Marketing Plan For A New Product - 776 Words

Marketing Plan for a new product Background In 1990, Mr. John and his family in the city of San Francisco had established SH confectionary which has grown to be a big franchisor with 10 stores in the State of California. SH confectioners are interested in adding new products to their product line to expand their business. In order to do so, Mr. John had came up with an idea of selling liquor flavoured chocolates named Grand Marnier in his store. This chocolate consists of orange flavoured, and it has only 1% of alcohol in it. Marketing Strategy SH Confectionary will introduce a new product named Grand Manier chocolate using extensive advertising. The marketing objectives consist of targeting specific age people and distribute them in various cities in order to increase revenue, and also customer satisfaction. The action plan includes the following things: 1. Product 2. Price 3. Distribution 4. Promotion Product Currently, SH Confectionary is selling various flavours which includes caramel, lemon, Raspberry pink. We will introduce orange flavoured liquor chocolates which are cost effective and also permitted by the government to sell in the store. Our product will be having an expiry of 6 months from the date of manufacturing, and it will be replaced as soon as it is near the date of expiry. There will be an offer on these chocolates for a week such as Buy 1 and Get 1 Free. Our goal is to sell 25 boxes of chocolates perShow MoreRelatedMarketing Plan Of A New Product1137 Words   |  5 PagesBackground It’s not too far, about one month ago we six friends were gossiping in our university. We were talking about our new term paper of marketing course. We were discussing what our topic should be. All of us gave so many ideas about our term paper objective, â€Å"Marketing Plan of a New Product†. Suddenly one of us invent the idea to production of â€Å"Date Palm Juice† in a new format which no one ever seen. All of us support the idea and it’s really nice. After that day we started our research onRead MoreMarketing Plan For A New Product2084 Words   |  9 Pageslike a good start. Presenting a new product to the market is not just described as selling and promoting. Certainly, launching a new product needs more than just that, in orders to be highly demanded by customers. Another things also contribute to making a great product: dedicated employees, good strategy, decent information systems, excellent implementation, in special when it comes to introduce a new product to a highly developed market. That is where marketing should be used, as nowadays, successfulRead MoreMarketing Plan For A New Product1357 Words   |  6 PagesWhenever introducing a new product to a current market, an organization will need to prepare for challenges they may face. For this reason, Kohler will need to be smart with our promotional and advertising objectives when introducing Hygieia to the commercial and residential markets. Our objectives will focus on building awareness, creating interest, providing information, stimulating demand, and reinforcing the brand. Working with our big box retailers, we will need to work closely with channelRead MoreMARKETING PLAN FOR NEW PRODUCT4262 Words   |  18 Pagesï » ¿ASSIGNMENT ON MARKETING PLAN FOR NEW PRODUCT SUBMITTED TO: Bankim Chandra Sarker Lecturer Marketing Department, BUBT SUBMITTED BY: Rajeeb Kumar Saha ID# 13142201070 (30th) S.M Rafiqual Islam Rahat ID# 11121201529 (23rd) Mohammad Rasel ID# 12132201078(27th) MBA PROGRAM, BUBT BANGLADESH UNIVERSITY OF BUSINESS AND TECHNOLOGY Plot#77-78 # 9 Rupnagar Mrpur-2, Dhaka-1216 SUBMISSION DATE: 07-01-2015 January 07, 2015 The LecturerRead MoreNew Product Marketing Plan4260 Words   |  18 PagesSYNERGY 3-in-1 Laundry System Marketing Plan Laundry is no longer a chore with DIVA! Synergy TABLE OF CONTENTS 1.0 2.0 EXECUTIVE SUMMARY †¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦ Pg 3 SITUATION ANALYSIS †¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦...Pg 3 2.1 3.0 4.0 Target Market †¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Pg 4 NEW PRODUCT INTRODUCTION †¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Pg 5 SWOT ANALYSIS †¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦......Pg 6 4.1 4.2 4.3 4.4 Strengths †¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦.. Pg 6 Weaknesses †¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦.. Pg 7 Opportunities †¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Read MoreNew Product Marketing Plan7111 Words   |  29 PagesTABLE OF CONTENTS ACKNOWLEDGEMENT †¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦ APPROVAL LETTER †¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦. EXECUTIVE SUMMARY†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦.. THE CHALLENGE †¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦ †¢ Product concept and description †¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦ †¢ Characteristics †¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦.. †¢ Strategies to be implemented†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦................................ †¢ Company’s strategic goals †¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦...... SITUATIONAL ANALYSIS†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦. †¢ CompanyRead MoreAn Effective Marketing Plan For A New Product1037 Words   |  5 PagesAn effective marketing plan is one of the most important steps in introducing a new product or service. It is an essential tool in preparing executives, employees, and partners of the company in understanding the strategy to entering the market place with success. Having a solid marketing plan will not only ensure that the company is sticking to the schedule, but that the marketing resources are being disbursed wisely and appropriately (U.S. Small Business Administration). Some of the main objectivesRead MoreNew Product Launch Marketing Plan922 Words   |  4 PagesNew Product Launch Marketing Plan Joanka Lewis MKT/571 July 1, 2014 Larry Moore New Product Launch Marketing Plan Organic Baby Products are a new product that would allow your baby to be health and safe at the same time. The products are made with only natural ingredients which allow the consumer to feel comfortable about using and purchasing the products. The market segmentation will show how this product is marketed to a targeted buyer PLC StrategyRead MoreMarketing Plan for New Product Launch2326 Words   |  10 Pages{draw:frame} SUPERIOR UNIVERSITY LAHORE Project Name: Marketing Plan for new product launch Presented To: Sir Kashif* *Mahmood Group Name : The Stallionz Leader Name Id: Imran Shoukat MBP Members Name Id: Muhammad Arslan Dilawar MBP Abuzer Shabbir MBP Hassan Raza Muhammad Kashif Munir Company N*ame:* The Glimmers Limited. Company Logo: {draw:frame} Product Name: {draw:frame} * * * *Contents of Marketing Plan Part 1: Executive Summary Part 2: PurposeRead MoreMarketing Plan For Developing New Products1690 Words   |  7 Pages Product Development Name Institution of Affiliation Describing the Product The new product is the adjustable umbrella. This is the newest product for the Sky-Joy Company. The product comes with many features that are good for the different customers thus making it the best product ever in the market. The product is easily adjustable to fit in a small bag thus making it easily portable to carry. Its portability makes it the best to travel with and maybe use it anytime depending

The Crystal Shard 21. The Icy Tomb Free Essays

string(125) " crest of the fall were several huge icicles that stretched from the domed ceiling down below Wulfgar’s line of sight\." At the base of the great glacier, hidden off in a small dell where one of the ice spurs wound through broken rifts and boulders, was a place the barbarians called Evermelt. A hot spring fed a small pool, the warmed waters waging a relentless battle against ice floes and freezing temperatures. Tribesmen stranded inland by early snows, who could not find their way to the sea with the reindeer herd, often sought refuge at Evermelt, for even in the coldest months of winter, unfrozen, sustaining water could be found here. We will write a custom essay sample on The Crystal Shard 21. The Icy Tomb or any similar topic only for you Order Now And the warming vapors of the pool made the temperatures of the immediate area bearable, if not comfortable. Yet the warmth and drinking water were only a part of Evermelt’s worth. Beneath the opaque surface of the misty water lay a hoard of gems and jewels, gold and silver, that rivaled the treasure of any king in this entire region of the world. Every barbarian had heard of the legend of the white dragon, but most considered it to be just a fanciful tale recounted by self-important old men for the amusement of children. For the dragon hadn’t emerged from its hidden lair in many, many years. Wulfgar knew better, though. In his youth his father had accidentally stumbled upon the entrance to the secret cave. When Beornegar later learned the legend of the dragon, he understood the potential value of his discovery and had spent years collecting all of the information he could find concerning dragons, especially white dragons, and Ingeloakastimizilian in particular. Beornegar had been killed in a battle between tribes before he could make his attempt at the treasure, but living in a land where death was a common visitor, he had foreseen that grim possibility and had imparted his knowledge to his son. The secret did not die with him. * * * Wulfgar felled a deer with a throw of Aegis-fang and carried the beast the last few miles to Evermelt. He had been to this place twice before, but when he came upon it now, as always, its strange beauty stole his breath. The air above the pool was veiled in steam, and chunks of floating ice drifted through the misty waters like meandering ghost ships. The huge boulders surrounding the area were especially colorful, with varying hues of red and orange, and they were encapsulated in a thin layer of ice that caught the fire of the sun and reflected brilliant bursts of sparkling colors in startling contrast to the dull gray of the misted glacier ice. This was a silent place, sheltered from the mournful cry of the wind by walls of ice and rock, free of any distractions. After his father was killed, Wulfgar had vowed, in tribute to the man, to make this journey and fulfil his father’s dream. Now he approached the pool reverently, and though other matters pressed in on him, he paused for reflection. Warriors of every tribe on the tundra had come to Evermelt with the same hopes as he. None had ever returned. The young barbarian resolved to change that. He firmed his proud jaw and set to work skinning the deer. The first barrier that he had to overcome was the pool itself. Beneath its surface the waters were deceptively warm and comfortable, but anyone who emerged from the pool into the air would be frozen dead in minutes. Wulfgar peeled away the hide of the animal and began scraping away the underlying layer of fat. He melted this over a small fire until it attained the consistency of thick paint, then smeared it over every inch of his body. Taking a deep breath to steady himself and focus his thoughts on the task at hand, he took hold of Aegis-fang and waded into Evermelt. Under the deadening veil of mist, the waters appeared serene, but as soon as he moved away from the edges of the pool, Wulfgar could feel the strong, swirling currents of the hot stream. Using a jutting rock overhang as a guidepost, he approximated the exact center of the pool. Once there, he took a final breath and, confident of his father’s instructions, opened himself to the currents and let himself sink into the water. He descended for a moment, then was suddenly swept away by the main flow of the stream toward the north end of the pool. Even beneath the mist the water was cloudy, forcing Wulfgar to trust blindly that he would break free of the water before his breath ran out. He was within a few feet of the ice wall at the pool’s edge before he could see the danger. He braced himself for the collision, but the current suddenly swirled, sending him deeper. The dimness darkened to blackness as he entered a hidden opening under the ice, barely wide enough for him to slip through, though the unceasing flow of the stream gave him no choice. His lungs cried for air. He bit down on his lip to keep his mouth from bursting open and robbing him of the last wisps of precious oxygen. Then he broke into a wider tunnel where the water flattened out and dropped below the level of his head. He hungrily gasped in air, but he was still sliding along helplessly in the rushing water. One danger was past. The slide twisted and turned, and the roar of a waterfall clearly sounded up ahead. Wulfgar tried to slow his ride, but couldn’t find a handhold or any kind of a brace, for the floor and walls were of ice smoothed under centuries of the flowing stream. The barbarian tossed wildly, Aegis-fang flying from his hands as he futilely tried to drive them into the solid ice. Then he came into a wide and deep cavern and saw the drop before him. A few feet beyond the crest of the fall were several huge icicles that stretched from the domed ceiling down below Wulfgar’s line of sight. You read "The Crystal Shard 21. The Icy Tomb" in category "Essay examples" He saw his only chance. When he approached the lip of the drop, he sprang outward, wrapping his arms around an icicle. He dropped quickly as it tapered, but saw that it widened again as it neared the floor, as though a second icicle had grown up from the floor to meet this one. Safe for a moment, he gazed around the strange cavern in awe. The waterfall captured his imagination. Steam rose from the chasm, adding a surrealistic flavor to the spectacle. The stream poured over the drop, most of it continuing on its way through a small chasm, barely a crack in the floor thirty feet below at the base of the fall. The droplets that cleared the chasm, though, solidified as they separated from the main flow of the stream and bounced away in all directions as they hit the cavern’s ice floor. Not yet completely hardened, the cubes stuck fast where they landed, and all about the base of the waterfall were strangely sculpted piles of broken ice. Aegis-fang flew over the drop, easily clearing the small chasm to smash into one such sculpture, scattering shards of ice. Though his arms were numbed from the icicle slide, Wulfgar quickly rushed over to the hammer, already freezing fast where it had landed, and heaved it free of the ice’s hardening grip. Under the glassy floor where the hammer had cracked away the top layers; the barbarian noticed a dark shadow. He examined it more closely, then backed away from the grizzly sight. Perfectly preserved, one of his predecessors had apparently gone over the long drop, dying in the deepening ice where he had landed. How many others, Wulfgar wondered, had met this same fate? He didn’t have time to contemplate it further. One of his other concerns had been dispelled, for much of the cavern’s roof was only a few feet below the daylit surface and the sun found its way in through those parts that were purely ice. Even the smallest glow coming from the ceiling was reflected a thousand times on the glassy floors and walls, and the whole cavern virtually exploded in sparkling bursts of light. Wulfgar felt the cold acutely, but the melted blubber had protected him sufficiently. He would survive the first dangers of this adventure. But the spectre of the dragon loomed somewhere up ahead. Several twisting tunnels led off of the main chamber, carved by the stream in long-past days when its waters ran high. Only one of these was large enough for a dragon, though. Wulfgar contemplated searching out the others first, to see if he might possibly find a less obvious way into the lair. But the glare and distortions of light and the countless icicles hanging from the ceiling like a predator’s teeth dizzied him, and he knew that if he got lost or wasted too much time, the night would fall over him, stealing his light and dropping the temperature below even his considerable tolerance. So he banged Aegis-fang on the floor to clear away any remaining ice that clung to it and started straight ahead down the tunnel he believed would lead him to the lair of Ingeloakastimizilian. * * * The dragon slept soundly beside its treasure in the largest chamber of the ice caves, confident after many years of solitude that it would not be disturbed. Ingeloakastimizilian, more commonly known as Icingdeath, had made the same mistake that many of its kin, with their lairs in similar caves of ice, had made. The flowing stream that offered entrance to and escape from the caves had diminished over the years, leaving the dragon trapped in a crystalline tomb. Icingdeath had enjoyed its years of hunting deer and humans. In the short time the beast had been active, it had earned quite a respectable reputation for havoc and terror. Yet dragons, especially white ones who are rarely active in their cold environments, can live many centuries without meat. Their selfish love of their treasure can sustain them indefinitely, and Icingdeath’s hoard, though small compared to the vast mounds of gold collected by the huge reds and blues that lived in more populated areas, was the largest of any of the tundra-dwelling dragons. If the dragon had truly desired freedom, it could probably have broken through the cavern’s ice ceiling. But Icingdeath considered the risk too great, and so it slept, counting its coins and gems in dreams that dragons considered quite pleasant. The slumbering worm didn’t fully realize, though, just how careless it had become. In its unbroken snooze, Icingdeath hadn’t moved in decades. A cold blanket of ice had crept over the long form, gradually thickening until the only clear spot was a hole in front of the great nostrils, where the rhythmic blasts of exhaled snores had kept the frost away. And so Wulfgar, cautiously stalking the source of the resounding snores, came upon the beast. Viewing Icingdeath’s splendor, enhanced by the crystalline ice blanket, Wulfgar looked upon the dragon with profound awe. Piles of gems and gold lay all about the cavern under similar blankets, but Wulfgar could not pull his eyes away. Never had he viewed such magnificence, such strength. Confident that the beast was helplessly pinned, he dropped the hammer’s head down by his side. â€Å"Greetings, Ingeloakastimizilian,† he called, respectfully using the beast’s full name. The pale blue orbs snapped open, their seething flames immediately apparent even under their icy veil. Wulfgar stopped short at their piercing glare. After the initial shock, he regained his confidence. â€Å"Fear not, mighty worm,† he said boldly. â€Å"I am a warrior of honor and shall not kill you under these unfair circumstances.† He smiled wryly. â€Å"My lust shall be appeased by simply taking your treasure!† But the barbarian had made a critical mistake. A more experienced fighter, even a knight of honor, would have looked beyond his chivalrous code, accepted his good fortune as a blessing, and slain the worm as it slept. Few adventurers, even whole parties of adventurers, had ever given an evil dragon of any color an even break and lived to boast of it. Even Icingdeath, in the initial shock of its predicament, had thought itself helpless when it had first awakened to face the barbarian. The great muscles, atrophied from inactivity, could not resist the weight and grip of the ice prison. But when Wulfgar mentioned the treasure, a new surge of energy blew away the dragon’s lethargy. Icingdeath found strength in anger, and with an explosion of power beyond anything the barbarian had ever imagined, the dragon snapped its cordlike muscles, sending great chunks of ice flying away. The entire cavern complex trembled violently, and Wulfgar, standing on the slippery floor, was thrown down on his back. He rolled aside at the very last moment to dodge the spearlike tip of a falling icicle dislodged by the tremor. Wulfgar regained his feet quickly, but when he turned, he found himself facing a horned white head, leveled to meet his eyes. The dragon’s great wings flexed outward, shaking off the last remnants of its blanket, and the blue eyes bore into Wulfgar. The barbarian desperately looked around for an escape. He pondered throwing Aegis-fang, but knew that he couldn’t possibly kill the monster with a single strike. And, inevitably, the killing breath would come. Icingdeath considered its foe for a moment. If it breathed, it would have to settle for frozen flesh. It was a dragon, after all, a terrible worm, and it believed, probably rightly so, that no single human could ever defeat it. This huge man, however, and particularly the magical hammer, for the dragon could sense its might, disturbed the worm. Caution had kept Icingdeath alive through many centuries. It would not close to melee with this man. The cold air gathered in its lungs. Wulfgar heard the intake of air and reflexively dove to the side. He couldn’t fully escape the blast that followed, a frosting cone of unspeakable cold, but his agility, combined with the deer blubber, kept him alive. He landed behind a block of ice, his legs actually burned by the cold and his lungs aching. He needed a moment to recover, but he saw the white head lifting slowly into the air, taking away the angle of the meager barrier. The barbarian could not survive a second breath. Suddenly, a globe of darkness engulfed the dragon’s head and a black-shafted arrow, and then another, whirred by the barbarian and thudded unseen behind the blackness. â€Å"Attack boy! Now!† cried Drizzt Do’Urden from the entrance to the chamber. The disciplined barbarian instinctively obeyed his teacher. Grimacing through the pain, he moved around the ice block and closed in on the thrashing worm. Icingdeath swung its great head to and fro, trying to shake free of the dark elf’s spell. Hate consumed the beast as yet another stinging arrow found its mark. The dragon’s only desire was to kill. Even blinded, its senses were superior; it marked out the drow’s direction easily and breathed again. But Drizzt was well-versed in dragon lore. He had gauged his distance from Icingdeath perfectly, and the strength of the deadly frost fell short. The barbarian charged in on the distracted dragon’s side and slammed Aegis-fang with all of his great might against the white scales. The dragon winced in agony. The scales held under the blow, but the dragon had never felt such strength from a human and didn’t care to test its hide against a second strike. It turned to release a third blast of breath on the exposed barbarian. But another arrow cracked home. Wulfgar saw a great gob of dragon blood splatter on the floor beside him, and he watched the globe of darkness lurch away. The dragon roared in anger. Aegis-fang struck again, and a third time. One of the scales cracked and flaked away, and the sight of exposed flesh renewed Wulfgar’s hopes of victory. Icingdeath had lived through many battles, though, and was far from finished. The dragon knew how vulnerable it was to the powerful hammer and kept its concentration focused enough to retaliate. The long tail circled over the scaly back and cracked into Wulfgar just as the barbarian had begun another swing. Instead of the satisfaction of feeling Aegis-fang crushing through dragon flesh, Wulfgar found himself slammed against a frozen mound of gold coins twenty feet away. The cavern spun all about him, his watering eyes heightening the starred reflections of light and his consciousness slipping away. But he saw Drizzt, scimitars drawn, advancing boldly toward Icingdeath. He saw the dragon poised to breath again. He saw, with crystalline clarity, the immense icicle hanging from the ceiling above the dragon. Drizzt walked forward. He had no strategy against such a formidable foe; he hoped that he would spot some weakness before the dragon killed him. He thought that Wulfgar was out of the battle, and probably dead, after the mighty slash of the tail, and was surprised when he saw sudden movement off to the side. Icingdeath sensed the barbarian’s move as well and sent its long tail to squelch any further threat to its flank. But Wulfgar had already played his hand. With the last burst of strength he could muster, he snapped up from the mound and launched Aegis-fang high into the air. The dragon’s tail struck home and Wulfgar didn’t know if his desperate attempt was successful. He thought that he saw a lighter spot appear on the ceiling before he was thrown into blackness. Drizzt bore witness to their victory. Mesmerized, the drow watched the silent descent of the huge icicle. Icingdeath, blinded to the danger by the globe of darkness and thinking that the hammer had flown wildly, waved its wings. The clawed forelegs had just begun to lift up when the ice spear smashed into the dragon’s back, driving it back to the floor. With the ball of darkness planted on its head, Drizzt couldn’t see the dragon’s dying expression. But he heard the killing â€Å"crack† as the whiplike neck, launched by the sudden reversal of momentum, rolled upward and snapped. How to cite The Crystal Shard 21. The Icy Tomb, Essay examples

