ShantanuT01/DACTYL-Pretraining huggingface dataset:
Hofstede 5 Cultural Dimensions Hofstede’s five cultural dimensions model emerged in the period between 1965- 1990s when Geert Hofstede developed research on a team working for IBM to study various cultural orientation and values. The research focused on understanding how cultural views dictated individual values and attitudes. Initially, the study looked at the four dimensions, which included uncertainty avoidance (UAI), individualism and collectivism (IDV), power distance (PDI), and masculinity versus femininity (MAS) (Robbins et al. 2014). In the 1990s, the dimensions increased to five when Hofstede incorporated long and short-term orientation to the four dimensions. Fundamentally, several scholars have defined the terms in various ways that revolve around individual behaviour. Mazanec et al. (2015) define uncertainty avoidance as the scale of accepting new ideas and innovation. In the UA index (UAI), people who have the highest score are less inclusive and unwilling to try new ways of undertaking an operation. On the contrary, those who have a low score in the index are inclusive and ready to adopt innovative ways that may be risky. Consequently, Beugelsdijk, Maseland, and Hoorn (2015) define individualism and collectivism as the character of embracing individual or societal requirements. In individualistic societies, people are more concerned with their own affairs and care for their immediate families, whereas those in collectivist societies care for extended families and undertake acts that generate benefits to the community. In the words of Hanzlick (2015), power distance index implies the extent to which people accept the distribution of power and their place in the hierarchy of an organization or a society. Entities, which have a higher index, demonstrate a clear set of power and individuals understand their positions in the hierarchy. On the contrary, societies that have low scores question any unequal distribution of power and make it a subject of serious scrutiny. Masculinity is another dimension found in the Hofstede model and refers to the societal allocation of masculine and feminine roles. In societies deemed to be masculine, success is a derivative of competition and people care less about the welfare of others. However, in places that nurture the feminine culture, individuals arrive at a certain objective through discussions and consensus is all-inclusive. The fifth dimension in Hofstede model is short and long-term orientation. In the explanation provided by Beugelsdijk, Maseland, and Hoorn (2015), the long-term dimension relates to countries where people and entities focus on gains earned over a projected period. The norm is unlike in those places where people and organizations evaluate their gains within a short period. Assessment                              China
Agriculture problems The film Food Inc points to several issues which I find very much surprising, if not alarming. They are as follows:  1. complete financial dependence of modern American farmers on large agricultural corporations which can reduce them to the state of severe poverty by refusing to use them as suppliers;  2. cruelty toward animals and poultry;  3. the very existence of food libel laws that enable manufactures to file a lawsuit against people who criticize their practices;  4. the unwillingness of the government to close factories which produce contaminated food;  5. the health risks to which people are exposed. Agriculture work This film shows that modern consumers do not have an opportunity to work directly with manufacturers of food. One of the reasons is that large corporations can launch a mass-scale production of food, and therefore, they can dictate pricing policies to the small farmers, who, in their turn, have to work with these companies. Secondly, the authors of this movie attract our attention to the aggressive promotion of unhealthy food, and many people believe that this is the best choice for them. Secondly, one has to mention that large corporations can open numerous sales outlets, while small farmers cannot do that. Agriculture Participants Food Inc identifies several market players, namely Monsanto Co, Smithfield Foods, Tyson Food. These organizations dominate modern agribusiness in the United States. Farming Organically grown food has its advantages and disadvantages for both farmers and buyers. The farmer does not have to incur great expenses since organic fertilizers are not as costly as chemical ones. Secondly, organically grown plants are much more resistant to various diseases. Apart from that, such a form of agriculture is not so vulnerable to droughts. However, one has to consider that organic farming requires much more effort than chemical one, and it is more time-consuming. This is the way organic farmers cannot compete with large companies in terms of productivity. Organic food has its benefits for the consumer as well. This food is much safe, and it is rather unlikely to give rise to any health complications. Secondly, these products taste better than non-organic food. The key disadvantage is that they are more expensive, and many customers cannot afford it. Purchase in agriculture There are several alternatives to purchasing food from large agribusinesses. It is possible to identify three of them;  1. farm strands or place where people can purchase products from a single farm;  2. farmer’s market or a place where a group of manufacturers sells food to the customer;  3. food cooperatives or small retail stores where people can buy grocery items, provided by various farmers. The key benefit of such distribution channels is that a customer can purchase high-quality organic food at a reasonable price. In this
