ShantanuT01/DACTYL-Pretraining huggingface dataset:
The Purpose and Major Issues of the Case Weight Watchers International Inc. is now one of the leaders in the market of services provided to people who want to lose and control their weight. The founder of the company stressed that “love, information, companionship, and commiseration of fellow overweight individuals were the key components… for the effective formula… to succeed at weight loss” (Dess et al. 202). The company is now facing significant competition and it is also experiencing a considerable growth. Therefore, there are cautions that the company may lose its culture and basic principles that have attracted so many customers. There are concerns that the company will be unable to effectively address challenges of the new competitive environment. Discussion of Recommendations Thus, the company has an effective website where customers can get a wide range of services including diet and activity plans, discussions and online meetings in support groups, online videos with sport activities and so on. The company has managed to increase the number of its male customers focusing on gender peculiarities (thus, men prefer self-support). However, it is also clear that the rate of male customers can be increased. It has been acknowledged that men prefer self-regulated programs and they are reluctant to participate in group meetings. Thus, it can be beneficial to focus on customization of plans for men. These plans should fit diverse preferences and lifestyles. Cultural background should also be taken into account irrespective of customer’s gender. It is clear that American overweight people come from different cultural backgrounds and it is important to customize diet and activity plans to these peculiarities. Menus should include traditional foods. Activity plans can include some activities that are popular among specific groups. This will help people change their lifestyles to healthier ones with minimum inconveniences. Clearly, this will lead to the increase in customers’ satisfaction and it will also attract more customers. The company’s revenues are growing due to effective marketing strategies. Locating the company’s logos on some products has proved to be effective. However, people (especially females) often prefer attending various sport facilities. Collaboration with these facilities can be beneficial as this will be another opportunity for customers to share experiences and get support from fellow overweight people. The company will also get profit form collaboration with facilities that will be eager to collaborate with a well-established brand. Of course, the company should keep the focus on the balance between plans and support as this turned out to be an effective formula which is still attracting many people. The online resources should involve online meetings, conferences and Weight Watchers should make the use of social networks more effective. Summary of Recommendations First, it can be beneficial to pay more attention to cultural diversity by including customized menus and lifestyles (involving some particular sports or activities typical of particular cultural groups), providing information in English, Sp
Monet’s wintry painting of a Paris Boulevard during a rainstorm has a calming effect on the audience, even though blues, greens, and grays are often almost depressing. The brush strokes give movement to the scene of a busy boulevard in the 19 th century when horse-drawn carriages were the only mode of transportation. Despite the inclement weather, no umbrellas are visible. The mood is reinforced by the strong brush strokes used on the sky and the artist’s intentional blurring at the edges and the trees. The painting is an oil on canvas, done against a bright pastel blue, green, and yellow background foundation, often called underpainting. It gives the work a glow as if the sunlight were penetrating the gloomy overcast. This glow from the underpainting breaks through in many places, almost like a backlight on the miniature scene. The combination gives the painting a look of stained glass without the bright colors. In addition, stained glass normally uses very simple shapes, while this painting blurs all the shapes so that none are quite distinct. The predominant colors in the painting are blue, green, brown, gray, and black. The hatching in the painting blurs the sky, the trees, and edges, giving the impression of rain on the “figurative” lens through which we see this street. The whole gives almost an impression of the view through a clear bottomed kaleidoscope filled with fuzzy rocks and branches, or perhaps viewed through a lens blurred with something like fog or petroleum jelly. The perspective in the painting is interesting, considering the viewpoint. We are looking down on a Paris boulevard where people are walking on a very wide promenade and horse-drawn carriages pass or are lined up parked along the edge of the boulevard. Little dabs of color give the impression of flowers or bright balloons. The moody sky appears to show either an approaching storm or one just passed. The canvas is partitioned into approximate thirds, with a triangle of the sky in the upper right corner and the land rising from left to right. The promenade appears to be a hill, though we are pretty certain it is not. The greenish buildings almost give the illusion of aged copper, with more ghosted into the distance. We get the impression that this is a Saturday or Sunday afternoon, as people gather in small groups or walk in pairs. We are being shown a tradition that continues even on days of inclement weather. It is a slice of the life of this city and a cameo into a distant past when life went at a slower pace. The time of year is either at the end of the fall season or early in the spring because the trees barely have any leaves. There is an impression of a small whirlwind done with the brush in the upper branches of the first trees. It makes one think of March, but the drabness hint of October. Monet laid the paint in delicately on top of the underpainting and the viewpoint and perspective give the viewer almost a god-like feeling as if we are peering down on this street scene. This seems to be the heart of Paris and yet, the city seems to go on forever as the artist simp
