Infomatics Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Infomatics - Essay Example Caregiver, educator, and advocacy roles of a nurse identify need for computer competency towards knowledge development. As a caregiver and an educator, a nurse must develop knowledge that can then be conveyed to the audience for intended purposes and computer applications such as online searches from databases and libraries and communication applications aid these. Caregiver role requires greater competence for applications such as evidence-based research and evidence-based practice that the dynamic nursing environment necessitates. Competence into computer-based applications for data collection, analysis, and interpretation are necessary (McGonigle & Mastrian, 2011) and are my areas of weakness. Undergraduate and graduate students are competent in basic computer skills and have positive attitude towards informatics but parity in competencies between the two levels suggests need better skills at the higher levels (Choi & Martins, 2013) that can be inferred to needs at longer experien ce as mine. Nursing informatics competency is also necessary for improving effectiveness of self-care and for developing strategies for better self-care approaches (Knight & Shea, 2014), and this identifies need for improving my competency level. Use of research software for the application is the greatest weakness. Some software use commands for customization of worksheets to accommodate specific data sets, such as creation of headings for data sets. This remains my challenge and without it, input data lack meaning, and may rely on memory for an understanding. Similarly, specific commands or steps for executing in-built commands are necessary for conducting data analysis using statistical software and I lack the required competence. Results from my PATCH assessment identify my ability to realize the needs through learning to use computer and associated applications. My confidence in learning computer use for professional and creativity tasks, and my

The existence of God Essay Example for Free

The existence of God Essay One of life’s unanswered questions is about the existence of God. There has been an endless search for evidence of his life and handiwork. The dawn of the universe for instance, has been subjected to many theories like the big bang theory and the divine theory but no matter what people believe in one thing is for sure; there has been and always will be a search as evidenced by the following: One question which inevitably comes up in a discussion of this nature is what the origin of God is? If God created matter/energy and designed the systems that have propelled matter into its present arrangement, who or what accomplished that for God? Why is it any more reasonable to believe that God has always been than it is to say that matter has always been? As Carl Sagan has said, â€Å"If we say that God has always been, why not save a step and conclude that the universe has always been? (Sagan cited in Clayton 2008). Throughout the ages, mankind has always been in search of a being far greater that himself. Some of the ways in which this search is manifested is through different religions, through science and through nature. Man has always been craving to identify himself with a greater being to which he deeply wants to have a connection with. This paper aims to let those people know that they are not alone in their venture and that no matter what happens man will always find a way to bond with their origin. Man can do things or go to high or peaceful places to try and feel the security of being closer to God or any great being for that matter. Some people give so much respect to nature because they feel that it is an extension or an outward manifestation of the evidence of that God or greater being that they hold on to so much. Some people like to discover the mystery of astronomy and the universe is because of the experience of tranquility and serenity. Four hundred years ago, Galileo looked at the heavens through a telescope and saw things no one had ever seen before. Our new star show uses the amazing Zeiss Universarium star projector to reveal the beauty and wonder of the night sky. Most of us still see the sky today as our ancestors did with our unaided eyes. From Earth, its hard to understand why the sky looks and behaves the way it does. But Galileos historic observations, and the era of modern science they ignited, changed all that. From Los Angeles today, well take you back to Padua, Italy in 1609, so you can experience for yourself how the telescope changed everything (griffithobs. org 2009). There is such a place with an observatory and hotel which is built exactly for reconnection with people, with nature and with God. This place exists to meet not only the daily accommodation needs of the people but more importantly to aid in mankind’s continuous mission to find a way to be one step closer to that greater being be it God or not. Truly, the wonders and mysteries of the whole universe will forever be locked in Pandora ’s Box with man always guessing the whole of its contents armed with a little bit of knowledge and a whole lot of faith. Why such little knowledge despite the modernized technology? It is because no matter how advanced science the world of today has, no one has ever fully explored the ends of the universe nor anybody can prove or disprove the existence of God. Whether he is a figment of one’s imagination or he is an ever-faithful, omnipresent, omnipotent and omnicient God who is watching over the earth will forever be mystery of the mind and of substantial evidence but not of the heart and soul. As Albert Einstein once said â€Å"There are two ways to live your life, one is as though nothing is a miracle, the other is as though everything is a miracle† . References Clayton. J. N. , (2008). Who Created God?. Does God Exist. Retrieved 04 / 01/09 from www. doesgodexist. org/Pamphlets/WhoCreatedGod. html www. griffithobs. org/ 2009

Do new technologies of surveillance encourage self regulation :: essays research papers

2. Do new technologies of surveillance encourage self-regulation? Discuss A fundamental dimension of modernity is the emergence of coordinated administrative power. The nation state is the prime site if such power but is also a part of modern organisations in general. Administrative power is based upon the control of information. Administrative power is enforced through surveillance where information is routinely used to monitor the activities of a subject population. No less than capitalism or industrialism, surveillance is a tool in levering the modern social world further away from traditional modes of socialisation. Over the last twenty years the progress in the technologies which handle information have appeared very dramatic and has therefore posed a threat to information privacy. Analysis of this progress reveals that this progress is not in terms of new technologies being invented but those technologies already known have increased dramatically in their power while also falling dramatically in their prices. This has happened to such a degree that the market penetration could only have been dreamed about by the most optimistic of market analysts a decade ago. The countries that are predominately concerned are those of the developed first world but as a result of the tremendous market penetration of these products their prices have now fallen to such a level that it cannot be long before the technology spreads progressively through the developed world also. From the moment we leave the privacy of our own homes we are almost under constant surveillance by cameras. Closed circuit television (C.C.T.V) are deployed and monitored in town centres, shopping centres, railways and tube networks. Traffic cameras monitor car speeds and drivers compliance with red lights. Leisure centres, hospitals and universities are increasingly under the spotlight. A combination of modern video, powerful computers and telecommunication systems are capable of turning our cities into electronic grids which allow information which includes images to be passed around a multiplicity of social actors who are separated in the forms of time and space. The direct supervision of the subject population no longer requires the physical presence of an observer and images can be lifted out at any required time with authoritative interventions made at some future time and place. Since the installation of Britain’s first street based closed circuit television system in Bournemouth initiated by vandalism on the seafront the local council and police decided to install eight C.C.T.V cameras. Sixteen years later there are now 203 cameras situated around the town centre, beaches and car parks.