Introduction Views of different historians on the events that particularly took place in one and the same area can differ much. In this respect, three readings proposed in the book Thinking Through the Past: A Critical Thinking Approach to US History by Hollitz provide a mere extent of similarities and differences. It means that the social atmosphere in the United States was dynamic and influenced by different supreme opinions at the time. It also states the fact that people are individuals in shaping the world’s reality. Thus, it is about time to get it analyzed in detail. Main part Similarities First of all, it is vital to admit the first similarity occurred in all three readings. That is the “starving time” of winter 1609-1610. This period was a challenge for Puritan English people that first came on the American continent and founded Virginia. Here all three authors claim that both invaders and Native Americans were attempting to loan some features from each other. All three historians show that this was a time to consider European failure in the capability of surviving. Thus, growing crops further diminished the threat of starvation. The second similarity is in the fact that John Smith helped newcomers to negotiate (though aggressively) with the Natives of Virginia, Powhatans. In this feature, all three authors reduplicate this well-known figure in American history. On the other hand, John Smith is described in all three examples, as brave and with leadership skills. Differences Looking at the differences, it is peculiar to admit that the views of authors go apart at the point of the draught of 1607. David S. Muzzey writes that colonists at that time had a lack of water supplies and died from “brackish water of James” (13). Thomas A. Bailey provides another date of the start of colonists’ settlement (it refers to 1608). It is described in his work that, supposedly, Indians had provoked poisoning of the water in Jamestown. Another difference is in the fact of negotiations of John Smith with Indians. It is different in each reading. In the first reading, it is highlighted that Indians reduced to find the points of consensus. Merely the same notion refers to the second reading. Only in the third one, it is outlined that both camps find out peaceful points while negotiating. It is stated that Indians gave foodstuffs and taught Europeans how to grow crops. In response, Europeans should give Indians guns and rifles (17). Conclusion Such areas of biases can be treated merely through the social framework. It is clear that David S. Muzzey was surrounded by ethnic diversity in the United States. It might make him nourish prejudices to other cultural entities. Touching upon history, he could change the truth of events, so that to provoke some negative reflection on public opinion. Thomas E. Bailey wrote his historical discourse in a time when racial segregation began going under step by step. In this respect, he makes more emphasis
Lean Management Systems (LMS) is a strategic concept utilized by business leaders to initiate radical changes within their respective companies. The goal of every enterprise is to make a profit by increasing revenue while at the same time lowering production cost (Bell, 2006). This is where LMS comes in. The correct use of LMS principles will allow a company to reduce waste, in terms of using the least amount of resources to accomplish a task. This can be achieved by educating the workforce with regards to the importance of LMS and the reduction of waste. The employees must come to realize that they will benefit from these strategies and therefore they must cooperate with management when it comes to implementation and documentation of the new production process. Elimination of Waste Gone are the days of trial and error when it comes to production processes. In a highly competitive business environment of the 21 st century every resource must be utilized properly and its usage maximized to produce high-quality products. The elimination of waste can translate to reduction in production cost. Therefore, the company can offer more competitive pricing. This will be a competitive advantage, especially in a time when there is no longer brand loyalty among consumers; they are constantly on the lookout for the best-cost items in the marketplace. The Toyota Company is considered one of the pioneers when it comes to using LMS principles to improve their production processes. During the early stages of their experimentation with LMS, their founder, Sakichi Toyoda developed the concept called jidoka (Toyota, 2009). This is also known as “automation with a human touch” or the use of automated technology to oversee a complicated production process that has the ability to shut down the whole system if there is a problem with the raw materials or machine parts that are critical in the manufacturing process. The use of jidoka allowed Toyota to use less number of workers to oversee a complex system and at the same time it allows them to determine the problem quickly and preventing the system to produce substandard products due to a failure in the system. The automatic shut-off will allow VMC to save money on components and at the same time provide a quick feedback mechanism that there is something wrong with the system. In the case of VMC they have to figure out if they can improve their production processes in terms of converting everything into a fully automated system. Furthermore, since it will only require less labor to manage a fully automated system, VMC must train the one in-charge to master every aspect of the computerized assembly process for it is not enough to simply shut-down the factory if something is broken, the ultimate goal is to immediately restore production. According to Shi