Liberals Incline Towards Moral Intuitions Samples †MyAssignmenthelp.c

Question: Discuss about the Liberals Incline Towards Moral Intuitions. Answer: Hypotheses Liberals incline more towards moral intuitions such as Harm/care and Fairness/reciprocity in their decision making Conservatives rely more on a balanced nature of all five moral intuitions, in this case; all the foundations are rated equally relevant. Participants A total of 27 male and one hundred and thirteen female aged 20.230 and SD= 3.810 from Groningen University took part in the research. Data obtained from 25 additional participants were nullified due to different reasons. Taking into consideration scoring instructions from the questionare on moral Foundation's, the data from 21 of the participants who showed highly unusual responses were excluded. It is important also to state that the inclusion of these participants did not in any way affect the correlation of the measured variables and the moral foundation scores. Two participants, with extreme responses were excluded following the scoring instructions in IAT. Also, one of the participants did not accurately abide by the instructions and another data obtained from one other participant was lost as a result of a computer error. Dutch (n=15) was language for instruction used by majority of the participants. The sessions, technically, were concluded in different partitions, and each ma terial being encrypted using Dutch language in computers. Procedures The initial step in this stage was to complete the 41- item moral foundation questionnaire to test for underlying ideological preferences. The questionnaire had 40 items that measured two significant aspects of moral attitudes. 20 items measured moral relevance and hence tested for the extent to which various considerations for the participants were relevant when deciding on whether something is wrong or right. The researchers recorded the responses on a six-point scale that were labeled not all relevant or extremely relevant. The other 20 items measured moral judgment, in this case, participants answered to which extent they agreed with statements like, Is chastity as a virtue integral and valued?. Responses were manifested on a scale based on 6-points which were also tagged strongly agree or strongly disagree. A combination of the relevance together with judgment items was used to compute scores for the moral intuitions like harm/care, fairness/reciprocity and authority/respect, in group/loyalty and purity/sanctity foundations. For the purpose of statistical efficiency, scores for binding foundations and individual foundations were computed and employed in other analyses within the study. Participants then filled in a single item precise measure in regards to political affiliation, this was based on a 7 point scale. A measure of affiliation politically was completed by the subjects, the measure entailed implicit connotation test that examined cognitive associations between conservative, liberal negative and positive concepts on the opposite side. Subsequently, this is the procedure that was used to categories liberals and conservatives. Technically, positive scores were linked to a stronger association between conservatives as well as positive concepts. In the end of this procedure, the belief in a dangerous world scale that comprised of twelve test items that measured personality variances perception was completed by the subjects. The seven-point scale was used to stipulate the responses. Results A moral foundation perspective From the first test, participants individualizing foundation scores was higher as compared to the scores of binding foundation, (M=3.590, SD=0.450 and M=2.620, SD= 0.500, t{139.0}=20.700,p0.0010). This is technically, a representation of the general liberal alignment of the used sample. Just as reflected in the arguments above, it is noticeable that conservatives equally attribute importance to all five moral foundations, unlike liberals who attach most important to individual foundations. To attempt and analyze this perception, the researchers computed various scores whereby the obtained mean from binding foundations, were subtracted from the individualizing foundations (Progar, 2013). The difference in the two scores was used in later analyses in the course of the research. Political affiliation The value of mean of explicit measure in this case in terms of politics stood at 3.380 (SD=1.280). Subsequently, this result was less than the scale-midpoint of 4.0 t [139.0] =-5.760, p 0.0010. On the other hand, the IAT data showed a mean propensity that associates positivity with liberalism whereas conservatism with non-positivity was associated with conservatism. M=-0.980, t {138.0] =-21.250, p 0.0010. There also exists a positive correlation between explicit and implicit measure (r=0.220, p=0.0110). The association became decreased by a one subject who was strictly conservative measured implicitly. He was also very liberal on the side of implicit measurement (Davies, Sibley Liu, 2014). Eliminating this score augmented the correlation between implicit and explicit to twenty-eight. However, it only insignificantly altered fundamental results in other measures (Haidt Graham, 2007). For comparison, it was conveyed that a high correlation between explicit and implicit political affi liation exists (r=0.56). Political orientation and Moral foundations From the results, a high binding foundation score predicted a high explicitly measured and implicitly measured conservatism. On the other hand, greater scores on individualizing foundation considered higher were associated with lesser explicit conservatism measure (r=0.260, p= 0.0020). The outcome also pointed out that scores on moral foundations differences showed low explicit measures and implicit measures of conservatism (Haidt, 2012). The results hence replicate the previous findings in assessment one. Perception of social dangers and test of mediation The general perception from the results is that the perception of social dangers may serve as predecessor psychologically to stress positioned on the moral foundations that bind. Subsequently, this was in alignment with the expected outcomes. BDW, however, the association showed negative correlation with the difference in moral foundation scores (Haidt, 2008). Simply put, people perceiving increased social hazards tend to attribute bigger value to binding-foundations as compared to individualizing-foundations. Discussion One primary study objectives aimed at replicating as well as to building on the recent research findings that create the association amid moral intuitions together with political attitudes. Results aligned to previous research findings that indicated that political conservatives alongside liberals vary regarding the significance each is placing on the diverse moral foundations sets (Graham, Haidt Nosek, 2009). Greater value was placed by liberals on individualizing foundations like harm/care and fairness/reciprocity. On the other hand, conservatives place more weight on binding foundations like in-cohort/ loyalty, purity/sanctity, and power respect. Technically, by using different measures than the ones that had been previously used, like the use of a Dutch sample example rather than an Australian based example, the result indicated that their exist a strong association amid moral foundations alongside political alignment (Nilsson, Erlandsson, 2015). Divergent cultural sample also enabled the results to be broad and varied across a large spectrum. Also, one other objective was to comprehensively avail conceptual incorporation through connecting perception of social-dangers, moral foundations and political orientation. The outcome of the research remained similar with the hypotheses previously discussed that illustrates the propensity to incline more towards exact moral foundations (Graham et al, 2011). This in return predicts political affiliation. Simply put, the pattern used in analyzing moral attitudes partially mediates the association between the perceptions of social-dangers alongside the political alignment (Weber Federico, 2013). The findings in this case compliments as well as elaborates previous research on the antecedents psychologically involved in political affiliation. Also, it is important to point out which one, in particular, comes first, and is its political identity, moral concerns or any other third variable (Federico et al, 2013). The re search comprehensively answered this technical question. However, the results are preliminary, and hence there is the need for further research. One of the ways through which the challenges can be countered is by testing hypotheses with several other measures of variables attached to both anxiety and fear. Consequently, the current result indicates that upcoming study on the topic may benefit potentially from building upon notions on both the direct together with mediated impacts simultaneously. A relevant instance includes, instead of exclusively focusing on measuring anxiety alongside fear variables, future studies might theoretically as well as empirically manipulate the situational thoughts and hence access the effect on political orientation and moral intuitions (Milojev et al 2014). Also, the researchers may attempt to influence the level of consideration or importance that individuals place on specific moral foundations and examine its potential impact on political affiliatio n. However, this is not a simple task since neither political orientation nor moral intuitions can be easily persuaded through fleeting laboratory manipulations. Technically, one of the ways to counter this situation is through complementing the strategy with developmental approaches that focus on the acquirement of anxiety and fear related concepts, political attitudes and moral intuitions. In summary, the present study in the research support the widespread moral foundation's hypotheses and also additionally showed that political and moral attitudes are influenced by the perception of social dangers (Van Leeuwen Park, 2009). The findings supported the hypothesized association between patterns of moral duty, perceptions of social dangers and that of political affiliation. Relatively, the results denote a vital step in integrating different predictors of political references and affiliation that currently exist in the used literature. Relatively, the daily lives of all individuals are steeped in political content an inclusive of several attempts to alter our attitudes (Hindriks, Verkuyten Coenders, 2014). The attitudes can be attributed to a variety of sources like media articles and our social networks. In relation, the research set out to examine how exactly morally based appeals modify the socio-political opinions of people. Several research findings point out that persons social and political attitudes are as a result of their moral concerns. As defined by several moral foundation theories, people should ground their political as well as a social belief on their moral foundations such as the five foundations discussed previously (Clifford Jerit, 2013). The question that the paper set out to address is the whether moral foundations causally alter the degree of support for policies and political positions and whether this difference contrast among liberals and conservatives. Consistent with assignment one of t he moral foundation theory, case study two supports the hypotheses. Subsequently, this is specifically after exposure to the liberals as well as the conservatives stances on issues about political affiliations. With particular regards to Australia, the public assertiveness to the issue influence the public policy in respect to responding to problems such as climate change. Patterns in moral perceptions scores are high in harm and fairness when compared to in a group, authority or purity from randomly picked samples (Dawson Tyson, 2012). In relation, this is correlated with liberalism also referred to as the left wing political orientation. More specifically, moral intuitions predicted attitudes to responses to challenges such as climate change. The association however, is partially mediated by what is considered an individuals political affinity hence generally affecting political responses. Previous research has established beyond any reasonable doubt that conservatives and liberals differ regarding their preferred moral foundations. The research also demonstrated that the political attitudes of liberals as well as conservatives are affected by the level of exposure to moral foundations. The papers examination was straight forward, and future research can potentially benefit from applying the framework used in this research which is embedded across varied domain and settings. Despite the fact that the research directed its focus more on political issues framed within the context of political issues, similar effects can be exhibited in other settings like community, health communication, workplaces or any other relevant settings that are framed within relevant moral foundations. In relation, it is important for future research to confirm this possibility. References Clifford, S., Jerit, J. (2013). How words do the work of politics: Moral foundations theory and the debate over stem cell research.The Journal of Politics,75(3), 659-671. Davies, C. L., Sibley, C. G., Liu, J. H. (2014). Confirmatory factor analysis of the Moral Foundations Questionnaire.Social Psychology. Dawson, S. L., Tyson, G. A. (2012). Will morality or political ideology determine attitudes to climate change.Australian Community Psychologist,24(2). Federico, C. M., Weber, C. R., Ergun, D., Hunt, C. (2013). Mapping the connections between politics and morality: The multiple sociopolitical orientations involved in moral intuition.Political Psychology,34(4), 589-610. Graham, J., Haidt, J., Nosek, B. A. (2009). Liberals and conservatives rely on different sets of moral foundations.Journal of personality and social psychology,96, 1029. Graham, J., Nosek, B. A., Haidt, J., Iyer, R., Koleva, S., Ditto, P. H. (2011). Mapping the moral domain.Journal of personality and social psychology,101(2), 366. Haidt, J. (2008). Morality.Perspectives on psychological science,3(1), 65-72. Haidt, J. (2012).The righteous mind: Why good people are divided by politics and religion. Vintage. Haidt, J., Graham, J. (2007). When morality opposes justice: Conservatives have moral intuitions that liberals may not recognize.Social Justice Research,20(1), 98-116. Hindriks, P., Verkuyten, M., Coenders, M. (2014). Dimensions of social dominance orientation: The roles of legitimizing myths and national identification.European Journal of Personality,28(6), 538-549. Milojev, P., Osborne, D., Greaves, L. M., Bulbulia, J., Wilson, M. S., Davies, C. L., ... Sibley, C. G. (2014). Right-wing authoritarianism and social dominance orientation predict different moral signatures.Social Justice Research,27(2), 149-174. Nilsson, A., Erlandsson, A. (2015). The Moral Foundations taxonomy: Structural validity and relation to political ideology in Sweden.Personality and Individual Differences,76, 28-32. Lewis, G. J., Bates, T. C. (2011). From left to right: How the personality system allows basic traits to influence politics via characteristic moral adaptations.British Journal of Psychology,102(3), 546-558. Progar, B. S. (2013).Moral appeals in political discourse: A moderate approach to political identification(Doctoral dissertation, San Diego State University). Van Leeuwen, F., Park, J. H. (2009). Perceptions of social dangers, moral foundations, and political orientation.Personality and Individual Differences,47(3), 169-173. Weber, C. R., Federico, C. M. (2013). Moral foundations and heterogeneity in ideological preferences.Political Psychology,34(1), 107-126.

