Architecture and History Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Architecture and History - Essay Example Thus, the San Francisco Public Library remains to be one of the best examples of modern day architecture, which is characteristic of the most artistic era, the Renaissanceperiod, through its basic features such as the columns, the arches, the symmetry etc. The San Francisco Public Library is basically a civic building, which means it was mainly built with the public in mind. Thus, rather than merely providing a place with â€Å"a stack, a counter and a table† that define ‘library’ for some people, Kelham went the extra mile and turned the area of above 375000 square feet into an architectural bliss (Allen â€Å"photo_2_12_†). The hard work that went behind its engineering are proven from the sheer beauty of the library both in terms of its exterior as well as interior design. The library is built in the civic center, which is located at the heart of the San Francisco City, and is thus easily accessible to the general public. As the building finds its roots in the Italian Renaissance, it becomes clear that it takes inspiration from ancient Roman and Greek architecture. Although much of the architecture and design of ancient civilizations was lost due to the perils of time, their ruins retained the basic features of designing and this is what shaped the renaissance architecture. The main features of buildings belonging to that period include symmetry, use of columns as well as arches and domes. These features can be primarily traced back to the Roman Coliseum, which was a theatre as well as a stadium all in one.It was a civic building, which mainly aimed at the entertainment of the ruler but at the same time, the public too. Thus, it may be also perceived as a commercial building too as the profit generated from the entry fees mainly goes to the ruler. However, as time passed by the public’s worship shifted from the ruler tothat of the gods and religious beliefs. It can be seen that the usage of the civic buildings changed from t hat of entertainment to religious purposes. Thus, later on these attributes became to be increasingly used in the construction of religious monuments. Through this transition in the usage of the buildings, it actually made the ancient architectural citation more significant as during that time it was religion that ruled the public. Therefore, the aforementioned characteristicswere seen to be widely present in the churches constructed in the Italian Renaissance period.These churches had arches representative through a centralized door as well as rows of windows. This same attribute is intrinsic to the San Francisco Public Library with its arched doorways and windows. However, the library has its own style in the sense that it also contains rectangular windows on the top floor. On the other hand, these features were also present in ancient Greek ruins of temples, which were needless to say, built for religious purposes. For example, the temples built in Athens and other such areas bas ically involved the use of columns and entablature that consisted of architrave, frieze and cornice. Additionally, columns, which were an important part of these religious buildings, were mainly of three types, namely, the Doric, Ionic and Tuscan. On analysis of the columns of the San Francisco Public Library, it becomes clear that the columns are of the Tuscan order as the columns are not fluted and are basically plain, and also due to the fact that they are built on a circular base rather than a rectangular one. Symmetry that was an important characteristic

GW F. Hegel, Arthur Schopenhauer, Friedrich Nietzsche Essay

GW F. Hegel, Arthur Schopenhauer, Friedrich Nietzsche - Essay Example rt of a great consciousness we would not be so concerned with our individual freedom therefore, we would agree to act rationally in a way that does not follow our individual caprice that would help us achieve our goals and objectives. Hegel argued that the concept of â€Å"Geist† involves subjective spirit/mind that is the individual potential force, while Objective Spirit/Mind is the force in action and Absolute Spirit/Mind is the goal, aim or target of the force as well as the realization of one’s target. Objective Spirit and Absolute Spirit/Mind have a continuous cycle between them such that: the goals established, understood and represented by the Absolute Spirit govern, lead and motivate the action and dynamic of people in the objective spirit. Absolute Spirit/Mind encourages people to reflect upon their own practice, learn from it and overcome any limitations. Schopenhauer asserted the principle of work by emphasizing that the will is the inner nature of the body as an appearance in time and space, he concluded that the inner reality of all material appearance is dependent on the individual will. Considering the notion of will as the key to existence, Schopenhauer, who is considered to be a pessimistic philosopher, explained that the tragedy of life arises from the nature of the will which constantly urges the individual toward the satisfaction of successive goals, none of the goals can provide permanent satisfaction for the infinite activity of the life force or will. Schopenhauer claimed that some things such as interests and moral life based on sympathy, alleviates the suffering that people’s experience in their lives. The only thing that stands in our power to achieve, is to use the personal qualities we possess in the most advantageous way as possible and follow such pursuits only when will call then to play (Hegel 46). Friedrich Nietzsche argues that, it is our freedom, ability to make and implement our own choices that distinguishes us from