Service Learning And Integration Within Community Education Essay

The impression â€Å" community † is interpreted as the extent at which pupil instructors would travel in lending their services to the community. Service acquisition is an integrating of academic survey with community. It means pupils can use what they have learned during service larning to their academic life. Group Endeavours in Service Learning ( GESL ) was made compulsory to all freshers in an attempt to advance service larning in National Institute of Education ( NIE ) . Student instructors are indiscriminately grouped together to organize a squad and are led by an assigned coach. They so meet up on a regular basis to be after an event for a non-profit organisation of their pick. Point to observe that Service learning/GESL defers from community service. Community service involves voluntary work for the community. GESL on the other manus, is a mandatory group attempt to supply service through acquisition, reflecting and learning the community. Therefore, GESL can be reall y good for pupil instructors as they are able to lend back to the community. Unfortunately, I find that clip is a factor when be aftering an event. It farther adds on to the work load a pupil instructor already has. Therefore, does making a good cause seems like a load to student instructors now? If NIE makes GESL non-compulsory, would student instructors still take up this service larning on their ain or as a group? Student instructors have to take a stance for themselves as to whether GESL is good or merely a waste of clip. As supported by ( Butin, 2005 ) , a pupil can non stay impersonal when prosecuting in service acquisition as that would place oneself in a immune individuality. In this state of affairs, we tend to oppugn the effectivity of service acquisition in impacting a pupil ‘s academic life. Since GESL completion is necessarily required within a twelvemonth, a pupil instructors ‘ part may look nonvoluntary. Furthermore, GESL has no recognition unit awarded after its completion. In this paper, I sought to find whether the chief aim of service acquisition is lost through the procedure. In add-on, I will besides happen out factors that hinder a pupil ‘s engagement in GESL. Hence, if there is no accent on GESL, would student instructors volunteer for service larning throughout their academic life in NIE? This inquiry will be examined farther in this paper.Methods and MethodologyA questionnaire was designed to happen out the impact of service acquisition ( GESL ) on first twelvemonth undergraduates at National Institute of Education ( NIE ) . The mark sample comprises 10 Bachelor of Humanistic disciplines pupils majoring in different academic topics. GESL was introduced to all freshers in NIE and hence first twelvemonth pupils were chosen for this study. The study was conducted through a face-to-face meet up session and participants were required to finish a questionnaire signifier on the topographic point. Students were surveyed on their willingness, unde rstanding and outlook of GESL. Five inquiries were included in the questionnaire. The first inquiry asked pupils whether they knew the difference between service acquisition and community service. A â€Å" yes † and â€Å" no † options were given to them. The responses from this inquiry will reflect pupils ‘ apprehension of these two services. A misunderstanding could be a conducive factor to GESL being involuntarily completed. In the 2nd inquiry, pupils were required to take one out of four options given. The inquiry asked them on what they expect to derive from GESL. The four options were â€Å" Experience/Satisfaction † , â€Å" Academic Credits † , â€Å" Certificate † and â€Å" Good repute ( Example, for sketch ) † . Additionally, a 5th open-ended option was made available for them to stipulate any relevant reply. This inquiry was intended to happen out the intent or benefit that a pupil expects from GESL. Collated consequences for this inquiry were compared with the chief aim of service larning to reflect a consistence throughout the procedure. The 3rd inquiry asked pupils whether they would desire GESL to be made non-compulsory. A â€Å" yes † and â€Å" no † options were given to them. This inquiry was chosen to back up the forth inquiry that asked pupil instructors on how long they are willing to perpetrate to GESL. The forth inquiry had four options and they were â€Å" one twenty-four hours † , â€Å" one hebdomad † , â€Å" one month † and â€Å" one twelvemonth † . Students ‘ acuteness in lending their services will be determined by both inquiry three and four. Last, the fifth and the 6th inquiry were open-ended inquiries. Student instructors were asked â€Å" what they enjoyed most about GESL † and â€Å" what they enjoyed least about GESL † in inquiry 5 and 6 severally. Both inquiries aimed at happening out what pupil instructors gained from GESL and what are the possible factors that hinders them during the procedure.Findingss and DiscussionThe per centum of pupils ‘ responses to oppugn 1 is shown in Table 1. It can be seen that 70 % answered â€Å" yes † and 30 % answered â€Å" no † to this inquiry. The high per centum of â€Å" yes † is perchance due to the changeless briefings and negotiations on GESL by NIE, which has enabled pupils to better understand the differences between these two services. However, the little per centum of 30 % indicates that there are pupils who still misinterpreted service larning to be similar to community service. Even though there are a high per centum of pupils who knew the differences, so to what widen do they cognize about GESL? The fact that GESL has to be completed within a twelvemonth, pupils might desire to merely acquire it over and done with. This is supported by ( Clark & A ; Young, 2005 ) who states that service larning without deep reliable battle would merely be a normal field trip for pupils. ( Clark & A ; Young, 2005 ) besides highlighted the limited position or apprehension of service acquisition: â€Å" When viewed as merely assisting those â€Å" less fortunate, † pupils may neglect to see the function that their ain privilege dramas in the kineticss of power † ( p. 72 ) The manner pupils view service-learning will as such determine what they do with it and how they do it. Students with equal cognition on service acquisition would be able to hold a deeper apprehension and grasp for GESL as compared to pupils with minimum position of it. Therefore a pupil ‘s intent and aim were non wholly lost during the procedure but it was non even established at the start. In Table 2, it shows the responses from pupils on what they expect to derive from GESL. A high per centum chose â€Å" experience/satisfaction † , followed by â€Å" academic credits † and â€Å" good repute † . Indeed experience and satisfactions are one of the expected results of GESL. This is supported by ( Group Endeavours in Service Learning, 2005 ) which quotation mark: â€Å" GESL is an experiential acquisition experience for trainees to get and develop accomplishments in undertaking direction, self- and team-development, and community service. † Table 2 besides shows that 30 % of pupil expects to derive academic credits from GESL. Unfortunately, GESL is mandatory and has no recognition units awarded after its completion which make pupils experience burdened. With mention to inquiry 6, the same 30 % of pupils who expect to derive academic credits from GESL provinces that what they enjoyed least about GESL is it being very clip devouring. Hence, we can see that this 30 % wants their clip to be rewarded alternatively of interchanging it for valuable experiences. Surprisingly, the same 30 % of pupils ‘ responses to oppugn 5 was non consistent with inquiry 2. They expected to derive academic credits but alternatively what they enjoyed most about GESL was the â€Å" ability to run into new friends † and â€Å" meaningful experiences † . Therefore, this shows that to appreciate service larning better, one has to travel through the fuss of planning and forming foremost. They would so be able to harvest the priceless wagess from this undertaking. Ultimately, the pupils did interchange their clip with meaningful experiences. Next, the pupils were asked on whether they want GESL to be made non-compulsory. As seen in table 3, 60 % of the pupil answered â€Å" yes † and staying 40 % answered â€Å" no † . The difference between the per centums is instead little, which mean there are pupils who still want GESL to be made compulsory. Why do pupils desire GESL to be made compulsory? The ground could perchance be them seeking to avoid the incommodiousness of registering for GESL on their ain. They do non mind assisting out but it is non something they are passionate about. This is supported by ( Jones, Gilbride-Brown, & A ; Gasiorski, 2005 ) : â€Å" Like volunteering for a specific organisation when ( pupils in his leading and service bookmans plan ) in general merely like assisting out and volunteering, non because they want to endeavor to rectify a societal job, merely because they like assisting out. † ( p. 15 ) However, the high per centum showed that GESL should be non-compulsory, but would student instructors still contribute their service to the community? GESL has a undertaking life of one academic twelvemonth. With mention to postpone 4, merely 20 % are willing to perpetrate to serve larning for one twelvemonth. A figure of 20 % is exceptionally low. On the contrary, 40 % of the pupils are more willing to make service larning for one twenty-four hours, which defeats the intent of GESL. Furthermore, the aims of GESL can non be accomplished in one twenty-four hours or one hebdomad. Due to the deficiency of pupils ‘ engagement for the past few old ages, NIE had to do GESL compulsory for all freshers. As for the twelvemonth 2011, doing GESL compulsory will merely ensue in nonvoluntary part but higher engagement rate compared to old old ages. Therefore, doing GESL non-compulsory will merely take to similar tendency that happened in the yesteryear ; lower engagement rate. Students would instead prioritise on their academic faculty alternatively of GESL.DecisionTo reason, I looked into possible factors that are impeding pupil instructors during GESL and how this minimizes the impact of service larning on them. Through the study consequences, I was assured that clip was decidedly the chief factor refering pupils. From experience, it was hard to hold on a common timeslot for a meeting as everyone had different academic timetables. Hence, alternatively of sing GESL as a good undertaking, pupils find GESL to be really clip consuming. A pupil who engage in GESL with a mentality that planning and organizing is merely a waste of clip ; GESL will so be that manner. Therefore, it is of import to re-iterate the importance of holding a constructive position of GESL before being involved. Another lending factor was the rejection pupils received from the non-profit organisations themselves. What is surprising here is that pupils want to supply their services but these organisations were non acute in accepting their proposals due to certain restraints. On a whole, with all these factors impeding them, would pupils still volunteer for service larning throughout their academic life? From my position, they will take part in service acquisition, provided NIE do alterations to GESL so that pupils view it more positively. As suggested by ( Clark & A ; Young, 2005 ) : â€Å" Devoid of any brooding activities that require pupils to link their experiences in service sites to their schoolroom work, service-learning becomes, at best, volunteerism and at worst, simply the logging of hours toward a community service graduation requirement. † ( pg. 72 ) Normally, after the completion of GESL, pupils had to finish a simple self-reflection signifier. NIE should supply a deeper reflective activity whereby pupils can use their experiences to their academic work. This is supported by ( Torres, n.d ) that province, â€Å" Without contemplation, pupils merely describe on experiences alternatively of analyzing what they do impact themselves and those they serve. † ( p. 3 ) In this manner, GESL will non be perceived as merely a waste of clip but a undertaking that is relevant and impactful to their academic life. GESL could so be promoted as a instruction method that bonds both theoretical cognition and educational experiences together. Since some factors are inevitable, it is still of import to guarantee that pupil instructors ‘ service larning journey is a smooth and meaningful 1. As future instructors, it would be much easier for them to promote their pupils to follow suit when they themselves understood and experienced how informative service acquisition can be. Furthermore, service acquisition can be promoted as a pedagogical tool when they venture out to learn in the hereafter.

Analysis of the Cultural Framework of Norway

All human beings are affixed to some form of cultural system which dictates the way they do things and how they relate to one another (Tavanti 106). These unwritten norms, beliefs and values are affixed firmly to a cultural framework which is a blue print that enables them to be expressed. Each community has got its own cultural framework which binds people who share a lot in common e. g. a nationality and live within a distinct boundary like for example a country. In instances where the country has a large geographical area or has a mixture of distinct races there could be an existence of more than one cultural framework. An example of a country like this is the United States which has got two distinct races: black and white existing side by side although each race has got its own cultural framework. No country in the world exists without its own unique national culture. This paper will attempt to examine the cultural framework of Norway using findings from a study carried out by renowned professor Geert Hofstede who has studied the cultural frameworks of various countries and communities in the world at large overtime. Hofstede studied the cultural framework of Norway and came up with five dimensions. These are Power Distance Index, Individualism, Masculinity, Uncertainty Avoidance Index, Long-Term Orientation (Hofstede). Hofstede describes masculinity as the opposite of femininity and in culture it refers to the roles that the males carry out as compared to the females in a community. This dimension by Hofstede shows what it means to be male or female in any community. Holland, Blair & Sheldon argue that in most of the western countries, masculinity is hegemonic while femininity is emphasized (Holland, Blair & Sheldon 7). The characteristics exhibited by masculine members of society are power, authority, competence on technical matters etc while feminine members of society are tied down more to fulfilling the desires of their masculine counterparts (Holland, Blair & Sheldon 7). Hofstede’ scale places Norway’s masculinity index low at around 5%. This is low compared to many countries e. g. Germany where the masculinity scale is 65 percent. This shows that compared to other countries the difference between the values of the males and females of the country is not very large and both of them are treated with almost an equal status. For instance in a country with a low masculinity index like Norway both the men and women can do similar jobs without people raising their eyebrows like babysitting or cooking. The girls are also educated to the same level as boys and the number of boys and girls who graduate from university are almost similar. The similarity though is that most of the females in the world are concerned with how they look while males are measured according to their achievements. Individualism refers to the degree to which members of a society operate as single sovereign entities and are treated as such. Hofstede adds that it is the opposite of collectivism where individuals live as a community. Or groups e. g. extended families that consist of several relatives e. g. grandfathers, uncles, in-laws, aunts etc. in the individualism index provided by Hofstede places the country at 62%. This shows that most of the people in Norway are used to living and being treated as individuals rather than a collection where people think on their own and pursue their dreams as individuals. Countries with high individualism scores like the United States are also the ones with the highest economic strengths. On the issue of individualism Ponderator argues that the advantages of living in a country with a high individualism index are the treatment of all people with equality, freedom and independence (Ponderator 23). Furthermore individualists are considered to be high achievers and are very competitive as compared to collectivists who work as a group as this slows down the progress of the group as whole. However with individualism cohesion between people of an individualistic country tends to loosen with time and families are the ones that are affected mostly. For instance high divorce rates exist in most of the western countries. Power distance index refers to the division of wealth and power between the members of a population of a country. Hofstede says that it also shows how unequal the societies of the world are in terms of wealth and power distribution and the fact that the people without power have come to accept that power and wealth distribution is indeed unequal. His findings place Norway’s power distance index at 25% which is relatively low compared to most of the countries. According to Moij, a low power distance index represents a society that has its people operating on almost the same economic levels as the governments try to focus on providing equal opportunities and rights to its citizens (Moij, 83). He further gives illustrations like for instance in high power distance index economies people attempt to dress as nicely as possible in that you can know the economic strength of people from their outfits. On the contrary in low power distance index economies people do not care too much on what they wear as they are the same. He also adds that a low power distance index country like Norway is as a result of high levels of education within its population. Moij defines uncertainty avoidance as the level of fear of uncertain occurrences happening to them through their instincts and the steps that they take to avoid these unplanned occurrences (Moij, 83). The results shown on Hofstede’s index show Norway’s uncertainty avoidance index at 45% which is just below the centre mark. Moij further adds on that countries with low uncertainty avoidance index are more open to change and innovation. They also do not seem to care much about the quality of food that they eat e. g. it is uncommon t find people insisting to drink mineral water when piped water is clean. They also do not care too much about their physical appearances and are less emotional and more tolerant (83). The fifth dimension is an addition to the first four and was part of Hofstede’s plan to find out the difference in thinking between the people who live in western countries and those who live in the east. This was after it was discovered that the east is developing rapidly in terms of business and economy and no information was available originally to explain the success of some countries from the east in innovations, business etc (Moij, 84) Norway’s long-term orientation is placed at a low of 20% which in essence means it is a short term orientation country. Characteristics of the population of Norway with respect to their orientation could be they respect their culture, appreciate presents and give back, protection of personal reputations etc. Conclusion The 5 cultural dimensions outlined by Professor Geerte Hofstede gave a good framework for studying the difference in cultures in the world. It shows why people uphold certain beliefs and even passing them through generations. This paper has evaluated a case study of Norway which is in Europe while at the same time comparing it with other countries to show the difference in cultures.

