Global Media Management Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Global Media Management - Essay Example Global Media Management Introduction The communication industry has been one of the toughest industries in the world. This is as a result of the immense competition and rivalry that is characterized by the industry. In fact, it is one of the most competitive industries in the world. This can be rooted from the fact that the communication industry experiences the most technological innovations across all industries. Every now and then new communication software and hardware are innovated. The only way a firm in the industry can make sure that they are enjoying maximum revenue from the industry’s market, is to make sure that they are the first ones to come up with such innovations since this will not only attract more consumers to their product but also ensure that they have productions rights of the technology they have introduced to the market. Innovation has made the communication industry to resemble a perfect competition market since no one firm enjoys domination over the m arket due to these new innovations that revolutionize the industry every now and then. Green Technologies has developed a new smart phone which it intends to launch in the next four months. It is important for the firm to undertake a good marketing strategy to ensure that the product is received well by consumers in the communication market. In order for this to happen, the marketing team should identify its communication objectives, the target consumer group, the brand which they will give the phone, and what media tools they will use in their campaign of launching the new product. Communication Objectives To ensure that Green Technologies successfully launches the new phone, it is of note for them to come up with communication objectives for their campaign. This will be beneficial to the firm because, coming up with communication objectives will save the company both time and money since they will undertake communication strategies that will focus on the objectives they have set r ather than undertaking a general communication strategy that will convey information that might be ambiguous and unnecessary costing them a lot of money and time. One communication objective in the launching of their product is to communicate to consumers in the market on the system specifications of the new smart phone. The firm should specify to consumers on each and every feature the new phone has explaining to them in a simple way in which ordinary persons who do not understand technological specifics can understand about the new product. For example, the new smart phone will come with a 5.0 inch display screen with high definition. This means that the phone can display videos and pictures in crystal clear quality. In the above example, not all consumers understand what high definition is hence by explaining to the consumers that it means quality pictures and videos it further explains the meaning of the term high definition to a layman. This will go a long way in ensuring the c onsumers understand the specifications of the phone. Another communication objective that the firm should undertake is informing the consumers the advantage the smart phone has over other phones. This is due to the fact that in the communication industry, for a new product especially a smart phone to be successful in the

Mystery of Under Water Crop Circles Essay Example for Free

Mystery of Under Water Crop Circles Essay Current Events Paper Synopsis: Under Water â€Å"Crop Circles† Thesis: Although 95% of the ocean hasn’t been explored, researcher and photographer Yoji Ookata just recently named his new find the â€Å"mystery circle†, an intricate design of an underwater crop circle created by a tiny puffer fish, a find that uncovers yet another mystery of the ocean. Summary: Yoji Ookata has been diving and documenting the ocean well over 50 years, just off the southern coast of Japan, Ookata observed what looked like a circular rippling pattern. 80 feet below sea level and 6 feet wide is a work of art Ookata never thought he would see, created by a puffer fish. The specific ridges are designed to attract female puffer fish, they lay eggs in the center so that they are shielded from ocean currents, the more ridges the more likely it will attract females. The little puffer works tirelessly to complete his design with just one fin. When Ookata discovered this circle he went out with a camera crew determined to find its creator, taken aback when this puffer fish made his appearance Ookata knew he had just unlocked another beautiful mystery hidden within the ocean. Sources: Knowles, Melissa. â€Å"Mystery Behind Deep-Sea Crop Circles Off the Coast of Japan Solved.† Yahoo.com September 19, 2012. http://news.yahoo.com/blogs/trending-now/mystery-behind-deep-sea-crop-circles-off-coast-165833308.html?_esi=1 Christopher. â€Å"Mysterious Underwater ‘Crop Circles’ Discovered Off the Coast of Japan† Thisiscolossal.com September 19, 2012. http://www.thisiscolossal.com/2012/09/mysterious-underwater-crop-circle-art-discovered-off-the-coast-of-japan/

Essay --

Quantitative Research Critique on article, Trust in nurse- patient relationships: A literature review by Leyla Dinc and Chris Gastmans Summary: †¨Purpose of the study: According to Dinc and Gastmans, the purpose of this study is to look over empirical studies on the trust within the nurse- patient relationship and to analyze and synthesize the results. Study Design: In the search for nursing literature, 34 publications were found to be relevant to be used in the study; out of these 34 publications, 22 studies exercise a qualitative design while 12 exercise quantitative design. The quantitative studies designs of this literature review included descriptive designs, cross- sectional designs, correlational designs, descriptive cross- sectional and correlational design. As for the qualitative studies included study designs: exploratory and descriptive, interpretative interactionism, hermeneutic, phenomenological design, ethnographic, feminist phenomenological design, and grounded theory approach, How data is collected: As for how data was collected, all the quantitative studies were collected using a questionnaire and scales such as the Trust in Provider Scale, Consortium Patient Satisfaction tool, Group- Based Medical Mistrust Scale, Cultural Mistrust Scale Inventory, and Black Racial Identity Attitude Scale. One of the researchers used the Trust Subscale of Patient’ Opinion of Nursing Care to judge the trust of nursing staff. The Caring Behaviors Assessment and Caring Behavior Questionnaire were both used on studies that dealt with the importance of nurse caring behavior. In addition, most of the qualitative studies used part structured or non- structure interviews with patients to collect data with participants. Some of the studi... ...ituations. Many of these qualities are needed to being tolerant of patients’ culture, lifestyles, and decisions without being judgmental in a condescending manner, instead give sympathetic advice, and assure with confidence. The study of Benkert and Wickson showed that patient satisfaction was positively related to trust in nurse practitioners and receipt of care in nurse managed centre (Dinc & Gastmasn 2013). It mentions how trust and faith from a nurse gave empowerment and ease for women giving birth. Above all, their study found patients with suffering had more hope when felt trust in a nurse; as for dying patients, trust gave them motivation to live, ease and sense of peace when facing death. The positive outcome of trust for nurses is when there is trust; it makes the job less stressful because patients are more compliant and cooperative with nurses’ orders.

Company structure Essay

1. Explain the reasons why the organisational structure in any business is important 2. Some people prefer to work for a large company. Others prefer to work for a small company. Which would you prefer? Use specific reasons and details to support your choice. Management and culture diversity 3. Differences between countries become less evident each year. Nowadays, all over the world people share the same fashions, advertising, brands, eating habits and TV channels. Do the advantages outweigh the disadvantages of this? In some countries, young people are encouraged to work or travel for a year between finishing high school and starting university studies. Discuss the advantages and disadvantages for young people who decide to do this. 4. As mass communication and transport continue to grow, societies are becoming more and more alike leading to a phenomenon known as globalization. Some people fear that globalization will inevitably lead to the total loss of cultural identity. To what extent do you agree or disagree with this statement? When international media (including movies, fashion shows, advertisements and other TV programmes) convey the same messages to the global audience, people argue that the expansion of international media has negative impacts on cultural diversity. What is your opinion? 5. Some people think using cultural heritage to develop international tourism is wrong. Others think that is the only way to protect cultural heritage. Discuss both views and give your own opinion. Marketing 6. Today, the high sales of popular consumer goods reflect the power of advertising and not the real needs of the society in which they are sold. To what extent do you agree or disagree? 7. Advertising is all around us; it is an unavoidable part of everyone’s life. Some people say that advertising is a positive part of our lives while others say it is a negative one. What is your opinion? Give reasons for your answer and include any relevant examples from your own knowledge or experience. 8. Do you think that ‘word of mouth’ is the best method of advertising? 9. What makes an effective advertisement? 10. In what ways can producers or retailers try to persuade customers to try new products? Pricing 11. In your opinion, are prices the only factor that makes people buy products? Give explanation. 12. Increasing the price of petrol is the best way to solve growing traffic and pollution problems. To what extend do you agree or disagree? What other measures do you think might be effective? The costs of medical health care are increasing all the time. Governments are finding it difficult to balance the health care budget. Should citizens be totally responsible for their own health costs and take out private health insurance, or is it better to have a comprehensive health care system which provides free health services for all? Discuss. 13. It is said that â€Å"you have what you pay for†. Do you agree/ disagree with this statement? 14. Offering high prices is always good. Do you agree or disagree? 15. Offering ‘off sales’ is always good. Do you agree or disagree? 16. More and more people are becoming overweight. Some people say that increasing the price of unhealthy or high-fat foods will solve this problem. To what extent do you agree or disagree? Arbitration The only way to solve a serious crisis between two nations is by going to war. What is your opinion? 17. Discuss the advantages and disadvantages of arbitration 18. The advantages of arbitration outweigh disadvantages. Do you agree? Discuss International Trade 19. Some people pay money for the things they want or need. Other people trade products or goods for what they need. Compare the advantages of these two ways of obtaining things. Which way do you prefer? Explain why Improvements in health, education and trade are essential for the development of poorer nations. However, the governments of richer nations should take more responsibility for helping the poorer nations in such areas. â€Å"Free trade cannot be said to be beneficial to all sections of a trading nation. As such, it is necessary for it to be accompanied by an income redistribution policy.† Discuss 20. â€Å"While a country as a whole will gain from trading with other nations, this does not mean that all sections of the community within the country will benefit.† Discuss. 21. â€Å"Free trade is good for some but bad for others† Discuss this statement 22. â€Å"Everyone benefits from free trade!† Discuss â€Å"While protectionism is bad, the World Trade Organisation preference for the use of tariffs over quotas as a protectionist device is extremely sensible.† Discuss. What are the key principles underlying the operation of the WTO? To what extent do these principles make economic sense? 23. What are the advantages and disadvantages of international trade? 24. What are the advantages of international trade to businesses? 25. Globalization makes rich countries richer and poor countries poorer. Do you agree? Banking 26. For hundreds of years, the monetary system of most countries has been based on the exchange of metal coins and printed pieces of paper. However, because of recent developments in technology, the international community should consider replacing the entire system of coins and paper with a system of electronic accounts of credits and debits.’ Discuss the extent to which you agree/ disagree with the expression above. Support your point of view with reasons/ examples from your own experience, observations or reading. 27. Many people are using credit cards or loans to run up personal debts that they may be unable to repay. It should therefore be made difficult for individuals to borrow large amount of money. What is your opinion on this? 28. What are the advantages and disadvantages of using credit cards? Many people who work in the banking and finance industries earn very much more than nurses, teachers and other people who work for their local communities. Some people think this is unfair. To what extent do you agree or disagree? Give reasons for your answers and include any relevant examples from your knowledge or experience. 29. How do banks facilitate the workings of modern life? 30. What are roles of banks in international trade? Financing international trade 31. Documentary credit is often used to finance international trade. Why is it chosen so widely? Are there any risks or disadvantages for the exporter and the importer when they decide to use documentary credit? 32. Someday paper money and coins will be replaced by credit cards and online methods of monetary exchange. Do you agree or disagree? 33. Discuss the advantages and disadvantages associated with using credit card. 34. Why is letter of credit the commonest method of payment in international trade? 35. What are the advantages and disadvantages of letter of credit? 36. What are the advantages and disadvantages of open account method of payment? Financial Statements Financial education should be a mandatory component of the school program. To what extent do you agree or disagree with this statement? 36. Write an essay on the importance of financial statements of a company. Suggested points: + How many types of financial statements are there? + What purpose are they used for? + What are the features of each type? M&A 37. Discuss the Advantages and Disadvantages of Company Mergers and Acquisitions. 38. What are the reasons for the failure of many Mergers and Acquisitions? 39. Why are there high rates of failure of Mergers and Acquisitons? Exchange rates â€Å"Forecasting exchange rates is essentially a waste of effort.† Discuss Topics for essay writing 1. What are the advantages and disadvantages of international trade? 2. What are the advantages of international trade to businesses? 3. Globalization makes rich countries richer and poor countries poorer. Do you agree? 4. Why is letter of credit the commonest method of payment in international trade? 5. What are the advantages and disadvantages of letter of credit? 6. What are the advantages and disadvantages of open account method of payment? 7. How do banks facilitate the workings of modern life? 8. What are roles of banks in international trade? 2. What makes an effective advertisement? 3. In what ways can producers or retailers try to persuade customers to try new products? 4. Explain the method of Mark-up price or the Cost-plus pricing 11. Explain what the Product mix pricing strategy is and give an example to illustrate your point.

