the running of the technology. In addition, the business owner, can choose to engage barbers and workers to offer manicure services from external businesses. Contracting an external business to provide workers will significantly reduce labor costs and help the firm to save much money that could be used for other purposes like expansion. Advantages of outsourcing If the business plans to outsource functions described above, it would have the following advantages. First, it will benefit from a high level of expertise from the contracted firms because they will specialize in a given business area (Handley & Benton Jr, 2009). This will result in exemplary customer service that will attract and retain customers. The overall impact is improved financial performance of the business. Second, the outsourcing will help the firm to share risks of the business. In fact, the business will transfer most of its business risks to external businesses. Third, the business will have sufficient time to focus on its core activities (Weidenbaum, 2005). Disadvantages Although outsourcing will have many advantages for the business, it will also present some disadvantages that will have to be analyzed and prevented from impacting profitability of the business negatively (Weidenbaum, 2005). First, confidential customers’ data that will be contained in the proposed IT solution technology will be exposed to external businesses. Some workers of the external firms might use the confid
Voter turnout is one of the determining factors of a healthy democracy as voters elect the kind of leaders that they think are competent to fulfill the different agendas espoused in different parties’ manifestos. The effectiveness of the voting process can be measured by the proportion of people who cast their ballots, as some people may be discouraged from voting due to irregularities in the voting systems, which raises questions and doubts on the democratic sincerity of a given political setting. Hence, voter turnout should be a cause of concern to the government as the elected leaders should be a representative of the majority of eligible voters and unequal involvement can alter the pattern of representation and this aspect has real effects on policy outcomes and governance. Texas is the second most densely inhabited of all the 50 states of the United States, and thus one would expect that should also rate second or even first in the rating of voters who cast their ballots during elections. Unfortunately, this expectation is unrealistic as compared to other states, Texas has 36 percent voter turnout, which is among the lowest ratings in the country. This scenario is a very crucial problem in Texas, as the residents do not seem to be interested in participating in their democratic right of electing their leaders of choice. One of the factors that appear to be influencing this low voter turnout is the two-party system in the US (Bessette and Pitney 83). This system only gives an option of choosing between two contestants during the general election, and this aspect has greatly influenced Texas politics as one of the parties has always dominated politics for a long period. The Republican Party, which has remained dominant for decades with increasing expensive campaigns and continued support from the Latino community, has discouraged the Democrats from participating in the voting process as they feel that they are outnumbered. This aspect implies that as the popularity of the Republican Party continues to increase, the Democratic Party popularity is declining. For example during the 2010 general election, the Texas politics were mainly dominated by the race between two Republicans, which attracted an overwhelming turnout of 1.4 million people from the Republican side. The Republican governor, Rick Perry, who won the primary vote, defeated Bill White from the Democratic side by a very large margin. This trend is very worrying as Texas politics is being dominated by only one party and many people from the Democratic Party fail to vote since they do not think that their vote will make a difference due to the tyranny of numbers of the other party. The result of such a trend is the worrying 36 percent turnout of voters despite the fact that 61.6 percent
Defining the phenomenon of Modernist architecture is not an easy task, mostly because it incorporates uncompromising simplicity of forms and a number of design elements borrowed from a range of the existing styles. Perhaps, to approach the concept of Modernist architecture, it would be reasonable to address its relation to function. For centuries, architecture has been shaped by the aesthetical principles, with style obviously dominating the substance. With the advent of Modernist architecture, the emphasis has clearly been shifted onto the functionality of the architectural elements. The reasons for the use of simplicity in architecture are quite versatile. For instance, some researchers claim that urban style has started dictating its terms (Chalana 2010, p. 25). Others insist that the return to simplicity was meant to marry the concepts of nationalism and internationalism in design (Mentula 1979, p. 28; Al-Kodmany & Ali 2012, p. 43). The Eureka Tower in Melbourne, the design of which is based on a very simple principle of symmetry and rectangle shapes, yet incorporates the use of the latest technological innovations, is a perfect example of Modernist architecture. Therefore, Modernist, or Modern, architecture can be defined as an architecture concept that focuses on function as the top priority and stresses the significance and reasonability of architectural simplicity of forms. Gallery: Arx Barierro 2013, Web. Much like its definition, the origin of Modernist architecture is