SRM a Strategic Service Vision for Air Asia Bhd Essay Sample free essay sample

The major intent of a strategic service vision is to function as the vision of a topographic point and intent of the company every bit good as to associate the entrepreneur’s thought and the unmet needs which will finally let the company to accomplish its ends. ( Fitzsimmons and Fitzsimmons 2010 ) Service vision includes chief classs: mark market. service construct. runing scheme. and service bringing system. Target Market Segment Air Asia creates values through vision and mission. First of all. vision of Air Asia is to be the largest low cost air hose and functioning the 3 billion people who are presently underserved with hapless connectivity and low menus. It is clear that. the Air Asia is selling the air hose service company. Hence. feature of the Air Asia’s mark audience is the all people who wages are fall in the center or lower net incomes in Malaysia. That is the ground why the Air Asia ever use the low monetary value strategic to put it is ever cheaper than their rivals. We will write a custom essay sample on SRM a Strategic Service Vision for Air Asia Bhd Essay Sample or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page Second. it besides target to the age group who are immature grownup and supra because this sort of age group have the ability to disbursement and may be ever necessitate a flight to other far finish in shorter clip. So. they will easy pull and act upon by the publicity making by the Air Asia which merely RM0. 99 for a flight. This sort of mark market will easy switch to other rivals who besides offer the lowest monetary value or making a gross revenues publicity. In footings of service construct. Air Asia is the 1 of the largest air hoses in Asia. Thus. Air Asia has short flights with frequent goings. and uses inner-city or low traffic airdromes to avoid congestion. plus carry-on baggage. In fact. Air Asia’s major mark subdivision is originally geared towards low-middle gross earners. budget travellers and regular short-haul circulars such as abroad workers. contractors. and pupils. ( Onwutalobi 2008 ) Service Delivery System Well. how Air Asia delivers service? It is clear that. Air Asia has fostered a depency on Internet engineering for its operational and strategic direction. and provides an online ticket engagement services to traveler online. Furthermore. Air Asia hire cabin crew based on attitude and utilize a huge sum of aircrafts to command care and operational cost. In add-on. the cardinal aim of low cost bearers is to increase their range and supply the services to a big section. Hence. in the footings of service bringing. Air Asia largely uses engineering and it allows them to supply barriers to entry by rivals and distinguish the service from rivals. At all. E-ticketing seemed to be a ‘win’ solution for Air Asia. It offered the company a opportunity to do considerable nest eggs in both trade footings every bit good as in invoicing and internal accounting processs. Second. it was really attractive to clients. who may profit from a service offer both technologically advanced and of high intrinsic value. Air Asia produces of import cost nest eggs by directing information utilizing Internet. instead than by station or facsimile. To sum up. Air Asia largely uses modern engineering to run and present service. Air Asia put into pattern thin allotment by trusting on cyberspace as a chief method of distribution while cut downing the dependance on travel agents and gross revenues offices. as opposed to full service air hoses which normally used all distribution channels. ( Air Asia 2011 ) . Operating Scheme Following point is runing scheme of Air Asia. Selling and operations are important elements of runing scheme of Air Asia. So. most attempt concentrated on publicities and wagess. By making this. Air Asia provides sensible and inexpensive publicities. For case. Air Asia flies to Thailand by 450 RM. MAS ( Malaysia Airlines ) besides flies to Thailand. but cost of the ticket is about 800 RM. However. repasts. pre-book luggage. place assignment and excess services are non included in ticket of Air Asia. it is sensible. at all. Furthermore. Air Asia offers a simple â€Å"no frills† service at menus that are on norm notably lower than those offered by traditional full-service air hoses. Modeled on winning low menu air hoses such as the U. S. -based Southwest Airlines and Dublin-based Ryan air. Air Asia was established to bring forth a new air power merchandise in Malaysia. 1 that would develop air travel. and better the local air power market by supplying really low menus so more pe ople can wing. The company Bankss on the cost of running ‘bricks and mortar’ mercantile establishments and could make national markets without holding to widen a physical distribution web. Most indispensable was the company could salvage on client service costs by enabling clients to function themselves. Furthermore. Air Asia efficaciously adopted focal point schemes by holding developed a really well-organized and to the full computerized system for its clients to book the air tickets through its web site. Air Asia besides have a high frequence of flights to most short draw and regional finishs in order to function a wider market section every bit good as to cut down the turnaround clip in the land between flights. which is 25 proceedingss compared to an hr for full service air hoses. ( Air Asia 2011 ) To sum up. Air Asia focused on selling and publicities are major component of the organisation scheme. Service Concept Air Asia followed the overall cost leading service scheme. which is categorized by seeking out low-priced clients. less customization options. cut downing the individualized services for clients and decreased web costs. ( Fitzsimmons and Fitzsimmons 2010 ) Furthermore. familiar property of low-priced bearers that is used by Air Asia is the peak point of aircraft use. point-to-point web and deficiency of assigned seating. ( Air Asia 2011 ) To stress. the deficiency of assigned seating allowed Air Asia to maximise the rider capacity on the aircraft every bit good as advancing on-time public presentation and honoring promptness for clients. ( Fitzsimmons and Fitzsimmons 2010 ) Therefore. Air Asia has assigned seats to riders and besides offered options for riders to acquire much better seats. such as express embarkation and â€Å"Pick-a-Seat† that is available at an extra cost. ( Air Asia 2011 ) Wining Customers in Marketplace. Service Qualifiers At first. depending on the competition and personal demands. clients select a service supplier utilizing standards. Hence. before a service house can be taken earnestly as a rival in the market. it must achieve a certain degree for each service-competitive dimension. as defined by the other market participants. For case. in air hose services. safety is defined by the air-worthiness of the aircraft and by the evaluation of the pilots. as an obvious qualifier. In add-on. in a mature market such as fast nutrients. established rivals may specify a degree of quality. such as cleanliness. that new entrants must at least lucifer to be feasible rivals. To exemplify. for fast nutrient. a dimension that one time was a service victor. such as a drive-in window. over clip could go a qualifier because some clients will non halt otherwise. Thus. Air Asia is well-known as low-fare air hose and in the instance of service qualifier I can arguably observe that. Air Asia is service qualifier. hence a huge sum of people are choice Air Asia. Another good illustration is Volvo. which is well-known for safety. To stress. people know that Volvo autos can supply safety. To sum up. service qualifiers is one of the ways to win competition. In instance of Air Asia. Air Asia maintained a high criterion on safety by non compromising safety regulations. guaranting the security of staff members and invitees. and to follow with every ordinance while keeping the highest criterions. ( Air Asia 2011 ) Service Winners Service victors are dimensions such as monetary value. convenience. or repute that are used by a client to do a pick among rivals. Depending on the demands of the client at the clip of purchase. the service victor may change. For illustration. Air Asia is a service victor ; therefore Air Asia is the largest low-priced and award-wining air hose in the Asia. Well. if one wants fly to Thailand in a budget category. decidedly will take Air Asia. it means people select Air Asia as service victor. For case. BMW is celebrated for good engine and service victor. Well. Air Asia arguably can be considered as a service victor among air hoses in Asia and Malaysia. every bit good. Although. as legion rivals try to maintain up with Air Asia. many of the alone elements that form the competitory advantage for Air Asia will frequently be duplicated by its rivals in order to prolong in the competitory market and those will finally turn into a service qualifier when it became excessively commonplace. ( Fitzsimmons and Fitzsimmons 2010 ) Service Loser Service also-ran is the organisation or service supplier. which failure delivers at or above the expected degree for a competitory dimension can ensue in an unsated client. who is lost everlastingly. For assorted grounds. the dimensions of dependableness. personalization. and velocity are peculiarly vulnerable to going service also-rans. Some illustrations might be failure of an car trader to mend a mechanical job harmonizing to dependableness. rude intervention by a physician. which is due to miss of personalization. or failure of bringing service a bundle on clip because of slow velocity. Furthermore. Air Asia besides failed in footings of promptness and dependableness ; hence it may take to lose clients. To exemplify. sometimes when there is adequate ailment about an on-line service across many societal Medias. the concerns involved will seek their best to non merely address the job but engage with the populace to demo that they really care about the service they are supplying. In this instance it seems that Air Asia merely don’t want to listen. At all. the booking system of Air Asia is down frequently and there are legion mistakes. ( Air Asia 2011 ) Cost leading in the budget hotel industry and Air Asia Bhd. At first. an overall cost leading scheme requires efficient-sale installations. tight cost and over-head control and frequently advanced engineering. every bit good. Having a low-priced place provides a defence against competition. because less efficient rivals will endure foremost from competitory force per unit areas. Implementing a low-priced scheme normally requires high capital investing in state-of-the art equipment. aggressive pricing. and start-up losingss to construct market portion. A cost leading scheme sometimes can revolutionise an industry. as illustrated by the success of Tune Hotels. Walmart. and Federal Express. To exemplify. the scheme of Holiday Inn Express is likely best described as low-priced leading because of its wide entreaty to the mass market and accent on limited service. cleanliness. eternity. and cost efficiency- to guarantee optimum usage of infinite. easiness of care. and a higher return on in vesting for proprietors. This is non to state that Holiday Inn Express is a low-quality housing trade name. In contrast. Holiday Inn Express offers full-service comfort and value to a wide market. Hence. a huge sum of houses are prosecuting cost-leadership set out to go the lowest-cost suppliers of a good service. Furthermore. wide range of cost leaders means that they attempt to function a big per centum of the entire market. Therefore. legion hotelkeepers would abound at the idea that they are prosecuting a low-priced leading scheme. Rather. they envision their houses as prosecuting some kind of balance between low-costs and distinction. While clean room and linens and some degree of comfort ( i. e. telephone and telecasting ) is expected at every lodging belongings. attempts to distinguish may ensue in increased cost but non added value. doing a house more stuck-in-the center than competitory. Hence. I choose Tune Hotels in order to depict about cost-leadership in hotel industry. Well. Tune Hotels. com is a â€Å"limited service† hotel concatenation operated by Tune Hotels Regional Services Sdn Bhd that provides â€Å"5-star kiping experience at a 1-star price† high quality adjustments. Tune Hotels is portion of the Tune Group. the private investing group of Tan Sri Tony Fernandes. laminitis and Group CEO of low-priced air hose Air Asia. Tune Hotels is taking for 100 hotels in its planetary portfolio by 2015. The limited service theoretical account used by Tune Hotels is similar to the no-frills concern theoretical account practiced by low-priced bearers such as Air Asia and has been adapted to the cordial reception industry. As with low-priced bearers extinguishing many traditional rider services to maintain costs low and monetary values low-cost. Tune Hotels limited service and pay-as-you-use of additions concept omits many traditional cordial reception services to maintain costs and rates every bit low as possible. Alternatively. services and supernumeraries are offered on a pay-as-you-go footing. including toilet articless. 12 or 24 hours air-conditioning. Television and internet entree and besides individual or dual tenancy. The cardinal construct of Tune Hotels is supplying high-quality rudimentss such as 5-star beds. powerful hot shower. cardinal A ; convenient locations. clean environment. and 24-hour security at the best value for money. Tune Hotels targets the savvy traveller who wants the best value for money. Using a self-service online engagement system. invitees can book suites at monetary values get downing from USD3. 00 or even lower? Personal service is non an property you should anticipate to have. If you make a error in your engagement. anticipate to eat the monetary value of your engagement and do a new engagement for whatever monetary value is available at the clip. Hotel infinite is besides available for rent to advertizers ( indoors. out-of-doorss every bit good as whole floors ) on room walls. room keys. hallways and in the anteroom. Mentions Books:Bull. A ( 1995 ) . The economic sciences of Travel and Tourism. Second Edition. Longman. Melbourne. Bossevain. J ( edited ) . ( 1996 ) . Coping with Tourists. European Reactions to Mass Tourism. Berghann. Oxford. Cohen. E ( 1972 ) Contemporary Tourism. Elsevier. Oxford. Cooper. C. Fletcher. J. . Gilbert. D. . Shepherd. R. and Wanvill. S. ( 1998 ) Tourism: rules and pattern. Second Edition. Longman. Harlow. . Heskett. James. L. ; W. Earl Sasser. Jr ; and Leonard A. Schlesinger ( 1997 ) â€Å" The service net income chainâ€Å" . Free Press. . New York Hill. Terry. ( 2000 ) Manufacturing Strategy. 3rd erectile dysfunction. Irwin Mehraw. New York. Holloway. J. C. and Robinson. C. ( 1995 ) Selling for Tourism. Longman. Harlow. Lea. J. ( 1998 ) Tourism and Development in the Third World. Routledge. London. Law. C. M ( 1996 ) . Tourism in Major metropoliss. International Thomson Business Publishing. London Mathieson. A. and Wall. G. ( 1982 ) Tourism. Economic. Social and Physical I mpacts. Longman. Harlow. Oppermann. M. and Chen. K. ( 1997 ) Tourism in Developing states. International Thomson Business Press. London. Prokech. Steven. ( 1995 ) â€Å" Competing on Customer Serviceâ€Å"Harvard Business Review. November-December. 1995. pp. 101-112. Shaw G. and Williams. A. M ( 2004 ) Tourism and touristry infinites. Sage. London Vanhove. N. ( 2004 ) Economicss of Tourist Destinations. Butterworth-Heinemann. Oxford. Web sites: Air Asia Corporate Website. hypertext transfer protocol: //www. airasia. com viewed on 4 July 2011Navitaire Open Skies by Navitaire Reservation and Distribution System. hypertext transfer protocol: //www. navitaire. com/res_and_dist/openskies. asp viewed on 29 June 2011 Air Asia – How to book on-line tutorial.hypertext transfer protocol: //www. airasia. com/site/en/page. jsp? name=HOW % 20TO % 20BOOK % 20ONLINE A ; id=4d99d08ac0a8c85d-177e6b40-4dab9d31 viewed on 29 June 2011

individuality

individuality Kilakowske 1Aubree KilakowskeBaldwinEnglish 10May 6, 2014Individuality vs. ConformityConformity is the opposite of individuality. To conform is to go with what is said tobe the right thing to do in society. To not do what you would do, but what you should do.Individuality is to own what you were made to be and live to your fullest extent. To beyour true self, not what everyone wants you to be.In the article, The Sociology of Leopard Man, by Logan Feys, he argues thathumans are meant to be individuals, but society pressures us to all be the same and fitin. He even states that "society looks down upon freakish and extraordinary individualsalike and views them with suspicion." That conformity is seen as one of the worlds mostcommon but dangerous psychological disorder, and to be human is to be an individualhuman. He is trying to say that to conform is to give up who you are, who you were bornto be, to the majority of school, workplace, society. Individuality is good, but societythinks i ts bad. They say, "be your self" but then frown upon you if you don't dress or doyour hair the same as everyone else.I agree with Feys' argument. we are all born to be who we are, not to be someoneelse. If everyone in this world were the same, then the world would be extremely boring.There would be no variation whatsoever. In fact, thats how people become known. Forstepping outside of societies box, and doing something different. weather its good or badKilakowske 2could be argued, but they're still widely known for doing something that no one else hadeven thought of doing. Like the Leopard Man. Tom leppard wanted to be his true self andlive his life so he is happy, and so he did. He doesn't do it for the attention, he does itsolemnly because thats what he thinks hes meant to do with his life. Feys writes,"Leopard Man  ­ unlike so many millions of people who are a slave to societies demands ­ is happy." I think that this is how people should live their lives. If you want to be al eopard, who cares? Go live your life the way you want to. But sadly, we are all basicallyforced to go to school, go to college, get a job, make your career, and make money untilyou retire. I mean sure there is freedom, but theres also not enough. we have a choice todo what we want, but to an extent.in conclusion, I think conformity and nonconformity are both important aspects ofliving life the way you want to.Individuality Task