HIV Patients Should Have Equal Access to Kidney Transplantation Essay

HIV infection may be obtained by patients receiving renal replacement therapy (RRT) through blood transfusions, renal allograft, sexual contacts, or needle sharing of drug addicts. Viral infection or HIV-associated nephropathy can cause renal failure. In the early 1980’s, prognosis of patients with the acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS) was very low, and survival rate of HIV-infected individuals with ESRD was miserable. Accordingly, several people even doubted the worth of providing continuance dialysis to patients with AIDS. Due to progress in diagnostic techniques in serologic and viral markers of disease, and use of extremely efficient antiretroviral agents, the prognosis of HIV-positive individuals has radically improved. Today, skills and knowledge in hemodialysis are effective modes of therapy and many centers, though some are reluctant, are now starting to practice renal transplantation in HIV-infected patients. Human Immunodeficiency Virus HIV infects CD4+ T cells, making the immune system weak as these cells malfunctions. Abnormal activation ofCD8= T cells may contribute to the loss of both CD4+ AND CD8+ T cells through apoptosis, which may represent a major cause of infected and non-infected cell death in HIV infection. Many HIV-infected individuals proliferative responses to recall antigens, irradiated stimulator peripheral blood mononuclear cells from healthy, unrelated donors, or T cell mitogens (Roland & Stock, 2003). HIV infection can worsen existing renal disease and can trigger pathologically distinct disease named HIV-associated nephropathy (HIVAN), a focal segmental glomerulosclerosis (FSGS) associated with severe cystic tubular lesions, leading to chronic renal failure. Renal syndromes include: fluid and electrolyte malfunction, proteinuria, nephrotic disease, progressive azotemia, inflamed kidneys, and fast succession to end stage renal disease (ESRD). HIV-infected patients who developed renal disease have short survival span. Transplantation process may increase the risk of HIV-infected patients in accelerating the depletion and dysfunction of their CD4+ T cells, which may further result in the development of more serious and complicated disease, such as AIDS, making HIV replication harder to control. On the other hand, immunosuppression might reverse the immuno-pathology associated with HIV disease (Roland & Stock, 2003). End Stage Renal Disease  When the kidney totally lost its ability to filter waste from the circulatory system, renal failure finally meet the end stage renal disease or ESRD, the final stage of nephropathy or the premeditated degeneration of the kidneys. In 1998, over eighty-six thousand patients received therapy for treating ESRD in the United States. Autonomously, Medicare expenditures rose to 12. 9 billion dollars from 12 billion in 1998. The total cost of ESRD program through medicare was 17. 9 billion and is now projected to be 28. 3 billion dollars by 2010 (Winsett et al, 2002). The most common causes of ESRD include diabetic nephropathy, systemic arteral hypertension, glomerulonephrities, and polycystic kidney disease. In the case of ESRD, GFR declines to less than 10mL/min/m2, once it declines to that level, the normal hemeostatic function of the kidneys can not be sustained anymore. Whatever the cause, if untreated, ESRD may cause severe infection and even death to the patient. When the kidney function decline to less than twelve percent to fifteen percent, the patient survival will depend on the kidney transplantation and the therapies associated to it (Winsett et al, 2002). Chronic Dialysis versus Kidney Transplantation According to the New England Journal of Medicine (1999), transplantation is superior in saving life than long-term dialysis. The mortality rates were analyzed among over 200, 000 patients who underwent dialyses for ESRD and only twenty-three thousand received a kidney. Based on the research, patients who undergo transplantation live twice more than the projected years of life of patients who remained on the waitlist having dialysis. A successful transplantation improves the quality of life and lessens the mortality rate for many patients. Moreover, it consumes less time and energy. However, this procedure may cause bleeding, damage, and infection to other organs inside the body, even death can occur. That is why after transplantation, patients must undergo immunosuppression process for a lifetime period to monitor signs of rejection (Berns, 2007). Despite the greater risks, when it comes to quality and length of life, a transplanted kidney is more preferred. It’s man over machine. Statistics Over ten thousand kidney transplantations are being performed each year on patients with ESRD. Records show that patients who undergo kidney transplantation live longer than those who are just taking dialysis; but eight to nine patients on the waitlist die every day due to scarcity of organs to be used in the transplantation. Cadaveric kidney supply has an average of more than two years to come, and only 15-20 % of patients in the list were granted to receive them. The condition of renal failure and what causes them have direct effects on the transplantation rates of patients. Individuals with cystic kidney disease (25. 5%), obstructive nephropathy (24. 9%), and glomerulonephrities (23. 2%) have the utmost successful transplantation rate while patients having diabetes (13. 3%) and hypertension (8. 5%) have the lowest rates (Wallace, 1998). Why transplantation should be considered in HIV-infected patients? Organ malfunction has been the principal grounds of morbidity and mortality of HIV-infected patients, AIDS-related complication is only secondary. Before, immunosuppression was thought to be an unconditional contraindication in the circumstance of HIV infection, now, it is gradually more valued that immune activation is a major aspect of HIV pathogenesis. Consequently, immunosuppression has advantageous effects in people with HIV infection through temperance of immune activation or reduction of HIV reservoirs. Some specific immunosuppressant agents also have antiviral properties or interact synergistically with certain antiretroviral agents (Roland & Stock, 2003). Reasons for reluctance of performing Kidney Transplantation for HIV-infected patients: In a survey conducted to 248 renal transplant centers in The U. S. in 1998, 148 requires HIV testing of prospective kidney recipients and that the vast majority denies patients with HIV to undergo transplantation. Most centers believe that transplantation is not suitable for HIV-infected patients (Spital A. , 1998). Before, chronic dialysis was the only option for treating ESRD of HIV-infected patients for fear of increased morbidity and mortality due to therapeutic immunosuppression. The allocation of cadaver kidneys to these patients was also considered improper due to expected inferior patient graft survival (Anil Kumar et al. , 2005). Also, according to the research led by Professor Andrew Grulich from the University of the New South Wales’ National Centre in HIV Epidemiology and Clinical Search (NCHECR), immune deficiency is responsible for the increased risk of contracting several types of cancer than the general population. HIV patients are eleven times more expected to develop Hodgkin’s lymphoma while there is almost four times the risk for those who had transplants (Staff Writers, 2007). Professor Grulich further proposed that people’s immune system must be maintained at a higher level through the use of anti-retroviral drugs. The main historical exclusion of HIV-infected patients with ESRD was rooted in the coherent basis that immunosuppression necessary for organ transplantation would aggravate an already immunocompromised state. Although there were numerous initial reports signifying worse outcomes after solid organ transplantation in HIV seropositive recipients, there have been reports as well suggesting there were no unpleasant effects of HIV infection on allograft survival (University of California, 2007). Indeed, there have been two reports of HIV-infected patients going through liver or renal transplantation who demonstrated normal graft function for at least eight years following the transplant. The HIV status of the two was unknown at the time of transplantation; therefore no endeavors were prepared to adjust immunosuppressive therapy. The distinction in these studies may recount to differences in the time of HIV acquisition, with those of longstanding HIV infection prior to transplantation having a faster end relative to those who acquired HIV infection at the time of transplantation. Regardless of standard cyclosporine-based immunosuppressive treatments, there was no proof of OI or progression to AIDS in the first eight years following transplantation (Roland & Stock, 2003). There are multiple other reports of patients with HIV who had gone through transplantation and demonstrated long-term graft survival in the presence of immunosuppression with variable rates of developing AIDS or death. Six of eleven renal allografts were functioning at a mean follow-up of thirty-one months (Roland & Stock, 2003). Effects of Immunosuppressant Agents In order to avoid rejection reaction of the body against transplanted organs, immunosuppressant drugs are being taken to block the immune system from attacking the transplanted organ and preserving its function. As side effect, these drugs can help in HIV progress to AIDS. However, recent studies show that these drugs can also contribute in the reduction of HIV. Inactive T lymphocytes serve as a vital reservoir for HIV regardless of HAART. Immunosuppression may affect the reservoir of HIV-infected cell that persist throughout HAART through reduction of cell-associated HIV by either direct inhibition of viral replication, potentiation of HAART effects, or exhaustion of infected cells and lessening in the accessibility of permissive target cells by preventing T-cell activation. Otherwise, improvement in viral reservoirs can be caused by reduced immune management of HIV-expressing cells (Roland & Stock, 2003). Ethical and Medical Issues Organ shortage is one of the ethical issues in organ transplantation. One distributive fairness criteria is equal access which include length of time waiting (first come, first saved basis), and age (youngest to oldest). The supporters of this criteria has a strong belief that since kidney transplantation can save live, it is an important remedial practice and worth offering to anyone who needs it (Center for Bioethics, 2004). The second type is the maximum benefit, aiming to maximize the quantity of successful transplants. The maximum benefit criteria include medical need (the sickest people are being prioritized for a transplantable organ), and probable success of a transplant (giving organs to the person who will be most likely to live the longest). People who support the maximum benefit philosophy aspire to avoid the wasting of organs, which are quite scarce, so that the greatest benefit is derived from every available organ (Center for Bioethics, 2004). During the Pre-HAART era, HIV-infected patients have a very poor prognosis, many people believes that it would be a waste to use the limited supply of organ to those group of patients that is why many transplant centers are reluctant to practice the transplantation. However, now that the HAART has been launched and the mortality and morbidity rate has been decreasing, it would be unethical to withhold this option in the absence of evidence that it is either unsafe or ineffective. Advancement in HIV Therapy: HAART era Highly Active Antiretroviral Therapy (HAART) has been the primary improvement in the treatment of HIV-infected patients in the previous decade. Numerous studies and observations had proven that advantageous outcomes of HAART also include improvement of HIV-related renal complications. Virologic and histologic evidences imply that HIVAN perhaps the result of HIV-1 reproduction in the kidney. The potential relation of HIVAN with HIV-1 replication in the kidney is associated with epidemiologic and medical records showing that HAART may improve HIVAN. On the other hand, from nephrologist’s perspective, one effect of this achievement has been the emergence of new kidney diseases related to (1) enhanced management of the HIV infection and (2) the prospective nephroxicity of antiretroviral treatments. According to the studies of MD Roland and Stock, medical tests have confirmed apparent survival benefits linked with the use of protease inhibitor (PI)-containing or non-nucleoside reverse-transcriptate inhibitor (NNRTI)-containing regimens (HAART). Epidemiologic statistics show reduced mortality, hospitalization rates, and opportunistic infection (OI) incidence associated with HAART. There have been vivid decline in new AIDS-related OIs, the majority of which are now occurring in people with low CD4+ T cell counts and those who are not receiving medical care (University of California, 2007). Epidemiologic and modeling information sustain the clinical trial efficacy data, signifying that HAART has a considerable effect on medical result (Roland & Stock, 2003). Survival Rate Using the United States Kidney Data System (USRDS) data, the Journal of the American Society of Nephrology analyzed and studied these inputs to find out whether recipient HIV serologic status remains the primary factor in graft and patient survival in modern clinical transplantation. Ninety-five percent of the HIV-infected patients survived after transplantation and only 4. 3% died. Although in the earlier USRDS studies of kidney recipients before the introduction of HAART, the results showed that HIV-infected recipients had a survival of eighty-three percent while the uninfected patients have eighty-eight percent survival rates. While endurance records of HIV-infected and HIV-uninfected patients is almost the same, selection bias may have occurred, prioritizing the healthier patients than HIV-infected individuals. Also, in the studies of MD Roland, data showed that graft survival and rejection rates of HIV-infected patients who had gone through transplantation were similar to those HIV-negative patients (Roland & Stock, 2003). Studies and Observations Methods. This study aims to observe safety and success of kidney transplantation, and learn the effects of immunosuppressant treatments on HIV infection, with the approval of the Institutional evaluation board of two universities: the Drexel University College of Medicine and Hahnemann University Hospital. Forty-five recipients with HIV infection from February 2001 to January 2004 were observed. Patient inclusion criteria were maintenance of HAART, plasma HIV-1 RNA of