rather obscure; there was no particular point at which the epoch of Modernism in architecture started. The process of ousting architectural extravagances with more functional elements seems to have been going on rather naturally, with the introduction of globalist principle of culture fusion, as well as a careful balance of “spiritual fulfillment” and “material afluence” (Hirano 2006, p. 16) and the denial of the style-over-substance principles. However, speaking of the point at which the advent of a new Modernist era was heralded in architecture, one must mention the World Architecture Festival, with internationalism having been defined as the key trend in the XXI century architecture (‘World Architecture Festival’ 2012, 19). In fact, Modernist style blends the elements of the architecture approaches all over the world, which means that it incorporates the latest advances and some of the ancient traditions, thus, tying future and past together (Clark 2009, p. 13). For instance, Abbaszadeh specifies that Modernist architecture may incorporate the elements of a traditional Persian culture and the innovative approach towards functionality in that it follows the key premises of functional theory closely (Abbaszadeh, & Salim 2009, p. 117). Thus, it is reasonable to suggest that Modernist architecture appeared at the end of the XX century. Fallingwater, with its futur
The severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) and the novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19) that it causes represent a significant threat to all nations of the world, including the United States. Apart from its immediate effect in terms of healthcare, a global pandemic is also bound to leave a profound impact on the economy. The response to the crisis varies from nation to nation and depends, among other things, on the political constitution of a given country. This last factor is particularly important in the case of the United States, with its federated structure and complex judicial system. The governmental response should be informed by the experiences of the previous economic crises as well as the constantly updated data on the current one. Additionally, the response measures should aim at maintaining existing businesses and employment rather than directly pouring money into the economy in hopes of improving the situation. The federal government should lead the way in countering the pandemic within its prerogative but exercise caution when supporting the economy, and the relief bill passed by Congress would benefit from several improvements. The federal government should play a central role in responding to the ongoing crisis rather than leaving the situation to the private corporations to handle. First of all, this is a direct obligation under the American, as the Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency Assistance Act proclaims “the preeminent responsibility of the Federal Government to take action to stem a nationwide pandemic” (Gostin et al., 2020). Apart from that, it is also a direct legal necessity, because only the federal government possesses the power to enact certain measures necessary to counter the spread of the virus. Limiting the spread of the disease to flatten the epidemic curve and reduce the pressure upon the healthcare system requires, among other things, to impose severe restrictions on the border crossing. By the end of March, the President has banned the majority of the non-US citizens from entering the United States from China, Iran, and most of the European countries (Gostin et al., 2020). This measure is an integral and obligatory part of reacting to the pandemic of such a magnitude, and the federal government is the only entity authorized to enact it. Apart from the international, population movement within the national borders is also an epidemiological threat under the present conditions, and the federal government’s response to it should be more nuanced. At least several legal precedents interpret the freedom of movement as a constitutional right, although not an unlimited one (Gostin et al., 2020). It means that the federal, state or local authorities can technically limit the freedom of movement to counter the spread of a virus. Still, these actions would be subject to much legal scrutiny and require compelling evidence. It would be partic
Hotel Sims is a four star hotel established with the aim of providing quality services to customers. The hotel management has divided its market into various segments to ensure that they cater for customers from all social classes. For instance, there are facilities aimed at attracting leisure customers. These are customers who are out on vacations hence they are ready to spend a lot of cash in leisure activities (Martin and Fellenw 2010, p. 73). The hotel is under new management that is working extremely hard to improve service delivery. A SWOT analysis was conducted on the hotel to find out its strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats. Some strengths of the Hotel Sims are availability of funds. For instance, managers are able to install facilities that are required immediately without problems. This means that the organisation is financially healthy. A second strength of Hotel Sims is that it is able to lower prices during low seasons without incurring loses. This gives the hotel an advantage over its competitors who may face challenges in adjusting prices during low seasons. There are various weaknesses in the hotel which are slowing down their intended development. For instance, the management does not have money to do everything at the same time. Instead, they have just enough money to install what is necessary. If they had a lot of money, they could refurbish the entire