5 ways to stand out when you’re applying for competitive jobs

5 ways to stand out when you’re applying for competitive jobs We all know the market is competitive. Any job you apply for is probably receiving a minimum of 100 applications- with some getting up to the thousands. But someone has to get every job, right? People do make it through to the next levels of the hiring process, even in crowded, qualified fields of applicants. You have to assume the majority of job seekers you’re competing with are on the ball- their resumes are spotless and their experience and skill base matches or exceeds the job requirements. So how can you stand out as the best person for the job amidst all the house? Use some of these more targeted strategies to help elevate your application package.1. Make your purpose clear and direct.The most impressive (or at least the most attractive) candidates tend to be the ones that project a kind of professional purpose. These candidates have taken the time and effort to figure out what it is they want to do, and why, and how to reach their goals. Recruiters find it very easy to match these candidates into their companies, because it’s clear if they’ll be a fit. Make sure you can articulate the talents that make you a good match and place them prominently in your cover letter, resume, and other application materials. Know yourself and make that sing.2. Don’t hold back- sell yourself.It’s not enough to just know what drives you. You have to share that vision, enthusiastically, even if you’re shy and not prone to bragging. Put together a short pitch that summarizes why you, and only you, are the best person for the job. Once you have this down, you can use it at many points during your job search. Turn it into an elevator pitch for networking. Emphasize it in your interview. Build it into your social media presence. Make your sales pitch a part of how you present to the world while job seeking, both in person and on paper.3. Sanitize your social media.You could have the greatest application in the world, but if your social media profiles are inappropriate or controversial or just childish, a recruiter is going to toss your file in the trash. Make sure to Google yourself and scour your net presence until it’s every bit as polished and professional as you hope to present yourself to the world.4. Make your professional info a click away.There are some fancy trends out there, and you better believe the competition will be keeping up with them. If you’re up for it, try building a personal website to give a sense of your personal branding. Include the link in your resume, and include your resume on your website. A website can also (stylishly!) convey all the context you didn’t have room to include on your resume. Use this extra space to your advantage!5. Network to build a group of reliable referrals.Sadly, sometimes it really does come down to who you know. Make sure you’re constantly out there networking and making inquiries. Finding inroads to companies you want to work for to make contacts and seek mentors. You never now when someone you meet at a cocktail party or a lecture is going to be the one to pass your resume to a decision maker.

Does wal-mart do more good or bad in the world Essay

Does wal-mart do more good or bad in the world - Essay Example This many perceive to be corporate nonsense. Most jobs and careers associate Wal-Mart to a corporate that pays low wages compared to other corporate in the same job category and this engenders a sense of loathing from people getting such low wages. Due to this, Wal-Mart has received much resentment and scorn from all over as compared to other corporate entities. It is also seen as a large and powerful anti-industry, anti-free market call trap as its chain of stores is destroying small towns. This is achieved by acquisition of property in rural areas, thus maintaining monopoly. The rural as well as the town folks are availed open doors to convenient, one-stop shopping venue with ample supply of products at considerable cheap prices. This improves their efficiency in carrying out their activities and thus is appreciated by many. According to Coster, (Para. 5) there is a belief among the Americans that the Wal-Mart prices override the prices of other stalls due to the ability to have la rge stores, this economically it can be said that the reduced prices result from the ability to take advantage of the economies of scale. The domination by the corporate has not won favour among many Americans as they are not keen on strategies of clout and domination. On the other hand, these low prices drive the small and local competitors out of business as they do not have the ability to compete with Wal-Mart’s pricing and product selection. This is seen as an initiative to make Wal-Mart a monopoly which will then set high prices and make huge profits after driving out the competitive players who would have otherwise regulated its price. The strategy here is to drive the small competitors to shut down due to its low prices. The corporate would then look into the future in advance and set prices of goods just below costs long enough to corner the market. Afterwards through trial and error, find a new price that would be high enough to make super-profits but low enough to k eep potential customers from driving to another town to get the same products. This new price should be able to recoup the initial losses incurred when driving away the little players in the market. In general, the picture created in a small town is an easy way to drive competitors out of business but again this small town will remain with bitter memories among its population of the pricing strategy and small enough to boycott Wal-Mart before the strategy succeeded. In a larger town, the competitors are many hence much harder to drive away competitors and Wal-Mart remains with the option of lowering its price to a low level enough to attract customers. The low prices attract the not so well off population and hence concurring with Featherstone, (Para. 4) in that it’s the poor who make Wal-Mart tick. To the well-off members of the society, expensive commodities are observed to be of sound quality as compared to cheap commodities, where shortcuts might have been used in their p roduction. To the poor, they have to survive with the little they have and thus quantity rather than quality is most considered. As such, low prices that are offered always cot down the society along the social status lines. Reich (Para.1) on the other hand is of the view that symbolic analysts who solve, identify

Reading Respond Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words - 1

Reading Respond - Essay Example It starts with the childhood of Samson and covers all the important parts of his life, allowing the reader to track the evolution of the author and see what kind of obstacles he had to overcome on this path as a minister. One of the most interesting aspects of the source is the tone of the author. It is written in a way as if an old Indian is talking to you. Indeed, the text is able to convey the peculiarities of speech as well as worldview of the actual person. One would make no mistake that throughout the text the author is genuine and naà ¯ve, hoping for a better future for himself as well as the people who he works with. The source is crucial when it comes to understanding the process of spreading Christianity among Indians. It shows that way this particular religion was perceived by these people and what impact it had on those who adopted it. It is obvious that Indians were suspicious of the preachers and did not want to give up their old way. Nevertheless, when they were addressed at their own language, they saw that Christianity does not contain any danger for them and were eager to accept it. The text also tell a lot about the author, particularly the way he was able to combine his Indian worldview and Christianity. Indeed, though having adopted the religion of the white people, Samson did not stop being a true Indian. Having read the source, one is able to come up with several question. First of all, how would Samson interact with other Indian minister? It is possible that they may come up with some a more effective way to promote Christianity. Secondly, would Samson recommend all the Indians to convert to this religion or some of them should retain their ways? Indeed, he primarily addressed young and middle aged Indians and did not talk much about those who are of senior age. It must be noted that the source should be considered to be a reliable one since it reflects the inner thoughts of an Indian and

Aims and objectives Essay Example for Free

Aims and objectives Essay Based on these characteristics of project management, it can be gathered that an event is also a project. What distinguishes an event from other projects is that it has a very strong marketing element because it involves many actors, from the provider of the product or service and the prospective clients. Events assembles people therefore there is a collective sense of objective. Because of this attendance, events therefore have a strong promotional element (Soares). When it comes to bars and clubs, it is important that these establishments market themselves effectively in order to maintain their businesses. These establishments rely on customer count as a source of profits especially as they sell products like food and drinks, and services such as dancing and other entertainment-based gatherings. It is therefore important that these bars and clubs ensure they have a strong patronage and customer flow in order to assure that their businesses remain competitive. In observing the bar and club scene, there is much competition especially in a city like London. In looking at resources for these events such as TimeOut, there is always a list of bars and clubs with their respective events. These events may include a theme night, a special guest DJ or performer, a concert, and other gimmicks. It can be also observed that these events are strongly driven by sponsorships such as partnerships with relevant products and services like alcoholic drinks, fashion labels, and other lifestyle related products and brands. In this regard, when it comes to the application of events management concept in bars and clubs, it is evident that these have had some successes. This therefore elicits close inspection as to how these concepts are applied and which concepts are successful. It should be noted that due to the strong marketing element in these initiatives, these bars and clubs are also subject to what is known a product life cycle a cycle in which a product or service may start to plateau and decline. Hence, this reflects as to why bars and clubs may have their time; some bars and clubs that were famous a few years ago may have already shut down or are losing customers because new concepts get introduced in the market. It can be also observed that certain event themes also went through their peak and lost their lusters; examples are the raves, the cream parties, and the bubble parties, among others. Hence, this shows that although generally, events management concepts work in the context of bars and clubs, they dont work all the time and are not necessarily sustainable. This thereby shows the strong association between a project and an event something that is unique that has beginning and an end. This research therefore aims to explore the events management concept at greater depths by means of looking at the actual applications and the industry practices. As certain events tend to become old, the turnover of new events concepts need to be examined, especially in a market with changing preferences and values. In addition to the aspect of events concepts, the management aspect is also examined by this paper. This is especially important as the market is volatile, and the entertainment and leisure sectors tend to get easily affected by economic and market challenges. This paper examines how events actually take place and how certain strategies may need to be formulated in order to respond to challenges in resources. This therefore bring up the issues on cost management and how bars and clubs intend to profit from their events. This may then bring up certain events management concepts and applications from other event genres as applied in affairs that take place in bars and clubs. The events management industry in the UK is a million-pound industry considering the number of events held in the country, from conferences to major concerts. The industry also involves many sectors including those from the hospitality, entertainment and leisure services. This research therefore localises an exploration of events management in a specific context, and identifies the important factors that can affect the relevant businesses and establishments in this sector. In order to have a substantial insight on events management concepts in the context of bars and clubs establishments, this research therefore aims to achieve and implement the following: To develop a framework of evaluation on the applicability of events management concepts as integral elements to the marketing success of bars and clubs. To establish how events management applications are integral to the success of the bars and clubs sectors. To create a workable research framework as based on the assessment of actual movements and developments in the dynamics of bar and club business in the city, especially as to how the application of events management concepts make a difference to the business of the bars and clubs. This includes both primary and secondary research. To identify the factors leading to entertainment establishment success in the context of the marketing mix, with an emphasis on the promotional dimension. Based on the sourced literature, it appears that there are a few studies with regards to events management, especially as to how these affects bars and clubs. Because of the close nature of events with projects, and due to the function of events as marketing tools especially in this specific context of the study, much of the reviewed literature touches on the marketing aspect, the project and event management resources, and some literature touching on bars, clubs, nightlife and other entertainment establishments.

Innovative Waste Disposal :: essays research papers fc

As humanity develops new technology, the magnitude and severity of waste increases. When computers were developed, it widely was believed that the need for paper would be eliminated. On the contrary this was widely proven false and we are now utilizing more paper than ever. Canada is not an exception as the typical Canadian generates an average of three pounds of solid waste each day1. This alone shows what a careless species we have become- using and disposing materials without even considering the damage we are causing. With half a trillion tones of waste around the world, only 25% may be reused for a second or third time and less than 5% can be renewed limitlessly1. These facts are true only in developed countries. Since these traditional waste reduction methods have been proven inefficient, we must endorse new innovative technology to arrive at a solution. Traditional methods of waste disposal have proven to be ineffective and have caused harmful effects on the environment. The most popular and inexpensive way to get rid of garbage is burial, but burying your problems does not necessarily mean getting rid of them. Landfill sites pose as severe ecological threats as these mass garbage dump yards overflow with trash and frequently contaminate our air, soil and water with hazardous wastes. About 400 million tons of hazardous wastes are generated each year1. A large-scale release of these materials can cause thousands of deaths and may poison the environment for many years. For example many industrial companies around the world cannot afford to enforce the strict pollution regulations set by many developed countries. This usually forces these types of companies to move to developing countries where pollution regulations are very lenient. These developing countries knowingly accept environmentally hazardous companies usually because they ar e in desperate need of employment. The harmful effects of these companies were clearly illustrated in the 1960s and 1970s when residents living near Minamata Bay, Japan, developed nervous disorders, tremors, and paralysis in a mysterious epidemic. The root was later found to be a local industry that had released mercury, a highly toxic element, into Minamata Bay. The disaster had claimed the lives of 400 people1. Since 1970 you can bet that a lot more than 400 people have died as a result of waste disposal. If the type of waste disposal were cheaper and effective we wouldn’t have to deal with waste problems, which still plague mankind today.

Key Values of US Culture in any Disney Movie

IntroductionMovies speak volumes about a particular subject. It is even understood that most animated motion pictures even hammer the point much clearer than their non-animated counterparts. It has been a tradition that with every animated movie, a corresponding moral accompanies it to the end of the credits. The ability of animated films to send out messages within the confines of its story has been one of the hallmarks of animated American movies.With The Lion King, the movie stresses the importance of family through the relationship of both Simba and Mufasa. It also clearly does the same with the movie Finding Nemo as the whole story is about a dad clown fish tries to find his lost son, Nemo. There are a lot of subtle undertones and values which are also placed in some animated movies—some even more poignant than the next. This paper aims to shed some light on that fact. Walt Disney’s Aladdin, through the genie of the lamp, depicts equal opportunity and material comf ort, which even solidifies the classic American dream.The American DreamThe great â€Å"American dream† is defined by James Adams as â€Å"the dream of a land in which life should be better and richer and fuller for every man, with opportunity for each according to his ability or achievement† (Adams, 2001) It has been one of the most treasured features of the United States as the wealthiest nation on the face of this earth. It is in this particular country that â€Å"dreams are made† and where one’s past is quickly covered in prosperity upon reaching this particular land. As grandiose as this claim is, the different testimonies of all sorts of people have given justice to it on more than one occasion. If one looks closely at the Walt Disney animated film, Aladdin, certain aspects of this dream are also embedded in it.The GenieThe genie of the lamp in the animated film Aladdin can symbolize so many different things but more than anything, it is able to sig nify the American values of equal opportunity and material comfort. Gleaning from the genie’s character, it is not as hard to associate material comfort with him. The genie of the lamp is required to fulfill absolutely any three wishes that his owner desires. With the exception of making people fall in love, killing someone or wishing for more wishes, the master of the genie is quite literally powerful beyond measure. One of the most memorable scenes in the movie is when Aladdin, who is now already Prince Ali, parades across the streets of Agrabah. During the latter part of the song, the lyrics of the song gives testament to how much has changed with Aladdin’s situation:â€Å"Prince Ali!  Amorous he! Ali Ababwa  Heard your princess was a sight lovely to see  And that, good people, is why  he got dolled up and dropped by  With sixty elephants, llamas galore  With his bears and lions  A brass band and more  With his forty fakirs, his cooks, his bakers  His birds that warble on key  Make way for prince Ali!† (Clements, 1992)The former â€Å"street rat† has now become a prince because of the genie. This alludes to the fact that the genie is a very good provider of material comfort, should one choose to get that from him. In the same sense, the land of America is also able to provide material comfort from those who ask and willingly strive to make it happen.The last American value, which is equal opportunity, is much more subtly expressed in the character of the genie. Since the rules of the lamp is that whenever a person gains ownership of the lamp, the genie of the lamp is now bound to serve that person and that person only. All of the wishes of the owner of the lamp are satisfied by the genie. The â€Å"equal opportunity† clause enters here by giving absolutely anyone a fair shot to being â€Å"rich and powerful† The only negative thing about relating this particular equal opportunity clause with the genie is that no one is able to share that equal prosperity in such a way that the genie sort of has an exclusivity clause that does not allow him to grant two separate wishes of two different masters at the same time. (Clements, 1992) One person must be able to wield the lamp in order for the genie to grant their wish.ConclusionLooking deeper at the animated feature film Aladdin, one sees a much more poignant picture of how America essentially is as a superpower and a proverbial land flowing with milk and honey. As the film and as this paper suggests, America is a land where one can prosper materially in terms of wealth and it is also a land where equal opportunity is stressed. As long as someone works hard enough, they will simply have both within their lifetimes. Maybe, just maybe, you really don’t need a magic lamp with a genie after all.ReferencesClements, Ron. (Producer & Director). (1992). Aladdin [Motion picture]. United States: Walt Disney PicturesAdams, J. (2001). T he Epic of America. Phoenix: Simon Publications

Themes in My Antonia

â€Å"We sat looking off across the country, watching the sun go down. The curly grass about us was on fire now. The bark of the oaks turned red as copper. There was a shimmer of gold on the brown river. Out in the stream the sandbars glittered like glass, and the light trembled in the willow thickets as if little flames were leaping among them. The breeze sank to stillness. In the ravine a ringdove mourned plaintively, and somewhere off in the bushes an owl hooted. The girls sat listless, leaning against each other.The long fingers of the sun touched their foreheads. † (Page 159) My Antonia is one of my favorite books because of how it is so descriptive. I love the visuals that Cather adds like when she says â€Å"the bark of the oaks turned red as copper,† because you think of that rustic color and how that is what the bark looks likes because of the sunset. Cather uses similes like, â€Å"Out in the stream the sandbars glittered like glass, and the light trembled in the willow thickets as if little flames were leaping among them. You can really imagine glittering glass, mostly from experience, and how the little mirrors cast precious twinkles of light on water, and the little flames jumping around the thickets casting a brilliant light on them and going out as soon as they’ve touched them. Cather also uses a metaphor when describing the curly grass by saying that it was on fire, which is a great description of how the light from the sunset affected the grass, making it look ablaze.She uses another metaphor when describing the light from the sun, and calls it â€Å"fingers† which touched the girls’ foreheads because the rays were long and were as if they were caressing their faces like a hand might do in a loving gesture. You can just see the last bits of light the sun gives off reaching out to grasp and influence the last part of the Earth that it can before it has to disappear into the night sky.

