Sunday, November 17, 2019

Marketing Creates Customer Needs Essay Example for Free

Marketing Creates Customer Needs Essay Marketing creates customer needs. The following paper will elucidate how consumers are made not born. Marketing entices customers to try new products or do new things that they may never have thought of before. Commercialism is everywhere you turn. From the glossy ads, pop ups on their computer screen, billboards, emails, tweets, radio, television, telemarketers, etc. You can’t get away from advertising wherever you go. The marketers would not be continuing if it was not so successful in getting people to buy more of what they are selling. The following paragraphs will give examples of successful marketing advertisement campaigns and how they were effective. According to Forbes, for advertising to be effective it needs to be: memorable, connect with the consumer by delivering a person meaningful message that tells them how their product would make their life a better place, stand for values beyond the product itself, and be intricately tied to the brand not to be confused with the competitor. (Greewald, 2014). The article gives several examples of successful ad campaigns. First, the Red Bull gives you wings campaign. The ads are inspirational telling consumers if you use our product you will do everything better from studying to doing your job better. It empowers people and gets them to relate to the product. Next, the Beats Dr. Dre advertising campaign. The advertisements tell the consumer that by wearing these headphones you will be able to overcome your critics and be empowered to believe in yourself. They depict athlete Kevin Garnett blocking out his critics and allowing him to focus on positive thoughts and the music he loves. Both advertisements connect with the consumer on a psychological level. They focus on you relating to our needs to do better and finding greatness in ourselves. It is what most of us  tell ourselves every day- don’t listen to the people that are our critics and believe in yourself. Find greatness and believe in yourself sounds more like a motivational s peaker however it works to connect the consumer to the product. According to Forbes both campaigns met all the aspects to be effective. Both these products are not necessary for humans to survive. Both products are considered a want not a need. The advertisers have convinced students far and wide to drink Red Bull because it will help you concentrate more and be successful. We all survived before without these products. They have successfully changed the mindset of consumers who now believe the opposite that they now can’t survive without them. One of the most successful marketing campaigns has been Apples’ I Phones. Hundreds of people stand in line when their newest product becomes available. Everywhere you look people have an I Phone. It is a sign of stature to have the state-of-the- art technology which includes the latest and greatest that Apple has to offer. It has become an item people can’t live without. I lost my I phone for 24 hours and thought I was going to have an anxiety attack. All my personal information, contacts, bank card information is all in the one little phone. I can’t remember any of my important phone numbers anymore because I don’t need to – they are all in the phone. They have made it irreplaceable in our day to day living. This is the ultimate in marketing and sales of a product. I lived 36 years without ever having a cellular phone and survived just fine. Now I see 8 year olds with I phones calling their friends and tweeting! Marketing provides a value to business in that it helps showcase their products and engage consumers in purchasing them. The value to society is that some of these products may make our lives easier and we can benefit from them. In conclusion, I believe that marketing creates a need we didn’t know existed until they showed us their fabulous products. They connect with us, make us believe that what they are offering will improve our lives and are necessary for our existence. I agree that marketers encourage consumers to spend money they do not have on non-essential items. So many Americans have credit card debt. The average American household has nearly $7000 of credit card debt as of December 2013. (Credit Card Debt Statistics, 2013). We continue to spend money on things we don’t really need with money we don’t have. It is a vicious cycle for many Americans that leave them broke and in some instances homeless. References: Credit Card Debt Statistics. (2013). Credit Card Debt Statistics. Money-Zine.com: http://www.money-zine.com/financial-planning/debt-consolidation/credit-card-debt-statistics). Greewald, M. (2014, July 10). Secrets of 7 of the Most Effective Ad Campaigns. Forbes.com: http://www.forbes.com/sites/michellegreenwald/2014/07/10/secrets-of-7-of-the-most-effective-ad-campaigns/

Thursday, November 14, 2019

Arthur Millers The Crucible Essay -- Arthur Miller Crucible Essays

Arthur Miller's The Crucible Arthur Miller demonstrates the familiarities of the life he lived in the 1950's and of everyday life we live in through his plays. He communicates through his work to the way people are in society. The extreme witch hysteria deteriorated the rational and emotional stability of its citizens. This exploited the population's weakest qualities, and insecurities. The obvious breakdown in social order led to the tragedy that saw innocent souls hang on the accusation of witchcraft. Miller's way of writing plays which relate to our lives and the way in which we do things and treat one another is very interesting. He seems to see the world a different way to most people and expresses our everyday actions and the things we do wrong in another form. The audience should see parallels in the play to happenings in our every day life. The Crucible was written in the middle of the McCarthy political "witch-hunt" in America. The play relates to the fears in America that the philosophy of communism was spreading there and would eventually undermine and destroy capitalism and the American way of life. Almost any criticism the government received, in the eyes of McCarthy was not acceptable. A petition for communist sympathisers was set up in which Miller signed. He was asked to confess to signing his name. He quoted: "In truth, I had supported these various causes to express my fear of fascism and my alienation from the waste of potential in America while knowing nothing about life under any socialist regime" The activities seemed to have been linked in Millers mind with witchcraft trials two centuries ago. Miller saw these public confessions as parallels with the naming at Salem... ... play includes interesting messages about how reasonable individuals can become completely irrational and get carried away when they become part of a mob. But in the end, who is to blame? Puritanism, Abigail or Danforth? The play is deliberately complex and multi-faceted, and not in plain and simple black and white, even though the characters themselves are black and white. In my opinion everyone's to blame, If one person would have seen sense or not added to problem or admitted it was a hoax it would have never happened. If Abigail hadn't added to the story it wouldn't have happened. If Judge Danforth hadn't of been so single-minded he would have seen through straight through Abigail's sweet and innocent routine, and so on. But at the end as in many situations in our own lives no one is completely to blame. Very rarely is anything one person's fault.