The French Revolution was a period of political and social instabilities in France, which lasted between 1789 and 1799 (although some historians include Napoleon’s rule in the timeline), and was partially planned and carried out by Napoleon in the course of the French Empire expansion. The timeline of the Revolution can be divided into four stages. The first stage (1788-1792) was characterized by a relatively peaceful and constitutional struggle to achieve societal change (Cole et al. 427). The elites started articulating their dissatisfaction with the monarchy, which had enforced taxation without representation, despotism, and arbitrary authority. The French elites started developing an Enlightenment-inspired program for changing and rejuvenating French society. It is noteworthy that the king accepted some of the offered reforms while others were enforced without his agreement. However, the peaceful and constitutional period did not last long. In 1792, the threat of dramatic changes occurring in European countries transformed into war, which consequently put an end to the Bourbon monarchy and laid a foundation for the beginning of the republic. The period between 1792 and 1794 was characterized by repressions and extreme societal and political crisis. The centralized government mobilized its powers and developed the policy of terror, which fought the foreign enemies as well as the French counter-revolutionaries. Nevertheless, the policy exhausted itself and collapsed in 1794 (Cole et al. 428). In the third stage (1794-1799), the government drifted. France remained a republic and continued its fight with Europe. Weakened by division and corruption, France became prey for Napoleon Bonaparte, an ambitious military leader whose rule marked the end of the revolution. The last period of the French revolution was characterized by Napoleon’s victories and catastrophes. The causes of the French Revolutions and the attempts to transform the society were vast. First, the society that was predominantly dominated by the elite social groups (aristocrats, officeholders, businessmen, etc.) was deeply inspired by the ideas of the Enlightenment and wanted to overthrow the monarchy. However, it is notable to mention that the Enlightenment did not cause the Revolution, although it significantly changed the public debate (Cole et al. 428). Ideas formulated by Locke, Montesquieu, and Voltaire appealed to both nobles and the middle class. In the countryside, peasants felt the pressure from the landlords, the state, and the church that forced them to pay both direct and indirect taxes. Overall, the social and economic environment of France significantly deteriorated before the revolution, so there was room for upper and middle classes to offer a new system of government that would allow the economy to grow without the enforcement of
Introduction Kaiser Permanente is the largest managed health care organizations in the United States and was started in 1945 by a businessman called Henry J Kaiser. His partner for the venture was a physician called Sydney Garfield. The organization has a large number of physicians, nurses and other medical and health related professional working under it apart from its general and administrative staff. The company also works in close association with a large number of health organizations belonging to both the private and public sector in its effort to provide affordable health care and health information to the public. It currently operates in nine states in the country.. Tasks and responsibilities of Service Unit Asst Dept Manager – RN This position is for a qualified nurse. The employee “Assists in managing a large unit or multiple units providing ambulatory services, Ensures staff provides high quality, accessible, cost effective care, and patient focused services to members across the continuum, which comply with local, state, and federal requirements. Implements and maintains clinical practice standards, budgets, and staff development”. (Job Summary, 2007). To qualify for the post, the person needs three years experience in an outpatient care unit. Clinical specialization and knowledge of Nurse Practice Act, The Joint Commission and other relevant statutes are an added qualification. Leadership skills, communication skills, ability to work with other departments, multi-tasking, delegation etc are other non-technical qualifications. Should also be able to develop others and ensure attendance and quality of work. Ensuring work safety for self and for subordinates is also essential. Should be able to work and collaborate mainly with physicians and also other relevant personnel in providing the highest quality of medical care. The candidate should also be able to design, implement and evaluate new patient care systems. Budget allocation and monitoring of the same is also required. A complete range of staffing functions is also a part of the responsibility. In this respect the candidate should be able to design a complete staffing system which includes processes for interview, hiring, training and replacement of subordinates. The candidate should also be able to implement the policies developed by the organizations and her department. Should also work as an spokesperson of patients and should see that all patient requirements and needs are met by the subordinates. The candidate should be familiar with the Principles of Responsibility (Kaiser Permanente’s Code of Conduct) and should see that they are practiced in the department. It can be seen that the job involves a lot of responsibilities and authority. These two factors are enough to motivate some types of persons. Apart from the company’s rewards and compensation mentioned elsewhere in this paper, there are activities which can motivate service minded people. The company promotes diversity in the work force. “Our members speak