Free Essays on Generation M

Generation M gathered from all over the Bay, Muslims and non Muslims to come out and enjoy their successful event. September 20, 2003 at UC Berkeley, in the Wheelers hall from 2 till 10 pm, speakers, and Islamic music along with short comedy skits and much more gave life to the auditorium. A lot of speakers inspired the young hearts of many that were there. Some of the famous speakers came out to the generation M such as, Imam Zaid Shakir, Dr. Sapphire Ahmed, Amir Abdul Malik, Ustadh Suhaib Webb, Ali Shayan and many more. Some of the artists were Kumasi, Aman brothers, and Napoleon from the Outlawz. They were all here to talk about the topic, Muslim Youth vanguard of the Islamic Revival. As everyone got settled down, Abdul Rahman, one of the members of the Muslim Student Association started reading some versus from the Holy book Quran, and telling everyone about their meanings. Along with it another member talked about some Hadiths which are some true stories of the Prophets and the sahabas. As us youth tend to get very sleepy and start to lose our attention to the main thing, the Mc Rima Choudry decided to get them awake. She announced that the Aman brothers were going to sing their song all around the world live. When the music artists got up on the stage, they got all the youth wide awake. They filled the air with music and people hollering and cheering them on. There was nothing like an inspirational music to get the youth back to paying attention. It was the speakers turn to enlighten the youth with some knowledge. Each of them had a true story to tell and a word of wisdom to spread. Some of the speakers talked about how their lives were changed just by believing in Allah. Many of them gave examples of such like when Dr. Sapphire Ahmed, a doctor from New York was in her clinic waiting for the arrival of her patient, a woman or should we say a man walked in. She noticed the name of her patient and was surprised to... Free Essays on Generation M Free Essays on Generation M Generation M gathered from all over the Bay, Muslims and non Muslims to come out and enjoy their successful event. September 20, 2003 at UC Berkeley, in the Wheelers hall from 2 till 10 pm, speakers, and Islamic music along with short comedy skits and much more gave life to the auditorium. A lot of speakers inspired the young hearts of many that were there. Some of the famous speakers came out to the generation M such as, Imam Zaid Shakir, Dr. Sapphire Ahmed, Amir Abdul Malik, Ustadh Suhaib Webb, Ali Shayan and many more. Some of the artists were Kumasi, Aman brothers, and Napoleon from the Outlawz. They were all here to talk about the topic, Muslim Youth vanguard of the Islamic Revival. As everyone got settled down, Abdul Rahman, one of the members of the Muslim Student Association started reading some versus from the Holy book Quran, and telling everyone about their meanings. Along with it another member talked about some Hadiths which are some true stories of the Prophets and the sahabas. As us youth tend to get very sleepy and start to lose our attention to the main thing, the Mc Rima Choudry decided to get them awake. She announced that the Aman brothers were going to sing their song all around the world live. When the music artists got up on the stage, they got all the youth wide awake. They filled the air with music and people hollering and cheering them on. There was nothing like an inspirational music to get the youth back to paying attention. It was the speakers turn to enlighten the youth with some knowledge. Each of them had a true story to tell and a word of wisdom to spread. Some of the speakers talked about how their lives were changed just by believing in Allah. Many of them gave examples of such like when Dr. Sapphire Ahmed, a doctor from New York was in her clinic waiting for the arrival of her patient, a woman or should we say a man walked in. She noticed the name of her patient and was surprised to...

The Electromagnetic Spectrum

The Electromagnetic Spectrum There are certain components that make the world around a better habitation and beautiful for human beings. One of such components is the light, which enables us to see each other, and it ensures a harmonious coexistence between human beings. It is unimaginable of living in a world devoid of light; such a thing would make survival very hard.Advertising We will write a custom research paper sample on The Electromagnetic Spectrum specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More This report will look into the various types of instruments used to display light, and how they separate light into various components and how those components may be used in diverse ways of making the human survival on planet earth better. The first instrument in the separation of light, which require discussion, is the electromagnetic spectrum. The invention of this instrument that of late has been integrated into other devices meant a lot in the study of light as well as in a stronomy. The electromagnetic spectrum was first made from a prism, which separated white lights into different lights that were of different colors. The different colors came about because the natural light otherwise known as the white light made up different kinds of rays that travel at different wavelength. Though the electromagnetic spectrum did not indicate various wavelengths in which the light photons travelled at, it separated the light into various rays (Browning 39). The other instrument is the spectrometer that is one of the instruments used frequently in matters to do with separation of lights. It is notable that the natural light or the white light has various components that are important for people to be aware. These components of light are the infrared, the ultra violet rays and gamma rays. These components of light differentiated according to their wavelengths in order to distinguish them. One of the tools used in the separation of lights is the spectrometer and it separates the natural light into the diverse wavelength contained therein (Browning 44). The spectrometer is therefore an instrument that measures light by taking into consideration its wavelength. The spectrometer indicates the wavelength of the particular ray. It contains an electromagnetic spectrum, which separates different types of rays contained in a given white light directed to the spectrometer to measure the wavelength of that ray.Advertising Looking for research paper on natural sciences? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More This is because various rays mentioned above that is the infrared, the gammas rays the ultraviolet rays all travel in different wavelengths. The spectrometer indicated the length of the wave that is visible. This made it easier for the wave classification on whether it was for the gamma rays, X rays, the infrared or the ultra violet rays (Browning 54). The other type of device used in the se paration of lights is the spectroscope made using prisms, which has different levels of diffraction to diffract different types of rays on different wavelengths. The modern spectroscopes are modified with the integrated technology, that is different instruments placed in one device such that one device can perform various functions previously done by different kinds of instruments (Faust and Sternberg 67). The spectroscope therefore is a combination of electromagnetic spectrum, which is for diffracting different components of light and a photo detector to detect the light waves. Other than separating light into various components, the spectroscope detects the elements from which the light came from. Robert Bunsen and Gustav Robert put this method in place by explaining that when a particular element receives heat until it produces light is characterized by nature of that element. This means that each element has its own atomic components that are different from that of other element s. When that element is heated, it produces light whose wavelength and color is different from that of other elements (Jay 45). The other closely related instrument is the spectrograph that record spectrum of astronomic once it is obtained so that analysis can be done. This instrument was invented because of advancement in the field of photography. The advancement in photographic films, such that the films had effects of the other forms of light such as the infrared, the X-rays, the ultra violet rays meant that various waves of the lights could be captured and recorded on the film. The spectrograph therefore is a device combining the integrated technology of the spectroscope and the photographic film for recording and detecting various wavelengths emitted by different elements whose light the spectrograph can detect. The modern spectrograph separates the wave of a particular ray into frequency wavelengths that are visible. The recent spectrographs make it possible to view the detect ed ray on a computer thus making it easier to classify the type of light that the wave is from and the kind of element, which has produced such kind of light. The recording of these lights have also led to the discovery of paint pigments as well as new elements not known before (James 25).Advertising We will write a custom research paper sample on The Electromagnetic Spectrum specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More The other instrument is the beam splitter, which is a device that splits natural light into two. It is a rectangular instrument with two prisms joined together. The beam splitter can also be made of a glass with one side covered with half silver. Depending on the kind of covers used, the beam splitter splits the light into different wavelengths visible to the human eye. Telescope is another device that is relevant to separation of lights, though its basic use is that of observation of remote objects or long distance objects it ma kes use of the principle of separation of lights to detect the space objects to such as the stars. The telescope combines and separates the rays emitted by the object. It then focuses on that particular ray and the path from which it has come from. That means that telescope is able to focus on one particular star without faltering or drifting to another star (Palmer 88). The modern telescopes are well advanced such that they have inbuilt integrated systems which analyze the elements and materials which are contained by the object which they are viewing. The modern telescopes can be categorized into the optical telescope and the radio telescope. The optical telescope increase the angular size of the object such that the object becomes larger and brighter thus making it more visible. The object when photographed is clear and the photos are stored for further scrutiny (Palmer 72). Other than the field of astronomy, these lens used in optical telescope have other uses such as in spyglas ses and binoculars. The optical telescopes have a further classification into various forms depending on the kind of ray that they use. This means that there are x-ray telescopes, infrared telescopes, gamma ray telescope, and ultraviolet telescope. The x-ray telescopes are used to detect metal components of the stars and other planets in the universe. The ultraviolet detect various elements but mostly used to look for plant components in other planets. The other form of telescope is the radio telescope. This kind of telescope does not deal with light only but it detects microwave radiations (Palmer 69). Conclusion The study of light has changed our world more than expected. The fiber optic used to transfer data from one place to another uses light. The separation of light can be credited to have contributed a lot in this because natural light alone with its potentialities cannot avail the gains brought about by various components of light. As stated earlier, though many theorists do not consider light as a basic need for human survival it is still a basic need usually presumed. Food, derived from plants comes about because of photosynthesis made possible by the availability of ultraviolet rays, which originate from the sun. The separation of light has also led to the discovery of elements that remained unknown until the rays indicated that there were such substances. Elements such as lithium and uranium are some of the elements whose existence came to be because of various waves.Advertising Looking for research paper on natural sciences? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More Other planets may be in oblivion without the instruments that made it possible to separate lights. In the past, only light from the sun-enabled people to see during the day. However, many wonders of the universe such as the planets and stars have been visible during the nights due to the separation of lights. Light is important in the basic survival of the modern man more than any other time in history. Browning, John. How to Work With the Spectroscope: A Manual of Practical Manipulation. Massachusetts: Harvard University Press, 1989. Print Faust, James and Sternberg, Richard. The Design of Optical Spectrometer. Berlin: Chapman and Hall Ltd, 1969. Print. James, John. Spectrograph Design Fundamentals. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2007. Print Jay, Pasachoff. Contemporary Astronomy. Philadelphia: Saunders Colleges Publishing, 1981. Print Palmer, Christopher. Diffraction Grating Handbook, 6th edition. California: Newport Corporation, 2005. Print