Tuesday, November 12, 2019

Fund Flow Analysis

Every business concern, at the end of its financial period, prepares Income Statements and Balance Sheet. Income Statements show the net result, Net Profit, of the business operations and contains various expenses incurred and losses and revenue earned during that period. Balance Sheet gives a summary of assets and liabilities as on a particular date and shows the financial position of the business. The liabilities side of a balance sheet shows the sources from where funds are raised and the assets side shows how the funds raised are utilized. But it does not show the causes or reasons for changes in assets and liabilities, flow of funds, between two balance sheet dates. Therefore, a statement is prepared in addition to the Income Statements and Balance Sheet, to show changes in assets and liabilities between two balance sheet dates, which is known as Fund Flow Statement. It is a statement, also known as Statement of Changes in Financial Position, designed to analyse the changes in financial condition of a concern between to specified dates. The Term â€Å"Fund† The term â€Å"Fund† can be explained in many ways. In the narrow sense, it means cash only. Transactions involving cash receipts and payments are considered in this approach. In the broader sense, fund means working capital, which is the excess of current assets over current liabilities. For fund flow analysis, the broader approach, working capital approach, is considered. The word â€Å"Flow† means change and â€Å"fund flow† means change in funds or change in working capital. Any increase or decrease in working capital is flow of funds. Flow of funds may be either inflow of funds or outflow of funds. Inflow refers to sources of funds and outflow refers to applications of funds. If a transaction brings any change in working capital, flow of funds takes place. This will happen when changes occurs in the values of fixed assets, share capital, long term debts etc. with the corresponding changes in the values of current assets or current liabilities. Many transactions which take place in a business enterprise may increase or decrease its working capital or even may not affect any change in it. Following are some examples: Purchase of fixed assets: When an asset is purchased, cash is going out there by reducing the cash balance. The effect of this transaction is that working capital decreases and this change (decrease) in working capital is called as application of funds. Here the accounts involved are Current Assets (Cash) and Fixed Assets. Issue of share capital: This transaction will increase the working capital as cash balance increases. This change (increase) in working capital is called as source of funds. Here the two accounts involved are current assets (Cash) and Shareholders’ Funds (Share Capital). Sale of Fixed Assets: The transaction will have the effect of increasing the working capital as the cash balance increases thereby increasing working capital. It is a source of funds. Here the accounts involved are current assets (Cash) and Fixed Assets. Redemption of debentures: This transaction has the effect of reducing the working capital, as it results in reduction in cash balance. It is an application of funds. The two accounts affected by this transaction are Current Assets (Cash) and Long-Term Liability (Debenture). Purchase of inventory: This transaction results in decrease in cash and increase in stock thereby keeping the total current assets at the same figure. Hence there will be no change in the Working Capital. In this case both the accounts involved are Current Assets (Cash and Stock). Accepting Bills Payable issued by creditors: The effect of this transaction on Working Capital is Nil as it results in increase in bills payable (a current liability) and decreases the creditors (another current liability). Since there is no change in total current liabilities there is no flow of funds. The accounts involved as current liabilities. Fixed Assets purchased and payment is made by issuing shares: This transaction will not have any impact on working capital as it does not result in any change either in the current asset or in the current liability. Hence there is no flow of funds. The two accounts affected are Fixed Assets and Shareholders’ Funds (Capital a/c). From the above examples, it is clear that there will be flow of funds when the transaction involves: a) Current assets and fixed assets b) Current assets and capital c) Current assets and long term liabilities d) Current liabilities and long term liabilities e) Current liabilities and fixed assets.