IKEA Analysis Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words

IKEA Analysis - Essay Example Retaining competitive advantage is inevitable for firms to ensure profitability. This can be achieved by implementing effective management strategies and processes that allow them to conduct a thorough internal analysis of their businesses, such as benchmarking, value chain analysis etc., to name a few. For the purpose of this paper, benchmarking as a method of internal analysis is used and applied on IKEA. The process of benchmarking is of vital significance for organizations today, since it affords them the ability to compare their performance with that of their rivals or similar processes within their own organizations. The process was first used and introduced by Xerox Corporation, with a view to gain competitive advantage over their rivals in the industry, and capitalize on their strengths by overcoming their weaknesses and limitations (Zairi, 1996). The process of benchmarking is evolutionary in nature, whereby the companies involved begin by analyzing the various internal proc esses employed by them, and seek improvements in areas identified as problematic, thus ensuring best practices within the organizations (Wireman, 2004). Definitions: The concept of benchmarking has been widely used within the field of management and is defined differently by different authors. According to Zairi (1996: 35) "A benchmark refers to something that serves as a standard by which others may be served". However one of the most commonly and widely used definitions of benchmarking is the one developed by Xerox, which states describes benchmarking as "the continuous process of measuring our products, services and practices against the toughest competitors or those companies recognized as industry leaders" (cited in Kozak, 2004: 5). 2. Introduction: The global furniture retail industry comprises of various stakeholders and players. IKEA is one such international furniture retail chains, which dominates the global furniture market. It was founded by a Swedish furniture manufactu rer, Ingvar Kamprad, in the year 1943 (IKEA, 2012a). IKEA today, has grown into a global retail brand, with as many as 131,000 employees working in 41 countries across the globe, generating annual sales worth 24.7 billion Euros (IKEA, 2012b). IKEA, as is apparent from the statistics mentioned above, has come to become one of the most globally trusted and appreciated brands in the retail furniture industry. However by the turn of the 20th century, several new players entered the industry, thus making it imperative for the existing businesses to improve and enhance their product capabilities in order to retain their competitive positioning in the industry. In present day competitive climate, the firms within the retail furniture industry are required to lower their costs, improve product range and quality, and cater to a wide consumer segment spread across the globe, in order to increase their profitability. The situation is worsened with the highly volatile external economic environm ent, making it difficult for firms to offer good quality products at lower prices. Its core business mantra is â€Å"Low prices with meaning† which drives them to strive for lowering the costs of their

Apple Employee Training Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Apple Employee Training - Essay Example As per January 2014, the company had over 400 retail stores in more than 15 countries and an online store whereby hardware and software products are sold. However, despite the incredible growth the company has experienced over time, the is a pressing need to keep on training its employees in various departments in order to have a competitive edge over its close rivals like Microsoft, Dell, Samsung, Acer, Lenovo among other global technological giants. In the past, Apple Incorporation has been using a distribution channel that involved intermediaries in this case being authorized dealers. This strategy had proven to be a good idea in most parts of the world and particularly in the past when the company was under leadership of Steve Jobs. However, of late, the strategy has started backfiring as its close rivals adopt other strategies that are highly outdoing the company’s operations. One weakness that this channel of distribution has created is the fact that dealers do not know much about Apple products hence are completely unable to meet the requirements of the customers; they are unable to answer technical questions relating to the products (Apple, 2014). This has ended up making the company start opening its own physical and online stores in order to retain its market share in this competitive wave. As a result, the company requires training of cashiers, public relation personnel in their different stores, managers among human resources. Moreover, the company is under threat of being technologically dormant, a gap that is being created by the fact that its co-founder and a techno genius Steve Jobs is no longer in the management. This has made the company focus on training ambitious young persons in order to fill the gap that was created in hope that they will get another genius. However, this paper will focus on employees training with relation to public relation personnel, cashiers and other positions that