ESL Dialogue to Make an Appointment With the Dentist

ESL Dialogue to Make an Appointment With the Dentist In teaching English and a Second Language (ESL) or English as an Alternative Language (EAL)  students how to properly communicate in English, oftentimes specific examples will help them to understand the dynamics of English grammar and usage at play in real life circumstances, though it is important to also emphasize the technical rules associated with each grammatical situation. One such example of a situation an ESL or an EAL  student may encounter outside of school is scheduling an appointment at the dentist- or doctor, but its best to keep these types of exercises simple and one-dimensional to present the clearest message to students. In this scenario, the teacher should begin by playing the role of the dentist office assistant, mining answering a phone that the student, the patient, should voice.   ESL Dialogue for Practicing Scheduling Medical Appoints Dentist Office Assistant: Good morning, Beautiful Smile Dentistry, this is Jamie. How may I help you today? Patient: Good morning, Id like to schedule a check-up. D:  Id be happy to do that for you. Have you been to Beautiful Smile before? P: Yes, I have. My last check-up was six months ago. D: Great. Can I get your name, please? P:  Yes, of course, sorry. My name is [students name]. D: Thank you, [students name]. Which dentist did you see on your last check-up. P:  Im not sure, really. D: Thats OK. Let me check your chart... Oh, Dr. Lee. P: Yes, thats right. D: OK... Dr. Lee has time next Friday in the morning. P: Hmmm... thats not good. Ive got work. How about the week after that? D: Yes, Dr. Lee has sometimes open. Would you like to suggest a time? P: Does he have anything open in the afternoon? D: Yes, we could fit you in on Thursday, January 14th at 2.30 in the afternoon. P: Great. Thatll work. D: OK, thank you for calling Mr. Appleman, well see you next week. P:  Thank you, bye-bye. Key Phrases for Making Appointments to Emphasize The key takeaways from this exercise are the phrases that one might encounter at a doctor or dentists office that may be confusing to new English learners like which dentist did you see? or we can fit you in, which makes no sense in the literal interpretation of the phrase. The most important phrase for an ESL student to learn here, though, is Id like to schedule or make an appointment, but its also important to be able to understand the response, like if the office assistant had said I wish I could help as a rejection- an ESL student may not understand this means there is nothing that assistant can do to match that persons schedule. The phrase check-up and have you been to Dr. Xs before are both unique to ESL students because they present a colloquialism commonly used to describe situations specific to visiting a doctor or dentist.

John Steinbeck Biography essays

John Steinbeck Biography essays John Steinbeck, author of Of Mice and Men (1937), was born in Salinas, California on February 27, 1902. He grew up in a middle-class family of German and Irish descent in Monterey County, California. This is where Steinbeck developed his love of the natural world and diverse cultures that show up so often in his major works. His father, John Steinbeck Sr., was the county treasurer and his mother, Olive (Hamilton) Steinbeck, was a formal school teacher. They lovingly fostered his passion for reading and writing. John Jr. attended Stanford University but never graduated. He left Stanford in 1925 and attempted to become a freelance writer in New York City, but when his endeavors failed he returned to California. Steinbeck married his first wife, Carol Henning, in 1930 and they moved to Pacific Grove, where he wrote Tortilla Flat (1935). This novel was his first popular work and the turning point of his career. Of Mice and Men (1937), a tale of shattered dreams, was considered to be St einbecks first large success. In 1939 he published what is considered his best work, The Grapes of Wrath, the story of Oklahoma tenant farmers who, unable to earn a living from the land, moved to California where they became migratory workers. John Steinbeck was awarded the Nobel Prize for Literature in 1962 ...for his realistic as well as imaginative writings, distinguished by a sympathetic humor and a keen social perception. His last work was Travels with Charley (1962), a travelogue in which Steinbeck wrote about his impressions during a three-month tour in a truck that led him through forty American states. Other works included The Red Pony (1937), Sweet Thursday (1954), Cannery Row (1945), In Dubious Battle (1936), To a God Unknown (1933), The Sea of Cortez (1941), Cup of Gold (1929), and The Moon is Down (1942). He died in New York City on December 20, 1968, and was survived by his third wife, Elaine (Scott) Steinbeck, and their son...