Saturday, November 9, 2019

The Theory Of The Doctrine Of Affections English Literature Essay

We will doubt, foremost, whether all of the things that have fallen under our senses, or which we have of all time imagined, any one ( of them ) truly exist ; in the first topographic point, because, we know by experience that the senses sometimes err and it would be imprudent to swear excessively much to what has one time deceived us ; secondly, in dreamsaˆÂ ¦we imagine countable objects which have no being.[ 1 ] In this quotation mark Descartes explains that senses are undependable and that we can non swear them for they have been proven to lie. It is interesting, so, that music is such a popular art signifier, for it depends to a great extent, and about entirely upon listening. While a full cognition and apprehension of music can non be discovered from a strictly audile attack, merely listening to music has the ability to subconsciously entice emotions within an audience. This nexus between temper and plangency grew from ancient Grecian doctrine and extended good beyond the eighteenth-century, but came to its tallness during the Baroque Period ( ca. 1570-1780 ) . The Baroque thought called the Doctrine of Affections held this thought to be true ; it was the belief which held that by doing usage of the appropriate and established musical methods of the clip, the composer could make a piece of music which was able to bring forth a peculiar and nonvoluntary emotional response within the audien ce. It was a digest of ideas and musical techniques from many composers and philosophers from age of the Enlightenment, most prevalently Rene Descartes.[ 2 ]As antecedently stated, some of the rules of this construct day of the month back centuries, to philosophers such as Aristotle, who showed that â€Å" speechmakers employed the rhetorical agencies to command and direct the emotions of their audiences.[ 3 ]â€Å" However, musically the thought came to its tallness during the age of the Enlightenment and can be seen throughout Baroque music in instrumental pieces of great composers such as Bach and Rameau, but is particularly profound in opera, due to the greater emotional stimulation caused by music and text at the same time portrayed. The Theory of the Doctrine of Affections originated with Descartes. Descartes believed that music was centered on rationalized truth ; he held that the thoughts of scientific discipline may non be favourable to the humanistic disciplines, but the apprehension of scientific discipline enhanced the art ‘s possibilities. This thought relates back to his positivist thought which was represented in the Doctrine of Affections ; that â€Å" cognition is found in constructs, rules, and Torahs, and non merely in experiences or unprocessed esthesiss.[ 4 ]â€Å" As such, by utilizing scientific enquiry to understanding the biological workings of the organic structure it was possible to achieve truth and specific truth upon these systems which could so be used within music to bestir human emotions, and therefore could increase the potency of the humanistic disciplines. But, at the same time: By utilizing empirical observationaˆÂ ¦they may come to accept some system which has logical consistence, but small relevancy to the universe in which we live.[ 5 ]â€Å" Using the thoughts of scientific observation in this manner could greatly suppress the really intent of musical look. The really basis of the Doctrine of Affections can be summed up by a positivist thought, which states that when human emotions and ideas were appropriately written within the poesy or libretto for a peculiar composing, the texts could so be enhanced with a proper musical line, in an â€Å" effort to convey rational abstractions into the kingdom of the passionate concrete.[ 6 ]â€Å" The Passions, harmonizing to Descarte: Include love, unhappiness, hatred, desire, admiration, joy, and sorrow. Passions are predicated by actions of the psyche and set into gesture by contents of the blood watercourse. The psyche is excited by the traveling passions which direct a adult male ‘s will. It is on the passions, good or evil, that life depends. Passions have an consequence on the mind, and uses the thought believed by philosophers and Biologists, that passions are found in the liquors contained in the blood watercourse.[ 7 ]â€Å" Each passion is associated with a specific physiological symptom. For illustration, the breath might speed up and the bosom round may accelerate. Descartes believed that it was possible to foretell the external emotions that would ensue from the assorted passions the music intended to elicit. His influence over composing was singular.[ 8 ]Writers that followed, such as Johann Mattheson, described the composer ‘s thought procedure towards composing as such: that the music does non show the emotion of the composer to be, for illustration, â€Å" sad and tormented † , but instead the composer ‘s effort to make a work of art which would sadden the hearers. Besides, he says that this emotional power which the music has over the hearer is non needfully externally shown, but â€Å" the emotional consequence is personal and comes from the hearer ‘s single experiences.[ 9 ]â€Å" Descartes ‘ Compendium Musicae and his Traite diethylstilbestrols passionse l'ame ( â€Å" catalogues or digests of the basic human passions †[ 10 ]) , which became popular during the Baroque period became widely studied. These publications were two of many of the age, but were the first to give instrumentalists touchable and practical waies for appropriate and affectional usage of intervals, for illustration, happy emotions tended to be represented with broad intervals, while unhappiness was represented with narrower intervals.[ 11 ]As aforementioned, the emotional reaction to the consequence which music has upon the organic structure, used in effort to direct the emotions of the audience, was peculiarly profound when used in vocal music, particularly opera, due to the text to music relationship which enhanced the expressive development. This was â€Å" a construct originally derived from Greek and Latin Doctrines on rhetoric and oratory[ 12 ]â€Å" and besides expres sed within the doctrine of the Doctrine of Affections. In each single piece, the composer would seek to elicit a peculiar type of emotion within the audience, for illustration, hatred, choler, green-eyed monster, or fury, but would merely utilize one emotion at a clip. He would utilize peculiar musical devises to lure emotion within the hearer, which would parallel the ability of text to make the same.[ 13 ]One of the most celebrated of Baroque composers was Handel. He believed that: aˆÂ ¦plainness and simpleness had the greatest consequence upon human emotion as he endeavored to compose for the voice, more in the natural tones of the human fondnesss and passions.[ 14 ]( A survey in Handelian Thought 55 ) As such, Handel composed greatly within the constructs of the Doctrine of Affections, in effort to arouse the passions and incite human emotions. Besides, music director Nicholas McGegan believes that Handel had great insight into underscoring human emotion and his characters are â€Å" perfectly human.[ 15 ]â€Å" As antecedently stated, Handel composed within the kingdom of the doctrine of the Doctrine of Affections. As such, his arias and cantatas are written in such a manner to unite the emotional context of the libretto with a musical line which would unconsciously convey about preset emotions within the audience. Three types of arias found during the Baroque period were those that depicted fury, felicity, and lost love. Harmonizing to Johann Mattheson fury is much better at utilizing all signifiers of â€Å" musical innovations † than more pleasant passions. However, it is non equal plenty to merely utilize loud kineticss and speedy beat, as this violent quality has its ain personality and requires forceful look without losing sight of the beauty of the musical line.[ 16 ]The chief devices used during a fury aria can be seen in an expanded theory of intervals explained by the Philosopher and Composer Rameau. Assuming that the basic human qualities of fury include choler, force, sor row, gravity, abrasiveness, and aggression, Rameau would reason that a fury aria would include: whole and half stairss, used to stand for choler or unhappiness due to the contraction of the organic structure ; minor tierces, falling fourths, augmented fourths, minor sixths, and major sevenths. Besides fury or choler would be seen in a fast pacing and most probably a minor key.