Vibratory Rock Tumbler Instructions

Vibratory Rock Tumbler Instructions Vibrating or vibratory rock tumblers, such as those made by Raytech and Tagit, can polish rocks in a fraction of the time required by rotary tumblers. They also result in polished stones that retain the shape of the rough material, as opposed to the rounded shapes obtained by rotary tumbling. On the other hand, vibratory tumblers tend to be a bit more expensive than their rotary counterparts. However, if time is money and you want to retain more of the shape and size of the original material, then a vibratory tumbler may be just what you need. Vibratory Rock Tumbling Materials List A vibratory tumbler.Rocks. You will get better results with a mixed load that includes both small and large rocks.Filler. Plastic pellets are great, but you can use small rocks having the same or lesser hardness as your load.Silicon carbide grit, pre-polish and polish (e.g., tin oxide, cerium oxide, diamond).Soap flakes (not detergent). Ivory soap flakes are recommended. How To Use a Vibratory Rock Tumbler Fill the bowl of the tumbler about 3/4 full with your rock.If you do not have sufficient rock to fill the bowl to the 3/4 level, then add plastic pellets or other filler.Add the required amount of SiC (silicon carbide) grit and water. See the table below to get a sense of how much is needed. If you have the instruction manual that came with the tumbler, start out with those quantities. Keep records, so if you make changes you will know the effect the changes had on the polishing.Place the lid on the tumbler and run the vibrator. Let it run for a day or so and make certain that a slurry is forming. Evaporation will occur, especially if the external temperature is hot, so you may need to add water from time to time to maintain the slurry consistency.When the rock has achieved the desired smoothness and roundness, remove the load and rinse the bowl and the rocks thoroughly with water.Return the rock to the bowl, add a tablespoon of soap flakes, and fill the bowl with water to the top of the rocks. Vibrate the mixture for about half an hour. Rinse the rocks and the bowl. Repeat this step two more times. Return the rocks to the bowl and proceed to the next polishing step with the next grit (see the Table).After the final polish step, perform the washing/rinsing process and allow the stones to dry. Here are some conditions, intended for a 2.5 lb tumbler. You can adjust the quantities for your specific needs. The duration for each step is approximate - check your load and keep records to find the conditions that work best for you. Experiment with different polishing compounds to find the type that works best for your stones. Grit Type SiC SiC SiC SiC SnO2 CeO2 Diamond Diamond Mesh 220 400 600 1,000 - - 14,000 50,000 Grit Amount 8 tbls 4 tbls 4 tbls 3 tbls 4 tbls 4 tbls 1 cc 1 cc Water Cups 3/4 3/4 3/4 1/2 1/2 1/2 1/2 1/2 Soap Tbls 0 0 0 0 1/3 1/3 1 1 Speed fast fast fast fast slow slow slow slow Stones Hardness Days Days Days Days Days Days Days Days Sapphire 9 28 7 7 7 5 - - - EmeraldAquamarineMorganite 8 3 2-3 2-4 2 2-4 - - - TopazZircon 7.5 3-8 2-3 2 2 2 - - - AgateAmethystCitrineRock CrystalChrysoprase 7 0-7 3-4 2-3 2-3 0-3 3 - - Peridot 6.5 - 2 2 2 - - 2 2 Opal 6 - - 1 2 2 - - - Lapis Lazuli 5.5 - 4 3 3 2 - - - Apache TearsApatite 5 - 2-3 1-2 1 1 - -1 1 *Use a slow speed for all steps when polishing stones with Mohs hardness of 6.5 or lower (peridot, opal, lapis, obsidian, apatite, etc.). Helpful Tips for a Perfect Polish Make a balanced load that includes for large and small rocks. For a 2.5 lb bowl, sizes from 1/8 to 1 work well.A proper slurry is needed to get the best polish in the least time. If there is too little water, then the thickness of the mixture will prevent proper movement, thus slowing the polishing action. Too much water results in too thin of a slurry, which will result in a much longer time to achieve a polish. The grit may settle out of the mixture altogether.Never wash grit down the drain! While it doesnt typically present an environmental hazard, theres a good chance it will cause a clog that cant be removed using chemicals.Plastic pellets may be rinsed and reused, but you cannot reuse grit. Are you looking for information on using your tumbler to polish jewelry or metal components? Heres what you need to do.

Question 2 Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3500 words

Question 2 - Assignment Example This study will involve the analysis of the key theories and constructs into scholarly works that relates to the relationship between cultural diversity and organizational culture. The following pointers will be highlighted throughout the studies: Cultural diversity is an important and vital aspect of organizations today. This is because there is a general trend towards inclusion in the organizations around the country and issues perceived to be racist are treated with the highest levels of criticism and hostility. Cultural diversity is seen as a method of promoting inclusion in an organization and diversifying the processes and systems used by an organization to ensure that people from all different backgrounds get represented in an organization (Laleye, 2012). Culture is the way a group of people live and this is represented by the outward expression of their different processes and preferences for various things (Kelley & Fitzsimons, 2010). According to one definition â€Å"culture consists of shared beliefs, values and attitudes that guide the behaviors of group members in a given location.† (Kelley & Fitzsimons, 2010, p. 151). Culture and diversity are important aspects of the society. According to Hoftstede, culture is the software of the mind that guides the way people behave and react to certain things and situations (Hofstede, 2010). This is a standardized definition which explains the role and importance of culture in a given society and community. This involves the different processes and aspects of a given place and location and it affects the way people behave and carry out their activities and processes. Culture therefore forms a framework within which people act and behave in relation to their upbringing and other innate qualities that are representative of the group they belong to. Different people have different cultures and different social and cultural trends

History of a food item Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

History of a food item - Essay Example The name for the new beverage was proposed by John Pemberton's book keeper Frank Robinson. The pharmacist business met difficulties immediately: the same year was signed by a prohibition law that persuaded the chemist and unsuccessful businessman Pemberton to change his 'brand's' name and alter the formula for his commonly-used nerve tonic and headache remedy, 'Pemberton's French Wine Coca', offered by a number of drug stores. Thus, when the 'revived' coca-cola re-appeared in druggists', it possessed "the valuable tonic and nerve stimulant properties of the coca plant and cola nuts, yet sweetened with sugar instead of wine--Pemberton advertised it not only as a delicious, exhilarating, refreshing and invigorating" soda-fountain beverage but also as the ideal temperance drink" (Levenstein, 1993, p.152). Although the inventive pharmacist died just two years later, in March 1888 (Anderson, 1958), by that time he had created a corporation of the first coca-cola brand, concocted by his partners. On January, 1893, the formula was patented in order to protect intellectual property of the founders. And the coca-cola soft drink, whole unit sales totaled only 3,200 servings per day (ibid), is nowadays called the world's most widespread beverage, acknowledged and consumed in 195 countries. It is interesting to note that until the beginning of 1960s, countryside and big city inhabitants took their favorite beverages from the local soda fountains or ice cream saloons. These places served as meeting places for youngsters as well as seniors; but the rapid development of fast-food area and the area of bottled beverages was followed by the decline of popularity of soda fountain counters. Nevertheless, the status of coca-cola even benefited from this development, since small restaurants were so cozy and convenient that their customers took several servings of coca-cola for one person in order to stay there for a longer time. April 1985 was signed by a sensation: the 'New Coke' formula was released. This was called 'the trade secret release'. A trade secret is defined as information allowing an individual to make money, "because it is not generally known. A trade secret could be a formula, computer program, process, method, device, technique, pricing information, customer lists or other non-public information. If the economic value of a piece of information relies on it being kept private, it could be a trade secret" (Pendergast, 1993, p.208). As for coca-cola, its trade secret was a real miracle, and marketing and advertising techniques were concentrated (especially during the Great Depression, up to the 1970s) on the atmosphere of 'mystery' that covered the invention and the process of creation of the beverage (Belasco, 1988). This marketing campaign is ongoing, even though it has new shape nowadays. The research of the 1980s suggested that coca-cola is not exactly safe for human health, so the formula has been changed several times from 1987 up to these days. Being unable to create a 'healthy' image of the beverage, the marketers are now putting stress upon it's style and fashion, as the trade mark collaborates with several areas of sport and fashion industries. In addition, in order to meet the requirements of American youngsters, the company launched the production of 'Coca-Cola Vanilla', 'Coca-Cola Cherry' and 'Coca-Cola Light' (for those who follow low-caloric diets). The 1996 Summer