17 Tips for Older Job Seekers - Follow in the footsteps of winners!

17 Tips for Older Job Seekers - Follow in the footsteps of winners! Even before LinkedIn posted a blog with tips for older job seekers in September, I received some good news from a couple of my 50+-year-old connections on the job search front. Both of them are followers of my blog, and both agreed to share their stories with you. I hope their success inspires job seekers of all ages to keep on taking action! I pay close attention to my LinkedIn status updates so that I can congratulate people on their new positions. When I got word that Becky S. had obtained a new position as an IT Business Analyst, I wrote to acknowledge her success and she shared the following about how she obtained her new position: Your webinars and e-book were a real encouragement and a definite part of the process.  Thanks for sharing and encouraging all job-seekers! I attended classes and weekly networking sessions at the local WorkForce center met my new boss there. Took a 3-month contract position  which lasted a year.  I am so thankful to have had this opportunity. Posted updates on LinkedIn when attending classes, announcing the approaching contract end and my desire to be the newest member of your team. My new boss maintained contact through LinkedIn.   He even downloaded my resume and considered me an applicant. Three interviews later I had an offer! Note that Becky used social media to her full advantage, demonstrating that even though she might be older she is computer-savvy and on top of current trends.  Also note that she was open to contract positions and accepted one that gave her valuable experience while she was actively looking for other work. Shortly after receiving this message from Becky, another one of my followers, Steven A., gave me the following wisdom stemming from his successful search for a senior-level accountant position: Volunteering was a great confidence-lifter and networking tool. I did that at North Shore Long Island Jewish Medical Center for six months.   It was extremely fulfilling; met new professional contacts / links  and  helped fill  the gap in the resume while  looking for  next position. Strong perseverance, applying for jobs that may not necessarily been 100% qualified for (i.e.  taking chances), Strong LinkedIn profiling participation in group discussions there Having good contacts (such as yourself, Brenda) that help you with strategies and point you in a good direction. Supportive job search services  such as Connect-To-Care  (Little Neck NY other New York locations: FEGS and other channels) were great support groups. Networking helps but unless it is properly targeted it wont always work (e.g. job fairs predominant in sale promotions or  solicitations / advertising  will not help an  unemployed, experienced, professional accountant. [Steven also warns:] Employers, recruiters HRs will never ever  admit it, but age is a negative running factor if the applicant is in fact, older (i.e. for example as myself, over 50).  Many agencies (I recall approaching at least a dozen)  dont ever get back to applicants. Only 2 in  12 ever gave me  leads in a years unemployment time. Job searches must be predominantly independently pursued. Steven’s insights hammer home the message that being active on LinkedIn and pursuing multiple networking opportunities are two keys for the older job seeker. LinkedIn can be used in multiple ways, from researching whom you might know at a particular company in order to network your way in, to   participating in groups, to highlighting your volunteer activities, to attracting recruiters with targeted keywords. In LinkedIn’s blog article, 5 Steps for Older Workers to Succeed in the Job Hunt, author Kerry Hannon offers the following tips: Use a professional e-mail address. [meaning something with your full name if possible, preferably at gmail or a paid provider). And use it! Let your contacts know what you are looking for and find out who would be great to talk to about your search]. Join LinkedIn. [How to Write a KILLER LinkedIn Profile is a great place to start in creating a profile and using LinkedIn to get results. Note that Becky and Steven leveraged LinkedIn to its max and both of them found new positions!] Network. [You can network effectively both on LinkedIn and in person. Hannon points to a new, free service from AARP called Work Reimagined, which leverages LinkedIn’s API to help job hunters find information and job openings. You can sign up for customized job alert postings in your field of interest.] Start a Twitter account. [I defer to Hannon on this one. She says: â€Å"Follow people or companies where you might want to interview. For your username, use your actual name or a shortened form. Include a bio – where you live and what kind of work you do†¦. 160 characters. By following tweets, you can get the scoop on people you may wind up interviewing with and stay on top of a potential employer’s news. You can also share ideas and tips with other job seekers. Plus, you’re expanding your network.†] Don’t be a wallflower. [just like you need to exercise your body to get build muscle, you need to participate in discussions on line and in person, and keep doing your research, to build your job search success muscles. Looking for a job is a full-time job, so create a plan and get into action!] To read the entire LinkedIn blog article, go to 5 Steps for Older Workers to Succeed in the Job Hunt. Using a combination of tips from Becky, Steven and Kerry Hannon, you can win the job search game regardless of your age. If you have found success and have more tips to share, please do so below! And if you want more individual support with your resume and LinkedIn profile, go to www.TheEssayExpert.com. I look forward to working with you!

To Build a Fire and Young Goodman Brown Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

To Build a Fire and Young Goodman Brown - Essay Example Another interesting point is that Hawthorne makes sure to clarify that the journey which Goodman Brown makes into the forest is done at night and not during the day. If any trespasser were asked what comes to his mind with the thought of a dark forest, it can safely be assumed that by and large the first response would be related to the creepy feel that a dark forest exuberates. The dark forest sets the tone of the story and makes it clear to the reader from the start that what he is about to read is not a happily ending romantic novel or a light comedy, rather the dark thought provoking nature of the story comes across instantly. Therefore, the very first role played by the most predominantly used element of nature in the story, the forest, is to highlight the feel of the narrative and set the mood of the story. Time and again references have been made in the novel to the nature of the forest by the use of adjectives such as â€Å"gloomy,† â€Å"dark,† â€Å"silent,â €  â€Å"wilderness,† and so forth. ... As Goodman Brown continues with his journey in the forest he meets an old man, who has not been given a name but it appears to be obvious that Goodman Brown does know that he will be meeting this man and that the meeting was not a coincidence. The conversation between Goodman Brown and the old man revolves around the old man challenging Goodman Brown’s belief in the goodness of the people of the society and his father and grandfather. From this conversation it appears as though the old man represents the devil or the temptation that attracts man towards evil. Hawthorne makes it a point to specify that the â€Å"old† man is sitting under an â€Å"old† tree while waiting for Goodman Brown, so that the reader can instantly make the connection of the old man with evil because there is an inherent eeriness associated with old trees with their sagging roots. Furthermore, the stick which the old man is narrated to be holding is constantly compared to a black serpent as follows, â€Å"But the only thing about him that could be fixed upon as remarkable was his staff, which bore the likeness of a great black snake, so curiously wrought that it might almost be seen to twist and wriggle itself like a living serpent,† (Hawthorne, 8). Here we see another element of nature coming into play, the snake is said to be amongst the most venomous of all animals and the fact that the old man holds this stick with such comfort reflects on his association with evil. An interesting piece of conversation from the story is as follows, "Come, Goodman Brown," cried his fellow-traveler, "this is a dull pace for the beginning of a journey. Take my staff, if you are so soon weary,† (Hawthorne, 9), this suggestion of the old man to Goodman Brown can have

Institution of affiliation Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Institution of affiliation - Essay Example This statement is open to criticism and can be easily misinterpreted (Marr, 2012). Marr argues that genetic material can be traced back in time, but is arguable that, it reaches certain limit. In essence, it is disputable to imagine that all humanity is in a lineal civilized from the remainder of the world. Another instance, were I find a claim not substantial at all, is the assertion that, the Hom sap wiped out the Neanderthals. The primary cause was mass murder and this attributes to the argument that humans are naturally violent and clannish. I do not subscribe to this assertion, because if that is the case, why then cohesive state control is not regarded as an eternal necessity. In the last three episodes, Marr explains his understanding on revolution, industry and extremes. It is evident that, watching this series a clear mind of Marr is visible. Marr wanted to take the present generation through the evolution process of humanity, then revolution, industrial aggressiveness and f ar reached extremes. Marr expresses the path of revolution as being similar in all the revolutions that have occurred across the globe. For instance, he mentions of idealism, and then follows extremism and ultimately collapse of power into the hands of strong military man (Marr, 2012). However, commentators have repeatedly rehashed the idea that revolution leads to autocracy and attribute the evils of the 20th century to the French revolution. It is evident that Marr’s objective is to malign the inspiration of revolution by refuting that revolutions are not driven by ideas and at the same time asserting that such revolutions keep on rolling because of ideals. I find Marr’s arguments conflicting. They do not add up to indicate his beliefs on then real causes of revolutions. However, my reflection on the overall aspect of revolution is inclined is to the fact that, the initial civilizations were because of being driven to extremes and the response to survive gave rise to revolutions (Marr, 2012). This opinion is subject to criticism. On the same note, Marr fails to give correct account of the Russian revolution. Instead, he delivers piece-wise information, and at the end, the whole scenario result to portraying the Russian revolution as a derivative of the machinations of German imperialism in a bid to conceal the responsibility of the Russian population and Bolsheviks as the real forces that drove the revolution. The question arising is, does Marr imply what he believes in or simply his insinuations are meant to cow people to his selective study? I believe the Russian revol