Quality management Dimensions of Customer Satisfaction Starwood Hotels and Resorts employed the Six Sigma model to measure its performance and offer quality services to its clients. It had all the necessary inputs to ensure customers got what they wanted. However, it was unable to define or classify them and this means that customers were sometimes unable to get what they wanted yet the company had the potential of providing all the customer requirements. Therefore, the first stage involved defining or identifying the problem that customers were experiencing. This company managed to do this by introducing phones that contained the information about the services that clients wanted (Goldratt and Cox 2010). Guests were required to dial the numbers stored on the phones and hotel attendants would be on their doorsteps to serve them. The numbers were coded to represent various services. Secondly, the introduction of call logs enabled the company to track the efficiency of employees that handled specific tasks. The third stage involved the use of Pareto charts to analyze what employees could do within 15 minutes after receiving calls from clients. The fourth stage involved the introduction of improvement strategies that ensured clients got quality services from the company. This included improving how telephone operators handled requests from customers. In addition, it involved procedures that were used to determine the person to call when a client requests the services of this hotel (Krajewski, Ritzman and Malhotra 2012). Moreover, this organization faced serious challenges like engineering workloads, but it ensured that qualified people were assigned different roles in the control room to check technical issues that may affect communication between clients and employees. Lastly, it was necessary to establish effective ways of controlling and measuring the performance of the telephone system. This ensured that this service produced the expected results within the specified time. The services were monitored for 12-18 months and the managers were supposed to be given monthly reports to ensure the Sheraton Service Promise program improved the quality of services offered by this company. Costs of Process Performance and Quality The costs included service delivery, time, quality and products. There was the need for the new program to facilitate coordination among these aspects to help the company to achieve its targets. This was important in helping the company to offer its services properly and eliminate the chances of being unable to supply products that were available due to poor communication systems (Krajewski et al., 2012). Secondly, the company saved time because clients were introduced to mobile phones and how to use them to request for room services. The use of phones ensured that clients got what they wanted because these gadgets offered a list of the services and products offered by the company. Custome
Indeed, sushi is a symbol of cultural heritage since it is defined by all parameters linked to the Japanese people, ranging from religion to beliefs, geographical area, and personal attributes. The Japanese art of sushi is conservative and defines the feeding habits of the ancient Japanese. This art has remained inertia to the changing times and remains a symbol of Japanese cultural heritage. Raw food is not my favorite, especially when I think of the probability that I may suffer from foodborne illnesses. Raw fish is a hub for disease-causing pathogens like the Vibrio choleraeNon-O1 and especially for particular types of fish. I cannot even imagine eating raw fish since I am used to well-cooked and seasoned fish. In addition, I am a person who embraces variety, and the fact that sushi is predominantly made from fish, rice, and vegetables may turn out to be a boring experience for me. It is amazing how the Japanese incorporate their culture into their feeding habits. The samurai sword for example is an important legendary artefact that the Japanese use while cooking. The sushi is a healthy dish compared with the modern day diets. While the sushi is balanced, contains less saturated fat, and is minimally exposed to environmental contaminants, a majority of the modern diets are the opposite of this. Fish is an example of white meat, and in comparison to the red meat, it is very healthy because it contains essential fatty acids that are not available from any other source: the omega-3 and omega-6 fatty acids. This could be the reason why the Asian people and the Japanese are great inventors. The two essential fatty acids play a great role in brain development. Food Culture Interview The Vietnamese diet is characterized by herbs, and I love it. This gives food a less spicy taste, and it does not mean that the food is less delicious. Vietnamese diet is very appealing to the eyes due to its variety. I would really love to try this diet because it is commensurate with my preferences and taste. Symbolic meanings attached to food are important because they give individuals a kind of identity. In comparison to the modern American diet, the Vietnamese do not control their portion sizes while eating due to the sharing. Food is readily available and one eats without taking note of the portion sizes. In addition, a large section of the Vietnamese diet consists of fat and carbohydrates as opposed to the American diet that has been modified to include more of vegetables and fruits and less of fats and carbohydrates. This is important to reduce the incidence of non-communicable diseases and promote overall health. The manner in which the Vietnamese take their diets is beneficial to individuals because it entails creation of