The context of Magna Carta and the Robin Hood films Essay

The context of Magna Carta and the Robin Hood films - Essay Example His story has won the hearts of many young and adventurous readers who view him as a type of deliverer, and it’s interesting to discover that he had a bigger impact in history than we know. The first time for the story to be put into film was in 1938. It was filmed in Technicolor and starred Errol Flynn as the main character. It was released in the United States on a whopping two-million dollar budget. It was highly acclaimed by critics and won three Academy awards. The plot is focused on the political affairs of medieval England. It shows how Robin Hood plays a big part in preventing the royal throne from being usurped while King Richard is away. His younger brother, Prince John has been scheming the whole time, hoping his brother would encounter some trouble so that he would take the throne. When it does happen, he takes power and immediately exercises his authority, raising taxes all over the kingdom. Meanwhile, King Richard is smuggled into England, disguised as a monk. He joins Robin Hood, and together, they outwit his treacherous brother and manage to win the throne back to its rightful king (Dirks, 2002). In the film, the Magna Carta is not mentioned, although it was a main event during those days. The Magna Carta was drafted by the barons and noblemen in the year 1215 and presented to the king as a strategy to limit his powers and lighten the loads he had placed on their backs. But the signing of this document did not fully give the people the freedom they wanted. King John still caused problems. Moreover, the pope denounced the charter, calling it treason against the king’s God-given authority. This gave the king courage to stand up to the barons, who reacted violently, plunging the country into civil war, and threatening its collapse (Danziger & Gilligam, 2003). All the while, Robin Hood had been banished to Sherwood Forest as an outlaw, and he was daily evading capture from the king’s soldiers. Since then, Hollywood has produced many other films about Robin Hood and his exploits, the newest one starring Russell Crowe as the main character. This is one of the few films that includes the Magna Carta within its plot. Set on the backdrop of the early 1200s, this film also dwells largely on the political conflicts in the royal courts. In the film, King John promises to sign a charter promising to establish fair and just laws that will limit the monarch’s power and protect their privileges. This was to be done after a French invasion led by King Philip was overthrown. Believing in his promise, the barons unite with the King’s army in fighting off the French in the coastal beaches of England. They attain success and are able to push back the French armies. Once this is accomplished, the final scene depicts the barons in London eagerly awaiting the King to keep his promise to sign the document. The king stares at the document loathsomely, then after a short moment of silence, sets it on fire and casts it to the ground. Seeing this, the barons break into anger and hurl their curses at the treacherous King John. Unperturbed, he summons his soldiers to contain the crowd, then as a final act of betrayal, he banishes Robin Hood from England, declaring him an outlaw. Robin Hood is then forced to hide in Sherwood Forest together with his band of merry men. Various

Parts of Human Resources Align and Support the Organization Essay

Parts of Human Resources Align and Support the Organization - Essay Example It is also crucial that these strategies are mutually supportive and complement each other in it’s propose towards the organization. Thus efficient practices of human resource management involve efficient designing and application of HR policies in planning, recruitment, selection, compensation, performance appraisal and training and development too. The importance of these strategies also gets reflected through employee morale, motivation, as well as their efficiency and productivity in the organization. The project brings forth the present human resource conditions in a government contracting company which is primarily a manufacturing enterprise in the infrastructure and energy related sector. The organization manufactures a wide variety of components, namely, boilers, gas generators, gas and hydro turbines, transportation equipments, valves, transmitters etc. The organization incorporates a high quality human resource management culture which gets reflected through its vari ous HRM strategies and policies. ... ction, compensation and benefits, performance appraisals, job designing etc., such that they complement each other and work collectively towards the organization’s purpose and objectives. Based on the analysis the project recommends suitable solutions for the improvement of these strategies with regards to improving employee morale and participation in the organization, enhancing organizational efficiency, productivity and work life balance, and betterment of the culture and climate of the organization too. Parts of Human Resource Systems which support the organization Job Design issues Job designing is particularly done in the organization for meeting requirements of different positions in the organization. However, it is not considered an independent procedure. The importance of job designing is reflected through other human resource management aspects such employee motivation, employee attraction and retention. According to the views of Erven, a well designed job helps in a ccomplishing two important organizational goals. Firstly it helps to get the necessary job completed on time and in a competent manner. It also helps to motivate employees and provide them with challenges at the workplace (Erven, n.d., p.1). Besides serving the purpose of improving motivation and performance, job-design analysis begins by regarding a job from a wide perspective and rapidly moving towards identifying the particular activities required for doing the job. This is particularly done for the purpose of identifying any deficiencies and correcting them which has chances of affecting performance and motivation (Encarnacion, n.d.). An example of job design in the organization will help understand how it complements other HR aspects. Job design for the position of a mechanical engineer in

Mktg 3000 Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words - 1

Mktg 3000 - Essay Example The main reason behind this is the lack in market research or assuming that a single factor won’t make a lot of difference for example name , color, slogan, ingredients, advertising etc considering if the product is made right. We have numerous experiences on paper where such factors lead to failure of products or were termed in violation of local ethics. For eg famous British shoe maker UMBRO tagged as â€Å"appallingly insensitive† when it named its shoes meant for running as ZYKLON , the reason for such a response was later found out that ZYKLON was the same gas used in Nazi extermination camps. Similarly when Ford introduced PINTO in Brazil, it rather attracted quite a cold response and flopped. After research it was found that PINTO is a Brazilian slang for ‘tiny male genitals’. Later on Ford changed the name to Corcel meaning Horse. Also slogan for brands like Electrolux in America ‘ Nothing sucks like Electrolux’ and introduction of new products by brands who don’t keep the cultural difference in mind’ Coors Bear having slogan ‘keeping it loose’ in Spanish the slogan meant ‘ you’ll suffer from diarrhea’.

Parts of Human Resources Align and Support the Organization Essay

Parts of Human Resources Align and Support the Organization - Essay Example It is also crucial that these strategies are mutually supportive and complement each other in it’s propose towards the organization. Thus efficient practices of human resource management involve efficient designing and application of HR policies in planning, recruitment, selection, compensation, performance appraisal and training and development too. The importance of these strategies also gets reflected through employee morale, motivation, as well as their efficiency and productivity in the organization. The project brings forth the present human resource conditions in a government contracting company which is primarily a manufacturing enterprise in the infrastructure and energy related sector. The organization manufactures a wide variety of components, namely, boilers, gas generators, gas and hydro turbines, transportation equipments, valves, transmitters etc. The organization incorporates a high quality human resource management culture which gets reflected through its vari ous HRM strategies and policies. ... ction, compensation and benefits, performance appraisals, job designing etc., such that they complement each other and work collectively towards the organization’s purpose and objectives. Based on the analysis the project recommends suitable solutions for the improvement of these strategies with regards to improving employee morale and participation in the organization, enhancing organizational efficiency, productivity and work life balance, and betterment of the culture and climate of the organization too. Parts of Human Resource Systems which support the organization Job Design issues Job designing is particularly done in the organization for meeting requirements of different positions in the organization. However, it is not considered an independent procedure. The importance of job designing is reflected through other human resource management aspects such employee motivation, employee attraction and retention. According to the views of Erven, a well designed job helps in a ccomplishing two important organizational goals. Firstly it helps to get the necessary job completed on time and in a competent manner. It also helps to motivate employees and provide them with challenges at the workplace (Erven, n.d., p.1). Besides serving the purpose of improving motivation and performance, job-design analysis begins by regarding a job from a wide perspective and rapidly moving towards identifying the particular activities required for doing the job. This is particularly done for the purpose of identifying any deficiencies and correcting them which has chances of affecting performance and motivation (Encarnacion, n.d.). An example of job design in the organization will help understand how it complements other HR aspects. Job design for the position of a mechanical engineer in

Weekly response paper Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words - 1

Weekly response paper - Assignment Example Reflecting on both John May articles Sensing: Preliminary Notes on the Emergence of Statistical-Mechanical Geographic Vision and logic of managerial surface, it is clear that the significance of technology cannot be underestimated. Both in their military application, scientific emergence, and modern managerial posture has played a significant role. In Mays logic of managerial surface helps to think about how technology has played an important role in making us realize the sudden need for successful management (May, "Logic" 6). It also helps in decision about conceptual change, particularly in environmental management distancing ourselves from previous practices that failed to foresee consequences of design. Likewise, Sensing: Preliminary Notes on the Emergence of Statistical-Mechanical Geographic vision gives important insight on how we see things. The article also discusses statistical probability and how its relationship with logic of reduction and abstraction and their roles in ge ological science such as thermal imaging and mapping to what we see (May, "Preliminary" 43). Looking back at our earlier readings, on how technology has helped in the advancement of weapons and infrastructures, and others. Technology is largely responsible for the sense of stability of life in the world. Technology confers with the ability to increase a reflexive character of modernity and constitute a fundamental feature of the managerial surface. The environment produced by the technology is more aware catastrophic tendencies since they are prescribed to compensate for failures. Technology can regulate temperatures, light, water, and so on. However, the duration of contentions rests on geographical concepts that are rooted in modern technologies and analytical and inferential approaches in the geography practice. Using a technical framework, it is clear that the