Rethinking Help for Children the Wic Program essays

Rethinking Help for Children the Wic Program essays The New York Times editorial, Rethinking Help for Children points out the insufficiency of a thirty year-old federal program to achieve its goals. The Women, Infants, and Children (WIC) food assistance program was established in the mid 1970s and intended to provide financial help to approximately 8 million individuals that includes about half of all American infants and one-quarter of children (NYT 2008). According to the criticisms highlighted by the article, the structure of the program provides food vouchers to low-income families, but those vouchers are usable mainly for high-fat and high-sugar foods that contradict some of the basic dietary principles that nutritionists have developed in the three decades since the inception of the WIC program. Under pressure from the Institute of Medicine, the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) updated WIC regulations to improve the nutritional value to recipients, but even those changes are insufficient, largely because budgetary concerns limit the program budget to increases that amount to a few extra dollars each month, per person, for better nutritional choices such as fresh fruits and vegetables (NYT 2008). The Functionalist Reaction and Remedy: In general, functionalists view society as an interconnected organism in which the whole is only as healthy as the overall health of all its parts; they also consider the needs of everyone in society as the responsibility of society to provide as a whole (Macionis 2003). Therefore, functionalist observers of the WIC situation would strongly criticize the OMB for failing to authorize sufficient funding to achieve the changes to the program In light of changes in nutritional philosophy since the 1970s, functionalist critics would insist on increasing the program budget in accordance with the nutritional needs of its recipients instead of adhering to a budget that only p...

Alverson, Quinton Essays (2083 words) - Military History By Country

Alverson, Quinton 4/27 /2016 English 201 USA's Consequences and involvement on Vietnam The United States has always been credited as being one of the most dominant/ independent nations since our founding fathers declared their independence in 1775. Other nations plead for our dependence to justify their government s , boost insufficient economies, compel tranquility, and m uch more. Foremo st, these actions are all possible due to the striving success our country has with its strategic warfare. Witho ut it, the helping hand our country serves today would have never been foresee n. Why? The leading role of our nation arises from the involvement of the United States in previous wars. Whether it being The Revolution, WWI, WWII, The Cold Waretc. All t hese events have earned us our respect , and we've withheld this credibi lity from the protection/influence we provide against other nation's foreign affairs . Although our guidance remains , the question of the United States involvement with the war in Vie tnam confuses many Americans then, and now as to why it seemed necessary . Originally, the United States thought the issue would be resolved in no time, but the brutal outcome stated otherwise with it being the longe st war America has ever seen. Even though we will never fully comprehend our intentions in Vietnam, the following will explain why it should have never taken place. Vietnam was originally governed by the French until Japan overruled this region during WWII. Once the atomic bombs were dropped on Japan leading to their surrender in 1945, Vietnam felt that it was safe to declare their independence (Bacevich) . Some areas were still colonized by Japan and France following this declaration, but when a man named Ho Chi Minh, a former revolutionary leader, relocated back to Vietnam, he sought help to completely reform all their taken land. Ho Chi Minh begged the United States to ass ist in his reformation and help spread his communistic government, but after the Cold War between America and the Soviet Union, an agr eement passed to restrict any spread of communism, so Minh's request was ignored. The French continued to occupy regions in Vietnam, fighting off Ho Chi Minh's soldiers called "The Viet Minh." When the " domino theory " was published stating that once one South Asian government fell to communism, ma ny more would follow ; the United States feared this possibility and begin aiding the French against Ho Chi Minh's army. At the Geneva Conference in 1954, The United Nations came together to find a way for the French to back out of the dispute, but America feared North Vietnam (Where Ho Chi Minh ruled) would completely unite the South into one communistic country. When the "Viet Cong" (South Vietnamese who supported communism) begin attacking southern Vietnamese who were anti-communist, the United States sent in troops for support. The original plan was to aid South Vietnam to fight off the Viet Cong in order to establish a justifiable government and then we would leave, but North Vietnam and the Viet Cong was too much against the little help we sent over. It wasn't until two US ships were supposedly fired upon in the Gulf of Tonkin (Water surrounding the southern coast of Vietnam) when the United States took it as an act of war ( Shally -Jenson) . I say suppos edly because many believe that we feared the spread of communism so much to where we lied about the missiles and declared war anyway. At the time, citizens of the US favored the call of war due to the previous tension we had with the Soviet Union, but as the war progressed , their cheers changed to riots. America entered a war far underestimating their enemy's potential. We ignored the fact that we were fighting on our opponent's home land, deliberately thinking our technology would play an upp er hand . What we did not know is that a large major ity of Vietnam is surfaced by jungle, and struggled to locate our enemy's whereabouts . The Vietnamese understood the advantage they had in their homeland, using tactics like unexpected ambushes, hidden booby traps, and very complex tunnel ways that allowed evasion

Strategic planing Coursework Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Strategic planing - Coursework Example Netflix started off with a novel approach to DVD movie rentals by letting customers rent for cheap as compared to its competitors like Blockbuster and more importantly it allowed its customers to keep the movie for as long as they wanted without any late fee penalties. It became an instant factor in its success. In today’s busy world the ease of keeping a rental movie without having to worry about late fee charged to the clients was a service that no other competitors of Netflix had thought of. This business recognized it and reaped tremendous financial rewards in the long term. In the last few years Netflix again left its competitors far behind and even drove its major competition out of the market by simply recognizing and incorporating the Internet technology to its business. The streaming videos and the growing number of internet users was a factor which would influence almost all businesses if it has not already done so. Netflix allowed its subscribers to watch instant movies without having to pay any extra amount. This was a major boost to their business expansion and even took clients from cable where people had to pay extra to watch a new movie. The use of emerging internet technologies during this economic down turn gave Netflix an extra edge over its competition as its subscribers are paying for internet already and at a very low cost they can watch movies instantly without having to leave the comfort of their home. Opportunity for Expansion. Should a business always expand if given the chance to do so? Think of a company that recently added one or more new businesses to the organization. Does the addition seem to be in line with the original mission, vision, and core competencies? The three facts which the management needs to analyze are the current business situation, its future direction and the strategy to get there. The first most important factor is the realistic assessment of the present situation. Any shortcoming in

Ethics Assignment Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Ethics Assignment - Essay Example She has informed the Boeing managers that she would be able to conserve the interests of Boeing using her influences if they recruit her daughter and son in law. This paper briefly analyses the above issue and discusses the possible ethical violations involved in this issue. The first ethical violation involved in this case is that Darlene tried to sacrifice the interest of her employer for gaining undue advantages. It is the duty of Darlene to exhibit 100% loyalty to her employer and to work always for the benefit of her employer. Boeing will take undue advantages from Darlene and she will be forced to work for Boeing if she recommend for her relatives. At the same time Darlene cannot stay inactive in finding jobs for her beloved ones. Her daughter and son in law will dislike her if she fails to use her influences in favour of them. It is difficult for Darlene’s daughter and son in law to lead a good family life without employment and hence it is the duty of Darlene to help them in finding suitable jobs. So when we analyse the above case with respect to personal ethics, Darlene did nothing wrong in trying to find employment for her relatives or beloved ones. At the same time when we analyse this case with respect to professional ethics, Darlene committed serious mistake. If her organization loses nothing, sometimes, the actions of Darlene could have justified, but her organization may face damages if Darlene allots projects to Boeing without obeying the norms. Darlene can argue that if she stays away from recommending, others may use the same means to get employment in Boeing and will safeguard their interests. â€Å"It is sometimes seem (wrongly) as a victimless crime and is often rationalized in terms of â€Å"if we don’t offer a bribery, others will† From a moral or ethical perspective it should be approached not in terms of â€Å"can we get away† with it but is it right to offer a bribe to secure a

Children with special needs can be cured Thesis

Children with special needs can be cured - Thesis Example mmended for the improvement that the children with special need positioned in inclusion classrooms, there is nothing more imperative than the educational benefits. According to different research studies children with developmental disabilities positioned in inclusion classrooms create immense developments in language, mental and motor development that are beyond their peers in individual education classrooms. Poor children are exposed to significantly more social and physical toxicities in the environment that cause or exacerbate chronic health conditions.  These exposures are due to the risk behaviors of their parents, other adults around them, and their living environment.  Substance use by their mothers during pregnancy; poor nutrition pre- and post-natal; exposure to second hand tobacco smoke; substandard housing with potentially increased levels of toxins. Once diagnosed with a chronic condition, poor children and their families generally have more limited access to health services, (McManus & Newacheck, 1040; Miller, 430) and often the services they receive are of lower quality.  In some places, health providers are subtly directed to limit their therapeutic time with a child covered by Medicaid because the reimbursement is too low to cover their time. Just as medical technology has prolonged more childrens lives, scientific advances have increased knowledge about treatments, equipment and technological devices designed to improve the function and quality of life of Children With Special Health Care Needs (CSHCN).  For example, early intervention services are guaranteed by law for children with or at risk of developmental disabilities as a way to maximize their potential (Ramey & Ramey, 110).  Adapted computer technology and new therapies can increase functional abilities for children with motor and sensory impairments.  However, both the increased prevalence of CSHCN and increased treatment options are occurring in the context of a national effort to