Pride in Bury My Heart in Wounded Knee Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Pride in Bury My Heart in Wounded Knee - Essay Example In this movie however, pride is presented as strength. To begin with, the White settlers exhibit pride when they employ pretence to gain access to the land of the natives. After gaining the access, they maltreat the natives and reportedly kill the natives ‘for their energy resources’ (Voluk 154). The strong pride in this case makes them to maintain that the contentious land resource does not belong to anyone. This is regardless of having found the native inhabitants therein. Ultimately, this enables the Whites to have access to the resource. Also worth appreciating that the inherent pride gives the Americans the strength to persist on. Pride in this case is the driving force of all the activities. The White soldiers believe that they deserve only the best and this enables them to conquer the natives. Certainly, it is pride that made General Custer to carry and fight on even after the gruesome defeat in 1876. The soldiers at this point believed that the then defeat was temporary and could not demoralize them. Thus pride in this case can be considered a strength that contributes significantly to the success of the

Describe a SPECIFIC room Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Describe a SPECIFIC room - Essay Example There is multimedia equipment also present in the room and is put at the top, close to the ceiling, because it is a very expensive item and can get damaged. There are about 6 rows and each row has six chairs. Thus the class can accommodate more than 30 students. The desks are also movable but are vey heavy to actually be moved around. There is a computer lying in one corner on which multimedia slides are run. The door is on the right top corner of the room and is big enough to let 3 people pass at a time. The windows are full length both on the right and the left. The right ones overlook the garden, while the left ones open in the hallway. Lighting is considered an important component of good classroom design and attention has been paid to this. There is adequate artificial lighting that complements natural light coming from big windows. The classroom is roomy, adequately illuminated and clean. Interestingly there is only one door for such a big classroom. This must be because of the architecture and also because a back door can make it easier for students to sneak out. There is rostrum where teachers make their lectures but no teacher stands still behind the rostrum. They keep moving around and pacing the room to make the class more interested in the subject.

Zain Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2250 words

Zain - Research Paper Example Scott Gegenheimer holds the title of CEO of the Group (Zain, â€Å"Believing in the Power of Dreams, Annual Report 2012†). 2. The two letters have been written by the Chairman and the CEO of the Group basically addressing the shareholders. The basic message in the letters comprises assisting the shareholders to know about the broad operations of the company throughout the year with the deliverance of certain useful information. These encompass short description of the financial results, business practices, marketing strategies, current position in the operating business markets, future goals and most importantly its rise in profitability from the preceding few years, making a greater appeal to its current and potential shareholders (Zain, â€Å"Believing in the Power of Dreams, Annual Report 2012†). 3. Letter from the Chairman. In this letter, the first paragraph depicts a short description about the challenges faced by the company throughout the financial year 2012. Ad ditionally, this section explains the changes in the external as well as the internal environment and how the company addressed those challenges with the adoption of few developmental based projects and effective business policies. The next part of this letter explains the operational results of the Group including net income, earning per share and consolidated revenue with relevant data. Correspondingly, the next section of the letter depicted a detailed understanding about the launch of various networks by the company and its restructuring business process in different parts of the globe. The last section of this letter portray the Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) based activities that the company performed towards the society and the environment with a conclusion seeking for continuous support from the esteemed members of the Group (Zain, â€Å"Believing In The Power Of Dreams, Annual Report 2012†). Letter from the C.E.O. In this letter, the first section provides a b rief explanation about the journey of the company and the experience of the person as the CEO. The next section of the letter includes the description of the services or the products that the company offers to its customers and how it is adopting effective strategies to raise the level of customer satisfaction. Correspondingly, the next part of the letter reflects the review of the business conducted in the financial year of 2012. The last section of the letter presented looking forward statement with an aim to show the potentials of the company to compete in future (Zain, â€Å"Believing in the Power of Dreams, Annual Report 2012†). OTHER MATERIAL 4. The 2012 annual report of Zain includes various sections including Chairman and CEO statement, company overview, key milestones, share price evolution, business operations, group technology, financial statements and practice of CSR activities among others. All the information has been provided and explained in a proper sequence. Additionally, it can be viewed that the annual report has been prepared with the focus of keeping it quite simple and easy to understand by the customers along with the shareholders (Zain, â€Å"Zain Group’s 2012 Annual Report Earns Accolades at ARC Awards in New York†). The materials contained in the annual report and the messages that these communicates can be viewed as quite impressive owing to the reason that one can obtain a clear idea about the financial performance of the company and also the effective strategies that the company adopted. FINANCIAL HIGHLIGHTS 5. Zain provides adequate financial information to the shareholders through presenting those in its annual reports. The shareholders of the company are provided with appropriate financial information concerning the operational performances as well as other related financial

Influencing Performance Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words - 1

Influencing Performance - Essay Example When strategic goals are clearly communicated to the employees, they feel confident and motivated about it. Secondly, â€Å"equal pay for equal work† is an important compensation theory which works towards employee motivation (McIntosh 1998). Inequalities tend to generate between employees when they feel that some other person is getting more for the same work or he/she is not getting adequate compensation for his/her services. It is very important for the organization to observe equity theory of motivation (McShane and Von Glinow 2010) while designing the compensation packages. Also, training and development programmes for employees at different levels work wonders in enhancing performance as they give the employees a chance to increase their skills set. They become more competent to handle more responsibilities with greater enthusiasm and ability which automatically builds upon their positivity towards work. Understanding employee professional and personal needs is the key to their motivation and best performance. Sufficient promotion opportunities, clear goals, mutual working environment and celebrating each and every achievement of employees lies at the heart of bettering the employee performance. Workplace security, safety measures and constructive criticism also form an integral part of this. Describe one method effective leaders can use to improve individual and/or group performance in your organization. Include the role of theory in your discussion. Support your method with a minimum of 1 reference from the literature. Leaders are considered to be effective when they are able to direct the actions of their followers through motivation, planning and judicious implementation of plans. Leaders are considered as role models by the followers because of their charisma or the inherent qualities and values they possess. Leaders are said to be effective when they are able to transfer these to their followers (Leadership Expert webpage 2010). One popular

Zain Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2250 words

Zain - Research Paper Example Scott Gegenheimer holds the title of CEO of the Group (Zain, â€Å"Believing in the Power of Dreams, Annual Report 2012†). 2. The two letters have been written by the Chairman and the CEO of the Group basically addressing the shareholders. The basic message in the letters comprises assisting the shareholders to know about the broad operations of the company throughout the year with the deliverance of certain useful information. These encompass short description of the financial results, business practices, marketing strategies, current position in the operating business markets, future goals and most importantly its rise in profitability from the preceding few years, making a greater appeal to its current and potential shareholders (Zain, â€Å"Believing in the Power of Dreams, Annual Report 2012†). 3. Letter from the Chairman. In this letter, the first paragraph depicts a short description about the challenges faced by the company throughout the financial year 2012. Ad ditionally, this section explains the changes in the external as well as the internal environment and how the company addressed those challenges with the adoption of few developmental based projects and effective business policies. The next part of this letter explains the operational results of the Group including net income, earning per share and consolidated revenue with relevant data. Correspondingly, the next section of the letter depicted a detailed understanding about the launch of various networks by the company and its restructuring business process in different parts of the globe. The last section of this letter portray the Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) based activities that the company performed towards the society and the environment with a conclusion seeking for continuous support from the esteemed members of the Group (Zain, â€Å"Believing In The Power Of Dreams, Annual Report 2012†). Letter from the C.E.O. In this letter, the first section provides a b rief explanation about the journey of the company and the experience of the person as the CEO. The next section of the letter includes the description of the services or the products that the company offers to its customers and how it is adopting effective strategies to raise the level of customer satisfaction. Correspondingly, the next part of the letter reflects the review of the business conducted in the financial year of 2012. The last section of the letter presented looking forward statement with an aim to show the potentials of the company to compete in future (Zain, â€Å"Believing in the Power of Dreams, Annual Report 2012†). OTHER MATERIAL 4. The 2012 annual report of Zain includes various sections including Chairman and CEO statement, company overview, key milestones, share price evolution, business operations, group technology, financial statements and practice of CSR activities among others. All the information has been provided and explained in a proper sequence. Additionally, it can be viewed that the annual report has been prepared with the focus of keeping it quite simple and easy to understand by the customers along with the shareholders (Zain, â€Å"Zain Group’s 2012 Annual Report Earns Accolades at ARC Awards in New York†). The materials contained in the annual report and the messages that these communicates can be viewed as quite impressive owing to the reason that one can obtain a clear idea about the financial performance of the company and also the effective strategies that the company adopted. FINANCIAL HIGHLIGHTS 5. Zain provides adequate financial information to the shareholders through presenting those in its annual reports. The shareholders of the company are provided with appropriate financial information concerning the operational performances as well as other related financial

Review of Quantitative Research Designs Assignment

Review of Quantitative Research Designs - Assignment Example It is estimated that approximately 24 million teenage Americans, 9% of the entire population engage in drug abuse. Such research requires descriptive statistics to establish the trends and provide a visual impression of the research (Black, 1999). The research was conducted on a population to describe the data in relation to drug abuse. An experimental research design can be applied when trying out a new technology in the public transport system. For example, attempting to see how commuters using public transport would respond to an easy pay system; pre-paid cards fitted with a magnetic chip and can be used as a means of payment in buses. An experimental research design would be appropriate for such a research situation because the research is subject to manipulation, control, random selection, and random assignment (Vogt, 2007). The above-mentioned characteristics of experimental research design indicate that the researcher can obtain as much information as possible due to the ease of control of the research topic. The research question would be: How will people respond to the easy pay system and the number of people that would recommend it. The independent variable will be the response (excited, satisfied, and not sure) while the dependent variable will be the number of commuters who recommend the