IKEA Analysis Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words

IKEA Analysis - Essay Example Retaining competitive advantage is inevitable for firms to ensure profitability. This can be achieved by implementing effective management strategies and processes that allow them to conduct a thorough internal analysis of their businesses, such as benchmarking, value chain analysis etc., to name a few. For the purpose of this paper, benchmarking as a method of internal analysis is used and applied on IKEA. The process of benchmarking is of vital significance for organizations today, since it affords them the ability to compare their performance with that of their rivals or similar processes within their own organizations. The process was first used and introduced by Xerox Corporation, with a view to gain competitive advantage over their rivals in the industry, and capitalize on their strengths by overcoming their weaknesses and limitations (Zairi, 1996). The process of benchmarking is evolutionary in nature, whereby the companies involved begin by analyzing the various internal proc esses employed by them, and seek improvements in areas identified as problematic, thus ensuring best practices within the organizations (Wireman, 2004). Definitions: The concept of benchmarking has been widely used within the field of management and is defined differently by different authors. According to Zairi (1996: 35) "A benchmark refers to something that serves as a standard by which others may be served". However one of the most commonly and widely used definitions of benchmarking is the one developed by Xerox, which states describes benchmarking as "the continuous process of measuring our products, services and practices against the toughest competitors or those companies recognized as industry leaders" (cited in Kozak, 2004: 5). 2. Introduction: The global furniture retail industry comprises of various stakeholders and players. IKEA is one such international furniture retail chains, which dominates the global furniture market. It was founded by a Swedish furniture manufactu rer, Ingvar Kamprad, in the year 1943 (IKEA, 2012a). IKEA today, has grown into a global retail brand, with as many as 131,000 employees working in 41 countries across the globe, generating annual sales worth 24.7 billion Euros (IKEA, 2012b). IKEA, as is apparent from the statistics mentioned above, has come to become one of the most globally trusted and appreciated brands in the retail furniture industry. However by the turn of the 20th century, several new players entered the industry, thus making it imperative for the existing businesses to improve and enhance their product capabilities in order to retain their competitive positioning in the industry. In present day competitive climate, the firms within the retail furniture industry are required to lower their costs, improve product range and quality, and cater to a wide consumer segment spread across the globe, in order to increase their profitability. The situation is worsened with the highly volatile external economic environm ent, making it difficult for firms to offer good quality products at lower prices. Its core business mantra is â€Å"Low prices with meaning† which drives them to strive for lowering the costs of their