Aetiology of Gestational Diabetes Mellitus

Aetiology of Gestational Diabetes Mellitus Abstract Gestational Diabetes is a condition present in the later stages of pregnancy where the mother has insulin resistance leading to glucose intolerance. The aetiology of Gestational Diabetes Mellitus is largely unknown but several theories include autoimmune destruction of the beta cells, monogenic mutations and insulin resistance. In pregnancy it is normal for there to be some levels of insulin resistance and it is thought that the products of the placenta contribute to the state of insulin resistance as GDM usually subsides after pregnancy. GDM in pregnancy can lead to an increased risk of cardiovascular disease in the offspring such as hypertension and atherosclerosis. This is due to the increased levels of oxidative stress and inflammatory mediators present during pregnancy. The placenta is very important as it is able to control and buffer the amount of glucose that is delivered to the fetus but if this level is too high then it is out of the placentas control and the fetus may have increased rate of growth due to this extra glucose. The current focus of research in this area seems to be into finding ways to diagnosis GDM earlier in the pregnancy and to try and reduce the amounts of oxidative stress. Gestational diabetes: consequences for fetal programming of vascular disease in adulthood Introduction Gestational Diabetes Mellitus (GDM) occurs when there is a glucose intolerance that is first detected during pregnancy. It is a form of hyperglycaemia (Buchanan and Xiang 2005). The aetiology of the condition is unknown but there have been many suggestions as to the cause of it, including autoimmune destruction of the ß pancreatic cells and the possibility of a genetic predisposition to the condition. Hormones that are produced in pregnancy help contribute to the insulin resistant state which characterises diabetes. In recent years, there has been an increase in the cases of Obesity and this is a risk factor for both Diabetes Mellitus and Cardiovascular Disease. The intrauterine environment can affect fetal programming and development. This essay will look into how the placenta and its products can affect the insulin resistant state and how this resistance effects programming as well as the role of oxidative stress and inflammation in making the offspring more susceptible to cardi ovascular disease. Gestational Diabetes Mellitus (GDM) GDM is a state of insulin resistance which disturbs the intrauterine environment and can lead to accelerated fetal growth (Radaelli et al 2003).It effects approximately 7% of pregnant women with approximately 200,000 cases seen each year (Schillan-Koliopoulos and Guadagno 2006). The term GDM is applicable when the onset is during the second and third terms of the pregnancy, but it does not exclude the possibility that the insulin resistance was undiagnosed before the pregnancy. If this is the case and is found to occur in the earlier stages of pregnancy then the mother should be treated the same as mothers who are known to have diabetes before pregnancy (Metzger, Coustan 1998). There is a degree of insulin resistance in normal pregnancy which begins towards the middle of the pregnancy but during the later part of the second and the final trimester these can increase to levels of insulin resistance that are associated with type 2 diabetes (Yogev et al 2008 Chapter 10). Insulin resista nce is when the tissues do not produce a response to insulin due to problems with the secretion of insulin or where the tissues are desensitised to insulin and therefore lack the ability to produce a response (Catalano et al 2003). In a normal pregnancy, the mother changes her metabolism to allow a constant supply of nutrients to reach the fetus to support its rapid growth. Among these nutrients is glucose, which is the main energy source used by the fetus. During the later stages of pregnancy the mother becomes hypoglycaemic and although there is increased gluconeogenesis, the hypoglycaemia still occurs because there is a high rate of transport of glucose to the fetus (Herrera 2000 cited in Herrera and Ortega 2008). GDM can have effects that impact the development of the fetus such as hypoglycaemia and macrosomia, which is an increase in body weight and has the possibility of leading to problems when giving birth, such as shoulder dystocia (Schillan-Koliopoulos and Guadagno 2006). During the second trimester of pregnancy there is peripheral insulin resistance but there is also the possibility that hepatic insulin sensitivity is altered in pregnancy, although few studies confirm this. By the end of the pregnancy the levels of insulin that are circulating are thought to be double those at the start (Redman 2001). Insulin Resistance Insulin resistance in GDM can occur in two forms. The first is where it develops in late pregnancy and it has been postulated that there is a post-receptor mechanism that may influence the insulin signalling pathway which leads to a reduced glucose uptake. The second form is where there is already a degree of resistance before the pregnancy but the changes that occur in normal pregnancy aggravate this (Metznger et al 2007). The insulin resistance that develops in pregnancy is much needed to allow the flow of nutrients, from the mother, directly to the fetus to allow for growth (Radaelli 2003). Increased insulin resistance leads to an increase in insulin secretion by the ß pancreatic cells (Buchanan and Xiang 2005). The insulin resistance is thought to be caused by increased adiposity and as the insulin resistance usually stops after pregnancy this suggests that there is a possibility that the products of the placenta are a potential cause of the resistance. During the course of th e pregnancy the actual changes in glucose levels are very small. It would be assumed that the glucose levels would rise due to the increased insulin resistance but the pancreatic ß cells increase their secretion of insulin to maintain homeostatic glucose levels (Yogev et al 2008 Chapter 10). GDM occurs because there is an increased demand for insulin which under normal circumstances can be met unless there are problems with the secretion of insulin leading to the development of hyperglycaemia. The majority of mothers who develop GDM have been discovered to have a degree of insulin resistance before they became pregnant. Therefore, with the insulin resistance that occurs in normal pregnancy it can be said that GDM occurs with a greater insulin resistance than normally present in gestation (Yogev et al 2008 Chapter 10). Insulin resistance causes a decreased uptake of glucose into skeletal muscle, adipose tissue and liver as well as a decreased production of hepatic glucose. (Catala no et al 2003). One suggestion for insulin resistance looks into the possible role of the mitochondria. Studies using Magnetic Resonance Spectroscopy (MRS) have shown that in normal offspring of parents with type 2 diabetes, there is an increased amount of intramyocellular lipid. This has been shown to cause a reduced function in mitochondria which suggests that mitochondrial dysfunction may play a part in insulin resistance (Petersen et al 2004 cited in Morino et al 2005). It has been suggested that this increase in intramyocellular lipid activates a serine kinase cascade which causes an increase in the Insulin Substrate Receptor 1 (IRS-1), which inhibits insulin receptor phosphorylation on tyrosine sites. This can cause a decrease in the effects and utilisation of glucose. One study showed that in the insulin resistant offspring the mitochondrial density was reduced by just over a third to that of a normal offspring. This suggests that offspring who are insulin resistant may inher it a condition that causes a reduction in rate oxidative phosphorylation in mitochondria (Griffin et al 2009 cited in Morino et al 2005). Detection of GDM Diagnosis of GDM helps to identify pregnancies that are at risk of fetal morbidity as well as obesity and glucose intolerance in the offspring (Buchanan and Xiang 2005). GDM is hard to diagnose as it is asymptomatic. Normal diabetes could be diagnosed by glycosuria but in pregnancy the renal threshold to glucose is lowered so that glycosuria doesnt give a true representation of hyperglycaemia (Redman 2001). There are several risk factors of GDM which can be classified into three groups and help in the screening process. Low risk factors include women who are younger than 25, normal weight at conception, no known family members with diabetes and no history of glucose intolerance. High risk factors include obesity of the mother, diabetes in close relatives, a history of glucose intolerance, current glycosuria and previous pregnancies with GDM (Metzger and Coustan 1998 Chapter 25). Causes of Diabetes There are several theories as to why diabetes occurs and this has been thought to be similar to the underlying mechanisms that cause gestational diabetes. Diabetes is a result of pancreatic beta-cell dysfunction which can present in three main ways: autoimmune, a genetic cause and on top of already present insulin resistance (Buchanan and Xiang 2005). Autoimmune diabetes accounts for approximately 5-10% of all diabetic cases (American Diabetes Association 2010). There are circulating antibodies to the ß cells of the Islet of Langerhans. In GDM, there are a small number of women who have with these antibodies present in their circulation. It is thought that these cases present with GDM due to problems with insulin secretion caused by destruction of the Islets by the autoantibodies (Buchanan and Xiang 2005). This form is similar to type 1 diabetes. The Islet Cell Autoantibodies (ICA) have been shown to have four major molecular targets: Insulin, Glutamic acid decarboxylase (GAD 65), Insulinoma-associated antigen-2 (IA-2) and Zinc Transporter 8 (ZnT8) (Tree 2010). Monogenic diabetes has 2 general forms, one where there are mutations in autosomes and the other where there are mutations in the DNA of mitochondria. The first form is commonly referred to as Maturity Onset Diabetes of the Young (MODY). In both cases onset tends to be at a young age and the patient doesnt present with insulin resistance or obesity (Buchanan and Xiang 2005). Mutations that cause MODY have been found in some women with GDM and commonly occur in genes coding for glucokinase, hepatocyte nuclear factor and insulin promoter factor, MODY is associated with beta cell dysfunction (Weng et al 2002). Chronic insulin resistance with beta-cell dysfunction seems to be the most common cause of GDM. As mentioned before there is an increase in insulin resistance in normal pregnancy but if this develops with background insulin resistance then there is an even greater insulin resistance which can lead to GDM. An established suggestion is that women who are unable to increase their secretion of insulin to cope with the insulin resistance developed in late pregnancy are more susceptible to developing GDM (Buchanan and Xiang 2005). However there could be various environmental processes that are involved in the underlying pathophysiology of GDM. The products of the placenta may also have a role in increasing or decreasing insulin resistance and these will be discussed later. Placental Function The placenta is an organ that has many roles during the development of the fetus. One of these functions is that it acts as a barrier to separate the maternal and fetal surfaces such that the syncytiotrophoblast surface exposes the placenta to the maternal circulation and the endothelium is exposed to the fetal circulation. This position between the two circulations means that the placenta is influenced by molecules from both circulatory systems, including cytokines, hormones and growth factors. The placenta produces molecules which can separately affect the maternal and fetal circulation and it expresses a large number of cytokines including leptin, resistin and tumour necrosis factor. However it has been discovered that these molecules are also produced by adipocytes. All molecules that are going from the mother to the fetus have to cross the placenta. Here they are either modified, for example lipids or like glucose, they are metabolised for placental purposes (Desoye et al 2008). The placenta plays an important role in fetal growth and the regulation of pregnancy (Giachini 2008). The placenta acts to sustain normal homeostatic levels and to carry out the functions of the vital organs. It also provides an immunological defence to the fetus and allows the exchange of molecules vital to its development (Jansson and Taylor 2007). Placental Development Approximately 4-5 days after conception, the process of cleavage causes rapid cell divisions and one of the groups of cells to form are called trophoblast cells. Further developmental processes form the blastocyte which is surrounded by an outer layer of the trophoblast cells. As the pregnancy progresses, the trophoblast cells develop into the placenta while the inner parts of the blastocyte form the embryo and umbilical cord (Huppertz 2008). The blastocyte implants itself onto the epithelium of the uterus where it differentiates into a syncitiotrophoblast which is able to implant itself in the epithelium leading to it being embedded into the decidual part of the uterus (Huppertz 2008). After the attachment of the blastocyte, the trophoblast layer divides very quickly and changes into 2 layers; the inner cytotrophoblastic layer and the outer syncytiotrophoblastic mass (Gude et al 2004).The whole implantation process takes 12 days to complete and after this the fetus is fully embedded into the endometrial layer (Huppertz 2008). The chorionic plate is the surface of the placenta that faces the fetus and this is where the umbilical cord inserts. The basal plate is the surface that faces the mother which contains many types of cells including immune cells such as macrophages and killer cells to carry out the placentas immunological function. The maternal basal plate and the fetal chorionic plate converge to form the smooth chorion which is composed of three layers (Huppertz 2008). When the trophopblast invades the endothelium there is a remodelling of the uterine spinal arteries which is necessary to ensure that the fetus and the placenta receive an adequate blood and nutrient supply and is able to remove any waste materials. This direct supply of blood and nutrients to the placenta can define it as being haemochorial villous organ (Gude et al 2004). After the rapid divisions of the trophoblast and development into 2 layers there are two pathways that can occur, th e villous and extravillious pathways. The extravillious pathway results in the trophoblast being able to invade into the decidua and cause the remodelling of the uterine arteries to increase blood supply to the placento-fetal unit. The villious pathway has a transportation function as well as having endocrine and protective functions (Gude et al 2004). Normal Placentation Placentation involves the structure and function of the placenta. The process of placentation is helped by the composition and arrangement of the extracellular matrix (ECM) of the endometrium. Studies on rats induced with diabetes provided results that showed that diabetes has an effect on the distribution of the ECM molecules. This study by Giachini et al illustrates that Types I and III collagen as well as other molecules, such as proteoglycan molecules decorin and biglycan were distributed throughout normal and diabetic placentas. It was shown that diabetes affects the expression of fibronectin and an increase in deposition of fibronectin may cause changes to the ECM structure which could affect the transfer of molecules from the mother to the fetus. One way in which changes in the ECM can be overcome is to test blood glucose levels frequently during the pregnancy and if kept in normal ranges this can dramatically decrease the prevalence of diseases and disorders present in the fe tus (Giachini et al 2008). As the pregnancy progresses the size of the placenta increases which also means an increase in the amount of products that the placenta produces therefore increasing in the insulin resistance (Schillan-Koliopoulos and Guadagno 2006). This is because the net effect of the products of the placenta is to increase insulin resistance. The increase in size of the placenta means that it needs an increased blood supply. Failure of the mother to increase its blood supply to the placenta can lead to placental insuffiency which if exacerbated can be attributed to be a cause of intrauterine growth restriction (IUGR). This growth restriction is more related to poor maternal nutrition rather than to a cause of GDM. GDM have been associated with an increased fetal and placental weight (Jansson and Taylor 2007). One of the reasons why GDM and increased insulin resistance affects the fetus is that while glucose can cross the placenta, insulin is unable to. This means that the fetal pancreas has to compensate by producing more insulin to prevent high blood glucose levels. The fetal pancreas is capable of doing this and the liver responds to the higher levels of insulin by increasing its production of glucose (Schillan-Koliopoulos and Guadagno 2006). Offspring who have an increase in birth weight have been shown to be at risk of developing cardiovascular disease and diabetes later in life. The main risk factor for this is poor transfer of nutrients via the placenta (Jansson and Taylor 2007). How dramatic these changes are depends on how good the control of blood glucose levels have been during the development of the placenta, if any treatment has been received and if there were any periods of away from normal glucose levels (Desoye 2006). How does diabetes affect Placentation? Diabetic insults at the beginning of the pregnancy can have long last effects of the placenta. One of the roles of the placenta is that it is able to buffer excess maternal glucose which can help to keep the fetal glucose levels within range However if the insult lasts longer than the placenta is able to compensate for then excessive fetal growth may occur (Desoye Mouzon 2007). In diabetes there is endothelial dysfunction which can lead to vascular disease. The endothelial cells help to control the vascular tone of the smooth muscle lining the vasculature. They do this by producing substances that help to vasodilate the smooth muscle including Nitric Oxide, Prostacyclin and Endothelium-Derived Hyperpolarising Factor (EDHF). There have been several studies to suggest different mechanisms of how diabetes affects the endothelium including impaired release of these vasodilating molecules, faults with signal transduction and increased release of constricting mediators of the endothelium. The dysfunction of the endothelium in diabetes is thought to be caused by activation of protein kinase C (PKC) as well as increased oxidative stress, non-enzymatic glycation and an increased activation of the polyol pathway (De Vries et al 2000).The main reason why these effects occur is thought to be due the activation of the protein kinase C pathway and the increased oxidative stress. This can cause early damage to the development of vascular vessels (Roberts and Raspollini 2008). These mechanisms will be discussed later. The effect of hormones produced in pregnancy Pregnancy causes changes in the circulating hormones and cytokines which can all have different effects on insulin resistance and this may help explain the mechanism underlying the resistance that is found in pregnancy and in GDM. Cytokines produced in pregnancy, such as TNF-a, Adiponectin and Leptin have been found to cause an increase in the insulin resistance (Gao et al 2008). In early pregnancy, the levels of oestrogen and progesterone rise but no net effect is seen as the two have antagonistic effects. Oestrogen increases the binding of insulin to its receptor whereas progesterone reduces the ability of insulin to bind (Ryan and Enns 1988). Cortisol levels in pregnancy increase so that by the end of the pregnancy the levels are three times that of what they were at the beginning (Gibson and Tulchinski 1980 cited in Yogev et al Chapter 10). Studies have shown that with increased amounts of cortisol there was a decrease in insulin sensitivity causing insulin resistance (Rizza et a l 1982 cited in Yogev et al 2008 chapter 10). During pregnancy the levels of prolactin increase up to ten times the normal amount (Yogev et al 2008 chapter 10). Studies have shown that in a culture of pancreatic beta cells, prolactin can cause an increase in levels of secreted insulin (Sorenson et al 1993 cited in Yogev et al 2008 Chapter 10). However, high levels of prolactin are not seen to be a pathological cause of GDM (Yogev et al 2008 chapter 10). Human placental lactogen (HPL) is a hormone, and its levels rise during the second trimester of pregnancy. This causes a decrease in the phosphorylation of insulin receptor substrate (IRS1) which can lead to significant insulin resistance (Ryan and Enns 2008 cited Yogev et al 2008 ch 10). Leptin is associated with obesity and concentrations of leptin have been shown to be related to the concentration of insulin in the plasma. In pregnancy the leptin levels increase dramatically. During pregnancy the mother uses her fat stores to supp ort fetal growth and