[ 17 ]The fury arias of Handel straight follow this subject. Handel ‘s celebrated aria â€Å" Empio, diro , tu sei † from his opera Giulio Cesare is a authoritative illustration of a â€Å" Fury † aria. The first importance of this piece in footings of the Doctrine of Affections is the text: Empio, diro , tu sei: Togliti agli occhi miei Sie tutto crudelta Non e di rhenium quell cor, Che donasi Al asperity Che in sen non hour angle pieta ( I say you are a scoundrel, Remove yourself from my sight, You are cruelty itself. This is non the bosom of a male monarch That abandons itself to such abrasiveness, That contains no commiseration. ) This is Giulio Cesare ‘s ferocious Act 1 aria in which he chastises the Egyptian general, Achilla, who has merely returned to him the detached caput of the Pompeo, the baronial Roman general. This aria expresses Ceasar ‘s fury, and as such, Handel wrote it in hundred minor and in the pacing Allegro. The aria besides includes many hotfooting graduated tables, arpeggios, and uneven figures. From the really first gap line, the orchestral overture creates uneasiness and apprehension in the hearer by usage of running graduated tables, big springs, and awkward intervals ( m1- 9 ) ; this agitation is affirmed by a really strong vocal entryway by the castrato, Giulio Cesare, which begins with a falling scaler line and is followed by larger springs ( m.11 ) . . Throughout, the vocal line can be described as highly intense- incorporating extended coloratura with hotfooting graduated tables ( m14-16 ; m24-25 ; 32-34 ) , arpeggios, and drastic interval alterations would make an appre hension of fury even in a hearer who did non understand the words, for illustration, when Cesare says â€Å" Sie tutto crudelta † ( You are cruelty itself ) , the vocal line implements leaping intervals every bit good as a brief chromatic transition ( m35-37 ) Besides, throughout the piece the orchestra is peculiarly ungratified, and includes running transitions, big springs, arpeggiated figures, which besides create an edginess. All of these factors contribute to accelerating the pulse of the hearer, supplying them with an emotional relation and apprehension of Giulio Cesare, merely as if they, themselves were the ramping party. The apprehension of the text along with the utmost musical line and concomitant creates an even more graphic image of Cesare ‘s intense choler and fury and pulls the hearer even further into the emotion, raising the blood force per unit area further and therefore, physiologically doing the raging and uneasy emotion within the hearer. Among the passions was besides the emotion of joy. Mattheson held that: aˆÂ ¦joy was an enlargement of our psyche, and therefore it follows that moderately and of course that [ one ] could outdo express this affect by big and expanded intervals.[ 18 ] Harmonizing to Rameau joyous music was besides represented by great intervals, but to boot was shown with Major key and fast pacing.[ 19 ]The Air Oh! Had I Jubal ‘s lyre from the Oratorio Joshua by Handel implements these doctrines within the vocal line and orchestral concomitant. Oh, had I Jubal ‘s lyre, Or Miriam ‘s melodious voice! To sounds like his I would draw a bead on, In vocals like hers rejoice. My low strains but faintly show, How much to Heav'n and thee I owe. This is one of Handel ‘s later works, and it is based upon the scriptural narratives of Joshua. Basically, Moses and the Israelites, after being freed from Egypt are told by God that they must keep their religion to him for 40 old ages in the wilderness before being allowed into the promise land, they do non obey him and direct in undercover agents to look into out the land after two old ages. Long narrative short, Joshua and Caleb, of the younger coevals maintain their religion within God and are therefore allowed to come in the Promise land, while the nonbelievers perished in the desert. In the bible, Jubal is quoted as being â€Å" the ascendant of all who handle lyre and pipe[ 20 ]â€Å" and Miriam is the sister of Moses and Aaron who was believed to hold been a prophesier. This is a simple vocal of felicity and congratulations Sung by Achsah, the girl or Caleb. First, the piece is written in A major and in the pacing Allegro. From the gap of the piece, big and heavy inte rvals and chords are heard and a feeling of easiness and felicity is evident. When the soprano, Achsah enters, her line outlines an A major chord ( thousand 10-11 ) and continues to travel within a beautiful major cardinal country. Although in some parts of the piece there are running transitions ( m21-24 ; m41-44 ; m 46-47 ) there continues to be big intervals and major chords throughout the concomitant below. This stableness below the rapidly moving and aureate transitions allows the emotion of joy and felicity to be maintained throughout the piece. The piece begins and ends in a major key and throughout it implements big intervals and a harmonic tone. These foundations musically create a joyous emotion within the audience because they entice openness within the organic structure physiologically ; the hearer ‘s emotional reaction, hence straight parallels the plangency of the musical line and concomitant. Another of the passions outlined by Descartes included love. Within opera, a common subject of unanswered or lost love is prevailing. This absence of love, which is sought by a character, brings about an emotion which is a combination of unhappiness and hope, and abstractly creates love. On sadness Mattheson provinces: Sadness is a contraction of the elusive parts of out bodyaˆÂ ¦it is easy to see that the little and smallest intervals are most suited for this passion.[ 21 ] To make the feeling of lost love, this emotion is combined with the passion for hope. In respects to this emotion Mattheson explains: Hope is a pleasant and soothing thing: it consists of a joyful yearning which fills the spirit with certain bravery. Hence, this consequence demands the loveliest usage of voice and the sweetest combination of sounds in the universe, for which brave hankering serves as a goad as it were ; yet so that even joy is merely moderate, courage however enlivens and animates everything, which yields the best combination and amalgamation of sounds in composing.[ 22 ] This combination of the passions of unhappiness and hope can be used to understand the emotion of love. Mattheson shows this: Love is in fact basically a diffusion of the liquors.[ 23 ] Love is hence a â€Å" diffusion † or combination of joy or hope ( enlargement ) and unhappiness ( contraction ) , depending upon the type of love which is happening. For illustration new and immature love would be represented in a more joyous manner, with larger and more expansive intervals musically. However, lost or unanswered love would be represented to pull unhappiness or little intervals, but besides to lure hope, by utilizing larger and more expansive intervals which are pleasant and soothing, because the character continues maintains some hope that love will finally ensue from the unhappiness and loss, therefore musically pulling the hearers into their melancholy but optimistic emotion. The doctrines of the Doctrine of Affections can once more be seen in the aria O Sleep, why dost 1000 go forth me? from the opera Semele by Handel. O slumber, O slumber, why dost 1000 go forth me? Why doust 1000 go forth me? Why thy airy joys take? O slumber, O slumber, O slumber once more deceive me, O slumber once more devieve me, To my weaponries reconstruct my wand'ring love, My wand'ring love, Restore my wand'ring love, Again deceive me, O slumber, To my weaponries, reconstruct my wand'ring love. The secret plan line of the opera is basically therefore: Semele is in love with Jupiter, but is about to Marry a adult male called Cadmus at the temple of Juno. Before the ceremonial, nevertheless, Semele is snatched from the temple and taken to the celestial spheres where Jupiter builds her a expansive castle. Juno is angered by this and asks the God of slumber, Somnus, to assist her in her retaliation. In this aria Semele has been deprived of slumber, and therefore, deprived of her dreams of her lover who can non be with her. The piece is written in a major key, but in the pacing largo. This, from the first chord of the piano, shows the analogue between felicity and unhappiness that are present during lost love, the emotion of hope can be seen in the big interval leaps in the left manus of the piano concomitant ( m1-4 ) Semele ‘s first phrase is really quiet, slow and insistent ; it uses a beautiful scalar line of 2nd intervals to demo her torment for the loss of her lover w ithin dreams. Underneath her beautiful line is a likewise running form within the piano, which is characterized with some springs to convey about a little feeling of hope and felicity ( thousand 8 in both custodies ; m 9 in both custodies ; m11-end in the arpegiated left manus ) The unhappiness comes to a tallness on the 2nd page when there is a long running transition upon the word â€Å" wand'ring, † ( m 17-18 ) , but hope is seen in the stoping of the piece with the interval leaps upon the word â€Å" restore, † coming to the climatic and attractively quiet G crisp, before desending once more into unhappiness ( m24-25 ) .