Social Issue Essay Example for Free

Social Issue Essay â€Å"We must learn to live together as brothers or perish together as fools. † As Martin Luther King Jr. once said, the world must go far beyond than our differences and we must love each other for what we are. And Afghanistan religion is not an exception. Amir is the son of Baba, a wealthy businessman and a Pashtun Muslim, he also goes to school, owns books and wears fancy outfits. Hassan, on the other side of the coin, is the son of Ali, a member of the Hazaras and Amir’s personal servant. He does not attend school and is analphabetic and wears pitiable clothes. And despite the fact they live in the same property, Amir’s dwelling is the most beautiful and opulent house in town, meanwhile the servant child lives in a humble cabin down by their garden. The Kite Runner clearly exposes the social inequality of Amir and Hassan upon the different lifestyles of the characters, the education they are given and of course the discrimination upon the ethnic groups they each belong to. The three main points already mentioned, clearly exemplify the immense social gap inside the Afghanistan culture. To begin with, the ethnic conflict and the discrimination issue in Afghanistan have been around from years in such culture. The Hazaras on one side, are the minority group among the society, they belong to the peasant class and throughout centuries, they have been persecuted and exterminated by the members of the nation’s ruling class: The Pashtuns. â€Å"Afghanistan is the land of Pashtuns. It always has been, always will be. We are the true Afghans, the pure Afghans† (Hosseini, K. (The Kite Runner), 2003 p. 22). Nevertheless, Amir and his father Baba are members of this religious sector; in fact, they are one of the wealthiest families in North Kabul. Hassan and Ali, on the other side, were part of the Hazaras and due to their Mongol features and cultural status, they constantly tend to receive social and physical discrimination. And although these two Islamic branches tend to live together assorted inside the same land, their social disparities are enormous. And which better example to portrayed this idea, than Hassan and Amir themselves. They both live in the same location and nearly eat the same food, but the society’s views about them are completely dissimilar. The Pashtun boy is seen as a fruitful and pure soul; however, Hassan is perceived as a filthy and foolish fellow with no certain future. Second of all, the education received by Amir is completely unlike the one given to Hassan. This Pashtun lad attends an upright school in Kabul, where he is taught how to write and read. At home, he frequently enjoys reading several sorts of tales and even writes his own short stories. Hassan’s education, however, was exactly the opposite: he doesnt know how to write or to read. He works most part of the day and attends no school at all. The only kind of â€Å"education† this poor Hazara child will ever obtain, is the one given by Amir from time to time, when he teaches him the definition of a few words from the books he reads to him. Just for the fact he belongs to a social minority, Hassan will never in his life do anything but to cook or clean before others. And no matter how hard he struggles, he will never be given the chance to attend any school, will never be given the chance to read and will never be given the chance to write. â€Å"After all, what use did a servant have for the written words? † (Hosseini, K. (The Kite Runner), 2003 p. 37). Pursuing this further, the Afghans kids’ lifestyles are completely unlike. When both lads get up in the morning they follow a very similar routine, however lived from utterly different perspectives. When Amir wakes up in the morning, he comfortably eats his breakfast. When Hassan wakes up, he prepares Amir’s breakfast. While Hassan makes his bed, polish his school shoes and ironed his uniform, Amir complains about homework and how tough is school. â€Å"When the sun dropped low behind the hills and we were done playing for the day, Hassan and I parted ways. I went past the rosebushes to Baba’s mansion and Hassan to the mud shack where he had been born, where he’d lived his entire life. † (Hosseini, K. (The Kite Runner), 2003 p. 24). This is one of the greatest example of the social disparity in Afghanistan, where the younger generation’s future is strictly related to the their religious group. Amir, for instance will have a successful life, crowded of opportunities and joyful moments, meanwhile Hassan will grow old enough to become dust in the wind. However, Amir and Hassan both grew under the same roof and spent the first twelve years of their lives playing together. They learned how to crawl together, they even taught each other how to ride a bicycle with no hands. They spent entire winters flying kites, running kites, watching westerns at the cinema and chasing each other between tangles of trees in Baba’s house. Never mind any of those things. Because history isn’t easy to overcome. Neither is religion. In the end, Amir was a Pashtun and Hassan was a Hazara, he was rich and he was poor, and nothing was ever going to change that. Nothing. Given these points, we can conclude the differences upon Amir’s and Hassan’s education, their unlike lifestyle and the discrimination throughout The Kite Runner’s main characters are undoubtedly originated upon their ethnical position. Just for the fact Hassan is not a Pashtun Muslim, just for the fact he belongs to social minority, just for the fact he is different, he is destined to live this rotten life eternally. However, Amir will be given the chance to live his own life. He will study hard and become one of the many wealthy men in Kabul. He will drive his opulent family in an opulent car to his opulent house, where Hassan and his child will be waiting for them inside their mud shack. The same mud shack where they have live their entire miserable life. It is incredible how the religious distinctions between them, greatly affect their existence. But it is a fact. The Pashtuns and the Hazaras discrimination in Afghanistan is happening. And no matter how hard they struggle, Amir and Hassan can not escape from this reality where each of these two innocent boys stands as an example of the social inequality in Afghanistan. Reference List: -Hosseini, K. (2003). The Kite Runner. New York: Riverhead.