it is thought that the leptin levels increase with the mobilisation of these fat stores. Leptin levels relate to the body mass of the individual (Sattar et al 1998). Placental Leptin is the same in structure and charge to the one produced by adipose tissue (Ashworth et al 2000). One study showed that high leptin concentrations in the umbilical cord increased the likelihood of developing fetal macrosomia (Wiznitzer et al 2000). It is also thought that leptin effects insulin sensitivity by effecting glucose metabolism in both skeletal muscle and in hepatocytes. Rats that received an external source of leptin were found to have an increase in gluconeogenesis which accounted for the majority of hepatic glucose production (Rossetti et al 1997). In GDM there is a greater secretion of TNF-alpha in response to glucose. TNF-alpha functions to regulate metabolism of glucose and lipids as well as being involved in insulin resistance. Many studies suggest that TNF-alpha is involved in the progression to GDM. They found that an increase in glucose cause the placenta and adipose tissue to increase production of TNF-alpha in some cases up to 4 times more than non-diabetic pregnant(Coughlan et al 2001). One study showed that the increases in the levels of TNF-alpha during pregnancy increased consistently with increases in body weight (Catalano et al cited in Yogev et al 2008). Adiponectin is a protein derived from adipose tissue and its function is to regulate insulin resistance and maintains levels of glucose. During pregnancy it has been found that its levels drop and could therefore lead to the increase insulin resistance found in GDM (Gao, Yang, Zao 2008). Adiponectin has also been found to decrease the secretion of TNF-alpha which as stated above can lead to insulin resistance (Hotamisligil 1999 cited in Yogev et al Chapter 10 2008). Adiponectin may cause increased insulin sensitivity as its concentration decreases throughout the gestational period ( Desoye and Mouzon 2007). Resistin is a protein that is produced by adipose tissue and is thought to be involved in insulin resistance in diabetes and is associated with obesity (Steppan and Lazar 2002) In pregnancy, resistin is secreted by the placenta and this secretion reaches its peak by the last trimester (Yura et al cited in Megia et al 2008). Studies show that TNF-alpha is an important factor in insulin resistance during pregnancy and with inputs from leptin and cortisol there is altered glucose metabolism whereas inputs from oestrogen, progesterone and prolactin had little significant effects (Kirwan and Mouzon 2002). There are many hormones produced during pregnancy, mainly by the placenta and adipose tissue that have varying affects but with the overall impact being insulin resistance. Inflammation in Diabetes There are genes in the placenta which regulate reorganisation of the endothelium and inflammatory responses and in GDM these were found to be altered. The increase in leptin receptors suggests that in the placenta this can cause proinflammatory responses (Radaelli 2003). One of the current theories is that the abnormal metabolic environment in GDM can lead to increased production of cytokines and inflammatory mediators. Molecules such as TNF-alpha, Resistin and Leptin increase during pregnancy and these increases in these inflammatory mediators produce metabolic changes by increasing insulin resistance (Desoye and Mouzon 2007). Leptin and TNF-alpha activate phospholipase A2 which are a family of eicosanoid precursors that go on to produce essential fatty acids such as w3 polyunsaturated fatty acids (Desoye Mouzon 2007). There has been a recent investigation which found that with increased adiposity at birth there has been an increase in w3 fatty acids in the placenta (Verastehpour et al 2005 cited Desoye and Mouzon 2007). As stated before, the placenta produces cytokines but it is also a site of action of the cytokines. It is the location of the receptors for these cytokines will influence if the cytokines act on the mother, the placenta or the fetus. With cytokines there is very little transfer across the placenta from mother to fetus and the origin of the cytokines in the fetus can be from either the placenta or from the fetus itself (Desoye and Mouzon 2007). Fetal Programming Many studies have highlighted the fact that events that occur while the fetus is developing can alter its developmental pathway and have adverse outcomes in later life. Fetal programming describes how the environment can affect certain developmental events of which the effects are permanent and can affect processes such as metabolism and the organisms physiology. Women with GDM have an increased risk of the fetus developing macrosomia (Catalano 2008 Chapter 11). The main factor that effects the growth of the fetus is the maternal environment and there is a strong association with the weight and height of the mother and the growth of the fetus such that mothers who are heavier and taller will produce heavy babies. (Love and Kinch 1965 cited in Catalano 2008 Chapter 11). The placenta and fetal programming The placenta is very important to the developmental processes of the fetus as it is able to change the quantity of signals and nutrients that the fetus receives. Deviation from normal would alter the fetal programming, thus making it more susceptible to disease in later life. Pregnancies that are complicated by GDM have excessive oxidative and nitrate stress which has been found to change the activity of certain proteins. Oxidative and nitrate stress alter the placentas function and may cause changes in the fetal programming. Nutrient transfer depends largely on the normal development of the vasculature to allow blood flow and this can be affected by GDM which can cause a decrease in the flow of substrates and is a mechanism in which fetal programming can be affected (Myatt 2006). Fetal programming involves a large amount of development plasticity and interruptions to this development may cause abnormalities in the development of certain cells which may progress to structural differe nces in organ development (Gluckman and Hanson 2004 cited in Jansson and Powell 2008 ref 16). Effects to the fetus exposed to GDM If a fetus is exposed to a diabetic environment during pregnancy then there can be certain long term effects. These effects can be classified into three groups; Anthropometric, Metabolic or Vascular and Neurological or Psychological. Anthropometric changes are concerned with the rates of growth for both height and weight and in a diabetic environment these can be excessive leading to macrosomia and obesity in later life. Metabolic and vascular changes that occur are abnormal glucose tolerance which can eventually lead to diabetes mellitus. Finally the neurological and psychological changes that can occur are usually minor but development of psychological and intellect can sometimes be deficient (Dabelea and Pettitt 2008). Potential problems that may arise with the fetus from an exposure to maternal diabetes include abnormal organ mass, altered angiogenesis and increased levels of fetal insulin (Fetita 2006). It has also been found that if there is an increase in weight during pregnan cy then there is usually a higher birth weight of the fetus (Humphreys 1954 cited in Catalano 2008 Chapter 11). The developing fetus cannot synthesise glucose and is dependent on the mother to produce it where it is transported to the fetus via facilitated diffusion through the placenta (Aerts et al 1996 cited in Mello, Parretti and Hod 2008). The result of decreased insulin sensitivity is that there is more glucose available to the developing fetus which can lead to a greater birth weight (Mello, Parretti and Hod 2008). Using animal models, it has been shown that exposure to high levels of glucose in utero can lead a diminished number of nephrons in the offspring (Amri et al 1999 cited in Fetita 2006 ref 68). This is important as nephrogenesis only occurs in the fetus and stops after birth (Gomez, Norwood 1999). It has been shown that a reduction in the numbers of nephron may affect the rate of progression of renal disease in adults due to an inability to secrete sodium. This may l ater develop into salt-sensitive hypertension (Brenner et al 1988). The mechanisms of reduced organ mass, high levels of fetal insulin and defects in angiogenesis may help explain how the fetus programs abnormal glucose tolerance in adulthood as a result of exposure to GDM (Fetita 2006). Transmission of diabetes from mother to offspring Exposure to gestational diabetes mellitus increases the risk of the fetus developing abnormal glucose tolerance which may develop into type 2 diabetes. (Fetita et al 2006). The association between greater incidences of the offspring having diabetes with a mother with GDM is greater than what would be predicted that could be passed on by maternal genetics (McLean et al 2006). One study showed that the phenotype for GDM/T2D was more common in daughters of mothers who were diabetic rather than daughters of fathers who were diabetic suggesting that the transmission is from mothers with GDM to their daughters. However there were limitations of the McLean study. Patients may not be aware of their fathers diabetes status due to men having lower inclinations to report symptoms and share illnesses with the family. One study showed that the mass of the pancreatic beta cells is relatively fixed by the end of fetal growth and this can be influenced by an intrauterine environment of hyperglycaema (McLean et al 2006). Congenital defects are more common in babies born to diabetic mothers (Farrel et al 2002 cited in Fetita et al 2006). There are many factors that can influence the prevalence of these malformations including the duration, severity and age of onset of GDM (Kousseff 1999). If the onset of GDM is at the beginning of development then development of some organs may be affected. However as said before, the majority of GDM develops during the second trimester. This can then lead to embryopathy which includes defects such as failure of neural tube closure and malformations in the Renal, Cardiac and Gastrointestinal systems which present in childhood (Fetita 2006). In diabetes the hexosamine pathway is activated and inhibits the pentose shunt pathway which decreases the production of antioxidants and therefore leads to an increase in oxidative stress. This oxidative stress has been found to disrupt gene expression and may contribute to congenital defects. One example is that oxidative stress inhibits a gene called pax-3 which is needed for neural tube closure and in diabetes there is an increased risk of neural tube defects (Horal et al 20 Aetiology of Gestational Diabetes Mellitus Aetiology of Gestational Diabetes Mellitus Abstract Gestational Diabetes is a condition present in the later stages of pregnancy where the mother has insulin resistance leading to glucose intolerance. The aetiology of Gestational Diabetes Mellitus is largely unknown but several theories include autoimmune destruction of the beta cells, monogenic mutations and insulin resistance. In pregnancy it is normal for there to be some levels of insulin resistance and it is thought that the products of the placenta contribute to the state of insulin resistance as GDM usually subsides after pregnancy. GDM in pregnancy can lead to an increased risk of cardiovascular disease in the offspring such as hypertension and atherosclerosis. This is due to the increased levels of oxidative stress and inflammatory mediators present during pregnancy. The placenta is very important as it is able to control and buffer the amount of glucose that is delivered to the fetus but if this level is too high then it is out of the placentas control and the fetus may have increased rate of growth due to this extra glucose. The current focus of research in this area seems to be into finding ways to diagnosis GDM earlier in the pregnancy and to try and reduce the amounts of oxidative stress. Gestational diabetes: consequences for fetal programming of vascular disease in adulthood Introduction Gestational Diabetes Mellitus (GDM) occurs when there is a glucose intolerance that is first detected during pregnancy. It is a form of hyperglycaemia (Buchanan and Xiang 2005). The aetiology of the condition is unknown but there have been many suggestions as to the cause of it, including autoimmune destruction of the ß pancreatic cells and the possibility of a genetic predisposition to the condition. Hormones that are produced in pregnancy help contribute to the insulin resistant state which characterises diabetes. In recent years, there has been an increase in the cases of Obesity and this is a risk factor for both Diabetes Mellitus and Cardiovascular Disease. The intrauterine environment can affect fetal programming and development. This essay will look into how the placenta and its products can affect the insulin resistant state and how this resistance effects programming as well as the role of oxidative stress and inflammation in making the offspring more susceptible to cardi ovascular disease. Gestational Diabetes Mellitus (GDM) GDM is a state of insulin resistance which disturbs the intrauterine environment and can lead to accelerated fetal growth (Radaelli et al 2003).It effects approximately 7% of pregnant women with approximately 200,000 cases seen each year (Schillan-Koliopoulos and Guadagno 2006). The term GDM is applicable when the onset is during the second and third terms of the pregnancy, but it does not exclude the possibility that the insulin resistance was undiagnosed before the pregnancy. If this is the case and is found to occur in the earlier stages of pregnancy then the mother should be treated the same as mothers who are known to have diabetes before pregnancy (Metzger, Coustan 1998). There is a degree of insulin resistance in normal pregnancy which begins towards the middle of the pregnancy but during the later part of the second and the final trimester these can increase to levels of insulin resistance that are associated with type 2 diabetes (Yogev et al 2008 Chapter 10). Insulin resista nce is when the tissues do not produce a response to insulin due to problems with the secretion of insulin or where the tissues are desensitised to insulin and therefore lack the ability to produce a response (Catalano et al 2003). In a normal pregnancy, the mother changes her metabolism to allow a constant supply of nutrients to reach the fetus to support its rapid growth. Among these nutrients is glucose, which is the main energy source used by the fetus. During the later stages of pregnancy the mother becomes hypoglycaemic and although there is increased gluconeogenesis, the hypoglycaemia still occurs because there is a high rate of transport of glucose to the fetus (Herrera 2000 cited in Herrera and Ortega 2008). GDM can have effects that impact the development of the fetus such as hypoglycaemia and macrosomia, which is an increase in body weight and has the possibility of leading to problems when giving birth, such as shoulder dystocia (Schillan-Koliopoulos and Guadagno 2006). During the second trimester of pregnancy there is peripheral insulin resistance but there is also the possibility that hepatic insulin sensitivity is altered in pregnancy, although few studies confirm this. By the end of the pregnancy the levels of insulin that are circulating are thought to be double those at the start (Redman 2001). Insulin Resistance Insulin resistance in GDM can occur in two forms. The first is where it develops in late pregnancy and it has been postulated that there is a post-receptor mechanism that may influence the insulin signalling pathway which leads to a reduced glucose uptake. The second form is where there is already a degree of resistance before the pregnancy but the changes that occur in normal pregnancy aggravate this (Metznger et al 2007). The insulin resistance that develops in pregnancy is much needed to allow the flow of nutrients, from the mother, directly to the fetus to allow for growth (Radaelli 2003). Increased insulin resistance leads to an increase in insulin secretion by the ß pancreatic cells (Buchanan and Xiang 2005). The insulin resistance is thought to be caused by increased adiposity and as the insulin resistance usually stops after pregnancy this suggests that there is a possibility that the products of the placenta are a potential cause of the resistance. During the course of th e pregnancy the actual changes in glucose levels are very small. It would be assumed that the glucose levels would rise due to the increased insulin resistance but the pancreatic ß cells increase their secretion of insulin to maintain homeostatic glucose levels (Yogev et al 2008 Chapter 10). GDM occurs because there is an increased demand for insulin which under normal circumstances can be met unless there are problems with the secretion of insulin leading to the development of hyperglycaemia. The majority of mothers who develop GDM have been discovered to have a degree of insulin resistance before they became pregnant. Therefore, with the insulin resistance that occurs in normal pregnancy it can be said that GDM occurs with a greater insulin resistance than normally present in gestation (Yogev et al 2008 Chapter 10). Insulin resistance causes a decreased uptake of glucose into skeletal muscle, adipose tissue and liver as well as a decreased production of hepatic glucose. (Catala no et al 2003). One suggestion for insulin resistance looks into the possible role of the mitochondria. Studies using Magnetic Resonance Spectroscopy (MRS) have shown that in normal offspring of parents with type 2 diabetes, there is an increased amount of intramyocellular lipid. This has been shown to cause a reduced function in mitochondria which suggests that mitochondrial dysfunction may play a part in insulin resistance (Petersen et al 2004 cited in Morino et al 2005). It has been suggested that this increase in intramyocellular lipid activates a serine kinase cascade which causes an increase in the Insulin Substrate Receptor 1 (IRS-1), which inhibits insulin receptor phosphorylation on tyrosine sites. This can cause a decrease in the effects and utilisation of glucose. One study showed that in the insulin resistant offspring the mitochondrial density was reduced by just over a third to that of a normal offspring. This suggests that offspring who are insulin resistant may inher it a condition that causes a reduction in rate oxidative phosphorylation in mitochondria (Griffin et al 2009 cited in Morino et al 2005). Detection of GDM Diagnosis of GDM helps to identify pregnancies that are at risk of fetal morbidity as well as obesity and glucose intolerance in the offspring (Buchanan and Xiang 2005). GDM is hard to diagnose as it is asymptomatic. Normal diabetes could be diagnosed by glycosuria but in pregnancy the renal threshold to glucose is lowered so that glycosuria doesnt give a true representation of hyperglycaemia (Redman 2001). There are several risk factors of GDM which can be classified into three groups and help in the screening process. Low risk factors include women who are younger than 25, normal weight at conception, no known family members with diabetes and no history of glucose intolerance. High risk factors include obesity of the mother, diabetes in close relatives, a history of glucose intolerance, current glycosuria and previous pregnancies with GDM (Metzger and Coustan 1998 Chapter 25). Causes of Diabetes There are several theories as to why diabetes occurs and this has been thought to be similar to the underlying mechanisms that cause gestational diabetes. Diabetes is a result of pancreatic beta-cell dysfunction which can present in three main ways: autoimmune, a genetic cause and on top of already present insulin resistance (Buchanan and Xiang 2005). Autoimmune diabetes accounts for approximately 5-10% of all diabetic cases (American Diabetes Association 2010). There are circulating antibodies to the ß cells of the Islet of Langerhans. In GDM, there are a small number of women who have with these antibodies present in their circulation. It is thought that these cases present with GDM due to problems with insulin secretion caused by destruction of the Islets by the autoantibodies (Buchanan and Xiang 2005). This form is similar to type 1 diabetes. The Islet Cell Autoantibodies (ICA) have been shown to have four major molecular targets: Insulin, Glutamic acid decarboxylase (GAD 65), Insulinoma-associated antigen-2 (IA-2) and Zinc Transporter 8 (ZnT8) (Tree 2010). Monogenic diabetes has 2 general forms, one where there are mutations in autosomes and the other where there are mutations in the DNA of mitochondria. The first form is commonly referred to as Maturity Onset Diabetes of the Young (MODY). In both cases onset tends to be at a young age and the patient doesnt present with insulin resistance or obesity (Buchanan and Xiang 2005). Mutations that cause MODY have been found in some women with GDM and commonly occur in genes coding for glucokinase, hepatocyte nuclear factor and insulin promoter factor, MODY is associated with beta cell dysfunction (Weng et al 2002). Chronic insulin resistance with beta-cell dysfunction seems to be the most common cause of GDM. As mentioned before there is an increase in insulin resistance in normal pregnancy but if