Musical Genre Classification of Audio Signals Essay Example for Free

Musical Genre Classification of Audio Signals Essay Musical genres are categorized by human. It depends on human hearing. There are common characteristics shared by categories. These characteristics are related to instrumentation, rhythmic structure, and harmonic content of the music. Currently many music is still classified by manually. Automated system for musical genre classification can assist or replace manual work for classifying musical genre. In this paper, the automatic classification of audio signals into hierarchy of musical genres is explored. Three feature sets for representing timbral texture, rhythmic content and pitch content are proposed. Also propose classification through two-times KNN classification method and show enhancement of accuracy. Using two-time KNN classification method increases accuracy about 5% than one-time ++++KNN classification which two-time KNN classification accuracy is 77.9% and one-time KNN classification accuracy is 73.3%. Index Terms – Music classification, feature extraction, wavelets, KNN classification Table of Contents I. II. Introduction Music Modeling Genre Segmentation III. Feature Extraction A. Timbral Texture Features i. ii. iii. iv. B. Spectral shape features Mel-frequency cepstral coefficients (MFCCs) Texture window Low-Energy features Rhythmic Features C. Pitch Content Features IV. Classification V. Evaluation and Discussion VI. References I. Introduction Musical genres are categorized by human. It depends on human hearing. There are common characteristics shared by categories. These characteristics are related to instrumentation, rhythmic structure, and harmonic content of the music. Genre classification is magnified when music industry moved from CD to web. In web music is distributed in large amount so importance of genre classification is magnified. Currently many music is still classified by manually. Automated system for musical genre classification can assist or replace manual work for classifying musical genre. In era of web, it enabled to access large amount of all kinds of data such as music, movies, news and so on. Music database has been grown exponentially since first perceptual coders early in the 90’s. As database grows it demanded tools that can enable search, retrieve and handle large amount of data. Classifying musical genre was great tool for searching, retrieving and handling large music data base [1-3]. There are several more method such as music emotion classification [4], beat tracking [5], preference recommendation [6], and etc.. Musical genres classification (MGC) are created and used for categorized and describe music. Musical genre has no precise definitions or boundaries because it is categorized by human hearing. Musical genres classification are highly related to public marketing, historical and cultural factors. Different countries and organizations have different genre lists, and they even define the same genre with different definitions. So it is hard to define certain genres precisely. There is not an official specification of music genre until now. There are about 500 to 800 genres in music [7, 8]. Some researchers suggested the definition of musical genres classification [9]. After several attempt to define musical genres researchers figured out that it shares certain characteristics such as instrumentation, rhythmic structure, and pitch content. Genre hierarchies were created by human experts and they are currently used to classify music in the web. Auto MGC can provide automating classifying process and provide important component for complete music information. The most significant proposal to specifically deal with this task was released in 2002 [3]. S everal strategies dealing with related problems have been proposed in research areas. In this paper, automatic musical genre classification is proposed showed in Figure 1. For feature extraction, three sets of features for representing instrumentation (timberal), rhythmic content and pitch content are proposed. Figure 1 Automatic Musical Genre Classification II. Music Modeling Genre Segmentation An untrained and non-expert person can detect the genre of a song with accuracy of 72% by hearing three-second segmentation of the song [11]. However computer is not design like human brain so it can’t process MGC like human. Despite whole song may somehow influence the representativeness of feature, using whole song can extract most of features that music has. Also to extract short segment of music for automation system is unsuited for the purpose because difficulty of finding exact time of music that represents genre of music. Without research finding certain section of music representing its characteristic using whole song to modeling is proper way to MGC. There are too many music genres used in web [7, 8]. Classification genre has to be simplified and in this paper proposed genres which are popular used in MP3 players in the market. Figure 2 Taxonomy of Music Genre III. Feature Extraction Feature extraction is the process of computing numerical representation that can be used to characterize segment of audio and classify its genre. Digital music file contains data sampled from analog audio signal. It has huge data size compared to its actual information. Features are thus extracted from audio signal to obtain more meaningful information and reduce the over-loading processing. For feature extraction three sets of features for representing instrumentation (timberal), rhythmic content and pitch content will be used [3]. 1. Timbral Texture Features The features used to represent timbre texture are based on the features proposed in  speech recognition. The following specific features are usually used to represent timbre texture. â‘   Spectral shape features [1-3] Spectral shape features are computed directly from the power spectrum of an audio signal frame, describing the shape and characteristics of the power spectrum. The calculated features are based on the short time Fourier transform (STFT) and are calculated for every short-time frame of sound. There are several ways to extract feature with spectral shape feature. 1. Spectral centroid is centroid of the magnitude spectrum of STFT and its measure of spectral brightness.