Hotel at once and start all its principal operations (Ireland, Hoskisson and Hitt 2009, p. 54). There are a lot of opportunities for the company. For instance, there is a potential market for casinos and spas. Since the Hotel Sims is targeting leisure customers, a casino and spar can be particularly ideal. In fact, their main target can spend a lot of money gambling hence bringing a lot of revenue to the business. There are also abundant opportunities due to the presence of tourists’ attraction sites in its environs. This means that the company can tap opportunities by creating facilities that are ideal for tourists. There are several threats in the market posing a danger to the hotel. For instance, there is stiff competition from other players in the hospitality industry. This forces the company to work hard in order to retain its customers and maintain its sales (De Wit and Meyer 2010, p. 87). Customer trends keep on depreciating with seasons hence making it hard for the mangers to plan their expenditures. For instance, there are times when customers are many calling for urgent measures to be taken to cater for the large numbers. The hotel managers have come up with a strategy of installing facilities slowly depending on their urgency. This is important since the organisation will be able to utilize resources that are available and achieve its goals (Romer and Wolfers 2009, p. 65). In addition, they have decided to spend
One of the most socially significant aspects of today’s living in the West is the fact that, as time goes on, more and more people begin to refer to the discourse of feminism as innately erroneous – something that can be illustrated, in regards to the ongoing intellectual marginalization of feminism. What is particularly notable, in this respect, is that many feminist authors do contribute to this process rather substantially. The figure of Eve Ensler exemplifies the validity of this idea perfectly well, because it is largely on the account of a public controversy, sparked by her play The vagina monologues , that the notion of feminism is now being commonly discussed in conjunction with the notion of a mental deviation. In my paper, I will explore the validity of this suggestion at length. The play The vagina monologues consists of a number of thematically related monologues, in which American women of different ages/ethno-cultural backgrounds expound on the sexuality-related issues, while primarily focusing on the graphically explicit subject matters, such as what makes the scent of female genitals ‘special’, for example. Among the play’s most controversial monologues, can be named: I was twelve, my mother slapped me (about women’s endowment with ‘guilty consciousness’, because of their monthly periods), Reclaiming cunt (about how it is important for women to feel good about their genitals) and The woman who loved to make vaginas happy (about lesbian anxieties in women). While coming up with their monologues, the featured characters strive to present themselves as the victims of institutionalized sexism. The manner,
Introduction Tourism is the movement of people from their normal places of work and residence to places they are not familiar with as well as the activities they carry out during the time they stay in such activities.In addition the activities they carry out are for fun to them. Other definitions of tourism have also been given (Mathieson and Wall 4). Bhatia (5) says that tourism is travelling for enjoyment, business functions and recreational purposes. The people who engage in this are known as tourist. Tourists can either be local or international tourists. Local tourists travel in their own countries and enjoy the beautiful scenes. International tourists, on the other hand, come from other places for tourism purposes. In the modern day tourism has become a major activity in the world as compared in the previous years. There has been tremendous percentages increase in international travels by the tourists over the years. For instance, in the year 2011 there were more than 980 million tourists in the world. This represented a 4.6% increase as compared to the previous years. Tourism is an important aspect to different countries. It affects all aspects of life, that is, education, culture, economics and social aspects. One of the major contributions of the tourism is to ensure inflow of income to the country in which the tourists visits (Mathieson and Wall 20). Tourism is also a major source of employment to the citizens of the country either directly or indirectly. For example in the transport sectors, hotel industry and entertainment places (Holloway 3) Balance of payments is records on all monetary engagements between a specific country and all outside countries. The engagement occurs in form of exchange of goods and services that are at issue. The balance of payments is recorded in form of account which records the exports as inflows and the imports as outflows. Goods received are positive gains while imports results to funds outflow. A balance of payment would be experiences if what is imported is more than what the country sells outside its territories. Conversely, if the country is exporting more than what is importing, the country is experiencing a surplus in terms of the balance of payments (Mathieson and Wall 26) Relationship between Tourism and the balance of payments Bhatia ( 10) says that imbalances are always possible in the different accounts of the balance of payments for example in the current and