this develops with background insulin resistance then there is an even greater insulin resistance which can lead to GDM. An established suggestion is that women who are unable to increase their secretion of insulin to cope with the insulin resistance developed in late pregnancy are more susceptible to developing GDM (Buchanan and Xiang 2005). However there could be various environmental processes that are involved in the underlying pathophysiology of GDM. The products of the placenta may also have a role in increasing or decreasing insulin resistance and these will be discussed later. Placental Function The placenta is an organ that has many roles during the development of the fetus. One of these functions is that it acts as a barrier to separate the maternal and fetal surfaces such that the syncytiotrophoblast surface exposes the placenta to the maternal circulation and the endothelium is exposed to the fetal circulation. This position between the two circulations means that the placenta is influenced by molecules from both circulatory systems, including cytokines, hormones and growth factors. The placenta produces molecules which can separately affect the maternal and fetal circulation and it expresses a large number of cytokines including leptin, resistin and tumour necrosis factor. However it has been discovered that these molecules are also produced by adipocytes. All molecules that are going from the mother to the fetus have to cross the placenta. Here they are either modified, for example lipids or like glucose, they are metabolised for placental purposes (Desoye et al 2008). The placenta plays an important role in fetal growth and the regulation of pregnancy (Giachini 2008). The placenta acts to sustain normal homeostatic levels and to carry out the functions of the vital organs. It also provides an immunological defence to the fetus and allows the exchange of molecules vital to its development (Jansson and Taylor 2007). Placental Development Approximately 4-5 days after conception, the process of cleavage causes rapid cell divisions and one of the groups of cells to form are called trophoblast cells. Further developmental processes form the blastocyte which is surrounded by an outer layer of the trophoblast cells. As the pregnancy progresses, the trophoblast cells develop into the placenta while the inner parts of the blastocyte form the embryo and umbilical cord (Huppertz 2008). The blastocyte implants itself onto the epithelium of the uterus where it differentiates into a syncitiotrophoblast which is able to implant itself in the epithelium leading to it being embedded into the decidual part of the uterus (Huppertz 2008). After the attachment of the blastocyte, the trophoblast layer divides very quickly and changes into 2 layers; the inner cytotrophoblastic layer and the outer syncytiotrophoblastic mass (Gude et al 2004).The whole implantation process takes 12 days to complete and after this the fetus is fully embedded into the endometrial layer (Huppertz 2008). The chorionic plate is the surface of the placenta that faces the fetus and this is where the umbilical cord inserts. The basal plate is the surface that faces the mother which contains many types of cells including immune cells such as macrophages and killer cells to carry out the placentas immunological function. The maternal basal plate and the fetal chorionic plate converge to form the smooth chorion which is composed of three layers (Huppertz 2008). When the trophopblast invades the endothelium there is a remodelling of the uterine spinal arteries which is necessary to ensure that the fetus and the placenta receive an adequate blood and nutrient supply and is able to remove any waste materials. This direct supply of blood and nutrients to the placenta can define it as being haemochorial villous organ (Gude et al 2004). After the rapid divisions of the trophoblast and development into 2 layers there are two pathways that can occur, th e villous and extravillious pathways. The extravillious pathway results in the trophoblast being able to invade into the decidua and cause the remodelling of the uterine arteries to increase blood supply to the placento-fetal unit. The villious pathway has a transportation function as well as having endocrine and protective functions (Gude et al 2004). Normal Placentation Placentation involves the structure and function of the placenta. The process of placentation is helped by the composition and arrangement of the extracellular matrix (ECM) of the endometrium. Studies on rats induced with diabetes provided results that showed that diabetes has an effect on the distribution of the ECM molecules. This study by Giachini et al illustrates that Types I and III collagen as well as other molecules, such as proteoglycan molecules decorin and biglycan were distributed throughout normal and diabetic placentas. It was shown that diabetes affects the expression of fibronectin and an increase in deposition of fibronectin may cause changes to the ECM structure which could affect the transfer of molecules from the mother to the fetus. One way in which changes in the ECM can be overcome is to test blood glucose levels frequently during the pregnancy and if kept in normal ranges this can dramatically decrease the prevalence of diseases and disorders present in the fe tus (Giachini et al 2008). As the pregnancy progresses the size of the placenta increases which also means an increase in the amount of products that the placenta produces therefore increasing in the insulin resistance (Schillan-Koliopoulos and Guadagno 2006). This is because the net effect of the products of the placenta is to increase insulin resistance. The increase in size of the placenta means that it needs an increased blood supply. Failure of the mother to increase its blood supply to the placenta can lead to placental insuffiency which if exacerbated can be attributed to be a cause of intrauterine growth restriction (IUGR). This growth restriction is more related to poor maternal nutrition rather than to a cause of GDM. GDM have been associated with an increased fetal and placental weight (Jansson and Taylor 2007). One of the reasons why GDM and increased insulin resistance affects the fetus is that while glucose can cross the placenta, insulin is unable to. This means that the fetal pancreas has to compensate by producing more insulin to prevent high blood glucose levels. The fetal pancreas is capable of doing this and the liver responds to the higher levels of insulin by increasing its production of glucose (Schillan-Koliopoulos and Guadagno 2006). Offspring who have an increase in birth weight have been shown to be at risk of developing cardiovascular disease and diabetes later in life. The main risk factor for this is poor transfer of nutrients via the placenta (Jansson and Taylor 2007). How dramatic these changes are depends on how good the control of blood glucose levels have been during the development of the placenta, if any treatment has been received and if there were any periods of away from normal glucose levels (Desoye 2006). How does diabetes affect Placentation? Diabetic insults at the beginning of the pregnancy can have long last effects of the placenta. One of the roles of the placenta is that it is able to buffer excess maternal glucose which can help to keep the fetal glucose levels within range However if the insult lasts longer than the placenta is able to compensate for then excessive fetal growth may occur (Desoye Mouzon 2007). In diabetes there is endothelial dysfunction which can lead to vascular disease. The endothelial cells help to control the vascular tone of the smooth muscle lining the vasculature. They do this by producing substances that help to vasodilate the smooth muscle including Nitric Oxide, Prostacyclin and Endothelium-Derived Hyperpolarising Factor (EDHF). There have been several studies to suggest different mechanisms of how diabetes affects the endothelium including impaired release of these vasodilating molecules, faults with signal transduction and increased release of constricting mediators of the endothelium. The dysfunction of the endothelium in diabetes is thought to be caused by activation of protein kinase C (PKC) as well as increased oxidative stress, non-enzymatic glycation and an increased activation of the polyol pathway (De Vries et al 2000).The main reason why these effects occur is thought to be due the activation of the protein kinase C pathway and the increased oxidative stress. This can cause early damage to the development of vascular vessels (Roberts and Raspollini 2008). These mechanisms will be discussed later. The effect of hormones produced in pregnancy Pregnancy causes changes in the circulating hormones and cytokines which can all have different effects on insulin resistance and this may help explain the mechanism underlying the resistance that is found in pregnancy and in GDM. Cytokines produced in pregnancy, such as TNF-a, Adiponectin and Leptin have been found to cause an increase in the insulin resistance (Gao et al 2008). In early pregnancy, the levels of oestrogen and progesterone rise but no net effect is seen as the two have antagonistic effects. Oestrogen increases the binding of insulin to its receptor whereas progesterone reduces the ability of insulin to bind (Ryan and Enns 1988). Cortisol levels in pregnancy increase so that by the end of the pregnancy the levels are three times that of what they were at the beginning (Gibson and Tulchinski 1980 cited in Yogev et al Chapter 10). Studies have shown that with increased amounts of cortisol there was a decrease in insulin sensitivity causing insulin resistance (Rizza et a l 1982 cited in Yogev et al 2008 chapter 10). During pregnancy the levels of prolactin increase up to ten times the normal amount (Yogev et al 2008 chapter 10). Studies have shown that in a culture of pancreatic beta cells, prolactin can cause an increase in levels of secreted insulin (Sorenson et al 1993 cited in Yogev et al 2008 Chapter 10). However, high levels of prolactin are not seen to be a pathological cause of GDM (Yogev et al 2008 chapter 10). Human placental lactogen (HPL) is a hormone, and its levels rise during the second trimester of pregnancy. This causes a decrease in the phosphorylation of insulin receptor substrate (IRS1) which can lead to significant insulin resistance (Ryan and Enns 2008 cited Yogev et al 2008 ch 10). Leptin is associated with obesity and concentrations of leptin have been shown to be related to the concentration of insulin in the plasma. In pregnancy the leptin levels increase dramatically. During pregnancy the mother uses her fat stores to supp ort fetal growth and it is thought that the leptin levels increase with the mobilisation of these fat stores. Leptin levels relate to the body mass of the individual (Sattar et al 1998). Placental Leptin is the same in structure and charge to the one produced by adipose tissue (Ashworth et al 2000). One study showed that high leptin concentrations in the umbilical cord increased the likelihood of developing fetal macrosomia (Wiznitzer et al 2000). It is also thought that leptin effects insulin sensitivity by effecting glucose metabolism in both skeletal muscle and in hepatocytes. Rats that received an external source of leptin were found to have an increase in gluconeogenesis which accounted for the majority of hepatic glucose production (Rossetti et al 1997). In GDM there is a greater secretion of TNF-alpha in response to glucose. TNF-alpha functions to regulate metabolism of glucose and lipids as well as being involved in insulin resistance. Many studies suggest that TNF-alpha is involved in the progression to GDM. They found that an increase in glucose cause the placenta and adipose tissue to increase production of TNF-alpha in some cases up to 4 times more than non-diabetic pregnant(Coughlan et al 2001). One study showed that the increases in the levels of TNF-alpha during pregnancy increased consistently with increases in body weight (Catalano et al cited in Yogev et al 2008). Adiponectin is a protein derived from adipose tissue and its function is to regulate insulin resistance and maintains levels of glucose. During pregnancy it has been found that its levels drop and could therefore lead to the increase insulin resistance found in GDM (Gao, Yang, Zao 2008). Adiponectin has also been found to decrease the secretion of TNF-alpha which as stated above can lead to insulin resistance (Hotamisligil 1999 cited in Yogev et al Chapter 10 2008). Adiponectin may cause increased insulin sensitivity as its concentration decreases throughout the gestational period ( Desoye and Mouzon 2007). Resistin is a protein that is produced by adipose tissue and is thought to be involved in insulin resistance in diabetes and is associated with obesity (Steppan and Lazar 2002) In pregnancy, resistin is secreted by the placenta and this secretion reaches its peak by the last trimester (Yura et al cited in Megia et al 2008). Studies show that TNF-alpha is an important factor in insulin resistance during pregnancy and with inputs from leptin and cortisol there is altered glucose metabolism whereas inputs from oestrogen, progesterone and prolactin had little significant effects (Kirwan and Mouzon 2002). There are many hormones produced during pregnancy, mainly by the placenta and adipose tissue that have varying affects but with the overall impact being insulin resistance. Inflammation in Diabetes There are genes in the placenta which regulate reorganisation of the endothelium and inflammatory responses and in GDM these were found to be altered. The increase in leptin receptors suggests that in the placenta this can cause proinflammatory responses (Radaelli 2003). One of the current theories is that the abnormal metabolic environment in GDM can lead to increased production of cytokines and inflammatory mediators. Molecules such as TNF-alpha, Resistin and Leptin increase during pregnancy and these increases in these inflammatory mediators produce metabolic changes by increasing insulin resistance (Desoye and Mouzon 2007). Leptin and TNF-alpha activate phospholipase A2 which are a family of eicosanoid precursors that go on to produce essential fatty acids such as w3 polyunsaturated fatty acids (Desoye Mouzon 2007). There has been a recent investigation which found that with increased adiposity at birth there has been an increase in w3 fatty acids in the placenta (Verastehpour et al 2005 cited Desoye and Mouzon 2007). As stated before, the placenta produces cytokines but it is also a site of action of the cytokines. It is the location of the receptors for these cytokines will influence if the cytokines act on the mother, the placenta or the fetus. With cytokines there is very little transfer across the placenta from mother to fetus and the origin of the cytokines in the fetus can be from either the placenta or from the fetus itself (Desoye and Mouzon 2007). Fetal Programming Many studies have highlighted the fact that events that occur while the fetus is developing can alter its developmental pathway and have adverse outcomes in later life. Fetal programming describes how the environment can affect certain developmental events of which the effects are permanent and can affect processes such as metabolism and the organisms physiology. Women with GDM have an increased risk of the fetus developing macrosomia (Catalano 2008 Chapter 11). The main factor that effects the growth of the fetus is the maternal environment and there is a strong association with the weight and height of the mother and the growth of the fetus such that mothers who are heavier and taller will produce heavy babies. (Love and Kinch 1965 cited in Catalano 2008 Chapter 11). The placenta and fetal programming The placenta is very important to the developmental processes of the fetus as it is able to change the quantity of signals and nutrients that the fetus receives. Deviation from normal would alter the fetal programming, thus making it more susceptible to disease in later life. Pregnancies that are complicated by GDM have excessive oxidative and nitrate stress which has been found to change the activity of certain proteins. Oxidative and nitrate stress alter the placentas function and may cause changes in the fetal programming. Nutrient transfer depends largely on the normal development of the vasculature to allow blood flow and this can be affected by GDM which can cause a decrease in the flow of substrates and is a mechanism in which fetal programming can be affected (Myatt 2006). Fetal programming involves a large amount of development plasticity and interruptions to this development may cause abnormalities in the development of certain cells which may progress to structural differe nces in organ development (Gluckman and Hanson 2004 cited in Jansson and Powell 2008 ref 16). Effects to the fetus exposed to GDM If a fetus is exposed to a diabetic environment during pregnancy then there can be certain long term effects. These effects can be classified into three groups; Anthropometric, Metabolic or Vascular and Neurological or Psychological. Anthropometric changes are concerned with the rates of growth for both height and weight and in a diabetic environment these can be excessive leading to macrosomia and obesity in later life. Metabolic and vascular changes that occur are abnormal glucose tolerance which can eventually lead to diabetes mellitus. Finally the neurological and psychological changes that can occur are usually minor but development of psychological and intellect can sometimes be deficient (Dabelea and Pettitt 2008). Potential problems that may arise with the fetus from an exposure to maternal diabetes include abnormal organ mass, altered angiogenesis and increased levels of fetal insulin (Fetita 2006). It has also been found that if there is an increase in weight during pregnan cy then there is usually a higher birth weight of the fetus (Humphreys 1954 cited in Catalano 2008 Chapter 11). The developing fetus cannot synthesise glucose and is dependent on the mother to produce it where it is transported to the fetus via facilitated diffusion through the placenta (Aerts et al 1996 cited in Mello, Parretti and Hod 2008). The result of decreased insulin sensitivity is that there is more glucose available to the developing fetus which can lead to a greater birth weight (Mello, Parretti and Hod 2008). Using animal models, it has been shown that exposure to high levels of glucose in utero can lead a diminished number of nephrons in the offspring (Amri et al 1999 cited in Fetita 2006 ref 68). This is important as nephrogenesis only occurs in the fetus and stops after birth (Gomez, Norwood 1999). It has been shown that a reduction in the numbers of nephron may affect the rate of progression of renal disease in adults due to an inability to secrete sodium. This may l ater develop into salt-sensitive hypertension (Brenner et al 1988). The mechanisms of reduced organ mass, high levels of fetal insulin and defects in angiogenesis may help explain how the fetus programs abnormal glucose tolerance in adulthood as a result of exposure to GDM (Fetita 2006). Transmission of diabetes from mother to offspring Exposure to gestational diabetes mellitus increases the risk of the fetus developing abnormal glucose tolerance which may develop into type 2 diabetes. (Fetita et al 2006). The association between greater incidences of the offspring having diabetes with a mother with GDM is greater than what would be predicted that could be passed on by maternal genetics (McLean et al 2006). One study showed that the phenotype for GDM/T2D was more common in daughters of mothers who were diabetic rather than daughters of fathers who were diabetic suggesting that the transmission is from mothers with GDM to their daughters. However there were limitations of the McLean study. Patients may not be aware of their fathers diabetes status due to men having lower inclinations to report symptoms and share illnesses with the family. One study showed that the mass of the pancreatic beta cells is relatively fixed by the end of fetal growth and this can be influenced by an intrauterine environment of hyperglycaema (McLean et al 2006). Congenital defects are more common in babies born to diabetic mothers (Farrel et al 2002 cited in Fetita et al 2006). There are many factors that can influence the prevalence of these malformations including the duration, severity and age of onset of GDM (Kousseff 1999). If the onset of GDM is at the beginning of development then development of some organs may be affected. However as said before, the majority of GDM develops during the second trimester. This can then lead to embryopathy which includes defects such as failure of neural tube closure and malformations in the Renal, Cardiac and Gastrointestinal systems which present in childhood (Fetita 2006). In diabetes the hexosamine pathway is activated and inhibits the pentose shunt pathway which decreases the production of antioxidants and therefore leads to an increase in oxidative stress. This oxidative stress has been found to disrupt gene expression and may contribute to congenital defects. One example is that oxidative stress inhibits a gene called pax-3 which is needed for neural tube closure and in diabetes there is an increased risk of neural tube defects (Horal et al 20