Thursday, November 7, 2019

The impact of Climatic Change on the Decline of Black French Truffle The WritePass Journal

The impact of Climatic Change on the Decline of Black French Truffle Introduction The impact of Climatic Change on the Decline of Black French Truffle ). However, the Tuber melanosporum is becoming scarcer, and there is a common idea that this scarcity is due to global change of the climate (Jolly, 2012). This has led to a sharp price increase of this rare commodity, but most of all is the concern of the gradual decline in its availability.   Europe, and more so, the Mediterranean basin has seen a steady decline of this rare species over the last 40 years (FAIR, 2000). This decline has been both in quantity, as well as quality, however this paper will examine the former. 1.3 Project Aims and Objectives This project’s principle aim is to collect and analyse data using both quantitative and qualitative methods to understand the increasing decline in the production of black truffles from France also referred to as Pà ©rigord truffle and Tuber melanosporum.   In this regard, the project will adopt cause-effect deductions, hypothesis testing, and observations to develop understanding this decline in truffle production and in particular whether it affects the natural occurring or cultivated truffles. A secondary aim of this project considers the reasons for the decline of production of the black French truffle. This project, through careful analysis of related research acknowledges the fact that there is a general decline in natural occurring truffle and that this decline is associated with various factors. The study seeks to identify the main reason for the decline in production and harvesting of black French truffles.   The study also aims at providing recommendations to ad dress the decline in truffle production. This study will be documented accurately in order to provide subsequent researchers with all the information necessary to further the development in this field of study. Literature Review In consideration of Truffles biological and ecological growth and development Smith and   Read (1997), assert that root symbionts are most significant in checking the ecosystem function   in most temperate forests of the world, and this includes the rare ectomycorrhizal fungi.   Their main function is the provision of the much needed trace minerals to the truffles as well as protection from drought, disease causing agents and pests (Garbaye, 2000; Govindarajulu et al., 2005). Smith and Read (1997) further add that truffles reciprocate provision of food and protection from disease with provision of carbon to the micro-organisms. The ecology in these temperate regions is complexly interconnected, the mushrooms that are produced by the micro-organisms and are significant sources of food for the animal populations in the forests (Carey et al., 2000). However, according to FAIR (2000), the black truffles production in Europe has dramatically declined over the last half century, this is both in quality as well as quantity.   Furthermore, efforts have been made to increase the vegetation that promote truffle growth, but the decline has persisted.   This trend had been identified earlier by Cherfas (1991), and in his research, he claimed that the decline had begun over 100 years ago in the natural habitat, in the temperate forests. The cause of this decline in the growth and development of black truffles has been the subject of inquiries and research. There is still little explanation for these long term decline in both natural and cultivated   truffle.  Ã‚   Research is needed to help understand this decline, the real difficulty lay in understanding the underground microbial since experimental environments fail to match the necessary real world conditions (Macdonald et al., 2005). As a matter of fact Lamon et al (2009) agree that there is scarcity of much needed extended observations of quantitative data generated from natural the natural setting. Chevalier et al. ( 2001), assert   that   both Tuber melanosporum and Tuber magnatum are the most valuable species in the market. These varieties are also the endangered species at the brink of extinction. Hall et al. (2001), in their findings explain that geographically, Tuber melanosporum naturally occurs   in France, Italy, Bulgaria and certain areas in Europe.   Martin, F. et al (2010), specifically examines the decline in the production of Tuber melanosporum, however, he also adds that they naturally occur in the Mediterranean   habitat.   Sourzat (2002), in the french publication, explains that T. melanosporum’s fruits best in its natural setting characterized by rocks, forests that are open that are generally warm with mild winter seasons, as well, as regular precipitation in the summers. In addition, best production is expected on the slopes where the produce receives protection from excessive cold and dry wind. According to Hall et al. (2001), research rev eals that truffià ¨res grown in rainy areas with lower temperatures and have not yielded any truffles. In fact, truffles of the T. melanosporum species grew best in climatic regions with between 600-1500 mm average precipitations, average temperatures of 18-21 degree Celsius in the summer and the winter, an average of 1-8 degree Celsius (Zambonelli Di Munno, 1992). It seems areas that continuously have frozen ground in the cold seasons are not suited for the growth of T. melanosporum because the fruits spoil when frozen. Fontana and Bonfante (1971) in their publication introduce the idea of growing truffle fungi in an artificial environment. They explain that this idea was to supplement the deficit of the produce collected in the natural habitat. This method was developed back in the 1970s indication that the decline of truffle had already been the cause of concern in the market. By the turn of the millennium,   truffle grown in orchards accounted for half of the truffle produced around the world (Hall et al., 2003). It also important to note that a majority of these orchards are developed within truffles natural geographic areas. Having highlighted the required natural habitats for the truffles, and in reference to their decline, there are several suggestions based on various research on this decline.   Cherfas (1991) traces back the history of this decline by asserting that the number of mushroom species gathered in every foray dropped from 72 to 38 between 1912 and 1982 in the Netherlands.   In the same publication, it is revealed that chanterelles in central European market in mid 1970s were found to have reduced in size 50 times than those in 1950s. Hall et al.(2003) in their publication reveal that, by the 20th Century, T. melanosporum in the French market had dropped to 2000 tons annually and a further decline was witnessed by the turn of the 21st Century by 150 tons. It is true that the truffle harvesting in France has been an affair by a small number of people who mainly collected them from their natural setting. As seen in the previous paragraph, there is an increase in production of truffles in orchards as a supplement to the dwindling natural supply. In a later publication Hall et al., (2007), affirm that the decline in natural truffle harvest has persisted and is at an all time low of between 12 to 150 tonnes per year from the 1000 to 2000 tonnes in the 1990s. The steady decline in the production of   truffle has led to the rise in price per unit over the last decade with an increase in demand (Lee, 2008). The decline of French Truffle has been a point of concern in the scientific research circles with some as Hall et al. (2003) in their study, pointing at water and air pollution, in addition to other factors including, the dynamism in forest structure and the lack of knowledge in traditional gathering as a result of world wars. Similar findings have been published in a report by Amaranthus (2007) citing destruction of truffle natural habitat, urban development, among the reasons for the decline. Such factors are most likely to continue reducing the production figures and specifically those in their natural settings (Amaranthus, 2007; Hall et al., 2007).   Garvey and Cooper (2004), in their report further allude that this decline in natural habitat has resulted in the production of truffles on cultivated farms where the trees or truffià ¨res are inoculated. However, these remedies cannot beat the native oak and hazel vegetation as the major producer of the French black truffles in F rance. In the recent years, the decline in truffle has been experienced in many regions of the world and especially the fast declining French black truffle or the Tuber melanosporum. However, it appears that most researchers are turning to climate as the main culprit. Bà ¼ntgen et al.