Statement of the Problem Childhood obesity has been on a steady increase in the US resulting in a decline in child health since children who are obese are at increased risk of physical as well as psychosocial health consequences. Dehghan, Danesh and Merchant observe that childhood obesity has reached catastrophic levels in the US with 11% of children being classified as obese (2). Considering the fact that 70% of obese adolescents grow into obese adults, this rise in childhood obesity is cause for alarm. Research further indicates that the prevalence rate of obesity has risen over the past couple of years and statistics by the Center for Disease Control and prevention (CDC) show that according to the 2007 national youth risk behavior survey, 23% of US high school students were overweight. This was a notable rise from the 5% level in the 1980’s. Owing to the fact that obesity reduces the quality of life and shortens the lifespan of the person, it is of importance that solutions be developed to deal with this problem in children. Figure 1. Prevalence of obesity among children and adolescents aged 6-19 Source: Pekruhnk, C. Childhood Obesity: A school Health Policy Guide. National Association of State Boards of Education, 2009. Causes of prevalence in obesity While obesity can be attributed to a number of causes, the condition is mostly limited to people who overindulge in unhealthy food and exhibit limited activity. In the US, childhood obesity levels are closely linked to the lifestyle adopted by the children. Andreacci et al affirm that the increase in sedentary behaviors and decrease in physical activity have been related to the rise of obesity in children (36). Unhealthy dietary habits by children have also led to the prevalence of obesity among students. In the school environment, many elements such as vending machines and the fast foods offered at cafeterias encourage unhealthy eating habits. According to the CDC , 20% of schools in the US offer brand-name fast foods such as McDonalds to the children during the school day. Solution and its Implementation Having highlighted the magnitude of the obesity problem, it is obvious that a feasible solution is not only desirable but is the only way in which we can restore the health of the children and avoid future repercussions that may spring as a result of Obesity. As has been articulated, most of the problems are as a result of the eating habits exhibited by the school children and the lack of physical education programs in the schools. As such, for any solution to yield favorable results, it must set out to tackle this two core issues of nutrition and physical education. It has been extensively documented that the quality of food available in schools is of low nutritional value and unhealthy as it is mostly made up of snacks, fast foods and sodas. Key to solving the obesity problem is an overhaul of the school nutrition prog
Some European countries have had a significant influence over a large part of the globe. Many countries in the Americas, Africa, and Asia remained colonies for decades. However, eventually these countries managed to obtain freedom and overthrow the rule of European monarchs and leaders. Interestingly, the United States can be seen as a country that has had and still has an immense influence on the global political and economic agendas, but it was once a colony of the British Empire. African and Asian countries were under the rule of such countries as Britain, France, Belgium, Germany, Spain, and Portugal, which warred with each other to obtain control over colonies (Strayer 922). Apart from a similar enemy (European invaders), it is possible to draw a number of parallels between the struggle for independence of the “new nations” in the two Americas in the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries, and that of African and Asian nations in the twentieth century. One of the major similarities within the struggle for independence of the mentioned regions might be their determination to define their nations and states after the period of European rule. For example, Ethiopia became a symbol of the struggle for independence in Africa after its victory over Italian forces in 1896 (Strayer 928). Although the Italians’ attempts to establish their rule in Ethiopia continued until the middle of the twentieth century, the country managed to protect its independence. One of the effective strategies its citizens used was their determination to define their state. The monarch of this country, Menelik II, managed to prove that Ethiopia was a state, with its nation, its army, its culture, and its state institutions. Likewise, Latin American states understood that their statehood was a key to their independence. For example, Simón Bolívar, a renowned Latin American political leader, stressed that nations of Latin America had “a common origin, a common language, similar customs, and one religion,” but were still different, due to “dissimilar characteristics” (Bolívar 815). Those people understood that their nations had to develop independently, but could collaborate effectively. Another similarity was these countries’ focus on the development of their economies. People understood that political and economic independence could be regarded as two facets of their struggle. Therefore, they tried to develop economic relations with other countries (their neighbors and developed European countries). For example, Simón Bolívar understood the importance of trade between countries in South America (Strayer 815). Clearly, countries with developed economies could have the necessary resources (e.g., well-equipped army) to stand for their independence. African nations also tried to arrange trade relations with different states, including European countries. For example, the Ethiopian ruler managed to have commercial links with European countries, even Italy that had tried to make the state its colony. Finally, the struggle for independence was associated wi