Starbucks Corporation is an American coffee company situated in Washington. It was founded by three scholars at the University of San Francisco who had ambitions of selling high quality coffee beans and equipment (Simon, 2009). During that time the company provided only foodstuffs such as coffee and ready-made sandwiches. It was also involved in entertainment. As time went by the company widened its scope of operation and currently the company also offers beers, wines and appetizers. Apart from these, it is believed to be the largest coffee house in the world with branches and outlets in over 62 countries worldwide and an estimated employee population of about 150,000 people. It is also one of the major stakeholders of the World Cocoa Foundation (Gordon & Schultz, 2011). Starbucks Corporation has drawn much attention from economic investors and the worldwide business community due to its unique structure and expansion rate. The corporation has exhausted every avenue at its disposal related to the coffee industry to increase its revenue collection. The corporation has diversified its products to the entertainment sector as well as provision of wines and beers which is a sharp contrast to the mono product supplier it was years back (Schultz & Yang, 1997). It also offers incentives and perks to its clients enabling it to maximize on customer loyalty as well as expanding the market for its products. The corporation’s management is also designed in a way such that only individuals at the top must work hard to attain the overall success of the company. For instance, in the year 2007 when coffee sales went down, Jim Donald was asked to step down after only two years in office as the chief executive officer of the corporation (Behar, 2007). This has largely contributed to the rapid expansion of the corporation amidst tough financial times. Howard Schultz is one of the brains behind the success of Starbucks Corporation. He is the founder and current chairman and chief executive officer of the corporation. Schultz is an American businessman and writer. His superb managerial skills and entrepreneurial skills have earned him several recognition awards (Schultz & Yang, 1997). His key contribution was that he championed the advent of espresso coffee. It is this idea that introduced coffee restaurant business and which finally saw the founding management of Starbucks sell their retail unit to Howard Schultz. His determination in business and a keen interest also saw him ranked the 134 th richest person in the United States of America (Watts, 2008). Howard Schultz rose in rank until finally he took over as the chief executive officer in 2008 from being the marketing director. He was appointed chief executive officer when the corporation had started to realize a downward sales trend and his immediate task was to stabilize the sale and help increase returns under severe economic circumstances. Under his management, the Starbucks Corporation has expanded its scope of operation as far as Mexico, Japan, Turkey and Germany (Fiedler, 20
In her 1990 bestseller A Natural History of the Senses, poet Diane Ackerman applied a poetic treatment to a work of non-fiction, ostensibly the function of sensory input from the natural world and how it affects human beings as they move through the various stages of life. This essay examines the way in which Ackerman’s poetic voice and vision influence the ideas discussed in one section of the text entitled Synesthesia. Ackerman employs not only poetic language but the poet’s sensibility – specifically in her attention to sensory detail – to illustrate the idea of synesthesia or the blending of one or more senses into a new sensory experience. Critical response to Ackerman’s text has been mixed. Hayward Johnson raved that “after this book nothing will ever look quite the some again” and employed some of Ackerman’s own poetic style to describe the sensory examination therein: “if you cover your nose and try to stop smelling, you will die. Etymologically speaking, a breath is not neutral or bland – it’s cooked air, we live in a constant simmering. There is a furnace in our cells, and when we breathe, we pass the world through our bodies, brew it lightly, and turn it loose again, gently altered for having known us” (Johnson 59). Critic R.H.W. Dillard has described Ackerman’s work in A Natural History of the Senses and Synesthesia as “a history of her extraordinary enthusiasms,” one that continues in the vein of the poet’s “effort to draw scientific and poetic curiosity (and understanding) together into a unified field of electric language” (Dillard n.p.). Dillard understands the work to “explore in depth and with intensity the full extent of the subject – its history, its detailed ins and outs, its poetry, and ultimately its meaning” (Dillard n.p.). Of Ackerman’s literary process, Dillard writes Ackerman is “a prodigious explorer of the world, if by “world” we mean, as she puts it, “the full sum of Creation.” Her poetry is distinctive in finding its source in that same enthusiastic energy; she explores the world, inner and outer, with a scientist’s poetic eye, recognizing, as the chaos scientist Mitchell Feigenbaum put it, that ‘art is a theory about the way the world looks to human beings’” (Dillard n.p.). Dillard rightly places Ackerman’s work in the scientific context and comprehends the experiment that Ackerman’s has undertaken in Synesthesia . Critic Mark Doty meanwhile likens A Natural History of the Senses to a failed zoological experiment, the attempt by a talented poet to go beyond the boundaries of creative writing and poetry and offer the same way of seeing to a scientific topic of inquiry (Dory 264). In his analysis of Ackerman’s work, entitled Horseha