(2012) in their study on drought induced truffle decline explains the effect of climate on the   production of truffle.   They claim in their research that the effect of climate can either be directly or through the truffles symbiotic host vegetation. This literature review delves much into this article because of its relevance to the topic. Bà ¼ntgen et al. (2012), provide in depth review on the yearly inventory of regional collection of truffle from Spain consisting of Aragà ³n, France mainly a Pà ©rigord or Tuber melanosporum, and Italy a combination of Piedmont and Umbria.   In this analysis, they indicate that the change in truffle production between 1970 and 2006 was similar between the species from Spain and France that is Aragà ³n and Pà ©rigord respectively. Their analysis also found a lack of similarities in changes of production between Pà ©rigord and Piedmont–Umbria from France and Italy respectively. This observation from the regional-scale coherency is consistent with Sourzat (2002) observation that western mediterranean basin is the home of truffle fruiting.   In addition, the harvests of Aragà ³n and Pà ©rigord have revealed significant correlation, this the authors relate to the similarity in summer precipitation, whereas lack of correlations was found between Piedmont and Umbria production and precipitation (Bà ¼ntgen et al., 2012). The difference in levels of sensitivity here is understandable because the Piedmont and Umbria experience double summer precipitation than Spanish Aragà ³n with Pà ©rigord ranging in between (Zambonelli Di Munno, 1992). The average of   the three, truffle production outcomes, their regional mean correlated both p ositively and negatively at higher significant level of 99.9 percent with between June and August rainfall totals as well as maxima temperatures. The authors, Bà ¼ntgen et al.(2012), posits in their analysis that both the natural and the cultivated truffles in the Mediterranean are seasonal and are subjected to the season between November and February a claim supported by Mello et al., (2006).   In addition, this is dependent on the summer condition with rainy and cold weather instrumental in the fruit body development as supported by Gallot, (1999) in his publication more than a decade prior to Bà ¼ntgen et al., (2012).   Bà ¼ntgen et al. (2012) postulate that given the relationship between fungi and host vegetation, there is bound to be competition for moisture due to the amount of rainfall in this season and this correlate significantly at 99.9 percent level with the yield. Fischer and Schr, (2010) present a suite of a dozen climatic models leading to rise in mean temperatures and decrease in rainfall totals for the Mediterranean region until the end of the 21st Century. This is indicative of the increased summer eva potranspiration. It is interesting to note that the simulated southwest European climatic conditions representing the last ten years are consistent to the drop in the production of truffle harvest (Bà ¼ntgen et al., 2012).   Nonetheless, Bà ¼ntgen et al. (2012),   state that it is unclear whether the truffle will reach tipping points as a result of the projected shift in climate, this is regard to their physiological and biogeochemical fruit body development. In their assumption, the expected or projected summer dryness will result in a sustained decline, in truffle yield, while the regions north of Alpine arc are most likely to provide suitable habitat for the truffle due to their calcareousness. Based on their observations, Bà ¼ntgen et al.(2012), are inclined to the idea that climatic change and more so reduced summer precipitation and   increased temperatures are the cause for truffle yields in the Mediterranean basin the natural habitat of T. melanosporum. Mello et al. (2006), in their analysis claim that the reduction in future summer rainfall coupled with summer aridity will result in drought resistant strain of T. melanosporum within its natural setting or distribution range. Samils, et al, (2008) in their research predict that the expected drop in truffle harvest in the Mediterranean   region, will have a significant impact not only on   the local tourism, but the agriculture as well as the global prices of this valuable commodity.   This is most likely to increase the value of other varieties with artificial metabolism and not specific to the requirements of their ecological niche   as the T. melanosporum (Mello et al., 2006;Gallot, 1999). This might see an increase in T. aestivum cultivation in areas where traditionally T. melanosporum was predominant as well as an increase in demand of truffle from non-traditional T. melanosporum producing regions outside Europe (Bà ¼ntgen et al., 2012). Splivallo et al. (2012), in their analysis of the Burgundy truffle, suggest that the change in climatic conditions that were said to have begun a century ago has no impact on the current burgundy truffle distribution.   However, they concur with Bà ¼ntgen et al.(2012) on the impact of climatic change on species with narrower ranges such as the French black truffle, Pà ©rigord or Tuber melanosporum, and Italy a combination of Piedmont and Umbria. They support this by claiming that if the climate fails to restrict the distribution of these two species, then even a slight temperature increase in northern Europe as predicted by Bà ¼ntgen et al. (2012) might result in its northern expansion. They confirm what Chevalier et al.(2001) had outlined that rainfall, soil composition are also factors that contribute to the decline in the production of Pà ©rigord. Splivallo et al. (2012), concur with Bà ¼ntgen et al.(2012) assertion that other options will be needed to avert the looming sho rtage of this truffle species,   success cultivation lies in orchard farming as a change from the current empirical practices. They claim that cultivation of truffle in a bid to mitigate the effects of climate change which is a major cause of the decline should be based on scientific evidence. Therefore, the rise in temperature, in its self, will not be sufficient for the shift of truffle production in the northern European region (Splivallo et al., 2012). Methodology and Procedure 3.1 Research Design This study will adopt a mixed methods research design. This process entails collecting and analysing data using both quantitative and qualitative methods to understand the research problem comprehensively. When both qualitative and quantitative methods are combined in research, they supplement each other allowing a comprehensive analysis of the research problem (Tashakkori Teddlie, 2003). According to Charles Mertler (2002), quantitative methods deal with numerical data using cause-effect deductions, hypothesis testing, and observations to develop an understanding of the research issue. On the other hand, qualitative methods require the researcher to develop a complete picture of the research issues by conducting an in-depth analysis of words, as well as, compiled reports by the study participants. In this approach, the researcher adopts a constructivist approach to have a complete understanding of the problem centred on different contextual aspects (Charles Mertler, 2002). In the mixed research methods, the uses pragmatic philosophy by affirming that truth is what works. Therefore, mixed methods integrate both text and numerical data to give a clear overview of the research problem. In this regard, this study will use surveys and interviews since they are the most popular data collection research tools (Creswell, 2002). In the first step of data collection, a web-based survey will be used, and data analysed using discriminant function. The qualitative method will involve semi-structured interviews to collect textual data from people to regarding the decline of Truffles. 3.2   Research Sample The target population sample will be about 1,200 environmentalists and hoteliers in France regarding the decline of truffles. These individuals are people who have been working in the hotel and environmental sectors in France. For the first quantitative stage of the research, a convenience sample will be chosen comprising individuals studying truffles decline, locals, and environmentalists, as well as, hoteliers. For the qualitative phase of the research, a smaller sample will be used to   understand the main issue regarding the decline of French truffle (Creswell, 2002, p. 194). This is to ensure the selected participants will give appropriate answers to the research questions. Besides, for the qualitative part of the research, participants will be notified of their selection for voluntary follow-up individual interviews. Given the use of mixed methods research in the study, selection of participants for the qualitative part will rely on the outcomes of the quantitative stage. The use of this approach will ensure the researcher gets a multidimensional outlook of the research problem. For this research, the participants will be chosen centred on the statistically significant difference outcomes of the discriminant function analysis. 