The Fungus Rhizopus Stolonifer

The Fungus Rhizopus Stolonifer The fungus Rhizopus stolonifer is a widely distributed thread like mold which is commonly found upon bread surfaces and other food. This is why it has the common name of black bread mold. Due to the fact that it is so common and can easily grow upon bread substances it makes it a very appropriate fungal choice to experiment on. Rhizopus stolonifer grows rapidly when placed in a moist environment where the temperature stays between 15 and 30 degrees Celsius and can easily reproduce in these temperatures. Rhizopus stolonifer is capable of causing infections in humans and so it makes it appropriate to choose Dettol, Savlon, and Bleach as substances to apply to the fungus as these substances are known to kill pathogens, fungus and clean surfaces. Fungi are known to have a resistance to certain antiseptics however if sufficient concentration of a substance is added, the antiseptic can overcome such resistances. Aim: To determine the effect of certain household substances on the growth of the Rhizopus stolonifer fungus species. Hypothesis: From the research gathered in the literature review, it is expected that- if the variables of the fungus being tested such as species, size are kept constant- Dettol will have the greatest effect on the fungal growth. As it will most efficiently overcome the resistance of the cell membrane as it will be the the first to overcome the resistance of the cell membranes of the fungi due to two of its active ingrients (CHLOROXYLENOL and ISOPROPYL ALCOHOL). It is expected that Savlon will have little or no effect on fungal growth, as through previous research gathered ( stated in literature review) Savlon only has anti-bacterial properties. Literature Reviews: There is a research paper by Mahmood and Doughari from the African Journal of Biotechnology, from the Department of Microbiology, School of Pure and Applied Sciences, Federal University of Technology which was posted for peer review on 16 May 2008. It shows an experiment that was conducted in order to determine the effect of Dettol on the viability of some microorganisms associated with nosocomial infection such as Candidia albicans which is a fungus. The experiment sought to determine which concentration of Dettol the fungus would be more susceptible to destruction. Results showed that after adding Dettol little change occurred in the cell count of the fungus in 5 minutes however after 10 minutes there was a rapid decline in the cell count of the fungus. Cove and Holland suggested in 1983 that in order to completely kill all of the fungal cells, a sufficiently high concentration of the antiseptic must be in contact with the cells for longer than those cells resistance time. Cove and Holland also reported that microorganisms which were exposed to toxic agents will almost always show a constant death rate in the cells. Doughari found and then supported the idea of Cove who stated that there is a constant death rate of the cells when in prolonged contact with an antiseptic. What was good about the experiment/research? The same type of fungus was tested and all the fungi were grown to the same size. The fungi were all exposed to the same volume of antiseptic. Two types of water were used to dilute the Dettol. Bad things about the experiment/research: It was not repeated more than twice for each concentration. Our hypothesis stated that if fungi, with constant variables, were exposed to equal concentrations of Dettol, Savlon and Bleach, the Dettol would be the first substance to overcome the fungus resistance and therefore start decreasing the growth of the fungus by killing its cells. This report shows exactly how quickly the Dettol kills the cells and therefore supports our hypothesis. [1] Similarly there was another research paper by Emeka, Awodele, Agbamuche and Akintonwa which was peer review and posted on 16 April 2007 at the African Journal of Biotechnology, from the Department of Pharmacology, College of Medicine, Idi-Araba. University of Lagos, Nigeria. Which was all about the antimicrobial activities of some commonly used disinfectants on several bacteria and fungi such as Candilida albicans. They tested Savlon, Jik and Methylated Spirit. The experiment showed that Jik and Methylated Spirit had inhibitory activities on both fungi and bacteria however Savlon had only antibacterial activity. Good things about the experiment: They inoculated and incubated each of the fungi and bacteria before the experiment to keep them sterile and to avoid cross contamination. Constant variables such