Ecosystem Function, Structure and Change Essay Example for Free

Ecosystem Function, Structure and Change Essay Lake Tahoe is a large lake that is almost split in half by the border of California and Nevada. Lake Tahoe’s surface area is about 191, 500 square miles with a depth of about 500 meters. Lake Tahoe is listed as the 26th largest lake by volume. The vegetation around the lake supports a variety of plant life and animal life, as well as a very diverse organism community. The vegetation around the lake consists of a mixture of Jeffry Pine, lodgepole Pine, and both white and red fir’s. Vegetation also includes both wet and dry meadows and brush fields. The brush field Ceanothus has the capability of fixing nitrogen that makes the soil of the surrounding lake more fertile. There are several processes that prevail inside and outside the lake. The lake is under threat from eutrophication that can severely affect the aquatic life living in it and the surrounding vegetation. It has been estimated that there has been changes in the populations of the various aquatic animals living in the lake’s waters. Zooplankton population has faced the greatest changes. The lake experiences both winter and summer seasons, which in that area of the country can be extreme. Temperatures can go as high as 80 degrees Fahrenheit in the summer and as low as sub-zero in the winter. The vegetation surrounding the lake experiences these temperature changes and responds to this stimulus by the change in leaf colors and leaf numbers. The seasonal changes also affect the different mammal activities and interactions in the surrounding environment. Human activity around the lake is considerably high. Historically, the area around the lake was inhabited by Native Americans. The lake, because of its natural beauty and vegetation is a great attraction spot for tourists who wish to ski and fish. Because of the surrounding human population, there have been attempts to dispose of the raw sewage away from the lake basin but this strategy has not proved to be that useful. This is because the  eutrophication levels of the lake water are rising at a considerably high rate. The nitrogen and phosphorus levels of lake are increasing because of the high amounts of these elements and their compounds in the sewage water. The phytoplankton population present in the lake’s water is a natural tool that is reducing the levels as we speak. However, the rate of this natural proves might not be able to cope with the nitrogen and phosphorus amounts in the future if per say the sewage problem is not dealt with effectively in time. [Strong, 1999] The need for effective ecological planning is essential in today’s world where industry and technology is growing at a remarkable rate. Ecological planers plan to protect the nature’s true works and work hard to promote awareness against ecological deterioration. There are several things that planning requires. The lake is surrounded by vegetation and is home to hundreds of aquatic life forms. The vegetation and the mammalian life inside it is directly dependent on the lake for food and nourishment. This is because the primary protein source shall be the fish inside the lake for the land animals. Ecologists use these types of useful information to develop plans for management and restoration. In this case, the ecologists shall consider the water quality of the lake to be of the greatest importance. They shall ensure that there is little human interference in the natural habitats of the vegetation’s animals to allow the natural ecosystem to flourish because human interferences can cause migrations. The ecologists shall calculate the area required by the lake and the surrounding vegetation and shall accordingly present the data for further use. If in the future, companies or industries aim to industrialize the area, the ecologists shall use the data to calculate the risk of opening an industry to the environment. Ecologists that use preservation techniques to help preserve natural ecosystems give often consider the importance of an ecosystem by looking for any endangered or rare species inhabiting the area. The conservation of these rare species keeps ecologists busy. Ecological interactions between species are numerous and some types of standards only occur rarely or in specific climates and/or seasons. Lake Tahoe is an example of the hundreds of natural ecosystems found on the planet. Each ecosystem has a unique setup and the organisms populating it are dependent on it in every way. The presentation of these ecosystems is a responsibility for humans. References Lake Tahoe. (n.d.). Retrieved from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lake_Tahoe