Post Traumatic Stress Disorder is a common type of anxiety disorder. This disorder occurs after an individual has experienced a traumatizing event that may lead to death or serious injury (Yehuda, 2002). Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) may occur to any individual irrespective of age or gender. For instance, if a person witnessed or is part of terrible events such as domestic abuse, rape, war, assault, prison stay, terrorism, fire, and floods, he or she may undergo PTSD. There was limited research undertaken on PSTD before the advent 1980s (Yehuda, 2002). In 1980, the American Psychiatric Association recognized this disorder officially. Currently, advancements are being made on the strategies that can be employed to counter this disorder (Yehuda, 2002). This paper will examine the definition, characteristics, and available forms of treatments for post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). There are myriads of definitions of abnormal behavior. For in-depth understanding of the background of PTSD is, this paper will adopt a specific definition of abnormality that relates to the disorder itself. In this paper, abnormality has been explored in terms of personal distress. In this case, abnormality has been viewed in terms of personal subjective feelings and distresses (Meyer, Chapman & Weaver, 2009). Therefore, an abnormal person from this point of view is an individual who feels anxious, miserable, and depressed. PTSD can therefore be termed as an abnormality since an individual affected by the condition exhibits at least one of the symptoms used in defining abnormality (Meyer, Chapman & Weaver, 2009). This form of abnormality takes away an individual’s character and his/her dignity. The significant characteristics of PTSD is the consistent repeated visualization of an event once witnessed, avoiding situations that might lead to remembering the event and hyperarousal (Yehuda, 2002). These symptoms vary among different individuals with varied experiences. In some people, these symptoms often emerge during the first three months from the day of trauma while in others; it might take a long period. Even though there are variations in the PTSD cases among different individuals, the characteristics of this disorder are the same in most cases since the features of the disorder may be typically categorized into three groups as expounded earlier (Yehuda, 2002). Any form of a traumatizing event will usually affect the daily activities of the victim. In this case, the individual may experience repeated nightmares, flashbacks, upsetting memories, and sometimes a very strong reaction towards an event. The latter may act as a reminder of the traumatic event that the affected person went through (Yehuda, 2002). The avoidance characteristics of a PTSD victim include the development of emotional behavioral characteristics, lack of hope for the future, tendencies of avoiding p
Since Ahmed, Sarah, and Khaled want to establish a limited partnership company (LPC), they need to know the applicable law that can govern their activity. According to Article 1, any company emerges when two or more persons decide to participate in an enterprise for profit (Companies’ Law, n.d.). An LPC implies that two types of partners should be present. The joint partners are Ahmed and Sarah, and they are responsible for their “entire funds for the partnership debts,” while Khaled is a dormant partner, meaning that his share determines his level of responsibility (Companies’ Law, n.d., p. 16). Since more than one joint partner is present, formation, operation, and termination rules are the same as those for a general partnership. In particular, it is reasonable to comment on the specific rules. Articles 21 and 22 stipulate that, within 30 days of its formation, the partnership’s directors should publish a summary of its contract, highlighting the general information of the company, partners’ data, partnership’s capital, and others (Companies’ Law, n.d.). Simultaneously, Articles 27-34 denote that management practices can depend on whether the partners appoint directors and stipulate their responsibilities (Companies’ Law, n.d.). For example, if management regulations are not specified, each partner is entitled to manage the partnership alone, while the others have the right to object to such management decisions as per Article 28 (Companies’ Law, n.d.). Termination rules are found in Article 35 explaining that a partnership typically ends “by the death, quarantine, declaration of bankruptcy or insolvency of one of the partners, or by the withdrawal of any partner from the partnership” (Companies’ Law, n.d., p. 15). However, the contract can stipulate that the partnership keeps existing after any of the events above has occurred. Since it has been mentioned that not all the partners are equal, it is rational to comment on their shares in the company’s profits and losses. Since Ahmed and Sarah contribute equal shares of cash, they are entirely responsible for the partnership’s losses and gains. However, Khaled contributes to his employment, and Article 7 stipulates that an agreement can release such a partner from sharing losses provided that no remuneration is given to him (Companies’ Law, n.d.). Consequently, a contract between the partners can determine their liabilities in the company’s profits and losses. If the friends want to establish a Joint Venture, they should be acquainted with additional rules. Even though the Companies’ Law (n.d.) stipulates some regulations regarding how general or limited partnerships should be named, such restrictions are absent for Joint Ventures. Simultaneously, Article 14 reveals that a Joint Venture is the only company type that does not require establishing its headquarters in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (Companies’ Law, n.d.). This company type implies the least number of organizational restrictions. Finally, establishing an unlimited liability company (ULC) is also an option, but the friends should unde