3.3 Data Collection For the quantitative phase of the research, a cross-sectional survey will be used; this implies that statistics will be gathered at one point in time (McMillan, 2000). The survey used for this research will be of different formats including multiple choices, yes/no questions, self-evaluation items, and open-ended questions. The questionnaire will comprise twenty four questions divided equally into six sections. The first section will contain questions regarding truffles and the participant’s understanding of truffles measured on a 7-point Likert scale. The second part will evaluate the participants’ awareness regarding the decline of truffles using a 7-point scale. The third part will provide information regarding the factors participants believe to cause a decline in truffles. The current issues regarding management of truffles will constitute the fourth part while the fifth segment will provide data answering how ecological factors influence truffles survival. Demogra phic questions will be in the sixth part of the survey regarding data about the participants’ age, residency, gender, and employment among others. Besides, the final question in the survey will be open-ended asking for additional information about truffles decline in France. The survey will be web-based accessible through a URL address given to the participants. For the qualitative method, in-depth semi-structured face-to-face interviews will be used to collect data. Half of the research sample will be interviewed regarding the research question. Historical texts will be further used to validate the data collected from the interviews. The interviews will include twenty open-ended questions pilot-tested before the interviews. The interviews questions will be formulated based on the results from the quantitative method. During the interview, the participants will be debriefed to obtain reliable information for the interview questions though, they will be issued with the questions prior to the interviews. The interviews will be tape recorded with the participants’ consent and a copy of the transcript emailed to them after the interview. The respondents will also be allowed to review their answers for the interview transcripts to ascertain their correctness. 3.4 Data Analysis Prior to the statistical analysis of the survey results, the data will be screened on both univariate and multivariate levels. This will help the research detect any multicollinearity in the collected data. Any data that shows a high probability in another category will be excluded during the analysis since they may give a poor model fit (Tabachnick Fidell, 2000). The research’s data screening will entail descriptive statistics for the variables, linearity and homoscedasticity, normality, multivariate outliers, multicollinearity and singularity. The descriptive statistics will be tabulated, and a frequencys analysis conducted to determine the validity of the survey questions. The discriminant function analysis will be used to determine the proportion by which the variables differ, and classify the functions into predictable groups. The results will then be reported in the form of discussion. Nonetheless, all the statistical analyses will be conducted using Statistical Package for Social Sciences software (SPSS) version 11.0. In most qualitative research, data collection and analysis progress concurrently. For the qualitative analysis, data collected from the interviews will be coded and analysed for premises using the Qualitative Software and Research (QSR) N6 for qualitative data analysis. Furthermore, a visual data display will be used to identify the relationship in the data collected from the interviews. Data analysis for this phase of the research will involve creating a comprehensive description of the results; the researcher situates the cases in its context to make the case descriptions, and premises related to particular activities in the study’s outcomes (Creswell Maitta, 2002). The researcher will construe the meaning of the results and describe them in the discussion section of the research proposal. Bibliography Amaranthus, M., 2007. Independent Truffle Expert’s Report in Product Disclosure Statement for   the Oak Valley Truffle Project. Oak Valley Project. Bà ¼ntgen, U. et al., 2012. Drought-induced decline in Mediterranean truffle harvest. Nature   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Climate Change, 2, pp.827-29. Carey, A.B., Colgan, W., Trappe, J.M. Molina, R., 2000. Effects of forest management on truffle abundance and squirrel diets. Northwest Science , 76, pp.148–57. Charles, C.M. Mertler, C.A., 2002. Introduction to educational research. 4th ed. Boston, MA: Allyn and Bacon. Cherfas, J., 1991. Disappearing mushrooms: Another mass extinction?. Science, pp.254: 1448. Chevalier, G., Gregori, G., Frochot, H. Zambonelli, A., 2001. The cultivation of the Burgundy truffle. In Proc Second Intl Conf on Edible Mycorrhizal Mushrooms. Christchurch: Crop Food Research Limited. pp.1-12. Creswell, J.W., 2002. Educational research: Planning, conducting, and evaluating quantitative and qualitative approaches to research. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Merrill/Pearson Education. Creswell, J.W. Maitta, R., 2002. Qualitative research. In N. Salkind, ed. Handbook of research   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   design and social measurement. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage Publications. pp.143-84. FAIR, 2000. Improvement of the organoleptic quality of European truffles (EUROTRUFFE). Cooperative Research Measures. Fischer, E.M. Schr, C., 2010. Nature. Geoscience, 3, pp.398–403. Fontana, A. Bonfante, P., 1971. Mycorrhizal synthesis between Tuber brumale Vitt.and Pinus nigra Arnold. Allionia, 17, pp.15-18. Gallot, G., 1999. La truffe. INRA. Garbaye, J., 2000. The role of ectomycorrhizal symbiosis in the resistance of forests to water stress. Outlook on Agriculture , 29, pp.63-69. Garvey, D. Cooper, P., 2004. Increasing the productivity of truffià ¨res in Tasmania. RIRDC. Govindarajulu, M. et al., 2005. Nitrogen transfer in the arbuscular mycorrhizal symbiosis. Nature   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   , 435, pp.819-23. Hall, I.R., Brown, G.T. Zamboneli, A., 2007. Taming the Truffle. The History Lore and   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Science of the Ulimate Mashroom. Timber Press. Hall, I., Byars, J. Brown, G., 2001. The Black Truffle: Its History, Uses and Cultivation. Christchurch: New Zealand Institute for Crop Food Research Limited. Hall, I., Yun, W. Amicucci, A., 2003. Cultivation of edible ectomycorrhizal mushrooms. Trends in Biotechnology, 21, pp.433–438. Jolly, D., 2012. $1,200 a Pound, Truffles Suffer in the Heat. [Online] Available at: nytimes.com/2012/12/21/business/global/is-climate-change-shrinking-the-luxury-truffle-crop.html?_r=0 [Accessed 2 December 2013]. Lamon, L. et al, 2009. Environmental Science Technology, 43, pp.5818–5824. Lee, B., 2008. Taking Stock of the Australian Truffle Industry. Barton: Canprint. Macdonald, R.W., Harner, T. Fyfe, 2005. Macdonald, R. W., Harner, T. Fyfe, J. Sci. Total Environ. J. Sci. Total Environ., 342, pp.5–86. Martin, F. et al, 2010. Tuber melanosporum. Nature , 464, pp.1033–38. McMillan, J.H., 2000. Educational research: Fundamentals for the consumer. 3rd ed. New York: Addison-Wesley Longman. Mello, A., Murat, C. Bonfante, P., 2006. FEMS Microbiol.. Lett, 260, pp.1–8. Ruffles Estate, 2013. An Internationally Recognised Gourmet Experience. [Online] Ruffles Estate Available at:   HYPERLINK http://canberratruffles.com.au/ http://canberratruffles.com.au/   [Accessed 2 December 2013]. Samils, et al, 2008. Econ. Bot., 62, pp.331–40. Smith, S. Read, D.J., 1997. Mycorrhizal Symbiosis. London: Academic Press. Sourzat, P., 2002. Guide pratique de trufficulture. Station dexpà ©rimentation sur la truffe. Le Montat: Lyćee professionnel agricole et viticole de Cahors. Splivallo, R. et al., 2012. Is climate change altering the geographic distribution of truffles. Front   Ecol Environ, 10, pp.461–62. Tabachnick, B.G. Fidell, L.S., 2000. Using multivariate statistics. New York: Allyn Bacon. Tashakkori, A. Teddlie, C., 2003. Handbook on mixed methods in the behavioral and social   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   sciences. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage Publications. Zambonelli, A. Di Munno, R., 1992. Indagine sulla possibilit di diffusione dei rimboschimenti con specie tartufigene: aspetti tecnico-colturali ed economici. Ministero dellAgricoltura e delle Foreste.