Impacts of Amalgamations and Takeovers

Impacts of Amalgamations and Takeovers Chapter 2: Literature Review 2.1. Introduction Investigators have been analyzing amalgamations and takeovers in the context of their characteristics and the impact on the development of both the entities over the past several years. In actuality, Weston et al. (2004) opine that the experts and researchers in the field have provided a large quantity of records related to the topic. There are many reasons why companies follow development policies related to amalgamations and takeovers. This permits rapid acceleration in addition to having a quick and instant approach to markets, both local and international. It is also likely to touch renowned brands, apply knowledge and skill, and widen the dimension and extent without losing time. In the sphere related to real estate, a participant (real estate firm) may want to promote a mutual organization for funding ventures on an individual basis. It may also consider entering into a joint venture with a construction enterprise in the domestic market so as to execute the venture as per assur ed measurements and highlighted conditions as stated by Jensen (2006). Clients are reassured when they involve themselves with big enterprises, which have a great degree of brand reputation and remembrance. During these times, they articulate their backing, not merely as clients but also as financers as they buy stakes so as to invest money in the enterprise. It also possible for a company to advance by augmenting returns or managing expenses which in turn can be attained by reorganizing and reconfiguring finances apart from using creative methods and reengineering. Some enterprises may also purchase brands, goods, and utilities to expand the goods portfolio of the enterprise. The capability of an enterprise to undertake a development policy by reallocating its resources in creating different facets of its presence was maintained by Hogarty (2000). This could be denoted by its production unit, RD, and through creating and promoting its brands and setting up more projects in parallel or varied spheres. Firms may also purchase extant enterprises or amalgamate with others to attain their objectives. Amalgamations and takeovers assist in accelerating development as the roles pertaining to infrastructure, branding, and manufacturing are clearly set up. Superior mediums which endorse development comprise of contracts, treaties, and agreements for varied ventures for a pre-determined time. All across the world, international corporates and enterprises are entering into purchases of and amalgamations with new firms, forming joint ventures and such equivalent associations on a common basis. Nearly fifty percent of the contracts pertaining to amalgamations and takeovers in India have been initiated by global enterprises. In 2005 alone, India witnessed global contracts of around 58 percent, a number which was double compared to Japans agreements at 21 percent. Internationally, amalgamations and takeovers entail dogmatic frameworks particular to a specific nation and the labor unions of the enterprises. Post the 1990s, economic revolutions have been occurring globally and this has seen a growing attraction for amalgamations and takeovers. The financial segment witnessed a newness which saw modifications being made to possession and trade regulations, an increase in the disposable earnings and as a result, the capacity to discover newer marketplaces and newer chances. Firms are now fully utilizing the reduced interest rates and cost of capital. This has assisted several enterprises in broadening their scope of operations at the domestic and global levels through partnerships, associations, amalgamations, and takeovers. Additionally, the presence of many global media enterprises which publish information pertaining to contracts and partnerships on a large extent-particularly in segments related to production, cars, retail and others. On the other hand, it is extremely crucial for companies to ensure specific advisory metrics before they perform their functions related to amalgamations and takeovers, especially in huge markets which have not been discovered. Amalgamations and takeovers also have the ability to shift the stakeholder worth affirmatively or adversely, which may result in a scenario, which eats away into the prosperity. When local takeovers in addition to global amalgamations get transformed into deficit-making and zero-worth developing patterns, all of these experience impediments. When stakeholders are not going to benefit from such projects, the costs of shares decline and thus, such agreements must consider all the primary essentials before opting for the linked choices. The influence of amalgamations and takeovers may be favorable or harmful to the development and this may take a long time and also be extremely costly for a total revival from an impediment. The existing segment also highlights the investigations and examinations undertaken on the topic by analysts. One needs to have sufficient data evaluation and also conduct hypothetical tests while assessing the influence of amalgamations and takeovers. Adequate links should also be deduced to comprehend the reason and impact correlations in amalgamations and takeovers in context to the criteria such as development of trade, stakeholder worth, productivity, and general performance. As the current study is linked to the influence of international amalgamations and takeovers, it is crucial to analyze the global amalgamations. Global partners who function from India while being based in the European Union framework have been examined depending on specific extant data. Additionally, domestic amalgamations and takeovers have also been analyzed. 2.2. Theoretical Background: Mergers Acquisitions (MAs) 2.2.1. Definition Amalgamations and takeovers can be superiorly comprehended as development polices to enhance the income of the enterprise and also, its capital foundation. Sometimes, for two enterprises, with similar or dissimilar trade functions, to amalgamate on specific ranks is a superior trade choice. An amalgamation of this type assists in imparting a blend of experience and finances. A commercial amalgamation of this type functions as a solitary body between edifying impacts and worth values of a commercial amalgamation and takeover (Jensen and Ruback, 2003). Though the phrases ‘amalgamations and ‘takeovers are frequently employed collectively, they are two extremely varied procedures. Amalgamations describe the merging of two different enterprises into a single entity. The two enterprises join each other, and shift all their resources and functions into a new one. This procedure includes the merging of all types of resources-employees, manufacturing facilities, and functions into the new entity that is shaped. The new entity shaped out of this has its individual distinctiveness, edifying representation, and groups of convictions. It is pointless to state that they are possessed by both the parties which share their resources to develop the new identity (Huang and Walkling, 2007). A takeover is considered as the purchasing-out procedure of an enterprise by another with the goal to stimulate management of its assets, investments, and functions. Takeovers occur when a firm purchases a major share of another firms stakes, assets, and liabilities (Weston et al., 2004). Firms experience a supplementary benefit when this occurs as they get the management apart from the functioning assets, in contrast to when they purchase merely the stakes, in which scenario they have to only compete with the other shareholders. Purchasing assets includes more expenses and offers an extensive capital foundation (Singal, 2006). Now let us consider acquisitions. This phrase also has been employed for many perspectives and is understood also. Takeover is a vague expression and though it may denote a context similar to acquisitions; the two are actually varied types of trade agreements (Jensen, 2006). A takeover is when a purchase is conducted without acquiesce or permission of the ente rprise being taken over. Takeovers come with an adverse action that entails the attaining of another firm with the intent to ‘manage it. When an enterprise desires to take over another firm, it tries to purchase all its shareholders. Takeovers are the ones which do not have the approval of the firm being purchased and they are often nearly undertaken as a hostile proposal. This now clearly explains the different expressions and implications attached to amalgamations, acquisitions, takeovers, partnerships, and associations and how their context is based in the situation in which they are being applied. 2.2.2. Types of Mergers Acquisitions Mergers can occur at parallel, perpendicular, or   multinational levels. Each kind of amalgamation has not only its own typical characteristics but also a distinct impact on the work processes and trade functions. Horizontal Mergers When two enterprises or enterprises that have parallel trades, which amalgamate to develop an entirely novel trade enterprise, it is known as a parallel merger. The enterprises which enter into a parallel amalgamation combine their assets as individual enterprises to shape a novel entity. These enterprises are thus capable of making a more robust enterprise which has a wider capital base and greater resources. The rationale behind this is to acquire a larger market share and become a dominant force in the market (Shleifer and Vishny, 2009). Such parallel amalgamations provide several benefits. They enable larger presence and greater range in addition to optimal performance ability to the novel entity. The two previously distinct entities now have the benefit of augmented resources capable of executing procedures in a superior method to ensure consistent supply of goods, which are of much better quality (Mitchell and Mulherin, 2006). Even in India there are a few instances of parallel amalgamations, for instance, the amalgamation between Indian carriers which occurred between Lufthansa and Swiss International apart from Air France and KLM (Bottazzi et al., 2001). The United Kingdom (UK) has witnessed several parallel amalgamations. In reality, the results of several investigations have depicted that nearly 60 percent of all amalgamation agreements which have occurred post-2001 have been parallel amalgamations (Firth, 2000). The same notion is also put forth by Berndt (2001). He also states that most of the amalgamations which happened post-deregulation and liberalization of the economy were parallel in character. Another instance of a parallel amalgamation like the one of Birla Cement and Larsen Toubro (LT) is related to the cement sector. Additionally, the amalgamation of Kingfisher Airlines and Air Deccan in addition to the one between Jet Airways and Air Sahara depict parallel amalgamations in the airlines sector. The Tatas and the Birlas are two huge corporate entities, which have amalgamated in the telecommunications sector. Vertical Mergers A perpendicular amalgamation is one in which enterprises which are elements in a supply chain or which function as utility suppliers or subsidies in the equivalent type of trade resolve to become one entity. It is noticed that such amalgamations occur when firms resolve to augment their forte in the supply aspect (Agrawal et al., 2002). Perpendicular amalgamations manage to keep rivals away by maintaining stress and managing their supply firms. The perpendicular amalgamation is thus capable of seizing a bigger market share for their goods while the supply group fails to back the goods of other contenders. This plan assists the enterprises to closely react to their clients needs. The element pertaining to the rivals is capable of keeping the prices from rising as the supplies are not reimbursed for (leanmergers.com). Logically, the outcome of this action is an extremely robust management and more revenues as the firms attain an upper hand over their contenders. An instance of perpendicular amalgamation is the one between Ford and Vauxhall who are car producers, who have acquired or purchased automobile enterprises. When Ford purchased Hertz, it was an instance of a perpendicular amalgamation (Loughran and Vijh, 2007). Another example of a perpendicular amalgamation in the telecommunication industry is that of Reliance Communication Ltds purchase of Flag Telecom. Conglomerate Mergers Multinational amalgamations occur amongst two entirely varied enterprises. Such enterprises are participants at distinct degrees and have no equivalents in the good variety, markets, clients, supply chain, or any other criterion. Multinational amalgamations occur amongst such enterprises and a novel association is shaped in addition to new trade contracts. Multinational amalgamations show only one line of power or authorization, which manages the trade functions from a solitary aspect of knowledge, resources, client power, and market experience which guarantee enhanced trade after the multinational trade which occurred before (Asquith et al., 2003). Multinational amalgamations are executed so as to diffuse the dangers over an extensive base and thus avoid any chief impediment for the enterprise (Huang and Walkling, 2007). Financial Acquisitions Monetary attainments are related to the capital and fiscal aspect of trade plans such as Management Buyouts (MBOs) or Leveraged Buyouts (LBOs). Such purchases are not considered in the same context as amalgamations and takeovers (Travos, 2007). 2.2. Stimulus for Amalgamations A large chance to develop the value of mergers is when incentives for the same are anticipated or envisaged by investors. Investigators such as Asquith et al. (2003), Agrawal et al. (2002), and Andrà © et al. (2004) have developed comprehensive data related to the topic pertaining to the incentives for mergers. Mergers must be discouraged by varied reasons such as a superior geographic market, varied economies, superior capabilities and price efficient conduct, widening of the trade, the synergy incorporated, and shifting assets to superior administrators so as to maximize the assets and create superior results, which is the chief objective. It has been proved that mergers and amalgamations are distinctive mediums related to financing in the context of advancement by many investigators. The chief idea or objective behind attaining a profitable investment would be important, particularly if such a concept is considered. In the event of the presence of incentives such as professions or sometimes pure respect improvement occurrences, the possibilities of investments becoming valuable, particularly when there are totally varied incentives for the varied enterprise to triumph and create the line of business. In the event of mergers, at the point when the primary incentive shapes the real advantageous investment, one has to consider the reason why the merger may seem to be priceless. A primary reason may be the lack of the expanding capability to access an unexploited market. One may anticipate a merger so as to achieve these objectives in an effortless manner (Gugler et al., 2003). For a triumphant merger, one should ascertain aspects of robust revenues and synergies. The focus in this matter should also lie on comprehending the incentives for cross-border mergers. It is noticed that dissimilar to domestic mergers for cross-border mergers, one needs to develop an incentive evaluation (Conn et al., 2001). The FDI incentives would resort to internalization, ownership, and position advantages as good instances as mentioned by Moeller et al. (2004). In the context of cross-border mergers, a merger is not likely to have unique ownership advantages. On the other hand, locational advantages may be unclear. Thus, in lieu of purchasing an enterprise in a totally varied geographical market, there are many idea-procedures which happen constantly. The majority of crucial internalization advantages