as temperature were kept constant. A control was introduced. Bad things about the experiment They did not repeat the experiment enough times. In our hypothesis we expected Savlon to be weaker as an antifungal substance compared to Bleach because through this research we have come to realise that there is a potential issue that no matter how concentrated the Savlon is, it proves to be unable to kill the cells of the fungus and therefore it has no effect on the growth of the fungus. However we will still be incorporating Savlon in our experiment in order to test whether this result was valid and correct. [2] There was a third journal which had a similar experiment which was conducted in Nigeria by Oyewale, Mojeed and Oladapo at the Department of Applied Sciences. The experiment tested the effectiveness of antiseptic substances such as Savlon and Bleach on fungal growth. The results matched their hypotheses: both Bleach and Savlon managed to completely kill off the mould. Existing knowledge is that Pelczar observed that there was an initial time which enables penetration of chemical agents into the fungal cells and then this will interfere with those cells protein synthesis. The results relate to our hypothesis because it shows that Bleach can act as an effective antifungal antiseptic and therefore there is the potential that our original hypothesis is valid and correct however it opposes the experiment results of Emeka, Awodele, Agbamuche and Akintonwas experiment which stated that Savlon has no effect upon fungal growth. [3] Method: Data Plan: We will measure the size of the fungi using a series of utensils such as a square cm grid, as well as using a ruler to measure the area regularly. The growth of the fungi will be monitored and recorded daily. Then once the fungi have grown to a useable size we will measure and record the size of each fungus in each Petri dish using the same methods as before. We will then trim the fungi which are too large as we need to keep size a constant. Temperature will remain constant as well as light available to the fungi. We will then record exactly what the concentration of substance used on each fungus. This will be constant for every dish. We will then measure the change that this substance causes every 30 min for 6 hours. We will leave the fungi for a week longer, recording results and appearances daily. After a week we will restart the experiment but increase the concentration of the substances added to the fungi. Method: Prepare the bread which will be used to grow the fungus by cutting one slice into 4 equal pieces and then removing the crusts on all pieces. In this way the type of bread, thickness and size of the slice and the age of the bread is kept constant. The size of the bread should be 5 x 5 cm however this will differ according to chosen bread size. Place one piece into each Petri dish. Label the dishes A-D. Contaminate each piece with chosen fungus by using sterilized instruments. Each bread piece must receive spores of the same species of fungus. Monitor the fungi growth for about two weeks until it has grown enough to undergo the experiment with. These dishes must be left in the same environment therefore keeping light and temperature equal for all dishes, preferably a temperature/light controlled room. Trim the larger grown fungi so that the size of the fungi is constant in all dishes however this is not strictly necessary. Record the size of the fungi. Prepare the household substances which you will be treating the fungi with. The concentration of substance to water must be equal for all the substances; therefore if one substance is mixed with water, then all are mixed with the same volume of water. Using substance A, place 2ml of substance on every 1cm of fungus growth in dish A. Do the same for dishes B and C. Place the same amount of sterilized water onto the fungus in dish D. Record the size of the fungi every 30 minutes for 8 hours. Take note of any other observational changes such as colour and smell. Note: Replace the lid on the Petri dish and place back in a light/temperature controlled room. After an hour, leave the fungi for the night and take notes the next day. Record size changes again if available. Do this every day for the rest of the week. After a week, clean up the dishes and sterilize all equipment. Repeat the experiments however use a stronger concentration of substances this time. Results: Table showing the results recordings every 30 minutes for the size changes in the fungi after 3 different substances were individually placed in contact with the fungus.