Understanding Young Adult Footwear Shoppers in India

Understanding Young Adult Footwear Shoppers in India Executive Summary ‘A man can be judged by the shoes he wears. Footwear today is much more than just an integral part of ones attire; it helps the modern day consumer make his or her unique lifestyle statement. This study was done to understand the footwear preferences was various categories of footwear and to understand the footwear shopping behaviour. The objective of the study was to segment young adult footwear shoppers into unique footwear shopping orientation groups and to develop a profile for each segment with respect to footwear benefits sought, importance of store attributes, patronage behavior and demographics. To start with, a secondary research was done to gain a broad understanding of the footwear industry in India, in particular footwear retail, and the modern Indian consumer. In-depth interviews of 10 young adults from metros, both males and females, were conducted to arrive at the parameters used in the evaluation of footwear, footwear retail stores and also to understand general footwear usage and buying behavior. This understanding and the parameters arrived at were then used in formulating a questionnaire consisting of 60 line items which was administered through online surveys. A total of 100 responses were achieved of which 85 were complete responses. The data of the complete responses was then analyzed through frequency distributions, factor analysis and cluster analysis. Factor analysis helped to reduce the number of variables to 8 factors. On the basis of these 8 factors, the 85 respondents were classified into 3 clusters with unique shopping orientations. The result of this study can be helpful to footwear retailers in customizing their merchandising, display, and other store attributes like space and availability of mirrors to gain maximum store loyalty and patronage. Introduction Footwear is much more than just an integral part of ones attire: while on the one extreme, it helps the modern day consumer make his or her unique lifestyle statement, it also helps enhances the performance of athletes and sportsmen at the other extreme. A brief history of footwear One of the first things made by our primitive ancestors was foot covering. It was primarily used to protect themselves from burning sand, rocks and rugged terrain. Records show that different civilizations like Egyptian, Chinese and other early civilizations, all contained reference to shoes. It is also mentioned in the Bible. The Hebrews also used it in binding a bargain (Shoe History, 2009). The first form of shoe consisted of a simple piece of plaited grass or rawhide which was strapped to the feet. During early times, sandals were the most common type of footwear. In Mesopotamia, during 1600 1200 BC, a particular type of shoes were used. They were soft and made of wraparound leather. Up to almost 1850, the method of making shoes was the same as that in 14th century B.C. in Egypt. Hand tools were used. Shoes were absolutely straight. There was no difference between the right and left shoe (Shoe History, 2009). In 1845, the first machine that found a permanent place in the shoe manufacturing industry was invented- the Rolling machine. In 1846, a sewing machine was invented. In 1875, a machine was developed which later came to be known the Goodyear Welt Sewing Machine (Shoe History, 2009). Rubber heels for shoes were patented in on January 24, 1895 by Humphrey OSullivan. These rubber heels on shoes outlasted the leather heels then in use (The History of Shoes, 2009). Keds were first mass-marketed in 1917 (The History of Shoes, 2009). They were positioned as canvas-top sneakers. These were officially the first sneakers. The word sneaker was coined by Henry Nelson McKinney, an advertising agent. This was because the rubber sole made the shoe stealthy. All other shoes, barring a few exceptions like moccasins, made noise when a person walked. Hence you could ‘sneak on anyone wearing Keds. Since the mid-20th century, the type of shoes being created has changed considerably compared to the traditional crafting techniques. This is due to advances in plastics, rubber, synthetic cloth, plastics and industrial adhesives. Leather, even though is still used in expensive dress shoes is no longer really used in athletic shoes. Soles, which were once hand stitched, are now machine stitched or simply glued on. A century ago, if a lot of effort was put in, a person might have been able to produce a few pairs of shoes. Today, automatic Toe Laster for Goodyear Welt shoes can produce 1200 pairs in an 8-hour day (Shoe History, 2009). Footwear industry in India Industry overview The Indian footwear and leather industry is amongst the top-10 foreign exchange earners. It is also amongst the top-12 focus manufacturing sectors in the country if we consider it in terms of competitiveness and untapped potential. The worlds largest footwear manufacturer is China. Next is India. India producs 16 billion pairs accounting for 13% of global footwear production. India produces 2065 million pairs of different categories of footwear (leather shoe uppers 100 million pairs, non-leather footwear 1056 million pairs and leather footwear 909 million pairs). India exports just 115 million pairs of footwear. Almost 95% of the production goes into meeting the domestic demand. Nearly 15 percent of Europes leading brands outsource their footwear, apparel and fashion accessories purchases from India. Indias domestic footwear market is better than others around the world primarily because of abundant raw materials, low cost of production and a huge consumption market. Indias major importers for Indian leather products: Country Share (%) Germany 14.12 Italy 12.82 UK 11.48 USA 9.98 Hong Kong 6.61 Spain 6.09 France 6.14 Netherlands 4.13 UAE 2.38 Australia 1.55 Total 75.30 The 10 countries mentioned above account for nearly 75.30% of Indias total leather products export. More than half of the Indian footwear market comprises of gents footwear. This is contrary to the world wide trend. The worlds major production is in ladies footwear. Hence, in India there is immense scope in the womens segment. In the unorganized sector, more than 80 percent of the sales happen in the mens segment. However this is might change soon. The footwear industry is extremely labor intensive- 90% of its production comes from SMEs (small and medium enterprises). There are in excess of 42,000 such SME units, there are primarily concentrated in two provinces in Uttar Pradesh up north and in Tamil Nadu down south. They are also present in Rajasthan, Maharashtra and Punjab. Agra, Ranipet, Kanpur, Ambur, Jodhpur and Kolhapur are also traditionally renowned centers of excellence in the production of leather and footwear. In the last five years, footwear production in the country has increased by nearly 60%. Out of this, the rural areas consume 75% of the footwear production. It has become a necessity product there since till now, they have been majorly deprived of its usage. The Footwear sector has now been de-licensed and de-reserved. This has paved the way for expansion of capacities on modern lines using state-of-the-art machinery. In order to assist this process further, the Government has permitted 100% Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) through automatic route for footwear sector. Categorization or classification of footwear The Indian footwear market, in terms of quality offerings, has four main segments: 1. The super premium end- comprises the best of global luxury brands 2. The high-end or premium 3. The mid/economy ranges- comprises of formals, functional, casuals and party wear 4. The low-priced mass range- includes leather and plastic strapped slippers, as utility wear Apart from this, the genuine active sportswear segment with different price ranges also exists. The volume share of the economy/mid range has reduced. It was 61% in 2006-07. It has come down to 53%. The active sports-wear segment has increased its share from 7% to 9.6%. Premium leather and premium non-leather segments have both seen a rise from 7% and 3% in 2006-07 to 7.3% and 3.5% respectively in 2007-08. The super premium luxury segment has a 0.08% market share. In terms of sales value, this is a very significant number. Also there are four major categories of footwear: 1. Sports footwear 2. Semi-formal or casual footwear 3. Formalwear 4. Utility footwear The Indian footwear market mainly consists of casual wear. It occupies nearly two-thirds of the total footwear retail market. The other sub-segment that is doing well is the branded sportswear segment. It is estimated to be about Rs. 1,000 crore. The main players in this space consist of reebok, Adidas and Lotto. Compared to other segments, this segment is growing fast in terms of the number of outlets. Apart from footwear, these outlets also sell apparel. Major players in Indian footwear industry The top domestic and premium brands in India consist of: 1. Action It has a pan Indian presence. It consists of multiple branded outlets (MBOs), 135 exclusive branded outlets (EBOs). It commands a total of 175,000 square feet retail space. 2. Bata It is a household name in India. It was the brand that made branded footwear popular. Bata India Limited manufactures and markets various types of footwear, leather and footwear components. Apart from these, the company markets products related to footwear, garments, accessories, sports goods and other merchandise. Batas sub-brands consist of Dr Scholls, Hush puppies, Bubblegummer and Power. Till the first quarter of 2009, Bata India had 1,293 outlets. Bata India is currently looking to expand towards Tier I Tier II cities. 3. Khadims Currently, it has over 329 outlets. The area under it is approximately 148,000 square feet retail space. It is present in 22 cities across India. 4. Liberty After Bata, it is arguably the most popular domestic brand. It is the only Indian company among the worlds top 5 leather footwear manufacturers. It has EBOs as Revolutions and Liberty. Revolutions provides footwear, travel accessories, watches, leather accessories, sun-glasses and jewellery Its sub-brands consist of Footfun, Force 10, Senorita, Gliders, Tiptopp, Windsor, Coolers, June, Warrior and Perfect. Liberty has 360 EBOs, 40 Shop-in-shops and 150 distributors. It services 6000 MBOs. The total retail space under it is 1.26 million square feet. 5. Metro, Mochi These are two brands from Metro Shoes Ltd. They were launched in 1977 and 2000 respectively. It consists of over 85 EBOs and 76 MBOs. The retail space under it is 131,000 square feet. It is present in 32 cities. 6. Pavers England It stated in India in early 2008. It was launched in Reliance stores. It is a Chennai based brand. It operates 40 MBOs. 7. Red Tape This brand belongs to Mirza International. It was launched in 1996 in the domestic market. It started its exclusive retail operations in 2006. By end-2008 it had 10 company-owned EBOs, 50 franchise-owned EBOs and also 135 Shops-in-shops. 8. Sreeleathers It was established in 1950. It is a very strong brand in Easten India. It has 5 company-owned EBOs and 28 franchise-owned EBOs. 9. Woodland It is looking to enter the junior and kidswear segment. It is also looking at apparels business very optimistically. It hopes that this business will contribute to half of its total sales in India. It operates 250 EBOs in India. 10. Lilliput It is a leading brand in kids footwear. By the end of 2008, it had 250 EBOs and also 100 shop-in shops. 11. MB Footwear It has 2 in-house brands, viz ID and Mercell. It has been operating for more than 21 years. It has tie-ups with brands like Lee Cooper. By the end of 2008, it had 32 EBOs and also 11 shop-in-shops. International brands in India 1. Adidas It is one of the biggest companies in the sports goods category. This nramd has acquired Reebok. It now consists of 3 brand divisions: Adidas, Taylormade-Adidas golf and Reebok. Adidas brand focuses on sports. It offers footwear, apparel and hardware in three divisions which include sport heritage, sport performance, and sport style. The sport performance division focuses on the hardcore sports player. The sport heritage division focuses on the casual sports man. The sport style division focuses the fashion-conscious consumers. The Reebok brand focuses more on style. Adidas entered India in 1977. It operates more than 450 EBOs. It has 340,000 square feet retail space. It claims a 20% market share in the active sports segment. 2. Lotto It currently has 10 flagship EBOs in India. It has plans to increase it to 100 by the end of 2010. It is present in 30 Indian cities. 3. Nike It has 107 EBOs in India 4. Guess (Premium) It was launched in 2005 by Planet Retail in India. It operates 19 EBOs and one shop-in-shop. 5. Carlton London (Premium) It currently operates 10 EBOs. It has 50,000 square feet retail space in India. It is concentrated in North India. It has plans to open up new stores in metros and in Tier I cities. MBO Retailers 1. Planet Sports It has 39 outlets and a retail space of 73,000 square feet. It is present in 21 cities across India. 2. Provogue It was launched in 2005. It consists of 55 EBOs and also 15 shop-in-shops. 3. Reliance Footprints It is a division of Reliance Retail Ltd. It started its operations in 2007. It currently operates 14 MBOs. It offers global brands like Ecco, Geox, Josef Siebel, Rockport, Florsheim, Hush Puppies, Lee Cooper and Clarks, Piccadilly, Dr. Scholls, Levis, Crocs, Disney among others. Apart from these, it sells handbags as well as accessories. 4. Shoe Factory It is a value format. It offers huge variety of footwear for a wide age groups. It started its operations in Ahmedabad in 2006. It is present in 16 locations and has a retails space of 48,000 square feet across 8 cities. 