Psychosocial health is defined as the ability to engage both the mental and social facets of a person’s life, and looking at these in terms of the effect they have on their emotional and mental growth. It is also referred to as the complete and stable state of physical and emotional wellbeing and is mainly experienced in young children who are still growing. This is because in their formative years, children pick out their virtues from the society, the people around them, their environment and what they are exposed to in their daily lives. These set the parameters between good and bad, and what norms are encouraged in the society and what they should pick from the society; hence they adopt the principles that help them grow through life. The mental state of people also stems from this stage, in that in general, people whose mental states are on form are able to handle issues however big with moderation. They look at situations around them from a positive perspective and this outlook in most cases gives them a relaxed mindset when they tackle the issues around them. These people, in most cases had real positive upbringing, their guardians took time to teach them what they knew about life hence are generally positive about things around them. Their relaxed and composed physique creates around them an attraction of people of almost all facets, and their social circle tends to be too big, as in they have very many friends and people that relate to them. The other group of personality that is different from the positive minded people is the unstable characters. They have a tendency to react negatively to the situations they are exposed to in life, and as such they act irrationally. Irrationality in thought and general judgment is evidence to poor psychosocial health, this is factored in the type of upbringing an individual had. These people tend to have confined or very limited social lives and are mostly wary about what other people think of them, majorly the negative aspect of their lives. Sometimes it is the experiences they go through that make them react this way, but it’s mostly rooted in their subconscious mind, and they can barely do anything about it. Our case study revolves around Mr. and Mrs. Carters family, the degree to which they nurture the virtues in which they raise their family of three children and the parent-children relationship in the home compared to their own lifestyles’, also in their formative years. This is in respect to the accepted standards of the preferred psychosocial health, which includes: Having a good feeling towards oneself, a feeling of easiness and contentment when with other people, the ability to have control over one’s emotions (In terms of tension and anxiety), keeping around an optimistic attitude about oneself, being grateful for the small things in life, setting goals and working towards achieving them fully and to admire and appreciate the beauty that nat
Introduction Daniel Dresner is one of the scholars who conducted a critical review on theories of international relations, including realism. The scholar notes in his works ‘ Theories of International Politics and Zombies’ that powerful states are always in search of effective ways of conquering enemies. He observes that the emergence of the Zombies would be the perfect solution to the problems facing powerful states. The scholar observes that Zombies are more dangerous as compared to Vampires and witches since they can eradicate humanity from the face of the earth. The emergence of Zombies threatens world security. Therefore, it calls for the attention of both state and non-state actors. Zombies are unstoppable since they have the capability to cross state borders. Therefore, Zombies can affect the governance structures of various states. In chapter eight, Dresner compares Zombies to other global problems facing states, such as climate change, political instabilities, and endemics. From the chapter, it is evident that the tenets of realism are brought out clearly. However, some aspects of the theory are not explored. This article aims at evaluating the views of Dresner as regards to realism. Strengths From a realist perspective, the state is the unit of analysis implying that other actors are not considered. The behavior of a state in the international system is influenced by the superpower. If there is change in polarity, the state tends to adjust its foreign policies to reflect the changes. In other words, this means that the international system is anarchical whereby the most powerful states will always use force to ensure compliance from weak states. In chapter eight, Dresner observes that unstable cooperation among states is always the order of the day in the international system. The scholar uses various movies to show that human beings rarely unite when faced with Zombies. In the same way, states are simply concerned about national interests. They will only intervene to solve a problem in the international system if their national interests are at stake. Furthermore, the scholar notes that the threat of Zombies may force individuals to form alliances. In the international system, realists believe that states form military alliances only to strengthen their military power but not to liberate other states. In chapter eight, the scholar observes that states form alliances but they do not commit themselves to the treaties formed. For instance, the meeting between Gorbachev and Ronald Reagan in 1985 was meant to solve common problems. The US president claimed that Russia had to form an alliance with the US because they were both faced with a common problem, which was terrorism. Terrorism is currently treated as a global problem affecting the stability of many states. Terrorism is an example of a Zombie because no state is spared. However, powerful states seek the assistance of weak states to enhance their national security. For instance, weak states such as Kenya, are adoptin