in the instance of cross-border mergers are when products are sold overseas by one nation to another. In the event of the incentives, the OLI framework provides a backdrop for the objective of cross-border mergers, but other factors are also very crucial. It is considered by Chen and Findley (2002) that there is a speed if the retrieval to international markets since those from Greenfield investment cannot be equaled. By the end of the initial ten years of the 21st century, the waves in mergers were analyzed by Danzon et al. (2004). This was later referred to as the ‘Cross Border wave. In contrast to other waves of the century, Evenett explained the trends of the merger wave to be distinct. The utility segment displays how the merger wave comprises of more mergers since specific elements had become components of the ‘Cross Border and more so, with the liberalization effects in addition to the industrial monetary facet, this has additionally intensified privatization. There had to be a greater milieu to assist cross-border mergers. With the chief investment, the incentives had to be linked to the dogmatic surrounding to guarantee an element of the merger wave as depicted by Evenett. For other such grounds, cross-border mergers rise as depicted by Nicholson and McCullough (2002). When the researcher has to handle the theoretical information pertaining to mergers, he tries to present an expansive literature for better understanding. In the context of mergers, a maximized direct policy contention seems to be the most superior and is accountable for the impact of the mergers. A reasonable facet of the investigation discusses how both, markets and clients in the market commence many types of mergers. There has also been a theoretical investigation relating to ideas such as benefit predictions, envisaged variations in the outlays, diversified and varied quantum, in addition to who will eventually gain or lose on account of mergers. These theoretical investigations found their crux in oligopoly markets. Oligopoly markets have been the only crucial markets to utilize the rationale behind mergers opine Conn et al. (2001). So as to manage such market situations, a firm which enjoys a monopoly generally cannot enter into a merger. In a merger of firms, there would be no impact on the market outcomes. In varied production scenarios, the strengths of demand and cost in varied types of oligopoly markets function in different ways while the emphasis of the literature is on studying mergers. 2.3. Cross-Frontier There are several literatures which pertain to theories related to mergers. In reality, none of these literatures actually differentiate that in the management of international merger procedures there must be variations. To achieve cross-border mergers several simultaneous investigations have been undertaken, which complement that there are several literatures dealing with the impacts of these mergers. In terms of globalization, it relies so this is a close expansion and additionally it fulfills international economy apart from varied types of market endeavours to expand international firms of their functions. With consistent methods related to cross-border mergers there is relevant contention for the perusal of â€Å"Indianization† of different segments as described by Ozawa (2002). On account of the absence of attempts in merging administrative techniques, business is the driving aspect behind communication and culture which is why different cross-border mergers were unsucce ssful states Finkelstein (2009). Every type of merger is impacted by these matters instead of cross-border agreements which may be dominant. A further peril is that cross-border contracts are entered into merely to gain benefits. To regard the facets of wondering literature there are subjects and anxieties in context of the methods which incorporate cross-border mergers that have been completed. For cross-border mergers, informative differences are real in the hypothetical model facet as stated by Estrin (2009). In the process of achieving merger benefits, jargon, cultural problems, and official systems are cited as types of primary obstacles. The capabilities to draw attention of skills from other enterprises have been provided to differences useful influence procedures, attainment of communal mergers in firms and the particular speed. Generally, between the links amongst the merging methods of firms informative differences are the source of distrust, to which the triumph can be impeded by the communication matters. There is no clear theoretical model on the other hand, which is related to the impediments which harm the efficiency; despite it being a hypothetical exemplar. In contrast to domestic mergers, for a successful cross-border merger, however, this proves that the closer the facets, the more the obstacles, and these are limited to specific countries since many of th ese obstacles are linked to the regulatory and informative systems prevalent there. According to the origin of enterprises in context to the obstacles, there exist behavioral national variations which need to be expected and depend on the country. By being a source of synergy, informative differences can enhance merger ability in addition to generating benefits as opined by Fama (2009). However, impediments can be built by this, for expanded manner of spreading that is more possible. Instead of any of the domestic mergers participating in cross-border mergers as to gain more useful outlooks for the firms a theoretical exemplar method has been developed by Bjorvatn (2001) for the profit of handling cross-border mergers. By allowing varied mediums of entry in addition to cross-border mergers and for assessing and impacting triumph of cross-border mergers in addition to assessing entry outlays these are the primary variables, he employed to follow Fama (2001). Greenfield investment has been shifted into avenues which are minimally attractive by entry outlays, by methods using cross-border mergers augmented to the degree of revenue. On the other hand, in that market for achieving success as expected facets domestic mergers are regarded to be linked to a rise in the entry expenses. In contrast to the domestic ones in envisaging cross-border mergers success focus on hesitancy which is the outcome in this scenario. While choosing the expected outputs in addition to the entry outlays, the cross-border mergers can also provide access benefits to the distinctive market. In this regard, for both domestic and cross-border mergers, there is present, a theoretical merger literature. In terms of price uncertainty and demand exemplar depending on the matter of the doubt as put forth by Das and Sengupta (2001) both in domestic and cross-border mergers is the correct method. 2.4. Experiential Study MAs are expansion strategies that corporates adopt to increase scale and market share rapidly. They are also used to diversify business interests or acquire technological capability, capital, expertise, or enter new markets. From the business perspective, growth is seen in terms of capital, profits, and shareholder value, operations become more efficient, and business registers improved performance. One of the major benefits of MA transactions is the decrease in costs as resources are shared and processes are streamlined. There have been many instances of companies taking the MA route to save costs like Wells Fargo, whose acquisition of First Interstate in 2006 resulted in cost savings of USD 1 Billion (Jensen and Ruback, 2003). With the restructuring of processes and systems that follow a merger, companies become more efficient and effective as the organizations operational dynamics are realigned and streamlined. The benefits of operating on a large scale, reduction or elimination of wasteful and duplicating processes, the sharing of personnel and other resources all lead to high savings and better performance. The sharing of resources including capital infusion reduces costs and facilitates growth and with open lines of communication, a company can maximize its return on investments. Large-scale operations give companies larger purchasing power and rates for material in bulk can be contracted at far cheaper rates than if supplied to separate companies. MAs deliver value in terms of cost savings, operational efficiencies, large-scale economies, increased market share, diversified product lines, and expertise and technology. Bradley and colleagues (2008) observed that mergers and acquisitions in allied industries also create effective synergies for companies to cut costs and increase returns. Large-scale operations lead to better economical management which gives companies a better chance to compete in the market as they can deliver value to the customer by providing better products and services at cheaper costs. As mentioned earlier, MA deals increase customer base and market share leading to increased revenues and profits. It also helps eliminate unhealthy competition as the new merged enterprise now strives for dominance instead of competing with each other as they did before the merger like the successful Hindalco-Novelis acquisition. Acquiring a company is the quickest and most effective way to enter a new market or increase market share and standing in a current area and location of operations. A company can grow at a faster rate and be market ready virtually by Day One whereas in a Greenfield project, a company might have to strive for years to start production and penetrate the market. A merger also effectively deals with competition as shared resources, expertise and technology coupled with the economies of scale make them competitive and help increase market share.   To be considered successful, mergers and acquisitions either register higher revenues or effectively reduce costs. There has been a lot of research indicating that cost saving rates has been higher than increased revenue figures in MA deals. This is not to say that companies have not grown in terms of revenue. It merely indicates that the rate of growth is not matched by the rate of savings. Operational efficiencies, cost savings, and increased revenue are the three vital objectives of a merger (Jarell and colleagues, 2008). Andrade and colleagues (2001) have researched and studied the success of mergers and acquisitions in India and whether the stated objectives of the MA have been met. Between 2005 and 2008, 26 MA deals were struck with international companies from 13 different countries. Their study revealed that most mergers did not register high profits or top-line growth. Some companies showed negative rates of return and thus the objective of increasing revenues taking the MA route was not successful. Similar results have been recorded in the US although 107 mergers that took place in the US in 2000 showed higher valuations and asset increases. Shareholder value and company valuations in India did not increase as substantially as they did in MA deals that took place in the UK (Anandan and colleagues, 2008). The main motivational drivers for mergers and acquisitions are market dominance and efficiency whilst growth of shareholder wealth though a prime factor is not impacted as heavily and sometimes falls. Research indicates that valuations are less when larger multinational companies pick up controlling stake. 2.5. The Indian Merger Environment This study examines the MA environment in India and also studies previous research on MA analysis of firms in Europe. A major portion of this study is devoted to the understanding of mergers and acquisitions in the EU. With the opening up of economies globally and governments announcing policies to attract FDI and amending rules and regulations for foreign companies to do business, a lot of international MA deals have been witnessed in Europe. A lot of research and information is available on business collaborations in Europe along with the entry of cross-border companies. These studies are detailed and comprehensive accompanied by detailed analysis (Chaudhri, 2002). A lot of mergers in Europe took place at the turn of the millennium. Bridgeman (2000) observes that the UK, France, and Germany have been aggressive in conducting MA deals across the world. International companies have entered their markets with heavy investments and taken over local companies as well but these countries impose restrictions on certain industries and sectors. Luxembourg, for one, however, does not have any restrictions. The European Union Merger Control Act was formulated in September 2000 to assess and evaluate mergers and acquisitions as Europe tried to centralize operations to facilitate transnational transactions. This Act was amended in 2004 and 2008. The objective to bring about uniformity in procedures across Europe for business though noble is contentious as there are many differences between the richer nations and countries not doing as well. There are also policy shifts and business conditions that create issues related to the venture and investors are often forced to rethink their options (Bridgeman). Mani (2005) observes that the nations who are far more economically developed hold the edge in cross-border negotiations. The European Merger Control Act came into force on 21st September, 2000 and further amendments were carried out in 2004 and 2008, but these were only enacted on 21st December 2009 giving the European Commission more discretionary powers (Anandan and colleagues, 2008). Mergers across borders demand that cultural and social uniqueness and sensitivity have to be factored in and this is controlled by the EC Authority. The amendment in 2008 was to create and empower the EC Authority to be able to function as a single window facilitator and ensure social and economic ends were met and local interests protected through each venture (Rice). The European Commission Green Paper (2001) has also highlighted the amendments led by the Act but there still are a lot of problems and procedures that are yet to be sorted out by the Act especially those to do with applications and filings. These gaps and ambiguities create roadblocks in MA transactions especially when international companies merge with domestic companies to create powerful alliances and companies such as the PO-Stena and American Airlines-British Airways in the UK which faced problems due to differences in policies (Bridgeman, 2002). The European Commissions success with the single window facilitation for mergers and acquisitions in Europe is still to be proven. The EC intervention to facilitate and fast-track procedures for mergers in Europe was a noble intention especially the amendments in 2008, which empowered the commission considerably (Basant, 2000). There are about 200 mergers that have benefited from this Act. In fact after the amendments in 2008, mergers increased from 10% to 15%. Thus, the issues before the 2008 Amendments and after need to be studied in conjunction to understand benefits, valuations, and profitability impact on the host nation. Many deals may have been affected adversely or may not have been affected as such due to the expectation of the changes in policy. Deals require clarity, timing, focus, and policy and any variable that could be affected due to ambiguity of policies or lack of trust is bound to affect the merger. The European framework is a structure, which is far more rigid and severe than the USs as illustrated by the GE-Honeywell experience and alliances in aviation. These strictures impact profitability in Europe and investors end up with lower margins. The Merger Control Act however, remains a structure that any nation can learn from and adapt to suit its own conditions and environment. Mehta and Samant (2007) suggest that this Act could be adapted to suit India in the current business environment. A reduction in companies going in for restructuring or strategic alignments has put pressure on countries with extended and cumbersome policies as companies prefer to shif