5. The Blues It is an exclusive licensee of major global brands like Corneliani (2006), Versace Collection (2005), VJC Versace Jeans Couture (2008), Cadini (2005), Versace (2008). By the end of 2008, it had 6 franchised EBOs, 3 shop-in-shops and also one MBO. Emergence of modern Indian retail Introduction In 2007, the Indian retail sector stood at $350 billion. It was predicted to increase to $427 billion by 2010 and $635 billion by 2015 (Morierty, 2007). Many Indian business houses are entering or have already entered this sector. The food and grocery sector is turning out to be a major contributer to this field. Even though it started slowly, it is now growing at a feverish pace. The other forms of retail have also evolved consistently. With the huge business houses entering into this business, the field has become extremely competitive between them. This is one sector that is looking to explode in the near future. Today, mega Indian business houses and corporate like the Future Group of Kishore Biyani (Food Bazaar), Reliance Group of Mukesh Ambani (Reliance Fresh Reliance Hyper), ITC Ltd (Choupal Fresh Choupal Saagar), Wadhawan Holdings (Spinach), RPG Group (Spencers Retail), the Aditya Birla Group (More), Subhiksha, the Godrej group (Natures Basket Godrej Aadhar), J Raheja group (Hypercity), etc. are driving the forays into retail through different models like single-format, multi-format or integrated urban-rural model. (Sengupta, 2007) However, the growth of the Indian retail space has been a long and ardous journey. Let us have a brief look at how the sector as a whole has evolved over the years. History It is popularly assumed that with the opening of the Indian economy in the early 1990s, the retail sector started opening up. This is when all the supermarkets and hypermarkets came into existence. However, the types of retail formats have existed in India since 1970s. In 1971, Nilgiris was set up in Bangalore. It was what one could popularly refer to as the ‘face of modern Indian retail. It was a supermarket. Since then, a lot of other business houses/ entrepreneurs have entered this sector. A few went national while a majority of them were restricted to a local scale. Popular among them were Trinetra from Hyderabad (now part of the Aditya Birla Group), Foodworld from Chennai, Margin Free from Kerala among others. A few others like Stop Shop from the TVS group in South India and Nanz in North India have shut down. In 1947, when India got independence, the per capita income was very low. People could not really afford any type of luxuries. Majority of them managed to live by getting their basic necessities. The main type of retail format prominent during those days was the mom-and-pop (kirana stores). They were run by individuals. The other format was the Bazaar. This trend continued up to the 1960s. Even post that, when supermarkets like Nilgiris opened up, the trend continued (Sengupta, 2007). It was during the 1990s and 2000s that this trend gradually changed. The growth story of the modern retail format in India is the early part of this millennium can be divided into 4 phases. Phase 1: This phase is characterised between 2002 and 2004. Lots of new entrants into the market were driving the top line growth. Phase 2: This phase is characterised between 2004 and 2006. The consumers were getting more and more aware of the possibilities that this retail growth could mean for them. They started demanding more and more variety in the organized retail formats. Phase 3: Post 2006, the retailers realized that in order to distinguish themselves, they would have to strengthen their back-end activities. The front end of almost all retail outlets were more or less the same. The thing that distinguished them from the rest were activities like inventory control, turnover time etc. Phase 4: This phase has been in progress since 2007. The retail players are in the process of consolidating their operations. (Srivastava, 2009) Organized retail is moving from being a ‘novel experiment to an expected back-end innovation and scale build up (Srivastava, 2009). Indian retail story First some facts (Srivastava, 2009): * The retail industry employs almost 21 million people * The Kearney study undertaken in 2006, ranked India 5th among 30 developing countries in the Global Retail Development Index * The study projects that India will overtake Russia and China to become the number one destination for foreign direct investment in retail India has over 12 million retail outlets. Out of this, about 95% of the outlets are less than 500 square feet (Srivastava, 2009). If we compare Indian retail with other countries, we see that the number of traditional retail outlets is still very huge. In 2005, US had about 15% traditional retail outlets and 85% organized retail outlets. India had 97% traditional outlets and only 3% organized retail outlets (Srivastava, 2009). (Srivastava, 2009) The organized retail in India is still at a very nascent stage. The opportunity for growth is enormous. Even though speciality stores in India are gaining prominence, almost 90% of all future retail development is predicted to be malls. The Indian consumer wants everything in the same place. One more trend that is being seeing is the marriage of retail and entertainment. Lots of multiplexes are opening up at malls. In fact, this seems to be the future trend. Sand alone places might not attract the crowd that such mergers could. Also, facilities like book stores, coffee shops, food courts etc. are being developed at these places. The major distinguishing factor of malls in India is that they have a mix of high-value items as well as mass branded items at the same place. In comparison, other countries have speciality malls. They either are of the high-value kind boutiques or the mass category. India has the highest shop density in the world. It has about 11 shops per 1000 people. This adds to one shop per 20-25 families (Srivastava, 2009). However in cities, this density is much higher. If we look at the money spent on various facilities, the urban-rural difference becomes very evident. About 33% of entertainment spends come from rural areas as opposed to 67% from urban areas. As opposed to this, when we talk about more basic necessities like food, clothing and footwear, over 60% comes from rural areas. (Srivastava, 2009) If we look at the share of the various things that are sold in the organized retail, we find that apparels and accessories is the maximum at 38%, footwear is at 9%, while others like mobile phones, books etc. are at 3% each (Srivastava, 2009). (Srivastava, 2009) Retail formats Both traditional as well regional retails constitute footwear retail market space. Along with these, new players like The Loft and factory outlets also constitute this space. These are category killers. The Loft offers over 130 brands, all under the same roof. It has completely revolutionarized the industry. In Mumbai, The Loft store has an area of 18,000 sq feet and also offers other services to the customers enhancing their experience. Factory outlets have also changed the industry. Pantaloon Retails Brand Factory, Reliance Footprints, Max Retail of the Landmark Group, and The Loot, are all offering a multiple footwear brands. 1) Hypermarket This format of stores has seen a huge growth in India. Most of the stores in this format are making money. The costumers find it very comfortable as they can get almost all their daily necessities like food, clothing, shoes, utensils, home appliances, durables etc. under one roof. It is like a one stop shop for all necessities. 2) Departmental Store Similar to hypermarkets, these shops also offer all the requirements under one roof. The difference is that these outlets have a more luxurious setting. The Indian consumer likes the idea of shopping in a better way with entertainment, novelty, variety and an international setting, all under one roof. 3) Single brand/ Stand Alone Outlet As the name suggests, these outlets consist of only one brand. They are generally run by the brand itself or are run as franchisee. The consumers do not have much choice here in terms of the number of brands but, generally, most of the variety of items, even the rare ones, of the brand are present here. 4) Multi-Branded Outlet A huge variety of brands are present here. The consumer has a wide array of brands to choose from. The only drawback of such outlets is that only the popular items of a brand are present here. So if a consumer has a very specific requirement, he/ she might not be able to find the item here. 5) Factory Outlet A factory outlet is a retail store where the manufacturer sells his brand directly to the customer. The store might have a warehouse attached to it. The biggest advantage of such stores is that there are no middle men. Hence the end customers get the brands at a very low cost. They are also called ‘Best Saving Outlets. Footwear retail AT Kearneys eigth annual GRDI (Global Retail Development Index) in 2009 ranked the Indian retail sector as the ‘most attractive emerging market for investment. Indian retail market is the fifth largest retail destination globally. In the footwear retail market, only 5.9 percent of Indias total retail market is organized. This comes to Rs. 13,300 billion. The total footwear retail market stands at Rs. 160 billion. Out of this, 48.4% of the footwear retail market is organized and is dominated by brands. The Indian Retail report of the year 2009 maps the growth of the organized retail since 2004. The findings indicate that compared to the other retail categories, footwear category has grown at a much faster pace. In 2004-05, only 25% of the footwear retail sector was organized. In 2009, it grew to 48.4%. The overall retail market share in the organized sector has only increased from 3% to 5.9% in the corresponding time frame. Emerging trends The performance of the footwear market is forecasted to accelerate with an anticipated CAGR of 10.2% for the five-year period 2008-2013. This is expected to drive the market to a value of $5,791.4 million by the end of 2013. Comparatively, the Chinese market will increase with a CAGR of 8.3%. (Singh, 2009) The organized retail sector is also seeing many changes. This sector occupies about 5% of Indian retail market. Large format stores and branded retail stores are coming up. This trend was first seen in South India and now in North India, West India and East India in the next couple of years. The retail sector is also opening its operations in Tier II cities like Gurgaon, Noida, Kochi etc. A market research report ‘Booming Retail Sector in India predicts that Indian organoized retail sector will reach US$ 50 billion by 2011. This study was carried out by RNCOS. The number of shopping malls is also set to increase between 2007 and 2015 by a CAGR of 18.9%. The Indian consumer On the World Map, India is placed 5th in the list of consumer markets of the world. Improved communication systems and the exposure to popular international brands has brought about a huge difference in the cities. People have become more indulgent. They want to acquire more and have also become very ambitious. According to a McKinsey report, the size of the Indian consumer market is expected to grow 4 times by 2025. This report is aptly titled ‘The rise of Indian Consumer Market. The youth population in India is huge. 33% are below 15 years of age. The consumer spending has increased as the disposable income among the youth has increased. The consumer spending in India has increased by 75% in the last 4 years. The share of wallet for products like footwear, clothes, transport, entertainment, education, medical services, housing and renting etc. has increased significantly. In fact, the Indian middle class has also started consuming luxury goods like air-conditioners and cars. The Indian demographic profile is changing rapidly. The upper class is growing much quicker than the lower class. The ‘deprived class is shrinking. The middle class is expected to touch 28 million by 2010. One third of the total middle class population will be from the rural areas. Lifestyle category goods are expected to be the future. With the increasing number of working women and fashion conscious males, they will look for a better quality of life. The Nielsen Retail Index 2007 reveled that consumers are switching to branded products. Also due to impulse buying by young consumers with disposable income, brands like Reebok and Adidas saw their semi-urban and rural sales increase by more than 70%. According to Kishore Biyani (Biyani, 2007), the typical Indian consumer can be classified as follows: The serving class consists of 55% of the population. This indicates that the retail outlets should target this group as well instead of mainly targeting the consumer class, which consists of only 14% of the population, as it currently does (Tripathi). Literature Review Indian footwear consumer The basic understanding of fashion and change in consumer perceptions has given a huge boost to the footwear industry. There is more exposure for Indians due to global travel and media penetration. The new retailing formats and distribution systems have capitalized on this. Branded footwear from overseas has become popular. Of course, the cost for the consumer is still a concern, due to which even the international brands have had to bring down their prices drastically in order to achieve break-even sales. Comfort is very essential for the Indian footwear consumer. The branded and organized sector has taken advantage of this. However, the awareness about more specialized products like performance enhancing and fitness assisting is still very low in India compared to other South East Asian countries. This could increase with time. Also, the young working population is seeing a shift in preference to international trends and lifestyles. One more fact is that women buyers buy more frequently compared to their male counterparts. About 29% women go shopping at least once every quarter. Men account for about 19% of the total purchases of that segment (Indian Retail Report, 2009). As per a study on how consumers divide their wallet spends, about 44% of the urban Nupscale (short for Nielsen Upscale, based on the usage of 12 consumer durable products by the consumers households) buy mens footwear. 41% buy womens footwear. The average annual spend on the products is Rs. 2318 and Rs. 1336 respectively. This study was conducted by Images- AC Neilsen. Women had a role to play in the purchase of mens footwear (26% women to 56% men). Men had a bigger role to play in purchase of womens footwear (34% males to 51% females). Men spent more lavishly on footwear irrespective of whether they were buying for themselves or others or gifting. Males spend on an average Rs 2,459 in a typical year on purchase of mens footwear and Rs 1,428 on purchase of womens footwear. Comparatively, women spend on an average Rs 1,875 on mens footwear and Rs 1,265 on womens footwear in a typical year (Indian Retail Report, 2009). Research articles ‘Shopping Orientation in the Evolving Indian Market, a research article by Piyush Kumar Sinha, attempted to understand shoppers from their disposition towards shopping. This was very useful because it has been noted that the differences between retailers are not really significant in terms of the value they deliver. The study managed to bring out the shopping orientation of the Indian shoppers. It said that emotional value matters more than the functional value while shopping. They are also more oriented towards the entertainment value. Based on this orientation, 300 shoppers were divided into 2 segments: Fun shoppers and Work shoppers. These two segments had different demographic and behavioral profile. This orientation was primarily affected by the frequency of buying, type of store, and to some extent by the SEC (socio-economic classification). These findings were finally used in order to draw implications for store format, merchandising and pricing (Sinha, 2003). ‘A Typology of Apparel Shopping Orientation Segments among Female Consumers, segmented female apparel shoppers into unique apparel shopping orientation groups. It then developed a profile for each segment by taking into consideration the information sources, lifestyle activities, importance of store attributes, demographics and patronage behavior. Then by using cluster analysis of apparel shopping orientation factors, three groups were identified: 1) Highly Involved Apparel Shopper 2) Apathetic Apparel Shopper 3) Convenience-Oriented Catalog Shopper They were further compared through MANOVA (multivariate analysis of variance) and chi-square statistics. The results indicated that shopping orientations are a base for segmenting female apparel shoppers. These groups are unique in consumer buying characteristics. They include: * 3 factors of information sources (Fashion Publications, Store Fashion Service/Promotion and Mass Media) * 5 factors of importance of store attrib