Tuesday, November 5, 2019

How to Pin a Tweet That Makes the Most of Your Content - CoSchedule

How to Pin a Tweet That Makes the Most of Your Content Sometimes small actions can have outsized impact. While smart bloggers and social media marketers often focus on 10X projects that drive massive results, sometimes taking several smaller steps in succession can add quick wins to your work week. That can also take some of the pressure off feeling like everything you do as a marketer needs to make a big splash. Pinning tweets is one such thing you can do that takes just a few moments, but can make a meaningful contribution toward improving your results. Whether you have a particularly popular tweet, or a major campaign to promote, it’s a simple thing anyone can do to get more attention to an important message. In this post, you’ll learn not only how to pin tweets, but how to optimize them for best results. It’ll cover: How to identify a strong topic for a pinned tweet. The best ways to optimize them for maximum results. Some examples of actual tweets from real-life brands and bloggers. Table of Contents: What Are Pinned Tweet? What Are the Benefits? Pinning a Tweet in 3 Steps Optimizing Your Tweet Examples

Sunday, November 3, 2019

History of Christianity to the Reformation Research Paper

History of Christianity to the Reformation - Research Paper Example Not until in the year 312 A.D when the emperor and his soldiers were in the quest to overthrow Maxentius, a man who was allegedly believed to want to take over the Roman Empire. According to Anonymous (45- 46), the soldiers of Maxentius were thrice more than those of Constantine. David (1-2) adds that Emperor Constantine was born in a place called Naissus, in recent times renamed Nish. He was the eldest son of Constantius Chlorus and Helena. Emperor Constantine’s father was promoted to serve as the Augustus after he married a Caesar’s daughter and when he died Constantine took over the Augustus. This led to his fame and popularity among the Roman people. This gave him more power and probability to get the chair of Roman Emperor. The sudden change came when Emperor Constantine said a small prayer shortly before the battle was underway. Even though he was not sure of what was going on, it is legendary that after saying the prayer he looked up above and saw a cross that sh one greatly and was located higher than the sun. He thought that his gods were not as powerful as the Christian God otherwise the cross should have been located at the same level to the sun. If the sun that he served had appeared higher than the shinning cross, maybe he would not get that conviction. Since the sun was going to set, the shinning cross was vividly seen and had the words â€Å"by this sign conquer†. Therefore, he believed that it was the God of Christians who caused this sign to appear at such a moment after prayer. The sign he saw was proceeded by a dream in which Anonymous (45- 46) notes he still saw more of these signs. Then came the day when the battle was set. Maxentius troupe, the army that looked so big, was defeated surprisingly. Maxentius in pursuit to escape and save his life died after drowning in a river called Tiber. Emperor Constantine at this juncture was fully convinced that the help came from the God of Christians. Ever since he honoured Christi anity and worked to the best of his abilities to honour the God of Christians and became the first Christian emperor. He is the reason for the Christian faith and history to date (Anonymous 45- 46). According to David (1-2), Constantine became the undisputed emperor after his soldiers defeated the soldiers of Maxentius. This led to the rise of Christians who were at first despised, persecuted and deemed superstitious. Christianity hence forth prevailed in Rome and affected not only the Roman Empire but also the Christian church. Historians have not disputed the reason as to why Constantine transformed to Christianity. He adds that the God that Constantine honoured so much helped him in the beginning till the end of his reign. Again, this writer likens Constantine to Moses because the two were brought up in hostile homes and the religions that they held at this time are those that had overthrown their enemies; Christianity. Moses fought for Christianity when he was sent to release th e Israelites. The leaders of the enemies of these two men died by drowning in water and this mark another similarity between Moses and Constantine. David (1-2) describes Emperor Constantine as a one great and eminent person. Attributing these characters to the fact that he was brave hence the name Great. Before his reign, Christianity’s doctrines and teachings in Rome had lost value and integrity. After he sat on the great seat, Emperor Constanti